Waiting for something., Topic Status: Open

[Siege]

"Vinnie... Vinnie.... Please wake up...."

It had been weeks since Vincent had been imprisoned in the dungeons beneath the castle, it had been days since they caught Maria and threw her in there with him. He was in a tight spot, he was being beat bloody everyday, he had gone against the word of the Aesir, he spread discontent without trying to just by being a symbol of Ariel's rebel forces and the old Zaleran power. Now he was being punished for it, they made it so he could not run by capturing the child which he had been charged with protecting, they made it so that he could not fight back out of fear for the child's life.

"Wake up."

He felt her shake him and could only force a grin as he remained still acting as if the beatings actually caused him true harm. He was covered in bruises and cuts, one eye swollen shut and his lips were split and yet this was nothing to him. School yard bullying was much harsher in his opinion, overall it was nothing compared to the wounds which he took during battle.

"I am fine..."

Slowly he reached up and patted the girl on the head before tilting his head slightly so that he could glare at the guard who was watching over them. There were no allies in the castle, no old Zaleran soldiers, none of Ariel's men, only those loyal to Aesir and thier cause. The guard smirked before walking on by muttering something which Vincent could not make out.

"Why are they doing this to you Vinnie?"

Vincent looked back at Maria and saw that she was shaking, he runes glowing a dim red color, she was angry, her rage was barely being contained, it was obvious that she hated seeing him like this but everyday he told her that he was fine and do nothing. He felt sorry for the girl but knew he could not do anything to endanger her now.

"Fear."

He didn't know if that was true or not but as the bars of his cell creaked he forced a grin, they took his weapons, they took his armor, they removed his primary elements, watched him carefully as he drank water. They knew he was dangerous and took what precautions they could though it was gonna be all for not, he was once again adjusting to his knew environment, he was becoming stronger and soon the time for escape would be at hand, though for now he could only endure.

"Then why must we stay here."

Vincent forced a laugh as he ruffled her hair.

"Cause only the mortals know that fear."

The gods of the city did not fear him or his power to his knowledge and He doubted that they ever would.

((OOC: Just putting him somewhere due to a certain request.))

[-Luthe]

The gods did not fear, and that was why they suffered. Because a God could not dance beneath the pale moon light, surrounded by faeries and cattails and wish tomorrow would never come, they did not feel fear - but they suffered. Because a God could not taste a moment in the finest wine or savor the most delectable foods and experience longing for them again and again, they did not feel fear - but they suffered. God never felt fear because God knew he was eternal, and in eternity missed nothing - God suffered because of the things they could not have in eternity, which were much more abstract than what the average man or woman suffered over. Gods never wished, and hoped, and desired, and they never worried about the future because they had those things in the palms of their hands and in every breath of the divine.

Instead, they longed for longing, sorrow, defeat, exacerbation, a checking of morals, and they desperately longed for fear. They did not fear because they couldn't. A being with no reason to fear could only hope for it, but that dream of fear never came to fruition. So they suffered, and they hated. Gods seethed on their thrones, grasping at straws, swinging their fists at the lesser races across the universe out of spite. Gods hated men and beasts because, while Gods grasped eternity, they were fundamentally unable to place value on experience. An entity doomed to last forever would experience life again and again, and all its pleasures, with each passing moment dulling the mixture until there was nothing left but grey boredom. So no, a God would never have fear, and would always despise mortals. Mortals took every moment as precious, because it could very well be their last, and Gods desperately wanted that. But by exacting wrath upon them, the Gods only ensured that the mortal races continued to have exactly what made them special: fear and value in experience.

The cycle would never end as long as both Gods and men existed.

But fear... Fear was rampant in Ascantha. A gift from the Aesir from the hand of God to the mortal races that lived within the silver city. Fear like a fire, that spread through the homes of the people who lived there, and washed away reason and joy like wine washed away the grease from a glutton's tongue. It was disgusting, and the Aesir could only muse and broil inside himself and desire, and grasp at straws, and pine, and long for it to his core.

Disgusting.

Caspian raised the order to arm a secret war machine, previously hidden beneath the halls of Laubholz Castle. Years of work maintaining the portal to the Shadow Realm paid their worth in time and effort infinitely over, and what he had now to show for all of the sacrifices and human labor was brilliant.

An army.

Unmanned clockwork monstrosities began to pour out from the dungeons below the castle. Golems twelve feet high and bigger made of radiant sky blue shadow corite crystal and hinges and gears of watersilver rolled like thunder down the main thoroughfares of the city. They crushed stalls, baskets, troughs - anything that stood between them and their programmed destination. If there was a lack of corite showing in the city before, now there was none. The behemoth machines were powered by heaven's light, with an engine containing their soul vessels buried deep inside the invulnerable shells. Unstoppable by any magician, immovable by any alchemist, these machines were the achievement of time on Redemption well spent. Radiant steam produced in the the holy crucible inside their bodies spewed out into the streets, and covered the castle in a glowing fog. Shoulder to shoulder, the machines packed into the empty walkways. Families inside their homes cried and shivered at the terrible creations, hoping for nothing except to not be noticed.

This armada is what Caspian had named The Throne of God. Augmented by the heavenly host of angels that swarmed the skies over Ascantha, the silver city shone out into the world as one enormous swirling representation of light, power, and terror.

Caspian sat upon the silver throne, deep inside Laubholz Castle in a muted recline. His arms stretched long across the lengths of the chair, and a deadly gaze directed outward across all the city, connecting to every hulking hunk of corite that stood there. A permanant grimace was cast upon his perfect features. Silver hair and golden tassels wreathed him in his furious glory.

Let the mortals come. They were not prepared.

[Siege]

"Vinnie, what is that sound?"

Vincent had no answer, it sounded like thunder echoing through the halls, the floor of his cell shook more violently as each second passed. Then when the first one passed Vincent's jaw dropped, he had seen the mechanical monstrosities before yes but what surprised him was the amount of them that continued to pass by his cell. It was obvious they were mobilizing and in this magnitude it was going be a major battle. The Aesir were going to tear another city from the face of Redemption, slaughter more people, and drive more fear into the hearts of the citizens. Vincent gritted his teeth and clenched his fists as the march continued, Maria had a different opinion of the creatures she was gaping in awe of how cool they look and thinking about how much fun it would be to fight one.

Minutes passed and the march finally concluded, from the deafening noise Vincent could only assume there were even more then he had seen, all of them must of been developed in the winding lower sections of the castle, hidden from the eyes of the public until this time. It was then one of the guards reappeared, having ducked into a empty cell while the machines passed him by.

"I guess your rebel fools are gonna finally get what is comin... ugh...."

The man's body was no longer under his control, he tried to speak, yell, anything and he could not, any attempt to resist to force which had come over him inflicted pain. Awkwardly the man stumbled towards Vincent cell. As the guard came close to the cell Vincent grated his own fist against the stone floor of his cell. The Guard's eyes went wide at the sight of the madness, Vincent had forcibly bloodied his own hand, but what was odd was the fact that the blood which leaked from his hand was forming a blade which the old soldier grasped in his hand.

"Then your lord shall face my conviction."

Vincent stood up and walked towards the bars of his cell, where the guard now stood. A quick thrust and the blade of harden blood embedding it in the man's chest. Vincent wore a empty face, no sign of disappointment, disgust, anger, or sadness. He knew this alchemy was a tainted art and yet he use to use it freely, increasing the rate which his enemies bleed out, drowning them in it, though rarely for full on manipulation for it required to much concentration to be effective. Yet he didn't care now, his city needed him, his people needed him, if he had to break every taboo known to man at this time he would probably do it without a second thought.

This lead to one of the worst deaths the guard could of experience, the feeling of your life blood being sucked from your bloody and watching it form a dark red gauntlet on your assailant's wrist. It took only a few seconds for the man to die, a few seconds later Vincent to push the shriveled husk of the guard away after having leeched the majority of the man's blood from his body. It was then Vincent looked down at his blood covered hand and concentrated, the gauntlet tightened and shrunk, creating a gauntlet which barely covered Vincent's hand and forearm though the toughness of the blood gauntlet was nearing that of iron. Normally the concept was wasteful for the amount of blood required to create such an object but with nothing else to protect him Vincent was not about to picky.

"We are leaving."

Said Vincent finally turning his head to look at his companion, he expected to see fear or disgust and yet the girl wore her normal cheerful smile and her eyes appeared to be sparkling.

"No I won't teach you to do this."

"But Vinnie!!"

"I Said No!"

Vincent's voice echoed through the now quiet hallway, the girl now wore a startled look not being use to being yelled at especially by Vincent. Vincent sighed and looked at the bars to his cell, with a shake of his head the bars bent enough so that he and the child could get through them. He was put in this cell due to the fact he had never shown the ability to manipulate anything beyond fire, electricity and water. Sadly for the Aesir they forced his hand and now their forces would pay the price. Vincent stepped from the bars before turning about and offering a hand to the girl. She looked at it for a moment, glancing up at Vincent's face, the dead look to him unnerved her and yet she knew that he swore to protect her as he protects his city. Maria smiled lightly before grasping his hand and moving through the bars after him.

With Maria out Vincent turned his eyes to the many cells which lined the walls of the hall way, some held actual criminals while others held rebels. Right now he did not have the time to pick and choose, he needed men, he needed soldiers and even a farmer would pick up a sword if his way of life is threatened.

"Listen up! You all saw those monstrosities, you all have seen the tyranny of the Aesir, You all have seen the fear they have cared into this city. I am marching out of this god forsaken place to fight for this city, to fight for the people, to fight for you whether you are criminal or rebel. All men have a right to choose their path whether it be for right or wrong. I now offer you a choice, step forward and march out of here with me so that we can defend our city, no our world from these monsters or you can stay here and hide."

Then with a wave of his blood covered hand all the bars in the part of the dungeon he was located in tore away from the cells. He release everyone regardless of who they were, if they were criminals and tried to run the Aesir would probably kill them on the way out; if they decided to stay and hide it was their choice.

"I will not condemn those who decide to stay here to avoid death but I must ask, is living in slavery really living?"

[-Raeliron]

The scent of the prisoners taken by the Aesir left behind after following the tracks of the prisoners of war were becoming stronger. Had it not been for becoming a vampire, he would have probably lost the trail. The scent was that of dried blood.

Zeke made his way into the Silver City. It was definitely a sight he had not seen before. He huddled close to the ground and moved as light and quick as he could as to not alert any guards. Eventually he would be led to a monstrous castle, and the scent abruptly drifted away. The scent was feint now. He needed to find an alternate route.

A roar came from afar. Creaking and churning with roars and bellows of thunder filled the sky. It was almost deafening. He needed to get out of there now. Zeke climbed the wall stealthily with his razor talons. He could smell a guard above him. He moved closer up and into a shadow to improve the element of surprise. He whistled and caught the guard's attention. The guard foolishly looked over the ledge, and it was then that Zeke tossed his blade and decapitating him. The blade went over and on the castle wall with a clang as the body of the guard went limp. Zeke grasped the body before it fell, feeding and then tossing it in the shadow. The body dropped to the base of the castle, hidden from view behind a boulder.

His body was rejuvenated; no longer tired from the climb he grabbed his blade and headed quickly and quietly into the castle. The scent was strong once again; and Zeke instinctively followed. He found himself descending beneath the castle. Walls were becoming dirt and plated with stones. The scent was overwhelming, but it didn't stop him from smelling the guards.

There was unrest. More guards were heading towards the commotion.

Prison break...

Zeke swiftly moved behind one, snapping the guards neck, slicing the other's throat with his talons and pouncing on the other to feed on him before moving forward. The rest of the guards were falling to the mob.

A Human looked to be leading it. His hand bloody from a fresh kill. A woman followed next to him. Zeke fell in line as they moved toward his direction.

"Might I assume that you are leading this riot?" Zeke questioned the Human with a bloody grin.

[Siege]

((OOC: Will post with Vincent later, welcome Morganus the pain in caspian's ass. He is located in the field of the undismissed soldier for a general idea on his location.))

As Morganus walked through the rows of corite soldiers he could only smile, a honest smile for once, he could feel the winds of change blowing, he knew that he was gonna live to see the end of this era. He had seen a great many people come into this world and watch a great many people fade away. But it was moments like this that he was reminded that he was indeed mortal, these great moments that would define ones life. But he did not stand alone in this moment, many other fools had arrived to assist in overthrowing god, he had personally hurt some of them and now he was gonna cover that debt by making their lives a bit easier.

"Hear me warriors of corite!"

As Morganus spoke he swung his arms wide and tilted his head back so that his words could ring loudly through the area, or maybe he was just shouting his defiance at god, one could never tell with him. Spears of dark energy appeared floating in the air around him, the sky above him slowly became blanketed in a cloud of dark energy which cast a shadow upon the soon to be war torn city.

"I request you aid, I request you assist in defeating the god which has oppressed the people of this world. I request you lend this world your strength one last time, in return..."

One of the spears then pierced Morganus's flesh, embedding itself in his shoulder. Morganus groaned loudly as blood began to drip from the wound, the spear did not vanish like normal Morganus did not allow it, he knew he needed to bleed, he knew the amount of energy required to do what he was about to do.

"I offer you my blood!"

Another spear pierced his other shoulder, this time Morganus let out a yell as he stumbled forward, his eyes widened due to the pain. He knew it was necessary, he knew he had made people suffer like this in his place; it was his turn to feel the pain.

"I offer you my pain"

Three more spears pierced his body, one went through his gut, another went through his right leg, and the last went through his left hand. Morganus yelled, one compare the yell to a battle cry, Morganus wanted his voice to be heard by the would-be gods who had looked down on him.

"I offer you my flesh."

It was then that his flesh began to get eaten away by his magics, patches of raw flesh began to appear all over his body. His life blood flowed from the ever increasing injuries which dotted his form. The blood though only made it to the ground before vanishing into a black mist all of his sacrifices going to full the spell which he hoped would even the playing field. The cloud of darkness grew even large as the seconds went on, eventually it would blanket the entire cities sky line dropping the entire city into darkness.

"Please hear my call."

In response hand on the statue closest to him twitched. Now it was only a matter of time.

[-Atonement]

The idea of simply appearing from place to place wasn't exactly right in what describes a person's teleportation. It can be done numerous ways depending on the magician, or what they know they can accomplish. Some of the darker ones bended shadows some sorcerers could blink and be in a different place with no sense of a transition. Levi was different. Instead of merely popping into existence like many others the knowledge he had gained from the fruit showed unexpected boosts in what one would describe as traditional magic. He wondered if people understood the fundamental concepts of mana and how no matter where a mage was in the world they could utilize it. What did it come from? The world.

Riding along the true nature of magic as it flowed freely was truly incredible it could last as long or as short as the user wished the trip to be floating in the aether between as a means to cross physical boundaries was amazing. The Archmage smiled to himself genuinely, true understanding was one of the few things that made him truly happy. However that feeling would dissipate quickly, as he drew closer to his destination he felt the taint in the world around him, and unfortunately it seemed to Levi he was heading into the very thick of it. How comforting...

As Levi phased into the chamber that Morganus had begin his ritual in he winced. Dark Mage's....so dramatic. Call him crazy but while vomit absolutely disgusted him, the sight of a man impaled by spears, that was pretty mundane in his life. Which isn't at all normal for the record.

"Well it seems I disturbed your 'private time' and I must admit I'm a bit flattered you invited me along but I don't swing that way." he laughed to himself, well at least he thought he was funny, "I won't ask what your doing, but I'm merely hear to talk, not to get dragged into this." That's when he noticed something move out of the corner of his eye.

Suddenly he was completely aware of his surroundings. The sight of an impaled man can really draw one's attention from the simple details. Like being surrounded by what would appear to be some sort of Golem army. Little details like that. As it twitched and the smell around him grew thick with blood he could only put the pieces together all too well. Seems like now wasn't the time for a nice little chat.

"Some toys you got there."

[-Rilian]

"Wait," she hollered, crawling up from the filth in the bottom of her cell. She'd been working for six nights trying to shave through the base of the bars. Fuck, didn't have to do that anymore. Some dinkus just4 went and blew the whole coop wide open. Suddenly Iris and her compatriots were free, and she knew exactly where they were going. "Hold on!"

They had to keep up with this guy. Had to match his speed, and had to kick ass while doing it. They grabbed weapons from racks, and she stole a combat knife from the soldier that the frightening "Vinnie" had drained to skin and bone. No rest for the wicked, and no remorse either. Poor bastard didn't need his boots, belt, or chain shirt anymore either. She suited up as best she could and used a few sparse hand gestures to rally her small company together behind the bloody man. Hopping along on one, two, one, both feet sporadically. Finally, she recovered her gastraphetes where the guards had left it standing butt down in a corner.

"I'm coming too. My sister is out there. Let me help."

Sweat was already soaking through her shirt, but maybe that was the fire from the torches, and the heat of excitement.

[-Dory]

A flash of turquoise light exploded above the city amidst the hosts of angels before the orb of metal took form like a synthetic moon above the city of Ascantha. For a moment, it simply hovered there, metal churning ceaselessly as the nearest of the Aesir's host of angels came near to investigate.

"What do you think..." Though they prodded at it, the metallic orb gave no tangible indication that it even knew they were there.

But inside, there was a woman; and clasped between her fingers was the loop of corite which, once, had ringed her aorta. It had become a pendant, since; a sort of sky for a planet she'd had no real hand in creating, and been hung upon a painfully small chain which dangled from her neck.

The metal around her remained in constant flux, rushing images through it's interior even as the outside remained entirely indescript; and just the smallest of grins touched the corner of her lips. If Rhiannon was involved in this, everything had changed-- dramatically.

And she was-- she'd have known the sense anywhere.

It seemed a floating chunk of metal was something worth attacking, and so the angels did so; but Xanthe's grin only broadened as her vessel shook around her. It wasn't as though they were going to get through. There was a little thing called 'skill' that just kept getting in the way.

"You forgot something." She spoke, softly, in to the hollow her armor was welded to, and to the pendant in her hand. "It's called potential." And laughed. "No one ever learns to ask..."

Suddenly, the orb came open-- bladed tendrils of metal spinning and slicing in every direction around her as they plunged through angelic flesh to fold against her body. Bladed chains pierced through the membranous skin between the feathers of her wings, and looped in to the forming armor as deeper alchemies drew liquid gold from the lowest layer to spin through the iron beginning to encase her now. What metal in the city she could reach-- those overlooked things, such as nails, silverware, cookware-- surged from the homes below to tear through everything in it's path to the orbit she was building.

In a matter of moments, a monster comparable to the ones below took form around her; though it was much bigger, and the gears remained hidden below the bladed feathers of a massive falcon. It lifted it's head, and released a silent cry as a corite pendant surfaced from the smooth, silvery metal where there should have been an eye; and the second eye hollowed out to reveal the lounging psychic within.

Go time. The briefest of thoughts sent the Falcon directly in to a dive for the castle.

_______________________

Freya's arrival was much quieter; little more than a speck of a sillouette and eerily glowing wings on the horizon, but Fesseln soared overhead, and Penumbra preceeded her shadow to the city's gate.

[Siege]

“I am married so you don’t have to worry.”

Morganus was obviously in pain; blood was beginning to drip from his mouth hinting at internal injuries. He didn’t have time to be selective on what he gave to feed his magics thus he simply let them take what was needed. He turned and look at Levi forcing a grin and showing the boy his face, it had begun to rot away, bone visible in some portion, tendons, muscles, his entire body was becoming a mess but he knew it was necessary. How Morganus was able to turn and face the mage while his body was under a state of constant regeneration and degeneration would be beyond the imagination of most people though he doubted it would phase the mage who had fought him before.

“We can speak if you wish, but know that if you stay too long you might get dragged into this.”

A image would flash in the mage’s mind, an imagine of multiple machines made out of shadow corite, each machine coated in a material which was known to be immune to magic and could not be manipulated by alchemy. Each of these clockwork abominations stood over twelve feet tall, easily dwarfing the statues which Morganus was trying to animate. These machines were pouring out of the castle in droves and would soon fill the streets of Ascantha. Morganus forced a laugh before bring a hand to his mouth as he coughed up some more blood.

“Though I suggest getting any questions you desperately need answered out now, I doubt my toys will compare to those things of the Aesir.”

A second spell of Morganus’s was becoming apparent; each of the corite statues was becoming coated in a white bone like material. Morganus knew what they were going to be fighting; the small amount of extra protection on the statues could buy a few more seconds that they were going to need. Overall he found it humorous, the whites knights of a murderer were going collide with the monsters created by god in a war which would determine the fate of the world. It sounded like the beginning of a horrible joke and yet he could not help but honestly smile, it was finally his time to leave a mark in this dreadful world.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~


“I will not turn back any assistance at this time.”

Vincent didn’t waste any time in taking advantage of the corpses which were beginning to pile up, blood flowed from their bodies to rise up into the air and drift towards Vincent gathering on his already blood covered arm. Once all the bodies had been drained Vincent’s right arm and part of his chest had become coated in the blood armor, some of his new allies gave him questionable looks but he didn’t care, this was war and during war you took whatever was available to you.

Bells began to ring and shouts could be heard, the alarm had been sounded the guards were beginning to gather. Luckily for them it was mostly humans though the ringing of metal on stone could be heard echoing through the dungeons hinting that some of the machines had turned about to assist in quelling the uprising. As more guards began to flood into the hall way Vincent decided it was time to stop the silliness.

“Watch our backs, I’ll deal with the front.”

That said Vincent pushed past the rebels, making his way through the halls ahead of the rest and leading them steadily towards the stair way. He didn’t ask them to stay behind cause he thought them incapable, it was for their own protection and when the first group of guards rushed them it became apparent. Vincent reached out with his bloodied hand towards the first guard to approach him and with that the fight was over. A thin needle of dense blood shot off Vincent’s hand and embedded itself in the man’s chest. The guard looked down at the needle in disbelief before letting out a blood curdling scream as multiple needles of blood exploded from his body. Each needle which left the first guard’s body found a home in another guards and as quickly as they had appeared all the guards which appeared before Vincent had been dispatched, their blood flowing through the hardened needles back to Vincent’s body expanding the area which his blood armor already covered.

But that was all the luckier he was going to get, the next group could be heard coming from around the corner though the first thing to appear was one of the Aesir’s war machines to Vincent’s disappointment. The abomination’s form nearly filled the entire hallway and behind it was a group of ten guards carrying crossbows. Though before the first click could be heard the blood on Vincent’s blood spanned out across the hallway stopping the blots before they even got close.

“Be prepared for anything!”

His words could not be more true, though he had seen one in action before Vincent did not know what the machines were completely capable of besides being nearly unmovable.

((OOC: Luthe am gonna leave the description of the thing up to you since I have no idea at the moment what they look like or what other fancy skills you gave them.))

[-Atonement]

Levi smirked to himself. Being able to have a normal conversation like this in that state was impressive. But there seemed to be more pressing matters to attend to, business can wait. He returned the smile though to be sure it was a hard sight to smile at. As the man coughed more blood up and his face began to rot away consumed as fuel he truly resembled a talking corpse more than anything. A talking corpse eh? That would be amusing to see.

As he was pondering the thought visions began to fill his head, and they weren't thing he particularly liked, as much as he hated to admit it perhaps that temperamental woman had been right. He sighed loudly. So that mean's I pretty much can't do shit to them...but then again? Do I really have to? An amusing thought had entered his mind and it might just prove to be beneficial later down the road, if they survived this reckless little raid. Well even ants can take down Elephants given enough of them. He started to talk and in doing so began to take a step forward.

"Must be a keeper if she fell for you with a face like that.", he laughed, "It seems I always find myself getting dragged into these situations. Regardless of my intentions. We can bullshit later, it seems we need to start getting busy." The others had arrived. Though he did question their methods. He couldn't see what was going on in the usual manner but a big enough presence could be felt on the psychic plain.

Levi gathered his magic as he slowly began to step toward him, he had a fun little idea in his head. His left palm began to glow as a small orb similar to the one he had attempted to roast the donkey with had begun to form and start to spin rapidly. He raised his palm nonchalantly pointing it toward the impaled body, before launching it full force. Just as it had with the donkey the ball quickly grew larger, but unlike with the donkey a warm green light flooded out from it's core. Curative magic would soon flood over Morganus to assist with the rate of regeneration that the fruit had already granted him.

"For right now I only have one question. How many more of those things do you think you can get?"

[-Davina]

Evangeline usually like to make an entrance but given the fact that she could feel the aura fluctuate so randomly on her unlikely friend she didn't bother with the theatrics. She entered the room on a muted explosion and her emerald green eyes examined the room in a quick sweep. The auburn hair swung in half tamed waves down her back since she hadn't taken the time to pull it back but the black leather that clung lovingly to her slight curves was all business as were the leathally thin blades that hung from her waist.

The swords were drawn instantly as she realized that not only were they not alone but Morganus was impaled and bleeding profusely in front of another male. Gore couldn't have phased a woman who had Kashishan living in her basement and dragon wolves chasing her around but this random scene... It was just weird.

"Someone had better tell me what the fuck is going on or I am going to gut you and use your intestines to castrate you while you watch." Her voice was hellsmoke and sex making the words sound more like invitation than threat, it was the eyes that told you she meant it they were hard as stone and promised death. The tempurature dropped dramatically as she checked in with Meritia, then all hell broke loose in her mind and she looked again at Morganus. Maritia had friends... And they lived in him.

Focus, there is a man impaling another man here... Woman, can you please focus?

[-Phillipe]

The air was full of sound above the field of corite soldiers, and despite the dark of night, the sky lit up as it seemed that the sun was rising again over the city of Ascantha. From behind Castle Laubholz, an orb thirty feet spanning, and fast as a rocket soared high over the buttresses and touched the slivered moon befor arching down again from its heavenly heights, and plummeting like a screaming comet down to Redemption. Inside the orb, there was a voice that likely none could hear.

"Insurrection - persecution. Lord Aesir, hallowed be thy name. It shall be as it is in heaven, a world of order, without quarter, forever and ever. Douse the wicked in fire, and topple the sinners down into everlasting darkness. I am for you, your angel of judgement, and all will know justice beneath the shadow of my wings."

That shadow was light.

In a storm of heavenfire and power, Phillipe smashed into the field, obliterating dozens upon dozens of statues in a godly explosion of light, power, and earthen fury. A dome of light cascaded out from the impact point, throwing even more in directions rolling out from the crater. When the haze lifted, a hole three carts deep and twenty wide was splayed open in the middle of the field, with the archangel commander of the Aesir's Heavenly host standing in the center, brandinshing one-handed a holy lance, and glowing brilliantly with the divine's light.

[-Salamel Umeadrion]

A bolt of lightning struck the metal bird from the clear black sky, and riding it was the Aesir's archmage, Salamel. He impacted the head and made the diving monstrosity dip for a second before it returned to its crash course for the castle proper.

"Miss, potential is discovered in children. There's a reason that my Lord and I don't expect extraordinary things from you." With his polearm blade dug almost to the haft into it, and a swirl of wind-suppressing counter force swirling around him, the ride was altogether a fairly smooth one. Such was appropriate for one considered a master of magics - he would show these young people what for. Their spirit was no match for experience.

"You're an adult, and have already outgrown the chance to discover anything as abstract as your potential."

He touched the machine with his finger and scrolled down a rune that glowed bright green. Salamel disengaged his weapon, and was lost in a tremendous gust of wind that ripped him away into the night. The green rune exploded, and the careening bird was covered in voracious green fire that corroded and peeled away the metal inch, by foot, by yard in seconds.

[-Caithann]

God, he was pissed. Again.

Again some more.

To a greater degree.

And not even for the last time.

Heavy footsteps thudded up the numerous stairs (That he hated), aiming right for the throne room. Long, flowing sleeves. Armored shoulderpads and breastplate atop of a reddish brown tunic. Burgundy trousers and folded boots. It was the first lie, Caithann's human visage.

Something else was needed. There was no housecarl for him to shove or growl at. He would find one. He diverted his course for only a moment, splitting off into a hallway where a servant was bringing a group of people their meal. Caithann thunderstrutted up to him, grabbing his shoulder and quickly turning the man around.

The dragonkin demigod let out a brief, punctual roar in the man's face, then simply turned and left the servant in a horrified stupor.

Had he done something wrong? The man thought.

Now that that was out of the way, Caithann ventured to the throne room.

"Who! Where?!" He roared. News of Faerie's death had reached otherwise deaf ears. Angry, deaf ears.

[-Luthe]

---

Ariel

---

The Aesir shared a collective groan among the three of them. Caspian on his silver throne, Luthe from his sick bed, and Ariel on the back of her golden dun on the grassy hill a thousand meters out from the silver gates of Ascantha. Ariel covered her face and tried to wipe away the exacerbation as she peered out over the city and watched the light display coming from the field where Morganus was casting his ritual. Caspian winced, but smiled when Phillipe erupted onto the scene. Yes, his second sight had returned, much to Luthe and everyone else's regret. He was broadcasting information again to every one of his soldiers. That meant Ariel knew the entire layout of the battlefield, too. She could lead her men to victory through the masses. She could relay information to her allies trapped within the city.

It also meant that they had to be careful. Morganus was a boon to their efforts, but no one should ever trust that man. Not further than he could spit. Not even that far. Not at all. Morganus was a worm.

"Ready your weapons," she roared, and all three hundred mounted soldiers beside her unsheathed spears, and swords, and bows. In front of them, the gathered human forces under the Aesir's Holy Army, equivalent to roughly 1.5 million battle-ready bodies, stood as a roadblock against her and anyone else seeking to get inside the city.

She was prepared to cleave apart those who used to be her own beloved men. She had to be. For the future of Redemption, free from tyrannical rule and thought control, unsuppressed by a religion built up on conceit and greed... She had to.

"Raise the call! Charge!" Horns blared, and the company took off down the hill, only a half mile from plowing into enemy lines - their own brothers.

---

Caspian

---

In his silver throne, the God looked fairly unamused. He spoke in kind to the dragon's questioning. Plainly put, and in the most moot of tones, because no effort had to be put in to stirring the will of this beast, even with his newfound intellect:

"Fenyx Aran, the dragon hunter. Outside with the lycans. They come soon with their king." With his finger, he aimed the demi-god weapon back out the door, where certain victory awaited the Aesir.

Caspian began to draw in power for a spell.

---

Luthe

---

Salome was holding his hand, darling little dark eyed girl that she was. Adorable, with skin as fair and smooth as the desert sands which had born her into this world. Dressed all in black now, she was. Dressed in ceremonial garb to heighten her powers and prowess. Trinkets of the arcane persuasion hung from her ears for decoration - a small globe, and on the other a crystal star infused with mana. Her dress was woven from the darkest silks, and sprinkled with demon souls that had been dried and turned to candy dust, making it sparkle like the stars overhead.

The two of them floated over the city, hand in hand. Luthe's four angelic wing beat steadily, while the little girl just seemed to hover in place, almost invisible in the night sky. But wait... Luthe never had wings. Oh, but didn't he wear robes? Oh my, and his hair had grown so long. In fact, the person holding Salome's hand was much shorter than Luthe as well. Entirely the Aesir, but this person was none other than Caspian himself. Golden tassels, a long white jacket, and plenty of leather to bind the feat and hands, treated for combat impact. He even had two swords strapped to his hips in a thick leather belt. Caspian. Yes, that was him, with Salome hovering over the city.

"Beautiful, isn't it? A thousand little blue and gold dots coloring our silver city to life. Do you see the angel down there, punishing the bad people who want to hurt our friends? And Salamel. He's always cranky, isn't he? There he is, flying away from the giant scary bird. He made green fire to scare it away. They're doing their part. You should, too, don't you think?"

The little girl bobbed her head rabidly in approval, and gave a very big very innocent smile.

[-Dory]

A moments notice-- the flash of electricity, and Xanthe grinned; soaking up the static so thoughtfully focused directly in to her alchemy. The bird was going down-- of course, but that was the point; and she simply sent the lightning away and stared through the opening in the falcon's skull as her challenger made his presence known.

"My potential?" Well, she hadn't been referring to that, but the old mage did snag near another point entirely, she was moving. The eye taken by corite bowed inward sharply, practically shoving the pendant back in to her hand as her armor popped loose from the rest of the apparatus and, laughing, she stood.

"You never got anywhere near it-- didn't even brush the surface."

And as the corrosive fire began, she jumped. Alchemic pull amputated the back half of the apparatus before it could melt away, and a ribbon of it streamed in her trail as she flipped, regained stability, and let it crash over her again.

Soon. Amitiel's voice echoed in the back of her mind.

She crossed her arms over her chest, and grinned as the metal shifted and spun in to an orbit of metal feathers again.

"Still so blinded, God-Prince?" Wherever you are.

'Angels' existed to clean up the fuck ups of their higher castes. Xanthe drew her knees to her chest as, with the wave of one hand; she launched two of those feathers to impale the first line of the hoard closing in on her now. The rest, she sent to frenzy as her mirror glazed eyes reached past them and the angelic bodies trying to parlay their way in.

"All it takes is a little inspiration, y'know." And where is that, exactly..?

She turned her head with a growl as one nearly broke through. Sonovabitch, pain in the ass pawn's was what they were-- so presumptious in the name of one god that they didn't even recognize the arch of another one entirely.

It was just rude.

So she flung out both arms, and the feathers exploded outwards through the ranks of offending husks surrounding her. As they cleared, her eyes caught a pair of figures hovering above the city-- Luthe, and a child she had never seen. But why would they...

It didn't matter. The metal returned to her, folding in to armor of a newer, more fitting design as she brought her fingers to her lips, and gave a sharp whistle.

______________________________

War has broken. Alexandra's voice hummed surely through her head. We're not getting in without a fight-- not with the wolf; anyway. And though she did sound disappointed, it very clearly wasn't for Penumbra.

Freya's lips narrowed in to a thin line as her flight slowed, and eventually stopped with her heartbeat, hands balling in to fists at her sides. For a moment, she simply watched Ariel's troops charge in to battle with their Aesiran brothers, and shook her head-- this had gone too far, long ago.

Dragonflight is quick. Alexandra reminded her softly, from the back of her mind. If we act quickly, we could still just go over them. Paused. Just not with the wolf.

"Not good enough." She murmured her response; and drew Purebane from her back with a throaty sigh. "We're all getting through. I want a path."

You're insane.

"Yeah, I've heard that before."

The dragon went quiet, simmering in the back of her mind as she cast her eyes over a million and a half people like ants; and cracked her neck. She could carve a path if she wanted to; but with that many soldiers, it wasn't going to stick-- not unless Ariel and her men were willing and able to hold the substantial excess. There was no guarantee on that, but there was also no one behind her-- and whether she'd prefer to save her appetite for ambrosia or not, more would come.

And whether or not more would come, their chances of getting through went down with every second that she stalled.

...That one.

She heard a whistle.

"Damnit."

She dove, aiming first for the frontline; and then to the very center of the closing divide beyond as her wings folded tightly against her back. As she reached near to her mark, she pulled them around her and what had been a dive became a streaking free-fall of obsidian and lilac.

Purebane preceded her, and waves of force like claw marks thrashed from the ground ahead of her as she came to land; tearing apart a small group of Ascanthan soldiers who had probably expected to raise their blade mere moments later, and against someone of a very different nature.

[-The Gunslinger]

He had been waiting, atop the tallest spire of Castle Laubholz, for a long time. Months upon months of standing, immobile, observing the citizens going about their business far below, all of them save for the Aesir itself utterly unaware of his presence. He was here because Caspian had permitted him to wait, to watch, and - if necessity dictated it - to act decisively.

But that moment had never came. The Zaleran Empire had been destroyed before even reaching the city's gates. The Empire, and those that he had presumed to be acting in its shadows, had failed. And that, more than anything else, troubled him. He was sure that the Empire had just been a puppet in a far grander scheme, but he had been wrong. Instead, the Zalerans had been discarded, a tool no longer needed. Merely a feint by the unknown enemy? He did not know.

But finally, after a year of waiting, he was done. The coming battle would be catastrophic, a fight on a scale that would change the balance of power in the world. Before, he would have stepped aside, indifferent to the winner. In a way, he still was indifferent to who emerged victorious. But one thing was certain.

Epoch Ruin's inactivity was at an end.

He needed list no names of the people he would kill, needed conjure no list of wrongs. Today, he would be justice incarnate. Heedless of sides or ideologies, his blackened blade would take lives, discriminating only between those who deserved to live and those who did not.

Darkness, mirroring that which now shrouded the sky, began to race around him, swallowing his form completely in a shape resembling folded wings. Then, a thunderous clap, and the two shadowy wings surged upward.


Far down, in the city below, a golem of the Throne of God marched through the streets, on its way to Field of the Undismissed Soldier. It had already crushed one hapless citizen in its path, and would soon smash its way through a group in the alley ahead. A group of brave citizens on their way to the castle to request the Lord Aesir Caspian to arm them so that they could defend their city. The golem was indifferent to all of this; friend or foe, it had its orders. Anything getting in its way was dispensable, and it would not stop for any reason other than self defense.

The hapless citizens screamed when they realized it would not stop. Turning around in desperation, tramping each other, trying to get away.

The wings of darkness that slammed into the golem's chest were enough to knock it off its feet, propelling it backward into a nearby building. In place of the shadowy wings was a man, seven feet tall, his skin as black as the abyss. In his hands was a sword, wreathed in bloody, ethereal chains. A sword which was buried to the hilt in the golem's chest.

It stuttered for a moment, steam billowing forth from its joints, its body pulsing with blue light before its inner mechanisms failed completely.

Ripping his sword from the construct's corpse, Epoch turned to study the street around him, heedless of the dust still falling from the upper floors of the caved-in building. Three more golems were now thundering onto the street - two from one entrance, one from another. Across from him, the alley with the citizens was now empty.

The golems did not pause upon seeing him; being constructs, their functions were simple. A threat existed, and it had to be exterminated. They closed the distance to Epoch in a half dozen giant strides, but by then, he had already surged into motion.

Aided by magic, his speed easily trumped that of the golems. His sword danced rhythmically among them, sliding through their gears with expertise, masterfully outmaneuvering their swings. It was a most deadly dance.

Against three at once, he could have held his own. Against five, perhaps, or even more. Soon, over a dozen had poured onto the street, and the rumbling off cobbles announced still more on their way. Beams of concentrated energy assailed him from all directions, testing them limit of his senses. Fists still swung at him with colossal force. Even as he waded through the press, disabling mechanisms on each as best he could, more often than not it was all he could do to stay alive. It was clear that, for the time being at least, he needed to withdraw.

Shadows coalesced around him, racing up his body, swallowing it once more to form twin wings.

The fist from his left flank caught him by surprise.

It was instinct alone that saved him, shielding his body from the majority of the punch's force. Even so, he was thrown across the street, crashing through a barred door and two walls of three story house. Gritting his teeth, his face contorting in pain, he pushed himself up. His left side was on fire; the shielding magic has saved his ribs from cracking and prevented any internal bleeding, but he knew the skin under his armor had been shredded, both where the construct had hit him and all along his back from sliding across the floor of the home.

Outside, he could hear many of the golems retreating, although some were making their way toward his building to ensure the destruction of the threat. He hadn't planned on a prolonged confrontation with these mechanisms; the only reason he'd interfered in the first place was to save the unfortunate humans. These things were merely tools. His targets consisted of the living, not animated, mindless constructs.

Sheathing his sword, he focused his mind away from the pain. As he did so, his entire form began to shift. Encased in inky blackness, Epoch's body contorted, his hands lowering to touch the ground. Where he had once stood was now a cat-like creature dwarfing even a draft horse. Its hide was a mass of scars. Giant claws at the ends of its feet, violent red eyes, its head crowned in scythe-like horns, the creature exploded from the house, colliding with the golem who had been about to enter.

Before the construct could react, Epoch was already moving, bolting down the street, barely taking notice of the two destroyed golems and various other parts that now littered the city street.

Now, he would hunt.

[Siege]

“She was.”

Morganus’s smiled seemed empty now, his eyes saddened by what he just said. Though he was forced to shake it off and listen to what else the mage had to say though besides the normal wisecracks there was nothing important being said until the end. In a few seconds Morganus’s body appeared as good as new, wounds closed, flesh regenerated, the only obvious wounds which remained were those with the dark spears stuck in them. Though sadly this healing process didn’t happened fast enough to avoid a misunderstanding.

“Glad you could make it Beth, he is an ally for now…”

Then as if some god decided that his life wasn’t hard enough someone sent a uppity angel bursting onto the scene, before the blast from the angel’s entrance could come over them a wall of bones erupted from the ground, defending himself and his two allies from the blast before crumbling back into nothingness so that they could have a good look at the enemy.

“Him on the other hand you can castrate… god dammit.”

It was then that the first wave of golems came crashing into the field, crushing his still immobile statues in their wake, it was becoming obvious that he could not do this with his power alone, raising his left hand to the sky Morganus began to draw the magic stored within his cloud of darkness back into himself and while placing his right hand over his chest.

“If you want to help deal with these maggots now is the time Elymer.”

“ As long as you make those want to be gods suffer.”

“Can do.”

Morganus’s body then became surrounded by a combination of green light and a black smoke. Both were being released from his body and both were working against each other, one spell tore his body apart while the other one increased his regeneration rate making it so the wounds which would have been created closed instantly, couple with the remaining energy from Levi’s spell it appeared that Morganus was no longer taking damage from his magics though occasional twitches and grunts showed that not all the pain was being dealt with. The cloud over head gone, Morganus swung both of his arms wide, dispelling the spears which had litter his body, the wounds created by them vanishing in an instant.

“Awaken!”

Morganus’s voice could be heard all across the field and in response his pawns began to lift their weapons and march towards the incoming golems, ready to fight until destroyed for their new master. But he knew that this was only the tip of the iceberg, there were many more statues about the city their numbers totaling over a thousand in all, he needed more time and luckily with Beth and Levi present he might be able to get it.

“I can get us a small army if you can keep that maggot occupied.”

He then made a link with Beth so that he could speak with her personally.

“I am sorry I can’t properly fill you in but I don’t think that angel will give us a chance to talk.”

Morganus then closed his eyes and began to concentrate, taking in information from every living thing available in the city, trying to find each statue in the city and begin animating them. It would require time though he hoped it would be worth it in the end. Though if not with the emerald’s aid he would be more then ready to fight once his ritual was complete.

((OOC: Phillipe is all yours. Dark surge and a constant curagan effect active.))

[-Atonement]

Seems they had a guest, and judging from her entrance not a pleasant one. It seemed it was pretty often that people's first impressions of Levi resulted in them wanting to inflict bodily harm upon him in some demented way. This particular female was after his genetalia, and in his experience girls into that sort of thing had normally been abused as children. Poor thing.....but my my what does she have there? Old friends.

"Ah so you must be the new host I take it." Levi smirked, "No need to get your panties in a bunch little girl. We're simply talking. Now any-", he stopped.

As he turned to defend himself it would seemed Morganus beat him too it. As the energy from the initial impact clashed against the bone wall Levi took in the visage of the the newly descended angel. He had seen this one before, it was the one who had led the host in Ultimatum, the one who had led them safely through his blizzard. This one he owed a debt to. Never did get to thank you personally for that. The Magi grinned his emerald eyes lit up, maybe the golems were immune to his magics, but he would be his life this one wasn't. He had time for one last word to Morganus before he couldn't contain himself anymore.

"With pleasure!"

Time to go! With a quick turn from Morganus and his little girlfriend Levi bursted into flight. Behind him tendrils of blue energy started to emerge from his back, they seeped slowly from his clothes growing brighter as the tendrils expanded and twisted into a new form. At first they coiled out and branched from each other like a tree, but then as they deviated and arched it became clear what they intended to form. A pair of transparent magical wings flapped mightily as they came into this world, sending Levi ahead with an amazing burst of speed.

Since the angel had crash landed among them he had been constantly drawing in mana from the aether, preparing to burn it all out. It came slowly at first, The Archmage hadn't had to rely on using his own mana since he had fused with the gems, but with them no longer part of his body he somehow felt lighter despite his over all power going down. Perhaps it was the freedom afforded in relying on one's own strength and not the strength of others that fueled him now. Either way he didn't have time to reflect just time to fight.

As he closed the distance between himself and the angel several things began to take place, and an acute psychic concentrating on Levi would begin to feel a full surge of power welling up inside him. His eyes closed despite the conventional logic that one would need to see to fight or preform at their best. It's usually what we don't see that ends up killing us. But there is nothing my "eyes" can't catch. Though the light had left his world it had become infinitely clearer the entire area of the field surrounding the group had been utterly grasped. Every sense of the world, magical, physical, the living and the dead now spoke to him.

Knowledge, how lovely. His ears filled with whispers from the blades of grass surrounding them, his mind capturing every breath the angel in front of him took. It was all so clear now. A multitude of sigils and designs weaved in front of the magi as he flew warping around him along his flight path leaving trails in his wake before fading into nothingness. Everything had slowly began to begun to fall into place various defensive enchantments now covered him ready to activate at the slightest hint of danger, which would inevitably come in just a few moments. In his hands formless energy gathered relentlessly, ready to be used at a moments notice.

He would show this one just what it meant to bear the title of "Archmage".

[-Raeliron]

Impressed by the Human's blood armor and spells, Zeke did what he could to support the fight. His speed made him blur. Few guards remained after his ally slaughtered them and consumed their bodies. The slashes from his blade took only seconds to sever the doomed guards' limbs and watching them cringe and squirm.

Gruesome as it was, he enjoyed the sight. However, his pleasures were cut short. Aesir machines blocked their only path out of the dungeon followed by more guards. Zeke had to think quickly, going over every possible option and seeing what would be effective. The only problem to the equation was the machine that stood in front of them. What was it capable of? More importantly -- how much destructive power does it have?

Gotta figure this out the hard way. Zeke burst ahead with incredible speed. His target: the guards getting ready to fire.

[-Davina]

Eve's eyes cut to Levi, little girl? Her smile was sarcastic as she considered him, stupid fuck up with wisdom. Even as her thoughts turned to Morganus she almost laughed out loud as he announced this was an ally Maritia too snickered in her head. He had been a poor host, not allowing her the freedom she sought not mentoring her gifts and allowing her a voice. If this was what he brought to help him no wonder he had called for her, anything was better than stupid. She buttoned her lip and let it lie, bigger fish...

The explosion of light had her wings breaking loose and raising but it wouldn't have been in time to save her from getting her ass kicked. Morganus had them covered and she sent him a look that held both gratitude and promise. "We've got this, you do what needs to be done."

She wheeled around and prepared to launch herself into the air but a second thought hit and she reached out to touch the robes. "Just gonna borrow something to help." She said it with a wicked grin and took off as she heard his command.

“I am sorry I can’t properly fill you in but I don’t think that angel will give us a chance to talk.”

Don't worry love, you called me to help you, we will talk later.

She felt around her as she sped off in what appeared to be the wrong direction for a second, Levi was strong and working and then the rush hit her... Natalia had arrived and Garnita checked in with Maritia, suddenly all the gems chattered for a brief instant then she had silence. Good to have you Natalia, keep her safe and watch Jerrick's ass, he'll protect yours.

No more words were needed as she swung around and paused in mid air to study the "angel of light" in her minds eye she saw him coated in sheets of ice, his wings matted in it, weighed in the thick heavy crystals. She was going to test a little before she dove head first into it... Her mouth curved and she let Maritia make her vision happen. Let's see what he does with a little extra weight on his ass shall we gentlemen? She brought Levi into her mind, allowing him if he chose to hear and speak with both her and Morganus. Easier to fight all the way around when you could speak without talking and not tumble over on another.

[-Rilian]

"Gravey, did you find those charges from Alegrarse?" Iris dropped to the floor and braced the butt of the crossbow between the floor and her chest and cocked back the first heavy bolt.

Just like her sister, she did a good job of making sure a job got done when shit hit the fan. Already, she was starting to sound like Ariel. The two of them had grown up so much differently from the other. When Ariel went in to the academy at Galam, Iris stayed for another eight years in the orphanage. She never had any official military training, herself, and survive mostly by doing odd jobs and apprenticing under a ship yard quartermaster. But for some reason, those girls just had a knack for leadership. Maybe it was their tits. Women were persuasive, and they didn't spit when they screamed - not as often as men, according to Ariel. Guys naturally liked to follow around a pretty girl, and some men even liked to be bossed.

"Got 'em, Eeree."

"Well fackin throw 'em!"

"Watch your heads!" All of Iris's gooneys dropped, and the thin as a coat rack elven rebel Gravey overhand hucked two round clay pots down the hall.

When they smashed on the golem's crystal and silver chest, they smashed open. When they smashed open, they also exploded. Chemical fire dripped down the machine and it staggered the monster a half step back, halting its progress. The corite cracked and the metal stained and dented, with specs of it missing and the second layer underneath showed at the exact point of impact. Unless they had a dozen of those little bombs, though, they wouldn't be taking it down that way.

Iris fired her first shot, and hissed when the butt of the gun recoiled and smacked her collar bone. The bolt slammed into the golem's armored face, and... It did absolutely nothing.

"Yumack, Tom, grab that table." They saw the Aesirian guards readying another volley, and one of their cohorts, freed from the dungeons, dashing out ahead of the group. Nothing they had was going to work as a barricade against the machine when it decided to come stomp on them, but they sure as hell didn't want to get stuck full of arrows in the mean time.

"How many more pots do you have?"

Gravey came back with a disappointing "Just three."

Iris spat. "Shit! Vinnie, I hope you've got more than blood magic."

the machine took another step down the hall. it swung an arbitrary fist through an arch, where the space narrowed for a few feet to allow for a door (broken off the hinges, already). It's head drug through the ceiling of the basement dungeon, and it had to practically muscle its way along with every step. They could leave it wedged there, but the bitch of it was that it was absolutely blocking their way to the outside.

[-Phillipe]

A frigid spell wrapped around him, and he felt the weighted pull of solidifying magic. It drug his wings to the ground and forced him to a knee. Phillipe used his lance to stay upright, but as the spell continued, drawing up his ankles, legs, body, and engulfed his head, he realized that they weren't just trying to use it to slow him down. They sought to stop him cold. A thin white layer of light hovered just above the skin, shrouding him in protection from the elements, fighting back the worst of the brutal chill and crushing constriction.

It was only a short moment to gather the strength before he started to push back.

The ground around the ice tomb started to shake. Inside, a myriad of colors bounced across the uneven angles, and cracks started to form all across the frigid magic crystal. From the center, where all light was emanating, a metallic cry pulsed out and across the field of corite soldiers. It was the voice of an angel with words and thoughts trapped inside a hollow helmet, reverberating and resonating with his vengeful holy soul.

"NO redemption!"

Slices of light beams broke out of the shell, and immediately after that initial release of energy, the whole thing exploded, sending chunks of magic ice hurtling in every direction.

there was Phillipe again, standing as he had upon arrival, but the holy lance was still stuck deep in the ground. Now he brandished Cherubima, Sword of Judgement, and from the blade with a wide stroke, he called down a hundred foot wave of churning fire from heaven upon the witch and her winged accomplice.

[-DamagedHero]

Ark was running forward the moment they appeared like a bolt of something that usually came with a storm. At the moment the name escaped Ark as he checked where they had appeared seemed to be just a small distance from the front line. Now here Ark was rushing forward sword drawn. The excitement on his mind had not caused him to miss the golem that largely stood in his way. Ark face crinkled briefly with a look of disgust or was it annoyance whatever it was went away rather slowly as his face returned to its original state as Ark screamed loudly, "Fucking cheaters!... using inanimate objects you guys suck!."

Ark couldn't help, but giggle now as he ran towards one of the golems. Now obviously he was going to have issues with taking it down so why not use it to his advantage. "HEEEEY You Ugly piece of tin! your mother was a broken sword... no that doesn't work.... she was a used chunk of iron o- Oh shit!" Ark cartwheeled backwards quickly sticking his sword back into it's sheath as he seemed to have gotten the attention of a golem. Ark smiled as he began running away in a circular pattern around the golem.

"Geez you guys don't know how to take a joke!" Ark yelled back as he turned quickly around almost falling as he dug his hand into the dirt to stop his fall. Ark looked up and smiled again, "Their is no possible way this could get worse..." Ark no sooner said that as the Golem tried to step on him. Ark cartwheeled backwards and gave the mechanical monstrosity the finger.

This was getting seriously way to damned annoying.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Naga's mind this wasn't the best way for them to have gotten here as they had traveled like the literal form of a thunderbolt or maybe it was a lightning bolt Naga really wasn't sure he cared to remember his head already hurt as he let go of Syvetta's shoulder and quickly moved away to scan the battlefield so he could get a feel of whats going on.

Honestly what did he expect from Caspian now.... Well it sure as hell wasn't an army of men and golems, Naga sighed as he drew his first arrow. It was odd how useless he felt before he started moving forward towards the battle. Naga felt a chuckle start up at the implications of doing such a thing, but that small feeling of joy had quickly died as he opened a portal in front of him as he took a look back at the others and smiled, "See you all either at the pub after this or in hell... i'm preferring the former because i owe you a drink Syvetta."

Naga didn't grin as he took a step into his portal a breath falling and when he stepped out of where had led him. Naga knew where the hell he was going and what the fuck he wanted. As he looked around Naga noticed that he wasn't that far from what he assumed was both sides of the Aesirs troops Caspians coming towards his general direction and Ariel's going forward. Naga moved forward again and raised his bow towards the enemy and did what he did best and started releasing arrows one after the other into the enemy lines.

Naga turned his eyes to one of the golem and with a sigh as he used his mind to try and relay his question to anyone in particular who cared enough to answer,

Does anyone know if we brought any bigger weapons. Like maybe a Ballista. cause i'm pretty damn sure now i'm going to need a bigger arrow to take these overgrow toys down

(OOC:hope this all works i have no faith in myself in this kinda big topic)

[-Kilik]

It started out as a dusty haze in the distance. The sound was unmistakable for those who had witnessed her rage within the dark forest of the attempted erradication of the An'I. The occassional slight flashing of blue electricity could be seen from within for those who were placed far enough away. Swallowing the eerily lit horizon, by the gathering of golem's set forth, of the night sky. Instantly two flashes of bolts shot forth spewing the non-alchemic members of the group to the front of the battlefield. Syvetta had struggled to maintain the small party within the alchemic travel of static like manipulations.

Allowing Ark and Naga to lay the ground work for what may lie ahead, Syvetta forced herself, with the help of Armin's borrowed energy, to land in the distance and forced the storm forward, skybound and with rage. Yet this was no normal grouping of sand and dust and dirt. It held the mark of Euylcura, The axe of stone. The energy that marked them was Syvetta's and would be difficult for any alchemist to hack into her wavelength. A common trick that was taught to her when she was younger still.

"You okay?" She asked Armin. The young boy, still silent from the conversation on the battle plan could only nod. He looked weakened somehow but Syvetta knew that all alchemy could never fully drain a person. It's potential was limitless. Gathering her bearings the young warrior allowed the storm to rage on in it's own form. Allowing it to build naturally far above in the night sky.

Taking a dwarf alchemist common 'horse' stance Syvetta breathed inward and slowly exhaled. Far above bits of the dust storm started to take shape. Slowly, they gathered together. The common marks of humonoid shape and size. A half cracked head here, a shattered arm tossed to the wind reformed over there. Using that 'sight' she let them reform themselves. A stone army, one thousand or so strong, most of them were once living Aesir soldiers. Some, fallen tribe members of those 'imp's' that faced near eradication by the angelic forces they now faced.

Even more so, by the will of Dwarven tribesman who claimed it their right to be turned to stone at their death, family and friends and blood and sweat and tears. Memory's of a past long gone existed within the Terra Cota militia that now formed above them. Masked by the dust storm that raged far above.

Inhale. She had to keep this storm going for just a moment longer.

Hold your breath. The dust storm gained its own life. The earthen militia above becoming ever watching, ever faithful. Ever vigil in their cause to Syvetta's alchemic command.

Exhale. The entire stone army snapped together and with no alchemic hold to keep them airborne they streaked across the luminescent night sky. They would fell like meteor's with one will alone. Golem's lie beneath them. Soon those Golem's would have to feel the force of ton upon ton of raining stone soldiers.

Inhale.

Armin watched with anticipation. Syvetta let the storm feed itself. Gain its own life so far above. It was time.