[KQ] (invasion) the take over, the break's over

Whitebrim takes a beating, but given that only Edy is around to see it, we'll just say that she's brought the dilapidated settlement down from 60% health to 40%. In a clash of magic, Deimos is the victor over Neron. However the water that is now everywhere will slow Zuriel slightly, making it such that the Sword is not out of the KQ yet. A final push will get him there if Neron is unable to stop it. Though it might be a hail mary from Wessex, the Wraith is no bumbling player grasping at straws at the end of the game. A demigod (with crazy stats), she is able to hit the running reindeer in the fatty portion of his hindquarter. There is now a polar bear for Wessex to deal with, however, if she wants to keep chasing Noah. Lightning from Nate also strikes just in front of the Sentinel, his attempts to evade it unsuccessful. It will stall his process and blind him temporarily to the world around him, and Noah will find himself partially burned by the proximity of the blast. You have 24 hours to reply. Remember to include a summary at the bottom of your post with all action taken. If weapons/upgrades/abilities/items/shifts/etc are used, please include their desc. from your profile at the bottom of your post as well. Your posting order is Edrei, Neron, Wessex, Nate, Deimos, Noah You have 24 hours to reply. Noah HP: 57.5/120

EDREI

Unaware of all the other things happening, Edy continues to try and do what she does best: cause some motherfucking chaos.

If there is anyone alive in Whitebrim, the dragon will set her sights on them. Cannibals, stragglers, wayward adventurers on their way back from the climb, little puppies and kittens? Gone. Smashed. Blasted. Edy's dial is set all the way up to violence, and having had very little to do as of late to rid herself of excess energy, she's not going to let this opportunity slip away.

Peeing on buildings, smashing thatched rooves with her tail, belly-flopping onto homesteads and farms, Edy does her best to come up with new and novel ways of causing damage.

---

Edy continues to Edy, to destroy more of Whitebrim.

"Go fuck yourself."
"Fuck me yourself, you coward."

liars and lovers combine tonight, we're gonna make a scene

Neron calls bullshit. Or he would have, if it had been for no other reason than stubborn, stubborn pride. He hisses out a curse to see the ice turn to steam and water before his eyes, and the fresh splashes on the ground show that the rider is very much tearing ahead by now. Baring fangs to the night, the Hailstorm continues on his way, and he reaches deep within himself to conjure not more ice - but illusions, this time.

With the entrance to the Fangs and to the portal (way to shit all over the Ascended but still want to use their cool stuff by the way, and a very Edrei go fuck your hypocrite self to boot) so close, Neron attempts to bend reality, to create tunnels where there are none, to lead the rider and his mount off track.

---

Neron tries to lead Deimos off the path to the Fangs with illusion magic, utilising his citizenship ability to do so:

Living in Halo means at some point you've digested a small amount of mageglass. As long as you live in Halo, you can increase one of your magics to a higher level, once per PQ/PQ+/KQ/Drop. (In order to use this ability, you must specify the magic to be increased at the bottom of the post in which it will be used.)

Type: Dark
Cloaking Upgrade | A 90% body upgrade that bends light making the user invisible. Dramatic action or the use of weapons/upgrades/items makes the user 25% more visible. This translates to rolling disadvantage to hit the user in a battle.

Illusion: Can create 100% compelling and complex illusions within a 30ft radius.
Type: Grey | Rank: Mastered

Neron

WESSEX

Go
deep throat
a cactus

Her chakram comes back coated in slick, dark red sign of success. The appearance of a polar bear coming her way does little to dampen the feeling that Noah’s capture might be juuuust around the corner. With a lightning-spewing dragon in the sky and an injured reindeer, there’s no real need for her to deal with a polar bear, so she pulls up, and checks in quickly with dragon!Nate.

Fuck that bear. You got this, right? He just needs to get back to Morgan alive. Anything that happens in between now and then is… well, potentially an unfortunate accident. But she’s confident that her brother is smart enough to hunt the Attuned down, or fuck, pick him up in his claws and literally carry him back. Gonna make sure the other portal is secure too.

Neron had mentioned he’d be watching the other portal, so she sends a thought to him. Coming to Halo’s portal. Teleporting from the Tundra to the portal, Wessex appears and tries to head off any potential attack with a quick biopulse.

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

Wessex says nope to dealing with the polar bear and leaves Nate to take care of Noah. She teleports to Halo's portal to make sure it's also secure and tries to pre-empt any attack on her with a defensive biopulse.

Magic: Teleportation | Can teleport to any board that Wessex has already visited, OR can teleport to an adjacent board that she's visited with someone else. If used within the same board, requires a 1-post cool down period between uses.
Type: Grey | Rank: Mastered

Type: Dark
Bio Disruption Upgrade (Mastered) | A pulse that causes disorientation, rapid heart rate, dry mouth, dizziness, and an increased temperature in living creatures with a complex nervous system (humans, animals like dogs, horses, birds). Effects creatures in a 20ft radius, symptoms are more noticeable the closer the creature is to the upgrade.

The world is new to you, and you to it. During PQ/PQ+/KQs/Drops, you roll with advantage on luck-based rolls and receive an extra name during drops. (In order to use this, make sure to note the ability at the bottom of each post)

A blender in a lightning storm, disguised as a blessing I'm sure

The lightning does exactly what he wants it too, a roar of triumph filling the air, Wessex’s voice cutting it short. Alive? Theres no small amount of playful disappointment oozing off the single word. Nate all but rolls his eyes as he wings circles tightly above Noah, not giving the reindeer a chance to slip away. I can handle this. Get the big guy. He reassures Wessex, the dragon diving as the demi-god teleports away, claws outstretched.

The goal is to simply scoop up the caribou in his claws and fly him before Morgan, leaving the Warden to dole out punishment as she sees fit. It’s disappointing, but at the end of the day it’s exactly what he’d been expecting.

I wouldn’t struggle too much, Bambi. I’m not actually all that good with these claws yet. Nate croons the words through the attuned bond towards Noah. His tone as incendiary as he can manage. His first priority is height, a mn effective deterrent against squirming for obvious reasons.

---

Nate attempts to dive and grab Noah so he can be brought back to the citadel

NATE

It's taken a lifetime to lose my way

All the wasted time on my hands turns to sand

Remaining cloaked and hidden, the world altered and changed before him, and he stilled them both completely. Muted and soundless, he stared at the shifting void, gaze narrowing, scrutinizing. He’d lived here long enough, used the portal enough, to know, to understand, something else was morphing the realm.

To what purpose? A stalling tactic – for more and more and more individuals to come rampaging through?

He took in a quiet, muffled inhale, and steeled himself. For a fight. How long had they been simply fleeing? Is that who he was?

No was the simple truth of it. His attuned eyes glanced into the dark, and he thought he saw a glimmer, another change in the schism around him. Could that be the current culprit? And if he assaulted that individual, would it cause the illusion, the bizarre tunneling formation before him, to fall apart?

Without giving away his position, Deimos called upon his Mastered Fire once more, intending for it to rain down upon where he believed the individual (Neron) to be. Infernos, conflagrations, burning, blistering edges; hopefully enough to render them, and anyone around him, listless and incapable. Burnt to ashes. Out of the way.

--

Remaining under the invisibility cloak, Deimos and Zuriel stay still, not intending to give away their position. Believing he saw movement, Deimos tries to aim his Mastered Fire towards where he thought he saw Neron, and then spreads it out further, intending to catch anyone else nearby.

Can partially shift into animal form

Type: Grey
Invisibility Cloak | (Upgraded) Ornate, detailed cloak, that when worn, renders up to two individuals (or a rider on a horse) invisible.

Would like to use the Halo Citizenship Ability on the Mastered Fire:

Fire Manipulation: Can create and control flames. Must be within a 30ft radius.
Type: Dark | Rank: Mastered

Living in Halo means at some point you've digested a small amount of mageglass. As long as you live in Halo, you can increase one of your magics to a higher level, once per PQ/PQ+/KQ/Drop. (In order to use this ability, you must specify the magic to be increased at the bottom of the post in which it will be used.)

I'm fine in the fire

I feed on the friction

NOAH

The impact of the projectile made Noah's hind lurch to the side. The white flash burst and Noah's eyes went white -- spotting and flashing taking over his vision as he ran. His heart pounded in his chest, adrenaline pulsing through each beat and spreading through his body. He could feel the damage to his leg, the burns across his chest -- but he needed to keep going. Though slower, and blinded, the hunter did not stop. He could not stop. He needed to keep drawing them away, away, away from the Citadel and the people.

The polar bear had no target now, and so Noah called it back. Protect me he demanded, commanded of the creature. He felt the dragon approach him despite his running, and he steeled against him. The polar bear turned and attempted to attack the dragon -- lunging to try and attack behind it's wing where it would not be able to reach around and grab it with its teeth. It was fueled by all of what Noah felt, its ferocity deep and burning and destroying anything against its better judgement. Should Nate succeed in grabbing Noah, the hunter would shift into the form of cat -- teeth and claws unleashing as much havoc on the beast's feet as possible.

He heard his attacker through the bond and gave nothing back but a wall of rage.

---

Noah commands his compelled bear to attack Nate as he tries to pick him up, and shifts into his lynx form and claws and bites Nate (if he is able to pick him up).

i'd fashioned my own cross
been crushed by its weight
there's no stronger message
than dirt in your face

Without anyone there to stop her, Edy brings down the total structural-health of Whitebrim to 20%. Neron 's illusion is complex and powerful ahead of Deimos, and though the Hailstorm's invisibility is fractured slightly by the use of his magic, midnight-black as the world is for someone like Deimos, seeing the hybrid's presence is almost impossible. Still, his arc of fire is able to hit Neron due to sheer power. And that...well. It's very bad for Neron, who drops unconscious (read: would be dead), into the snow. Wessex leaves the polar bear (dragon, and reindeer), and teleports to the portal. There is no time for her to biopulse just now, but stopped as Deimos is, her attack would have missed anyway. Luck is on Noah 's side, at least partially. As Nate swoops down for the reindeer, Noah is able to dart away and evade his grip. However as the dragon follows, Nate is able to evade the polar bear's attack, leaving the trio of them running about as if playing musical chairs.   You have 24 hours to reply. Remember to include a summary at the bottom of your post with all action taken. If weapons/upgrades/abilities/items/shifts/etc are used, please include their desc. from your profile at the bottom of your post as well. Your posting order is Edrei, Wessex, Nate, Deimos, Noah You have 24 hours to reply. Noah HP: 57.5/120 Neron HP: 0/115 *unconscious

EDREI

THUNDER BOLTS AND LIGHTNING, VERY VERY FRIGHTENING: EDY.

She feels alive in a way that she hasn't since coming back. Her muscles cramp and whine with exertion in this body, and every new sensation makes her positively bloom.

The real question is whether or not the destruction of an abandoned village way out in the middle of Noonegivesashitistan, is going to satisfy her hunger. Will she perhaps seek out fleeing citizens as dessert? Will she set her sights on the Citadel with its shining walls, its glistening parapets and turrets that will likely snap like carrot-sticks beneath her bulk?

Perhaps she'll even fry Morgan for being such a bitch during LongNight. Edy had never received an apology after all, and she was pretty sure that neither Nate nor Wessex would give a shit if the Rapacious replaced the Glacier.

---

Edy continues to destroy Whitebrim and contemplates destroying the Citadel and killing Morgan for fun.

"Go fuck yourself."
"Fuck me yourself, you coward."

WESSEX

Go
deep throat
a cactus

Fire, fucking fire. From a single point. There’s someone there and she has a feeling she knows who it is.

Neron drops to the ground, visible again, and as he collapses, Wessex is mentally screaming his name (maybe loud enough for Edy to hear, who knows?). Enraged, she hurls the chakram already in her hand towards the place where she saw the flames originate. It’s more distraction and lashing out than planned attack, but if she happens to hit Zuriel and/or distract Deimos, all the better.

As soon as it’s arcing through the air, the Wraith sprints towards Neron and tries to put herself between him and Deimos. Reaching for her adrenaline syringe, she hopes there’s enough time to jab it into him and keep everything inside him running for just a little longer. Just until she can get him to the shrine. Just until her teleport reboots.

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

Wessex throws her chakram at Zuriel/Deimos and sprints to Neron, putting herself between him and Deimos. She jabs her adrenaline syringe into Neron to try and keep him alive.

Type: Dark
Leviathan Chakram (Upgraded): An unbreakable chakram created from the scale of a leviathan by the Voice. With razor-sharp edges, this discus will always return to the hand of whoever throws it, and will always do so without injuring the hands of the thrower.

Type: Grey
Manufactured Adrenaline | a syringe containing a daily dose of adrenaline. Can be used once per thread. Raises all stats by 1 for one post and increases an ascendeds other senses for the duration of the thread.

The world is new to you, and you to it. During PQ/PQ+/KQs/Drops, you roll with advantage on luck-based rolls and receive an extra name during drops. (In order to use this, make sure to note the ability at the bottom of each post)

idk, she's had this on the whole time, but i keep forgetting to put it on the summary --
Type: Grey
Shadow-Cloth | A cloak that renders the wearer invisible when in shadow. (Made by Remi)

in case she's attacked --
Type: Dark
Damage Splash Upgrade | For every attack made at Wessex, double the damage is deflected back to the creature who caused it. (Elemental effects are not duplicated. 30 pts of fire damage is translated back as 30 pts of regular damage, for example).

Magic: Fire Dodge (FEAT) | Rolls with advantage against fire attacks

A blender in a lightning storm, disguised as a blessing I'm sure

A growl crackles in Nates throat as Noah evades his grasp, the reindeer apparently more dexterous than he’d thought. And well, he wasn’t lying, the claws were still new to him. Nothing more than laughter leaves him through the bond though, an incessant cacophony beating against the walls of the momentary Warden’s rage.

There’s not a chance to get bogged down in his anger though, not with the way his attention is forced to be split, his original target still trying to flee while a bear attempts to menace him from behind. It’s stupid, honestly. So he uses the advantage of wings to rise once more, out of reach of the bear, and let’s another burst of energy crackle between his jaws, this time aiming to trip Noah up from behind while hopefully roasting the polar bear.

---

Nate flies upwards and attempts to strike the bear with his breath attack, then continues to fly after Noah to wait for another chance to grab him

Dragon ability | Can breathe lightning (mastered lightning damage)

NATE

It's taken a lifetime to lose my way

All the wasted time on my hands turns to sand

Cloaked, invisible, drawn into those Stygian wakes, he felt no remorse as the flames curled and coiled around the cavern. Cold, and colder still, the blood chilling in his veins, into Reaper tendencies and lack of condolences. He didn’t care. They’d made their choices, the whole lot of them. Perhaps these moments would be reminders.

With his partial Attunement, those tiger eyes, still strung into his stare, he wasted no time in summoning, in moving, in proceeding towards the portal. The moment the illusions were gone, they were in motion. While Zuriel raced onward once more, the Sword compelled beasts upon beasts; ursur, large and massive, encompassing, potent, powerful.

Protect us he commanded. By shielding, by defending (like from that flinging chakram). By permitting them to get to the portal unscathed.

Wise and true, Zuriel’s sagacity held steadfast, ready and willing to heal herself if a barrage came her way.

And hopefully, hopefully that would be the end of it.

--

Deimos continues to use his partial shift (tiger eyes) to see in the cave. Still cloaked, he and Zuriel race forward towards the portal to leave the KQ the moment the illusions drop. While galloping through, Deimos tries to compel six ursur, to protect/meatshield/defend against attacks from Wessex (specifically meat shielding the chakram attack). The ursur are not meant to attack Wessex herself.

If Zuriel is hit by Wessex’s chakram, she will try to heal herself.

Can partially shift into animal form (Tiger eyes)

Beastmaster | can compel any animal for assistance (6 large, 12 medium, or 20 small)

Beast Speaker | Can speak to rare creatures/companions/regular animals. Requires permission to "speak" on behalf of someone's companion. Regular animals speak in varying levels of coherence.

Type: Grey
Invisibility Cloak | (Upgraded) Ornate, detailed cloak, that when worn, renders up to two individuals (or a rider on a horse) invisible.

I'm fine in the fire

I feed on the friction

NOAH

With the dragon unable to catch him, and his vision coming back in spots, Noah took the opportunity to keep running. He had seen injured reindeer and luxere run for miles with fatal injuries, let alone how long they ran with just wounds. So, on he ran, vision spotting but his focus on getting himself through the unguarded tunnel to the Climb. The adrenaline that pumped through wounded prey animals was an amazing chemical mixture -- it fueled them for, what always felt to Noah, ungodly amounts of time. He pushed forward, on and on and on, determined.

The polar bear continued to rage under Noah's command. It had no sense to run from any oncoming attack from the dragon. It lashed out with claws and teeth and pure strength -- and it would until it perished. Even through the lightning, the bear would continue to pursue what he could to wreak the havoc he was commanded to do. Behind him, lightning burst, and Noah continued to run on as fast and hard as he could, pushing the pain down and behind him.

---

Reindeer!Noah runs as fast as he can for the unguarded entrance to the Climb, and the polar bear continues to attack Nate and will until it is dead.

i'd fashioned my own cross
been crushed by its weight
there's no stronger message
than dirt in your face

Only 5% of Whitebrim remains, not that anyone but Edy is around to appreciate it. Wessex and Deimos are not not unevenly matched in this. Though the Wraith is able to zero-in on his location based on the fire blast, her chakram does not hit. Flinging into the darkness, it returns to her after she's jabbed Neron with her adrenaline. Stabilized now but still unconscious, this has given Deimos the opportunity to escape through the Fangs cave. With a row of ursur blocking his exit, as soon as he is through the portal, they snarl and wander back to where they had been. Nate 's attack nearly kills the polar bear, but not quite. As Noah races toward the entrance to the climb, the bear rises onto his hindlegs to swipe at the dragon, even as its fur begins to sizzle and its skin burns because of the dragon's attack. It misses the hulking shape overhead, but still it roars in protest. Without Nate 's ascended-eyes and because of the delay with the bear, Noah blends in almost seamlessly with the background, successfully making it into the Climb cave. Congratulations! Morgan and co have successfully taken back Halo. Deimos, Hotaru, and Noah successfully escaped. Neron was knocked unconscious, but stabilized by Wessex. Edrei destroyed all but 5% of Whitebrim. THE END.