In this world, Magic is Everything. All people, all races, are granted with the power to perform mystical and magical feats via grimories, mystical tomes granted to each and every child on their 15th birthday. Those blessed by the mana can have their names written down in legend.
Shattered Grimoires is the work of the mind(s) of Ardere & Shattered Grimoire's staff. All characters and content are copyright their creators, and may not be replicated without their creators' permission. Black Clover is owned by Yuki Tabata and published by Viz Shonen Jump. All images belong to their original owners. The theme you are currently viewing was made by Eliza of ElizaCodes exclusively for Shattered Grimoires.
Actions Taken - Maintained Ignite (-10 MP) - Performed a spinning corkscrew slam with Haunt for Int damage (-10 MP). - Delivered two kicks for junior damage and KO'ing the mana beast. - Fired a shoony spell at the other mana beast for junior damage (-10 MP)
- Recovered 20 MP
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This visit to Hage was turning out to be the most eventful excursion yet. What was meant to be a small moment of clarity given the whirl of events that transpired in her life as of late, Bryn gained the opportunity to clash with a Magic Knight, be introduced to the captain of a highly prestigious squad, witness children inherit the will to step up for their country, and now she was out in the woods to look for clues about a missing case. Missing children case apparently. She couldn't help but be amazed while equally frustrated at how this sort of thing happened while she was in the zone. According to the elders however, the families of the children had stated it was a periodic coincidence. A very detached response to a very heinous crime, but Bryn waited for the explanation before punching someone's face in.
Hage was a poorer sector of the kingdom. Children did not have the luxury of staying inside out of concern for their safety. Being so far from the kingdom's capital also came with the closer relationship with bandits. Parents know of the risk and generally the town was safe due to it housing the Green Mantis's base of operations. Still, they would get a maverick here and there just raring at their chance to pull a fast one under the magic knight's nose. The villagers would tread that line of terror carefully, since these sorts of events do happen...but the Mantis squad were notoriously efficient (and brutal) in their delivery of justice. All the elders advised Bryn to let the knights do their job. It was on them to protect the populace, not some nomad who was slowly earning a good rep in the community.
Maybe it was the feeling of being semi-helpless. Or that she was being underestimated because the group suspected in the kidnapping may not be your run of the mill bandit upstarts. All the same, Bryn was more than pissed off enough to get her rear in gear. She had wrapped up a day's worth of rations and checked if her gear was still serviceable. Not that there was much to check. A few stretches here, some bandages in her carrying pouch, and all the plates on her gauntlets still securely fastened to the polished black leather. Her hair was still being worn down, but the lay of the land suggested some of the hideouts could be in one of Hage's mountainside. Speaking from experience, it was often better to go in with tied hair rather than a long mane while in cramped quarters. Besides affording less opportunities for an opponent to paralyze her, she really didn't want to bring home any unwanted surprises nestled between a split end.
As she came up to the clearing near the base of a mountain cliff where the kids were last seen, her red eyes spied some footprints. They were accompanied by drag marks a wee bit bigger than the set leading into the rocky terrace. In fact...these smaller footprints barely looked human as it was.
"Goblins? Halflings? Ugh. I wished I paid more attention to dad's tracking lessons." she mumbled to herself.
Sounds of rustling behind her immediately got her guard up, turning to face the source of the sound.
Hans found himself in the town of Hage yet again. This was one of the places he tends to lurk around when looking for jobs to do. The last time he done a job here it involved a rather...interesting wolf situation with a magic knight and a pink haired elf. Now the merc was here for another job, one that feels a bit personal to him.
A man had requested Hans' service, claiming that his daughter has gone missing. Having sort of a soft spot for kids, there was no way the dark mage would refuse this job, but he still charged the parent or at least he told him he was going to after he's found his child, but the merc is still quietly debating that. When it comes to taking on missions, Hans did not want to show weakness, wanting to continue to build up his reputation as a mercenary which has slowly been rising around the Forsaken Region at least. He never takes on jobs for free, but this felt different. It felt almost like the time he took on that one woman's request to spy on her cheating husband.
It wasn't something he normally did, but after seeing the woman's child, it made the guy feel bad and so he took that job, but there ended up being much more to that simple request. Turned out that the husband was being controlled, manipulated by an evil, seductive witch who then set her sights on Hans. This was also how he met that blue haired elf for the first time...Suna, someone who has made their way into the merc's mind more than once.
The desperate father claimed that he last remembered his daughter being around the forest by the town, so Hans started to make his way there. Being familiar with Hage, Hans knew that this place wasn't exactly safe, even with a Magic Knight base being stationed here. There were still a fair amount of shady people, delinquents, crooks. It was like that for a lot of areas in this region which wasn't a surprise. Even making his way towards the forest, the dark mage was met with a few dirty looks, but he tends to ignore them. They were no different than people talking trash, completely meaningless and not an issue. He just focused on the job ahead of him like always.
Little did he know, that there was more to this than just a single disappearance...
Entering into the forest, Hans started to look for clues of the child being here. Best case scenario, she just got lost and is looking for a way out, but given how long it's apparently, it seemed pretty unlikely. So the guy was looking mostly for clues of a kidnapping...or worse, something the guy didn't want to think about, but unfortunately he couldn't deny the possibility of a wild animal getting to her. The merc was now in an area where the trees were much closer together, the leaves on them rustling as he brushed against them. Finally out of that part, the man found himself in a clearing...but he wasn't alone.
"Hm?" The first thing he saw was a woman who was on guard, and facing the dark mage. On instinct, Hans had his hand on the hilt of his sheathed sword as he carefully watched the woman. The merc silently wondered why she was here. She couldn't be the one responsible...right? "...Have you seen a little girl around here?" the man asked calmly, remaining cautious.
After a few moments, rustling could be heard coming from a tree behind Hans and one behind the woman. This caused the merc to turn around, now with his sword drawn as a shifty looking male dropped from the tree, landing perfectly on his feet! Just as that happened, a more bulkier looking guy dropped from the tree behind the woman. They both snickered mischievously at the two mages. "Kekeke, well what's this now? Not...snooping around now are we?" the guy in front of Hans claimed as he pulled out two bandit like swords, licking his lips before going back to a bloodthirsty grin.
Reacting to what was an eerily suspicious question, Bryn snapped back with, "Who's asking? Asking for trouble are we?"
Her alertness shifted to a new entry by a couple of thugs. They matched the description of what some of the Green Mantis folk said were the upcoming newbies in the region. Unsavory habits, curved equipment that often looked better for intimidation rather than practical usage, definitely worth getting some answers out. The two noticed Bryn glaring at them, but neither could stifle some less than tasteful comments. Letting out a few wolf calls, one of them humped the air as the other began to advance with the sword's blade facing up at chest level.
"And our fortune keeps on getting better. Hey there pretty lady, why don't you drop your arms and turn around a bit. Bend over so we can get a good look at yah. We'll take much better care of you and even dispose of the bad ol' sword bully there. That way, you can focus solely on having a good time with us and the boys."
His buddy cackled, adding in, "Yeah! Real swell!"
Bryn scowled throwing a straight punch right at the man's neck. The bandit easily caught the punch and twisted her wrist enough to draw her in forcibly. His face was rather close and the stench of his lack of hygiene was unbearable. He looked like he wanted to taste the supple curves of her body, but decided to tease the pugilist some more.
"Baby gurl, you can't be throwing punches like this! Pretty things like you oughta be more gentle. You could've roughed up someone, or worse....someone could've gotten mad and roughed you up. You need a bad spanking, with some of our tools, so you remember not to do this again." he said in a sultry manner, moving on in to her personal space hips first.
The young Halcyon smirked, as if that punch was intended to be caught. "You're right. It is a good time for some punishment!"
There was a loud crack as the bandit began screaming in pain when Bryn's fist suddenly slipped out of its shackle. She gut checked him with a loud THUD! to crush all the wind out of the grown man's lungs. Bryn thrusted her knee between the man's legs and kicked open his stance wide. He staggered forward onto Bryn for support, clearly unbalanced by the sudden change the pugilist forced onto him. This would lead into a terrible mistake, as she locked her arms up and around the man's armpits to hoist him upside down. The singular lift looked effortless as the bandit's own backside of the neck rested between the hill of Bryn's and her shoulder. To stabilize the upside down victim, Bryn latched onto the underside of the man's knees and pulled down. In a few seconds, she turned a compromised position into her carrying a human parcel. To add onto the marvel of what was going on, she then took a small leap into the air.
When she came down and landed in a kneeling position on the soft dirt, the impact of her landing shot straight up her body and into the neckline of the captured bandit. Letting go, he fell down unconscious face first into the dirt. His buddy seemed dumbstruck but drew his blade out to stab Bryn in the chest. The girl took a small step to the left and quickly chopped the assailant's wrist. This caused a kneejerk reaction from his hand to let go of the weapon, with him whimpering in pain. A dark, sinister look came on over Bryn's face as she grabbed a hold of this bandit.
She grabbed the poor soul and launched him into the air. As the man took his time coming down, she decided to address the other swordsman, "Guessing these guys aren't with you. And you came from the same direction I did, from the road leading back to Hage. You a member of the Mantis or a hired hand?"
CRACK! went the impact as Bryn caught the individual onto her shoulder and tossed him back up again while waiting for the new person's answer.
Hans had his blade ready, drawn on the bandit in front of him. From what he could tell so far, these two weren't with that woman. "Huh?" Before the merc could do anything else, the bandit he was preparing to face turned his attention to the woman, walking past the dark mage like he weren't there. As the guy walked, Hans made sure to keep his eyes on him in case he'd try something, but found himself a bit dumbfounded the moment he witnessed him and the other guy trying to advance on the woman.
This definitely wasn't the first time Hans witnessed such ballsy and vulgar behavior since the places he usually travels around tends to have its fair share of guys who try to take advantage of women, some not even afraid to do it in public. This was just another one of those instances for Hans, causing him to exhale out his nose with indifference. Still from an earlier comment one of these thugs made about snooping around was fresh in the merc's mind. These two knew something related to his job, and he needed to find out.
The moment the first bandit grabbed a hold of the woman's first punch, Hans gasped lightly and gripped the hilt of his katana. His four leaf grimoire then floated to his side, and opened up, a dark aura surrounding it while the silver metal of his blade turned pitch black, darkness seeping from it like smoke. Hans was very much ready to take them both out now! The second thug peeked over at Hans while the other one was busy with the woman. "Oi, scram, boy! Can't you see we're busy her-" Before the thug could finish, both he and Hans were completely caught off guard by the first thug's scream as the woman went in for the attack! Both Hans and the second thug were completely speechless at the black haired woman's incredibly skillful techniques! It didn't even look like any magic was involved, just pure grit. Being no stranger to using hand to hand himself, Hans was not exactly on this level since mostly utilized swords for combat now. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't awestruck by this despite having a more puzzled look on his face.
This...definitely wasn't go the way he thought it would.
Snapping out of it, the second thug now attempted to take down the woman, but found himself practically being juggled, causing the darkness surrounding Hans' grimoire and sword to vanish, straightening his posture as he watched her. Clearly she didn't need any help...
"No...they aren't..." Before he could finish, Hans' eyes focused on the thug as he was falling right back down, only to be sent flying again. "...they aren't with me. I was hired to look for a missing girl." he claimed, looking at the first thug who was unconscious while sliding his sword back into its sheathe. "I uh...take it you're here for the same reason?" He questioned, rubbing the back of his neck. Despite trying to keep his usual stoic behavior, Hans was still trying to process what he witnessed. Just who the hell is this woman!?
While this happened, an eyeball crafted from wax floated idly hidden within the leaves of a nearby tree, looking down at the two....
At a certain mountainside base, a woman in similar bandit like attire stood at the entrance with her grimoire opened, floating idly beside her with one eye closed with a look of disbelief on her face. "My my, what have we here? Both the vigilante, AND the mercenary?" The girl gritted her teeth, obviously having heard about these two before. "Honestly expecting us to run into Magic Knights at this point, but this...The bosses won't like this one bit either...." she claimed, her annoyed expression surprisingly shifting to a more curious one followed with a grin. "Hehe, I'm looking forward to this~" she claimed before walking back into the base.
"Not really just one girl. There's been a chain of disappearances lately. Children and teens it seems. Figured I would go check it out myself and come give any relevant info back to the Mantis's. They patrol the area...supposedly." Bryn responded, catching the falling bandit once more and throwing him back up into the air. "Not super sure on this given that there must've been a big enough lapse for more than one child to get abducted."
She waited to crunch the back of the bandit once more, but Lady Luck paid him a pretty penny this day. Held by his knickers, the bandit dangled from a tree branch helplessly above Bryn and Hans. She scowled a little but admitted doing multiple backbreakers was detrimental to her own posture. Bryn wouldn't admit to having a height complex but was rather disappointed at where she ended up being. Eyeballing the general location of the branch, she jumped up and kicked her leg in an overhead fan motion. Shooting out of that arc was a small blue projectile that soared towards the direction of the hanging bandit. The sphere broke the holding branch and left the victim to fall helplessly back down to Bryn's waiting self. Timing the strike, she thrusted an open palm forward and planted it square in the mid section of the falling body. The blow held enough of an impact to redirect the fall towards the bushes nearby, where the shrubbery cushioned the impact. She found that this would be enough for one day. Any more would be overkill.
Coming over to Hans, the girl sized him up again and then offered a handshake. No change in expression but she made sure to not come off as overly hostile. "Name's Bryn. Traveling nomad and nosy do gooder in the zone. You stranger?"
She actually was hoping this individual was more acquainted with scouting, since the best she could do was follow the tracks up until the mountainside shifted to gravel. It was easy to read skid marks and the sorts, but judging what else would come from to assess what to expect was definitely out of her league. Or perhaps not so much so if a spell could be devised to counteract that flaw. Bryn would have to consider it as a project for the future. There was more to this sort of lifestyle than having fancy spells to beat the holy life out of a person. She probably came off too strong from that first exchange, even to a battle hardened mercenary such as this fellow.
"So you said you're on the sameish job. Care to work together to find the miscreants causing Hage so much grief? Would feel better if a capable hired hand was alongside me." she asked, slightly insincere at that last part. No prejudice to people who wanted to get paid for doing what they're good at, but there's just a lot to think about when it came to the convenience of the timing.
Hans appeared to be more focused on the woman's words rather than her impressive juggling act now. The moment she claimed that more youths were involved in this, his expression grew more serious with a hint of concern. To think more children were disappearing around this area worried the merc. His assumption on the girl just getting lost was now thrown out the window. "I see..." the man commented, placing a hand on his chin as he pondered this quietly. To think something like this was happening right under the Green Mantises nose was odd as well. If this is something that has been ongoing, why haven't they taken action?
The merc was then knocked out of his thoughts as he heard the sound of a tree rustling overhead of them. Looking up, Hans noticed that the guy the rather strong woman was tossing about had got caught in the trees in a rather hilarious position. It was almost enough to cause Hans to laugh, but instead a quick exhale of breath had escaped his lips as that laugh failed to form. Hans doesn't even remember the last time he's laughed, but having it nearly happen now was enough to take him by surprise. He was once again looking at the woman as she continued to prove her physical prowess by doing an impressive kicking maneuver...while knocking the poor guy out of the tree with what appeared to be a bit of magic! She then finished it off by sending the guy flying into some bushes and while Hans' eyes followed where the guy was heading, he noticed something small and spherical in shape floating by a tree near said bushes, but it faded in a matter of seconds, leaving Hans to blink a few times, assuming he was just seeing things from all the madness that was happening.
The merc heard the footsteps of the woman drawing closer to him, leading him to turn around just as she started to observe him. Not having the best experience with women, Hans found it hard to keep eye contact at first, prompting him to look to the side, but the moment she introduced herself, the merc willed himself to look at her, taking notice how they were about the same height. "Hmm.." Hans was now looking at her welcoming hand, some hints of hesitance of whether he should accept Bryn's handshake, not because he was rude, or because of his nerves...but because of how easily she could send him flying as well. In the end, he took his chances and shook her hand. "Hans. I'm a mercenary...and a....nomad too I suppose." Hans claimed. It was interesting how similar these two were...well except for the nosy do gooder part. Hans never really thought of it before, but he was a nomad as well, not having anywhere to live and just traveled about doing jobs for the right price...believing that's all he's good for.
"Sure...But I'm only interested in finding the girl." Hans claimed as he looked away once more. His claim was very much a lie. At first it was about finding that one missing child, but knowing now this is part of a bigger chain, Hans wasn't going to sit by and let this slide despite how distant he was trying to act.
With that, Hans backed up a bit and looked at both unconscious bandits. He doubted they would be awake anytime soon, so interrogating them was out of the question. The merc then looked at the ground by one of the downed foes and noticed some footprints and drag marks, the ones Bryn had seen before. "Goblins?" Hans muttered to himself, most likely loud enough for the black haired fighter to hear him. With his brows furrowed, the merc stepped over to the tracks and crouched down. Last he remembered, goblins weren't really in this area which confused the man more. The tracks were still pretty fresh as well. He followed the direction of where they were going with his head and noticed them going deeper into the forest. Standing back up, Hans gestured at Bryn before saying, "Let's go..." and started to proceed down the path whether she followed or not. Hans was fairly decent at tracking, something he picked up from his awful father. Despite how much he loathes him, at least he was still able to take some of things he's learned from the guy to benefit himself.
Walking a bit through the forest, the merc continued to follow the tracks with nothing eventful happening. Eventually, the tracks would lead to an entrance of another clearing...which strangely looked just like the one they were previously at. "This can't be right..." This was a pretty straightforward path. There was no way they had gone in a circle? With an eyebrow raised, Hans stepped a bit closer to the opening and right as he took another step forward into the clearing...his leg seemingly vanished! Taken off guard by this, Hans quickly stepped back and noticed that his foot returned, causing a sigh of relief to escape his lips. Slowly, Hans pushed one of his hands forward, and it disappeared as well except this time, the guy kept it there. He could still feel his hand but there was something...different. It felt like there was wind brushing against it. After a few seconds of pondering, realization struck the merc! Hans pushed both arms in and cautiously walked through, seemingly disappearing from reality. After a few more seconds and if Bryn were still with him, Hans would peek his head out and look at the woman. "You should see this..." he claimed before his head disappeared again.
On the other side...appeared to be a big military like camp of sorts with an opened mountainside looming overhead. There were goblins patrolling around the area with various weapons and armor equipped.
Before Hans could even process this, one of the goblins squealed, having took notice of the intruders! Six of them all about half the size of the two mages were now rushing at them. Gritting his teeth, Hans unsheathed his katana just as his grimoire flew to his side once more! Seems like it was time for him to get into the action as well!
One of the three attempted to lunge at Hans with a spiked club in hand, but the weapon was met with Hans' own. As the two clashed, Hans put in enough force to push the goblin back to the ground, causing it to drop its weapon. Darkness coated the blade of Hans' sword as he performed an upward vertical slash, striking the goblin and sending it flying back! Two more of the goblins then rushed in at Hans, trying to take him down on opposite sides. Once they were close enough, the merc dug his blade into the ground and left it there before crouching down, sweeping one of the goblins from right under their feet with the use of his leg, causing it to fall over and crash into the other approaching goblin. As those two toppled over each other, Hans stood back up and pulled his blade from out of the ground. He may not be as insanely strong and flashy as Bryn, but he was still a capable fighter in his own right.
Name of Spell: Darkness Magic: Chaos Slash Elemental Type: Dark Rank & Spell Type: Junior - Attack Creation Range & Speed: Melee - 10 m/s Mana Cost: 10 (Initial) - 5 (Sustain) Stats Effected: +4 Power (Battle Knight) Applicable Perks: Battle Knight, Quick Shot Description: As the user's grimoire flips to the page of the spell, the blade of the user's sword (or their arm if no weapon is used) with be wrapped in a pitch black aura. The user will then perform a vertical or horizontal slash, striking their target with darkness, dealing some minor cuts and bruises, knocking them back two meters while tearing through flimsy objects/structures or leaving minor cracks on stronger ones. Knock back increases by five meters for every ten power the user gains. (Spell gains +5 Durability)
"You're a terrible liar you know that, Hans? she said with a twinge of a tease, "But I guess even mercs can do a bit of extra leg work for things other than money huh?"
Bryn was joking, but a good deal of the mercs she came across really had no interest in anything beyond the contract. Some were hired to be town guards while the magic knights were away. Others took less desirable jobs for those requiring someone to be silenced. Hans? Looking away shortly after trying to reaffirm his position as a merc? Suspicious behavior indeed. She was going to cut him some slack though. Good motives as a hidden one was a pass worthy look. No further words would be given until Hans tracks brought them to the edge of what appeared to be a war camp.
She was about to say that they were way over their heads about this now, but took a moment to breathe and take a closer look. Surely, there were more goblins than what would be expected out of a scouting unit or a random encounter. She'd wager double-digit numbers at least. They were also decently armed, which may have been a result of constant pillaging. Quickly scanning over what green specks were visible and guesstimating with the number of tents up, this was just shy of a good-sized squad. Not large enough to warrant concern by magic knight scouts, but enough to crush a typical adventuring team lacking in firepower. What confused her was the quality of the tents. Each tent had a bit of patchwork visible but Bryn was concerned that none of them seemed to be self-made. In the sense, she didn't think goblins had the reputation for this sort of handiwork. No cross stitches, no pelts, nothing.
Bryn looked to Hans to note the strange quality of the goblin's gear when they were jumped. Six patrols, broken into two units of three. One set charged at Hans and got molly whipped so hard that it would've been a sin to describe it at Sunday church. She wanted to say that Hans's fighting style was impressive, but then Bryn would have to had seen the spectacle to make an appropriate comment. On her end, there were three goblins squirming to get themselves unburied from the ground. Their legs squirming as their football-shaped heads were planted like root vegetables rejected off the market stand. It was a shame, given that all Bryn did was a three-hitter quitter combo on each goblin.
1. Weave and broke the enemy's integrity on their weapon grip. 2. Gut punch the goblin. 3. Dunked the ever-loving bejeebus out of them into Mother Earth's soil.
Bryn was dusting her gloves by the time Hans took his weapon into his hand again. Looking his way, she flashed him a "V for Victory " sign towards his way along with a proud smile. She moved towards his way and picked up one of the clubs that the goblins had been using.
"Creatures like these getting their hands on these sort of weapons and armor is pretty strange. Not without a leader of sort. Question is if we're dealing with something like one of their Hobs, or..." Bryn began.
She quickly turned about and whipped the club at the treeline. A loud cracking sound was heard as something small and black began to buzz away just as the club fell back down to the ground. Bryn smelled a rat trying to use a goblin to cover their dirty work. The action earned a bit of attention and Bryn figured that more reinforcements would be coming soon.
"...we just stumbled upon something a bit bigger than a bunch of goblins. Whatchu think about it Hans?"
@morty2
MADE BY ★MEULK OF THQ
Last Edit: Jul 10, 2020 19:53:15 GMT -5 by Bryn Halcyon
Lifting his sword from the ground, Hans looked down at the three goblins he took care of before looking to Bryn to see how she was doing. Again, Hans couldn't comprehend what he witnessed. The other three goblins were now dug head first into the ground like plants, all while the woman responsible for this flashed the confused merc a "victory" sign. "Er...n-nice." was the only thing the dark mage could think of to say. He completely missed what the fighter did to lead to...this, and now a part of him was kind of upset he did. Hans has met a few lively folks, but Bryn here was certainly a character.
As the fighter approached Hans, the man's expression shifted to a more pondering one as she started to speak about the goblins. She did raise a point. Goblins tend to be more disorganized than this, and there was also that illusion spell that hid this location, something that ordinary goblins wouldn't be capable of pulling off. The guy would be snapped out of his thoughts as Bryn chucked the club like it were nothing at the treeline, something flying off from that location in the process. Were the two being spied on!? Hans' suspicions about these stuff grew. Whoever is behind this has been expecting them.
Before Hans could answer his partner's question, more squeals could be heard as the rest of the goblins were now alerted of the two's existence. "I think you're a piece of work..." the man claimed in a deadpan tone in response to her previous actions as he readied his sword which was his own little attempt at a joke. As the goblins grew closer, stampeding with weapons in hand, Hans' eyes shifted from them to an opening at the mountainside nearby. Squinting his eyes, the merc could make out that same flying thing, heading towards that location...with a figure standing at the entrance which stepped back inside. Whoever that was, it was hard to tell if they were goblin or not from this distance, but this was obviously connected. "We should make our way up there." He looked back at Bryn, gesturing his head towards the mountain. "Have a feeling we'll find our answer there." Hans quietly hoped that the missing children would be there too...and safe.
With that, the dark mage rushed at some of the incoming goblins! As he ran up to one of them, the goblin prepared to swing his club at Hans who managed to dodge it by sliding across the ground like a baseball player returning to home base! But as he slid past the goblin, Hans used his sword to slice at the creature's ankles, causing it to groan in pain and fall to its knees. Of course the merc wasn't in the clear just yet as he laid back first on the ground while three more goblins rushed at him. These guys clearly weren't the tactical type. As they tried to bash the merc, Hans lifted his hand up and summoned a glass like barrier of darkness, deflecting all three strikes with an audible bang! With the goblins still leaning against the barrier in a feeble attempt at breaking it, Hans rolled out of the way, and shifted the barrier to the other side with a gesture of his hand, causing the three goblins to fall on the ground and onto each other.
Getting back up and de-materializing his barrier, Hans decided to waste no more time with those three and continued to run, his main target being to get to that cave! Of course the closer he got, the more resistance he was met with. There was now a small incoming horde at the merc's front and the previous three were approaching from the back! At this point, Hans stopped running, and waited for the goblins to get closer. Once they got in range, Hans tapped the tip of his blade onto the ground with both hands on the hilt, and the moment his sword made contact with the ground, a dark shock wave, sent the surrounding goblins flying in different directions! "Don't have time for this..." the man muttered before continuing to run, making his way to the root of this problem!
Name of Spell: Darkness Magic: Chaos Barriers Elemental Type: Dark Rank & Spell Type: Junior - Defense Creation Range & Speed: 23 meters - 10 m/s Mana Cost: 10 (Initial) - 5 (Sustain) Stats Effected: N/A Applicable Perks: Self Repairing, Quick Shot, Skilled Sniper Description: With the grimoire on the page of the spell, the user summons a glass like barrier of darkness for defensive purposes against spells of the same rank. The barrier is square like in shape, reaching up to six inches in height and width. The barrier will float around the area they were conjured at until the user takes control of them, being able to use these barriers from up to twenty-three meters around them. (Spell gains +5 Durability)
Name of Spell: Darkness Magic: Chaos Crash Elemental Type: Dark Rank & Spell Type: Junior - Attack Creation (AOE) Range & Speed: 5 meters - 10 m/s Mana Cost: 10 (Initial) - 5 (Sustain) Stats Effected: +4 Power (Battle Knight) Applicable Perks: Battle Knight, Quick Shot Description: Once the user's grimoire lands on the right page, the book will glow in a dark aura as the user taps the tip of their blade (or the bottom of their foot) on a solid surface, causing a shockwave of darkness to erupt around the user, damaging and knocking those who are within range back by two meters. Knock back increases by five meters for every ten power the user gains.
Actions Taken - Decked a hobgoblin for intermediate damage with a brand new combo! - Encountered a lesser demon.
- Recovered 20 MP
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She nodded as the swordsman began to make his way up the mountain. Seems like he came to the same conclusion as her, as staying where the action took place only served to bring them closer to a bad end. Hans wasn't one to mince words though, or much of anything. Bryn stared at him a bit till it was noticeable, trying to get a feel for what this man's motivators were. In combat, one's deepest natures come out. Bryn's was aggressive and at times wild. She was generally mild mannered till then, but the expression of physical combat spoke volumes often enough. What she couldn't understand, was that while this individual was proficient and seemingly held no lies behind the claims earlier, was the hesitation behind his actions. How could someone who was this committed to finding the lost children be so half-willed at the thought of conquering the aggressors? Unless...
Keeping the last thought to herself, they came across a second sentry stationed up at the entrance to a cave. Mostly peons from what Bryn could see, which have caused adventurers to take an early retirement by overestimating their stamina. She took up a combative stance and saw that Hans took point again. More flashy displays of force with a combination of defense and area of effect spells got a whistle out of Bryn, seeing that the man before her was getting worked up. The thought line she had before surfaced again and she smirked. If her comrade was putting this much effort in then she ought to return the sentiment. As she focused her resolve, a loud footstep came from the cave.
A hobgoblin. Enemy of female pugilists and lightweight combatants. Often thought to be crossbred between a goblin and one of the larger races, these entities were far superior build wise to most humans. Still retaining the intellect of their smaller cousins, hobgoblins often was a prime example of the reason weight classes were implemented in sport fighting within the kingdom. It wasn't that the little goblins were forced to stay their size, but hobs were different. Bryn had recalled goblins were actually a very cunning and flexible race, with variants and job classes similar to their own. Her teacher mentioned that most female pugilists struggled to break through the typical muscle mass Hobs had without magical aid, thus it was often better to serve as a decoy so that one of the weapon or long range magic users could dispose of them. Unfortunately for Bryn, she never truly believed in backing down from a tough opponent.
Kicking off with her fiery red aura active, she charged up a fist until it glowed a molten red. The black knuckle casing appeared to have just been pulled out of the forge, garnering the look of the hobgoblin as Bryn delivered a deep gut punch to the monster. It bellowed...
...and then smirked. Bryn looked in confusion, wondering if her new spell had not been executed correctly since the impact should have brought the creature to its knees. The solid resistance that pushed her knuckles back out told her that the hobgoblin flexed its abdominal muscles on the point of impact, showing that the creature was confident it could take one of her hits. Licking its lips, the creature wound back and swung with its large green hand to slap Bryn's face. The force and weight difference would have sent a lesser woman crashing to the ground and forcing her partner to back her up. Hobgoblin was prepared for that outcome, as several goblins laid in wait to pounce on the swordsman should he intervene.
That is, if Bryn were a lesser woman! A loud crack echoed into the cave as the goblin's stunning attack struck clean. Bryn's form reeled back from the hit, but her feet still remained planted firmly on the ground. Supporting her were a pair of phantasmal limbs extending out of her backside and dug into the ground enough to withstand the impact. A pair of glimmering red eyes rose to lock onto the hobgoblin, who stared back at the girl with bewilderment. The phantom arms faded away after she returned to her neutral combative stance, staring down her opponent. Though her face stung like crazy, a fierce grin grew on her face.
"My turn." she muttered, as her aura changed from a red to an aquamarine color. "You're gonna regret not putting me into the dirt with that hit."
In that moment, Bryn thrust her arms to out to the sides and let out a battle cry. Her aura intensified and then Bryn's form flickered for a moment. The singular woman split into three and then converged back into one. Bryn's shoulders became garbed with a mantle of energy that meshed into her hair. The energy appeared to dance about her form like azure flames, kissing the contours of her body with invigorating force. She raised her right hand up while clenching the fist tightly until it was parallel to her cheekbone. Her legs took steps to widen while buckling slightly at the knees. The opposing arm led her slightly hunched posture and stayed open. The yellows of her opponent assessed the change in the long haired vixen's stance and decided that the girl was foolishly challenging it to a grappling contest. Cackling, the creature lunged forward and went for the takedown.
"MY HEART RESONATES." she roared as her aura energy spiked, rotating on her frontal leg to deliver a spear kick to the same area as her first strike.
The goblin puked out what liquids its poor innards had, having been struck so soon in an area that took the mighty blow from earlier. It scoffed, wondering why it was moving a tad more sluggishly when any overextension from Bryn should have been easy to counter. Her form moving quicker too, leaving behind after images in that aqua color. Having taken the kick set the stage for the follow up three hooks to its lower jawline, as the girl shouted "WITH THE HEAT ENOUGH TO BURN ALL THAT STANDS IN MY WAY!!"
It howled as Bryn then grabbed its head after delivering another uppercut to the gutline, causing the hob to lurch forward in response. Jumping up with her hair whipping wildly, the girl delivered a flying knee to the hobgoblin's nose and continued, "THE BEAT OF MY BLOOD RAGING FORWARD." The final strike being a series of punches that put the hobgoblin airborne just at Bryn's eye-level. The aura pulsed like the water rippling from a dropped stone for but a moment. Then Bryn unleashed the finale.
Thrusting a single punch and then following up with another. Then another. And another. Until a series of punches clad in the aquamarine aura made it as if thousands of tiny comets were smashing onto the writhing form of the Hobgoblin. Its nose distorted, teeth smashed, muscles caving under the impacts, and bones twisting in directions that ought not to be natural, Bryn's leaned back fury of torrential punches did not let up for at least a good few seconds. The other goblins saw their leader in peril and foolishly jumped at the woman occupied in the beatdown. What they underestimated was how wide the area was for the hail of punches, and were suddenly sweeped up into the flurry. It was spectacle to see a monster thrice the size of Bryn and three soldier goblins being suspended in the air by the sheer volume of punches. The onslaught continued for a few more seconds until Bryn suddenly stopped, immediately shifting her form by doing a quick pirouette turn and bring her fists together.
In one instant, smooth motion, the girl took a step forward and thrust her energy filled fists forward into the airborne enemies. Pushing her shoulders forward, she unleashed a shoony spell at point blank to blast the goblins into the cave's wall. Their defeated bodies battered, bloodied, and unconscious. The aura around Bryn simmered off a bit, but one could have sworn there was smoke coming off her fists from all the hot fire she put out on the enemy. She was noticeably winded, but her body felt good. Bryn would have turned about to check on Hans, but a sultry tone came out of the cave's entrance.
"My~ I did not expect a human so capable to find me this soon. Let alone two~" a feminine tone spoke, followed by an ill wind bellowing deep within the cave.
Stepping into the light was an entity that appeared similarly to a nude human female, but lacked any noticeable parts that would have confirmed so. Her face covered by a leather mask and parts of her body adorning the same. A large red heart appeared on her forehead and her eyes were an unnerving black with red pupils. She had a whip at her side and long, gelled back yellow hair. One could tell she was in a class far above even the hobgoblin Bryn recently disposed of.
"I'll have you know this was only supposed to be a simple scouting and preparation of vessels before the big show, but I do so appreciate it when the snacks deliver themselves. You face devil scout Cyllia foolish humans, and I shall be the taste of the devil world to come. Rejoice, for our lord comes for your souls soon!"
Cyllia then unleashed a scent about her that was intoxicating to the nose. Sweet, calming, and could raise the body temperatures of any who stood in it. Point and case, several goblins around her suddenly combusted into pyres. Seeing this, Bryn kicked back and regrouped with Hans.
"Guess we found our answer!"
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Lesser Demon Cyllia Health: Grand Mana Skin: Intermediate Magic: Aroma with Oddity Fire Specialization: Hex, Attack, Restraining
@morty2
MADE BY ★MEULK OF THQ
Last Edit: Jul 19, 2020 19:07:16 GMT -5 by Bryn Halcyon
“When you spend so long trapped in darkness, you find that the darkness begins to stare back.”
Having dealt with the goblins on the ground level, Hans made his way to the mountainside along with Bryn. The cave entrance was void of any light, dark like the merc's magic. Despite not being able to see what lies within, there was still this sense of eeriness that came from in the cave. Picking up on it, the grip Hans had on his sword's hilt tightened as if he were bracing himself for something. Heavy footsteps from within drew closer, vibrating the very ground the two mages stood upon.
That is when it emerged out...a hobgoblin. Hans grit his teeth and immediately placed his other hand onto his weapon's hilt as he prepared himself. Unlike ordinary goblins, hobgoblins were no pushovers.
The monster "gatekeeper" eyed its opponents, waiting to see which would make the first move. The merc then heard some more footsteps and picked up on the goblins that approached from the darkness of the cave, interestingly not going on an all out attack like the previous ones. That is when Bryn lunged at the bigger goblin, Hans only managing to catch the part where her coated fist collided with the monster's stomach...but it was seemingly ineffective much to Hans' surprise. He was already aware that hobgoblins weren't something to bat an eye at, but with how the puglist was performing before, Hans was half expecting her to take care of it in one punch.
With a cocky smirk, the hobgoblin returned a punch of its own! The force of the impact, kicked up some dust that made Hans instinctively shield his eyes with his arm. "Bryn!?" Hans looked like he was prepared to rush in, fearing for the worse. The other goblins had their sights set on the merc and were just about ready to strike the man if he tried to interfere. But when the dust finally settled and his vision was no longer clouded, Hans' eyes widened at the sight of Bryn....still standing there with support from arms constructed out of her aura. The other goblins were also shocked by this along with the hobgoblin. The woman was not one to easily go down...and she was about to further prove it...
Her aura now changing colors, Bryn unleashed a combo that swiftly surpassed her previous actions that Hans witnessed. Mouth a bit open in awe, the merc couldn't take his eyes off of the aura mage and how powerful she was. Never has Hans found himself so distracted before until now. She launched the behemoth of a goblin into the air like he were paper and started to deliver a barrage of punches! Hans took a step back to make sure he didn't get caught up in any of this. The other goblins were shocked at first but managed to gather themselves before hoping into the fray. Hans didn't even need to assist Bryn as the other goblins were now suffering the same fate!
Afterimages, flaring auras, insane combos...Hans had never met anyone so skilled in hand to hand. He was completely captivated.
Even when the fighter was finished, Hans still looked at her in disbelief. As she turned to face the shook male, Hans caught himself staring and quickly averted his eyes while closing his mouth. He needed to make a mental note to NEVER get on her bad side..."Er..."
Unfortunately, the two weren't in the clear yet. With a voice coming from the cave's entrance, Hans pulled his eyes away from Bryn and onto the feminine looking humanoid that emerged out. The mana signature this sultry woman gave off felt sinister. If it wasn't clear by her appearance that she was no human...then that awful mana of hers surely sealed the deal. "Vessels..." Hans muttered. Was she referring to the children? This caused Hans to furrow his brows as he looked at Bryn, giving her a nod. He watched as the goblins around Cyllia burned from her magic, but the man wasn't phased. He was now more set on rescuing that girl...no, rescuing them all.
"Quit the chatter, and return the children." Hans spoke up in a demanding tone, drawing his katana. The man's dark armor shined once again as a dark aura surrounded his body. The darkness slowly took the shape of a knights armor with the dark mage still visible from within. Rushing at the demon which admittedly wasn't a well thought out move given how determined the guy was, Hans faced the blade of his katana forward in an attempt to impale the abductor in the chest! But as the tip of his blade was mere inches in front of the unmoving woman's chest....as large snake constructed of ink blindside Hans, tossing him to the side! If it weren't for his armor spell, Hans might've taken some serious damage.
Sliding against the ground with one hand on the surface and his other still up and holding the sword, the dark mage's eyes met with the culprit of that strike.
"You do not have permission to lay your filthy hands on the mistress..."
"Those who attempt to will suffer forever in the shadows of our lord."
Unlike Cyllia, this woman appeared to be human with blonde hair tied together at the front wearing a black suit with a hoodie over her head and bearing black snake like tattoos on her arms. Before Hans could even get back on his feet, the blonde extended her arm, and the tattooed snake uncoiled, stretching itself towards Hans where it then latched its fangs onto the guy's foot, dragging him into the darkness of the cave with the blonde following right behind!
Things are not looking good...
~~~~
Servant Ada Health: Junior Mana Skin: Junior Magic: Ink Specialization: Restraining, Attack, Physical Reinforcement
POW
24
DUR
22
STA
12
SEN
8
CON
10
Battle: +7 to Han's Durability due to Malevolent Armor Spells:
Name of Spell: Darkness Magic: Malevolent Armor Elemental Type: Dark Rank & Spell Type: Junior - Defense Creation - Attack Creation (AOE) Range & Speed: 5 meters - 10 m/s Mana Cost: 10 (Initial) - 5 (Sustain) Stats Effected: +2 Durability (Battle Knight) Applicable Perks: Battle Knight, Self Repairing, Quick Shot Description: Using their grimoire, the user forms an aura of darkness around them, mocking the appearance of a medieval knight for defensive purposes against spells of the same rank. However with the clench of one of their fists, the armor will transform into a six foot sphere of darkness around them that will burst out up to five meters around with the user as the center, striking those within range with blunt damage while knocking them back two meters (an additional five meters added every ten power gained. (Spell gains +5 Durability)
As Hans was dragged into the cave by that woman, the evil mage let go of the merc who then quickly stood up, facing her with sword drawn. Both mage's grimoires were glowing, prepared to fight each other...until Cyllia spoke to her blonde servant through the use of a communication spell. "Let them go....We've got what we've came here for." With that, Ada rose an eyebrow by simply nodded. Her grimoire stopped glowing and fell to her hand much to Hans' surprise.
"We're done here." Ada would say before turning to leave. Hans, not wanting to let the woman get away attempted to slash at her...but she quickly vanished into the shadows, her mana scent being nothing but a memory.
Not only that, but Cyllia had left as well, the two abandoning their base without a second thought.
Hans wasn't sure what to make of this, but all of the children that were captured were there, being locked up in different cells. With no one guarding them, Hans and possibly Bryn were able to free the children and eventually escort them back to Hage where they would be reunited with their families.
It was never found out what those two sinister mages were looking for...or what they found...but the dark mage had a feeling that this wouldn't be the last he'd see them.
