this is Salem, a land filled with magic and maladies. It is a place where witches and their elemental familiars gather, a home to legend and
lore that predates time itself. Yet of all the wicked and wonderful stories the past can tell us of, the most magical are the ones yet to happen.
This is Salem - this is the start of your very own journey. Welcome to starfall
Starfall is an animaga witch roleplay set in mostly modern times. Members play as witches in a world plagued by monsters, where the only safe spots are walled cities. Starfall strives to be a character-driven roleplay with expansive lore and a highly interactive plotline. We want to allow members to
create and look back on a magical journey, and mold the site and its plot as their characters grow.
Her red eyes look on at the scenes in front of her. Red stars shoot fiery stardust at the Jahr cast by a witch she admittedly doesn't know. It illuminates the Jahr's body, and from her own distance she sees that ominous looking orb that only seems to glow red from inside it. Jelly squints, trying to focus on the strange sphere, but it seems to have disappeared along with the light that revealed it.
And then, lightning, from a red-haired witch, and the orb is illuminated yet again. But she still doesn't get a clear view of it yet, no matter how hard she tries. She is so focused on thinking about the orb inside Jahr that the next attack it does with its tail catches her off guard. Its tail strikes the witch who'd conjured the lightning, and her eyes widen as she watches the scene unfold, complete with shock and worry for her companion.
Jelly is stuck in a trance, but only for a while. Things happen one after the other; the ground cracks from beneath her and just as quickly as that had happened, shadow tendrils like her own jut out from the ground, trapping witches in their grip. It almost also takes her a moment to realize that her sticky shadows has been removed from Jahr's body; before the tendrils could take a hold of her, she hops off from the shadows that are starting to dissipate into nothing but darkness; once she is on the ground, she hops off to the other witches, eyes still on the strange shadowy tendrils jutting out from the ground.
Someone from the interface asks if anyone would want something to fly with. She immediately recognizes it as Zephyr, a fellow Leviathan witch and acquaintance. "Give me one too, please," She states to the interface after the others asking for a board as well, looking above for any signs of the blond.
--
TECHNIQUES AND SPELLS USED: - Night Vision - Feast of the Butterflies - ILLUSIONIST’S HANDBOOK: CLOAKING SCROLL - ASTRAGIC GRIMOIRE: GEMINI THE TWINS - THE ILLUSIONIST’S NEW HANDBOOK: LUNAR GLAMOUR
[attr="class","gearcore"] Is he- Madds’ ok right?!
From the icy sensation shooting down his own spine upon registering Corvus's thoughts, Zephyr can tell that Basil's fear-dampening magic was beginning to wear off. Even so, he forces himself to view this battle as a challenge rather than a threat -- he had to at least pretend that he had the power to change any of this to keep himself together.
Without needing to request her presence, Zephyr feels the comforting weight of his familiar suddenly appear wrapped around his arm. He makes sure to keep her close. If asked about it later, the crafter would claim he'd noticed that Bailey's familiar was materialized and didn't seem to be drained by elemental magic kept at a sufficient distance, so he figured it'd be safe. (A lie hiding a simpler truth: he'd only seen Maddox being buried, and was willing to suffer the consequences to stop it.)
The earth around the purifier shifts and shapes itself into hands large enough to grab a full-grown human by the waist, which then dig their fingers into the ground to pull themselves away, smashing clumps of magical shadows under their palms before reverting to a statuesque stillness. Though Maddox's mobility should be returned, Sprocket remains physical.
"I don't fuckin' know, Billy, I ain't exactly a god-killin' expert," Zeph retorts as he turns his windsurfer fully to head back towards the alchemist, keeping one hand steady on the sail to steer, and the other waving vaguely at the monster above them, "I mean, th' dark ball thing it keeps hidin' is prob'ly a weak point, 'else it wouldn't hidin' it, yeh?"
"I guess a combo 'o those potions might help out if I can get a clear shot at it? Lemme just get th' first spares t' folks who can't fly b'fore wreckin' another..." he relays as he zips over to Heath, then Caleb, then Jelly, distributing a windsurfer for each. Thankfully, he's now assisted by Spock, who could crawl right into the Gate to drag the spare flying machines closer to the portal's mouth. (Making enough functioning windsurfers to play a proper game of Quidditch would have to be delayed, he supposed. Stopping the apocalypse took priority, as unfortunate as it was.)
(spells used:) the modern athenian: infocasting vibrionus gates magic canister cloudcutter
Desmond was familiar with the way the woman sidestepped the question of saving people. It was a pattern he'd noticed early on in his training with Silvertongue. When patrons wanted something unspeakable, they rarely said it outright. He was a bit disappointed, honestly. Part of him had hoped the Jester's Den leadership was different.
But, at least it was familiar.
"I'm sure Dmitri has issues far more pressing than dealing with me," the seer muses over the established mental link with a stranger. He disregards the core of the fight (at least, everyone who was not Ling) and instead looks towards the town. He can see where the debris will fall -- where the monster's giant body will smash moments before it happens. But, no answer nor key to victory is handed to him, so he relays what he can -- time, location, and method of destruction -- and hopes this athenaeum stranger is creative and powerful enough to use it. "Save what you want."
Mere seconds, of corse, would only do so much. Saving a building from being destroyed by flyrock now would mean nothing if it was going to be reduced to rubble in a few minutes. He had to find the flow of the battle, chase the ripples, uncover what those involved were setting up to do. He looks to the bloodied scrying pool, and what he sees nearly makes him choke.
"Just stay away from that damned crypt--"
spells used: third eye + elements of insight, water (Desmond will remsin in the non-DE section)
He’s not exactly a god killing expert? Well no shit Sherlock if he was Billy would have just nicely asked him to kill that helios bitch ages ago. Not that she was a god but you know as close as a human could be. At least in the modern era. “Rude. Language Zeph there are children present. Well child.” He pointed at corvus kasparian.
A creature as powerful as this naturally had to have one or two weaknesses at most. One didn’t get to live this long or be this powerful without managing to protect whatever secret there was the killing them. After all immortality was a farce. Everything could die. Even the gods.
"Agreed. It’s probably what’s controlling the skeletal body. Or maybe it’s the heart? Who knows.” He hummed in thought as he hovered in his little broom. From the looks of it Zephyr Hart was busy playing ‘help the nerds survive’ and maddox rothscus ✨ was trying not to get crushed to death. Annoying. It would be so much easier if he could pull out his familiar for an extended period. That was suicide though. Besides he was saving his mana for a certain spell in case one of them would need it. Probably maddox rothscus ✨ to be honest.
"corvus kasparian just keep your head down and try not to get closer to it alright? Sio will probably bring you back to just beat you to death if you die. And we both know she would." He would use another of his sonic bomb potions and lob it as far away from them as possible. Maybe it would draw the creatures attention away from them. If nothing else it would annoy the creature. That was always a plus.
As attacks continue to sink into the Jahr's form with little to show for it, Bailey hears an interesting question. Such curiosity doesn't really seem appropriate to him at the moment, as the broken bodies of witches he couldn't save fall limply to the ruined earth and the waters nearest to Eclipse Town's docks are stained a darkening crimson. (But he's not a fighter, not a soldier -- he's talented in the magical arts certainly, but only barely has the stomach for brutal scenes such as this. Perhaps it's natural for the more adventurously inclined to ask questions in the face of devastation). [break][break] "It's debated." Is his reply to heath ambroise over the mental link, pausing only briefly to cast another burst of light to counter the Jahr's shadows and to mull over the most concise way to boil down multiple essays he'd read on the subject, "There's only so much one can glean from legends, but it was largely accepted that the stories of Jahr were inspired by some sort of extraplanar being. A few theorized that it might be a wraith due to its malicious nature, but these were usually discounted for their weak explanations regarding its ability to talk, barter, and utilize elemental abilities, plus its golden body -- traits not seen in wraiths. But... maybe we were wrong about what a wraith can do... what they are..."
[break][break]The next few events are spurred by aiden emerson, reckless as he is bold.
[break][break]First, the redhead scoops up a golden scale, easily the size of his outstretched hand. Though caked in mud it still glimmers and hums with in inexplicable power.
[break][break]Next, he flies towards the Jahr, shears raised towards the glimpses of the sphere within the darkness...
[attr="class","stafftemptextarea"]
[attr="class","stafftemptitle"]
cain delacour
If Cain had to guess, the round thing within the Jahr was probably its core. Or "heart", as some called it. There wasn't really a technical term for it as far as he was aware. All he knew was that some wraiths (at least the larger, older ones), sometimes left them behind when they died. Usually they're the size of marbles, though he'd seen some as large as basketballs in his travels. Never as large as this one, though, which looked large enough to fit a whole person inside of it -- possibly even two. [break][break] It had never been confirmed if attacking the core would kill a wraith, seeing as wraith hunting was a less than scientific occupation. Regardless, Cain figured enough red hot, explosive stardust could take out just about anything. You don't need to know a creature's weak point if you're hitting every part of it, after all... but he was beginning to have some doubts. No sooner was he contemplating if he should switch to different tactics than the choice was made for him. [break][break] "What the fuck are you doing!?" he both shouts and sends pointedly across the mental link as a red-haired witch starts flying towards the Jahr -- and his own explosive attacks. [break][break] The starcaller quickly alters his spell, twisting the falling stardust into another, more stable shape. The miniature red dwarf star that's spun into existence is too easy for the Jahr to avoid, static in its position and obvious in its heat output. But, but, its red starlight shines through the whole of the monster, unveiling its entire serpentine skeleton (mostly whole, though embedded by shards of stone, arrows, and swords) as well as the core...
When the darkness falls away, líng lù-xī is able to see that there is not one weakness pointed out by her spell but two: the dark core of the wraith, and the golden scales flecked along its face. [break][break] Moments before aiden emerson's blade is set to strike, something childlike whispers in his ear, though he cannot understand the words, and a ghostly butterfly which only he can see appears to land on the edge of the blade. Suddenly, the golden sword feels weightless, and in fact feels like it's pulling him forward of its own volition, with more strength than he would have been able to muster on his own. [break][break] The blade solidly strikes the core, causing a crack through the hard substance and a sudden sapping of magical energy around it. Aiden's broom shatters beneath him, and the spell he was about to the cast dies on his lips. He falls.
[attr="class","stafftemptextarea"]
[attr="class","stafftemptitle"]
Sólveig
It had been a long time since she was last here. Logically, she knew this, but it was always a bit painful to be reminded of exactly how long it had been since she'd last been in Mirrorlight. The city was different, and larger. The people were different, too... This wóþbora who'd found her doesn't seem to know how to speak with her like the first one she'd encountered, but at least this one seems better morally aligned. [break][break] At least, she assumes so. There's a lot she doesn't know about this new world. [break][break] Her undead mount with just enough membrane and sinew to hold itself together veers towards the elluvian pointed out by Charani Petrov. It does not slow for them to land, and instead falls into a dive. Sólveig does not know the word for "duck" in the new language, and so instead clings tightly to the mount's mane with one hand and shoves Charani's head down with the other as the wind rushes past them even faster than before. The mount's wings pull in to its body and its legs pull up to its chest as it makes itself just compact enough to fit through the frame of the mirror meant for a human. [break][break] In a flash, they're in a small wooden building, just in time to hear the Jahr outside unleash a hellish, earsplitting shriek. The mount's feet have left four streaks of blood on the floor, having been torn apart by the unsafe landing, yet it charges out the door at its creator's will and returns to the air. Without prompting, they're heading straight towards Aiden's falling body, fast enough to catch him before he hits the ground. She doesn't know this boy, doesn't know why he's falling, but the undeniable tug in her soul knows that he holds her missing piece.
The Jahr and its magic both lash out after the strike against it. The shadows burst from the earth in force, crushing anyone who remains on the ground. Bailey's mana-infused threads can only pull so many back through the town's elluvian mirrors (astartia zamóre, maddox rothscus ✨, and zhihao lin among them) before even that building and the mirrors within it are shattered. líng lù-xī and meifon lin both become entangled by the shadows, and feel pressure nearly strong enough to shatter their bones. kasimir burovski ✨ would find the building he fell through begin to shake and crumble after the Jhar's tail strikes its upper floors clean off, and the wall which @emery leaned up against did not have the courtesy to offer her warning at all. It crumbles atop her, burying her under brick and suffocating her in shadow. [break][break] Those who have taken flight, however, were not fully spared the Jhar's wrath. Zephyr Hart, corvus kasparian, heath ambroise, @caleb, and @jail would all begin to feel prickling scales begin to grow across their skin -- the beginnings of a transfiguration spell. Though Billy Kasparian also feels a slight tingle, he is ironically immune.
[break][break]---
[break][break]( Aside from a muttered curse, Desmond is not given any further comments across the mental link. )
[break][break]--- ooc notes: [break]From this point on, characters are not able to enter or leave the death enabled portion of the thread due to the destruction of Eclipse Town's Elluvian Hub.
[break][break]astartia zamóre, maddox rothscus ✨, and zhihao lin have been removed from the death enabled portion of the thread, but may continue to react as observers. They may not re-enter Eclipse Town.
[break][break]aiden emerson cannot cast spells nor summon his familiar this round, and his basic broomstick has been destroyed, but he is alive.
[break][break]@emery, unfortunately, has a near-death experience and may only post once more in this thread before passing out. Her coven death-save trinket should be changed to "used".
[attr="class","gearcore"] It starts as a crawling itch, unnatural enough for Zephyr to recognize the effects of magic before identifying exactly what was happening. Keeping one hand on the sail, he uses the other to hitch up his sleeve to reveal a patch of light scales actively growing across his arm.
Those in his mental network would hear a slew of vaguely comprehensible curses about lizards and swamp cults.
"... Caleb's right, this's way too similar to that guy's magic to be a coincidence," he notes once he's gotten over the height of his frustrations, shoving his sleeve back down and steering his cloudcutter towards Billy Kasparian. His path is quick and jagged, in part to avoid the sudden hazards of the thrashing shadows, but also to keep himself from becoming too easy of a target.
It stood to reason that, if this transformation was allowed to go on for too long, he'd end up much like Billy did on the night of their hunt for the Lizardman. Maybe he'd be lucky and get turned into something with limbs, but even then he doubted he'd be able to steer his flying contraption properly. Since Zephyr was not a purifier, nor did he know where the only purifier he knew here went, he was putting what little faith he had in their collective ability to stop the spell at the source: the wraith who was surely casting it.
It was one of the rare moments in his life when he was glad that one of his best friends was an aquapyromaniac.
"If I hook a gate t' one o' these, would that be enough t' toss all your potions through?" he shouts over the din as he slows to a languid glide beside Billy. "'N then Corv could break 'em all mid-air with that star... stuff," he waves a hand vaguely at the red star the wraith was now circling.
Two primate hands pop out from one of Zephyr's gate-rimmed pouches, one offering the tip of a cloudcutter to deliver their attacks skyward, and the other with a pair of distinctive bottles of aquapyre she'd been gifted for the holidays. Surely there was no better time to use them than now.
(spells used:) the modern athenian: infocasting vibrionus gates magic canister cloudcutter
Spells used: Tarot Reading Telepathy Guide of Paths
"I think you broke my heart again"
"please don’t leave and take my hand"
There is no time for stopping it seems. The brunette witch can feel his body pushed down, his face getting a very close look at the bone and sinew of the necromancy creation as the wind rushes through his ears. Like a rocket they dive into the mirror compact enough to make it through.
In a flash, they're in a small wooden building, just in time to hear the creature outside unleash a hellish, earsplitting shriek. The mount's feet have left four streaks of blood on the floor, having been torn apart by the unsafe landing, yet it charges out the door at its creator's will and returns to the air. Without prompting, they're heading straight towards a boy with red hair. Charani feels the mental telepathy snap into existence the moment they are fully through the portal.
“You idiot!” Is all the boy probably hears as the brunette screams into their mental connection obviously a mix of worried and pissed off. He tries to reach out for the other boy as they pass. He’s falling. Can’t have that. They could worry about whatever that thing was later. Right now his first priority was a dumb knight.
He didn’t have time to even really look at the creature before them. He was so wrapped up in trying to grab Aiden after all. Maybe it would hit him later? The magnitude of its mana. The cold dark feeling of its presence. Adrenaline was kicking in blocking out all feeling.
“Are you okay!?.” The boy shouted. The mount was uncomfortable and the girl new to... well both of them. On the plus side it appeared the redhead did something good against the creature. So that’s a plus. “What now?” What did she want to do? Or what could she do? Only time would tell.
The problem with water is that it does not bend to human desire, and rarely graces seers with what they want to see. Furthermore, it flows at its own pace; a question may prompt a scene which lasts anywhere from seconds to hours, regardless of its urgency.
This is why, Desmond suspects, he failed to predict his daughter being consumed by shadow. And he does not need to ask fate -- does not need to force his gaze into her future to see what could happen. The broken and discarded corpses piling upon the ground did well enough to illustrate that.
"Free the group here," he insists to his elusive partner across the mental link, providing the location of Ling and those around her in a way more abstract than words. He does not hesitate to falsely imply that failure could mean the end of the city through some incomprehensible butterfly effect. Nor too did he shy from feigning confidence that his partner had the power to accomplish this (despite lacking any significant knowledge of his capabilities).
Oftentimes, deception could be more powerful than genuine magic.
As he places his demands, he silently poses a more direct question to the blood-tainted scrying pool: how might Líng Lù-Xī survive today with as few injuries as possible? With nowhere left to escape to, the seer assumes that the issue of the Jahr might also be resolved with such a question, if the waters' answer is clear.
spells used: third eye + elements of insight, water
It feels like an itch on your skin. A hum of magic unpleasantly familiar. On the positive side your body already knows what this is and reacts. The transformation does not come as your body essentially gives the transformation a huge middle finger. A feeling as wind rushes near him as a boy rushes towards him. Oh it’s just Zephyr Hart. “You should really get that checked out.” He pointed said pointing to the scaly skin now on the other boys body. Scales.
The creature was doing its best to lash out as some knight boy did some serious damage. Annoying. This creature needed to poof like a cloud in the desert. It was an existence that should have long died out. He could not abide old things that stuck their nose where they didn’t belong.
"Probably. Maybe aim it above it so flames rain down upon it? That’d probably cause the most damage.” He hummed in thought as the crafter suggested his plan. Of course it’d cause quite a bit of damage to the part of the city surrounding the creature. They could always just try to get it as close as possible to the main body. It wouldn’t do as much damage but would spare more of the city. They’d need to rebuild anyway who cared about a bit more damage.
“MY sweet it’s time for us to shine. Mwahaha.” The boy on his broom put his hand over his eye with a villainous laugh like a freaking JoJo villain as he pointed to the small carrying the tools of the creatures destruction. He would hand over the vast majority of his bottle collection to the small familiar only leaving himself with one or two just in case. A second shot if they needed it. “Do your thing.”
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break] i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe [break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"]
Strategic. Levelheaded. Strong. These were all characteristics that at one time or another Marjorie had declared the mold of an heir to be. While she endlessly drilled him to fine tune his reactions and sharpen the blade that was his magic, she had always tried to clamp down on the recklessness of the youth that had escaped her nurture when he was still budding. Now, Aiden Emerson was overgrown, branches and vines growing wild in every which direction with thrown cutting those who got too close. She’d cut him down, bit by bit, but that sort of promise took time. She had only had him for a couple of years at most. So when the matriarch watched on silently, her husband by her side gripping his chair until his knuckles went white, she is not surprised in the slightest when the boy dart head first into danger strung along by some lofty ideal or overconfidence that she still hadn’t ripped out of him just yet. [break][break]
Aiden is only vaguely aware of the crackling of mana around him as red light fills the inside of the monster making the harrowing experience feel like a surreal haunted house experience. Still, as Aiden cut the distance and ignored the shouting ringing in his head, he reared back anticipating the moment of impact. He doesn’t anticipate his sword almost getting pulled out of its socket, not the panic inducing hallucination of a butterfly. Impact was rough, even for a magic sword but what happened next was far worse. In an instant, a deafening roar racks through his body at the same time he felt as if his very consciousness was being sucked out of his body. And throughout it all is that very sickening, lag before his stomach dropped and he along with it. Without even realizing it his broom was dust and he was a choking, wheezing as he tried to figure out what’s happening. [break][break]
‘McKenna!’ he called out as his weakened body free fell to the cracked, bloodied earth. But there’s a very weak response. He can’t make it out clearly, and he can barely register to do something to slow his fall of try his magic. Wind howled in his ears as he sunk down like a rock, and the surging winds that pass him rip small tears from his eyes. He is going to die again. He wondered if the magic printed into his skin and bones would still work, or would he splatter into a million pieces. Or worse, would he fall into one of those abysses Jahhr had cracked open. Aiden gritted his teeth, pained and still vaguely aware of two things left in his hands. His shears were still clutched tightly in hand, his fingers wrapped around the handle and clutching so hard his nails were biting into his skin. The other is that pesky piece of gold he had decided to save earlier. It didn’t do anything, he thought, but he doesn’t let it go. [break][break]
Another scream rattled his mind, this one much closer and more familiar. Jahr’s weak point shrank above him before his momentum is stopped abruptly as he slammed down onto the back of a creature, Charani’s arms gripping him tightly as Aiden gasped for air, choking for a moment from impact. His own fingers try to dig into the fabric of Charani’s shirt while clutching his wand and the scale as he forced his lips to move. “I’m sorry!” The relief is palpable in his wide, wet eyes and shaking body. But it wasn’t the dying part that scared him the most or the anger and worry he would suffer if he and Charani survived this. “I-I’m ok…She won’t let me die yet.” The ginger said, tugging the brunette closer to him so he could hear him. It’s far from over still, but he had temporary respite at least. Charani brought with him a modicum of safety and with it, the gears in Aiden’s head begin turning again. [break][break]
He remembered the visions that he couldn’t understand or decipher. ‘You gave me something once. For visions. I took it and it led me to this thing. I thought it’d react with the sphere, but it didn’t.’ Aiden explained, heaving as he looked over at the strange woman driving the creature they were on. His eyes flickered back to Jahr’s massive form before he tried to shove the scale into Charani’s hands. “This does something important.” He insisted before looking over at the woman. “Ma’am…can you fly us closer?” he said as he pointed at where the gold fleck had fall off of Jahr the first time around.
[break][break]
items | vision inducement x1, heirloom wand: shears of fortune, [break] spells | integration, bag of holding, clear sight: alchemy, break flow, full reset [break] techniques | concussion wave, [break]
Post by heath ambroise on May 19, 2020 1:50:59 GMT
He is infinitely appreciative of the cloudcutter as he looked down at the carnage bellow. The journalist hovered with his friends watching the chaos continue to unfold, with Jahr getting angrier by the second. He paid close mind to Bailey’s explanation trying t desperately to following some line of thinking he’d had before sprinting for his life for something to get him airborne. “Thank you.” He returned simply. If Jahr was simply a fucking wraith, there wasn’t anything purification could do. Not that it mattered since that wasn’t really his field of expertise. Witches are missing baby the handful and Jahr’s various attacks had already cut through dozens of them who were still struggling to get back up or get to cover. Before Heath can scramble towards a new idea that may have given him some sort of plan of action to follow other than blindly attack, the beast let’s out a deafening shriek and it’s all he can do but try to stay on the borrowed cloud cutter.
“The fuck?!” he snapped in response before feeling a horrible itch on his forearms. A glance down at his bare skin revealed the subtle growing of scales. On of the boys that had been with him at the swamp noted the similarities, and heath grimaced at the idea of being transfigured into something against his will. Once again, he’s not a purifier. Even worse, he felt tapped out magically. There wasn’t much else he could do at this point. Still as the witches buzz at each other, the pinkette offered his own thoughts. “Unless they sacrificed that guy for failing to kill us, I thought maybe that cult was somehow controlling this thing. But I’ve never heard of wraiths being manipulated like that.” Most weren’t that intelligent to begin with, and he barely remembered the information on witches interacting with the behemoths that existed in their plane.
He tried not to scratch too hard at the scales as the magic began to take effect. Though, he was already planning his next moves if he started to shrink down into an animal like Billy had. He couldn’t offer much support for the mission above, so the plantshaper set his sights down below. Eyes scanning for bodies that were still breathing or struggling he waved his hands to coax the mana form the earth and the few sprouts still residing in it. He looked over at witches caught in binds or moving away from the danger and down at the broken ground. His town hadn’t escape damage, and whoever had been unfortunate enough not to evacuate earlier was either flailing around or dead. Stull, for the witches stuck on the ground, Heath calls on Woodshaper’s Spear once more, grimacing as he shrunk their size to make it safer for use this close to witches. He aimed the smaller spears at shadow binds sprouting up form the earth towards bodies hoping that even if shadow wasn’t really a physical manifestation, the interaction magic would interrupt the spell and give the victims a better chance of escaping. As he does, he this he asked, “Billy if we turn into snakes too can we get a ride in your hood this time?” He probably had enough space, and it kind of looked like he was fine for now.
spells used: entangle, impassive bush, commune, woodshapers spear, fungal decay: flesh and bones, glowshrooms, the modern athenian: drones techniques used: storm of swallows items used: summoning sprites: light sprite
[attr="class","gearcore"] Zeph flicks up his middle finger in Billy's general direction, deciding his friend's comment didn't deserve any more response than that. (Not to mention he was a little preoccupied with mentally figuring out the logistics of actually aiming this thing, while also steering his own cloudcutter to keep himself above the ground, while also probably turning into a snake; there was little to no brain power left for thinking up witty retorts, unfortunately).
He could follow Billy's advise on where to attack, but from how the monster had reacted to various forms of damage, he wasn't so sure. Some starcaller had done a damn impressive job at attacking it with more than enough stellar force to wipe out an army, but with not much to show for it. That redhead who'd just attacked the dark sphere flitting around the body obviously did some damage if that ear-splitting screech released by the wraith was any indication, but Mads' and Sirius' joint efforts at assaulting its face with lightning and explosions had gotten the Jhar to react, too. Sure, Sirus had gotten swatted out of the sky for his efforts (and Zeph was really hoping the both of them were okay despite doing his best to stay focused), but in that moment when they struck, the earth had also stopped splitting apart at the seams.
Maybe, if he wanted to interrupt the transfiguration spell, that was the best way to go about it...
"'Ey, don't give Spock all the potions -- she's not stayin' physical for long," Zeph says a few seconds too late as he notices what's happening between Billy and his familiar -- though considering her size, she's doing an impressive job balancing all the vials between hands, feet, and tail, "No way in hell am I lettin' her near an open Gate that's gettin' launched straight into a wraith that big..."
Spock cackles and flashes a sharp, toothy grin, depositing all of the vials into one of Zephyr's leather pouches so that she could free her hands and properly copy the way Billy dramatically put a hand over his eye. She then climbs up her witch's arm with the grace of someone who's done so thousands of times before, bumps their foreheads together in a very rare show of affection, and de-materializes.
"It's time for us to shine--"
The cloudcutter whirs to life, launching itself up towards the coiling wraith. Zephyr risks slipping one hand through the gate he'd attached at its front so he could steer it properly (or, at least as well as could be expected given the circumstances). It curves with the movement of its target until it's close enough that the crafter knows his aim will be true. And then, he dumps his bag full of Spock and Billy's potions into the mouth of gate just in time for--
"Corv, NOW--!"
(spells used:) the modern athenian: infocasting vibrionus gates magic canister cloudcutter
[attr="class","s1lyrics1"]constellation of tears on your lashes
[attr="class","s1lyrics2"]burn everything you love then burn the ashes
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Corvus swallowed, eyes flickering from his cousins as they bickered playfully despite the backdrop of the God serpent himself. He frowned at his older cousin as the witch called him a child. “Hey!” he protested, but any follow up died on his lips. He was kind of the child here, even when Siobhan was around, he tended to be the weakest of the bunch. Which was OK most things considered, just not when you were on the same battlefield as an ultra-powerful wraith that had just personally ripped apart and gored dozens of witches. He could see the blood stains from his cloudcutter all too clearly. He glanced over as the earth began to move from around Maddox before looking back at Billy. “Y-Yeah! I’m keeping the vial you gave me handy…” he replied awkwardly, hoping if he really needed that secret weapon?? Potion?? Thing?? Billy had given him he would be able to use it. He was still reeling from how violently his oldest cousin had gone down. [break][break]
And then, hell fucking rips itself open in the form of Jahr’s unholy scream that rattled his bones and brain. It’s all Corvus can do to cling to cloudcutter, while Merle instinctively wraps shadowy tendrils around the device as well. Like a shock wave, there’s the snap of mana and the feeling of something incredibly wrong as his body began to turn into something else completely. The witches near him surmise to have seen something similar, and Corvus can feel the panic bubbling up in his chest and clamping down on his throat. A quick look over and he can see the scales bubbling out of his skin and covering up his arm in small patches. [break][break]
Still as the group conferred, and messages flew from all witches on the battlefield, Corvus found his attention ping ponging from the victims on the ground, to the god himself and the rogue witch that had fallen out of the sky, to back to his family who was formulating a hail Mary of a plan. He seemed a little stunned as he heard his name called out and hesitated for a moment before the gears in his head began moving. “Yeah-!” he said nodding along as he agreed to participate. The range was a little too far, it was already pulling at his limits. He remembered the flash of red and the explosive stardust from before. That hadn’t been him. There were other Starcallers here. He remembered the girl who’d taken off running with a twin. [break][break]
Fumbling with the weird mental connection that was their network Corvus did the equivalent of a witch wide ping. A very aggressive one that even left his own brain shaking as he hurriedly shouted his thoughts into the mental void.“Hello?! 😖😖 Uh- Um, Cain? And any other Starcallers that are still up?! 😰 Please! We need to pool every bit of stardust into Jahr right now if they’re going to make the most out of an Aquapyre Trojan! 🥺🥺🥺" he explained unsure if it was clear enough but surely once he began pushing the glittering sands towards Jahr as he continued his onslaught ever closer to Eclipse Town. “We think it can interrupt this weird scale spell! 😖😖😖” he added, eyes darting from the few bodies still breathing and back at the monster. The snake was already busy snatching at every stray speck of stardust swirling it as quickly as he could towards Jahr in anticipation for his cousin’s last-ditch attack. [break][break]
There’s already a heavy concentration thanks to Cain, but the more fire power they can dump into that thing the better especially when he was eliminating the ground they were standing on by the minute. His breathing is hitched, difficult not used to neither the strain nor the life or death pressure of what the battle had become. With one hand attached to his cloud cutter so tight his hand turns pale, the other moving methodically as he traces pathways and pulls from the sky itself. Eyes flash with mana as he begins to see stardust coagulate out of the ether joining its brethren in small swirls. His lips move as he silently uttered the words and sent out the prayers to the sky. He doesn’t notice Billy grinning brilliantly or Zephyr moving to set up the gate. In fact, he’s so focused that when he heard his name the witch let out a small yelp, his open hand flaring open before coming together into a fist quickly. The motion seemed to set off his stardust as the golden sands began vibrating and exploding as the vials of Aquapyre fell. [break][break]
items used | [break] spells used | a subtle touche: scroll #1, scroll of the switch, FAULKHEIT’S GRIMOIRE: STARDUST AS PLASMA #2 [break] techniques used | firestorm, recolor [break][break]
In the heat of the moment, Bailey doesn't notice the unusualness of his sudden impulse to save a particular group of witches. After all, it was true he was trying to save as many people as he could -- but this group just felt important for some reason. [break][break] He pours a bit more energy than would be safe into an elemental burst of light to dispel the reaching shadows around líng lù-xī, but makes one key mistake: watching to make sure it worked. The shadows grasping at Ling do vanish, but the moment it takes the academic's eyes to readjust from the bright flash is enough for him to miss the low-sweeping coil of the Jahr's body rushing at him from the side. [break][break] The collision is swift and brutal. Bailey's breath is knocked out of him before he even had the chance to scream, and his consciousness goes dark before he has the chance to realize what just happened. His body is flung limply from his disintegrating platform of light and hits the ground hard. [break][break] ( In the private long-distance mental link with Desmond Grey, Basil grumbles: "You'd better have a damn good reason for that." )
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Sólveig
The probably-a-wóþbora boy caught the falling swordsman, thank goodness. Though, in this situation, saving a single stranger's life hardly offered Sólveig any reassurance. [break][break] She does, however, let out an audible whine -- something laced with a complex tangle of pain and relief -- when she spots the golden scale in aiden emerson's grasp, and promptly snatches it away when he tries to hand it to Charani Petrov. Furthermore, despite Aiden's request to fly closer, the necromancer appears set on descending. [break][break] The mount lands -- or rather, crumples beneath them upon touching the ground -- and the necromancer stumbles off from its back. She falls to her knees, one hand clutching the golden scale against her chest and the other splayed against the earth. [break][break] A whisper of something ancient passes her lips, and the dead rise to answer it...
[break][break]But first, at the same time the mount descends, a fiery alchemical delivery rises. [break][break]Unfortunately, innovation often demands sacrifice, and the transformation hastens on the hand Zephyr Hart is using to steer, due to the swiftly shrinking distance between itself and the monster. By the time he retracts his hand from the gate, it is fully covered in scales and has narrow and malformed fingers resembling the foot structure of a skink. Billy Kasparian, lucky bastard that he is, continues to be immune to the transformation despite hovering nearby.
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cain delacour
corvus kasparian's call for starcaller support does not go unnoticed, though it's received with some detectable surprise. Despite managing such a large coven, Cain was a bit of a loner when it came to dangerous activities such as this. [break][break]He also wasn't entirely sure what an "Aquapyre Trojan" entailed, but the witch who was pleading for help seemed so genuine that the head Jester was willing to give it a try. [break][break]"Can do, buddy," he affirms across the mental link, already beginning to stretch his star into a smear of red light, as if it were circling a black hole. [break][break] Though the light illuminating the innards of the Jahr dims, it seems the wraith, perhaps not realizing the danger this poses, is more willing to hover near the ellipse of stardust now that it has become less concentrated. [break][break] The rocket of aquapyre makes contact, and the stardust sparks alight...
[break]Like rolling thunder, not one, but two explosions shake the air mere moments from each other. One is the combustive combination of aquapyre and stardust, exploding in the Jahr's face and burning through the false god's body like a trail of gunpowder. The shadows still and fade away as the Jahr lashes and shrieks, though its inner skeleton and its core are much less visible after the destruction of the star. The transfiguration of witches in to some sort of reptile halts. [break][break] The second blast comes from within the town itself. To those who were familiar with the area, they might recognize the direction as that of the local catacombs. [break][break] From there, a huge, flaming lance hurtles into the Jhar's skull, sending a small spray of golden scales raining down into the lake below and restoring the visibility around the Jahr's head. [break][break] Unfortunately, neither attack intends to mitigate the damage which was already done, and so he crumbling building which kasimir burovski ✨ was throws into crumbles atop him. Though his permanents prevent him from being killed instantly, it is a near thing. He loses consciousness, and is at the mercy of rescuers should any remain after the fight.
[break][break]--- ooc notes: [break]Characters are not able to enter or leave the death enabled portion of the thread due to the destruction of Eclipse Town's Elluvian Hub.
[break][break]aiden emerson has gained enough distance from the Jahr to cast spells again, albeit with less power than he'd be able to at full strength
[break][break]kasimir burovski ✨, unfortunately, has a near-death experience and may only post once more in this thread before passing out. His death-save trinket should be removed from his inventory.
[break][break]There will be ONE more staff post before the end of the DE portion of this event.
Spells used: Tarot Reading Telepathy Guide of Paths Protego Episky
"I think you broke my heart again"
"please don’t leave and take my hand"
With the red headed boy now safe and with him he seemed more bold with his magic and defensive of the other knight. He used Protego around them to block anything such as wild debris or shadowy magic or anything from the small group of three as best he could. Yay barrier magic..
The scale is quickly taken from Aiden as an interception from the young woman. When on the ground she uses some more necromancy while holding the scale. Was she using it to Lowe herself up? Or was it the thing she was aiming for the kill the creature. Lots of those scales fell of in her next attack. She was really quite good at whatever it was she was doing.
“Are you hurt? Let me heal you. Come here.!” Is what Aiden hears inside his skull as the boy turns to him with mana courses through his hands. Any bumps, bruises or cuts he might have would be child’s play for his friend to fix up. All the while he would be waiting for the girl to tell the, something. Anything. What to do.
He would attempt to extend their mental links invitation to the girl. A place where all three of them could share images and words very quickly. It would be taxing adding her because he didn’t really know her but he would try. She could easily refuse of course. He’d ask her what they needed to do next if the link is allowed.
There we’re tons of people all around them. Injured, dead, more. All of the above. He would attempt to use Protego on anything near him to try and block anything from Jahr or falling debris that may come around. Better protect the citizens after all. He could worry about helping heal the survivors later. After the threat was gone. His familiar could help with healing too when it was gone thanks to water magic.