• Solo • ☠ Sword in the Bone ☠ Ch.5

[Cervantez]

Vhalar 6th to 7th
☠ Mood: Calm, a little concerned
☠ Current Thought: If you must
☠ Current Theme: Skeleton

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Vhalar 6th

Cervantez had packed everything he needed for this expedition and set out to head to the gate that would lead to Maiden's Refuge. He was a little nervous as he rode on Njama's back, the hound happily trotting forth decked out in his armor. He wasn't sure how this would go, traversing the swamplands. He had heard the stories but adamantly avoided the place like the plague it was. Along the way he stopped at some more stalls, buying a few more supplies such as an oil lantern and a vial of oil for it, a sculptors & another medical kit, a compass, fireplace rod and hook stand (to cook with)and 20 more throwing knives, and a large basket to carry them all in. Overall he spent close to if not more than 130gn on some more supplies to be extra safe in case something happened while on this journey. As he reached the gate he would find himself greeted by a familiar face. A smile perched upon her lips, Mariatte stood there, gear in hand and waving at her student, well with his current knowledge and power, one could say they were equals.

"What are you doing here Madame?"

a question that came from his confused and concerned face, as he descended his pet to greet his mentor.

"Word through the magical grapevine is that you are going to track down a very dangerous group of mages. Do you really believe I'd let my star student go on such a perilous endeavor on his own?"

she answered, stepping past the hulking man only to pet Njama on his head and give a kiss on his wet nose.

"I can handle this on my own Madame, I don't need you to come with me. Its bad enough that I'm even going through that accursed place, but I can't allow you to get hurt because of me."

he pleaded, looking to his mentor. She returned his gaze, a smile on hand, as she caressed his chest with a trailing finger.

"Have we forgotten that you are an investment Cervantez. This is going to be a perilous journey as you say, and I would rather be there in case something does happen. Worse comes to worst, I can just reanimate you as my own personal thrall"

she teased with a chuckle picking up her own bag of supplies and securing it on to the massibex hound.

"Listen to reason Mariatte, Its better for me if I do this on my own, my pride is at stake here. Plus I have unfinished business with these crazy bastards. It's not your fight and I won't allow you to go and that's final."

he commanded, moving to take her bag from where it was only to be met with the end of her rapier pointed at his chest.

"Bold and brazen are we? You will have to work on your silver tongue if you plan on persuading me, let alone anyone to do as you command. We are connected, our souls intertwined young man, so whether you will it or not, I will be right here with you regardless."

she explained, placing her blade within its holster and looking to Cervantez.

"We'll need to get moving if we want to get as close to the swamplands as possible before nightfall."

she added, motioning for the Lotharro to mount his beast, which he did, and gave her a hand onto Njama's back. With a sigh and slight mumble under his breath, he nudged the hound to head out the gate.

Breaks into breaks, the two traveled and along the way, all that filled the air was the sound of Mariatte humming a light tune. It was a tune he remembered her humming.

"What song is that?"

he asked, tilting his head. She giggled and leaned into his ear, tickling it with a whisper.

"A song my father used to sing to me when I was a little girl."

she affirmed, looking to the setting sky as she began to break into song.

"Come, all yee lost souls, I'll take thee away, into the land of sorrows. Come, all yee lost souls, there's no time for you to stay, here in a world of mortals. Come, all yee lost souls, I'll take thee away, lead you to a place of comfort. Come, all yee lost souls, the time has come to play, here in my garden of shadows."

That song took them into the night. Finding a relatively safe place, the two made camp for the night.

"Cervantez's Speech"

"Mariatte's Speech"

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[Cervantez]

Vhalar 6th & 7th
☠ Mood: Calm
☠ Current Thought: I've got unfinished business
☠ Current Theme: Skeleton

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Vhalar 7th

The entire night before Cervantez was awake, alert, keeping a watchful eye over the camp as Mariatte slept. He was prepared to spend the night without sleep, wouldn't be the first time, surely not the last. The Lotharro used that time to read the journal of Du'umurat, finding a particular passage within the pages interesting.

"I find that these mundane are simpletons, mindless sheep ruling a world they are unfit for.
I find that they fear us, the gift of the spark and the mountainous opportunity they offer.
In all my travels I find it odd that mortal men try to contain that which they can not control.
And in their quest for dominance, they forget their place.
But in time, oh in all due time, they will know where they stand on the food chain.
With this sword, I will usher in a new word order, and they will either fall in line, or perish"

There was something about that passage that unsettled the necromancer. This mage, this Du'umurat had the mindset of a dangerous man. The Yari didn't scare easily, but the more he read the more he found this man, his ideals, and the fact that people were eating this shit up was terrifying to him. He wasted no time, using the light of the oil lamp, and read the confines of the book.

The morning had settled upon them and Mariatte awoke to find Cervantez still awake, and his face glued to the journal.

"Some light reading in the morning?"

she pondered, stretching as she laid eyes on the book in his hand.

"Something like that"

the Lotharro chimed eyes still glued to the pages of the book. Mariatte had begun to freshen herself up when she eyed the book in his hand. Eyes wide she hurried over to his side and took the book from him, effectively snapping the mage from his trance.

"Where on Idolas did you get this book?! Please tell me you didn't steal it?!"

There was a clear hint of dismay in her voice, and he could see the panic in her eyes

"Of course not, it was given to me."

he reassured, snatching the book back from his mentor. She put herself directly in front of the Lotharro.

"That book......that manuscript holds dangerous knowledge Cervantez, and you read every last page, in one night."

disbelief and a small hint of anger began to fill her tone. He could look to her face and see that there was genuine fear on her face, something he had never seen on this woman before. He just held that same stoic gaze he always held.

"That knowledge, its like poison to mages, his ideology was flawed and he created a toxic following that only served to further the hated mundane feel for people like us."

she warned, her eyes burning into her protege, to which he only scoffed and began packing.

"We need to get moving, now"

He commanded, shooting a glare to his mentor.

Mariatte was not happy in the least, the morning sun illuminating the fear she now held in her eyes. Packing up the camp, the two mounted Njama and with a tap of the hound's ribs with his heels, Njama took off into the swamplands. A few breaks into there traveling Mariatte continued to voice her concerns.

"Listen to me Cervantez, the reason I'm concerned is that I've seen what that man's cult can do. Their reach extends all across this region, and by attacking this cell, you could be bringing their purview to yourself."

she explained, tightening her hold around his waist as Njama sprinted through the muck and grime of the swamplands. Cervantez chuckled at her warning, turning his head lightly so that the flame in his left eye could catch her in its view.

"They brought this fight to me, I'm just dealing with the unfinished business."

he said, putting his eyes on the path ahead.

"Besides I wouldn't be able to call myself a Yari if I didn't take on such a perilous endeavor now could I?"

he chuckled, cracking the reigns for Njama to move a little faster.

"Cervantez's Speech"

"Mariatte's Speech"

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[Cervantez]

Vhalar 6th & 7th
☠ Mood: Calm
☠ Current Thought: What in the hell?!
☠ Current Theme: Emil {Despair}

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Vhalar 7th

The pair continued on, Njama trudging through the thick mire of swamplands, slowing his pace to try and conserve his energy. Along the way, the large hound began to pick up on something. The deep rumbling of Njama's growl filled the air around both mages, breaking the silence between them. Cervantez was on edge now, as Njama only make that noise when something wasn't right. The beast finally stopped in its tracks, barking a thunderous sound into the distance. The two mages unsheathed their blades and began peering into the tree line and the swamp water, looking for anything hostile.

Njama's barking, a warning that meant keep away, echoed throughout the area. The wind began to whistle in the corrupted trees, but that only masked the sound of movement. It was faint, but there was something moving in the distance.

"Get ready Madame' it seems trouble is coming."

he warned, the flame flickering about looking for the danger his pet sensed. For what felt like forever, nothing happened, and Cervantez was beginning to think Njama was losing his mind. His guard dropped just for a moment, but it was a moment too soon. In the blink of an eye, vines cascaded from all directions; above & below them, to the left & right of them. Limbs were gripped and all three of them were stricken in place.

Both mages and the massive beast began to struggle to break free of the bonds on them, but it was no use.

"What the hell is going on here, where did all these vines come from?"

the Lotharro hissed, struggling to grip the vines latched and tightening upon his body slowly.

"I don't know, but if we don't do something about them quickly, we'll be crushed to death. Now think, how can we break free of these bindings?"

she replied back, struggling just as poorly as her apprentice. As they could feel the crushing constrictions of the vines, they could hear it again. The sounds of movement within the trees. Mariatte saw them first, and soon, Cervantez would have them in his sights as well.

Creatures began to fill the tree line, as well as the ground before them.

"What.....what in the hell are these things?!"

he asked, looking to the ones he could see, their snarling maws snapping at the pinned group.

"If I knew I would have warned you about them. The question we need to answer is how are we going to escape this alive?"

she inquired, looking about her surroundings. Cervantez's mind was hard at work, formulating a way to come out of this alive somehow. He knew they needed to free themselves, and whatever these creatures where, seemed restless, which meant time was running out. He could feel the pull of his soul, the spark he came to recognize with his necromancy, spurring him to use his magic. He figured he'd give it a shot, looking to his hand as the black & lavender laced ether formed and concentrated.

By that time, one of the creatures climbed onto Njama and was closing in on Cervantez. Gripping the vine holding his wrist, he watched the organic matter disintegrate in his clutches. With a free hand, he reached for the monster, gripping its face with the withering laced magic, watching it flail in agony as its head rot away. As it died he freed his other arm that held his blade and dismounted Njama.

"You need to use wither on them, it works on them just like mortal flesh!"

he called out, fending off the weird plant creatures. Mariatte without delay did the same, coating her hand with the wither spell, and freed herself from her bindings. A creature grabbed her from behind but found its head removed by her rapier. With both mages free, the battle of survival exploded.

"Free Njama, I'll handle them!"

he commanded, keeping his wits about him as he hacked down the creatures that came at him, using his strength to wield the blade with one hand and catching them with wide arc swings. The other hand of his was still coated in the withering spell, rotting those that came in close to him. He slashed the ones bold enough to attack him from the right & left side. Hearing Cervantez's orders Mariatte nodded deciding to protect their escape route and Njama. Lunging into the direction she chose to defend, she dismembered several smaller creatures, ones of little to no note at all and easier to handle. She was able to free the massibex hound who began to rampage through the hordes of smaller creatures, which allowed Mariatte to breathe a little easier. Admits their fray however she notices that Cervantez is being set up for a pincer strike. After dealing with the 3 she had attempting to flank her, each one receiving a precise slice through their vital points, she twisted her body and sprinted toward him. With a mighty arcing slash she sent her weapon through their plant flesh.

With those monsters dealt with, she stood back to back with Njama. Now the real fun had begun, as the two immediately began clear several feet in front of them, which led to the eastern part of the swamplands. Both mages were a wheel of bladed fury, cutting down each wave soon after the other. They never had a reason to use their magic, but seeing how the odds weren't in their favor, they would have had no choice. Sadly for them, however, they were without their thralls.

"We need to find a way to end this, they keep coming!"

She shouted, taking another head in the process. Cervantez was lookign at the monsters, noticing how plant like they looked, and thats when the idea hit him, a wicked smirk fell on his face.

"I have an idea, cover me!"

he said, running over to Njama and rummaging through the contents of his supplies. Mariatte stood ready as the next wave began to assemble, looking rather eager to rip the mages and the hound apart. Cervantez, astride Njama, held his hand out for his mentor, snatching her up onto the hound.

With his other hand he held the oil lantern, and with a smirk, he put all of his strength into hurling it into the horde of them. The lantern exploded and ignited the impact point. The creatures that were ablaze were running around like headless chickens spreading the flames even further. Both mages watched as the creatures flew into a frenzy, panic and screeches filled the burning scenery as these creatures burned, few fleeing from the area to avoid meeting the same fiery fate.

"Let's hope that keeps them at bay till we are at a safe distance."

He said, stirring Njama toward the eastern part of the swamplands. With the crack of the reigns, the large hound took off towards the eastern end of the swamps, leading to the crags. The only sound they heard as they sprinted off was the sound of screeches and the burning crackling of flames. By this time, the adrenaline high they were on faded, and their wounds and injuries were evident. The evidence of cuts and the bruising from constriction was permeating their bodies with pain. Mariatte was groaning from it, but Cervantez was pushing through this, knowing it could be worse as blood was trickling from the numerous cuts he aquired during that encounter.

"Cervantez's Speech"

"Mariatte's Speech"

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[Mads]

Cervantez and Friends

Knowledge.........

Endurance: Fighting monsters with no Sleep
Endurance: No Pain, No Gain
Endurance: Holding out Against Binding Restraints
Tactics: Adapting to your Surroundings
Leadership: Giving Commands in a Crisis
Necromancy: Wither works on all Organic Matter

Loot....................

None

Consequence......

-1 Oil Lantern; minor cuts, scrapes and bruises that will sting for the next 6 or so hours and heal completely within about 6 days

Renown..............

None

Experience...........

10 Expert Necromancy

A couple wrong words (likely stuck in with those darn robot spell checks) but otherwise gramatically fine. Story-wise, very nice YA Fiction, though, again, mages aren't really the information sharing type in the sense of like... magic gossip? So I just assumed Mariatte was being facetious. The fighting was fine and the ferahoms were cute, but I found it really difficult to suspend disbelief that a master necromancer wouldn't immediately use the signature close quarters spell (or know that it rots through all organic matter). I defintely get wanting your PC to be the hero of your stories, in which case I'd suggest either much more difficult monsters or incapacitating his mentor in a way she can't easily get out of - e.g. monsters/people know she's stronger so expend the resources to handle her, weakening themselves to bring them down to Cervantez's level. The way it was written here made her look extremely incompetent as a mage and made Certanvez superfically "impressive" by over emphasising the short time it took to think that wither would work on plants. If he was alone, it would have been much more believable. Also, with novice endurance, he's not going to be much more tough than someone without, so I just assumed the cuts and injuries were really basic, as that would be all he'd be able to handle without at least reacting a little. All in all, another entry into what is surely shaping up to be a saga.

Also also, the thread qualifies for expert necro, but you don't need to use the points for it.

Please edit your grade request.

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