The Magecraft Chronicles III Story Thread

[Razgat]

"FINALLY!" Deyanira appeared behind Nathaniel, leaning against the wall. "Oh, I left my room ages ago. Been wondering around the whole time with Steve. We're both pretty cranky from being cooped up." Her stomach growled again. "And hungry. Very, very hungry. Where's the kitchen? Is there time for a snack? I could go for some vultures myself. They're tough, but once you get through all the feathers, it's really rather good. caught them often back home. Ooh! Or maybe rabbit! It was always half eaten, and I had to wrestle with the vultures a bit, but it was worth it." She grinned widely, trying not to show that she was bothered about being left. "Oh, and Steve's hungry, too. Don't know what he eats though....or how."

[Myrdraxxis]

Nathaniel stred at the girl, nonplussed for a moment. She just didn't stop talking, did she? Still, at least she appeared to be fine. Hadn't run afoul of any of the Sylvina's crew. Nathaniel trusted Corvinus with his men, but still.

"I...I have some rations with me. You can eat them on the way." He answered finally. He handed his supply pouch over. "Come on. The others are waiting." He began to guide the girl (and her skull Steve) back to the waiting portal. A part of him wondered when he had started caring enough about this blood mage to worry whether she would be hurt. Considering her....profession....and Nathaniel's own job. Nathaniel blamed Roluo and Suri. Those two were rubbing off on him, making his views towards darker magic more soft.

"Okay let's go." He said as the two reached the portal. He stepped back through and was suddenly again before the ruins of Tintalla.

...And apparently had steped into the middle of an awkward conversation.

][

Arrick wasn't laughing anymore.

"Blood magic." He all but whispered. The fabled forbidden art. Almost extinct these days. For good reason.

"This just got a great deal more dire." Solomon spoke up. "And that sword..."

Arrick's gaze was drawn away from the blood magic-imbued Hellan and towards the blade clutched in the Red Queen's hand. His blood ran cold.

Oh, he recognized it. The blade of countless blood mages past. A sword of ruin and madness. One that had existed in his father's time. "Cruor."

Arrick inhaled sharply. 'Sol, send out the call. Warn every Seeker what is happening here. I need a few reinforcements now, but I want everyone else on standby at the Cerberus border.'

"Understood" The Celestial answered and Arrick felt his consciousness withdraw.

"Alright. I've changed my opinion." Arrick addressed the Red Queen. "Which means I can't let you live." Arrick conjured dozens of arcane, ghostly weapons around himself. "I am Arrick Sorien, Seeker and guardian of Mundus Magica. I have walked this plane for centuries and I'll be damned if I let some punk-ass teen was a sword cause it harm."

It was posturing, of course. Arrick was strong, but against a small army of blood-crazed fanatics...and that sword... He just needed to buy time.

[Razgat]

Deyanira stepped through the portal while stuffing her face full of whatever had been in the bag. She didn't bother to check. Something had caught her attention though.

When did Nathaniel start being nice to me? He wasn't nice before. He's threatened to kill me...a few times. Definitely more than once. He didn't care about their matching faces before, and she doubted he changed his mind that fast. She didn't have time to think about that now though. There was something very important at hand.

"ASH SFTIKFF!" She dove to the ground with her mouth still full of food, sweeping a long branch off of the ground. "It's perfect for Steve."

She glanced up after noticing how quiet it was. Everyone was staring at that weird guy. "Oh, hello." She waved a little.

[Mizagium]

He’s calling them, Red heard the voice whisper to her. Well, whisper wasn’t so much the operative word in this case, being that only she could hear it.

Why so quiet, T? she teased, still staring at Arrick.

He doesn’t know I’m here, yet…

Is it bad if he does? But the voice didn’t speak again, so she shrugged. “Wendyl, dear, won’t you please show Mr. Sorien out? I’m afraid He’s worn out his welcome.”

“At once, my lady.” When Wendyl spoke, it sounded as if his voiced echoed within him, or that there were two voices layered atop one another. It was very unsettling. So the blood-magic-infused man rushed at Arrick, evidently hoping to take him by surprise…but everyone had apparently forgotten the damn Fire Drake in the room, who in turn tackled Wendyl. Even powered by blood magic, Wendyl wasn’t much of a match for Professor Penrose T. Fezziwigg. The Professor slammed into Wendyl and hurled him across the room, where he slammed into the wall and fell.

“Ah, that felt good,” he grumbled, flexing his mighty shoulder muscles. “Well, what are you all standing around for? We need to be going!”

But alas, it was not to be. Hellen soldiers poured in from the hidden areas from which Wendyl had entered. As well, the entrance opened and revealed a legion of spellblades waiting outside.

“Hide,” Marion told Telan and Jolie while she and Kugo joined Arrick and Fezziwigg in the center of the action. She fumbled at her belt and found an artifact that hadn’t been confiscated: a palm-sized stone that, when held in a fist, produced a variety of magical effects to augment hand-to-hand combat. “Seeker, huh? I’ve heard about you people. Well, stories anyway. I think I’d rather be on your side right now, than hers. Professor, can you clear us a path?”

But the drake-man was already focusing on Wendyl beginning to rise. “I’m a tad occupied, Marion.”

“Tag out.” Kugo tapped him on the shoulder and charged at Wendyl, gleaming with Barrier magic runes and Arcane magic in his hands.

“Well…alright.” Fezziwigg lumbered past Marion and Arrick and barreled through the open doorway, knocking spellblades left and right.

“We staying, Sorien?” Marion looked at him questioningly as the soldiers closed in. “Or do you have some Seeker magic crap up your sleeve?” One soldier came at her and went down in a face full of frost. “The best weapons are always the most unassuming,” she muttered, and dropped another with a fire fist.

-

“Uh, Meredith?” Tultett had wandered over to the Hellmouth and was peering through the viewfinder, which had been set up to see even when the rock wall was set in place. “I think you should see this.”

Irritated, Meredith Grendal shoved the insufferable man out of the way and looked into the viewfinder herself. What she saw made her swear on the Ancients.

“Ma’am?” Kruschev was standing again, rigid, and patient, like a dog ready for his master’s command.

“It’s that Vorr.” She gritted her teeth. “We have some interlopers at the Tintalla site. And they’ve spotted Vorr there.”

Tultett sipped his drink absently. “What is Vorr doing there, I wonder.” Something about his tone made Meredith shoot him a sharp look.

“Yes. I wonder.” They held the contest for a moment before she barked, “ ready the Hellmouth again.”

Kruschev jumped at once and began putting everything into place, opening the rock wall, and warming up the weapon. The twins giggled excitedly to themselves, but Tutlett couldn’t bring himself to share their enthusiasm. “Is that wise? We haven’t had time to inspect the machine after the first shot. Something might have come loose or broken or simply run out of power. Kruschev, wait a minute, we should – “

But Meredith had him by the collar and against the wall hard and fast enough that he dropped his glass and it shattered on the floor. “You don’t give the orders, Ovelais, I do.”

“It’s my money,” he growled. “So it’s my machine. And even if it wasn’t, it needs to be inspected. This is new – “ He lost the words when Meredith slammed him again.

“We cannot have anyone looking too closely, Ovelais. If they start snooping around in Tintalla, they might…”

“Might what? Nobody knows who we are. Nobody knows where we are! We got what we wanted – the world is afraid. Let them stew in that fear, let them wonder when the next blow will come, which city will be next. Don’t rush the job because you think Vorr might blow the whole operation!”

She glared at him hard, real hatred in her eyes. Then she threw him aside and said, ice in her voice, “Start the machine, Kruschev.”

Tultett picked himself up with a groan and watched Kruschev and Meredith ready the magitech weapon, Hellmouth. It was a bad idea, he knew. The machine might have broken internally. It could suck the whole mountain into another dimension for all they knew. But no one was going to listen to him, not with Meredith in charge.

His arm stung. When he inspected it, he found a shard of glass – his glass – lodged in it. With a sigh and a mutter, he left to find some gauze and a bandage.

[Damien]

Dorian continued looking at Al and the illusion veiling him. "I thought that the spell seemed familiar. It might be a different type of magic than you normally use, Magnus, but it still feels like your magic. You need to tell us what's going on here right now."

"Dorian, I don't think that's such a good idea," Izaak responded immediately. "Yes, we need to know about what this illusion is for, but I think we have more important things to tend to."

"Izaak, I'm a master illusionist. I know the reasons for most illusions, and this illusion is meant to keep something hidden. In a sense, it's meant to deceive. I know that I've only just joined this group, and that you all knowing my brother makes me trust you all completely because he only knows and associates with good people, but I'm always wary of other illusionists. Most of them are thieves and liars..."

"Dorian," interrupted Izaak, "answer me this: do you trust your brother's judgement of others?"

"Most of the time..."

"Do you trust me?"

Dorian stayed silent for a moment, noticing a peculiar look from Izaak. It seemed his answer would carry unknowable consequences.

He answered honestly. "Yes, I do." Izaak's expression became more relaxed. Looks I answered correctly, he thought.

"And I trust Magnus. Isn't that enough?"

Dorian sighed. "I trust you. I truly do." More than you'll probably ever know, he thought. "I just don't know...I don't trust illusions when I don't know the illusionist's intent."

"I understand that," replied Izaak, "but we have much more important things to deal with here. I'm sure that Magnus will explain himself in due time once we've completed our investigation here."

Dorian groaned. "Surely this lovely woman," he said, indicating Hecate, "and I can't be the only ones with opinions here. Valendis, surely you..."

Izaak looked straight at Dorian, giving him his best "not now" look. He looked worriedly at Valendis, wondering what he could to do bring him out of his horrible memories and back into the present.

"...never mind," Dorian conceded. "You three!" he said addressing Eleazar, Roluo, and Suri. "What have you to say about all this?"

[Monika]

You're going to die...

All Keiran wanted to do was find a book.

You're going to die...

He had never been the most talented soul mage, and tried to compensate for it through constant studying.

There is no escape...

He had been roaming the country for months - no, years - searching for a book. A scroll. A flier. Anything with even a shred of knowledge about soul magic. But the subject was taboo. Not forbidden, like blood magic and necromancy, but so prone to abuse that people were reluctant to publish information about it.

You're going to die...

And so karma justly rewarded Keiran for his pursuit of this questionable branch of magic. The futile search led the talentless soul mage into the heart of a remote village, surrounded by manic citizens whose expressions were like that of a puppy whose master had finally come home.

Even if you use his power...

Across from Keiran in this circle of villagers appeared a woman - no, this being was cloaked in thick azure robes from head to toe. He had no way of knowing if it was a woman except by instinct. Even from beneath those robes, the soul mage could sense the thing's otherworldly beauty. Beauty and power.

"The Arbiter returns!" one villager cried out.

"Our Arbiter has broken through the barrier!" yelled another.

"Great Arbiter, please kill this trespasser! He treads too far onto your sacred ground!"

With a visible struggle, the crazed townsfolk managed to break their gazes away from the robed being, instead fixing them on Keiran. No longer did they look like reunited puppies. Now, each and every pair of eyes on the mage was like a death sentence.

Keiran gulped as the robed figure took a single, delicate step forward. Four feet. Four more steps separated him from certain death.

"Outsider," the figure said. The voice that came from those robes was smooth. Seductive. Saccharine. That would make it all the more chilling when those next steps were taken and Keiran's fate was decided. "You are not one of my followers. Why do you walk upon my land?"

"Well, ah, you see..." Keiran stammered, nervously running a hand through his hair. A few thin strands of gray fell to the ground. "I was just passing through, looking for a book to study from. You know how hard it is to find a good soul magic book these days, heheheheh..." He quickly shot a glance toward the being's hood. It was raised just enough to reveal a set of pink, pursed lips, not curved even slightly. Looks like the humor approach didn't work, he thought. "Well, since there are clearly no books to be found, I'll just get out of your way and-"

Keiran's heart skipped a beat. Now those lips were curved into a smile.

"Oh, you misunderstand, boy." The figure laughed, taking another step forward. "All of the land in this world belongs to me. Wherever you slither off to, you will be a trespasser. Would you not agree that walking upon my land without my permission is a crime?"

Keiran gulped again. He knew what this being was: a Celestial. He didn't know how he knew...No, that was wrong. For all his lack of talent, there were two things Keiran was naturally good at. The first was talking. He was always ready to talk his way out of situations that his magic couldn't solve, and those situations came far too often. The second was looking inside himself. He couldn't - or wouldn't - use his power on other people, but manipulating his own soul was simple enough. He knew his spirit better than most people knew their physical bodies, so it was a cinch to find the disturbance in it - a part of his soul that should not have been there. And so naturally, Keiran talked to this part of himself regularly. He recalled one such conversation, during which he learned about the Celestials, the lost inhabitants of Mundus Magica, legendary beings of unimaginable power.

Remembering that conversation calmed him down. Fear and the adrenaline that came with it were only good if you had even a minuscule chance of survival - the tiniest chance to fight and win or run away. But there was no such hope against a Celestial, so there was no need for fear. "I guess so," he replied with a smirk. "That's the sort of crime people shoot you on sight for."

The figure's own smile widened. "You took the words right from my mouth. Trespassers should be killed on sight. Does this not frighten you, boy?"

Keiran shrugged. There was no fighting. There was no running. There never had been for him. All he could ever do was talk. "I've lived a decent enough life. Not even thirty and my hair's already gray, so I'm probably nearing my limit anyway."

The smile faded. "If an insect does not crawl on the ground, how can I be expected to crush it?" The figure took the third step forward and was now within touching distance of the young soul mage. A few of the villagers around them squirmed in anticipation, but remained silent. "You will entertain me in another way, boy. Give me a compelling reason to spare your life. Whatever excuse you come up with will surely make me laugh."

Keiran thought about this for a moment. He was sure that he was going to die no matter what he said. His fate had been determined from the moment he walked into that town. But talking was the only thing he'd ever been naturally gifted with, so he decided to play along until the end. "Well, let's see. You are very clearly a Celestial. From what I've heard, you all hate the Mage of the Beginning. And, as it turns out, I hate him too. If I were to give a reason for why I should be spared, it is because I, unlike these nameless cultists, have a reason to exist with you."

"Is that so?"

Keiran nodded. "Not senseless devotion or mindless fanaticism. We would bond over our mutual disdain for that wretched Mage of the Beginning. A man who has always had the aptitude for magic and could reign as a god with no special training or effort...Disgusting, isn't it?" He smiled as he continued to say, "You can feel it, too, can't you? Maybe not in this world, but...somewhere...the Mage still walks among the people. I could help you find him...and destroy him."

"I do not like the way you have phrased that arrangement, boy," the figure said, taking the fourth step toward Keiran. Less than a foot separated the robed Celestial and the soul mage now. "If 'you are helping me', then you imply that I need your assistance for this task. And if 'I am helping you', it is implied that I am your subordinate."

Not one to be verbally backed into a corner, Keiran replied without hesitation. "Since we both hate him so much and both want to track him down, it's quite probable that we'll end up in the same place at the same time. Once you spare my life, I'll most likely end up fighting alongside you in the near future by mere coincidence. Maybe destiny will have it that you accidentally put a magical barrier around me, or I just so happen to hit him through an opening you made." He grinned. "It could happen right? It's like I said before. Unlike these aimless commoners, I have my own reasons for wanting to take the Mage down. It'd be weird for us not to cross paths."

The surrounding villagers all shifted uncomfortably and were prepared to kill the insubordinate intruder, but they were halted by a quick gesture. The Celestial took the fifth and final step forward, fully bridging the gap to Keiran. "Your answer has amused me, boy. You will certainly provide more entertainment than these mindless thralls. What shall I call my new pet?"

"You can call me Keiran. And to whom do I have the pleasure of speaking?"

At once, the robed figure's hood was down, revealing a head of long, silver hair, and a pale face of overwhelming beauty. It was a woman, like Keiran suspected - no, that was not the right term. Calling this figure a woman would be like calling the Mage of the Beginning a mere spellcaster. The Celestial let the soul mage take in her features for a few moments before she finally answered, "Does my beauty overwhelm you? Good. Learn well my appearance, boy. When I first walked this earth, the lessers both feared and revered me as their Arbiter, the one who passed judgment and determined fates on a whim. But you, Keiran, shall know me as Desdemona, your new owner." And with those words, the Celestial tapped her new mage on his forehead. Purple magic glowed from the contact and a strange marking appeared on Keiran's skin, symbolizing their relationship...
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How long has it been since then? A month? A year? Five? I've been working for Desdemona the Arbiter ever since that faithful day...

Keiran sat at a circular table in a dimly lit abandoned building. His Celestial owner took the seat to his right, and the remaining seats were taken up by various other fairly high ranking members in their forces. A couple other lower ranking members were scattered about the room, looking at their leader with anticipation.

"The time approaches," Desdemona whispered. Her hood was off and her eyes were firmly shut, but Keiran and the rest knew that expression all too well. The Celestial's sight transcended that of even the Empaths, the world's most skilled and highly trained Scryers. Blocking out the world around her, Desdemona was easily able to see the world beyond. "Those insects are seeking out the Mage of the Beginning as we speak in a vain effort to stop the rest of us from arriving. And to defeat those of us that have already come." She snapped her eyes open and spat out the next words. "Bah. I used much of my strength crossing that wretched barrier. Were I at my full power, I could shatter it into oblivion and have the rest of my brothers here in an instant."

A person standing against the far wall spoke up. "I...I think your magic is plenty powerful as it is, Arbiter."

Desdemona regarded the man for a moment before focusing her stare on his right arm. It was almost instantaneous. In one moment, the man's arm was perfectly fine, pressed against the wall. In the next, the man's right hand was on the ground, and his wrist was spurting out blood uncontrollably. Ignoring the resulting bloodcurdling screams, she gave a very stern warning. "Do not ever repeat what you just said." Looking around the room and to the people at her table, she added, "The same goes for the rest of you. You worms use magic. We Celestials use miracles." She nodded toward two other unseated members of her forces. "Take him away. Tend to the wound. I do not have men to waste frivolously."

The two nodded back and dragged the amputated man down a set of creaky wooden stairs and out of their master's sight.

She let out an exasperated sigh. "As I was saying before that outburst, calamity will befall those insects momentarily, splitting their group up into portions that even the weakest among you should be able to handle. I want them all dead. When the Mage of the Beginning is found, it shall be on my terms. No one will discover him until I have regained all of my strength. With that said, I have more than enough power to teleport some of you to their locations. Who among you shall volunteer for this mission?"

Keiran said nothing, but the corners of his mouth curled into an unnoticeable smile. Degrading as some might have seen it, being Desdemona's pet had its advantages. He never had to offer himself for potential suicide missions. He could (within reason) talk out of turn. And he certainly never had to worry about losing any of his limbs. All things considered, his life was pretty good, and this thought ran through his mind as he looked at his expendable comrades.

[Sariel of Tevet]

Roluo looked over at Suri, who just shrugged at Dorian's question. Eleazar walked up between them, placed his arms around them and sighed.

"Well look at it this way. Suri, you're a blood mage. Roluo, you're a necromancer. I can play with necromancy, blood magic, AND shadow magic. Most people would have killed us by now. E...specially Nathaniel. I don't know what the hell you two did to get on his good side before I got here but, good job with that one."

He looked up to address Dorian and Izaak.

"So as far as I'm concerned, Magnus is alright with us. "

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

Oberon, we have to go.

Oberon put the a mop back into a bucket and the water sloshed its way out back onto the floor. He fell backwards onto the bed next to himself, and spread out with a groan. He was inside of a small Motel room, surrounded by cleaning supplies, and dawning a large pink apron that looked way too fitting for a Shade to be wearing somehow.

Go? Not that I'm complaining, I'll use any excuse to get out of this place, but my shift isn't even over. And I don't want to be eating ramen for the fourth night in a row.

I told you years ago, after that nonsense with the artifact that we needed to wait for a sign. I could feel it. Well now we have it. Besides, no one told you to stay at this motel all these years. And you certainly didn't have to help rebuild it after the collapse of Megolin.

Oberon sat up on the bed and rubbed the back of his neck, and held his free hand up in front of his face to look at the ring on his finger.

Yeah yeah yeah, Azathoth, I know. Guess I just have a soft spot for this place. So what's the gig?

There has been a call for the seekers and their partners to gather at a fortress in the Cerberus Desert.

A call for all seekers? This sounds huge. Well, off to the desert I suppose.

He stood up and leaned into the cleaning supply cart, and let it roll lazily out into the hall.

"Just after I go grab my paycheck."

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

The wood of the table split as a large curved dagger collided with its surface. A tall, slender woman was at the other end of the knife, straddling a chair that she had turned around. Eyes from around the room met with her, granting the desired effect of her silent outburst. For an assassin, Alex sure did love to make a bit of an entrance. She pulled another blade from her waistband and dipped it into the glass of water of the man seated next to her without bother to look for his reaction, and she began to scrape the cooled blade across her scalp to sheer what little fuzz was left growing on the top of her head. She dipped the knife back into the glass of water when she was finished and wiped it off on the man next to her and stood up from her seat.

Alex put both her knifes back into the back of her waistband and walked to the front of the room where the Arbiter and her pet were standing. She wore a black, crossover crop top and fatigues, and clunky military style boots. She had a long scar from under her brow the led down across her right eye, a wound from her own doing to remove the eye. She replaced it with a replica eye, that was a shade of milky white aside from the crescent moon insignia etched into it. She enchanted in order to see in the dark. As she says, "One good eye in the dark is more useful than two that can't see for shit."

She reached the end of the room, and her purple lipstick stained mouth began to move. Alex addressed the Arbiter in her slightly raspy voice.

"I'm game. I've been a bit bored here lately anyway. This sitting around for the Celestials to take over is going to drive me even more insane than I already am. Better to have me kill the pests out there instead of the ones in here. She tilted her head back to draw attention to the guy who used to be seated next to her.

"Would have started with him."

[Myrdraxxis]

'Well thank you for the vote of confidence." Magnus said. Al was still giving him a confused and now rather angry look. Magnus sighed and scratched his head briefly. "Al, we can talk about it later. In private. Now isn't the time or place to-"

"Sir!" A voice called from within the ruins. Nathaniel recognized Faust's voice. "We have something!"

Nathaniel broke into a jog, heading for his team. Magnus and Hecate followed, while Al hesitated for a brief moment before doing the same. The frown hadn't left the methusela's face.

They found Faust and the rest of Nathaniel's team surrounding a man, weapons raised. Vorr had his hands raised in surrender, but somehow the gesture seemed more mocking than anything else.

"Report." Nathaniel said, striding up.

"Sir. This man claims to be from the Hellfire Clan." Faust glanced over at the mage hunter before returning his hard stare to Vorr.

"Really, now." Magnus spoke up, stepping forward. "The group responsible for this tragedy?"

"Responsible? Oh yes, very much so." Vorr spoke, nodding emphatically. "And this will just be the start. The fury of the Hellmouth will be known to all across Serioc." he was still grinning pleasantly as he spoke. Magnus internally groaned.

Great, a crazy one.'

Suddenly Al was moving, standing close to Vorr. The methusela grabbed Vorr by his collar and started shaking him roughly. Al was practically trembling in sudden rage.

"You...you did this?! TO my people?" He spat. His voice suddenly had a strange metallic quality to it. Magnus swore aloud.

"Al! Wait-"

The smile had left Vorr's face, replaced by an ugly scowl of hatred. "Get your filthy hands off of me, blood-sucker!" VOrr spat. The gauntlets on his arms started to glow a fiery red. Vorr's hand blurred, striking Al in the face with a quick left jab. When the blow connected a cone of flames suddenly sprouted from the gauntlet.

AL let out a cry of pain and stumbled back.

][

"Leave! We should definitely leave!" Arrick replied, firing one of his arcane weapons into an attacking spellblade. "I called for reinforcements, but I don't know how quickly they'l get here."

"Callidus and Cainte both say their Seekers are nearby." Solomon spoke up.

'Good.' Arrick thought back. Now if only they lived long enough for the pair to reach them.

"I'll make a hole for us!" Arrick called. He raised a hand and a concentrated ball of blue flames leaped from it, immolating any soldier in its path. Which left them a a clear path towards the door.

"Go!" Arrick dashed for the exit.

[Mizagium]

Valendis heard Al’s yell of pain even from the distance he had absently paced from the others. No one had seemed to have any idea what that flyer was or why there were so many scattered around the blast zone. Not even the people from this world…what was it called? Saraok? Something like that. So, he had started away from the group, pushing the memories of his home down as deep as they could go while scanning for anything that might give some clue about who had done this, or where the Mage of the Beginning had gone.

“Could he have done this?” He asked his Familiars. Reafe had scampered off to search on her own, and Hesseppatt was flying high above, doing the same, leaving only Jorsin to ride on his shoulder.

“Who?” the little man asked.

“The Mage. Could he have done this?”

“Could he?” Jorsin arched an eyebrow at the ruins and said, “Certainly, he could have. This and a lot more if he felt like it. But would he?” He said it as if that was the question Valendis should have asked. “No. Definitely not.”

Valendis snorted. “You say that like you know him.” When Jorsin didn’t answer, only hemmed and hawed, Valendis tried again. “Do you know the Mage of the Beginning?”

“We’ve…had encounters before.” Under Valendis’ glare he added, “Before the severance. A long time ago…but I suppose three hundred odd years isn’t much time for…beings like us.”

Valendis was suddenly very aware of how old Jorsin probably was. Hesseppatt and Raefe he knew were Familiars of other families who had married into the Gae’om bloodline centuries ago, the names of which they had either forgotten or decided not to tell. Jorsin, however, based upon what the other two had said (or not said) was as old as the Gae’om bloodline itself. Dating back to the Mage Wars…and possibly even beyond that, before Mundas Magica had even been settled. Was Jorsin talking only of Adden Gae’om – quasi-legendary hero of the Gae’om family? When people said the Summoner, they meant Adden. But, Adden was hardly the first Gae’om of note, and certainly not the first to qualify as a Hero. How many times had Jorsin encountered the Mage?

But his musings were cut short by Al’s cry. Valendis reacted with a quickness he didn’t know he possessed. He spun on his heel and had the shattered blade of Garm drawn before he could think against it. Raefe and Hesseppatt were with him moments later, telling him that they had found nothing noteworthy, and that Nathanial had cornered a suspicious character.

He muttered a first-level summoning incantation on the way, holding it until he assessed the situation. Al was rearing back, and the suspicious figure was spewing flames. Fire it is, since he had only prepared a first level summoning. “Lavara!” The incantation completed, a gateway opened in the fabric of the world, connecting it to Mundas Spiritas, the home of all spirits. Was it his imagination, or did the summoning take more time and energy than it should have?

Regardless, the fire spirit, Lavara appeared, a gelatinous form of living lava that oozed along the ground. “Restrain that man!” He indicated Vorr. Appendages of living lava shot forth and seized Vorr around the wrists. “What is going on? Who are you?” he demanded,

-

Marion dropped another Red Hellen and turned to where Telan and Jolie were hiding. “You two coming or what?” A terrified look passed between them before they stood as one, and bolted after the hole first opened by the Professor, and then cleared by Arrick. “I’ll get you two some weapons once we’re not about to die!”

Kugo seemed to be handling the empowered Wendyl well enough. If she didn’t move fast, soldiers would fill the hole. “Damn it. Sorien, let’s go – follow the red drake!” And then she was out the inner sanctum.

Red was screaming something about being cheaters that was lost mostly over the ruckus.

[Razgat]

"Ok, so pretend you're talking to somebody who may or may not have been in jail until recently....and maybe grew up in a wasteland and had no contact with anyone and probably has no idea what anyone is talking about or what's going on. What might you say to them?" Deyanira leaned on her new stick, hopefully waiting for some answers.

[Mizagium]

Hesseppatt, the bird Familiar, fluttered over and landed on Deyaneira's shoulder. She eyed the blood mage curiously. "I'd say you were a long way from home, young one. And I mean that in more ways than one. We aren't even in that same world any more." She adjusted her sings uncomfortably.

"But I suppose you ought to know enough to stay alive. We've come to a world called Serioc, hunting the Mage of the Beginning." She didn't bother explaining who that was. Even the deepest wasters knew the Mage. "And now it seems we're caught up in some sort of racially-charged conflict in this world." She nodded towards the ruined land, formerly known as Tintalla. "The Methuselah capital city. Erased off the face of the world. Credit claimed by what appears to be a terrorist group, of which he" she indicated Vorr "is likely a member of."

Unsure of what else to say, Hesseppatt added, "This whole thing makes me uneasy."

[Razgat]

Deyanira cradled Steve in her arms while looking down at him. "Well, Steve, it looks like we're not in Mundas Magica anymore. We've gone somewhere over the rainbow...."

She stared off into the distance a bit. "Is me being a blood mage going to be a problem?"

[Sariel of Tevet]

Suri walked over to Deyanira and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry. I'm in the same boat as you. I'm sure we will be uh...fine. Besides, Steve has your back. And I am sure you would have his...if...he had one. "

Roluo scoffed and ran his fingers through his hair.

"I'm sure they hate us just as much as blood mages here. It's like that in every world..or universe or whatever the hell we are in right now. Just how things are. I bet there isn't ONE universe out there where our kind aren't the outcasts." (SPOILER ALERT....THERE IS! COMING TO A YS ARC NEAR YOOOOU!! SEE YOU AT SOME POINT IN THE NEXT DECADE)

He looked up and noticed that while they were all busy talking...some lava thing was seeming to restrain another thing.

"Eleazar, you gonna do something about that or should I?"

"Sigh. Yeah yeah...I got it."

Eleazar opened up a shadow into the ground and Vorr sunk down to his waist.

"So uh..I guess we are trying to make you talk or something?"

[Damien]

Dorian ran to Al's side, pulling a salve from the bag on his belt. He veiled himself and Al with invisibility and then pulled the methusela back, making it less likely that the pair would be successfully attack.

"Here," he said quietly, "let's get that burn taken care of." He didn't want to touch the methusela more than was necessary for fear of dispelling the illusion covering him. What is this illusion even for?

Izaak moved next to Eleazar. "I like the idea of making him talk," he said, his hand out to his side as though holding something. He then cast a spell with words of power. "Flagello fulminis." With a small crack of thunder, a bolt of lightning appeared in his hand, looking very much like a whip. "Tell us what we need to know, or else you'll be in for quite a shocking experience." From behind him, Izaak heard a snicker, and he smiled a bit.

All that was left was for the man with the flaming fists to give up what he knew...

[Myrdraxxis]

Vorr was, by this point, buried up to the waist, restrained by lava shackles (of sorts) and facing a man intent on interrogating him with an electric whip. Most people in that situation (of which there are probably very few...) would be in some state of terror or at the very least look nervous.

Vorr simply grinned. "What fascinating people you are." he sighed. "Ah, it's such a shame. A waste, really."

"The hell is he going on about?" Faust muttered. Nathaniel frowned, an uneasy feeling working its way into his gut.

"We were hoping to catch any methusela who came to investigate the capitol's destruction." Vorr continued. "Still, given the circumstances."

Suddenly a device on his wrist began to glow. Then Vorr began to glow. ANd suddenly he was no longer in the same spot, but standing several feet away from the team. "What?!" Nathaniel exclaimed.

"Was that..." Hecate said,

"Magitech." Magnus finished, a worried frown on his face. "But that doesn't make any sense..."

"It's been fun, eveyrone. I hope you all take heart in the fact that your deaths will serve as a glorious symbol to the CLan's might!" Vorr grinned disturbingly and his wrist-device glowed again.

Then he was gone.

After a moment of silence, the Imperial trooper Kasser spoke up."I...have a bad feeling about this."

[Mizagium]

“Vorr is clear,” Meredith snapped. Then she literally snapped her fingers at Kruschev. “Fire the Hellmouth.”

Despite his undying loyalty, Kruchevski hesitated. “Ma’am, perhaps…”

“Perhaps, what?” She glared at him. He was taller than her by a head, but with the way she carried herself, their heights might as well have been switched. No one, not even Ovelais could hold her gaze for very long.

“Nothing, ma’am. Hellmouth is only operating at around 30% power.”

“We aren’t destroying a city again, Kruschev—just squashing a few insects.”

“Of course. Standby.” He initiated the firing sequence and the whole room filled with the harsh crescendo of machinery. They had only altered the target area by a few degrees and the machine groaned for a second as it readjusted itself. “Firing in 3…2…”

For such a device, the actual firing was rather anticlimactic. The whirring ceased abruptly and the room shuddering just a bit, but there was no great boom or anything of the sort. All the noise just stopped and they were left with an eerie silence. Meredith moved to the telescope and watched the small sphere of modified silver magic cross the vast distance in an instant.

Magitech was the term they had come up with for the kind of machine they had built, as it was a combination of magic and the advancing technology that was cropping up in some of the human cities. It was designed to generate a massive amount of destructive magic, and then compress it into a more manageable form via a magic circle that had been inscribed around the inside of the barrel. The containment spell would collapse upon contact with a sufficiently dense material, such as earth. Such a precaution was added so that the spell would not break loose if it hit a bird or insect along the way. The circle would need to be re-inscribed every few shots, but at 30% power, Meredith had her doubts that this shot significantly eroded any of the circle.

The beauty of it all was that, unlike traditional projectiles, modsilver magic (and magic in general) would not be affected by such obstacles as wind resistance and gravity. Ovelais, she knew was already drawing up plans to produce more compact versions of the hellmouth to market. Magitech was the way of the future—even she could see that—and Ovelais intended to be right at the forefront of the new arms race.

She let a wicked grin overtake her as the modsilver sphere hit its target, and consumed the area in a searing whiteness.

-

Even though Valendis hadn’t dismissed Lavara, the spirit disappeared. “What…” the aborted question accounted as much for Lavara’s disappearance, as for Vorr’s. But something unsettling ran along his skin, something like the air becoming charged with electricity. It felt like the world was charged and about to explode.

“Hey – “ There was never going to be enough time to warn anyone. The odd ball of silver light struck the ground between them all and filled the area with a blinding whiteness. When it should have atomized them all instantly, there was a moment when the light lingered like that, in an expanding hemisphere to cover the area beyond the destroyed Tintalla.

“Magnus!”

[Myrdraxxis]

Magnus heard the shout, but by that time he was already moving. He could see-hell he could feel the blast coming towards them. They wouldn't survive it. Magnus was good, but even he could only produce so strong a magical barrier to block an attack, and it wouldn't be enough to stop this.

So he thought quickly, and used the one spell he could think of in that desperate moment.

With a grunt of effort, he started casting. It was essentially the same spell he'd used to get everyone away from the Celestial Ahriman.

"What-" was all Nathaniel could get out before the spell started taking effect. The mage hunter was surrounded by a bright glowing light and then suddenly vanished. The others started popping out of existence one by one. Magnus hoped it would be fast enough because even as the others were teleported, the area was becoming blindingly bright as the Hellmouth's fire drew closer.

Magnus squinted as the area became blindingly bright. There was no time left. He could only hope that his spell had gotten everyone out. With a final grunt of exertion Magnus teleported himself away.

][

Magnus blinked away the spots in his vision and took a quick glance of his surroundings. He was....well, nowhere. In the middle of absolute nowhere. A mountain range stretched in the distance behind him and a large forest before him. Not a whole lot to go on, really. "I really should have studied the geography here more closely." Magnus lamented. At the time, he'd been more concerned with the anthropology of Serioc rather than its geography. And then the Lich King had risen to power and that had caused a whole new set of distractions.

So yes, Magnus was lost.

Not wholly unexpected, he supposed. The spell had teleported the team randomly. There hadn't been any time to focus the spell to a specific location, or else they'd all be back at Altinor right now. "We're gonna have a hell of a time trying to link back up." Magnus muttered, glancing around. "Better et walking, I guess."

With that, the mage picked a direction and started walking.

"The others will be fine. Probably."

][

"This isn't good." Nathaniel observed neutrally. There had been a brief instance of panic when he had been suddenly teleported away from the rest of the team, but he quickly locked it down and started assessing the situation. Whatever Magnus had done, it had gotten them out of danger...but it also now but Nathaniel in a different sort of trouble.

As far has he could tell, the teleportation spell had dropped him and one other in the mountains. Which mountains, he had no idea. The more immediate concern was dangerous wildlife and weather conditions. Training for sorties into Nostia, Nathaniel knew that a sudden drop in temperature in these conditions could prove deadly if you weren't prepared.

Idly he checked his gear: a pistol, short sabre, his radio (out of range of any contact) and a couple days worth of dry rations.

Yeah, they weren't prepared.

"I don't suppose you have any ideas?" He glanced over at the other person to be teleported here with him. Of all the people, it had to be Deyanira.

][

Hecate decided that this was a very strange world. It hadn't appeared so at first glance, but now she was beginning to see more of its...uniqueness. Namely, the strange new denizens that they had stumbled across after Magnus had so abruptly hurled them across the world (she was going to have a long talk with him about that later).

Hecate didn't admit it to Magnus, mostly because she enjoyed lording her "mystical celestial" image over him, but the traveling mage really had more experience with other worlds than she did. Hecate was familiar with her origianl home land of Mundus Magica, she had briefly visited the world Mundus Magica at some point, and she knew the otherworldly dimension that all Celestials lived in after the Mage ousted them. So to say she was fascinated by the sight of a Euryion was an understatement.

There were three of them, traders or something fromt he looks of them, traversing the road towards Hecate. "I'll admit I'm a little out of my element here." She said back to her two companions. Valendis and Kazan had both appeared here along with her. "I don't suppose either of you have an idea?"

][

Faust considered himself to be a patient man. A simple man as well. He took his work seriously, he believed the Vaerian creed of anti-magic and he devoted himself to its cause. This devotion had found itself torn between his loyalty to Lord Hunter Sorien, and the ideals of the Empire. It had never been a problem until their recent excursion to Nosta, and their....acquisition of several necromancers. Oh he supposed he could stomach their presence fine when Nathaniel was there to keep them all in check, and Faust had to admit their competency in a fight. But that didn't mean he liked them. He liked Ishabel more than Suri, Roluo and Eleazar, and that wasn't saying a whole lot.

But now here he was, alone. With one of those necromancers.

Again, Faust considered himself a patient man. But this was becoming a test of his willpower.

"Try not to get lost." He said over his shoulder to Suri, not pausing hin his walk down the street. They had appeared in an alleyway in this small city that Faust didn't know the name of. He counted his blessings that it was at least a human city so neither he nor Suri stood out too much. Though their appearance did garner them some weird looks. Well....mostly his. Faust had to admit that his greatcoat and Vaerian military cap didn't exactly inspire subtlety.

At least it made it easier to walk down the crowded streets, as the locals tended to move out of his way warily.

'We need to find out where we are.' he mentally figured. Surely there was an inn or a tavern somwhere they could get their bearings...

][

"I really should have listened to my dad and joined the navy...." was Kasser's first thought when his vision cleared and he found himself in a large sprawling forest. Kasser was a simple soldier, who by either luck or by curse had drawn the gaze of the Hunters early on in his career. Sure, there was a lot of respect that came with the Stormtrooper Corps, but these days Kasser was starting to figure that respect wasn't worth a whole lot compared to...well...situations like finding yourself in an unknown forest on a completely different world with a necromancer.

"Join the army, they said." He muttered, looking around for any signs of civilization. "See the world they said." Oh he was certainly seeing more of the world than he had ever dreamed.

Finally he stopped, realizing that spinning in circles was getting him nowhere. "Roluo." He called to his comrade (and he used that term grudgingly). "You have any tricks for figuring out where we are? Cause all I can figure is we pick a direction and start walking."

][

This place was dead.

It was obvious even to the casual observer, but the once grand city state of Vvarden was nothing but a burnt out husk now. One of the first victims of the war against the Lich King, Vvarden had been taken by complete surprise, and its citizens massacred. Now all that remained were empty streets and burnt homes, the once tall stone walls protecting the outer and inner districts of the city demolished by its once-invaders. No one had attempted to re-settle the city. Its wounds were too fresh. To the humans that lived in Serioc it was a tragic reminder.

For Al it was a memory.

"What..." he gasped, grabbing his head as a sudden and very painful headache gripped him. He and Dorian had appeared here in the city's cener only moments before, and upon seeing but a glimpse of Vvarden Al was suddenly assailed by a stream of images: memories leaking through a steadily cracking barrier in his mind.

He let out a cry and sank to his knees.

][

"...And then you found yourselves back here." Gregor Kell finished reviewing the story that Ishabel had just told him.

"That's right." The scryer nodded. By some luck, she, Xing and most of the stormtroopers that made up Nathaniel's retinue had been flung back to the ship. It had been fortunate. It had also scared the hell out of the crew.

She and the team were in the briefing room, explaining the situation to Lord Kell, as well as Ezeriah and captains Corvinus and Lucien. Neither looked particularly happy.

"Are we sure they're even still alive?" Lucien asked the question everyone was thinking.

"If...if the spell did what I think it did, then yes." Ishabel nodded. "probably?" she added. Beside her the ever silent Xing sighed.

"We're going to have to break cover if we want to search for them." Corvinus grumbled.

"But with the airships we can cover a lot of ground quickly." Kell pointed out. "Given the circumstances I don't think Commander Magnus will mind all that much."

"I suppose not." the captain of the Sylvina agreed.

"I'll give the orders then." Captain Lucien spoke up. "Let's just hope they don't get into too much trouble down there."

[Damien]

Eventually, the threat of his stomach and its contents leaving through his mouth subsided, and Izaak was able to stand, albeit a bit unsteady. Once he was up, he scanned his surroundings and found himself in a small clearing in the jungle.

"Well, this is lovely," he said aloud. He heard rustling behind him as the other person that had gotten teleported with him began to get up. Oddly enough, he found himself hoping that it would be Dorian. To his disappointment, he saw Eleazar moving about. He walked over and extended a hand to help the necromancer up.

"Looks like it's just you and me here," he said. "I hope Dorian's okay." It took him a few seconds to realize what he'd just said. He blushed a brilliant shade of red, attempting to correct himself. "Of course, I'm worried about everyone else. You know that, right? Of course you know that...yeah..."

-----

Dorian took a moment to pick himself up, hearing Al a small distance away, which he assumed was getting up as well. He took a look around and saw nothing but burnt homes, empty streets, a city that was nothing but ash and ruin now. He heard Al speak.

"What..." managed the methusela before he grabbed his head at the sides, sank to his knees and let out a cry of what sounded like pure agony to Dorian.

"Al?!" said the illusionist. "Al! What's wrong?!" He approached the man but kept a small distance, not wanting whatever was affecting Al to begin affecting him. He looked around for what could be causing the methusela's distress, but found nothing. He decided the best thing to do was to stay close enough to Al should he need someone.

And wait...

-----

"Well, that's interesting," said Sorin, who had been reading through a multitude of books on various types of magic.

"Have you found something?" asked Vynalion. "Is it something we can use?"

"Indeed I have! According to this tome, there is something known as a Violet Ioun Stone, a magical artifact that allows the owner to communicate telepathically with others that also have a Stone that came from the same deposit. It's powerful magic, but supposedly they can only communicate in turns. I assume that it's much like a question-response type of communication. For instance, say I said something through the stone. I could not speak again until someone else has spoken, or until a short time has passed, whichever comes first. And what's more is that there's no limit in terms of range. According to this, people could use these stones to hold a conversation of sorts with half the planet between them!"

"Brilliant!" exclaimed the cleric. "Does it give a location or even direction as to where we might find some of them?"

"We're in luck!" he responded, smiling. "The book says that there were massive deposits of these stones in the Ceberus Desert, but they left a few behind because they were difficult to reach. I figure with my voyage into shadow spell, I can teleport us there, and then probably shadowstep up to the deposits they mentioned."

"It would probably help us against the Celestials to have those," said the cleric. "They'd never hear what we were planning that way." He closed the book he'd been reading. "I say we go for it."

"Splendid!" said Sorin with a grin. "I might also get a chance to use some of the new spells I've been learning from these tomes. What say you, Lenore?"

[Monika]

Pathetic fools. Cowering behind the strength of their weapon, unable to use reach their goals through their own power. Such mages are no better than Veritans.

Kazan shook his head vigorously, clearing his mind of the foreign thought. He quickly scanned his body for any external injuries and, after failing to find any, took a good look at his surroundings. "From one city I've never seen before to the next," he noted, chuckling. "Well, I wouldn't have signed up for a world hopping adventure if I didn't want to get completely lost." After taking another look at the land around him, he finally answered Hecate. "We should probably start by finding out where we are. I'll handle it!"

Fearlessly, Kazan strode toward the three traveling Euryion traders and gave them a friendly wave. "Hello there, good people of this land! My friends and I just came here from another dimension and we're wondering if you could tell us where we are right now!" He grinned sheepishly, desperately trying to resist the urge to comment on the fact that all three of the travelers looked like snakes.

---

Lenore closed her books and slipped them into one of the library's complimentary knapsacks, also marked with their 'Reading is FUNdamental' logo. "How could I not agree?" she replied, smiling. "A chance to practice my summoning and healing while getting some stones that may help us in the upcoming battle? I'll take that over aimless studying in the library any day." Hoisting the bag over her shoulder, she added, "Besides, it wouldn't be fair to let the other group do all the work. We split up to double our chances of finding something to beat the Celestials. I simply could not allow our team to be viewed as dead weight. I'm ready when you all are."

---

"It is time." Desdemona opened her eyes and fixed her gaze on the overeager volunteer. "The group has been separated at last. And I know just the section to send you after." The Celestial rose from her seat - the mass of people around her parted as she stood - and walked over to Alex, tapping her on the forehead. A purple glow briefly emanated from her fingertips.

"I am sending you, Alex, after the three you should now see in your mind. The two young men and their female companion." Desdemona returned to her seat as she spoke, and she was once again surrounded by her loyalists. "The men do not seem particularly threatening, but that woman..." Her eyes narrowed as she went on, and her tone was laced with bitterness. "That woman is another Celestial. Hecate. A blood traitor," she spat. "I know not how much of her original power she possesses, but stay alert. I want all three of them killed. I needn't remind you of the penalty for failure."

She pointed at the empty space next to Alex, and that area began to distort, forming a portal that would lead directly to her target. "If you have no concerns regarding this assignment, then go at once. Take backup if you will. Just make sure the trio is eliminated before you return."

Keiran said nothing, silently chuckling to himself. Being sent to go kill an enemy Celestial? These are exactly the kind of suicide missions I'm glad I get to avoid.

[Sariel of Tevet]

Suri was still a bit disoriented when she heard Faust calling out for her to not get lost. He was already leaving the alleyway and she scampered off after him. As they walked she tried to check out the surroundings, but it didn't do very much for her. Growing up in Nostia made sure that you never came across a traditional town, or any town for that matter. After that she spent most of her life living with the old chronomancer in the woods. Towns were not exactly her strong suit.

As they walked she noticed that they were getting some strange looks, mostly Faust. His military outfit stuck out in this, or any, town. Her dress was no better. Any teenager sauntering around in a classy black dress in the day time was a bit strange. Suri sped up a bit to try and get in step next to Faust and wrapped her arms around one of his own.

"So we are kind of sticking out a bit. If anyone asks we will just say we are on the way to a military ball. Hopefully this place has those. Father Time used to talk about them all the time when I lived with him. I never did believe most of his stories anyway. "

She felt a bit awkward holding onto Faust like this, and then blushed a bit.

"Just don't tell Roluo about this. You know how he is."

She stopped in her tracks and let her mouth drop a bit. Her grip tightened on Faust's arm and she didn't let him walk any further.

"The others. What happened to everyone else? Do you think they are somewhere in the city?"

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

"Well I know one thing for sure, this suit isn't going to do me shit out here. I don't think anyone is going to be running into us any time soon. "

Roluo began to casually wipe the shadow magic off of his outfit to reveal his old tattered Nostian gear. He look around the forest and didn't see much other than trees, and hardly even a patch of sky.

"I tell you what though, we need to see if we can't get above those trees. " He pulled the pen from his pocket and held it back like a javelin. "Let's see if the pen is really mightier than the sword, eh?"

He hefted back the pen and threw it up into the air at a circling vulture. As it gained speed the shadow magic faded off and it turned back into his spear tipped staff. It struck the bird and plummeted to the ground near them. Roluo jogged over to the kill, pulled his staff from the carcass, and resurrected the bird into a thrall immediately. It took off into the skies in search of a good direction for them to continue in.

"Guess we just wait now. How do you think the others are doing?

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

Eleazar pulled himself up with the help of Izaak and waved a shadow over his blushing cheeks.

"Alright, Juliet, calm down. We should to worrying about our own hides for the moment. Man, I sure wish Wawanarduwas to get me out of this one again. "

Eleazar slumped against a nearby tree and put his hands into the pocket of his hoodie, where his hand hit his father's journal and an old rune from years ago that he conveniently still had on him.

"....welp. I'll be back."

He formed a shadown bow and a quiver full of arrows and began walk around the jungle, hunting all that he could find. After an unnecessary amount of time, his hunt concluded as he began to drag numerous animal corpses of all shapes and sizes into a large pile uncomfortably close to Izaak. He tossed the fire run into the mix, took a few steps back and yelled out "Maius Attollere Creatura, Maius Attollere Creatura, Maius Attollere Creatura, MAIUS ATTOLLERE CREATURA!!!!"

A blinding light enveloped the clearing and began to consume all of the bodies in the vicinity, as well as the fire rune. As the light faded away a giant pterodactyl-esque creature was left in its wake. The daunting creature lifted its head and shot a dazzling blast of fire into the air from its throat.

"WAWANARDUWAS TWO!"

Eleazar climbed up onto its back and began to pat it affectionately.

"So you coming or what, Juliet?"

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

(alex stuff coming eventually)