Adventures of Naletia: Beyond The Skies

Zenovia Kokinos walked briskly down the narrow corridor of the great castle in the sky. The peal walls were adorned with gold and red banners, the colors of the deities. Paintings depicting the creation of the world and it's gods hung on the walls of the long hall. Zenovia was walking towards Dianthe's Observatory, so the paintings passed her by in chronological order. First came the creation  of the world, once a land filled with great mountains and volcanoes. When a meteor tore open part of the world, water leaped out of the crust, creating the world's oceans and seas as each volcano erupted countless times to form what would be known as the continents of Naletia. Then was the birth of Dragons, born of the volcano rock and fire, pure essence of the earth. For a thousand years, they ruled the earth.

When Dragons gave birth to Man, they created of them slaves, forced them to worship the Dragon Kings. Born with quick wit and incredible magical ability, Man was ruled over by the Dragons for three millennium. That was when the outside world began to interfere, raining fire down upon the world, the earthen rocks giving way to reveal the hardened metals of the earth. Dragons could not touch this metal, and that gave Man their first opportunity to strike back at their oppressors.

With metal from the earth and the ash of Man's past lives, Man created magical deities that could slay Dragons with such ease that the Dragons were forced to go into hiding. This was the time when Gods were born, and when they died, they did not turn to ash like Man did. Instead, they ascended to the heavens to forever gaze upon Man, to watch as their creators ruled the earth in their stead.

Such was the story illustrated in these halls. But Zenovia was not interested in the art now. Navy boots clicked down the white marble floor, taking no note of the many steel guardians stationed after every meter. These golems would only awaken when the halls were threatened, and a threat has not waken in these halls for many years. But this generation has already proven different from the rest. Already the Valkyries, the ancient order of divine protectors, were mobilizing their forces for an assault. The Vanguard was given a mission only recently, just as the first sight of demon activity was spotted by the reconnaissance squads.

Clad in her full armor, Zenovia was a frightening sight to gaze upon. She wore the armor of the Valkyries in her own fashion. Dark blue steel covered her chest, the dark wings of ravens formed blades on her breast giving more than a simple modesty, but a deadly punching bag as well. Her helm was the same dark blue, but plated and reinforced with heavy gold metal, as was the shield she bore on her left side. On her back hung a weapon far too tall and heavy to be worn on her side. The halberd's ax and blade was as menacing as her armor. The helm covered her right eye, but allowed for a small, red lens to allow her to see. Possibly the most striking feature about Zenovia, though, was her great, blue wings that lay folded many times across her back. If she stretched them out, she risked knocking over everything in the hall, as it was a narrow corridor.

Zenovia reached the spiral staircase, but did not ascend it. She merely closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened her eyes again, she was within the Observatory, overlooking all the stars in the sky. Dianthe's Observatory was a place not to watch the stars, however, but a place to watch Man in their realm. A great large pool of water lay still in the center of the room, entrenched into the floor as it was. At the edge of it stood one Zenovia had known since she was born.

Zenovia went down on one knee in respect and reverence, "I have arrived, Mother," Zenovia announced, bowing her head to the great woman in front of her. Zenovia's voice, unlike her appearance, was smooth as silk. She held a commanding aura and a forceful nature that sometimes compelled her to be short with others. "Have you chosen the three?"

"I have, Zenovia. Rise and meet them." The woman spoke with a peaceful calm, as expected of Queen of the Valkyries. The most powerful Valkyrie among them, that was what the Queen was. She did not rule. She did not command. Her very being demanded respect, as she had defeated every living Valkyrie many times over in order to keep her title. One day, Zenovia would challenge the Valkyrie Order and her mother for that very right to be called Queen. It was something Zenovia looked forward to with every passing day.

Her mother's name was Sephaimes. No one knew how long she had held onto her title of Queen, but her age was beginning to show through the lines of her face and the wrinkles on her fingers. Valkyries, unlike Man, do not age. At least, not as quickly as Man. A Valkyrie could live for a hundred lifespans of Man and still only be a child within the Order. The fact that Sephaimes was beginning to show age was a sign that she might have been alive since the dawn of the Valkyrie Order. Perhaps even before that, as some men are granted the honor of being reborn as Valkyries. That would not be the case with these three.

Sephaimes turned to Zenovia as she rose. Her dark purple hair flowed down her back and spilled onto the floor, and piercing red eyes glazed over Zenovia's form as the much younger woman approached her. In Sephaimes' hands were three little, white diamond lights. Souls of the living, now parted from the world. Their hearts glow with a purity unlike any of the other souls swimming in the pool of water below them.

"This one is named Kier," Sephaimes spoke kindly, holding one of the three lights separate from the others. This was by far the largest of the three souls. "He gave his own life to defend the world from a demon king once already. I have already promised him ascension, and asked of him to lend us his strength once again. He agreed." Sephaimes took the soul and threw it at the pond of water, where it hovered just above the surface as she took another soul separate from the others, a smaller soul than the first.

"This one is called Trystan. It is not often that people are born with such an intense love of people. Strong enough to forge bonds with others from nothing, he gave his life to save that of strangers. His was truly a suffered death, I have promised him ascension as well, and I gifted him with a strong magic befitting his nature." Sephaimes tossed this soul to the pond s well, where it joined it's brother just above the surface.

"To the last one called Irene. Her name means peace, and she was a soul that truly wished peace upon others. No matter the cost to her own well-being, she was always in the service of others. Her death, unfortunate, but we may rejoice still, as she has agreed to help us. I have promised her ascension, and she has promised me peace," Sephaimes smiled a little, "I hope that when this is over, the peace you give me lasts much longer." Zenovia's mother moved the last soul next to her brothers, and there they sat above the surface of the pool, which now began to ripple beneath them and change. Sephaimes turned to Zenovia and spoke again. "Now it is up to you, my child. You are the Vanguard. Take these three souls and seek out the source of this demon activity. The Goddess of Eternia must also be told. If I remember correctly, she was Man before becoming Goddess. If she still holds any ties to her old world, she will help you. Now go, and do not look so weary, daughter."

Zenovia nodded her head once, bringing herself to the very edge of the pool. When the ripples stopped and her destination was set, she finally spread out her arms and her wings, which spanned the length of the pool with ease. Slowly, she tipped herself over and fell through the water. When Zenovia's body disappeared, the three souls ducked in after her, just as the pool was about to change.

~

From the skies of Ermith, the world below could see the crimson being pierce through the cloud layer and hurtle towards the earth. One large meteor followed by three small ones, they pierced through the atmosphere and when they landed, they were followed with an enormous birth of ash and dirt. Here, the air was dry, and the ground was such a fine sheen of silver that one may not have called it a desert at first look. But that was the way of the Silver Meadows, a desert of silver sand.

Zenovia stood, brushing off the silver dust from her armor and turned on the spot where the three souls stood in their former bodies. Zenovia bowed her head to them. "Greetings to you, I am Zenovia. I was born into the Valkyrie Order and have trained for the past thousand years for this very moment. I am sure my mother already explained to you that there has been a large amount of demon activity, and we must defeat it before it gets out of hand. I have seen each of you live your life, and I am honored to finally be able to meet you."

The slightest green glimmer appeared as his soul hit the pool, a ripple of a similar colored energy expanding outward before following him as he sought to follow the Valkyrie Princess. When his meteor like presence appeared in tandem with the other two chosen and agreed souls, the tail of his energy trailed behind this very same verdant glow which clung to him as he found his body once more on the ground. He opened his eyes, also the same dazzling green in hue, and offered her a respectful smile––his pure white teeth flashed slightly, offering further a sense of serenity matched only by the lines created on his face by the action.

"It is an honor to extend my will to the aid of the Valkyries," he responded with voice that exuded peace and tranquility. As if in response to the words pouring from his mouth, a gentle breeze fluttered through the area, the very sand he stood on––barefoot for he had never worn shoes, even while living––darkening, becoming loamy with fertility in response. Life itself seemed to poor from the man, and this was further evidenced by the tufts of green that sprouted around his feet as he shifted ever so comfortably the slightest bit closer to the Valkyrie Princess. "I only hope this demonic activity poses less of a threat than anticipated." Trys' aura of serene certainty which gave birth to life never faltered. Even when his brow furrowed slightly, the only reaction the world around him seemed to to have was to flourish.

Upon her return to the mortal plane Irene left little disturbance in her wake. The trail that followed her meteor-like descent was much less prominent than the others, and the cloud of dust and ash that was stirred up from her landing was noticeably smaller than the others'. She was a frail-looking woman with a very small stature. Her amber eyes had a distant gaze that seemed to glance past the physical form of everyone around her, as if she was looking directly into one's soul.

Standing up Irene brushed the sand and dust off of her dress with a single, swift motion before turning her attention to the others who had arrived with her. She opened her mouth to speak but no words came from them. Pausing for a moment Irene solemnly placed a hand upon her chest, allowing it to remain pressed upon her bosom for a moment before holding that same hand out to the Valkyrie princess. Immediately a soft blue glow appeared at the center of both Irene and the princess's chests and there seemed to be some sort of stand of blue light connecting the two together. At that moment there would be a soft, quiet voice echoing through the Valkyrie princess's head. "A pleasure to be able to aid those in need once more."

There was only an endless world of darkness surrounding him in this moment; the ill-fated warrior from the days of old. He was certain he had met his end after the Demon Lord's final gambit, so he could only wonder where he was now, and what exactly was his existence. He remembered the poisonous miasma that emanated from the fallen blood of his slain foe, and how it devoured away at the world and corrupted the hearts of man. Being as close as he was to it at the time, he remembered the excruciating sensation of his soul being pulled apart, consumed into a state of madness, a madness that overwhelmed his body and turned him against society. A destructive vessel, driven purely by instinct of destruction wandered about the lands to tear apart every living thing that would stand in its way. Some would say that Keir himself became worse than the Demon Lord in his final days before his own sons took up arms to stop his rampage.

He does not recall the aftermath of the encounter, only that his soul had already been expelled from his own body. Keir's presence in this eternal event horizon must have been what remained, and soon a voice spoke to him, offering him a second chance into the realm of the living in exchange for his service. Upon agreement, the blackness of his surroundings began to brighten in a shining gleam and felt his body plunging downward until he arrived back onto the almost familiar world he once knew. He stood up, though he felt as though he was but a single shred of the man he once was. Before him were two others that emerged from the land, and one armored woman that had dark wings. Keir listened as she explained the situation and gave her order. Glancing back at the other two, Keir couldn't help but feel a strain of doubt in his mind. They didn't look much like fighters or hardened warriors, so he wondered what chance they had against the forces of demonkind. Of course in his past life, Keir traveled and fought alone; teamwork was far from being a concept he was familiar of, and one he begrudgingly would have to learn. Nothing mattered anymore anyway, as he would find answers to what happened from his last encounters or meet his true death by the blade and be rid of his shame once and for all.

"Show me what to kill, and I'll kill it," Keir responded, in a very subdued and forlorn tone.

Zenovia nodded to each transcended soul in turn as they spoke. She knew each of their names, and what they were in their past lives. She knew they would fight for her, her mother had promised her that much. No doubt they were still in shock, though, having only just come back to the mortal plain. This could be a very different time period from when they lived. Zenovia cleared her throat soundlessly, no doubt they would want to know the state of the world.

"As of today in the Mortal Realm, it has been a hundred years since the second coming of Dragons. While there are still young dragonlings flying across the lands and burning wherever they go, it is not so great of a threat as it was. The village of Iona never recovered from the destruction of dragon fire, but all the other cities have been rebuilt and stand stronger now than they have in years. Jesu city is no longer the second largest city, it's people greatly diminished by the great water dragon's destruction. The Dragon Queen Imca has died, and her son Theos rules now.

"After Sar'tu's most recent invasion of Ermith's borders, and the catastrophic failure of it, Sar'tu has been quiet for over seventy years now. No doubt they have recovered from their own failure and are ready to try again. Mother has told me nothing of their fate, so I can only assume that they have not come in contact with demonic activity. Dragonlings have been sighted in their forests, and the country burns brightly. But it is not the duty of the Valkyries to kill dragons. Sar'tu will not fall to beasts.

"Here we stand in the great desert of Ermith, called the Silver Meadows. You can see it has quite the apt name. Feel how the silver sands brush against your skin, like a thousand blades of grass swaying in the wind. The first sign of demon activity was noticed by the Valkyries here in this blank expanse. So it is here that we were sent.

"I do sincerely apologize. To you three go my heart and my sadness. You will find no loved ones in this age. What you have experienced in your past lives has been gone for ages. If you expected to be able to see the work you have done in the world, you may take notice of traces of your influence in the world, you may hear songs or poems sung in your honor, but no memory of your identity will be left." When she finished, Zenovia bowed her head, a pained look on her face. To the three who saw her, they could tell that she truly felt their loss. The life of a Valkyrie was long, and the very essence of empathy was bound to their souls. It would be no different for the gentler spirits as it was for the hardened warriors, as Zenovia was.

"So my existence means absolutely nothing then?" Keir stated bluntly, planting his sword into the ground and leaning against its broad surface. "So this time means nothing to me, and I, nothing to it. I am only here to fight as one of your pawns in a war that has been raging on and off for what seems like millennia. I hope you realize the questions that this raises. What happens if we were to die a second time? What will we become of us once the battle ends? In all honesty, it would be all the same to me if I were to just stay dead than to carry on without reason. I suppose that's the reason why you brought me back, isn't it? Nothing more to lose, so I might as well shut up and do the same thing for you that the king of my time commanded of me, right?" Despite the reasons one would have to be angry, Keir just couldn't find himself to muster the fury to sound outraged as he could not be bothered to care. He was uninspired to fight and only had desire to find meaning in his newfound life. The ironic part of which was that the only possible way to potentially find purpose was to fight in the given cause.

"Hmph. I was a simple fisherman once. Lived a quiet life between the mountains and the shore. When the demons attacked, the trained soldiers of the kingdoms were outmatched and fell by the Demon Lord's army. It was then that the king decreed for every able-bodied man to take up arms and fight. A desperate time. I didn't need any training, though. Seeing the Demon Lord sending the Leviathan to raze my town and drag my wife to the bottom of the ocean was all the 'training' I could ever need. Motivation... I guess that's what I was looking for. It won't matter if you pit me against demons or dragons, I'll just do as I am told until I find my motivation. Hell, you could throw me at a horde of gryphons, but as we all know... gryphons just don't exist."

Irene cringed at a pained feeling in her heart with Zenovia's final words, but not because of what she had said but what she felt and the slight flicker of soul's flame. She tilted her head and glanced down, her hand placed back upon her bosom though her expression showed no sign of sadness. "It may be better this way." The voice appeared once again in the back of the Valkyrie princess's head, "We would have to return once we are done here, so perhaps it's good that our identities are not remembered to spare our loved ones the pain of losing us a second time."

"But is that the only way?" Irene looked back up, staring right at Zenovia, "To defeat the demons means to kill them, correct? But can we not find another way to limit this threat? They may be demons but if they're intelligent enough then they must still possess some semblance of a conscience and reason."

The man spoke of many things, much of which Zenovia had already known. The others would know nothing of each other though, and so she let him speak his mind. He asked many questions as well, and the young Valkyrie burned those questions into her memory, so that she could answer each and every one. These three had a right to know what is happening to then, and what would happen should the worst come to fruition. Zenovia prayed that the worst would not occur.

"Forgive me, I did not mean for my words to wound you so," Zenovia spoke softly to the man called Keir. "You lived in an ancient age, when the Valkyries were not quite as powerful. It took all of humanity to win the war against this demon king. Or queen, as the case may be. Demons are not particularly tied to a single gender. Your work helped change the world, and what the world is ultimately stems from your efforts. If you had not claimed victory, the world would have surely ended. But that was ages past, you will see no signs of your struggles here. You will hear a song, perhaps a poem, but the earth is ever changing. Likely you will not remember any place that we go to.

"Death to your mortal bodies is simple to understand. You await judgment in the rivers of the underworld, and some are plucked to be reborn, while others can ascend or burn. If an ascended were to die again, your tasks upon the mortal plane would come to an end, and you would not be able to sustain your life here."

Zenovia reached into her wing and took out a small jar, filled to the brim with a strange white mist. The mist spilled over the edge of the jar, but never seemed to empty it. Zenovia put her mouth over the jar and breathed into it. All of the mist was expunged from the jar at once, allowing those who watched to see a small, white jewel hovering there in the center of the jar. Almost immediately afterward, the white mist around them surged back into the jar, and Zenovia closed the lid tightly.

"That was a Soul Anchor you saw," Zenovia explained, "It is what keeps your soul from eroding away as you travel the mortal world. A very valuable and irreplaceable jewel. If you were to 'die' here, the jewel would break, and you would be sent back to the Hall of the Gods. As for what happens when this battle is over...you are chosen to become part of the ascended. If you survive, you would be granted the honor of becoming Valkyries yourselves. You would feast with the gods, and I would be your sister in both body and soul. Any wish you might have, so long as it is pure, would be granted. You also have the option of being reborn. The choice is yours, once the war has ended."

Then Zenovia's eyes darkened, as she reached to answer the final question. She struggled at first, not wanting to speak, but she had already vowed to herself that she would answer their every question, no matter what it was. "What do you have to lose?" Zenovia whispered now, a shiver running down her spine. She hated to even think about it. "You would lose everything, should this war be lost. Demons do not care for the souls of the dead. They would feast upon you, devouring everything you are, while letting your immortal soul regenerate. To them, human souls are nothing more than crops to be grown and harvested. An eternal suffering awaits a human at the end of his life, should he make a deal with demons. It is even worse for Valkyries. Our souls are immortal as well, but unlike you three, I still have my body, flesh and blood and all. Demons who capture Valkyries chain them up and drag them down into the depths of the abyss, where no light shines, the females to become brood mothers for their flocks, the males to become food for their spawn. It is a fate worse than death, I would not wish it upon anyone."

Zenovia took in a deep breath, then let herself go, removing any traces of fear from her heart. It would not do to show weakness in front of them. Only Valkyries could become brood mothers, this was true. Their souls and bodies, so free of corruption, would be the only ones capable of surviving the corruption of demons. Zenovia did not fancy shitting out demonspawn for the rest of her immortal life. She would die first, if she could. There were ways to kill Valkyries, all of which were known by demons.

"The demons must be stopped by any means necessary. Whether that is to kill them or drive them back from whence they came, either one will work. I will not hesitate to kill them when I can. Too many of my brothers and sisters have already fallen prey to demons. Demons have no conscience. They can reason better than any human, and will strive to steer you off the path of righteousness. But so long as you follow me, I will not let your souls become their food. I swear it upon mine own soul."

"Then I'll stop asking questions so we can move on," Keir added, picking up his sword and hoisting it over his shoulder with a single hand. "I'd rather tear the damned beasts apart and eat them myself than become mere sustenance for them. My body and mind were already once corrupted by their might once before, I will not allow their vile touch reach my soul again." Keir then turned to the other two souls resurrected by the valkyrie's power and nasally exhaled his breath in skepticism. ""With no disrespect to them, I don't think they possess the might nor the instinct to take a life, not even a demon's. Out of all the collective 'virtuous' souls in history, you had to pick two that look like they've never taken up arms or experienced the hardships of combat. If I am wrong, if they have actually tasted blood upon steel, then feel free to speak up and prove otherwise. Though it might have been better off if they had stayed in their cozy little afterlife... you probably should have brought along more veterans."

To say that Keir didn't like people would be a debatable statement. It wasn't necessarily that he disliked being around people, it was just that he wasn't used to not fighting alone. He believed that those not fit to fight would only get in the way and end up hurting themselves, and because of such, Keir remained a lone wolf through the entirety of his previous journey. There wasn't much of a filter to his mouth either, as though he had said he meant no disrespect, whether or not the other two were actually offended by his statement couldn't cause him to care less. At the end of it all, he would respect the fact that he wasn't the one calling the shots. "Either way, if this is really what your queen wants, then by all means have them. Just don't be surprised if they turn out to be no match for the demons of this time.

Trys could not say he felt pain when Zenovia explained that his work in this world had faded away like the caress of a gentle breeze. What use would pain be for what was already lost? Besides, he knew, deep down, that what the Valkyrie princess had said was true: had they not done their work in the past then the world would not have been shaped in its current design. He knew this much with the utmost certainty. The waters of time may have washed away his imprints in the sand, but the sand remained upon the beach––hopefully it found itself in a situation less dire for quite some time before this occurrence.

To say that he remained quiet after Keir spoke, however, would be quite the opposite. His brow furrowed, the gentle wind and feeling of life whistling and rippling in response. Did this man not trust in his ability? When he could see its effects flourishing in the sandy dunes turned earth around him? "I do not believe our worth should be measured in blood upon steel," he answered with a frown, the sand whipping up to form a veil around his now-clenched fist. "I may have been a peaceful soul in my time, but I stood to defend the tranquility of that era––true, no demons ravaged the land in that time, but my strength of will and embrace of nature saved many. A new foe brings naught but a new challenge. I shall not waver; I will defend." The sand which had gathered at his fist tightened into a ring and then transformed into a spire, but quickly fell back to the loamy earth beneath his feet. His hand, now unclenched, found a new place on his side as he folded his arms over his chest. The earth continued to flourish. "I cannot and will not speak for her," at this he glanced quickly at the other woman before resting his soft yet determined eyes upon the warrior of the past, "but I feel certain that she too will not falter."

And with that he said no more.

Zenovia took a deep breath, easing her muscles and calming her senses. It was here in Ermith's desert that the first sign of demons showed up, so it would be here that they would find demons. But after having landed, Zenovia could see no sign of demon activity nearby. Was it a trick of the silver sand, or have the beasts not been to this area as of yet? If memory served, the place they stood in used to be a small city, before the sands swallowed it whole. Some remnants of broken buildings could still be seen, jutting up out of the sand to serve as landmarks. The city folk moved their camp, as the barbarian tribes were wont to do. They now lived some twenty miles from the city, but the portals that demons frequented were still open here.

The group conversation would have brought any stray demons to them, or so Zenovia had hoped. So far, that did not seem to be the case. It was common knowledge that demons hated the living, and hated Valkyries even more. At any chance, they would throw themselves at their hated foe in suicidal attempts to kill them. But with the demon attack that was reported by the Valkyrian scouts, the demons were attacking in large numbers, and their battle strategy and tactics had gotten much better.

A shift in the wind, the sound of sand moving at the slightest breeze. That was all it took to catch Zenovia's attention. Her head snapped to the side, dark hair whipping around her head to cover most of her front. Just in time too, something caught in her hair and wrenched it aside, causing Zenovia to be thrown through the air. Zenovia quickly fanned her wings out and caught herself in the air, bringing herself back to the front of her charges. A golden hand erupted from the sands, the coloration of the melting skin clashing against the silver grass beneath it. Still, there was no mistaking the scent.

"Sand Scourges!" Zenovia cried, taking her halberd from her back and readying it in front of her, pointing the tip of the ax head to where the hand came from. With the sound of shifting sand, the hand slowly rose to reveal a disgusting golden head, shaped much like a human's if not for the constant melting of the sand on it's face. The silver around the body began to turn to gold wherever it went, and it seemed both angry and hungry.

Encounter!
New Objective: Rout the Enemy!

Area: The Silver Meadows - Old City Ruins
Atmosphere: Beating Sun; Beating Hearts (Party +1 Atk; +1 Int | Enemy +5% HP Regen)
Achievement: I Make Death Fun - Gather the Sand Scourges into a single Sinkhole one-by-one and kill them. (25 AP)
Soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HKn1qWqcdE

(r) ( ) ( ) ( ) (6) (b) ( ) ( ) ( ) A
( ) (5) ( ) ( ) (b) (b) ( ) (4) ( ) B
( ) ( ) (3) ( ) ( ) ( ) (2) ( ) ( ) C
( ) (s) ( ) (r) (1) (r) ( ) ( ) ( ) D
( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) E
( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) (s) ( ) F
( ) (s) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) (s) ( ) G
( ) (s) ( ) ( ) (Z) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) H
(w) (w) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) I
( ) (w) ( ) (b) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) J
-1---2---3---4---5---6---7---8---9
Player Characters may start in cells H-J

Zenovia (Princess of the Valkyries)
HP: 35/35
EN: 50/50
Atk: 5----6
Def: 7
Int: 1----2
Spr: 3
Move: 4
Evade: 4%
Crit: 3%
Morale: (//////////)

Sand Scourge (1)
HP: 40/40
EN: 60/60
Atk: 7
Def: 3
Int: 1
Spr: 3
Move: 3
Evade: 5%
Crit: 4%

Sand Scourge (2)
HP: 40/40
EN: 60/60
Atk: 7
Def: 3
Int: 1
Spr: 3
Move: 3
Evade: 5%
Crit: 4%

Sand Scourge (3)
HP: 40/40
EN: 60/60
Atk: 7
Def: 3
Int: 1
Spr: 3
Move: 3
Evade: 5%
Crit: 4%

Sand Scourge (4)
HP: 40/40
EN: 60/60
Atk: 7
Def: 3
Int: 1
Spr: 3
Move: 3
Evade: 5%
Crit: 4%

Sand Scourge (5)
HP: 40/40
EN: 60/60
Atk: 7
Def: 3
Int: 1
Spr: 3
Move: 3
Evade: 5%
Crit: 4%

Sand Scourge (6)
HP: 40/40
EN: 60/60
Atk: 7
Def: 3
Int: 1
Spr: 3
Move: 3
Evade: 5%
Crit: 4%

(b) - Broken building wall (Impassible)

(s) - Deep Stone - High Ground Advantage +10% DMG Output

(r) - Rock
Trigger Command: Kick

(w) - Dry Well (Impassible)

Keir could almost find the will to smirk at the young man's sudden indignant proclamation, however his attention quickly turned to the sudden appearance of the demons that rose from the shifting sands. "I see demonkind has certainly adapted and evolved throughout the ages," Keir remarked, eyeing each one that showed its face. "They've certainly learned how to become more hideous looking, after all." As he carried his sword, Keir took his stand next to the Valkyrian princess, making a firm stand against the opposition. Never one to back down in the face danger (or in this case, the face of ugly), Keir was already determined to fight until his second bitter end.

Keir turned his head and looked over his shoulder back at Tryst. "Well then. Go on, prove me wrong."

Keir starts in H-6.

Trys starts at I5!

Trys' gaze on Keir remained hardened, but he his desire lay naught in continuing an argument. Rather, the young soul's two green orbs landed on the demons skirting in the sand and he inhaled deeply. "So be it," he whispered as he exhaled, the earth shaking slightly beneath his feet. It was time for battle.

Irene starts at cell H-4

Irene placed herself beside the Valkyrie. Her calm expression didn't change, however the slight smile that was on her lips had faded. She kept her head down her eyes falling onto the shifting sand in front of her. Of course she had never seen combat, violence was not something she believed was a correct solution to anything, but as the woman had said these were demons. They wouldn't listen to reason or show any mercy.

She brought her head up and her eyes focused on the demons before her. Hideous. Yet, if she could somehow reach them then maybe, just maybe they could be convinced. As long as there was a chance she would cling to it with hope that the demons could be sent away without having to kill all of them.