boundlesshart
"ah, what a burden to be great at everything!"
The boy thought he had no place to go. All he could do was destroy the boundary between the inside and the outside worlds.
Close Claude RP blog affiliated with TOA. [Golden Deer House Leader]
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all dreams come to an end eventually — gold round ( team thirteen )
pirrhyc:
Camilla is strong in death, bold against it even as it takes away her breath and she falls off her wyvern. Pelleas could only pretend to be something like that. The exhaustion from deciphering the tome in his hands takes a toll on him, and when the rainbow-scaled bird comes at him, there is nothing he can do.
But he knew this was to be their outcome. He knew it since the moment he had failed to stop the creature from shifting. He knew the odds were stacked against them, and he must once again ponder what it feels like to have no choice but to race towards one’s own death.
Death comes. It always does. He will not be saved this time. Many miracles have worked their magic in his life to keep him alive even as he fought against them, but this time when he wishes to stay, this is where his spirit extinguishes.
Twin Soul attacks Pelleas with Sharp Beak. 4d20 roll: 20+18, 3+18, 18+18, 7+18. Crit! Hit! Hit! Hit! (-10HP) Pelleas’s HP: 0/10.
His body is mutilated with a quickness and ferocity that he knows not whether to consider it a kindness. When he died, he had always wished it would be quick. But he also had always wished he would be dazzling in his final moments, that his death would mean something…
…It doesn’t. It never does.
“ Mi… caiah… ”
He won’t wish he died in her arms this time, burdensome those thoughts might be. He won’t wish he had died another time.
But he’ll grant himself the selfishness to call for her name regardless, even if she cannot hear him, because if this would be the death that finally claimed him of all the times he has died so far, then he will have wished to go out with her memory as the last thing he sees before everything fades away into vast darkness.
Pelleas has been defeated!
next: @boundlesshart !
Psychopomp activates! (-1HP) Claude’s HP: 1/10, Twin Soul’s HP: 13.5/50.
When Camilla and Pelleas fall, Claude only sees Edelgard and Monica.
He thought they were close to the end. There’s no logic to describe it, but his heart cries out all the same. They were working together, supporting each other, fighting this beast with every bit of strength they had in them. Was it not enough? Would it ever be enough?
Claude just thought it would be different this time.
An exhausted Roxane descends to the healer. “Edain...” Claude slumps over the wyvern’s neck, but he still has his eyes on the healer. “I-I think there’s something wrong...”
What wasn’t wrong? Claude forces out a small huff of laughter, followed by a terrible cough. “It’s like I’ve been poisoned. Is there anything you can...”
Psychopomp activates! (-1HP) Claude’s HP: 0/10, Twin Soul’s HP: 12.5/50.
"do...”
Darkness overcomes him.
I’m sorry, Edain. I would never wish this on you.
Claude has been defeated!
#t. all dreams come to an end#that title fucked us#toaarena2022winter#pirrhyc#maligknightthorns#ulirblood
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all dreams come to an end eventually — gold round ( team thirteen )
pirrhyc:
Professor Edain’s candlelight becomes a raging inferno, fanning the flames that the beast had prepared for them all along, and yet, somehow, though Pelleas feels himself engulfed in that blaze, he finds himself emerging from it without fear or even a burn.
He cannot say the same for his allies.
Twin Soul attacks the Party with Divine Fire. 4d20 roll: 6+12.
Pelleas: Hit! (-0HP) 10/10HP → 10/10HP
Party unable to counterattack!
Twin Soul transforms into Moon Form. Regeneration activates! (+2HP) Twin Soul’s HP: 33.5/50.
Twin Soul takes Toxic Poison damage. (-1HP) Twin Soul’s HP: 32.5/50.
The large bird transforms and those rainbow scales do truly come back, but they quickly change color to a silver and deep blue as vivid as the prettiest skies and the widest seas. It soars with grace, rejuvenated, but it eventually shows its weakness—
“ Ah! Everyone, I think— ”
—that no matter how it has changed its form…
“ — this form is still under the same effects as it was before…! It must be the same bird, I’m sure of it, unable to rid itself of our attacks completely! ”
Edain thinks they can make it through, pleads with them all to continue to hope even as she struggles to stay afloat herself. Pelleas knows not if that fate awaits them, but he knows that he has to try.
Pelleas attacks Twin Soul with Apocalypse at 2-range. 1d20 roll: 2. Miss! (-0HP) Twin Soul’s HP: 31.5/50.
Twin Soul is unable to counterattack!
Opening his tome, it reads of ancient text so deep even he feels as if he is being sucked into it. It’s a vast darkness, one he’s scarcely touched even in the waking world, but he must decipher it now and make use of it. He knows this tome holds power— he can feel its weight, its oppressive force…!
The first attempt goes poorly, but he can feel it start to do something. He can feel the gravitational pull of the earth begin to falter, begin to twist and warp under his control… he just needs more time to harness it. “ Augh, just a little more time…! ”
His mind feels as if it is being torn asunder, ready to be split in twain, but despite the pounding in his head, despite the burning in his spirit, he must… he must!!
Twin Soul is no longer inflicted with -2 Def. Shadow Puppet attacks Twin Soul with Sharp Beak. 2d20 roll: 1, 4. Hit! Hit! (-4HP) Twin Soul’s HP: 27.5/50. Twin Soul is inflicted with -2 Def for one round!
Twin Soul is unable to counterattack!
Feeling this stress, his shadow puppet rises to the occasion, soaring to meet its shifted twin and drags its beak across it, injuring it all the same. The cry of the divine bird reverberates, and it is then that Pelleas feels as if he’s finally understood.
Twin Soul attacks Edain and Pelleas with Gale Blast.
Pelleas: 2d20 roll: 18+12, 13+12. Crit! Crit! (-8HP) 10/10HP → 2/10HP
Its cry is accompanied by a huge gale blasting his and Edain’s way, and Pelleas is too weighed down, too focused on his studies, to be able to do anything against the way the wind whips him, sees fit to tear him to pieces and whap him hard into the arena’s walls.
But even as he’s sliding down, the color of his blood redecorating the coliseum, he finds the strength to form his incantation, calling upon the very earth to shake and tremble with a great ferocity that increases more and more, its violence asking the planet to tilt under his control as images of sigils chain the world in his grasp.
Pelleas counters with Apocalypse. 1d20 roll: 14. Hit! (-3HP) Twin Soul’s HP: 21.5/50. Lifetaker activates! (+1.5HP) Pelleas’s HP: 3.5/10.
Edain and Pelleas are inflicted with -2 Res for one round!
And as his life force grows weaker, he opens the air to a massive dark hole, sucking in the earth into places unknown and dragging their foe into it, challenging it to fight against the unholy sounds of the end of the world as one knows it.
It is saved only by its very own miracle.
Twin Soul transforms into Sun Form. Twin Soul has reached 50% or less HP!
Apocalyptic activates! Twin Soul gains +4 Avoid, +6 Dex, and will always attack twice in a row.
Unyielding activates! Twin Soul gains immunity to all status effects and debuffs.
Twin Soul is no longer inflicted with -2 Def, Toxic Poison, Seal Defense, or Bind!
It transforms again into that rainbow creature, burning as brightly as the sun as it is reborn anew. It is growing weak, its beauty marred by the toils of battle, but it somehow looks healthier and faster than before.
It meets Pelleas’s own threat of an apocalypse with one of its own, and Pelleas feels the spirit within him die as the darkness of that revelation begins to sink in.
next: @boundlesshart !
Psychopomp activates! (-1HP) Claude’s HP: 9/10, Twin Soul’s HP: 35/50.
Twin Soul attacks the Party with Divine Fire. 4d20 roll. Claude: 16, Hit! (-2HP) 9/10HP → 7/10HP
Twin Soul takes Toxic Poison damage. (-1HP) Twin Soul’s HP: 32.5/50.
Rainbow feathers melt off the bird’s body as it sheds them for silver scales, taking on a more ethereal form. It’s the same creature... right? Pelleas certainly thinks so, and Claude doesn’t have much room to argue. “Got it!” Claude calls in response. The bird soars high, faster than it has any right to be, but Roxane swiftly pursues it. “Those feathers made it hard to get close to, so as long as they’re off—”
—and just like that, as if sensing Claude’s hope, that plucked chicken sprouts all those rainbow feathers back again. Of course. Couldn’t even finish his sentence! Rude!
Psychopomp activates! (-1HP) Claude’s HP: 6/10, Twin Soul’s HP: 31.5/50.
Claude: 6/10HP → 9/10HP with Edain’s Fortify.
Amaterasu, Bond, and Guardian’s Axe activate! Claude 10/10HP
There’s hardly any time to complain. Gritting his teeth, Claude winds up for a strong attack...
Lightning Axe! Roll: 17, hit! -4HP, Divine Soul 17.5/50HP
Feather allergy, -1HP, Claude 9/10HP
The feathers sear Claude’s skin again, but that’s the least of his worries when the bird turns its head towards him once more. Its beak marked with his allies’ blood, it shrieks furiously before attacking.
Divine Soul counters... twice! Roll: 3+6, 19+6, Hit, Crit! -6HP, Claude 3/10HP
That beak tears easily into flesh and weaker wyvern scales, and both dragon and rider cry out painfully as they try to escape the bird’s grasp. Claude clings onto Roxane’s neck as she kicks off bird’s face, flying just out of reach. She’s faltering, though. He is as well.
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Amaterasu, Bond & Guardian’s Axe heal Claude. (+3HP) Claude’s HP: 10/10.
“That’s the magic Edain used last time, isn’t it?” Returned to Roxane’s back, Claude pulls her away from the bird conjured from shadows. The worm she summoned last round fought against their enemy, but he can’t trust that these things are actually on their side. Still, the imposter’s sharp beak tears an opening for them to take advantage of. Trust or not, there’s no sense in wasting the opportunity. Claude’s response to Pelleas is a loud whistle, a command for Roxane to rush at their new enemy.
Claude attacks Twin Soul with Guardian’s Axe.
1d20 roll: 5+4. Hit! (-1HP) Twin Soul’s HP: 44/50.
Twin Soul is inflicted with Toxic Poison!
Freshly-formed rainbow scales soon crumble to Claude’s axe. It’s a surface wound as best, but that’s more than enough to infect the creature’s bloodstream with his poison.
Twin Soul counters with Sharp Beak. 1d20 roll: 16. Hit! (-2HP) Claude’s HP: 8/10. Claude is inflicted with -2 Def for one round!
The bird counters with a quick peck at the base of Roxane’s wing, frighteningly close to his leg. Red blood spills out from a new wound, now unprotected by scales. “Hey,” Claude begins with a soothing voice and a hand on her neck, but the irate wyvern ignores him in favor of revenge.
Trample activates! (-2HP) Twin Soul’s HP: 42/50.
Rainbow Scales activates! (-1HP) Claude’s HP: 7/10.
Roxane scores her talons across the bird’s neck, sending a flurry of feathers and scales scattering around them. One downy feather meets Claude’s cheek as suddenly as a splash of hot oil, and he recoils painfully. “Ow!” He pulls the reins harder than he means to, but it’s finally enough to force the wyvern to retreat.
Seal Defense activates! Twin Soul’s defense buffs are removed for one round.
“Careful with those feathers,” Claude warns Camilla as he soars by her. One hand reaches for a spot on his cheek, burned smooth and tender. “They hurt more than you think.”
all dreams come to an end eventually
For as nimble he had been through this surreal gauntlet of fights, the tome in his hands and the robes draping over his back now feel so inexorably heavy; he feels downright suffocated by them. Pelleas has been treated to many strange fantasies: the dream of being able to destroy things with his bare hands, the dream of being charismatic and fitting of his royal title, the dream of being able to rise to his so-called father’s might, and the dream that he could find his own happily ever after…
It’s time to come to reality, now. He’s not quite there yet, but if he’s being given the order to fight as he always has set himself out to do, he’s certain the end to this dream must be in sight.
He wields a staff, levitated through the air just as his old mentor had done it before him. Seeing Edain use it last time, seeing its similarity in design to that which his teacher in princely duties and dark magic had wielded… He has a very good idea of what he can do now with it.
The enemy soaring above them is majestic, scales colored every hue of the rainbow shimmering in the light… Pelleas knows Izuka would have loved to experiment on the thing.
Psychopomp activates! (-1HP) Claude’s HP: 7.5/10, Twin Soul’s HP: 49/50.
The moment it falters in its flight, Pelleas gets to action.
Pelleas tries to summon Shadow Puppets. 1d2 roll: 1. Success! A copy of Twin Soul - Ultra Sun has been summoned. It will last three phases.
With a spin of the staff, a bright light shines from it and from a pool of inky blobs does this dark matter coalesce into a twin form of the flying beast come into very being. Pelleas’s eyes are hollow, the first time they have been ever since this nightmare has begun, as he falls into line with the fighter he’s always chosen himself to become.
“ Go. ”
Shadow Puppet attacks Twin Soul with Sharp Beak. 2d20 roll: 3, 2. Hit! Hit! (-4HP) Twin Soul’s HP: 45/50. Twin Soul is inflicted with -2 Def for one round!
Twin Soul is unable to counterattack!
His command is quiet and even, but the puppet he’s conjured flies and strikes its original, beak scraping along those iridescent scales and hacking them off, a shower of rainbow descending upon them all in a motion not unlike a light rainfall, as it draws blood. It pierces through those defenses and then it returns to Pelleas’s side, shifting back into a pool of shapeless dark matter before it reforms itself again, evading the chance for a parry.
Darkness is his weapon, and he breathes it even here.
“ That should provide a temporary weakness in its defenses, though I can see that our enemy knows how to grow its scales again. We’ll have to be quick about it then… or else we’ll never make it out. ”
After all, he could spot one scale’s return already. Time was of the essence, this ever constant race against it, as it always was.
next: @boundlesshart !
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let’s take ibuprofen together | team 13 — silver round
pirrhyc:
“ Ah, m-my bad, ” Pelleas apologizes sincerely to Claude’s exasperation, realizing the effect his words had. But there’s no time to think, not when there was so much maneuvering around the battlefield to do. It’s only when Claude has returned from another of his daring attacks, the one man seemingly able to reach and scratch the surface of this gargantuan serpent, that Pelleas finds his opportunity to make amends.
Pelleas casts Recover on Claude. 1d20 roll: 4. Bad Heal! (+3HP) Claude’s HP: 10/10.
“ Thank you. It looks like you’ve set something on it to eat away at it… This fight is winnable then! I see now. ”
A poison touch, if Pelleas were to presume. Claude wasn’t looking that much better coloring-wise either though, perhaps inflicted with the same toxins, and although Pelleas’s staff can heal away wounds, it can not flush out the source.
He would have to keep an eye on him, even as they are brought company in the shape of the snake’s twin. It would appear as if Professor Edain had done it, though to be surrounded by two of these, even if one was an ally, did stir the blood and put the shaman on edge.
Chaos… That’s what this presence invited.
Primordial Serpent attacks the party with Earthquake. 4d20 roll: 3-3. Miss!
Pelleas: (-0HP) 10/10HP → 10/10HP
Party unable to counterattack!
But the earth trembles again, robbing Pelleas of his thoughts as he is set to dance his way around the cracks and the rocks, but now another source enters the fray.
Primordial Serpent attacks Pelleas and Claude with Poison Spit. 2d20 roll: 1-3. Miss!
Pelleas: (-0HP) 10/10HP → 10/10HP
Shots of venom hits the spot where Pelleas stood moments ago before he pulled himself out of the way, his agility the only thing keeping him unharmed even despite everything. But in his constant dodging, it has finally inched him close enough to attack their foe.
Pelleas counters with Candlelight. 1d20 roll: 17+3. Hit! (-0HP) Serpent’s HP: 26/40. Serpent is inflicted with Bind! Serpent is unable to attack at range, its range+ abilities are nullified, and the unit can be counterattacked by melee weapons until the end of the following phase.
And so he raises his candlestick high, fire burning bright as it ensnares the serpent and keeps it from moving even as it clearly tries to fight this force binding it. Pelleas may not have been able to deal any damage, but…
“ It can’t move far out! It can’t strike us with a ranged attack for as long as I can hold this! …Hopefully. ”
next: @boundlesshart or @maligknightsthorns !
Edain doesn’t know what she’s summoning. Thankfully, Claude flies above her so he’s free to wince out of sight. “Oh, uh, is that so...”
And then, it happens. Rising from the shadows, another one. Claude yelps in surprise—he can hardly blame the kinshi for spooking, it shrieks as it flaps away from their newest enemy. That staff looks like it’s working, though. “Is that it?!” He shouts, barely able to contain his shock and fear. “Gods! Just as we were getting somewhere with the first one!” The summoned creature spits its poison at their first enemy, but Claude can’t see it being a reliable ally for long. “Careful!
“We can still do this.” But really, Pelleas opens Claude’s eyes to something that he thought wouldn’t be possible just a few minutes earlier. The worm is still as strong and feisty as ever, but its movements are growing sluggish. It’s getting tired, slowly but surely. Claude sensed that the poison laced on his weapon was strong, but not strong enough to bring a beast that size down in this amount of time.
Psychopomp activates! Claude’s HP: 9/10, Serpent’s HP: 26/40.
Oh well. As the people of Fódlan say, no sense looking at a gift horse in the mouth.
Serpent attacks with Earthquake! Roll 2-5, Miss! Claude 9/10HP
Serpent follows up with Poison Spit! Roll 16-5, Hit. Claude 8.5/10HP
Primordial Serpent takes Toxic Poison damage and Serpent Poison’s damage! (-2HP) Serpent’s HP: 24/40. Serpent loses -0.5 Str/Mag.
Psychopomp activates! Claude’s HP: 7.5/10, Serpent’s HP: 23/40.
Bond and Guardian’s Axe activate! Claude 10/10HP
Claude tightens his grip on the axe, wincing at how slimy his hands have gotten with all this spit and acid and eugh. Hilda wouldn’t last two seconds here, getting drooled on like this. Circumstances be damned, Claude can’t help but smile at the mental image of her whining about all their troubles. For once, she’d have a good point...
Spirits renewed, he dives back towards the worm’s head, aiming for that same gap in its armor.
Claude attacks with the Guardian’s Axe! 8+4, Hit! 0 damage, Serpent 23/40HP
Serpent counterattacks! 14-9, hit! -1HP, Claude 9/10HP
Trample activates! Serpent 21/40HP
Claude takes Serpent Poison damage. -1HP, Claude 8/10HP and -0.5 Str/Mag.
Not quite. The axe is weighing heavily on Claude’s arms now—he’s getting exhausted himself. The poison is running its course. All he can do is bear it.
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let’s take ibuprofen together | team 13 — silver round
ulirblood:
‘edain dear don’t get down. try again!’ comes camilla’s comforting— even in the midst of battle— words. she clutches her staff unsure of herself. she wasn’t even sure what magic she was trying to use right now. she bites her lip, raising her staff once more, before another set of quakes shake the ground beneath her. while she deftly dodges the rocks that fly up, her faith is quickly shut down in her concentration. her shield is raised to block anything she cannot dodge.
[ edain was refreshed! edain rolls to summon shadow puppets, 2, fail! ]
[ primordial serpent rolls to attack with earthquake, 12, hit for 0 damage! ]
she would be useless at this rate. a huff of frustration, her next attempt at least leads to a different feeling than her previous. a feeling in her heart of magic too great to ever capture— a beast stronger than the one they face that attempts to live through her faith. it’s different than anything she’s ever felt before.
[ edain rolls to summon shadow puppets, 2, fail! again :pensive: ]
summoning— was this staff to summon something? edain frowns, falling back and away from the serpent. why else did her chest feel like this, her heart burdened by the faith she tries to summon? it never felt like that for her, not until now. perhaps then, this staff was key to defeating their enemy? “i’m sorry everyone, please give me a little more time!” she calls out to her allies. she must figure this out eventually, surely. “i know this staff is useful i just—” she huffs. “i have to get it to work.”
Claude restored to 8.5/10HP
Claude is grateful for Pelleas’ healing, but that quickly turns into exasperation. Could have done without the comment, man! “You’re supposed to be healing my wounds, not rubbing salt in them! Hard enough coming back from the dead...”
Psychopomp activates! Claude 7.5/10HP, Serpent 35/40HP
Weakness strikes again, but he’s strong enough to bear through it this time. The poison should be coursing through the worm’s body by now: all they have to do is tire it out.
Primordial Serpent uses Earthquake! Roll 15-5, Hit! -1HP, Claude 6.5/10HP
Primordial Serpent follows up with Poison Spit! 7-5, Miss! Claude 6.5/10HP
Primordial Serpent takes Toxic Poison Damage! -1HP, 34/40
Psychopomp activates! Claude 5.5/10HP, Serpent 33/40HP
Claude laughs nervously to himself—all they have to do, he thinks. Talk about a tall order. But they can do it. He believes in this team. They have to...
Bond and Guardian’s Axe activate! Claude HP 8.5/10HP
Tightening his grip on the axe, he circles the worm’s head for an opening. It’s sights are set on Edain, desperate to pull off that spell she’s been talking about. Claude doesn’t quite know what she’s trying to do, but if she says that it’s useful, then that’s enough for him. I’ll buy you some time, he promises. She has their target well-distracted, and the least Claude can do is return the favor.
Claude attacks! 20, crit! -3HP, Serpent 30/40HP
It shrieks. Claude’s ears ring and go half-deaf, but he grins all the same. Got you.
Primordial Serpent counters with Poison Spit, 8-5, Hit! Claude 7/10HP
Its saliva burns at Claude’s bare skin again, and that stench. The kinshi’s talons dig into the worm’s soft skin and push off, flying out of reach once more.
Claude takes Serpent’s Poison Damage! -1HP, 6/10HP and -0.5 strength/magic
Trample damage on Serpent, -2HP, Serpent 28/40HP
Nausea rises in his throat as Claude descends to Edain’s side. “What’s that staff supposed to do?” he asks. He doesn’t have the best view, but it looks nothing like the healing staves he’s familiar with.
#t. ibuprofen party#ulirblood#pirrhyc#maligknightthorns#toaarena2022winter#getting hit by earthquake as a flying type hurts
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Air fills Claude’s lungs once more. His armored legs, once scratched by smooth wyvern scales, now straddle the white feathered body of a magnificent bird. Unlike last time, Claude wakes up already soaring the skies. Exhausted, but alert. Alive, but still here. Still in hell.
Claude frowns, already light-headed. “We could say that...”
Psychopomp activates! Claude HP 4/10, Primordial Serpent HP 39/40
With a soft groan, he places a hand on his chest, brows furrowed in confusion. Taking a deep breath pains him. Wonderful. Some kind of poison? Injuries from the last battle?
Primordial Serpent attacks with Earthquake! 1-5, Miss! Claude HP 4/10
The, er, the worm focuses its energy on grounded targets first. Good, that’s good, but the idea of rushing in to draw the monster’s attention like last time... it leaves a bad taste in Claude’s mouth. Still, it must be done. Swallowing his fear once more, he spurs the kinshi into action and tries a sneak attack. Only for the worm to turn its head towards it, hissing as it opens its maw.
Primordial Serpent attacks with Poison Spit! 11-5, Miss! Claude HP 4/10
A last-minute tug at the reins commands the bird to fly upward, avoiding the attack.
Psychopomp activates! Claude HP 3/10, Primordial Serpent HP 38/40
Talk about a heart attack... Claude coughs out the breath stuck in his throat.
Bond and Guardian’s Axe activate! Claude HP 6/10
There’s no ambush on the menu anymore, but they’ll have to make do. The axe Claude wield glistens with a certain wet sheen, something that registers as poison in his mind. That’s reason enough to try again.
Claude attacks with the Guardian Axe! 10+4, Hit! -0 HP, Primordial Serpent HP 38/40 and inflicted with Toxic Poison
Primordial Serpent counterattacks! 17-5, Hit! -1.5HP, Claude HP 4.5/10 and inflicted with Serpent’s Poison.
Trample activates! -2HP, Primordial Serpent HP 36/40
Getting close is the only way that Claude could have landed a blow. That thick hide barely looked like it was damaged, but he could feel the blade sink below the skin’s first layer all the same. That should be enough. Even as poison begins to course through him, let this be enough...
let’s take ibuprofen together | team 13 — silver round
the beast falls thanks to pelleas’s might and edain falls in and out of consciousness. claude. she thinks. what about claude? when she wakes next it is to the mighty tremors of the earth beneath her— beneath all of them. a gentle soothing feeling from her shield is interrupted by the intensity of the earth’s quakes.
[ occhain shield activates and heals edain for 1HP, 9/10HP remaining ]
[ primordial serpent rolls to attack with earthquake, 11, 0 damage ]
her stomach rolls as she tries to stay on her feet, looking to her allies fraught with worry. claude was alive! thank the gods. a smaller smile is brought to her face despite their circumstances and soon the tremors stop— but an assault still follows. one that seems so obvious in hindsight.
[ primordial serpent rolls to attack edain with poison spit, 2, miss! ]
a poison liquid shoots out of their enemy’s mouth, edain only just now noticing this time they face a terrifying serpent-like creature. she dodges out of the way with such ease, ducking and letting the poison liquid hit the arena floor instead.
strange, she felt so light on her feet…!
[ edain rolls to counter with luce, 4, 0 damage ]
the priestess rises just as quickly, throwing her hand out— light magic follows but it isn’t something she’s ever seen or used before in her life! orbs of light that all converge together to become one ultimate and bright explosion. this is luce. her mind supplies for her, and then she reaches for the staff at her back.
[ edain rolls to summon shadow puppets, 2, fail ]
she tries to summon her faith through the staff, unsure of what will come out of it— nothing, apparently. a frown tugs at her lips until she feels a gentle healing light again. from pelleas and claude? she thinks with a purse of her lips as she looks back to them.
if only she could heal them as well. “is everyone alright?” she asks with her usual gentle worry.
HI TEAM! @pirrhyc @boundlesshart @maligknightsthorns
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King of the Rats attacks with Spendthrift!
Roll: 2, 2, -4HP. Claude HP 6/10HP
Magic sears Claude’s skin to the point of painlessness—all he can hear is Roxane’s agonizing shriek as it cuts through the cacophony of battle. This is where it starts to go wrong.
The hair on Claude’s arms and neck stand on their ends. Heat and pain and fear fester in his body, infecting his thoughts, threatening to overwhelm him. This might be it. There’s nowhere to run. One remaining bodyguard has its beady eyes set on Claude, that hungry-wyvern look that even Roxane has when they come across a wounded animal. A hot, easy meal. It’s the truth, as sick as it makes him.
...Fine, then. If those two rats are set on attacking the weakest link, then let them try. Turning a blind eye to Pelleas, Camilla, and Edain will be the last mistake they ever make.
Claude exhales nervously. Roxane’s massive heart beats between his legs, almost as loud as his own. He’s been struck down in the arena before. Edain revived just a few minutes ago. Why fear dying when that’s not even on the table right now? (His mind immediately rejects that thought. That’s definitely for the best.)
“I’ll draw their attention.” It’s the last thing Claude says before he spurs Roxane into charging the Rat King.
Claude attacks with Valaura. Roll: 13, Hit! -3HP, King of the Rats 2.5/30HP & inflicted with Toxic Poison.
The monster lets out a shrill scream. Smoke rises from its skin, reeking of burnt hair. The King commands its guard with a squeak, and with that they both pursue Claude. While Roxane lets him soar far above them, it hardly deters them.
The King of the Rats counterattacks with Arson! Roll: 3, miss! Claude 6/10HP
He can feel the heat of the flames before Roxane deftly dodges the blast. She dives downward.
King of the Rats takes Toxic Poison damage! (-1HP) King of the Rats’ HP: 1.5/30.
King of the Rats attacks the party with Shakedown. Roll @ Claude: 11, Hit! Claude affected by Bind!
Roxane roars in confusion. Her wings don’t quite work anymore. Both wyvern and rider cry out as they are sent tumbling to the ground.
King of the Rats attacks Claude and Pelleas with Rollout at 2-Range! Roll @ Claude: 19, Crit! Claude 2/10HP, unable to counterattack.
Claude’s bones are crushed under Roxane’s weight. The Rat King abandons its downed prey. It’s the bodyguard that goes in for the kill with a bloody, double-edged blade.
Bodyguard D attacks Claude with Double-Edged Blade. 1d20 roll: 19. Hit! (-2HP) Claude’s HP: 0/10.
Claude has been defeated!
The party is no longer under the effects of Inspiration!
As Claude falls to darkness, the weight lifts...
pirrhyc:
le voyage du héros — steel round ( team thirteen )
By the time Pelleas evens out his breathing, one of the smaller rats (comparatively) skitters across the ground and kicks up into the air, staking its life on stabbing Pelleas even if it means abandoning its king.
Bodyguard B attacks Pelleas with Double-Edged Blade. 1d20 roll: 15. Hit! (-0HP) Pelleas’s HP: 10/10.
Pelleas counters with Khanda. 1d20 roll: 18. Hit! (-2.5HP) Bodyguard B’s HP: 7.5/10.
Bodyguard B doubles Pelleas with Double-Edged Blade. 1d20 roll: 5. Hit! (-0HP) Pelleas’s HP: 10/10.
Trample activates! (-2HP) Bodyguard B’s HP: 5.5/10.
Panic floods Pelleas, or so he would think, but his arm moves seemingly on its own, pure instinct fueling him as he uses his blade to bat the rodent off his mount, not even flinching as the rat tries its best to strike at him on the way back down, cutting a tear into one of his sleeves right before Pelleas commands his wyvern companion to use its tail to thrash the poor thing down into the coliseum’s ground beneath them with a horrid thud and crack.
But despite the fact the rat’s two strikes connects and Pelleas can see a thin line of his blood beading out of his arm, he still feels no pain. No… if anything, he feels great! Stronger even! The best he’s ever felt in his life!
Bodyguard B takes recoil damage! 1d6 roll: 1. (-1HP) Bodyguard B’s HP: 4.5/10.
Pelleas absorbs Speed from Bodyguard B. Pelleas gains +2 Speed and Bodyguard B loses -2 Speed.
The small rat writhes in pain, seemingly accepting of its coming death, as Pelleas begins to grin from ear to ear as he hovers in the sky, looking down at his once-predator and now-turned-prey.
Magic so often takes from him, and illness had weakened him again and again… but here in this dream, here he could be anything he wanted to be! He could be everything he has always dreamed to be! He could be strong, he could be mighty, he could no longer have to cower before anyone…!
No wonder the king before him grew mad with power! For who knew that power that came at no price at all tasted so sweet?! He could drink of this, drink to his own death of it, to simply know this in reality…!
Did General Ike and Queen Elincia know how good they had it?! Did they?! Did Queen Nailah and King Tibarn feel this high every time they attacked? Is this why the laguz only felt truly alive when they charged into battle?
To think, before, he would get sick and vomit on the battlefield, but now he could take blows, could bleed out onto the earth, and feel stronger for it…!
Running on this exhilaration and euphoria, the shaman’s focus increases, that difficulty to breathe seemingly a thing of the past, and he takes advantage of the opening in the ring of defense that that errant vassal had left behind.
Pelleas attacks King of the Rats with Khanda. Windsweep activates! 1d20 roll: 8+2. Hit! (-3.5HP) King of the Rats’ HP: 23.5/30.
King of the Rats unable to counterattack!
Pelleas absorbs Speed from King of the Rats. Pelleas gains +2 Speed (for a total of +4 Speed) and King of the Rats loses -2 Speed.
Trample activates! (-2HP) King of the Rats’ HP: 21.5/30.
Soaring, Pelleas and his wyvern fly fast, swooping in and attacking right where they spot a mark characteristic of the burn of dark magic. A wound that would be easy to fester and make worse— the perfect target, and Pelleas feels himself grow faster, heart reaching exaltation in tandem with his return to the sky, his steed giving a good whack over the King of the Rats before the thing could quite get up on its feet to even dare to think of fighting back…!
But as Pelleas goes to look back at the state of the battle, curious to know just how much he was capable of now, he spots a woman standing when before she had been the color of death.
Pelleas’s wicked smile turns sickly sweet as he notices her, genuine relief dripping in amidst the chaos of other emotions battling for dominance within him.
“ Professor Edain! ” he calls down to her with a big wave from the hand of his wielding his sword still. “ What a relief that you’re still alive…! You look far better now! Oh, thank Ashunera…! ”
That was one less thing on his conscience, knowing she hadn’t actually died in front of him and that he hadn’t been able to have the power to keep his allies from dying whether that be physical might or through magic.
next: @maligknightsthorns !
Protected from attacks for a bit? She liked the sound of that. Camilla urged Leo’s horse towards the middle of the arena.
One of the smaller rats dared to try to attack Camilla. A barrier of light protected her, and she smiled like a Cheshire cat as the rat looked confused. “Say night night!” She grabbed the rat’s snout and let the dark magic blow it back. The rat trembled before exploding in a disgusting pile of goo.
Bodyguard C attacks Camilla with Double-Edged Blade. Camilla is protected by the Light Rune!
Camilla counters with Gespenst. 1d20 roll: 7. Hit! (-5HP) Bodyguard C’s HP: 5/10.
Bodyguard C takes recoil damage! 1d5 roll: 5. (-5HP) Bodyguard C’s HP: 0/10.
Bodyguard C has been defeated!
Leo’s horse reared back in fear and Camilla grabbed the reigns in a panic. “Calm down please calm down quit being scared.” She patted the horse’s neck in an attempt to calm the frightened beast. She looked up and watched Pelleas revel in the blood shed he was creating. At least someone was having fun.
At the sound of her name, Camilla’s ears perked up. Well she was just getting all kinds of goodies this time wasn’t she? “I won’t let you down dear.” She smiled.
Oh the axe felt so nice in her hand…
She urged Leo’s horse towards the big guy. She swung, getting two hits in on the king rat as she passed. The rat tried to attack her with the same spell it had used on Edain, but it missed by a wide margin. Camilla scoffed. “Pathetic. That was your only chance.” She turned Leo’s horse around and readied another attack, hitting it twice more.
Camilla attacks King of the Rats with Brave Axe. Uncanny Blow activates! 2d20 roll: 19+6, 16+6. Hit! Hit! (-9HP) King of the Rats’ HP: 12.5/30.
King of the Rats counters with Arson. 1d20 roll: 4. Miss! (-0HP) Camilla’s HP: 10/10.
Camilla doubles (quads technically, I guess) King of the Rats with Brave Axe. Uncanny Blow activates! 2d20 roll: 4+6, 11+6. Barely Hit! Hit! (-7HP) King of the Rats’ HP: 5.5/30.
Suddenly, she felt as if the breath was stolen from her lungs. She gasped and coughed as she struggled to regain her composure.
King of the Rats has reached 50% HP or lower! King of the Rats attacks the entire party with Spendsthrift!
Camilla: (-2HP) 10/10HP → 8/10HP
There was only one thief Camilla was willing to tolerate and this rat was not it. Leo’s horse began to panic again and suddenly she was occupied with both trying to catch breath and calm the horse. “Someone kill that stupid rat!” She coughed out as she tried to placate the horse.
#t. le voyage#toaarena2022winter#pirrhyc#ulirblood#maligknightthorns#directions unclear: gets killed by stupid rat#my thought is that roxane gets thanos snapped after claude blacks out
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le voyage du héros — steel round ( team thirteen )
ulirblood:
she comes to consciousness next with the most splitting headache she’s ever felt before. her memories are lacking, the last thing she remembers being calling out to claude. her brow furrows in confusion, but her thoughts on the matter pause as she realizes they face a new enemy, and edain has been granted a new arsenal.
her fingers flex experimentally at the feeling of a new magic she hasn’t played with before, along with the comfort of faith that returns to thrum in her heart. though she now had a shield she has no physical weapon. she is no longer forced to hurt herself with that stupid bow— what a relief.
the steed she sits atop is new, but it feels as if she has always known how to ride. was that an effect of this strange dream? nevertheless her gaze startles upward at the sound of flapping wyvern wings. pelleas is not the person she expects to see riding it, smashing into one of the rat creatures with a gusto she didn’t know he had!
[ edain rolls to attack bodyguard A with halahala, 11 ]
[ bodyguard a takes 3 damage, bodyguard a has been defeated! ]
the rat is left with barely a hold on its life, and somehow she knows she can finish it off. raising her hand, a black magic spell she’s never heard of comes to mind. a strange murky poison— a dark mass similar to swarm or mire is rained down upon the rat and just like that it is defeated.
[ edain rolls to use recover on claude, 14, +6HP claude 10/10HP remaining ]
shook for a moment, edain moves to work her faith as well. this was something she was familiar with, something far more comforting to both her mind and heart. claude is the first one she pays attention to, guiding her horse to his side. momentarily she dismounts so she may get a better look at his injuries. “claude— i don’t remember what happened last time, are you alright?” she speaks as she manifests her faith to her hands— the fodlan way of healing. she would be lying if she didn’t say she missed her staff. “did we defeat it…? the one before this…”
NEXT: @boundlesshart
The heavy exhale of a wyvern’s breath blows through Claude’s hair. He can tell Roxane is here from that alone, that and her crooning chirps as she “gently” leans her head against his side. This is the last place I’d want her to be in, Claude muses, projection or not. But for now, she’s too real for Claude to resist stroking her snout and rubbing his hands on her antlers, everywhere she loves to be scratched and petted.
They’ve cleared the second round, and Claude has entered uncharted territory. He can’t imagine what waits for them at the end...
“Ah!” The sudden surge of healing magic knocks Claude out of his thoughts and into reality. Edain looks at him with concern, a trained healer’s eye scanning his body for injuries. She lived. Thank the gods. Claude flashes an exhausted grin at her, only for it to fall when she asks her questions.
He pauses to take a breath, only to hesitate. Then, “Yeah, we managed to pull through.” Claude knows the truth, they didn’t really defeat it. But Edain doesn’t need to know that. And if she doesn’t remember her death in the last round... then maybe that’s for the best. He collects himself before carefully pulling out another lie, “But you were seriously injured. Camilla had to destroy the Devils Bow before it could kill you.
“Please... don’t risk your life like that again. We all need each other to stay alive if we want to make it through here in one piece.” There’s more that he wants to say to her. Why did you take the Devils Bow? Why did you sacrifice yourself? What about your life? But Claude leaves that unsaid, lips pressed tightly before all these nerves and feelings can overwhelm him. Instead he mounts Roxane and takes flight, leaving Edain behind as he rushes to Camilla’s side.
Claude casts Light Rune on Camilla!
“You should be protected from attacks for a short while,” Claude shouts. “Cut our path forward!”
#t. le voyage#toaarena2022winter#pirrhyc#ulirblood#maligknightthorns#claude is having Complicated Feelings
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tonight’s top story: everything is awful!
maligknightsthorns:
Everything went so wrong so fast. One of the little scraps got a good hit on Camilla’s head, knocking her off her rhythm. She threw out a spell, but missed.
Scrap D attacks Camilla with Juggernaut Strike. 1d20 roll: 18+1. Crit! (-3HP) Camilla’s HP: 7/10.
Camilla counters with Luna. 1d20 roll: 4. Miss! (-0HP) Scrap D’s HP: 10/10.
Her head pounded from the impact, but Edain’s shout jolted her out of her confusion. “Edain!” Camilla cried out. She ran as fast as she could. She would take the hit for her. She could endure.
She wouldn’t make it.
Camilla watched in horror as Edain was struck and crumbled to the ground. “Edain!” She slid the rest of the way to the fallen friend. “Edain!” Camilla scooped her up into her arms, trying to find any hope. Edain grew cold in Camilla’s embrace.
Camila went still. It felt so senseless. One moment things were going so well, they were going to break that stupid bow together…
Camilla ignored Pelleas’s question, the whirring and grinding of the machines bringing her back to the battle field. Camilla set Edain down, closing her eyes. It almost looked as if she were sleeping. Covered in blood and bruises and poison throbbing throbbing through her veins from that stupid stupid bow. It seemed so unfair that Edain was stuck with a weapon that made her so weak, while Camilla herself was granted a shield that healed her.
Seiros Shield heals Camilla. (+1HP) Camilla’s HP: 8/10.
With a banshee shriek, Camilla grabbed the cursed bow and snapped it over her knee. She threw the broken bow at one of the scraps and a spell at the big machine. The spell was careless though, missing by a wide margin.
Camilla attacks Revolution with Luna. 1d20 roll: 2. Miss! (-0HP) Revolution’s HP: 12.5/20.
Her nostrils flared as she fought to control her breathing. There were two students still to protect. Her anger would do no good here.
Camilla is at Edain’s side before Claude can even begin to process the reality of what just happened. And then it hits him, breath catching in his throat as he realizes that Edain just took a hit meant for him. Claude grits his teeth. Why? Why? Didn’t you want to live? Didn’t you value your life? Why did you throw your life away like that? There was no reason... This pain in his heart hurts more than anything these golems can do to him.
Nausea roils in Claude’s throat, worsened by the tingling heat of Pelleas’ healing magic. He clutches the gauntlets tighter. Pull it together, he scolds himself. Just a little longer. So long as we’re alive, we can still pull through. He takes a minute to collect himself before turning to his distraught allies. “I was ‘killed’ by the Projections before. A pegasus knight ran me through with a poisoned lance.” Claude swallows thickly when he recalls the memory, but there’s no time for that now. “You can probably see that I’m not dead right now.
“The rest of my party ‘died’ too. But after I was killed, I woke up outside of that realm and they were all there. Seriously injured, sure, but alive. We all were. I’m not sure if it’ll be the same this time,” Claude admits. “But that’s out of our hands now. We need to focus on what we can do. And right now, we need to fight.”
Claude casts Light Rune on Pelleas!
“Sorry, but that includes you too.” The way Pelleas shouted about how useless he was still grates in Claude’s ears. “You’ve been keeping us alive, and that counts as something! So please, stay standing. As long as you can!”
The biggest monster sets its sights on the two, wielding a massive weapon. The pellets deflect off of Pelleas’ newly restored Light Rune, but Claude is less lucky.
Revolution shoots with the Gatling Gun! Roll: 14-2=12, Hit, 9-2=7, Barely Hit. -2.5HP, Claude HP 7.5/10
And just after a good heal, too, Claude thinks wryly to himself. He throws a few punches back, grateful that he doesn’t have to actually get near the thing.
Roll: 9, Hit! But Revolution is too buff to take any damage! Revolution’s HP 12.5/20
“I’ll stay by Edain’s body, so go!” Claude raises his voice so that Camilla can hear as well. “Give them hell for me!”
#t. everything is awful#you know what? everything IS awful#toaarena2022winter#pirrhyc#maligknightthorns#ulirblood
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tonight’s top story: everything is awful!
ulirblood:
the soothing comfort of recover washes over her with pelleas hurrying to her side. ‘power like that is scary, isn’t it?’ he says, to which edain purses her lips tight. there is something of this bow that seems to wound her when she utilizes it, but it is not as if she can help out in any other way in her current way.
suddenly her student pulls her out of the way of an incoming monster, edain wide-eyed for a moment— for she had not thought even a second to pay attention to the battle at hand. oh ullr, please give her the ability to get her head together. “..it’s the only way i can fight back at the moment, so i’ll have to endure it.” she replies simply before he heads off in the direction of camilla.
[ prayer ring heals edain, +1HP, 9/10 HP remaining ]
she grabs for her bow again, able to walk again thanks to pelleas’s healing magic. it would be a lie to say she wasn’t scared to feel that strange poison again… but she cannot back down. decidedly she knocks another arrow, looking for a weakpoint upon the largest mechanical monster. she feels the prayer ring give her just a little bit more energy as she does so.
if she could incapiciate it for even the briefest moment… perhaps she would be a little more useful in supporting her allies. it is than that she spots it, a softer surface in the legss of the mechanical monster. narrowing her gaze, she pulls back the string and aims.
[ edain uses encloser on revolution, 14 ]
[ revolution takes 0.5 damage, 17.5/20HP remaining and bind activates ]
the monster crumples to the ground, the legs temporarily disrupted giving everyone an easier chance to fight it. she can’t say she looked like she did much damage, but at the very least that would help take it down faster without anyone else getting hurt.
[ devil bow activates recoil, 7 damage, edain 2/10HP remaining ]
again the pain comes, but this time it is somehow so much worse. edain cries out in pain, managing to keep herself from falling thanks to the fact that the recoil was not a surprise anymore, but still clutching herself for comfort. it truly felt like poison seeping through her very veins— was this somehow meant to be a punishment inflicted on her, for ignoring the purpose of ullr’s blood in her all this time? whatever it was, she wasn’t sure how much more of this she could take.
NEXT: @boundlesshart
Don’t worry, Claude. I’ll be fine.
Professor Edain was, in fact, not fine. Claude may not play the role of healer too often, but it doesn’t take a trained eye to recognize a weakened ally on her last legs. Fear rises in his belly, but something worse threatens to overwhelm him. Frustration. Towards the professor, for being so damn reckless. And towards himself, for the lapse in judgement.
A thought intrudes Claude’s mind. If he had stopped her, ignored her word and went with his own intuition, maybe things wouldn’t have gotten this bad for the professor. Claude grits his teeth. He can’t just will this feeling away. His pessimistic side clings to this turn of events—I should have been more forceful. I should not have let her keep that bow.
Does that mean I was wrong to trust her?
The mere suggestion is all it takes to extinguish the Light Rune Claude placed on Edain. The magic relies on reaching out to others, connecting with them, placing your faith and trust in them. That doesn’t come easily to him. Claude relies on himself most of the time and for good reason.
Claude casts Light Rune on Pelleas!
But he musters just enough faith for poor Pelleas, who is looking worse for wear through all his efforts of keeping their little party alive. If Claude can’t rely on his teammates, they’re all done for. “Stay alive, will you?” There’s no point in forcing a smile when they’re fighting for their lives. “I’ve got your back, so keep doing what you’re doing.”
#t. everything is awful#toaarena2022winter#pirrhyc#ulirblood#maligknightthorns#losing support points in real time
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tonight’s top story: everything is awful!
all things considered (iron round) @ulirblood @maligknightsthorns @pirrhyc
What’s here for them now? Monsters made from metal scraps flank a larger golem, knights besides a king, all of them clearly out to kill them like the enemies before and the ones that will come. Claude can barely begin to grasp how these monsters will come for them. Instead his thoughts cling to the things he can recognize. The people in his party, unchanged since the last battle... and the bow in Edain’s hand.
“Hey, Professor...” A Devil Bow? A fickle weapon, plenty capable of killing its own master if it sees fit. Claude can’t say he knows the professor too well, but she definitely never struck him as the type to go for such a dangerous bow. Frowning, he reaches out to grip Edain’s shoulder, exerting as much authority as a student from a different house can. “...I’m placing my faith in you. That you know what you’re doing with that bow.”
Claude casts Light Rune on Edain!
“The bow’s not worth your life. Its power isn’t worth dying for. You get that, right?”
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These illusory things aren’t something to be messed with. When Claude’s first foray into the “colosseum” ended with him and his teammates ejected from the ring, beaten within an inch of their lives, he decided that he had enough of that for a while.
No, thank you. Another chance to fight the monsters and learn what he couldn’t last time comes, for once Claude balks at the idea. Giving up isn’t in his nature, but there’s a first time for everything, right? Not this. Not again. I’m good, actually. I’ll live. Claude’s fought several lifetimes’ worth of battles, he’s decided. What’s left for him? “Redemption”?
-
Redemption it is. Claude narrows his eyes at the Thunder Beast before them, squinting against the glare of light reflecting off dazzling fur. Light on its feet, the beast moves with catlike agility, its beady eyes firmly set on the humans before it. A creature that agile would never allow an enemy to get close to it. Yet Pelleas, to his credit, manages it. He rushes to greet the monster with his dark-tinged gauntlets, quick on his feet in a way Claude’s never seen from the shaman before. Two quick hits land in succession, and moments later the beast’s flesh shows signs of being poisoned.
“Good start,” Claude comments under his breath. That should slow the beast down. His hand reach for a quiver that is suddenly there, pulling out the first of many arrows. If there’s one thing he likes about this strange space, it’s how their weapons and abilities appear to them naturally, as though wielding them is second nature to them.
Chase roll: 38
The wound Pelleas opened serves as a natural target. Bow in hand, Claude nocks his arrow and aims for bloodied fur.
Roll: 9, hit! -1HP, Thunder Beast HP 6/10
It’s far from a perfect shot, but it’s enough to slow it down just enough. No good deed goes unpunished, though, when the beast retaliates with crushing fangs.
Thunder Beast counters, 13-2 = 11, crit! Claude HP 7/10
blood and thunder — bronze round ( team thirteen )
Ever since coming to Rusalka, tranquility and dreams beyond compare have been the dominant forces to contend with. A dream too sweet to be real, too wondrous to withstand, have become the norm, and although many things in this life were unpredictable, Pelleas had begun to believe he knew where tonight’s dream would take him this time.
It would be familiar, he believed, but the scenery that greets him in the coming night is not quite what he had anticipated.
Roars of a coliseum assault the senses, and he feels himself ushered down a tunnel towards it. He is not chained down, but there is little else to go to, and staying within that tunnel does not guarantee his safety. It just ensures a setting for him to get cornered into.
So he runs, greets the light, and he comes face to face with a great beast when he emerges out into the arena’s center stage. The crowd erupts further, louder, but the creature in the sky begins to fly farther, threatening to get out of reach.
But it cannot escape. Something tells Pelleas this— instinct, perhaps— and so he knows all it is doing is surely preparing something no good.
He cannot let this be.
Chase Roll: 48
A desperation fuels him, not unlike how his other dreams in Rusalka have gone, and he comes to the realization that the inclination to violence that his other dreams have granted him has followed him here too, blinding him to his surroundings. All that exists in this moment is him and the winged beast as the shaman leaps up into the air to follow it, graced with a speed he seldom knows…
Pelleas attacks Thunder Beast with Shifter’s Claws. 2d20 roll: 7, 16. Hit! Hit! (-3HP) Thunder Beast’s HP: 7/10. Thunder Beast has been inflicted with Toxic Poison!
…and he slashes at the beast, grasping onto its thick hide with his bare hands, cutting deep into it with two lashes. He feels something beyond adrenaline pump through him, and the discoloration of the creature’s new wounds makes him recognize it for what it is— what is quickly spreading through the monster’s system.
His eyes widen at this revelation, taken out of his near intoxicated stupor to question the horror of this news, but to do so is a mistake. When one is up so high in the air, they need to hang on for dear life or be willing to sacrifice it, after all.
Thunder Beast counterattacks with Crushing Fangs. 1d20 roll: 14. Crit! (-3HP) Pelleas’s HP: 7/10.
The monster screeches and fights against its assailant, throwing the dark mage off from its back and sending him down to the sands below, careening until he hits with a harsh thud and a spatter of blood as to be expected from such a plummet.
“ Haaaah… ” Pelleas picks himself up off the ground, surprised to feel himself still in-tact. No magic, no weapon…
Just his two hands and their poison touch.
@maligknightsthorns @ulirblood @boundlesshart
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Claude scoffs, though he smiles good-naturedly. “Come on, you make it sound like I tortured you. Did you even break a sweat today?” He didn’t think that training session was particularly hard, but Hilda’s “gauge” runs differently from everyone else’s. If she’s still standing by the end of the period, she’s fine! But he softens just enough to let her finish her complaining. “Of course, if you broke a nail, then there’s something to complain about.”
But nothing that tragic has to happen for Hilda’s next complaint to come in–bows and bullseyes don’t belong in the dining hall, and it takes a second for Claude to connect the two. “Oh! Huh, so that was today. The uhh… Fork-Knife-Spoon challenge, something like that.” It’s coming back to him now. Their archery instructor told them that they’d be doing something like this.
Claude raises an eyebrow. “Me? Are you sure about that? If anything I’d be too good at this, you’ll end up with three spoons.” He returns his gaze to the target, regarding it more seriously. As far as he can tell there’s no tricks to this, it’s exactly what it looks like. Getting the best utensils will be a cinch for him. As for Hilda… that’s tough. Claude isn’t opposed to doing her a favor as a friend as much as he’s loathe to fuel her antics.
…He probably owes her, Claude decides. Probably. Not that he admits it to Hilda of all people–turning away from her pleading doe eyes, he scratches the back of his neck and lets out an exaggerated sigh. “Well, if it’s this easy… but you’ll owe me, Hilda, my talents don’t come cheap!”
It should have been simple, but the professors manning this station stop Claude from even picking up a bow on his own. Apparently he’s “too skilled”? Well, naturally, but how does that warrant a punishment? “You can only participate if you’re blindfolded,” the professor explains, handing over a strip of cloth as if Claude already agreed to this nonsense. “Otherwise, no dinner.”
No dinner! “You drive a hard bargain, Professor,” Claude retorts weakly, but with their food on the line, what choice does he have? With the blindfold on, he allows the professor to walk him in a circle and spin him around, disorienting him far more than necessary. He says that Claude’s where he started, but… He has no choice but to let memory guide his shots. Knife on the outside, spoon in the center, fork in between…
All three arrows pierce the canvas with a loud thump, but when Claude pulls off the blindfold, he’s disappointed by what he sees. “So two forks and a knife? I’m losing my touch…”
major drawback » claude & hilda
In collaboration with the kitchen staff, the archery professors have come up with a fun game. Each ring of the target corresponds with a piece of cutlery. Outer ring = Knife, Inner ring = Fork, Bullseye = spoon. Each student gets 3 arrows and whatever they hit is the cutlery they get to eat dinner with that night. Will they get all three or a strange mix or none? Either way the chefs hope they enjoy a hearty meal of soup, pasta with pesto & sausages, chocolate pecan pie and ice cream. [Grants Bow +1]
“That was exhausting,” Hilda complained to her House Leader as they headed towards the Dining Hall. Claude had orchestrated a gruelling training session, refusing to acknowledge her various excuses, and she was ready for a well-deserved meal and a long nap, in that order. “You’re lucky I’m still willing to eat with you after what you just put us through. I hope dinner tonight is at least—”
She stopped abruptly as they arrived, noticing that the chaotic din of the hall was far beyond its usual levels of commotion today.
“Huh?”
By the main entrance, the front tables had been cleared to make way for a row of targets. As she stood there, momentarily bewildered by this development, a group of students approached an available target. One by one, they drew back their bowstrings and unleashed each of their three missiles. Even more confusingly, one was lamenting at what she’d supposed would be a good score: three bullseyes.
Finally, she noticed the two details that allowed her to put two and two together: the kitchen staff, taking stock of scoring and handing out cutlery accordingly, and the text printed around the circumference of each ring, boasting the utensils they rewarded you with.
Hilda stomped her foot in an – at worst, childish, and at best, endearing – expression of frustration. “They’re putting work into mealtimes now?!”
With a desperate look at Claude and a bat of her eyelashes, she pleaded, “You’ll shoot my arrows for me, right?”
@boundlesshart
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you dropped this, king 👑
thyrosus:
LET THE RECORD SHOW LORENZ HELLMAN GLOUCESTER CAPABLE OF SILENCE.
Not that Claude would ever catch a word—least of all while on horseback.
Lorenz had intended on taking to Begonia alone: time to himself is a precious, finite resource, dwindling further and further with the climax of war on a promised horizon. It is far smarter to travel in pairs, but Lorenz has enough confidence in his ability to outride most anyone, and the chances of him being ambushed here are odds Lorenz chooses to gamble on for solitude, and for the purposes of riding out into the plains until he could no longer feel his legs. The idea to let himself in, bucking all propriety but a cursory warning knock, came later. It was only in the stiffness of a greeting, at the heels of a discussion gone well over time, that Lorenz considered the—timing of his actions.
Easy enough to remedy, and to not make it look as though he was getting the last word in. For once in his life, Lorenz can say with certainty Claude does not make it difficult to weave such a lie: “I would ask for the honor of a ride, but I would rather circumvent niceties—for this one time only, mind. I am setting out to survey our surroundings, and it would do you well to step outside at **some** point today.”
When Lorenz rides with company, it is polite to match pace, in order to facilitate the pleasant conversation and have two pairs of eyes alert to the surroundings. It’s not the first time they haven’t seen eye-to-eye, but perhaps the first in a while it has been due to such extenuating circumstances as a breakneck gallop. And let it be known Lorenz tried to keep pace, at first, but it almost certainly goes against the proper survey they should no doubt be doing, no matter the intentions he had to do the same without company.
So, instead, Begonia slows to a canter, then a trot, and then he’s leisurely setting his own walk unencumbered as Lorenz eases off his spurs, watching Claude become little more than a speck on the horizon with a pensive expression before he starts the trek back to Lorenz, windswept but at least in somewhat better spirits.
“Ah, well. I had a meal for two, as well as the finest Gloucester wine—but because you were so eager to make a grand escape at the suggestion, I’m afraid such preparations fell by the wayside.” The sarcasm is thick, although there’s not much bite in Lorenz’s words. Begonia snorts and the telltale whip of his tail sends any lazy flies scattering, not particularly interested in Claude nor his steed and likely just restless at the inconsistent pace.
“Expect no apology, and let your hunger be a lesson—this is not supposed to be a picnic, Claude!”
—Any interest in admonishing Claude further is allowed to be put to rest, then. Lorenz’s expression, mostly neutral, betrays the tiniest hint of a smile as much as there’s a certain… puzzlement. Still, the mantle of nobility is set aside to ask, as a friend:
“Were we really so unruly today that the only option was such a breakneck escape?”
No lunch? Claude’s eyes widen in (half-disappointed) alarm. “Lorenz, I’m shocked! What kind of romantic are you, being this unprepared for a spontaneous riding adventure?”
His horse nickers, pawing at the ground. Claude interprets that as scornful agreement, smiling at the thought.
“In any case, there’s a river nearby. A little further west, if I recall…” Claude slowly walks his horse in that direction, observing his surroundings. To think, just a few months ago he was marching an army through this territory, all to drive the Empire’s army into a corner. Time doesn’t pass the way it used to. “You can catch us some fish for lunch. We should make sure that lance arm isn’t getting rusty.”
While Claude takes the lead again, he relents and takes on a slower, more conversational pace. But Lorenz’s henning takes a turn into the uncomfortable, and quickly Claude wishes he had just gone ahead as planned. The meeting. He hoped to escape for it just for a while…
He can feel it. His shoulders rise and stiffen, and a breath catches in his throat. This is fear, he acknowledges. Like a rabbit unearthed from its dark warren, suddenly exposed. Thinking too deeply into it won’t help anyone, so he says, “Not at all” and leaves it at that. Claude forces his shoulders to drop. He takes a deep breath, turning his attention to his surroundings. The rustling grass blowing pollen into the wind. The steady ebb and flow of his horse’s breath. The sun, climbing higher as morning turns into midday. “Building a government is hard work,” Claude continues carefully. He doesn’t want to give the impression that he’s running away from this. “Fairly sure that comes with the territory. Everyone has their ideas on where they want Leicester to go, but overall, I believe we’re heading in the right direction.”
If this is what Lorenz wants to talk about, that’s more than fine with him. Definitely. But Claude refuses to be interrogated on his hours off. Instead, he turns the topic of conversation toward Lorenz. Claude knows that man would never pass the chance to preen his feathers. “You play a pivotal role in our meetings,” he says, voice turning sweet. “Like a beacon of common sense and honesty when things get testy. I’m pleased to see you representing House Gloucester in so many of our discussions.” That, Claude can bring himself to genuinely smile about. They may have their differences, but he trusts Lorenz to be fair in state affairs like these. If Claude is going to put together that world he wants, he’s a good ally to keep on his side. “Is it everything you thought it’d be? Acting as the head of your house.”
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“She should be! Confidence is a virtue.” Claude reaches his hand out and fondly scratches at the base of Grimbelle’s neck, where it meets the shoulder and the wing. “I love wyverns that are confident like that. They don’t feel threatened by every little thing–they just walk around like they own the place. “That’s really what I’m looking for in a pegasus. True, wild pegasi are breathtaking, but in the same way that I find wild wyverns ‘breathtaking’,” he jokes. Both powerful, impressive animals, both perfectly capable of killing someone without even trying. “I think they’d end up too skittish for my taste. I’m in talks with the Goneril Valkyries to buy one of their pegasus geldings. They said there’s one that excelled in training but would be better-suited in a less intense environment.” Risey hailed from the same stables, but nostalgia’s not the only reason he’s keen on their stock. “I’m still not too familiar with pegasi, so I was looking for one that was already decently-trained and sensitized to wyverns. The last thing I want to do is ruin a perfectly good pegasus.”
But to why they're here. “I’m passable with a lance on the ground. I haven’t gotten the chance to practice in the skies too much,” Claude admits. Roxane humors him from time to time, but they’re both annoyed by his lack of immediate skill. He twirls the lance in his hands, conscious of how hard he’s concentrating. At this rate all Claude can do is laugh at himself, there’s absolutely no way he made that look effortless. “But still, I’m pretty sure I can do it. I can shoot arrows and swing axes from wyvernback. I know how to wield a lance, and I know how to ride a pegasus. Just gotta bring all that together and I’ll be good to go. Definitely. That’s definitely how it works...”
boundlesshart:
insert pegasus joke here
*steals @blaydiud’s pegasus and runs*
When Claude first met a pegasus, it should have been in Fódlan. Creatures hailing from the coldest reaches of Faerghus are out of place where he grew up, the dry plains of Almyra that few wyverns even nest in. But his mother had been a pegasus knight in a previous life. While she was determined to leave her old life behind in Leicester, her pegasus Risey was one of the few exceptions.
He was three or four when he first met that pegasus, to him a beast as massive as a wyvern when she stretched her wings. Claude remembers her most by how she felt in his small toddler hands: dense winter fur that came off in clumps in the spring, then shaved smooth in the summer.
That pegasus is long-dead now, and her Almyran-blooded descendants live in luxury back in Maragheh. Still, the flock back home are lean and athletic, better suited for the climate they were born in. Claude sees an echo of Risey in Grimbelle: stocky and thick-coated, ideal for Faerghus winters and cold nights in Fodlan’s Throat. “She’s a beautiful animal,” he tells Dimitri warmly, already extending an open palm for her to sniff. “I hope the pegasus I end up with is half as stunning as her.”
Claude’s heart will always remain with wyverns—he admires their fierceness, their independence, their passionate loyalty to their riders. Risey, beloved as she is, casts a long shadow over every other pegasus he’s ever met. None were as bold as her, as unflappable. A wyvern in pegasus’ clothing, his father called her once. Every other pegasus seems skittish and weak-tempered in comparison. “Does she spook easily?” Claude asks. “I’m experienced with flying, but pegasi seem high-strung compared to some of the wyverns I’ve ridden.”
Dimitri isn’t stranger to the feeling of wonder that comes with seeing pegasi. Although he found himself mostly used to their presence by now, the awe was still very much there- the very same from when he was but a young boy looking at the skies of Fhirdiad, white with winter clouds, as knights on messenger duty rode their stark-white pegasi above the city to deliver mail to the faraway towns, or when he first saw the falcon knight squadron of Galatea in one of his many visits to Ingrid’s estate.
Thankfully, fate was kind to him at least once and allowed him to be able to not only interact but also ride on these beautiful creatures, a feat he once thought was impossible. Stories upon stories on how pegasi were sensitive to the human spirit and rejected riders that possessed a rotten, evil soul.
At least, so far…Grimbelle and now Fidertanz seemed to accept him, which to the prince was way more than enough.
Enter Claude however- in which his fellow house leader suddenly requested his aid to help him in maneuvering weapons, particularly lances, while on a pegasus’ back. Now, Dimitri was fine with the request and was more than willing to help him with it, but…why is he asking Dimitri of all people? Wouldn’t Ingrid be a much better fit to help Claude with this, considering how skilled she was in the skies? The circumstances puzzled the prince a bit, making him wonder if there was any ulterior motive, but…
Ah, perhaps he just wished to bond. Claude was scheming, but he was a nice guy. Maybe he wants to be friends?
“She truly is! And she seems rather aware of it.” He chuckled as the mare sniffed Claude’s offered hand, before flapping and stretching her wings. That goof, Dimitri thought fondly as she returned to inspect the deer’s leader. “I imagine the pegasus you will be getting will hail from your homeland, correct? In that case, I am sure you will be given a beautiful one. I have heard that the Alliance’s northern territories have some lovely pegasus flocks.” Dimitri’s knowledge was embarrassingly lacking in Leicester’s matters, but from the little he knew- or at least from the bits that were closest to Faerghus, it seemed there were still some flocks that roamed around those parts.
I hope Claude isn’t too bothered to teach me some about it later, he selfishly thought- refusing to spell it out in actual words. He doesn’t want the other to think of him as so on-the-face ignorant.
“From the battles we have attended together so far, she seemed rather confident. And even if she did spook, she would never let you fall off her. Grimbelle would be quick to scoop you up.” As stubborn as she was, Grimbelle was the calmest of the two by far. The other option was Fidertanz, a black pegasus stallion Dimitri had just received best fit for handling mage riders. The thing however was that…despite them not knowing each other for that long, Fidertanz was loyal. Awfully so. Perhaps too much. Dimitri didn’t want him to cause Claude trouble.
“Pegasi tend to be more disturbed by big, fast moving things, such as wyverns themselves. That and some are rather picky regarding riders, but I assure you Grimbelle will treat you well. She never misses a chance to show off how good she is, after all.” Dimitri turned around to pick their equipment- two training lances. “Allow me to ask a quick question, but how is your skill with the lance?” Claude seemed strong enough- as an archer he definitely had powerful arms. “I only ask because the way you maneuver one is slightly different on a pegasus’ back since you must be mindful of their wings and the stirrups are positioned differently which changes your posture slightly…” Blink. Then he shook his head. “Ah- sorry, I did not mean to dump so much on you this quickly…”
@boundlesshart
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you dropped this, king 👑
playing hot potato with @thyrosus but the potato is leicester’s future
The meeting blows almost two hours past its allotted time.
There’s a part of him that wishes he could pin the blame on Gloucester and Edmund, how they always have something to say, an opinion to push forward, some lasting remark they want to linger in everyone’s minds. They were the same as always. It’s Claude that needed to adapt to the situation, take charge of his discussion, direct the conversation. But he couldn’t. Not when the discussion was on how exactly inheritance would work for a Federation’s king; every suggestion worse than the last, more deadly than the last, and all Claude could see in their ideas was blood and ‘rivals’ strangled in their cribs.
“Let’s pick up this discussion tomorrow.” Claude stands. They stand, bow, leave. And as they leave, he’s left shaky and weak-kneed. Adrenaline abandons him as soon as the meetings end, leaving him a shell of the brilliant leader in that room, empty, inept. Claude didn’t handle it well. Judith will tell him as much when she has the chance. A petulant thought crosses his mind, she wouldn’t understand.
Four months later, the desperation in Shahid’s eyes still haunt him, the bits of blood and hair that clung to the cliffside where he fell.
Four months later, Claude still wonders if some part of him tumbled off the cliff after his brother, still clinging to him as their bodies shatter against the rocks.
-----
On a horse, Claude feels more like himself than he has been lately. Not a duke or a king or a leader, just a man recklessly galloping through the grasslands of Riegan territory, leaving his partner in the dust. They outpace the wind itself, blowing through his hair and past his cheeks. The drumming of powerful hooves fill his ears. The scent of clean air, and miles and miles of open fields around them, as far as the eye can see... at last, his heart remembers how wondrous this world could be. At last, he’s just Claude again.
It’s been some time since he’s had the time to go on an expedition himself. With the war quieting down, apparently they’ve become more like picnics, what with everyone using them as an excuse to get away and relax for a bit. Who could blame them? The saddle suits Claude better than those hard, ancient chairs, he thinks, and between Shahid’s death and the discussions for the Federation, he’s glad to be reminded of what the sun feels like on his skin.
His heart aches, knowing what’s waiting for him back at Derdriu. If Claude was alone, would he run away like he daydreams about? Just asking himself that, maybe that’s why Lorenz offered to come.
With one last look to the open plains, Claude turns his horse and returns to Lorenz’s side, breathless and smiling. “You brought lunch, right?” They didn’t talk through this much, did they. “...Right?”
#t. you dropped this king#thyrosus#three hopes spoilers#long ass starter sorry#every time i write a muse in a depression era i end up punching myself in the face
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insert pegasus joke here
*steals @blaydiud’s pegasus and runs*
When Claude first met a pegasus, it should have been in Fódlan. Creatures hailing from the coldest reaches of Faerghus are out of place where he grew up, the dry plains of Almyra that few wyverns even nest in. But his mother had been a pegasus knight in a previous life. While she was determined to leave her old life behind in Leicester, her pegasus Risey was one of the few exceptions.
He was three or four when he first met that pegasus, to him a beast as massive as a wyvern when she stretched her wings. Claude remembers her most by how she felt in his small toddler hands: dense winter fur that came off in clumps in the spring, then shaved smooth in the summer.
That pegasus is long-dead now, and her Almyran-blooded descendants live in luxury back in Maragheh. Still, the flock back home are lean and athletic, better suited for the climate they were born in. Claude sees an echo of Risey in Grimbelle: stocky and thick-coated, ideal for Faerghus winters and cold nights in Fodlan’s Throat. “She’s a beautiful animal,” he tells Dimitri warmly, already extending an open palm for her to sniff. “I hope the pegasus I end up with is half as stunning as her.”
Claude’s heart will always remain with wyverns—he admires their fierceness, their independence, their passionate loyalty to their riders. Risey, beloved as she is, casts a long shadow over every other pegasus he’s ever met. None were as bold as her, as unflappable. A wyvern in pegasus’ clothing, his father called her once. Every other pegasus seems skittish and weak-tempered in comparison. “Does she spook easily?” Claude asks. “I’m experienced with flying, but pegasi seem high-strung compared to some of the wyverns I’ve ridden.”
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