Seeing Acai rush in foolishly, Mixine let out a sigh and responded to Marcus, "Fine, but I am not fighting. Mahtr... you might have to carry me out if things go wrong. Just don't touch me." With that, both Mahtr and Mixine decided to follow because being left alone meant greater danger. Mixine did not consider her rod to be a weapon, but she pulled it out and kept it by her side. Behind her would be Mahtr. Though she was truly a witch, her own powers were almost completely singular. While Vetiver and Merrique seemed capable of such trickery and elegance, Mixine's power was far more elemental in nature. Magic that made pretty lights and acts were invariably flawed to her. As much as she did not want to show anyone her power, she prepared and suspected that both Vetiver and Merrique saw through her disguise and knew her potential. "Baba. Forgive me, but I cannot run anymore... this is my stand." As they followed Marcus up to the parapets, Mixine's footsteps became almost inaudible and the cloak clung to own body more tightly than ever before. Her breathe slowed and then stopped during the ascent and the way the air moved around her began to change again. The air current around her became charged and very fine loose particulates began to cling to Mixine's outer cloak. Under all her concealment, her body had begun to shut down as her body prepared itself. Her four limbs began to alternate and build up a differing charge as she mixed her physical body with the spiritual energy as a catalyst. At this point, Mixine became weakly magnetic and trace ferrous material would be drawn physically to her.
"Jade, why are you running back?" Vetiver asked when she was close. "Is something wrong?" "Fighting," she panted, and ran to find Marcus. By the time she reached there, though, he, Mix and the hulking figure were heading up the wall. Jade sighed, and ran back to the mist. Where there was a huge battle earlier, now a single lone figure stood. He was facing off against Merrique, Vetiver and Acai. Jade walked slowly and quietly through the fog, clutching her dagger in one hand, waiting for an opportunity,
(Jade, Merrique Vetiver, Acia) Any projectile thrown at him stopped midair before falling to the ground as his face twisted into a snarl again, before a chuckle came from him. "Look at you all. Heretics lacking insight." He dove towards them, his thick pauldron smashing into Acia's chest while a bolt was launched at Jade, the shot aiming for her knee. His movement after that was smooth, a lunge with his brand towards Merrique, managing to burn the mark into her shoulder. "Cowards the lot of you." He whispered, before leaping away and fading into the mists. "I shall enjoy this hunt."
(Marcus, Mixine) The parapet was almost a hundred meters high and would have provided a clear vantage point from which to examine the city, if not for the thick fog. Instead only a few structures were visible. In the center of the city was large cathedral, ivory towers reaching up from beneath the fog, one at each compass point with each having statues of the gods or long forgotten saints carved into them. A faint light could be seen, shining out from one of the windows, before quickly being snuffed out. To the west the tops of trees could be seen, ashen and leafless, though, a sense of permanence radiated from them, as if they'd been there since the dawn of time and would last to the end. The east though, was empty, not a single structure poking through the fog.
Mixine's eyes caught the light before it vanished and she lowered herself behind the parapet to hide. Mixine concealed herself and slowly peeked one eye out towards the source and seeing if it reappeared while scanning the area quickly again. This large cathedral was beyond her comprehension, such a sight filled her with awe and she wonder. She spared enough of a glimpse to catch the thick fog which clouded her view and hoped it would lift in the morning, but fear drove her now. "Down," Mixine moved back and Mahtr came close to her, but did not touch her, "A light vanished from that central building. We may have been spotted, let's not catch death. Come down. Before we are caught." Mixine and Mahtr turned and headed down the parapets from their ascent, Mixine was nervous that they had been spotted and wondered if Mahtr was really a thief, or if they all were thieves of some sort. Everything pointed to this place being inhabited and that they were invaders. Confused and on edge, Mixine retreated to their original position whether or not Marcus and Kent would follow. Her power still surged about her as she grumbled, "This is no holy land."
Merrique "I shall enjoy this hunt." Merrique spat on the ground where the psycho was standing. She was clutching the arm that had been burned and breathing rapidly through her nose, trying not to dwell on the pain. Her magic started to return slowly and she scrambled inside her satchel for a small jar of thick, greenish gel. "I call forth light, in the dark of night," Merrique chanted softly over the smoking brand. "To take away the pain of this blight. Lessen the hurt, lessen the sight. I will it to be with all my might." When she finished, she rubbed the liquid over the brand with two fingers in a circular motion and continued to chant, until the pain was almost completely gone. When she removed her fingers, the brand started to fade away; in just a few seconds there was nothing there but a smooth patch of dark olive-toned skin. It wasn't healed, it was still there, but Merrique had cast an illusion over it to "lessen the sight". She exhaled and wiped her forehead, which was covered in sweat. "Well, that was fun," Merrique remarked dryly. She stood up, wincing slightly, and forced a smile as she turned to Vetiver. "Thank you for helping me," Merrique said with feeling. Then she turned to Acai. "You too, my little savior. You both were great...which is more than I can say for the others." Merrique's smile lessened a fraction as she glanced over her shoulder in the direction of the front gates. "Why don't we rejoin our loyal companions?" Merrique strode back through the gates of Para'Ven, after picking up her bow and her throwing knives, and putting her secret dagger back in it's hidden sheath. Once sje was back outside, Merrique faced the others and crossed her arms over her shapely breasts. "May I ask what you lot were doing while I was fighting for my life?" she demanded, tossing her long ringlets out of her face. Her eyes blazed gold and made her look all the more fearsome.
(Merrique) A searing pain flashed from the mark, forcing itself into the rest of her body, and any feeling of magic quickly evaporated as if being burned out. A horrifying screech clawed at the inside of her skull, like a child being torn from its mother. Then came the vision. A great brown wolf tangled in vines bowing, a book filled with savage runes beneath its paw as it howled at a pale disk that was chained to the sky. Three leeches rested in the background, one first was black, the colour of a moonless night, the second was a coppery tone and barbed while the finally was a sickly green, as if decay had set in. All three latched themselves to the earth, draining whatever they could. The black one began to twitch slightly, before its stomach split open as if something forced its way out, connected by a fleshy cord that hovered in the air as if linked to something unseen. After half a dozen seconds, it faded, leaving her in the world once more.
Marcus caught a glimpse of the light coming from the central cathedral, and noticed when it was gone. What was that light? Someone looking out for someone? The fog clouded his vision so that he could not see what was going on below. Fortunately, the fog did not reach him. He had no idea if his new accomplices were dead or alive, and he was not so reckless as to check. However, he had a feeling that they were not dead yet. They would surely think them cowards... If they decided to break with him, Mixine, Kent, Dart, and Mahtr, that would be their poor choice. He decided that the best plan of action was to regroup with the others, then head to the center cathedral where they had seen the light. Or... he had seen trees in the West portion of the city. Maybe they could find supplies and perhaps rest there. He had seen nothing to the East, and was mildly curious as to what was there as well. "Down," He heard Mix's strange voice, "A light vanished from that central building. We may have been spotted, let's not catch death. Come down. Before we are caught." Marcus watched Mix and its companion move down from the parapets back onto the courtyard before the gate, and followed them, motioning for Kent and Dart to follow him. They stayed low, worried they might be spotted by someone watching out from the central cathedral. They had gained a lot of insight of the layout of the castle. They made it down the stairs, walking out onto the courtyard, where they saw a somewhat frazzled Merrique, Vetiver, Acai, and Jade returning. Merrique was in front, her arms crossed, a look of veiled anger on her face. "May I ask what you lot were doing while I was fighting for my life?" "We were scouting out the city from the parapets, and noticed some interesting things. Do you want to hear what we found out, or are you going to stubbornly refuse to talk reasonably with someone who didn't mindlessly leap into a risky maneuver with creatures and things they didn't know about?" Marcus held a withering frown on his face, eyeing the almost invisible mark on her arm. Of course, the only reason he'd noticed it was because he had looked over her before.
"May I ask what you lot were doing while I was fighting for my life?" "We were scouting out the city from the parapets, and noticed some interesting things. Do you want to hear what we found out, or are you going to stubbornly refuse to talk reasonably with someone who didn't mindlessly leap into a risky maneuver with creatures and things they didn't know about?" As they returned and regrouped, Mixine strode up to Merrique and stared at her with rage, "Supercilious witch! Flying in all cock-sure like a fiend! Are those breasts sucking all the nourishment from your brain or something?" "Children! The three of you! Children!" Mixine seethed with anger and her body began to radiate even stronger as she continued her little rant, pointing Merrique, Vetiver and Acai in order, "May your womb be barren! May your cock rot off! Acai... do not rush to your death before you know love. Now sit down and live for a few more decades!" "Do not waste your breathe on them. They will only leap to their deaths." she said calmly to Marcus and she raised her arm out to point at Vetiver, the rod's tip concealed under the edge of the cloak, "You are no leader of men. I cannot touch and will not lay a finger on Acai, and I think you knew that. So hang your head in shame, because you nearly killed him with your stupidity! You pompous man-child."
Jade legs were shaking. It wasn't her injury, the bolt scraped her knee thanks to a quick movement, it was the shock that the man noticed her. All along, her greatest weapon was her stealth mixed with the shadows. She was the dagger in the night, the swift death that few noticed before it came. And now the fog has taken away her shadows, and the strange man through some sorcery noticed her move. Even in captivity, Jade never felt so helpless, so clueless. That man wiuld come after them, she was sure of it, and she didn't know what to expect. She then swallowed hard. This wasn't the time to feel sorry for herself. She was Jade Kleese, she was a survivor, and this time, she wasn't alone. But was her company a good thing? Jade returned to find the group in argument. Mix was screaming at at the two sorcerers and the child, for good reason, she thought. Jade herself was wondering whether to kill Merrique herself. She joined the group silently and listened.
Vetiver Vetiver gave Marcus an equally withering look as the cowardly mercenary justified his lack of action. "Going up to parapets?" Vetiver said in a bone-dry tone. "While we were fighting for our lives? That seemed like the appropriate time to go sight-seeing to you?" The tall sorcerer shook his head and turned away from Marcus with a look of absolute disgust on his face. Vetiver considered himself to be cold and remote, but not even he would leave someone to fend off a crazy murderer on their own. In his eyes, Marcus' excuses were flimsy explanations for his cowardice. "I guess you can only fight for something if you're paid to do it," Vetiver grumbled under his breath. Before he could do or say anything else, The Tent exploded, yelling curses and, once again, calling him childish names. He felt his power rising through his whole body as his anger escalated. "You are trying my patience, Tent Thing," Vetiver spat out. "Instead of cursing us with your foul tongue, how about you show some human decency and ask if we are alright after our battle?" He almost went on, but then he saw that Merrique was having some sort of fit, and he rushed to her side. "My lady, what is wrong?" Vetiver asked frantically, holding Merrique's shoulders.
Merrique Merrique cried out in agony, the brilliant gold in her eyes flaring bright before vanishing. She felt the intense white-hot pain in her head and the renewed scolding of the brand on her arm. In the same instant, all of her power drained away and she felt like someone had ripped her soul out of her body. The terrifying visions flashed through her mind and she wondered if she was going insane. If it was not for Vetiver's firm hands on her shoulders, she would have collapsed on the ground in an undignified heap. When the pain finally left, Merrique clung to Vetiver and looked around at the ground, still trembling from head to toe. "The one-eyed man, he somehow took my magic," Merrique babbled. "He burned me with this brand and he took my magic. He wants to cleanse us, people with magic, I mean." She paused to take deep gulp of air and then she rushed on. "I had a vision, a wolf in vines bowing, a book of savage runes, some kind of disk chained in the sky, and three leeches, there were three leeches, one black, one copper with spikes, and one this gross shade of rotting green, all of them latched on to the earth and sucking, sucking, sucking, and the black one started to shake and it's stomach ripped open and something came out on a cord, like an umbilical cord..." Merrique's eyes were wild as she looked at each one of them, sweating and shaking all over. "What does it mean?!" she shouted. Then she started crying so hard that her sobs wracked her entire body.
Mixine ignored Vetiver's comment and turned away from Merrique, believing her to be overly dramatic, "Given a blessing and crying like a baby. Mixine will handle it." Stooping down and pulling herself out from under the cloak, Mixine's left hand removed the smiling white mask as she rose up with the rod firmly in her right hand. Her soft gray face was the only part of her exposed and it was not the visage of someone with an ounce of anger. Somber and with a sweet feminine voice, Mixine looked down on both Merrique and Vetiver and smiled sweetly, "Step aside, Vetiver. I am here." The two had caused enough trouble and Mixine asserted herself to protect everyone. If this meant teaching Vetiver a lesson, so be it, but she knew spoiled misbehaving brats needed and secretly craved authority. Age or rank meant nothing over the life of another, but Vetiver was a despicable man in her eyes. She did not care what the Muse did with such males, but if he was any example, they were best culled.
"Going up to parapets? While we were fighting for our lives? That seemed like the appropriate time to go sight-seeing to you? I guess you can only fight for something if you're paid to do it." Vetiver snapped. In which way did Vetiver equate scouting with sight-seeing? Suicide with 'fighting for our lives'? What would he have been fighting for, a death wish? This sorcerer Vetiver was getting on his nerves, however, Marcus had the common sense to keep his mouth shut to keep the argument from getting anymore heated. "Children! The three of you! Children!" Anger seemed to boil off of Mix in every direction, "May your womb be barren! May your cock rot off! Acai... do not rush to your death before you know love. Now sit down and live for a few more decades!" Mix turned to face Marcus. "Do not waste your breathe on them. They will only leap to their deaths." It turned to Vetiver, its arm pointing straight at him. "You are no leader of men. I cannot touch and will not lay a finger on Acai, and I think you knew that. So hang your head in shame, because you nearly killed him with your stupidity! You pompous man-child." Marcus was taken aback by the rant, and was too slow before Vetiver came back at Mix. "You are trying my patience, Tent Thing," Vetiver spat. "Instead of cursing us with your foul tongue, how about you show some human decency and ask if we are alright after our battle?" Then, suddenly, Merrique howled in agony, and Marcus's attention snapped to her. Vetiver rushed to be near her. "My lady, what is wrong?" She seemed to fling about like a fly in the air, until she came to a stop in Vetiver's grasp. She mumbled almost incoherently about something she had seen, and Marcus made a mental note of some of the words he'd heard, knowing that Kent had better ears and memory than him, and would be able to recite it later. "What does it mean!?" Merrique cried out, the pain affecting her. The brand on her arm, almost invisible, was probably responsible. He saw Mixine rushing to her side, and saw her remove its outfit and mask which had for so long been its clothes and face, but from this angle Marcus could not make out its face, but Merrique seemed to quiet and so did Vetiver. However, he did hear its voice... and it was feminine. A very sweet, lullaby voice. "Step aside, Veltiver. I am here." Marcus watched somewhat furiously, the arguments and refutals bouncing around in his head, his heart beating insanely to it's own furious drum. He breathed in and out, stepping away from the scene, suddenly noticing that the woman who had introduced herself as Harriet earlier was by him, only a few feet away, quiet and silent. He stepped away from the commotion, and near her, and sat down next to her, feeling a nice calm envelop his heart and calm it. "A smorgasboard if there was any, am I right?" He gently chuckled, his voice lighter, slower, quieter, infused with tiny chords of optimism. As if he had left the confident leader Marcus behind at the argument, and in the darkness showed himself as the young adult he was. "I hope you weren't hurt too badly." He didn't know why he trusted this woman. A complete mystery; both the reason and the woman herself. She was a sorceress, after all. The type who corrupt the world with their egotistic death wishes and curses. Maybe she was one of them... maybe this was just hormones trying to get him a child... maybe it was just one of those mysteries one doesn't really solve. Or maybe, Marcus almost laughed aloud, it was because she was now just so invisible and excluded that he saw a version of himself in her that wasn't even there. "If you want to be by yourself and think, that's good... I'm always here and available... I don't know what you faced back there, but be confident in the fact that you survived. It's what I tell myself every day, even if something bad happened." Marcus lightly chuckled, the singsong notes fading into the air gently, as he lays on his back on the grass there. "Don't know if that helped. Just like I don't know if I'll help much here in this city where sorceresses like you are beaten handily... Tomorrow is another day."
Jade looked at Marcus. He was kind, foolishly so, even. But if there was anyone in the group she would trust, she had a feeling that it was him. "Thank you," she said quietly. "I am fine, it's just a scratch. The name is Jade, by the way. Jade Kleese." Jade looked over to the commotion. Mix appeared to have removed her mask, revealing a grey, Brakenmarshian face. Jade wondered how a powerful magic user managed to leave the marshes, and suddenly a thought struck her. Was the woman an agent of the Muse? She never heard of the Muse's girls leaving the marshes, but then again, she had seen stranger things.
Merrique Merrique was deeply hurt and all she wanted to do was curl up into a ball and cry forever. Her magic was gone and there wasn't any reason for her to believe that she could get it back. But how could she possibly sink into despair when everyone was yelling at each other? She stared up at Mix in shock when she started yelling curses and threatening Vetiver. "How can you threaten to fight him?" Merrique demanded. Her voice was unsteady, but her eyes sparked with anger. "If anything, you should be thanking him for being brave enough to do...to do something!" Merrique stopped and took a deep breath to calm herself. She felt an aching black hole in her chest where her magic used to be. She tucked her black ringlets behind her ears with shaky hands and wiped the snot and tears off her face with an embroidered red napkin. "Listen, you can yell at Vetiver if you like, but put that toy away," Merrique told Mix, pointing at the rod she was brandishing. "Because I won't let you fight him or anyone else, it's just plain stupid. I may be...magic-less...but I'm far from harmless. And I'd hate to have to hurt you. I've considered you a friend so far, even if you're a little off." Merrique smiled at Mix, hoping she would calm down.
"Thank you... I am fine, it's just a scratch. The name is Jade, by the way. Jade Kleese." Jade said, looking up at the commotion. Marcus glanced at her, smiling to himself. Her real name, finally. He'd known Harriet had sounded off. Marcus slowly got up, brushing off the stray strands and crumbs of grass and dirt, then walks back to join the group, readying himself to defend his position. He was not wrong for staying back. He hadn't even been able to see the battle, and in the first place, it was suggested that they all stay back except for one scout! How could he have been expected to go in there if it was asked of him to stay back, and he wasn't able to see what was happening in the first place? Merrique was fuming, with an unsteady voice edged with anger. "How can you threaten to fight him? If anything, you should be thanking him for being brave enough to do...to do something!" She paused for a moment. "Listen, you can yell at Vetiver if you like, but put that toy away, because I won't let you fight him or anyone else, it's just plain stupid. I may be...magic-less...but I'm far from harmless. And I'd hate to have to hurt you. I've considered you a friend so far, even if you're a little off." "Okay, listen everyone... Merrique's right. Calm down. Mix, put your weapon away... Everyone, just calm down, please." He waited for a second, allowing his heartbeat to calm down from what it was. He turns to Merrique, directly talking to her. "Merrique, I think we'll discuss your dream after we get a few urgent matters out of the way... First, I want to know... who was it that you fought? Was it a human? A creature? Also, did the fog have any strange effects on you? Also, I heard you say that you were magic-less... why is that? What took it away from you?"
So many questions, thought Jade. "I do not know what he was, probably human, but with inhuman skills. I saw him kill a monster and about thirty men single handed. All attacks we made against him stopped short, and he managed to notice me creeping on him through this fog. This fog that, for some reason, strips you of your magic, I don't know how. I say we just try to steer clear from it, and the city itself." Jade turned to Merrique, and wanted to say something, then decided against it. It won't do her any good, she knew. There was no talking sense to that woman. Jade sighed to herself.
"I do not know what he was, probably human, but with inhuman skills. I saw him kill a monster and about thirty men single handed. All attacks we made against him stopped short, and he managed to notice me creeping on him through this fog. This fog that, for some reason, strips you of your magic, I don't know how. I say we just try to steer clear from it, and the city itself." Mixine did not back down and became only more sure of her actions from Jade's words. Two famous mages being defeated so casually? There was some weight to Vetiver and Merrique's despair. Trying to stay clear of the city was the best statement thus far, this holy place must be defended by an entity like the Muse. Defilers had no business trespassing upon the land of its lord. As for this 'murderer' Vetiver spat about, perhaps it was a righteous guard tasked with to defend this land from stalkers in the night. "Merrique. Vetiver." Mixine's voice remained soft, but it was clear that Mixine had not the slightest concerns over her own likability or how they perceived her, "Remove your weapons. Vetiver, take off those rings." Despite how soft and sweet her voice was, this was not the same as Vetiver's rude tongue. If Vetiver was magically perceptive, the four poles of energy rooted in her hands and feet could be sensed. The only distinction of her power to the naked eye was the sudden appearance of a purple corona from the worn tip of her flat metal rod. Her power was leaking out and it was clear this was Mixine's full potential being summoned up. "Please." Mixine begged Vetiver. The softness of her voice letting her fear of hurting another come through, "Please do not make me punish you. Then we can decide what to do, together." Mixine could not control her power very well, she needed every bit of strength she had to defend herself. How fragile were humans? She did not know. The electric eel which shocked her and awakened her gift, did it spare her life intentionally? Or did it want to kill her? She knew Vetiver could survive that type of shock. Hundreds of people had been shocked in the muddy shallows. It hurt, it took the breathe away, it locked the muscles and constricted the entire body. At least he would not drown if he lost consciousness, not on dry land. That much was allowable. Perhaps necessary to put Vetiver in his place. "Please do not make me. Please..." Mixine thought to herself as she pointed the rod at his face and asked, "Disarm and discuss it together. Okay, Vetiver?" She dropped her rod, but before it touched the ground it let out a six bolts and a bang as it discharged. Like a cannon firing, the bolt made it immediately clear to everyone that she was a mage as well.
Vetiver "Disarm and discuss it together. Okay, Vetiver?" Vetiver looked Mix over carefully, noting her purple corona, which was coincidentally the same color as his magic. He could sense the extreme power building inside her, wild and dangerous. Vetiver was not amused. Since Merrique had let go of him, his hands were free since he did not have to hold her up anymore. He looked down at his rings without speaking, flexing his long pale fingers and making small noises, as if he was considering Mix's demands, when in fact he was just mocking her. "I don't think I will take off my rings," Vetiver said at last. He gave Mix a cold smile, his dark eyes flickering with purple light along the edges of his irises. The same light glimmered around his head and his shoulders, and dripped down his arms to curl around his fingers. The jewels on his rings shone brilliantly: amethyst, moonstone, opal, amber, diamond, emerald, and malachite. (The missing onyx ring Vetiver had given to Nightbird, his horse, after saying a protection spell over it.) His rich purple cloak flapped in a sudden breeze and the gems on the fingers of his gold hand amulet glowed just as intensely as his his ring. "You will control yourself, Tent Thing," Vetiver continued in his usual haughty tone. "Or I will put you down. We don't need any crackpot mages on our team that can't control their own power." With that, Vetiver turned to the right, keeping an eye on Mix in his peripheral vision. He reached into his satchel and took out Nightbird's thick gray blanket. After murmuring something under his breath, he flapped out the blanket and it stretched into a large rectangular tent that could hold up to ten people, maybe more. It had a door flap in the front as well as the back and four window flaps, two on each side. Purple glimmers flickered along the seams of the tent for a couple seconds and then winked out. "Acai." Vetiver snapped his fingers at the boy. "Get inside. I want to show you some of my magical instruments so that you will know what they are when I need you to fetch them. And Merrique." Vetiver turned to the lady sorceress. "Get inside and rest." Lastly, the tall sorcerer turned to the rest of the group, trying his best to not look as severe as usual. "You may all sleep in the tent tonight, if you so wish. I also have some foodstuffs that we can share."
Acai Acai rubbed his chest as Vetiver snapped orders at him. That one-eyed guy had got him good. His collarbone felt like it was cracked, but he was pretty sure that it wasn't, it was probably just bruised. The pain was already lessening from when he was shoulder tackled earlier, but what had happened to Merrique was a little more permanent. He felt sorry for her and hated to see her in such agony, and he admired her even more when she smiled at that tent monster when it had yelled it her. It just went to show how compassionate she really was. "C'mon, milady," Acai told Merrique, gently taking her hand. "Let's head inside." As Acai tugged Merrique's hand and tried to lead her into the tent, her nervously glanced over his shoulder at Mix and Vetiver. Mix looked really dangerous, but if half the stories Acai had heard about Vetiver were true, then he could hold his own against that thing. Still, Acai was worried that Vetiver might get hurt. Mix didn't look like she was going to calm down any time soon. As he led Merrique to the tent, Acai turned to Marcus and Jade and the others. "Can you please stop that tent thing?" he asked in a very serious adult tone, even though he was only thirteen. "If it starts tussling with Vetiver, then we all might be discovered...and who knows what else lurks in Para'Ven. There might be greater dangers than that one-eyed freak, and I for one don't wanna attract them."
"I don't think I will take off my rings," Vetiver said at last. <snip> "You will control yourself, Tent Thing," Vetiver continued in his usual haughty tone. "Or I will put you down. We don't need any crackpot mages on our team that can't control their own power." Through all of Vetiver's mocking and open use of his power, Mixine restrained herself. She was better then Vetiver and she risked her life with such a posture as he did. This was a dangerous game to play and she had blundered by demanding too much of him without the absolute commitment to killing Vetiver. In terms of will, Vetiver outmaneuvered her and took advantage of the situation. She had been hung by her own compassion. "Baba... why... do I want to kill him. Why? He's still... human." Mixine thought to herself as Vetiver disappeared into his magic tent. As he led Merrique to the tent, Acai turned to Marcus and Jade and the others. "Can you please stop that tent thing?" he asked in a very serious adult tone, even though he was only thirteen. "If it starts fighting Vetiver, then we all might be discovered...and who knows what else is in Para'Ven. There might be greater dangers than that one-eyed freak, and I for one don't want to attract them." As Acai lead Merrique into the tent, Mixine waited until they would not see before expelling her energy. As she stooped down to pick up her rod the energy suddenly shot into it until it started to glow red and orange as it was heated. It took half a minute to diminish her power and drain the excess from her until she could be touched. Drained and tired from exhaustion and fear, Mixine turned to Marcus and Jade with tears running down her face. "I...I..." Mixine fell to her knees and covered her head in shame and started to weep, "I almost killed him....I almost... did the unforgivable."
Merrique Merrique smiled down at Acai, with the same love of a mother looking at her own child, when he took her hand to take her into Vetiver's magic tent. "You are such a darling," Merrique told him, trying not to burst into tears again. The kindness that Acai (and Vetiver) showed Merrique meant everything to her in this time of grieving. Suddenly she realized that was what she was feeling: a deep, soul-rending grief. She just kept thinking over and over in her head, My magic is gone...my magic is gone...my magic is gone. But Merrique couldn't fall apart, not now, at least, not when Mix was on the verge of attacking Vetiver. If Mix killed Vetiver, or if Vetiver killed Mix, she would not be able to handle it. She couldn't take it if someone died right now, not when she had just lost her magic trying to protect innocents. Merrique was prepared to fling herself between Mix and Vetiver to stop them, even if it meant getting hurt in the process, when Mix suddenly collapsed and started crying. "I almost killed him....I almost... did the unforgivable." Merrique let go of Acai's hand and sprinted to Mix's side. "Oh, don't cry, please don't," Merrique said as she knelt down. She reached out to touch Mix, but snatched her hands back at the last second, not sure if she would get shocked or not if she made physical contact. "C'mon, dry your eyes, my sweet. Let's all just get inside and rest, okay?" She waited to see what Mix would do.
Marcus watched the exchange with a gaze that betrays a personality torn between two viewpoints, then he breathed in and out, making sense of what they both wanted. Mix confused him still, but Vetiver was easy enough to read. He was too prideful to lower his power level. Whereas Mix was... somewhere in between. He wasn't sure about her. "I almost killed him....I almost... did the unforgivable." Mixine's voice was filled with frustration and sadness, pouring out in pure rays of emotion. Merrique gracefully sprinted to Mixine's side, almost touching the woman, but hesitating at the last second. "Oh, don't cry, please don't... C'mon, dry your eyes, my sweet. Let's all just get inside and rest, okay?" Marcus sighed, walking back to the small encampment near the walls that Kent and Dart had finished working on, not far from the tent Vetiver had. It was a mystery how he had constructed it... but nevertheless he had one. Kent lays his hand on Marcus's shoulder. "Come inside. I have something to tell you." He eyed Dart too. "You as well." They climbed into the decently-sized tent, a brief respite from the sickly darkness outside, and left it open in case anyone wanted to come inside this tent, if the other was full or such. "I'm sure you both know that I'm pretty good in battle... in fact I've never lost one in my life." Kent sighed. "You may or may not have accidentally discovered this at some point... I normally keep it covered by my desert robes..." He pulls up at the sleeve of his robes, taking off his desert brown gloves, revealing an arm entirely made of metal. It caught the glint of the little light that there was. Marcus and Dart were both caught in disbelief, and Kent lightly chuckles. "Made it myself. I'm a good mechanic when I can be..." "Wait... so you're... so the rumor about the sword glancing off your arm..." "Was true, yes." Kent laughed. "I've always found that one funny. Either way... curses bounce off of these arms and limbs like mirrors reflect light. The only thing I haven't replaced are my torso and head. The rest are all... completely... metal." "How can you control it though?" Dart asked, Marcus's eyes dragging along the shiny, perfect metal arm in front of him, the rest of his body obscured by the desert robes he always wore. The dreadlocks that were his hair fell down to his neck. "It's been linked by magic... I know how you all feel about that, which is why I've held it back from you all this time. Especially you, Marcus. You have a particular distaste for all things magical." Marcus was silent. Everything... well, almost everything made sense now. Why he was so fast, accurate, and precise in his fighting. He never grew tired of walking or running. He never complained about the sand. All because of metal craftsmanship and magic. He had definitely cheated... he'd used the death works. The ability that corrupts the world and brings into it more power and with it more death. "...Why?" "I wanted to be a better warrior. There used to be a terrible bandit leader, and he abused us just as much as he used us. I wanted to beat him... so I did. With a little help, of course." Kent chuckled lightly. "Why tell us now?" Marcus's voice was clipped and short. "We are in the company of many very talented sorcerers right now, Marcus. I just want to tell you now... that if ever one of them decides to kill you... I will be there, and they will not be able to defeat me. Arrows glance off my arms, spells reflect back at their casters... I have come to want to protect you, Marcus. I see you as a father might see his son... because I have my own family anymore. I've given that up to make my body from metal magic." "Will... your joints fail to function if they are disabled by this fog, or another such magic-reducing device?" "I fear so." Kent grimaces. "Which is why I'm telling you now. Also, that is why you have Dart with you." Dart's eyebrows leap up. "I'm no good at fighting though!" "Oh, yes you are. You are the fastest and strongest swordsman I have come to know. It is only because you have been fighting me that you think you are weak. If I were not made of metal, you would beat me without even a scratch despite my skill. You wield a claymore as if it a dagger, using only the muscles in your arm." Marcus smiles at Dart. "Told you you were good." Dart smiles earnestly. "Thanks, Kent, Marcus. Don't worry, I will stay by Marcus no matter where we go. We've been friends too long for anything to come between us." Marcus smiles at Dart, then back at Kent. He could forgive Kent. He could, most definitely. He'd known Kent for many years, had seen his good heart. He slept, seeing images of Kent racing across a distance of 10 meters in a second to deliver a killing strike, but this time with no cloak on. It was a metal man, one that looked more like the heroes he'd read in the ancient greek epics. Then he remembered the moment. That singular moment. Henry laughing, red stains blotting his vision. The ghoulish nightmares reaped from a past he did not want to recall. The reason magic was wrong. He didn't sleep that night, only shivered, and Kent besides him could do nothing, for his metal limbs did not provide warmth, only a stark, bitter cold.
"C'mon, dry your eyes, my sweet. Let's all just get inside and rest, okay?" Mixine sniffled and raised her head a little and she nodded slightly, "Merr... I... am...." Having gone through so many emotions, Mixine was more terrified of herself than of anyone else. Open to Merrique's desire to comfort, Mixine wrapped her arms around Merrique while still sobbing. There was no danger now, she had expelled everything harmlessly into the earth. Still, there was a pronounced magical warmth emanating from her body through the thick clothes. Holding back her sobbing for a second, Merrique whispered softly into her ears something that she did not want the others to know. Pulling back, Mixine bit her lip and nodded weakly as she struggled to stand, her knees still aching from her earlier fall, "Please forgive me." With everything over between them, Mahtr would follow Mixine and Merrique into the tent to rest. It would be a restless sleep for Mixine at the least, her mind far too active and fearful to let herself settle down. While believing she was safe from Vetiver, the line she almost crossed in a moment of madness terrified her. She knew a little of that kind of madness, but knew that its most dangerous aspect was the lack of fear and compassion that lead to savagery. "A protector of life... of all life... even his life." Mixine thought to herself, "Baba... forgive me. I am useless without you."
