[Cherry Heart] Cherry Heart Guild Main Hall Thread

[JessicaMuddy]

Tobias paced along the streets, making his way along each stall, barely glancing at what they had in store for the many many customers all making their way around the clunky-footed boy. When he had first left home he didn't really notice all the different... things that were in the city. Sure there were a lot of humans, which was to be expected, but looking around Tobias saw dwarves, elves, a bee-person, and things that he couldn't even begin to describe. "I suppose that's what a life isolated in this city does. Ah well, never mind." Continuing to walk down the path, Tobias made his way to one of the end stalls, a shabby looking thing manned, or more specifically, womanned, by a stunning creature. It's title was a big block of pink that appeared to be covering something up, then the works "Kissing Booth" below it. Attempting to act cool, Tobias strutted over to the woman. "Heh." He started, running his hand through his hair. "Best kind of booth, ain't it?"

 

 

"Seriously, that boy is so brash." Mary began, throwing in a few tsks while watching her son lazily walk away. "Well, I'd best make some use of my time." She began to walk in the opposite direction of her son, not taking long before seeing two men standing on what appeared to be a sort of stage, preparing for some kind of act. She moved closer to the crowd around the area, seeing a delightful yellow and black suit shouting some encouraging words. "Go get him Myth!  I'll bee right beehind you!"

"What a bee-autiful costume you have there sir. May I ask what it is these two men are doing up there?" Before he replied, however, one of the men spread his arms out and a gust of wind started to form around him.

[Hakima]

Masaru scratched the back of his head in confusion. He scoured his memory, which was admittedly a bit more than he liked to admit after three years. Had he done something to make her mad at him before he left? He couldn’t recall anything outside of his usual uselessness inside the smithy, but he had tried to disappear more once she was old enough to start helping her parents, and even then, that didn’t seem like something to be mad about for three entire years. Maybe it was just some weird sibling thing that all girls went through? Masaru guessed he would get hit with a hammer for suggesting that, and he doubted she even considered him her sibling.

 

He sighed, following the line as it surged forward at a surprising pace. It seemed like most of the people in the front were clearing out quickly, chasing after some girl, or fighting over her, or something. “I’ll never understand women...” Masaru finally decided, slumping his shoulders and making a mental note to try and find where Mena went so he could talk to her once things calmed down. Maybe some rumor had started back in the village about him the day after he left, and she believed it? Hopefully it was something that goofy… She hadn’t seemed to like him very much to begin with, and he couldn’t stand the thought of anyone actually hating him. Especially someone who had done so much for him in the past.

 

An enormous, calloused hand clapped down on his shoulder before he could walk any farther down the depressing mental path he was on. Masaru’s knees buckled under the weight and it was all he could do to not go crashing into the ground face first, and then he was almost deafened by an inhumanly deep voice bellowing in his ear, "Hello there boy, I've got an idea, why don't you and I be friends? M'name's Tegur!"

 

Masaru was momentarily stunned into passiveness, not reacting to the Minotaur or anything else happening in the application line. His very first instinct was to pull his sword and chase off the monster that had a hold of him, or that he needed to run in the other direction until his legs couldn’t carry him anymore, both of which were probably next to impossible and left him feeling guilty for thinking that. This Minotaur couldn’t help what he had been born as anymore than Masaru could help that he couldn’t remember half his life, and to judge him off that was a horrible thing to do in the Summon Mage’s opinion.

 

A piece of advice an elderly woman had given to him when he first started traveling came into his mind: “The first thought that goes through your mind is what you’ve been conditioned to think, but what you do next is what will define you as a person.”

 

Masaru gathered up all of his courage and pushed his way back to his full height, mustering up the brightest and most welcoming smile that he possibly could, before sticking out a hand for Tegur to shake. “I’m Masaru! I’m kind of new to this whole guild thing, and it’s probably pretty easy to tell… But a friendly face in all this mess would be great!”

[Super Chaos Sonic]

BGM

 

Kin was right about the crowd gathering after he shouted this...but it wasn't long before saw someone finally step up to challenge him. This bare chested, red haired guy stepped forward, with a smirk. A gust of air burst from his body as he opened his arms, as Kin could only grin back in return.

 

"Come..."

 

"Oh yeah...I'm gettin' a nice vibe from you." Kin smirked, cracking his knuckles. He remained still as he exhaled slightly, before grinning widely. "You better go all out...cause I'm not holding anything back!"

 

Kin finally shifted his stance before beginning to take a deep breath, inhaling quite the amount of air. "GOLD DRAGON'S.....ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAR!!!" he said, quickly shooting from his mouth a powerful golden tornado towards the young man: Myth. The sheer force behind this attack was incredible that it even made quite the number of those surrounding the arena back up.

 

Alright...that should knock him for a loop...as well as do a number on him with all those gold shards. Kin smirked, before his fist began to turn a bright gold. But...if he survives that... He thought, before finally rushing towards the man, using the Gold Dragon's Roar as a covering. "GOLD DRAGON'S...SHINING FIST!!!" he yelled as he leaped into the air, preparing to crash down on top of Myth. He wasn't sure if this guy would be able to stop his assault...but if he did...it honestly meant that he found someone on the same level as him...almost the same, anyway.

[Mr. Hyde]

---

---

 

"What a bee-autiful costume you have there sir. May I ask what it is these two men are doing up there?"

 

Leo looked up and to his side to notice a human woman had mistaken his beeing for a costume.  Nervously, his wings started to hum, and he twiddled his hands.  

 

"Actually madame...I am an Insectoid...this is what I actually look like."  The nerves had settled down once he saw Myth take a fighting stance, and a gust of air washed over the gathering audience.  So his friend Myth was a Wing Mage.  How exciting!  He looked back to the woman and pointed to the center of the arena.  "And to answer your question, I believe these men are about to have themselves a bout."

 

A ferocious roar could be heard coming from the fight, and Leo's eyes widened with excitement.  That guy was on a whole other level...would Myth be fine?  

 

"These cherry heart hopefuls are sure the handful.."

 

---

---

---

 

"Oh yeah...I'm gettin' a nice vibe from you.  You better go all out...cause I'm not holding anything back!"

 

"Wouldn't dream of it..." he said as he put his hands up, fists outward.  One foot also raised off the ground a tad, just enough for his knee to stick high into the air.  

 

"GOLD DRAGON'S.....ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAR!!!  Myth's eyes glowed at the name of that attack.  He hadn't known until just now, but his opponent was one of the mythical dragon slayer mages.  He used to read tales about those sorts of people all the time back when he was young, but he'd never imagine he would meet one face to face.  He had even less faith that he would ever get to test himself against their legendary strength.  Myth's muscles twitched with excitement.  

 

As the golden ray of an attack approached him, Myth spread his arms wide.  He then brought them together rapidly, and when his hands met, a giant blast of air was sent rushing towards the beam, colliding with it.  The two attacks seemed to be equal in strength.  

 

"GOLD DRAGON'S...SHINING FIST!!!" 

 

The shout came from above him, and he hadn't noticed the first attack had been a diversion.  On instinct, Myth launched an elbow straight at the fist, as his hands pushed on each other to add to the already powerful elbow that he was delivering.  A swirl of air had appeared in front of his elbow as well, for added effect, and as a slight defense against the golden fist his elbow would be colliding with.  

[Alaina]

What a glorious day this was. The sun was shining brilliantly overhead, with nary a cloud to block its radiance and give light to all those within the city. Strio had been to human cities before, over the course of her life, but none seemed quite vivacious as the one she had stepped into on this very day. There were crowds of people strewn about the entirety of the city, doing various things, having various conversations and enjoying various activities. This was not something she had really ever experienced, even within her own home, and it was quite the pleasant one at that. Even more to add to the awe of the crowd was the variety of other non-humans that seemed to mingle about. Truly this was a place worthy of such beginnings on her grand quest. In spite of all of this, though, that which had the most presence out of anything in this human festival was one building that stood above all others. The one that all had come here for. The guild hall of Cherry Heart! 

 

Of course, Strio had already filled out her application for the guild, being apart of the first batch to do so. After all, she was an early bird and that application was her worm. With the main event out of the way early, this left her plenty of time to sight see and wander about. As such, she had wandered all about the city to look for things to do. Devouring all manner of exotic foods that she would have never seen at the mountains, playing all manner of games, looking at all kinds of people. There was even a man who she could unleash the might of the Coronids on. Yes, he was one such human male who had an odd look in his eyes and tried to grab at her. So she obviously responded to his challenge by unleashing her fighting spirit and pummeling the man into the ground. What a challenge that was! 

 

The only thing that made her slightly uncomfortable here was the great hallmark of her people; her wings. With so many people in one place, her wings had to constantly be folded so as not bump into anyone. Then there were the stares she was getting, though those only managed to fill her with pride rather than discomfort. After all, she either received praise for them or rude comments about them, the latter of which was obviously born out of jealousy. And so, to alleviate such a problem, when she found an empty enough space, she spread her wings out to their fullest and briefly hovered off the ground, stretching them by flapping them against the wind. To be in the air like so, truly it was a marvelous feeling....though no such events were being held above ground and it would most likely be difficult to find another landing place. As such, she let out a sigh before folding her wings back up and descending to the ground. While her brief demonstration drew attention to herself, she paid no mind to it as she continued to walk about, in search of things to do.  

 

 

[Wind Rider]

Angel had only stood up from her table for a second when she noticed a crowd gathering around. When she went to see what the fuss was about she was greeted by a large gust of wind that nearly knocked her to the ground. When she looked to where the wind originated from she realized why everyone was so excited, two men were brawling with eachother, each one possessing a strong type of magic. The two seemed to be evenly matched so far as the two combatants clashed against eachother. The resulting shockwave, nearly knocked Angel off balance again, however she was able to keep herself from falling. "These two are certainly great fighters, the guild would be foolish not to accept *spark* THEM, Gah!!!" Angel caught herself in the mouth again hoping to hold back her glitching. " *pant,pant* I can't keep doing this, *spark* Gah, I have to get away from this crowd!"

 

Angel broke out of the crowd of people, if she could just find a spot to vent off she could stop herself from glitching, however, where's a quiet place in the middle of a festival? Angel knew she couldn't stop herself from glitching at this point, so there was only one option. "If I can pose as another fighter I may stay focused on the combatants rather than the civilians *spark* Gah, I can't... I just can't..." Angel's eyes turned a deep red as she looked back at the two fighters. "You two *spark* call that fighting? I'll show you *spark* what real fighting is!" Angel couldn't stop herself, she rushed through the crowd of people and into the brawl, she charged straight at Myth, ready to deal a devastating punch.

[Love of Ghibli]

Excitement...Excitement was in the air. Henry quickly read the room and saw that people were migrating slowly to some action outside. Naturally the young socialite in training went on and followed the crowd. The whole goal of being a socialite is to be where all of the happening events are at. It wasn't too long that he was able to see a crowd gather around an arena while a fight was taking place. 

 

"GOLD DRAGON'S.....ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAR!!! 

 

Henry looked on in slight shock as he didn't think that there were dragon slayers applying to this guild. For a split second Henry was worried if he would be accepted or not into the guild if mages of this caliber were already applying. He shook his head and perished all of the negative thoughts that had infected his mind. Unfortunately, they almost came rushing back in when the dragon slayer's opponent somehow manipulated the air and blasted away the dragon slayer's magic as a counter attack. OH COME ON! Why do all the monsters want to be in this guild! 

Henry persevered and realized that everyone has their own strengths. I mean I can give these hands in some poker he chuckled as he thought to himself.

It wasn't a full second later that Henry noticed another person charging into the fray and taking a swing at the wind person. Henry looked on frantically with his hands twitching. I should do something...I mean I think that's what I should do. I mean I'm not a fighter but...but...this looks like it could be fun! Henry immediately leapt out of the crowd and shot dozens of cards from his wrist at the space between the new fighter and the wind user. 

Wall of Aces! Henry's cards lined up and formed a complete barrier partition separating the new blond fighter from the other two. Henry landed in the ring behind this blond warrior and tried to stand stylish in front of his new adversary. If the dance floor is open to the public then I wanna cut a rug too!

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

Angela

 

"There are many who seem to want to take advantage of it. But I have my own ways of avoiding trouble. I could show you sometime, I guess."

 

"I'll keep that in mind."

 

"Introductions, another tradition I never really understood. I'm Kasayee, just Kasayee, not some adventurer or anything. Though I guess I am on an adventure...anyway, where I come from. Not many people have visited, it's an island, far from here. It's...peaceful, except when it's not. I guess really it's not peaceful at all. Though I've never had any problems. I wonder why that is..."

 

"Hey hey hey, introduction's really important, you know?" Seems like the lizard girl...Kasayee wasn't really that accustomed to how things go over here, and seemingly not having that much interest in getting herself accustomed with it. It's not a problem, definitely, but Angela decided that she should try giving her own piece of mind for once regarding a topic to the girl that might be her new friend. "It's not about being polite or anything, but you don't just go talk too much without getting both sides know each other, at least by a little. I mean, you might be the type that's not going to be bothered much to do something like this, but...geez, how can you expect yourself to get friends out here, anyway?

 

Unless it's yet another thing you decided not to bother about."

 

That went on for longer than what Angela planned, and after thinking for a bit, she realized that she might sound a bit rude with how she said it.

 

"Uh...sorry about that. It's just, I feel that you're too detached from this world for your own good, intentional or not. But anyway...that island of yours...maybe you can tell me more about it?"

 

Though, before Kasayee had a chance to answer, someone bumped into the two of them. It was a young-looking man, but Angela could feel something wrong about him. Kasayee too, apparently. No, that's not just it. Kasayee's tone became grim, and how she stated the unnaturalness of the man and asking about who brought him into existence (an odd question that raised more questions on Angela's mind) made it seem that there's more to the girl than on the surface. Though, the tenseness stopped not long afterwards, and Kasayee shook her head before offering the man an apple. Just then however, Angela could hear a commotion coming from outside, and that intrigued her, even getting her to forget that she was going to visit the barbecue stand. Getting an apple before bowing out from the scene (promising Kasayee that she'd be back later), Angela rushed to the source of ruckus, and found two men facing each other in the arena.

 

It was quite breath-taking. The attractiveness of both guys aside, Angela was taken by the high-energy combat that the two shown. One of them even used wind magic! It was quite pleasant to see someone else utilized it, and utilized it well he did. Angela was quite awed at the scene, and his opponent was also no slouch with his golden-themed attacks. She gotten an itch to join in the fight, but she knew that entering the one-on-one brawl would be rude of her. Both men seems to be quite spirited and stoked in their duel, and butting in would be a pain in the ass.

 

And then, a girl attacked the wind-using guy. No...that wasn't really just a girl, wasn't it? Her movements and speech was weird. Angela prepared her spear so she could enter the fight at anytime, but...she still didn't see it as the right time for her to butt in. But then, someone else decided to enter the fight. Yet another man, he summoned a wall made of cards between the windy guy and the attacking blonde "girl", and prepared himself to fight the blonde.

 

Well...perhaps this is the best time to enter the fight.

 

"STRIKE AIR!"

 

Creating a sonic boom from her spear to propel her upwards, she soon landed just some distance away before the new addition to the fight. Looking at the blonde girl and the man interchangingly, Angela shrugged before playing around a bit with her spear as a little exercise, before activating Invisible Air and coated it in its sheath, making the two meters-long weapon invisible to others.

 

"Well...since everyone's crashing this party, I guess I can't just stand back and just watch, no?

 

Now, I shall introduce myself. I am Angela Celeste Silkans, the Heaven's Hole of the Shangri-la Company, and I am here to show you all a real fight!"

 

Once she was done with her introduction, she turned towards the newly arriving man, and activated Strike Air again to jet herself forward to attack him, aiming for a decisive rapid three thrusts at his vitals. She didn't assemble the blade of her spear, so it was more like a blunt metal stick more than anything right now. Getting hit by it would still hurt like hell though.

 

---

[Wind Rider]

Before she knew it, Angel had thrown herself into a free for all. She was blocked off from her attack on the wind user from what seemed to be a barrier of cards. Angel turned to see a man who was seemingly manipulating the cards in a way that they were turned into deadly projectiles. Seconds later, a girl jumped into the fight utilizing a spear and wind magic. As much as she wanted to fight the others, Angel turned her attention to the new combatants.

 

"Now, I shall introduce myself. I am Angela Celeste Silkans, the Heaven's Hole of the Shangri-la Company, and I am here to show you all a real fight!"

 

The spear wielder had a polite tone to her words, unfortunately Angel wasn't exactly in the mood for niceties. The girl seemed to target the card manipulator first, with what seemed to be an invisibility enchantment on her weapon, clever, but nothing Angel's Nano-Tech eyes could see. "You two, spark, think you can come in and ruin my fun? You just spared that, spark, other fighter from what I'm going to do to you!" Angel brought out her wrist blasters and aimed them at the two combatants, normally her blasters are nothing more than repulsers, but overcharging them turn them into high powered blasters. "Let's see if you can handle me!"

[Love of Ghibli]

With a sonic boom and thunderous entrance a true warrior had entered the stage. Henry laughed as this was definitely a first for him. He got to be in a battle against another mage. He wondered how long he could actually hold his own against a trained fighter. 

 

Now, I shall introduce myself. I am Angela Celeste Silkans, the Heaven's Hole of the Shangri-la Company, and I am here to show you all a real fight!"

 

Angela was her name then. It looked like he was about to find out as she propelled herself his way with a blunt spear. Henry smirked as he dodged by going into a full split and tilting his head backward. He was gitty with joy about how close that was, but even he knew he wouldn't be able to hold his own in close range combat. Mainly because he didn't know much out combat and from the sounds of it that was her occupation. Henry recovered from his split by doing a classic flare and launching into a grand jeté some distance away from Angela. He landed in full first position and then gently put his foot down. 

 

Of course that couldn't be all that was coming his way. "You two, spark, think you can come in and ruin my fun? You just spared that, spark, other fighter from what I'm going to do to you!" 

 

Henry was genuinely shocked as he managed to do a death drop to dodge the other opponent's laser cannon fire but throw a card in its path so it would explode right behind him. He wasn't used to being that close to explosions so his hearing was a little messed up but he couldn't let the enemy see him sweat. Henry got to his feet and looked and the blonde one. 

 

Hey make sure not to hit the audience for we need them to get hype for us. Henry said as he looked back at Ms. Silkans.

 

 

Alright there Ms. Angela Silkans nice to meet you. The name is Henry Whitley and while you're in for a fight I think we have to give these people a good show! Henry flicked his wrist and two decks of cards came out. He quickly fanned the cards and started trick shuffling them to make them form a crazy snake like shape. He clapped his hands once again and all of the cards seemed to disappear. Nothin' up my sleeve! 

He pointed one hand straight towards the sky and repeatedly fired a series of cards into the air! 52 PICK UP!! The cards came raining down on both Angela and the blond participant!

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

Angela

 

"Tch!"

 

The man did a full split to dodge Angela's attack, and her momentum made it harder for her to turn back and attack. She stopped herself before going too far and turned around, but then she heard a voice that could only mean trouble.

 

"Let's see if you can handle me!"

 

From the distance, the blonde-haired girl seemingly aimed at her and the man with her hands, and that was never a good sign. Angela was barely able to dodge as a burst of energy came from those hands, grazing her more than necessary. It was an impressive show of power, of course. Though...was it magic? It was quite unclear, but it didn't look like what magic should be. The blonde was definitely quite the intriguing person...maybe she should talk to her later after this.

 

"Alright there, Ms. Angela Silkans. It's nice to meet you. The name is Henry Whitley and while you're in for a fight I think we have to give these people a good show!"

 

"Then, Let's start the fun if you want it so!"

 

The man revealed two decks of playing cards and started shuffling them before somehow the two decks disappeared. What was he, a magician? Angela stayed on her guard. She was unsure on what kind of tricks might the man play against her.

 

"52 PICK UP!!"

 

The man pointed one of his arms forward, and Angela realized what was he going to do. The cards flew upwards from his sleeves, and started raining on both her and the blondie, falling down like a rain of knives. In response to this, Angela spun her spear above her as fast as she could, and channeled her wind magic into it to blow the cards away from her position. That was quite interesting. His magic was card-based, it seemed. It's not actually illusion based, was it? Illusion would make this quite a pain. Though, no reason to think about that.

 

"My turn!" As soon as she was sure the rain was over, she stretched her wrists a bit to let them get a short break, before getting into a stance. The cracks that she had been familiar with for ages opened all around her, and gave her a more menacing air. Channeling the magic from those holes into wind that would help her attain better speed, Angela encased her spear with air once more, and now lunged towards the blonde-haired girl with her newfound agility. She could attack Henry again, but she needed to see what the blondie was capable of. Once she get in range, she wasted no time into pressuring the girl with a series of strikes and thrusts with her weapon - and capping it all off with a sonic boom blast coming from Strike Air.

 

Perhaps letting her opposition see her spear before encasing it with Invisible Air was a mistake, but if they didn't pay much attention to the two-meters weapon, it would be very hard for them to accurately gauge her attacks to guard against it. Granted, from how the blondie looked at her weapon, it seemed that she somehow could follow it. That might be a concern.

 

"Show us more of your fun side!" Finished firing her wind blast, Angela lunged forward again to continue her assault. She had no intention to give the blondie a room to rest, at least for now. The fun's just getting started, so why would they need to slow down?

 

---

[cardgameking]

One could argue that tales with unhappy endings for the hero are more heroic mused Solomon as they show a greater realism... His thoughts were interrupted when he accidently walked into the middle of two conversing girls. The blue-haired one was just saying something about an island, and for a brief, bright, moment Solomon believed they may not have noticed him... somehow.

His hopes were shattered when the other girl turned to face him- Wait, why the hell is she naked?! Solomon shouted internally. This was getting worse and worse, as it would seem he had encountered some kind of savage who din't understand clothes. Perhaps she doesn't need them in her climate? a small part of Solomon asked, Not an excuse!!! a much larger part shouted back. 

"Uhm..." began Solomon, hoping to come up with some sort of apology, explanation or a honorable reason just to keep walking. However, his thoughts were stifled by the same small voice, this different repeating don't look down, focus on the face, don't look down, focus on the face over and over. This stopped him from saying something straight away, and the girl took this opportunity to speak.

 "You are...unnatural."

Well, talk about harsh. The words, dealt flatly and without malice nor sympathy opened a gap in Solomon's stomach.  I know I'm a monster, but who is she to speak... knowledgeably about the matter? Unless... Wait, is that a tail?! Once again rendered dumbstruck by this discovery, Solomon pondered how he'd not noticed this feature before. This gave the girl, lizard, thing, a chance to continue. However, while Solomon registered her question, he was too busy putting pieces together in his mind. She must be a druidess of some kind. She recognises me as undeath and weren't there rumours of druids being able to shapeshift? Wouldn't be the strangest fact I've learnt this month... About to speak and question the druid, he was once again beaten to the punch by the druid shaking her head and reaching out and grabbing an apple.

 "Nevermind. Want one?"

Solomon stared at the apple in mild distaste. Since his revival, all food had seemed unnecessary. There were a few uneasy moments when he happened upon rotting fish and was disgusted to find himself savouring the aroma, but it had passed. Nonetheless, he took the apple, if only to placate the girl. He gripped the apple tightly in one hand and let it hang by his side.

"Thank you, druidess." he said in response. Hopefully, him figuring that out would let him back into control of this conversation. "In response to your question, I'm not fully sure. My best guess is that the person who did this to me wished to shame me, even in death. My current purpose is to find whatever remains of my lineage." He frowned, was he being a bit too open? But she was a druid, and should be trustworthy enough. The fact she hadn't attacked him or called for the guard aided that impression. "What is your..." he scrambled to finish the sentence "current purpose?" He finished lamely.

[Wind Rider]

In response to the raining cards, Angel brought her wings, which had been secretly folded on her back, up to block them. Angel noticed the cards digging in and cutting the stonework of the arena and she would've been worried if not for the fact she was entirely metal.

 

"My turn!" Angel turned to see the spear wielder coming straight at her. Angel used her wings to her advantage and began parrying the strikes from Angela's spear. The spear wasn't invisible this time but Angel could stop the attacks regardless, though she was taken by surprise when Angela launched a sonic boom at her.

 

"Show us more of your fun side!" Angela was prepared to keep the pressure on her, but Angel wasn't having it one bit. "DON'T MESS WITH ME!!!" Angel flapped her wings back and proceeded to grab the incoming spear, if she got away with it, Angel could throw Angela out of the way and would have enough time to focus on Henry.

[Super Chaos Sonic]

Kin apparently caught Myth off-guard with his second strike. But nevertheless, just as he dispersed his Gold Dragon's Roar, he countered his Shining Fist with an elbow, having a swirl of air at the end of it.

 

"Heh...you ain't half bad!" he laughed, before jumping back, already seeing on the side of them three more wizards already brawling.

 

"You two *spark* call that fighting? I'll show you *spark* what real fighting is!"

"If the dance floor is open to the public then I wanna cut a rug too!"

"Well...since everyone's crashing this party, I guess I can't just stand back and just watch, no?"

 

"Well...looks like we started a nice lil ruckus here." Kin turned to look at Myth again with a huge grin. "Still, I'll deal with them later. I've gotta finish this fight first! GOLD DRAGON'S SHINING FIST!!" Soon both of Kin's fists turned a bright gold as he rushed towards Myth and began to throw quite a number of punches at him.

 

"You aren't bad...but your not as good as me!" Kin chuckled as he watched Myth dodging his strikes, only starting to pick up the pace of his punches.

[Makο]

Nanuq had stood toward the center of the hall for a while, scanning the crowd for any sort of hint, or cue, or something to give him a chance to act. Or rather, he had been acting as though he was. In actuality, he had been standing completely out of it; not a thought passed in his mind for this time. Thinking too deeply was never a strong point of his during his time growing up, although to his credit, it was never particularly required. Written literature does exist among Ursine, but due to the finesse and patience required to actually sit down, hold a writing utensil, and write, only one or two among a single clan even had the skill (usually, the trader of the clan.) As a result, literacy was alarmingly low among Ursine. Mathematics were also limited to traders, and perhaps those who worked in some of the more sophisticated crafts. Philosophy never went beyond "do what's right" and "respect life," though both could be interpreted in a number of ways. They just never bothered to. Not a thinking man's species, for certain.

 

At some point, he just began walking. As people were getting settled down, and more and more applicants managed to sign up and leave, he wasn't at any particular risk of running into someone. At this point, his empty mind had been occupied by a single, lonesome thought. He missed his father. A mere day before the raid, he had been out on a hunting expedition with his father. It was a particularly slow day out in the fields; every trap was empty, few, if any tracks could be found. As such, they had time to simply sit down and talk. It had always felt... strange to be with him, being a good head above his father, but the air the patriarch carried with him was undeniable. An intense confidence, an addictive personality, and a drive to always move forward kept him as his object of admiration. Plus, it had been him that helped Nanuq, who certainly appeared more human than otherwise, to fit in with the other cubs. Almost everything he knew about fighting, living, and the world had come from him. He once gave a passive mention to the life from whence he had come, before becoming a part of the clan. A dirty, dangerous life filled with regret and sorrow, that he would never return to. Any question Nanuq would ask would be deflected, for whatever reason, as he never got into specifics about it. All he could parse is that it seemed to be mercenary work of some kind, and that he was deeply ashamed of what had occurred during that time.

 

He knew he boundaries. He knew not to press any further into something tha-

 

"Oof!"

 

He had been walking for a few good minutes, without thinking or paying attention to his surroundings, seemingly in circles. It had only been a matter of time, and he finally collided with someone. Or, something. Taking a few steps back, he looked down at the person he had collided into... until realizing he was looking the wrong way. Standing a good foot taller than him was a minotaur, with a large, extended beer belly and what appeared to be a huge crossbow slung across his back. Nanuq was taken aback for a moment; this man was strong. Very strong. It seemed like he had known the wear and tear of the world, and appeared to be a traveler of sorts. Is this my chance, he wondered. Someone of his caliber must've heard SOMETHING about a traveling band of Ursine, right? He seemed very well versed in the world.

 

He stared down the minotaur, who was now looking at him. "How well traveled are you?"

 

A bit tactless, without an apology and all, but he had to start somewhere.

 

 

From just outside Tracy's shop, one could hear the jingling of coins and the occasional expletive. Something about being in the red this week.

 

Still closed.

[Cherz]

Lily watched as a confident young man swaggered on over...but she couldn't help but giggle. His mother had really placed a damper on that swagger. She had left though, as he approached.She shot her gaze to the jar, then leaned in and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

 

"The first one is on the house. I'm a nurse, so I'm pretty trained in mouth to mouth. If ya want some of that, it's going to cost you.~" She said to him, throwing a wink then gazing back to the jar.

 

However, a bunch of people behind the teen began to disperse, much to her irritation. It seemed as if another attraction had drawn their attention away from her booth. She looked over and saw what it was. A one on one match had turned into a full scale brawl. How simply barbaric. She was visibly agitated that that was taking attention from her. She looked in the mirror to her left. She was still beautiful. She huffed and said allowed.

 

"Can you believe it? The audacity! How can such a barbaric display capture the audience away from me? Why if I could fight I would teach them a lesson!" She fumed, before regaining her composure. She huffed but remained at her booth. She knew she couldn't participate in that slug fest, so he devised  new plan. 

 

Using her red lipstick, she wrote on the base of the stand "And healing too" below it. The cherry red would surely capture the attention of some of the fighters. After their barbaric display, they would come to her to mend any wounds. It was a genius idea! She could even give some of the cute fighters a kiss while they stopped by. 

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

“I’m Masaru! I’m kind of new to this whole guild thing, and it’s probably pretty easy to tell… But a friendly face in all this mess would be great!”

 

Tegur nodded, and chuckled. "Aha, there we go laddie!" He grabbed the boy's hand. But instead of shaking it he dragged the boy up into a bull-hug. He let him down carefully. "Seems ye got some lady problems, ol' Tegur has wooed many lasses in his day, yes he did, yes he did. If ya ever need some advice" He paused, belched, shook his head, and continued. "Just ask me."

 

Before he could bestow some of his infinite wisdom upon the young lad, he felt a light tap. Looking down he saw another boy, seemingly older than Masaru, but still young. He expected the boy to apologize, or challenge him, or something similar. It had happened many times before and would likely happen many times again. But instead...

"How well traveled are you?"

Tegur's face broke into a huge smile, and he put his arm around the new boy's shoulder, and the other around Masaru. "Well lads if ye really want to know I can tell you my tale." He cleared his throat, and begun singing, horrible, horribly, singing.

"There once was a man, a man of the sea, a man of the sea who saw all that a man could see. From one side of the world to the other did he travel, travel far and wide, wide and far, what was this man called? Ooooh what was this man called? None other but Teeegur, Teeeegur Steelskull, yes Teeeegur, Teeeegur Steelskull, a sailor of renown, a sailor of justice, yes he was the legendary sailor...." And then, louder still, he nearly roared. "Teeeeeeeguuuuuuuuur Steeeeeeeeelllskullllll!"

 

He broke out into laughter, and once that slowed down, he spoke. "And that's just the first verse. M'name's Tegur, if ye didn't figure that out." He tilted his head at a sound. He knew that sound, it was a battle. Bah, young folk were so quick to fight. If it went on too long he'd have to break it up...

---

Kasayee found herself disappointed as the girl ran off. She didn't even get a chance to answer her question.

Of course she wanted friends. But, who needed names to be friends? Those two things are entirely unrelated. To Kasayee, all that was needed to start a conversation was...start it. There weren't any rules. You talked until you didn't feel like talking and then you went on to other things.

Speaking of other things...

"Thank you, druidess. In response to your question, I'm not fully sure. My best guess is that the person who did this to me wished to shame me, even in death. My current purpose is to find whatever remains of my lineage. What is your...current purpose?"

He knew what she was, well, that made sense. She wasn't exactly hiding it, and it was very possible he was old and knew a few things. She let out a loud sigh. Out-loud, but to herself, Kasayee muttered. "These people, I will never understand. Disturbing the natural order for such a fleeting emotion as shame..." She seemed to snap out of her funk quickly, however, realizing there had been a question. "My purpose?" What was her purpose. To make the world better...no, that was her desire, a dream that she may not ever put into action. But purpose? That was something else entirely. "My purpose is the same as any other. To exist." She gave a bright, pure, smile at the man, before turning her attention back to devouring the apple.

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

Angela

 

"DON'T MESS WITH ME!!!"

 

"Wings...huh? E-eh, what are you doing?!"

 

Angela was surprised when her opponent grabbed the invisible spear and started to yank it. The strength was exceptional...inhuman even. Something that didn't belong to someone with that body frame. What she did was quite unexpected that Angela messed up her stance and got yanked up into the air. The blondie let her spear go by then, and went to attack Henry. Still up in the air, Angela sighed before she channeled magic from the cracks once more to keep her floating temporarily.

 

"I'm not done yet!"

 

Using yet another sonic boom, Angela went down rapidly with her bladeless spear ready to strike the blonde. It would be a blindingly fast, one thrust strike. Her foe could grab her spear when she attacked her earlier, but with this kind of speed backing her up, Angela would like to see if the blondie could actually repeat the feat or not.

 

---

[Wind Rider]

Having gotten rid of Angela for the moment, Angel set her sights on Henry. "Now then, Mr. Magician" Spark. "Your going to regret blocking me" Spark. "From my original target." Angel prepared her blasters but before she could aim them at Henry...

 

"I'm not done yet!" After hearing Angela's voice, what followed was another sonic boom. Angel turned to see Angela rushing right at her. "How can anyone even recover that quic..." Before Angel finished her sentence, Angela's spear had already punctured Angel's body, her nano-fiber armor may be able to take damage, but not when it's coming from a spear launched at Mach speed. " H... How did you" Spark. "Recover that.... Quickly?"

 

Angel wasn't hit in a fatal spot, but it was enough to make her feel what must've been... Pain.

[Thar]

"AAAAAAALLLLLLLRIIIIIIIIIIGHT!!! Haven't had a good brawl in a while. So...which one of y'all is first? C'mon...no need to be shy about it. I won't kick your tails hard!"

 

Gush could hear the triumphant voice echo throughout the festival. Surely it wasn’t from the crowd as no mere voice could stand out at such a faded sound. From what she could tell, it sounded like it was coming from the arena, which she had recently learned was from the friendly sparring event that was also taking place. The idea lit her up as the sound of the boasting champion from within made her resonate with joy, shaping her currently shy and anxious expression into a smile that literally stretched her face a few inches wider with glistening eyes.

 

“Is that… is that a battle?!!” she gasped as she stood up to face the direction of the voice with no other emotions or events to distract her. At first she resisted the urge to squeal in delight, but she gave in as she bolted towards the area, leaving dust in her tracks and people shifting and diving to the side to avoid her momentum, “WAIT! WAIIIT!! I’M MISSING ITTTT!!!”

 

---

 

Gush finally reached the viewing seats that looked upon the arena where two combatents faced each other with menacing expressions, at least to her. One man stood out to her, and it was clear that his voice was the one that resonated within her body. A man with blonde hair that resembled that of a freelance warrior with potential to take on this entire arena as well as the entire festival left her interest magnetized like a compass to the north pole.

 

“Was he…” Gush thought to herself, almost aloud despite how speechless she was, “...the one who’s voice I heard??”

 

She then snapped out of her daze when she realized he had an opponent. She took a look to the side to see another person whose expression was that of a warrior, but not of the same caliber. However, wit was what came to mind within Gush, interesting her all the same. There was a hint of doubt that her hunch may be wrong about his fighting style.

 

“Oh my god, this fight… it’s already exciting!!” she squealed with fists tightening near her chin as she hopped with joy while not even finding the focus to locate a seat. She stood at the edge where she would never be satisfied otherwise to watch.

 

“Come…”

 

Gush froze, as if from intimidation from someone who wasn’t even threatening her.

 

"Oh yeah...I'm gettin' a nice vibe from you. You better go all out...cause I'm not holding anything back!"

 

“YEAH BLONDE GUY, KICK HIS ASS!!” Gush screamed instinctivally, only to look around out of reflex knowing that this was not who she was at all. However, all anxiety was neutralized from the thrill of the fight she was watching.

 

"GOLD DRAGON'S.....ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAR!!!"

 

A sudden shockwave of energy burst from the arena. Without thinking, Gush braced herself from the gust and dirt that spread into the audience which made them all flee to the back of the seats. Gush, meanwhile, remained stationary to recover and see the blonde-haired warrior charge up his next attack. 

 

"GOLD DRAGON'S...SHINING FIST!!!"

 

With that, Gush could barely take another breath before the impact took place towards the long-haired opponent’s elbow that unleashed another burst of wind. This time, Gush didn’t budge, but let the burst consume her as she widened her eyes in delight at the nature of such a powerful clash. Had she had the ability to produce tears, they would’ve been falling in excitement.

[Mr. Hyde]

---

---

 

"Heh...you ain't half bad!"

 

The two had been blown back by each other's attack.  Myth dusted off his elbow, a minor scratch had appeared on it.  

 

"Cocky...aren't you?"  He said as he prepared another attack, only to be interrupted by a commotion to the side.  Their show had brought a rather...strange crowd, and three more brawlers joined the stage.  

 

"You two *spark* call that fighting? I'll show you *spark* what real fighting is!"

"If the dance floor is open to the public then I wanna cut a rug too!"

"Well...since everyone's crashing this party, I guess I can't just stand back and just watch, no?"

 

"Well...looks like we started a nice lil ruckus here.  Still, I'll deal with them later. I've gotta finish this fight first! GOLD DRAGON'S SHINING FIST!!  You aren't bad...but your not as good as me!" 

 

The boy's hands started to glow again, and he unleashed a flurry of punches at Myth.  They were slow at first, and Myth was able to bob and weave around each one, but as the pace of the punches slowly increased, he found himself having to protect his vitals with his forearms.  This was exhilarating!  His might had yet to be tested to this degree!  He could feel every inch of hair on his body stand up with excitement, goosebumps appearing on his arms. 

 

When another punch came his way, Myth took to the air.  As he leaped off the ground, a slight crater was created.  As gravity took it's hold back on him, he stuck his knee out.  The air around Myth had covered him, as if he were a meteor about to impact the earth.  

---

---

---

 

“YEAH BLONDE GUY, KICK HIS ASS!!”

 

A shout could be heard from right beside Leo, and he turned around to notice a blue...slimy creature.  He jumped in shock, but then snapped back into it when he realized he was being out cheered!  

 

"Come on Myth!  I bee-lieve in you!  Knock out that Blondie's lights!"  He covered his mouth.  That was a bit violent for him.  "Oh dear...."  

[Hakima]

---

---

Masaru shouted in shock as he was lifted off his feet like he weighed nothing and wrapped in the biggest hug of his entire life. The smell of alcohol was overwhelming, mingling with Tegur’s natural musk in the worst kind of way, and the Summon Mage’s eyes watered and he had to hold his breath not to break into a fit of coughing. Masaru took an extra deep breath when he was placed surprisingly gently back on the ground, but he made sure to smile back up in Tegur’s direction.

 

The overwhelming feeling that he was out of place was already receding now that he wasn’t alone. Tegur was bit of a spectacle all things considered, but his room-filling personality easily drowned out all of the second-guessing that Masaru had been doing. He had already made a friend! Maybe his smile wasn’t so lousy after all…

 

“Seems ye got some lady problems, ol’ Tegur has wooed many lasses in his day, yes he did, yes he did. If ya are ever in need of same advice,” He paused, momentarily, to release a loud belch and shake his massive head once to clear the air. "Just ask me."

 

Masaru was confused for a second. “Lady problems? What do you,” The pieces of the puzzle clicked together all the sudden and he laughed, the most carefree and like himself he had sounded since arriving in Prunus. “You mean Mena? Oh, no, she’s my sister! Well, sort of. It’s not really important right now.” He gave Tegur a thumbs-up. “I’ll keep it in mind in case I ever need some actual advice on girls, though.”

 

Thankfully, something distracted the minotaur hybrid before he could continue that strand of conversation further. Masaru watched as Tegur shifted his massive bulk to turn around, blinking in confusion. “Huh?”

 

"How well traveled are you?"

 

That was a new voice. It wasn’t nearly as deep as Tegur’s thick drawl, but it had the faint traces of an accent that he wasn’t able to place. Maybe somewhere from the North? Masaru hadn’t met many people from that terrifying and cold place, but the few he had were not people to mince words.

 

He was pulled from his thoughts suddenly as Tegur threw one meaty arm over his shoulder, pulling him close while he began to sing in his typical deafening manner. Masaru should have covered his ears to block the horrible tune in a heartbeat, but the spirit of the festival and the overall demeanor of the minotaur was contagious. The song was a simple one with no real pace and a pitch that could only be described as LOUD, and Masaru picked it up quickly and sang along with the minotaur.

 

To the Summon Mage’s credit he sang loud enough that his voice was actually discernible from Tegur’s, smiling and belting out his new pal’s name until his throat was raw. When Tegur wrapped up the final line, Masaru tried his best to finish the note with the minotaur, and then stumbled back a bit laughing.

 

"And that's just the first verse. M'name's Tegur, if ye didn't figure that out."

 

Masaru got a good look at the newcomer as Tegur shifted out of the way, still chuckling. He looked like a human for the most part, but he was absolutely massive; not as big as the minotaur, but Masaru still had to incline his head to catch a glimpse of his eyes. He was starting to feel extremely short all of the sudden. What had these people eaten when they were kids?

 

Thinking back to the inch or two that Mena had seemed to have on him, Masaru decided that he definitely wanted some of whatever it was.

 

Shaking that thought off, and still in a rather jovial mood and hoping to make yet another friend, he jabbed a thumb at himself and smiled. “Mine’s Masaru. Glad to meet ya!”

 

[Love of Ghibli]

What was this! It seemed Henry was almost being ignored as the two other combatants began to engage in some form of close range combat. Though to be fair it looked as if that was a lucky break for him. He looked over to his left and noticed that the Gold user and the other air mage were still going at it strong. It was hard being the fifth wheel so naturally he would have to do something to get back in the spot light. He looked on as the blonde one prepared to aim her cannons back Henry, the young card slinger smirked because a third person he was able to witness was about to happen next. 

 

"I'm not done yet!"

 

Henry looked on as Angela had landed a direct hit on the blonde woman and it seemed to take that one out completely. Well Henry could only hope anyway. He started to get a running start towards the woman.

 

Hey, did you forget how to play 52 pick up? Once the cards are on the floor....he then flicked his wrist upwards...you gotta pick them back up again! Henry's cards that were scattered all over the arena immediately shot up and flew right back at Angela. However as they got within a .5 meter radius of her they all stopped. Surprise! Henry shouted as all of the cards exploded near her creating a small fume of smoke around her! Henry flicked his wrist upward and he appeared to have five cards in each hand. 

Alright now where to attack? Let's just say its the dealer's choice! He said as he launched his ten cards at Angela in the smoke aiming for various body parts.

[Super Chaos Sonic]

"Cocky...aren't you?"

 

"Heh, maybe." Kin laughed as he just threw his punches. He was actually having fun in this fight. Sure Tosz gave him a challenge, but he was a dragon, go figure. But this guy Myth...he was human (or humanoid whichever floats your boat). And for a human of this person's caliber being able to keep up with his Dragon Slayer techniques...AND counter them...Kin was colored impressed.

 

“YEAH BLONDE GUY, KICK HIS ASS!!”

 

Kin could only sigh at this. It wasn't cool that he wasn't called by name...but he knew once he got his name out there, everyone would be screaming it. Until then...the encouragement was very much needed.

 

That's when Myth took to the air, as he swung and missed his punch. "H-Hey! Get back here!!" Kin shouted, watching the man in the air, noticing the crater that he made when he jumped. Wow...this guy has that much magical pressure? Hehe...yeah I'm lovin' this already!!

 

Kin stared at Myth, only to see him sticking his knee out and coming back towards the ground...like a meteor. But Kin didn't move, he only grinned. "Now we're talkin'! GOLD DRAGON'S SCALES!!!" Soon the young Dragon Slayer's body began to be covered in gold scales. He only smiled and shouted up towards his opponent. "Bring it on!!!"

[cardgameking]

 "These people, I will never understand. Disturbing the natural order for such a fleeting emotion as shame..."

Solomon couldn't help but frown when he heard the druidess mutter this to herself. Shame is no fleeting emotion. When someone is shamed, that shame is put upon all that person would protect. I was risen to make a mockery of my own attempts to save the kingdom... And in doing so, shamed all I tried to save and all who came before them. Still, Solomon's companion snapped out of her reflective mood nigh instantly, and answered his question. "My purpose?" For the first time seeming a little unbalanced, she recovered quickly. "My purpose is the same as any other. To exist."

This enigmatic answer puzzled Solomon. How could one not exist? Had magic advanced to such a point that a person could simply slip in and out of the ether of non-existence and this world? Perhaps she isn't a druid, but a spirit taken human form? Who are the spirits the druids talk to anyway? I know they talk to spirits, but are these 'spirits' the embodiment of the land, animals or... the deceased.

Struck by this revolution, Solomon was about to ask the druidess if she could, perhaps, put him into contact with his family, from the beyond, when he heard a yell. Well, actually, several yells.

"You two *spark* call that fighting? I'll show you *spark* what real fighting is!"

"If the dance floor is open to the public then I wanna cut a rug too!"

"Well...since everyone's crashing this party, I guess I can't just stand back and just watch, no?

Solomon turned to see where these rather unusual battle cries were coming from, hoping the lizard girl wouldn't mind this breach of manners. Considering she was digging into an apple with slightly startling ferocity and had no clothes on, he hoped he could get away with it. When he saw where the battle was occurring, his lip curled in a sneer. Fighting in an open arena like barbarians? If people couldn't control their bloodlust, join the guard or a guild. Solomon knew from painful experience that these arenas were not spectator friendly. Shaking it off before his mind turned to the the memories of his life he prefered not to think about, he turned to the lizard girl.

"Beg pardon, druidess, but may I ask... can you commune with those who passed on?"