Researching the Past [ Job / Ayero / Closed]

History Lesson:

//This first post is to serve as a training post.//

The dull clatter and clang of the mechanical war construct's floor beneath her feet echoed about the internal dome of the ruin she had found within sight of the city's walls. The rust of the machines siding had disintegrated large holes in the metal plating, allowing the early morning light to stream in through the patchwork of holes that made the otherwise shadowy structure into a kaleidoscope, old shards of other metals refracting the light in abstract directions. She set her staff down, recuperating from her last attempt at implementing an idea Ariella's advice had given her.

The woman had talked about amplifying a conduit by circling the rukh back in on itself as a way around one of her beginner spells. Of course, Minerva immediately wondered if she could apply this in a practical manner. The dull chirp of her electric rukh filled the air around her, the bright crackle of lightning surrounding the crystal end of her staff as the the lightning fires forth.

Her goal was simple, in theory at any rate. She could already perform the circuit short-cut on her channeled spells, but the question was, could she sustain it as a projectile. If she timed the rupture of the circuit correctly, there would be a minor burst that would theoretically deal the same amount of damage.

She smiled as her rukh connected with the stone wall, but frowned nearly immediately after. She'd set the circuit right after all....no.

"Idiot..."

She cursed herself. The circuit wouldn't rupture on contact if she structured it the same way. She'd have to stretch the circuit so that it was weaker, hopefully...

---

She slammed the butt of her staff on the ground in frustration, the wall opposite her seared with several failed attempts. She sat down, furiously scribbling an alteration before slumping against the wall with a defeated sigh. She needed to rest. She'd run out of magoi at this rate, and outside the walls with no magoi was definitely not an ideal position, even with high ground and vision. She picked her staff up once more pushing herself into motion, taking a seat on the edge of the dome and looking out over the plains, the scattered ruins contrasting the gentle flowing amber. The sun had only risen slightly. Had she really only been attempting this spell for an hour? Perhaps the drain on her body made the time pass longer.

---

The sun was approaching it's zenith, the young woman finally rested again. She had taken the time to do some additional research on her circuit idea, stumbling upon something Ariella had scribbled on the side of her paper. She was almost certain the spell would work, the only thing left was to try it.

She hefted her staff above her head, the sharp crack filling the air as the shock bolt of her arcane epiphany jolted towards the wall. The contact left a sudden burst, the small sphere of lightning that was created on impact radiating outwards with a burst of noise. Here eyes grew wide as a grin spread across her face. "I-I did it!!" She nearly leapt from the sheer satisfaction of creating something of her own. Of course, she was sure someone had done it and written it down, but she never had access to any of those materials, so it was just as well the same to her.

She slipped her pack on, aiming to descend the towering ruin she had abused as her practice facility. She scanned her eyes over the horizon, noting nothing in between the short distance from her own position to the gates of the city. Her eyes turned to roam in the opposite direction, spying what seemed to be the ruins of a battlefield, along with two figures advancing towards it, one with shocking red hair, and the other...from Balbadd, perhaps? His garb made it seem possible.

"Curious..."

She slid down the polished steel plate onto a stone ledge, eyeing the two. "I suppose I could follow them...I might learn something." With a grin, she made her way to the dilapidated stone stairs that had led her up in the first place, eager to find out what the ruins the others were approaching held.

Spells:

[Word Count 708/500]
[Magoi 130/150]

With a gruff sigh, the red headed woman rubbed at her temples in an attempt to ward away an oncoming headache. Several hours ago she had agreed to escort a Balbaddese researcher and historian to the famous ruins of the battle fought between Reim and Heliohapt that had occurred not several generations ago. While she was certainly used to escorting people through dangerous terrain, she found the circumstances rather…frustrating. Usually all escort jobs had the same pattern: protect the target, subdue a roving band of thugs or wild animals and return to the safety of a town or city. But it had been nearly half a day into their journey, and so far they hadn’t encountered one measly threat.


To make matters a little worse, the man who had hired her would absolutely not shut up about how “exciting and progressive” his discoveries were. At first she appreciated his vast knowledge of history especially as it pertained to his country, but the man quickly became insufferable. As he babbled on and on in a scholarly manner about the ruins of war, his words gradually began to lose significance and eventually just didn’t make much sense all together to the Fanalis woman. She was content to let the excitable man blabber continually, but he was beginning to grate on her nerves and distract her from their surroundings.


Remaining silent and trying to increase the distance between them by only a few feet if she could, Ayero concentrates on examining the ruins with a much different eye. Much of the metal was rusted over, and the scattered parts and shrapnel as well as the shadows they cast could provide easy camouflage for predators. The black snake wound around her body appeared rather alert too, his head swiveling as his large red eyes peered around every corner. Every so often his tongue would flick out and taste the air to see if they were being pursued.


As she drew closer, Minerva’s approached would indeed be sensed by Kabu’s Predator Sense. Sliding his tongue out of his mouth, he opens his maw and lets out a low warning hiss. Ayero stops in her tracks, her eyes following the direction Kabu’s head was pointed. An overturned juggernaut was blocking her view of what or whoever the snake had sensed. Eyes narrowed warily, she unsheathes her sword and widens her stance, prepared to take on the unseen threat.


”Wh-what was that, miss?” The historian jumps at the snake’s hiss and the woman’s stern reaction, nervously looking from side to side while fidgeting with the sleeve of his robe. ”Quiet!” She shoots back, not entirely intending to be rude but was rather focused on the potential danger lurking among the scraps.


[454/1500]

[Stamina: 195/200]

Spoiler:

She grabbed on to the metal rail hanging from one of the sides of the construct, her gloves and stockings mitigating the burning from the friction. She slid quickly down to a lower level of the ruined building, dropping on to the cobblestone balcony before moving down quickly onto the plains. She cast her gaze briefly back up at the ruined building, the construct half lodged within before setting off at a light jog towards the Finalis woman and her companion.

She quickly tried to run through her mental bestiary, remembering wolves were fairly common to the area. She hoped that there wouldn't be any to deal with, but just in case, she shifted some bandages towards the front of her pack. She slung it back up, letting her short cloak fall over it as she scaled another heap of metal, using the high wreckage as a vantage point.

The soft smell of grass washed over her face. Even with the brown fields of autumn, the plains of the western front still smelled beautiful to her, picking up her spirits slightly. The pleasant scent eased her mind, assuring her that her day couldn't possibly be upset. And then the Fanalis woman stopped, a very, very large snake beside her seeming to communicate something.

Minerva slid down the mound of steel and held her soft jog, making sure that her approach wasn't from a bad position. She ran towards the left of the pair to be at a more visible angle, slowing to a walk as she got her first glimpse of the wreckage. The collective piles of constructs and structures from the battle was mind boggling, the sheer volume of strewn armor and war tools done no justice by the books that were recorded. She covers her mouth in a gasp, the battlefield now splayed out before her view. Minerva was incapable of imagining the horror of what had happened hear only 60 years ago, and would never want to be a part of such a gruesome conflict.

She inhaled deeply, several deep breaths calming her mind as she forced herself to recall that this was a remnant of the past, not a visage of the future. She looked over at the Finalis woman, and the now clearly anxious Balbaddese historian (at least, that's what his pile of textbooks suggested he was). She pulled her staff out of the ground, realizing she had unconsciously used it to support herself as the terrifying visions of war raced through her mind. She took a drink from her water skin, slinging it back down around her waist before sounding out a greeting at the Finalis woman.

"Hello! It's nice to see another face out here!"

[Word Count 452/1500]
[Magoi 130/150]

She watches the shadow of the young woman’s movements through the wreckage, her stance solid and unyielding as if she’s ready to strike or defend at a moment’s notice. When Minerva reveals herself, part of Ayero sighs inwardly in relief, even if it wouldn’t be written on her features or by her posture. While she was glad that it didn’t turn out to be a beast stalking them, Ayero wasn’t about to immediately trust this strange girl. She’d been fooled by appearances before.

Ayero takes in the young silver haired woman with a trained eye, her gaze resting on the staff she’d been leaning on. ”A magician?” Her eyes narrow at the realization and not out of hostility. ”You know this woman?” She cocks a brow, turning her head slightly towards the researcher while maintaining Minerva in her line of sight.


”N-no…” The man stutters out, craning his neck while adjusting his thick glasses to get a  better look at the girl. ”Young lady, would you…happen to be researching these ruins of battles past?” His nervous tone gradually crescendos into excitement at the thought of finding another like-minded individual all the way out here. Ayero rolls her eyes at the man but backs down somewhat. ”If so, then I have some texts here on the Kingdom of Sassan. You see, these symbols here engraved into the metal match up with the exact same that were worn by the ancient knights…” The man begins to tirade into his scholarly speak, and Ayero feels a bit sorry for Minerva if she didn’t happen to be the historian type.


A flash of a shadow moving between the ruins catches her attention once more, and for a second she thinks that Minerva may have been a trap, distracting them while her companions drew near. But soon she could see that was not the case, spying a flicker of a black tail disappear behind a structure. ”Magician girl! Get ready for a fight!” She announces suddenly stretching her sword to her side as her gaze reaches past Minerva and over to the five black wolves that appear from the metalwork. They snarled savagely, saliva dripping from their black maws before three jolted forward, headed for the nearest human which happened to be Minerva.


[832/1500]

She adored history, nodding to the old man, even shouting back, "The one's from the era two decades before the war, yes?" Her gaze brightens excitedly as the historian spouts detail after detail, the images bursting to life from the man's words before her. Pictures of acient civilizations swam before her, the massive scale of the olden empires and massive cities gliding through her mind, their influence spreading far over the world and developing into the countries that existed today, but that vision was short lived. The Finalis woman's words bringing her back to reality quickly. Her amethyst orbs frantically scanned the wreckage, the dark ruins and decaying armor obstructing her view of the stamping across the plains her ears could barely pick up. She slipped her staff into her hands, the distinctive cracle of her rukh filling the air. She wondered how the Finalis woman had marked her as a magician. It couldn't have been that obvious, right? A thin girl, that didn't have much muscle on her...and was dressed in fine clothes...and held a large staff...ok so it was obvious, but there was more to this little magician than met the eye, or so she hoped...

She snapped out of her mental process quickly, her eyes racing to catch upwith what her internal dialogue had turned her blind to, the environment around her. She panicked, quickly observing the wreckage around her for signs of movement. She saw tails, which mean wolves, but she couldn't tell how many and what direction they would approach from. She stepped back, allowing herself a slightly wider view of the once again battlefield. She saw the pack pass through a clearing, quickly taaking a mental inventory of their tails. She ciunted 5 in total, the dark black fur was a brilliant contrast to the soft amber of the grass, and she was glad it wasn't darker. She quickly fell backwards into place, allowing the wolves four approaches, one from each side of her. She hefted her staff, preparing her first spell, aiming to down the first quickly, obtaining an idea of how much damage one could take. Time seemed to slow around her thoughts as the adrenaline began to flood her system, her accelerated heart rate pushing blood through her body and increasing her perception. The rukh around her gently began to crackle and soon the air around her was full of the melody of her own magic, the soft, chirping symphony brining her to a place of serenity. She had been like this since the day she meditated, and every time she had used the rukh since that day the air ariund her filled with music. She adored it, and listened to every crescendo and glissando her magic created with awe, and in the midst of battle, she new the music would let her stay the level-headed tactician she dreamed of becoming.

She felt her foucus rise as the first wolf approached directly from the front, the beast curling it's lips back and showing her its yellow, blood-stained fangs. She simply inhaled, swirling the rukh into a half meter thick spear of lightning, waiting. The wolf paused, obviously intelligent enough to realize she was trying to bait it. The wolf quickly padded down the path between the wreckagfe towards minerva, slowly working its way between two rocks 25 meters away. The opportunity was perfect, and she couldn't let the wolf get any closer or else it could dodge her spear. Her mind suddenly flashed back to her last meeting with Ariella, and a collection of amplification and focus runes returned to her. Her hand slid beneat the staff, forming the old hand sigil's for the runes beneath the spell. The crackling of the lightning suddenly intensifying, the arcs playing together more fiercly. She contorted her hand awkwardly, shifting into the next set of runes. The lightning seemed to struggle until she pushed more of her magoi into the spell, the lightning now condensing itself rapidly above her.  She smiled, the new spear was only 4 centimeters thick and a meter long. If her calculations were right, it'd fire farther this time, but what would be most different was the increase in power.

She leveled her staff at the wolf, the beast snarling before her with hunger. Her mind acted on reflex, launching the spear into the gap between the two rocks, the air around her sizzling with the improved speed of the slimmer spear. The seen seems almost to play out in slow motion before her, the new spear, her Volt Spear, sailing between the rocks, striking the wolf right between his eyes. The resulting crunch was audible, even from 30 meters away. She heard the wolf's skull crumple beneath the B-tier damage the spear released as it burst. The ruined form of the wolf sank to the ground between the rocks. She knew from the way the wolf hadn't even been able to yelp that it wasn't resilient.

Her body relaxed slightly, knowing these wolves were easy to deal with made her task a whole lot easier, but she still needed a better position. The stomp of her boot's could be heard as she ran into the wreckage, the cracklingnsound following her footsteps as she mealy over the dead wolf. Her steps falter as she hears the howls of the other wolves finding the dead one. She didn't really have the luxury of idle time, instead swiveling her gaze around her immediate surroundings. She noticed what seemd to be half dome, deciding that place would be the most ideal, allowing for only one dirrection the wolves could assault her from. She quickly broke into a sprint, skidding to a halt just in time to see the four wolves round the corner. She kicks a metal plate at the base, the rusted steel falling down. She slid it down the rubble pile, hoping one lf the dogs would mistakenly put a paw through it and give her a free shot, but of course, She wouldn't rely on that strategy, rather, she'd opt to gear the situation to use her chain strike, hoping the multiple hits would take out the pack in one fell swoop.

[Word Count 1035/1000]
[Approval Thread]

Volt Spear:

Ayero would have rushed forward to help Minerva meet the wolves if a deep, throaty snarl hadn’t stopped her as she attempted to lurch from her position. The noise had come from somewhere behind her. Narrowing her already wary gaze, the Fanalis woman grabs the man she’d come with to protect by the wrist and whirls around, effectively placing him between her and Minerva. A few meters away, she’s met with the hostile form of wolf much larger than the ones who had approached initially. Must be their leader…


Bringing her full attention to the large black wolf, Ayero pauses to inspect the creature seeing as how he apparently didn’t have the intent to immediately attack. The Great Black Wolf was a hulking creature, his massive frame covered in dark fur and his thick muscles rippling with each breath and subtle movement. His maw was open slightly, the darkness of his fur contrasting sharply with this gleaming white fangs that protruded from his upper palate. His eyes were an eerie sort of animalistic orange and almost appeared to be glowing despite it being mid-day. Ayero silently praises their luck that the sun had not yet dipped  behind the horizon leaving the land in darkness where they’d be far easier to attack, especially from these wolves who would likely blend in with the night.


”Stay between the two of us!” She grunts, feeling conflicted in partially entrusting this man’s life with a stranger. She didn’t know how well Minerva could fight, or even if she was able to fight, but she hoped that a young woman venturing out here alone would do so with the intent to defend herself. Hearing the familiar crash and sizzle of lightning behind her, she’s slightly more confident in the now identified yellow magician’s abilities. Nevertheless, she plans to quickly subdue her own opponent in the case that the wolves were able to overwhelm the other woman.


The historian nods quickly, a look of fear and confusion lingering on his face as he looks between the two women, one of which was serving as a makeshift guard whether she wanted to or not. His gaze travels down to where Ayero was still holding his wrist, wincing at the Fanalis woman’s tight grip. ”A-ah, miss…” He stutters out gently, not wanting to distract her but also desperately wanting to restore his circulation which was slowly beginning to get cut off. At first it seems like Ayero didn’t her him, and perhaps she truly didn’t as she releases his wrist in order to have all of her limbs at hand, her mind geared towards taking down this wolf. The creature had begun pacing back and forth, his incandescent eyes flickering back and forth between Ayero, Minerva, and his pack.


As Minerva’s Volt Spear hit’s it’s mark and fells one of the wolves nearly instantly, the Great Black Wolf bears witness. Pawing at the ground, the beast lets out a low, guttural growl in anger and lowers his head in preparation for a Take Down. With a thunderous roar, he bursts forward sharply with his body angled towards Minerva. But Ayero had caught the subtle movements he had made in adjusting his trajectory before he sprung forth with his attack, and was able to intercept the creature in time. Raising both of her arms in front of her, she crosses them so that her outer forearms faced outwards and solidifies her stance. As the beast’s skull clashes with her Simple Block II, Ayero feels the force of the wolf’s body practically vibrate through the gauntlets she wore on her arms. The charging attack that he had performed had massive power behind it, and the woman grits her teeth as she tries to focus and repel the assault. After a few moments of her frame being bombarded with the beast’s power, the attack as well as the creature’s body loses momentum. Feeling the stress of the force begin to lessen, Ayero finally lets out a breath when the wolf stumbles back, nearly collapsing as he shakes his head from side to side. As powerful as the attack had been, it seemed that her opponent had become a bit strained in performing it.


Seeing that the wolf was momentarily distracted, Ayero took the opening and lunged forward with an assault of her own. In moving to stop the wolf, she had allowed herself to be pushed back several meters from her initial position just by moving to block him. It wouldn’t do them any good to get closed in on by the pack, so with this in mind the red headed woman attempts to put some distance between her and the other wolves. Taking advantage of the injured beast, Ayero ignores the dull ache in her arms and brings her scimitar back behind her. Raising the blade over her head, she pushes off from the ground and aims to bring the weapon down and across the monster’s flank in a heavily angled diagonal slash.


She hits her mark, dragging the blade expertly across the beast’s body. A howl of pain accompanies her assault and the wolf begins to flail in pain, desperately trying to dislodge the woman’s blade from his body as it cuts through his skin and into the muscle. As the Fanalis withdraws her blade from the mountain of flesh, she’s momentarily unaware of how close she is to the thrashing beast in pain. She’s soon aware of this however, as the creature raises one massive paw and swipes down at the woman, delivering an Iron Claw which clips the side of her face. A short gasp leaves her lips at the contact, but she’s unprepared for the second swipe which shreds right across her face.


Yelping in pain, she recoils and bring a hand to her face. Blood began to seep from the claw marks that ran diagonally from the right side of her temple down to the left side of her chin. Thankfully, none of the wolf’s claws had met her eyeballs. Instead, the blood from the wounds made above her eyes began to obscure her vision. Grunting in irritation, the Fanalis woman tries to wipe the fluid from her face while keeping an eye on the wolf.

Damage to opponent:
-1 D-tier (recoil)
-1 B-tier (non-ability slash)

Damage taken:
-1 C-tier (Iron Claw)


[Stamina: 170/200]

[1000+/1000]

[Trained: Simple Block II]

Spoiler:

The dogs were far more intelligent than she initially assumed, two of the four simply leaping the plate with ease. She knew that her shock chain wouldn't move fast enough to hit the wolves at this range but perhaps she could distract them. She kicked her foot against the rubble, dislodging several pieces of metal that slid down the pile, disguising Minerva's tactic.

She slipped onto one of the pieces of rubble, slipping quickly down the unnatural hill at a quick 15m/s. She pulled her staff up quickly and readied her spell, the rubble masking her approach. She suddenly slid directly beside one of the wolves, his form less than one meter away. But the wolf was prepared, thanks to it's Tremor Sense. The pounce and attempted bite shattered her borg. The claws sank into her left arm five times, it's Fury Swipes dealing C-Tier damage each time, the cumulative stress on the arm causing her bone to fracture.

The sudden crack causes her to howl in pain as she casts the spell, the reflexive roll away causing her to hit the second wolf with her chain strike instead. Thankfully, the wolf that had pounced on her was a mere 3m away from the second one, the spell suddenly chaining from the initial target to the wolf that had just fractured her arm at a speed of 10m/s. The shock traveled through their nervous systems quickly, causing them to crumple.

The pain in her left upper arm sent her body into shock, her mind stunned briefly as she slid to the ground in silence. She nearly missed the wolves approaching her, catching the third one in the middle of a leap. She cast her Shock Spheres, the first of the thunderous orbs missing the wolf while the other four managing to pummel the beast in mid air for a rousing total of D-tier damage, the force of impact sending the wolf over her body instead of on top of her.

She slowly drags herself upright on one hand, turning to stare down the wolf sitting twenty meters away, their eyes locking in a vicious stare. Her arm hung limply at her side, a steady trickle of blood dripping from the open wounds, lessening as the dirt from the ground covered some of the openings. She'd have to waste some water to clean the scratches out, and go and get the bone set, but dealing with this last wolf was her primary concern.

It was very obvious that neither of them wanted to make the first move, and the stared at each other incessantly the wolf suddenly turning and sprinting away towards the sounds of a much larger battle. Minerva was soon to follow, intent on discovering what exactly was occurring.

Spells:

[Word Count 915/1500]
[Magoi 100/150]
[Damage Taken: C-Tier, fractured upper arm]
[Damage Dealt: Three instances of D-Tier]

The wolf staggered, its movements unsteady from the damaged caused by Ayero’s sword. The angle that the blade had cut through the creature had been somewhat askew, leading the Fanalis’ weapon to deal roughly half of its normal damage. It takes a few moments for the woman to realize this after taking the time to analyze the condition of her opponent. To two warriors stared each other down, both gritting their teeth and trying to focus through the pain that had been inflicted on them.  After the mutual hesitation, the large black wolf lets out a guttural roar and digs his claws into the ground before gathering his energy and springing forward at full speed.


Another snarl rips from the beast’s throat as he raises a giant paw, razor sharp claws glinting as the sunlight bounces off of them. A mix of rage and instinctual fear for his enemy had driven the wolf to try and eliminate his opponent in any way possible. However, although Ayero had sustained damage she was still well enough to keep her wits about her and ignore the stinging pain made by the wounds that ran across her face. Though there was quite a lot of blood, the actual damage wasn’t as bad as it seemed as facial wounds tended to bleed a lot. The only trouble she had was the blood which kept leaking into her eyes and obscuring her vision.


With a grunt, the red headed woman raises her blade so that it’s nearly perpendicular with the incoming paw. A dull clink is heard as tempered metal meets hardened bone and skin, and the two are locked in a Parry for several seconds, each pushing with their own force on the another. Ayero’s arm shakes slightly under the pressure until her own strength wins out. Another grunt, and she’s able to summon enough force against the beast’s weakening assault to push his paw up and away to the side of her. She exhales sharply and performs a Great Leap, soaring above the wolf as he recovers from the clash. Holding her blade out in front of her, she moves it to rest straight above her head as she reaches her apex and begins her descent. The wolf was still trying to shake off the confusion and pain, and didn’t think to look above him when the Fanalis woman had disappeared.


Sucking in a deep breath, Ayero lets gravity do part of the work for her and aims her blade toward the wolf’s thick skull. The steel weapon meets its mark, ripping straight down the creature’s face with its full force. The wolf emits a yelp followed shortly by a few gurgles and a pained cry before stumbling backwards, disoriented from the blow and the increasing loss of blood. A thin wound could be seen across the beast’s face, becoming more apparent as it becomes highlighted with blood. A handful of whimpers and yelps are heard before he collapses heavily, his wounds overpowering him.

[Trained: Parry]

Spoiler:

Letting out her breath in a slow, deep sigh, the woman keeps an eye on the wolf until all movement and noises stop. Certain that the threat had been subdued, Ayero lets her focus from the large black wolf drop in time to register the quickly approaching sound of feet. An irritated growl tears her from her defeated opponent and she turns just as the last black wolf leapt for her, snapping his jaw down on the arm she held her sword with. ”Kkttt….!” She winces more out of surprise than pain and loses the grip on her sword. The blade clatters to the ground as the wolf stares up at her with angry eyes, clearly upset from seeing his leader felled by the young woman. He sustains his growl and keeps his grip on Ayero’s arm, thrashing his head from side to side in an attempt to tear at the skin.


Wincing again at the wolf’s tight grip on her arm, Ayero raises her free hand and smacks the wolf in the side of the head. The creature yelps as Ayero’s Fanalis force causes him to lose his grip on her arm and sends him flying, landing somewhere amongst the wreckage. Satisfied that she had dealt enough damage for the straggler to be unable to move, she looks up to notice that the young silver haired magician had been following behind closely. She eyes the girl silently for a moment, sizing her up. The remnants of battle were clearly etched into her being, what with the numerous scratches and bruises along her body not to mention the way her arm hung limply at her side. Her gaze focuses just over Minerva’s shoulder, searching behind her for some movement or noise. She feels a bit bad that she didn’t notice the historian who had taken off after Minerva, albeit far slower. It seemed that he was a bit ruffled but otherwise unharmed.


Satisfied that there were no more potential opponents to face in the moment, Ayero fixes Minerva with a stern gaze and nods in approval. ”I thank you for your assistance. Here, let me see your arm.” She motions for the girl to come closer. The snake settled around her neck knows that he will be needed soon, and shifts in anticipation.

Damage to Great Black Wolf:
-1 A-tier (non-ability)
-Total damage 1 A+1 B+1 D (opponent defeated)

Damage to Black Wolf:
-1 B-tier (non-ability)
-Total damage B-tier (opponent defeated)

Damage taken:
-1 D-tier
-Total damage 1 C+1 D

[1217/1500]

[Stamina: 130/200]

Spoiler:

She dashes into the fray just as Ayero hurls the small wolf against the rubble. She can hear the sharp crack as the wolf hits the solid rock and falls to the ground. She shakes her head, keeping up her run towards the woman to keep the adrenaline from wearing out. She knew that once that happened, she'd be in a lot of pain, and she wasn't all to eager to have that occur anytime soon.

The woman calls her over, Minerva slowing down and nodding, trying in vain to raise her bleeding arm to give the woman a better view. Her deltoids flex, causing her minuscule biceps to push against the bone, her eyes widening in pain as the arm falls back down to her side. Her breathing seems strained as the adrenaline in her system begins to fall down, the fracture along her arm, suddenly setting in with her nervous system. Her breath seems strained now, trying to fight back the reaction to let out a yelp after the failed movement. She's doing very well, considering this is the first bone she'd ever broken. She knew it would happen some day, but she'd never expected this pain.

The shifting snake unnerved her mildly, but she figured if the woman meant no harm, neither did the snake. Even so, that snake was massive, and certainly warranted caution. She approached slowly, taking care to not make any actions that would upset the snake. She closed the game and stood approximately .5m from Ayero, letting her wounded arm hang closer to the woman than her other. A closer inspection of her face definitely assured her that the woman had Fanalis blood in her, which begged the question. "How do you intend to heal my arm?"

[Word Count 1209/1500]

”I’ll need a piece of cloth.” She announces smoothly, eyes sliding over to the researcher who had just caught up with the two woman. The man hesitates then nods furiously upon seeing the woman’s injuries and sets to work digging through his pack. ”I don’t.” She admits, reaching out to take Minerva’s arm gently in hand. ”But he does.” She jerks her head toward her shoulder, Kabu flicking out his tongue as she does so.


The historian soon resurfaces and hands Ayero a roll of bandages and she grunts in affirmation, taking them with her free hand. ”I’m no healer, but I know enough to get by. Hold still.” Her brow creases in concentration as she wraps the bandages around Minerva’s shoulder and across her bandaged arm in a makeshift sling. Kabu’s healing powers were rather impressive, but Ayero was aware enough to know that she could cause more harm than good if the bones were set incorrectly when healed. Satisfied with her work, she removes her hands from Minerva and places on atop the snake’s head. Deducing what was wanted of him, Kabu slithers forward until he’s hovering over Minerva’s damaged arm. He begins to wretch, as if he were about to vomit. After a few cycles of dry-heaving, he deposits a large amount of saliva onto the magician’s arm.


”It’ll take a little bit for it to heal, but you should be fine shortly.” She declares as the snake’s spit begins to work its magic. Minerva would feel a stinging sensation as it entered her wounds, but soon it would produce a sizzling, menthol-like feeling as the repairs began. ”I’m Ayero, and this is Kabu.” She offers, her tone a bit less wary and a bit more friendly than before. ”You’re a lightning magician, then? You fight well.”


[1500+/1500]

She winces, her voice escaping in a pained gasp as Ayero moves her arm, her muscle grinding the against the fracture while the bend reopened some of the scabs that had begun to form. She clamps her teeth down, trying to keep from shouting as Ayero ties her arm in place, but once the bone is finally pressed back against itself, it somehow feels...less painful, a dull throb compared to the sharp stabbing pain that had been present previously.

She nods at the merchant, giving him thanks as she wipes some sweat off her brow and takes a bit of the extra cloth, dripping some of her water onto it and gently wiping away the dried blood. The snake shifting threw her off slightly, causing her to start backwards. The last unnaturally large snake she had seen was responsible for some...not fun activities. but she felt like she could trust Ayero, and the snake didn't seem like it meant her harm.

She winced as the snake spat on her cuts, the searing chemicals working to disinfect the wound and numb the pain initially. She lost her voice as she let loose a mild yelp from the pain, shuddering as the snakes spit slowly numbs her arm. She lets her cloak fall over it, reminding herself to wash the blood out later. "Th-Thank you, Kabu..."

She turns to the fanalis woman. "I'm Minerva...And I really don't. I made too many tactical errors and I got punished for it. I'm sure if I'd played my cards right I would have made it out with out a scratch, but the fault is my own." She tries to run the encounter around in her head, slowly attempting to figure out how she could have gone about it. "Damn it..." She seems rather upset with herself over this, but on the surface, it seems to only be caused by the pain of her fractured arm.

[Word Count 1500+/1500]

Kabu lets out a low trill and flicks his tongue in response, receding back around Ayero’s shoulders. Said woman purses her lips into a thin line and stares down at Minerva, analyzing the girl quickly. Typical magician’s physique, but the Fanalis woman knew that physical strength wasn’t the only way to fight. She had a handful of magician friends of respectable strength who were more than able to hold their own in battle.


Placing a hand behind her thread, Ayero runs her fingers through her wavy red mane. She understood why Minerva was upset, having been in the magician’s shoes at some point in her life. ”I didn’t see the battle.” She admits before shrugging. ”But you made it out alive, so that speaks to your strength. You can only grow from here.” She doesn’t attempt to try and tell the girl to not be hard on herself, but the way she saw it, Minerva’s way of thinking was necessary to drive her to improve her combat skills. ”What were you doing all the way out here, anyway? Are you a book type like him?” She jerks her thumb back toward the researcher.


”W-well, it seems as if I’ve g-gotten all of the information that I n-needed. Yes, let’s head back to the ci-city before dark!” The nervous man fumbles over his words, looking at his escort with pleading eyes. The red head in question nods and turns to the magician. ”Would you care to come back to the city with us, Minerva?”


[Exit]

She shakes her head slowly, reluctant to move her arm before she knows it's fully healed. "The rubble makes for a good place to hurl spells without hurting anyone on accident, so it's a training spot for me." She looks back towards the city gates, standing up a bit straighter now. She was certain that next time she would do much better.

She looks at the man, feeling a little burdened for him. She knew what it was like to feel rather helpless, and she hadn't enjoyed it. She gave the man a friendly smile, hoping the kind action would at least make him feel like less of a burden than he did. Aye's invitation drifts by, and she's thankful she doesn't have to make that trek alone. "Yes...I need to make sure my arm is fine before I start trying to throw spells out everywhere." She smiles lightly at the woman, feeling far more comfortable than she had initially as they began walking back towards Riem. Perhaps sometimes making a mistake was the better way to train. She wanted to make sure to avoid them in the future, and making one taught her what not to do, and in her mind, learning what not to do was just a roundabout way of learning what to do.

[Exit]