northern mission

[promittere]

VYING POWER ANIMANDO

It's a lovely day, isn't it? I hope you're certainly enjoying whatever it is you're doing on this fine afternoon, because it's about to be interrupted in the rudest way possible.

It happens very quickly. Whatever Ahito, Solomon, Malice, Robin, and Ithaqua might be up to, a sensation suddenly washes over them. It's magic—someone's magic, and it's unfamiliar. Unfamiliar, but powerful, and the five Northern wizards as they are now are unable to stop what happens next.

Space and time feels like it stretches for an instant, and there's a pull. In the next moment, they're falling from midair and being deposited together in the soft snowbanks just outside of the City of Ice. It seems they've been granted one free teleport straight to the City of Ice, how lucky of them!

Before they can do anything else, voices begin to ring in their heads. The magical signature matches that of what initially drew them here; the voices sound like they belong to young children, but they speak with a cadence and wear that suggests they are, in fact, very, very old.

"Boys! Listen to us!"

"We need your help!"

"The barrier around the City of Ice has fallen—this must mean something has happened to us if we have been unable to repair it!"

"Whatever the problem is, go fix it, quickly!"

And then, in unison, "Please!"

No sooner are the voices finished talking when the ground shakes in a terrible, terrible rumble. A roar echoes from the mountain range on the far side of the snowy field, and should they look in that direction, they'll see a large, monstrous shadow clamber over the peaks. It perches upon the top, its grotesque wings and limbs outstretched in victory, and roars again.

It seems that monster is the reason the barrier fell. Uh oh.

OOC NOTES

Welcome, Northern wizards, to your mission!

Missions are mod-guided events that are partial CYOA, partial play-by-post, and...well, in this case, it's mostly combat. In general, you are free to interact with a scene as you please, and the mod will tell you how the scene reacts as a consequence of your actions. Some scenes will allow for more flexible threading, such as exploration or conversation, while some scenes will require strict turn order to preserve rounds, such as combat or other time-sensitive conflict. The mod will inform you if strict turn order is required at the start of a scene. Regardless, always be sure to bold any important actions you take.

This mission has been specifically tailored to Northern disposition, attitudes, and magic. If you find yourself struggling to tackle a situation, refresh yourself on the description of North on the locations page, and make sure to confer with your teammates too!

As a bonus, here's your theme music!

You will have until 11:59 AM EDT on Saturday, June 1 to reach a conclusion for this mission. Good luck!

» NAVIGATION

Comments

THINK FAST!

[promittere]

[ No sooner after the large creature finishes roaring, it seems to set its sights on you. It kicks off the mountain, snow puffing around it like dust, and cuts through the air, straight towards the group.

You're lucky the field between you and the mountains is as vast as it is. You have one turn to do something before the creature is close enough to engage combat. Hurry! ]

[leewards]

[To be honest? Ithaqua, with his new experience in barriers, he's going to try and erect a quick, magic-resistant barrier around the Northern wizards. It's not enough to encompass the whole city, he knows he's not good enough for that yet. But just enough, he hopes, to protect them while the others get ready.

He himself needs no preparation time, such is how he works.]

[impacter]

[oh my fucking god not again this is the second time he's been teleported in two weeks--

Solomon at least is on his feet when dropped down into the snow, his outfit still enchanted in white with a pair of gloves and scarf to match now. How fashionable! Too bad the creature in front of them doesn't seem to like fashion.]

A problem indeed -- [His broom is out along with his wand, jumping onto it as he attempts to get some horizontal distance as fast as possible, perpendicular from the creature's dive. Can't do much of anything if they get bowled over!]

[dyingtohealyou]

[Ah, shit, of course they wouldn't get kindly guided to a problem, of course the previous Norths would simply grab them and drop them right into the middle of it all.

Ahito was back in central and he doesn't know who else may have been, so he'll cast a quick ward against the cold on everyone, fresh.]

Bruno warned me of a future vision of dangerous lights - be careful!

[fellheart]

[ okay, while he's no stranger to warping around or being warped around, it hasn't happened while they've been here so while robin does manage to land on his feet, it's a close thing.

still, in whatever split seconds they have, he surveys the situation as best he can with a click of his tongue. what is that, a chimaera? that unnaturally large? but like to confirm, how big is it. small building size? kaiju size? ]

You'd think there'd be more warning for something like this...

[ anyway, like solomon, he's also getting out of dodge, for now relying on his broom to fly the opposite direction of solomon to flank around the creature's other side and try to get a better idea/view of what they'll be handling. let's be real there's probably no conspicuous weak points but you never know. ]

[annihilator]

[What, you mean he can't immediately resort to the fight option?? Smh. Oh well, Malice follows Ithaqua's lead and adds a second barrier - this one is a crackling wall of fire. It should serve to protect them from physical attacks if the creature attempts to get close enough for that.]

Hey, Solomon! Catch!

[Thankfully, Malice's aim is good - he tosses a coin Solomon's way, hope you can catch it! It has Yamato's unique mark on it, so that likely explains who it came from.]

PHASE 1

[promittere]

[ With a ferocious roar, the creature flies straight at the group.

In the few seconds before it reaches them, they get a very good look at the monstrosity. It's big, but nowhere near as big as Robin's original majesty—about the size of a small village—but it is very clearly beyond its original size. It is bloated with magic, and the more keen-eyed of the group can see that the parts that constitute the monster are mismatched, awkwardly combined, as though it has consumed other creatures in order to create a vessel big enough to contain the unusual magic. It has the head of a griffin, wings of a dragon, the tail of a cockatrice (a snake's head), the torso of a rime dryad, and the claws of a wolf.

Say hello to your opponent—the chimera.

It swoops past the group, beak going into grab Malice, but instead skimming the physical fire barrier in its failed attempt (8). It comes to a halt in the air just past them and whirls around, and shrieks. Eyes on both its head and tail glow a bright, eerie purple.

Its cockatrice tail opens its mouth, and bright purple energy begins to gather in its open maw...


Welcome to combat! Here's how this will work.

• Please bold the actions you will take for your turn.
  
• When you attack, please note which part of the chimera you want to hit.
  
• When attacking or doing any action that might meet resistance or would be considered risky, roll a d20. An 11 or higher is a success.
  
• Any action that would give an ally a boost or buff in any way will allow that ally to roll with advantage (roll twice, take the higher die).
  
• While there's no strict turn order, you can coordinate amongst yourselves and adjust your order if need be (or, adjust to make up for absent players).

Good luck! ]

[impacter]

[Ah, the chimera... though he hasn't seen one quite so enormous before. His hand lifts sharply with the flick of his wand.

Spirits of the wind, bring down your force upon this creature, may it be bound and robbed of its freedom--]

Manu Propria.

[With a magic circle quickly forming above him, Solomon will immediately cast a binding spell, trying to either pin the beast or paralyze. (13) The wings, the claws, the multiple mouths, the sheer size - they need to pick off what they can to make this a more winnable fight.]

[leewards]

[Well. His wind is certainly not going to do anything to that, so he might as well rely on his speed and agility. Their small sizes are still an advantage, even if the beast is quick for its size. But if they were to remove some of its mobility...

Ithaqua takes to the air with his own broom, finally, and brandishes his axe.]

If anyone feels like having an excursion right atop it, come with me! I intend to clip its wings!

[annihilator]

[Thank you Jing Yuan for suggesting using fire as a shield!! Anyway, Malice immediately knows what he's going to do - he summons a firebolt - part fire, part lightning - to his hand and aims at the chimera's eyes hoping to blind it (20).]

[dyingtohealyou]

[Hmm, energy gathering looks bad!]

The End of the World.

[He's summoning a boulder of ice and sending it flying right at the cockatrice's head to try to do damage and knock off its aim (17).]

[fellheart]

[ robin's already in the air, so when he hears ithaqua he'll call back, a hasty arcwind spell amplifying his voice: ]

If that's the case, then I'll follow from the other side!

[ among their number it's only some of them that have weapons suited for dealing more physical damage, no? ithaqua's axe, robin's sword, malice's claws? ithaqua's axe is, frankly, a better option for this than robin's sword, but either way, them coming at it from different angles at least might present the creature with different targets to focus on.

still, even aiming for some of the more delicate structures in the wing he targets ... disabling a creature of that size with sword alone will be no small task, even aided by momentum (5). ]

PHASE 2

[promittere]

[ Ithaqua pries himself free from the chimera's beak, while Solomon freezes up, literally. Unfortunate...

Malice, however, is relentless in his assault. His attack on the cockatrice tail hits hard. After the energy courses through that part of the chimera, it seizes, and then falls limp. The cockatrice tail is down. Well done!

Now, the abominable being looks more like a fantasy creature than a two-headed monster. Its griffin head looks worse for wear, but its dragon wings, rime dryad torso, and wolf claws pulse with vigor still. With a burst, they free themselves from Robin's chains (20). It screeches in its triumph and newfound freedom... ]

Stop right there!

[ A voice rings loud and clear through the empty field—it belongs to a woman.

Suddenly, from the distance, two powerful beams of energy shoot through the group. One collides with Solomon at his stationary spot on the chimera's back (17), while the other slams square into Ahito (19). Not long after fly in, at an incredible speed, two witches: one stands atop her broom, arms crossed over her chest. Her wavy black hair floats in the wind and she stares down at the group with disdain in her violet eyes.

The aura that emanates from her is powerful. ]

This game is mine. [ She wrinkles her nose. ] You would call yourselves Northern with strength like that? Pathetic! I'll kill you all, eat your mana stones, then kill this monster myself!

—Sophie!

[ The other witch—Sophie—sits sidesaddle on her broom. Short blonde hair frames her face, and the bright blue sapphire necklace matches her eyes. There's a ferocity to her gaze as well. ] Yes, Eva! [ She calls, before flying away, and around the group.

Meet Eva and Sophie, Witches of the North. It seems they're not letting you claim this kill for yourself. ]

[dyingtohealyou]

[He was a bit busy watching, you know, the fucking chimera as opposed to preparing to take a hit from some random witches. So yeah, he's definitely looking worse for wear and in horrible pain AGAIN but you know what.

You know what!!!

Fuck this, if they want Northern strength, that's exactly what they're getting.]

Who's pathetic?! You can't claim to be that strong when we've done most the work!

[Anyway, enjoy a return laser beam to the face, Sophie (20)]

[leewards]

[Well, Solomon is freefalling... Someone has to get him, right?

Anyone?

No?

Might as well be Ithaqua, especially when there are more troublesome idiots-- hey, no kill stealing, you opportunistic vultures!-- and he thinks he would rather do away with them in an easy way, even if it means working with Solomon.

He tries to make the save, but he's not well-equipped to catch someone falling like that. (3)]

[fellheart]

[ robin just

looks at the two witches from his position on his own broom still, the spell he was preparing for the chimera building but not yet loosed.

he does not seem very impressed. wow, you can do long range magical sniping, cool, so can anyone with a siege tome. ... and so can ahito, apparently. wow, you want to swoop in mid fight, fight them, eat their mana stones, and only then attempt to kill the beast? sounds like someone doesn't think they're strong enough to fight off either party when they're fresh.

(wonder if he can bait the witches and the chimera into attacking one another as collateral damage...)

anyway, ahito can blast the witches, robin's going to keep aware of their actions but not bother addressing them, pointedly seeming like he's still paying more attention to the chimera. below his notice etc etc.

with a gesture made to look like an afterthought, he'll release the rexcalibur he'd been in the middle of casting towards the witches instead, loosing the bladed, gale force winds of a storm to answer the witches instead (14). eat shit. fall off your brooms.

(hopefully the rest of north appreciates the uhhhh let's call it a distraction, sure). ]

[annihilator]

[Well, it looks like Solomon's down for the count, but Malice is no healer. Someone better help him...!! Malice is better suited for offense, so he turns his attention on those two - following up after Ahito's attack with a firebolt of his own at Sophie (6).]

You wanna fight us for it? Then we'll put on a show!

[...is it a good idea to ignore the chimera, guys...]

PHASE 3

[promittere]

[ However, the chimera is not yet down for the count entirely.

Eerily, despite both heads hanging limp on either side of its torso, the creature still soars through the air. Its wings still pump vigorously, the chill over its torso lingers like haze, and its claws flex in instinctive search of its next victim.

In fact, it attempts to bodyslam Eva, but not even in all her grief will she allow such an unsightly attack touch her at all (4). She quickly steps out of the way, unharmed.

The blizzard still rages, and both Eva and three parts of the chimera remain alive. ]

[dyingtohealyou]

[This blizzard sucks and even if he wanted to pull another match (ugh, why does he keep needing so much healing?) he can't even be sure it would actually stay alight long enough to heal, so...

One way or another, the remaining witch needs to go.

Gathering his strength and murmuring his incantation properly this time, he manages to send a blazing fireball that doesn't immediately dissipate this time. In fact, the fireball flies for Eva and makes a clean hit (15)]

[impacter]

[Icicles slice, and the white Solomon wears stains bright red. The pain stings, the wind bites against exposed skin where fabric tears. But he feels that magic absorb, feels the unnatural fight of it.

It unnerves him. Unnerved him in a way he hasn't quite felt before. Is this what it was like, perhaps, when a demon swallowed up a human? Did they feel the dying gasps of the soul that once was fighting for its existence? Would a demon's flame do this, too, if devoured by a human? He knows the fight and pull of hell in the establishment of dominance, but this feels a little closer to home. The will of one versus another. Does he consider this one a person? If so, what does that make him now?

...

At the very least, despite his discomfort, the inner war is not unfamiliar. So he still can manage to stumble to his broom and get some vertical distance, pulling out the second stone as he uses this boost of magic - Sophie's magic, blue and brilliant and determined - to bind Eva in place (14).]

Yours?? And what is it that gives you that claim on a brilliant soul? This confidence, this determination.

You'd dishonor her by treating her like an object in the face of her killer? You'd make this about your strength, and not hers?

[His blood drips to the snow below, but he lets his cape fly freely, the red now making him an easy visible target even amidst the snow and ice.]

Withdraw or mourn with all your heart, dear Eva! Cry your sorrows of the life of a loved one, mourn the loss of their personhood, or Solomon the Wise will treat her expendable, just like you planned to treat us in turn!

[And into his mouth goes the second stone.]

[annihilator]

[Solomon's definitely taking a beating, so we need to take Eva out as soon as possible. We can heal once this blizzard is taken care of and then maybe we can remember the chimera exists, but for now...

Well, Malice has had enough of flinging spells for the time being. While her attention is on Solomon, he's going to try to flank Eva and use those claws of his to stab her (13).]

[fellheart]

[ oh, that is it. if it isn't enough to suffer the indignity of being plucked out of the air like that, to be released directly into what seems to be some of the harshest parts of the magical blizzard seems to be what frays the last of robin's patience.

even with both of the chimera's two heads dead, a bestial snarl issues forth from somewhere on the battlefield, resounding unnaturally in the hail and frost before transforming into a roar.

so too does something else transform. perhaps eva can be forgiven for losing track of the wizard she's been ignoring, but as robin plummets from the chimera's beak and the shards of ice tear at his cloak, he makes no attempt to call back his broom, no attempt to twist around midair and control his landing. instead, he throws a hand upward, energy rushing towards and spiraling around him to cocoon his form for a brief moment before it bursts, revealing a much larger form: a serpentine dragon that catches itself midfall with the beating of six feathered wings, navigating the storm more naturally now than if he'd been on a broom (16). ]

Cᴏᴍᴇ ɴᴏᴡ, [ laughs robin as he banks by the scene solomon seems to be setting up, his voice colored by the hissing and sibilant affect conferred by this form, ] ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʜᴀᴘᴘᴇɴᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴀʟʟ ʏᴏᴜʀ ʙᴏᴀsᴛs ғʀᴏᴍ ᴇᴀʀʟɪᴇʀ? Yᴏᴜ'ᴅ sᴇᴇᴍᴇᴅ sᴏ ᴄᴏɴғɪᴅᴇɴᴛ ɴᴏᴛ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʟᴏɴɢ ᴀɢᴏ!

Dᴏɴ'ᴛ ᴛᴇʟʟ ᴜs ɪᴛ ᴡᴀs ᴀʟʟ ᴛᴀʟᴋ? Yᴏᴜʀ ᴏᴠᴇʀᴄᴏɴғɪᴅᴇɴᴄᴇ ʟᴇᴀᴅs ʏᴏᴜ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴏss ᴏғ ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴅᴇᴀʀᴇsᴛ ᴘᴀʀᴛɴᴇʀ, ᴀɴᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ᴄᴀɴ'ᴛ ᴇᴠᴇɴ ᴄʟᴀɪᴍ ʀᴇsᴘᴏɴsɪʙɪʟɪᴛʏ ғᴏʀ ɪᴛ?

[leewards]

Aaa~ah, you're still alive? [Ithaqua's voice is full of disdain, irritation and impatience. How is she not dead yet? Annoying.

He is almost distracted by the dragon nearby-- that's Robin, isn't it? But that is also the dragon he met at the beach... Two things can be true at the same time, and he will be taking this up with Robin later.

For now... He realizes what the two eldest Norths are trying to do, and he grins nastily under his mask. He'll play along... but he would prefer if she concentrated on him right now, as well. So why not go straight for the heart of the matter.]

What are you looking at? Who are you aiming for, mh? [He drives the blunt end of his axe into the snow to make it stand upright so he can show off what's all over his clothing-- blood, that is.] Do you think she died from magic? A spell from afar? No, of course not.

[His voice pitches higher as another cackle bubbles out of his mouth, and he takes up his axe again, now casting a strong wind spell layered with icicles, just for her. (17) He knows that without talking to Solomon first, he cannot achieve the blizzard from earlier, but he doesn't need to rely on it all the time.]

I will hack you to pieces just as I did to her!

PHASE 4...?

[promittere]

[Eva was only hanging on by a thread, the ice dropping on her stunning her momentarily. She turns towards Ahito, raising a hand, amethyst eyes filled with so much rage and hatred. Grief and love are driving her to madness, spurring her on.

Love is a dangerous thing, for a Northern witch. It's something beautiful and precious but few will ever experience it, driven by their pride and their ambition and their constant need for more and more power. A place like the North demands that sort of life, so few would ever consider caring for another when at any moment they could get stripped from them. Better to never love at all and protect yourself than to love and lose who you hold dear in this inhospitable place.

Eva and Sophie had loved, but at least Eva will not have to live without her. Her body goes still as Malice's flames hit her, and her skin turns to a beautiful, translucent stone, like a statue made of the most extravagant amethyst. Cracks spread throughout her, and then she shatters.

Eva is dead, and with her the raging blizzard dies, too.

The chimera drops to the ground, wings destroyed by the fell dragon Grima, and it thrashes and writhes. The air around them all gets heavier, and it becomes apparent as the chimera lurches to its feet. Its wings hang limp and torn—truthfully, it's a shock that it can stand at all, but the air starts to shift. The air feels heavier, like something heavy is crushing their chests as the chimera struggles through the snow towards Eva's mana stones. Purple light oozes out of its wounds, and it struggles onwards.

Now might be a good time to finish it off, before things take a turn for the worst. They can still move and have not taken any damage this turn, but they've heard enough stories by now to know things may still end poorly for them.]

[dyingtohealyou]

[While he does spare a glance in Solomon's direction, he's quickly distracted by that sudden, crushing sensation. Any thoughts he had about healing are instantly directed to making that nonsense stop as soon as possible, which means-

The chimera needs to die.

Drawing on power from his amulet, a bracelet charm of a little teacup that remains hidden under the sleeve of his clothes, he adds an additional kick to his spell to hopefully silence the thing for good. Nothing elemental, nothing fancy, just a blast of pure power at the Chimera (17).]