Thrown Into The Snow

She saw a giant of a man, or merely a giant, run forwards to protect the group from something even larger. Several blows ensued, and the giant was thrown into a fruit stall.

Venetica drew her blade. She could do something, a temporary distraction at least, to give the giant time to recover.

Running forward, on the hulking creature's blind side, and jumped onto it. It bucked as she tried to hold on. As a last resort, V slammed her sword into the beast's neck and hung on.

It groped clumsily for her, but couldn't reach her on its back. It then realized what little damage she actually did, and continued walking towards the giant.

'Damnit.', V thought to herself.

Why there were only two people fighting the beast at the time Ordamos would never know. The colossus had been thrown into a nearby stand, the dark elf was clinging on to the neck of the beast for dear life, and in the whole chaos the Ogran was still charging at “tin-man.”

“Sorry my friend,” said Ordamos as he relieved Aethr of his bottle he had just received. He gripped it with both hands, closed his eyes, and then slid it into his belt loop for later use. Afterwards he notched his bow and prepared to aim.

The shot hit the Ogran directly in the jaw, piercing through the lower gums. Ordamos’ poison could, perhaps over time, have kill the beast but with the tiny amount he had upon each arrow it was only enough to immediately drop a normal sized man dead. No, to kill this beast he would need use his Reaper’s Touch. The Ogran cried out in pain and pulled out the arrow like it was a tooth pick. The blow probably didn’t even harm to beast, but the numbing of his mouth might have given him some initial alarm as he turned to Ordamos and began to charge.

“That’s right,” he said, grabbing the bottle and darting towards the left with a speed only an elf could have, “Follow the birdie.”

Just as he had hoped the Ogran charged towards his new location. Wasting no time Ordamos began to climb atop a building nearby reaching half the level of the giant beast. He only had one shot at this so it need be precise. The beast finally reached him and brought its fist back with such intensity it through the dark elf off of its back. Ordamos brought back his hand as well, and at the last moment threw the bottle directly at the beast’s head. It smashed in the swell beneath both, splashing plenty of poison into each of his eyes. The Ogran cried in shock and pain but still managed to finish his punch. The punch took out the western half of the building barely missing Ordamos as he leaped into a nearby ally to disappear.

The beast was feeling the full effects of the near acidic poison in its eyes as it slowly went blind. It crashed backwards into a building deepening the blade within its neck which only caused it more pain. It punched and screamed wildly but found no target to accept its blows. It was done for, but not without what fight it had left.

Ordamos finally reached the location of the rest of the group, out of breath from is rondeveu with the Ogran. “Finish him Aethr,” he said, catching his breath, “Put the beast out of his misery.”

Aethr watched the initial skirmish with the monstrosity with a morbid combination of excitement and boredom. Throughout his life, he had seen many skirmishes of adventures and large, armored beasts, and too often the beasts won. So it came as a surprise when Ordamos managed to goad the beast into charging him, whereupon he flung the bottle Ordamos had so rudely stolen from Aethr into it's face, rendering it blind.

As the beast cried in confusion and pain, Ordamos walked up to him, out of breath, and said "Finish him Aethr. Put the beast out of his misery." Aethr calmly walked up, placed his rifle right over it's left eye, and fired three times. Satisfied that the Ogran was indeed dead, Aethr walked back, then said,

"Remind me never to let you prepare our food, my brother."

Ordamos spat on the ground and pulled out two more bottles, handing a new one to Aethr. “Ah but what you wouldn’t know is that I’m an excellent cook!” He took a swig from the bottle, “You see, while I can indeed make things toxic I can also detoxify already toxic things. This allows me the sole ability to create dishes that would, under normal circumstances, kill an individual. No my brother, I’ve created dishes that men have killed each other to simply taste of.”

The last sentence he said was, of course, a lie but it made Ordamos feel good to say such a thing. It was true however that he had become an excellent cook of the years of life in the wilderness. He chugged the last bit out of his bottle and threw it against the wall of a nearby building. Normally he would avoid being so rude, but with the current disposition of the city he didn’t figure anyone would notice.

“Let us go check on our comrades who still besmirch the battlefield,” He picked up his three bags of bottles and reached for another, “Then we shall see if there is anything worth looting upon the corpse we have made.”

Venetica was thrown into a wall, crashing through it and into the living room of a human family. She lay very still for a few moments, listening to soft whimpers in the room.

V looked up, to see a mother holding several children to her bosom. She sang something softly, but was too far away for V to hear any of the words.

Hearing renewed sounds of battle, V groggily got to her feet. Her sword was still stuck into the beast, so she looked around for a weapon.

A fire poker was all that was near, so she took it. "I'm borrowing this.", she said to the frightened family. The mother nodded, and waved her away.

Her vision blurred, her feet became wobbly. Twice she collapsed, and soon the fire poker became more of a cane than a weapon. She passed figures, unsure of who they were. Flashes of red, and someone walked past her. A spark of green rushed towards her, but her
reaction wasn't quick enough to attack.

A firm, but gentle hand, grabbed her shoulder in an attempt to steady her.

"Ca.....y.u..hea....e?", the voice spoke. Words faded in and out. "A.e...y....a..ri..g..t?"

She hung limply in his grip. The hands were oddly soft, the fingers were long and thin, so he musn't be human. A bottle was being pressed to her lips, and she allowed herself to be forced to drink.

Things slowly faded back into focus, then became hazy again. It was difficult to remain standing, so V sat down.

'I'm fucked up....', V thought to herself, feeling a black eye form, and possibly a broken rib floating around.

Sorrow sighed with relief that he hadn't been forced to draw his blade as he clambered to his feet. Walking over to the Ogran's corpse he decided to be on the safe side, put his boot on the creatures head and using all of his strength crushed the skull of the brute.

"Thank you" he said to Aethr and Ordamos before looking around "What happened to the dark elf?"

He looked and pulled off the Ogran's shortsword. It being the size of a human claymore actually made it the perfect size for him to use. "Anyone want this or can I have it? It would be nice to have a blade to use"

"Well I'll be," the Voice mused as Cassuner angrily tried to ignite SOMETHING, "they actually managed to do it."

"Fucking fantastic!" Cassuner growled, with a bit more sarcasm than he'd intended. Being unable to set things on fire utterly infuriated him. He was a Bi-Gamma, a mancer of the second-highest Mortal Order, and the possibility that something as simple as rain could undo him... it was disgusting.

Shortly after rallying the others to his violent cause, he'd retreated into an ally, where a large balcony shielded him from much of the rain. Still, he could not get a flame going. The wind made sure of that much.

"You're hopeless," the Voice said, "Your father could call flames in the middle of a blizzard, and he was three years younger than you when he died."

Cassuner hated when the Voice compared him to his father.

Kicking a pile of trash into the street, he fumed at his predicament for a few moments, then stalked out into the road where the Ogran had died. "Well done!" Cassuner called out to everyone and to no one at the same time. "Now let's get the hell out of here bef-"

Exploding thunder lit up the sky as buildings came down on all sides. The ensuing dust storm killed visibility. Mixing with rain, the dust fell back to the earth as flecks of mud. Though disgusting, at least it quickly returned visibility.

The Voice whistled again. Cassuner hated when the Voice whistled. Cassuner hated a lot of things about the Voice.

They were surrounded. Ograns on all sides.

"Well I's be knicka'd!" came the booming, guttural voice of what could only be an Ogran (Though Cassuner could not tell from which way it came) "They itsies gawt ald Terrence!"

"Ald Terrence?!" asked another Ogran in mock shock.

"Ya mean dee ald dodga what's touched in de head?" another piped up in a ridiculously high-pitched voice. Horrible laughter sprang up on all sides.

"Well 'op to, lads!" the biggest one said, stepping forth in his golden-trimmed armor. His mane was ten feet long, "Captcha 'em da mancas fo dee masta!"

"Can you understand them?" the Voice asked, not sounding nearly concerned enough, "I never can."

Cassuner cursed loudly.

After failing to beat the first of the brutes with nought but his fists Sorrow was determined to defeat at least one of the new group now matter the cost.

Bellowing like a wild beast he charged straight forwards towards the nearest of the creatures drawing both the short sword he had taken from the downed Ogran and his own. As he removed the later his speed seemed to increase and he seemed to grow even larger.

As he reached the ogran it was still confused that this person was running at him. He began to draw back his arm to swing a punch at Sorrow but the creature wasn't even able to throw the first punch before Sorrow reached it.

Beginning by slashing into its left leg with the short sword which caused the creature to collapse to one knee he thrust his blade through its heart and out of its back killing it near instantly.

Before the other Ograns could recover from the shock of seeing one of their own dispatched so quickly he spun and threw the short sword sending it with a dull thud straight into the head of a second Ogran.

Withdrawing his sword he looked to see who his next victim would be.

Aethr was tense, ready to pounce. He hadn't even been able to take a sip from the bottle Ordamos handed him, elated by his victory, before almost two dozen more Ograns surrounded them. Aethr could not make out their warbling, but hte general tone did not sound like they wanted to thank them for killing one of their brethren. Aethr sighed, thinking on how many situations like this he had been in. Well, not quite like this, as he rarely faced twenty foot tall monstrositys.

Before Aethr could think, however, The Tinman, as Aethr had already started to think of him, burst into action, using his newly looted sword to fell two of the beasts. Aethr laughed, then, after taking a deep drought from the bottle, threw it into the face of the nearest Ogran, then shot it in the face.

Aethr quickly cocked his rifle, then yelled, "Well, my friends, I do not intend on going down easily! Would anyone care to help!?", before loosing a second shot at another ogran.

Talethal felt as he had blinked and missed the battle with the Ogran, his new found "comrades" where very skilled, to say the least. All thoughts of congratulating them on them on a kill worthy of song being composed in their honor, stopped when next group came crashing through a cluster of buildings. A number of them broke off and came at him when the spotted him.

Sidestepping the crash of the beasts blade, he scythe out with his leg and sent the stunned monster crashing into the ground with a solid wall of wind aimed at its knees. The wind screaming in his mind, he jumped over a cleave from the monsters friend. Using the wind he turned the jump into a leaping back flip that landed him on the shoulder monsters.

At this range it was all to easy to form a ball of compressed air and to send it smashing through the beasts ear. As the Ogran spasmed, its grip on its blade slacked. Throwing himself from the corpses shoulder, he garbed and pried the hilt from the loose grip on his way down, and with a burst of air, used it to impale the Ogran on the ground through its neck.

Throwing himself clear of the spurting blood. The last Ogran was stunned at the ease of the slaughter, then bellowing at for its lost brothers it charged forward, only to be cut down by a blade of wind sent screaming at its neck. If nothing else, this fight would give him an excellent opportunity to compose a ballad that would make the minstrels weep and be played for the next thousand years.

"Alright motherFUCKERs." Cassuner growled, clenching both fists. Calling flame might have been out of the question, but summoning sure as hell wasn't.

Both eyes glowed redder than red as the rain and thunder played in the background. At that moment, there was nothing but The Rage that fueled his deadly art. These Ograns were mere children to him. It was laughable, the ease at which he could dispense punishment.

The heathens would very soon be baptized in flame.

"umad bro?"

Cassuner raised both hands to the heavens as his body was engulfed in steam. Only his crimson eyes could be seen through the torrent. lost in The One True Passion, Cassuner called upon his fourth best Randos.

"ELUT'ILIUT ANOS EN UNUNVIALTES" Cassuner screamed in high elvish, tilting his face toward the pouring rain.

"umad."

"GORGABATH EN HOLVARES EN KAVANA'LOU"

Cassuner's expression of pure hatred turned to one of ecstasy. It had been so long since he'd last summoned Efrit.

"You're going to burn this whole town down..."

"EFRIT!!!!" yelled Cassuner, every muscle straining with the intensity of his incantation.

"ZENDAUN, GU'ALLA DENAIS!!!"

As his chant climaxed, Cassuner slapped his palms together, sending a line of pure crimson sailing vertically, straight into the heavens. For a split second, the sky turned as red as blood. Lighting was nothing.

The Ograns halted their advance for a moment, dumbstruck by what was happening. Whoever had put them up to this certainly hadn't filled them in on just what degree of mancer they were hunting.

"Divers are coming," the Voice seemed to say. But Cassuner wasn't listening. There was nothing but the moment.

All was silent for the faintest instant. Even the rain seemed to hang in midair. And then a deafening roar filled the world as the sky ripped open in a hail of flame.

"Did you fucking hear me? I said Divers are coming..."

RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Efrit. The Bleeding Dragon of Hell. The embodiment of flame and misery.

"GET THE FUCK OUT OF THERE!!!"

It was a truly massive creature - Red and black, and... well, massive. It had three dragonic heads and long, winding necks. Its body was sharp and cruel, with eight stinger-tipped tails. It had six legs that it used to gallop across the sky, sending molten lead raining from above. It had no wings, but could fly nonetheless. Its rage surpassed even Cassuner's, and it boasted a thirst for blood that couldn't even be described with human words.

But Efrit knew who the enemy was. No harm came to Cassuner or his apparent comrades. However, the Ograns were shown no mercy. Molten burning lead fell down at first, scathing through armor and flesh, reducing the masses to bleeding ulcers, oozing blood and flame into the streets. Unfortunately the surrounding town fared no better, and was utterly destroyed in the chaos. Many civilians died, melted in the bleeding tears that fell from Efrit's very scales.

Cassuner was laughing, having utterly lost control. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAA

"... woah."

With a deafening crash that could be heard on the other side of the continent, Efrit crash-landed right by Cassuner, sending him toppling to the ground. He quickly picked himself up, still giggling, unable to hear the incessant ringing in his ears.

Efrit screamed out his rage, causing the few surviving ograns to piss, shit, and cum themselves in unison. Rearing back, the beast breathed purple flame, burning all but one into nothingness.

Raising his fist to the horrible fire, Cassuner drew upon its strength, controlling it. He siphoned off a chunk of the flame, and held it above his head. It was about as large as a morbidly obese element. Surveying the area, Cassuner could not find any surviving enemies to burn and kill. This gave him much grief.

One ogran lay on the ground, writhing in burning agony, but it was not for Cassuner to kill. It was Efrit's toll; the price of his service. One giant paw after the other, the evil, flaming creature happily stomped toward the dying enemy. Cassuner turned his eyes as Efrit began to violently rape the ogran with a cock as massive as seventeen redwoods. In and out it ripped through the poor half-man's asshole, ripping blood, shit, and flame everywhere. By the time Efrit ejaculated, the ogran was dead. Purple magma cum erupted into the streets, melting the dead ogran and its decimated comrades. Hundreds of villagers were swallowed up, melted, and killed as the tsunami tidal-wave of sun-hot-cum rushed over the land.

RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

"Dammit Cassuner! The Divers were coming!" Very rarely did the Voice call Cassuner by name. This meant that something was dreadfully wrong. Snapping briefly, out of his unfulfilled bloodlust, Cassuner leapt into the purpling red sky, propelled upward by the gigantic fireball he controlled. Within seconds, he was a hundred feet in the air.

He could see the smoke, despite how dark it was.

Divers. Invincible undead creatures, as fast and vicious as starving cheetahs. They had surrounded the city.

Cassuner could do nothing but laugh. He would enjoy burning an enemy that could not die. He did not even care what had brought them here, or what they had to do with the destroyed ograns.

All he wanted to do was kill.

That was all he wanted.

They had such little time. Hell was coming after its master.

Bianca.

Talethal simply refused to take notice of the giant rapping demon cock monster shooting cum with a force a thousand suns. For the sake of his sanity, it could not possibly be happening. He turned his attention to something he could handle.

Turning, he blocked, parried and countered a lightning fast swing meant to rend his throat open, divers, unkillable abominations from the dark sea. At the very least he could do something about these, if only temporary. Snapping the neck of the one he had in his grip, he decided it was time to use the wind to its full power.

As more divers came sprinting at him, clawing, biting and kicking, he let loose with a flurry of blows barely visible to the naked eye as he broke them as wave breaks upon the stone, all the while he chanted. Turning he sang out.

"Cassuner, lend me your fire"

"Only if you promise to kill many foes!"

"By the winds I swear to do that"

"Then take this shit"

Finishing his chanting, the wind stilled for a second, only to start moving again at breakneck speed. Slowly a tornado formed, then another, then another, till there where thirteen howling like mad dogs to be let loose of their leash. The hunger coming from them was almost palpable, for they where living beasts slaved to form he had given them

"NOW Cassuner"

And then there where thirteen raging infernos.

Any civilians where now long dead or had fled for safety, hopefully. He unshackled the beasts and sent them raging into the waves of divers running towards them.

Venetica knew her skills were of no use anymore. With the appearance of a dragon, she knew the city would not last much longer. She made her way out of the city, avoiding the fireballs and craters that were seemingly everywhere.

V felt cold as soon as she left the town gates. Before her stretched a large field, and after that was the forest. Whatever angry creatures lived within were a safer choice than the angry giant beasts that were behind her.

"What was that?!", a man shouted. Venetica could barely see the man. He stood with a group of other survivors, and a few guards.

"Are we all that's left?", Venetica asked, running over to the group. It was a ragtag collection of the city, but surely not the only surviving citizens. The rest must have already fled into the forest.

"Demons! From the seven hells!", a woman shrieked. "They come for our sins! They come for our souls!"

After the woman said this, a few children began crying and the scene devolved from there. Panic and fear set in, but V was concerned with something else.

Smoke, but from the forest. Figures began running towards the city at an impossible pace, and soon were upon the group. Blood splattered over V, and screams filled the air.

Venetica ran, as fast as she could, into the forest. She had made it only a few yards past the entrance when something tackled her around the waist. V kicked it off her and managed to turn over before its decayed hands were around her neck. The hands tightened, cutting off air. Venetica's vision blurred, air running low.

"h...elp..", she gasped, hoping someone, anyone would hear her. The monster holding her looked up, and was thrown off of her. V turned and grabbed her throat, sucking in air in huge breathfuls.

The creature that had attacked her was on her again, and a loud rustling of the trees and the creaking of wood sounded around her. A branch swung from a tree and knocked the monster off again.

Venetica looked around. The trees...were closer than they were earlier.

“THIS,” Ordamos yelled in displeasure at the raging cock dragon and the flaming tornadoes, “IS BULLSHIT.”

Ordamos could handle a lot of things. In fact most would agree that he was a relatively passive person. However, the ONLY reason he was a passive person was because it had forever been engraved in his head he was better than everyone else. Ordamos started feeling slightly inferior; having seen a Dragon kill off all the remaining Organs, and immortal corpses being made bitches by the wind made. This would simply not do.

Ordamos grabbed his cloak at the collar and unhooked the latch. His cloak, now loose from his body, dropped to the ground and exposed him in all of his glory. From head to toe his entire body was covered in black tattoos that made no attempt at a tangible image. If one were to look closer at these confusing marks they would realize that they were attempts to conceal the thousands of slashes Ordamos’ skin had endured from the blades of enemies. His eyes turned white, almost a holy white, and closing his eyelids did little to hide the color. He clenched his hands into fists and fell to his knees. Like a beacon his tattoos lit up a radiating white. His entire body glowed like that of an angel. If only the others knew how much evil it truly meant.

“Si’HIVAN MOK TUNAR” he shouted in a different voice with a rage unparalleled, “IK’NA HAR SI LA TWAL’AH!!! IN’MOTICO LAN SIVANA!!!!"

“GIVE ME YOUR FALLEN I BEG OF THEE!” he shouted.

He repeated the chorus in the same voice as before: “Si’HIVAN MOK TUNAR IK’NA HAR SI LA TWAL’AH!!! IN’MOTICO LAN SIVANA!!!!"

“GIVE ME YOUR FALLEN!!!” he shouted again, “I BEG OF THEEEEEEEEEE!!”

He dropped to his knees and began the process of catching his breath. A pain shot into his stomach and his began to cough up blood. The commotion he had made had caused others to look at him.

“It’s alright,” he said smiling a bloody smile, “What happens next is well worth it.”

He cracked open a bottle and a wolf howled, several, more.. Branches could be heard cracking as if they were coming to life. Other animals.. A hoard...

“COME MY MINIONS” he shouted he glee, “DINE UPON THIS FEAST YOU HAVE SO HUNGRLY WAITED IN THE AFTERLIFE FOR.”

And with that: wolves, deer, bears, and even trees themselves came crashing away out of the forests that had hidden them. They all shared a feature with each other… they were all clearly dead. Eyes missing, rotten teeth bared, and flesh hanging from broken limbs. It was gruesome this site… but Ordamos fucking loved it.

By this time a large puddle had surrounded Ordamos. It was no longer water… it bubbled a violent poison. The animals came and drank it from around Ordamos. He pet them and smiled.

“Fucking… kill… everything.”

For the elves closest to nature there was reserved a special ability... Likewise, a special place in hell for those who actually used it.

The creature decided against the weak female in front of it, and backed away. Eventually Venetica was alone again.

The ground moved near V, but she ignored it. She dismissed the movement as the ground shaking from the dragon. More movement around her.

A tongue, forked and thin, ran its way across her neck. She gasped and turned, but only heard laughter. She held the fire poker tighter to her chest.

"Quite ze ilf.", a female voice hissed. "Dark az ze night, und az sveet az un berry."

"W-..what are you?", V asked, her voice quivering. She couldn't make out any figures in the forest, but something was near her. She could hear it moving, but not any footsteps.

The ground crackled as something slid over it. V swung, but the blow missed.

"Zat vas not very nice, Dark Ilf.", the woman cooed. "I savez zu from ze monstairs, und yu treat moi like zis."

A scoff could be heard in the dark. "Dizrezpeckful."

"Who should I be thanking?", V asked, straining her eyes.

"Moi.", the woman said, slithering into view. Her face was beautiful, her entire body from the waist up was clad in a golden array of small chains, knitted together in an extravagant fashion. From her waist down was that of a snake.

"A Lillend....", Venetica whispered. "Why did you save me?"

"Why?", the lillend scoffed. "I like zu, zats vhy."

Then the snake woman laughed, a sort of hissing laugh. She flicked her forked tongue out, to which V recoiled.

"Zu have ai gift, Dark Ilf, und I vill help zu unlock zit.", the snake hissed. Without warning the lillend grabbed Venetica, and pulled her into a kiss.

And yes, there was tongue.

Cassuner was on his knees at this point, bent over in a fit of laughter that rang well beyond the pitch of insanity. "That's what I think about your fucking Divers!" Cassuner shouted at the burnt cobblestone before his face.

"That won't kill them," the Voice muttered, "They'll just keep regenerating and coming back."

"Then," Cassuner began, rising to his feet, "we'll just have to keep spanking them until they give up."

"I need you alive, host-boy. You better not fucking die."

"Not without taking a great many of them with me."

Rolling up his sleeves, Cassuner hunched down as low as he could, and pulled up with his arms, as if trying to lift something extremely heavy off the ground. Gritting his teeth, he tilted his head back, growling. Inch by inch, he managed to raise the invisible weight. He tried to block out the carnage that swirled around him, but could plainly see in his peripheral vision, that Efrit was having way too much fun with the Divers. For once, he was glad for the rain. It felt lovely.

To the untrained eye, it probably looked as if Cassuner was trying to blow out a massive shit. It certainly wasn't his most dignified technique.

Inch by inch, centimeter by straining centimeter, Cassuner slowly managed to stand up, raising his cupped hands ever-higher.

And then, in an instant, the invisible weight broke, and Cassuner nearly lept into the air as his palms fired straight up. In the same instant, lava erupted from massive fissures all over town, swallowing buildings and corpses. Some scathing geysers shot as high as two-hundred feet in the air before returning to earth, where everything the burning sea touched was blasted into oblivion.

If he could not destroy the Divers, he would would simply melt them and sweep their bubbling remains into the ocean.

"Fight fire with lava. My, how I adore pyromancer logic."

Cassuner laughed, holding both hands over his eyes. That had taken quite a bit out of him. Wiping the sweat away, his sight beheld a vision of pure beauty. A sea of lava, twenty feet high, surrounded them in a perfect circle, about fifty feet in diameter. Cassuner was in the dead middle of the Safety Field. He hoped none of his comrades had wandered beyond where the crimson walls now marked death for anyone caught beyond.

Though he could see little except lava and sky, he could hear Efrit, clearly beside himself with joy. This was like a hot bath for him. Cassuner almost felt bad for the lovable rape-dragon when he began to direct the lava out into the bay. Gradually, the red wall surrounding them started to go down.

And then a roar shot up, like hell tearing through the earth and stars.

GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!

"Now you've done it."

"What was that?!" Cassuner demanded. Whatever it was, it sounded far angrier than he'd ever heard Efrit, and THAT was saying something.

Picking up the pace, Cassuner pushed his arms forward, launching the rest of the lava out into the ocean. Another scream, more hideous than the first went up, stabbing painfully into Cassuner's eardrums.

When the lava had receded, there was nothing but black, smoldering nothingness, except for the parts of nearby buildings that had been within the Safety Field.

Cassuner saw Efrit, rearing back, defensively. In front of the mighty dragon, out into the boiling bay, was an even bigger dragon.

"Meet Leviathan," the Voice said, sounding rather annoyed, "I assume she needs no introduction."

Cassuner's jaw had long since dropped. Turning, he began running north as fast as his little legs would carry him. As he went, he cooled the boot-melting ground he ran over so that the others might follow. If they didn't, they were surely doomed.

The rain seemed to fall even harder. Behind him, he could see nothing but the red of his favorite dragon's eyes, and the eight giant blue eyes of Leviathan.

He hoped Efrit could buy them at least a little time.

"IfuckedupIfuckedupIfuckedup," the pyromancer muttered as he dashed.

"Yes, yes you did."

When the lava flow hit him Sorrow was suprised that he wasn't killed and even more so that his sword seemed to pulse with energy as the lava hit him almost as if it was absorbing the power from it. Sheathing the sword he looked for his comrades.

Suddenly a scream erupted and Sorrow turned to see a dragon even bigger than the one the pyromancer had made rise from the ocean.

"Oh great" He thought to himself "This is going to hurt lik-" he then noticed the pyromancer sprinting away.

"Hmm" he muttered "I guess it wouldn't be wise to even try then" and began following the pyromancer using his larger size and the impressive speed he held he soon caught up to being close behind the pyromancer and fell into line with him.

"Keep an eye on that one," the Voice said as the large man came sprinting up to Cassuner. "Talk to him. Mark his name."

"Bossy today, aren't you?"

Turning around in mid-trot, Cassuner began running backwards. "Oi, what's your name?!"

Just then, the great and all-powerful pyromancer tripped over a chunk of blasted cobblestone, and twisted his ankle most painfully.

Growling, Cassuner grabbed his ankle, and tried to prop himself back up. The pain instantly put him back on his ass. Just then, Cassuner caught sight of Efrit...

He was dead, encased in ice. Cassuner hadn't even noticed when it had happened. Leviathan's attention was now directed entirely at them. Three of its countless legs were on land at this point. the giant beast resembled an eight-eighed blue crocodile with a long neck. Its sheer size was difficult to fully comprehend. Some people claimed it had as many as ninety pair of legs.

"Efrit!" Cassuner yelled, something almost like sadness gripping his heart, "Efriiiiiiiiiiiiit!!!" He wasn't supposed to die. He was supposed to fucking fly off if things got bad. They had spoken on matters of desperation before.

He'd probably died so fast that it hadn't even mattered. Leviathan was no mere dragon. Leviathan was one of The Beasts, sister to the very Beast that resided in The Forbidden Blade.

"Perhaps it is for the best," the Voice murmured as Cassuner quietly grieved, "When others show, they'll think it was the fire-dragon that caused all this. Nobody will know you were here."

"Shut up!" Cassuner barked in a rasp, having lost his voice. Getting up painfully, he began wobbling toward the dreaded Leviathan, intent on vengeance. He made it three feet before falling in pain.

"You could kill it," the Voice agreed, realizing Cassuner's intent, "but think of the consequences."

Leviathan controlled the tides and the rain. Killing it would be a very bad thing.

"Fuck!" Cassuner yelled. "Fuck fuck fuck!!!"

He still couldn't walk.

The Beast was still coming.

"Well if I'm gonna die anyway," the Pyromancer said, his voice quivering in rage, "I'm taking it with me."

The Way of the Pyromancer. His eyes began glowing purple.

He initiated the first phase of his most powerful incantation ; Enokjurau, the Inner Phase. His heart, it seemed, made the only sound in the world.

Before he could answer Cassuner's request for his name the pyromancers tripped in front of him and fell. Stopping next to him he watched the man get to his feet and attempt to walk back but collapse after a short distance.

After a short bit of shouting the pyromancer began chanting. Looking back at the giant dragon Sorrow thought for a moment before grabbing Cassuner and flinging him over his shoulder and beginning to carry him in a rather undignified manner. He put the choice to take the pyromancer down to instinct and left it at that.

"You're coming with me" He called to Cassuner "Might as well make myself useful"

And with that he began running away from the town at the same speed as before as if he had no hinderence from the weight of carrying the man.

Instantly, Cassuner's eyes reverted to normal (normal by his standards anyway), as he was slung over the giant's shoulders like a sack of potatoes.

His first thought was to protest, but he quickly found that all the fight had fled from his limbs. Using what little concentration he had left, the pyromancer continued cooling the seared ground with his mind.

"Thank goodness somebody here has more sense than you."

"You're name," Cassuner mumbled as his hair blew about his face, disorienting him, "Tell me your name, friend."

Looking at the pyromancer he was glad to see he wasn't going to struggle. That would make this a lot easier.

"It's Sorrow. I already know yours to be Cassuner" he said "Once we're out of here you're going to have to explain what just happened. I've seen a lot in my time but that was somewhat new"

And with that he continued running.

Well, Adrian WAS smithing a sword. Before everything started burning & strange monsters started killing his customers, and everybody else.

Now, he was on the road heading away from town, with a few weird monsters in hot pursuit. He had already attempted to crush them with stone, using his Geomancy, but they would always reform and come after him again.

After running from the monsters for a while, Adrian had potentially the smartest idea he'd had in a while; He'd bury the monsters alive!

And so he did. The Earth separated at his will, and the monsters fell into the crevice he had created. After closing the fissure he had opened, Adrian heard a loud roar from the town he had recently escaped... And saw what looked like a single figure heading in his direction, closing the distance between them very fast...

He called out to the mysterious humanoid figure. "Perhaps they know what is happening in town", he said to himself.

The fiery infernos Tal had helped create ripped through every thing in their path. He laughed at the sight of it as he continued to incapacitate the divers that made it past them. Though they where unkillable, they would be able to halt the divers long enough for an easy get away. Smiling he turned to view the ocean, to where the river of molten lava was washing remains out to see.

His smile turned to a frown as he viewed the enormous dragon that was making its way on it land. Seeing Cassuner running away from it at full speed, he decided it was not a good idea to stick around and see if he could kill it. With a thought he sent all thirteen tornadoes spinning at the beast hopping to slow it down and buy them some time.

Knowing it would hurt like hell come morning, he decided he needed to get the hell out of there now. Chanting of a quick incantation, he rose five feet above the ground and then flew quickly overcoming the mancer, who was now being carried.

"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT THING"

"SOMETHING THAT KILLS YOU IF YOU THROW LAVA ON IT" Cassuner shouted back to the Aeromancer.

"Ahem."

"Oh, say, can you get us the hell out of here, maybe?"

Talethal nodded and touched down back on the ground and began to chant in a baritone, the words reverberating through the air, and echoed back in an understandable tongue.

Sors salutis Fate is against me
et virtutis in health
michi nunc contraria, and virtue,
est affectus driven on
et defectus and weighted down,
semper in angaria. always enslaved.

The air around them swirled, as Tal called its attention to him.

Sors immanis Fate - monstrous
et inanis, and empty,
rota tu volubilis, you whirling wheel,
status malus, you are malevolent,
vana salus well-being is vain
semper dissolubilis, and always fades to nothing,
obumbrata shadowed
et velata and veiled
michi quoque niteris; you plague me too;
nunc per ludum now through the game
dorsum nudum I bring my bare back
fero tui sceleris. to your villainy.

A distinct shape started to form in the air, a deep rhythmic thump could be heard, almost like a heart, only a thousand times more audible.

Hac in hora So at this hour
sine mora without delay
corde pulsum tangite; pluck the vibrating strings;
quod per sortem since Fate
sternit fortem, strikes down the strong man,
mecum omnes plangite! everyone weep with me!




Njord

With a roar, the vague shape became the well defined form of a sleek white dragon. Turning it looked into Tal's eyes. Gazing at him for a moment it nodded its head, and then kneeled down offering its right side for ease of climbing on.

Throwing himself in the air, he took his place on its back where the gap in the spines made a perfect seat.

"Tin man, pass him up to me then get on."