~bellatrix~ (reboot)

OOT: I got permission from TRG to move things along, so I'm gonna try to get the main story going again.


After a little more discussion, Captain Donavan and I manage to work out a deal and we finish up our little talk with a firm handshake and a smile. I'm already feeling better about this mission now that we've got an experienced, battle-hardened pirate crew backing us up! I mean, I'm sure we could handle these elves on our own, but more allies means less casualties in the long run and I don't want to lose any more crewmen than I have to. After all...we've already had more than enough losses on this journey. I look up to the sky with a slightly sad smile on my face.
"I hope you're watching us, captain...this one's for you."
I whisper to the air before turning back to my crew to give them their orders.
"Ain't any sense in lollygaggin' around here any more. Get yerselves movin' already, we been keepin' the princess waitin' long enough as it is!"
After a loud cheer from the crew rings out and subsides, I continue.
"Make no mistake, ya sea dogs. This be the final battle! Them elves are surely just 'round the corner and we're meetin' 'em head-on with all the steel and fury we can muster! Don't let 'em see any fear in yer eyes. Stand yer ground an' strike 'em down!"
I draw my saber and raise it high!
"CREW OF THE DRAGON! WE MARCH ONWARD TO VICTORY!!"
The crew lets out a deafeningly loud battle cry, shouting, yelling and chanting my name! I can't help beaming with pride when I see just how much faith they've placed in me. I can't let them down! I can't let the king down, either! We'll win this fight, that's all there is to it.

Just as I'm about to turn around and lead the charge, I hear something coming from the portal and immediately, we all look towards it. We all fall silent in an instant, leaving only the loud hum of the now glowing portal ringing through the air. Soon after, the gateway opens up to the other side, just like we expected...the only question is, who's coming through? I see a figure step forward and...

"Ahh, if it ain't me first mate! Ye know, ye really shouldn't keep yer captain waitin' like that!"


Leif, who wore a dour expression and was looking slightly ragged from the long and difficult march, took a second to catch his breath before slowly lifting his head to look at Leon.
"Yeah, sorry about that. You see...we were held up with some very strange and mostly unfortunate circumstances. I'll tell you all about it on the way back."
He shook his head and rolled his eyes.
"Let me tell you...it's quite a story."
While Leif was giving his brief explanation, the rest of Leon's crew started coming through the portal in small groups of two or three, followed by Mordred and Trinity who were the last ones to come through the gate before it closed.


Now that's the look of a man who's had a bad time. I can't help but wonder what, exactly, happened to Leif and the rest of the crew but it looks like they're all safe, so I guess the details can wait until later. Besides, it's not like we have a lot of time to spare. With a confident smile, I'm about to call out to the crew once again to start marching forward when I notice that Mordred and Trinity are still right in front of the gate, lagging behind the rest of the crew. I point Leif in their direction and whisper to him.
"Why don'tcha see what be takin' 'em so long?"

Leif nodded back to Leon.
"Leave it to me. You can get the crew moving while I see what the holdup is."
With that, Leif made his way to the gate while Leon took his place at the forefront of the group, once again raising his sword boldly to the sky. Leif let out a quiet groan as he knew right away there would be more unnecessary shouting from Leon and the crew, trying his best to ignore it as he approaches the two stragglers.
"Hey, how come you two aren't keeping pace with the rest of us? Heh heh. Don't tell me you're getting cold feet about this."

Mordred scoffed at the idea.
"Hardly. I simply need to discuss something with my pupil."
"You sure picked a great time to have a chat. Can it wait?"
"No."
There was a brief moment of awkward silence.
"...Just no?"
"Precisely, "just no." We will rejoin the crew as soon as possible."
Leif wanted to say something back to him, but he decided to drop it as he shook his head in defeat.
"Alright, fine. Just don't take too long, okay? If the elves find you here, you'll be in danger and we'll lose the element of surprise."
"We will be fine. Your time would be better spent worrying about your crew and captain."
Leif shrugged and turned to walk away.
"Fair enough. See you around."
With that, Leif ran back to rejoin Leon and Donavan.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

This is it...it's go time! I proudly stand in front of the combined forces of the Dragon and the Boar and in that moment of glory, I feel invincible. I feel like our united crews can take on any challenge, any army, even the gods themselves! I can't help beaming with pride as I loudly announce my next orders.
"Pirates of the Dragon! Pirates of the Regal Boar! Now that all of our comrades are here, no force in this world-- elven or otherwise-- can stand in our way!"
I can see a brief glint of light from my blade as slowly lower it, pointing the edge towards the path ahead. As vigor and determination fill my body, my crew waits with bated breath for me to give the order. I won't keep them waiting any longer.
"The time has come to take this fight to the enemy's doorstep! All forces, FORWARD MARCH!!"

 

As Innacent listened to Semira deliver her unbeatable deal to Johan, Innacent felt anger begin to rise up within her, but said nothing as she waited for a response from her husband. Johan had hoped that confessing would get him out of being Semira's nutrition source, but saying "no" after being weakened would likely end with him dying. After thinking it through for a minute, he came upon a conclusion.
"Wife?"
"Hm?" Innacent expected him to respond to Semira.
"If I turn down this deal, will you protect me from this vampire lady?"
"I shall. You are my long-lost husband, and I do not want to lose you again."
Johan seemed to sign in relief before boldly declaring his response to the deal.
"Thanks for the offer, Semira, but I will not be acc-"
"AS IF!"
Interrupted by his wife, it took a few moments for the words to begin sinking in.
"What?"
"As if I will protect you after you played with this woman! I'm a goddess of judgement, and this kind of judgement is fitting for you."
Dumbstruck, Johan gathered his thoughts.
"Fine... I'll accept, for retribution. By body is ready!"
The healing crystal had entirely run it's course through him, allowing him to stand up from his bed and spread out his arms in a surrendering position. What he did not realize was that his clothes were removed beforehand, and his bare, scarred body was fully exposed when the sheets fell away from him.

 

As Lorena yelled several of the crew also looked to Donavan. While true he wasn't happy he need to let Leon and Leif feel as if the pirates of the boar were on their side.
"Uh Leon, these be sailors not soldiers. Aye a few severed but ye need to just tell em to head deeper into the islands" Clearing this throat he shouted to his crew
"What the lad is trying to say is we be heading deeper into the place, so keep ye eyes peeled" The men started to settle as their own captain gave them orders.
Donavan then slide over next to Lorena gently resting his arm across her back.
"You do love trouble don't you..... well then i do have something to tell you then" whispering into her ear he spoke
"The princess we are after.... we share a, history... not romantic but a history none the less" Starting trouble of his own he decided to change subjects.
"Ye still have the crystal Blackwater, where ye be hiding it?" as he finished speaking he realised where it was, the same place she puts everything. Maybe she has a portal to another place between her breasts.... Enough of that
As they walked Donavan noticed sets of tracks, some deeper than others.
"Keep an eye on the tracks, they might lead us to the elfs"

 

Seeing her husband stand stark naked in front of another woman, Innacent scowled and flipped one of her tails in front of him.
"Do not be so enthusiastic you lose your common sense."
Looking at Serena, Innacent continued speaking as Karma meekly grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around himself.
"As for you, he may have a duty to pay restitution to you as a recompense for his sins towards you, but he is still my husband, and my property. If you try anything foolish towards or with him, you shall be punished."
Karma looked at her, a slightly confused expression on his face as he looked at Innacent.
"Property? I thought that was figurative."
"It is literal. Perhaps you might remember that other vow you made on our wedding day?"
"I didn't know that was what it was for! And I forgot!"
"Too late, and how unfortunate," she responded callously. "That was my way of keeping a tight reign on you, should you find another woman."
"Jealous women! Doesn't matter if they are beggar or deity, they will always be jealous!"
"Perhaps I should just sell you."

 

After seeing Captain Donavan give his orders in such a...low-key way, all I can do is stare in awkward silence. That's it? Where's the passion, where's the fire?! I...I can't believe what I'm seeing. After a while, I finally manage to quietly mutter a response which I'm not even sure he heard.
"Oh, uh...okay, that works, too."
"You'll have to excuse our captain. Loud, bombastic and completely over-the-top speeches are kind of his thing, in case you couldn't already tell. They always have been, in fact, it's like he just can't help himself."
"Speaking of helping...you're not."
The smug grin that Leif gives me in return is almost unbearable.
"Who said I was trying to help?"
He gives me a pat on the back-- can a pat on the back feel condescending? Because right now it does, it really does. After that, we both turn back to the crew, leaving Donavan and Lorena to their private-sounding conversation.

Mordred casually walked towards the edge of the clearing they were standing in, speaking to Trinity as his eyes drifted all around around the forest.
"It's quite simple, really. I kept you here to teach you another lesson in survival."
When he made it to the edge, he leaned against a nearby tree, finally fixing his gaze in Trinity's direction.
"If something seems too good to be true, it probably is. Always assume that your enemy is one step further than you think they are and plan accordingly. For example, if your enemy has set a trap, find it and make them think that you have fallen into it..."
Like a bolt of lightning, he suddenly drew his sword and thrust it straight into the chest of an elven scout that was hiding right next to him.
"...Then spring your own."
With a gasp, another scout ran out from behind cover, but he was soon restrained by chains of darkness summoned by Mordred. No matter how much the elf tried to break free, the chains held him just as firmly as the genuine article and perhaps even moreso. All he could do was struggle uselessly as Mordred walked up to him and delivered the killing blow. After he was finished, Mordred looked up to Trinity, his expression even more grim than usual.
"They know."

"Of course we do."
A surprised Mordred immediately whipped around to face the source of the mysterious voice. When he did, a mysterious man in black dropped down from a nearby tree. The only indication that he was male came from his deep, raspy voice as his features were entirely obscured by a black hooded cloak, along with a similarly black mask that had some sort of elven runes carved in it. Mordred readied his sword and took an aggressive stance; in response, the figure merely let out an amused laugh, letting his arms hang to his side without even bothering to draw the curved sword on his waist.
"Hee hee...your ragtag band of adventurers weren't exactly being subtle, you know. I hope you're not as incompetent as you look. Then again, you made it out of that prison, so I guess that's something. You might be fun to play with after all--"
He was cut off when Mordred swiftly charged towards him, bringing an overhead blow down on the cloaked figure. But for all of his speed and vigor, his blow was deflected when the elf drew his sword in defense. The sword glowed a deep crimson, a deeply unsettling aura emanating from it as if the blade itself was crying out for battle, blood and death...much like the one who wields it, truth be told. The two of them locked blades as Mordred gave him a hateful glare. The cloaked figure then began laughing quietly to himself, growing steadily louder and more unhinged by the second.
"Hee...ha ha, ah ha ha ha! Yes! That's perfect! That's exactly what I was hoping to see from you humans! I take back every negative thing I said; this is going to be fun after all."
With a grunt of frustration, Mordred broke off with his foe and took a quick step back. All the while, the elven swordsman never stopped cackling to himself, though it did become slightly more subdued.
"Oh, you have no idea how much I'd love to settle this right here and now. The mere thought of watching that rebellious stare contort in agony as I flay the flesh from your bones is simply...exquisite. Unfortunately, my master has forbidden it. I really must be going now but before I do, what is your name, human?"
"I see no reason to tell you that."
"Hmph. Very well, but I'm sure you won't mind if I tell you mine. I do so for all of my victims so they may burn it into their minds as they leave this mortal coil for the world beyond."
He held up his right hand and a magic ring began to glow from beneath his gauntlet.
"Maartuz Kendov. Remember that name, human warrior."
Just as he finished speaking, he disappeared in a flash of light. A frustrated Mordred sheathed his sword and turned back to Trinity.
"Our enemy has tipped their hand. That must mean they are confident in their victory. That...is most certainly a cause for concern."

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After walking along the path for some time, we've finally made it to something! It's just a fork in the road, but this path has been going along for ages and it all looks exactly the same, so at this point I'm up for just about anything that'll give us a change of pace.
"Crew of the Dragon, halt! Crew of the Boar, ye should probably be haltin' too, but only if Captain Donavan be sayin' so and not me."

Leif groans as he smacks his face with his palm, both because of what Leon said and because Leon had put on his obviously fake pirate accent once again.
"Smooth, Leon. Real smooth."

Ignoring Leif's remark, I take a quick look down the two paths that this forest is branching off into. I can already tell...these paths are gonna go on for a pretty long distance. That's not good. We don't exactly have a map of this place, so it's anyone's guess which way is the right one. I guess there's only one thing to do.
"I've got a plan, mateys!"
As I call out, my crew snaps to attention immediately, just the way I like it!
"We'll be splittin' up into two groups so's we can cover more ground. That way, we'll be sure ta find the princess and the sword, just in case they be gone in different directions."
I then look over to Donavan give him a nod.
"If that be alright with ye, of course, Captain Donavan. It just be an idea and I don't want to be oversteppin' my bounds."
I ignore Leif as he groans again, a little louder this time.

OOT: As you can see, I've set things up for our characters to go in two different directions, but they don't necessarily have to. Basically, I wanted to give everyone a choice on what they want to do next. One path will lead to a story-heavy section with a lot of dialogue and not much fighting going on (at first) while the other path leads right to a boss battle, so just let me know what you're in the mood for and I'll make sure your character goes the right way.

 

"So be it. I could argue the fact that you owe him for not eviscerating you on the spot when the both of you first met, when he chose instead to feed you under the pretense of poisoning. But no matter."
Innacent stood up, and pulled a set of clothes she had found from a chest. Earlier, when her husband Karma slept, she found this set of clothes and made some of her own touches to it. In response to Karma's recent display of his heavily scarred body, she handed him the clothes.
"Clothes for you to cover what only I should see." Walking to Semira, Innacent scooted her out of the room. "And if you do not mind, some privacy. We will be out shortly to rejoin the other travelers."
Once Innacent removed Semira from the room, Karma began dressing himself into the new outfit.
"Where is my old coat?"
Innacent pointed next to the bed.
"I left it there while you slept. I do not understand why you would wear it now."
"My muscle tissue and structure is superior to the average man's. That coat is heavy enough to restrict a certain amount of that strength so that I could fit in with the common person." Karma bent down to pick up his coat. "With that needle I used to paralyze part of my body gone, it should be no problem for me to-" He stopped speaking when he tugged on his coat, unable to budge it. He attempted lifting it, but to no avail. Mockingly, Innacent commented on his struggling.
"My, how pitiful. What was that you said about being superior?"
"Oh, shut up!" Karma gave up, sweating from his failed efforts. "I think something in me broke down from using too many berserk crystals and going removing my limiter."
Shaking his head, Karma tied his long hair into a ponytail and rounded up his gear that had all been brought into the room beforehand. Out of healing crystals, all he had left were his sustenance type crystals, berserk crystals, purification filter, equilibrium crossbow and his weightless sword.
"I am ready now."
He stepped out of the room where Semira waited, with Innacent following.
"Semira, we'll be headed to where the rest of crew have gone to. If you want, you can follow along, but we won't be coming back for some time. The wife and I will have a lot to catch up on."

OOT:
Had to puppet Semira slightly to avoid the usual blah blah back-and-forth posts that would go into an event like this.
And, Karma's new clothes:

Spoiler: Not the Emperor's new clothes

Hasty sketch awhile back. I can't draw violins. =<

 

Sean watched the remaining elven scout make his way through the woods. Normally he would have shadowed him, but he knew where he was heading. There was really no need for him to follow.... not alone at least.

He was perched high up in a tree, above Trinity and Mordred surprisingly enough. He had smiled as he watched mordred's lesson on how to effectively knowing your surroundings and how to use your enemies traps against them. He jumped down the tree limbs to reaffirm Mordreds lesson when he noticed another Elf. this one was different from the previous scouts so he decided to linger in the dense forest in order to get a better idea of what he might be up against. Sean was glad that he did when he saw and heard who he was. Sean waited til after the elven swordsman left to appear behind Trinity.

"So thats one of the elven swordsman that I've heard so much about." Sean said as he walked towards trinity and mordred.

 

Hearing Semira's interest in his blood, Karma groaned in agitation and grumbled under his breath. as he walked away.
"Yeah, I'll make sure you get a new smell embedded in you."
Making his way to the deck, Karma checked his body, trying to see if anything seemed off. Fortunately, there was nothing out of the ordinary, other than lacking the raw strength he used to possess.
"I shall meet you on the deck momentarily. I must search for a particular item."
"I'll wait for you then."
Innacent broke off Karma's path, and was out of sight after passing a corner. Thinking nothing of it, Karma reached the deck and waited. Sitting on barrel, he looked around and noticed the rain-smeared blood on the deck from earlier. His blood, and the blood from another sailor. Remembering his fight with Innacent, he did not hear or notice her coming from behind until he felt something metal press against his neck and heard a metallic "click". Startled, he jumped up and felt the heavy metal that was now wrapped around his next.
"What! Shackles!?"
"That is correct. Because the people of this ship have had their trust harmed by your actions, this will give them some assurance that you are not free to rampage as you did before."
Whirling around, Karma faced Innacent to protest. Pointing her staff at his throat, a beam of binding energy formed into a chain and latch onto the neck shackle. The chain of energy hung limply, slightly pulling on Karma's neck.
"Look! This is embarrassing! It is bad enough I have to lose blood daily for some succubus vampire demonic wahatever-she-is! Now I have to wear this!?"
"Yes. Now shall we go? We do not want to lag too far behind the others."
"What? No! Not li-"
With a yank, Innacent pulled the protesting Karma while in mid-sentence and made her way down the ship and into the darkening woods.

After having given up on protesting, Karma decided to ask why his long-lost wife came to him. After recounting the event of seeing him through the orb and breaking it out of anger, Karma nodded his head.
"In truth, it was entirely accidental. I never expected to meet you again, especially after the world seemed to have been shattered by the Void."
"I was wondering how you managed in the Void. I didn't know that your parents, servants and estate were fortunate enough to escape it in that way."
"I think it was the fact that so many divine beings such as I were in one area that the estate was spared. I still do not understand how it was done, however."
Innacent sighed, remembering what she had wanted to do for her servants.
"The servants at home are not taking this salvation so well, however. The Void bothers them, knowing that there is nothing else to the world they knew. I had seen you perform some type of Void magic, and I wanted to know how we could get fix their situation."
Karma began to see what she wanted, and nodded his head slowly and thoughtfully.
"I think I see what you are wanting. You want to let them have their own world back, or live in another one. Since the first option is beyond my range of finding a solution, the second is more likely. But which world? I have hardly been in this world a day to know if this is a good world, and I have yet to attain the skill of traveling from one world to another through the Void portals to find another quickly. And even if I knew this was a good world, how would I even summon a giant flying estate like that? I cannot do it alone, and nobody else knows how to use the Void portals like I can."
Innacent stopped walking and facing him, put a hand on his shoulder. Her expression, both serious and determined, showed her will to help.
"Then teach me how you create those portals, so that I may create my own to help you. I care for my people, and I want them to be happier than they are now, Johan."
Karma showed his willingness by nodding to her. Although they had not seen each other in many years and seemed to have a rough time with one another, he felt the connection that had bound them together so long ago: To travel and to find a way of completing the goal they had set out on.
"If your serenading voice has not changed since the last time we met, then I am certain that you will be able to do it. Perhaps even easier than myself, since you have a voice, while I imitated a voice with the violin you had given me."
Reaching up, he took her hand off his shoulder and held it. For some reason, it felt strange to have her hand on his shoulder.
"Let's go for now. When we have a moment to, I will show you how to use the Voice of the Void."
Happily, Innacent sighed.
"I knew you would accept, Johan!"
She began moving once more, forgetting to let go of his hand as they walked towards place where a portal had been used to transport the crew of the ship elsewhere.

 

Sean scanned the clearing and responded to Trinity's question.
"He's powerful enough to be a challenge to both me and Mordred. He'll most likely be waiting for us at the castle, along with the rest of the Elven forces. It might be best to rejoin the others since they've been setting up a good sized ambush at the castle." Sean said as he walked towards the middle of the clearing.

"I was lead to the castle by the lightning blade itself, thanks to it's power bond with me. But in order to rescue both the sword and the princess, we'll need to rejoin with the rest of the group. Even with my skills there was too many elves for me to take on myself. And after seeing that Elven swordsman, I can say that I was right in thinking that." Sean smiled as he looked over to Trinity.

"Another key to survival is knowing how to gauge a situation and coming up with a way to overcome it. So, now that we know what could be lying ahead of us, how should we proceed?"

Zerron was just inside the portal, the tree in front of him full of knife marks from him throwing knives into it. Currently he's on his tenth time around sinking all of hos throwing knives into the tree's trunk. He looks towards the portal as he throws his last knife. He let out a slight sigh out of boredom as he realized he's thrown his last knife.

"Why do those pirates take so long?" He said as he got up to retrive his knives.
"If I was leading this whole party, I would have charged right thru those Elven solders by now..." As he yanked the last knife out of the tree, He saw the portal shimmer. He smiled as he heard the loud cheers of both pirate crews. he drew out his oversized crimson rapier from his back as the rest of the group came marching out of the portal, with Leon leading it.

"Well it took you long enough. Ready for one hell of a battle?" Zerron said with a smile and a raging flame in his eye.