~Armonia Chronicles~ .:Abyss of the Seas:.

Violet didn't need this. She didn't want any of this. Something about this situation was pissing her off, and the girl's attitude only made it worse. Some sense of justice encouraged Violet to follow the girl to her home, but she didn't want a reward. She was doing what she thought was right in the first place. That, and searching for the ice spirit, in order to destroy said spirit.

"I don't need a reward," Violet said, "And I don't need to rest like you humans do. I'll just keep watch through the night. Holler if you need me." With that said, Violet left the shanty, quickly jumping up on top of the house, not worrying about it caving in beneath her. As a fire spirit, Violet weighed next to nothing, and her footsteps were silent. She would keep watch for any more of those thugs. They would burn before getting anywhere close to this place.

Violet also wanted to catch the last few rays of sunlight, building her energy up as much as she could. Gods knew she would need it. Violet calmed her blood and energy, minimizing it so that she only gave off a faint glow, like a dying candle. Except she wasn't dying, only resting. Violet sat, hugging her legs close to her chest to keep warm from the cold of the night.

Anivia watched the girl finally speak about her past, with how the child was mentioning her brother all this time it must have been killing her to bottle it all up inside. Anivia shook her head, a frown apparent on her still calm expression, it was rather unfortunate for this girl. Anivia wished to help her, to perhaps use some of her magic to at the very least create a better living environment for the girl. But she knew it was impossible, as it was already bad enough that she had shown herself to humans. Anivia would for sure be facing much worse consequences than a bit of reprimanding if she were to use her powers to directly alter this girl's life.

"'Tis unfortunate, child." Anivia spoke as she watched the fire spirit leave. She blinked and quickly floated after her onto the roof, situating herself beside the fire spirit, though still a good distance away so she could back off in case she tried to kill her. "I didn't expect you to stay around this long." Anivia spoke, "Are you worried about the child?"

Violet stared and watched the ice spirit situate herself close by. Violet didn't attack her. She didn't want to at the moment, plus that rule from the girl still stood. She wouldn't attack in the other's presence. Someday, maybe. But not today. Not yet. "You say that as if you expect me to be some sort of brute that cares not for the lives of humans," Violet said, a little poison in her tone. Violet rolled her eyes. She was worried about the girl. More so that more thugs might come and attack her, for whatever reason.

"Yes, I'm worried," Violet admitted, putting her chin in the gap between her knees, her arms wrapped around her legs, pulling them close. "I feel like those thugs back there aren't going to be the only ones coming after her. I'm not as strong at night as I am in the day, so I don't know if I'm enough." Violet's eyes swerved to look at the ice spirit. Violet's body was glowing like a candle, so she could easily see the ice spirit's features. "You're worried too, aren't you?"

Rather glad that the fire spirit wasn't showing any signs of aggression, Anivia settled herself down to a comfortable seating position just like her. The snow fairy then nodded as the fire spirit explained why she felt the need to stick around, as well as to respond to her question. Of course she was worried, she was a snow spirit but that didn't mean her heart was cold too. In fact it's the only part of her body that's not cold, figuratively speaking of course. "Yes, I am very worried. That girl, she's not safe at all. With a background like that and no one to really care for her, she can easily be the target of anything. Even if she's killed I doubt anyone would find out." Anivia responded, then thought about the fire spirit saying she wasn't as strong during the night, "Well I'm a snow fairy and our kind aren't really affected by the cycle of day and night. So I suppose I can take over for whenever your powers are weaker."

Well, Patrice was granted her answer, and though she wasn't fully satisfied, the girl she had helped save just rushed away indicating that they should stay the night mingled with more self-pity. Patrice scoffed and sat down on the hard floor. She figured she'd go downstairs when she got tired, but she was far from that at the moment. The two weird fairy/spirit things decided to depart the cottage to keep watch or some such which was fine by her. What was she going to do now? Sit there? She figured she could meditate. The source of nature was strong here. At least it would pass the time because she certainly didn't feel like talking with any of the other saps in the room at the moment. There was the weird engineer guy and then the other one who was rather quiet. Well, that suited her just fine.

How atrociously boring. Why did I have to get so worked up earlier? Then I wouldn't be caught up in this nonsense. I guess I could just walk off now, but what the hell, Patrice mused to herself in her mind as she sat, a thoughtful expression upon her face. It's not like I had anything better to do. Wait until the captain finds a way to get me out of here. Until then, I'm stuck. Now a solid grimace settled upon her face. Her captain was very powerful, and would probably wind up intimidating someone in hopping dimensions to fetch her one and only pirate sage. Still, nothing was certain. It would no doubt be a long while before Patrice was ever found. If the dimension hopper made it to this world, he or she would still have to scour it until Patrice was found. Thoughts of how she managed to wind up on this world surged through her mind like a wild flurry and a headache was quick to arise. Now meditation wasn't sounding so bad...

Violet's thoughts raced back to the memories of others like her. The snow fairy's mentioning of her own kind made Violet think of hers, in turn. She was the last of the Sun Spirits. The Meteor Guides. The Phoenix Riders. But no one else could know that. Violet would make sure that no one ever got the pleasure of knowing they were the one to wipe out a spirit's existence.

Violet began to feel the chill from the night and the fairy, so she scooted further away from her and rubbed her legs, the friction making it easier for her blood to warm. Violet didn't hate the night, it was the only time she could see meteors fly across the sky. There were none this night, so far at least.

"For now," Violet said, in answer to the fairy's last comment. "Just don't start thinking I'm a wimp when the sun isn't in the sky. I'll kick your ass, night or day." Violet hoped she wouldn't have to deal with a solar eclipse anytime soon.

Despite the fact that he had never been around magical beings before, Gerard didn't seem that fascinated in them. To him, they were just children finding their way in the world. Apathetically, Gerard sat down and helped himself to a plate of the odd meat that was presented and struggled with the conflicting flavor as he forced it down.

"Ah... hm... a very... robust taste," He critiqued. "I like it! Reminds me of the war times when all we had to eat were salted dirt and cooked rocks." He then stopped for a moment and stroked his chin, looking at the people around him. Finally, he announced, "Now where are my manners? I have not yet properly introduced myself. My name is Doctor Gerard Thorley. I am an esteemed inventor with some minor medical background. I would like to thank you all for participating in my field research earlier. I absolutely despise crates and barrels and I enjoy jokes at the bottom of pudding cups. I hope to someday introduce the world to the brilliance of machinery. If you'd like to know more, it's all here in my dossier." He concluded by placing a yellow folder containing some of his sample blueprints and records of his accolades on the table.

(OoC: Sorry I haven't been able to get to this so long. College recently started up again and I'm dealing with a death in the family at the moment. I'll try to be more active.)

(OoC: Thank you, Vergil, and I'm sorry to hear that. I don't ever mean to come off as aggressive with my remindings, but to not provide an answer like this after so long just got me pondering and irritated. Just keep in contact when things get in the way~)

The luminous stars above shone with a splendor that not all worlds could achieve, for Armonia was in perfect celestial alignment. A deep breath was heard down the street, a sigh almost as a dark figure stood. The peaceful essence of the small town shook the figure with slight irritation, but remained calm nonetheless. He would have his fun breaking the silence in a moment. For now, he wanted to savour walking down this final street to see what- or who- had felled the ones that had enraged his employer. It was an almost curiosity that drove his black boots clacking slowly down the cobbled way, causing him to smile under a black mask, eyes vicious in shape and mouth malevolent in grin. The other half was simply to obtain his money and leave. Beneath the black cloak adorning his figure, a gleam of a weapon distantly reflected the celestial bodies above, as if mirroring the grace onto itself. Of course, if any survivors spread the word, one would know that it wasn't simply a metaphor.

The skill of a blade this man hoped to unleash upon these beings.

Unfortunately, he thought, that the goons of his employer had to tag along. They didn't seem all too keen to be around him; nobody did. It made him smile at the intimidation he posed. Despite lacking any true intimidating features albeit the enigmatic mask, it seemed his essence was the only thing emanating this fearing essence. As the figure neared the famed cottage of the small girl known as Takaya, this wave pulsed over the home immediately, as if a cry from a hidden devil screaming to those that he approached. The black figure stopped, along with a few of the pirate thugs around him. He could clearly see two beings on the roof, having a fun little conversation. His eye caught immediate differences, not just in simple appearance, but in essence. Spirits... he thought, only making him grin wider under the mask. What a challenge this would be!

"You there," he suddenly called out, raising a black gloved finger to the firy girl, "Tell me where the girl is. I need something from her."

Violet sensed the hostile presence before it came into her line of sight. It was not a dark night, but the lighting was not bright either. The wave of dark energy that washed over her and the hut alerted her and brought her to attention. This wasn't an ordinary revenge visit, Violet could see the pirates, this was something different.

What great fucking timing, Violet cursed to herself, glaring down at the man. If I overexert myself now, I'll die. This guy looks tougher than those pirates too.

Violet stood and jumped off the hut, landing on the soft ground without a sound. The ice fairy was certain to follow her. Spirits had a knack for knowing hostiles by sight alone. At least, Violet did. Violet paused for a moment, then raised an eyebrow. Perhaps she should play with this man a little, after all, he was insulting her intelligence by asking that question.

"The moon shall not reveal the secrets of the sun," Violet said, intentionally making a riddle. It was simple, but Violet was angry with the stranger. "The darkness is unwelcome, it cannot be trusted. The sun shines through lies and deceptions."

The hour had grown a bit later, and Patrice had indulged in meditation, feeling the nature of the town enjoying the night. The earth whispered to her secrets sometimes, but suddenly, she jolted, eyes opening wildly. Her eye twitched slightly as she put the back of her hand against her forehead. She had broken out in a sweat so suddenly. The earth was afraid. She leaned over and touched her cheek to the floor of the cottage. "What the fuck is going on?" Patrice groaned, quietening herself afterwards so she could feel. The earth was quivering. She could feel it through the floor, it was so strong. Something was approaching. Standing up, Patrice made her way to the door of the cottage, and she could hear some talking going on outside--a voice she wasn't familiar with followed by the response of the fire girl. Whatever it was, it wasn't good. She was about to give a warning glance to the rest of the people around, then thought better of it.

"Let's see what we're dealing with here," the pirate sage whispered to herself, opening the door and stepping out into the cool night air. Nature practically screamed at her, warning her. "By the gods, I know, I know. Shut the hell up for a minute," she said to herself again, her gaze falling upon the rather intimidating fellow surrounded by more thugs. Now she could tell why the earth was so afraid. She, herself, remained unfazed. She had seen scarier before, but the imposing aura this man exhibited was quite stifling. It seemed that Violet was taking a stand against him because he sure as hell was up to no good, especially with those sorry excuses for pirates at his side. She remained quiet, just giving a disconcerted look at the intimidating fellow, crossing her arms over her chest.

Suddenly Anivia felt a chill run down her spine and shuddered, which was very unusual for her, being a spirit of ice and snow and all. Immediately afterward Anivia felt an ominous presence, obviously the same presence that sent those chills through her body. She turned toward the direction from where she sensed the presence and at the same time she heard, whoever that strange man was, ask them a question. Though it was mostly directed at the fire spirit, who jumped down and gave a rather odd answer. Anivia positioned herself up and allowed the eight icicles to protrude out her back again, forming into crystal wings just like before, then floated slowly and gently down until she was about a foot from the ground.

"You're a rather odd one," Anivia stated, floating around the man with her conjured scepter in hand ready to defend herself, "What need have you for this girl?"

Gerard had been scribbling on his pile of notes all day with ideas for new blueprints. Whenever he had run out of room on a sheet of paper, he would accidentally go off and write on the walls and floor of the cottage. On one of his breaks (and breaks by his definition meant getting out of his seat to pace around the room while still brainstorming of ideas) he noticed three of the youngsters outside observing a dark figure approaching the cottage accompanied by men of uninteresting and lesser significance. After gathering his notes into a neat stack, Gerard stepped outside to get a closer inspection.

It certainly didn't take an incredibly brilliant (or potentially insane) inventor to come to the conclusion that these men were most likely associated with the pirates from the alley much earlier that day. Whether or not that was the case mattered not to Gerard, as he responded to inherent hostility all the same. Taking a few steps forward and adjusting his coat, Gerard announced to the arriving group, "I really appreciate that I have a benefactor out there that is supplying me with live test subjects for my inventions, I really do. However,you must realize that it is late now and business hours are over. I have much work to do now before I head off to sleep. Well actually, that's a lie. I have long since forgotten the concept of sleep. What is it again, some sort of dance craze that teenagers are into? I'm getting sidetracked, where was I? Oh that's right. If you wish to take part of my next field testing, please come back in the morning. Now I must kindly ask you to leave my home. Wait a minute... this isn't my home! Bahahahahahahahaha! Seriously though. Leave. Shoo. Scoot. Vamoose."

Terra's heart ached behind the stoic mask of his face as he watched the young homeowner disappear with sullen words. He did not move after her though, it was not his place to go and comfort her; he didn't know her. Yet he yearned, for whatever reason, to follow her into the other room. If only to let her know that everything would be alright even if he didn't honestly think so.

He couldn't explain it. There was just something about the girl that made him want to care; something that made him want to shield her from whatever attempted to harm her. It was a strange and uncomfortable feeling. One that he was unaccustomed to feeling. He turned away from the location she had retired to for the night in his own effort to remove his sentiments. He took a few steps away and sat by the window when he felt his heart cry out.

He remained situated by the glass, staring out into the night for quite some time. His visage remained hard as stone as he listened to the musings between the spirits. It was only when an unfamiliar voice resonated from outside that a frown formed and his brow furrowed. When the pirate sage made her way outside he followed her. His hands were white-knuckled around the air when he came to a halt next to her.

The masked man looked over to the flaming spirit, seeming to have a grin showing through his eyes. "Ah, but I show no deception," he stated clearly, holding his hands away from his body. "I am here for the girl for the sole reason of retrieving what is not hers. If you wouldn't mind, I'll just explain this in simple terms..." Taking a few paces, his hand came to his side, gripping the handle of the blade within his cloak. His boots continued to make the echoing clicking and clacking as he paced slowly, his eyes unwavering from the group- or at least, his mask's eyes.

"The girl you are currently staying with, she had a glove, did she not?" he inquired. His eyes gave off a smirk as he read the simple confirmations on the others' faces, continuing. "Well, that glove belongs to my employer, a very wealthy traveler of the seas whom he found that glove from a place not far from here, the glove itself having origin from an undiscovered plot of ruins found in the foretold Shroud Forest," The man finally stopped, his black cloak billowing to a stop. With a majestic swing, he pulled his sword from its sheathe, pointing it towards Patrice while his eyes scanned over to the group. "To make things clear, that girl you have in there is a thief, and we are simply here to take what is ours." With what appeared to be another smirk, the masked man's blade diverted over to the door. "Isn't that right, little miss?"

To no one's attention, a figure had appeared at the door, the familiar small and fragile figure of the girl they had saved. Her eyes were locked onto the cold black abyss of the man's mask, fists tightened, one of these wearing the talked about glove. Takaya took a step down, keeping a calm composure. "Yes, I did take this glove..." Takaya declared, stopping at the bottom step, "But you've been misinformed. It was never your master's glove." Takaya's voice seemed to hiss in emphasis on the word "master's" as she spoke, taking a few more steps forward. "This glove belongs in my family, and has been for the past generations, dating back as far as anyone's ever lived on these islands. Your master stole this glove from my family!" she exclaimed, her cheeks flustered in anger. "You took this glove from my brother!

The masked man remained silent, taking in a breath as he lowered his blade. He took a few paces, surveying the group with condescending eyes. "I am not here to make the judgement, little miss, nor to say what is rightfully who's," he started, "But simply here on the will of my employer. I'm afraid no matter the situation, at the end of this time, it will be his." his blade motioned to the other pirates nearby, who had been awaiting his word since. They drew their weaponry and advanced slowly, their eyes on their nearest opponents.
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Chapter I-II ~ Fated Despair
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Location: City Outskirts
Objective: Defeat Disterria!
Atmosphere: Fighting Will- "everyone's pumped for battle, let's do this!" Critical hits are more common.


{h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} A
{h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} B
{ } { } { } { } {D} { } { } { } { } C
{ } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } D
{ } {X} { } {F} { } {T} { } {B} { } E
{ } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } F
{ } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } G
{ } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } H
{ } { } { } { } { } { } { } {T} { } I
{h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {s} {s} {s} J
-1---2---3---4---5---6---7---8---9-


Player Side:

Spoiler:

Enemy Side:

Spoiler:

Legend:

Spoiler:

Characters start at rows H-I!

Violet flicked her wrists out, grabbing her two short knives as they flew out of her sleeves. The tip of her large, bushy ponytail on her head that pointed skyward wavered ever so slightly, like a candlelight. She was preserving her power, but the light illuminated her face ever so slightly, giving her a quiet look, which was completely different from her previous look, where she was a torrent of fire with a human-like appearance.

Violet bent her knees and brought her daggers up, ready to defend or attack at any point. Her eyes flicked over to where the girl, Takaya, was before refocusing on the intruder. She didn't understand all of what was going on, but the message was clear enough. That glove was the whole reason for this fight.

"Tch," Violet spat. "You stupid humans don't know how to stop fighting. How fucking pathetic. You're all pissing me off, so I'll just kill you and be done with this whole mess. You're beyond saving at this point anyway."

Violet starts at H-2

"I'll start with you," Violet growled, glaring fiercely at the closest thug. She forgot what they were called again. "Let's dance, worm."

Anivia starts at I-9

"Oh dear, this could be bad." Anivia spoke softly, a great deal of concern in her tone. However her expression remained rather calm and serene, as she gently floated toward the young girl, lowering herself to the ground for a moment and kneeling down to get to eye level with the now furious girl over this glove of her father's. "It's alright, we'll make sure they don't touch you or the glove." Anivia cooed, trying to calm the girl down, "Anger and hatred isn't good for a young maiden like you. Leave that for the fire spirit over there."

Gerard starts at I-7

It certainly didn't matter to Gerard why these men were here or what they were after, however he could not allow them to interfere with his work, and he definitely owed it to his host to provide whatever protection he could in return for the food and shelter. Looking upon the situation in a tactical perspective, the formation was far from favorable for Gerard. The enemy was evenly spread across the field, giving his Landrakers very little utility outside of their own range. If the enemy were to group together, they'd overpower the turrets and easily break them. He decided the best course of action would be to position the turrets to one side, and hopefully the other guests could lure the pirates closer to the turrets to pick them off one at a time while retaining their attention.

Then there was their leader. If their leader could be eliminated early, the rest would most likely rout from loss of morale, however failing to kill the commander in a timely manner could prove catastrophic and perhaps the better approach would be to scatter and clear the grunts first. Perhaps forming a line formation to prevent any one person from being ambushed from the sides would be a more viable scheme in the long run. It was now time to act, so Gerard retrieved his spanner from his coat and adjusted his goggles.

"It's just business."
...What an odd thing to randomly say.

Terra starts at H5!

Terra opened his hands only wide enough for his glaive to appear in a flash of green light. As soon as it remained in existence his knuckles were white around it. The men from before had not learned their lesson and they even brought some friends along with them; they would all learn their lesson. He was very calm in his movement, however, despite the rigidness of his hands, and he easily settled in front of the pirate sage.

There was a deathly eeriness in his eyes.

It was clear he intended for this to be their last encounter.

The pirates stopped their advances as those in front of them began to disperse and prepare for battle. Rusted blades began to slowly be pulled from their sheathes as the sea thugs pointed out who they would love to tear at first, some of them spitting out foul curses to the group and specifically the young Takaya. It was then that the masked man spoke up again.

"I will give a last offer, friends," the man spoke, swirling his fine silver blade around slowly. His piercing gaze shot through each of them one more time through the veil of the black mask that grinned over his face. Dark strands began to appear about the figure, curling and twisting in the air as he prepared for the inevitable. Despite him summoning them, a slight discomfort seemed to pierce the mask's cover, but was quickly diminished like a flame under water. "If you will not stand down, then you will meet your end. I am Disterria, I am your end."

Takaya felt her body shiver slightly as the aura about her kept getting cooler and cooler, her eyes focusing on the dark strands that swirled about the one who had threatened her very life over this glove. She felt immediate vulnerability, but confidence still veiled her face. She wouldn't let these thugs take the glove, nor her life. Not while she had friends beside her. "I'm afraid that none of us will back down from you," she spoke bravely, summoning the large halberd from before. The familiar flight of energy jolted from the gemstone and began to form the solid shape of the large staff weapon, Takaya's hand grasping onto the now solid form as the final piece- the mirrored gemstone crest at the base of the blade- formed and completed the weapon.

"I won't let my brother go in vain!"

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Chapter I-II ~ Fated Despair
------------------------------------------------

Location: City Outskirts
Objective: Defeat Disterria!
Atmosphere: Fighting Will- "everyone's pumped for battle, let's do this!" Critical hits are more common.


{h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} A
{h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} B
{ } { } { } { } {D} { } { } { } { } C
{ } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } D
{ } {X} { } {F} { } {T} { } {B} { } E
{ } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } F
{ } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } { } G
{ } {V} { } { } {E} { } { } { } { } H
{ } { } { } { } {P} { } {G} {T} {A} I
{h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {h} {s} {s} {s} J
-1---2---3---4---5---6---7---8---9-


Player Side:

Spoiler:

Enemy Side:

Spoiler:

Legend:

Spoiler:

~Player Phase~