Tales of Exzalia, death of magic.

Red snorted in disgust. She hated being ignored. "Excuse me!" She shouted viciously. "But my question was not answered. Did you kill the person, that took my brothers arm and eye?" She asked scowling at everyone at the table. Red may not have liked Pickles. But she wasn't about to let someone get away with mutilating her brother. She waited for a response.

 

excuse me!" She shouted viciously. "But my question was not answered. Did you kill the person, that took my brothers arm and eye?"

"Um incase you haven't noticed, we hate your guts." Tassy sassed back, "So back off we aren't talking to the likes of you."

 

Pickles sighed sadly. "You know, we never did catch the guy that me blasted apart." He spoke up. "I don't seek revenge but I'd at least like to bring him or her to justice." He stated looking at his arm. He then looked up at his friends kindly.

Red whistled at Tassy's comment "Boy I could just eat you up. That guy over there ain't to bad either. But kinda to soft spoken for my taste." She said pointing towards Lebry. Red liked her lovers ruff, vicious even. She planned on killing the man who had mutilated her brother.

 

Boy I could just eat you up

"My mother is going to rip you apart." Tassy responded glaring at her, but enough talk we need to move.

 

"Who's Lebria? er what ever her name is." Vayla asked,

"Who cares who she is, we have to get to Tess now!" Tassy weaved a spell and gills popped on all of them, she was still convinced something was wrong with lethross, and Tess may know something.

"This temple is dangerous, every one be careful okay? follow me." Tassy jumped in.

At first it was pitch black, but as they swam the glow of eather, ancient runes glowed scratched on the walls. Before them a large door, Tassy opened it.

Inside to their delight were pockets of air, it seemed this place tested both mers and land dwellers. Clambering out of the water they observed the first of many challenges before them.

If you wish to hold the jewel of the sea, then ascend the water fall.

a voice called to them seemingly from no where, puzzled they looked around. no water fall, only a very high wall, that stretched for some ways, too steep to climb an image of a waterfall was carved on it. Above even that was a roof made of ice.

"We need to get over this wall, we can't climb it, and there's too many to try flying. What do we do?" Tassy said scratching her head.

"Ahhh puzzles, me and Tess used to solve so many of Exzalia's puzzles." Vayla said stary eyed.

 

Pickles screamed "I hate puzzles!" He shouted in annoyance, but he kept a nice smile on his. He looked at Vayla's expression. He smiled at her brightly "Miss Vayla are you okay? You look sick. But not with a rather interesting illness." He said grinning at her. He knew she liked Tess. Ain't hard to see romance in a girls eyes.

Red sighed "If she is sick, lets put her down!" She half shouted at Vayla. She held as much hatred for Vayla as Vayla did for her.

 

River: Breaking the Ice

River looked around the room for any ideas. Looking up she noticed the ceiling was made of ice. She could sense quite a bit of merc up there. Her mind quickly put together the pieces. "We need to find a way to melt through the ice up there." She said pointing. "The water will fill up the chamber and we can just float to the top. With these gills, we'll be fine." Her own reasurrances however, didn't do much to dispel the fear of having who knew how many tons of water dropped on them.
"Guess now is as good as any to learn how to swim." She said quietly to Will, who was standing beside her.

 

Pickles looked up at the melting ice "Isn't there another way?" He asked with a nervous look on his face. He hated being under large bodies of water.

Red simply looked at him with hate in her eyes. "Stop complaining!" She barked. Pickles jumped in fear. He hopped behind River and ducked. Red picked up a rock off the ground and tossed it at River at full speed. But Pickles being Pickles obviously dove in front of it. Which is exactly what Red was counting on. The rock smashed him between the eyes. He fell backwards as blood spurted from his nose. Red laughed "Do not hide from me brother." She stated with venom

 

Vayla and Emery began blasting the ceiling with hot spells and soon the water began falling in torrents. soon the began to rise and after all the water had been melted off the ceiling they climbed over the wall, and into the next room, and there next trial.

A door sealed with powerful magic sat behind a very large tank of water. at the bottom of the tank a key to the door, the key was sitting on a glass box filled with water, there is an opening in the tank that will carry eather from the outside were they stand to the little box the key is sitting on.

You can not go in the tank, for the water inside is filled with deadly nox. You some how have to make the key rise to the surface of the tank of water. Tassy begins looking for clues, a carving next to the door depicted a cold ocean with large clouds, powerful winds, a little ship, some iceburges, and a siren singing on shore.

 

Will

"Guess now is as good as any to learn how to swim." She said quietly to Will, who was standing beside her.

Once they got over the wall, and River hadn't drowned in the process, Will said, "That wasn't so bad, was it? The real key is not drowning." He smiled then looked at the next puzzle, wondering what they would have to do.

 

Pickles breathed heavily as he was clinging to his sister's leg. "Get off me! I have no time for your fear of drowning!" Red hollered as she began to stomp on the terrified Pickles with her free leg. "Ouch, stop, dear sis- OUCH!" He screamed as his sister laid into him with vicious kicks. He finally let go. But she kept kicked him 5 more times for good measure. Pickles rolled over in pain. Red scoffed "Told you to let go." She stated bluntly. Pickles lay on his back with a sad painful expression on his face.

 

River

"That wasn't so bad, was it? The real key is not drowning." Will smiled.
"We had gills. No danger of drowing." River replied pointing to the awful things on her neck. "I'm pretty sure I wasn't swimming either. I spent most of the trip up under water." She chuckled lightly inspite of herself and began wringing the water out of her long hair and what excess she could out of her clothes. She didn't like how the water caused them to cling to her skin. Hope we dry off soon.
Will's wet clothes also clung to him. River couldn't help but noticed that his muscles had become well defined. He was just as handsome now as he had been 15 years ago, if not more so.
She turned her attention to the next puzzle before them. It was strange indeed, as was the mural. Though the mural had a dark beauty about it. "I wonder what the answer is."

Suddenly she heard Pickles yelling and turned in time to see Red throw several kicks at him. His face was etched in pain as he lay on his back.
"Told you to let go." She scoffed.

River sighed sadly. Again she wanted to shoot Red with an arrow but she knew Pickles would just throw himself in harms way like he had earlier down below. She could have easily avoided that rock with a weave but he didn't think of that.
"What do we do about her?" River asked Will guesturing to Red with her head. "She's going to kill Pickles but he won't defend himself. Maybe you can talk to him? Get him to stand up for himself."

 

"Pickles is like a child, sometimes you got to do things kids don't like even though it's good for them. I say we blast Redd to oblivion when Pickles not looking." Vayla suggested.

"She makes me very uncomfortable." Tassy added standing behind River as if she were using her as a wall against Red.

"better idea, lets make her talk about Vampira." Vayla had a scary grin on her face.

Tassy frowned, "how would that help?"

vayla smiled to her self, observing Red. "You didn't notice? when Red was talking about Vampira Pickles stood up to her and didn't back down,it was she who backed downed. She seems to have some understanding of limits, we just need to get her to cross those limits." Vayla shrugged in satisfaction.

"Then we let Pickles take care of the rest."

 

The shoulder of Redd was patted with strenght.
Behind her was Lebry.

"Hey... I don't know what kind of relationship you two as brother have but..."

His eyes fixed in Redd's with an stern look on them

"... I don't want to see you harming your own brother for so low reasons... I warn you this....You don't want to fell my wrath"

 

Red shot a Lebry a glare from hell look. "I care very little for your wrath warrior. I treat my family how ever I please. You don't know him like I do." She stated with a scowl. "He is a fool." She said pointing at Pickles who was standing up. "Well I wouldn't say fool. I mean I'm no gen-." He didn't get a chance to finish. Red held up her hand "Silence! or I'll start calling you that nickname you hate." She said bitterly. Pickles gulped and nodded.

 

Crumpet

Goodness Dillboy is pathetic. Crumpet frowned at him. Then he frowned at his sister. Then he shrugged and continued past them. He then proceeded to approach the tank in which the key to their progress rested and plastered his face against the glassy barrier. After a moment's deliberation, Crumpet's mind lazily churned out a solution. "Smhm, fmmph thmm wmmhrm nn thmm mmx," he suggested with his face still plastered to the tank. Nothing. Crumpet attempted to sigh, though the attempt really just translated to a temporary expansion of his cheeks. Must I? Noisily peeling his face away from the remaining smudge, Crumpet repeated, "Someone, freeze the water in the box."

 

"I don't have a family... so I don't know.. I never felt what a family is.. neither I have memories of my child... but I have another self... who must die... and I must kill her... I don't know if it's the same... but that should be the feeling of having to kill someone of your own family.... I really don't understand why. But it pain me to see how those with the opportunity of a family.... just treat it like trash!!!" Screamed Lebry to the girl...

"Hmmph... Perhaps you hid your own weakness and fear using your brother as a scapegoat???"

 

Red rolled her eyes. Though oddly a flash of hurt was in them. "Me? Use him as a scapegoat, for my problems. I have no problems!" She shouted at Lebry. "I've slaughtered, butchered and beaten who ever I've had to, just to get this far in life. I smash my problems." She stated bluntly. But then she bowed to Lebry. "Though I must give you a certain point. I do not know what it is like to be without a family completely." She quickly raised back up. "But you do not dictate how I treat my brother. If you knew him like I did and as for long as I have, you would see why I do what I do."

 

River

"better idea, lets make her talk about Vampira." Vayla had a scary grin on her face.

Tassy frowned, "how would that help?"

vayla smiled to her self, observing Red. "You didn't notice? when Red was talking about Vampira Pickles stood up to her and didn't back down,it was she who backed downed. She seems to have some understanding of limits, we just need to get her to cross those limits." Vayla shrugged in satisfaction.

"Then we let Pickles take care of the rest."

"That actually might work." River said nodding her head. She put her arm around Pyria's shoulders offering her comfort and assurances that she was safe beside her. Only...it wasn't Pyria. River's stomach clenched and her eyes teared up a little, as she thought about her daughter, still missing. Was she still alive, was she well? Had she gotten her ability to weave back.
She cleared her thoughts returning her attention back to the Pickles plight and removed her arm from Tassy's shoulders. "It's a cruel tactic, but if it gets Pickles to stand up for himself and teach Red a lesson...it might be worth it."

 

Redd could be right... perhaps.... But Lebry could not withstand his cruel acts...
As a consequence... he threw a punch against her face... but not to hit her. Instead it stopped at one milimeter of her nose, then with a quick move, Lebry raised the index finger hid into his fist, so it poked Redd's nose in a way that seemed more to be just a childs game

"I understand.... but from now on, Pickles will be my friend... And the link between friends can be as strong as the link between blood.... AND AS HIS FRIEND I DO NOT APPROVE YOUR ACT AT ALL!!!"

 

Crumpet

Crumpet frowned again. Here I am dropping nuggets of ingenuity and NOBODY'S listening to me. Walking back towards the center of drama, Crumpet threw a clean punch at Lebry. Then, brushing his hand on his shirt, he cleared his throat. "Ahem! Gentlemen and gentlewomen, if you are all finished dramatizing their little family feud–" Crumpet pointed in the direction of Pickles and Red, "–then, at your earliest convenience, it would be greatly beneficial to, oh, saving the world should one of you decide to proceed and freeze the water in the box upon which the key to the door is perched." Crumpet smiled broadly at his companions, sparing a glare at the newcomer every now and then, and stood expectantly before them.

 

Red didn't flinch as Lebry's hand came to her face. But Pickles sure did he quickly jumped in front of Lebry and put his hand on his shoulders. "Hey come on were all getting along here." Pickles stated trying to sound happy as he backed Lebry up. Before his sister could say anything. "Dear sister is just looking out for me." He said with a broken smile. Red glared at Pickles "Do not interrupt me when I'm about to speak!" She barked out. Red then a sent a vicious boot to between Pickles legs. His eyes crossed as he felt his sisters foot crush his.........pickles. He threw up and fell on the ground. No matter how much the man or hero. Nut shots always hurt the most. Red sighed and helped her brother up by leaning him against the wall. She then turned her back to Lebry.

 

Emery Rose

Emery watched the others encounters with the girl, the taste of blood lingering on her tastebuds. She willed herself not to speak, but what she saw in front of her was her past. Her brothers were just like Red; always killing, always taunting, always getting away with anything. Although, unlike Pickles, she had tried to simply avoid them. Yet, they seemed to always get there way. Not last time, they didn't. Emery's eyes flashed, as she watched Crumpet slap Lebry. But, Poor Aidan still got less than he deserved. I showed mercy when I shouldn't have. Her memories tainted her mind...and she couldn't stop herself. Weaving a ball of Charon in her hand, she stepped close to Red.

"I know your kind, girl. Believe it or not, I was once like you," Emery tossed the ball of Charon up into the air, to catch it with ease. "I know that you do this for a reason, whether you think so or not. I know that you seek attention, whether it be hurting your brother or others. I understand it all, and I have been mistreated unfairly myself, but that didn't stop me from learning to let it all go." She swirled her eather threateningly close to the girl's swollen face, before extinguishing her flame. "Family is a blessing, be thankful you have a brother who is so good to you. Mine would beg to differ."

 

Red rolled her eyes "Good to me? Him? If it wasn't for him then......nevermind." She said giving a frustrated grunt. "Stop comparing your lives to MINE!" She yelled at Emery and the rest of her brother's friends. "What I do to him, is none of your concern!" She stated viciously.

Pickles sat in pain. He was holding his legs close together. "Can't we all just get along?" Pickles asked threw gritted teeth as he tried to calm everyone down. "I think Crumpet had t-." Red glared at Pickles "I can handle myself!" She snarled out. Pickles frowned and nodded.

 

Tassy fired frost beam into the tank causing it to rise to the surface, she plucked the key from the surface and opened the door. Inside was a large chamber, in the middle there last obsticle. A large warping circle lay en carved on the sea floor emptied of eather, in the middle of that a riddle.

I curve, I bend, I soothe, and give life to those who take care.
Over time, my heart has turned black and brown for the help I have given.
What am I?