From Tried's Mouth to the mysterious Tower, the waters around Scalvoris and the island itself hold a vast array of secrets, just ripe for discovery. Here are landmarks, jungles, mountains, forests and islands of note.
Ran'dar called out what sounded like a suicide mission: Couriers of Lisirra, Aye-aye Mice, Boulder Snakes, and several men. Aye-aye Mice aside of course, the odds seemed tipped firmly out of their favor. They were blindfolded. Even without the silly cloth tied around their heads, Max and Mercedes had no ability to see in the dark. They couldn't predict where the tunnel would twist and turn. There was no reliable way to know just where any of their many new adversaries laid in wait. The Couriers carried deadly illness that could be transferred with one single touch. Just one mistake and one of them could fall sick and perish breaks to trials later, even if they survived the general encounter. The Boulder Snakes were mean, massive monsters with fearsome fangs capable of both speed and agility. One wrong move was all it took to be run through with their steel-like jaws or crushed in their giant coils. Men routinely proved to be a mixed bag of peril. Mages or marked, it was gamble just how powerful their adversaries might be. All in all, this was an equation that ended in their death. Of that much Maxine felt sure.
Mercedes sprinted forward into this madness without a single thought. Their Ithecal master had given the command to charge and the mage didn't so much as blink. Max reached out for him all too late. Her fingers caught not the back of his robe but empty air. Though it didn't really matter, she reached up and ripped the blindfold off her head as though she hoped to see him through the pitch black. She could hear his bare feet slapping against the ground as he haphazardly ran into the unknown. This was folly. It was a well known and understood suicide. He'd gone in anyways, and as much as she didn't want to die, she couldn't leave him to suffer his reckless end alone either.
The marked woman ran in after him. The sound of his missed strikes filled the tunnel, and when no subsequent ones suggesting the advance of an enemy rang out around them, she paused with her brow furrowed. Ran'dar's booming laugh surrounded them while Mercedes continued to combat ghosts. Instantly, her hands balled into tight fists. She turned on her heels to stare darkly into the shadows in the direction of the reptile.
"Fuck you, Ran'dar," Maxine hissed despite the relief that washed over her. No doubt he could spy her disdainful expression thanks to his racially-endowed sight. "That wasn't funny and you know it." The perilous jest hadn't been for nothing. The Ithecal learned something right then about the both of them. When he gave an order, Mercedes obeyed with blind aggression. Maxine had wavered. He'd never suspected she was in this partnership because she respected him by her own volition. She wasn't there for him. Circumstance had made relying on a more powerful, acclimated prisoner necessary for survival. Her allegiance down her belonged to Mercedes and no one else. If it wasn't clear before, it was now.
Besides the cruel joke, there was a reality to the exercise. The smallest of sounds, she'd learned, had the ability to travel for miles through the tunnels. Combat that felt a room over could've easily been a half break away in distance. The sound of that dripping water had remained. The resource remained one that they desperately needed. After all the Ithecal had just put them through, she was determined not to see the trial wasted.
"We need to go," she grumped, rising to stand tall. "Toward the sound of that water or somewhere else. Either way, we made some loud noise. We can't stay here anymore."
As the sorcerer felt his right Seiken strike nothing at first; he debated whether or not he truly was a master of unarmed combat. How could he call himself skilled in any sort of battle; if he failed to miss a target by mere inches. Even when surrounded by a veil of darkness; he simply could not imagine how he missed. However, when the sound of cackling, and laughter filled the vicinity Ran'dar had made it obvious he joked. The person he made an attempt to strike down had been the Ithecal himself. Judging by the scaly surface of whatever flesh he elected to strike first. Mercedes too removed his blindfold, and laughed alongside Ran'dar until he had nearly been out of breath. Although everything seemed to be a serious matter in the beneath; they needed to have fun in some fashion or another. However, much as Ran'dar predicted; Maxine showcased that her loyalty lied with Mercedes and no one else. This was simply a test of her mettle, to see whether or not she would charge with Ran'dar or with Mercedes. She chose her lover, and companion which had been the obvious choice. While the blood on the ground had been factual, and the presence of Mice too; there were no enemies here. However, Mercedes in taking a step inside the blood; also managed to step upon several spiked rocks that punctured the soles of his feet. Endurance had been a skill he was obviously no master in, and as the spike punched through his foot he lost balance too. The sorcerer fell onto the very same spikes, albeit small they hurt. Small amounts of blood trickled from the newly opened wound in his left pectoral along with his heels. The process of bleeding itself burned, and stung like nothing he could previously compare such a pain to; however, he did not bother to scream and simply recovered.
Ran'dar spoke finally after he broke the series of rampant laughter. “Alright, It might not have been funny, but you fuckers sure fell for it! I have been in the beneath for quite some time, and this reservoir of water is small. Although small it leaks from what is likely to be somewhere above us. I discovered this arcs ago, but you two have finally found it and it has already been secured. There are collapsed tunnels surrounding this place; thus this is the only way in and out of here. We can set up security around this, and take it exclusively for ourselves without a problem. It is here that you will train together and become even more powerful.. Max, although you did not find this funny did you not sense things quite a bit better than you had previously?” Ran'dar made the point obvious and clear to these two. They needed to become masters of detection, and develop the ability to figure out their locations at all times. However, with Mercedes lack of sleep; his focus had not been the most clear.
The sorcerer nodded at the notion; although he had been a bit shaken up by the very thought of battling the opponents spoken of without magic. Mercedes, however had been far stronger than one would have initially thought he was. Although he lacked magic, he did have more than enough power in a single Seiken to eliminate an enemy. He was an unarmed combatant to be reckoned with much like his love. Although she had been the tougher, and stronger of the two with an entirely different style of fighting. Typically he would combine the elements and incorporate them within his combat. However, when he lacked that option; he needed to be more intelligent and tactical about how he killed opponents.
Ran'dar spoke aloud again, at the thought of leaving simply because they made quite a bit of noise. “I made the noise for a reason. That is because I am comfortable with speaking here. Sound does not travel like one would think. Although the caves have a tendency to be silent; depending on the vicinity or area you are in sound can become condensed and silence itself outside of an area. Thus, we can yell here all that we like, and if someone approaches; I have a weapon far more lethal than either of you two could ever imagine. Mercedes, you should meditate inside that pool of water. Regain your strength, defier.” The Ithecal commanded, and Mercedes walked over to sit beneath the large stalactite that loomed over the pool of water, and dripped atop his head.
Last edited by Mercedes on Thu Jun 21, 2018 3:18 am, edited 3 times in total. word count: 768
Fun. Maxine loved to have fun. Her idea of it was anywhere in the realms of getting blackout drunk at a tavern, engaging in a thrilling brawl, smoking good dope, or challenging the meddle of strangers in a good-natured game. Fun was a concept she was plenty familiar with. Putting Mercedes' life in serious danger, on the other hand, was something else entirely. Dark humor had always been her style. This time the morbid joke found her to be a sour audience. Her arms crossed, eyes boring resentfully toward Ran'dar wherever it was he stood in the dark. Disdain practically radiated off her as much as the stench of stale blood did this chamber. The Ithecal was a beast to be reckoned with. Should something unfortunate befall Mercedes, however, her protector would find a surprisingly formidable enemy in her after all.
Ran'dar had been right about one thing: they'd both fallen for his prank. Over time she had become accustomed to the darkness. She'd learned to rely on her ears, her tongue, her nose, and touch to learn about the world around them. Slowly she was figuring out how to do just that with some reliable accuracy. This time was the exception. Maxine hadn't waited to verify what she'd been told. She'd taken Ran'dar perception as blind fact just as Mercedes had rather than fact check it for herself. All her life she'd relied only on herself to survive. The Ithecal might've been gifted with the ability to actually see down here but, unless she suddenly acquired the ability to distinguish fact from fiction, he was a reptile of his own accord. Like all sentient beings, he reserved the ability to tell lies and deceive. Max and Mercedes had come to trust his judgement and his intentions to see them survive, even if only to serve him. That didn't mean they shouldn't rely first and foremost on themselves.
Rather than dwell on her irritation, Maxine allowed herself to be steered by the mention of a reservoir of some sort. Her brow raised. Securing a water source could change things considerably for them. Hope threatened to resurface before she shoved it somewhere deep within. Focus settled solely on how they might harness the resource and little more.
"You made your point," Max replied, almost snapping at Ran'dar justification in his earlier antics. Yet, even as she stayed frustrated at him, she would reluctantly admit he'd been right. This chamber's strange acoustics seemed to strangle sound within it. Such a place could prove strategically useful, especially if it masked their sound from far away enemies who survived by hunting others. The mage was the more willing student of the two. He gave not a single protest to his instructions. She heard the sound of his feet slapping the earth on his way over to the pool. The marked woman made no rejection of Ran'dar suggestion on this matter. He'd been right. Mercedes needed to regain his Defiance in totality. He was only a fraction of the powerhouse he could be without it.
"You keep saying that," the marked woman accused the Ithecal lowly. "You keep threatening this power you apparently have, but it's been a long time. I don't know how long exactly. All I know is that you keep bringing it up and I haven't seen you use it. Not even once." Max found a wall to rest her back upon. Body squared toward the reptile, he'd note the skeptical expression written all over her face. "I'm starting to wonder if you have any special ability at all." The other levels were bad. None were as bad as Level 7 by any means, but bad enough. To be put here, certain conditions had to be met. Then again, maybe Ran'dar had been condemned down here with the rest of them just for being a physically powerful asshole.
Max would soon regret each and every word that exited her lips, as Ran'dar became silent at the thought of her challenging him. The Ithecal chuckled at her, and in a moments notice Maxine would find that she could not move. The abrogative tangles of ether outstretched themselves from his large frame. The air around her seemed to solidify; thus robbing her of the ability to breathe. Shackles in which she could not see tamed all of her limbs and forced them to remain at her sides. One even wrapped itself around her neck, and with a single downward motion of his hand she had been brought to her knees. Ran'dar approached her as he continued to apply pressure, and crush her using the very ether-shackles he placed upon her. He began first by twisting her body, and then continuing to shrink the shackles around her. Following which he used strangle, and suddenly she would almost entirely lose any capability she had of breathing. The Ithecal approached the now disabled Max; in her immobilized state and crouched beside her as to taunt her. With his large eyes nearly the size of dinner plates, with a singular slit down the middle he spoke aloud.
“You believe I do not have real power? You physical fucks do not survive here. This is NOT your territory, and NOT your home! You do not fucking belong here, know your place bitch! Mercedes cannot save you from me, nor can any mage in the beneath. I may not be the most powerful of them all, but if I wanted to I could kill you, him, and half of the beneath with a single gesture of my hand!” The Ithecal proclaimed as he continued to apply pressure, twisting and tormenting her body using the ether shackles.
“Mercedes! If you move she will die! Meditate, or I will kill her right in front of you, and then make you eat her with me!” The ithecal proclaimed at the top of his lungs, and made a bold statement. After witnessing what he had just done to Maxine; Mercy certainly knew he was truly outclassed.
“This is Abrogation, a Magic that not even the strongest of Mages can handle. This magic is without nature, and is typically defensive, and only defensive. You cannot defend against me, as I am truly a nemesis to Magic itself. Try me again, I dare either of you to challenge my fucking dominance! I will kill you both faster than you can blink!” The ithecal threatened, as he threw Max against one of the several stone walls without so much as touching her.
Mercedes quickly closed his eyes as he heard the thud of her body against the wall of rock directly behind her. The sorcerer made it his business to concentrate heavily upon the task at hand. The meditation began with a series of deep inhalations followed by exhalations as to slow his heart-rate. He needed to hear the voice of the elements, and it began slowly at first. The voice of water had been quiet, and at a volume below that of a whisper with the first drop. However, as the droplets of water continued to fall the voice grew louder, and began drowning out all of the outside noise.
Max had been sick of it: sick of the empty threats and flexing without substance to keep her afraid. She knew the reptile was a force to be reckoned with in hand-to-hand combat, but he was yet to show her any more than that. Until he did. Ran'dar's unappreciative chuckle rang out like subtle thunder before the eminent downpour. Without explanation she found her arms dropped down to the sides. Her feet felt as though they weighed a thousand pounds, or perhaps a massive nail had been driven through her soles deep into the ground. The marked woman's brow creased but she found her arms had been subject to the same treatment. Forced from their crossing, they had become sealed against her sides. Immobilization quickly became the least of her worries.
The next draw of breath was one that was nearly impossible. The one after that was. Her lungs sucked but the reptilian mage would not permit them to be filled. Maxine's eyes widened, pupils dilating as panic and understanding began to seize her at the same time. Her body didn't belong to her anymore than she was entitled to the air that filled the chamber. Ran'dar forced her with his strange magic down to her knees. All sense of control had once more been denied to her. Like fingers tightening around her throat, she could feel the Ithecal increasing his strangling pressure from where he stood in the dark. Try as she might, her limbs would not respond to her will to break free of invisible shackles. The marked woman's eyes bulged, face turning a deep red. Slowly she was being crushed under the potency of a man who hadn't so much as lifted a finger. Just like Mercedes had. Just like Earth Mask had. Maxine was helpless.
Vaguely, she could feel the reptile crouched beside her, his slit eyes admiring his own cruelty while her soundless gasps wracked her frame. Anger, indignation, and the desire for revenge against the ones who tormented her, had always motivated the stubborn woman beyond any physical restrains. This time was different. Possessed by the panic of asphyxiation, her negative emotions faded deep beneath the surface of her most basic survival needs. Consciousness started to fade as the color in her face deepened closer toward a purplish blue. Scaly lips to her ear, Maxine had still heard the Ithecal loud and clear. She was nothing. She was no one. Here, she was powerless, and she would remain so long after this exercise of absolute, body and soul crushing force. All the while Mercedes looked on.
The explanation of the magic Ran'dar possessed felt like a full eternity. Then, without so much as a scruple, the Ithecal mage hurled her limp body against the stone wall she'd been leaning upon bits ago. Her back struck the stone hard before Maxine fell and crumpled upon the gravel-ridden floor. The sounds of violent hyperventilation filled the chamber while Mercedes quietly began to focus on his meditation beneath dripping water. She pressed her forehead against the ground, fingers curling around loose stone while chest-rattling gasps shook her. Unwilling tears stung the corners of her blood-shot eyes. The marked woman wanted to be furious. She wanted to rise up and lay waste to the man who had reduced her back to this feeling of inadequacy. The only energy she had was that which she used to breathe.
Abrogation was a magic that was unrivaled by any she had seen before. If it truly was a nemesis of its kin, Rupturing and Defiance both stood no chance against it. Any mage she'd met before could be crushed beneath its heel just as easily as she had. Mundane and mage alike could fall with so much as a gesture. This was not a magic Maxine could defeat. Whether she liked it or not, she was firmly beneath the thumb of another mage. She was a slave in all but name. How could she think to ever challenge the mage again when she couldn't so much as lift herself from the ground?
Last edited by Max on Wed Jun 20, 2018 2:36 am, edited 1 time in total. word count: 698
The Sorcerer grew frustrated with the notion of being unable to defend Maxine from their “Master”. Ran'dar had amassed entirely too much power to be challenged, and that was a problem for Mercedes. Without a method of fighting him, and no other option he needed to meditate for an extended period of time. Mercedes needed a safe method of combating this Ithecal. Ran'dar had been far more powerful, and intellectual than Mercedes had previously realized. Why had he held the power back, and restrained himself to mostly physical techniques instead of magic? Perhaps there were several more things he knew that they had not about magic. Max, and Mercedes had only gotten to witness a select few other types of magic, and this “Abrogation” had been added to the list. Ran'dar described it as being a magic nemesis to other forms of magical discipline.
He explained the technique called by the name of “Shackle” as being more potent, powerful, and offensive. That certainly was no shield, and he flung Max across the room as if she were a feather with a hand gesture. Just how powerful was the crocodile like Ithecal in truth? Perhaps neither of the pair would survive long enough to know the answer. However, if they could remain alive long enough; Mercedes had every opportunity to rekindle his elemental relations. There were likely a series of strenuous tests he had to undergo for each of them, but he would figure out the recipe sooner or later. Had the process been as simple as Ran'dar made it out to be; was it simply to meditate for an extended period of time?
“Ran'dar, you will leave her alone you big fuck. I will eventually overcome you, and crush you like the insect you are!” The Sorcerer insulted, and rather than assault him as he did Max; he simply spoke aloud in response to the challenge. “I accept, and some trial when you do take me on I will kill you, Mercilessly if you are incapable of defeating me.” The Ithecal concluded his speech. However, something told him just how sinister, and truthful these seemingly “empty” threats had been. Ran'dar showed them one of his several supposed “powers” that could incapacitate nearly anyone in the beneath.
Mercedes spoke in response; “Such a thought is lovely, and witnessing your end only to take your body will become my goal. Ran'dar, I want to be taught your way, your will, and just how powerful you truly are. Teach me how you have survived for such an extended period of time. I want to learn everything you have. “ The sorcerer spoke aloud in a hushed tone, whilst he made an attempt to concentrate on breathing. A sharp series of inhalations, followed exhalations as he carried on with his several failed attempts at concentration.
Every incessant, repeated drip of water that struck his skeletal structure continued to scream. The horror of his mistakes had been truly realized in all but a moments notice. Mercedes never considered a suicide attempt criminal. However, in the world of the elements; a defiers closest companions this was a disgusting act.
Ran'dar Responded yet again, with a conclusive statement, and instructions. “If you want to kill me, you have to become quite a bit stronger. Not only must you come to match me, but you have to defeat me. You have to become an abrogant, and become far stronger, faster, more intellectual, and powerful than you are currently. I could have killed you with one hand even at your fullest potential. Prove your worth to me, and regain the trust of water.”
Knowledges
Detection: The Sound of Punches in the Air
Detection: The Sound of Footsteps Give Away Position
Detection: The Sound of Nearby Water
Endurance: Being Strangled With Abrogation
Endurance: Suffering a Period of Time Without Air
Intimidation: Challenging Your Master
Tactics: Exposing an Enemy’s Hidden Strength Via Taunting
Tactics: Knowing When to Retreat from a Location
Loot: N/A Injuries: N/A Renown: N/A
Points 15
Merces "Mercy"
Knowledges
Unarmed Combat: Sometimes you miss
Meditation: Just Breathe
Meditation: Brings one closer to Magic
Endurance: Punctured Feet Hurt
Endurance: Sleep Deprivation
Endurance: Punctured pectorals Hurt
Endurance: Bleeding can be painful
Loot: N/A Injuries: Small punctures on his feet and chest; will heal within 5 trials if cleaned, if uncleaned the feet will become infection, painful swelling will occur and will last for 10 trials before fading into a dull pain for another 5 trials. Once healed, if they were infected, they will leave small scars. Renown: N/A
Points 15
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NPC Note: As Ran'dar is an expert in abrogation, he can't use "shackle". Seeing as Max wasn't the one who had him use the magic and had some interesting and useful development off of it, it doesn't necessarily need to be retconned, but if you refer to it at any point after this thread, please do so vaguely and without mentioning the technique, as even if Ran'dar knew what shackles were, he wouldn't be able to utilize them at his skill level.
Whata twist! Max's skepticism is spot on. Haha, I'm glad at least one of them is wary about the super sketchy lizard wizard. I was cringing when Ran'dar told dirty bloody Merces to go sit in the water and pollute their water source, ahhhhh.
