#if not for the fact that the world of extra has no mana left

[luckythereviewer]

What are your thoughts on Hakurin in CCC? I found their interactions to be cute, especially since Rin is a little more open about her crush

HakuRin gets the same treatment as a lot of other Extra casts that return in CCC: more depth. Rin's more upfront about her feelings for Hakuno, even if they fly over her poor head, and we do get more scenes with her and Hakuno. I still remember the screenshots of her commenting how cute Hakuno is in the Extra outfit if I remember correctly. Unfortunately, HakuRin, along with HakuRani, basically gets cast to the side and forgotten in favor of the ship with Sakura, BB, the Alter-Egos, and Hakuno's servants. Rin even gets done more dirty during the True Route as there isn't even a final goodbye moment with her after Kiara betrays everyone, absorbs BB, and Sakura, tossing Hakuno back to the top of the stairs of the labyrinth leading back down into the core, and tossing Hakuno's servant to the edge of the universe within the Far Side. All we get is a few words with Rani as the last interactions we get with the Student Council. It's frustrating because they do all this work to establish Rin and Hakuno's relationship in both Extra and CCC, only to then disregard it in favor for putting Sakura in the limelight only for that to not even matter moving forward with Extella and Link. I wish CCC had an ending with not only Rin and Rani but also Julius and Leo, as both of them were suppose to have endings in Extra but they were cut from the game, instead of just having all of them be shoved to the side for Sakura, who didn't even have a specific ending in Extra.

Let Hakuno somehow breed with Rin, Nasu! We need HakuRin babus to be cannon.

[inventors-fair]

Mixed and Matched Winners!

Congratulations to @corporalotherbear, @i-am-the-one-who-wololoes, and @nine-effing-hells for winning this week's contest!

@corporalotherbear — Belligerent Notion

I too have an exceptionally strange body plan. And also, I have a strange feeling that this card would be a pain in the butt in my friend's Temur Reef deck in Pioneer. All the same, I think this is certainly a pet card despite the fact that you need to invent new physics to get this thing on a leash. Blinking your Elementals has always been a great way to get around removal and maximize ETB long-term triggers. I'll say that the end-step is probably the best option to avoid infinite nonsense, and also not having the ability to blink itself (unless you have two, lol) is for the best.

I also want to touch on the excellent art direction that's followed the name here. I knew that "notion" was a Lorwyn thing, but I was actually shocked that Horde of Notions was the only one to have it in the name! I think that introducing a whole "notion" group of Elementals could really be cool in the world. It's a funny but world-consistent description that uses the idea of manifested ideas to emphasize the perfect mood. All around, I think this card hits the nail on the head for what it wants to be in its limited/constructed/typal shell as well as its place on the weird world of Lorwyn.

@i-am-the-one-who-wololoes — Ossified Choir

I looked at this card, reread it, and then said aloud "What on EARTH" as I was looking over new submissions. I think that it's a pretty aggressive answer to blue's fliers that it might have at the same cost/rarity, perhaps even eating up some cool WUB space in a limited shell. Most importantly, though, this specific design space is absolutely stunning to me. What I love most is how it relies on other Skeleton cards, but not only do Skeletons love to reanimate themselves—if you happen to have extra mana and more of these cards, one will herald the other. A single Skeleton returning like Reassembling Skeleton will allow the Choir to get another Choir, and so on. Plus you can exile cards from the graveyard for the same effect trigger if need be!

And that feels cool to me. The whole human-skeleton-war is a pretty specific and weird story to build around, but it also has a unique specificity that makes me want to know more about the world in which it takes place. I enjoy the flavorful feeling that any skeleton can call the Choir down, and the harmonies can make the Choirs stronger as well if they can hear it. The name is also suggesting to me that the angels somehow became skeletons, too? I don't know what theology you're working with, but I think I'm in. Let me get my Sunday best.

@nine-effing-hells — Abandoned Tomb

Without art direction or specific world placement, this card feels like it's begging for the conquerors to be specified. That said, what I enjoy about the flavor text is how the name plays into the type of worldbuilding that it could lead up to. The tomb isn't just ancient—it's been left to time, purposefully lost. Who chose to abandon it? Certainly not the conquerors. The ranks, perhaps, the soldiers who were conscripted into a cause they had no choice but to believe in, the acolytes of false gods... And no matter what, the insidious nature persists. It's quite an evil notion and you play the mood well.

Mechanically, this card made me pause for a second before remembering that Lion's Eye Diamond is also a card that exists, and it became so clever after that that I could only laugh a little bit. Yeah, this is a wonderful and strange card that's asking for a number of odd decks to play with. I think people underestimate the kind of power that fast mana can do, though, and while this isn't anywhere near the power level of cards like Ancient Tomb or City of Traitors, it's offering a question that deserves to be answered: what will you do with what these despots have left in your hands? Or, uh, not left in your hand, I guess?

Runners soon, and we'll see about commentary and timing.

@abelzumi

[currymaker]

can you imagine if they didnt dumpster the cross classing system from HW=>SB and then dumpster the role actions system which was less interesting but still had actual party utility from SB=>SHB (i miss mana shift) in hindsight that was a massive red flag for the homogenized slop they have now where every class in a role just plays the same but with jingling keys

its a real shame imo, the writing on the wall was there pretty early in hindsight when it came to this design philosophy, they i think set themselves up for failure with the way they refused to innovate on the base they had (classes, cross skills, etc) and instead would rather create new things from scratch (jobs with no base class, role actions) which caused a lot of homogenization imo due to the way that design rapidly backs itself into a corner when you're releasing two extra jobs every expansion from scratch instead of using what you already head. the world where like new expansion jobs were constructed off an already existing base class (marauder, thaum, etc) would have i think been easier to add complexity and diversity within because of not spending all your dev time remaking dragoon from the ground up so you can give it like 5 different buttons and a teleport. we can even see this with arcanist who, surprise! had two jobs with the same base class. why they never did this again is a mystery to be but I imagine it has to do with the code making them share EXP and the fact that their dev resources are so strained and spread out that there's never any new content that lasts longer than like a couple weeks and all you have left to do is grind jobs.

[asketchyperson]

Is Toxic Better than Infect?

I had my first experience playing against Toxic this past week at a game store, and it genuinely surprised me! When All Will be One was first previewed and we saw Toxic for the first time, I think most players saw a “fixed” version of infect that was more palatable to the current player base. Infect has a pretty negative reputation in all formats, not just EDH, and Toxic felt like WotC’s way to use poison counters again without reintroducing a largely disliked mechanic. I cannot speak to its current impact in any other format, but (brace for hot take) I think Toxic might not only be better than infect, but a strong mechanic in its own right when it comes to EDH. I will present the qualifier that I only played against it in one session, but the opponent played the deck in two games and the impact was felt heavily in both. I would like to see it more to get a better feel for it, but I genuinely feel like Toxic might have some legs because it gets to fight the battle on two fronts.

The biggest difference between the two mechanics is what causes poison counters to be applied. Infect is a replacement effect that exchanges damage for an equivalent number of poison counters (or -1/-1 counters on creatures). If you are playing at a table with an infect player, that player is generally going to be the only one who has a win condition of poison counters (if there are multiple infect players at your table, Godspeed friend). For that player, each opponent essentially has a life total of 10, and they have to squeeze in just enough damage to kill everyone. 30 health points between your opponents is a lot less than 120 like a normal game, so they should have a huge advantage, right?

Well, yes and no. They do have way less leg work to do to kill a single player, but that is generally public knowledge, and it changes the behavior of the rest of the table. If everyone started a game of EDH at 10 life, decision making would absolutely be effected. If you are at 40 life and have a 5 power creature swinging at you but have a mana dork available to block that would die after combat, you will probably feel ok taking the 5 damage so you can keep the extra mana next turn. But if that same 5 damage is coming and you are at 10, you almost have to block it or you are going to lose half your life! You will block it, spend a removal spell to get rid of the creature, or you will do your absolute best to hit that player back once your turn comes around. From the start of the game, the infect player is going to be one of the first targets for just about everything, especially once the first poison counter gets attached.

The first poison counter is especially important, because it shapes how the game will look going forward. The Infect player is incentivized to continue to focus on that player because going wide and trying to kill everyone at the same time is generally less efficient and slow, so the game will devolve into a 1v1 between the Infect player and their first “Infectee” until one of them is dead, meanwhile the other two players will largely be left to their own devices. Even if the infect player manages to take out one person, they will be starting from square one with the next player if they have not found a way to chip away at them prior. An infect player may have to deal less damage to knock someone out, but they have a lot of other factors that will be working against them in the meantime.

Now let’s look at Toxic. Toxic X is a triggered ability that triggers when combat damage is dealt, and it assigns X poison counters to the damaged player. The fact that a Toxic creature gets to deal both the damage and give counters means that the Toxic player (pun definitely somewhat intended) is getting the best of both worlds when it comes to combat. The biggest strength here is that the Toxic player does not need to warp their decision making around poison counters. If an infect player is not able to get counters on their opponents, their deck essentially does nothing. A Toxic player on the other hand can handle combat almost completely normally, and the poison counters are just a threatening side effect. They also do not have to dedicate slots in their deck to cards that are focused on adding poison counters. Having cards that care about counters or proliferate is still completely fine, but it is less of a necessity than it would be for the Infect player. Toxic decks can go tall or go wide, and being primarily in Abzan colors gives them access to some of the best combat-centered spells in the game. Carnage Tyrant is already a pretty scary creature to deal with, and it’s Toxic cousin Tyrranax Rex is just as big a threat while the Toxic 4 is just gravy. Black, glistening gravy.

The Toxic player also gets the advantage of not having to dedicate all of their resources to killing one person at a time. They can spread their damage across everyone just like any other deck could, and they can spend time building up their board without looking like they are getting ready to try to one-shot someone. They also are dealing damage with the rest of the table, unlike Infect. Somebody hitting an opponent for 15 damage does not mean much to an Infect player because they do not really have a way to take advantage of it. If an opponent has 3 life left but 0 poison counters, that person is no easier to kill for the infect player than they were when the game started. But the Toxic player can lick their chops and either go in for the kill or try to make a political ally of the endangered player. Does Toxic generally assign less poison counters than Infect? Absolutely. But still being able to deal damage while also giving a couple poison counters is still incredibly strong!

Out in the wilds of your local game store, you are not likely to see a lot of Infect brews. On top of being a narrow strategy that tends to have to focus on one person at a time, the general attitude toward the strategy is largely negative. The only frequent wins caused by Infect will mostly come from a well-timed Triumph of the Hordes or Tainted Strike, and those cards are better outside of an infect strategy when they come as a surprise (targeting an opponent’s creature that is about to deal you lethal damage with a Tainted Strike so you can survive is also a wonderful feeling).

Toxic on the other hand can look and feel like your average Abzan +1/+1 counter deck, while also causing an early knockout here and there through poison. Now, I do not think the attitude of the EDH player base toward Toxic will be much better, but I also do not think anyone will be quite as threatened by it, at least for the time being. Toxic gives the space for a far more flexible game plan than Infect, and because of this, I think there is a real chance that we see some very strong brews in the future as players explore the theme.

[steve0discusses]

S5 Ep 31 Part 2: Bakura Eats a Garlic

Pharoah, unaware that his friends are trying to find him in that maze that Yugi has never been able to solve in his entire life, is pondering on his new/ancient friends...and whether they classify as “friends”

They don’t actually! Good on him for picking up on this.

And yes, I still didn’t pick up on the fact this guy was Dark Magician, even after this girl shows up:

Just...it really tells you about my card game knowledge in how I saw this chick with that nonsense hat and was like “...Rebecca?”

Anyway, this girl is a lot.

Pharaoh almost got murdered by Bakura, the world almost ended just now, and she spent her time in a pot.

We gracefully left Rebecca back in Northern California, only to run into basically the same girl in Egypt. Neat.

(read more under the cut)

Remember how in S1 I was like “Yami probably had some child bride or some nonsense” and then I was like lolol of course not, he’s way too awkward for those freakin young Egyptian marriages and now it’s like...this is her right? This is this situation?

Anyway, she has a weird crush on Yami that she never actually says is legit crush or a hobby crush or if they just happen to be the only children the same age in this palace so they hang out too much but have never actually had any romantic interest in eachother. But, it’s enough of a relationship that this is the first person he recognizes without actually being told what her name is.

When Mana brought up his lack of hat that she assumes gave him sunstroke and roasted his bean, I looked at that head and was like....

...what type of hat does Pharaoh WEAR?

Like for reals, he’s already got a huge ass crown, so like...where does the hat GO?

Like I just never think about Yugi in a hat, but that has to happen occasionally, right? Like...is it a situation like Grandpa in that fedora where the extra hair vanishes? Or would the hat balance oh so delightfully on that middle hair spike?

It feel like thinking of Yami in a hat is a little bit this situation:

Woops, my apologies

There, better.

At least it makes sense to have a crush on Yami, as he is covered in jewelry and rich ass suave Pharaoh energy, vs Yugi, who is a nice guy but is in a constant state of danger and anxiety. That and she is the Dark Magician Girl card, quite obviously. (The fact I didn’t pick up on this right away is frankly embarrassing) And, as we know, card lovers are the only lovers that matter in Yugioh. Crosses 5000 years and several incarnations. Card love is eternal, even if you’re just “a girl that used to jump out at me from weird pottery, I guess.”

Can’t believe the Dark Magician Girl is so freakin unhinged but I’m sure we’ll find out more on that in time because wow this girl is a lot of a disaster.

Out living his best life in the desert, Bakura is having deep thoughts over dinner.

WTF was this food in the non-dub?

Like it had to be some sort of bao right? And they just deleted the filling?

If this is an Egyptian treat let me know, because from here that sure is an entire head of garlic skins and all om nom nom.

So Bakura makes a new plan, ignore Pharaoh, and go for the one that doesn’t have 3 entire God Cards.

Which...sorry this is the first time I’ve ever thought about this although this arc has gone on for so many episodes...they don’t have decks here. Everyone has unfettered access to every monster in the world in that temple. So like...you could just hail over anyone, and sure you have to sacrifice souls...usually...

...hey...wait a second...

...no one sacrificed their soul in these Egyptian duels I just realized...wait what?

Wait. Maybe that happens later in this arc but the soul sacrifices from earlier seasons that talked about ancient Egyptian duels that absolutely had soul sacrifices to summon cards and ended up in my deathcount...I think they got retconned. Oh shoot I almost didn’t realize that.

But anyways, you can hail people over a hell of a lot easier than it takes to play a normal ass Yugioh card. Like even in Duel Masters, which I now have experience in, I have yet to figure out how to summon a Link Monster higher than level 2, so this just seems way easier. Even if you have to kill a couple cultists (which again, seems to have been retconned)--easier to understand than than the actual card game Yugioh.

(My bro and I share a steam account and he made me a deck of just a bunch of cars and motorcycles, ps. They go vroom vroom and don’t require being killed or banished 12 times to work so now I main the vroom vroom deck. I don’t remember the official name of it, and I will never remember it.)

But just having an infinite temple of every card that doesn’t require an asinine set of steps to work seems OP, honestly. Bakura would have a hell of a time. Makes sense now how Seto could so easily murder Yami I mean...he had literally every card. Like the gun vault is just OPEN. For anyone to use.

The fact that this isn’t Marik gets rid of a lot of poetic energy here. What a bummer that the traitorous bromance between Marik and Bakura doesn’t return in S5 with yet another murder.

So the next day arrives, and Mahad is like “sure is a good day to freakin die on a hill.” Just like twitter.

Then back at the palace, Yami is trying to figure out what the hell he was ever doing with his past life. Here at the...whatever architectural decisions happened with his fence. Pharaoh needs to fix the statuary situation on his lawn.

Listen why is the tail on the right butt cheek? And if I’m supposed to think that the left butt cheek is actually legs...then what the hell is the right butt cheek?

What is this?

More confusing than the Millennium puzzle, this weird ram butt statue.

And then the other riddle of the sphinx:

So, this one time I saw a webcomic I’m gonna put on blast a little bit but they’ll never see this so it’s OK, and it had a name like “I’m a short 28 year old man that looks like I’m 12 and I can’t get a girlfriend” and I was like “...OK?” and so I was so weirded out by the longass and very specific title that I read the 5 pages it had before the author went on an infinite hiatus. The entire comic was a wealthy anime businessman in a hospital who was very short, and he was trying to get a nurse to marry him. But, no matter what, he could not get the nurse to figure out that he wasn’t 12 years old.

At no point did the guy say “Hey I’m not 12, and I just added you on linkedIn as proof.” At no point did he say “Sorry, I just got off the phone with my work, because I have to work for a living, because I’m Not Freakin 12.” Instead, of flashing his drivers license or his college diploma, he had to clumsily slip and fall on his nephew or something so that the nurse thought he was dating his own nephew (???) and he never says “that’s literally my nephew what the hell?” Instead, the guy proceeded to beg for her hand in marriage without addressing the problem in any way whatsoever.

Anyways, this is not nearly the same level of stupid, but the show needs to give us some actual magical reason why Mana literally can’t tell him his name, because it’s too easy to just cover her eyes and be like “guess who!?” like it’s so freakin easy to get your own name from your card girlfriend/card wife. Like I just wish the show gave us some better reason than “you’re pharaoh so I have to call you Pharaoh”...or we’re in a hospital and the plot is trying to explain it’s just because we’re too damn short.

Anyway, first day on the throne, and the Dark Magician has decided he wants to die and Yami’s like “already there, buddy.”

And then Dark Magician girl freaks the hell out and I finally connected the dots.

It took.

THAT LONG.

On the first watch of this episode I did with my bro, I probably saw the tablet down there and was like “nope this is a card duel, I know it in my bones” and probably fast forwarded and skipped this reveal. I have no other excuse other than my short term memory has been completely shot from pandemic exhaustion.

So like...Mahad may have actually been with this girl the whole time, I don’t know how dating in Egypt works, and I SUPER don't know how dating in Yugioh works, but like...Dark Magician Girl is actually Dark Magician’s Student...

That’s some lore, I guess.

But speaking of people with weird love lives, Isis comes up to Mahad, has an awkward moment, and spoils the future for him. Isis is just kind of quiet and awkward around people, and it does make you wonder if the awkwardness of the dub fueled some fanfic somewhere of her hooking up with all the other adults in his castle at some earlier point.

He tells her “take care of Pharaoh for me.” and she was probably like “wellllllllll the prediction on that kid is a weirder version of himself in a blue blazer suit thing”

And we get a flashback to Mahad’s history, where we see a younger, mini Pharoah. Nearly the same size as Yugi.

Anyway, he’s getting attacked by a snake because he wanted to give Mana a piece of fruit.

Took me this freakin long.

It took me so long.

When I saw that hair wasn’t white as snow I was like “ffffffffff” and I looked at all my caps and was like “I’m not changing them. I’m not. I’m going to keep them as is, and whatever. It’s part of the experience.”

And hey, maybe if Marik wasn’t trapped underground in very stressful situations, maybe his hair would be brown? Maybe he’d have sweet Zoey Deschanel type bangs like we all did in the early 2010′s? Maybe.

And then Pharaoh does this nasty snake bite remedy that was debunked like 30 years ago.

I assume that in the non-dub, Pharaoh was like covered in blood during this segment. Would be kind of disappointing if they didn’t tbh.

But it was because of stuff like that, as to why Marik is now hell bent on protecting his Pharoah. Because Yami might be a dumbass, but he’s a very good dumbass. And like he’s done better than the last Pharaoh who killed an entire village. Sorry his name is not Marik. I will probably never stop doing that, oh damn it, this is going to be rough for me.

Back in the present, Mahad decides to lure Bakura out by pretending to return Yami’s Dad to his tomb. Instead, Mahad goes to a completely different tomb where I assume Dark Magician hangs out.

This lure was completely unnecessary because 1.) Bakura knows where Yami’s Dad was buried, he was there 2 episodes ago and 2.) he only wants the ring so you didn’t need a freakin lure. Chances are, Mahad just wanted an excuse to fight Bakura without Yami getting worried and without any help from any of the other millennium item people. Which like...why dude? Yami proved he could protect you, why are you...whatever. Mahad does what he wants, just like Marik.

After Bakura enters the tomb, Mahad’s goons are ordered to just block that exit with big ass rocks, with the intention of killing them both.

And this horse. RIP horse. You were too hard to animate. Which, youknow, shoutouts to animators, it takes a long time to do, it’s really bad for your body to do, they don’t get paid enough, it kind of sucks, so go ahead and kill your horses, I won’t judge.

And so next time I guess it’ll be a card duel the entire time which I look forward to because these have been like a lot of information in each episode. Would be nice for me to have an episode that’s like 10 caps but we’ll see. This arc is just doing a lot of legwork, trying to wrap up stuff from like actual years ago. I can’t believe they decided it shouldn’t be the whole season but well, that’s TV for you.

And if you want to read these from the beginning in chrono order, here is your link:

https://steve0discusses.tumblr.com/tagged/yugioh/chrono

[sage-nebula]

Game Review — Blue Fire

One of my all-time favorite game series is The Legend of Zelda. My favorite game of all time is The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. And my second favorite game of all time is Hollow Knight. So it would make sense, then, to think that a combination of the two would be the most amazing thing the world had to offer me.

Overall Score: 7/10

Well . . . it could have been better. It also could have been worse, absolutely, but it also could have been better. For more detailed thoughts, jump below the cut (and view on blog due to formatting).

The Pros:

The graphics and animation are beautiful. The specific Zelda game the graphics brought to mine (despite the color palette, which was clearly more Hollow Knight inspired) was The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. Whatever reason the developers had for going the cel shaded route (maybe they had an artistic vision in mind, or maybe it was easier somehow) it was a good one to make. In particular, all of the glowing and flame effects were lovely, the shadows all fell in the right places, the characters were charming to look at, et cetera. Everything worked well with the acrobatics as well. Visually, the game is beautiful.

For the most part, the platforming is fair and even platforming challenges are doable with enough practice. This is particularly true for the overworld / main dungeons, rather than the Voids, which are more extra dungeons that you don’t have to complete to beat the game (although doing so certainly makes the game easier given that each completed Void gives you another life heart). While there were some areas where the game lagged for whatever reason and threw off crucial timing, as well as some Voids that were definitely more Platform Hell than simply platforming, the platforming puzzles were very well put together for the most part and were enjoyable to play.

The fast travel system, when unlocked, is incredibly convenient and takes a lot of the headache out of traveling around the world, particularly given that you use the shrines for a number of things (fast travel, saving, char—spirit equips) and there aren’t any maps present in this game whatsoever. It does take some time to unlock fast travel and you’re not exactly pointed in the direction to get it (in fact I had to look up to figure out where I was supposed to go to get it), but once you have it it’s a well-developed system that took a lot of pain out of playing that would have otherwise been there.

A minor thing that I liked, but (just like in Hollow Knight) when you die, your spirit or soul is left behind. Also like in Hollow Knight, it keeps all of the money you had on you when you died. Essentially, it is the exact same thing as the Shade from Hollow Knight, but white instead of black. Anyway, the minor thing I liked about this is that if you die in a boss fight, your spirit waits for you directly outside the boss arena, meaning that you don’t have to try to reclaim it while the boss is trying to kill you. It was a nice bone the developers threw the player.

While no tracks in particular standout, and while the OST doesn’t live up to the OSTs of the inspirations behind this game, there were times when the music was very nice, which is always a plus.

While the main quest is very short, there are numerous sidequests you can do even apart from the Voids that give you things to do in each area, making them feel a little less small and giving you a bit more time with the game, as well as unlockables as rewards (mainly in the form of new costumes, but still). There are lots of little secrets hidden around in each area too, which is nice to discover if you’re someone like me who loves exploring in games. 

The Neutrals:

The story. The story is . . . how do I put this . . . okay. So, it’s clear the developers wanted to write a story with the aesthetic of Hollow Knight (ruined kingdom, lots of shadow / light dichotomy, fallen kingdom, et cetera), but with an overt storytelling style like The Legend of Zelda. So you get a lot of exposition about what happened in the past, and what you as the main character are supposed to do now . . . but the thing about the exposition is that not only is the same thing repeated about fifteen different times (such as the constant harping on about how the main character contains both light and shadow within them), but also there are huge chunks of seemingly important detail that are just left unexplained. Like for instance: we know that the Fire Guardians from the Fire Keep were one of the last strongholds against the Shadow (who was also the sixth god and has also corrupted the queen yadda yadda). And we can extrapolate that the Fire Guardians were specifically trying to create a warrior that was both light and shadow based on the fact that the game starts with the main character breaking out of a test tube with a bunch of corpses that look just like the player scattered around, seeming to be failed experiments (i.e. just like how the Pale King created the Hollow Knight in Hollow Knight). But the only Fire Guard that we see around is Von. I think he mentions briefly once that the Fire Guards were trying to make the warrior, or had made the warrior, or something like that, but we’re never told why, exactly. We don’t know what processes led to that. We don’t know who was in charge. We don’t know why this specific type of warrior was needed except “since you have both you may be the answer.” And the fact that there were apparently a bunch of failed experiments is never really touched upon either. Furthermore, we’re told that the five gods had lifted Penumbra (the world) into the sky to protect it from the Shadow (a la Hylia raising Skyloft to protect the people from Demise), but that it didn’t work and the Shadow ultimately got to them anyway. So allegedly this is a post-apocalyptic land. But the only thing to really be ravaged is the Temple of Gods, where apparently the corrupted queen sleeps. Everyone else seems mostly fine as long as they avoid the monsters? It’s like they were going for what Hollow Knight did, but didn’t quite want to go the full route of having corpses literally everywhere on-screen at all times. Although weirdly enough, there is also a distinct lack of NPCs which makes the world feel more empty than Hallownest despite the circumstances . . . What I’m getting at here is that there definitely is a story, but it was told in a way that was pretty sloppy. It’s not so sloppy that it detracts from the overall experience, but it’s like too much was piled on in some areas and not enough was explained in other areas. Or like they took some things they liked from other games (e.g. making the creation of the “warrior of light and shadow” reminiscent of the creation of the Hollow Knight) without following through on what made those things work. Like it wasn’t just that there were a lot of failed Knights and that their corpses were tossed into the abyss and that The Knight had to try to claw his way out (as did Broken Vessel and others) while the “successful” Hollow Knight was raised by the Pale King. It was also that we know that the entire reason why the Hollow Knight was created in the first place was to contain the Radiance / the Plague. It was also that these hundreds or thousands of corpses were the Pale King’s children. It was also that the Pale King has a monologue over that segment saying, “no mind to think, no will to break, no voice to cry suffering” as requirements for the Hollow Knight to be considered successful. The horror didn’t come just from the corpses being tossed down the pit around you as you had to climb up in an attempt to get out, but also at all of the surrounding context, which was left entirely out of Blue Fire’s version with the warrior of light and shadow. Not that they should have copied it (although if they had it really wouldn’t have been surprising), but it’s clear what they were trying to do and where they failed because they didn’t have the follow through to go with it. I feel like the above paragraph is so critical I should move it to The Cons, but I do want to say that I don’t think the story itself was terrible. It borrows so much from both Zelda and Hollow Knight that it really isn’t original and it doesn’t follow through on things that made those stories work, but overall it doesn’t ruin the experience, even if all of the repetition gets old pretty quickly. Although as a final note, I’ll also add another thing that bugged me, which is that we never learn what the people of Penumbra are. Like we know the Shadow is bad, but they all look like Shadow people. We know there are creatures called “onops” but we don’t know what they are, or if everyone is an onop. Whereas in Hollow Knight we know that all the characters are bugs. It’s just another little thing that wasn’t explained but probably should have been.

On a less long note, the combat is also pretty mediocre. Again, it’s not bad. There is a parry system that, if you learn to time it right to actually pull off the parry, is pretty cool. But although you are given magic, which is useful for killing long-distance enemies, the magic can’t do a single thing for you in boss battles no matter how many times you upgrade your mana. Additionally, it is very much a “mash Y to win” type of game, where Y is the button you use to attack and you just mash that while jumping around. There’s no complexity to the combat at all or any strategy that is really required. It’s not bad, per se, but it’s nothing to write home about either.

The charms in this game are called spirits, and while you can buy a majority of them from shopkeepers, you can also “capture” your own by coming across the spirit of a dead person and trapping it to use its power for yourself. This is made apparent when you go back to a young child who is dead the second time you go to see them, and capture their spirit for use. Also when you literally murder an NPC for a sidequest and then later capture their spirit to use for your own use. And aside from the sidequest giver being horrified you killed the NPC and telling you to keep it hush-hush (without even knowing that you can and will capture the spirit of that murder victim for your own use) this . . . is never really remarked upon. Ever. And the thing is, it creates a sort of dissonance, because your character is treated as a hero in this game. No one seems horrified by you, there’s never any question of whether your existence is moral or not, nor any reason to think that your character would be amoral. In Hollow Knight, the Knights were created to be soulless husks who were there to be vessels for the Radiance / infection. Hornet in particular calls out your cursed existence and how she does not like you because of it. But although you can learn “emotes” from statues (which is teaching your character either actions or emotions, it’s unclear), no such deal is made here. So this aspect of the game is strange, even if I can at least appreciate that they tried to make their spirits a tiny bit different from Hollow Knight’s charms. Though with that said . . .

The Cons:

It’s one thing to be inspired by other games, but the sheer amount that this game cops from The Legend of Zelda and Hollow Knight is, at least to me, incredibly distracting. Just a handful of examples off the top of my head: — In Hollow Knight, you have a Shade that lingers where you last died and keeps all of your money from when you died. In Blue Fire, you have a spirit / soul (again, it’s unnamed) that lingers where you died and keeps all of your money from when you died. You have to retrieve them before you die again to get your money back. — In Hollow Knight, you have different circular charms that each have a different design, name, and grant you different abilities. You can only have a certain amount equipped at a time (though you can increase how many you can equip at once) and you can only equip them at save points. In Blue Fire you have different spirits that are contained in circles that each have a different design, name, and grant you different abilities. You can only have a certain amount equipped at a time (though you can increase how many you can equip at once) and you can only equip them at save points. — Everything I explained above about how the main character breaking out of a test tube at the beginning, surrounded by corpses just like them, felt like an echo of the Knight’s creation in Hollow Knight (but again, not as effective for reasons outlined above).  — The default tunic has a hat that is exactly like Link’s from The Legend of Zelda. This is made even more obvious with the dyed green tunics. — The story segment detailing how the five gods created Penumbra was copped from how the golden goddesses created Hyrule from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. To compare the dialogue: Ocarina of Time: “Din. With her flaming arms, cultivated the land and created the red earth.” Blue Fire: “Dina, God of Land. With her mighty body of stone, Dina carved mountains, deserts, and landforms in the earth.” It’s in the exact same cadence, to the point where I half expected the artifact they created at the end of the story to be the Triforce (instead it was called the Oath of Sarana).  — In Hollow Knight, the titular Hollow Knight is housed inside the Temple of the Black Egg, and is in fact locked inside that Black Egg to seal the Radiance / infection. There are three locks on the egg, and each one will only be broken when one of the three Dreamers dies. You have to break all three locks to face him, a corrupted “final” boss. In Blue Fire, the corrupted queen is housed inside the Temple of the Gods. There are three locks on her door, and each one will only be broken when one of the three Shadow Lords dies. You have to break all three locks to face her, the corrupted final boss. — It’s implied that, especially in places like the Temple Gardens, that the humanoid enemies that attack you are not monsters, but are people who were once completely normal and even forces of good who were corrupted by the Shadow. This is exactly like how all of the enemies you face in Hollow Knight (with the exception of, say, Hornet) were also once normal bugs before they were turned into zombies by the infection. I could go on. The point is, it’s perfectly fine to be inspired by something. Hell, it would be hard to find an action/adventure game that wasn’t inspired by The Legend of Zelda at this point. But it’s one thing to be inspired by something, and another thing to completely rip-off your inspiration to the point where the similarities are distracting to your audience. And it’s not just me; when I was looking up the exact dialogue for the story of the gods from Blue Fire, I found others who were pointing out just how similar everything was to Hollow Knight in particular, including someone who, like me, realized that the Temple of the Gods was essentially the Temple of the Black Egg. When things are this blatant, it feels a whole lot less like inspiration and a whole lot more like plagiarism.

The Voids all have a star rating to indicate how difficult they are. These star ratings are completely meaningless. Granted, partly it’s because everyone is going to have different abilities and so it will be hard to create an overall difficulty scoring that will be accurate for every player, but it’s also telling when a four-star course is miles easier than a two-star course, which I found to be the case on more than one occasion due to level design that was, at times, kind of bullshit. 

Although there are NPCs, there are none who are memorable or standout, despite the fact that most of Penumbra’s populace is (maybe?) still alive. Unlike in Hollow Knight, where there were characters like Elderbug, the Last Stag, Hornet, Quirrel, and so forth that were memorable and lovable, all of the NPCs in Blue Fire feel rather the same and are pretty easily forgettable.

The world itself is incredibly small. While the fact there are no maps makes this kind of a good thing, on the other hand it’s a bit disappointing that there are a total of two towns and then a few small connecting areas. It doesn’t really make it feel like the kingdom that it’s supposed to be. 

On that note, why aren’t there maps? The fact that there is fast travel is really more of a necessity than mere convenience because there are no maps to help lead you around. If you put down the game for a while and then go back to it, you might not remember how to get to different areas in the game, and if you haven’t unlocked fast travel yet (since it is something you have to unlock) you’re going to be pretty much boned due to the lack of a feature that is in basically every other game. 

Overall, while this is not a game I think I would ever go back to, it also isn’t one that I regretted purchasing and playing. It could definitely have been better, but it also could have been worse. My only hope is that the next game this studio makes is more original, rather than copying so much from other, more successful titles. (Or at the very least, that they study why certain things worked in more successful titles, instead of just copying at the surface level and calling it a day.)

[talpup]

Summary: Yami Sukehiro just wanted to join the Magic Knights and make his mentor proud. He knew there would be trails. He knew trouble would come his way. Knew he would be faced with discrimination for being a foreigner and a peasant. What he didn’t know. Didn’t expect. Was that literal Chaos would come his way. That he and his mentor’s sister would be at the center of world ending trouble. Or that he would fall in love with his mentor’s sister and face more than discrimination; but the jealously of Nozel Silva who loved the same woman he did.

Please remember this fic is rated mature and has warnings of violence, abuse, sexual tension, sexual behavior, and other possible triggers. For a full list of story tags please check the fics AO3 (link to that at the top of my tumblrs homepage).

IMPORTANT NOTE: Also, there’s a very small part in this chapter that turned out a bit more spicy than planned. It’s not explicit and definitely not enough to change the fics tags, clothes stay on and nothing happens under them. But since it’s a bit more steamy than I had planned I decided to mark where the spice starts and ends for anyone wanting to skip it.

Chapter 97

Teris stepped into the great room surprised to see Yami there. “I thought you were going to tend to the wolves.”

“Is that why you chose now to leave?” Yami asked, closing a book and getting to his feet.

“And just where do you think I’m going?” Teris tossed back.

“So you are leaving.” Yami said, both aggravated that she had attempted to sneaking off and proud at how well he knew her. “I’ll go with you.”

“You will?” Teris questioned.

“What? I helped save them.” Yami said.

“I didn’t claim otherwise.”

“Then?”

“It’s just--” Teris released a breath with a slight shake of her head. “Never mind. You’re more then welcomed to come.”

“Good we can talk about what you did down there on the way.” Yami said.

“What did I do?” Teris asked.

“Don’t play dumb. It doesn’t suit you.”

Teris sighed. “I knew what you would say and made a choice.”

“You’re damned right I would have stopped you. Alowishus said it was trying to decide if you were you, what with him having given you some of his mana.” Yami’s fist clenched at the memory of it.

It wasn’t so much that Alowishus had pressed his lips to Teris’. Though Yami certainly hadn’t likedthat. It was the fact that the man had forced his mana upon her. According to Julius, Alowishus forcing his mana into Teris’system had born sizable risk to Teris’ life if her system hadn’t accepted it but was too weak to expel or assimilate it. The fact that Teris had gone along with Alowishus’ plans for them to open the vault doors without fully explaining the risks involved,made Yami cross with her. Sure he understood why she’d done it. But even so, Yami never would have allowed her to take such a chance with her life. The fact that Nozel and Fuegoleon would have agreed with him, even knowing what it would mean for the them, made Yami all the more adherent to his stance.

Yami stepped in front of her, grasping her arms. “Teris, look at me.”

Teris stared back at Yami, impatient and annoyed by the continuation of the topic. Sorry as she was that she had in essence deceived Yami, she wasn’t sorry about what she did. Mana only knows what Alowishus would have done to them if she refused. Nozel and Fuegoleon certainly would have been put to death.

Seeing her petulant expression, Yami snapped. “I need you to listen. This is important.”

“Fine.” Teris snipped back.

Yami ground his teeth, the two staring at each other. Finally he told. “Don’t you ever take a chance like that with your life again. You hear me? I need you to promise me, Teris.”

“I can’t promise you that. I’m a Magic Knight, same as you. Could you promise me such a thing?”

Yami was silent.

“Well?” Teris pressed.

“That’s different.” Yami rumbled.

“Why? Cause you’re a man?”

Yami scoffed. “No.”

“Then why?”

“Cause I’m not half as important as you.”

Teris frowned. “Yes you are.”

Yami gave a mirthless smirk. “I’m a poor, foul mouthed, ill tempered, irreverent foreigner.”

Teris cupped his cheek, other hand resting on his chest. “Yami. You are so much more than that. You are… You’re everything to me.”

Yami clasped her neck, palm lifting her chin. He pressed his forehead to hers, her dark eyes filling his vision. “That’s why you can’t ever chance your life like that again, Ikigai. You’re my everything. The reason I get up and do what I do, and go on. I can’t lose you. I refuse to lose--” He stopped and swallowed, remembering how he had lost her for a few seconds that had felt more like an eternity the morning of the Summer Solstice.

Finger tracing his stubbled jaw, Teris looked sadly at him. “Yami, I love you. But even in a world without crazies interested in us,I can’t promise you that.” Her hand lowered, joining the other one on his chest. Pulling her forehead from his, she went on. “But I promise I’ll try never to take such chances. Will that work for you?”

“Hardly.” Yami huffed. His thumb tenderly caressed her cheek. “But I’ll take it.”

Teris gripped his wrist, pulling his hand down from her face. “Will you promise me the same?”

“Are we exchanging vows here? Can I make you mine, Princess?” Yami grabbed her waist, pulling her against his solid frame.

Teris knew exactly what he was doing. He was trying to get out of making the same promise she’d made. Annoyed, she tried to come up with a response but was too flustered by his words and desirous gaze.

Yami smirked crookedly. “I got all sorts of promises I’ll be making you the day you fully give yourself to me. Fair warning, most aren’t be for public ears.”

Teris’ own ears warmed, blush deepening. Swallowing her nerves, she met his gaze and tried to match his toying, lustfulsmile with one of her own. “I hope you plan on giving more than words if such a day ever comes to pass.”

Yami pressed closer his hands sliding down to her hips and around to her ass. Pulling her into him, his large hands squeezed and lifted her to her toes. “Just you wait, Princess. I got all sorts of things planned.”

Teris shivered at the low rumble of his voice. Though the lady she had been taught to be told her to shrink away and scold him, she instead listened to her inner wanting, reveling in the trusted freedom she had with Yami.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, Teris pulled him down and kissed him.

Yami’s hands panned up her butt to wrap around her waist. Leaning over her, he returned her kiss with hungry excitement.

Teris sighed into his mouth, hands tugging at his hair.

It wasn’t long before Yami had to pull away. Breaking the kiss, he turned his hip to her. It was his own fault. His thoughts and words, coupled with the feel of her had excited him enough to make things stir.

“Done already?” Teris asked, looking disappointed. She gave a playful pout. “You’re not giving me much hope for these so called plans of yours.”

Yami gave a throaty growl. Taking her words as a challenge, he told himself would surpass his limits of self control and deny his wanting till he left her dizzy and breathless. Leering over her, he backed her up, large hands on her hips.

Teris lowered her hands, reaching back to feel for the wall that she knew was there.

“Why do you suddenly look nervous?” Yami teased with a predatory smile.

“I—I’m not--”

Yami swooped down and kissed her,cutting off her words. His bodypressed into hers as hedeepenedthe kiss, tongue dancing with hers.

Teris’ lips became delightfully sore from the pressure. Her face raw from his sandpaper like stubble. Still, she kissed him back. Heady relief that she, Yami, Nozel, and Fuegoleon had made it out alive two days ago mixed with her love and desire for Yami.

**** extra spicy bit starts ****

She pressed back against Yami as he pressed her against the wall. Just when she thought she would faint from lack of air, Yami pulled away only to dive to the curve of her neck. He kissed and nipped as he slowly made his way up to the tender point just below her ear. His tongue leaked out to trace its way up to her earlobe which he flicked and nibbled.

“Yami...” Teris’ hands ran up his arms, trimmed finger nails pricking his skin ever so lightly.

Yami gave a low hum in reply. He nuzzled deeper into her neck when she tried to turn and return the favor. His hand lifted, clasping her just beneath the jaw. Gently, he turned and tilted her head, better exposing her neck.

Taking his hand, Teris kissed it. Her teeth plucked at the calloused skin of his fingers. Yami laced his fingers with hers, knowing that if she took one of his fingers between her lips he would be finished. Just the thought of it made things below his belt twitch. At that he gave another throaty hum which turned into a soft, low growl of frustrated wanting when Teris arched her back her breasts pressing into him.

He took her other hand and pinned both her arms to her side. Teris strained against his hold wanting to touch him.

Yami lifted from her neck wearing a grin. “Let’s see how long you can keep your hands off me.”

He slowly releasing his hold. Teris reached for him, but Yami gripped her wrists pressing them back against the wall.

“You’re not even trying.”

“Where’s my incentive?” Teris questioned, hips swaying. There was that familiar pulsing warmth in her core that Yami often caused, her legs squeezed together trying and satiate the need.

Yami slowly looked her over. Seeing the slight dance of her hips, his lips curled upward. The year and a half till her twentieth birthday seemed painfully far away. But he was set on waiting until they were wed. Even if he thought he had a chance of convincing her otherwise, which he didn’t, they were faced with so much as it was.

Seeing her like that. Realizing that she wanted him just as much as he wanted her. It should’ve been enough to make him step back and let them both calm. But he didn’t.

Smirking, Yami told. “You keep your hands to yourself till I’m done with you, and you can have anything you want.”

“Elaborate what you mean by anything.”

Yami’s eyes pulled over her form. “Anything.”

“That certain you’ll win this little game of yours?” Teris grinned, warming to the idea.

Yami didn’t reply. In all honesty, her tone only heightened his wanting and made things all the harder on him. But he didn’t caring about winning in this case. He simply didn’t want to stop yet and thought this tactic might help his cause.

Teris’ arms relaxed in his hands. “Fine. Have at me.”

Yami groaned. Her words. The huskiness of her voice. The look in her eye. She wasn’t playing fair.

Teris gave a surprised squeak and bliss filled laugh when Yami pounced.

Yami’s lips latched onto her collarbone. Arm snaking around her waist, his other hand gripped the back of her thigh lifting it his side. His hip pressed against her core.

Teris’ laughter ceased with a hitched in take of breath. Her head fell back against the wall further exposing her neck to him. Yami gladly took the invitation, lower lip pulling up her bared throat. Her hands moved to touch him; but she wasn’t about to lose this game so easily. Pressing her arms against the wall, her fingers curled into fists.

Yami tugged at her raised, held thigh. A soft, short moan escaped her. Lashes fluttering against her cheeks, Teris pressed her kiss swollen lips between her teeth trying to stifle any further noise.

Yami began to gently pull at her thigh and hip in time with every forward thrustof his hip.

Teris’ hands lifted, grasping her wrists above head. Breath uneven, she trembled with desire.

“Yami...” Teris exhaled in a needy moan.

Nipping along the line of her jaw, Yami made his way to her lips. He kissed her just as she released another moan. His chest reverberated in a responding groan. He released her thigh, his hand lifting to cup the back of her neck. Deepening the kiss, his other hand trailed up from her hip and curved around her ribs. His thumb came to rest just beneath her breast. He felt the tension within her change slightly. But when his hand didn’t move any further she relaxed and melted back into him, giving herself over to the heady feelings and sensations he caused.

His hip ceased thrusting and began to grind against her. Teris rewarded him with a long throaty moan, her body both tensing and easing at the same time. Yami’s hand pivoted, fingers sweeping up from her side to cup her breast. He followed her as she tried to break the kiss. His other hand, still cupping her neck, holding her in place.

Teris’ hands had dropped to Yami’s chest. But all thought of pushing at him to stop, fell away when Yami’s thumb swiped across the perk sensitive bud covered by her top and bra. Her body thrummed at the pleasurable jolt. She tired to suck in a breath, but with Yami’s mouth still attached to hers, was unable to.

Teris’ fingers clawed at Yami’s bicep. She wanted more. Needed more. And Yami gave her exactly that. His thumb traced around the pebbled peak as his hip moved in tandem against her core. Though she clearly enjoyed it. It wasn’t the response he had been hoping for. Experimentally, he ran the pad of his thumb back and forth over her excited flesh. Teris’ chest heaved, giving another mewling moan.

Changing his dance, Yami’s hip and thumb swiped in opposite directions as they pressed into her. He felt Teris’ body shudder, her muscle clenching and releasing only to tighten and release again and again. Not wanting to drown out the perfect sounds she was making, his lips moved onto her neck.

Teris whined, breath coming in starts and stops. “Yami.”

There was a growing tightness in her abdomen. The wetness in her underwear so that, if she weren’t lost in the throws of the moment, she would’ve worried it had seeped through and showed on her pants.

Teris pulled at Yami’s shoulder, other hand running up the back of his neck. All that existed was Yami, and the feeling his movements caused within her.

Her head rolled forward to rest on his shoulder. “Yami...”

The coil in her center tightened further. Yami’s strong body pressed harder against her as if trying to become one. What was left of Teris’ thinking mind wondered if this was what was meant when they said man and wife would become one flesh. The thought brought on a completely different kind of jolt. They had said they were going to wait. Yami had said he wanted to wait just as much as she did. They had to stop.

“Yami.” Teris said, voice more sober but still heady.

Her eyes fluttered open, mind caught between the unthinking tide of pleasure and wanting to tell him to stop. Only she didn’t want him to stop. She wanted him to continue until the coil within her snapped.

“Oh, Yami.” Teris mewled, melting back into him.

**** extra spicy bit end****

A burst of light from over Yami’ shoulder pulled at her attention. Teris blinked, seeing a darkened silhouette. Her muscles tensed for a completely different reason. Her hand dropped from Yami’s neck to push at his chest, other hand patting at his shoulder. They were no longer alone.

“Yami.” Teris whispered.

Still, Yami continued.

Eyes adjusting to the brightest of the incoming light, Teris recognized the figure. “Nozel!”

Nothing could have brought Yami out of the moment quicker. His head pulled back, movements instantly ceasing. “Nozel?”

Yami saw Teris’ wide eyes trained over his shoulder. A short, angry growl rumbled from his chest. Now that his focus wasn’t drawn to better things, he could sense the other mans raging Ki. For mana sake, why couldn’t he and Teris get a moments peace? What was the damned Ball of Pride doing here anyway? Wasn’t he suppose to be recovering at Healers Hall or something?

Yami let Teris push him back a step. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he balled them into fists to better hide the tent in his pants.

His eyes trailed over Teris wondering again how much she knew about sex or a mans body. Even if her mother had lived, Yami didn’t know what the ranking class taught their young unwed daughters. It wasn’t as if he could ask Julius about it. He considered just asking Teris. But even with them both wanting a relationship of free and open communication, some topics would have to wait until they were wed.

Nozel stood as still as a statue. Boiling inside, he wanted to lash out and end Yami Sukehiro. He wanted to demand to know what the hell Teris, his Intended, thought she was doing. But he couldn’t find the words. He was so shocked he couldn’t even move enough to tear his eyes away from the scandalous disarray of Teris’ hair.

Jax entered the great room from the back hallway. He lifted Teris’ report, squinting. Mana he swore her scrawl was worse than Yami’s. It was almost as messy as Julius’. He shook his head. Julius better get use to writing in a neater hand. The Magic Knights would find themselves in a bad way with a Wizard King whose penmanship no one could decipher.

“Yami. Can you read— Nozel?” Jax stopped.

The Black Bulls Captain blinked in surprise. They had said Fuegoleon’s injuries were worse; but still, even after two days of constant healing spells he would've figured the Silver Eagles Vice Captain would still be at Healer’s Hall or at least convalescing at home.

Nozel didn’t even turn to acknowledge the Black Bulls Captain.

Jax followed Nozel’s gaze. First he saw Yami and wondered what the man had said or done to antagonize the royal this time. Then he caught sight of Teris, who he had thought had already left to visit the Crimson Lion and Silver Eagle Vice Captain's. Taking in Teris’ somewhat disheveled state, Jax instantly pieced together what Nozel had walked in on.

Sighing, Jax muttered to himself. He felt annoyed on Yami and Teris’ behalf. Given all of Julius’ rules, meant to keep Yami safe from further attempts by Nathyn Silva, this was the only place the young couple could truly be a couple. And now Nozel had walked in making them, well at least Teris, feel uncomfortable at even that. Granted it wasn’t Nozel’s fault; but it didn’t change how aggravating the situation was.

“Yami. I need your help with this.” Jax called, lifting Teris’ report.

Yami turned to the Captain. It would probably be best for all of them if he left Teris to handle this anyway. He gave Jax a nod. Still facing Teris, back to Nozel, he lowered his head and uttered. “Go ahead and visit the Lion Cub without me. See you later, yeah?”

Teris nodded, mutely. Yami ran his hand down her arm as he took another step back and followed Jax down the hall.

Nozel watched Yami’s fingers trail across Teris’ stomach as the man walked away. Saw Teris’ slight tremble at the contact. He told himself it was because she found Yami’s touch revolting., but knew better.

As badly as he would rather turn away and leave, Nozel stepped fully inside. His hand slapped the front door closed, flinty blue eyes never leaving Teris’.

Teris jumped slightly at the slamming door. She shouldn’t feel guilty; but she did. Frowning at the feeling, her kiss swollen lips pressed together. She wondered if her mouth and neck looked as hot and red they felt, tender from the pressure of Yami’s kisses and scrapped by his stubble.

The awkward discomfort grew turning seconds into minutes.

A small wicked part in Teris heartlessly thought that maybe Nozel would finally believe that she wouldn't obey Fyntch and marry him. She hated herself for the thought. Nozel was her friend. She didn’t want to hurt him. If only he didn’t care about her that way.

“I’m glad to see you’re up and released. We,” she glanced over her shoulder down the hall where Yami had long since disappeared with Jax, “were just going to visit you and Leon.”

Nozel stared at her without word.

Teris cleared her throat. “Are you alright?”

“I wouldn’t have been released if I wasn’t.” Nozel clipped, coolly.

“And Leon?” Teris asked.

“Likely released tomorrow.” Nozel answered, shortly. He began to turn back to the door.

Teris took another step toward him, hand reaching out.

Nozel eyes lowered to her hovering hand. Unlike usual, there was little inclination to bridge the gap and connect with her. He had known, had imagined the things she and Yami did. Having seen the marks Yami once left on her neck, it was all too easy to picture the allowances Teris let the foreigner have. Even so, Nozel had scolded himself. Told himself that his imaginings were so much worse than what actually went on. He had been wrong. So very wrong.

“Are you sure you’re alright? I was so worried.” Teris said. The unwelcome memory of him and Fuegoleon hanging from the tree, blood dripping from them, filled her mind. Nozel’s stifled screams followed by his cry of pain echoed in her ears. She shook the image and remembered sound away, unable to bear it.

“Fine.” Nozel’s voice caught. He coughed lighted and stepped away, turning. “I should go.”

Teris stepped after him. “Nozel. But—you just got here. Don’t you want to--” Want to what, she wondered feeling foolish. Stay here and draw out this clear discomfort between them? She wasn’t going to apologize for what Nozel had walked in on. Sure she and Yami had once again gone too far; but that had nothing to do with Nozel. Guilty as she felt for whatever hurt it may have caused him, she wasn’t ashamed. She wished Nozel didn’t like her. Why did he have to like her?

Nozel stopped but didn’t turn back to face her. He couldn’t bare to look at her anymore. Couldn’t bare the sight of her kiss swollen lips. Couldn't stand the sight of her reddened mouth and neck which had been scratched raw by Yami’s few days growth; because the ill bred peasant foreigner refused to regularly shave like a civilized person.

“I was just released from the healers.” Nozel said, not mentioning that this was the first place he had come. He had needed to see Teris. Needed to know she was alright. Well now he knew, she was more than alright. He swallowed the bitter bile that rose in his throat. “Several Crimson Lions were visiting Fuegoleon when I left. If you’re truly interested seeing him, I’d wait a couple hours for him to rest and recoup some energy.”

Teris fidgeted, plucking at her fingers. “Of course I truly want to see him. I wanted to see the both of you. To see for myself that you were truly okay.”

Nozel’s eyes closed. He hated how her words both soothed and stung. Why did he have to love her? How had he even fallen for her? They were so different. It wasn’t as if she had led him on or given him hope. Was he really that in need of affection that what little she had given him as a friend had sparked an interest that grew into this love that was now his doom? If so, how did he get over it? How did he get over her?

“Nozel. I’m so sorry about what happened. You and Leon being taken by the Agents of Chaos because of--”

“Stop.” Nozel silenced. He couldn’t say what upset him more; the fact that he first thought her apology was for the allowances she afforded Yami, or that she was blaming herself for what those lunatics had done. He turned on his heel, blue eyes piercing her dark ones as he avoid looking anywhere else on her. “What the Agents of Chaos did wasn’t your fault.”

Teris’ mouth clamped shut. She wanted to argue; but her guilt would only make him feel worse, and that was the last thing she wanted.

Nozel’s head lowered in shame. He was the reason Fuegoleon was still at Healer’s Hall recovering. They had tortured the Vermillion until Nozel had broke and answered their questions. His shame built at having broken and answered their questions. But Fuegoleon would have died if he hadn’t. But he had told them things about Teris… It was a spiraling cycle that would bury him and seeing Teris made it that much worse. Why had he come? Why couldn't he have just trusted the reports that said she was alright? Why did he love her so much? Why couldn’t she love him?

As if reading some of his thoughts, Teris told. “It makes no difference what you told them, so long as you and Leon are safe and alive.” Unbidden images from two nights ago flicked through her mind once again. Overcome with relief, she rushed the rest of the way to him and hugged him. “I’m just so thankful that you’re alright. I was so worried.”

Nozel stood there trying to resist the urge to hug her back. He lasted all of a second before his arms lifted and returned her embrace. “You’re not the only one who was concerned. Promise me you’ll never bargain your life and safety like that again.” Though his tone was stern he silently pleaded, even if you never promise me another thing again, promise me that.

Teris exhaled, annoyed and amused. “You sound like Yami.”

Nozel bristled. He pulled away from her, voice rising in temper and volume. “I beg your pardon!”

“No Magic Knight could make such a promise.” Teris said.

Nozel wanted to argue that she wasn’t just a Magic Knight. That she was his Intended. His beloved. His friend. But he held his tongue. “I need to check in with Captain Kess and work on my report. I have a full debriefing tomorrow morning and would like my report ready to hand over by then, if not sent in later today.”

“Please don’t over do it. You were only just released from the healers.” Teris said.

Nozel gave a curt nod but didn’t make any promises.

97.2

Without invitation Yami plopped down in one of the chairs in front of Jax’s desk. Jax closed the office door and made his way around the desk easing into his seat.

“Did you really need me, or were you just trying to get me out of there to spare the Royal Bird?” Yami asked.

“It’s unlike you to sound so petty and jealous.” Jax commented.

Yami scoffed. “What do I have to be jealous about?”

“You tell me.”

“I’m not jealous. Just pent up and aggravated.”

“I noticed.” Jax’s eyes darted down to the bulge in Yami’s pants, quickly lifting back to meet the mans gaze.

Yami growled and crossed his arms. “I just want a moment of undisturbed peace. Is that too much to ask?”

“Until you can better control yourself, I don’t think you and Teris should be spending a sizable length of time alone. That is unless you changed your mind about wanting to wait for certain things.” The Captain’s brows rose in silent query.

“No. I mean, yeah. I was in control of myself.”

Jax sat back sighing. This would be so much easier if Teris wasn’t Julius’ sister. Sure he looked out for every member of his squad no matter their rank or age; but Julius being his closest living friend added a whole other level of responsibility.

“Nozel’s scheduled to be debriefed tomorrow morning. I want you there with me.” Jax told.

Yami sat forward, remembering Alowishus had said he had tortured the Silver Eagle and Crimson Lion into answering his questions. Given the state Fuegoleon and Nozel had been in, Yami figured neither had been all that forthcoming. But Alowishus had said they eventually broke. “What kind of questions were they asked?”

“I don’t know. But considering who was doing the asking, is there any doubt it was about you and Teris?”

Yami’s teeth pressed together. He was tempted to march back out to the great room and demanded answers from Nozel now.

“Ellara will be there. So I need you to do whatever it is you do to relax and calm that temper yours.”

“I’m fine.” Yami rumbled.

“No. You’re not. You’re clearly angry, and rightly so. But on top of that you’ve been more easily annoyed than usual.”

“You’re annoying me.” Yami stared across the desk telling himself that he couldn’t hit the Captain. That Jax had a point, and if he was thinking clearly he wouldn’t even want to hit him.

“That’s exactly what I mean. You have a short enough fuse as it is. But for the passed month or so that fuse has been near nonexistent.” Jax said.

I’ve been struggling with this heightened temper for well more than a month, Yami thought, anger bubbling near the surface. It’s just that he had begun to lose his battle with controlling the shortened temper this passed month.

“Either you get a handle on whatever’s been bugging you by tomorrow morning or I’m not taking you.” Jax went on.

“You’re not taking Teris!” Yami stormed, feeling an overwhelming swell of protective possessiveness that wasn’t like his usual self.

The only reason Jax didn’t say he was the Captain and could do whatever he wanted was because he could see Yami’s inner struggle to control himself. “Of course not. The last thing Teris or Nozel need is for her to be there while he relays what he likely feels is a betrayal.”

“Any answer he gave them was a betrayal.” Yami said.

Jax almost spoke in Nozel’s defense; but realized that in the state Yami was in, it wouldn’t make a difference. Shaking his head, he told. “Just get this extra aggression out of your system and be ready to go before breakfast.”

“Are you ever gonna tell me?” Yami asked.

Jax’s eyebrows furrowed. “Tell you what?”

Yami shrugged. “Don’t know. But there’s something you’ve been hiding for a couple weeks now.”

Jax thought of the journal sitting in his desk drawer that he had found thanks to Iban’s very belated confession about his family’s past. The journal Marx had used his magic to copy; and Julius had asked him not to tell Yami and Teris about just yet. Even Greywright had agreed with the Azure Deers Captain; though the Knights Commander hadn’t ordered him to keep quiet. After the Agent of Chaos, Flic, had turned himself in, Jax had decided he was going to tell his Vice Captain's about the journal. But that was before Fuegoleon and Nozel, and Yami and Teris had been taken. Even with it over and the four Vice Captain's safely returned, Jax had changed his mind and decided to wait for at least a few days.

“That Ki of yours tell you that?” Jax asked.

Yami shrugged a shoulder. “Ki, knowing how things work, and a tiny bit of guessing.”

Jax huffed. Thanks to Yami’s sense of Ki, he was able to read him almost as well as Bronn had. “I’ll tell you--”

“Jax.” Commander Greywright’s voice sounded from the communication orb sitting on the bureau behind him.

“I’m in a meeting with one of my Vice Captain's.” Jax said, so the Knights Commander knew he wasn’t alone should anything be confidential.

“Good. Bring whoever it is too.” Greywright responded.

“Bring where--” Jax’s question died on his lips as Cob stepped through a portal and into his office.

“Hidy ho.” Cob waved.

Yami and Jax shared a look.

Pushing out of his chair, Jax exhaled. “You heard the Commander. Let’s go.”

97.3

Disappointed that Fuegoleon had still been asleep but glad to see he had been resting peacefully, Teris turned the corner and nearly bumped into Mereoleona.

“Leaving Leon’s?” The Crimson Lion Captain asked.

Teris nodded. “He was resting but it was good to see him just the same.”

“Then maybe I should wait before going in. I’d likely tell him to wake up and get to work, and we both know he needs the rest.” Mereoleona took in her cousin’s downcast face. “Hey. You’re not being stupid and thinking this is all your fault are you? I’ll knock some sense into you if you are.”

Even though she was, Teris shook her head. “I just wish Leon and I hadn’t argued at Nebra’s party.”

Mereoleona’s eyes narrowed. “I thought I told you to enjoy things while you could.”

“Yeah, well that’s easier said then done.” Teris snapped.

The Captain arched an eyebrow.

“Sorry.” Teris apologized. Looking down at her feet, she mumbled. “But it is.”

Mereoleona sighed. “I could use a drink. You look like you need one too. Come on.”

“What kind of drink?”

Mereoleona looked at Teris out of the corner of her eye. “I know you’re not that stupid or innocent.”

“There is something I would like to ask you about.” Teris said, more to herself.

Hearing, Mereoleona smirked. “Don’t tell me you’re in trouble, again.”

Teris bristled. “What do you mean, again?”

“I don’t like to repeat myself, but I’ll say it again, you’re not that stupid.” Mereoleona threw her arm around Teris’ shoulder and led her down the hall. “You can ask all you like at the pub. I’ll even let you pay first round.”

97.3.2

Seated in a corner table at the Boiling Brew, Teris looked about in interest. She might not have been a perfect royal lady; but she was upstanding enough to stay away from pubs in Black Magic Alley. Taking the place in she didn’t see the difference. Was it just the pubs location that carried a stigma? Because it looked like any other bar she had been in.

Mereoleona clearly came here quite often as the waitress asked her cousin if she wanted the usual. Even though it was a bit early in the day and there was no occasion for it, Teris ordered a stout thinking the drink would help settle her nerves.

Teris tried to pay for the drinks after they arrived. Mereoleona laughed and waved her off.

“I was joking about you paying first round.” Mereoleona turned to the waitress. “Put it on my tab, Lisbet.” Looking back at Teris, she teased. “Unless you’re wanting to open up a monthly tab of your own.”

Teris’ eyes widened. “No, no.” She gave the waitress a polite smile. “Not at this time. Thank you.”

“You can be so cruel, Leona.” Lisbet chuckled, shaking her head at the Magic Knights Captain. She patted Teris’ forearm. “No worries, lass. We’ll be happy to serve you if you ever come again.”

Back straight, Teris watched the waitress turn and go.

“Ease up. It’s just us. There’s no older brothers, stuffed up royals, or Silva’s here to judge you.” Mereoleona told, sitting back in her seat.

The tension in Teris’ shoulders eased.

“Take a drink and tell me what’s going on.” Mereoleona ordered.

Teris took a small sip. Looking at her cousin over the rim of the mug, she took another, longer draw of alcohol.

Mereoleona chuckled when Teris took a third quaff. Picking up her own mug, the Vermillion took a swig. “Better?”

“A bit.” Teris took one more sip before placing her half empty mug on the table.

Mereoleona sobered. If half a pint of beer wasn’t enough to fully relax the her then what Teris wanted to talk about must really be troubling. “What’s going on?”

“I—I wanted to ask— I want to ask about...” Teris stopped and fidgeted.

“Spit it out.” Mereoleona commanded, impatient nature getting the best of her.

“It’s only—with my mother gone I never learned such things.” Teris said. Sighing, she muttered. “That’s if mother would have told me about them at all.”

Mereoleona frowned. Teris wasn’t looking for sympathy. Even if she were, she had come to the wrong person and they both knew it. “What things?”

Teris lowered her gaze trying to summon her nerve.

“Teris. What things?” Mereoleona asked, impatience growing.

Taking in a breath, Teris lifted her eyes and questioned with more volume than intended.. “What happens when a man and woman are married? What makes them one flesh?”

Caught off guard by the question for a moment, Mereoleona grinned. “Ask the whole pub why don’t you.”

Teris blushed beet red seeing that her unintentionally raised voice had garnered a number of looks.

“I’d be happy to show you, lass!” A patron called to her.

Mereoleona looked over her shoulder ready to tear the man apart. Seeing he was an old man who wore a humored expression that bore no hint lewd intent, she chuckled along with him.

“Leave the ladies alone, Merv.” Lisbet told the man.

Mereoleona looked back at Teris seeing her color. “You sure you should be asking such things if you can barely make yourself voice them, and redden so once you do?”

“I— It—it’s only—just— It’s not like we’re doing anything.” Teris finally managed to get out. “We both want to wait. It’s just--”

Teris might feel like a fool; but she wasn’t completely innocent. She had touched herself. Doing so while thinking about Yami until the coil in her belly snapped and left her floating on a wave of mindless ecstasy. But there was a difference between her creating those sensations and Yami doing so. Wasn’t there? She had to make sure that what she and Yami had been doing wasn’t what was meant for marriage. Yes, it was still more than what they should be doing. But she had to know that she hadn’t been about to give herself and become one with Yami if they hadn’t been interrupted.

Mereoleona sighed when Teris didn’t go on. Thinking about a long ago Captain's meeting, she said. “Well, I already told everyone you and I had this talk so I guess it’s only right we have it in truth.”

Teris stared wide eyed, the color draining from her face. “What do you mean ‘told everyone’? Who did you tell?”

Mereoleona waved her off. “Never mind that. Lisbet!” She yelled, signaling to the waitress for another round.

The waitress gave a nod.

Looking back at Teris, Mereoleona asked. “How much do you know? Our should I just assume you know nothing?” Before Teris could answer the Crimson Lion downed her drink and went on. “Well I guess you know the basics. I saw the marks on your neck the morning after the Lava Springs party last year.”

Mereoleona sighed thinking it fitting that she hadn’t hosted one this year. Since Bronn had been the one who gave her the idea in the first place, it wouldn’t have felt right having it without him. Or maybe it would've been a way to honor the bastard...

“Stop your blushing.” Mereoleona snapped at Teris.

“Leave the girl alone.” Lisbet scolded, setting the drinks on the table. Smiling at Teris kindly, she asked. “Are you aware of the male form, lass?”

Maybe it was a mistake to ask Mereoleona instead of Venice. Teris had thought her cousin would be up front and straight to the point without all the teasing Venice would likely do. But now…

“I—I just don’t want to—you know. Have sex.” Teris mumbled.

“Ever?” Lisbet blinked.

“She and her beau want to wait till they’re wed.” Mereoleona told her friend. Looking at Teris, she thought that it didn’t matter whether Yami and Teris wanted to wait or not, they had to and sure as hell better.

Lisabet huffed and rolled her eyes. “Sure he does.”

“He does.” Teris said.

“Actually, I think he does.” Mereoleona told Lisbet. “At least as much as any young, excitable man is able.”

“Well isn’t that sweet.” Lisbet cooed.

“So you know next to nothing of the way of things and are afraid of unintentionally having sex.” Mereoleona stated, wanting to be sure she understood.

Lisbet sputtered, both at how preposterous such a worry sounded and Mereoleona’s bluntness. Mereoleona gave the waitress a look.

“It might sound silly and completely stupid to you; but yes.” Teris said, a bite to her voice.

Lisbet sobered, sorry she had laughed. “It’s alright, lass. Innocence is nothing to be ashamed of. We all gotta learn sometime.”

“What brought this on?” Mereoleona asked.

“Ah...” Teris drew out unsure how to respond. If she and Yami had truly come as close as she worried they had she wasn’t sure what Mereoleona would say or do.

Mereoleona felt herself becoming truly concerned. “Have you done anything below the waist?”

Teris thought of Yami’s hip pressed against her and how the coil within her would’ve snapped from his rutting if they hadn’t been interrupted.

“Beneath your clothes. Skin on skin. Things going in places.” Mereoleona clarified, growing worry when Teris didn’t answer, making her bluntness turn crass.

Teris’ eyes widened. “Certainly not!”

“Don’t be crude, Leona.” Lisabet chastised.

Teris wiggled in her seat, distressed and uncomfortable. Things going in places? What was that about? Sure she had once taken Yami’s finger into her mouth...

Mereoleona exhaled, relief making her smiled. “You have nothing to worry about.”

Lisbet swallowed a smile. “I’ll leave you ladies to it. Let me know if I can get you anything else.”

“A piece of lead and scrape of paper.” Mereoleona told.

“What?” Lisabet scoffed. “You gonna drawn her a diagram?”

Mereoleona shrugged a shoulder. “Should be the easiest way. Unless you wanna give her the talk.”

Lisabet shook her head. “Even if the lass didn’t want to wait. You’ll probably scare her off sex by the time you’re through. Just… Try to draw things to scale. Wouldn’t want her being too afraid. Or worse, disappointed when the time comes.”

97.4

It was just happenstance that Jax and Yami came across Julius in the large courtyard that connected the headquarters of the four divisions.

Walking up to the fellow Captain, Jax stormed. “Where the hell have you been? Where’s your communication crystal?”

Julius patted his pockets.

Standing beside him, Jon told his Captain. “You left it in your office saying we’d only be out a moment, Sir.”

“That’s right.” Julius nodded.

“Though it’s been far longer than a moment.” Jon muttered.

“How was I to know I’d get caught up?” Julius asked.

“Cause you always do.” Marx said, though in this case it was partially his fault.

“You look upset. What’s wrong?” Julius asked Jax.

“The Agents of Chaos traitor, Flic.” Jax said.

Julius tensed. “What about him?”

“He’s ill.” Jax said.

“How ill?” Marx asked.

“Deathly.” Yami rumbled.

“The Healers can’t do anything for him. They can’t even say what’s wrong with him.” Jax said.

“Ellara?” Julius questioned, softly.

“Hasn’t been anywhere near him, according to Greywright.” Jax said.

“But if she used her magic to tamper with the guards memories.” Julius pressed.

Marx shook his head. “The day Mister Flic arrived I recommended to Commander Greywright that he only assign guards he knew to have a memory block. Though the number was few, he readily agreed.”

“Could the Agents of Chaos have another follower in place at Headquarters?” Jon wondered.

“Let’s not go there.” Julius told his Vice Captain. Looking back at Jax and Yami, he said. “If Alowishus’ magic truly is death magic, then that combined with the fact that he obviously uses Black Magic would be enough for him to kill Flic from afar if he had some piece of the man on hand.”

“That would explain why the healers can’t figure out what’s wrong or how to help him.” Jax said, finding it as good an explanation as any. He certainly liked it better than the option Jon had put forward.

Yami scowled thinking about the pieces of him and Teris the Agents of Chaos had taken during the first time they were attacked. Voicing the concern, he asked. “What about the bits they took from Teris and me our first year as Magic Knights?”

Jax’s eyes widened. He stared at Julius in silent query.

Julius made a face, considering a moment. “Most, if not all of what they took would’ve been used to make the personalized mana blocked cell they held you in during the Summer Solstice.”

“You said most.” Yami grumbled.

“It’s difficult to say without knowing exactly how much of each piece they took from each of you.” Julius said, not liking it any better than Yami did.

“It’s doubtful they would even bother with such attempts.” Marx said.

“Why? Because they still need Yami and Teris for their plans.” Jax said, finding small comfort in that.

“Also because of the way the pieces were taken and their age.” Marx said. When everyone looked at him expectantly, he explained. “Such spells are not only determinate on the skill of the Mage; but the freshness, as it were, of such items.” He cleared his throat in distaste. “Then there’s the fact that you and Teris didn’t give the pieces of yourself willingly.”

“Damn right we didn’t.” Yami growled.

“Though not impossible, it’s always easier when the item for the spell was freely given. Just like it is with my memory absolute spell. I can force my way in. But it’s far easier and requires less time and mana if the person willingly accepts. Those factors, coupled with what Captain Jax said, and the likely limited ingredients that Julius mentioned make it highly unlikely that such a thing will ever happen to you or Teris. Especially when they have proven on several occasions that they can reach you by far simpler means.”

Though true, Yami and Jax glared at the Investigations Mage.

Trying to draw the two Black Bulls heated attention away from Marx, Julius said. “Suffice it to say, there’s no cause to worry they’ll do such a thing to Teris and Yami.”

Jax turned away from the group. “I need a drink.”

“Same.” Yami turned, following his Captain.

“Yami, wait.” Julius called, walking after him.

Jon trailed behind. Marx turned back and made his way to Magic Investigations. He would see the men tomorrow morning during Nozel Silva’s debriefing, and then later tomorrow night for a planned meeting at the Black Bulls base. Given all that had happened, that secret meeting couldn’t come soon enough.

Julius fell into step beside Yami. “Has Teris talked to Nozel or Fuegoleon? Has she said anything to you about what they said? What questions the Agents of Chaos might've asked?”

“No.” Yami told his mentor, wondering if Teris was still in the great room visiting with Nozel.

“I’m bringing him to Nozel’s debriefing.” Jax said.

“Is--” Julius lengthened his steps to walk beside Jax. He looked over his shoulder at Yami and lowered his voice. “Is that wise?”

Jax looked at Julius out of the corner of his eye. “When has wise ever been an apt description of me?”

“But…” Julius cast another backwards glance at Yami.

“If they haven’t killed each other yet, especially after this afternoon, it’s safe to say they’ll be fine in the same room debriefing room tomorrow.” Jax said, still surprised Nozel hadn’t attacked Yami then and there in the great room. So long as Yami followed his command to get rid of his pent up aggression, Jax figured everything would be fine at tomorrows debriefing.

Julius’ brow furrowed. “Why? What happened this afternoon?”

“What were you doing at Investigations?” Jax asked, dodging the query.

“You’re not taking Teris to Nozel’s debriefing are you?” Julius asked.

“Mana, no.” Jax said.

“Then why are you taking Yami? What are you thinking?” Julius questioned, suspiciously.

“Nothing. You should know me well enough by now. I rarely think.” Jax said.

Julius’ eyes narrowed. “That’s why I’m asking. Cause I do know you well enough. You may pretend not to have schemes and ideas but are full of them.”

“Those bastards killed my Vice Captain nearly six months ago. If they think they can continue messing with my two new ones, they got another thing coming..” Jax said.

It wasn’t an answer; but he clearly wasn’t going to get one, so Julius let it be. The four walked the rest of the way to the Boiling Brew without word.

Upon entering, Yami’s eyes skimmed the pub. Seeing Teris, he blinked in surprise. There was a man standing over her, his hand on the back of her chair, other on the table, boxing her in. Leaving Julius, Jax, and Jon; Yami made his way to the table.

Stopping behind the man, Yami told him. “Walk away.”

“Yami!” Teris looked up at him in surprise and relief.

“Find another woman. I saw this one first.” The man called over his shoulder. He smiled drunkenly at Teris. “Pretty, innocent little thing. What do you say I take you out back and I give you the answers to all those questions of yours with a hands on lesson, eh?”

Yami reached for the mans shoulder to spin him around, fist already primed, when a fiery lion paw gripped the top of his head and pulled him back a pace.

“We’re you really gonna start a fight? The man is clearly drunk.” Mereoleona glared.

“I wasn’t gonna start anything. I was gonna end it.” Yami said, glancing spitefully up at the magical paw that still held him.

Mereoleona didn’t doubt that Yami could knock the man out cold. And she might've liked to see it, if not be a part of it, if it wouldn’t have caused Lisbet any trouble. “You and I both know Teris can fend for herself.”

The man reached out to touched Teris. Both Yami and Mereoleona made for him. Teris grabbed the mans arm before he could touch her.

Twisting his wrist in on itself, Teris told him. “I said, no.”

Though she wasn’t putting much pressure, the man tried to turn his body to lessen the painful wrenching of his wrist.

“You’re drunk. Go home and sleep it off.” Teris told.

The man nodded vigorously.

“Make sure to leave your waitress a good tip.” Teris said, releasing him with a push.

The man took a couple unsteady steps back. Turning he looked for his table, but couldn’t find it with the way everything spun around him. Instead he merely tossed several coins in the air and stumbled to the door.

The fiery paw on Yami’s head disappeared. Smiling proudly at her cousin, Mereoleona told Yami. “See. Told you she could take care of herself.”

“Never said she couldn’t.” Yami said.

Mereoleona plopped back in her seat across from Teris. “I leave you alone for a couple minutes and you get yourself into trouble.”

“I didn’t do anything.” Teris argued.

“You’re right. That was unfair. It isn’t always you who finds trouble. Half the time it’s trouble that finds you.” Mereoleona teased.

Teris was too annoyed at the truth of it to find her cousin’s words amusing.

Stopping behind his sister, Julius demanded. “What are you doing here?”

Teris spun in her seat, eyes wide and anxious. “Julius!”

“Leave the girl alone, Julius. I brought her.” Mereoleona told, leaning back in her seat.

Julius’ eyes leveled on the Crimson Lions Captain. “Have you no care for my sister’s or family’s image? The women that come to bars in Black Magic Ally are--”

“What?” Mereoleona sat forward, forearms on the table. “What kind of woman am I, Julius? You are referring to women like me, aren’t you? Given that I frequent this place.”

Julius swallowed thickly, reevaluating the wisdom of his argument.

“You come here quite often too. Don’t you, Julius?” Mereoleona pressed when he didn’t answer.

“Let it go.” Jax told the fellow Captain's, taking the seat to Teris’ left.

Yami pulled out the chair to Teris’ right, sliding it closer to hers as he did so. Sitting down he gave her an appraising look.

Teris blushed, feeling self conscious after everything Mereoleona had told her.

Yami smirked thinking her blush was from remembering what they had gotten up to earlier today. “How was the Lion Cub?”

“Sleeping when I got there. He looked good though. No lingering sign of outward injury.” Thinking about everything Mereoleona had told her, Teris tentatively touched Yami’s arm, eyes darting over him.

Yami quirked a brow, wondering at the way Teris was looking at him.

Knowing what she now knew, Teris felt silly for her earlier worry. Making love was so much more than she had imagined. Her eyes fell lower. Though rudimentary, Mereoleona’s drawings had given her an idea of what Yami was concealing. The thought of seeing him naked. Of him seeing her naked. Of Yami touching her where no other but she had seen or touched before. It both made her nervous and excited. No wonder it was customary for such an act to be put off until marriage. It was just so personal. So private. So meaningful and intimate. To share such a thing with someone you hadn’t yet promised your life and love to seemed nigh to impossible to her. Not that she judged Venice or anyone else who didn’t wait or had more than one partner in their lifetime; she just couldn’t see herself doing so.

Julius clasped his sister’s shoulder.

Teris jumped, startled out of her thoughts. Her hand jerked back from Yami’s arm, blushing at where her mind had gone. She ducked her head wondering if Julius had been able to tell and that’s why he was frowning at her.

Julius shook his head. He wondered if there was a set number of times he had to tell them before they listened. Though not an excuse, at least Teris didn’t know the full reasoning behind it all. Yami on the other had faced two attempts on his life because of Nathyn Silva, and yet he still tempted fate being close and alone with Teris when out in public.

Looking down at Yami, Julius ordered. “Scoot.”

Yami growled under his breath and moved his chair a couple inches away from Teris’.

“Scoot over a seat.” Julius clipped, irritated. Had Yami forgotten about the two attempts on his life? Or did he just not care?

“Let the man sit next to his girlfriend.” Mereoleona said.

“Not so loud.” Julius hushed, eyes darting to the surrounding patrons.

Teris stood up. “It’s alright. I’m leaving.”

Julius looked after her, expression pained. Why were they making him out to be the bad guy? He was just trying to protect them.

Getting to his feet, Yami told Julius. “There you can have your choice of seats. Happy?”

“Sit down.” Jax ordered.

Yami stared at his Captain. “After what we learned about the crazies traitor. Are you really fine with her going off alone?”

“I’ll see her home. Shall I, sir?” Jon asked his Captain.

“Thank you, Jon.” Julius nodded.

Jon turned and made after his Captain's sister.

Sinking into the chair Teris had vacated, Julius told Yami. “This was your doing. When are you going to learn? Unlike Teris, you are all too aware of the full reasoning for such discretion.”

Mereoleona’s lip twitched, remembering the threat to Yami’s life that she had spoken to her father about. Looking at Yami, she told. “Much as I hate to admit it, Julius has a point. You should have more care; for both of your sake's. If you truly are interested in marrying, you’ll have the rest of your life to be as free as you want after. Well,” she lifted a shoulder and grinned, “as free as Teris will let you be.”

“Is this the fine young man that’s willing to wait?” Lisbet asked Mereoleona, glancing at Yami.

Jax turned to the waitress. “Why would we have to wait? It’s not like you’re full up with patrons.”

Mereoleona smirked and nodded at Lisbet.

Lisbet’s smile widened. “What can I get you gentlemen?”

“Ale.” Jax and Julius ordered.

“Same.” Yami said.

“Yours is on the house.” Lisbet told Yami.

Yami took in the woman’s curious expression. He wondered at her generosity but wasn’t going to question the good luck.

“This one drink.” Mereoleona told before Yami could get any ideas. She had seen the man drink and didn’t want Lisbet’s pay going to cover Yami’s tab.

“How’s Leon?” Julius asked as the waitress went to fill their orders.

“They say he’ll be released tomorrow morning.” Mereoleona said. She looked at Yami giving him a nod of thanks for going along with the Agents of Chaos’ sick game. No doubt they would've killed Nozel and her brother if Yami and Teris hadn’t obeyed.

Yami looked away from the Crimson Lions Captain. He had nothing against being praised and recognized. But in that case he hadn’t even have a choice.

“I’m just glad that the Future of Chaos wasn’t there. Who knows what ill a man like Alowishus could do with such knowledge.” Jax said.

“I’m just glad it’s not cluttering up my or Teris’ grimoire.” Yami said.

Despite the thing likely being a single magical page like the History of Chaos, Jax understood Yami’s meaning. The Black Bulls Captain was also grateful that Teris didn’t have such a thing to focus and fuss over.

Lisbet returned with four ales. Sliding one to Mereoleona, she gave her friend a wink.

“Thank you, Bet.” Julius said as the waitress set a mug in front of him.

Jax noted that Lisbet didn’t give the Azure Deers Captain her usual flirty smile. As soon as she left, he quietly asked. “She still have a thing for Julius, Leona?”

“Who’s that?” Julius questioned.

Jax gave his friend a look. “Don’t play dumb.”

“That ended long ago. Though I’m sure she’d change her mind right back if Julius ever offered.” Mereoleona said.

Julius’ ears heated. “Can you two please stop.”

While Lisbet was good company and certainly attractive enough, she struck Julius as the type that was looking for a relationship. With his work as Captain, all that was going on with Yami and Teris, and his endeavors to become the next Wizard King. Relationships were something Julius didn’t have the time or inclination for. Even if Lisbet wasn’t Mereoleona’s friend, he wouldn’t have wanted to chance hurting the waitress.

“You and Marx come up with any ideas on who, where, and when the Future of Chaos was moved?” Jax asked Julius.

“Too many and none worthy of mentioning.” Julius sighed, aggravated disappointment showing.

Yami set his drink down. “That labyrinth really was two hundred thousand whatever--”

“297,353.” Julius nodded. “Yes. It was.”

“Crazy Happy Killer Voice said the Future of Chaos would be found there.” Yami said, thinking. “So if Crazy Happy Killer Voice was this Yurist guy and Yurist wrote that the ones who found the History of Chaos would find the Future, does that mean he’s wrong? That the chances of Teris and I finding the Future of Chaos are the same as anyone elses? I mean the damned thing could be destroyed for all we know. Right?”

“Such a magical item would be near impossible to destroy.” Julius said.

“Even so, the thing could be anywhere.” Yami pressed. He didn’t know if he believed in Yurist’s prophecies; but he had hoped Julius would tell him that the Future of Chaos missing from the labyrinth meant that he and Teris were off the hook.

Julius shook his head. “I simply can’t say.”

“Well if you and Marx ever do find out where the thing was moved, be sure to tell me so I can keep Yami and Teris well away from it.” Jax said.

97.5

Calen rose from the chair before Alowishus’ desk. Straightening the orders his Master had given him to pass on to the others, Calen took in a fortifying breath.

Alowishus had been murderous since the night of the labyrinth, but the matter was too important to put off any longer. While Flic hadn’t had any pertinent information about their plans and Sanctuary was magically moved by Alowishus on the night of every new moon, meaning Flic could no longer tell the Magic Knights where they were. The man still had to be dealt with. His crimes of betrayal could not go unpunished.

“Master, if I may. We’ve yet to receive word from Lady Ellara about the traitor, Flic.”

“Nor will we.” Alowishus told. His dual colored eyes lifted from the book he’d just open. “Ellara cannot be anywhere near Flic. It would only give those already suspicious of her what they so desperately want.”

“Then--”

“Iam handling it. Have you learned why Flic abandoned us yet?” Alowishus asked.

“It would be easier if we could bring Ellara to search the lesser members memories.” Calen said.

“Ellara will not be of help with this.” Alowishus said, irritation growing.

“Then if you would allow me to question them more openly.” Calen said.

“No.” Alowishus said, shortly.

Calen inclined his head. “As you wish, Master. I will continue my endeavors.”

“Do more than endeavor.” Alowishus told.

“Yes, Master.” Calen bowed.

Alowishus watched the man exit, closing the door behind him. Left alone, he pushed to his feet and turned to the bookshelf behind his desk. Placing a hand on the now quiet skull, he slid it to the side revealing a small saucer-like dish made of obsidian.

He smiled, seeing the fingernail in the dish was almost fully dissolved. Flic would be dead before the night was through. Pushing the skull back in place, he returned to the desk.

After Captain Shadow Banashe had killed his sixth iteration, Everard Spade, Alowishus had taken the first hundred or so years of his seventh life to work alone. When he had finally decided to rejoin the group he had started in his third life, he took his time to win over the members that called Alric Halvor Master before challenging him for the right to be Master of the Agents of Chaos.

After seeing the dead Alric Halvor’s family expelled, graciously allowing them to seek refuge in the Clover Kingdom, Alowishus had made all the existing members go through a ritual of cleansing and loyalty. Though all of those members were now long dead, Alowishus had made the ritual a prerequisite for joining the Agents of Chaos. It wasn’t the pomp that he was interested in; but the right thumb nail that each person willingly gave during the ritual. Such a thing was hardly necessary for a cleansing and promise of loyalty to him, Chaos, and their cause; but it was a simple way to get what he wanted without anyone asking questions.

This was hardly the first time he had needed to use a followers given nail to find, or kill them from afar. At least Flic’s treason had come at a time when their Sanctuary was routinely moved so Alowishus had not needed to expend any excess energy in moving their base should Flic have told the Magic Knights were to look for them.

With a sigh he looked over his grandfathers final journal. Many said Yurist had gone mad well before the journal was written. And given how jumbled and lacking of sense most of the phrases and sentences were, Alowishus would agree. But that didn’t mean the writings didn’t contain helpful truths.

Considering how many times Alowishus had read the journal that was nothing but snippets about Chaos, Death, Light, and Darkness; he doubted he had missed anything. Still, he hoped Yurist had written something in there that would tell him where his father had moved the Future of Chaos. Surely Yurist’s prophecy magic had shown him that the page would be moved from the labyrinth he had placed it in. And if Yurist's magic had shown him that, then surely he had made some note about it.

Alowishus refused to believe he would never find the Future of Chaos again. Not when having it would guarantee the success of his aims.

Unlike the History of Chaos which was a set spelled page that could only show Chaos’ passed; the Future of Chaos was a volatile, changeable page that could answer questions. It wasn’t alive but imbued with some of Yurist's prophecy magic. And since the future of Chaos wasn’t yet set, like Yurist's prophecy magic, the answers given could often be unclear or altered depending on events and how close those events were to fruition.

Alowishus had had the Future of Chaos for all but half a day before his father stole it; and most of that time with the page had been trying to get somewhere secure so his father couldn’t take it back. As such he had only been able to ask the page how to awaken Chaos and end existence. While such an answer wouldn’t or shouldn't change, it would have been extremely helpful to have the page in hand.

As troublesome as the Spade Kingdom Magical Scientist Rayla had been. Her taking Yami and Teris had ultimately been a help. With his having taken a portion of the overflow of Yami’s mana, Alowishus had been able to track him. It meant Ellara hadn’t needed to use her magic to affect Jorah to assign Yami and Teris to a set area to search for the royal princes.

With two Magic Knights Captain's suspicious of Ellara, her not adding to their suspicious by affecting the Wizard King for something that had ended in failure was the one good thing to come out of all this. And it hadn’t been a complete failure either. While the questions he asked the royal Prince’s had been purposefully all over the place, he now knew what type of mage the Black Bulls were sure to want come the next Magic Knights Entrance Exams in three months.

A spatial mage, Alowishus thought with a smile. Was poor dead Vice Captain Bronn that missed yet so easily replaced? Well if giving up one of his spatial mages would make Yami happy, and get one of his Agents of Chaos welcomed into the Black Bulls, Alowishus would gladly do so.

97.6

“Commander Greywright?”

Seated at the desk in his office, Greywright looked up and blinked in surprise. “Vice Captain Nozel.”

Standing outside the open office door, Nozel glanced at the empty assistants desk in the anteroom. “Forgive me for disturbing you, Sir, but there’s no one here to check-in with.”

“Unless there’s something going on, I insist Luca calls it a day by six at the latest. I see no sense why at least one of us can’t have a life and rest outside work.” The Knights Commander lowered his quill. “Speaking of getting rest. You were just released from Healer’s Hall this afternoon, you should you be at your home or base recuperating.”

“I will, Sir. But I wanted to hand in my report.” Nozel said, lifting the paper.

Greywright beckoned him in with a wave. “One. This report didn’t have to be done until your debriefing tomorrow. Two. You didn’t have to personally hand it in. You could have sent it through secure magical carrier. But having been a Magic Knight for nearly four years, you know that. Take a seat.”

“Thank you.” Nozel sat in one of the two chairs in front of the Commander’s desk.

Greywright noted Nozel’s stiff movements and slight grimace as he sat. The royal really should be at home or the Silver Eagles base convalescing. So why wasn’t he? “What can I do for you, Vice Captain?”

Nozel noticed the untouched touched dinner, pushed aside on Greywright’s desk and felt a margin of guilt. The Magic Knights Commander was clearly busy if he had ignored his supper. But the matter he wanted to discuss was important, and after he and Fuegoleon had been taken and tortured by the Agents of Chaos, he felt that he had a right to some answers.

A knock sounded before Nozel could speak.

Greywright looked to the door. Without waiting for leave, one of the guards who worked at Magic Knights Headquarters entered.

“Commander.” The stony faced man greeted, handing Greywright a slip of paper.

Greywright read the short note and sighed. “Sir Jorah has been informed?”

“Yes, sir. And someone was sent to inform Advisor Ellara as well.” The Guard said.

Greywright nodded. “Dismissed.”

“Sir.” The Guard saluted and exited the office.

Folding the missive and setting it aside, Greywright told Nozel. “Your time just got considerably shorter, Vice Captain. I’d hurry up and speak if I were you.”

“Sir?” Nozel’s brow furrowed, not understanding.

“Flic has died.” Greywright said.

“The Agents of Chaos traitor!” Nozel blinked.

“Yes. And the Wizard King will likely be sending for me shortly, so speak.” Greywright said.

He would’ve gone to the Wizard King’s office immediately; but Greywright couldn’t see what harm Ellara could do in this instance. Ellara had been strangely uninterested in the traitor Flic after that first day. And they had already known Flic would likely die sometime before tomorrow morning. Greywright couldn’t help a dead man; but he could listen to and hopefully help one of his Magic Knights.

That would be nice, Greywright thought. To be of actual help again, instead of just trying to stave off and mitigate disasters.

Nozel stared, wondering why the Knights Commander wasn’t rushing to the prisoners body or Sir Jorah now.

Seeing his wondering pause, Greywright told. “Flic’s death was sadly expected, Vice Captain. He had grown considerably ill at a rather alarming rate and there was nothing the Healer’s could do for him. But that isn’t why you came, so why have you?”

“I--” Nozel faltered when the Knights Commander held out a hand. Mind still whirling from the news he just heard, it took him a second realize Greywright was asking for the report he still held. He passed it over. “I was hoping for answers, sir.”

“Answers? To what?” Greywright asked, looking over the report.

“The Agents of Chaos.”

Greywright’s eyes lifted, all hope of being of help to someone crumbling to dust. “The Magic Knights Captain’s were told what information they were allowed to give their squads. Seeing as Kess seems like a fairly open Captain and you’re her Vice Captain, I would imagine she told you all she could.”

“Yes, sir.”

“And you were there when Vice Captain's Yami Sukehiro and Teris Nova convinced the now dead Mister Flic to yield to my interrogation.” Greywright said, lowering Nozel’s report.

“Yes, sir.”

“So what else is there for you to know?” Greywright asked, disappointment making his tone stern.

“With all respect. Everything, sir. What did Mister Flic say during your interrogation of him? What has Magic Investigations learned of the Agents of Chaos and how the group plans to go about their aims? What are we doing to find and combat them and those plans? What exactly happened during the Summer Solstice that lit up the sky almost a year ago? Why is Alowishus Spade seemingly fixated on Lady Teris and Yami Sukehiro?”

Greywright didn’t miss the bite to Nozel’s tone when he said Yami’s name, but didn’t comment on it. “Those are a lot of serious questions, Vice Captain.”

“Being taken and tortured is a serious matter, sir.”

“Is that why you think you deserve answers when you have the same information we are willing to allow any other Magic Knights Vice Captain?”

“Lady Teris and… he have more information.” Nozel said, unable to say Yami’s name again when the image of Yami pressing Teris against the wall refused to leave his mind no matter how far back he tried to bury it.

“Sir Jorah has only allowed them more information relatively recently, and that is only because the matter involves them.” Greywright said.

Nozel lifted his chin slightly. “Fuegoleon and I were taken and tortured. It involves us now too.”

Greywright lifted and skimmed Nozel’s report as he spoke. “Yami and Teris’ report stated that Alowishus Spade said you and Fuegoleon were taken as means to force them to do his bidding; and from what I see here, you say pretty much the same.” He lowered the paper and sighed. “I understand you’re upset and want answers. None of us here are happy you and Fuegoleon were abducted and used as pawns.”

Nozel’s eye twitched at being called a pawn. Yes, that’s what he and Fuegoleon had been to Alowishus and the Agents of Chaos; but it didn’t mean he liked it.

“But, upsetting as it is, being taken and tortured does not equate to being involved in this.” Greywright continued, thinking that he would seriously consider quitting, his promise to Sir Jorah be damned, if any more of his Magic Knights became the focus of these crazies.

“Teris is my Intended.” Nozel stated.

Greywright paused briefly at that. “I am aware. But I do not understand what you think you’ll gain by saying that.”

Nozel’s eyes shifted down and away from the Knights Commander. Honestly, he wasn’t sure what he had hoped to gain from saying it either. He knew full well it meant nothing in this instance. It was just that after seeing Yami and Teris this afternoon a part of him had needed to say it. Had needed to hear someone in authority acknowledge it. As if saying and hearing it would somehow fix everything and erase what he had seen.

“I’m sorry, Vice Captain.”

Nozel’s gaze lifted. For a moment he thought the Knights Commander was apologizing for what he had witnessed between Yami and Teris.

“I know this can’t be easy. But until Sir Jorah says otherwise, I cannot tell you any more. You will have to be satisfied with the answers that you have.” Greywright straightened at the sudden appearance of Cob outside his door. “Ah, Cob. I was wondering when you would show.”

“Good evening, Commander. The Wizard King wishing to meet with you immediately.” Cob said, jovially.

“Yes.” Greywright stood, taking up his transportation charm. “Please do me a favor and see Vice Captain Nozel either home or to the Silver Eagles base. He has a long morning ahead, and needs to rest and recuperate.” Greywright looked at Nozel. “If you must. Consider that an order, Vice Captain.”

Nozel’s hand twitched at the twinge of his still tender side as he slowly got to his feet. “Yes, sir.”

“See you tomorrow morning.” Greywright said andactivated the transportation charm.

97.7

Wiping her mouth with a napkin, Teris got to her feet and told Yami. “I’ll meet you out by the picnic table.”

“You barely touched your plate.” Yami commented.

“Can blame her.” Tobin muttered, chewing around the overly dry food.

“Hey.” Gendry scowled, offended on Abril’s behalf.

“Then tell your girl to learn how to cook.” Tobin shot back.

Ignoring the two men, Jax looked between his Vice Captain's. “Where you two going?”

“Taking Pilfer and No Name out for a run.” Yami said. It was actually a date; but that wasn’t anyone’s business.

Jax shook his head. “No.”

Yami glowered. “What do you mean, no?”

“Exactly that.” Jax said.

“You’re the one who told me to get this aggression outta my system.” Yami stormed.

“Find another way to do it. You’re not going out. And if you can’t you’re staying tomorrow.” Jax warned.

Still standing at the table, Teris looked between the two. “Why? What’s going on tomorrow?”

“Nothing.” Jax and Yami said. A sure sign that it was definitely something.

“What’s the harm in taking a ride?” Yami asked. The anger building in him might've been a bit out of proportion for the circumstance, but Jax’s order was just as overdone.

“I. Said. No.” Jax clipped.

Muttering a curse, Yami grabbed and lifted the tables edge, slamming it back down.

Teris stared wide eyed.

Tobin’s drink fell over onto his plate. He cursed then shrugged; it couldn’t have made the meal any worse.

The rest of the Black Bulls sat silently, watching out of the corner of their eye.

“Are you finished?” Jax questioned, calmly.

Though the outburst had helped his growing temper, Yami snarled. “It’s just a damned ride.”

Jax threw his napkin down. “It’s never just anything when it’s the two of you. Damn it, Yami! Why must you tempt fate? I swear, Julius is right. You never learn!”

“If fate has plans for me and Teris, I’ll kill the bastard along with the Agents of Chaos.” Yami growled. He looked at the Captain, sudden temper further diminishing. He needed space to breath. The base and people making him feel as if he’d been caged in for far too long in a too small enclosure. “I just want a moments peace. That’s all. Just an hour out and away. Two at most.”

Jax’s expression softened. He felt for Yami; but that didn’t change the fact that his squads safety was far more important than their wants or needs. Mereoleona had been right when she told Yami he had the rest of his life to be as free with Teris as Teris would allow once the mess of Nozel being her Intended was over with. Then again, the loss of his love Belinda, and Bronn’s death had proved that fate was cruel and laughed at such hope filled plans.

Jax shook his head clear of the depressing thoughts. “With you and Teris being taken only a couple days ago and the Summer Solstice so near--”

“They have no plans for us for the Summer Solstice. Alowishus said so himself.” Yami argued.

“Which could be a lie.” Jax said.

“That sick lunatic has done a lot to us, but he’s yet to lie.” Yami said.

“Yet.” Jax stressed. “He hasn’t lied yet. Come on, Yami. With what’s going on with Flic you should’ve seen this coming.”

“Tch.” Yami turned away, making a face.

Teris looked between the two. “Why? What’s going on with Flic?”

Jax glanced at Teris, then back at Yami. “You didn’t tell her?”

“Tell me what?” Teris questioned.

Jax explained about Flic’s unknown illness and the likelihood he would be dead by morning.

Not sure which Vice Captain he was apologizing to, Jax apologized. “Sorry. I thought Yami would've told you.”

“One would've thought.” Teris frowned down at Yami.

“I was going to.” Yami said.

“Sure you were.” Teris spun on a heel and stormed away, leaving her dirty plate.

“Teris, come on. Teris!” Yami called, watching her disappear through the dining room door. Getting to his feet, he cursed and grabbed the table lifting and slamming it back down.

Jax lifted his hands watching his drink tip over. Maybe taking Yami tomorrow really wasn’t the smartest thing.

97.7.2

Climbing the stairs two at a time Yami caught up to Teris as she reached the second floor landing. He grabbed her arm, stopping her from continuing on up to the third level girls wing.

Pulling her back down the two steps she had climbed, Yami griped. “Will you just wait a dang second and listen.”

Teris tried to pull free, her voice angry and wounded. “Why? So you can explain away why you’re still not telling me stuff? I thought we had moved passed this after— Iban.”

Yami opened his mouth to say that they had, but followed Teris’ gaze to see the Blood Mage watching them from the ground floor. “Go away before I kill you, Creepy.” He turned back to Teris, not waiting to see if Iban complied. “Come here.”

Teris’ eyes widened when Yami tugged her down the hall toward the boys wing. “No. Yami. I can’t go down there!”

Growling, Yami bent and lifted her over his shoulder.

Teris yelped. Squealing, she kicked out. “Yami! It’s not proper!”

Yami gave another rumbling growl, feet staggering slightly from Teris’ squirming and kicks. Shifting the balance of her weight, he continued down the hall, giving her butt a sharp smack. “Settle down.”

He kicked his bedroom door open and stepped inside. Setting Teris down on her feet, he closed the door and leaned against it.

Teris blew her hair out of her face, wide eyes darting around the space.

Yami crossed his arms and smirked. She looked like a trapped hare. As cute as he found it, he didn’t want her to be nervous or afraid. “Calm down. It’s not like I haven’t been in your bedroom before.”

Teris stepped backwards. “That’s different.”

Yami quirked a brow. “How so?”

She bumped something and gasped, spinning around.

Yami chuckled. “That’s my bed. You can have a seat if you want.”

“No. Thank you.” Teris took a sideways step.

Yami’s smile grew. It was cute how the royal politeness of her upbringing so quickly and easily came forward despite her clear ire and nervousness. He pushed away from the door and stepped to the bed. Falling back into the mattress, he pillowed his head with his hands and stretched out with a sigh. “Fine. I’ll take it then.”

Teris watched Yami kick out his legs, crossing his ankles. “Why didn’t you tell me about Flic?”

“I was going to.”

Teris huffed.

Yami lifted his head, looking at her. “You doubt me?”

“Just when were you planning on telling me? After he was dead?”

Yami laid his head back down. “I was gonna tell you after our ride tonight. Didn’t wanna ruin it with the news. Instead, Jax ruined it all anyway.”

“I don’t like it anymore than you do, but he’s just worried about us. Besides, he has a point.”

Yami sighed. The dark, brooding feeling within him that was constantly simmering wanted to bubble up in anger at Teris for agreeing with Jax’s point. But he knew that wasn’t really him. It was the thing inside him. The thing he had been battling since the sun set on the night of the Winter Solstice. He wondered if Teris had struggled with the same when the supposed primordial force inside her was on the rise, but didn’t want to ask. He didn’t want to worry her if it hadn’t been the same. Surely she would've said something if it had been like this for her.

He sat up and pushed back in bed leaning against the headboard. “Sorry. I should've told you sooner.”

“You wanted us to enjoy ourselves without all that mess. I’m sorry I got angry. I never should have doubted you.”

“Jax wants to take me to Nozel’s debriefing tomorrow.” Yami said.

Teris sighed. It was an easy enough thing to figure given the way Yami and Jax had responded to her questioning in the dining hall. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t already known about Nozel’s scheduled debriefing. She wondered if and when Yami had originally planned on telling her that. Possibly after their date this evening too. She’d never know for sure now, she sullenly thought. She was just as frustrated by all the rules and restrictions as Yami was. Would they still have to face house arrest and escorts? They were Vice Captain's for mana sake.

She turned away, her disgust at the situation switching to curiosity as she took in Yami’s bedroom. Yami smirked and watched her look about in interest.

“Is it was you imagine?” He asked.

Teris looked back at him, the slight tint in her cheeks belying the surety of her tone. “I thought it’d be messier.”

Yami smiled crookedly. “Yeah well, I haven’t been spending much time in here and the clothes were just sent out for washing so...”

Teris gestured to a box on top of a chest of drawers. “May I?”

“Look through whatever you want.” Yami said.

Teris tentatively opened the long, thin box. It contained instruments used for detailing his katana.

“Don’t stop there.” Yami told.

She could hear the taunting smile in his voice and took it as a challenge to continue, knowing he thought she wouldn’t.

Yami lazily sat back watching her open and close various drawers and cupboards. “Looking for your bra?”

Teris’ eyes slid to him without amusement.

“You’re nowhere close.” Yami taunted.

She closed a drawer overly hard.

Yami watched her walk around the bed to his desk and smiled. “You’re getting closer.”

“Shut— I’m not looking for it. So just—stop.”

Yami chuckled at her temper. “Fine. Forget I mentioned it.” He swung his legs off the bed closing the nightstand drawer she had just opened. “Not that one.”

“What happened to, look through whatever you want?” Teris teased.

“Whatever you want but this one drawer.”

Teris shook her head. “That’s not what you said. You said--”

“I know what I said.” Yami interrupted, hand lifting off of the drawer as he stood.

“Then?” Teris stared up at him, fingers wrapping around the knob and slowly pulling the drawer open.

The side of Yami’s leg pressed against it, closing the drawer back up. “So I misspoke. What of it? You don’t see me going up to your room looking through everything.”

“No. Just stealing undergarments.” Teris humored brow raised.

Yami smiled proudly at that. “If I remember correctly you threw them at me.”

“And if I remember correctly, I never gave you leave to go looking about my things, where as you gave me permission to look.”

Yami grabbed her wrist, arm wrapping around her to pin it to her back. “You’re a greedy little brat, you know that.”

He looked her over, eyes lingering on the rise and fall of her chest. His other hand skimmed up her free arm to cup her face.

Teris’ teasing smile faltered. “Yami. I—we--”

“Shh.” Yami’s thumb brushed lightly across her lips. “Leave what’s in that drawer alone. You’ll find out was in there soon enough. Think of it like sex.”

Teris’ eyes widened, heart quickening.

Yami smirked at her expression. “Something to wait for.”

“You still do, right?”

“Still do what?” Yami asked.

“Want to wait.”

Yami’s brows furrowed. He had told her as much. Why was she... “Are you asking cause of what we did earlier today?”

Teris became defensive. “I know it wasn’t sex.”

“Who would think that was sex?” Yami chuckled.

Blushing at her naivety, Teris pushed him back. “Shut up.”

Yami laughed louder. When she tried to pull away from him, he grew serious. He stared a moment, confused at how upset she had become. “What’d I say?”

“Nothing.” Teris shook her head, crossing her arms when Yami released her.

“If I don’t know, how am I to not do it again?” Yami asked.

“It’s nothing.” Teris said, temper in her tone lessening.

“You can tell me anything, you know.”

“And you can show me anything.” Teris said, eyes flicking to the nightstand drawer with interest.

“Alright then.” Yami grinned, mischievously.

Teris’ eyes brightened then closed tightly shut when his hands went to his belt buckle. “Yami!”

Yami laughed, looking freely over her.

“Is it safe?” Teris timidly asked.

“Hardly.” Yami’s deep voice rumbled, eyes raking over her form.

Teris’ eyes opened.

“What?” Yami asked, innocently.

“What?” Teris echoed. Her eyes darted down, both glad and slightly disappointed his buckle and pants were still done.

Yami smiled crookedly. “You’re too easy, Princess.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Teris asked, a hint of temper in her tone.

Sitting in bed, Yami gripped her hips and pulled her closer, his legs spread to either side of her. Teris stopped, unable to get any closer without falling into bed with him.

“Don’t worry, Ikigai. I’m far too easy when it comes to you too.”

“Are you ever going to tell me what that means?” Teris asked.

She saw a bit of color peeking out from under Yami’s pillow. With a blink she realized it was her bra. And here she had been certain it had been hidden in the nightstand drawer he wouldn’t let her open. Now she really wanted to know what was in the drawer.

Yami’s eyes lowered to the front of her upper left thigh. “Let me kiss that birthmark of yours and I’ll consider telling you want it means.”

Teris’ eyes shot back to him. “Yami!”

“Alright then, just let me see it.”

“Yami.”

“What? It’s not like I haven’t seen it once before.” And a million other times in my head, Yami thought.

“No.”

“Fine. Then can I touch it?” Yami asked, hand already sliding down from her hip to do so.

“Yami! No.” Teris squeaked and laughed, slapping away his hand.

Yami bent, lowering his head. “You sure I can’t kiss it?”

“Yami!” Teris put her hands on his shoulders holding him at bay.

There was a quick knock followed by the bedroom door opening.

Olsen poked his head in. Seeing Yami sitting on the bed. Teris standing between his legs. Yami’s head bent, face so near Teris. And Teris gripping the mans powerful shoulders. The Water Mage quickly ducked his head back out. “Sorry! Sorry.”

“No. No.” Teris called. She stepped back, Yami’s hands falling to his knees.

Olsen peeked back in, apologizing once more. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“There was nothing to interrupt.” Teris said.

“Says you.” Yami grumbled. Turning to Olsen, he demanded. “What do you want?”

Olsen continued as if neither Vice Captain had spoken. “It’s only Iban said I could find you up here. But, he said nothing about Teris being with you.”

“Of course he didn’t.” Yami muttered and asked again. “What do you want?”

Teris made of the door. “I’ll leave you two to it.”

“Teris, wait.” Yami reached, but she was too quick in her steps.

Olsen inclined his head as Teris passed.

Yami listened to her footfalls as they hurried down the hall and up the stairs. He eyed Olsen murderously. “What have I told you about entering without leave?”

Olsen held up his hands in a placating surrender. “You’re right. I’m sorry. But whatever was going on would've come to a halt whether I waited for a response or not.”

“Nothing was going on.” Yami said.

Looking back over his shoulder, Tobin pushed his way passed Olsen and entered Yami’s room. “Was that Teris I saw rushing from this way?”

“Shut up.” Yami snapped.

Olsen gave Tobin a nod.

“What happened to wanting to wait?” Bran asked from the doorway.

Tobin smirked lewdly. “I knew you couldn’t wait. You--”

“If you want to keep your tongue, stop using.” Yami growled. He got to his feet and frog-stepped Tobin and Olsen out of his room. “Bran! Go feed the wolves.”

“Gendry took them out for a run.” Bran said.

“Then go do something else useful.” Yami said.

“Like stepping in here and stopping what you and Teris were up to?” Olsen asked.

Yami glowered. “I told you, nothing was going on.”

“You should take more care.” Olsen said. “That is if you truly wish to wait. A year and a half may not seem like much. But it can be a very long time indeed.”

Tell me about it, Yami thought.

“A word of advice. Holding out for such a time would greatly be aided if you didn’t enter each others bedrooms.” Olsen went on.

“What he said.” Tobin said, backing into Bran as he was backed out of Yami’s room.

“Didn’t ask for your advice.” Yami told the two men, slamming the door in their faces.

Exhaling, Yami ran a hand through his hair. He turned around and leaned back against the door. He saw Teris in every area she had been, and several places she hadn’t. Namely his bed. Closing his eyes, his head banged back against the door.

Unwanted advice or not, Olsen was right about one thing. A year and a half seemed like a very long time indeed.

***Important question***

So I have what would be some longer chapters like this one. Currently, they have been cut in half to cut down on length and give me a buffer between what I’m writing and posting. The question I have for you all is, do you like these weekly updates, which would mean those longer chapters would stay cut in half? Our would you prefer longer chapters like this one, which would mean switching from weekly to every other week updates?

Also I got a couple asks this past week that might interest some readers. One is a reader theory and the other is about the fic length and how I section it. There's links on ao3, or you can just go to my tumblr's honepage.

Comments are VERY MUCH appreciated and really make my day. Thank you to those who have left hearts. And a special THANK YOU to those who have recently commented or re-blogged. It really means a lot.

Next chapter snippet:

“If all the History of Chaos covered was strictly just the history of Chaos why would it even make an attempt at showing you the image of Alowishus Spade or the Master of Master's? No matter how old Alowishus Spade is, I seriously doubt he’s old enough to have been alive and around during the time of Chaos’ reign and defeat which brought about Order.”

Teris frowned, having never thought of that. Her eyes lifted to Marx realization dawning. “You think the portrait is of Yurist.”

[pellelavellan-a]

Pelle + Post Trespasser Notes

When Pelle resigned from his position he did not actually disband the Inquisition because he still believed there was a need for it, but it needed to continue without him. What it needed was someone whose authority the nobility would respect ad it had become clear that he was not that person. In ways he understood how the situation had gone as far as it did even if he disagreed. A lot of the disapproval he had gained over the years actually stemmed back to the crucial missteps he made in the beginning like nearly inciting another elven rebellion with his stunt at the Winter Palace and his reckless language regarding the elves' position in the world. Does he still believe every word of it? ...Most of it but while he wouldn't take a single thing back he is aware of the controversial reputation it earned him. Moreover, while he had improved a great deal as Inquisitor, he still did not tolerate any maltreatment of himself, mages, or other elves for what they were and while he chose his words much better never backed down on the stances he stood upon when he was a much younger Inquisitor. When he resigned he appointed his disciple, Kane Trevelyan, to take over as Inquisitor. He did remain in Skyhold for some time after his resignation. The first reason was the huge risk it posed him to leave immediately. Cullen and The Iron Bull had warned him of the huge target that would be placed on his head once he was wandering without security and soldiers to stop an assailant from trying to assassinate him. He was well aware of the danger of course, and per Dorian's request he remained in Skyhold for a little while for his own safety. In the meantime, he took the time to decide what identity he wanted to take on once he was no longer Inquisitor Lavellan, as well as sought out Cullen, Bull, and Leliana to identify things about himself that would cause him to stand out in a crowd or give away the fact that he was a mage which to him was just as dangerous as being recognized by any other means. While it wasn't ideal, Cullen recommended he learn to desensitize himself from mana drain as it was often a telltale sign that someone was a mage. He recruited a trusted Templar, Captain Rylen to conduct some exposure therapy on him daily to help him get used to having his mana drained and with time no longer have a visceral reaction to it. He decided to remain amongst other elves in alienages once he was gone, easier to blend in that way. He would go by Sibs instead of Pelle. Both were technically his name, Sibs was just his nickname back home by many of the hunters. The endearing nickname originated from his surname before he was adopted by Keeper Lavellan. Sibil was his last name by birth, and he did identify with that when he was young but as he grew older his connection to Keeper Deshanna as her son encouraged him to embrace her name after her passing. Many within the Inquisition did not know his surname was not always Lavellan save for a select few so it felt a safe enough name to go by to avoid attention and so he committed to it.

Post Corypheus changes:

After Corypheus, Pelle became far better at his job when granted the time to learn it. He took up Leliana on her offer to teach him bard skills on the side, she also taught him a great deal about hiding his facial expressions as they often got him in just as much trouble as his mouth used to. He became better informed on politics from a lot of reading (and Josephine). Became a polyglot from picking up Orlesian, Tevene, and Antivan speaking a total of five languages when Common and Elven are added into the collection. He did not all three in this three year period, he picked up more Elven from Solas before Corypheus was defeated and the Tevene from Dorian here and there both before and after, and studied to fill in the gaps. Professionally it was simply useful to learn Orlesian and Antivan so he put in the effort to do so. Overall he matured a great deal, became more discreet, professional, informed, and able to communicate. His necromancy also improved dramatically.

Extra Post Trespasser:

Pelle was correct in believing that the nobility would respect Kane more than him but soon found it was for all the wrong reasons. Afraid of the nobility and what they were capable of he denounced Pelle entirely as a teacher and claimed to disagree with any views of values that Pelle had thoroughly enforced. The nobility liked him because unlike Pelle he was easy to manipulate and in time it was his sister, Mira, who was running the Inquisition in the background, pulling strings and putting ideas in his mind that benefited her and the empire. Cullen and Josephine resigned after Kane took over as they could not agree with his leadership. They were replaced by Mira and a chevalier. Seeing as the Inquisition had quite literally gone to shit, Pelle was still eager to help with things so long as his name stayed out of it and he had no further affiliation with the Inquisition, He became a bard, working for Leliana as a spy and venturing places she could not as Divine. He functioned somewhat like a Left Hand though never claimed that position as it would draw too much attention to him. He currently lives in an alienage built over the remains of the one that was burnt down years ago by Empress Celene. While he keeps to himself most of the time he is a Friend solely to help his people in a way that does not place him in the spotlight. It was slow going finding a shred of stability. For a long time he was wandering from alienage to alienage dodging templars and anyone who might have the slightest suspicion of who he was. As he'd expected there were a number of people who had gone through the trouble to track him down to harm him and so staying anywhere too long was far too dangerous. He found himself in a number of close calls, spontaneous squabbles, and made scenes places he really shouldn't have including restraining and nearly strangling assassins with the Vhenadahl in the Kirkwall alienage. It was almost two years before he was able to blend in enough with the rest of the elves wandering about in Orlais to go unnoticed in the common rabble. It still took a great deal of effort but finally after such a long time of running and cheating death he learned along the way how to cover his tracks and draw as little attention to himself as possible. Eventually, the attacks slowed as he became harder to track down. Working as a bard for Leliana was risky, but he couldn't justify sitting back and watching idly while all the hard work he and his advisers put into putting things back together was all being unraveled by his cowardice disciple. By the time he's thirty he's learned more than enough for her and from trial by fire to look after himself and avoid unnecessary danger. The downfall is having to occasionally appear in society again because despite his efforts it is impossible to become entirely invisible after the influence he had over Thedas for so long. If he catches any hint that someone knows who he is and intends harm he has had to become comfortable quietly killing them. It hasn't happened too often but he would be lying if he said he hasn't murdered people for discovering him out of self defense. Though it isn't entirely positive, he does consider the skill of discreet murder to have been a huge blessing the sole time he discovered someone who after Dorian during an assignment that brought him to Tevinter.

[dumplingfaye]

Here’s my top 30 strongest characters in Black clover

(I’m trying to be extremely fair but there is some biased so if there’s someone that doesn’t make that much sense why they’re highly ranked it’s because I’m biased one character in particular and I’m doing this because someone made a absolutely god awful top 15)

Charlotte Roselei .30

if you wonder why she’s ranked so low it’s because even though she fought Vanica and won that was when Vanica was weaker and once Vanica went 100% she creamed Charlotte plus her magic was only effective because it was cursed magic if she fought any of the other dark triad members she would have probably lost

Lumiere Silvamillion Clover/Licht .29/.28

if you’re wondering why they’re so low on the list it’s because they couldn’t defeat Zagred and contrary to some people’s beliefs Zagred is actually extremely weak at least compared to the other Devils

Zagred .27

he’s very powerful what can I say but he’s pretty low on the list because well he is smart however when it comes to fighting he’s very bland and does the exact same thing over and over

Luck Voltia/Leopoldo Vermillion/Charmy Pappitson/Mimosa Vermillion .26/.25/.24/.23

a basic summary they all have true magic and intern they all have ultimate magic (Luck has Elven magic as well which also gives him an extra boost) (Leopoldo is a Royal and trains a lot so he doesn’t gets left behind)” not that that helps”(Charmy is a hybrid of a human and a dwarf)and (Mimosa is a Royal as well as a recovery mage but that doesn’t mean that she can’t put up a good fight)

Nozel Silva/Fuegoleon Vermillion 22/.21

(Nozel to tell the truth i’m not actually sure how much powerful he’s gotten over the last six months but he’s probably going to play a big role soon so this is also kind of his biased) as for (Fuegoleon to tell the truth I kind of think he’s pretty weak but maybe he has spirit dive so that’s why he’s here if he doesn’t well he’s not even on the list in that case)

Zora Ideale .20

you’re probably wondering why he’s here This isn’t me being biased because I’m kind of indifference towards Zora but he’s here because his magic is quite interesting he can reflect someone’s attack and double its power and he possibly even has more tricks up his sleeve after all it has been six months

Magna Swing: .19

now you’re probably wondering why he’s so low on the list after all he beat Dante well that’s actually pretty simple it’s because to me this is actually kind of me being biased I don’t actually like Magna in fact I actually hate him but to me personally I think his trump card is for very pacific conditions for starters we know that Dante is extremely strong right when it comes to magic but when it comes to intellect or physical strength he has none so to me if Magna fights someone with either of those things or God for bid both I personally think he would lose but this could just be my bias talking

Gaja .18

he fought the wizard king to a stalemate and he was able to fight Devil Lolopechka to an even degree when he wasn’t even trying to hurt her but she was trying to hurt him (I could be wrong please don’t get mad at me keep in mind this is just my opinion)

Julius Novachrono(at prime) .17

Julius at his prime everyone stroke his power and even though Yami trained for six months he was still weaker than Julius he only became stronger after he surpassed his limits

Yami Sukehiro .16

(dimension slash/Equinox)(death thrust)(Black hole) etc.

Jack the Ripper .15

if I’m being honest I’m pretty sure if he fought Magna he would probably lose (because he has a weak body and doesn’t have that much intellect) but because his magic is so versatile that he can adapt to the magic attribute it’s against he possibly could do incredible things with it even though I kind a wish he would die I don’t like him either

Devil Lolopechka .14

To tell the truth I’m not exactly sure if she’s stronger than anyone who’s on the list but I assume she is at the very least I know she’s stronger than Charlotte but because she’s a devil she’s probably stronger than most of the other characters

Zenon Zogratis /Yuno Grinberryall .13/.12

if I’m being honest I don’t actually know who’s stronger because even though at the beginning of their fight (of course not in their first one) Yuno was indeed winning the fight but after Zenon went 100% it came to a stalemate so I’m not exactly sure who is stronger (one is a devil user) and the other (is a spirit user) so 50/50 ╰(0 ~ 0)╯

Dante Zogratis/Vanica Zogratis: .11/.10

I mean they’re both stupid and they’re both strong and I didn’t put them in the same boat as Zenon because when Vanica heard that “Yami was defeated by Zenon” she said that he might not be as strong as she hoped implying that she was stronger than Zenon plus Dante has the king of all devils so that’s why there here

Dorothy Unsworth .9

this might be my bias talking but because she has her own world (created by magic) she can conjure up anything she wants and of course she’s gotten stronger over the six months so that’s why she’s highly ranked

Mereoleona Vermillion .8

She’s fighting a demon God and even though her magic is being absorbed she can still fight so yeah

Noelle Silva/Acier Silva .7/.6

to me personally they don’t actually have that many differences when it comes to strengths because both of them defeated Vanica and sure Vanica was weaker when she fought Acier but (Acier had to protect both of her children plus she died because of Megicula’s interference) and Acier was able to leave a permanent mark on Vanica

Nacht Faust .5

(OKAY if I’m being honest this is extremely biased I really like him a lot) but Nacht was able to cream Asta and Liebe for two days straight and while they were being cured he wasn’t (I mean it’s possible he was but I didn’t see it and neither did you” except in Fanart”) and they were able to defeat Dante and fight on par with Yami when they were weaker and out of breath and not even working in conjunction with each other so yeah and when he fought Naamah and Lilith he was able to perform a spell that is on the same level as supreme devils and the only reason why they were able to break through it is because Naamah and Lilith burn/freeze everything even invincible concepts/constructs and they were the strongest Devils we’ve seen so far at that pint in time and even though they were playing with him at a stalemate they were still stronger than anything they faced before and he was able to keep them busy for a little while wow this one was long

Naamah and Lilith .4

I just said it before but they’re able to burn/freeze everything you need including invincible concept/constructs anyhow they’re basically extremely strong and they could cream everyone on the list except the people who are higher than them

Megicula .3

well he/she (I don’t want to assume genders and be wrong) basically trashes on everyone in mere instant

Asta & Liebe .2

Devil union is just that over powered I mean it’s able to take out transformations such as spirit dive possibly other devil unions and of course normal spells such as Valkyrie dress or princess healing flower robe as well spirit of hellfire etc. able to dispel mana-zone based rooms is able to cut through any type of magic even if it’s a physical being and the sword themselves already pack a punch by themselves so with extra power that’s just over powered

Lucifuge/Lucifero .1/.0

Who the fu*k did you think was going to be number one/number zero Seriously who they’re literally the main bad guys in this arc it is impossible to tell what they’re capable of but whatever it is we know that they can kill anyone they want in an instant without even trying this isn’t me overhyping them this is a factual thing they are practically the most overpowered creatures in Black clover we have yet to see them and frankly I don’t think we want to I mean both of them killed really kind people Lucifero killed Licita Lucifuge I mean technically he didn’t kill Morgan (Morgen died because he interfered with the Devil ritual) but they killed Nacht and Morgan parents and if we’re being honest their parents well they kind of did deserve death

[gaming]

Indie Game Spotlight: Ikenfell

Hope you’ve been practicing your magic because this week’s Indie Game Spotlight is going to need it. Ikenfell is a turn-based adventure tactical RPG about a group of mischievous kids who go to magic school. When one of them goes missing, the others must put their heads together to find her. The game mixes tactical encounters with fast, timing-based battle mechanics in a blend of genres twisted together.

We chatted with ChevyRay, the main artist, coder, and writer of Ikenfell, and talked all things magic, character development, and more! Read on.

Ikenfell is described to use a turn-based style battle system. What other gameplay mechanics are present?

You create a party of 3, of 6 total playable characters, and use tile-based movement to move and position your characters. Each character unlocks 8 unique spells as you progress which you use to overcome various enemies and bosses. Spells have no MP in Ikenfell; they are mechanically and situationally driven, instead of being mana-capped.

For example, one character has a Levitate spell that can lift an enemy and drop them a few tiles away. This is useful to push away strong enemies with low-range attacks. But it cannot carry large or heavy enemies as far, so you have to decide when it's best to use over her other spells.

Another character might choose between a strong, single-hit spell or a large AoE spell which does less damage. But the AoE spell has another side effect: it will destroy any hidden traps enemies have placed on tiles that it hits.

One character can place his own traps for enemies to step on. But why wait? Maybe instead use one character’s Push spell to knock them backwards into another enemy, while also dropping them onto the trapped tile for extra damage.

The spells are designed to mix and match and be used in different situations and encounters, so the strategy isn’t as much about conserving your resources as it is about using the right actions at the right times, and responding to how the enemies respond.

Who are some characters we can expect to meet?

Maritte is our hero, she is not actually a witch as our story begins. She is an “Ordinary” (Ikenfell’s version of “muggle”), and has only come to Ikenfell to find her Sister, Safina. Safina is the aforementioned witch who has gone missing, and is, in fact, the most popular and famous witch in the whole school.

As Maritte searches, she encounters her sister’s friends and rivals who may either help or hinder her on her quest. Petronella, a brilliant but extremely anxious alchemist with a terrible self-image. Rook, an anti-social bookworm who is often the brain behind the group’s mischievous adventures. Pertisia, the group’s fierce rival who will do anything to stop Safina, who she believes is up to a nefarious plot. And Gilda, a once quiet and bullied student who has assumed a new identity and somehow acquired powerful magic never seen before.

Along for the ride are Ibn and Bax, two handsome mage officials who have been sent to the school to apprehend Safina. The party must rescue her before she’s captured, and somehow get her out of the horrible mess she’s gotten herself into.

Which character do you most identify with and why?

I identify with Maritte and her self-confidence, but also with her impatience and ongoing battle with anger.

I also identify with Petronella, her terrible self-image and negative self-talk is almost word-for-word things I have caught myself saying.

I identify with Gilda, who is loud, proud, and whose passions can shift and flip around at a moments notice.

I especially identify with Pertisia, who feels left out and pushed away from people (often a thing of her own making), and cannot find ways to communicate her hurt with others while she continues to suffer from it.

Everyone has a little piece of me in them. I am not immune to narcissism, but putting myself into my characters is intended as a way for me to make them feel honest and authentic. Hopefully, others will see themselves in them as well.

What types of spells or magic are incorporated into Ikenfell?

In the world of Ikenfell, magic is divided into a few different schools of thought:

Conjuration: magic of manipulation, movement, and matter. You can form temporary objects in thin air, move objects about, change the shape of things, turn invisible, or form protective shells at a moment’s notice.

Alchemy: magic of materials and substance, the “science” magic of Ikenfell’s world. This might be in the form of healing, causing plants to grow, creating a stink bomb, or turning wood into stone.

Spirits: magic of ghosts and faeries, its source drawn from parallel realms. This might be summoning a creature, creating a portal to move a short distance, taking control of a creature’s body, or visiting someone’s memories.

Runics: magic of books and ink, its source drawn from the pages of enchanted tomes. These spells are a combination of the above, and have a variety of effects, and can be quite powerful.

But runic spells take a long time to prepare, and thus are less flexible in their usage. They’re usually used to create booby traps, seal doors, create protective barriers, draw energy from power sources, bind creatures to your will, and hide objects from the naked eye.

But as Ikenfell’s story unfolds, new kinds of magic start appearing; magic like none seen before -- explosive flames, destructive lightning, and immensely powerful conjurations. Our party seeks to find the source of these new magics, and hopefully prevent them from causing damage that cannot be undone.

Ready to cast spells until your heart’s content? You can follow Ikenfell’s updates here or wishlist it on Steam!

Art by @darcydee

[abalonetea]

Bolte and Red 1, 2, 3, 6, 10, 11, 12, 15. Captain 16, 18. Blue 17, 16, 1, 2, 3

AHHH YOU’RE SPOILING ME FRIEND THANK YOU

_-_-_-_

BOLTE AND RED

1. Their physical weak spots

You could argue that all of Red is a physical weak spot. His head injury knocked him down to a total of 5HP. It’s pretty easy to take him down if the Intent is right - and it usually is in their world. More specifically, he’s got a nasty wound on one side that is still very tender even though it’s also pretty old. A hard knock there will have him coming right down. 

Bolte’s biggest physical weak spot is his right leg. He pretty much shattered it several years back and it did not heal up correctly. He should have a cane, but presently uses magic to support/ignore the fact that it’s a problem. That being said, it’s pretty easy to knock him down if you land a hit there!

2.Their emotional/moral weak spots

Bolte and Red have always been each other’s biggest weak spots. Keeping each other safe is the only thing they’ve always wanted, and there’s nothing that they won’t do to ensure that end goal. They made a promise when they were children and it was supposed to be no matter what, you’ll keep going but it quickly became, no matter what, I won’t let you die. 

3.Scars or painful spots

*low whistle* It’s not a pretty sight, once Bolte gets his shirt off. There’s the one on his left shoulder, where Midnight’s lollipop scythe carved a deep rivet after he stepped out of line one time too many, the scars on his face from his “graduation” battle against Captain, when he first became general. The burns on his hands from learning fire magic and the mass of knotted scar tissue on his lower back, from his days training to become a knight. The discoloration on his knee, the mana-bullet burns left on his upper arms, the place Dazzle dug his claws in too tight when Bolte showed up baring bad news. 

(the deep wretched wound on his HEART that’s still seeping and the calcification that covers up once vivid amber and molten red)

Red’s a little better off, but only barely. He has a nasty one on his side where it was split open when he was eighteen and Bolte was sixteen, and they stitched it up together in a little hidden nook of The Wastes. The other big one he has is on the side of his head, mostly hidden by his hair, from when he got caught up protecting Bolte during a Capitol War; this one nearly did him in, and stripped away his magic when it happened.

6. Their vices (physical or emotional)

Red doesn’t drink because he has no control over how much he drinks, and it can get out of hand really fast. He does smoke, however, and would smoke a lot more if cigarettes weren’t so expensive back home.

Bolte will claim he has no vices. This is largely because Captain broke him of the habit of smoking (by breaking a few fingers) and because he can’t risk anything like gambling or drinking. But I’m pretty sure you can count the fact that he gets into fights on purpose as a vice, and also probably his very bad temper, too.

10. Fears/phobias 

Bolte is terrified of spiders and he will not admit this, ever. 

Red’s got a pretty nasty fear of heights. 

11.  Bad or petty habits

Bolte is a bundle of bad habits that function as an even worse coping mechanism, from the fact that he’ll smother pain down with magic so he can ignore a wound and work longer, to the fact that when his HEARTsickness is really acting up, he’s prone to putting his fist through walls or trees to try and get it to calm itself down. He overworks, under sleeps, always gives Red the biggest portion of food. 

Red wears his mask nearly constantly at this point, from anxiety. He’s not that great at coping with things either, but he’s, uh, marginally better than Bolte. Sort of. He picks at the furry sleeve of his jacket whenever he’s stressed and he will do the same thing to your couch. Fair warning.

12. Grudges and vendettas

Bolte’s only remaining grudge is with the queen. He’s taken care of all the rest. One of these days, he’ll take care of her, too.

Red isn’t at a point where he’s able to hold grudges anymore, unless you count the one he holds against himself, for not being able to get Bolte into a better place.

15. What it takes to make them cry

Bolte doesn’t think he has any tears left by the time the story starts; he’s moved past crying and is stuck in a permanent state of anger and rage and desperate determination to survive. But then they get to Fields of Fara, and it turns out that a little softness, a little kindness, a little sleep and health is exactly what makes him cry. (you know that reddit post about the bf crying when his gf washes his hair because it’s just so nice and kind? that’s bolte)

Red has nightmares, a lot, that frequently bring him to tears. He does a lot of getting teary-eyed when Bolte gets hurt and it doesn’t matter how many times he lives through Bolte dying, it always makes Red sob.

_-_-_-_

CAPTAIN

16. Dark secrets/’skeletons in the closet’

Captain killed Frost, the general before Bolte. He tried to make a move on her, and she landed the final blow. This still would have gotten her in a lot of trouble with the Queen, though, so he’s simply gone missing under strange circumstances, presumed dead.

18. Things they’ll never admit

That Bolte is her best friend, that she saw his tag line when it read future hero, that every day she blames herself for stripping it into something else. That there’s a summer dress hanging in the back of her closet and she’s never been loyal to the queen, not for a second, and one day she’s going to strip Midnight from the throne or die trying. 

_-_-_-_

BLUE 

17.Regrets

Not being able to stop Kee sooner and getting Locke tangled up in this mess of glitches and time loops and violent, angry people. Not being able to see what was really happening in the labs. (not being able to stop so many loops from ending badly)

16. Dark secrets/’skeletons in the closet

The fact that Blue remembers the time loops is a secret for the majority of the book. At least, he thinks it is! He also never fully comes clean to Locke about some of the things he does during his unfortunate stay in Fara Falls. Isn’t it handy, how loops undo Level gains? 

1.  Their physical weak spots

Blue only has 1HP. It doesn’t take hitting a weak spot to bring him down.

2.  Their emotional/moral weak spots

There’s really nothing that Blue won’t do for Locke. He wants to keep Locke safe and he wants to survive - and sometimes he’ll go the extra mile and take that extra step to make sure it happens. He’s also very quick to judge, which is part of why he and Bolte start off on the wrong feet.

3.  Scars or painful spots

None of Blue’s scars have stayed through the resets, but he has a pseudo-scar on his left arm from where Kee grabbed him one time too many that’s always a little tender, even if nothing is physically there.

[inventors-fair]

The Title Match

Congratulations to our winners this week! @eveydeevey with Afflict, @kamoegoi with Surveil, and @naban-dean-of-irritation with Echo!

~

Afflict

Hard to say much about this, it’s such a solid card. As pure removal it’s worse than grasp of darkness (which is above the curve if you ask me), but this has some extra text that is relevant but not a given. Very often with instant speed removal you leave it up and kill stuff on their end step, usually something that just hit play. This encourages you to wait until they actually start using their creature. I also like how this subtly makes players play faster, by encouraging you to not just wait until the end step: kill it now before it hits you, dummy! Arena clocks appreciate that. At first I thought the life loss was too close to the original ability, but it actually feels a lot more like someone has been “afflicted” with something painful, and the stress of fighting is making the wound bleed. Or, as the art implies, they were going to die anyway, and the fact that they go out swinging is just painful to watch. I’m very happy with this card.

-

Surveil

This is a bit of a weird one, and takes a minute to unpack. First, I like the cantrip. Normally a one-mana cantrip with value is a bit scary, but the fact that this can ONLY target your opponents stuff means that this isn’t a free roll. You have to be playing against a deck with creatures before you can draw from this. Second, I thought the last ability would be too oppressive, but I forgot that they can just… not attack. It reminds me a lot of Cowed by Wisdom, where it stops creatures from attacking depending on how many cards they have in hand. It being a blue card is also clever, since that’s a reactive color, so it’s one that will most want to know what’s in the opponent’s hand. The deck manipulation I’m not as certain of. I know there needs to be more on the card because just looking at a hand is not enough of a discouragement for attacking, but fatesealing is one of the most unfun abilities ever printed. Again, though, it’s really clever that they exact moment the first part (looking at hands) stops being relevant (no cards left in hand) is the exact moment that the fatesealing is strongest. I will say it’s strange to have looking at the top card be a may. You could easily just say they get to look at the hand and deck every time, I don’t know why you would ever say no. Though I didn’t like this card at first, it really grew on me, and the name is a great fit as well. Though I could see this card causing trouble, I can’t help but be impressed by the design.

-

Echo

Art Direction: A hazy veil across the world. One side looks like Lorwyn, the other has been transformed into Shadowmoor. A series of ripples in the veil is vaguely forming itself into a humanoid face, though it is still see-through.

Stunt double got a glow-up! Only fair, considering this is a mythic. I like how you tied in the somewhat strange name into being an elemental, since they are often named after thoughts or ideas (though Incarnation may have been a bit much). Mechanically, though, it’s a great fit. Echo being a clone is incredibly fitting. The fact that it has evoke is really clever, because it not only really makes it feel like an echo, appearing as a copy then fading away, but because it makes this a very cool clone effect. It reminds me of student of sakashima in that respect: take a unique creature-based mechanic and put a clone in there. It also (I think) stays in pie. It’s really just a very strange blink effect. It isn’t a heat-shimmer since it doesn’t have haste and dies immediately, and it isn’t a Malakir Rebirth because it doesn’t really save the creature from dying. It just lets you get an extra ETB trigger, something totally in pie, plus an extra death trigger, which is a little murky but only if I’m splitting hairs. I also like how, even though it gets you a blink trigger, it’s different in some important ways, like letting you keep any counters on the original creature. It also works really well with other instant speed blink effects, so it has synergies within its own archetype. This is really cool, and the fact it fits the theme so well is awesome.

~

And there we go, some awesome winners! I was very happy with these, as well as a lot of the other entries this week. Check out later when I put up the runners-up!

-Mod Mr. ShinyObject

[ranger-report]

Thoughts On: HEXEN II

After developing two fantastic games utilizing the id tech 1 engine -- also known as the DOOM engine -- Raven Software found themselves once again at the forefront of technological advancement when their neighbors id Software released a little game called Quake. Using a brand new, fully 3D rendered engine, Quake revolutionized first person shooters and PC gaming graphics. After the successes of Heretic and Hexen, Raven was deep in the throes of developing a third game in their dark fantasy series, this one titled Hecatomb. Sadly, this game never came to pass, as John Romero (who’d had heavily helped develop the previous two games) left id Software to found his own company, abandoning Hecatomb in the process. At this point, Activision Publishing acquired Raven and the rights to distribute future games they developed. Activision told Raven that they wanted to see the Heretic and Hexen games split into two separate franchises as both games were different in gameplay styles. So rather than a final third game to wrap up a trilogy, ideas from Hecatomb were then split between Hexen II and Heretic II. While this yielded mixed results, we’ll look first at Hexen II, a game that was highly anticipated upon release, and whose legacy is an uneven yield.

The story this time around is that the third and final Serpent Rider, Eidolon, has taken over the word of Thyrion. Separated into four lands, Thyrion is infested with Eidolon’s minions, and it’s up to one of four warriors to take him down: the Crusader, Assassin, Necromancer, and Paladin. What’s neat about this premise is that each of the warriors comes from one of the four lands --  Blackmarsh, Mazaera, Thysis, and Septimus, respectively. And each land has a different cultural theme -- Medieval European, Mesoamerican, Ancient Egyptian, and Greco-Roman, also respectively. Also very interesting about this setup is that each land is being ruled by one of the Four Fucking Horsemen of the Apocalypse -- Famine, Death, Pestilence, and War also also respectively. Off the jump there is a lot going on here, a lot more detail than the previous two games about the worlds and what is happening. This works to the game’s credit in attempting to set up a distinct world for this entry in the game series, but somehow, it falls a little flat. In previous games the player encounters a variety of monsters and enemies that all carry over from hub to hub, level to level, giving the player a chance to learn their attacks and be aware of how to defend themselves. There’s also overarching aesthetics that maintain a steady, immersive feel to the worlds presented. Hexen II’s decision to split the hubs into unique lands works against it, as each land as its own unique enemies and aesthetic and architecture. Just as the player has a chance to get used to enemy tactics and tricks (thanks to some stellar AI work), those strategies are abandoned as the next world is loaded up with new enemies and new look, throwing the player off and breaking the immersion. As much as I tried to get into it, what it ends up feeling like is the standard issue Water World, Fire World, Sand World, etc of old NES platformers. This is not to say that the worlds aren’t good looking, however -- Raven modified the shit out of id tech 2′s textures and polygonal aspects, crafting a still-gorgeous game which takes full advantage of the technology.

Progression here is also slightly different from the previous Hexen, but is a very welcome course change. Each character class has different skills and abilities, and as you play through the game, you’ll gain experience and level up. Returning from the previous game are the fact that each class has their own four weapons, using 1) no mana ammo 2) blue mana 3) green mana and 4) both mana. As usual, the fourth weapons need to be assembled from pieces in order to be used, but what overpowered destruction they bring. My favorite class is Crusader, whose skills and weapons focus on defensive measures, but his ultimate weapon is the Light bringer. It fires a steady stream of what can basically be called pure light, burning through any enemy in a matter of seconds, and the drain on Mana is negligible. It’s possible to reach the max level of 12 through the game, and each character receives a new passive ability at levels 3 and 6. It’s always nice to notice that you’ve gained a level during the adventure, but it usually happens well after the fact. I had a difficult time hearing the audio cue to let me know that I’d leveled up and now had extra health, or new ability. I had to go into the revamped inventory screen, which now shows key quest items as well as the current items in your pocket.

In fact, Hexen II’s biggest immediate suffering is that there seems to be a lack of feedback. There’s little in the way of gratifying sound or feel whenever your attacks land, which is doubly frustrating when most attacks are ranged and as far away from the very deadly monsters. Up close and personal melee attacks seem to have a weird range, sometimes being able to hit at different distances, but it’s hard to know exactly how and when that’s going to happen. The inventory system is fine, objects work they way they’re supposed to. Most of the problems come from the early usage of id tech 2. Quake is not a game designed around interactivity, despite Hexen II being the exact opposite. id tech 2 takes away the Action button, so you walk into panels or switches to operate them, no button mashing required. There’s also no minimap, so navigating become a trying issue. But projectiles in this game don’t seem to have an impact; there’s no oomph to it, similarly to Quake’s monster who rarely stagger when hit. This is a problem because multiple times will occur when you’re firing rapidly at damage-sponge enemies, wondering if you’ve hit them enough to count, counting each shot, watching your steadily diminishing mana fall away, waiting hoping praying that this isn’t another time where you’re going to be forced to use the melee weapon, and then they are suddenly dead and you didn’t know they were close to death. It’s not as frustrating in the early levels, where you’re Level 1 and Everything Hurts and Everything Takes A Lot To Kill. But by Level 9, there are bigger, badder, more horrifying enemies who soak up so much damage that it feels like a Thoroughly Epic Duel every single time. This, perhaps, is meant to make up for the fact that -- unlike Hexen which sent waves of hordes of squads of monsters at the player at once -- Hexen II lobbies much fewer enemies at a time. In fact, I’m hard pressed to remember any time I fought more than five at a time, and even that is a generous number. But since each of the enemies are so much more resilient, anything more than three becomes an exercise in dodging and weaving and running for cover in order to get in a few shots and quaff a drink from a healing elixir, because these fuckers hit, hit hard, and hurt harder. Especially the Four Horsemen, who are so intense and difficult that I was convinced for a moment that the game was building up to a boss run near the end that would have been insurmountable. Fortunately, thank fuck, there wasn’t. And yet, while the increased difficulty of the enemies comes with the bonus of impressive AI (most notable in the Were-Jaguar warriors, who leap and roll and attack like real human opponents), it also comes with the downside of empty stretches of pathfinding. Where in Hexen enemies would respawn with abandon in an effort to wear down the player, Hexen II seemingly keeps a limit on the number of enemies involved on a map. Once they’re dead, they’re dead, which then makes wandering around afterwards an exercise in frustrated boredom searching for clues and hints to the puzzles.

Speaking of which, while feedback and aesthetics are weak points, if there’s anything that the game truly bounces players out of the game, it’s the puzzles. Blackmarsh is host to one of the most infamous puzzle glitches in the series, possibly in all RPG gaming, the solution to which is based on how your character enters a particular courtyard. Depending on which turn the player takes, this will then spawn a clue in one of three locations based on your entry point, along with the necessary quest item in one of three locations after gathering the clue. However, the clue itself can be accidentally destroyed. It can also be missed entirely, and if you don’t find the clue you can’t go directly to the quest item location knowing the solution -- it can only be solved in the order of clue, location, item. So if you somehow miss or even destroy the clue itself -- and Hexen II is rife with destructible items holding hidden mana and health so chances are you’re breaking a lot of shit -- you’re out of luck. I discovered this far, far too late, and had to start the whole game over because I didn’t have a recent enough save file that I could utilize to go back to. Thankfully, this was fairly early on in the game, but it serves as a brutal low point that comes back to haunt the player in the Egyptian levels, where a maddeningly opaque puzzle involving time travel and astrology nearly drove me to a walkthrough and early onset baldness. Elsewhere, puzzles are item-based rather than key-based like in Hexen, which revolve around gathering items, transporting them to a location, and then receiving either a new item or a key. Sometimes these items need to be altered or transmutated; the game is questionably vague about what is necessary sometimes. Fortunately, despite the veiled hints, most fetch quests are simple enough to solve. But the lack of enemies giving way to empty hallways and corridors makes those fetch quests empty and tedious, moreso than they ought to be.

Hexen II isn’t a bad game by any means. It’s very much a product of 1997. New technology, advancements in PC gaming, experimentation with new control schemes and movements, a lot of games at the time featured both innovation and frustration in equal measure. Hexen II is a solid game at its core, with great direction from the returning team, a great soundtrack, fantastic graphics and sound design, and RPG progression. But all of these upgrades come at the cost of a more simplistic version of Hexen that is somehow trying to have the straightforward run-n-gun gameplay of Heretic and the brutal dungeon crawl of Hexen. Puzzles suffer, shooting mechanics suffer, and immersion suffers. What it ends up being is Hexen Lite, not as good as the original, but fine on its own. Would I go back and play it? Sure, at some point I’d love to, but it didn’t draw me in the same way that Hexen did, not even as much as Heretic. But it’s a Quake engine game (which I’m a sucker for) and a 1997 game (which I’m a sucker for, goddammit), and despite its flaws it represents a moment in gaming which I can’t help but be nostalgic for. Your mileage may vary, but be advised that there are other, bigger, bolder versions of this experience that Hexen II has inspired, and while this may have inspired quite a few, it hasn’t aged as well as its predecessors.

Next up: we close off the Thoughts On series of Heretic/Hexen games with Heretic II. And if Hexen II was a different experience in order to differentiate itself as a unique series, Heretic II goes above and beyond to set itself apart....for better and for worse.

[nanominyo]

The rulers of my world :’D

More about them underneath the cut

The King of The Ardelian Kingdom:

Age: ???

Magic: Undecided

Gender: Male

Specie: Fae

Years on Throne: 283 years

The King of Ardelia is actually a good king. Depending on country may he meet up in his warfare clothes (Depicted) or his royal clothing. In countries like Shuirin, Reayeria and Qutetish does he always meet up in his warfare clothing, while I Countries like Silverroot and Dotish does he meet up in his royal clothing.

He has kept peace with other countries for his 283 years on the throne but here in the later years are countries like Shuirin and Qutetish looking negatively on him being a pro-Beastmen for his country.

He has deals with Reayeria that they’ll sail their beastmen to his country once a month to keep the peace between them. He also has peace contracts with Silverroot and Dotish and are training both of these young rulers to become good rulers.

The story of how he became a King of Ardelia is still unclear but a Rumor is that the tavern he often visits in Rane City is owned by the original royal line which he should have stolen the throne from.

(Ardelia ends up losing a big chunk of lands towards east (The land turning towards Qutetish) in war but ultimately wins over Shuirin in the west. The capital of Ardelia is still on Ardelian land at the end of the story but is known by the time traveler to be lost later on and a new country forms in its place: Ardia)

The Emperor of the Qutetish Empire:

Age: 57

Magic: Body/Earth

Gender: Male

Specie: Half-Elven

Years on Throne: 23 years

The Emperor of the Qutetish Empire took over from his father who was an Elven. It is said the original Qutetish Empire originally only belonged to Elven people but after conquering the neighboring countries and becoming one big empire has the people been mixed – this means that most of the citizens that live in Qutetish are some of the humans who have the closest to the original Elven people.

The Emperor is a strict man there like his father before him seeks to get more land in his hands. He specially has eyes on Ardelia who is another major power in the world and are on a quest to overthrow Ardelia so he also can get his hands on The Silverrootian Dynasty and The Dotish Kingdom (Both protected by the Ardelian Kingdom), but also have easier access to take over the Reayerian Kingdom and the Shurinian Kingdom.

The Emperor is also against beastmen there isn’t Elven. This means demons, werewolves, Faes etc. which is further used to create hate against Ardelia who is Pro-Beastmen.

There is a thing with the Emperor that always get an extra look:

On the battlefield is he known to be a big strong man physically and magically but when he is home in his palace, is he known to be a big fat man – two very opposite body types. This is because he has Body magic where he can easily alter his body to fulfill the needs of the current events.

The Emperor is known to have a little Harem which is a mix of both men and women, but his heir is a girl who he cherishes a lot. She is unknown to how terrible set the Qutetish Empire and culture is outside the capital.

(In story does the Emperor end up focusing all his men against Ardelia after the “Evil Witch” kills his daughter. Ardelia ends up losing a lot of land to Qutetish due to this – but due to his Focus does he lose land towards south as the Silverrrootian Dynasty attacks his lands)

The Queen of the Reayerian Kingdom:

Age: 32

Magic: Blood/Mana Control

Gender: Female

Specie: Human

Years on Throne: 5 years

The Queen of Reayeria is known to be both strong and beautiful. From her dark skin and eyes to her muscular body is she known to take physically on hands battle in the arena with the guys and even known to beat them without using her magic.

Despite ruling an island there had little to no vegetation inside the country due to the sleeping volcanos there is now covered in ashes, sand and dirt do the Queen handle her country quite well. Her people love her ruling for her optimistic spirit and for her way to handle the country.

She has created a deal with Ardelia where in trade for the Beastmen does her country get food – this makes both sides happy, though as an extra thanks for the food has she promised to assist Ardelia in war due to the treat that Qutetish has against them. Mainly she has also made this promise to protect her own country (And her country’s gold production).

She also has deals with the northwestern neighbors about the fishing in the sea between them – so despite her war getup is she doing fine.

Overall, despite her dislike towards Beastmen does she not execute them unlike her mother.

(In story does Reayeria help Ardelia out in war – and thanks to their help also have a place for the citizens to flee too as Ardelia is losing.)

The King (Or ruler) of the Shuirinian Kingdom:

Age: 43

Magic: Light/Dark

Gender: Intersex

Specie: Human

Years on the Throne: 11 years.

The King – or rather the Ruler of Shuirin is a bit of an odd one for the fact they one of the few intersex humans who doesn’t have orc blood in the lineage.

Shuirin is a human purist country – they even have a hate towards Elven people who else are the part of the evolution before the humans.

Of course as a human purist country does Shuirin hate Ardelia but also for the fact Ardelia holds a lot of farm land right up of the country of Shuirin meaning Ardelia control the foods that Shuirin need since Shuirin is very much a country filled with lots of mountains and snow most of the year.

Despite earlier Kings having hold a peace with Ardelia by selling out the iron and silver they get from the mountains in trade for food does the holding Ruler see this as unfair and that Shuirin all along should have the said farm lands instead of being held “hostage” over a thing like food – this is despite the people living at the said farmlands does not feel like they are Shuirinians and feel like they are Ardelians.

Because of this conflict is there also a treat of war from Shuirin against Ardelia.

(In story do they bomb their own citizens, so their citizen becomes corrupted and turn into monsters to be used as a weapon in war against Ardelia. They do lose against Ardelia but Ardelia does not take over the land they won)

The Majesty of the Silverrootian Dynasty:

Age: 19

Magic: Water/Air

Gender: Female

Specie: Human

Years on the throne: 2 years

The Majesty of the Silverrootian Dynasty has a harsh time with only two years on the throne after her parents left the country in utter chaos. For years had her parents had a smaller war ongoing with the Qutetish Empire where they had done everything to protect the cold islands they own against the greedy Emperor and in the end this left her father to be corrupted and turn into a beastman – something her mother who then sat on the throne demanded to get executed – this left the country in chaos as the people now rebelled against the Royal family and even got as far as killing her mother – the People did actually love her father and threw their dislike towards corrupted humans aside when it was shown that even the most prestige of all humans could be corrupted too.

The Majesty at the age of 17 now took over the throne from her parents on the wish of her people but was inexperienced in anything near ruling and this has left her constantly worried about failing as a ruler.

To her luck though did the King of Ardelia come her to rescue and has for the past two years helped her out – both in protecting her country against the Qutetish Army but also had an advisor down to help her learn how to satisfy her people without being a weak ruler. She’s still nervous though from her past experiences but every day she gets better and a little bit more confident.

(In story she actually goes as far to beginning sending out fleets herself to protect her own country with her own strategies and it actually works out really well for her – so well that she even takes over a little piece of land in the south of Qutetish though losing it 4 years later).

The King of the Dotish Kingdom:

Age: 11

Magic: Neutral/Neutral (Magicless).

Gender: Male

Specie: Human

Years on the Throne: 6 years.

The story of how a child became a ruler is following a bit of a classical line: His parents died in war against the Qutetish Empire.

Quickly after his parents’ death did the Ardelian King come to his rescue as he by the age of 5 wanted to be the King – having always followed his parents around out of admiration. He accepted the help from the Ardelian King and got a personal advisor from Ardelia together with the Ardelian King himself showing up now and then to teach him how to be a proper king.

Now 5 years later is he asked for troubling questions since war seems to be a thing, that he now has to take choices around again. He wants the best for his land and people, but now where he is entering a phase as a ruler where Ardelia won’t protect his lands all the time and with the same power as when he was younger does he need to take important choices by himself – though he does not give up and will take it all very seriously.

Dotish unlike a lot of countries around has never had anything against beastmen at all.

(In story does Dotish lose the protection of Ardelia as Ardelia lose against Qutetish but since Silverroot has taken over the south of Qutetish does he keep on working with Silverroot to have an unified army there can protect their lands together.)

[crimson-mage-02]

Voltron Legendary Defender Written in the Stars  A Thousand Lifetimes

Summary: Voltron and Honerva come together at the source of all realities in the ultimate battle between good and evil for the survival of the universe. 

Note: Here it is, the very last chapter of Season 8! Hope you had enjoyed all three stories i have made along with making my own character Kaela. Hope you all enjoyed her character. Enjoy reading!  Hope you enjoyed the journey!

@spacelion-loveshermulletson, here it is! The very, very last chapter! Hope you enjoyed the journey! 

The battle against Honerva continues in alternate reality of Altea with many Alteans down below watching the fight. Honerva shoot a blast at the Castle where Zarkon was shielding his Lotor away from the attack and Voltron depleted the attack and saved them from the blast with their sword.

Honerva knocked down Voltron the ground proceeding to attack them. “We have to take the fight as far away from here as—” Keith started as he saw Honerva coming their way and lunged her sword at them but they all moved out of the way, getting away from the Alteans, not wanting to harm them or getting anyone hurt.

They clashed blades together and fought on with Honerva tripping them using the tail and tried to stab through Voltron using her drill. She pounded them into the ground. Allura gritted her teeth as she let out angered battle cry and blasted Honerva off them.

“Now let’s finish this!” Allura growled, preparing to fight back. “This is for Kaela!”

“Incoming!” Lance shouted seeing one of the wings are coming their way and stabbed them from the back. And two came and stabbed in the lower abdomen, falling down on the ground.

Then all of the flaps of the wings were creating a portal up in the sky along taking away the quintessence from Voltron. “We can’t let this happen. She can’t get away.” Shiro said. They all pulled out the flaps of the wings out of them and went after Honerva through the portal.

“Is everyone okay? Allura?” Keith asked. They all responded much to his relief and haven’t heard from Allura.

“I’m here, Keith.” Keith sighed in relief, glad to hear that she was alright.

“Does anyone has eyes on Honerva?” Shiro asked, looking around for her. They all saw strands in front of them and glowed brightly.

“What is this place?” Lance asked.

“I-I’m not sure.” Allura said. They all gasped hearing Honerva from behind them.

“This is the beginning.” Honerva said as she charged at them. “And the end.” She shot one of the strands making all of the paladins seeing the people that lived in another reality.

“Can—Can you all feel that?” Allura asked, looking up ahead where the strands were. “These strands are...”

“The only remaining realities left in existence.” Lance said.

“This place is the source of time, of space, of…” Pidge started as she looked at the strands.

“Everything.” Hunk finished as he held onto the controls tightly.

“I will end this once and for all!” Honerva snarled as she shot down all of the reality strands. Removing them from all of existence. Voltron flew in and then felt the wave of the explosion seeing all of the innocent lives in another reality.

“She’s destroying all realities!” Allura grunted.

Honerva kept on destroying all of the strands until there is nothing left. And there was only one more strands left. “She’s destroyed everything. There’s only one reality left.” Keith said.

“No. Please.” Allura gasped seeing Honerva was going after the last strand.

They all clashed blades with Honerva to prevent her from destroying the last strand. Destroying the remaining reality. Honerva thrusted Voltron forwards towards the last remaining strand.

“If Honerva destroys this final strand all of existence will end with it!” Allura exclaimed. Then Voltron had created extra booster with enough fire power to push Honerva away from the last remaining strand. Then the light appeared and shone brightly coming from Voltron and Honerva’s mech.

(~)

Honerva was teleported in a void with light orbs floating around her. She gasped softly as she saw Kaela standing in front of her with her hair down and was in a white dress. She had this unreadable expression as she walked towards her.

“Where are we?” Honerva demanded.

“The connected consciousness of all existence.” Allura said to Honerva until she saw Kaela in the void and the paladins gasped, seeing Kaela standing in front of them.

“You think you’re safe here? Soon, all will cease to exist.” Honerva said.

“You have to stop this.” Kaela pleaded. “You have to stop all of this destruction.”

“All these worlds, all these realities, they deserve to live.” Hunk said.

“Those realities are flawed and weak, living out the same pathetic cycle of war and pain.” Honerva said.

Allura walked up to her. “There is beauty in their flaws. I lost my father, my mother, my planet, to this war, but I’ve gained a new family and a stronger than any I could have imagined.”

“Humans began very flawed. There were wars, hate. But each with mistake, they learned and grow.” Pidge said.

“Now we reach out to other worlds to pass on those same lessons and spread them across the universe like your people once did.” Shiro added.

“And with every new world touched, the message grows.” Hunk said.

“Every world, every reality. We wouldn’t exist without the others.” Keith said.

“Our differences are what makes us stronger.” Lance added.

“You think your words mean anything to me? I’ve lived multiple lifetimes, and all of them filled with pain and loss. If I cannot experience the simple joys of life, why should anyone else?” Honerva asked, glaring at the Paladins and Kaela.

Allura put both of her hands on her temple and Honerva gasped seeing all of her past memories with King Alfor and her adventures before she was corrupted. “There was a time when you loved more than just your family, a time when your fascination with how vast the universe is gave way to your desire to help others and uplift others.”

Honerva got her Altean markings reverted back to normal as she turned see the memories of Lotor. “You tried to help him. He was happy. He deserved better. You deserved better as well, Kaela. Better than I could give. I am so sorry that I had killed you in cold blood.”

“Honerva, you were as desperate as Zarkon when he tried to save you. And you were desperate to find your son. You loved them. You still have love for your family. And what I did was out of love to save my brother and you did the same when you were trying to find your family.” Kaela said.

“Lotor may be misguided, but, ultimately, he wanted to preserve life. Honour your son. Help me change this.” Allura said.

Honerva felt tears rolling down her cheeks. “I’m sorry, but the damage is done. There’s nothing left to save.”

“I can change the Quintessence within your vessel. Your son helped me learn how to transform it from a destructive force into a life-giving force. But I cannot do it alone.” Allura said, offering her hand to her.

“But that would require-…”

“I know the risks.” Allura said as she offered her hand, but Kaela’s held hers. Much to Allura’s confusion. She looked over at the young mage princess as she gave her an unreadable expression on her face.

Kaela stood quiet for a moment in silence. She helped Honerva up to her feet and turned to her and the paladins. “I know you knew the risks. But you don’t deserve this, Allura. And…I am the only one who can also do this.” Kaela said.

“W-What are you talking about Kaela?” Allura asked as she stuttered and trembled. Feeling her body going numb all over and clasped her hands together.

“I have broken one of the laws by using dark magic and that my runes are disappearing because of it.” Kaela confessed as she held on to her arm and shown her runes were disappearing.

The paladins gasped with Keith knowing why her runes were disappearing. “But you did that to save us.” Lance said in disbelief after hearing that she had used Dark Magic to save the universe and them. Along with the fact that her runes were disappearing, and she didn’t tell them. Or either of them.

“I had to pay the price, Lance. I…I have to deal with the consequences on my own.” Kaela said. “This is why I never told you what had happened during that last battle on Earth. I wasn’t ready to tell you then. But it is happening right now.”

“You knew? And that was the reason why?” Keith asked sadly as he narrowed his eyes, feeling hurt that she didn’t tell him about her runes were disappearing aside from her telling that she had absorbed Dark Magic. For the very second time.

“Yes. I knew.” Kaela nodded and then looked at everyone who had crestfallen looks. “All I want for you all is to live your lives to the fullest and never throw it away.” Kaela said.

“No, there has be another way.” Allura pleaded desperately as Honerva walked towards her and stood beside Kaela.

“You have a life to live with your family and friends. And with one man you love. I shall use the remaining Quintessence I have left to save all realities. My mission…Our mission ends here, right here and right now.” Honerva said.  

“And I have my last remaining mana to restore all of existence.” Kaela said to the paladins. “I have to take it. It is my purpose. Your paths go on. Mine ends here.”

“There will be no Voltron without you.” Hunk said as tears started to form in the corners of his eyes. He will miss Kaela so much, but he knew that the sacrifice must be made.

“Voltron will always be needed, Hunk. The rest of the work is up to the people and you all. They’ll have you to guide them and bring them together.” Kaela said with a sad smile as they shared their last hug.

Kaela turned to the weeping Green Paladin. “Goodbye, Pidge.”

“I’m gonna miss you, Kaela.” Pidge sniffled as the two girls hugged tightly. They both recalled back to their memories whenever they were helping each other in the Castle of Lions. And how Pidge was the first person to accept her aside from Shiro when they all first met.

“I’m going to miss you too, Katie. Please stay curious and fearless.” Kaela said. “Here, I want you to have this.”

Pidge looked at the green pendant with two purple crystals in her hand. “You sure?” Pidge asked as she was about to take it from her.

Kaela nodded and put the pendant around her neck. “You look beautiful, Katie.” Pidge’s tears wouldn’t stop flowing down as she hugged her again. Kaela broke the hug as she wiped her tears before going to Shiro.

“Most of them won’t know the sacrifice you made so they could live. You won’t be able to see what they had done to honour you.” Shiro said.

“I will always be watching over you, Shiro. I will always be there to guide you. I wish you full happiness and a peaceful life that you deserved and needed.” Kaela said as she hugged him. “Thank you for giving me another chance to meet my brother.”

“You never have to thank me for anything, kiddo.” Shiro said as tears formed in the corner his eyes.

Kaela smiled and moved in front of Lance and looked away for a moment until they looked at each other. “It has been a quite an adventure.” Lance said, looking away from her not wanting to let her see his tears. But it was too late. They were already rolling down his cheeks.

“It has.” Kaela said as her voice cracked and wiped his tears away. “Stay safe and fulfil your dreams, Lance.”

Lance felt a lump in his throat. “And thank you for everything you had taught me. It has been a greatest pleasure to fly with you, partner.”

“At first, I thought you were a nuisance, but you proved me wrong otherwise. You proved yourself that you are more capable to do great things as a Paladin of Voltron. I am proud of you, Lance. It has been an honour to being your partner and sister.” Kaela said as they both hugged tightly. “Take care of Katie, or otherwise, I’ll hunt you down.”

Lance let out a teary chuckle and they broke the hug with Lance kissing her on the cheek. Kaela let go of him as he comforted Pidge, he wrapped his arms around her. Pidge hugged her boyfriend tightly with her arms around him. They comforted each other in a tight embrace.

Kaela saw Allura was in Keith’s arms and they were comforting one another. She noticed how close they were and realized that they are now together. She came towards Allura as she hugged her tightly. “Please, please, don’t go.” Allura wept as she already knew she had died to save them, but she doesn’t want her to go just yet.

“Allura, I have to. And you know what has happened. For the sake of the universe, Allura. I’m doing this for all of you. You deserve to live. And to rule Altea and continue your father’s legacy.” Kaela said as she held her hands. Allura gasped as she saw Kaela taking off the crown. The crown she had given her after her capture. After they declared their friendship that lasted. Kaela was willingly to give back to her.

“I won’t be needing this anymore.” Kaela said as she put the crown on her forehead. Allura’s tears flowed down and Allura smiled. They pulled away from the hug as Kaela used her powers for the last time and got the dark entity out of her with Honerva destroying it. Allura gasped softly and saw that she was free from the dark entity at long last.

“Thank you. I am so proud of what you have done for us. I will truly miss you. Thank you for being my friend, Kaela.” Allura said with tears rolling down.

“And thank you, Allura for everything. Thank you for being my friend. Thank you for giving a second chance.” Kaela smiled and held her hands. “You have my blessings.” Allura smiled brightly knowing what she had meant. She had given her blessings for being with Keith. The two girls smiled at each other and hugged each other again before Kaela went over to her brother.

Kaela held his hands tightly as Keith rubbed the back of her hands and he saw her arms were no longer covered by her mage runes. “This was it, wasn’t it? Your nightmares?”

“Yes, it was.” Kaela replied with tears rolling down her cheeks.

“W-Why you didn’t say anything, Ella?” Keith asked as his voice started to crack.

“I still die either way and this is all we have. I know that the lions have enough quintessence in them. The universe will always need Voltron and you.” Kaela said, caressing his cheek, seeing that there were tears forming.

Keith put his forehead against hers. “But you have so much to see. So much for you to explore.”

“I know.” Kaela said as tears flowed down. “But I already have you and mom along with a wonderful family. I had everything I ever needed. You made that happen when you first found me.”

“Kaela, when you accepted me, it helped me to accept myself. I am proud to see what you have become. I am proud of what you had done. You helped us to save the universe. And you saved countless lives with us.” Keith said with a sad smile.

“You have helped me to believe in myself in using my powers and I want to thank you for all the moments we had shared together. And no matter what happens, I’ll always be with you forever.” Kaela said as she put her hands on his shoulders. Both of them closed their eyes with their foreheads pressed against each other.

Then appeared purple and red aura, twirled and danced around them. All of her mana were all transferred into Keith. Kaela pulled away as she cupped his left cheek and brushed her thumb against it. Appearing a new marking on his cheek, while wiping his tears away.

Keith opened his eyes with tears were flowing down his cheeks. He looked at his sister one last time and kissed her on the forehead gently. Once they pulled away, Keith saw a purple diamond appearing on her forehead. He chuckled and he wiped her tears with a smile. It was the symbol that symbolises that Kaela is now a true Master Mage and the Great Ikri. Kaela and Keith shared their last hug one last time until a warm light and the spirits appeared.

The paladins of the Old, King Alfor, Zarkon and Lotor appeared with Serene who offered her hand to her. Kaela and Honerva walked towards them with the paladins watching and all of Kaela’s runes were disappearing one by one. Honerva was reunited with her son and husband at last. Both son and husband were now reunited with Honerva and had warm smiles.

Kaela had tears falling down while remembering her memories with the Paladins. She looked back at them seeing Hunk was being comforted by Shiro, Lance and Pidge were in each other’s arms, smiling at her with tears flowing down their cheeks. Keith and Allura were in each other’s arms, looking at her with bittersweet smiles. Kaela smiled gratefully seeing Allura was wearing her crown. With final look, she closed her eyes with a single tear rolling down and joined into the light with Serene.

(~)

Then the shape of the phoenix appeared and screeching with the wings were stretching out to all strands of realities that were saved and the phoenix light and essence died out. The spirits were flowing around the Atlas and the lions and they were back into their normal form floating in open space as purple essence danced around the lion and the Atlas. “Is this?... Are we?” Keith asked as he opened his eyes.

“Yeah. This is our reality.” Pidge said while wiping her tears away. Allura cried and mourned in her lion as she felt coldness on her forehead and realised that Kaela had given her crown to her. She cried as she held it close to her heart.

“She did it. She saved us all.” Lance said as he looked down at the group photo they took with Kaela in the Castle of Lions. She was smiling and had her arms around Pidge and Allura with Keith, Hunk, Shiro and himself in the background smiling and Coran was looking at all of them fondly with a tablet in his hands.

“I don’t remember that planet being there before.” Hunk said as he wiped a tear.

The paladins all looked out of their lions with Allura gasping softly with more tears rolling down her cheeks. “It’s Altea.” Allura said. She silently thanked her friend for reviving her beloved home planet.

Keith looked down sadly and felt something in his hand and opened it. He gritted his teeth and held the shining object in his hands. It was the bracelet he bought for her when she stayed with them after he saved her. He realised that Kaela added red crystals to the bracelet. He looked out to the spirits and he could feel her essence. She’ll be there to protect us. Forever and ever

In the hangars, James held the locket in his hands as he saw the spirits were shining brightly above them and disappeared. He looked down at the locket in his hands and saw another photo where they had taken in Clear Day, he noticed that she wore the hair pin he had won for her. He saw that Kaela had written something. “I’ll always search for you in a thousand lifetimes.”

One Year Later

“With the return of Planet Daibazaal, the Galra Empire is at a crossroads. For so long, the people of this extraordinary civilization have been manipulated by a dictatorship, that placed a misguided sense of self-preservation above all else. It was a tragic, unfortunate series of events, that led us down this dark, never-ending pain of power and greed. But now…. We, the citizens of the Galra Empire have an opportunity.” Keith said and looked up at a shining star above them.

“To make right all of the injustices set into motion by our forefathers. Because of the sacrifice made by my sister, Mage Princess Kaela, we have been given a second chance, to come together in rebuilding the Galra Empire by joining the galactic Coalition and ushering in a new era of peace.” Keith concluded with the Galra cheering and chanting his sister’s name.

Keith turned to look at his mother who was looking up at an evening star in the sky. He comforted his mother with a smile and a side hug. “I hope she is here with us.” Keith said.

“I am sure she is always watching over us.” Krolia said. “Always.”

(~)

In the Atlas, the chancellors were arguing over the table as Shiro tried to calm them down until Hunk came by at the table with two trays in hand. “Chancellors. Please, sit. Dinner is served.” Hunk said.

He placed the plates on the table to eat the meals. “The filet of bandrillo, spiced with seasoning from the plains of planet Mabo, alongside pilaf of long-grained forlongian brill from the vast fields of Antidoll.” Hunk smiled. “And it’s accompanied by a cider made from the petals of Altean juniberry flowers and Plumberry flowers that Mage Princess Kaela once loved. Bon Appetit.”

Shiro and the Chancellors took a bite of the dish and smiled brightly as they tasted something so delicious. “It wouldn’t be possible without cooperation of all three planets of Xritoo system. Much like my cooking crew, comprised of aliens from all across the cosmos working together to bring you this delicious meal.” Hunk said as he gestured to his crew.

“Mage Princess Kaela, the very person on this day, once said, “We all must not give up hope.” Hunk said proudly. “If the people of your planets work together, so much more can be achieved.”

“Let’s honour her by following in her footsteps and walk in the path towards peace and hope.” Shiro smiled.

(~)

James was walking around Plaht City, wandering around the city as he saw some couples walking in hand and hand. He looked away immediately, almost thinking of his days with Kaela. His best friend and the person he had loved since childhood.

Then a blue petal blew by and looked up, seeing the tree that Kaela had healed and grew. He walked towards it and looked up. He smiled as the blue flowers reminded him of her. He looked at the trunk and saw a flower crown in front of a memorial with writing on it. Everyone had heard what Kaela had done for them and for the universe.

James saw a little girl putting a flower on the crown and ran back to her parents. He walked towards the tree and put a hand on the trunk. He smiled a bit, feeling some of Kaela’s essence from the tree. He turned to the side and imagined her standing by her side, with a smile. With a warm and care-free smile. Her eyes would sparkle every time.

James then fished into his pocket and got Kaela’s locket. With the engraving, “I’ll always search for you in a thousand lifetimes.” He smiled and then decided to wear it, to keep her closer to his heart and he did promise he would try and find her in a thousand lifetimes.

(~)

Lance wiped his sweat on his sleeve, putting the tools down and looked at his girlfriend. “Hey, Katie. Are we almost done? You know we can’t be late.”

“All done.” Pidge smiled as she took out a drive and walked towards her boyfriend and brother.

“So, peanut, have you been thinking of any names?” Lance asked, smiling at her and kissed her on the cheek.

“Yeah, I was thinking of Chip.” Pidge grinned. Matt and Lance looked at each other with smiles on their faces.

“You and your puns.” Matt chuckled in amusement.

“And this is why I love your sister so much.” Lance said, looking at his girlfriend lovingly. Pidge smiled at him brightly and gently nudged him on the arm. Lance kissed her on the forehead and was about to kiss her fully on the lips, but Matt cleared his throat. Last time they kissed he walked into them by accident. Seeing them in uncompromising positions as he referred.

“Katie, your father’s got the teludav all warmed up for you. Better get going. You two don’t wanna be late.” Colleen said, calling out to her daughter and Lance.

“Don’t worry, Pidge, I’ll have chip all ready to go by the time you get back.” Matt promised.

“Just don’t initialize until we return. I want to witness Chip’s first moments of consciousness.” Pidge grinned as she given her brother the flash drive and Lance grabbed her hand to get ready.

Lance and Pidge were in their armours and lions getting ready to visit their friends. “Have a good time, you two. But not too much fun.” Sam said to the two paladins.

“We will, Dad.” Pidge smiled.

“Don’t worry, Mr Holt. Katie’s in good hands here.” Lance said with a charming smile.

“Come on, sharpshooter! We’re going to be late!” Pidge chuckled as they went through the wormhole.

(~)

“Construction is on course, your highness.” Merla confirmed to the new Queen of Altea.

Allura smiled brightly as she watched the construction of the new Castle of Lions in front of her. “Most excellent. How are the preparations for tonight’s birthday celebration coming along? It has to be perfect. This will be the first Altea’s victorious celebration and most memorable birthday.” Allura said as she looked over the preparations.

“It is going along very well, Allura. And the rest of the paladins should be coming very soon.” Merla replied. “And I wish I would’ve met her. She seemed to be a very brave Mage Princess.”

“She is one of the most bravest, stubborn and courageous Mage I have ever met. If she were here, she would’ve taught the Altean children about healing.” Allura said, remembering how she watched Kaela attentively as she healed the paladins with her magic. Allura wore Kaela’s crown with pride and love as she also wore a purple and white dress in the honour of her.

“She sounds like a wonderful person.” Merla smiled.

“She is too.” Allura replied with a warm smile. “A most wonderful and courageous woman I have ever met next to my dearest friend Pidge.”

“Oh, and Allura, we can get access to the location, we can begin set up.” Merla said.

“Perfect. As soon as Coran is finished with something.” Allura said looking at where Coran stood.

“…and had Mage Princess Kaela not seen that there was still good left in Honerva, we most likely would not be sitting here today. She grew to understand that there is good in anyone also seeing the bad.” Coran said to the children. “She would always find a way to save people and bring out joy, hopes and dreams. She could see that in every person.”

“Even her adoptive father, Emperor Zarkon?” asked one of the children.

“Perhaps.” Coran replied with a small smile as he looked at the statue in front of him.

“Do the paladins miss her? And do you?”

“Yes, I do believe that the paladins misses her greatly as well as I. She had taught us to never lose hope. And that her spirit will always be guiding us. Also teaching us on how to move on forward to the future.” Coran replied with a smile.

The children all smiled as they were about to ask more questions. “All right, everybody. I think Coran has someplace to be in a few doboshes. And you all have class to get to.” Said an Altean teacher.

The children groaned with Coran laughing in amusement until he heard three wormholes opening and saw the Black, Red, Green and Yellow lion coming out in front of Kaela’s statue and landed near the New Castle of Lions. Allura smiled and greeted her friends as Pidge hugged her. Lance and Hunk greeted her warmly along with Shiro. She met with the eyes of the man she loves, and she cupped Keith’s face and kissed him passionately on the lips. “Hello, Keith.” Allura said as she pressed her forehead on his. “You have everything we need for the birthday celebration?”

“I have. Mom made me bring other things.” Keith said, showing her a bouquet of blue flowers. “Also, her favourite cake from Earth. It’s a cheesecake. Well, a blueberry cheesecake.”

“Hey, I brought something for her, as well!” Lance exclaimed happily as he pulled out loaded boxes of flowers. “I didn’t even know what was her favourite flowers so I uh, sort of ordered different tons of flowers.”

“Oh, I think she’ll love the flowers, Lance. But Plumberry flowers are her favourite.” Allura smiled, gesturing to the bouquet that Keith had brought.

“What? She never told me that.” Lance said as he scratched his head.

“Yeah, remember how you saw her writing something in her journal and she got mad at you for trying to read it?” Pidge smirked at her boyfriend.

“Yeah, I remember that. She punched you so good that she gave you a black eye.” Hunk chuckled. “Classic Kaela.”

“And that’s why she never shared anything with you or tell you anything about her until you two are friends.” Keith smirked. Lance groaned in annoyance much to everyone’s amusement.

Coran came and smiled at them. “Great, everyone is here. Shall we get started?”

(~)

Everyone laughed out loud as they all sat on a blanket in the juniberry field. Pidge was sitting on Lance’s lap while Allura was leaning on Keith and Shiro was sitting next to Keith. Hunk was munching on some food with a smile. They were watching a vlog that captured Kaela’s most memorable memories. They all saw Kaela pinching Lance’s ear in the kitchen. She was helping Hunk cooking with Pidge in the background fixing something.

And the video changed to where Kaela and Keith were training, and Kaela had Keith pinned down. She had him in a headlock with a brightest smile they all ever had seen. The slide were showing the sibling moments. Keith putting Kaela into bed, Keith reading her a book and Kaela helping him on cooking with Hunk. And another slide shows Kaela with a grin as she pointed at the direction where Keith and Allura were in the hallway gazing into each other’s eyes. Both Keith and Allura chuckled at that memory.

The other slide shows Shiro and Kaela were looking at the stars together in the Atlas. Them dancing in the ballroom while Kaela was in a light blue and purple dress with her hair in a braid. Keith and Shiro lecturing her all night in her study and had a pile of books all over the table.

Allura giggled when she saw Coran fixing the corset for Kaela when she was fitting in a dress for a diplomatic meeting. She could not breath properly during the whole meeting. Later that day, she ripped the corset into pieces with Coran crying over the loss of the dress. Kaela was never going to wear any corset. Ever. She despised corsets ever since then. And in the background, Allura was comforting Coran with a sheepish smile.

It also show where Allura and Kaela were looking at the stars with Pidge at the beach on a planet. The girls all had their arms around them with Pidge in the middle. Then the slide changed to Keith was carrying Kaela in his arms with bright smiles on their faces. Everyone gushed at that memory, but Keith’s expression can be noticed and that he misses his sister every day.

Then the video changed it to where Kaela was speaking. “Lance, no. I don’t wanna do this. Besides we both know you’ll end up being pinned down by my brother.”

“I’ll be fine. I can take it. Come on! It’s fun! Every kid does this to their older siblings.” Lance whispered as he passed the marker to her.

“But this is Keith, we are dealing with here. You know how much he gets mad after that.” Kaela hissed as she looked at Keith who was sleeping in the lounge. Lance beckons Kaela with a grin to take the marker.

Kaela raised an eyebrow and opened the lid. She started to draw on Keith’s face. After a few moments, Keith woke up to seeing Kaela was covering half of her face with her book. “Ella? Are you okay? You look red.” Keith said.

“Uh-huh, I am fine.” Kaela nodded, trying so hard not to laugh out loud.

“Then why are you acting like there is something in my face?” Keith asked as he rubbed his face until he felt ink on his fingers. He looked back and forth at Kaela and the ink on his hands. He heard Lance’s laughing.

Keith growled. “You are so dead!” He chased Lance around the Castle with the rest of the paladins watching in confusion and Kaela laughing in amusement.

Keith glared at Lance who smiled sheepishly. “Okay, I was teaching her the stuff she missed out as a kid. She needed that.”

“Yeah, anything besides that.” Keith said.

“But Keith, at least she was having fun with us.” Allura said as she calms him down.

“Yeah, it is nice to see her smiling again.” Hunk said.

“And she inspired us all. She even convinced my dad to do the impossible with the garrison tech to infuse it with Galran and Altean tech. I mean, seriously, though, Earth has come a long way. It’s a hub for all alien activity now that my dad’s stabilized his teludav technology.” Pidge said with a smile. She was handing him another piece of a birthday cake for Lance.

“That’ll make travel on the Atlas much easier. We’ll be able to reach more sectors with the improved mobility. Not to mention the supplies we’ll save with the shorter journey.” Shiro smiled as he set down the plate.

“Yeah, yeah! We’ll have so much room for the cooking ingredients. People are just so much easier to reason with when they’re full.” Hunk said. “Man, this diplomacy thing isn’t nearly as easy as you and Kaela made it look.”

“I am sure you are doing a fantastic job, Hunk.” Allura said with a proud smile.

“Then you and my sister made everything look easy.” Keith teased Allura as she punched him on the arm playfully. Keith smirked and kissed her on the cheek, making her blush.

“She said she wanted to learn a few things about politics.” Allura smiled playfully at Keith. “She had done a fantastic job. But her strongest point is as a Mage Healer.”

“Speaking of which, how are things in Daibazaal?” Shiro asked.

“We’re calling for an election to select the Galran representative for the Galactic Coalition. So that’s step in the right direction.” Keith replied with a smile.

“Let me guess. They asked you to be their leader and you said no?” Lance asked raising his eyebrow while he had his arm around Pidge.

“Yeah, pretty much.” Keith replied with a smile.

“Classic Keith.” Lance smirked and everyone laughed in amusement.

“I am so proud of your decision, Keith. Kaela and I knew you would always be the key to the Galra’s future.” Allura said as they intertwined their hands together.

Coran smiled at the paladins and the new Queen of Altea. He smiled proudly and thought how they came a long way when they first met and when they first met Kaela. “Just around this table I see so many lives touched by her actions. For some of us she was a healer, a counsellor, a confidante and a sister. But to those of us around this table, she will always be family.” Coran said as he grabbed a glass and raised it high. “To Kaela!”

“To Kaela.” Everyone said as they all looked back at the statue of Kaela from behind them that had photos and flowers in front of her. They also had the statues of the Paladins of the Old along with Mage Princess Serene standing in behind Kaela.

Keith smiled as he hugged Allura as she wrapped her arm around his waist, smiling at the statue. “Happy Birthday, Ella.”

(~)

Everyone went to sleep for the day until Keith woke up and saw a white feather coming into his room from his window and then saw the spirits had appeared. Allura woke up beside him also felt her presence and heard the lions roaring.

The paladins and Allura all went outside to see the spirits appearing before them with the Lions all drifting above them. They all saw different kinds of colours in the sparkling night sky with the spirits lighting up the dark as they all white orbs coming down and two spirits appeared as King Alfor and Queen Melenor. Allura’s tears rolled down her cheeks as she ran to them and wrapped her arms around them tightly. Shiro gasped when he felt a hand on his shoulder from behind him and saw Adam. He was smiling at him fondly. Shiro had tears forming overjoyed to see him.

Keith, Lance, Pidge and Hunk all smiled seeing that Allura and Shiro were reunited with their loved ones. They heard a white phoenix squawking above them and landed in front of them and appeared Kaela in spirit form and wore a white dress. Keith’s breath hitched seeing his sister after a year and saw another spirit appearing and saw their father was standing beside her. Kaela walked towards him smiling as she caressed his cheeks and wiped his tears.

Keith smiled and they hugged in a tighter embrace and she looked back at their father who walked towards Keith. Keith gasped softly as he felt Kaela holding his hand tightly until their father went up to his children. There were no words need to be spoken and he simply nodded, he was proud of what he had done as a Paladin of Voltron and for everything he had done for the universe. The three hugged each other with everyone watched with tears flowing down.

Allura looked at her parents as they began to fade. Her mother and father both embraced their daughter one last time. Shiro looked at Adam who was smiling at him sadly and started to walk away from him. Shiro looked at Keith who had his arm around his sister and father. Their father smiled at Keith one last time before he started to walk away and joined the other spirits in the night sky. The paladins all looked at their lions one last time as they reminisce on their memories as Paladins of Voltron and their memories they had shared with Kaela. The joyous memories they all had treasured.

Kaela and Keith pressed their foreheads together with Keith shedding one tear and let go of her as he watched she running towards the lions. She transformed into a white phoenix and flew with them with the spirits shone bright in the night sky with the paladins smiling and with tears flowing down.

After a year, everything had changed for the better with The Holts family established the next generation of Legendary Defenders. Hunk created a culinary empire, bringing the universe together, one meal at the time. Lance took Kaela’s wishes to heart and followed his dreams as he became a teacher in the Garrison and teach the young generation of becoming great pilots with his girlfriend, Pidge, by his side, Krolia and Kolivan became the Galra representatives to the Galactic Coalition. Keith helped transition The Blade of Marmora to a humanitarian relief organization with the help of his girlfriend. Queen Allura of Altea, who encouraged the Alteans to become peacekeepers and brave diplomats in the universe while respecting Kaela’s wishes as she continued her father’s legacy and ruled Altea. Shiro found happiness with Curtis and finally left the battle behind.

Somewhere in deep space, all five lions followed the white phoenix and led them far away from Altea to a planet with pillars around it, serving as a gate way and the spirits glowed brightly, responding to the white phoenix and the Lions.

(~)

“My lord, we just got word.” Said one of the soldiers, he had his jet black tied up back neatly as he bowed down in respect. “It seems that the Great Ikri has fallen.”

The soldier watched his lord and master swung his spear across the room and then slashed a tapestry that was on the wall, cutting it in half with Mage Princess Serene and her family image on the tapestry. “Is that so?”

“Yes, my lord.” Replied the lieutenant.

The Lord chuckled evilly as he looked at the cut tapestry of Mage Princess Serene. “Hmm, looks like the story and the legend is not ending, after all, Mother. Gaius, begin preparation and summon the Elders. It is time to bring back what is rightfully ours.”

“Yes, of course my lord, Prince Adelram. At once.” Gaius complied as he went and do as he was told to.

“Soon, Mother, I will take everything you have. And then I shall rule Zelza and it will all be mine Looks like the story is not over just yet.” Prince Adelram chuckled evilly as he overlooked his soldiers building and creating weapons of their own in an abandoned mansion.

[hypexion]

A Pile of Fanwalkers (Part 3)

Part three of all these fanwalkers. Now it’s time for all the ones who are mean, and should not be trusted. Sometimes because they’ll stab you, and sometimes because they’re just... kind of massively evil.

The basic format for each planeswalker will be a Name/Colour Identity/Pre-Ignition Typeline/Homeplane blob of information, a quickish description of them and some “fun“ facts, and then some hits and misses for extra flavour. Also, I’m going to split this into three posts - “Heroic“, “Okay“ and “Villians“, for I believe I have the moral authority to judge my creations.

Also some of these are going to be from fanplanes, which will go undescribed beyond whatever tidbits come out the character flavour. Others will just have a ?, representing a lack of knowledge and/or sufficent worldbuilding. With that out of the way, let’s go!

Villians

Evil is not a state of being. It is a form of intent, and a form of action. Some of these Planeswalkers can be trusted. Some of them may even appear to be nice. But make no mistake. They have caused suffering. They have altered lives for the worse. Either by design or consequence, their effect upon the multiverse marks them as villians.

Aster - B, Human Warlock, Zodyas - Aster was born under the influence of a bad star, which granted him the ability to draw power from negative emotions. But don’t think that makes him a bad person. Aster’s powers do not compel him to perform evil deeds. They simply enable him. Motivated by nothing greater than his own self-interest, Aster is the truest example of a disaster with a point of view. He was, while it lasted, a member of the Infinite Consortium. After Tezzeret forget how to run it, Aster managed to… convince a number of cells to accept his leadership. While lacking a grand plan for his splinter group, he’s interested in expansion, if only for the sake of increasing his own personal power. Aster may possess a certain kind of charm, and some level of restraint when compared to other ‘walkers, but do not be decieved. The moment harming you becomes worth the effort, Aster will be ready to do so.

Aster is often described as being pale of skin and dark of hair. There’s some weird magic causing that, since different cultures usually focus on different things when describing others. Aster prefers to dress in the fashions of power, whether that happens to be expensive robes, hand-tailored suits, togas or other such clothing. He preferes to wear darker colours, but if opulence is the style of a plane’s elite, then opulent he shall be. While he does carry a mean looking dagger, his primary form of defense are his so-called attendants - humanoid shades he commands via magic. These can perform many tasks, such as “fetch me more wine“, “open that door“ and “kill them“. When Aster planeswalks, he dissipates into a fine black mist. Interestingly, if he’s thinking about planeswalking, his magic generates a similar mist, that trails from him as he moves.

Hits: Power, influcence, tormenting his enemies, using people’s guilt to literally physically crush them. Misses: The undead, constructs, Loxy, Constellation Cults trying to recruit him, being around Ashiok for too long.

Galina - WB, Human Advisor, Ithmorne - In her early life, Galina leaned much more towards the White aspects of her personality. Even as a member of the Zoriac Imperium, she valued their goal of peace greatly, and was one of those that saw certain practices as a detriment to that goal. However, this did not last. When the outpost she was in was raided, everything changed. The ignition of her spark saved her life, but not her right eye. Fortunately for her, Galina arrived on Ravnica within dragging distance of a Simic emergency care clinic, where it was assumed she was an Azorius member who had suffered a run in with the Gruul. This was a role she was happy to take up for real, once the chance provided itself, seeing the Senate as an obvious parallel for the Imperium of her homeplane. In fact, Ravnica seemed to have many similarities with Ithmorne. This could only be due to the work of Azor, the great Sphinx who had brought peace to her warring plane so long ago, and whose Compact still enforced it now. Galina soon realised that her ability to traverse the multiverse would allow her to find more worlds ‘saved’ by Azor, and in turn learn more from them. Ultimately, she decided, those factions on Ithmorne too small to be affected be the Compact would be forced into co-operating. And if not? Then they would perish. Such would be the price of peace. The process had already begun, Galina believed, and if accelerating the pace was necessary, it would be done.

Galina has white skin and long brown hair. Additionally, the events that led to her ignition left her with a noticeable scar, running from her temple, across her right eye, to halfway down her right cheek. Many wonder how her right eye survived such a wound, and the truth is that it didn’t. Instead, she had it replaced by the Simic while on Ravnica. Galina generally wears the standard uniform for those in her position in the Zoriac Imperium - navy blue military robes, kept in the best condition possible. Rather than carry a weapon, Galina relies on her mastery of law magic, using it bind and impede her enemies. She is also capable of many of the standard black mana abilities, especially those which weaken her foes. When combined, these make her a formidable, and potentially deadly opponent. Galina’s planeswalking effect is a jagged and chaotic burst of darkness, which can cause minor damage to living things that nearby.

Hits: Peace through power, Azor, law and order, her own take on the concept of justice, Simic biomagic. Misses: “Barbarians“, insubordination, traumatic memories.

Malius - UBR, Human Wizard, Innistrad - In every profession, there are those that push boundaries. They look at the rules, and wonder which are truly needed. These are the kind of people the majority of Innistrad distrusts. And in the case of the stitcher pariah Malius, they are completely right to do so. While his fellow skaberen found his “wolf with werewolf arms“ experiment a daring new idea, even they had limits. Rumors began that he had started to use demons as a source of parts, and that he consorted with diabolists for unknown purposes. These rumors contained some truth - Malius was interested in demons and had, for a time, used them to “improve” his creations. But over time, he had become interested in the nature of demonic pacts, and how one might acquire the benefits without having to pay the price. Somehow, he was able to construct a device that extracted the source of a demon’s power, and began using it to infuse himself with dark power. For a time, not demon, nor mob, nor torch-wielding monstrosity could stop him. The destruction of the Helvault was an opportunity to Malius, bring him yet more specimins. Everything was going well, until an angel arrived. She cut through his creations, and had both the strength and motivation to kill Malius. In an act of desparation, he activated the extractor, aiming it at the angel. She exploded (don’t worry - she got better (sort of)). This would have been incredibly fatal to Malius had his Spark not ignited, sending him across the Blind Eternities to Zendikar. And so, he soon discovered all sorts of new things to stitch. Including Eldrazi. In fact, Malius was straight-up ecstatic during the events of Eldritch Moon.

Malius’ various experiments have left him with sickly, pallid skin, and pale white hair. His eyes no longer appear human, and those who spend time around him soon feel uneasy. Malius wears the standard dress of the stitcher, a white labcoat, brimming with tools and notebooks. Malius often manipulates his tools via telekinesis, either to work upon a new creation, or as a method of attack. In dire situations, he calls upon the demonic powers he has infused himself with, physically taking on the form of a demon. This grants him signifigance strength, speed and endurance while it lasts, but prevents him from planeswalking, making it as risky as it is useful. When Malius planeswalkers, he disappears in cloud of dark and burning ash, crackling with lightning. This occurs even when he cannot actually planeswalk due to being a demon.

Hits: Extracting demonic power, demonic infusions, terrifying creations. Misses: Angels, torch-weilding mobs, basic medical ethics.

Skath - WBG, Naga Assassin, Orpheri - At first glance, Skath is like any other planeswalker assassin you might meet. She kills people for money, and she does it well. However, she is still a member of the organisation that trained her, a religious order of assassins on Orpheri. So Skath will not kill those standing on sacred grond, those not old enough to be an adult of their kind, and she requires more than just a payment before targetting a diplomat or member of a religious order. Beyond the rules of her faith, however, Skath kills without hesitation, selling death for gold and jewels. When not killing, she is surprisingly thoughtful, a writer of poetry and cultivator of interesting plants. And while unrepentant, she not always unrelenting. Put up enought of a fight, or simple hide in a shrine for a few days, and Skath will move onto easier targets.

Skath has copper-brown scales, and no hair, because Naga don’t have hair on Orpheri. She wears light armor on her torso, which is engraved with protective magic. Her favoured weapons are two scimitars, enchanted to deliver venomous strikes. She also carries a dagger, and a number of poisons, so that she might have the perfect tool for any assassination. In a pinch, she can bite someone, however the Naga Assassins of Orpheri consider this an act of last resort. Mainly because once you identify the cause of death as Naga venom, finding the killer is fairly simple. Skath planeswalks with a flash of pale orange light, leaving behind traces of sand. Interestingly, she is capable of being incredibly precise with her appearance on a plane, and has sometimes managed to planeswalk into a room based on it’s relative position to a know location.

Hits: Getting paid, botany, the statisfaction of a job well done. Misses: Cold places, oath-breakers, Locke, people attacking her from sacred ground (this is actually a bad idea - her religion sees this as an act of desecration, meaning you ultimately forfeit the protection provided).

Look at all these not nice people. It’s probably best to keep a distance between you and them. Of course, their motivations differ greatly, so if you were to find yourself in close proximity to them, you might be able to avoid getting stabbed. Or worse.