Heroic Impulse {IC|Semi-Open}

[Faal Lot Himdah]

IC TBA

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Heroic Impulse

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In the beginning there was nothing. No light, no dark, no colour, no sound, no space, no time, just nothingness. However, from this nothingness, through some unknown means, something came into existence. This something was creation. Time, space, light, dark, colour, sound, everything came into being. But it all existed in chaos, until through the chaos, the first being was born. This being would become known as Zenith, a being with no gender, and no known form. Zenith did not create, instead it took what came into being, and organized it. Slowly, the chaos of creation ceased, and everything fell into order. Through this order, many things came into existence, include the mortal world.

However, order must be maintained, else chaos rises. In order to keep creation from falling back into chaos, Zenith gave its life. From Zenith’s flesh, the first life came into being. From Zenith’s soul, the invisible forces that maintain reality came into being. From Zenith’s blood, magic came into being. Finally, from Zenith’s heart, the Three came into being. The Three were Zenith’s children, and would come to be considered the primal gods. While they all came into existence at the same time, they were not equal and would come to rule over different domains.

First there is Tivnia, who would become known as the Lord of the Light. He would be considered the holiest of the three, and ruled not only over light, but the Heavens and all things good. Unlike the other two, Tivnia is the only one who would maintain his physical form after the Sundering. Tivnia is credited with the creation of the Angels, who serve as his personal army, and the mortal races. Second there is Ijun, who would become known as The Sunderer. When he had his physical form, he could match Tivnia in terms of strength. But that form was lost during the Sundering, as his body was torn apart, and spread over long distances to prevent him from regaining his physical form. Even without a physical form, his influence would still be felt. He would eventually become considered the most demonic of the three, and is said to rule over darkness, the Dark Realm, and all things evil. Ijun would be credited with the creation of the Daemons, who served as his personal army.

Finally, there was the most powerful of the Three, the goddess Zodia. With power over time, space, and the forces that maintained reality, she would never be considered fully demonic, nor would she be considered fully holy, as she acted as the balance. Her physical form was lost during the Sundering, but unlike Ijun, whose body remains in the mortal world just in pieces, Zodia’s body was lost. She gave her body not to stop the Sundering, but prevent the mortal world from being forever lost, and maintaining it in its current form. However, one part of her body was said to remain, her heart. Unlike her brothers, who had their own personal armies, Zodia did not. Instead, she was credited with the creation of the only beings capable of naturally traveling from the Heavens to the Dark Realm, the Dragons.

However, the Three’s roles would only be solidified with a certain event, the Sundering. The Sundering happened before the mortal races existed, before the Dragons, and before any of the gods, the exception being the Three. The only intelligent beings that existed where the Three, Angels, and the Daemons. Many details surrounding the Sundering are unknown, as Tivnia refuses to go into too much detail, as it was a hard time for him. That said, it is not completely unknown, and the story goes like this.

Sometime after the birth of the Three, Ijun grew jealous of Tivnia, jealous of his rule over the Heavens. So, Ijun challenged his brother to a duel, where if he won, Tivnia would hand over Heaven, and he would give his brother command of the Dark Realm. And if he lost, Ijun swore to never bother his brother over the right to rule the Heavens, which came with the right to rule the mortal world. So, they fought, and Tivnia won. Despite losing, Ijun refused to keep his word, and returned to the Dark Realms, where he planned to overthrow Tivnia. So, he created his Daemons, and returned to challenge Tivnia. However, Tivnia knew his brother was creating the Daemons, and as such, he created his own army to fight against them, the Angels. The two brothers clashed once again, this time with an army aiding them. Once again, Ijun lost, and once again Ijun was disgraceful in defeat, this time he decided though that if he couldn’t win, he’d take the mortal world with him.

Focusing all his power, Ijun struck the mortal world, causing it to shatter. But there was a price to using all this strength, as Ijun’s body also shattered and flew off in all directions, as the fragmented pieces of the mortal world did so as well. Tivnia tried to stop Ijun, but was to late. So, Tivnia just watched and begged for help as the fragments of the mortal world, which would soon be known as Aeria, flew further and further apart. That was when Zodia arrived. She could not reverse what had happened, but she had the power to prevent the fragments of the mortal world from flying to far apart and away from the mortal world’s core, which remained intact.

So, Zodia descended to the burning core of the mortal world, ripped out her own heart, focused her power, and plunged her heart into the core. The molten core changed with the addition of the heart, as invisible chains erupted from the heart in all directions. These chains embedded themselves into each of the fragments of Aeria (and the Dark Realm), and prevented them from drifting too far apart from each other. It was then that Zodia’s body was said to transform into the barrier between the fragments that formed the new Dark Realm, and the fragments that formed the new mortal realm. This barrier can still be seen, though it takes the form of an endless cloud that is far to dangerous for most mortals to attempt to penetrate. Still in her body, Zodia’s blood changed and gave birth to the Dragons.

The Sundering took Tivnia’s siblings from him, and left him alone with the mortal realm, along with his Angels. After hundreds of years of loneliness, as the Angels made for poor company, Tivnia decided to do something about it. He created the races who would inhabit the mortal realm. With the creation of the mortal races, something unexpected happened. More gods started to appear as well. Tivnia was no longer alone, and eventually joined with these new god. Eventually the mortals stared to create their own nations, inventions, languages, but still appeared lost to Tivnia. So, Tivnia came to some mortals, and told them how they came to be, and what would become the dominant religion, The One Faith was born.

For many thousands of years, the world was dotted with many city-states, and kingdoms. Due to the fact that the “islands” of Aeria are drifting, and constantly moving at a decent speeds, maintaining the borders of large empires has nearly been impossible, but ambitious souls did try to found empires. Of course, some succeeded, and out of those who succeeded, they all fell before five years passed, with the average lifespan of empires at this time being a year, thus the term One Year Empires was used to describe empires of this time. However, that was until the creation of magic devices known as DAMS, or Dynamic Aeria Mapping Systems. With the creation of DAMS, nations could keep track of their territories, no matter how far apart they drifted. As such, empires could last much longer, thus ending the era of the One Year Empires.

Not many empires did rise however, as while DAMS made it easier to track ones territory, one still needed the resources to defend it. So, only the most powerful empires survived. Such as The Epostolis, an empire founded to serve Tivnia, spread The One Faith, and to enforce its doctrine. It is during this time of grand empires that our story begins, and it begins with a single mortal. A mortal who managed to not only pass into the Dark Realm, but return alive. Deep in the Dark Realm, he found it, the legendary Heart of Zodia. But unfortunately he could not obtain it, as it was sealed away, and in attempting to break the seals, the mortal lost his mind. But for the sanity that he lost, the mortal gained the knowledge of what was needed to break the seals.

This mortal was found by The Epostolis, and revealed the knowledge to them. Certain items where required, items that the mortal referred to as the 7 Keys of Truth. The mortal was unable to say what they were, or where they could be found. After the mortal told The Epostolis this, The Epostolis tried to prevent this knowledge from becoming public knowledge on the orders of Tivnia. But of course, knowledge of such items could never remain beyond the reach of the enemies and allies of the Epostolis for long, not to mention the general public.

Why so many people desired to find the 7 Keys was no secret, as if the legends were to be believed, then who ever controlled the Heart of Zodia would have the power to rule Aeria. So of course, many power hungry individuals and nations began searching for the 7 Keys. Of course, upon learning about all this, The Epostolis could not remain silent. So, using its influence it demanded that all other nations cease searching for the 7 Keys. Many backed down, at least publically, and others just scoffed at the Epostolis’ demands as they decided the risk was far lesser than the rewards. As such, The Epostolis was forced to act.

This is where our story begins. The Epostolis has gathered a team, be them mercenary or members of The Epostolis military, that they will send to gather the Keys and return the Keys to The Epostolis. Will this team find the Keys? Or will this team fail? The future is clouded, and the stage is set Aeria to change once again.

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OP: Faal Lot Himdah
Co-OP:

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So It Beginnings
The Grand Cathedral of Tivnia, Luxsancta, The Epostolis
Three Months Ago

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Somewhere within the massive Grand Cathedral of Tivnia in the holy city of Luxsancta, in the holiest nation of The Epostolis, a single room could be found. The room had only one door, and within the room, everything that was expected for a bedchamber of a high ranked official of The Epostolis. The walls and ceiling were decorated with gold, elaborate designs and paintings depicting events through out the history of Aeria, or depicting divine beings, or of battles between the good and evil deities. The room was home to a rather large and fancy bed, along with equally fancy furniature that was expected. There however was only two chairs, both near the fireplace, with a person sitting in each.

"Down. Down. Down. Down." The maddened mortal explorer spoke as he remained curled up on the seat he found himself sitting in. His eyes never stayed focused on the same place for more than a few moments and his right hand constantly tapping his left shoulder. "The Heart beats. Below. Below. Below the clouds. Deeper down. Through the land untouched by light. Follow the path. The path daemons and angels do not travel. Follow the path of Zodia's children. For they know their mothers heart. But down. Down. Down. Deeper. Deeper. Deeper. Heart was found. Watched it beat. Ba dum. Ba dum. Ba dum. Beating in time with the flow of everything. Can see it. But can't reach it. Sealed away, beyond mortal reach, but still visible. Reach for it. Try to force the seal. Seal pushes back."

"What do you mean, seal pushes back?" The priest speaking to the maddened man asked.

"It called out. Ringing. The ringing. He still hears it. Up here." The explorer said as he now repeatedly tapped his head. "Its call summoned them. Two of them. Aryna and Ymari. She took his mind. For that was the punishment. But Ymir... he came not to bring punishment, but for the Heart. She took his mind, but he shared secrets. He shared secrets of fate."

"And these secrets of fate were?" The priest now asked

"Two secrets." The maddened explorer said, raising two fingers, "First he told him, how to break the seal. He told him seven keys were required. Seven keys of truth. Hidden for mortals to find. Light. Darkness. Life. Death. Order. Chaos. And finally, Time. Truth is in all of them... they are the keys of Truth. With all 7, the seal will break, and the Heart will be in reach of mortals... But not for him. He will never touch the Heart. For he doesn't know where the keys are. Not even Kyaris knows where to find them all."

"And what of the second secret of fate?" The priest spoke again.

"Second." The maddened mortal spoke, "Second. Second secret of fate. Yes. He was told to say this. Broken seal; Extant powers give rise to Elder powers; Heavens will fall and the unsullied world will rise to meet it. Order will fail, as Aeria is consumed by the tides of Chaos. The great deception will be no more."

"Anything else?"

"No. No. Nothing more. He wants silence." The maddened man said as the priest left the room.

Outside the room the priest meet with another group of Epostolis officials. After a short discussion, one place their hand on the door, and a seal appeared on the door to the room holding the mad explorer. As the seal faded, the door disappeared from sight and the group that had assembled dissipated.

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Sir Silas Lucius Alard
Grand Cathedral of Tivnia, Luxsancta, The Epostolis
Two Months Ago

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"Ah, Sir Alard. Please join us." The eldest cardinal spoke as the elderly admiral and war hero entered the room. The room was a rather empty, but sizable room, with a handful of Epostolis officials. There was three cardinals, a general and another man, the Epostolis' Head Inquisitor. "I am sure you are aware of why we have gathered in secret."

"I have an idea, but lets hear it." Silas spoke with a smirk.

"The existence of the Keys has some how become public knowledge." The general spoke, "Someone let the secret go..."

"Not possible." The Head Inquisitor now spoke, "Everyone who knew about the Keys hasn't spoken a word. I personally investigated. So, are you suggesting that I don't know how to do my job?"

"Well, how could the information get out?" The general said with the smirk.

"Aryna." Silas said, "The explorer did say that both Aryna and Ymari gave him the information. So, it is only natural to think that the goddess of discord and mischief would let it slip. After all, it is a good way to cause a headache for the forces of order. So, now the question is what are we going to do about it? Though I suspect there is already a plan."

"The Aetherwing." The youngest cardinal spoke, "It's almost finished. We called you here to tell you that in the best interest of the Epostolis, we want you to lead an expedition to find the Keys. With The Aetherwing as the expeditions ship. You will have to operate without assistance form the Epostolis' military..."

"So to avoid starting unnecessary conflict with other nations." Silas finished, "I understand. I assume that I will get the right to decide who I bring."

"Of course." The eldest cardinal spoke now, "I assume you already have a number of people in mind. But if you need more, the Epostolis has prepared a list of possible crew members. Also, the Epostolis will pay whatever is needed to get them on the ship, unless it is to extreme."

"And one last thing." The middle of the cardinals spoke, "There has been another attack. It is now clear what they are after..."

"I understand." Silas said with a nod, and then left them. He had some letters to write and an expedition to plan.

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A Meeting of Two Dieties
Palace of Tivnia, The Heavens
Two Months Ago

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Far beyond the reach of mortals, in the realm of gods, high in the Heavens, the palace of the greatest of the gods could be found. The Palace of Tivnia was a sight that no mortal had ever laid their eyes on, and would never lay their eyes on. Its pure white walls, with golden designs and dotted with shining gemstones would never be seen by the eyes of mortals. Nor would the paradise that surrounded it be seen by mortals. The great doors of gold would open up to polished floors, great white walls, and a highly ornate ce-

"Enough of this blah blah blah." A certain fourth wall breaking deity interrupted the setting up of the scene. "Oi, how about my real title? Aryna, goddess of trickery, mischief, manipulation, discord, madness and cats... and the destroyer of needless word barfing."

Anyways, Aryna was here at the Palace of Tivnia, far from her palace in the Dark Realm, as she was summoned -

"Hey, no one summons me." She interrupted once again, "Not even Tivnia can summon me. After all, why would I obey a guy who doesn't evne realize that he is but a creation of forces beyond this world that you decided to put together. I only came because I was bored."

Fine. Aryna had travelled from her palace in the Dark Realm to the Palace of Tivnia in the Heavens, because her presence was requested. And Aryna being Aryna, she only came due to being bored out of her less than stable mind. So, there she was, in the Palace of Tivnia, approaching the great god Tivnia whom sat upon his throne, watching her approach.

"Aryna. So you have come." The more powerful god spoke, "You are really a pain sometimes... I know what you did."

"You'll have to be more specific." Aryna said with a smirk and a mocking bow, "I really do a lot of shit that can be considered a pain in your ass..."

"Your most recent action..."

"Oh... Its already happened?" Aryna started pacing, "Damn that mortal acted fast... to think that he'd start a minor revolt in the furthest reach of the Epostolis over the uncalled for death of his brother's cat... and his brother. But more importantly, the cat."

"That is not what I am talking about..." Tivnia slammed his fist to his throne, "Enough games Aryna. I am running low on patience for your games."

"Fine. Fine. Fine." Aryna sighed, "Yes, it was I who leaked information about the 7 keys. After all, what good would it do if it was kept a secret. Its much more entertaining when mortals compete for unimaginable power..."

"And also threaten the order of this world."

"Oh, that should go without saying." Aryna cocked her head with a smirk. "I have other reasons for doing so as well..."

"I am aware." Tivnia spoke, "Do you really thi-"

"Ah. No. No. Spoilers." Aryna said and winked, not to Tivnia, but to some space of in the distance. "Now, if you got nothing else to say, I'll be going. You know, I got things to do. Mischief to cause, discord to sow, the fall of nations to plan, people to pull into madness, you know, my usual."

And with that Aryna left Tivnia speechless like normal.

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Alicia Messier
Some Tavern, Neunau, Juali Imperium
A Week or So Ago

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Neunau, a city that flew the colours of the Juali Imperium, but currently found itself sitting much closer to cities of The Epostolis than cities of the Juali Imperium. Due to this proximity, Neunau was often known as the most religious city of the Juali Imperium. Despite this, one could find taverns and other rather sinful places if they looked hard enough. It was in one of these taverns that a certain mercenary could be found.

Alicia Messier, one of the hardest to locate mercenaries in all of Aeria, and one of the deadliest snipers not among the ranks of the Juali Rangers. In fact, her skill had been often compared to that of the Juali Rangers, and when ever she heard that, she’d just smirk. Little did most people who hired her know that she was a former member of the Juali Rangers. While she could have made it more known, and raise her prices, there was no need. The prices for her services where already fair, for both her clients and herself.

Right now, she was in town after just finishing a contract for a client, and was getting a bite to eat, along with something to drink. So, she there she was, sitting in the corner of the tavern, with her meal and drink, listening to the other patrons speaking. Until everything went silent. The silence caught her attention, and she looked up from her meal to see a man in the robes of the priests of the One Faith start to approach her. The strange man didn’t stop till he sat across from her. Soon, the others in the tavern returned to their normal business.

“So, what brings a holy man to this den of iniquity?” Alicia spoke as she continued to eat her meal, “And why have you come right to me?”

“A job.” The priest spoke, and removed a letter from his robes and placed it on the table before sliding it to Alicia. A letter sealed with the seal of the Order of the Merciful Hammer, “Alicia Messier, master sniper, former Juali Ranger. You have been requested by name.”

“Umm… and what are the details of this job.” Alicia said as she looked at the letter, and then back at the priest.

“I have not been told.” The priest spoke, “I was told the letter would have all the details you’d desire, and to deliver it directly to you, along with this, a ticket for the next vessel from Neunau to Luxsancta.”

The priest then reached into his robe, and pulled out a ticket. He then stood up and left the tavern, leaving Alicia alone to finish her meal. Once her meal was done she opened the letter. After a short read, she just smirked, pocketed the letter and the ticket. She had a ship to catch, and one last job to do before a very early retirement.

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Min-Ki
The Vitonca Library, Vitonca, The Epostolis
A Week or So Ago

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"Let's see..." Min-Ki spoke to himself, as he looked through the many shelves of the Vitonca Library. Vitonca was one of the big cities of the Epostolis, and was known as the Epostolis' center of learning. So, it was no surprise that the Vitonca Library was not only grand in design, but massive in size. Thousands, upon thousands of books and documents could be found. Books and documents of cultural and scientific value, along with some documents of historical values. The labyrinth of shelves was easy to get lost in for those who were not used to the library. Fortunately, Min-Ki was very familiar with the library.

"Oreus' Lament... The tale of the warrior poet Oreus' journey to the Land of the Dead, and his attempt to retrieve the soul of his lover, Iryce... and his ultimate failure." Min-Ki spoke to himself as he flipped through the pages before adding the book to the bag he was carrying that was already holding multiple bags, "Yep. Going to need that."

"Min-Ki." A voice said, causing the demihuman to turn to the voice, and taking note of the priest that was approaching him. The priest handed him a single piece of rolled up paper, with the seal of the Order of the Merciful Hammer. "I have a message for you."

"Oh? A message?" Min-Ki said and took the paper. As the priest left him, he unsealed the letter, and started to read, "Let me see here... Oh? That's fun. Well, looks like adventure is calling... need to get a few more things first..."

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Fi Qina
Duzinok Prison, The City State of Duzinok
A Week or So Ago

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It was cold, and poorly lit. But what else would one expected from a prison in a state run until recently by a single monarch, who was often seen as a tyrant. A state that had long been embroiled in a civil war, a civil war that many of the elite had gotten sick of. That was part of the reason she was being lead down the narrow corridors, deeper into the prison in chains. You see, she was hired by a certain noble to eliminate the tyrant ruler of Duzinok, which she did with relative ease.

Unfortunately it had seemed like the noble betrayed her, and reported her not long after the murder. In fact, while she was meeting to get paid, she was surrounded, ambushed and brought in. She didn’t fight, even though she would have likely gotten the death penalty, it wasn’t worth fighting. So, instead, she let them take her weapon, put her in chains and now found herself in the cities prison.

“Alright, here we are…” One of her escorts said, and opened the door to the cell she was now faced with. When the door opened, the human escorting her from behind decided to push her into the cell. “Enjoy your stay, pointy eared bitch.”

With that the two escorts left, and Fi took a look around the cell. She couldn’t see much, besides two old beds, and a rather foul smelling bucket. Oh, there was also her cellmate. A human male, it was hard to tell his age due to the darkness, and that she had a hard time to determine differences in the ages of humans. But what she did know was who he was, by the scar on his face.

“Umm….” The man said and looked at his cellmate, “What are you here for? Seeing as you have been placed her, I assume it was something to justify a death penalty.”

“Yes, it was.” Fi spoke and smirked as she sat down on one of the beds. “Just job. A little murder of a high profile target… you know that tyrant that called himself king.”

“So, he’s dead?” The man spoke, smiling slightly, “After all these years, he’s finally dead. It's only a matter of time before this country is reborn... “
“Well, about that…” Fi started, “You are under the assumption that there was only two parties in this civil war of yours. Your forces and the king's forces. It's never that simple…”

“So, there is a third party…” The man said, “And let me guess, they hired you to kill the king.”

“Yep.” Fi said and shrugged, “But it seems they have betrayed me…”

“So, they used you. Now, like the king threw away his people when they were not needed, they have thrown you away. It is only a matter of time before my men free me from here…”

“Whoa there.” Fi said, “I’m not joining some rebel group… it’s about time isn’t it?”

“What do you mean?”

“For my escape.” Fi said and approached the door to their cell.

“Hah, there is no escape. At least not with help from the outside.” The man said, “There are a series of spells on the door and walls to prevent such escape. Its partially why they don’t have legions of guards wandering around. No need to guard something that no one can break out of…”

“That’s good to know.” Fi said and turned to the man. She smirked as blue lightning started to crackle from her back, travelling to her chains. She closed her eyes, as the lightning slowly heated the chains, until finally she opened them. As she opened them, she pulled her arms apart, causing the chains to break. “I’ve wasted to much time here. I have a job to finish…”

“What do you mean fin-” He froze, realizing what she meant, “No… Please no…”

“Oh, that won’t change anything…” Fi said and approached the man before placing her hand over his mouth, “I always do my job…”

With that she summoned her white lightning, and watched as it entered the rebel leader. Everything burned, from his skin to his hair. The screams and the smell didn’t bother her, instead she kept her hand on him until the man's body fell to the ground lifeless. She then smirked and waited. A few minutes later, the door to the cell opened, and the noble who employed her to kill the tyrant, and the rebel leader entered.

“There you go.” She said and motioned to the body, “The former king is dead, you apprehended the killer, and now the rebel leader is dead. I assume that you are going to say the kings killer was killed, but before the king died, he ordered the death of the rebel leader… spin it to your liking so that you may seize power… as the mastermind of this most recent coup, and the newest tyrant of this dark, cold and miserable little slice of Aeria. Anyways, what you do now isn’t my worry, all I want is my pay.”

“My men will lead you to a ship I have contracted to take you away from here.” The noble said and stepped out of the way for Fi, “They will present you with your pay… Oh, before you go, someone else is here to see you.”

With that a priest stepped out from behind the nobles men, and removed a letter before handing it to Fi. The first thing she noticed was the seal, the seal of the Order of the Merciful Hammer. As she looked at it, the priest spoke.

“I was asked to deliver this to you.” The priest said, “You will find answers to all your questions in there.”

“Um, interesting.” Fi said and slid the letter into her cleavage, before following the nobles men out. After retrieving her weapon, boarding the vessel, and getting paid, she opened the letter. It was a job, and an opportunity, that made her smile.

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Sir Silas Lucius Alard
On the Upper Deck, The Aetherwing
At Port, Luxsancta, The Epostolis

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Today was the day, after weeks of preparation, today was the day that a single ship would set out on a world changing expedition. This would become a decisive moment in the history or Aeria. A moment that would lead to all of their names to be etched into history. Or just a fairly normal event for Silas. There he was, walking through the empty halls of the Aetherwing, to greet his crew on the upper decks.

Once he stepped out of the ship, and on to the upper decks, he took a moment to look over the crew as he stepped up to an elevated platform. Most of them were volunteers, people who wanted to forge their legend, make their fortune. That said, he didn’t trust the volunteers, as while some may have wanted to serve the Epostolis, he was also aware that many of them desired the Heart for themselves. The same could be said for those few who did not volunteer, but were invited to join the crew of the Aetherwing. Call him paranoid, but that was going to be the only way for the Epostolis to retrieve the Heart.

“Welcome…” Silas spoke, loud enough to cause silence to fall over the crowd, “I am Sir Silas Lucius Alard, and I am pleased to welcome you all to the Aetherwing. I will be serving as your captain. Now… what are you all standing around for? I want this ship out of port yesterday.”

With that, everyone went to work, as Silas returned to the bridge of the Aetherwing. After a few minutes, the ship left port, and began its journey. Its quest to find the 7 Keys of Truth. Fortunately, the location of one of them was already known to the Epostolis, and that was their first stop.

"Set course for Swiftpeak Citadel." Silas issued his orders, "We have a Key to collect."

[Charlia]

"..."

The young man stared out over the side of the ship, seeming lost in thought. Wrapped in a cloak and with his long hair tied back in a ponytail, he had a reserved, dignified sort of air about him, but the look in his eyes was dark and sad. He'd listened to the captain intently, eyes fixed on the man the entire time, but hadn't interacted with anyone else, seeming to prefer to keep to himself.

He was whispering something as he looked out at the sky, as if talking to some invisible figure.

Perhaps it was a prayer. Perhaps not. Either way, his thoughts were his own.

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Quick footsteps rang out as she ran across the deck, her eyes wide and excited as she took in everything there was to see. "This is so cool," she giggled, spreading her arms out and spinning in place, enjoying the feeling of the wind in her hair. "It's a real adventure! Ohhh, it's going to be so much fun!" Her voice was soft and high-pitched, and that combined with her attitude and appearance made her look very much like a child, but her clothing told a different story, identifying her as a priestess.

There were so many other people she wanted to talk to, but who? They all looked interesting... She just didn't know! Making decisions like that was so hard.

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The woman paced about on the deck, glancing back and forth at the others warily, eyes darting from person to person with the same rhythm of her clicking footsteps. She was clearly suspicious, unwilling to stop looking around for even a moment--but she paused, took several deep breaths, and took out a gun, sitting against the side of the ship and beginning to clean the weapon meticulously, as if to distract herself.

She still looked up every now and then, focusing particularly on anyone who came near her, but she seemed only half as wary as before, having focused most of her attention on her task.

She reached up, brushed a few strands of hair out of her eyes, and continued.

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"Well, now, this will be interesting, won't it?" She pushed her hood back, allowing the wind to blow her long hair about her face. She didn't seem to be speaking to anyone in particular, only idly talking to the air about her. "Yes... a real adventure. That's what you could call it, for sure," she mused, hearing the younger girl's excited words. "I'm not sure it's going to be fun, though..."

Not like it matters. She leaned against the rail of the ship, closing her eyes and sighing. "We'll see what happens, won't we?"

And if disaster strikes, then... well, won't that be a pity.

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Min-Ki
The Mess Hall, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

Since the majority of the crew of the Aetherwing was either doing their jobs or wandering around and socializing, and it wasn't quite time for a meal, the Mess Hall of the Aetherwing was fairly empty. So, a certain demi-human genius decided to make use of the larger tables, and could be found sitting in the mess hall. The table where he sat was almost completely covered by books, some in the modern common language, while others were in much older languages. Other than books, he had a quill, ink and paper, and was currently looking from book to book, jotting notes as he read.

"Interesting..." He said to himself as he looked at one of the books written in an ancient language, "So if this account is to believed, the White Pheonix could be more than symbolic... and possibly could actually exist... I need more evidence..."

---

Alicia Messier
The Upper Deck, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

This never got old. The feeling of the wind on her face, and the sight of the endless sky. Saying it was beautiful or breath taking would have been an understatement. However, she didn't come at Sir Silas' request to have a leisurely cruise. Alicia had a job to do, and as such she decided to take on part of the responsibility for patrolling the upper deck of the Aetherwing, to be ready just in case they came under attack.

It was during her time patrolling that she took note of Karlin acting suspiciously and then sitting down to clean her weapon. Other than that, nothing was to suspicious, and so she continued her patrol.

---

Fi Qina
A Training Room, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

There was a crash, then there was a bang, then another cacophony of sounds, all coming from one of the training rooms in the Aetherwing. Yes, the Aetherwing had training rooms, after all what good is it to have a ship full of warriors, if they don’t have a place to train and keep their skills honed? Anyways, the sounds came from one of the training rooms, specifically from the sparring mat were mercenaries and soldiers employed on this journey would fight one another to keep their skills sharp.

Standing on the mat, with her foot on the chest of her most recent challenger, and a wooden staff in hand, stood Fi Qina. After some time wandering the halls she found this training room, and joined in with the group of sparring soldiers, only to beat each and everyone in a rather disappointing time.

“Really? Is that the best that you all got?” She asked looking at them all, “The best the Epostolis could find? Really? That is disappointing. I didn’t even use my magic. Here I thought I would actually have some challenge… ah well, anyways, if anyone else thinks they can take me step forward, after you pick your practice weapon of course.”

[Castle Crashers]

It...was happening.

She...was really leaving, just as she had dreamed for so long...

Her blue eyes gazed softly out past the railing that she clung to, watching the port sink slowly in the distance, quickly covered by a sea of clouds and fog as the left for their long journey. Still, as it disappeared, she kept her eyes trained upon its location, imagining the port, the land she was leaving, and everything she knew along with it. With something close of a frown, she pulled a few strands of white hair from her face, her tail swaying in the wind as she stood, feeling...anxious, almost. What could await her in the near future? Who would she meet? How would they treat her? Most importantly...what would her parents do without her? Sure, they were adults, they would survive...but she had never left home...how would that hurt them emotionally..? Would they miss her..? Well, the answer to that was an easy one.

She quickly found that her knuckles had turned white from her tight grip on the railing, and she pulled away, finding that she would only grow more anxious the more she brooded over the idea. With an almost forced smile, she gently brushed her clothes down to rid of the wrinkles she found in them, and found it a better idea to find somewhere to set her things; a room, perhaps, or atleast a bunk to keep her belongings...after all, she couldn't just lug her sack around everywhere, could she..? Besides, it might be better to draw her mind away from her anxiety, and focus instead on the ship she would spend most of her time on. After all, there was no need to get lost in the event of an emergency, right..? It was better to get familiar with everything...

So she began to wander, and found it often that other travellers looked to her, including an almost menacing woman cleaning her gun against the side of the ship...Lucine quickly averted her eyes, keeping them low as she passed, afraid to catch unnecessary attention. Her father had told her to be very weary of those who weren't demihumans, after all. He had greatly informed her beforehand that people...weren't always kind to her species. Not that she could blame him; it was better to be informed, after all, but still...she hoped that, atleast, the people on this ship wouldn't regard her so lowly...how could she possibly make friends that way? She was scared to know what the truth would be...

And yet...as she entered the ship, her attention was quickly drawn to everything going on around her. The ship itself seemed to be relatively basic, and yet...she had never really been on a ship before. The only time her father had taken her on one was to drop her off at the port, to come here...but his small ship was nothing compared to this one (Not that she didn't love his as well, of course.) She found herself overtaken with awe as she looked around, wide eyes gazing the doors that lead to rooms, some open, some not. But...perhaps she was too enticed with it, and she'd barely noticed how she'd picked up her pace in exploring the ship. She ceased to be aware of her surroundings, completely swallowed by her interest of the vessel she was on. One moment she was trying to catch a look into a particularly locked off door, and then...

Smack!

She quickly found herself on the floor, having taken someone down with herself. She'd been so infatuated with exploring, she'd ceased to notice the boy walking directly in front of her, against the wall, just as she had been. She found that both her forehead and her nose ached now, too, having taken direct impact with him. "Ow..." She whined softly, rubbing her nose as she did in an attempt to relieve the pain...atleast, until she realized once more what she'd done. Lucine was quickly overtake with panic, scared of how the boy could react, afraid he would lash out in anger for her obliviousness. "O-oh, I'm so sorry! I-I didn't mean to...I...I should've been watching where I was going...I'm...I'm really sorry..!" She rambled quickly, trying to make up for her mistake as she looked to the boy in front of her. He had messy, white hair that was tied back into a small ponytail, and wore more white clothes that seemed to match his attributes. Perhaps it was her underexposure to humans, or her general lack of exposure at all, but...she found him cute. She wondered if this was a normal reaction to have in meeting strangers. Regardless, though she blushed slightly, she scrambled to her feet, and held out her hand to him. "H-here, let me help you up...I...I'm sorry if I've made you upset, I--It was all my fault...I'm sorry..!"

[Clan Grimrock]

Vanarr Lostglory
By the time Vanarr entered the training room, the she-elf on the mat had already dispatched all but two of the soldiers inside. He watched silently as she easily brought them both down in mere seconds. Here was one that could stand against him. Here was one who could provide a challenge, and keep him as sharp as his axe. Then she called for another challenger, and he pushed through the small crowd.
"They may have been the best the Epostolis could find, but I am not from the Epostolis," he said, dropping his axe, gun and bandolier onto a table, before shaking his head at the weapon rack, selecting a staff small enough to be wielded in one hand, even by him. With that, he stepped onto the mat.

Vorgrim Lostglory
Vorgrim chuckled at the young priestess' eagerness for adventure. He remembered the excitement he and his brother once felt when taking off, still so idealistic, so hopeful that they could save the world. It warmed his old heart, seeing that the world wasn't always as serious as Vanarr thought. As the girl looked around, he decided to approach. After all, this journey would be long, and it would be best to get to know his companions early.
"Well met, young one! I hardly expected to see such friendly faces on a mission this serious, but I'd be lying if I said it was unwelcome." He fiddled a bit with the straps on his shoulder as the contraption he carried let out a small puff of smoke.

Spanner
Spanner would say that he made his way to the mess hall to explore the facilities, but to be quite honest, it was mostly in the hope of finding a snack or a good conversation before checking out the engine room. There was no real rush, since he usually didn't spend much time in an engine room before being sent packing. He was surprised to find others in the mess hall, though, and was intrigued by a young man hunched over a frankly worrying amount of papers, muttering to himself.
"Hey, buddy! You doing alright over there? Because, uh, I don't think I've seen that much paper since I pretended to read the Manual for Advanced Airship Operation and Repair."

[Elysian Kentarchy]

Valerian
The Mess Hall, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

I walk into the mess hall carrying several notebooks in my arms, I would have done this in our sleeping quarters but there is barely enough room, plus observing others, such young and short lived flowers, is quite a learning experience that I would be a fool to pass up, as I walk past them I nod to a young demi-human and gnome chatting while I claim another table and open one of the books but I click my tongue in annoyance again at the sight before me. "As always her handwriting is terrible, you would think after a century it would be better." I mutter to myself for what must be the hundredth time and get to work writing what is written on one book, the book my sister took all my notes in, onto the clean pages of the other book, a completely blank book that I use for these kind of things. "With any luck I should be able to get most of this done before we arrive to wherever it is we are going." I mutter to myself again as I write, though I observe the room and the people in it out of the corner of my eye, truly this place is so different from anything built at home... or so I would say but who knows what is in fashion back home. There certainly wouldn't be as many young flowers though.

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Fi Qina
A Training Room, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"Oh, lookie here a pretty cocky little dwarf if I ever did see one." Fi said with a smirk as she walked up to Vanarr and patted his bald head a few times and continued in a mocking tone. A tone that was similar to that of a person talking to a beloved pet, "Ah, wittle dwarf thinks he so big that he can take me with a wittle stick... Its adorable."

With that she chuckled and took a few steps back before pointing her own staff at the dwarf.

"So then..." She said as there was a slight crackle from behind her, "Here are the rules. Everything goes. Dirty tricks, magic, whatever. First one either incapacitated, knocked off the mat, or surrenders losses. Understand? Good. So, come on now, lets begin. Don't keep me waiting."

---

Min-Ki
The Mess Hall, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"Me? Oh, I'm doing perfectly fine. This is... well, just some light reading and research." Min Ki said with a chuckle, "Oh, I remember reading that when I visited a master Dwarven steamwork engineer in the city of Gor Tarum. It wasn't the worse manual I had ever read, but it was still quite boring. Oh forgive my manners. The name is Min-Ki. Formerly the orphan genius inventor of the City-state of Azuhelm, before it fell to the Hordes. Now... you could say I'm a freelance scholar, inventor and so on. With my most recent creation being the power supply and engines of this very ship. I also helped design the weapons and other parts of the ship, but the engine and power supply are my babies."

"Anyways, who are you? Oh, just wait one sec." Min-Ki said and then looked to another table, "Oi! Dryad! Why not join us? And yes I know your a Dryad, the nose knows after all. Its all about the smell. To floral to be an elf, therefore dryad. Anyways, come over here. I can move some of my papers and books to make room."

[Clan Grimrock]

Vanarr Lostglory
Typical elven arrogance. Remember, use their height against them. Strike low, trade hits until they go down. Elves are light, their center is high, that's the weakness.
"Anything goes, then. Use your crutch if your victory is more important than honour."
Strike first, strike low. Strike first. Strike low.
Strike.
Vanarr closed the distance as quickly as his short legs would allow, swinging for the inside of her knee with his staff used more like a club than a fine instrument. All the while, his left arm was by his head in a defensive posture, ready to block incoming attacks.

[Elysian Kentarchy]

Kalmia
A Training Room, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

I am leaning against the wall, the defeated opponent is not much concern to me but I observe the victor. An elf, a longer lived mortal certainly and almost certainly older than myself, but a mortal at the end of the day. She has good combat skills but I still feel inclined to face her in combat, it is good to keep my reflexes sharp. But before I can do so a dwarf, as abominable as I expected and knew his kind to be, taking up the challenge first. I observe the elf and how she reacts to the challenge, and suffice to say her reaction is disappointing. I actually frown at the elf patting the dwarf on the head, how arrogant, no matter her strength such arrogance is pointless, but that can be expected from her kind, almost a pity really.

So while the elf and dwarf go at it as is their nature I simply leave and, after some wandering, emerge outside on the upper deck. At this I sigh and let out a small smile, "Fresh air at last, how mortals can live in such places for long periods of time is beyond me." I say to myself as I approach a railing and hold onto it, just enjoying the feeling of the wind in my face and hair and the world before me. Truly the air and the sun is all that one needs to find joy but I suppose those so divorced from nature must suffer their eccentricities and find joy elsewhere.

"I wonder if the Sanctuary has sent an expedition as well and if so what form it will take." I ponder aloud to myself, it has been so long since I have seen one of my own kind outside of my brother so I can't say I am dreading the possibility.

Valerian
The Mess Hall, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

As I quickly jot down note after note, line after line, a voice interrupts my thoughts. "Oi! Dryad! Why not join us? And yes I know your a Dryad, the nose knows after all. Its all about the smell. To floral to be an elf, therefore dryad. Anyways, come over here. I can move some of my papers and books to make room." I look up and blink at the demi-human and the gnome before looking back down.

"One moment." I inform the young demi-human as I finish up a line and I blow very lightly to allow the ink to dry quicker. "There." I nod in satisfaction before closing both notebooks and stacking them back up, sealing the ink and cleaning the quill while I am at it, and carrying them over to the table. "Consider me impressed on the scent thing, can't tell you how many times I have been confused for an elf over my life." I compliment the demi-human in honest praise as I take a seat.

[Vulnier]

Jorgen Otoro
The Upper Deck, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

Jorgen couldn't remember the last time he had sailed, let alone been assigned, on a airship that wasn't meant to just transport him to the next outpost. He never had good experiences when on one, especially when the wind tended to whip up and turn those smaller trips into a rather... unpleasant ride. Jorgen had hoped that the Aetherwing would be a much different story than what he had experienced before.

For a time, it was for Joregn. Even if he was helping to haul up supplies or crates to the deck, he was in awe at the sheer size up the ship, wanting nothing more than to try and explore every inch of the ship if he could, even if he couldn't quiet understand all the bells and whistles that this ship had built into it. Even if the mission he was assigned had serious implications for the future, Jorgen couldnt help but feel excited as the ship left port, almost forgetting the other bad experiences with airships that he had in the past. Emphasis on almost, though.

Shortly after leaving port and putting most of his belongings away, Jorgen volunteered to help patrol the ship, thinking he would get the chance explore the lower portions of the ship while patrolling. Instead, he was assigned to patrol the Upper Deck of the Aetherwing. It wasn't so bad at first as he milled about the deck, using his binoculars to see into the distance with a rifle at hand and mace on his belt. But as he continued, Jorgen made the mistake of looking down as he found himself close to the railing. Trying not to think about the endless drop didn't help poor Jorgen as a queasy feeling settled in his stomach as he tried to continue his patrol. The feeling only grew worse as the wind seemed to pick up, eventually one not even needing to look hard in his face to see a slight greenish hue.

His speed slowing to a crawl, Jorgen didn't even bother to look through his binoculars anymore. He was now just trying to find a place where he could get away from the wind to catch his bearings for a short while. His eyes lit up with a spark of relief as he spotted some equipment piled on the side of the Upper Deck, apparently having not been put away yet. Eyeing it, Jorgen made his way over to the side of the equipment as he halfway slid down to the deck, eventually sitting down and setting the rifle down beside him. Welcoming the relief of getting out of the wind for a bit, Jorgen rested as he sat waiting for the feeling to pass

[Tracian Empire]

Airships.. it wasn't his first time flying on one, of course, but he was probably never going to lose this feeling of awe whenever he found himself in one. It was just so exciting..the idea that they were flying, away from land and its chains, freely throughout the sky..even if he couldn't see it, none of it. The airship, the land behind and under them, the vast expanse of the sky..but he could imagine them. And he could also feel it.. that the ship beneath his feet was moving. Flying was truly amazing. But was just so weird sometimes.. thinking that not so long ago, his entire world, everything he knew, everything that mattered to him.. was limited to a small, cold village, and the fields around it. The frozen mud and the snow, the freezing darkness.. but it didn't matter anymore. The past was gone, the past was dead, and there was no need to think about it anymore.. even if sometimes, he just couldn't help it. It was just so easy to remember things.. and he hated that. The future was all that mattered. The duty that he had to his goddess, his endless desire to learn more, to find more, to know more.. and of course, the quest that had brought him here, on this ship, in the first place. Finding the Seven Keys, breaking the seals around the Heart of Zodia.. it was going to be dangerous, it was probably going to be bloody.. but it was also going to be just so much fun.

But as he started to feel the ship moving, Illya realized that there wasn't much for him to do on the deck. Others were probably gazing at what they were leaving behind, but he had no time for that. He had of course to find a room for himself and other stuff like that, but there was something even more important that he had to do first. Getting used to the ship. He could handle himself very well, but that wasn't the point. He wanted to be able to move around without any hesitation, he wanted to give people as few reasons as possible to assume that there was something wrong with him. And he was certainly not going to use his powers for something as ridiculous as that.. it would have felt like an abuse, almost. And he was going to stand out anyway, at least a little. He knew it pretty well, the way in which he looked like. Pale skin, white hair. White clothes. He was still a human living in a magical world, that was true, but as far as humans were concerned, his appearance was sort of.. distinctive? A lot of people probably thought that he looked weird, but he just tried not to think about it. He also knew that apparently, other blind people would cover their eyes with something, or just keep them closed. He on the other hand always tried to keep his open, even if the darkness surrounding him never changed.. and even if some people might have found his eyes to be.. off-putting.

The white haired boy wasted no time, and not before long, he was walking against a wall, carefully moving forward through a corridor, trying to remember as much as he could. And this of course, reminded him of how well he had known his former home.. that wooden shack, every table, every wall, every door..this was weird. It wasn't like him to get this emotional, to sink like that into memories..it was probably because of the quest.. because he was on this airship, because he still had no idea who the other members of the group truly were, or what they were going to do.. yeah, that had to be it. He just had to focus on something else, he had to find someone to read him a book.. just like she used to. And Illya stopped for a moment. No, he had to stop doing that, he had to stop thinking about that, he had to..

And of course, his thoughts were suddenly and rudely interrupted by someone bumping into him. Poor Illya had no time to react, as whoever or whatever that was just dragged him down to the floor. By the time he realized what had happened, they were already down and he had hit his head into something - his forehead hurt, and he had dropped both his satchel and his staff. For a moment, he did feel a twinge of fear, with his idea of where he was and what happened thrown away like that, but that quickly disappeared when someone whined, before the same, girly voice started rambling, trying to apologize. He heard her standing up, but it took him a couple of moments to realize that she was probably trying to help him stand back up too. He opened his eyes again, out of habit, and Lucine was able to see his hollow, silver eyes. He nearly used that power, but instead of that, he just hesitantly moved his hand in front of him.. after all, if you were telling someone that you wanted to help them up... you had to hold your hand out for them, right? He slowly moved his hand, clearly having no idea what was in front of him, until his hand accidentally touched hers, and after another short pause, he grabbed it, and used her help to stand back up. He let go of her hand really quickly though, as if the physical contact had scared him, and instead, he carefully used his other hand to look for the wall, touching it and keep his hand there, almost as if he was looking for support.

"No, it's.. it's alright, I wasn't exactly careful either..", he answered, with a warm smile on his face.. even if a bruise had already started to form on his forehead, made even more obvious by just how sickly pale his skin was. "Are you alright though? You sounded like you had hurt yourself..", he tried to ask, genuinely sounding worried. But at the same time, Illya also realized that both his staff and his satchel were somewhere on the floor.. and he certainly wasn't going to get back on his knees to look for them with this girl next to him.. so he had to do the thing that he hated the most..so he just took a deep breath, even if the smile never left his face. "Hey, would you.. mind to help me find my satchel and my staff? I think that I've dropped them both when we both fell.."

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Min-Ki
The Mess Hall, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"Ah well, I can see why." Min-Ki commented, "You must be rather young for a Dryad. Though, no matter how young, there are always a few tells, for example the scent. Its a rather strange tell, but never fails. Its so minor that only Demi-humans can detect it. Anyways, my name is Min-Ki. Formerly the orphan genius inventor of the City-state of Azuhelm, before it fell to the Hordes. Now, freelance scholar, inventor and so on. The most recent creation of mine is the power supply and engines of this ship. So, who are you? And same question for you my gnome friend, who are you?"

---

Fi Qina
A Training Room, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"My crutch?" Fi said as she easily blocked the dwarf's attempt to take her knees out. She block with her staff as it touched to mat, and was held at a slight angle, "Are you referring to my magic? Surely you should be aware that magic is a tool to be used to further ones goals. Therefore, it is only logical that those with magic will make use of it in combat. It is no crutch. It is just simply another weapon. As for honour... I don't have that Dwarven honour."

With that she smirked, and suddenly pulled the upper half of the staff down, will pushing the lower half up. In doing so, she knocked the club/staff that Vanarr was holding upwards, creating an opening in the dwarf's defense. Then came the quick twist of her hips as she slammed the lower part of the staff into the new opening, with enough force to make a human stagger. But this was a dwarf she was up against, and that level of force, while it would be felt, would not stagger him.

[Elysian Kentarchy]

Min-Ki
The Mess Hall, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"Ah well, I can see why." Min-Ki commented, "You must be rather young for a Dryad. Though, no matter how young, there are always a few tells, for example the scent. Its a rather strange tell, but never fails. Its so minor that only Demi-humans can detect it. Anyways, my name is Min-Ki. Formerly the orphan genius inventor of the City-state of Azuhelm, before it fell to the Hordes. Now, freelance scholar, inventor and so on. The most recent creation of mine is the power supply and engines of this ship. So, who are you? And same question for you my gnome friend, who are you?"

I raise an eyebrow, well this one certainly likes to speak of his accomplishments. "I suggest when you meet my sister that you avoid mentioning her age, she is a mite bit sensitive about her youth, not like I can't understand why anyway. And Valerian, a simple wanderer and observer of the world for the past century or so."

[Clan Grimrock]

Vanarr Lostglory
As Vanarr's club was knocked upwards, he allowed it to leave his hand. The elf surprised him with the speed and precision of her strike, and he grunted as it connected with his chest.
Stupid practice weapon was no use anyway. Time for something less predictable.
The stocky dwarf used his height to his advantage and ducked under the staff, bellowing a battle cry. Rather than going for the obvious tackle, though, his yell was cut short when he pivoted left and sunk his teeth into his opponents forearm, bracing himself against it with one hand.

Spanner
"Me? Well, I'm nobody, really. Name's Spanner, at your service. I'm something of an engineer myself, though my real gift is in using magic to protect my battle-brothers Vanarr and Vorgrim. They're here, too!" He paused for a moment, processing what Min-Ki had said. "Wait, you designed this yourself? That's quite impressive! I'll have to get the tour sometime."

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Min-Ki
The Mess Hall, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"Why rush to grow up?" He said and looked at Valerian, "I will keep that in mind. Do not mention her age. But still, I don't understand why old lived races such as you dryads would have issues with age..."

"Well, it really isn't that impressive." Min-Ki said as he shrugged, "All I did was design a power source taking aspects from Elven clockwork, Dwarven steampower and Human magitech to power the engines. Dwarven steampower, while providing lots of energy overall, is expensive to maintain and energetically inefficient. Elven clockwork provides less energy overall, is easy to maintain, and energetically efficient. The only thing, Elven clockwork requires a vast amount of energy to start or stop. Both Elven clockwork and Dwarven steampower require the power source to be near the engines as well in order to be efficient."

"Now, human magitech on the other hand converts energy into magic power that can be transmitted from a power source to an engine." He continued, "It provides rather average energy overall, is not cheap but not expensive either, and its about 50-50 efficiency wise. Neither Elven clockwork, Dwarven steampower, or Human magitech could be considered ideal. To power a ship like this the current systems could work, but they'd be highly inefficient. So, I decided, why not try to combine them? It's been attempted before, but this is the first time its been completed. I unfortunately can't share how I did it, because of reasons."

---

Fi Qina
A Training Room, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"What th-" Fi said as she felt the teeth of her dwarven opponent sink into her arm. While she felt the pain, she was not very impressed, and quickly surrounded herself with lightning, electrocuting the dwarf and forcing him to release her before being knocked to ground. "You fucking bit me. What. The. Fuck. So, you want to play dirty, do you? Very well..."

With that Fi just stood there as lightning crackled around her, creating a wall of lightning around her, a wall that slowly started to grow outward, looking to push the dwarf off the map, or to fry the dwarf.

---

Alicia Messier
The Upper Deck, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"Oi. Get up." Alicia said as she stood over the resting Jorgen. She didn't look very happy, as she looked down at the demi-human. "I assume that since you are up here, you are on lookout duty... as this is not a cruise. So, get up and get back to keeping your eyes open."

[Castle Crashers]

Airships.. it wasn't his first time flying on one, of course, but he was probably never going to lose this feeling of awe whenever he found himself in one. It was just so exciting..the idea that they were flying, away from land and its chains, freely throughout the sky..even if he couldn't see it, none of it. The airship, the land behind and under them, the vast expanse of the sky..but he could imagine them. And he could also feel it.. that the ship beneath his feet was moving. Flying was truly amazing. But was just so weird sometimes.. thinking that not so long ago, his entire world, everything he knew, everything that mattered to him.. was limited to a small, cold village, and the fields around it. The frozen mud and the snow, the freezing darkness.. but it didn't matter anymore. The past was gone, the past was dead, and there was no need to think about it anymore.. even if sometimes, he just couldn't help it. It was just so easy to remember things.. and he hated that. The future was all that mattered. The duty that he had to his goddess, his endless desire to learn more, to find more, to know more.. and of course, the quest that had brought him here, on this ship, in the first place. Finding the Seven Keys, breaking the seals around the Heart of Zodia.. it was going to be dangerous, it was probably going to be bloody.. but it was also going to be just so much fun.

But as he started to feel the ship moving, Illya realized that there wasn't much for him to do on the deck. Others were probably gazing at what they were leaving behind, but he had no time for that. He had of course to find a room for himself and other stuff like that, but there was something even more important that he had to do first. Getting used to the ship. He could handle himself very well, but that wasn't the point. He wanted to be able to move around without any hesitation, he wanted to give people as few reasons as possible to assume that there was something wrong with him. And he was certainly not going to use his powers for something as ridiculous as that.. it would have felt like an abuse, almost. And he was going to stand out anyway, at least a little. He knew it pretty well, the way in which he looked like. Pale skin, white hair. White clothes. He was still a human living in a magical world, that was true, but as far as humans were concerned, his appearance was sort of.. distinctive? A lot of people probably thought that he looked weird, but he just tried not to think about it. He also knew that apparently, other blind people would cover their eyes with something, or just keep them closed. He on the other hand always tried to keep his open, even if the darkness surrounding him never changed.. and even if some people might have found his eyes to be.. off-putting.

The white haired boy wasted no time, and not before long, he was walking against a wall, carefully moving forward through a corridor, trying to remember as much as he could. And this of course, reminded him of how well he had known his former home.. that wooden shack, every table, every wall, every door..this was weird. It wasn't like him to get this emotional, to sink like that into memories..it was probably because of the quest.. because he was on this airship, because he still had no idea who the other members of the group truly were, or what they were going to do.. yeah, that had to be it. He just had to focus on something else, he had to find someone to read him a book.. just like she used to. And Illya stopped for a moment. No, he had to stop doing that, he had to stop thinking about that, he had to..

And of course, his thoughts were suddenly and rudely interrupted by someone bumping into him. Poor Illya had no time to react, as whoever or whatever that was just dragged him down to the floor. By the time he realized what had happened, they were already down and he had hit his head into something - his forehead hurt, and he had dropped both his satchel and his staff. For a moment, he did feel a twinge of fear, with his idea of where he was and what happened thrown away like that, but that quickly disappeared when someone whined, before the same, girly voice started rambling, trying to apologize. He heard her standing up, but it took him a couple of moments to realize that she was probably trying to help him stand back up too. He opened his eyes again, out of habit, and Lucine was able to see his hollow, silver eyes. He nearly used that power, but instead of that, he just hesitantly moved his hand in front of him.. after all, if you were telling someone that you wanted to help them up... you had to hold your hand out for them, right? He slowly moved his hand, clearly having no idea what was in front of him, until his hand accidentally touched hers, and after another short pause, he grabbed it, and used her help to stand back up. He let go of her hand really quickly though, as if the physical contact had scared him, and instead, he carefully used his other hand to look for the wall, touching it and keep his hand there, almost as if he was looking for support.

"No, it's.. it's alright, I wasn't exactly careful either..", he answered, with a warm smile on his face.. even if a bruise had already started to form on his forehead, made even more obvious by just how sickly pale his skin was. "Are you alright though? You sounded like you had hurt yourself..", he tried to ask, genuinely sounding worried. But at the same time, Illya also realized that both his staff and his satchel were somewhere on the floor.. and he certainly wasn't going to get back on his knees to look for them with this girl next to him.. so he had to do the thing that he hated the most..so he just took a deep breath, even if the smile never left his face. "Hey, would you.. mind to help me find my satchel and my staff? I think that I've dropped them both when we both fell.."

As she held out her hand to him, watching him search uneasily for her as she did, she frowned slightly. Was something wrong? Why didn't he immediately grab her hand? She let her gaze wander to his face; and, despite his white hair (which she found funny, given that her hair was nearly white as well), he was young...but his silver, sightless eyes seemed to say otherwise. She was almost caught off-guard when he immediately yanked his hand from hers, her gaze returning to it with a slight jump of her shoulders...had she hurt him? Was he disgusted by her? Had she truly ruined her first chance of making a friend by something so careless?

Her anxieties grew as her eyebrows furrowed, her worried blue eyes gazing back up again as he told her it was alright, smiling warmly as he did, as if to ease her worries. Still...she was terrified that it was all some silly act, that he would soon turn on her and yell, or grimace and tell her to leave for her insolence. Her ears flattened at the thought, and she pulled a strand of her frosty blue hair into her mouth to chew on nervously as her tail swung, beginning to get lost in worried thought once more. She almost didn't hear him when he asked if she was alright, and when she registered that he had, her wide eyes shot back up as she let the hair fall from her mouth again, a wide, apologetic smile on her face; not that he could see, of course. "O-oh no, I'm alright!" She excused quickly, before her sore nose painfully reminded her otherwise. She frowned again and rubbed it, furrowing her brow as she did. "Well, my nose might bruise up, but...it's nothing I can't deal with!" She responded cheerily, then noticing that he had not spoken that she looked as if she'd hurt herself, but that she had sounded like it.

She was confused. Not that anyone could blame her, of course; she'd never been around blind people before. Or...anyone really, for that matter. Curious, perhaps too much for her own good, she inched closer to him with her wide, wondering gaze, staring closely at his eyes as she tilted her head, as if it would help her analyze his expression better. She let her gaze wander his face, searching for some kind of reaction to her closeness, though he could likely tell in many other ways other than sight. When he spoke of asking her to help him find his satchel and staff, she was shocked back out of her research session, and immediately jumped back to her previous position, worried she'd made the situation awkward; though she wasn't certain he'd been able to tell. "Of course!" She answered happily, obediently as she spent no time scooping the items back off of the ground in one swift movement, and held them out proudly to him. "Here you go!" She answered with a large smile, opening her eyes after a moment as she watched him retrieve the items from her hands.

Perhaps she really was too curious, as she tilted her head and curiously viewed his expression again, and the way he held the items, and his reaction in general...her tail flicking about curiously as she did. Without thinking much about it, or if it could be offensive or intrusive, the words spilled from her mouth. "Are you blind?" She asked, watching him intently as she awaited his response, wondering if he would even bother to answer...after all, in theory, he really didn't need to talk to her anymore since she had already helped him. He had all the position and right to walk away if he wanted, but she...sincerely hoped he wouldn't. He seemed interesting, he seemed...fun to talk to, and she...desperately wanted to make friends. He couldn't judge her so much for it, could he..?

[Charlia]

Vorgrim Lostglory
Vorgrim chuckled at the young priestess' eagerness for adventure. He remembered the excitement he and his brother once felt when taking off, still so idealistic, so hopeful that they could save the world. It warmed his old heart, seeing that the world wasn't always as serious as Vanarr thought. As the girl looked around, he decided to approach. After all, this journey would be long, and it would be best to get to know his companions early.
"Well met, young one! I hardly expected to see such friendly faces on a mission this serious, but I'd be lying if I said it was unwelcome." He fiddled a bit with the straps on his shoulder as the contraption he carried let out a small puff of smoke.

"Oh!" She was startled slightly by the stranger's approach, but turned to beam brightly at him, clasping her hands together. "Oh, I always try to be friendly! It wouldn't do for a priestess of the Maiden of Fire to be sullen and unapproachable! Speaking of which..." A tiny flame sparked at her fingertips, and she blew it out gently before reaching out and touching Vorgrim's forehead, her skin still heated from the flame but not enough to be painful. "May her blessings warm your life," she said with a smile and genuine sincerity.

[Vulnier]

Alicia Messier
The Upper Deck, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"Oi. Get up." Alicia said as she stood over the resting Jorgen. She didn't look very happy, as she looked down at the demi-human. "I assume that since you are up here, you are on lookout duty... as this is not a cruise. So, get up and get back to keeping your eyes open."

"Even if it was a cruise, I'd probably still feel like crap..." Jorgen said he as looked up at Alicia, still a bit worse for wear as that sick, nauseous feeling still hanging over him. "Just... give me a few more minutes to get my bearings." He looked back down as he sighed. "Been a while since I was last on a ship..."

[Elysian Kentarchy]

[quote="Faal Lot Himdah";p="35468603"]

Min-Ki
The Mess Hall, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"Why rush to grow up?" He said and looked at Valerian, "I will keep that in mind. Do not mention her age. But still, I don't understand why old lived races such as you dryads would have issues with age..."

"Well, it really isn't that impressive." Min-Ki said as he shrugged, "All I did was design a power source taking aspects from Elven clockwork, Dwarven steampower and Human magitech to power the engines. Dwarven steampower, while providing lots of energy overall, is expensive to maintain and energetically inefficient. Elven clockwork provides less energy overall, is easy to maintain, and energetically efficient. The only thing, Elven clockwork requires a vast amount of energy to start or stop. Both Elven clockwork and Dwarven steampower require the power source to be near the engines as well in order to be efficient."

"Now, human magitech on the other hand converts energy into magic power that can be transmitted from a power source to an engine." He continued, "It provides rather average energy overall, is not cheap but not expensive either, and its about 50-50 efficiency wise. Neither Elven clockwork, Dwarven steampower, or Human magitech could be considered ideal. To power a ship like this the current systems could work, but they'd be highly inefficient. So, I decided, why not try to combine them? It's been attempted before, but this is the first time its been completed. I unfortunately can't share how I did it, because of reasons."

---

Valerian

I smile a bit. "Ah that is the thing, we are an old lived race, while a century and a half would be considered respectable by some races and for others the age of a young adult but by the standards of our own kind we are little more than children. And if there is one thing my sister does not like it is being treated as a child." Beyond that remark I simply listen to his explanations. "It is quite different from the technology of my kind." I shrug. "I think anyway, I haven't seen another Dryad besides my sister in, oh, seventy years or so, so I wouldn't know. But it is still rather fascinating to see so many different things combined. Does give the feeling that there isn't just one race on the expedition, well beyond the obvious that is."

[Clan Grimrock]

Vanarr Lostglory
Vanarr regained his feet just in time to come face to face with a crackling wall of electricity, pushing towards the edges of the mat. He composed himself, and took a deep breath before attempting to charge through the barrier.
It did not go well.
The dwarf was forcibly pushed back every time he even touched the growing field, and he continually approached the edge of the mat. Finally, he plunged both of his arms through the barrier, causing his bracers to sputter and smoke, but he could not reach his opponent. When he tried to follow through with the movement and lunge, he was sent staggering back past the edge of the mat, breathing heavily. As he attempted to catch his breath, with electricity still arcing between his gauntlets as their enchantments died, he looked up and said two words to the elf who bested him.
"Well done."
Vorgrim Lostglory
Vorgrim politely bowed his head to accept the young priestess' blessing. When it was done, he looked up at her again. "Regardless of why you act as you do, I think this world would be a far better place if we all shared your attitude. Oh! I nearly forgot to introduce myself again, didn't I? I am Vorgrim Lostglory, humble engineer at your service. You'll surely meet my brothers before long."
Spanner
Spanner smiled at Min-Ki's enthusiastic talk of his designs, and nodded at Valerian's response. "Well then, I guess I'm in the company of geniuses, yes? Most people are too blind to see that we can work with others, and not have to be limited to our traditional designs. Wisdom is in many places! That's why I enjoy working with the dwarves so much; we may have similar ideas, but our implementation is always different. I look forward to making new things from scratch, making old things new, and making both explode with the two of you."

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Alicia Messier
The Upper Deck, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"I'm not here to baby you." Alicia said and kicked Jorgen. Not to hard, but still hard enough to be noticeable. "Get up. I don't care how long it has been since you were last on a ship. If you can't handle the ride, then why bother coming? If you are weak then we do not need you. This expedition is destined to run into threats beyond anything any of us have ever faced. If the journey across the skies of Aeria is enough to take you out of action, then you should get off next time we make port. If it isn't enough... then you'll get off your ass and back to work."

---

Min-Ki
The Mess Hall, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"I guess... If you want to get like that." Min-Ki said with a shrug before looking to Valerian, "Though, the fact that technologies of different races can be intertwined so elegantly makes me think that perhaps the knowledge of each race is merely a piece of a far larger puzzle that is the truth of reality itself... A truth that perhaps even Kyaris is blind to. But I can't be sure, not without gathering knowledge from races beyond the Demihumans, Humans, Elves, Gnomes, and Dwarves. Even among the Humans, the knowledge of the She Snijan is out of reach. So to is the knowledge of Goblins, Orcs, Oni, Daemons and Angels. The Gods also likely know a great deal, but trying to get them to reveal said knowledge would be difficult. And the knowledge of the Dryads... No matter how hard I tried to get Dryads from the Mythanathas Sanctuary to teach me what they know, they refuse to teach."

"Anyways, that's beyond the point." Min-Ki said, "So... enough about me, what about you two? Anything of amazement for you to share?"

---

Fi Qina
A Training Room, The Aetherwing
Airspace between nations of Aeria

---

"You bit me." Fi said as she stared daggers into the dwarf, "You could have at least let me fry you a little. I thought dwarves were all about honour bullshit. But then you go and bite me. You couldn't match me with your weapon, so you resorted to dirty fighting. Which I use whenever I need to, but still... You bit me. So cease your 'Well done', I could have taken you out instantly if I wanted to."

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Au Enjerusureiya
Kurimuzonshiti, Enjerusureiya Clan Territory
40 Years Ago

---

Kurimuzinshiti. The great city of the Enjerusureiya clan, and one of the great cities of the Hordes. It’s walls had long protected the city from rival clans, allowing for the city to prosper. The white stone buildings were topped with bright crimson roofs, and the streets were paved much like the cities of Man. Orcs, Goblins and Oni would wander those streets, going about their lives. The great market square would be nearly completely covered by the stalls of traveling merchants. A single road would lead up a great hill to the temples and through a great garden, that was always open to the public, to the residence of the head branch of the Enjerureiya Clan.

That was what the city normally looked like, but now… now the city was in flames. The walls had fallen, and from a balcony of the Enjerusureiya head’s residence one could hear the screams as the citizens of Kurimusinshiti were being slaughtered, regardless of who they were. The great army of the Enjerusureiya clan was currently trying to fight back, but they were being overwhelmed by the enemy. Their enemy was none other than a massive army of humans, elves and dwarves, rallied by the Epostolis.

“How many do we have left?” Tamon Enjerusureiya spoke. Tamon was an Oni, with Red skin, and two horns protruding from his forehead. Well, would have been two, except one was lost in battle some time ago, leaving a stub behind. His face was also scarred and he was missing one eye, and his face seemed to rest with a pissed off look. As of the moment, he was fully armoured and had his sword sheathed on his hip. Despite this appearance of a warlord, those who knew Tamon knew what kind of being he was. He was kind, understanding, just and preferred peace over war. After all, he was the head of the Enjerusureiya clan.

“Around 800, and there are maybe 100 among those taking shelter who could fight.” Another Oni answered him, “My lord, we can’t win this. I suggest you flee with your family. The clan needs to live on... “

“I will not run.” Tamon said back with a snarl, “This is my city. Those are my people. I will stand and fight, even if I am the only one standing, I will fight. The odds may be against us, but we are Oni. We are Orcs. We are Goblins. Fighting is what we are naturally best at. So, I will not flee… But the clan does need to live on...”

“Sir.” A goblin spoke as he ran into the room, “The enemy approaches…”

“Looks like the time has come.” Tamon spoke and then looked at the Goblin, “Have the men prepare for our final battle.”

“Yes sir.” The Goblin spoke and left the room as quickly as he arrived.

“Father…” A new voice could be heard in the room. There standing at the door was a young Au Enjerusureiya, with a club in hand. “I wish to fight as well…”

“No.” Tamon instantly said, “No my daughter. I can not let you fight this. You are still too young…”

“But I ca-”

“No. And that’s final.” Tamon cut her off and then looked to an Orc that was in the room with them. “Xruul. Take a handful of men, and lead my daughter along with all those who can not fight through the escape route. Lead them to the Howaitosan clan.”

“Yes my lord.” Xruul said.

Now, Tamon turned to his daughter, and knelled. He placed his hands upon her shoulders and looked into her eyes. “Listen Au. I know how strong you are. But you are still young. As your father and clan leader I can not allow you to fight this. As your father, I do not wish to see you die like your mother did. And as your clan leader I need you to do something else for me. I need you to survive. The clan must live on. And if I was to allow you to fight, no one would remain to lead the clan ever again. So, I need you to flee. I need you to survive.”

With that he embraced her, as tears started to roll down both their faces. “Go my daughter. Go with the speed of Xephine. Survive to fight another day. Go, and remember, I will always love you.”

Before Au could say anything, her father let go, and left the room. This was their final goodbye, and she knew it.

“My lady…” Xruul spoke and held a hand out, “We need to go now.”

A few minutes later Au was walking through a tunnel with those destined to be the survivors of the Enjerureiya clan. As they made their way through the tunnel to safety, the residence of the Enjerureiya clan fell.

“Father... “ Au spoke to herself, “I will avenge you… and all those who were killed… I swear this on the name you gave me. They will pay…”

---

Au Howaitosan
Epostolis Outpost, A Day's Journey from Swiftpeak Citadel
Present

---

Sitting there, upon a hill overlooking a certain Epostolis Outpost, a certain red skinned Oni could be found. She was sitting there with her booze beside her to one side, and a rather large club to the other. This was the Drunken Hammer of the Howaitosan Clan, the former Au Enjerusureiya, the feared and respected Au Howaitosan. She sat there watching as her forces surrounded the Outpost, which they managed to sneak up on. Which was no easy feat, considering this was an Outpost used by the Epostolis as a way to keep watch for enemies to the Epostolis and inform the nearby fortress of Swiftpeak Citadel to prepare for battle.

“General.” An Orc spoke to the red skinned Oni whom he served, “The Outpost is surrounded, and communications via magic are being jammed. We are awaiting your orders.”

“Good.” Au said as she stood up, “We will take this place. No quarter. Raze it to the ground, and then prepare to move on the Swiftpeak Citadel.”

“Understood.” The orc said, “Will you be joining the attack?”

“Of course…” Au said with a smirk, “How can I avenge my clan without getting a little blood on my club?”

Meanwhile, along the walls of the Outpost, the Epostolis’ forces were getting prepared to drive off the invaders. The walls were lined with gun men, pointing their weapons at the surrounding force of Orcs, Goblins and a few Oni. While they were caught by surprise, they managed to mobilize rather quickly. Demeanours varied among the defenders. Some smiled at the possibility of killing the enemy, others were nervous for a variety of reasons.

The commander of the Outpost stood on the Northern wall of the Outpost, looking out at the enemy. He was an experience commander, and had fought against forces of the Horde before, but even he was nervous. Why was he nervous? Well, the Orcs, Goblins and Oni he could see were wearing more sophisticated armour than normal. Normally Horde forces came covered in hides, leather armour or even crudely constructed iron armour. But the armour he saw now, well, it was frightening similar to the armour worn by the forces of men, elves and even dwarves.

His attention turned from the masses however when he saw a figure in no armour moving through the enemy force, towards its front. Upon seeing Au, he recognized her. Turning to his men, he addressed them. “We will defend this place to the last man. If this outpost falls, our enemy will be able to move on the Swiftpeak CItadel. And our enemy are not your normal Horde forces… If we fall, they will likely strike and surprise the Citadel, along with other Epostolis settlements nearby. We shall not fail, with Tivnia as our witness. Long last the Epostolis. For the glory of Tivnia!”

As the commander of the Outpost addressed his forces, Au turned to her forces. “Before us is a construct of the dreaded enemy. A outpost of the Holy Epostolis. We all know that is a lie. The Epostolis slaughters our kind indiscriminately. Why? Because we happen to be Orcs, Goblins, and Oni. Because we do not bend to their faith. We are children of the Horde. There comes a pride in that. A pride that they will never understand. We do not fight because we wish to bloody the land. No we fight because we must. Fortunately, we have allies unlike any clan has ever had. So… Let us show them the pride and fury of the children of the Horde. A fury only matched by the divine wrath of Zoysus! No quarter! No fear! Charge!”

With that Au’s force roared out and started to advance on the outpost’s walls. Ladders were carried forward as the defenders fired at the advancing wave. However, the defenders found difficulty slowing the wave down, not because of the sheer number, but because of the armour they wore. Bullets often refused to penetrate, and when they did, it wasn’t enough to down the attackers. Soon the ladders reached the wall, and the walls were overrun.

The gates of the outpost didn’t fare to well either. Au was leading the charge on the gates, with her booze in hand. She came to a stop a few feet from the gates, and lifted her booze up before taking a rather sizable drink. With a sigh of happiness, and a rather scary smile, she lifted her club. With the club up high, she walked up to the gate, and swung at it. The moment the club struck the gate, the gate was smashed wide open, and the shock wave from the strike sent debris straight into the waiting Epostolis forces behind the gate.

The debris knocked a number of the Epostolis’ forces to the ground, and before the dust thrown up by the destruction of the gate could clear up the forces under Au’s command were already rushing in. Metal clanged on metal, as the two opposing forces crashed into each other, and the melee began. As the melee raged on, forces that climbed the walls had now began pouring down from the walls, flanking the Epostolis’ forces that were now fighting desperately to survive. Archers took the walls, and fired down into the melee further adding to the chaos.

The battle lasted for almost an hour, and after the battle, the outpost went up in flames as the remaining force was that of Au’s. There she stood, with her force, watching as the output burned to the ground. They would celebrate tonight, and then prepare. Prepare for another attack. An attack on the Swiftpeak Citadel.

[Elysian Kentarchy]

Valerian

I nod, figures my kind would keep their secrets close, we tend to look down on such children who come wondering about them, especially with such intentions as that. "I wouldn't call myself a 'genius' as Spanner said but I consider myself to be rather knowledgeable when it comes to matters of botany and medicine, I have spent most of the past century studying such matters after all." I gesture to the notebooks I have with me. "I was actually in the process of transcribing my notes since my sister's handwriting is rather terrible, even after a century of her listening to my observations and studies and recording it all it hasn't improved."

[Tracian Empire]

Illya

It was... a little confusing, to say at least. It was pretty difficult for him to understand what the other person was doing sometimes, so periods of awkward silence.. really unnerved him sometimes. He generally liked to pretend that he didn't care about what others thought of him - he always loved to say that there was no use worrying about the things that he couldn't control.. but it was of course much more complicated than that. It wasn't his fault that there was always going to be a barrier of darkness between him and everyone else.. but it wasn't like he didn't want to be liked by others. It was just.. a bit difficult to actually form any sort of connections with others. Even if they weren't weirded out by his appearance or by his dead eyes.. it was much safer to just push them away, to keep the distance.

But right now.. he had no idea what was going on. He had no idea who was standing in front of him anyway, even if he was fairly certain that it was a girl. But he was also hearing a weird, vague song.. as if someone was swinging something in the air. And instead of just answering to what he had said, she hesitated, leaving him hanging for a few good moments.. which only amplified his confusion... until she eventually answered, claiming that she was alright.. before hesitating again and saying that she had bruised her noise.. which did make him feel at least a little bad, despite how cheerful her voice had been. It hadn't been his fault, clearly, but knowing that he had played a part in injuring her, even if just lightly like that.. it did sting a little. And having no idea how she felt about it, he clearly had the impression that her cheerfulness was just a cover, a way of acting politely, so he did at least appreciate that she was good enough not to start insulting him then and there. If some people were mean enough to start mocking him for no reason at all, what could he expect from someone who had a big reason to be angry with him?

But instead of her saying anything, a few more moments of awkward silence followed, as he felt her..getting closer to him? She was close, far too close, and even if he couldn't see her, he could feel her presence, he could hear her breathing, he could almost feel her gaze..but he did nothing. Showing feelings and reactions to people acting like that around you only made them focus even more on his blindness..there was no way he was going to do that. He had to leave, to get away from her.. but to do that.. he needed.. he needed his satchel, and his staff.. as he only now realized that they were missing, having probably fallen on the ground together with both of them. He couldn't use his powers for something as mundane as this, and he couldn't just get on his knees and start touching the floor around him, that would be way too embarrassing.. so he had to swallow his pride and ask for her help... which he did, with his smile never leaving his face..

And she helped him, answering happily and taking the two items from the ground..before she probably tried to hold them out so that he could take them.. but if not for her saying "Here you go!", he wouldn't have realized that she had found them already. Hesitatingly, he managed get them both from her hands, even if his rather clumsy way of doing it probably involved touching her hands for far too long.. but he had no idea how to act around her. If he would have tried to take them without exactly knowing where they war, who knows what he could have done, since she clearly wasn't used to dealing with people like him. He put the satchel's strap back over his shoulder, and he tightly gripped his staff in the other hand, the feeling of the cold metal reassuring him, and he started to think about something to say to get out of this.. all while trying to ignore that annoying, flicking-like sound that he couldn't quite understand, but out of a sudden, he heard her voice... asking if he was blind.

At the beginning he just assumed that he had misheard her, after all, there was no way she would have asked something like that.. but his sense of hearing was one of the few great things about him.. so that wasn't the case. He had heard exactly what she had said. But why? Why would she say something like that? Was she.. was she having fun? As much as he was normally trying to hide it, it should have been pretty obvious for her that yeah, he was indeed blind.. so why would she ask this, if not in order to mock him? But the tone of her voice, the way in which she had spoken.. he had never really felt any such mean intentions from her. So what was she doing? He had no idea.. but.. even if she was mocking him.. just walking away from the first person with whom he had spoken on this ship.. it was.. it was a bad idea. Just hiding from such things. If she was actually taunting him, then he could at least prove her that it no longer affected him.

"Yes.. yes, I am blind.", he answered, with the same confident voice and smile as before.. but immediately after that, the illusion broke a little, with his smile slowly disappearing, and a pretty worried expression taking its place. "You aren't like...mocking me.. are you?", he tried to ask, hesitatingly.

[Endem]

Eler Yke

Eler walked into the Mess Hall trying to cover his leaf hair and a patch of bark on his left cheek, he sensed other Dryads were here, how? why?... Maybe some questions will better be left unanswered, he stood in one place leaning on the wall, his old armor clunking, so much time has passed, 200, 300 years, and the armor was probably older. Eler looked at other beings in the mess hall, such a delightful mix of Elves, Dwarfs, Humans and whatever other race was out there. Eler mumbled a little under his nose

"I wonder how much they pay"