the Rift


the wolf and the whale [Mesec v Zèklè]

Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#1

Every kind word from the blue lightning colt felt like a cold knife to Mesec’s stomach – wrenching and tearing as they dug in. He didn’t deserve the love of this colt or his friendship – certainly he did not deserve his faith. How long had it been since Mesec had done anything even remotely close to justifying such treatment?

Too long ago to remember now. He was losing the fight against the monster inside of him and it did not afford him any attention to respond in words to Zero’s misplaced kindness nor the capacity to form complete coherent thoughts.

What he could do was scream. Mesec screamed in agony like he had the first time this had happened - the fight with his Mother in the Green Labyrinth, the day Aviya died. This agony went deeper than the physical pain – Mesec felt as though his soul was being ripped from him this time. It was so much than all the others. He screamed as his body shifted, his last conscious thoughts were that he would give anything to stop it right here and right now to spare Zero further pain. His silver eyes were shut tight, too much of a coward to look at his young friend as this was happening - as he proved Zero wrong. He wasn’t safe and he was going to prove it in the most terrible way.

He prayed to his mother, to the sun god, and to their brothers - to anyone who would listen.

But it was too little too late.

Mesec collapsed to the ground and the screaming only stopped when the shift ended and the heaving sides belonged to a great, black and silver warg instead of his normal self.

Those pupilless silver eyes would have matched Mesec’s perfectly except that they were devoid of all emotion except one: anger. It was a rare emotion in the demigod but it was the driving force behind the warg. It was angry at everything. The expression was only enhanced by the blood that dripped down its face from the talons of Lucius who had been unsuccessful in his attempts to ground Mesec. Now the zephyr flew in distressed circles overhead, crying loudly. What was he to do? Protect Zero as much as he could, he knew that, but that may mean harming Mesec further. And each time he drew blood from his own bonded was another fracture in his heart.

With a grunt, the warg clamoured to its feet and shook itself - bits of fur flying off into the pale red light of the rising sun that filtered through the trees. It stretched in a luxurious fashion, momentarily looking little more than a ridiculously large dog, as it re-accustomed itself to being in this form. Roughly the same size as he had been in horse-form, this was no ordinary wolf.

But then, Zero had seen this before. He would already know.

Blazing silver eyes sought out the colt and then the warg moved quickly. It bounded directly for Zero – its lips pulled back from dangerous fangs as it snarled. Instead of leaping and trying to take the colt down immediately, it instead charged straight forward. Snapping its teeth, it aimed these quick effortless bites low on Zero’s legs. The goal right now was not so much to harm as it was to goad the colt into running.

After all, what was a hunt without a little sport?



-------
1/?* attacks
579/800 words using wordcounter
continued from: in the shade of poison trees
setting: Blood Falls, in the forest just after sunrise

* this is for Mesec's quest
"1. Turn into a warg and spar someone until they're within 15 HP (so very nearly dead, by our blackjack rules), and then stop the fight." given out here
so there is an undetermined amount of attacks until someone is within 15 HP

stock from deviantart


@Zèklè <33
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times

Zèklè Posts: 166
Outcast atk: 8.0 | def: 10 | dam: 3.5
Colt :: Pegasus :: 14.1 :: Three HP: 67 | Buff: NOVICE
charks
#2

Here's the deal. You're a good kid, going about your daily life, trying to do the best you can in a tough world. You're born with a deformity, but that's alright: you learn to live with it, to laugh when people bring it up. You don't have any badass fighting magic, but it's cool: you make monsters out of rocks. You've got a rough relationship with your Da, but it's okay: your Ma is all you need, even if she's a little busy sometimes. You have sisters, and you love them. You have friends, and they love you. And sometimes shit happens, like you try to fight a giant demon and break your wing. But, hey, look on the bright side- it's not like you were using it!

You're good at on the bright sides. You live on the bright side. Hell, you are the bright side. And you're okay with that! Because really, all you want is to be people's bright side.

So how come they keep fucking you over like this?

No- not like this. This is new. Nobody has ever hurt you like this. Sure, when Ma left, it sucked. And I mean really, really sucked. And it still sucks, every time you think about it- it sucks the way a splinter sucks, deep in your skin, impossible to remove, almost possible to forget until you so much as twitch, and then, oh shit, there it is again. But splinters are passive, they're accidental, and that's how you view your Ma's disappearance. It's not like she meant to hurt you. It's just that, well, shit happens, and maybe it was even your fault, and you got hurt.

But Ma didn't want to hurt you. And you know that. But looking at the-thing-that-was-Mesec, you have doubts, because Mesec doesn't want to hurt you... right?

You take a step back as he - it - stands, a writhing mass of dark and hunger. You try to find a name for it, this thing your friend has become. Wolf seems too kind; Tae has a wolf, and while her companion has never exactly set you at ease, it certainly doesn't fill you with the unspeakable terror brought on by this beast. You shudder, involuntary, fear clenching at your heart, your throat, your lungs. Feathers press tightly against your tail; your wing clings desperately to your suddenly diaphoretic side; the whites of your eyes shine brightly against your dark face. Your entire body is rigid and tight, a jack-in-the-box ready to spring at the slightest cracking twig.

Except you don't run. Even though you've seen this before and part of you knows, knows what it means, you hesitate. You stay. You can't help it. As the monster - Mesec - stretches, you think maybe, maybe, he can still be saved. He wouldn't hurt you. He's your friend.

So you call to him, to your friend, to the man you know must be hidden inside the monster.  Maybe you have too much faith in the world. Maybe you're just an idiot.

Probably both.

“Mesec?" you whimper.

The monster replies.

You jump away from the snapping teeth, but not soon enough. Sharp fangs tear through your left front cannon; you feel yourself scream. You don't hear it: all you hear is the roaring in your ears, the rush of blood and denial as you stumble backwards, scrambling desperately to get out of his - of its - reach. You spin around, a messy affair, and somehow within heartbeats you are facing away and running, fueled by something primal that manages to mute the agony of your incised, bloody leg. You look back to see if it follows.

Then you trip.

You're lucky: you've tripped a lot. You know how to fall. You tuck yourself into the stumble, legs digging for purchase against the dirt, wing snapping back and open- directly into a tree, which both severely bruises the radius of your appendage and brings you toppling to the ground, your left cannon deciding that all of this excitement is more than it can (literally) bear. Not to worry: you're still good at falling, and terror does wonders to keep you moving. You adjust your trajectory, tweak your stumble into a roll. You use your wing for leverage (ouch!), falling onto your left foreleg but pushing with your right everything in hopes that you'll roll all the way over and pop back up. As you're prone your legs flail stupidly, striking out against the world, a half-planned defense from the seconds of exposure as your body flips and turns. It's not impossible. You've done it before. Sure, the circumstances were a little different, but, well... it doesn't matter, does it?

You have to get back up. It's the only way to stay alive.

[ 799 words | 1/?? ]

image credits


@Mesec

Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#3

The scream from the colt sent a rush of something so close to happiness through the warg that it almost smiled. Those wicked, silver teeth tugged back into a horrid, twisted snarl of a grin as the pair - the trio, really - started to move. It was pleased that a chase was going to happen - even if it a short one. With the taste of fresh, hot blood in its mouth there is no breaking of focus. It drips from the gaping mouth and onto the forest floor below, red streaking black and silver fur. But it’s not enough. It wanted more. Blazing silver eyes are focused entirely on the running colt and then, suddenly, the colt is down. He tripped.

Before the warg can leap upon him with relish, the pesky zephyr that often got in its way on hunts was in its face, flapping four massive wings in its face and buffeting it with feathers and wings in an attempt to slow it down. Lucius was frightened past the point of being furious as he screamed at what was Mesec. Somewhere in that mind, his bonded still lived - their bond was dark and filled with shadows but it still existed. He could not be bonded to this monster so Mesec still survived which meant Mesec could get control. Perhaps he couldn’t control the shifts yet without his mother’s aid but he could learn to be awake after it happened.

Through their bond Lucius did not stop calling to Mesec, willing him into consciousness. They could not wait out this shift as they had some of the others - Zero’s very life was at stake and they needed to do everything to stop the coming disaster.

Despite his efforts, Lucius only managed to slow down the warg before he was batted aside - earning a few cuts for his trouble but they did not deter him. He was quick to turn around and keep after the pair. Trying to make the decision about whether to hurt Mesec to get him to stop or to risk getting Zero hurt by not stopping him felt impossible. But he loved his bonded and his bonded loved Zero - there did not seem to be one of them who could win out of this scenario.

And, really, it didn’t matter so long as they all survived this terrible night.

While Lucius circled and continued to deliver his own aerial deterrence to the warg, one of the flailing hooves from the colt hit the warg on the face as it went in for the momentarily prone boy. It balked at the impact, stumbling back a step and growling in response - that wicked smile was entirely gone from its face now. A shallow cut and bruise smarted on its right, furry cheek and it shook its head angrily to shake off the sensation of being clipped in the head with a hoof - however lightly.

Surely a minor hit, but it still had the effect of infuriating the warg more. Harsh sounds, something deeper than snarls and almost a roar, come from the wargs throat in warning as it hurried on heavy paws to keep up with the colt. Instead of teeth, it swung out its left front leg with claws extended - hoping to feel it connect with the flesh of Zero’s rump or hip. Vaguely it remembered the sensation of wanting this to be a hunt, to let Zero get far enough away that it could stalk him in the shadows and decend upon him without warning. But the taste of blood was burning in its mouth now and a rising panic in the back of its mind.

There was a sensation telling the warg that it should not be doing this, not trying to kill the young pegasus. For now it was an itch at the back of its mind - weak but annoying because it existed. The confusion these strange thoughts encouraged to grow did not deter it from its present goal but made it feel more reckless and violent. Once the colt was dead, once this was finished, those thoughts would be silenced.

Deep in the back of the warg's mind, Mesec started to stir.



-------
2nd attack
709/800 words using wordcounter


stock from deviantart
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times

Zèklè Posts: 166
Outcast atk: 8.0 | def: 10 | dam: 3.5
Colt :: Pegasus :: 14.1 :: Three HP: 67 | Buff: NOVICE
charks
#4

Remarkably, you arise unscathed.

Well, perhaps unscathed is improper terminology- your leg is a bloody disaster and your wing radiates in a dull throb, but despite your clumsy footing you have no new injuries to boast. Indeed, if anything it seems you have injured it - a thought which, though upsetting, ignites in you some new degree of stupidity.

You are distantly aware of Lucius, of the way he has attacked the beast from the very first, taking talons to the stallion who he must (you assume) very much love. And with the limited mental capacity of your terrified mind, you think, hey, maybe he has the right idea. Maybe I just have to shake Mesec out of it, and he'll be okay.

It may not be the best idea, but it's the only one you have. You cannot run away from the beast, not with your leg in its current state. You cannot fly- something you regret on a constant basis, but never more than right now. You cannot talk him down- you have already tried that, and, well, we all know how successfully that ended.

With Mesec, your friend, trying to kill you.

But he hasn't killed you, not yet, even though you know he could've- could've easily torn into your viscera with wicked teeth, could've torn off your wing and bitten into your flesh. He could easily have stomped all the light from your sunbeam eyes, if he really wanted to. But he didn't - he didn't do any of those things, and so you begin to hope, because hope is your cancer, your disease, your drug: you cannot shake it, cannot be cured, and sooner or later, it will be the death of you.

Sooner, if you carry on like this.

You leap away from the beast as soon as you rise, narrowly avoiding the swipe of massive claws (another sign Mesec's in there! you think), and run, darting out ahead of the monster, the pain in your left fore igniting a network of protesting neurons, the ache of your wing dulled beneath the adrenaline rush that keeps you moving. You do not run far - you can't, and you know it - but rather sprint some four or five strides before darting to the left and pulling to an abrupt stop. Your ears spin backwards and you wince in pain, though your hind legs and right fore take the brunt of the impact. You count on your small stature and speed to save you- ideally, the large, lumbering beast will be taken by surprise. He will not stop, at least not immediately, and you will wind up behind him.

That's the plan, anyway.

You are not still for long. Though you throw yourself alongside a tree, this is not an attempt to hide. This is an attempt to surprise, to scare the monster out of Mesec, the same way your Ma once told you hiccups could be scared out of your throat (it didn't work, but you opt to forget that detail (and, fuck, now you're sad again)). You bunch up tight before bounding forward and right, toward where you think Mesec the beast might be. Ideally, your strong, muscular rotator cuff will collide with his left something (hip? Side? What do weird demon wolf things who used to be your friends even have, anatomy-wise?), and the impact will be enough to wake him up and put an end to this whole affair.

Or, you know, he'll move faster than you and you'll crash into a grinning mouth full of jagged teeth. If this happens, you do not have a contingency plan. You are not a military tactician. Hell, until this moment, you have never even been in a fight. You are just a boy, lost, confused, and very much afraid, trying to save your friend from himself before he manages to murder you.

[2/??, 645 words]

image credits

Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#5

The word frustrated did not even begin to cover the effect that this fight was having on the monster. He had started out with the intention to play, to drag it out, but now it was taking actual hits from this cripple of a creature, from the annoying silver bird, and a battle was starting to form in its mind as well. The weak version of itself was waking and although it could not actually take control it he was rebelling. The knock to the face seemed to be jolting Mesec into consciousness and he was becoming aware of the battle, of what was being done to Zero.  

Or, more accurately, what the warg was trying to do to Zero - because he woke to discover that the colt was not as injured as he feared. A bleeding wound on his leg but not much else.

His despair at the events unfolding was feeding the shift, the unstable emotions triggering it over and over and giving it strength, but even as Mesec continued to wake he fought it as well. He had experienced glimpses of consciousness during shifts before, only recently, and although this was the strongest it had ever been - he was still trapped in a prison of his own body and unable to make the muscles mood according to his will and not that of the creature.

Lucius felt the flicker of Mesec, of his bonded, and cried out in joy - his screech echoing through the woods as they continued to brighten. Whatever injuries he inflicted on the demigod, even in this form, would be worth the chance that it could work to get him back. Mesec had healing magic and they would be visiting the Moon Goddess soon. Although Mesec was not thinking about their quest right at this moment, the zephyr could not stop. If Mesec woke up enough to stop this fight, to get control, it would satisfy one of the options they had been given in the Veins and this curse could finally be lifted.

The end of this year of tragedy was near and the demigod would get his chance to heal - to see his children, to rediscover friendships, maybe even to go home.  

Lucius flew in a wide circle around the pair, watching and waiting for more opportunities to intercept. The young Zero no longer seemed intent on getting away, he was fighting back and it gave Lucius hope. Perhaps with the two of them, they could finish this. The zephyr tilted his wings and dove, syncing his attack with Zero’s - flying toward the warg’s neck and reaching out with his sharp, silver talons to grip into it. A roar of anger and frustration ripped from the shadow creature as Zero collided with its hip and Lucius tore chunks of fur and flesh from the top of its neck. The hip felt bruised and pieces of skin hung loosely, on his neck, the blood getting soaked into midnight black fur.

Its reaction was swift. It turned, stumbling just slightly with its aching hip, and scrambled around in the needle-strewn ground until it was facing the colt again. A sense of recklessness was rising in it, wanting to finish this as quickly as it could before Mesec even got a chance to fully wake. It launched, throwing itself at Zero's right side with claws outstretched and teeth ready to snap, seeking to tear into the pitiful flesh wherever they could - the side, withers, or that one wing - to get one step closer to stopping this fight once and for all. It would give that annoying voice in its mind something to really scream about as he was forced to watch his dear friend be torn to shreds.

-------
3rd attack
630/800 words using wordcounter


stock from deviantart
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times

Zèklè Posts: 166
Outcast atk: 8.0 | def: 10 | dam: 3.5
Colt :: Pegasus :: 14.1 :: Three HP: 67 | Buff: NOVICE
charks
#6

It worked! You nearly fall over as the beast roars its fury, but the howl is a confirmation that you struck it and maybe - if you're very lucky - proof that your plan was working, that by striking the monster would drive it from your friend. Hope rises again in your breath, and you freeze for a moment, staring at the stumbling beast, trying to gauge how far you are from victory.

Only a few more blows, you think. And then Mesec will be free.

It had better happen soon. In your youth and inexperience, this is quite a bit of pain and fighting- it feels like you've been terrified for hours, though dawn is still barely working its way through the trees. You're not sure you can take much more. Your shoulder hurts where it struck the creature, the dull pain radiating out and joining the ache of the rest of your wing. Still, it is not as bad as your leg, which continues to very slightly bleed, since every time you do something stupid (like try to slay a giant wolf) you seem to tear the coagulation apart. You are desperately tired, and your sides are darker than usual with streaks of sweat.

You only have a second to catch your breath before the monster rebounds, literally throwing itself at you as you stare, helpless, through wide sunbeam eyes.Couldn't he have given me a minute?, a very stupid part of your mind whines, while a louder, much smarter part screams: Move, idiot! Mercifully you listen to the second voice and move, your slate hooves scrambling for purchase on the leafy ground as you try to escape yo your left. But you're too slow to escape the onslaught of teeth and claws, and the beast is upon you, his toothy grin filling your eyes to the brim. You raise your wing instinctively, trying to protect the appendage you treasure most (a rather foolish sentiment, seeing that it's thoroughly useless so long as you have only one...), and in doing so allow the wolf access to your exposed right side.

And the wolf takes advantage, as giant murderous wolf demons are wont to do.

You scream as teeth tear into your tender flank, leaving deep gashes in their wake. Pain sends stars to your eyes, and you forget, for a minute... well, everything. Your panic is too complete, your terror to intense; you retreat into the mind of a primitive being, hell-bent on nothing but pure and simple survival. Your large wing comes crashing back down, pulling tight against your body before shoving out in a desperate attempt to move the beast away. That is all you really want- to get away, to get it away, and as you try to pull forward and left you kick out with your right hind for good measure, your teeth snapping in a furious panic at whatever they can possibly reach, be that tail or air- you are willing to do anything to dislodge this monster from your side.

Because while the monster is becoming Mesec in its internal struggle, in your mind the opposite is taking place- Mesec, your friend, who you wanted so much to save, is slowly crumbling into nothing but the monster.

[3/?? | 542 words]

image credits

Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#7

Mesec seemed incapable of existing at any point in time and not being in conflict with part of himself. For so long, this had been the norm. Well, not this particularly - he had never fought with Zero before, had never started to feel the prick of consciousness while the warg was in control and become aware of what he was doing. Before, all those shifts before, he had relied on the information from Lucius and those who had been around at the time. He had been a third party to his own destruction.

In one way or another, Mesec always seemed to hate a part of himself. He just never expected that part to hate him back. Mesec-proper began to struggle against the hold of the beast, shouting in agony as he saw through the monster’s eyes that the teeth had found their mark and ripped into Zero’s flesh. He could feel the sensation in the shared mouth of him and his monster, knew that the blood that they tasted was his friend’s.

And the warg relished in how Mesec was disgusted, tormented, by that realization.  

Before either of them could do anything about it, before the warg could dig its teeth in deeper or before Mesec could try to wrestle control, Zero fought back. That massive blue wing came shooting at the belly of the warg, knocking the breath out of it with a yelp and breaking a few ribs as it went falling backwards and away from the colt. With haggard breaths it scrambled to its feet again, snapping at Lucius who dived in again and ripping out some of the feathers from the zephyr as it tried to avoid those dripping jaws.

Silver eyes flashed with anger as all the warg thought of was ripping that pesky wing right off - leaving the boy more of a cripple than he already was. The fact that this fight was dragging out longer than it should was infuriating. Wincing at the movement, the warg had the thought to tug at one of the amulets Mesec carried with him and smashed it in its jaws - releasing the blood contained within it. Pain wracked the warg for a moment as the magic of the blood worked on its body - not healing everything but doing enough so that his breathing became easier and it would be easier to move without risking the broken rips puncturing something vital.

Mesec was becoming more aware but the warg was not running out of anger and remained stronger, eyes blazing with bloodlust and hatred for the crippled boy who was fighting back and doing well at it.

Invigorated as the pain from the Kaos blood and injuries faded away, the warg charged again - leaping and throwing itself at Zero's wingless side and attempting to use the powerful mass of its body (equal to that of Mesec in his true form) to knock the young horse over. It needed to regain the advantage in this fight and pinning that wing so it could later be torn apart was high on the priority list.


-------
4th attack
520/800 words using wordcounter

used Kaos amulet


stock from deviantart
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times

Zèklè Posts: 166
Outcast atk: 8.0 | def: 10 | dam: 3.5
Colt :: Pegasus :: 14.1 :: Three HP: 67 | Buff: NOVICE
charks
#8

Your usually useless wing finally pulls its weight, striking the beast square in the stomach and forecfuly sending it away. This is not a harmless exercise for you- your wing has already taken damage this fight, and the muscles of your rotator cuff are growing swollen and strained. This is the least of your worries. The ligaments, meanwhile, are quite thoroughly sprained. A doctor would likely bandage it up and order you to refrain from engaging in activities such as flying (Ha!), but you don't have a doctor, so you grit your teeth against the pain and continue to survive.

So you ignore the damage to your wing, though at the moment it is definitely making up for years of hanging useless by your side and stepping forward as team MVP. The important thing is that you managed to get away from the monster, the force of your blow not only pushing Mesec away from you, but sending you stumbling away from him, effectively increasing the separation while also causing you to stagger, your weakened foreleg refusing to take much weight and sending you into a spiraling twist of limping compensation....

...And into a tree, which you proceed to strike with your head.

You don't hit it particularly hard, but it's hard enough to leave you dizzy, a bruise blooming on the left side of your face. The world spins around you as pain damages your senses; for a moment you are blind, which is a very bad thing to be. You stumble (a pervasive theme of this fight), vigorously shaking your head to clear it, painfully aware of the beast behind you, the wolf who seems adamant on tearing you limb from limb, despite how little your conduct seems to warrant such a violent response.

You're too scared to be sardonic, though, or even to question Mesec anymore. Your hooves search for purchase on the needled earth as your head continues to spin. Sunbeam eyes blink rapidly, trying to dispel little spots of sunlight that dance like fireflies through your vision. And then, just as you're able to see again- just as you think maybe you have your bearings- just then, your ears turn and your head follows and you taken in a big eyeful of the surroundings and-

(“OOMPH!")

-and you're on the ground again, screaming, writhing against the weight of the massive beast.

He hits you square on your left shoulder, his body smashing into the metal that seeps across your side, and you go down easy. But you don't give in. You don't think This is it. You don't reflect upon your past mistakes, the things you wish you could have done differently. Your short life doesn't pass before your eyes. As Death grins down at you, his mouth pulled tight over wicked teeth, saliva dripping hot onto your skin, you, Zero the Lightning's Son, cling to life. You will not die like this- not here, not now. Not today.

You kick up, your three uninjured legs flailing at the beast, your left fore hanging back as blood continues to pool into a half-hearted scab. You've broken a rib, and your wing is pinned painfully beneath you, but you don't care. Your face is twisted into ugly determination as you fight back, trying to both strike the wolf in its ugly, toothy maw and roll away. Ideally you'll hit him and that momentum will send you onto your left, giving you an opportunity to get to your feet.

Ideally, he won't take off your hoof with those horrible teeth. You kind of need that to escape.



[4/??? | 601 words]
Injury list (for my own sanity)
- cut on left front cannon
- gashes on right flank
- sprained rotator cuff
- bruising on humerus, ulna & radius
- mild concussion
- broken rib on right side

image credits

Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#9

Knocking over the colt only seemed to produce more problems - those flailing limbs making too easy of targets of the warg and its face. With a strong hit one hoof smashes into the lower jaw and the bone there fractured in an explosion of pain that causes the warg to scream and Mesec to woop for joy even considering the pain - the jaw could be healed but he was proud of Zero for fighting back. Blood gushed freely from this new wound, spilling out of the warg’s mouth and pooling in the loose joint that now hung unnaturally from the bottom of its mouth. It’s long tongue spilled out, hanging in a grotesque mockery of a smile as the warg moved away, pacing in quick angry movements to regain its composure.

This should not be an actual fight. This should be a slaughter, with the cripple boy the won who bled into the ground.

Mesec didn’t care about the pain, didn’t care what damage he was taking to his own body, so long as Zero survived. But he still wasn’t in control of the body, no matter how much he wrestled and fought, so he had to sit back in horror as the warg refused to give up. Bits of flesh that Lucius had dug out from its neck flopped with each movement and its tongue continued to loll, dripping blood onto the forest floor as its silver eyes continued to burn.

One weapon had been taken out, but that hardly meant this was over.

Instead of attacking right away, launching itself yet again at the colt, the warg drew the shadows around its body - clawing at those last bits of night that clung in the dawn forest - and disappeared from the spot it was in. A flash of a moment later, and it had reappeared several metres away, off behind the tree that Zero had crashed into. It slunk in the shadows, eyes never leaving its prey as it paced a few steps before disappearing again - reappearing in another spot in the forest - back closer to where this fight had begun.

Zeeeeeerrrooo

The name was butchered and choked out through blood that splattered the forest floor with the effort, a terrible hoarse voice but it is Mesec’s voice all the same. The voice of a friend.

This magic game only further drained the warg’s energy but it was rewarded by the anger of Mesec, the demigod grew furious at these taunts but his anger only provided more fuel for the warg to continue with its plan. It fed off of Mesec's hatred, all of the negative emotions boiling within the pathetic hybrid for the last four years - it had so much to use to keep this shift going, to keep it strong and dangerous. Barely a moment passed when Mesec wasn't tormented by one thought or another and that gave rise to it, to this terrible creature.

And now that it had control, it did not want to let go.

Instead of teleporting forward, the warg drew the shadows toward it so that it became invisible. The clock was ticking, it wouldn't be able to use this magic for long, but it was enough to charge across the ground towards Zero. Enough to only let the shadows fall back when it was springing with claws outstretched, spitting blood through that slack jaw as it snarled. It wasn't picky - its claws would tear happily into the flesh of neck or wing. Time to end this battle with the little nothing.


-------
5th attack
598/800 words using wordcounter

used the following magic to be a dick before attacking:
:: [ Magic: Dark (U) | able to teleport through shadow and shroud himself in it to disappear ]
:: [ Restrictions | May be used to evade an attack or travel quickly across the battlefield and can turn invisible for 20 seconds at a time ]

Following Chark's example and just gonna list injuries for our clarity
- shallow cut and bruise on right cheek
- bruised hip
- bruised ribs
- cuts and pieces of flesh/fur hanging off neck
- broken jaw


stock from deviantart
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times

Zèklè Posts: 166
Outcast atk: 8.0 | def: 10 | dam: 3.5
Colt :: Pegasus :: 14.1 :: Three HP: 67 | Buff: NOVICE
charks
#10

A sickening crack! rings through the air. Your strike the beast, the monster, your friend, your hoof splitting into his mandible, but when you look up to see the damage done there is nothing to see. By the time you're standing the monster is gone, and you spin, dizzy and disheveled and afraid, trying to figure out where it could be. Your ears dance frantically upon your head, and for a moment you think you hear him- but by the time you turn around there's nothing but threatening woods, long shadows in the morning light that threaten to divulge their terrible secrets. A shiver racks your body; you are drenched in sweat; blood pools on your flank; the smell of it is copper and draining life, danger in the darkness, and you want to run away. But where? And how? Between your broken rib and cut cannon your mobility is limited, and besides, you don't even know which way away is.

You should have run sooner, little lightning. You should have known that this world is cruel: the good only die young because they have so far to fall. What to you have to show for all your bravery, your loyalty, your love? Nothing but blood and broken bones.

“Zeeeeeerrrooo”

You scream and spin around; and the movement makes your ribs grind with stabbing pain, so you scream louder, a choked and terrible noise. Your mind is not prepared for the sight of Mesec- your eyes fill with terror as his face fills your eyes, contorted and destroyed by the force of your blow. It is the face of a demon, of something that ought to be dead- it is horrible. The canine grin, the bloodied jaw, the tongue that lolls and waves and reaches out to consume you, red on black on silver on death. Fear clouds your eyes, and your heartbeat surges.

The face will haunt your nightmares until the day you die.

You're still screaming, the whites of your eyes bright in the dim light, your ears pulled back and your body struggling to turn without looking away, terror making you stiff and pain making you clumsy. Instinct rules you at this point; you have lost yourself to a primal instinct, an ancient fear, just as surely as Mesec is lost to the beast. Because you are not rational, you think, if I see it I can react. You think, if I look at it, it will not strike me.

And who knows- perhaps you're right. It doesn't matter, because before you can so much as blink, the beast is just..... gone.

You turn and run.

You're limping. Your right hind aches from the flank down; your left fore has been pushed past any reasonable limit since this fight began. There was never a real shot at escape, and you know this, but you run anyway- and as you run, even in the moment the beast appears, you see something out of the corner of your eye, and your mind makes a connection. The wolf materializes behind you, and as it reaches out its terrible claws you screech into the woods at your right, crying out for your saving grace even as the greatest blow yet lands upon your left hind.

“SQUISHY! STOP HIM!"

The woods brighten painfully as electricity arcs from the golem who, up to this point, has waited patiently among the trees- but you don't see it, because your mind is exploding in agony, your eyes are full of tears, and you are blind with pain. The beast strikes you with unfathomable force, and as claws tear a trifecta of deep furrows into your left gaskin, your nerves scream in protest as your femur fractures: a death blow to a normal horse.

You are aware of your left shoulder striking the ground, and little else, as you fall.

(Thank goodness you're a magical pony with an uncanny ability to avoid fatal damage, huh?)


-------------------------------------
[5/??? | 659 words]
Injury list
- cut on left front cannon
- gashes on right flank
- sprained rotator cuff
- bruising on humerus, ulna & radius on wing
- mild concussion
- broken rib on right side
- deep cuts on left gaskin
- fractured left hind femur
- emotionally scarred fo lyfe

image credits

Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#11

All of the screams were painful for Mesec to hear, but none more so than the one inspired by his face - that horrible, twisted face but still his face all the same. Mesec was looking out of those silver eyes and saw true terror in the face of his friend, terror he had caused. Just as Zero would never forget the face of the warg, Mesec knew he would never forget how this young stallion - his dear friend - looked at him in that moment.

This was his nightmare, his hell, and all because he was too weak to get control of his own body. But hope was not lost, he could not give up when there was the life of someone that he considered very, very important was on the line.

The warg, that monster, was not giving up on taking down Zero. Not now that it learned how special the little cripple was to Mesec. It relished in the pain the demigod was feeling, how its weaker other half had to watch everything since it could not be in control.

But then.

When the massive claws tore open Zero’s flesh, control was in flux between the two opposing minds. “Zero!” The voice that garbled out from the broken jaw then was the same as last time, a quick shout that was still undeniably Mesec but the inflection was different. No taunting this time - just actual concern in the voice now. A part of him that was breaking through, winning control, if it was just of that one broken joint.And he succeeded for long enough to get out those two syllables and it was a victory. That meant it was possible to stop the rest of the body.

Right? That had to be possible.

Mesec knew what to expect when Squishy was called for but the warg was caught off guard. When Zero tumbled, Mesec feared that this was the end - how much more pain would his friend need to go through this morning? - but before the warg could move forward, a shock coursed through its body. Painful but not disabling, the scent of singed fur rose with small tendrils of smoke from where the arc of electricity connected with the warg’s left shoulder. It was enough to force it to stop, to not pounce on the fallen colt right away. Enough to inspire another gurgling snarl in annoyance.

Without the use of its jaws, the warg couldn't strike out and bite Zero. It was limited to its bulk and its claws. It prowled forward toward where Zero lay, moving slowly as Mesec fought against it for control - enough that clear hesitation in its movements began to show. This was not the enraged, quick-pace of the creature that had started this fight. Something was changing - and it had little to do with the wounds that riddled its body from where colt and zephyr had struck.

Lucius continued to fly between the warg and Zero, screeching and beating his four massive wings - dodging most of the strikes that came his way in retaliation. It slowed the warg down, it distracted him, and Lucius could only pray that it would be enough for Zero to get back on his hooves once more. They couldn't give up, Mesec needed them to save him.

There was no way for the zephyr to convey just how close they were to the lightning colt, to tell him how he could feel his bond with Mesec's mind growing stronger through the shadows and rage that dominated the mind of the warg.

Just a little while longer.

They were so close.

When Lucius got too close on one dive, the warg strikes out - its massive paw connecting with one of those great wings and fracturing the delicate bones within it, sending the zephyr off balance and (most importantly) out of the way.

It moved around to Zero's front, where it struck out with its paw - slowly and carefully and - noticeably not in a slicing motion. Instead, it aimed to grip into the flesh of shoulder or neck and drag the crippled little creature up and toward that useless but menacing, dripping jaw.

Confusion reigned in the warg's mind - those burning silver eyes cloudy with uncertainty. Despite the use of the claws, this wasn't really an attack. It was Mesec, doing what he could to see Zero on his hooves. A less painful attempt would have been preferable, of course, but he was still wrestling for control and had not yet won right out.

There was pain all around him now - with his companion, with his friend - and finally he was close to making it stop.


-------
6th attack
792/800 words using wordcounter

injuries for our clarity
- shallow cut and bruise on right cheek
- bruised hip
- bruised ribs
- cuts and pieces of flesh/fur hanging off neck
- broken jaw
- minor electrical burn on left shoulder

+ Lucius has several scratches and a broken wing


stock from deviantart
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times

Zèklè Posts: 166
Outcast atk: 8.0 | def: 10 | dam: 3.5
Colt :: Pegasus :: 14.1 :: Three HP: 67 | Buff: NOVICE
charks
#12

The beast prowls with terrible purpose, and you shiver where you lie, fear pounding an irregular beat as your heart struggles to escape the cage of your ribs. You try to roll over, try to find your feet, but your legs don't want to move- your right hind aches from the injury to your flank, your left fore burns, and don't get me started on your useless left hind. Only the right fore still maintains any semblance of functionality, though the bruising on your wing more than compensates for that. Still, you struggle, tenacious to the end. A squadron of ants, oblivious to your plight, struggle to move a piece of red fruit which far outweighs them across the cool ground. You watch them intently, focusing your mind on that, the pain in your body so intense that you can barely think above its howling fury.

But as long as you focus on those ants, you think you might survive.

You make it onto your stomach, your right fore ready to try and push you up, when the monster makes its move. Terror and resignation dilute your determination - what's the point? Oh, you don't stop trying to stand. You stare at the ground, your tongue clenched between your teeth. The ants have moved maybe an inch, if you're being generous, but they're moving, so you move too, your body quivering with the effort as you manage to get your right hind under you.

The beast with the broken jar and copper breath looms above you, and he is your death, your reaper, your condemnation. You are on the ground, and he's won the fight. Why do you keep trying, when you know there isn't a point?

You refuse to look up. You keep your gaze fixed on the ants, even as a massive paw reaches toward you, even as sharp claws reach out and tear into your neck, even as your body begins to rise up and to the right until you're... you're...

Standing?

Kind of. You watch the ants fall away as you rise, your muscles working in tandem with the monster to raise you back to your feet. Your right legs hold most of your weight, and your left fore takes its share, but your left hind remains useless and limp, the broken bone a steady source of terrible pain. Blood drips from you in numerous places - your shin, your flank, your gaskin, and now your neck, where the claws of the beast have lodged themselves like fishhooks (though, remarkably, they manage to avoid all major vessels). The smell of it is copper in your nose, an acrid chemical scent that is drowned by pain, pain, pain in every muscle and every bone. The pain rushes through you as you stand, grows stronger than you ever thought it could be.

You feel light-headed. The world spins around you. At last you look up, seeking something steady in the spiraling of your brain, and catch the monster's silver eyes. For a second you hold them, and you see something- something that isn't evil, isn't monstrous. In the swirling sadness of svelte silver, you see Mesec, and know he, your friend, did this.

You snap. Literally. Your mind goes red and your eyes grow narrow and you snap, your neck darting out and your mouth spreading wide and your teeth clipping shut as, furious, hurt, afraid, and confused, you lash out at the thing that makes the least sense, the betrayal too horrible to comprehend. It is the last of your strength, but you don't care if you die, so long as whatever comes next isn't this. Your body moves with you, and you throw yourself at the beast, rage giving you this final burst of strength.

You don't feel the tears that cascade down your face. You do feel your heart, as the last of your innocence dies.

-------------------------------------
[6/6 | 645 words]
Injury list
- cut on left front cannon
- gashes on right flank
- sprained rotator cuff
- bruising on humerus, ulna & radius on wing
- mild concussion
- broken rib on right side
- deep cuts on left gaskin
- fractured left hind femur
- deep puncture wounds on right side of neck

WOW MY HEART. Amazing fight and thread <333

image credits

Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#13

With the warg, the monster, already having shaky control - it took just one thing for it to completely snap. One push for Mesec to find the strength. It was Zero’s attack, another foolish and brave action of Mesec’s dear friend, that provided the last push. He had known Zero to be brave, to be an incredible and intelligent boy, but this was heart-breaking, the point to which the younger stallion had been pushed was farther than anyone - especially the innocent, sweet boy who tried to talk down the monster at the start of all this - should ever be pushed. As Zero’s jaws snapped they caught on the already loose-hanging jaw and tugged it further from the joint. The physical pain that resulted was agonizing but it was also nothing - not when Mesec knew he deserved so much worse. The scratches and bruises and broken jaw that he would walk away from here were ghostly echoes of what he should have received.

Every sensation he felt, and not in the absent-hazy manner of a few moments ago. Mesec was in control. Everything was crashing around him as he regained the ability to move his own body.

As he watched the broken Zero get pushed to his limits, get dragged back to his feet with sharp bloody claws, get pushed so far that he actually snapped and fought back, Mesec wanted nothing more than to die. It was just a quick thought but as soon as it entered he knew it was true and it settled in his mind with certainty.

He only had to hold on for a little while longer, to make sure that the monster that had taken over did not return, to make sure Zero made it somewhere where he could be healed. Everything else could fall away after that.

His children had their mother, they would be fine. His mother could breed another child of the night, a darker power to provide balance. It only seemed right - Israfel and Hototo had died, it was Mesec’s turn now. He’d fall into the shadows and be no more. Perhaps demigods were not supposed to live this long.

There would be no forgetting this, no escaping from the horrors that he had done. The weight of it was settling on him and Mesec, truly Mesec, woke as though from a slumber and found that he had control of the form. Whispers in his mind reminded him that the monster was not completely gone - it egged him on, encouraged him to finish what had been started - but he wouldn’t.

Given the choice, Mesec would always choose Zero’s life over his own.

After wrenching his aching face away from Zero and carefully retracting his claws, Mesec’s warg form stumbled backwards. He shook but it was not from anger - there was no anger left in him. No strength left in his body - just a sadness so raw and powerful that it left him empty as he stared at his friend, silver eyes glossy with tears as they took in every wound, every smear of blood, on his friend’s form and as he realized the copper taste in his mouth was Zero’s blood.

Very carefully, Mesec lowered his trembling form to the ground - forfeiting this terrible fight. He couldn’t even apologize with his lower jaw hanging where it was but even if he could, he didn’t know where to begin.

Perhaps by telling Zero he’d never hurt him again.

Certainly by lying and saying it was all okay now. When they all knew it wasn’t - it never would be.

Lucius, hopping over to his bonded with his broken wing trailing on the ground behind him, cried out for him - a long, mournful note. As happy as he was to have Mesec back, to know this was over, there was no celebration on this new day.

They were only allowed that one, fraction of a reunion before Mesec closed his eyes - letting his body convulse in pain that he welcomed. Too exhausted, too broken, the warg form dissipated and Mesec proper was left in its place. On trembling legs he rose, sad eyes focused on Zero. Still unable to speak - his jaw hanging grotesquely loose in this form as well - Mesec lowered his head in apology, in submission, and began trying to figure out how they were going to get Zero somewhere safe.

And then after that? He did not know... but he imagined there would be nothing but darkness from here on out. The rising sun through the trees felt like a betrayal now - as though it was just another sunny day.

-------
Mesec does not attack/he forfeits to Zero

784/800 words using wordcounter

injuries for our clarity
- shallow cut and bruise on right cheek
- bruised hip
- bruised ribs
- cuts and pieces of flesh/fur hanging off neck
- dislocated/broken jaw
- minor electrical burn on left shoulder

+ Lucius has several scratches and a broken wing


<3333 THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE MUTUAL DESTRUCTION CHARKS


stock from deviantart
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times

Blu the Bootyful Posts: 443
Administrator atk: 99 | def: 99 | dam: 99
Mare :: Other :: 5'7" :: 25 HP: 99999 | Buff: TWERK
Blu
#14
Mesec forfeits. 1 vp to Zekle.
 HP: 1100

Helovia Hard Mode


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