the Rift


[OPEN] [Endless Night] From the heart of the world

Random Event Posts: 1,286
Helovian Ancient
Stallion :: Equine :: ::
#1

It climbed from the fires below, from the heart of the world. The beast was bathed in flames but immune to its pain. Tendrils of fire curled around its massive, orange and red colored body as bright, yellow, lizard eyes emerged from the hole. A forked tongue snaked from between scaled lips, tasting the air for prey and finding none. With powerful limbs, it pulled itself onto the land, smoke rising from his body as the flames died out. The beast was shaped like a komodo dragon, but it was much, much larger. Fifteen to twenty horses head to tail may not reach from nose to tail, but it was only two horses tall.

Veins glowed fiery yellow around its body and a thick, fiery liquid bubbled from its mouth. The beast seemed to glow from the inside out, a strange and bright fire color. It lifted its neck, gazing out at the horizon and spotted a deer. The beast propelled itself off of its legs, leaving three meter long gashes in the ground as it scaled through the air. With a snap of its jaws, the deer died in its mouth, consumed by fire as it swallowed the creature whole.

A deep hiss shifted from its throat, groaning and growling for more prey. The beast traveled slowly, but it moved to the west, looking for anyone or anything to stand in its way. A massive, clawed foot smashed a lamp tree, squishing the white, glowing juices from the plant and onto the ground. The beast breathed a plume of fire, igniting a path of destruction heading straight toward the World's Edge.



[Four monsters are appearing across the lands. Your character can choose to only respond to one monster since they are appearing simultaneously in four separate locations]

[You may choose to attack in the first post if you wish!]



Destrier Posts: 180
Outcast atk: 5 | def: 7.5 | dam: 7.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 16.3hh :: 16 HP: 65.5 | Buff: ENDURE
Suli :: Common Green Dragon :: Fire Breath & Merlin :: Plain Black Dragon :: Frost Breath Dingo
#2
Destrier



At first, there was relief. In the sky above, light began to return in the form of the stars I'd begun to think forever gone. My heart was sent fluttering in utmost joy at their reappearance, even if I had thought myself crazy, thinking the stars a simple hallucination sired by my desire for the return of light to our world.

But as I cast my gaze skyward, the distant orbs of light did not falter in my vision, and I knew that this was no dream. I had not lost my mind in this perpetual darkness. Even Suli had straightened, climbing to the zenith that was my skull, between my ears to peer up at the now-lit sky. We must have looked like awestruck children standing there in a clearing in the forest, witnessing some great thing that was forbidden in our young eyes. Yet even though light had returned to the ever dark sky, the trees still held to their colorful, pulsating hues, and I couldn't push the feeling away that something dark and sinister was still brewing in the lands of Helovia. The thrum of fire in my veins had not presented itself, so I knew Helovia's balance had yet to return.

Tonight, I couldn't have been more right.

In the not so far distance something sounds, reverberating throughout the land and within my ears. It's a recognizable sound, a hiss, but the sheer depth to it nearly caused a shiver to run down the length of my spine. Still perched between my ears, Suli stiffened noticeably at the sound, the spines upon her back erecting and a lowly, rumbling growl forming in her throat. I wanted to comfort her and assure her that there was nothing to fear, and to turn around and head back home, but... it would be wrong of me to be so sure. Although we were quite a distance from home, I couldn't go back to it knowing that something was out here, and possibly be able to harm those of the World's Edge.

"Calm, Suli," I spoke up, hoping to soothe the young green to the best of my abilities, "We must see what it is." All that was granted to me was a grunt of displeasure, but not even that could keep me from pressing on, and soon, I found myself closing in on Helovia's Heart.

My feet hesitated at the suddeness of a horrid, wretched snapping. It was as if lightning had struck down a tree and sent it into the ground, but the newly lit sky was clear and peaceful, absent of any signs of a storm. Before I could think much else on it, a tremendous light filled the capacity of darkness ahead of me, sending me reeling sideways several steps. I steeled myself and came to a brief halt, but my eyes remained wide. 'What on earth is that thing?' I questioned in regards to whatever I had just seen. Suli's growl deepened at the sight of the fire, and I could feel her clutching more tightly to the thick of my mane as she grew more and more apprehensive of the situation.

I couldn't stop here, though. An image of my Vallhean family flashed in my mind, and for a moment, I wondered what Bran would do in such a moment. My boy had been young, silly at times, not the smoothest around the young ladies of his kind... But he had been brave, and never had I seen him run from a potential threat. The sheer thought of my beloved boy stirred a fire in my chest, and unwasting of another second, I sprung forward at a gallop with Suli taking to the skies, following after me.

Even at a distance the creature looked foreboding, massive in both length and stature. I could only imagine the power behind its entire being, and how easily it could take me up in its jaws and douse the flame of life from me. But no matter the odds I was pitted against, I had to try something, even if I wasn't yet sure what I could do, lest it end all of Helovia. Tonight I would stand by my morals and offer my life for the sake of others.

"Go back in the hole you crawled from!" I called out to the massive creature, enunciating myself as loudly as was possible while maintaining a distance from the creature. If I got too close or vice-versa, its tail could knock me to the ground in one fell swoop. Suli was keeping her wits about her, sticking close to me but never stilling herself in the chilly night air, for doing so could be her end.

A mutter left my lips then, a gentle prayer to the Gods we had worshiped in Vallhea. "May your presence be with me tonight, Segomo."

Credits


You may attack and use magic on Des at any time for any reason.

HP: 66.5

Ampere The Mother of Companions Posts: 719
Dragon's Throat Sultana atk: 9 | def: 11 | dam: 4.5
Mare :: Pegasus :: 14 hh :: 6 years HP: 73 | Buff: DANCE
Kygo :: Green Cheek Conure :: None Blu
#3

A M P E R E

| pegasus | mare | 3 years | 14 hands |





Like a startled bird Ampere scattered into the night sky as the behemoth clawed from its fiery nest. Dark wings unfolded on a dark sky and she lost herself in the night, safe for now as she circled above, her head leering down between outstretched feet at the abysmal thing and the deer so quickly lost to its bite. If Ampere had any doubts about the monster's intentions, that scene eradicated them.

It has come to feed. And she was deer sized.

A shudder of dismay rolled through her even as the wind pressed against her body. The length of her winter coat set itself to tumbling and snapping in the breeze, more black tumbling into black - blue flaring up like the bright new stars that had appeared.
Ampere had been watching them, so in awe at their reappearance, that she'd nearly been the beast's first meal instead. The gaping hole of magma in the ground had always kept her wary, it just wasn't right, but Ampere found some semblance of comfort in the warm glow that fire brings. There were few other things to keep her warm these days.


The sudden shout of a voice, strong in masculinity and, to Ampere's mind, idiocy, rung through the haze of fire and fear. Ampere's electric eyes swiveled, barely able to discern the obsidian tower of a horse standing before the devil. Red light from the crevice licked at the stallion's body like a halo of madness. It surely suited him in the moment.
On any regular day when the world was right and magic hummed in her consciousness Ampere wouldn't have found a reason to pick a fight with this creature, but the current circumstances made her even less inclined. Although she supposed it was exactly because chaos had erupted that so too had the planet hatched this latest child from the depths of its womb.

Never one to pass up a fight usually Ampere still knew when to pick her battles. Sizing up the lizard it stood significantly taller, as most everything did to her, but more exceptional was the length it boasted. Ampere couldn't be sure how fast it was, but by sheer size it would have to work less to cover the same ground and she was sure that with it's sleek shape, like an arrow poised, it was not slow enough for her to fuck with it.
All the same, if dark and handsome down there thought he could take it, she sure as Helovia wasn't going to let him show her up. After all this was her bum pit for the winter, any where else and she'd likely be cutting her chances of Frostfall survival.
That, and this was the final bit of voltage that would send her into an arc volt. As if there wasn't enough shit to deal with Godzilla had to rear his ugly head. Frustration built inside her breast, pushing out all her breath and with it, whatever shred of sanity remained.

Live or die, isn't that always what it comes down to?

Wings tucked suddenly to her sides and Ampere dropped like a great rock from the sky.
She shot out her appendages suddenly as she neared the back of the beast, aiming to come in from behind so as not to be detected. Front hooves unfurled to strike a solid blow to the base of the creature's skull or the top of its head depending how it may turn, hoping to use her connection to then shove off with her back feet and fire back up and out of reach, losing herself into the night and hopefully, the monster's view.

Your turn dark and studly, I distracted him for ya. I just hope you don't die.
Her mind churned with nothing else but the focus of living another wing beat tonight, but occasionally she glanced to Destrier, hoping he'd work with her instead of trying to be brave. Bravery only ever earned you blood until you ran out of it, for good.


[Just a note, the italics are thoughts. I think sometimes it may appear as speech, but she is quiet, for once :P ]




Tag me only if starting a new thread.
Magic or force permitted any time, aside from death.

Roskuld the Sparklight Posts: 424
World's Edge General atk: 7.5 | def: 9.5 | dam: 6
Mare :: Tribrid :: 15.3 :: 6 HP: 82 | Buff: ENDURE
Zchiraxicon :: Royal Rougarou :: Electric Smithers
#4




A giant lizard. Of course. There was a giant lizard. A giant….motherfucking lizard.

I had been running for days at this point. Sometimes stopping briefly for a rest, and a drink and maybe some food, but then I would be back to running again as soon as I was able. Days and days of nothing but straight booking it, out of the Foothills, and into the extremely green and not-so-Frostfall-green forests that I knew bordered my home. Actually, I wasn’t really aware that it was green or not-so-green, because of the darkness and all. It was true that there were these awkward lamp trees scattered about, but I disregarded them, because they paved away to a direction and my running was directionless. Maybe it was unwise for me to run blindly into the dark, with no plot or forethought of a destination in my head. I mean, true, the memory of my tender horn stuck in a tree was still vivid in my head, and I would always remember that lesson from my youth (Don’t challenge trees.) Thing was, the more I ran the clearer my head got, the more lucid my thoughts became, more ordered and structurely and that type of thing. I wasn’t weighted with my own panic. I could contemplate.

So I ran.

I moved myself and felt my body as I moved, coming to know it, pushing its boundaries, coming to know when it ended and began. Becoming comfortable in my skin again. I thought about the dark, and my role in defeating it. And that I didn’t know what that “role” was, and ways that I could figure it out, and how those ways wouldn’t work. Sometimes I thought about Mesec, and I still called him “Bro” in my head, and I guess that would never change. But there was still hurt whenever I thought about the Foothills, because I couldn’t go back, at least right now. I was sheltered there, and coddled and stupid and complacent, and while I’m still stupid, there’s no way in hell I can stay sheltered. I needed to get my act together. I needed to give my homeland a daughter they could be proud of.

But how?

I was running so hard and so fast, I didn’t notice the stars pop into the sky, or see the moon from its position behind me. I didn’t see how the trees dwindled away, because my vision was blurred with fatigue. The deep forest was behind me now, and for the first time, I had left the green of my birth. What I did notice, though, was how warm the air became, despite it being Frostfall, and the warm light coming from further southwest of me. So I continued to go, curious about the light and the warmth, wondering if it was a sign for me, a sign from my daddy and whatever other gods there were, and holy crap there was a giant lizard.
I stopped, I panted hard. I felt my limbs tingle with numb, achy exhaustion. But there was a giant lizard in the distance, made of fire, slowly ambling its way across the landscape. Miles away from me still, but it was there and I could see it and jeez almighty it was a giant lizard.

I stood there for a moment, letting the idea wash over me, because there was no way I was just going to ignore this. It wasn’t a choice. Was this a “role” I was supposed to play? Was I here to kick ass? Cool.

With a snort and a last effort, I plowed on, running straight for the creature. It probably wasn’t smart for me to run into battle as tired as I was, but even if I was older, I was still young, and it was a lesson I hadn’t learned yet. So I ran into battle, sweating from the heat, panting from the other things, noticing two other dark colored horses I had never seen before in my life. I didn’t pay attention to them though, noticing only that one had wings and another had a dragon, because as I got closer, the lizard turned into a monster, a fiery thing with a lot more scales than I was used to, a lot more grumbling and growling a threat. Its tail was nearest me, a snakelike entity that thrashed about of its own accord, making the air thrum as it cut through it. It wasn’t a fast thing, but still, it was huge, and I didn’t know what I was doing, but maybe fighting this thing was doing something.

The black horse with wings was striking its head, and I was remembering something from my childhood. How I would go play with Jiji, and I would pick up tiny newts with my teeth, and they would fall away from their squirming tails, leaving them in my mouth. Jiji had told me to stop that because it hurt them, so I did. But would the same thing hold true for this monster? It wasn’t a newt, but…would it bring him pain?

The idea was planted, and my impulse was certain of itself. Some inner instinct bid me to strike, and I did. As the tip weaved and slithered, the movement coming to rest it upon the ground for mere moments, I urged my tired limps to charge it, and I made to trample the long thing, to dig the sharpest part of my hooves into the flamey skin of the lizard's tailtip. If I hit it, the tail might twitch and fling upward, slamming me into the air—or the monster might look at me and get pissed, and decide to turn towards me and burn me to a crisp. Maybe it would flail its hind leg behind me and gauge at me with its feet claws, trying to kick me. I don’t know, there were many ways this thing could retaliate, because my plan wasn’t a smart plan—it was a thing of impulse. But hey, I was winging it.

[TL;DR: Strikes at the tip of the monster's tail.]

Roskuld</style>

Onni the Illuminant Posts: 194
Hidden Account
Mare :: Pegasus :: 15.2hh :: 8 Buff: SWIFT
Lyhty :: Diamond Firetail Finch :: Sing Boom Boom!
#5

The moon had returned, the skies swelling with life of healthy winds. The breezes brush the shaman's pallid face, twisting tendrils of gold around her soft, blue eyes. The mare takes a deep breath of relief. The full moon above gifted light strong enough to make her eyes squint. After all, she had been living in the glowing light of the sacred flames, but with little else. How many days had been lost to this endless night? Would the sun return in a few hours?

Something in her gut made her think not.

"Lyhty," she whispers to the sleeping bird on her shoulder. "Wake up," she croons, soft muzzle nudging him gently. "The moon is back." The bird chirps uneasily, opening beady eyes to look upward, singing joyously once the sight has been taken in. Light, Onni. Moon come back. Soon sun? "I hope so."

The quiet, touching moment of relief lasts only a moment. The push of a wind from the North causes Onni's head to lift up, ears perked with attention. The scent of smoke and fire, yet not the type that was normal for that drifting from the Heart. This smelled acrid, and left a scathing taste on the roof of her mouth. Squinting her pale eyes to look forward in the distance, she sees the glimmer of the heart, but then something rising on the horizon - massive. Her eyes widen, breathing growing unsteady. Pale legs begin to move before much thought is taken. Lyhty holds fast behind the wings which unfurl.

She did not know what fate awaited her, but the fate of any in Helovia was shared. If a monster threatened one home, it would certainly lead to the destruction of others.

Hooves beat in the crimson sand, wings stirring up plumes of dust. With a few easy leaps, the painted girl flies North, feeling the power of wind in her chest. When the shaman attempts to pull the chords of the wind, however, she feels the connection get fuddled. Wind begins to toss in random directions, ruffling her feathers and causing her to waver unsteadily in the air. Panic in her heart, Onni drops her hold upon it, twisting harshly left to make sure she is not thrown toward the ground by a particularly violent gale. This would not happen to mother, she thinks with frustration at herself, but letting the issue go. If the wind would not listen to her, then she would have to ride the natural currents and push hard.

Determined, the former warrior slams her feathered limbs down and sails North.

Eased by the fact that tailwinds seemed to catch her, as well as being near the border of the Dragon's Throat from the beginning standing unofficial guard, the Heart came up swiftly, lifted by the heat above the pit once more. The monster grows increasingly as their distance is shortened, and Onni gives a glance below to see several already crowding to aid in halting the monster. Her pale eyes see a flash of black and blue, like lightning striking from the clouds. The mare dances in the air toward the head, and Onni smiles, silently aiming to help her. The shaman soars forward, aiming to circle around toward the face of the beast, being cautious to avoid getting too close to the mouth which occasionally spewed fire.

Roasted pegasus would not be good. Instead, the shaman extends a feathered wing to try and slap the beast on the top of its skull, a distraction built for the other skyborne ally. "HEY YOU!" she yells, finding courage born in her heart despite the land being covered in darkness. "OVER HERE." Flickering for a moment in front of its skull, Onni drops heavily downward, allowing herself to fall rapidly toward the ground, veering away from the ground bound equines, in case it decided to chase her with fire. Tilting a wing down toward the ground, the shaman careens left, hoping to swing around its massive form, pale legs extending to attempt a kick upon his spine if she managed to clear the monster's huge bulk.

With any luck, her fast flight would confuse and disorient the beast, allowing for him to be attacked more readily.

[ Onni attempts to distract the monster from Ampere's attacks by flying in front of its eyes, trying to slap the top of its head with her wings before calling out and diving down. She tries to circle around the monster and kick out at its spine. ]

Kahlua the Sunshower Posts: 662
Outcast atk: 5.5 | def: 9.5 | dam: 4.5
Mare :: Equine :: 15.3hh :: 9 [Orangemoon] HP: 65 | Buff: NOVICE
Khan :: Common Blue Dragon :: Frost Breath Sevin
#6


Her visit in the Throat had been a fantastic adventure and she was glad to have gone, but her welcome was far over. Her path took her North now, back to the Edge where she belonged. As she traveled now, a smile brightened her face more than any sun ever could have. With time, she had managed to more-or-less forget the fear she had experienced upon her meeting with Onni. It still creeped into her mind every now and then, when the darkness was especially pressing, but she was becoming at ease again. The surprising arrival of the moon only worked to ease her mind further- perhaps too soon.

Oblivious to her surroundings, Kahlua made her way toward the southwest end of Helovia's Heart, the natural place for her to travel through on her way from Throat to Edge. She should have taken another path- any other path- but today was not her lucky day. Rumbling of the ground startled her mind awake and she looked up, but the thrush grass and the limited light of the moon prevented her from seeing too far. Picking up a trot, out of curiosity, she moved forward, breaking through the grasses to meet the monster of her nightmares.

The scene that unfolded before her was like a horror story that she may have been told as a filly. As she watched her muscles tightened, freezing her into place and her mouth hung open but no sound escaped. The monster- for what else could she call it- stirred a feeling of dread that she could not escape as he condemned a deer to death. And it's travel to the west prevented her from moving forward without being intercepted by him. Not that she could move. Her muscles betrayed her, keeping her frozen in place.

Suddenly, the sound of a stallion's voice echoed through the land. Kahlua still found herself frozen and silent, but wide eyes surrounded by white found his form. His large black form gave her no comfort in this moment. She had never felt a fear so paralyzing. She wanted to yell out to him, tell him to save himself, but her mouth hung open in idiocy, no sound coming out. Before she could get any farther in figuring out what she was feeling, two pegasi dropped from the sky. They was brave, but Kahlua felt no joy in their appearance. As her hooves struck out, Kahlua prayed- to who she didn't know- that the mare's hooves would strike true. How these three stood so brave in the face of pure and complete terror was unknown to Kahlua.

As the pair rushed towards the monster's head, Kahlua had a sudden moment of realization. It was Onni, the mare that had warned her of the demons in the night, and she finally managed to make a sound. A wild sound- a cry of terror like none she had ever made before. It was a scream, ear-piercing and tremulous. She screamed for herself. She screamed for the three horses before her. She screamed because she didn't know what to do. As she screamed, she half-reared. As she landed, her hooves spread out below her in wild steps. Ten or twenty steps took her nowhere, her hooves just moving back and forth as she could hardly decide which way to go. She reared again, higher this time. What could she do? She was no fighter.

“ONNI!” She called the mare's name for no reason other than it was the only word she could think of. “ONNI!” She cried again, louder this time, more insistent. It was like she was a mother screaming for the death of her child. It never occurred to her that her screaming would attract the monster. She never even noticed the filly rush. forth from the darkness. Kahlua's wild eyes were picking up few details, focused mainly on the monster. Her head careened from left to right as she looked for somewhere to go, somewhere to run to; however, despite the frantic stamping of her hooves below her feet she moved nowhere. Fear and stupidity kept her rooted in place.
What is this? How? Monter! Onni said... She lied. She didn't lie! Should have listened- ONNI BE CAREFUL! Help. Help. Move body, move! Monster. Die. We're all dead. ONNI. BLACK MARE. BLACK STALLION. Move! HOW!
Her thoughts careened wildly through her head, making no sense to her and only acting to further the indecision that prevented her from doing anything other than stand there stupidly. She needed to get herself together. But how?
.KAHLUA


Permission granted to use magic or physical force with Kahlua at any time
for any reason to any degree, with the exception of killing her.

Please do not tag Kahlua unless it is in an opening post

Vikram Posts: 73
World's Edge Skilled Protector
Stallion :: Hybrid :: 19 hh :: 9 years Buff: NOVICE
Kachie
#7
Moonlight silvered the leathered sails that spread to catch the breeze for the first time in much too long. It spread to lend its pale glow to the land below, refreshing old memories of night flights in the past. This was right, this was good. Yes, the fire in his gut still lay dormant and cold, but that made hardly a scratch in the sense of contentment that lay within the breast of the dragon stallion.

Sadly, something did walk the lands that could do what his fire's lack could not. The distant firey glow of the Heart, forever lit even with the absence of the Gods, shifted strangely. Stirred, lifted, separated. What...? Curious, he beat his wings to carry himself closer, pupils widening to take in more light and better distinguish the strangeness. Baffled, he watched as the new fire-form shifted suddenly, with the air of a striking predator. It struck a chord within the hybrid's soul, a recognition born of the employment of similar hunting tactics. It's alive. Whatever it is, it lives. A dark thought, an uneasy thought.

Skin twitched as a deep hissing reached his ears, the instinctive reflex to shed irritant flies, woken in a vain attempt to shake off the shivers that hiss evoked. He watched as it moved, steady and methodical, westward, and rumbled to himself as it spawned a plume of fire. His rumble deepened as he realized the trajectory of the fire-beast. West. The Edge. Mirage! The girls! Fear for his beloved and his offspring sparked a fierce protective instinct. Louder and louder his rumbles became, until he cast them out in a single bellowing roar, prolonged and earth-shaking in its intensity, challenging the creature and proclaiming his fitness to face it.

Wings drew in as he began to drop, plummeting from the sky. Eyes were wide open as the the details of the beast registered in heartbeats. It was long, tremendously long, and reptilian in form and function, yet if he was any guess, he'd estimate it to be not much more than half again his height. An old, old memory surfaced, barely remembered, the sound of his mother's voice and fragments of a story. One word stuck in his mind, surging to the forefront.

Another tremendous roar burst forth from Vikram as he saw smaller, daintier pegasi dancing around the creature's head. Saw the forms of equines squaring off against it, the fire-lit green figure of Suli, lending identification to his herdmate, Destrier.

"You shall journey no farther, foul Salamander!" It was a fierce shout, wrenched from Vikram's throat as he averted his intended target, extending his legs to focus the impact. With moments to spare he flung out his wings to brake his momentum, to give enough mercy to his limbs that they should not shatter. His target was the beast's back, betwixt its shoulders, and he spared no thought for the possibility of the damage he might incur otherwise. A dragon was nearly fireproof, and he was half dragon, and bore the scales to prove it. They would protect his sensitive underbelly, and there were ample ways to tend a burn after the fact. But now? Now he wanted to destroy.
Ascended Helovian

Gaucho The Wildfire Posts: 1,004
Deceased atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 17.2 :: 12 HP: 85 | Buff: PINNACLE
Mara :: Black Mamba Snake :: Paralyze & Vorsa :: Plain Zephyr :: Phoenix Odd
#8



Onni.

As we all know, Gaucho is a little slow on the uptake, when it comes to deducing complex emotions, or garnishing unsaid details. As the skies grew dark, the primal stallion kept mostly to the skies, serving his herd quietly and stoically from above. Even so, he kept an obviously interested gaze towards certain members of the herd, at all times: My-dus, Soh, Kri, and Onni. It was to the painted mare, that his stormy gaze was now directed.

Perhaps there was another reason that he was watching the quiet shaman with such interest, but right now, there isn't time for that; Onni is on the move. Knowing nothing of Onni's impressive lineage, or whether she would be able to defend herself against the growing darkness, Gaucho resolved to follow her wake into the eternal night. Swiftly, his dark wings descended, bring his hulking form behind hers, if not several yards delayed. He watches with a primitive dismay, as an invisible hand seems to rock her petite shape, pushing her as if on a stormy sea, before subsiding completely. As he gains on her, his chase is too slow to catch her, before it comes into view. Whatever it was, the warrior did not take the time to process it - merely it was categorized as an enemy, the moment his beloved Shaman descended to attack.

All at once, Gaucho felt an electric thrill run through his veins, as a blast of fire illuminated the creature,. as well as 5 or 6 others who had joined in the fight. A dark smile twisted his features, as bloodlust welled up within him. Let the blackness go without a name or face no longer; he could not protect his herd against the fear that they felt in this eternal night, but he could protect them against this. His hot blooded vision was only ignited more, when he saw a familiar blueish black smear dart in front of the creature. The sight of Ampere was a deliciously pleasing one, causing his devilishly childlike smile to widen with lust. Amp-here and Onmmeeee he thought, mouthing their names into the relative stillness, from his vantage point.

A loud cry was issued from the warrior's lips, as his momentary reverie was broken. Down he plunged into the heart of Helovia, his soul humming with anticipation and delight for what was to come. Even Mara, confined to his antlers by the lack of light and warm, was now energetically swaying and hissing, feeding off of her bonded's emotions, as well as the heat of the heart. Without thought or pause, or even a nod in the direction of Ampere or Onni, Gaucho streaked through the skies, aiming directly at the creatures head. The tingle of excitement within his very core began to amplify as he descended, and, sensing the magic welling within Gaucho, Mara began to hiss more energetically now. The warrior however, was far too focused upon the creature to notice the message his snake was trying to send, and so, his bonded was forced to take matters into her own hands, as it were. Biting his ear, though with care not to release poison, Mara pulled away only as Gaucho's hot blood filled her mouth. Focus momentarily broken by the sting, Gaucho was suddenly made aware of what Mara had been trying to convey to him. With another hellish cry, Gaucho refocused, this time allowing the surge of his magic to spew out of his antlers in a blurry blue-silver haze. Three eagles, easily the size of large dogs began to shakily materialize, darting to the left side of the monster's vision, as if trying to distract it as others had done. Hoping that the creature would go for the illusion of an avian snack, he thrust himself straight towards its face, aiming to slam his front hooves squarely between its eyes, before once again darting upwards.

As his powerful wings slammed to his sides, attempting to bring himself up and away from the possible snapping jaws, or bouts of fire from the creature below, he noticed that his eagles, having darted to the left as part of the distraction, were now flying directly at him. Never before had they - or any other creatures he had conjured - done such a thing. Fearing little, Gaucho spun in mid air once he deemed himself out of the reach of the creature below. Facing his apparitions, he bellowed menacingly at them, to no effect. Quickly the three eagles came at him, wings bearing down, and talons outstretched...


[Gaucho follows Onni from the Throat. Seeing the creature, he begins to fly towards it, not realizing that his magic has returned. Mara, who is aware, bites him to ignite his powers, and Gaucho launches three spirit-eagles towards the left side of the creature to act as a further distraction. He then tries to fly directly at it, and slam his front hooves into the space between its eyes before flying upwards and away. Due to the broken magic, his eagles turn on him and are flying straight towards him.]


Image Credits
Please tag me in every post! Magic/Force is allowed on Gaucho at any time.

Ascended Helovian

Ophelia the Amaranthine Posts: 701
Outcast atk: 6.5 | def: 10.5 | dam: 7
Mare :: Hybrid :: 16.0 hh :: 6 Years HP: 77 | Buff: BULK
Tinek :: Royal Silver Dragon :: Frost Breath & Shock Breath Tamme
#9


Ophelia saw something stir in the fires of the world, and her eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "Tinek, what do you see," she whispered. The dragon chirped and took flight, turning his head suddenly as the stars over head began to sparkle. Phi, stars. he said. The pale princess turned her gaze skyward, smiling as the black sky returned to life. From behind thick clouds, the moon was beginning to show through the cracks. The goddess had returned and brought with her the beautiful night. Shards of the lost stone that had permanently caught in her mane and tail began to sparkle again, brightly, making Ophelia's pale, white coat almost glow in the light of the bright moon.

The silver twisted into the sky, crimson orbs able to see farther now with the lamp trees and the moon providing light. Monster.... from fire. Ophelia furrowed her brows and kicked off from the ground, cloven hooves sending dirt flying in her wake. What monster? Me.... no wings.... fat. Phi snorted in amusement and shook her head, moving in the direction of the flames. She was forever a moth, drawn to the power of the sun despite his every effort to keep her at bay.

Already many were there, including Roskuld. Eagles began to chase a pegasus who seemed to come after the pinto mare she had met once before. "Tinek, help with the dark flying one, please," she called. The dragon obeyed, opening the stance of his wings to climb to his level. Silver scales flashed through the sky and the beast opened his jaws filled with serrated, pearly fangs, talons extended to crash headlong into one of the eagles and tear it from the sky. Ophelia moved forward, heading straight toward her daughter and sending a prayer to her father for safety and protection.

The monster was indescribable in its size and mass, but the crimson and pale mare danced with the brute anyway. She moved to Roskuld's position, smiling affectionately at her daughter. "Be safe, for me, please," she murmured before jumping onto the back of the creature's tail and swiftly letting her cloven toes guide her up its spine. She was not too far from the ground, not as far as she had been before on the paths through the mountains. A fall would be detrimental, but certainly not perilous. Ophelia fell to her knees and tilted her head, aiming to drive the spiraled horn straight between the vertebrae of its back.

Regardless of if her aim was true, she swiftly moved back down the tail and then returned to the ground, legs pumping hard to put some distance between herself and the monster. Her dual colored gaze looked over her shoulder and she made a wide circle, returning back to the flank of the beast, tossing her head to use her weapon as a sword and slash along its belly and hind leg.




Image by Yumpy @ DA




Undertow has come to take me. Guided by the blazing sun. Look at everything around us. Look at everything we've done.
Please. Anyone. I don't think I can save myself. I'm drowning.


Please tag me in every response!

Hespera Posts: N/A
Unregistered
:: :: ::
#10
The world was dark.

Hespera was unbothered by darkness, seeing as it lived within herself, no matter how hard she tried to shut it out, replace it with purity and love, but her soul was tarnished by war and blood and sacrifice; and in any case, some memories she would never trade, no matter how clean her spirit might have become. It was the blackness of her that drove her forward, ceaselessly, despite the horrific images that played continuously behind her eyes; sent her seeking the touch of the innocent, the blessed warmth of romance in the air, the dreams that she stamped down on continuously; too weak, too soft, not hard and strong as she should be. She was the stormchild, a goddess even if no longer quite as godly.

No, Hespera would not allow anything to stop her from her hopes.

Exhaling softly, clouds of vaporous white curl into the air, glistening like her dark eyes; she moves with an unparalleled grace, already having accustomed herself to the weight of legs on her ebon bodice and the horn that pulls at her skull. Otienu, the little white griffin, soars above her, cheerful as can be, unworried by the shadows, much like the once-immortal. Above the constricting cover of trees, he glides and float with silver wings, giving a reassuring shriek ever once and while that he is still with her. Together, outcasts from the world, they walk in silence; for words are not necessary between bonded-of-the-hearts.

How much time passes is uncertain, for they only stop when they tire, which is very rarely indeed. On occasion, Hespera will sleep while the little griffon keeps watch; sometimes Otienu, the silver prince, will rest upon her back and close his eyes, napping as she goes.

Eventually, the night is interrupted by a shriek, and then in a whirlwind of gray feathers and stripes and wide eyes the griffon comes shooting down, scattering leaves like a small child playing in autumn, wings snapping open just inches above the stormchild's back, landing hard upon her withers and digging in just a little with the claws. Her ears pin in annoyance, yet Hespera refrains from snapping, even as blood begins to drip from the small pinpricks in her obsidian skin. Yet despite her hard face, she is worried at the panic engulfing her companion, and she cannot shake him from it. It overflows their connection, drowning her in it's depth. Something is very wrong, and so the stormchild quickens her step, from walk to trot to canter to gallop, Otienu hooking his talons into her mind, riding her like a man on his destrier into war, and together they fly.

Sweat breaks upon her skin as it grows warmer, the heat of magma stronger than the frivolous cold, dripping from her haunches and shoulders as they burst into the open, Hespera's eyes immediately assessing.

Lizard.

Horse. Pegasus. Child. Pegasus. Horse. Dragon-horse. Hybrid. Unicorn.

Dragons. No longer or smaller than Otienu; yet immediately her eye seeks them out.

With a scream, a battle-cry singing- or perhaps more appropriately, roaring- of tiger and eagle, melding together into a guttural sort of sound indescribable, the sound of a griffin. Wings beat and snap as Otienu, the silver prince of griffins, flies forward swifter than a vulture to a carcass, leaving Hespera standing silent, tilting her head back to admire the red lava dripping from the beast's mouth. Her head tries to match up the monster to the dragons, of the sekemoto warriors; of the Yin family who had taught them of the world of kirin and dragon, where hyenas, wolves, antelopes, and deer lived in peaceful harmony. But whereas the sekemoto was shining-scaled and white-maned, with eyes of wisdom and teeth of white, this was nothing was dull-scaled and red-mouthed.

For a moment she remembers Weneoa, and wishes her own battle axe, lost in the past with many others thing- the Dream Sower, or Ikima, forged by the great mountain lords- was at her side, wielded with her in her shining silver armour. But the memory does not bring back the real thing, and with a sigh, she charges forward, dropping her head to point her narrow, sharp horn forth, racing towards the child of black and white. "It's not safe!" she snaps, as she rears upward, attempting to stamp on the tail alongside her, sinuous body curving back and forth, lashing out with her horn, aiming to first swipe a large cut along the upper half, then stab downwards, through the thick scales and muscle.

"Leave it be, lest you wish to reap your life so young." Hespera sighs, for a moment forgetting the screams and the roars and the fire.

Otienu chirps from flitting about the monster's head, and he dives down towards the large, gelatinous, soft eyes, hoping to pluck and claw first the left one out, then the right. (Otienu's left, not the... thing's left.)

Random Event Posts: 1,286
Helovian Ancient
Stallion :: Equine :: ::
#11

The prey arrived, their bodies flooding the scene. A toothy, fiery grin is what greets Destrier's determined words. As the massive lizard opens its mouth to shower the black in flames (barbecue Destrier), Ampere's hooves come slamming down on its skull. spurts of flames spew from its lips, dancing fireballs flying to the ground and alighting the grasses at the equines' hooves. Disoriented, the hellbeast shakes its skull, as if trying to dislodge whatever powers fuddled the mind.

It was then that Roskuld begins trampling the soft, fleshy tail of the beast. Hisses of displeasure rain out of its mouth, and a powerful flick of the tail attempts to send the little girl flying, as well as unknowingly aiming to smack Ophelia before she has the opportunity to climb on. The movement disrupts whatever plans the pale and crimson mare had planned, and her stab falls of center, but is still immensely painful. A spurt of fire hot blood chases after the guilty horn.

The yelling of another feathered beast captures the attention of the lizard. Onni is caught in its sight, and the beast moves its head to follow her, allowing for Vikram to launch wide, powerful hooves directly between the shoulder blades. Deep gashes form, spewing more lava blood outward, and a bellow of hot fire races after the tail of the tobiano mare, as she narrowly turns to escape the path of firey hot destruction. The annoying squeal of Kahlua is met with a swipe of a massive, clawed arm. Luckily for the stupid mare, the flash of silverly blue catches his massive hand, rendering the clawed appendage instantly useless. Instead, it slumps down lifeless beside her.

A screech of annoyed hatred spews from its lips, and Gaucho's aim misses the bridge between the eyes, and hits instead the nose. A horribly hot breath is gushed out the nostrils toward the pegasus, hopefully ruining his flight pattern well enough to get him within reach of the monster's jaws.

Ophelia's second attack strikes true, tearing the delicate flesh open with another bright burst of seething hot blood. Turning his massive head around, the lizard summons a fireball directed at her. Unlike the one aimed by the God of the Sun, this one would burn. The turn of its head spares the eyeballs of the creature from the mad griffon, but the fleshy surface of its skull tears open. Raising the forearm still in commission, the lizard scoops after the annoying feathered beast just as more pain radiates up its tail, caused by Hespera.



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Ampere The Mother of Companions Posts: 719
Dragon's Throat Sultana atk: 9 | def: 11 | dam: 4.5
Mare :: Pegasus :: 14 hh :: 6 years HP: 73 | Buff: DANCE
Kygo :: Green Cheek Conure :: None Blu
#12

A M P E R E

| pegasus | mare | 3 years | 14 hands |





They come.
Where they come from Ampere doesn't know - just as birds gather to migrate or sea turtles wash up on shore in hoards - they come from the woodwork of the world, each and every corner in all manner of shape, size and skill. The beast calls to them and it makes Ampere wonder what song would be so sweet as to bring such steeds to their death. She fights for selfish reasons and with the knowledge that she is quick; quick enough to abandon the dark stallion below and the battle for her own needs, but some that arrived surely must have gone out of their way.

Some simply should not have come at all.
A child enters with more guts than most, if only that were enough. Alas, we all need our brains as much as our courage and the two are ever in competition for leadership of our fates and demise. Ampere has no idea the filly is the child of a god, but even so, children of any being are apt to defeat at the hands of monsters, as often real as imaginary.
Ampere does not call out to her though. She will not risk giving away her own position to save the brave little fool and she doubts her voice would be heard over the din of blood rushing in small ears. Too far away to act, she only watches, steeling herself against the spray of red she expects.

Crimson does flash in the dark, but not born of Roskuld's flesh. Fire erupts from the lizard's snout to blaze upon the ground below. Ampere is thankful for her wings not for the first time and surely not for the last.
Amid the flame another geyser of red comes, blood this time, but still not horseflesh. Instead the beast's hide weeps while moonlight dances off a pale horn, one eternally stained on its tip, one familiar to Ampere and her scars. A rough grin crawls upon her blue lips at the sight of Ophelia - at least someone here had sensibility and skill, because it certainly wasn't Ampere.
Another glint, like metal, comes where the girl's dragon darts through the rising light of the night to dance with more who had come.

Tinek shoots out to aid Gaucho, another familiar face, and one that brings a smile of different source to Ampere's features (and elsewhere).
A painted mare, whom Ampere hadn't noticed assist her earlier, moves with expert skill in the skies, easily catching Ampere's attention amid the flurry of activity.
Shouting pulls Ampere's attention, briefly, below to the painted mare honking amid the fire.
Another mare rallies down below with her. Ampere fears they will both be black in hue and still as stone come the end - lost to the earth as black dust.
A shadow passes overhead as a large shape, both horse and not, swipes at the lizard, which could possibly have been a relative. Ampere darts eagerly out of his way, subconsciously angling towards Gaucho and Onni. She takes comfort in their similarities and their friendship with the sky. Though Vikram incites respect, Ampere is similarly fearful.

The beast screams and the sound echoes terribly inside Ampere's ears. She shakes her head, blue flopping against black, to rid herself of the cacophony. Her vision clears just in time to see godzilla's flesh spew blood once more, but it is abnormal - everything else already was, why should anything be normal now - it glowed hot and sizzled in the cool air.
Fire Ampere knew at once, understanding that the being not only crawled out of the magma pit but seemed to embody it, rather literally.

Ampere screams in dismay as it aims its head towards Ophelia, the offender of its second large wound, with fire generating on its tongue. She ducks her wings to her side and angles down to arrow for its head once more, hooves stretching out to batter its left eye. She is fast, but Ampere can't be sure she's fast enough to keep Ophelia from the onslaught of searing breath.
Ampere tumbles and climbs continuously, tempting her fate as she harries around the beasts' head relentlessly.
It is a cursed thing in that she cannot leave it be, so massive and furious it would destroy much in swift accord, yet neither does she seek to injure it further, lest Ampere find the gore burning holes in her sails. Could it merely be driven back to its source if it could not be felled? Ampere was certainly good at posing as a thorn in ones side, or in this case a pidegon in an eye, but would it be enough?

Sweat beaded against her nape; born of stressed maneuvering and the proximity of the lava monster.
This is madness, her mind cawed at her, flesh rippling as hot wind, breath or passing flame, grazed along her back. I should run!
Ampere owned nothing to anyone here, even the faces that rung familiar with her. Even if confusion and sorrow had weighed her down in recent, she valued life above the glory of a death tonight. All the same, she stayed, looking to Onni and Gaucho for support in the air in the moments she could spare. Perhaps this was madness, but at least there was lots of company in this insanity.

Many of them shouldn't have come, but Ampere found she was glad they all had.


[Ampere tried to fly at the lizard's left eye with her front hooves at it blew a fireball at Ophelia. Then she proceeded to try and circle around its head, just trying to be annoying/distracting with bobbing and weaving.]




Tag me only if starting a new thread.
Magic or force permitted any time, aside from death.

Vikram Posts: 73
World's Edge Skilled Protector
Stallion :: Hybrid :: 19 hh :: 9 years Buff: NOVICE
Kachie
#13
Hooves met flesh with a jarring thud, rendering unnatural flesh to spill scorching lava-blood, knocking the hybrid stud's teeth together with a snap and a grunt. His body's sudden stop sent wings sweeping down, inadvertantly lifting his body back upward again in an awkward, painful bounce. But not as painful as it could have been, for that bounce lifted him high enough that the magma of the creature's core scorched resistant hooves instead of overflowing around vulnerable fetlocks.

Still feeling the resounding, jarring pain of coming to such a sudden stop, Vikram staggered back a few steps on his hind hooves as his wings flexed instinctively, responding to his brief glimpse of having lava well up where his hooves had been. Roaring fills his ears, the tang of fire and the scent of scorched rocks and grass filling his nostrils. Only the creature's focus on the others dancing in and out around it gave the stallion to opportunity to regroup, still poised upon its back.

Another screech, as his flailing platform swayed, and his attention swung outward again, watching as the creature suddenly turned its head around. He recognized the signs not so hidden within its suddenly gaping jaws and focused gaze upon some threat to its being behind and to one side of the titanic stallion. Fire breath.

Lips curved back, revealing a set of fangs in a snarl of defiance. And then the dragon horse was lunging forward, pushing off with his hind legs and tucking his forelegs up as he jumped over the oozing wound he'd inflicted. Wings beat the heated air, finding no real difficulty in finding airtime. Dimly he was aware of another diving in from the other side, with similar intent. A grim simile of a smile warped his snarl in the moments before he flung himself at the right side of the creature's face. Bared teeth sought an eye, flailing hooves struck for cheek and jaw, while massive wings battered at the creature's face in general while still keeping Vikram aloft. It was the span of a few heartbeats, before he shoved away with a roar of his own, daring the creature to come after him as he twisted to fly over its back.
Ascended Helovian

Gaucho The Wildfire Posts: 1,004
Deceased atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 17.2 :: 12 HP: 85 | Buff: PINNACLE
Mara :: Black Mamba Snake :: Paralyze & Vorsa :: Plain Zephyr :: Phoenix Odd
#14
WENT THE DISTANCE, NOW I'M NOT GONNA STOP.
JUST A MAN AND HIS WILL TO SURVIVE.
</style>



You know what's strange?

Gaucho doesn't swear.

If he did, as his luxuriously long tail was being singed by the creatures' hot breath, he might have been thinking FUCK FUCK FUCK! Instead however, his mind was void of emotion or frantic peril - a trait that someone like Sohalia might have thought extremely boring and would surely try her patience - but was at the root of his very being. Gaucho did not panic, he simply reacted.

The heat from the creatures' breath, while painful, also enabled him to fly upwards faster, as he used the hot thermals created directly beneath him, to his advantage. As he soared up, gently gliding around, he could make out the distinct form of a much smaller dragon, flying directly into one of his spirit-eagles, which appeared to have turned suddenly malicious. As his own massive bulk glided through one - instead of feeling the hot burn from having his flesh torn from the things talons, he merely felt cold, as if devoid of life itself. Grunting, and shaking himself in midair, Gaucho tried to rid himself of the odd feeling, but found that the coolness had seeped into his bones, creating a mentally numbing of his entire body.

Hissing frantically as Gaucho began to fall in mid air, the snake wobbled in his antlers, as if trying to use the magically affixed appendages like a great steering wheel. Our of the corner of her beady black eyes, she could see Ampere trying to attack the creature's eye, and tried to force Gaucho's bulk in that direction. With slow moving limbs, the bay's black wings indeed began to turn, as if mentally commanded by the snake at the helm. As he plummeted, half falling and half flying towards the opposing eye socket that Ampere was attacking, he watched the large massive bulk of Vikram attack the creature's face as well, before twisting in flight over its back. As the dark duo neared, Mara opened her jaws wide, letting her sickly poison spill from her fangs hopefully into the creatures eye. As Gaucho reached within striking distance, he mimicked Ampere, attempting to attack its right eye with his outstretched hooves.

[Gets singed by the creature. Tries to hit it's opposing eye (right), while Mara tries to spit/drip poison into the eye as well.]

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Please tag me in every post! Magic/Force is allowed on Gaucho at any time.

Ascended Helovian

Ophelia the Amaranthine Posts: 701
Outcast atk: 6.5 | def: 10.5 | dam: 7
Mare :: Hybrid :: 16.0 hh :: 6 Years HP: 77 | Buff: BULK
Tinek :: Royal Silver Dragon :: Frost Breath & Shock Breath Tamme
#15


Ophelia watched as the massive tail she tried to leap upon suddenly came swinging in her direction. With a sharp breath, she barely dodged the limb by using her jump to go over the limb instead of on top of it. However, her horn still pierced the site of the creature's leg, and she quickly withdrew the pearly, white weapon before rounding the corner to take a brief glance at the battle. A gigantic stallion whom she had never met before managed to gash at the monster's shoulder blades, and she could not help but wonder if he was part dragon himself.

A plume of fire was ushered up toward the dark bay with the antlers, and Ophelia used that brief moment of distraction to chase her horn along his side, and her aim had rang true. A hot, searing liquid of blood leaked from the monster's body, burning the fur and skin around the base of her horn as it dripped from the tip of the pearly bone. Luckily, the structure itself remained undamaged, but she still could not withhold a cry of pain as she shook her head violently to get the blood from her skin.

In the tilting of her head, she saw out of the corner of her eye a massive plume of fire, but she was able to narrowly avoid the lethal flames. Ampere, a mare whom she had sparred with once before, had seemed instrumental in her survival at this very moment, and Ophelia was grateful. If any of them survive this, she would have to make sure to thank the bold and daring pegasus. Some of the flames had caught on the fringes of her hair, and she shook the long, thick white tendrils to keep them from fully catching fire.

Her dodge of the fireball landed her farther from the monster's side than she wanted to be, so she swiftly turned back, aiming to further weaken where she had damaged along the monster's barrel and hind leg. "Tinek, help the winged ones," she murmured through their bond. No burn. Safe. He returned before widening the angle of his wings and soaring higher once escaped from the eagle spirit.

The silver dragon danced between the black and blue mare and the one with the antlers. Once the snake had been given a chance to spit, hopefully in the monster's eyes, Tinek swooped down, talons on all four of his legs spread as he aimed for the beast's eye. The aim was to scramble the tissue beyond repair, but if he missed, the dragon's jaws were wide open, prepared to try and bite onto the side of the monster's skull and rip the skin just above its eye.

Meanwhile, Ophelia charged head on toward the beast's side, aiming to widen the gash in the belly with her horn. She steeled herself for the fiery pain that she knew was to come.



Image by Yumpy @ DA




Undertow has come to take me. Guided by the blazing sun. Look at everything around us. Look at everything we've done.
Please. Anyone. I don't think I can save myself. I'm drowning.


Please tag me in every response!

Roskuld the Sparklight Posts: 424
World's Edge General atk: 7.5 | def: 9.5 | dam: 6
Mare :: Tribrid :: 15.3 :: 6 HP: 82 | Buff: ENDURE
Zchiraxicon :: Royal Rougarou :: Electric Smithers
#16




I was going to town, man. You should’ve seen it. My hooves were flying things, almost blurry as I struck again and again and again at the writhing appendage. I didn’t honestly know where I got all this…this desire to hurt this thing. I didn’t know it, I couldn’t possibly have predicted that it was a malevolent creature crawled from the depths of the earth having emerged to fuck shit up. I only knew it felt wrong here, on this planet, on my doorstep—and as more people entered the fray and threw their own punches, nothing but blurry smudges in my peripheral, I nonetheless felt an obsessive compulsion for protection. At least, I think so. It was doing something, and maybe it was the right thing to do and the right thing to feel, so. Maybe I was doing something right.

I was distracted, though; my furious onslaught was disrupted as the whisper of warm words washed over me more forcefully than the heat of this place and the fire of the ginormous lizard I was trying to beat the crap out of. With a spike of shock and a rumble of horror, I watched as Ma—Ma!—my own Ma ran up the tail of the monster, some sort of pale feline walking the trip-line of the fire-lizard’s spine. My heart was gone somewhere in my throat, or maybe it was stuck in a fetlock, or something, and I was a whirl of panic, but this was different, because it wasn’t centered on me for once—Ma! Ma, get down from there, get away, what are you trying to prove, this isn’t your battle, this isn’t—

There was nothing for me to do at that point; there was no following her, as much as I ached to do. Some yahoo had sprung up out of nowhere, somehow finding the nerve to chide me about my actions, and it sidetracked me from Ma and the swing of the tail and there were a few moments where I lost track of it, which was a mistake.

*"It's not safe!"*

“A-PPARENTLY,” I screamed in a voice layered with sarcasm and a hint of hysteria with my worry for Ma; maybe it was rude of me, but with the fear and the worry about the world and everything and Ma and Bro who wasn’t a bro and whether or not I had my shit together and knowing I didn’t have my shit together—well. With all that buzzing around my head, it seemed damn foolish for someone to be calling me “young”. “Get out of here!!” I snapped, gritting my teeth as my eyes left the monster for mere moments to gaze upon this stranger, “Go, get cover, this isn’t your problem, this ain’t yoOAUURRRGGH!!!

I hadn’t been watching the tail. As distracted as I had been, I didn’t notice it writhing and leaping and finally rising with a furious flick, slamming straight into my stomach and chest, and suddenly I was in the air, all for legs flailing helplessly, my entire torso on fire with the pain of it, the wind knocked out of me even though I was somehow finding a way to scream my head off.

The funny thing was, I wasn’t scared. There was no fear for my health and safety, no fear of my imminent death in the slightest. No, the only thing I was feeling was pure hatred, a hatred that boiled for the beast and the sideshow Bobette that had afforded me this painful dilemma. This hatred could’ve scared me, but I was consumed by it; I was gripped with a frightening sense of focus, a rabid desire to hurt this thing, and a pinpoint of absolute clarity that decided I wanted to be on the ground.

I wanted to be on the ground.

And with a smack-flash, I was there.

It was the very first time I had utilized the shock in my bones and body, the very first time I had wielded the magic inherited from Daddy-dearest, and it could’ve confused me and shaken me if I let it. But I was too caught in the fury and the focus, and even though I was flailing in the air one minute and laying on my side on the ground the next, it was exactly as I wanted, and it was right. I rolled to my feet with a snort and a catch in my throat, because pain was radiating through all four corners of my ass and body, but I had a plan. I remembered what I saw from Ma; I had glimpsed what she had tried to do, sending her horn into the back of the beast, and I knew she had failed in the doing—so I was gonna finish what she started. I charged like a bolt back to the tail, and leapt upon it once more, moving too swiftly to worry about balancing myself on such a wild thing. In a split second, I decided that I didn’t want to be there, but up further, closer to the lumpy hips on ridged lower back of the fire monster. The all-consuming desire engulfed me again—there was another spark and a flash, and this time I was actually aware of the sensation of movement, the gritty transportation of my entire being through….time? Shock? I wasn’t worried about the mechanics—there was lizard ass right below me, bucking and unsteady under my feet, and all I wanted to do what kneel and ram my horn straight into its scaly oblivion.

And that’s what I tried to do.


[Is thrown into the air by the tail, and warps back to the ground. Runs onto the tail, warps once more to the monster’s hips, and attempts to imitate Ophelia’s earlier attack of striking the monster in his vertebrae with her horn]



Roskuld</style>

Destrier Posts: 180
Outcast atk: 5 | def: 7.5 | dam: 7.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 16.3hh :: 16 HP: 65.5 | Buff: ENDURE
Suli :: Common Green Dragon :: Fire Breath & Merlin :: Plain Black Dragon :: Frost Breath Dingo
#17
Destrier



Everyone had thrown themselves into action, and yet here I was, standing there and doing absolutely nothing. It proved to be a grave mistake, for a group of flames came spewing from the mouth of the beast towards me, effectively setting the mostly dead grass on fire. In the back of my mind, I had wondered if this creature was really so bad, for what had he done besides crawl from the center of the world and take down an innocent deer? Nothing, until he had set the land aflame and went about attacking me and the rest of my allies.

Whirling on my hind legs, I made a mad dash away from the oncoming flames, hoping that the snow on the ground would be enough to stop the flames before they could travel very far. Leaning to the right, I attempted to go around the flames that had been started behind me and set my sights on my opponent. In the short amount of time between my arrival and now, it was already being barraged in attacks my a multitude of others, most of which I couldn't recall knowing personally. Vikram had come, the massive, draconic stallion whose company I'd come to enjoy during my time in the Edge. I had glimpsed his figure just in time to witness him go for the beast's shoulders before I went to planning my own attack.

Charging forward, I sought to put myself at the left side of the creature's belly, knowing that if my allies were successful in taking its eyes out, next to the head was the last place I wanted to be. Should I be successful in reaching the lizard's side, I kicked out with all the force I was able to gather, uncertain how much damage I could truly do to the tough skin. I thought briefly of trying to conjure my magic, for it seemed to be working suddenly once more, but as the beast was capable of breathing fire, I doubted it would have any effect.

Suli, seeing both Vikram and Ampere go for the eyes of the behemoth reptile, decided to look for a different area of the lizard to target. Speeding through the air currents that were much too warm for Helovia's Frostfall, the little green went for the left ear, even if it wasn't much more than a hole in the side of the creature's head. Reaching out with her legs, she prepared to catch herself on the skin of her fellow reptile and closed her claws as tightly as she was able upon them, much like a hawk squeezing the life from its prey.

[ooc - Des tries to outrun the flames and rounds back, trying to put himself at the monster's left side, where he kicks out. Suli flies to the monster's ear and closes her talons down on/in it.]

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You may attack and use magic on Des at any time for any reason.

HP: 66.5

Hespera Posts: N/A
Unregistered
:: :: ::
#18
Fuck.

Hespera is not a mare predisposed to vulgar language which forcibly reminds her of unpleasantry in the dirty fighting pits of another world, where the earth trembles and more and more foes are sent to her as they test her ability to battle. The stormchild did not have anything to fear- she was a goddess with lord-given powers, and every time she slayed the beasts without terror in her heart, the only sound the rush of blood pounding in her ears. Here, she could die; here, she might be ripped from limb to limb, swallowed in the yawning maw of the monstrous beast.

Even as she rears, welcoming the sensation of crushing hot flesh beneath cloven hooves, she fears for the fool child who came to play at war. Hespera wants nothing more than to protect her, the little yearling- she is utterly unaware of the many fantastical powers Helovians had, and she was most certainly blind to the fact there were gods and demi-gods here. Perhaps the stormchild could barrel her over, shove her out of the way, protect her.

The filly starts screaming, shrill vocals piercing Hespera's ears in a mind-numbing way. She winces, recoiling slightly, even as the tail sweeps and in a blink of a bird's eye the girl is gone.

Gone.

How so? Even as Hespera's horn pierces the flesh, cutting through to bone, her eyes search frantically for the idiot child still wet behind the ears running around. Unable to fathom the idea that the brindled foal could have teleported, she finally lets it sink in. Since she distracted the kid, she was crushed under a giant claw, and had become a smear of black and white on the ground somewhere. Perhaps it would have been a tragedy, perhaps her heart would've sunk deep in her stomach in pity and shame for not getting the fucking child out of the way, even as she pulls her gore-dripping horn from the scaly beast; but she does not feel. Empty, void of emotion, she turns and contemplates running for the briefest of moments, as the child had suggested. But not now- not after she watched an adolescent whippersnapper die.

Even as she goes through her own small combat, Otienu participates in his fair share's. His beak and claws land on the corner of the mouth, clawing and pecking and scratching whole-heartledly, before he pushes off firmly into the air once more. Young and agile, the cub flits out of the way of the rising claw. Still, the tip of his tail is scorched by the beast's piping hot breath, and he rises higher, riding on the warm thermals, quite like Gaucho.

For a moment the gray griffon rests patiently, hanging in the air, studying the horses below. Even with the pain stinging his tail, he will not stop harrying the monster. With a tip of his charcoal beak, Otienu contemplates a choice of action; his wings beat the steamy air peacefully. Hespera does not need his help, even though he secretly fears for her, and her state of mind. She still doesn't realize she can be hurt, and nothing good will come of that. Pushing the matters out of his mind, feathers swirling, he dives downwards, aiming to flash beneath to the animal's throatlatch, where he would cling and shred the flesh. Despite the high improbability of the griffon actually killing the animal, perhaps he could cause some damage with those sharp little talons of his.

Hespera slipped beneath the draconaid's legs, tossing her head up, hoping to scratch open the belly of the beast with her silver horn.


Sorry, this post could be better- was sort of rushed :c

Onni the Illuminant Posts: 194
Hidden Account
Mare :: Pegasus :: 15.2hh :: 8 Buff: SWIFT
Lyhty :: Diamond Firetail Finch :: Sing Boom Boom!
#19

The heat chases after the tail of Onni, and she feels the tendrils of her blonde banner turning dark and scorched as she tucks her back legs in quickly. Lyhty lets out a distraught chirp, terrified for the fate of his companion, whom he had never once seen in this form of danger. The poor finch had come to know Onni in her second, more peaceful life, but with well trained movements, it was obvious that this was not the shaman's first high stress battle.

The slithering sound of dark blades plays over in her mind, as she remembers the battle between the shadows which claimed her home.

Then, she hears Kahlua. A squalling, terribly loud noise, which forms something she knew well: her name. Distracted, her hooves miss her target, and Onni swerves around toward the front of the monster seeing the large clawed arm swinging for the familiar painted body of Kahlua. Letting out a stark calling, the winged mare tilts her course downward toward her new found friend, her body turning sideways in the air as she attempts to knock the other mare out of the path of destruction, away from her certain death.

As Onni prepares for a sudden impact, her sky eyes notice how the arm falls lifeless in the air, no longer directed by anything but gravity. Pale-faced and wide-eyed, the tobiano keeps her course, hopefully keeping Kahlua out of danger except for the harsh impact of her own body, hooves finally scraping along long grasses, tripping to a stop only to be rocked about by the massive collision of a large limb with the dirt a few inches from her.

Rearing up, the healer aims her front hooves toward the massive beast's arm, trying to catch upon it and pull herself up, back legs pushing off as wings start flapping again, taking back toward the skies. However, before she is too far away, Onni turns her head to look back at the mare she knew. "Get out of here, Kahlua! If you cannot fight, run! Run!"

Once airborne again, Onni watches as two dark pegasus chase after the head of the monster, a target likely not easy for their groundbound allies. With a massive rack of antlers and even larger, dark wings, the healer recognizes Gaucho immediately. He seems disoriented, as if his movements are slow and unintelligible. Onni had never seen the warrior battle, but she had noticed how swift and purposeful his movements were during patrols.

Something was wrong.

Instinctively, Onni shoots downward toward the same area, angling to strike the base of the right side of the neck, keeping out of the way of the strangely draconic looking pegasus, while pushing herself to be close enough to the Sergeant should he begin to fall. Upon her back, Lyhty shivers and cowers, chirping uncertain melodies. What in the world was going on?

[ Onni tries to knock Kahlua out of the way of the arm that is falling. Rears to strike the limb, trying to use it to climb up and push off into the sky. She then curves around to attack the base of the right side of the neck, in order to be close enough to help Gaucho if needed. ]

Kahlua the Sunshower Posts: 662
Outcast atk: 5.5 | def: 9.5 | dam: 4.5
Mare :: Equine :: 15.3hh :: 9 [Orangemoon] HP: 65 | Buff: NOVICE
Khan :: Common Blue Dragon :: Frost Breath Sevin
#20


There was so much happening, she could hardly take it all in. So many brave horses, young and old alike, were risking their lives to save Helovia from what was sure to be utter destruction. And what was she doing? Standing and yelling and running in place. A filly battled relentlessly, climbed upon the monster's back even, and Kahlua did nothing. Cowardice at it's finest. She didn't mean to be so useless. She didn't mean to make a fool of herself. It was hard not to, though, when she was flighty and stupid.

Though she caught little of the scene with certainty, she did see Onni nearly get singed. The sight terrified her so much that she forget even to keep track of the monster at all- the worst possible thing she could have done at that moment. But then, so much happened at once, she could hardly take it in. From the corner of her eye she saw the monster's arm come lashing at her. At the same time, her painted friend came swooping down. The painted mare's form hit Kahlua's solidly- how could it not, with Kahlua so uselessly locked in one place- and Kahlua tumbled to the ground.

Dirt mixed with scrapes and what would soon be bruises as Kahlua struggled to lift herself. Turning her head as she did so, she saw Onni try to pull off from the monster's arm. How the arm had fallen lifeless so suddenly was a mystery beyond her comprehension. She had not seen the action, having been thrown to the ground. And as she finally managed to stand up, blood oozing from a few scrapes on her side, she heard the painted mare call back. “Run.” Funny how that had been exactly she she had been trying to do all along and she couldn't. And yet, somehow, the Illuminant's words stirred up a bit of shame in the black overo.
You want me to run? I want to run. But can I? In the face of this monster a filly fights for my freedom and I cower? But is that her job? Is she a warrior trained from birth? What am I? I'm pretty... well not now that I'm covered in dirt. But that's all I know. Monster's don't respond to flirtation. I don't know what to do. Onni! I DON'T KNOW WHAT I'M SUPPOSED TO BE DOING!
Too many thoughts echoed in her mind and she couldn't comprehend the emotions flowing through her body. She wasn't meant for such philosophical dilemmas. She had never been so far out of her comfort zone. She wanted to cry- she was crying- tears fell from her face and blurred her vision, thought she kept careful eye on the monster this time. She couldn't run, could she? Would she disappoint Onni, or would the mare understand helplessness in the face of fear? No, she couldn't leave her painted friend alone. Indecision and terror had made her fear aggressive. The same way a frightened dog backed into a corner will bare teeth and bite, Kahlua prepared herself to fight.

Shaking her head to try and clear some of the tears, Kahlua tried to assess what was happening. Everyone seemed to be working in concert like they had devised some secret plan that she could not understand. Stupidity did not mean she had to be useless, though. She couldn't fly and she would never be so brave as the filly to run across the monster's back. His belly glowing with fire did not make her envy the stallion that was underneath the monster attacking his stomach, either. She decided, then, that her best shot was his foot. Picking up an uncertain canter, she aimed herself for his left rear limb. As she came too it she increased her pace to a gallop and then, similar to what Onni had done to her, she planted her front feet and let her body swing to the right, attempting to slam her already bruised and battered right side into the monster's limb.

Whether her attack worked or not, she then picked up a gallop again and moved back towards her original position, although farther to the rear to hopefully avoid the monster's front limb. She didn't want to be attacked for a second time. “I don't know what to do!” Her voice was uncertain, loud now but less of a scream that it had been. True, she didn't know what to do, but that wasn't why she was speaking. Instead, she sounded her voice out of some sort of selfishness. Even if Onni wasn't at her side, she wanted the Illuminant to know where she was. She couldn't do this alone. She was scared, eyes still wide and white and wet; her breathing was heavy. Onni at her side metaphorically was better than nothing.


[Kahlua is knocked to the ground by Onni. She canters to the monster's left rear limb, swings her body to the right and attempts to slam her right side into his back limb before cantering away]
.KAHLUA


Permission granted to use magic or physical force with Kahlua at any time
for any reason to any degree, with the exception of killing her.

Please do not tag Kahlua unless it is in an opening post


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