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.
Post by Willow Omens on Jul 28, 2021 23:47:08 GMT -5
She was more than ready to start trying. Her grimoire was floating next to her, ready to be used. Though Ardere wanted to help her along the way. When he approached, she stood, only to blink once his hand was on her. As mana washed over her, she felt something. She couldn't say what it was.
Was it potential? Was it the sensation of true potential, a chance to be something more? Was it that she could feel his belief in her to be greater? Ardere's power coming into her at least gave her a sense of just what could be. What she could be capable of. Her grimoire seemed to respond in kind to this.
It floated in the air next to her, pages fluttering open with the force of a gale, watery images of various mana beasts she had drawn before. Hovering for a moment before each new one came to replace it. Catalogs of what she had sensed in the past, taken note of. And then the pages stopped making images. The book closed and it floated back to her side.
She took a deep breath as she put her hand over the cover, looking at the man who had confidence in her and then the others. "I might not be of the strongest. But I will be of the most helpful where I can be. I am giving you the promise of that much." She had a fire in her eyes, a glimmer of confidence, a shadow of the old Willow giving her a little push in the right direction.
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When he really thought about it and heard the explanation of others regarding their own weaknesses, Griswold began to really dive into the things that held him back. Truth be told, there weren’t so many things weighing him down as there were things pushing him forward, which explained his rather explosive growth over the past six months since receiving his grimoire. Whereas most people had their grimoire since their fifteenth, he only had his for almost half a year now, which was likely the main thing that had held him back when initially becoming a magic knight around that time. Luckily for him, he had managed to get a rather firm grasp over his own magic rather quickly, allowing him to break away from the others that had joined the magic knight around the same time he did and put quite some distance between them. If he was to fight one of them in a one on one setting, it was safe to say that they didn’t stand a chance.
But in spite of that, Griswold had never really had the chance to gloat or really revel in the fact that he had outpaced those same people that considered him to be nothing but a peasant that didn’t have a future as a knight or believed that he was simply inferior in every way. The simple truth was that he had spent too much time in the forsaken region, fighting hard to protect the other peasants such as himself and working hard to make himself stronger. Because his own strength was a direct reflection of the threats he would be able to protect his own kind from, standing still and waiting for dust to gather was simply not an option for him. Whether it meant taking on dungeons in an attempt at saving those that stumbled into them or got snatched up and taken in, fighting dangerous creatures and monsters or simply taking on mages that had strayed from the righteous path, he’d take care of it.
“Aside from having no real defensive magic, I don’t consider myself as a person with weaknesses. And I don’t say that to sound smug or overly proud, I’m just very aware of what I can and cannot do. So when it comes down to fighting someone of my own level of strength or below, I know that I can win, even if I’m only a peasant.”
Arguably, that was the truth of the matter. Whenever he fought monsters that were within his realm of strength, he never lost or truly got injured. Because for an elf, Griswold had a rather small pool of mana to work with, though his mana skin was really powerful and dense, not to mention the fact that his body too was quite sturdy and resilient. So when it came to taking a few hits, Griswold could power through most of it and still end up landing a decisive blow that would work out in his favor. That said, the only time he had really fought against another knight of his level was when he fought against Verena in order to actually become a knight, which was a fight he had won. While it was a victory, it had shown him that there was still plenty of room for him to grow, and in which directions he should be focusing that growth.
In terms of destructive power, he still had quite a way to go before he would eventually hit that magical ceiling that made sure no one mage was ever going to blow up the entire country or even the planet by accident. He could still get more skilled at hand to hand combat, as well as properly wielding his sword to the point where it would be more equipped to deal with fighting magical spells. He could still get physically stronger, as well as faster, not to mention being able to fine-tune and outright increase the amount of control he had over his own mana and his individual spells while being able to craft more. But those were the kind of things that took time and effort to further master, meaning it was not something he would be able to just call into being during this specific session of training. That said, he imagined the majority of the people currently present here were well aware of that fact.
“That said, I can still build up on my strengths and make them…. Stronger. So while I do aim to learn a thing or two here today, it is not why I initially came here, as I’ve been getting quite a bit stronger on my own already. My main reason for coming here was to get a better feel of the team, the individuals making up said team and what our plan of attack will be.”
And that was exactly the truth of it. He honestly did not know enough about most of the people that were there to accurately tell what kind of magic they used, if they were better served to supplement others or take the lead in battle, if they could potentially heal one another, etcetera etcetera. So the knowledge that some of them apparently possessed elemental spirits was at least something he knew now that he did not know before that would be very beneficial in the fight. Having only seen Hania’s in action during something he believed was called spirit dive or spirit swim or whatever, he knew that such a state greatly empowered someone. For a time, he too had wondered what it might be like to have a spirit on his side, even if it were only for the reason of not always being alone during his travels. So in the knowledge of at least two out of the five people present having access to a spirit, that at least meant something, given they put in the work.
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Post by Charles Constantine✾ on Jul 30, 2021 20:11:37 GMT -5
[NOSPACES]
"I'm no g e n i u s, I'm just a fool who keeps going forward."
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[attr="class","glentext"] Charles listened out to what Captain Ardere had to say in regards to the arena itself. He had never been there personally but has heard of it before. The structure has been constantly changing and growing, which made any sorts of maps useless. Not only that, it was three times much bigger than it was before and its layout was currently unknown. And to make things better, sensory and Ki were useless inside to keep a track of the area. They were essentially going in blind without little to no direction ahead of them. "Great... He sighed upon the realization that Ki and sensory abilities were pretty much useless when it came to know the location of things within the arena. It would've been nice to have access to a map of the place in order to plan their path, but all maps of the arena were essentially useless. [break][break] Everyone was powering up, including himself. Although, he didn't want to let out all of his magical energy in one go. First, because he was too lazy to do so at the moment, and second because it was counter-productive. Such release would just drain him much faster. It was worth noting that Willow appeared nervous, he didn't know if she was also like this in the Royal Knight exams as he wasn't present at the moment. Perhaps the presence of so many powerful people, compared to her strength. Maybe she wasn't used to that and was simply just nervous. Regardless of the circumstances, Ardere seemed to put her faith in Willow's abilities. This was followed by Griswold's comment about him only being specialized in blowing things up. If there was a group of people known for making a mess out of things was the Black Bulls. Well, Charles himself didn't specialize in that, but he could make things blow up if necessary. Although, after Kikka he preferred to avoid those things for a very good reason. [break][break] "Well... My specialization is defense-based magic spells, followed by supplementary constructs as support and attack creation. My sensory abilities are poor, which is why I use Ki to make up for it. I'm overall good at defense, offense, and support. He said since both Ardere and Cyrus were mentioning their weaknesses. His major and most obvious weakness was his poor sensory abilities. Overall, in terms of defense and supplementary constructs, those were his best, with offensive attacks as third. Improving his Ki was the main focus of his training. While it wouldn't be much use in the arena, it would work best to detect enemies that were hidden or illusions. [break][break] Charles found Griswold's comment about not having any particular weaknesses slightly amusing. His comment had some logic behind it. Everyone had weaknesses, some were easier to spot more than others. Acknowledging them was also another thing, not a lot of people were capable of admitting to them. It had nothing to do with being a peasant, usually, the ones that acted that way were nobles. Anyway, he decided to keep whatever opinion he had about his comment to himself. The silver mage didn't have the right to judge, it was already obvious that he was here because of his strength. An experienced warrior like Aamon would probably try his best to exploit whatever weaknesses anyone had. "The best option is to rely on each other when necessary and make up for the other's flaws. If everyone was perfect then making a team would be pointless.
I don't know where the future[break][break] will take us,[break][break] But we will blaze it together.[break][break]
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[attr="class","ardereescroll"]Ardere's amber eyes gazed upon each member of the team, slowly but intently. His mind often wandered into the abyss these days, but not today. Today he stood among strong individuals capable of leading this team to victory, but the enemy was far too unpredictable to say for certain. They had to trust in one another--it was their only choice. Standing here alongside them the Crimson King realized that it was their support that would lead him to defeat Aamon. It was always the people of Clover that gave him strength. After all these years he was finally beginning to understand where his power came from; those around him. Not just his friend or family, but even his enemies. They all gave him strength. Friendship alone was not enough. He had a thirst for vengeance and justice as well, provided by not only the Daemon but others as well. There really was no easy answer to getting strong. [break][break] There is really only so much I can do to prepare you for what is to come. I can't magically make you all Archmages overnight. Placing hands on his broad hips, a slight sigh escaped his maw. But we can come together as a team and build on one another. Even if we can't trust in our own instincts, we can trust each other's. Looking over to Cyrus he gave a slight nod. They were forced into a corner here. The Daemon had given them no other choice. Ardere had to trust Jagen was right about this one and that their plan was good. The Wizard King was a wise man, but even with all that wisdom they were facing the spawn of Devils. This was a battle between worlds now. [break][break] Pacing for a moment, Ardere could not help but wonder when he adopted the habit of overthinking so much. His entire life he had been a man of instinct and pride, but here he was caught in a myriad of his own thoughts. Losing Silas had changed every aspect of who he was, but was he stronger now than he had ever been? All that pride and anger before had gotten him nowhere. Perhaps his greatest loss had now become the source of his greatest strength. The mages here were relying on him to deliver and deliver he would. I would like you all to come with me for a moment. The fire inside his chest began to grow a bright orange and the dragon inside him began to stir. Bursting forth from his body like a spirit leaping into the world; Salamander was summoned. But he was not in his ordinary smaller form--no. This was Salamander at his full size, a fully fledged winged dragon with titanic form and gargantuan wings. He landed in the courtyard of the Yuiee Estate for Ardere to leap onto his back. Step right up friends. He doesn't bite...often. The red dragon exhaled steam, yellow eyes looking at the mages before him. He was intimidating to say the least, however he had no malicious intent towards them. These were his partners comrades, therefore they were his comrades too. The Dragon King would fight to protect them just as his partner would. Let us go for a short ride.
[attr=class,cyrustext]Cyrus watched as the others said their own pieces on what they each believed to be their own weaknesses. It was interesting to see just what other people saw when they took a step back to reflect upon themselves; what they identified as weaknesses and strengths. Unfortunately, for the moment at least, Cyrus was too unfamiliar with the assembled party's members to tell just how accurate their assessments of their own abilities were. Hopefully that would change throughout their training; Ardere could not be more correct when he noted that their training wouldn't be enough to help the others reach their level on such short notice.
Even with his meager sensory capabilities and still developing ki senses, Cyrus could feel the mana within the Crimson Lions' captain as he summoned forth Salamander, the draconic fire spirit growing to its full size as a dragon right before their eyes. Cyrus' eyes glimmered in obvious delight at the display, his scholarly fascination with magic taking a brief backseat to a sense of childlike wonder at the sight. Hama, for her part, was also impressed but less openly. She had respect for the strength of the four main spirits, but also found it hard to not be irritated that they were just naturally so powerful when she had to train hard with Cyrus to reach the point she was at.
Still, seeing the clear excitement on her friend's face as Ard invited the others to all approach Salamander and get on, she found it difficult to maintain such a state of mind. She had mellowed out quite a bit over time, after all. Cyrus stepped forward first of the group, holding his hand out towards the majestic embodiment of flame, though not actually touching it yet out of respect for its boundaries. Whether the spirit responded to the gesture or not, Cyrus would take his seat on the dragon's back, while Nidhogg stood back up to its full height and spread its massive wings, prepared to follow its master wherever the Captain would be taking them. "It is an honor to meet you, Salamander. I look forward to working with you in the future." He said, tone both friendly and respectful. Hama took her usual spot on Cyrus' shoulder, resting against his neck as they waited for the others to board the beast. She offered her fellow spirit a simple wave, but nothing more for the moment.
Having heard everyone out, he couldn’t say he was all that impressed by it, as most of it seemed to just be issues that rose out of mental or emotional problems they had, he could also pick up quite clearly how at least two of them had been in the field before. While he had gone through his fair share of strife, what was coming towards them now was unlike anything he had ever faced before, and he imagined it was unlike anything any of them had faced up until this point. So when statements were being thrown around about them having to come together as a team, relying on the strengths of others to cover one’s own weaknesses, part of him wanted to do just that. But as someone who had more or less grown up relying only on his own strength and his own senses, that was just not something he could do, though they did not need to know that.
Trusting in his own instincts had gotten him to where he was today, and expanding on his senses through extrasensory means and magic had gotten him out of several incredibly dangerous binds so far, and would undoubtedly continue to do so. Now, that did not mean that he was not going to do his very best to look after the others when and where he could, it just meant that he was not going to blindly trust someone he really did not know that well to have his back as opposed to him having his own back. And to that extent, he would just have to keep training and getting stronger to the point where he would be able to do just that. But seeing as he did not wish to be considered some einzelgänger that could not be trusted to function within a team, he merely remained quiet about the matter and chose to let the rest do the talking, as that was generally not something he excelled at.
One thing became ever more pressing, and that was whether or not they would actually go about doing any training or if they would just keep sitting around here all day to talk about themselves. So when he heard Ardere stating that he wanted them all to come with him, he more or less imagined they would finally make their way over to the training grounds and so some actual fighting, which was long overdue. What he had not expected was a surge of flame that rose and rose up until it took on the form of a massive dragon, one that seemed like it could very well protect the country from demons on its own. At this point, he began to believe why there would be a whole church that chose to follow the quintet this legendary spirit was part of as some kind of celestial beings. Seeing the magnificent beast, it made him wonder why they even needed all of these teams to take the fight to the archdemons.
It either meant that the spirit was perhaps not as powerful as he believed it to be, just from looking at it, or it meant that the archdemons were just that damned powerful. But to make a massive wyrm such as this look like the kind of creature that would need help against a royal demon, it made him wonder what they as mere mortals were going to be able to do. Obviously, he would not go about voicing this particular opinion either, as he had already let his voice be heard plenty so far. By now, it was no longer about voicing opinions or agreeing or disagreeing with one another, it was about working hard and getting stronger so all of that talking would be rendered a moot point. Not hesitating for even a moment, Griswold made his way up to the back of the dragon, which was where he would wait for the rest to gather up so they could be taken for that “short ride” that had been promised.
Hoping it would lead them to the training grounds, he did not say anything to the spirit like Cyrus did, as he really did not know how it would respond to him, or what it might read from him. As it was a spirit, and one of the great four, he’d rather remain neutral towards it, rather than having it pick up on the doubts and misgivings he had in regards to this whole undertaking, as well as some of the people that for some reason had to come along for it. So as long as they were going to actually make a move towards getting ready for combat, he would be all the happier for it. It was after all what had been promised to him, and would make up for all of the taking he had been goaded into doing and suffering through.
Post by Willow Omens on Sept 3, 2021 1:17:35 GMT -5
Even if she didn't belong around here, nor had the current power to be here, she had a good head on her shoulders and the best intentions. What did that mean down the line? Well, she might not be fit for the royal knights at the moment, but it was clear she was earnest in lending a hand to these people as much as she could right here, and right now. When Ardere asked them to follow, Willow obliged.
Listening to the others talk about their strengths and weaknesses, defense specialists, golem specialists, hers was rather plain, but it covered the bases -- she could attack, and being from New Haven, she had a unique trait that was latent within her. Many in New Haven were known to be mana leeches naturally, siphoning off power from their foes while whittling them down made hunting much easier. The other trait that all Havenites shared was the ability to recharge mana skin naturally in the heat of battle, not all were gifted with it, and those that were had to work hard to master it. In her mind, she had hopes that she could do the same thing as her father one day, to be a bigger help.
Off they all headed, where Ardere would stop to show them Salamander, in all of his glory. Normally Willow was terrified of beasts like the spirit, mana beasts specifically, but this was a different case. She braced her feet on the ground, she clenched her fists, and she just stared up at the spirit with sparkling eyes. She was enamored with the majesty of the raw embodiment of fire magic.
"So glorious! I am having the inspiration to draw now! May I draw him? May I draw you?" SHe bounced from asking Ardere to Salamander directly, wanting to get out her water colors and do some rough sketching of the flame spirit.
Post by Charles Constantine✾ on Sept 5, 2021 15:24:44 GMT -5
[NOSPACES]
"I'm no g e n i u s, I'm just a fool who keeps going forward."
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[attr="class","glentext"] Charles simply watched, while some claimed they didn't have things like weakness. Everyone did, no matter how perfect one could seem. There was always a weakness, just the fact that they were humans was already a weakness. One needed to acknowledge their weakness in order to become stronger, without weakness there was no need to become stronger. A person needed to recognize themselves as weak to get a desire to become stronger in the first place, that's how it worked. They were carrying the fate of the Clover Kingdom and its people on their shoulders. A burden that wasn't easy to carry and failure would not only likely result in their deaths but the deaths of others. Their enemy was a seasoned warrior and the most physical out of all daemons. He was going to pain in the ass to deal with and he knew it. As a lazy person himself, he knew hard work wouldn't be enough to beat Aamon. Ingenuity was required if they wanted to have a shot at beating the Champion of the daemons. [break][break] It was true that they couldn't magically get to the level of Ardere in just a matter of days, it was impossible. The best they could do was to get close to that level to prepare for the upcoming battle and do something of significance. The silver mage already had several ideas on how to increase his strength for the upcoming battle and make up for his weaknesses. Training his Ki was one of them and he was going to focus on that after their training was done, after all, it wasn't something he couldn't do right now. Instead, waiting was a better option so he could concentrate much easier. The Estate was a good place to train Ki, so it was definitely worth training it there. Having decent sensory abilities was a most for him when they have to face up Aamon and his army of beasts. Charles took a moment to look at the growing energy that was coming from the inside of Ardere, it was something unique. It was the Fire Spirit, Salamander. His energy was impressive as expected from a spirit as powerful as him. It was a special feeling. Although, his Ki senses weren't that great one didn't even need Ki to feel the powerful energy that came off from the Fire Spirit. [break][break] It was his first time seeing a spirit in its full size, it was much bigger than a human and it could very well carry them without problems. It was impressive that Ardere had established a contract with Salamander, but if he also wanted others here to become stronger then it meant that not even the Salamander would be enough to defeat Aamon and his forces. They were many factors that had to be taken into account even if the Fire Spirit and Salamander were powerful enough to face Aamon. His forces were still a problem, without a proper strategy Ardere and Salamander could easily get tired out before the battle begins. There was no point in having such a powerful ally if he was already tired out by the time they fought the Archdaemon. It wasn't all about working hard and breaking through the enemy, they had to be smart and also conserve their energy for the real fight. This mainly applied to Ardere, it was necessary to prevent the Captain from fighting early on so he could go all out against Aamon. [break][break] Charles hopped onto the Fire Spirit, he decided to remain quiet and just let things run their course. Whatever the Captain Ardere had in mind, he was just going to follow and see through it. Other than that he didn't have much to say, he was more focused on his own thoughts than anything else. He was also taking a moment to analyze the people he was going to work and fight alongside. He didn't care much about getting along with them, but more about finding ways to work effectively with them so they could survive the harsh battle the was ahead of them. The silver mage himself already knew for a fact that this was going to be the toughest fight in his life, but this time he was going to make sure that they could succeed.
I don't know where the future[break][break] will take us,[break][break] But we will blaze it together.[break][break]
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[attr="class","ardereescroll"]Ardere leaned against the neck of this grand beast now carrying them into the sky. The crimson dragon nodded to the young girl, amused at the idea of being drawn. His partner gazed onto the land beneath them, peering at the mist below. Once they broke through the veil of fog, they could see the Kingdom named Clover. This is the world we're fighting to protect. All of this. Exhaling softly, the Crimson Lion Captain bit his inner cheek. The Dragon King took them into the clouds so that they could also gaze on the beauty of this world. [break][break] No matter what we face when we enter that Tower, we will do it together. Looking at the team that he had assembled, Ardere gave a nod of confidence. Just take a moment to yourself as we soar through the clouds. Think on your motivations. We will meet once more before the big battle and together we will enter the tower. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me. We will work on a plan. Clinging to the crimson scales of his comrade, they began to descend lower, shooting past mountains and trees. [break][break] Once more into the fray they would go. The climax of the conflict between Man and Daemon was swiftly approaching. Soon they would be fighting for their lives against an enemy more powerful than any other they've faced before. Their only option was to win. Ardere would not let any of them fall, not ever. [break] -Exit-
[attr=class,cyrustext]Cyrus smiled as they rose into the air on the back of Salamander, relishing the familiar sensation of the wind on his face as they soared through the skies. Given that he preferred to get around by riding his golems when at all possible, this felt very similar to traveling on the back of his Gauya Eyes, or the Falernum. But it wasn't exactly the same; as one might expect, there was a definite difference between an active but unliving mass of sap and amber and the very alive heated body of fire's personification. Warmth, for the most obvious of things. But also just in the sense of wonder. After all, it was rare enough to meet one of the Main Spirits; it was another thing entirely to actually be riding on one, and with its blessing no less.
Once they were high above the kingdom Ardere spoke again. He noted that they were now looking at what they would be training to protect in the days to come, and to think on what else they were fighting for. Who they were fighting for. Why they were fighting. All of that. The mention of how close the promised day was brought with it a sense of tension, but they couldn't let their worries consume them.
Cyrus' own thoughts turned to what he wanted to protect. The Kingdom, of course, was the first thing that came to mind after Ardere's brief but inspiring speech. Those who would journey with them into Aamon's lair was the next thing that came to mind.
Beyond that, though, he thought of his friends and family. Of Zaven, who had brought him into the Golden Dawn and given him the opportunity to turn his family on its head. Of Lady Pesha, who had trained him so that he might succeed, and her sister, both of which he hadn't heard from in some time but knew in his heart were alive. Hama, his constant companion and dearest friend. Verena, Rosaria, and Zarya, the friends who shared his scholarly interests. His parents, who had supported him through it all. And Magdalene, whose future he felt was in his hands for the time being.
At the thought of all these things, and Ardere's encouragement to ask him if they needed any help with anything, Cyrus decided to bring up something that he had wanted to ask of the Captain. He didn't want to make it too well known yet though, since it would likely be quite the undertaking to actually do. And so he whispered something to Hama on his shoulder, and had her relay the message to Ardere. She flitted over to the Crimson Lion's shoulder and gave him Cyrus' question to answer once they could speak in private. "Cyrus wants to know..."
How can have his family stripped of their nobility?
For all of the things he had done up until now, actually flying had never been one of them, and for good reason. He was but a simple fighter, battling monsters, evil men and anything that fitted in somewhere between those categories. Having also done so on land and traveling by foot, it was easy to forget how big the country actually was, and that there was more to it than just the forsaken region which he had been protecting so fiercely. From so high up, it was hard to see that there was such a massive divide between the poor and the rich, as all that was really visible was the landscape. In some ways, being this high up and watching everything going on down below felt humbling, or it might have worked humbling to some. But not to Griswold. He knew full well what was at stake, he had always known what was at stake, which was exactly why he had always prioritized working for the poor over the wealthy.
But that was just the kind of person he was, the kind that had a hard time justifying for himself that there were such things as castes in a kingdom as prosperous as this one. Maybe in the future, he might be able to change that to some degree, as that was what he had been fighting for all along. But never before had he been required to fight a demon, let alone one from the ruling class of demons. In a way, he imagined the difference between them to be about the same as that of your average peasant and your average noble, as most nobles seemed to be born with greater levels of mana and therefore having a greater potential towards becoming powerful mages. If the same did actually count for demons, and your average demon was already quite a handful, he could only imagine the level of danger an archdemon would bring along with it. More so an archdemon that was considered to be a champion among even that caste.
Where he to be the kind of person that really experienced such a thing easily, that alone would have been enough to frighten him. Luckily, he saw no point in feeling fear over the idea of something, believing that to be something that was best saved for the moment of the actual encounter. The way he saw it, if he could keep his emotions, primarily his fear in check when standing face to face with such a monster, that would mean that there wasn’t ever going to be a damn thing in this world that was going to scare him ever again. And for that matter, if he could somehow fight the good fight and do so without dying, he figured the whole concept of fear would never be the same again for the remainder of his life, no matter which way things went out there. But that was the thing about the future, nobody really knew what to expect since nobody had ever been there, leaving everyone to sit by and guess.
It made him wonder what the others were hoping for in terms of the future, as his own wishes and desires for it had never been hidden. To work towards the betterment of the forsaken realm, the bridge the divide between rich and poor, and to make it so the average peasant was no longer the butt end of every joke. Finding it easy to get lost in thought when looking over the country from above in this manner, he barely noticed a subtle gesture from Ardere. Spotting the nod, he nodded in acknowledgement, even though he himself was not entirely sure yet about this team. For reasons he had already brought up before, he could only hope the girl managed to become as strong in the time that remained as she herself had believed. But as he looked around him, it seemed like most of them were just quietly contemplating the gravity of the task that was ahead of them, and he couldn’t blame them for a second.
So as he thought about his own motivations, and guessed as to what the motivations of the others might be, he also pondered on the other matter: Whether or not there was something he wished to discuss once they had returned to the earth and got to go about their own business again. In truth, the only thing he felt sorry about in all of that was how little he had actually learned here. Sure, he knew who he was to be working with and all, but he still knew relatively little in terms of what their powers and abilities were. If they had actually trained to get stronger, they just might have gotten a bit of a sense as to what they others were capable of, meaning they might have learned something beneficial that could in turn maybe make the difference between someone dying or getting to live another day. That said, it was what it was, so once they got to go about their own devices again, he’d just go train on his own.
Post by Charles Constantine✾ on Sept 9, 2021 19:43:45 GMT -5
[NOSPACES]
"I'm no g e n i u s, I'm just a fool who keeps going forward."
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[attr="class","glentext"] Charles looked down as Salamander carried them to the sky. He was able to see a good portion of the Kingdom from the height they were at. This is how high the stakes were, the entire fate of the Kingdom was on their hands. Although, he didn't do this for fame or money, but for the sake of protecting his friends and atoning for his sins. Everything will be different if they failed, everyone was putting their hopes on them. [break][break] The time to fight would eventually come and the silver mage will make sure he's ready for it. Things were different now and he was going to make sure things end up differently as well. No reclamation effort, but go straight to the point and defeat the Archdaemon once and for all. With one of the strongest daemons out of the way, it will facilitate the end of this war. For all the lives lost due to his inexperience and weakness, he had to be one of the people responsible for putting an end to this. Charles nodded to Ardere's comment, certainly defeating Aamon alone was impossible, especially with an entire army backing him up. [break][break] Now that he got to know his teammates, the people he's going to fight the hardest battle of his life alongside with. It was only a matter of time before they'll have to fight. Charles briefly looked at everyone that surrounded him before looking back at the sight of the Clover Kingdom. [break][break] [Exit Thread] [break]
Post by Willow Omens on Sept 10, 2021 2:59:53 GMT -5
What did it mean to be a royal knight? What did it mean to protect this land? Did she have what it takes? She had the earnest desire to, but perhaps she had stunted her growth for far too long with her own terror of herself. She thought herself a monster, something that didn't belong, for so long, it was best that she hide away. Here she was now, ready and raring to go to protect the entire kingdom from threats that were far beyond the scope of her strength. Even if it meant falling in battle, there was a voice inside her that egged her on, wanting her to try her hardest out there.
Alas, this would not be the case. SHe was destined to be asked to step away from the royal knights. Not because she was a danger. Because she needed the time to grow in strength. SHe would not feel scorned by this, she would use it. She took Ardere's words to heart. His confidence in her was her confidence now. His inspiration and power would be a beacon for her to rush toward at the fullest pace she could sprint toward. The red-maned lion wanted them to press on, not a single one of them to fall, and she wanted to be there by his side like some sort of sense of brotherhood with him despite her background and being a girl.
"I promise you, I will be trying my hardest for you all, each and every one of you. If not today, then the next day. I will be coming back, and I will have the winds of fortune and the tides of fate bringing me in. I am going to be having the time to grow stronger for the sake of this country as a thank you for caring for my people. I, want to be of some help somehow." Those would be the words she would leave them all with when she was dismissed.
Little did she know, or any of them, she was going to be growing stronger much faster going forward. As if some sort of dam had been broken on the well of experience she could have gained. She was more in tune with the fragments of spirits that resides in her at this point, and in the deepest depths of her soul, the remaining vestige of the old Willow was smiling at her, 'Knew you had it in you kid.'
