Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

[Tassadar]

Re: Miranda (Tiffanian)

Spoiler

HP = 46, PP = 63, EP = 47, Status = Fine

The cloak draped over Miranda and covered her completely, so long as she kept it closed. That would keep her arms inside of it, however, which would leave her nudity at least partially exposed if she ever wanted to use either her magic or her rapier. That wasn't to say that she couldn't take keep a hold on her weapon, however, and the soldiers kept their distance from her. Helena glanced her way when Miranda spoke, and quickly nodded; "It is. And we shan't be going that way." She turned her head back forward once more, and said in an imperious voice that she often used on the servants when their work didn't meet her standards; "You and your men will escort us to the Tower Goldspike, immediately. We have important business."

There was no response to her mother's command for a long moment, the soliders stopping mid stride and glancing between each other with knowing looks. "You'll have to take that up with our commanding officer, Sargent Rawlins, Ma'am." One of them finally said, and then the men continued onwards, escorting the two of them out of their own home. Once outside, they found four more men, including the officer that Miranda remembered from when she had woken up, as well as the man that had found them, and argued on their behalf. He smiled slightly to himself upon seeing them, though it also wore a look of confusion that hid his pleased expression. The other two men only glanced at them before returning to their watch of the empty city streets. The officer, however, was another matter. His countenance dropped to a look of near blind fury upon spotting Miranda and her mother wrapped in cloaks, and escorted by his men.

His hand quickly fell to the sword at his side, his fingers drumming quickly upon the hilt. He waited until they were gathered nearby, and one of his men opened his mouth to speak before he quickly said, his voice brittle with barely contained rage; "No. You can't keep them. I don't care how good they were. I told you lot to have your fun and take the heads off before they started letting off that slime. Have you all gone daft, or did you just forget how to follow orders?"

One of them opened his mouth to speak, the others quickly taking a step away from him as he did so, but before the first words had left his mouth, Helena spoke in a tone just as brittle as the Sergent's; "I don't believe that you will be keeping us, no. We have pressing business, you see." The color drained from the man's face, and he stared wide eyed at Helena, and then at Miranda, quite obviously at a loss and just as surprised at their survival as his men had been.

 

[Tiffanian]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

As Miranda stood quietly, waiting for her mother to respond, she noted that the guardsmen were all giving her a wide berth, as if they feared her. She wasn’t quite sure what to think about that. Somewhere in the back of her mind she was ever so slightly amused that these soldiers might be afraid of a skinny little girl that they probably didn’t even realize was a mage yet, but it was likely that they were simply all out of sorts after having seen far more in this past day than anyone could be expected to properly process.

In any case, her mother soon confirmed that the barracks were on the other side of town, and commanded the soldiers to escort them to the tower in a tone of voice that she knew quite well. It was the tone she used when someone beneath her didn’t perform up to her expectations, whether that be a servant or Miranda herself. The men all stopped, giving each other looks before replying that they would have to have a talk with the commanding officer. Somehow Miranda didn’t feel optimistic about it. The men escorted them outside of the house to find this Rawlins character and three others standing guard and waiting for their comrades. Her lack of optimism was seemingly appropriate given the look of sheer rage on the commanding officer’s face when he saw them.

His speech disturbed the mage. Partly the barely contained anger and hate in his voice, but mostly his comment on “that slime” that the two of them were supposed to be letting off. She was reminded that they were supposedly the only survivors this lot had seen, and remembered something that she had barely noticed at the end of being raped by the slime; it had implanted a small crystal into her womb, which she hadn’t really thought about until now… as she pondered this, her worry increasing by the moment, her mother spoke up, which seemed to shock and terrify the man. There was quiet for a while, the men having all been stunned into silence, before Miranda broke it with questions. "What do you mean by letting off slime? What did your men mean earlier when they said they thought we were ghosts? What’s going on?" She clutched her stomach subconsciously as she asked, not entirely sure she wanted to know the answers. She had a terrible feeling about the whole thing. She had always been lucky… but could she really be so lucky as to escape without consequence what had apparently killed so many women like her?

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Miranda (Tiffanian)

Spoiler

Miranda: HP = 58, PP = 78, EP = 56, Status = Fine

As Miranda clutched at her stomach, she felt a light twinge within herself, but nothing more. Their officer was still apparently too dumbfounded to speak, but Caleb, the man that had first found them, replied; "The ones attacked by the invaders begin to emit slime once they have been fully turned. we aren't yet sure how this is done, or why the monsters do it, but when they begin emitting this slime there's nothing left of then but a mindless beast. Everyone we've found up until now was like that, either psychotically violent or aggressively lustful. We've taken to calling them ghosts."

He paused for a moment, and then sighed, before continuing; "The authorities have started sending out small groups to search for survivors. We encountered a group of adventurers earlier who came from the Tower Goldspike, but they hadn't found anyone else still possessed of a mind. They were sent to find something in a part of the city well away from where we'd been sent to patrol, so we parted ways."

Before more could be said, Helena said, in a cold and commanding tone; "Sergeant. You and your men will escort my daughter and I to the Tower Goldspike, immediately. And, with all further encounters with those you have been sent to help, you will ensure that both yourself and your men think first with your brains. This incident will not be repeating itself. And I will be having a word with your superiors about what you would have allowed those under your command to do. Are we clear?"

The officer finally seemed shaken from his surprised and horrified stupor at that, and his face became angry again as he shouted back; "And just who the fuck do you think you are to be giving orders to me, lady! If we hadn't found you any one of those monsters could have stumbled on the two of you! How could I have known that you two were-" He was cut off mid sentence when her mother, in a similarly angry but far more calm tone, interrupted him by saying; "I am Lady Helena Angelus Blackthorn, personal assistant to the Queen of Therion, former instructor in thaumaturgy at the Academy and the owner of this house. You would be well advised not to take that tone with a member of the nobility."

The man was stunned again, but this time only for a second before he returned; "Bullshit! Why would a noble be wandering around alone? You're probably just some scullery maid or servant that got left behi-" He was once more cut off as, in a single sweep of her hand, Miranda's mother set the ground around behind him on fire, the flames dangerously close to licking at the back of his legs. The man began to sweat profusely and closed his mouth, while the men around them took a step back and away from Miranda and Helena. All save for Caleb, who cleared his throat meaningfully, the ghost of a smile on his face. "R...Right.... Right away." The soldier finally said, and then Helena dismissed the fire. "Thank you." Helena replied simply,

The officer barked a few orders to his men, and the group headed outside and into the empty, half-ruined streets. Helena stuck close to Miranda, while Caleb walked on the other side of her. "The Tower is safe, last we knew. Whatever or whoever you're looking to find there, it's probably still there." He quietly said, trying to reassure her.

 

[Tiffanian]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

Miranda listened quietly as the young soldier they had called Caleb explained more about the situation to her. It made her feel exactly none better about what had happened to her. As she clutched her stomach she felt a slight twinge, which set off all manner of fear and paranoia inside of her, images of the crystal sending out little feelers up through her body to begin to control her flitting through her mind. Images of the entire population of Therion turned into mindless beasts, rampaging about the broken city also appeared in her head. Everything about this situation was bad, and it sounded like it would only get worse…

Her mother’s command at the sergeant and her demeaning tone of voice snapped her out of her daydream nightmares. She was a little worried about the potential result of the interaction; this man seemed to be volatile and angry, and he was surely under a lot of stress. In fact, his face contorted with anger again as he got over the shock of seeing them alive and well, and he began to fire back. The two had their argument back and forth, the guardsman’s questioning of her mother’s parentage even started to make her mad, though before she could interject her mother ended the little tiff by displaying her magical prowess, circling the man in a ring of fire that licked at his legs.

After that, the soldier quickly agreed to do as her mother had said, giving the others their orders as all of them walked back into the devastated streets of the city. Miranda stayed close to her mom, and Caleb flanked her on the other side, quietly reassuring her that the tower, and thus her father, were likely safe. "That’s good to know" she replied, trying to manage a smile at the young soldier. This one, at least, seemed like a decent enough man, and she didn’t want to seem ungrateful for his attempted kindnesses towards her. Still, the worry came back to her, and she decided to ask her mother about it. Leaning in closer to the older woman, she whispered "mother, when he was talking about these things… ‘turning’ people… Do you remember the last thing the slimes did to us? I vaguely recall them implanting some kind of crystal into me… I’m worried it might have something to do with what they’re talking about. It can’t be good, anyway. Shouldn’t we try to do something about it?" She hoped very much that her mother would know what to do, though it seemed unlikely; gods only knew where these things came from. It was quite possible that no one knew what to do… She began to worry again.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Miranda (Tiffanian)

Spoiler

Miranda: HP = 58, PP = 78, EP = 56, Status = Fine

Her mother turned toward Miranda and grimaced, but kept her head and her voice low as she replied; "Yes, they.... They did that to me as well. I've been running a monitoring spell on myself since we woke up, but I haven't detected anything unusual from it yet. It hasn't moved or emitted any energy yet, so I think that it's lying dormant, waiting for something. I agree that it most certainly isn't good, but there's not much that can be done about it now. Hopefully, it'll remain as such until we can find some way to remove them."

After Miranda made any comments on that, their so far brief journey was interrupted suddenly by a shout of warning, and Caleb suddenly grabbing them both and pulling them aside just before a bolt of lightning streaked down the street they had been walking down. Black lightning. "Dammit.... What the hell is this nonsense?" the soldier muttered. They had been separated, the sergeant and two of his men now crouched behind some rubble from a crumbled chapel, while Miranda, her mother and Caleb were at least twenty feet away, standing behind a carriage with broken wheels, and the rest of the men with them were thirty feet behind them, hidden amongst some more rubble.

"Oi! What the fuck d'you think you're doing?" The sergeant shouted, only to have another bolt of black lightning streak out and nearly hit him, before he crouched behind cover. Miranda could hear the man's cursing, but couldn't pick out any actual words.

 

[Tiffanian]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

"Well, that's good at least" Miranda said, though she was still quite worried. She gripped her rapier tightly, having the thought that if worse came to worst she could cut the crystals out of their wombs with it, since the two of them were both proficient in healing magic, to varying degrees. Still, she quickly pushed that thought out of her mind, the idea of cutting herself and her mother open both terrifying and repulsive, even if it were a better last resort than being turned into a "ghost" and going berserk.

The mage was shaken from her thoughts by a warning shout, as Caleb grabbed Miranda and her mother and quickly pulled them off to the side of the road behind a broken-down carriage. It was a good thing, too, because a bolt of black lightning shot down the street to slam into it somewhere far past them. Miranda crouched down behind the carriage, her mind racing as she tried to assess the situation as calmly as was possible for someone like her. The group was unhurt, but scattered all along the road, and definitely unable to properly project its force. This was made more apparent as the sergeant barely avoided another bolt of lightning. "Why is he shouting?" Miranda asked, confused by what he was doing. "Is it a human attacking us? It doesn't make sense" she continued as she cast a spell to help protect her against any spells the apparent mage shot at her. "Hey!" she shouted suddenly, still keeping herself hidden, "we don't have to fight! There are enough monsters trying to kill us all without us killing each other!" She hoped dearly that it was, indeed, another human shooting these spells at them, and that they were only attacking out of some sort of misunderstanding, though she was prepared enough for the alternative, readying herself to blast a spell at anything that might come around the carriage.

Spoiler

Cast Arcane Armor (Level 2 Arcane Spell) to give +30 to Dodge

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

Spoiler

Miranda: HP = 58, PP = 78, EP = 54/56, Status = Fine, Arcane Armor (+30 Dodge)

Rolls

Spoiler

Casting: Success.
Miranda has gained 10 * 3 = 30 Dodge!

Casting: Success.
Helena has gained 10 + 2 = 36 Dodge!

Casting (??) : Success.
Attack: Misses Miranda and her mother. Caleb isn't so lucky.
Damage: 2 + 1 + 2 + 6 = 11 * 4 = 44 - 9 = 35 damage.

To Miranda's surprise, and quite possibly to her horror, a human voice called out from somewhere up ahead in response to her shout. Her magic had, by then, formed a barrier around her, and Helena had done much the same in order to protect herself. "BURN!" A woman's voice shouted, and a familiar looking orb of flame streaked out from an unknown source. Directly toward where Miranda was standing.

It exploded well before she could even see where it was coming from, or offer any shout of warning. As it exploded, her magical shield flared to life, absorbing the flames. The field around her mother did more or less exactly the same, but Caleb, who had been hiding with them, had no such protection. The explosion through the screaming soldier twenty feet to the side, and against the stone wall of a nearby building. He crumpled to the ground, his body badly singed, and didn't move.

"Little bitch! Criok, Allen, circle around! You, girl! Get Caleb back on his feet and out of the open!" Another bolt of black lightning streaked out and slammed into the wall that the sergeant was hiding behind as he shouted his orders, and this time it carved a line in the stone and very nearly struck the man. The two men in back broke from cover and split off, one going in either direction. Her mother had closed her eyes and started another spell, and the sergeant and his men were scrambling for better cover.

 

[Tiffanian]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

After a brief pause, Miranda's shouting received an answer. "BURN!" a female voice screamed out from somewhere in front of her, and before she could react a ball of flame was shooting towards the three of them. It exploded just in front and to the side of Miranda, her magical armor shining brightly for a brief moment as it absorbed the flames and then became transparent once more, much the same happening for her mother. She was aware, however, of a pained scream from Caleb as he was flung aside by the explosion, slamming into the nearby wall. With a brief look back she saw him crumpled on the ground, badly burned and unmoving, and the girl's heart jumped up into her throat. Is he dead he can't be dead that can't have killed him she thought in a panic, unable to tell from here if he were still breathing or not.

As she heard the sergeant scream out orders, including one to her to get Caleb out of the open, she jumped up and began to backpedal towards the fallen guardsman, thinking a little more clearly now that some of the shock had worn off. She saw and heard her mother begin to cast a spell... It was a familiar one, one that her mother had tried to teach her on several occasions, but which had never quite stuck. It was a spell to dispel illusions. Come to think of it whoever is casting at us would have to be... right in front of us... Miranda thought, the pieces starting to fall into place as she backed up towards Caleb. She would have had to have gone around the carriage... but... she must have made herself invisible. She was almost to Caleb now, right in front of him, but she suddenly stopped and waited for her mother's spell to work, peering carefully into the street as she began to form a spell of her own. As soon as she could see whoever it was shooting fire and lightning at them, she would launch her own ball of flame at the woman, hopefully dropping her and protected herself and the others.

Spoiler

Wait until her mother has revealed the unseen and cast Flaming Sphere: (2d4 + 12) * 4 damage (4 EP)

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

Spoiler

Miranda: HP = 58, PP = 78, EP = 50/56, Status = Fine, Arcane Armor (+30 Dodge)

Rolls

Spoiler

Casting: Both Miranda and Helena succeed, no surprise there.
Attack: Miranda hits!
Damage: 1 + 2 + 12 = 15 * 4 = 60 damage.

Miranda gains 4 experience for winning without bloodshed! Sort of.

A blue orb of light suddenly appeared in her mother's hands, and bathed the area around them in its glow. A girl appeared not far from Miranda, a look of surprise on her young face. She couldn't have been much older than 20, if she had even passed her teens yet, and was dressed in haggard, torn robes. Signs of abuse covered her body, including numerous bruises and scrapes, as well as patches of slime and... Less wholesome substances.

This was all Miranda could see before her orb of flame slammed into the revealed assailants chest, and sent her flying across the street to slam into a pole. What was left of her clothes had been burned off, and the flesh beneath was blistered and blackened. Without some sort of medical attention, the girl likely would not be long for this world, but Helena was staring at the fallen sorceress dispassionately, and had already begun sweeping her eyes about, searching for more. The soldiers remained in cover, and Caleb groaned weakly in pain.

 

[Tiffanian]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

As soon as Miranda stopped, a ball of blue light appeared in her mother's hands, and everything around them took on a sickly blue tint. Including, of course, the young woman who was suddenly only a few feet in front of Miranda. "Woman" might have been a bit too generous, really, as she seemed quite young. She was also bruised up scraped, her clothing torn all to pieces, and she was covered in a mix of slime and cum. Miranda didn't have time to process it all, and didn't think as the ball of fire she quickly launched at the girl slammed into her chest. Her small frame was sent flying across the street, slamming into a pole and crumpling to the ground.

Her attack had completely blown the girl's tattered clothes off, and that she had badly damaged her skin, which had turned black and charred. She began to tremble and shake as she saw the results of her attack on what she had expected to be a much more menacing figure. Miranda could tell, though, that the girl was still breathing, just barely... She flashed back to the woman over the blacksmith's shop, the one she had incinerated... Not again she thought, trying to shake the memory out of her head. Even if she was attacking us... I don't think I could live with myself if I just let her die... She cautiously began to approach the fallen mage, saying "mother, please take care of Caleb" as she peered around the carriage again, and then darted quickly over to the girl. The smell of burnt flesh assaulted her nose as she got close, and her stomach turned, nearly overpowering her with nausea. She laid her hands on the mage's charred flesh and began to heal her. Not too much; she didn't want a fireball in her own face for her troubles. Still, she wanted the girl to be able to tell her why she had attacked them.

Spoiler

Cast Heat (2 EP) and heal the chick a little bit.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

Spoiler

Miranda: HP = 58, PP = 78, EP = 48/56, Status = Fine, Arcane Armor (+30 Dodge)

Rolls

Spoiler

Casting: Both Miranda and Helena succeed again.
Healing: 3 + 1 + 12 + 2 = 18 * 3 = 54 HP restored.

She didn't see it, but Helena gave Miranda a startled look as she asked her to heal Caleb. She went off to do it anyway, however, and soon enough the soldier's pained groans went silent, and he rose to her his feet. Meanwhile, Miranda's magic flowed from her hands and into the injured girl, the blackened flesh of her chest healing itself from her magic.The girl's eyes fluttered open, but they were filled with tears and agony, and she began to cough and wheeze.

She hadn't screamed when she had been hit by the ball of flame, and from the coughing Miranda guessed that she must have inhaled when she had been struck. That meant that her lungs had probably been blistered and burned, which her healing spell had dealt with already, but she would still take a few moments to recover... And hack up the dead tissue. Which she promptly started doing onto Miranda's feet, coughing up a small wave of charred lung.

After she had backed away, however, Miranda heard the sound of a sword sliding from its sheath, and the commander of the soldiers that had found them was walking toward her with a look halfway between a scowl and a sadistic smile. "Out of the way, so I can finish the little wretch." He spat, directing his comment at Miranda. A glance in the direction of her mother revealed that she was conversing with Caleb, and she would get no help from that direction... At least not in time to prevent the girl that she had just saved from getting a sword through her throat.

 

[Tiffanian]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

That Caleb stopped groaning in pain registered vaguely in Miranda's mind as she healed her adversary, just enough to comfort her that the soldier hadn't, in fact, been killed. The picture was a little less rosy for the girl she was healing, though. Her blackened and charred flesh was slowly turning a more healthy color as Miranda's magic worked its way into her body, but it was soon apparent that the external damage wasn't the worst this girl was facing. As she opened tear-filled eyes she began to cough, a rattling, wheezing cough that told Miranda that the girl had inhaled her flames directly into her lungs when they had hit her. The young mage had never seen the damage she could inflict with such a relatively simple spell on another person up close before, and as the girl hacked up burnt, flaky bits of lung tissue onto her feet she prayed to the gods that she would never have to again.

She got up to a standing position and kicked the burned lung off of her feet when it was apparent that the girl wasn't in any more danger, and backed away slightly as she prepared to ask the young mage why she had attacked them. She was interrupted by the sound of a sword being drawn, and turned a bit to see Sergeant Rawlins walking towards the two of them, a sadistic half-grin on his face as he commanded her to get out of his way so that he could kill the girl she had just saved. Something inside of Miranda snapped as she gazed at the man. He had yet to do fairly well anything that hadn't bothered her, and had projected to her the most foul demeanor possible. "No I will not get out of your way" she said quietly, her face contorted into a scowl the likes of which she had worn only very rarely. "I thought soldiers were supposed to have honor and decency, but you've shown me that you haven't an ounce of either. Just because she attacked us doesn't mean you can slaughter her like a pig when she's helpless!" Her voice was gaining in volume with each passing sentence now, her anger at this man who seemed to think so little of human life growing as she raised her rapier and pointed it at him. "You will sheath your sword and back away. You won't get much farther if you keep walking" she said, trying to channel her mother and inject as much authority into her voice as she could, trying to bluff him into thinking that she really would kill him. Though maybe she would... Her eyes burned with a flame similar to the one that was gathering in front of her rapier. The spell preparation was much more flashy than normal in order to get the point across, but it was still every bit as functional as the one she had almost killed the girl with.

Spoiler

Prepare Flaming Sphere: (2d4 + 12) * 4 damage (4 EP), only cast it if the sergeant does something stupid.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

Spoiler

Miranda: HP = 58, PP = 78, EP = 48/56, Status = Fine, Arcane Armor (+30 Dodge)

Rawlins looked quite startled when Miranda spoke quietly and stepped into his path, showing even more surprise when she drew her sword and pointed it at his chest. As he voice rose, hints of fear and anger warred to control his face, but he got himself under control before she finished, and his expression became a completely neutral mask. All eyes were suddenly on the two of them, their battle of wills transfixing everyone in their party. Caleb watched with a look of concern, unable to intervene before it was all over obviously wearing at the man, while Helena stood beside the young warrior, her expression impassive and... Perhaps a little bit speculative, and the other soldiers all watched with wide, almost predatory eyes, as if they were wolves about to watch a dangerous creature fall.

The man stood before Miranda, several feet from the tip of her rapier, and a war seemed to be going on within him as she put forth her magical display. For a moment, he did not move, and said nothing as his face contorted and relaxed repeatedly, his mouth opening to speak and then closing again without doing so. The battle lasted for a long few moments, and Miranda realized that she had, perhaps without intending to, directly challenged this man's authority. He knew it, and his men knew it too, and were watching to see what he would do in return. He also knew that he couldn't back down without losing face. And that she could kill him before he could even hope to touch her if she desired to. His men knew that too.

His face fell, and he slumped, taking a step backwards and grumbling quietly to himself. He turned fully around and took a step or two away, and only then began barking orders once more, albeit in a more hushed tone. "Get everything together. We're heading to Goldspike."

The girl behind her made a quiet sound, her coughing having ended some time during the standoff. Turning toward her, she was looking up at Miranda with wide, terrified eyes. Her mother was beside her, a carefully neutral look on her face, and Caleb had joined them as well, a grim look marring his otherwise handsome face. "That was well done, Miranda." Helena said, looking pointedly at Miranda as she spoke. She looked genuinely impressed, but quickly turned to look down at the injured girl with a frown. She said no more.

 

[Tiffanian]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

Miranda watched the sergeant's face carefully as he froze in place, trying to read his expression as she stared at him intently and prepared her spell, still wearing the angriest scowl she could manage. The initial flash of fear was almost surprising, in a way. It was somewhat hard for her to wrap her mind around the idea of a person, any person, much less a soldier, being afraid of her. He quickly righted himself and put on a neutral expression, but Miranda knew now that she was in no possible danger. She could kill this man at any time she pleased. Of course, she really didn't want to, and she hoped and prayed that he would make the right decision.

She could feel every eye upon them, boring into her, though the only thing her vision was focused on was Rawlins, and time itself seemed to stand still. The young mage knew well that she had challenged the sergeant's authority. Indeed, that was part of the point. As far as she was concerned he shouldn't have any at all, the way he had behaved. Finally he slumped and back away, grumbling, and Miranda let out a sigh of relief as she dissipated her spell and lowered her sword. Just one more thing she had done that, if you had told her she would do the day before, she would have scoffed and called you mad. She gave a brief prayer of thanks, quite glad the incident hadn't gone further, and turned back to the girl.

Her eyes were wide with fear, though the worst of her physical troubles seemed to be done with. As Miranda pondered what to say to the girl, her mother walked up next to her, a carefully chosen neutral expression on her face. "That was well done, Miranda." it was but a single short compliment, but the brief look that accompanied it meant everything to her daughter. She really, genuinely seemed impressed. That was something that Miranda had managed only very rarely in her short life, considering how often she had frustrated her parents' efforts to get her to improve or do something with herself, and she couldn't help but to grin a little, and feel a bit of pride. "Thank you" she said, before turning back to the girl.

"Don't be afraid" she said finally, after a pause. "You won't be hurt anymore. We're on our way to a safe place, and if you'll help us it'll be that much easier for all of us to get there, without being taken by monsters. So why don't you come with us?" she asked, squatting down again and lightly touching the girl's shoulder. The grin hadn't quite left her face yet, and she tried to be as welcoming as possible. She didn't know what would have possessed the girl to attack them, but she seemed scared out of her mind, and that probably had something to do with it. Miranda could definitely relate to that feeling... and she wanted to try and set the girl more at ease.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

Spoiler

Miranda: HP = 58, PP = 78, EP = 48/56, Status = Fine, Arcane Armor (+30 Dodge)

The girl recoiled reflexively when Miranda touched her shoulder, her eyes widening in fear, but she seemed to take a moment to process what Miranda had said. "You... You won't hurt me... Anymore?" She asked hesitantly, tears streaming down her face. "You'll take me somewhere s...Safe?" Caleb glanced at Miranda, and then laid his cloak over the girl, covering her nudity and causing her to jump in fright again. The man quickly stood back again, but he smiled down at the girl in a friendly manner. "Yes. We'll take you to the Tower Goldspike. It'll be safe there."

The soldiers had assembled again, and were already preparing to move on, though they were staring at Miranda and the girl. The sergeant remained silent, a sullen scowl on his face as he watched the exchange.

 

[Tiffanian]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

"Of course not, I promise. Why would I heal you just to hurt you again?" Miranda asked, trying to give her best reassuring smile. She didn't bother trying to touch the girl again, after the way she had flinched away in fear last time, though Caleb chose to drape his cloak over the scared girl, giving her back a bit of her modesty. Everyone was ready to move by now, just waiting on Miranda and this girl, so the young mage got up and reached out her hand to help the girl up. "Come on, let's get going. The sooner we start out, the sooner we'll be safe" she said keeping up her smile. "By the way, what's your name? I'm Miranda."

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

Spoiler

Miranda: HP = 58, PP = 78, EP = 48/56, Status = Fine, Arcane Armor (+30 Dodge)

"Mm.... Maggie.... My name is... Maggie." the wounded girl replied, curling up under the cloak that had been draped over her. She closed her eyes for a moment, and Miranda had the distinct impression that she would like nothing better than to curl up under the garment and go to sleep. "Okay.... Lets go." She rose from the ground a moment later, and Miranda realized that she was barely over fight feet tall and built like a twig.

Helena turned and started away immediately, but Caleb remained beside Miranda and Maggie as they started off. "Where are you from Maggie?" The soldier asked, looking over at her, and smiling. Maggie stared at her surroundings as they walk, her gaze hawklike despite her age, and quietly replied; "Here. I'm from here." Her voice was a great deal more steady than it had been before, but it was also very distant, and Miranda got the impression that she was only half paying attention to what was being said.

"You're very young to be on your own. Where are your parents?"

"Dead."

"What is your family name, Maggie?" Miranda's mother, who had been silent up until now, asked quietly.

"I don't have one."

"Surely you have to have had one at some point? What were you called when you were born?"

"I don't know. They died when I was born. That's what my teacher said."

"Who is your teacher?"

"Camrona."

Helena winced, but Miranda had never heard the name before, at least as far as she could remember. Caleb seemed to recognize it as well, as he had gone pale and silent upon hearing the name. So far, the streets had been clear, and the other soldiers walked ahead of their subgroup in a more scattered grouping than before. They were making good time, and the massive golden tower that was their destination loomed ever closer, though it would be a long while before they reached it yet.

 

[Tiffanian]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

"Maggie? That's a pretty name" Miranda said, still holding out her hand for the girl. She seemed not to want to get up, though, and curled up under Caleb's cloak. Miranda was beginning to wonder if the girl even wanted to be led away; maybe she had just lost it, and would curl into a ball and wait for death right there in the street.

That fear was proven unfounded soon enough, though, as the girl got up on her own, without taking the hand Miranda offered her. The mage was a little put off by that, but she explained it away as the girl being too skittish for human contact. Or probably contact of any kind... Knowing what some of the fluids splattered onto her body were, she could reasonably be excused for that. Looking her over, Miranda could see that Maggie was even more tiny than she was. The girl was only an inch or so shorter than she was, but was even thinner than the scrawny noble, looking almost emaciated. She looked no older than 15, but with a build like that you could never really be sure.

As soon as Maggie got up the group set to walking towards Goldspike, Miranda walking next to the girl, in line with Caleb and Helena. The young soldier seemed to be intent on breaking the ice and making their new traveling partner feel more comfortable, so he smiled and asked her where she was from as they walked. It didn't seem to have the intended effect; Maggie was paying little attention to the lot of them, instead keeping a sharp lookout around them, giving an answer that showed that her mind was elsewhere.

Maggie, Caleb, and Helena continued to have a brief conversation as Miranda listened and walked, their group now in a very loose formation and making good time in their journey to the tower. It wasn't long before Miranda couldn't keep up her attempt at a reassuring smile, though, in the face of the younger mage's having been orphaned from birth. And apparently without even a family name to be called by... At some point her mother asked the girl who her magic teacher was, and Maggie indicated that it was someone named Camrona... Miranda had never heard the name before, but from the way her mother winced it couldn't have been a good thing. Even Caleb had apparently heard of this person, and his reaction was even less subtle, his face going as pale as Miranda's.

I wonder who this Camrona person is, and why it's a problem that they're Maggie's teacher Miranda thought, giving her mother a questioning look and slowly making her way over to her. She wouldn't ask just yet, but she definitely wanted an answer... And when did the Tower Goldspike get so far from our home...? she thought, staring up ahead at the imposing tower, which had never seemed quite so distant as now.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

Spoiler

Miranda: HP = 58, PP = 78, EP = 48/56, Status = Fine, Arcane Armor (+30 Dodge)

Miranda's mother only glanced at her as she stepped closer, not quite sure what she wanted, and then turned back to Maggie. "Is Camrona in the city, or did he not accompany you here Maggy?"

The girl shrugged in response and said; "He left me here five days ago. Some sort of test. I had to fend for myself without spending any time in prison or attracting the city guard's attention."

"Did he have anything to do with the attack?" Caleb suddenly asked, and the soldiers ahead stopped and immediately turned to stare. Maggy and Helena stopped as well, both giving Caleb withering glares. "No. My mentor of twelve years did not instigate.... Whatever happened here. Thank you very much for asking." She continued walking, and the soldiers all shrugged and picked up soon after. Helena slapped Caleb on the back of the head, but the young knight simply shrugged and continued forward without speaking further.

The rest of the way was spent in silence. At least, it was silent until they started hearing explosions from up ahead. "Move it lads! We've got trouble up ahead!" The sergeant said, his first words since the face off against Miranda, and the men ahead began moving more quickly. Another two blocks saw them nearly at the square that served as the base of the tower, and the soldiers called them to a halt and took cover. A chill wind suddenly passed over them, and Miranda finally realized just how cold she was as snow began to fall lightly to the earth. "It's late in the season for snow." Helena muttered as she pulled both Miranda and Maggy forward, Caleb coming up behind the three cloaked women, to join the rest of their party behind a fallen wagon.

There was enough damage on the cart for them to peak through it. What they saw was not good.

The courtyard around the tower was literally swarming with monsters. Hundreds of them. "Shit...."

"Heaven's fire preserve us..."

"That's the safe place you wanted to bring me to? No thanks."

"Quiet you! Your queen's in there! We can't just run away."

"There are a lot of them down there sir..... And the mages seem to be handling it well enough. Maybe we should just wait it out?" One of the soldiers with them offered, but the sergeant shook his head. "We swore an oath to protect Therion and her people." He rather pointedly did not look at Miranda or Helena when he said that. "They need some help, and since we're here, we're going to give it to them. That's an order."

The majority of the invaders that Miranda could see were the smaller, tentacle covered variety, but she could spot a few slimes down in there as well, both plain grey ones and violet ones like those that had raped her and her mother. At least ten of the floating beings hovered at the edge of the massive square, out of spell range of any of the defenders, but at least four of them were well within range of them, even from here. She could see quite a few of the land bound ones moving about as well, and some of the stealthy reptilian creatures were skulking amidst the swarms as well. Finally, some regular looking people were among the legion battering at the defenders of the Tower Goldspike, either clustered closely together or alone, but looking for all the world like any other party of that teaming mass of aliens.

Fire, lightning, ice and wind all tore through the attacking enemies. Summoned monsters and constructs of force blocked their progress, harrying them and slowing them and killing them. But the aliens were unending and persistent, and though the lines of soldiers on the steps hadn't been reached by more than a few monsters yet, it was only a matter of time before the mages at the top ran out of steam. There were a lot of them, but monsters seemed to be streaming in from all directions to join the crowd, replenishing their lost numbers.

(I'm avoiding doing a full layout because... Well because I'm lazy.)

 

[Tiffanian]

Re: Never Ending Nightmare (Tiffanian)

Miranda listened silently to the conversation between her mother, Caleb, and Maggie, getting an idea, so she thought, as to why her mother might not like this Camrona person. What kind of a teacher gives their student a test like that? And what kind of a test is it? It surely doesn’t relate that much to magic… The way it looks like she isn’t being fed, too… this man seems dubious. Caleb’s assumption that he might have been behind this attack confirmed at least that Camrona had a reputation as such, though there was surely no way that any one man could be the cause of such a large-scale incident, no matter how powerful he might be reputed to be.

She thought quietly for a while longer, walking swiftly towards Goldspike, until she was snapped back into reality by the faraway sound of explosions. The sergeant ordered them all to move more quickly, and the soldiers began almost jogging, forcing Miranda and the others to do the same to keep up. By then it was only a few blocks between them and the central square, in the middle of which stood the massive tower. It wasn’t too long before they got there, and the sergeant called for the group to halt and take cover behind a broken and battered wagon. As they did so, a cold wind blew right through the cloak Miranda was wearing, chilling her to the bone as snow began to fall. It was odd, since it was definitely late in the year for snow, and she hadn’t thought it was that cold earlier in the day…

Unfortunately, she soon had more than just snow to worry about. The young mage could see into the courtyard through the damage to the wagon, and what she saw made her weak at the knees. It was literally swarmed with monsters, from the tripod tentacle monsters to the different sorts of slimes and the reptilian creatures she had encountered at various points. There were even about ten of the mage monsters that she had fought to save her mother, hovering mostly out of reach. "Dear Gods, what…" she muttered, shaking from both cold and fear. As the soldiers tried to worm their way out of fighting, the sergeant held firm, ordering that they would help the tower’s defenders deal with the teeming swarm of monsters.

Still trembling in fear, Miranda watched as the defending mages lashed out at their attackers, all manner of magical attacks eating through the seemingly endless ranks of the monsters. Their own summoned monsters blocked the progress of the enemies towards the stairs, keeping more than a few of their number from reaching the soldiers guarding the entrance, but it surely wouldn’t be long before they were overwhelmed, as more and more monsters took the place of the ones that were killed…

There isn’t any way… Miranda thought, her shaking hands gripping the wagon. We have to run… We’ll die if we fight… She looked up higher along the tower, thinking for a brief moment before her hands steadied, gripping the wagon so hard her knuckles turned white. Father is in there… I can’t just run away… I have to help somehow! Her mind raced as she tried to think of a way to get out of this mess alive. It didn’t seem to be any use, all of her tentative plans would surely end in failure and death. Unless… "If we just run out and attack them, we’ll be killed" she spoke up quietly. "But we have surprise on them, and some mages besides. Mother, there’s a spell we can use to make everyone run faster, right? If we do that, what if the three of us unleashed the most powerful spells we could over as wide an area of the square as possible, and then we all ran away?" she asked, proposing her plan in question form, wanting her mother’s approval. "I think I could cover a decent amount of the courtyard in flames myself… between the three of us, we might be able to clear it out, or at least thin their numbers enough that the defenders would have an easier time dealing with them. Some of the monsters might follow after us, too, and hopefully we’ll be able to outrun them and distract them from their attack. Does that sound good…?"

Spoiler

If the plan is accepted, cast Lesser Strength: (level 2 Body spell) 10 * 3 = +30 to Speed, targeting herself and 1/3 of the soldiers, (6 EP) having the other two mages do the same. After that
Cast Explosion with Empower Spell: (Level 5 Fire spell) (1d6 + 11) * 9 damage (21 EP, 5 HP) After that
Run like a little bitch at 44 * 4 = 176 feet per turn.