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Meaning and Defeat In The Mountains[Private|Caelus]

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Zion

Zion
A-Tier
A-Tier

Traveling across the ocean through the skies had been an exhausting experience for Zion as he underestimated just how vast and expansive the sea could be. Upon arriving at the western continent, the young magician had taken the chance to rest and relax a bit. The cover of night allowed Zion to descend unnoticed into a forest just outside a small village. Adorned in fashion to hide his foxy features, Zion made his way into the humble pocket of civilization where he solicited a local farmer for a meal and a warm bed to sleep in for the night. It was far from luxurious, but the kind hospitality Zion felt was genuine allowing him a much more fulfilling rest than any he'd gotten since leaving home.

Early morning cued Zion to pay the farmer for his troubles before setting out again before the sun could fully rise. Through the villagers, Zion was able to determine that Reim's capitol was west of here. He decided that it was probably best to continue avoiding people for a while and so he flew north towards the mountain ranges that were mostly uninhabited by humans. Thankfully there was thick cloud cover making use of the Raiju's pipe redundant. Following the peaks and crags, Zion could keep track of his direction at a glance knowing that the capital should appear south to his left once he got close. Sure enough, a sprawling metropolis could be seen on the horizon after Zion flew all day.

Most magicians would have been drained of magoi, but Zion's dungeon beast form made flight as natural as taking steps. Even so, he felt physically tired and so the foxdoll chose to land and approach the city on foot knowing he was stand out less that way. The clouds around Zion were cool against his skin as he descended through the moisture and emerged on the underside of the weather. Neither quickly nor slowly, Zion descended unto the mountainside at a casual pace feeling certain and confident that none were around to witness him. This confidence led Zion to carelessness as he touched down in a clearing next to a lake and immediately gave out a yawn and a stretch. His fox ears perked up from under the hairpieces hiding them and his tails grew out from his backside sprawling out in relaxation after having stood on end during the stretch.

"I wonder what kind of place Reim's capitol is..."

Zion spoke aloud to himself as he began to walk down the mountain oblivious to the fact that he was not alone.


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Caelus Valeria

Caelus Valeria
A-Tier
A-Tier

Caelus trudged up the hill outside the north entrance to Reimano.  His breath was a bit ragged, but taking a break from his training regimen had caused him to soften.  It was necessary however, as he had been training and fighting matches almost nonstop since his return from Kou.  His body had been put under a lot of strain and the fatigue had begun to catch up with him.  This previous week he spent relaxing served to relieve his stress, but restlessness soon set in.  He planed to travel north to find a tribe of world famous Magoi Manipulators to train with.  The journey would take a few days of uphill travel before he reached their last known whereabouts, but by then his body would be used to the exertion again.  In a way it was like training before training.

That said, Caelus couldn't help feeling uneasy.  The clouds had become darker the past day, and now loomed ominously.  It reminded him of his climb in Kou, and he shuddered at the thought of trekking up another mountain in the pouring rain.  He looked up again, as if hoping his gaze alone would disperse the clouds, and spotted the most peculiar sight.

By chance his eyes landed upon a figure slowly descending from the clouds.  Or rather, descending with them, as the cloud separated itself to make a kind of mat upon which the figure stood as the cloud ferried it down.  The cloud slowly disintegrated until the figure, a man, touched the ground not one hundred meters from where Caelus stood.

"What in the world..." Caelus whispered, and then repeated more loudly as he saw not just furred ears but several bushy tails emerge from the man.  Caelus couldn't place his ethnicity or his attire as belonging to anywhere in particular (then again, he had never seen a half-animal man before and didn't know what if anything they should wear) but it decidedly wasn't local fashion.  His first thought was that this could be the form of a dungeon capturer.  They were known for transforming into powerful sorcerers and taking on odd forms like this one.  Flight and fox features wouldn't be beyond their capability.

Deciding he had to know more, Caelus approached the individual warily, calling out "You there!  Fox!  No ordinary person just flies through the air.  Are you a dungeon capturer?  What is your business in Reimano?"  If he was right, and this mysterious man was blessed with the power of a djinn, the power he held would dwarf any skill that Caelus could claim.  He stayed on his guard, his right hand just an inch away from the grip of his blade.


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Meaning and Defeat In The Mountains[Private|Caelus] TEMcyWS

Zion

Zion
A-Tier
A-Tier

Fur stood on end for each of the nine tails as the sudden voice calling out to Zion brought on an immediate realization. He'd been spotted. The shock was visible evident for an instant, the tails and ears of the storm kitsune being far too honest when not consciously kept in check. The silver haired doll turned in the direction of the one shouting with a look of caution as he dropped the back of magic tools and held his staff at the ready. Zion feared that the agents of the Dark Auction or Kornel Klien had found him, but after a breaths time he realized that the strangers words were just that...words of a stranger. There was relief that his enemies had not discovered him, but being seen without his disguise by others was still a great risk for Zion.

Clearing his throat awkwardly, Zion replied to the young man after dropping his defensive stance, "G-Greetings, I wasn't expecting to meet anyone all the way out here..." The words came out of Zion's mouth slowly and with all the decorum a grand bowing gesture could manage. All an effort to buy time as his brain, in contrast, ran a million miles a second trying to think of a way to salvage the situation. "...I am no dungeon capturer, but it would be a lie to say that I haven't received power from a dungeon. My name is of no import and my reason for coming to Reim's capitol are trivial. It is but a stop on my way to Heliohapt." There was no untruth in Zion's words, but he tried not to reveal too much about himself to this stranger without knowing their intentions.

As the foxdoll spoke, he observed the individual from a distance and saw that he had the look of a warrior or soldier. Hoping the stranger wasn't a member of Reim's military, Zion would shoot back with questions of his own to fish for information being sure to speak loud enough to be heard in case the distance between them remained so great. "It is somewhat rude to ambush a fellow traveler in the mountains without first introducing yourself. Might I ask who it is I have the pleasure of speaking with? As well as what it is a fighter, like yourself, doing all the way out here? Am I going to have to defend my belongings from the robbery of a petty bandit?" The magician raised his brow and smiled, his voice remaining polite despite the subtle threat woven into his words to establish that he would not be a push over if this man began to covet the sack of valuable tools sitting beside Zion.


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Caelus Valeria

Caelus Valeria
A-Tier
A-Tier

Caelus flinched instinctively as the drew a weapon, his hand grasping Valkyrie in preparation. Upon seeing the staff however, he softened. A magician was another things entirely. There was an unexpected flood of emotion at the sight of the staff, memories of his father sprang up first and foremost followed by the wonder at the first time he saw the Rukh and finally the pain of loss. Caelus stood tall and released his grip on his blade. He opened his palms in front of him to show he meant no harm and began walking over to the man.

"I apologize for startling you, but you'll have to forgive me my surprise at seeing you fly out of the clouds. I haven't seen a magician in a very long time, and never one with a form like yours. I immediately thought the worst." Caelus stopped just a bit short of the man, about ten meters, before continuing. "I'm no thief though. You might even have heard of me. They call me Caelus the Revenant, the second greatest fighter at the Colosseum." Caelus smiled proudly as he introduced himself, however the man's unchanged expression showed he did not in fact know who Caelus was, eliciting a dejected sigh. "Fine... I'm headed north for training to answer your question. But now you tell me something about yourself. You're not a dungeon capturer, but a magician. And you're on your way to Heliohapt, was it? I assume you came from the other continent, so why didn't you just take a boat directly there? You landed pretty far from the border after all."

Something finally clicked in Caelus' mind, probably brought about by his standing more closely to the stranger, that his clothes were of a Kou style. His gaze hardened, his suspicions spiked. "You obtained your form from a dungeon. It wouldn't happen to be the one in Kou, surrounded by two armies? The one that only those close to the emperor or usurper would have access to?"


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Meaning and Defeat In The Mountains[Private|Caelus] TEMcyWS

Zion

Zion
A-Tier
A-Tier

The warrior's words elicited a frown on Zion's fair face. Hadn't seen a magician in a very long time? Were they really that rare outside of Magnostadt? Zion was aware that nowhere else in the world had as many magicians and that outside its walls, the goi reigned as majority. But if they were hard to find then perhaps the foxdoll's trip to Heliohapt wouldn't be as fruitful as he had hoped. Zion was seeking ancient knowledge, but also tutorship to help advance his magical studies since doing so in Magnostadt was temporarily impossible. The troubled expression eased slightly, however, upon hearing that Caelus was the among the "greatest" fighters. The last wish of Zion's creator, Mikael, involved finding greatness. Zion still wasn't sure what that meant, or if fighting had anything to do with it, but he felt a hint of interest towards Caelus' bold claim.

Listening to the young man speak, Zion began to feel as though he were being interrogated. The questions were fair, but answering them truthfully was complicated. Scratching his head nervously, the magician did his best to offer up an explanation that wasn't too unbelievable. "Truth be told, I crossed the ocean myself just because flying with magic is much faster than taking a ship. But tell me, if you walked into a port looking like me...would you be able to enjoy your travels in peace? I don't like attention, nor do I want to attract trouble.  I have ways to disguise myself, but it is tiring and uses up magoi. I've actually landed closer to the coast already to rest and only took to the skies on my way to Remano because it is less conspicuous than going by foot." Zion accompanied his words with subtle gestures of his free hand as he spoke, "That all being said, crossing the ocean alone is dangerous, if I ran out of magoi while flying over the sea and passed out...well, I'm sure you can imagine the results. It was a shorter flight to reach the northwestern continent than to head straight for Heliohapt and since I am here anyways, I might as well see the sights."

Having completed his description of how and why he had ended up here, Zion hoped that Caelus would be satisfied. Unfortunately, the gladiator wanted to know if Zion had come from Kou. The fact that he was wearing garb of eastern origin hadn't crossed Zion's mind so he found the question odd at first. But then he remembered Jericho telling him the robes were one of the last few goods obtained from the eastern superpower before its civil war had made trade dry up. A look of understanding came over Zion and he shook his head lightly, "I've never been to Kou. I didn't even know there was a dungeon there. These clothes were a gift, nothing more. Throughout his words, Zion kept up a facade of amiable smiles while his inner mind suffered turmoil. It was good that this man was not out to steal his valuables, but he was a bit too nosy and didn't seem like he would promise his silence for nothing.

In order to turn the tables of the conversation, Zion's eyes narrowed and a teasing smirk danced across his lips, "Tell me, Mr. 'Revenant', what does it mean to be the second greatest fighter at the...coliseem you called it? Is there anything truly 'great' about fighting? What meaning is there behind such a title?" Zion asked with legitimate curiosity behind his voice. He truly wanted to learn more about the meaning of greatness, but he also needed to challenge this stranger into some kind of contest. Zion felt that if he could use this man's pride against him, perhaps a promise of silence could be bought.


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Caelus Valeria

Caelus Valeria
A-Tier
A-Tier

The magician's answer was a little surprising. Not only because it implied he flew across the ocean for several days without rest, but that just a little longer and he might have fallen out of the sky before reaching land. To get from Reim to Balbadd, it took a month by ship with clear weather and the wind at your back, to say nothing of delays brought about by storms or changes in the wind. And this magician claimed it was much faster to fly. Just how long did it take him? Days? Caelus thought.

The answer satisfied Caelus, as did the claim that the clothes were a gift and that the magician had never been to Kou. It didn't assuage his suspicions entirely, but he didn't have a way to refute the claims, and so he left it at that.

Caelus wasn't sure he liked the magician's tone as he called him 'Mr. Revenant'. But he forgave the outsider for his ignorance. He smiled.

"I'm sure its about as important as proving yourself a great magician," He returned the verbal jab. "And its the Colosseum. Col-O-See-Um. You'll want to have that pronunciation down pat before you embarrass yourself in the city. Nothing says 'I don't belong here' quite like mispronouncing the greatest scene on the western continent." His smile turned a little wicked. Caelus always had a knack for smack-talk. It was part of what made him such a popular fighter, outside of his skill of course. As Telleus would say, "It's all a part of the same show."

"But as for what my title says... Honestly i'm not sure it truly means much. Some fame, some notoriety. Maybe a free drink at a local pub. But it means everything to me. Because its something i strive for. And really thats the only motivation i need." While he spoke the truth, Caelus neglected to tell the stranger about the promise to his parents at their grave. That he would make something of himself. Something they could be proud of. He didn't seek the sympathy of a foreigner on that account.


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Meaning and Defeat In The Mountains[Private|Caelus] TEMcyWS

Zion

Zion
A-Tier
A-Tier

Zion's smirk held strong throughout the man's verbal retaliation. In truth, it did embarrass Zion to learn that he had mispronounced the foreign word, but it was not so bad as to break his poker face of confidence and control. However, once the playful jabs had passed and Caelus began to speak seriously on the matter, Zion couldn't help but frown slightly.  Fame was one thing, but free drinks? There seemed to be a more personal motivation behind the fighter and yet it was not something he deemed to share yet. The magician was hoping to catch some glimpse or glimmer of wisdom behind the meaning of greatness. Unfortunately all he ended up with was more questions.

A light sigh and shake of the head marked the foxdoll's response as he splayed open hands and shrugged, "I don't understand. Surely greatness encompasses more than fame and favors. Are such things truly enough to satisfy a man?" The question was posed rhetorically, Zion looking up to the heavens briefly in contemplation before looking back down at the gladiator with resolve in his eyes. "I'd like to propose a challenge..." The smirk had melted away and Zion's tails swayed ominously as he reached up to place one hand upon his chest. "Truth be told, I have my fair share of enemies. If word of a fox-man were to spread, my journey would likely become much less peaceful. But it would be an unreasonable act for me to demand your silence, so how about we gamble for it?"

The hand moved smoothly from Zion's chest into a sweeping gesture towards Caelus. "Since you are a professional fighter, shall we settle it with a bout? First to forfeit. If I win, you must swear to never mention my inhuman features to others. I have no shortage of magic tools, you can choose one of which to take for yourself should you win." The magician twirled his staff and then prodded at the large sack at his feet undoing the knot and allowing the fabric to fall open revealing a number of valuable magic tools. Other than the staff in his hand and the magic rifle on his back, everything else in his possession was on the table. "If these don't interest you, you can think of your own terms as well. Either way, I don't intend to lose..." The bravado and firmness of Zion's outward act hid the nervousness and unease felt in his heavily beating heart as he laid out his challenge.

Wager:


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Caelus Valeria

Caelus Valeria
A-Tier
A-Tier

"You're misunderstanding me. You asked what this title did for me, and that isn't actually much. But i'm not risking my life for fame or favors, i'm doing it because i want to be able to say "i'm the greatest fighter in all of Reim". The accolades come afterwards. What i want is the title itself." It honestly seemed a little odd that the magician didn't understand his meaning. There didn't have to be some objective reason for wanting something, especially something immaterial like a title.

Caelus was about to continue when the Fox proposed his wager. His eyes widened in surprise, and he almost threw the opportunity away by letting slip that he wouldn't mind keeping his secret for free. A chance to fight a magician, and his pick of magic items should he win were both too good to give up.

While he had no problem with the deal itself, he wanted to make sure that the Fox really knew what he was asking for. "Are you sure that's how you want to settle this? I'll fight you if that's what you want, but i've killed men at first blood. I can't guarantee your safety."

There wasn't enough time for the Fox to answer before Caelus continued, "Oh, but then you have your Borg to protect you, don't you? I think that... Yeah that might be better. How about this: I'll admit defeat if you can land one solid hit on me, and you'll surrender if i manage to break your Borg." Though it might have sounded pretentious and overconfident, if Zion looked carefully, he'd notice that Caelus was being sincere in that he really didn't want to hurt him. Whether this had any effect on Zion would remain to be seen.

Caelus began getting ready, dropping his pack behind him and unwrapping Valkyrie. His shield was already strapped to his arm, and simply slid into place at his wrist where he then took the grip. "I have to say, i consider myself lucky today. Fighting magicians isn't something i have much of a chance to do, so this will be good practice. I'll let you decide when we start." Caelus took up a ready position and waited for the Fox to finish his own preparations.


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Meaning and Defeat In The Mountains[Private|Caelus] TEMcyWS

Zion

Zion
A-Tier
A-Tier

The gladiator's correction shifted Zion's perception of him, but the answer still made the young magician furrow his brow in contemplation. The greatness Mikael had been speaking of on his death bed seemed to be something different than the greatness Caelus sought. Or so Zion thought to himself in response until the wager had been set and terms established. The foxdoll's eyes made crescents of mischief as the confident fighter presented an air of assured victory. Though the rules were imposed for reasons of safety, they gave Zion an overwhelming advantage.

It was no easy task to destroy the borg of a developed magician and yet this man would attempt to do so without taking a single blow from Zion. Perhaps if Caelus had faced the Zion from six months ago, the handicap might have been the only way the young magician could stand a chance. But his magic had evolved drastically since then and now Caelus was facing a practiced illusionist magician. "I accept your terms." The magician was more than happy to agree and rubbed his chin thoughtfully as Caelus took his stance.

"Ah, just a moment." Zion said as he smiled apologetically before bending over to wrap up the magic tools. He then nonchalantly stood and put on his best act of confidence as he kicked off the ground and the rukh responded with a swell of wind around his form. Using his full speed, the Storm Kitsune cleared 20m to the edge of the clearing to hang the sack of items from a tree. Satisfied with the arrangement, Zion displayed free control of his movements in the air as he jumped as if to backflip only to kick off the air and burst back towards Caelus. The fox twirled in the air and righted himself as he flashed past Caelus to land gently on his feet sliding to a stop 10m from the warrior.

Excitement swelled in the youth as he showed off the fruits of his training to someone for the first time, a genuine look of joy and fun displayed freely on the doll's face as he stood there beaming at Caelus. Step one had been completed. Zion wanted Caelus to be aware of two things. The first was that he had underestimated the wandering magician. Secondly, the Kitsune's greatest strength was its flight speed. These two facts would be seeds planted into the real estate of Caelus' mind as an investment towards Zion's victory.

"We can start now."

Leaving little time to react to the abrupt and sudden feat of speed, Zion tapped the ground with his staff as he turned to face Caelus. The magician spread his hands as he revealed his Perfect Stage Domain to the gladiator. The clearing in the mountain forest was painted over by the scene of Magnostadt's own battle arena for magicians. The seats were packed to the brim with people and the sounds of their cheers roared out from all directions. The grassy floor became solid and plane in the form of a 15m platform and the two stood at opposite ends of the center still 10m apart. There was a bright clear blue sky overhead and even the sun’s warmth was replicated as its rays lit up the stage.

As the magic spread outward and transformed their surroundings, Zion took a step backwards as he lifted his arm to tap his staff against the stock of the Nightmare Rifle at his back only to aim the now vibration covered tip to unleash an Inversing Buzz towards Caelus with a subtle sweeping gesture that led into his third spell. Flight was cast on himself as Zion made an inviting gesture towards the warrior insisting he make the first move. The moment the fox’s gaze captured sight of Caelus making a moment, he would swipe his fingers upwards causing the false surroundings to warp and compress into a wall between them. Plastered on the wall was a childish artwork of Zion’s face sticking his tongue out mockingly.

Behind the insulting distraction and shield, the storm kitsune was quick to take his next two steps swiftly as he touched his staff with his free hand and produced two Perfect Double Body clones. Another swipe and touch of the staff rendered the real Zion invisible as he donned a Sight Bend Cloak. The magician floated up into the air and began moving backwards further away to watch from afar. The slow gravity flight differed from his natural kitsune flight as it consumed magoi, but it was also a bit less conspicuous since it didn’t kick up any gusts.

The two false Zion’s were standing back to back with their arms crossed grinning as they waited for Caelus to break through the wall or charge around it.




Magoi: 190/340
Abilities:


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Caelus Valeria

Caelus Valeria
A-Tier
A-Tier

As a child, Caelus' father did his best to school Caelus on the basic precepts of magic, even knowing that he had no ability to use it.  He was taught things like the magic circle, and the different basic types of magic, that magic was accomplish through commanding the Rukh to take specific actions, and that magic consumed Magoi.  Granted, since Caelus was not born a magician, these lectures were more of a way to spend time with his son than for any academic purpose, but they would come to form a very basic way to identify magic when it was used.  His father for instance, was an accomplished Blue Mage and healer.  His colleagues included a Purple Mage, two Red Mages, and a Seer.  Caelus had seen them perform simple acts of magic in his presence.

But it paled in comparison to what he witnessed the Fox perform.

For a moment, Caelus was lost in the splendor of what he saw.  All around him rose a structure not unlike the Colosseum back home, but different in style and architecture.  It was even filled with spectators, who cheered for their creator's victory.  This distraction was potent enough that he was not aware he was being shot at until the projectile struck him in the hip.

There was an instant of terror and vertigo as his muscles struggled to keep him standing upright as his nerves fired backwards, flipping every action to the other side of his body.  Thankfully, he had trained for this kind of attack.  His Perfect Homeostasis allowed him, along with a moderate level of concentration, to act normally, though his reaction time would surely suffer.

As he gripped his sword and began to move forward, the Fox flicked his staff and a wall arose in front of him, separating the two.  The fact that the wall sported a mocking face, served to underscore something that Caelus found grating: he was being underestimated.  It was true that he never expected the kinds of spells that the Fox employed, but he had always retained a healthy respect for magic.  That in addition to the caution he learned when fighting in the Colosseum-

Oh... He could chalk it up to several things, location, strangeness, but he was guilty of not just underestimating his opponent but of overestimating himself.  He had seen the wicked grin on the Fox's face when he recommended his rule change.  Now he knew why.  Caelus had made it personal.  I'll apologize for this afterwards.  But now i've got to make sure i live up to my own hype.

While the scenery was fascinating, Caelus was certain that it was in fact an illusion.  He hand't felt the earth move when taking on its new shape and after supplying some Magoi to Life Aura, now gripped in his left hand, he could see there was no life at all in the scene.  He could see the faint purple outlines of the trees, and a gentle violet haze of the grass, but it didn't extend into the wall or the arena.  He took Valkyrie and performed Vicious Cross to break the wall in a single stroke, erasing it.  This revealed the twin clones on the other side, invisible even to his augmented sight as they did not emit signs of life magic.  He reached them in a single bound with Brave Engage, and attempted to swing Valkyrie through the both of them in one go.

Sadly, even if this attack succeeded he was still at a loss for where the Fox was.  The range of sight that Life Aura allowed him clearly didn't extend far enough for him to locate the Fox.  Either he was very good at hiding in the trees, or was using magic to make himself invisible.  It was frustrating, but the best thing for him to do was simply wait for the Fox to reveal himself, rather than risk a sneak attack by running around to look for him.  At least this way, whatever the Fox did would have to enter the arena.  And in doing so, hopefully provide a clue as to his location.

Abilities:

Magoi: 170/180
Stamina: 270/290



Last edited by Caelus Valeria on 05/01/19, 12:28 am; edited 2 times in total


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Meaning and Defeat In The Mountains[Private|Caelus] TEMcyWS

Zion

Zion
A-Tier
A-Tier

[OOC: Discussed in Discord, posting as if Caelus used Vicious Cross to break the wall.]

Astonished by the gladiators versatility and focus, Zion floated quietly through the night air and frowned to himself. 'I know my magoi made contact...was the spell ineffective?' The magician thought to himself as he continued to drift back and watched on with sharp eyes. The gladiator used a mighty blow to rend the wall and showed little sign of having trouble adjusting to Zion's trick. Zion was forced to recognize that the mans boasting from earlier had not been hollow.

The two clones both smirked as the warrior slashed the wall apart and stuck a gallant figure emerging from the now shattering illusion on either side. They had been waiting for Caelus, even though his strike to cleave them was sudden, the clones were prepared to move. Rather than remain idle, they immediately split up and escaped the Brave Engage by flying out of the way. Though majestic winds didn't spread from their bodies, the pair still flew about freely. The solid illusions would each fly to the left and right of Caelus respectively traveling 5m before turning to start circling him.

The grass would part for them as their feet initially were close to the ground and their bodies still whooshed in the wind. It would be evident from the start that these were more than mere images, the perfect illusion magic possessing physicality, sound, and visage.  "You're pretty amazing, mister." The clone on the left praised before the one on the right took his turn to speak, "Not many people can move around like that after taking one of my Inversing Buzzes. Is there something special about your body?"

The frustration Zion had felt initially turned into excitement as he saw this as an opportunity to learn. There was a childish innocence in his voice as the clones would continue to circle Caelus trying to stay out of reach long enough for them to share some words. Even though he was using a lot of magoi, Zion was still treating this very casually and his demeanor was almost as if this were all but a simple game with little to no stakes.

Once the question had been answered or clearly ignored, the clones would take an offensive. Lacking any clear martial arts training or mastery in technique, the clones attacks would be akin to the flailing of a child if one were to measure only form. But they moved with the power of flight and possessed ample strength to their physical illusory bodies.

First they reached opposites ends of the warrior before charging at him in curved trajectories that resulted in a leg sweep and smack to the face flying towards Caelus. They were hit and run tactics, the clones attempting to fly past the man as they tried to hit him in order to circle him again for another round of similarly strange blows that had the potency of a master and the expertise of a fool with no training. Until Caelus neutralized or immobilized one of the clones, the attacks would just keep coming one after the other for an extended period. The clones did not need to take a breath or feel fatigue allowing them to keep up a relentless rush until dealt with.

A kick to the lower back by one fox flying by accompanied a hammer fist to the left shoulder performed by another fox swooping past above upside down through the air. Their playful maneuvers then became somewhat foul as one clone kicked dirt towards Caelus' face just as the other clone attempted to flick the back of his head as it maneuvered behind him. Like annoying flies, they buzzed about, peppering Caelus with such childish attacks.

Meanwhile, as Zion watched things unfold he slowly began to ascend upwards reaching a height of 8m and climbing. The doll was considering his path to victory first and foremost as his safety was at stake. However, he found time to appreciate that he had underestimated Caelus for being human. The skill gap between them when it came to to world of fighting was starkly apparent. Caelus was like a living unsheathed weapon and in comparison Zion was a twig being used as a toy sword...an imitation of an imitation of a close range fighter.

Magoi: 165/340

Abilities Used:


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Caelus Valeria

Caelus Valeria
A-Tier
A-Tier

The twins managed to dodge his initial strike, each dodging to opposite sides before slowly circling Caelus.  He had hoped to catch at least one of them with that attack to prevent this exact scenario.  Now that they had him surrounded, he would have to defend on two fronts at once.

Their questions startled him.  He wasn't used to how candid and nonchalant they acted.  Although, since neither is the real one, i suppose it doesn't matter if they're hurt, he mused.  The pair made no move to attack just yet, allowing Caelus time to answer them it seemed.  "It could be.  My heritage isn't so straightforward either," he said.

This must have been enough of an answer as the twins jumped into action, one coming in from below and the other from above to strike at his feet and head simultaneously.  He was prepared, but their attacks lacked experience and were performed clumsily.  Caelus hopped slightly as if he were going to perform a back-flip, and at the moment they would pass below and above him he utilized his Perfect Balance and executed a perfect split kick.  His feet collided with their chests, sending one flying upward and slamming the other into the ground beneath him.

Caelus jumped backward and readied himself again.  He had left Valkyrie unused as he was expecting a third attack to come from somewhere else.  And frankly he was a little disappointed when it didn't come.  It would have been a good ploy.

The next attacks were just as choreographed, a kick to his back and a weird kind of slam to his shoulder.  Deciding he had had enough of their playing around, Caelus bicycle-kicked the falling twin into the one coming in from behind.  They slammed into each other and stumbled, giving Caelus enough time to get his balance and attack again, this time using the first two strikes from Furious Assault to erase one and then the other.

As they faded away, Caelus turned to survey his surroundings once again, Life Aura still augmenting his sight.  Sadly, the Fox was still out of range.  He raised his voice to say, "You'll have to come out some time.  You'll run out of Magoi before your clones ever lay a hand on me."

He tried his limbs again, and found he was still being negatively affected by the Inversing Shot.  The Clones had been slow and obvious with their attacks, but if the Fox came at him at high speed from outside his vision range, he likely wouldn't be able to react in time even with Blind Fight aiding him.

Abilities:

Magoi: 165/180
Stamina: 250/290


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Meaning and Defeat In The Mountains[Private|Caelus] TEMcyWS

Zion

Zion
A-Tier
A-Tier

Not even a shadow was cast as Zion moved to eclipse the moon, coming to a stop 12m directly above the gladiator. The magician looked down to witness Caelus perform the finishing blow to his clones. The phantom copies covering the illusions were the first to break, shattering around the clones before they themselves were broken. Fragmenting into bits of light, the fox twins never stopped smiling as they stared at Caelus and gradually disappeared.

The Revenant was correct that the clones alone could not best them. Perhaps even another two wouldn't necessarily be enough. Either way, there wasn't enough time or magoi Zion could afford to try it. But thankfully the clones were only ever meant to buy time. Time to reach this position where he could obtain the ideal vantage point for an omnidirectional attack.

Zion closed his eyes to the world and waved his wand gently before performing a quick spin. The staff in the magician's hand tapped the air eight times forming an eight pointed star formation around himself. At each of these eight points air began to silently compress into 5cm balls encased in strength magic. These distortions lingered in the air around him until Zion opened his eyes and looked down making visual contact with his target.

Once Caelus came into sight the orbs would shoot outward. First in the direction of the tap that had created them before arcing downward to hone in on the target selected by Zion. Their ability to curved trajectories made them encroach not from above but from all around him. The eight bullets would surround and attack from almost all directions. Their heights varied slightly but were generally at the center third of the body making escape through ducking and jumping more difficult and extreme and option.

As the strength magic spell traveled to its target an orange cloak of light appeared around Zion and his shadow slowly became visible as the orange rukh peeled away and vanished. "Up here!" Zion would call out casually, his staff pointing down towards Caelus as he performed a flick followed by a visible attack that was faster than the spell he'd just unleashed. "RAY!" Calling out the name of the flashy light magic spell, the fox then fired a 10mm beam down towards the fighter below.

Everything Zion had done up till now was to build towards this ambush. An attack from above with hidden blows circling in from the sides. There was no point to the extravagant use of magoi thus far other than to throw Caelus off and prepare to execute an attack that ensured no escape to the best of his abilities. The final touch was the expiring of Inversing Buzz Zion had timed perfectly. Just before Caelus would be reacting to this surprise attack, the spell affecting his nervous system would ware off causing another sudden reversal to adjust to.

"Thank's for your concern, but I've got plenty of magoi left~"

The trickster even topped his gambit off by making a bluff to the gladiator. Though it might seem to be an empty claim from the weakness of the light beam, the hidden eight orbs that would accompany its arrival might just be enough to convince one otherwise. In reality, Zion had expended more than half his reserves and was not far from reaching the first stages of magoi exhaustion. Even so, he stood there in the moonlight, trying to have confidence in this attempt he had gambled so much on, eager to see the results.

Magoi: 100/340

Abilities Used:


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Caelus Valeria

Caelus Valeria
A-Tier
A-Tier

Caelus waited anxiously, his eyes closed in preparation for a sudden attack. His Blind Fight ability worked better in darkness, as sight would force his focus forward. But without it, he could extend his consciousness around him more completely, wrapping himself in awareness. He hoped that his taunt would force the magician to come out from cover.

Thankfully, it didn't take long for the magician to reveal himself, shouting from in front of the moon. From the point of his staff he fired a thin beam of light toward Caelus. But... something wasn't right. Caelus flashed back to his fight with the archer, Shelia Frocker, where she had used an obvious and easily avoidable attack to draw attention from her real intentions. In a snap decision, Caelus figured the Fox must be performing the same strategy now.

He made a motion to move backwards, and stumbled slightly as the effects of the Inversing Shot wore off. Now with less time, he used Quickstep to flee backwards, brought his shield to bear in front of him, and applied Reflexive Armorskin to his back. A good decision, as he felt an orb of some sort strike and burst upon his back. Several others flew into vision in front of him, some striking each other and bursting, while others flew past where he once stood harmlessly. One that would have struck his stomach instead burst against his shield, causing it to ring slightly. Had they all hit their mark, Caelus knew he would have been seriously wounded if not killed.

Caelus skid a bit as his feet gained traction, and was about to fight back when he realized: according to his own rules, he had lost the fight. He had asked for a solid strike, not that he would have to be harmed by it.

Visibly pausing, he started to laugh and stuck Valkyrie into the ground. He looked up to the magician and shouted, "Well done!" He motioned for the Fox to descend and join him.

Abilities:

Magoi: 165/180
Stamina: 210/290


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Meaning and Defeat In The Mountains[Private|Caelus] TEMcyWS

Zion

Zion
A-Tier
A-Tier

The heart in Zion's artificial body felt like it was twisted in a knot as he tensed up watching the final exchange take place. It was impossible for Zion to predict that the man would somehow sense the hidden orbs and act swiftly to deal with them. The timing left Zion stunned and lamenting that the homing aspect of his spell failed to make a difference with some of the orbs colliding into each other instead of the target, the magic formula he used for Bullet Attract would need some refining. Thankfully the warrior was struck from behind by one of the orbs but something didn't seem right about it. The fox frowned briefly as he noticed that Caelus noticed the other orbs, so why not that one? Not only that, but he appeared to deliberately move backwards into the attack which somehow failed to have much effect on him at all. Oblivious to the methods of a warrior's endless training and the hardening technique employed, Zion was stuck in thought trying to unravel the mystery.

The call was made by the opponent which woke Zion from his pondering. Victory caused the false smile of bravado to relax into a softer expression of relief. Though he was initially confident, Caelus proved to exceed Zion's expectations of what was possible for a person multiple times in succession. By the end of it the magician could no longer be sure of his triumph. The flight spell ended and Zion slowly descended using his kitsune flight instead, whirlpools of wind forming at the fox's feet to slow his fall.

"You were quite impressive yourself. I apologize for my earlier rudeness. Perhaps I have underestimated the "greatness" of the Revenant."

This time, Zion referred to Caelus by his title with respect, and he emphasized greatness to subtly admit that he was wrong to assume he could judge what kind of greatness gladiators could obtain. The magician smiled and then began to gesture with his staff as though he were binding their agreement with the movements. "I believe our agreement was that you would keep my appearance and our meeting this night a secret if you lost. I'll be trusting you to honor this agreement." The magician then turned and kicked off the ground in another swift act of flight.

It might have seemed as though he were abruptly leaving, but the kitsune's intentions would be clear as he stopped in front of the bag of magic tools previously hung on a nearby tree. Zion retrieved the sack and slung it over his shoulder before he moved like the wind through the air arriving before Caelus once more. The magician set the bag down and began to rummage through it before pulling out a strange weapon.

It had a handle like many swords might, but there was no guard and the blade was a long white sliver of miraculous metal that was akin to cloth. The sound of the coiled metal warping as Zion moved it reverberated and he presented the weapon to Caelus with sincerity. "Since you didn't win, I won't be giving you a magic tool...but as a sign of our friendship, I want to offer you this." The assassin's tool should have been familiar to Caelus as the swordsman's cloth owned by Zafar Mushtaq. There was even still some subtle signs of damage on the weapon left over from the last time the gladiator had clashed with it.

Unaware of the connection between the ribbon-like blade and the person he was presenting it to, Zion began to explain the blade's origin and why he chose it as a gift.

"This weapon once belonged to an acquaintance of mine. They no longer needed it anymore, or rather...could no longer make use of it. So it was left with me. But to be honest, I can barely handle a normal sword, let alone one such as this. With how sharp it is, I don't even dare to try practicing with it. But based on your movements towards the end of our competition...Mister, you have really good spatial awareness, right? If it's you...I think you could master this weapon. It will only go to waste or be sold off in my hands, so I feel it will be better off in yours."

Gift:


──────────────────────────────────────────────

Caelus Valeria

Caelus Valeria
A-Tier
A-Tier

Caelus couldn't help himself as a somewhat embarrassed smile crept onto his face at hearing the magicians praise. "To be honest, i've been on the receiving end of that kind of misdirection before. Had it not been for that experience, i likely wouldn't have fared so well. And you don't need to worry about me telling anyone about you. If i'm anything, i'm a man of my word."

Almost as if his words had freed the fox from some invisible shackles, the magician flew away. For a moment Caelus considered this to be quite rude, until his return holding his bag of tools. The idea of commemorating their friendship was nice, even if Caelus suddenly found himself feeling awkward at having nothing to return in kind. This feeling was quickly replaced upon seeing what was pulled out of the bag.

Thats...

At first Caelus thought the item to simply be of a similar type, but upon seeing the damage inflicted on its form from when Caelus nearly broke it, there could be no doubt. Gently cradled in the magician's hands was nothing other than Zafar's swordcloth. But how? It seemed very unlikely that Zafar would have sold it, and even more absurd that he had been killed and the swordcloth taken from his body. One thing he would freely admit was that Zafar was an incredibly talented combatant. These questions were only amplified by the magician's words, that Zafar could no longer use it. Though Caelus could never be confused as to caring for Zafar's wellbeing, the thought of someone taking him down was perplexing.

Caelus was so wrapped up in his own thoughts, he didn't notice he was actually interrupting the magician when he spoke. "What happened to Zafar?"


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Meaning and Defeat In The Mountains[Private|Caelus] TEMcyWS

Zion

Zion
A-Tier
A-Tier

Caelus surprised Zion when he interrupted with the name of the swordsman cloth's original owner. The magician's jaw dropped and one brow rose in doubt. "You know Zafar?..." A troubled look twisted onto the fox's face as he struggled with himself. It wasn't clear what sort of relationship Caelus had with Zafar, knowing the history of the killer clown to some vague extent, it was possible that the gladiator might seek revenge. But the tone the man used was measured and impossible for Zion to see past. It wouldn't be appropriate to say nothing, but Zion was unsure of how much the former assassin would allow him to share.

After a moment of thought, Zion relaxed his posture and looked up to lock eyes with Caelus. "I mentioned before that this form of mine was power received from a dungeon. A similar power was...forced on him. One that turned him into a living creature of molten stone. I don't know where he is currently, but he said that he was retiring. I know he was a dangerous person before, but now he probably won't hurt anyone anymore...I think." There was truth and half truth, but no lies in Zion's words. He had a pretty good guess where the lava was as there was no reason for that masochist to leave his lava pool as long as Jericho kept supplying him with a steady stream of ores to consume. Thankfully raw unrefined ores would do as otherwise the expenses incurred would probably quickly outpace the outpost's earnings.

Thinking about the finances of the estate gave Zion a headache along with a bout of homesickness. His eyes drifted off in the direction of Magnostadt to the east and sighed softly. "I last saw Zafar somewhere near Magnostadt. That was two months ago." Zion finished his explanation there and gave Caelus a moment to process the information before asking the question that had bugged him since Zafar's name was brought up.

"How do you know Zafar? He didn't...kill some one you knew, did he?"


──────────────────────────────────────────────

Caelus Valeria

Caelus Valeria
A-Tier
A-Tier

While the Fox explained Zafar's fate, Caelus realized that he didn't know much about Zafar at all.  Beyond their two bouts in the Colosseum he had neither spoken to or seen Zafar around Reimano or the country otherwise, and didn't hear any news about what kinds of activities he had been up to.  Everything he knew came from the battlefield, which, while providing a decent account of his personality, lacked anything akin to history.  Even Telleus couldn't find out anything about the man.

This led to the kind of surprised reaction that one might have if they had heard that anyone had been transformed into a magma-monster.  But thankfully there were subtle clues woven into the Fox's response that helped to piece together a bigger picture.  Zafar had hurt people, and from the tone of the Fox's voice those people might have been innocents.  The piece about Magnostadt was noteworthy, but otherwise uninteresting.  And his suspicions were confirmed as the Fox asked if Zafar had killed anyone in his family.  In all likelyhood, Zafar was a hired killer.

It would make sense then, why information on him was so difficult to come by.  Telleus had sources all throughout Reimano, both legitimate and otherwise, yet none of them could turn up anything about the strange combatant other than his appearance in the Colosseum before to spectate.  A chill ran up Caelus' spine as he considered the almost sexual thrill Zafar seemed to get out of fighting, and that Caelus himself was likely used to gratify his perversions.

"No, nothing like that.  We fought each other in the Colosseum.  Twice in fact.  The first time he had me beat to rights, but decided to surrender just before a blow of mine would have struck him.  I couldn't pull the punch in time, and knocked him out cold.  It destroyed my reputation.  It took over a year of training and climbing back up the ranks to fight him again.  That time i won fair and square.  Its actually why people call me Revenant, because i fell from glory and rose back up again."  Caelus' words were measured and calm.  He actually did consider himself lucky that Zafar hadn't hurt anyone, and more than a little proud that he might have played a part in his retirement.

"He was an excellent fighter, but if what you're telling me is true, i'm glad he's no longer out hurting people.  As for the weapon, i'll have to decline.  I'm too straightforward to make use of it.  And honestly, knowing what it might have done makes me want to avoid it even more."  He held his hand up in a placating gesture and smiled gently.  "Instead, i'll ask you for something else.  Once i'm back from my training, if you're still in Reimano, come have a drink with me.  We can swap stories.  But you'll have to tell me your name, so i don't have to call you Fox."  Caelus extended his hand to shake with the magician.


──────────────────────────────────────────────

Meaning and Defeat In The Mountains[Private|Caelus] TEMcyWS

Zion

Zion
A-Tier
A-Tier

A tangle of emotions wrestled in Zion as he felt a mix of relief and disappointment. It was a great weight off his shoulders to find that Caelus did not hold deep and unforgettable resentment towards Zafar. Thankfully, Zion would not have to worry about this formidable warrior assaulting the Koval estate to settle a blood debt. By all rights the magician didn't have much to complain about. But even so, it was somewhat of a let down to find that the warrior had no interest in adopting the strange weapon. With such an unorthodox blade, he wondered if he would ever find a home for the Swordsman's Cloth.

The gladiator's alternative was amiable and more than fair, but it still left Zion looking like he was yet again placed into a difficult situation. Although Zion wanted to agree, until he could master the art of disguise or put an end to his pursuers, it was dangerous even to meet for a drink. Let alone swapping stories as the magician's life had been one endless string of secrets after another. As for sharing the name "Zion Koval" it was even more out of the question. It wasn't that Zion did not trust Caelus to keep the secret, but as a clairvoyance magician the foxdoll knew there were ways to extract secrets without the subjects willing co-operation.

The magician paused for an uncomfortably long moment as he tried to think of a response. It could be seen on his face that there were no shortage of troubles that burdened Zion from being able to act as his heart desired. "It might be a long time before I can make good on such an offer...as long as you don't mind that then a drink shouldn't be a problem. As for my name..." The fox eventually decided that he would eventually be able to go enjoy himself in public freely, but he wasn't sure if he should lie about his name so he took another short moment before continuing.

"...I don't wish to deceive you, but I can't reveal my true name right now. For the same reason I made my previous selfish request. Still, you're right that I should at least have something for people to call me while I hide my identity. In that case, you can call me 'Vultem Pestaspe' for now. Some day when I've resolved my troubles, I promise to tell you my real name should we meet again."


──────────────────────────────────────────────

Caelus Valeria

Caelus Valeria
A-Tier
A-Tier

Caelus blinked as he realized his own mistake. "Oh, right, you're here in secret. Of course." He mentally kicked himself for forgetting something they had literally just finished discussing. "Whenever you finish your business, feel free to come find me."

The fox choosing not to reveal him name was a bit disapponiting, but he understood. The name the fox chose instead sounded completely alien however. "Vul-Vultim Pest... Um..." Try as he might, Caelus couldn't wrap his tongue around the infuriatingly slick words. He shook his head. "Nope. That's not going to work. How about... Aleppo? I think i heard it in Balbadd once as i was passing through. That will be much easier for me to remember." He smiled, and clapped the fox on the shoulder.

Whether the fox liked his new name or not, it would be the only name that Caelus would ultimately remember him by for some time. As they parted ways, he wished the traveling magician well and hoped to see him again soon enough, before looking north to continue his own journey.

[EXIT]


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Meaning and Defeat In The Mountains[Private|Caelus] TEMcyWS

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