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.
Rank & Element: Intermediate ¦ Spectra Class & Type: Relic ¦ Accessory (Ring) Magic Specializations: Physical Reinforcement ¦ Hex and Curse Appearance: An old shoddy-looking ring made from rock and clay with hints of tarnished copper coming through almost looking like teeth, at the top, there's a small circular amethyst around half a cm in size. This ring is meant to be worn on the index finger of the owner's dominant hand otherwise it just seems to slip off. History: This is a ring that any person could easily look over and not think twice about it or its history purely due to its appearance. It once sat in the most prestigious of museums within the diamond kingdom and was thought to have been forged when the four kingdoms were still in their infancy. Years ago during the first diamond war that museum was not only ransacked but left in ruins leaving the fate of many of the treasures within up for debate. It could have been one of the citizens or someone who had invaded that took this specific ring but whatever the story might be it has had many owners over that time each seemingly having a decent run at life until they eventually met some unfortunate fate.
Abilities:
The wearer of Oblitus Praeteritum gains access to the perks 'Herculean Strength' and 'Adaptive Body'
Name of the Ability: Legatum Fortitudo Type & Uses: Flow ¦ 3 Rounds Active ¦ 2 Rounds Cooldown Rank & Specialization: Junior ¦ Physical Reinforcement ¦ Hex and Curse Mana Cost: 8 ¦ 4 Range & Speed: 25m ¦ 10 m/s Stats Affected: Junior Strength Buff, 1/2 Junior Rank Strength Debuff Description: Swiping their thumb across the amethyst before rotating it once fully to the left and then once to the right activates this spell. The instant that it is active the ring begins to softly pulsate with pale jade green mana, this pulse only gets to around the size of a ping pong before fading and repeating a few seconds later. This may not seem like much but it has infused the user with increased strength allowing their physical damage output not only to have magical damage but increases it to be Junior rank. On a successful hit, a pale jade green diamond will appear where the hit landed, this mark helps to decrease the strength of the opponent while active this ability will actively attempt to suppress any healing or buffs a person may have on them as per the clashing rules. With the use of ammo rules, additional diamonds can be left with more than one opponent.
Name of the Ability: Viae Corruptae Type & Uses: Flow ¦ 3 Rounds Active ¦ 2 Cooldown Rank & Specialization: Junior ¦ Hex and Curse ¦ Physical Reinforcement Mana Cost: 8 ¦ 4 Range & Speed: 25m ¦ 10 m/s Stats Affected: Junior Rank Endurance Buff, 25% Junior Rank Endurance Debuff. Description: Rotating the ring to the right fully before doing the same but to the left and then rubbing their thumb over the amethyst is how this ability is activated. The ring begins to pulse with a vibrant jade green colour to about the size of a ping pong ball before fading and repeating a few seconds later. Like the other spell on this ring, it may seem mundane but it has given the wearer an increased endurance giving the possibility of ignoring a spell of the same rank or below. A physical strike is needed to activate the curse portion of this ability, when this happens a vibrant jade green whirlwind is left where the strike landed, this weakens the opponent's endurance meaning they take an additional 25% junior rank damage. While active this ability will actively attempt to suppress any healing or buffs a person may have on them as per the clashing rules. With the use of ammo rules, additional diamonds can be left with more than one opponent.
Name of the Ability: Occulta Historia Type & Uses: -- ¦ -- Rank & Specialization: Intermediate ¦ Physical Reinforcement Mana Cost: -- ¦ -- Range & Speed: Self ¦ 10 m/s Stats Affected: +2 Speed Description: This ability is passive due to this the word count to raise it will be added to the relics word count as it will increase at the exact same time. For now, this ability seems inactive due to no real connection made with the relic, however, as the relic gets stronger the wearer will find that their speed will increase by one rank lower as per the passive buff rules.
MADE BY NOVA
Conflicted. That was the feeling he was left with now that he was back at Port Njord. A feeling he experienced for several reasons, which didn’t exactly make it a whole lot easier to put it out of his mind. On the one hand, there was the boy he had saved from the Vatnshagur, a clever upstart swamp hag that had used her close proximity to the port to the fullest potential. Claiming bones, trinkets and children to use in her ritualistic practices, the creature had made itself more powerful than your typical islander would be able to take care of. Even more so because she had positioned herself in a portion of Dagmar’s mire that was rife with both corpse-eating Drukknari and the risen Draugr themselves, making it difficult for anyone without actual magic to just roll on up and get down to business with the Vatnshagur itself.
The fact that he had saved the grandson of the man that had effectively sentenced Gawain’s own mother to death, a death that was crowned by having the boy dump his mother’s lifeless body in the swamp if he wanted to get anything to eat beyond that point, it all just felt like a blow to the face. If there had been any kind of divine retribution, or ‘karma’ in this world, Heigan and all of his descendants should have burned in a fire until death claimed them. Maybe even a little bit longer. The other thing that had him feeling conflicted was the fact that he had left the corpse of the Vatnshagur that was thrumming with all kinds of wicked power after completing so many of her rituals and making so many bone totems to provide her with additional protection. Had he not felt obligated to save the child from certain death, he would have gotten rid of the body before leaving.
Because when she died, her death-scream resounded throughout the area, calling the dead from their shallow graves and barrows while rousing the corpse-eaters from their lull. The swamplands of Dagmar’s mire, which had been infused with necrotic energy due to countless decades of bodies being dumped in their muck by people who wanted to hide their shame or evade whatever laws the king might impose upon his subjects, were now ruffled even further. So many dead had been dropped down here, giving rise to the truly angry and resentful among them to become Draugr, which just further fueled the mire itself. When speaking about it in such a manner, it was almost as if Dagmar’s mire was an evil entity in and of itself, though it was no more evil than a tree was kind and playful, or a brick might possess the potential for plotting out evil schemes. It was a location in which truly evil things had transpired, but it was not evil.
If that swamp hag’s body was claimed by the bog, there was no telling what further evils might spawn from its muck, so before he would return to Clover, he would need to see to its proper destruction. He didn’t yet know how to go about it yet, but he imagined he’d get down to it sooner rather than later. Returning Heigan the younger to his parents, they were both in disbelief, finding it hard to believe that their child was still alive after being out in the mire for as long as he had been. And aside from some nicks and bruises, there were no real injuries to be found. Inviting Gawain into their home for a celebratory feast, the ashen haired child looked up at the building with a look of mixed disgust and a feigned happiness. He was happy for these people knowing that the swamp hadn’t claimed their son as it had his mother, yet he was disgusted to be back in the place where he had spent so much time as a slave.
Kindly declining on the offer for now and making it clear that he had to return to the place from which he had saved their child, young Heigan’s father, a man going by the name Helgeir, told him that it was best to let sleeping dogs lie. Nothing good ever came out of the marshes, and the fact that a boy like him had bested a Vatnshagur did not mean that he should go right back into it and tempt fate a second time. Judging by the bruises on Gawain’s body, it was clear that he had not been as fortunate as the child, having used his body as a living shield to keep him from being blown to bits and turned into food for the corpse-eaters. By now though, his mana skin had reconstituted fully and he was already back at full strength. And this time around, there was no need for him to needlessly tank shots at his body as there was no one other than himself to protect from harm. And that would end up making his job a hell of a lot easier.
With the knowledge of the kid being safe, Gawain almost felt as though a certain weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. Because for the longest time, he had felt like he had been something inhuman, a feeling he experienced for a plethora of reasons. On the one hand, you had his dehumanizing past as a slave owned by Heigan. The man that had him ditch his mothers remains in the marshes after she had gotten injured, sick and eventually died while doing the work he had given to them. Then there were the large amount of Skjaergardians he had killed for him, blood clinging to his hands, but never to his soul. For as he saw it at the time, these people had all normalized owning slaves and treating them as disposable objects, as had become clear when those that had been taken in along with him had gradually all disappeared or died.
To him, all those he had killed for Heigan were deaths that they had deserved. They were not people, they were nothing more than barbarians that lived only in a way that suited them personally, which was why they could never truly maintain a proper society. Why they were always fighting amongst themselves, and why Dagmar’s mire had been filled with so much death and decay due to decades of corpses being disposed of inside of its murky waters. But with the return of young Heigan to his parents, it seemed that a fresh wind was gradually starting to blow through the islands, one that was likely going to be met with a lot of pushback from the older generations and those in seats of power. But it was a fresh wind none the less, meaning there was a chance that the Skjaergardians would at some point make a societal change that would work out for the better. But that was something to occupy his mind with at a later time. Right now, it was swampin’ time.
On the way in the first time, he could tell that the swamp was quiet, that everything was going about its own thing. The Draugr were either slugging across the swamp by their lonesome or in a suspended state of animation in some underground barrow. The Drukknari were asleep or going about fighting their own kind over a dead body somewhere beneath the muck and murk. Most of them did not worry much about the odd boy wandering through the swamp. Though all of that had now changed. With the death of the Vatnshagur, as well as the necrotic mana that came down like snow, all of the residents had been riled and roused as Drukknari and Draugr fought one another in various places throughout. It was an odd sight to see, truly. These creatures were never partners or even remotely friendly to one another, as Draugr attacked Drukknari on sight while Drukknari ate Draugr the moment they entered an inanimate state of hibernation.
That was simply how things worked, how things had always worked. But that had all been thrown into a state of disarray because one swamp hag had broken an unspoken accord by stealing children that were still alive from the Villtsung and performed unspeakable rituals with their remains. And now all hell had broken loose, quite literally so. Up ahead, he saw a bunch of Villtsung warriors fighting a group of Draugr, which was somewhat unique for various reasons. Draugr were vengeful creatures that arose from death to claim vengeance on the ones that resulted in their deaths, they were not pack animals that stuck together. Yet here they were, moving together as a unit against a troupe of Skjaergardian raiders. What this told Gawain was that the explosion of magic had been sensed even as far away as Ragnvald’s Fall, the capital city of the Villtsung, prompting the high king to send out a band of warriors to seek out its cause and quell it if possible.
Looking more closely at the Draugr, it seemed like the same sickly green hue that had at some point been coming down from the sky had now soaked into them, providing them with just enough of the Vatnshagur’s stolen power to rise from the dead. These Draugr weren’t like the others, though they weren’t about to let themselves get cut down by the Villtsung. Clearly fighting for their lives… or rather for their afterlives, they clearly did not stand a chance against the warriors equipped with superior weaponry. Cutting the band of undead down where they stood, the men made sure to cleave their heads off of their necks so that they could not possibly ever rise again. In that sense, it seemed like they clearly knew what they were doing. As Gawain approached them, he could not help but feel like these Draugr might have been reasoned with, given just how different and non-violent they initially seemed to be. But the time for that was gone now, and another problem required his attention.
Approaching him with due haste, one of the warriors pointed his axe towards Gawain while speaking to him in their native Skjaergardian language. Luckily for him, he had lived among them long enough to be more than fluent in it, even in this more… dated dialect. It was clear that this man had come from Ragnvald’s Fall with plans to claim greater honor for himself and his house, and that he held no love for the mainlanders. Speaking to him in a way that more or less seemed to factor in the possibility that Gawain might not be able to understand them, yet still claimed that if he would not answer him, his axe would find his neck next, Gawain just grinned. Retorting with the question as to whether or not the man sought to gain greater favor with the high king by verbally abusing and potentially murdering children, the other men started laughing.
The leader of the group however seemed peeved, both because of the ridicule, but also because he had not expected Gawain to be able to understand him. Slightly reeling the threats back in while still maintaining the same demanding tone of voice, leading Gawain to think that he might have had more luck conversing and reasoning with the Draugr. But this too was part of his job as a magic knight, meaning he had to keep the antagonizing to a minimum, at least from his end of the argument. Explaining that he had killed a Vatnshagur not far from here that had been stealing children from Port Njord, the men all started laughing at him, claiming that no Vatnshagur had been seen this close to civilization in several lifetimes, and that they knew not to venture close to the living. Still, Gawain remained firm in his belief, knowing for a fact what had happened, and even explaining to the men how the fight had gone down and what he had seen.
Throughout his explanation, some of the men seemed to slowly come around to the possibility, though not to the point where they took his word as gospel. Telling the boy that they would amuse the thought if he could show them to where he had supposedly killed the swamp hag, Gawain forgot that these people could not sense mana in the way he and the other people from the mainland could. And so, he agreed to show them, though he made it clear that they would be seeing some pretty gnarly sights. Not being the kind of people to shy away from some grizzly sights, the young Silver Eagle began leading the way for the troupe of four warriors. As they did so, he listened to what the men were discussing among themselves, seemingly all being raiders of some esteem. Some of them had apparently been doing several tours towards various other countries, killing many, taking plenty of slaves and collecting a lot of food and valuables to last them a while.
While his ears listened to their boastful tales, his Ki remained fixated upon his surroundings, as were his eyes. Everywhere around them, there were clear signs of battle. Portions of broken armor, battered weaponry, as well as large amounts of blood that seemed to originate from corpse-eaters that had been felled in their battle for food. It was made plenty clear that the Draugr and Drukknari of the area had been fighting, though the exact reason was something he could not ascertain at this particular moment. The odd bit was that there seemed to not be any corpses anywhere. If the Drukknari had won, there would have been partially eaten Draugr corpses. If the Draugr won, there would have been dead Drukknari with a plethora of stab, cut, cleave or pummel wounds across their bodies. But the fact that there was nothing here, not even the odd drag marks signifying that they had been taken away was of some concern to him. That said, it wasn’t something the other warriors seemed to care about even the slightest.
For the time being, the boy would keep it all to himself. He did not care much for these boastful raiders that were just out here to collect more tall tales and kill haphazardly without asking any questions first. If they died, it was no skin off of his back. Little did he know at that moment that haphazardly killing things would soon prove to be a major boon. For as they drifted further and further away from the port and drew closer to their destination, a large group of Drukknari suddenly started coming up from below, popping their heads up and began blasting shots of water at the group. While some chose to attack from a distance, others used the confusion to get in close with their sharp claws to try and snatch some of them up and pull them into the murk. Knowing this to be a death sentence, the warriors began flailing their weapons about, carving away flesh from bone, showing that the corpse-eaters had picked the wrong people to assault.
With the other fighters being around him, the boy could not rely on simple blasting power as that would no doubt end up with him killing some, if not all of them in the process. Instead, he found himself relying on his physical capabilities while drawing upon the power of the ring as well. By now, his level of control over the ring had easily reached a point where it was essentially just an extension of his own body. He rarely took it off, only when bathing or showering since he did not want to end up ruining it in some way. Since it was a keepsake as much as it was the thing that managed to further push him beyond the limits of the average knight, the thing was priceless in his eyes. Tightening his fist, he could feel the ring ever so slightly between his clenched fingers as it was time to head out.
Jumping out from behind the warriors, Gawain tackled one of the Drukknari that had taken to close quarters. Jumping into its side, the sheer speed and physical strength the boy possessed allowed him to put the creature into a headlock, which was something he had learned by watching a bunch of oiled up men fighting in a ring for money once. It was one of those strange things people seemed to enjoy watching in the capital, though it was at the very least entertaining, not to mention informative. Applying so much pressure that the corpse-eater was gradually running out of breath, and found itself incapable of breathing in, it began lashing out at the boy with its sharp claws. But try as it might, its limbs were not long enough to reach the boy on his back. And then, with a loud crack, Gawain snapped the creature’s neck, causing the flailing limbs to all go limp and flop to the ground with a lifeless thud.
But he was not done, far from it. As soon as the creature died, the others began shooting bolts of compressed water towards him from several sides. Knowing exactly the kind of damage these things could do from his earlier encounter with them, the boy merely braced himself and protected his vitals as the blows made contact. Though painful for a moment, it only took that much time for the remainder of the water mana to be turned into an offensive bolt that got sent back to the original source of the attack. At the exact moment in which the attacks were bounded back to the sender, Gawain stopped protecting himself and dashed off. Feeling that his speed was being pushed even further than it had before, he was being extra careful with every step he made, making sure not to quite literally overstepped. Especially within these murky, watery patches of land, doing such a thing could make the difference between surviving and… well, not surviving and instead dying a horrific death by drowning and dismemberment.
Instead, as he cautiously planned out his enhanced steps, he moved like an honest to god blur across the battlefield with the Drukknari nor the warriors being able to really figure out where he had been and where he was going next. But that was exactly how he wanted it. For as he now moved at roughly a speed of thirty five meters per second, which insanely fast by any non-magically altered means, small bursts of compressed air mana were released as he passed by some of the Drukknari in his path. Some were knocked out cold as they sank back into their holes in the quicksand. Others that had already received damage as their attacks were sent back to them instead were killed on the spot, though their end was mostly the same. But as he killed some of them, he noticed something strange, just as he passed by and moved towards the next. Whenever he killed one of them, the moment when the light left their eyes, an actual light appeared.
It was the green mana that had been seeping into the soil from above as a result of the Vatnshagur exploding with literal power. But as the bodies disappeared beneath the muck, the green lights he saw disappeared along with them. And with his limited means of sensing mana, even that eventually disappeared from his radar. Though one thing stood out. The mana kept disappearing into the same direction, the direction where Gawain had left the remains of the swamp hag, the barrow where she had been working out of, and the nook where the boys had been kept against their will. As the warriors took care of the remnants and stragglers, the Silver Eagle began pondering. The fact that the mana all disappeared in the direction he was going, it wasn’t a coincidence, there was simply no way things would be different. This honestly gave him a bit of a fright, as he was the only person in this makeshift group of people that could actually sense him. That, and the others weren’t exactly prone to believing anything he said without proof.
Name of Spell: Puncture Elemental Type: Air Pressure Rank & Spell Type: Intermediate | Attack Creation | Sensory (Homing) Range & Speed: 40m | 25 m/s Mana Cost: 20 | 10 Stats Effected: - Applicable Perks: Overpowered | Quick Shot Description: Putting his index and middle finger together, Gawain will point his right hand at his target, using the tips of his fingers as a vocal point from which it is fired. This a sphere roughly ten centimeters wide for the purpose of puncturing the target. The attack itself is non-lethal, unless direct contact with one's vitals is established, as well as causing painful cuts and bruises on people and breaking most unreinforced walls, dealing Intermediate rank damage. In addition, the accuracy and chance to hit can be further improved by utilizing Homing rules, including following the target in adherence to those same rules. The bullet follows the target that was initially pointed at until it hits, runs out of space or hits another object. To those without at least 20 sensory, this spell will be invisible, appearing as a wispy green ball to others.
Name of Spell: Slice Elemental Type: Air Pressure Rank & Spell Type: Intermediate | Attack Creation | Sensory (Homing) Range & Speed: 40m | 25 m/s Mana Cost: 20 | 10 Stats Effected: - Applicable Perks: Overpowered | Quick Shot Description: Extending and pushing his right index and middle finger together before flicking them upward in order to activate the spell, a crescent blade of wind roughly five centimeters thick and three meters long is fired into the desired direction, following directly up on this motion. The attack itself is non-lethal, unless direct contact to one's vitals is established, as well as causing painful cuts and bruises on people and breaking most unreinforced walls, dealing Intermediate rank damage. In addition, the accuracy and chance to hit can be further improved by utilizing Homing rules, including following the target in adherence to those same rules. The crescent blade follows the target that was initially pointed at until it hits, runs out of space or hits another object. To those without at least 20 sensory, this spell will be invisible, appearing as a wispy green crescent blade to others.
Upon finally reaching their destination after fighting through the Drukknari that were in their way, a somewhat difficult to grasp sight met their gazes. The nook was gone, the barrow was gone, even the dead tree standing on top of the small hill was gone. In its place, a hulking mass of flesh, blood, bone and mud, taking the shape of a massive blob without any real notable features. That was, from a distance, that was about all that they could see. But see it they all could, and that seemed to worry the warriors. They had magically imbued weapons and armor, but beyond that, they lacked the capabilities to deal with this massive clump that seemed to move ever so slightly. It wasn’t real motion that Gawain saw, it was more like what happened to the human torso when they inhaled and exhaled, expanding and coalescing while not really being aware of anything.
Gawain didn’t even know if this thing had the capability to be aware of anything, as it did not seem to be like any kind of creature he had ever seen, be they living or dead. This conglomerate mass of bits that seemed to just be lump of filth however got more and more defined as they drew closer. At his current distance, he could see that whenever the mass seemed to expand, a pulse of green mana moved through it, originating from a spot at its center. However, due to all of the bits of bone, mud, roots and stones inside of it, seeing into it was quite difficult. Determined to figure out exactly what this thing was, and what it meant now that it had taken form in that specific location, Gawain did not want to provoke it just yet, as was his usual modus operandi. No, he wanted to learn what this was, and if it was something that could even be beaten. Unfortunately, he seemed to be the only person here with a functional brain.
For with a loud roar, one of the men tossed a spear, one which Gawain could tell was infused by mana as some rather specific runes carved into the head began to glow as it started to soar. Landing inside of the blob, the response they got came in the form of the very ground beneath their feet starting to rumble. This thing was causing a veritable earthquake just by willing it, proving to the young man that they were dealing with a force of nature in every sense of the word. Then, without further warning, tendrils of the same conglomerate mass burst forth from the ground where they stood, beginning to assault them like the flailings of a kraken. And just like that, the fighting continued. Maintaining the same speed he had achieved earlier for the first time, yet already seemed to be entirely on top of, he dashed around the tentacles while using his magic to scope out what these things even were. They seemed to be made up mostly of moisture and chucks, but cracked and whipped about like something entirely solid.
Tearing a blade of wind through it, a part of the tentacle was severed, causing it to fall to the ground as the green mana inside of it dissipated like a fire burning out till not even cinders remained. And as it did, the tentacle just fell apart, showing to contain portions of dead Drukknari, weapons held by Draugr at some point prior, portions of the many roots that ran underneath the swamp, as well as bits and pieces of the human skeletal structure. This thing was where all of the dead were being drawn to. Though the reason and the cause, that yet eluded him. Watching as the Villtsung raiders went cutting and carving at the tentacles, Gawain dashed onwards, moving towards the main blob that seemed to move itself underground in the form of tentacles while also using said tentacles to rapidly draw in more and more sustenance in the form of human and animal waste. The closer he got, the better he could see that the core from which the mana was flowing was a much more elaborate mass.
Evading several more erupting tentacles with his newfound speed, firing bullets of compressed air into them to blow out chunks here and there to cause them to retreat below the ground again, the blob itself started moving. Even though it seemed to not have a front or a back, at least none that he could deduce, the core itself turned towards him. Showing that the mass of bones and flesh was breaking down inside of the blob so that it could be reformed in its core into something else entirely, he saw that the core of the blob contained the two halves of the Vatnshagur. More than that, these halves had partially broken down into what seemed like nothing more than loose skin wrappings that had been wrapped tightly around the boy he had been unable to save. It was this body, the body belonging to the dead child in the cage that acted as the ‘sentient’ mind behind the blob, the thing that seemed to be pulling the string and instructing the blob itself to draw in more nourishment and building blocks.
Name of Spell: Perforate Elemental Type: Air Pressure Rank & Spell Type: Senior | Attack Creation | Sensory (Homing) Range & Speed: 80m | 45 m/s Mana Cost: 30 | 15 Stats Effected: - Applicable Perks: Overpowered | Quick Shot Description: Putting his index and middle finger together while pointing his thumb up, Gawain will point his right hand at his target, using the tips of his index and middle fingers as a vocal point from which it is fired. This spike is roughly two meters wide with the purpose of puncturing the target. The attack itself is lethal on direct hits, capable of leaving deep cuts and lacerations, broken bones and breaking most structures, dealing Senior rank damage. For every 30 Control, an additional shot can be fired. In addition, the accuracy and chance to hit can be further improved by utilizing Homing rules, including following the target in adherence to those same rules. The bullet follows the target that was initially pointed at until it hits, runs out of space or hits another object. To those without at least 30 sensory, this spell will be invisible, appearing as a wispy green ball to others.
Behind him, the struggling raiders were slowly being whittled down as their strength failed them. For however many tentacles they managed to beat down, more just seemed to come up, picking up the severed portions of themselves and re-attaching them to the greater whole. When one of the raiders was grabbed by the leg, the tentacle warped, showing its watery properties when it quickly enveloped the entire man in a sort of globule that was still attached to the tentacle itself. Lifting him off of the ground and moving it out of harm’s way, the moisture that seemed to be a mixture of mud, water, blood and bile entering into any orifice that it could possibly get into, filling the man’s skull, lungs and other organs so quickly that he barely had the chance to suffer. But suffer he did, however slowly it might have been. Then, the moment in which he died, his body began breaking down into a paste of gore, blood and bone that was being guided through the tentacle towards the main blob.
The sight of all this filled both Gawain and the other warriors with the urge to throw up, as this was the sort of thing you wouldn’t wish upon your worst enemies. Turning back towards the body of the child that was being held inside of the blob, as the new building blocks were being delivered towards the core, something truly unique began happening. The paste that had been wrung out of all of the corpses the blob had taken in was beginning to move around the body of the child, compressing itself around him as layers upon layers were starting to shape into something grotesque. Before long, the child he had tried to save was gone. As soon as this fact managed to burrow its way into Gawain’s skull, he began releasing a barrage of attacks upon the main blob. Circling around its main body that was rapidly getting smaller and smaller as it seemed to focus on getting whatever was inside of it ready while dishing out hits.
Firing several blows into it that started carving away large portions of blob while also tearing into the gross material coalescing inside of it, a rapid response was issued. When one of the tentacles suddenly branched off to lash out at him, the fact that he had both feet off of the ground meant that he had no chance whatsoever to defend against it. Knowing what had happened to one of the warriors, he was preparing to cast a spell the moment it might try to overtake him, believing he could deal the most damage to it that way while minimizing the damage he took by closing his eyes and holding his breath. As the tentacle struck him, the damage itself seemed to be minimal, though that wasn’t all. It was magical in nature, a spell of some sort. For as it collided with him, it wasn’t long before a portion of the blow was returned, causing the tentacles to get blasted apart by its own damage. Meanwhile, Gawain was knocked several meters back, falling into the much that was the mire.
Then, with a deep rumbling of the earth and an eruption of gore and sludge, a large figure radiating with green energy remained as the remains of the blob broke apart into nothing more than swamp water and waste. Pulsing and thrumming with magic, this figure appeared almost like some sort of knight, formed from a thick white chitinous plate with long and sharp talons for fingers and a helmet-like head complete with a mouth that possessed several rows of razer-sharp teeth. Whatever this thing was, there was a very good chance that it was the first of its kind. As its limbs started twitching, it seemed to be stretching and limbering a bit, causing the chitin to make cracking sounds as it tested its own mobility. In more than one sense, it seemed like this thing was more than just a collaboration of things or some amalgamation. In many regards, the blob seemed to have been some sort of pupa, a cocoon in which the caterpillar grew into a butterfly. Though calling this thing a butterfly seemed… odd.
If what remained of the Vatnshagur had somehow been using the boy’s body as a vessel to function as the ‘larva’, it made him wonder what kind of mind this creature had to it. If it was like the Vatnshagur, there was a good chance that it would turn to violence immediately and try to kill them all before doing what a swamp hag did: Collect more bones and victims to continue its ritualistic practices. However, if this thing was at its core just a child, there was no way of knowing what might happen next. But as could be imagined, especially after losing one of their own, it seemed that the Villtsung warriors were not willing to give this thing the benefit of the doubt. Rushing towards the white chitinous figure, axes in hand, the creature seemed to not move an inch until the weapons were brought down upon it. With a loud clang, the knightly white monstrosity had shifted its arm in a way that allowed it to block the haft of one axe with its elbow while capturing the head of the other axe with its taloned fingers.
Name of Spell: Reap Elemental Type: Air Pressure Rank & Spell Type: Senior | Attack Creation | Sensory (Homing) Range & Speed: 80m | 45 m/s Mana Cost: 30 | 15 Stats Effected: - Applicable Perks: Overpowered | Quick Shot Description: Extending and pushing his right index and middle finger together before flicking them upward in order to activate the spell, a crescent blade of rapidly spinning wind roughly five centimeters thick and six meters long is fired into the desired direction, following directly up on this motion. The attack itself is lethal on direct hits, capable of leaving deep cuts and lacerations, broken bones and breaking most structures, dealing Senior rank damage. For every 30 Control, an additional shot can be fired. In addition, the accuracy and chance to hit can be further improved by utilizing Homing rules, including following the target in adherence to those same rules. The crescent blade follows the target that was initially pointed at until it hits, runs out of space or hits another object. To those without at least 30 sensory, this spell will be invisible, appearing as a wispy green circular blades to others.
Even in its infancy, it seemed that this creature was already quickly getting used to its body while discovering the limits of its speed, strength and durability. Not even having turned its head, Gawain mused that it might have used something akin to Ki to do what it had just done. Then, before the Silver Eagle could even respond, the monster used its other arm while spinning itself on its feet, tearing through the handles of both axes while severing one of the warriors’ heads by the neck while outright slicing the others head in half right above the nose. In an instant, the remaining Villtsung warriors were put to death, and the creature did not seem to mind. Merely looking at its limbs as it just traced its clawed hands through the blood that stained them without any eyes that Gawain could perceive, the boy was at a loss for words.
He knew that this thing posed a huge threat, though he was not sure if it was ‘violent’ towards anyone that did not outright attack it. When he looked on to see the thing lifting up a leg before smashing its foot down on top of the severed head, it continued stomping until it was ground down into a paste of skull splinters and brain matter. Releasing an eerie sound that could only be explained as ‘laughter’, it was as if the thing took pleasure in destroying what remained of those that had attacked him. In fact, the way in which it proceeded to play with the dead bodies made it seem like this thing was very much still a child, which made Gawain that much more reluctant to act. Though the choice was quickly made for him as the creature abruptly stopped playing and laughing as it just stood upright. Slowly turning itself around to face Gawain, it was clear that it remembered how the boy had tried to attack it while it was still inside of it’s gelatinous cocoon.
Releasing a low growl at the magic knight, Gawain sank his feet into a fighting stance, his hands put out in a way that would allow him to respond in a melee. Much to his surprise, the white being seemed to mirror his stance, clearly learning from what he was doing. This was bad, this was very bad. If this thing could learn and adapt from battle quickly, there was no telling what kind of damage it might do to the whole of Skjaergard and the Villtsung settlements on top of it. One way or the other, this thing had to be stopped. And so, as Gawain’s muscles twitched, the creature responded first by rapidly closing the distance between them. Moving at a speed similar to his own, it seemed that the creature had the edge here, though the fact that it had a distance to cross allowed Gawain to figure out where the initial strike would land. Thanks to his own speed and his Ki, he could see that this creature, while immensely powerful, was still at a stage where it seemed to telegraph all of its strikes.
Foes on the lower end of the spectrum such as the Villtsung warriors might never have seen it coming, but at least Gawain could. Trying to keep pushing his physical speed and the upper limits of his Ki to match the creature, the two kept exchanging blows for as long as possible. Not being one to tire quickly, the boy tried to see how long the creature could last, and if it even got tired at all. From the looks of it however, it seemed like it did suffer from fatigue, perhaps more so due to the fact that it was still getting used to its body and its own upper limits. The moment it faltered in keeping up its defense, Gawain landed a powerful blow across its jaw, followed by another quick jab from his free arm against its side and then a third blow delivered by firmly kicking it in the side. While all of these strikes had been relatively powerful, none of them had seemed to crack the creature’s chitinous exterior in the slightest. Another troubling outcome that meant he had to kick it up a notch, maybe even two.
However doing so brought with it a rather monumental issue. If it could somehow learn by copying Gawain how to use its vast, enormous well of mana in order to increase its physical prowess or even cast spells of its own, he was quite certain that both he and the entire Villtsung species would die here this day. But seeing as how his physical strength was not enough to cause this thing any actual or lasting damage, it was the only thing he could do to win. It was a risk he had to take, or he would die here anyway. By first forming the seal of confrontation, followed up by the half-rat seal with his left hand, Gawain instantly pushed up both his physical speed, as well as his physical strength by channeling a good portion of his mana back directly into his body. Without warning, the boy who now moved at a speed of fifty meters per second struck the creature against the head a second time, causing it to be lifted from its feet and punched several meters away.
Name of Spell: Pressure Input: Pace Elemental Type: Air Pressure Rank & Spell Type: Senior | Physical Reinforcement Range & Speed: Self | 40 m/s Mana Cost: 30 | 15 Stats Effected: +15 m/s Applicable Perks: Full Blitz Description: This spell is activated by forming the confrontation seal with his left hand, causing his eyes to glow with a jade hue. After the trigger is utilized, pressurized air mana begins to internalize and externalize, causing his physique to be elevated. In so doing, the internalized mana makes him capable of pushing his speed by an additional 15 m/s. To those without at least 30 Sensory, this spell is invisible, otherwise looking like wispy green breezes surrounding his body.
Name of Spell: Pressure Output: Purge Elemental Type: Air Pressure Rank & Spell Type: Senior | Physical Reinforcement | Attack Creation Range & Speed: 80m | 40 m/s Mana Cost: 30 | 15 Stats Effected: +Senior Strength Applicable Perks: Overpowered Description: This spell is activated by forming the half-rat hand seal with his left hand, causing his eyes to glow with a jade hue. After the trigger is utilized, pressurized air mana begins to externalize, causing his physique to be elevated. In so doing, it coats his right fist and left leg, allowing him to strike for Senior damage while being magically backed, thus allowing him to clash his Power against offensive or defensive spells. To those without at least 30 Sensory, this spell is invisible, otherwise looking like a thin jade layer coating his body.
As long as the spell remains active, this is something he can keep doing. Additionally, upon utilizing the spell, Gawain can also release a burst of pressurized wind in a chosen direction from his imbued fist. This can be performed once every round, with ammo rules allowing for an additional shot to be fired in tandem for every 30 Control. This blast is aimed at a single target, being roughly five meters wide, dealing a Senior amount of damage. To those without at least 30 Sensory, this burst of air is invisible, otherwise looking like a wispy mass of jade mana.
Watching as it fell into the muck, it remained down there in a seemingly lifeless state. Laying flat on its back, in spite of not having any noticeable eyes, it seemed to just be staring up into the pitch black sky. Then, with a clear and present aura of sickly green mana forming from the areas between its carapace plating, its body started being enveloped in it entirely as small portions and segments of its armor began breaking apart, showing an entirely different kind of armored plating underneath that was black in color. Seemingly being even denser, the fact that this creature seemed to possess armor underneath its armor meant that it was going to be a real son of a bitch to take down. However, as its armor shifted and warped from what it was before into something new, it seemed that the pain of the last hit landing right against the side of its head seemed to trigger something as it began howling at an extremely high pitch. But in spite of the height of its pitch, Gawain could clearly hear what it yelled.
“MOMMY!!”
As its scream shook the ground and caused the shallow waters of the swamp to move back and forth, it did not take long before the creature once again fell silent. Clearly having had its little tantrum, it was now ready to get back to business. When the aura surrounding it changed from a sickly green to a black almost as dark and deep as the night sky, it all began to coalesce, forming an odd almost liquid looking halo over its head. Then, without moving, its body raised itself up from the muck and slick, moving into a vertical upright position without its feet touching the ground. Holding out its hands as if it were inviting Gawain to strike at him again, the young Silver Eagle was almost tempted, though it was clearly a trap. Floating towards Gawain with its chest and head remaining exposed, it seemed frustrated that even as it got closer, the Eagle would not take the bait, prompting it to just strike instead. Strangely moving just as fast as it had before, Gawain’s increased speed allowed him to move aside while aiming a strike at the head once again.
But that was when he felt it. Even though this new form had no real face to speak of, it was as if he could see underneath the exterior armor, as if he could see a smile. Shortly after, Gawain saw as his fist missed its mark entirely as the creature stepped away in the same way he had in such a nonchalant fashion. Believing himself to be that much faster, he had left his defenses open completely to the possibility of a counter attack. And that was when it came. A punch aimed right between his eyes, a hit backed by the creature’s enormously vast amount of mana that shook him to his core. On any normal person, this blow would have caused immediate death by effectively causing one’s head to shatter like a pumpkin under the sheer pressure. But Gawain had a little MacGuffin, the ring that allowed him to send back a portion of magical damage aimed towards him. And so, as the strike had its potential halved, the other half was shot right back into the face of the unsuspecting creature.
As the resulting blast shot Gawain all the way from Dagmar’s mire and over the cliff into the waters below, the chitinous creature was itself blasted all the way back into the mire, suffering the same heavy blow it had intended to dish out. Likely due to the fact that it too had not expected a counter attack to be employed in such a fashion, it had no defenses in place as it took the hit like a champ. What happened next however was something Gawain could not see. For as his body fell over the cliffs and into the dark waters, the only thing he saw around him was darkness, a difficulty to breath and even greater difficulty at staying afloat.
----- Several days later, Gawain woke up in a bed in the hospital somewhere in the Royal Capital. Having been in and out of consciousness for the past few days, it seemed that he had been found along the shoreline near Port Njord by a bunch of fishermen that had been quite grateful for his earlier work at eradicating various Skrýtinn that plagued their shores and made their work almost impossible to do without suffering casualties. They had taken him back to the port, where the spatial mage from Clover had been awaiting his return. However when the boy was late for their meeting, he had kept the portal open for quite a bit longer and even asked for the aid of several other Silver Eagles to launch a search party, people who had been eager to help out such as Adger. And now that he was awake, it was Adger that had come to him to handle the debriefing.
Clearly being able to tell that Gawain was not in the same upbeat state as normal, which was to be expected after taking the kind of beating that almost took off his head, he took the things the boy had with a grain or salt or two. Vatnshagur, Drukknari, Draugr, Villtsung warriors, gelatinous monster blob cocoons and a chitinous butterfly monster child, all of these things sounded so incredibly outlandish that Adger assumed Gawain to be delirious. But that too was to be expected as he had been beaten, sent flying, nearly drowned and then nearly died of hypothermia. So for the time being, Adger left Gawain behind to get better while he would just deliver the news that the initial mission had been taken care of. If the young Silver Eagle got better and still believed all of the things he had seen to be more than delirium, he could deliver the story to the higher-ups in his own time. So as Adger left the room, Gawain seemed to slip back into sleep rather quickly, but not before seeing the face of the child he had failed, and the expressionless white monster it had become…
