#interaction: renaisguy

[bxldrsdraumar]

"Sir Sigurd, happy holidays!" He hands him a box of chocolates, wrapped in a blue ribbon. "And thanks again for holding that party, I had a ton of fun."

"Ah! Young Forde!" Sigurd had enjoyed seeing the young man in their training exercise, and in the dining hall during his feast only a few weeks past. Relaxed and friendly, he could not help but think of knights that he had had in his household - and, in part, of himself, at that age.

Clapping him on the shoulder, Sigurd took the chocolates with a smile. "I'm pleased to hear you enjoyed yourself - then the party was a success, by all accounts!"

He shook the box gently, and laughed. "Thank you, lad, for the gift. A happy holiday to you as well. Go on, then - I hope you find the time to spend with your friends."

[crookedorel]

A mock battle would be just the ticket to get the kinks worked out. It had been too long since the last, a vacant and hazy memory of a time in a place that was almost a dream. At least this open plain did not have nearly the same disgusting humidity to make his hair an absolute fright, but whatever remnant of fiends on the field from the prior month stuck to him like a hateful shroud. He attempted to brush the mesmer from himself, to stand tall and proud alongside the leader of the Black Eagles, the future Emperor of the Adrestian Empire.

And, with a sidelong glance, alongside his erstwhile improvisation partner. This was no mere drama, and he knew not what it was that she considered herself most skilled at, but he had said it then and thought it still now - she had a grace and strength about her.

Surely with these companions it would be enough to -

Shez (F)5/5HP critically hits Berkut6/6HP with Wrath Strike! [Roll: 20 + 2 = 22] [1.5*2 (-1 Def) = -4HP) Berkut2/6HP

Ouahgh?!

The swordswoman streaked forward, slipping past Yunaka with a mere taunt - were such romantic endeavors so shameful that they ought be the cause to lose one's focus? - and Berkut steadied his stance, an odd facsimile of the lancer's pose he was used to taking before remembering that here, he wielded magic.

Poorly.

The slice did not merely graze him, nor even could he in good conscience call it a solid blow - the edge of the woman's blade sheared cleanly through the gauntlet he raised to protect his face and throat, and carved a line clean through the forearm.

He grit his teeth, grimaced and tried to laugh it off as a smile.

"I see we have come with all our teeth bared! Well, then let me oblige with a display of my own - !"

Forde 3.5/5HP hits Berkut 2/6HP with Javelin! [Roll: 7] [1.5 (-1 Def) = -2.5HP) Berkut 0/6HP 

The lance soared through the air, carefully coordinated with the swordswoman's strike, and well aimed. If he had been a commander, he would have commended the arm that had thrown it, granted him on the other end the accolades it deserved.

Here, he could only exhaled, a gentle huff of breath as his brow pinched in confusion before the pain began to hit, from one wound then the next, building in fits and spurts with the staggered beating of his heart until he realized that he was on his knees, and cursed himself, the shameful display that he could not even have given.

Berkut is defeated!

Girl I am so sorry for this tacky display please still think I'm cool haha @hresvelged

birdbrains say what? ...wait, what?

boel round 1 battle 12 : black eagles vs golden deer

[warpaway]

HEY EVERYONE – april makes kind of a landmark for me as it means i've been in the officer academy community for about six months!! i thought it'd be nice to commemorate the occasion with a follow forever!!  i've met so many new people through the officer academy and it's been such a blast returning to tumblr rp and being able to join such a welcoming and lovely community!!

urls are organized in no particular order and segregated by titles and formatting just to make the post pretty.

ME, ITS MOTH – i like to follow myself so that i can see my own posts on every dash.  in case you didn't know, i also run these blogs!!  feel free to come over and say hello!!

@azelfire @senerist @warpaway

NEW FRIENDS – i feel like i can comfortably call you people friends and i'm so glad to have met you through this group!!

@adalrikr @yukyunotabibito @goldoanheart @tossup-tempest @contempenitent @lollipop-bribes @radiantpaths @freliasarrow @justicespeared @naganokoe @thunderbanned @vallitevoice @livingrief @otgolokh @anthieseofvalentia @adheidth @nevassan @loyaldeserter @viridescent-lance @katabatiic @berglietz @aimlessarchery @allyphase @encantresse @luminousrider @nagaficat

HELLO AGAIN – after quitting tumblr rp for about 6 years i wasn't sure i would ever come back.  being able to reconnect with familiar faces has been a lot of fun!!

@blacktempest @in--nagas--name @fletching-scar @landslioness @craneswings @jasperblion @tineoffreege @pirrhyc @diadic @lazulienne @deliverred @justicefanged @fangedjustice

AGI – agi (she/they)

@princeofopenness @hatariwildheart @direthunder

EYES ON YOU – i have been lurking your threads especially.  i love seeing you guys on my dash!!

@kgetsu @rafent @duchaisruin @war-father @quartzhearted @losojos-decupido @theofficersacademy @hosannan @nobilisseoblige @mahalikha @cotharach @zweiflugelig @starrook @sciathrach @hermidetta @stellalimned @dcggersedge @verseandrhyme @cursedbluebird @maligknightsthorns @old-scalebag @ulircursed @shadoll @twistedisciple

HERE'S TO THE FUTURE – to all of you who didn't fit in any of the above categories, to all of you who i haven't yet had the pleasure of interacting with, and to all of you who have still made this group a lovely place to be for me.

@eruditesunrise @freliaslance @futurepastlord @sublimeflowoftime @pillarofopenness @nohrslittleflower @amatsuken @heavy-draw @petuniasblessing @grxstnnefealltoir @cielenruine @bladeunbound @crimsonpaved @petuniasblessing @fe13chrom @fellincantation @lunatenais @unrivale @gloucesterrose @freedomarrow @regnumaves @failnaughted @threads-of-healing @anruraiocht @nabataprophet @machiot @goldmaries @heriteur @gentleaureole @heliacalrisings @deathsdue @bladebrecher @archiepiscopus @crevassier @egittae @astrasword @ninisdance @shiningfalcon @championsblade @verdantshotarrow @optimismxmagicism @cendrivinite @rozyrne @wolfhednn @gurado-no-nouru @far-from-common @grimatruth @rineas @thestaunchshieldvassel @lilchxrmer @dyshonor @crookedorel @blaiddllodi @peerlessscowl @serraic @wingboundwarrior @mercenarymage @boundlesschaos @lindwyvrm @tomestudyholic @taguelbunnyboy @bladespromotedpawn @moriddyn @thelightofcreation @renaisguy @deamare @fluxrspar @knighteclipsed @alyration @unsungblade @princepsumbra @laslow @princessmacedon @ephemeralove @frauleindermorgen @amitieos @ashenprofessor @hresvelged @virtuoustyrfing @sacretic @carefreemonk @gentlenekomata @reddragonprincess @aubins @justices-blade @lycianlynx @fabledoath @lionscion @delicatevalentine

thank you all for a lovely six months!!  here's to another unspecified time period!!

[cotharach]

MARCH HOUSEKEEPING

it comes a few days later in the month than i would normally post this HAHAHAH but i haven't had the need for one of these in a long while so i'm not used to it. but there's just a couple of things i need to put out there before moving forward so here i go:

OLD DRAFTS: i have a couple of drafts from before lore that i do plan on responding to, but let me know if you'd rather drop them instead. i understand that waiting months on a partner can kill any motivation for a thread.

PRE-LORE THREADS WAITING ON ME:

Nya for me! (with @spinnerofhope)

Baby shoes, never shod (with @renaisguy)

just message me if you want to drop! otherwise i'll assume that we're still going to continue it.

JOKES ABOUT SETETH: i don't mind references to seteth since he is a big part of flayn's character but i'd prefer not to let jokes about it dominate my interactions with people, both ic and ooc. it's all in good fun and i do find a lot of it hilarious but it gets very limiting to work with in excess, which is why i took a bit of a step back from writing for flayn near the end of the month. now i know it's not usually like this: it may have just taken a head last month since it was an event all about romance, but it's just something i want people to be mindful of in the future. thanks!

[pryings]

a quiet hum buzzes through the dining hall as those assembled are shuffled in. this 'psychological experiment' or 'speed dating game' or 'social gathering' or whatever it is has been prepared. in place of the long dining tables, the hall is filled with numerous small, round tables, each with a number placed upon them. you are to find your assigned tables, chat with your partner, and hopefully make some kind of connection.

the goal of this exercise is somewhat vague, but knoll and hubert seem poised to take notes. so that's interesting.

schedule:

12pm. EST Feb 14 - 11:59pm Feb 15 ROUND ONE. 12pm. EST Feb 16 - 11:59pm Feb 17 ROUND TWO. 12pm. EST Feb 18 - 11:59pm Feb 19 ROUND THREE. 12pm. EST Feb 20 LAST WORDS.

please tag all interactions #toaLoveHypothesis2024. you will receive an ask from hubert or knoll within the next few hours asking if you like or dislike your partner. unanswered asks default to a 'no.' please answer it at any point before the round ends.

rounds will be 36 hours long, but should narratively simulate the speed dating experience of only having a few minutes to talk. it should feel rushed. interactions can be asks or short threads, please communicate with your partner to determine what works best. you can continue an incomplete interaction after a round concludes if you wish, but please note that you need to vote by the round's end!

the questions provided are only suggestions. if your muse would not want to discuss this topic, feel free to talk about whatever you wish.

forrest (@bruniatrobaire) & forde (@renaisguy) topic: you have been stranded in the desert. assuming you have the foresight to have chosen two items to help you, which would you bring?

tormod (@arcelerity) & leif (@diadic) topic: discuss your hometown.

dwyer (@apathynoir) & poe (@loveevangelist) topic: critique the other’s personal style.

elise (@nohrslittleflower) & niamh (@boundlesschaos) topic: if you could speak to one animal, which would you choose?

petra (@calderosea) & edward (@justices-blade) topic: how would you save your current conversation partner if you were in a sandpit together, getting slowly pulled down into the abyss? or would you prioritize yourself?

sothe (@nevassan) & faye (@fiberflxwer) topic: the ideal combination of pastries and beverages.

ike (@ofradiances) & raven (@peerlessscowl) topic: fear.

sylvain (@gauldheri) & goldmary (@flaurum) topic: choose between money, love, and power.

xander (@chevaleri) & farina (@making-dough) topic: tea or coffee? why?

nils (@carmennivis) & freyja (@foreversnightmare) topic: preferred ways to pass the time.

seliph (@virtuoustyrfing) & rosado (@rozyrne) topic: favorite flower

andrei (@ulircursed) & saizo (@saizov) topic: there are twelve orphans in a burning building. there are five adults who have a proven history of enacting positive social change that are being attacked by ruffians. you may only save one. choose.

erk (@adalrikr) & sothis (@sublimeflowoftime) topic: saints. yes or no?

duessel (@obsidiendo) & eremiya (@motheruin) topic: cleanliness of your room and your person.

(tumblr has set a limit on the number of people that can be tagged in one post, so this had to be split into two, if you do not see your muse's name, check the other post)

[bxldrsdraumar]

As the princess moved away from him, Sigurd could almost see the delicate drip of her blood, the faint vestiges of the girl she was smearing across the woods as she raced closer to the haunting facsimile, the shambling woman all of lank and disquiet.

He couldn't hear the words she said before she fell, but he didn't suppose he was meant to.

Sigurd frowned, casting his glance along the field at the ruin, the tangled mass of thorny bramble where lay the young Lady Yngvi, the tossed heap that was young Forde, and now too the princess, dropped to her knees before the ceaseless unblinking red.

"All right!" Sigurd called, tilting his chin upward, as though those outside in the monastery might have heard him. "They've fallen, you may end the trial now!"

It seemed a shame, a waste, to hold these training sessions only for it to end in such ruin, but he could not have claimed to be of the higher sort of mind that could run a school, let alone alongside a religious and military institution. He had faith in the Lady Archbishop, and her second, and those underneath her that worked in tandem to see her will done, but -

His brow furrowed. Nothing had changed. Nothing had shifted. They were still here, these children, crumpled at his feet, and that ceaseless unblinking red gaze had turned upon him.

Curious, for a moment. Not vacuous, as he'd assumed; incisive, unshakable.

He thought, perhaps, he might have understood then the connection the princess had had with the creature, why she had ridden forth to meet it so boldly.

"This is nothing to do with me. The trial is over we may - "

But it did not let him finish, launched its assault on him, its claws raking across the shell of his armor, cracks shearing along its arm as his reflexes kicked in.

It did not seem as though the trial would be ending until the thing was felled.

"So be it." If the girl could not end the beast, then he would do so for her.

Then, when she was back on her feet, he could show her how.

The battle that passed was a blur - indeed, he could not have counted the amount of times he heard the delicate tink of its nails raking across his armor, breaking, shattering, the haunting groan that rumbled from deep within its belly as it launched forward again, and again, and again -

He tucked the cannon over his shoulder when he could, launched its magic forth when he could, but it gave chase, over and over, never ceasing, never tiring.

But wearing down, all the same, in a way that he did not. Sigurd had felt the kinship with that warm burst of light, the call of its blood, but where he'd had the blood of Baldr singing in his veins, it seemed to have some corruption mottling its heart, and after a time, like a doll, it began to crumple and fade. Its attacks grew more frequent, more reckless, and after a time it felt as though the song of its blood was one of fury, one of rage, a scream that could not have risen to its lips.

Sigurd blinked at the sting of sweat in his eyes. He had not noticed when the world around him had set ablaze, could not have even been sure that it had for the lick of flames did not curl about his fingers.

He knew what that felt like, knew the taste of cinder trickling down from one's sinuses when only ash remained.

The final slam, desperate, keening, against his armor sent the beast to shivering - it began to twitch and convulse and for half a moment Sigurd thought in the rattle of its final breath he heard a cry, the sob of a child.

But perhaps that too was an illusion, conjured forth by the terms of the trial, something he could have never confirmed as the world shifted around them and they found themselves back in the sleek flagstones of the training room.

When he lay eyes on the princess of Adrestia, though, his heart squeezed gently.

"Well, my friends," he said. "It seems we have made it home. I am proud of you."

A beat.

"All of you."

- fin.

walk on through a red parade - team 6 gold round

[bxldrsdraumar]

"Evening sir." Forde holds a hand out to his new teammate. "My name is Forde, I don't think we've met." He flashes a smile, sizing up the man. He seems strong, perhaps strong enough to do Forde's share of the work. "I look forward to fighting alongside you."

"Oh? Well met, lad." Sigurd returns the smile easily, taking the hand to shake.

It warmed his heart, he thought, to see that no matter where he went, there were young men so eager to test their mettle in battle - training event or no, he thought he had a good sense for these things, and this Forde held the comfortable, familiar aura of a fellow cavalryman.

"I trust that we will face much hardship in the coming hours," he added with mock seriousness, winking. "I shall be putting my faith in you to have my back."

[bxldrsdraumar]

"Another skill for your resume," Sigurd interjected with a smile. "To be able to relate to those in your care, or those you fight alongside, is no small feat!" 

And, Sigurd did not add, he himself had been known to share a story a time or two. In times of duress, or in times of calm, or in times where the two seemed inextricable from one another, it was important, he felt, to remind yourself or those around you that there was something to live for outside of the present moment – be it to relive the past, or to make plans for the future. 

"Well done, lad!" Sigurd added to Chiron, who had immediately plunged his hands back into the water in search of another fish to reach for – the glow of his little fists glinted in the water, a mosaic of shimmer and sunshine so bright that for a moment Sigurd had not even noticed that there no longer seemed to be any fish nearby. 

Fishing roll: 8+2 = 10, lessgo fellas 

He sighed once, lightly, at first with only the thought that perhaps they had been chased off by the splashing of Chiron's feet in the shallow water as he kicked some of the stones peeking up from thee surface – but then, his brow pinching into a frown, he realized something with some trepidation. 

"Chiron, lad, come back for a moment, if you would." The boy obeyed him readily, trotting back to the riverbank with an eager look in his eye, as though waiting for direction, or a story from the outside world. Sigurd smiled down at him, placed a broad hand on the top of his head to ruffle his hair, and gestured to the stones smoothed by the water; "Why don't you find us the roundest, smoothest, flattest rock you can? Will you do that? Go on." 

When the boy trotted off, affecting a calm tone as not to alert the little boy to any distress, to Soren and Forde he added, "The water was at the boy's knees only a moment ago, wasn't it?" 

Though his inflection rose at the end, it was not a question.

@atypicalsenerio

Drop the (sea) bass

[bxldrsdraumar]

Sigurd had been ready for much when the march had begun - ambush, inexperience, or numbers beyond their ability. He had expected it to have been like any number of the hundreds of marches to battle that he had done in his time, across countryside, or through desert, or mountains, or woods.

What he had not expected was that their first stop was to a shop in town.

Nor the flood. He hadn't counted on that.

The transition from waking to sleeping was quite the blur, and if his normal waking moments had not been so mired in haze and confusion on their own during his time in Fodlan, it might have been more disconcerting. As it stood, however, he was able to keep himself composed - keep the smile on his face for those in despair to see, to keep his back straight and his shoulders broad to carry whoever might have needed it, either literally or figuratively.

As the homes had been lost in the flood, and they had made their way into the tunnels, he found he had needed to do a bit of that, and Sigurd was glad to - for the time being, keeping morale high was paramount.

Eventually as they found cover in the cave system that sprawled underneath the area, it seemed the remains of the villagers and his companions alike were able to find a brief moment to rest. Carefully, after ensuring as best he could that all were under the same roof, Sigurd took a post at the mouth of a cavern, prepared to take vigil during the long night.

He grinned at the companions that joined him - a young lady, a student of the Golden Deer house, who had taken a post and immediately retrieved a chessboard from her robes, and young Forde.

Sigurd extended a hand to shake. "Together again, are we? Always happy to have a familiar face nearby, in troubled times."

A shift in the loose stones behind him, and Sigurd cocked his head, smiling broadly at the child who appeared from the dark of the cave. "And what's this? Isn't it quite past your bedtime, young lady?"

Though his words were a scold, his tone was teasing, and the little girl - Aphaea, he believed - smiled at him, and cocked her head in return. "What use is a bedtime when there is so much to see? Maybe you'll miss something, and it will come in to gobble us all up."

Sigurd laughed. "Well, we shall try our best not to allow that to happen, won't we?"

Night Shift starter for @allyphase and @renaisguy

Whoa! Nice Creepy Doll You Got There

[bxldrsdraumar]

Though the world around him flashed bright and white and darkly familiar, a pinpoint to a time very far away that never seemed to leave his periphery, the young lady Yngvi is upon him immediately, and Sigurd feels the warmth flood him as she drags him back from the brink of the dark.

Sweat dotted his brow as he looked up at her, but he matched her grin with equal fervency, and winked. "Yes, I've heard those words before."

Rising from his knees, he accepted the light and grace of the young knight, the blood rising from its sluggish pace. "And thanks to you as well, lad. Feeling fine and fit."

And just in time for their foe to lash out its rage at him, furious and snarling. It seemed to take succor from its own divinity, or some corruption of it that gave its pelt such shine and that kept its teeth and claws sharp. It raised an enormous paw, and those gleaming blades sank once more into Sigurd's arm, the beast's shriek echoing in the valley below.

Divine Hide! Gricenchos 7.5/20HP recovers +1HP, Gricenchos 8.5/20 Gricenchos 8.5/20 hits, misses, critically hits and critically hits Sigurd 10/10HP with Razor Claws [Rolls: 14 - 4 = 10, 5 - 4 = 1, 20 - 4 = 16, 19 - 4 = 15] [1 + 0 + 2 + 2 = -5HP], Sigurd 5/10HP Sigurd 5/10HP hits Gricenchos 8.5/20 with Death [Roll: 11 + 6 = 17] -1.5HP, Gricenchos 7/20HP Poison Strike! Gricenchos 7/20HP takes -1HP, 6/20HP Toxic Poison! Gricenchos 6/20HP takes - 1HP, 5/20HP

He had managed to pull that dark corrupted magic from within him again, but he feared he would never be expert with it, despite the constant sting that seemed to follow whenever it landed its mark. In truth, it seemed only to enrage the beast, who leapt forward to once more sink its fangs into his arm, shaking brutally.

Divine Hide! Gricenchos 5/20HP recovers +1HP, 6/20HP Gricenchos 6/20HP hits Sigurd 5/10HP with Fearsome Fangs [Roll:8 - 1 = 7] -2.5HP, Sigurd 2.5/HP +1HP, Gricenchos 7/10HP Sigurd 2.5/10HP misses Gricenchos 7/20HP with Death [Roll: 3 + 3 = 6] Toxic Poison! Gricenchos 7/20HP takes -1HP, 6/20HP

Then, that tug, that gentle binding string that had wrapped around his heart and the beast's, pulling them together with the siren song of the beyond, as Sigurd dragged up all of that pain, all of that rage and misery forth to lay another strike on the creature.

Psychopomp activates! Gricenchos 6/20HP takes -1HP, 5/20HP [Saint’s Guard activates!] Sigurd 2.5/10HP takes -1HP, 1.5/10HP Sigurd 1.5/10HP hits Gricenchos 5/20HP with Death [Roll: 13 + 3 = 16] -0.5HP, Gricenchos 4.5/20HP Poison Strike! Gricenchos 4.5/20HP takes -1HP, 3.5/20HP

Pittance that it was, the beast roared at the affront, and, panting, Sigurd could only keep his feet when the thing's teeth sank into the juncture of his shoulder once again, deep and hot and searing pain.

Gricenchos 3.5/20HP hits Sigurd 1.5/10HP with Fearsome Fangs [Roll: 16 - 1 = 15] -2.5HP, Sigurd 0/10HP +1HP, Gricenchos 4.5/20HP

Until it wasn't.

Sigurd has been defeated.

Eye of the Tiger Starts Blaring - Team 6 Bronze Round

[bxldrsdraumar]

When he opened his eyes, Sigurd found that they were no longer along the rocky slopes, staring down the slathering maw of a divine beast - they were in a field, hale and hearty, as though the pains they had suffered in their imaginations were ghostly fingers dragging along their skin.

It was a familiar feeling for a familiar scene - the uncertainty of healed wounds before your next battle, staring down the enemy from across the field, the calm before the clamor - but turned on its head. Sigurd still found himself in cumbersome robes, billowy cassock and embroidered tippet a mockery of his faith (and, he supposed, the faith of Seiros) as he felt the familiar churn of shadow curling in his veins.

He had managed to give his comrades the room to breathe, the space to fight and learn at their pace, and he hoped again to do the same.

Staring down at them from on high appeared a form, graceful and light but a vile corruption of it that made his skin tingle to look upon it for longer than a moment. A threat, certainly, but not pressing.

No, of more immediate attention were the combatants standing opposite them. Their carriage indicated to Sigurd that they were practiced in warfare, each intimate with carnage in their own right from the set of their shoulders, the wary tilt of their heads.

The choice to begin was an easy one - it seemed ever his lot, to break the tension and strike first, before they were stricken - but whom was not so easy.

Eventually, Sigurd allowed the call of shadow in his blood to make the choice for him.

Sigurd 10/10HP hits Blaiddyd 10/10HP with Hades [Roll: 17 + 6 = 23] -3HP, Blaiddyd 7/10HP Poison Strike! -1HP, 6/10HP

Where before he had felt the call of death from this foreign magic, here he felt the dominion of it, the whisper of it against his ear in song as waves of violet smashed against the enemy Dark Knight, knocking the tome from his hands.

Blaiddyd is Broken and cannot counterattack!

"Come! We can focus our attentions - they are not so frightening as they seem!"

@hresvelged @lockpicnic @renaisguy

guys idk this seems fine - Team 6 Silver Round

[heliacalrisings]

The way Forde looks around them is telling. Innes doesn't want him to know this.

"During our match, I watched Tiki transform only to attack him, and my heart seized for a moment. I thought, what will I tell Tana if her brother gets maimed by a dragon? It's a mock battle, but things can always get out of hand. Innes can loathe me and not want me to die. All it tells me is that he's not quite so heartless."

He stood slowly. "My wounds are fine, you have no need to worry." They hurt, but it's a distant ache and he doesn't let it show in his expression. "Honestly, I've suffered far worse. Innes is a good shot but we've fought uglier than him a dozen times over."

Ephraim gestures behind Forde with a nod of his head. "I'm going to go find my sister." His tone doesn't brook question about that. "Did you know that Eirika has arrived back?"

Forde sighs. He didn’t want Ephraim to feel like he was forcing it out of him but… “I don’t understand him.” He says, glancing around to make sure the Freilan Prince wasn’t suddenly in the room with them.

“After Garreg Mach fell, we ended up in the same shelter. He approached me straight away, asking after you. It was obvious he was concerned about you, even if…” he looks around again, just in case, “he was a real asshole about it. Said if anything happened to you, your blood would be on my hands.” 

He hadn’t planned on telling Ephraim about this, but he was encouraging Forde to speak candidly (and it wasn’t as if Ephraim’s opinion of Innes could get lower). Until Ephraim had turned up safe, those words had weighed on Forde’s mind. 

“Anyway, I don’t understand him. Rivalries are one thing, but that fight was just…” Well, Ephraim was there. Forde didn’t need to describe it. “His actions don’t match his words.” So Forde couldn’t understand him.

“But um, I really am concerned about your wounds. How are they?”

[bxldrsdraumar]

He had not been sure what to expect from this training exercise when he had volunteered for it. The monastery was certainly equipped rather differently than any other institution Sigurd had ever set foot in, with technology and magics beyond his ken, and certainly this strange portal that promised them a fine exercise. A gift, he'd been told, from the same magical beings which had made them so small for their ball last winter.

When he stepped through the portal and into the arena where their battle was to take place, Sigurd shivered. Not from cold, at least not without, though the air seemed thinner here than even in the monastery, settled in the Oghma mountains as it was - flicking his eyes about, he found that they had been transported to a far rockier terrain, far higher, with the clouds hanging thin and close about them, brushing his cheeks with their delicate fingers.

No, he shivered from the strange crawl underneath his skin, the bubble of a thing he had never felt coming from within - he felt the shift of magic.

He had known magicians of all kinds in his travels, and had spoken to them of their abilities with wonder and awe, and not a little fear - but regardless of the warmth of fire mages, the flight of wind mages, or the implacable peace of clerics, he felt only dread, a deep mire of darkness pooling within him. It was not too far removed from the period of blackness that he knew bookmarked his death, though sharper, a thorn in his heart, pressing insistently to be released.

Sigurd had not the time to focus too in-depth on the sensation, for the clatter of rocks alerted him to their foe.

"Everyone, please - gather near, I think the time is on us. Have heart! We will fight together!" Easier said than felt, but he could not allow his team members to sense his trepidation, not even when the form of the great tiger slinked down the scree of the slope beside them.

It opened its mouth, its great fangs glistening in the high, dewy cloud-cloaked sun - and it screamed.

Psychopomp activates! Gricenchos 20/20HP takes -1HP, 19/20HP Sigurd loses -1HP, 9/10HP

Sigurd hissed, feeling the tug of the beast's heart against his own, the strange strike of pain that connected them in that moment.

He could not allow it closer!

Charging forward, though he'd no mount, no arms that he was familiar with, Sigurd pulled from up within his gut, his determination to lead, to strike! lashing out in a dark mire from his fingertips, striking the beast against its shimmering belt.

Sigurd 9/10HP hits Gricenchos 19/20HP with Death [Roll: 11 + 6] -1.5HP, Gricenchos 17.5/20HP Poison Strike! Gricenchos 17.5/20HP takes -1HP, 16.5HP

It roared its fury at the hit, seething with rage at the dark claws that seemed to seep into its blood before it lashed out at Sigurd with claws of its own.

Gricenchos 16.5/20HP hits and hits with Razor Claws [Rolls: 8 - 4 = 4, 17 - 4 = 13] -2HP, Sigurd 7/10HP

Sigurd grunted, but remained tall. He would keep his position between the beast and his charges, as he had done myriad times before - and would do evermore.

His eyes flicked over his shoulder for a brief moment, alighting on the young princess of the Empire, the leader of her own house - another commander, in her heart.

"Come, strike! It will not reach you!"

@hresvelged

Eye of the Tiger Starts Blaring - Team 6 Bronze Round

[bxldrsdraumar]

Panic began to pinch at his chest, watching Forde's javelin wrenched from his grasp and the successive strike to the top of his head – even if it did no harm, being disarmed in the middle of combat with such an implacable opponent was reason for concern, to say nothing of the fact that Aphaea was still within its grasp as well. 

It didn't seem to be harming her – if anything, the whole thing seemed a grand old adventure for the girl, who giggled and squealed in the vine's grasp as though this was something she might have looked forward to for weeks on end. The naievety of children – Sigurd could only hope that the reality of the situation did not reach her, that it could continue being a game for her until she could be rescued. 

Sigurd reached for Mark, who had dug her hands ineffectually into the writhing mass to tug, trying to pull the girl free as best she could, only for the vines to slither in her direction as well, looking to suck her in alongside the child. He took a gentle bonk to his head from Forde's head in the process, grunting and gritting his teeth in frustration, swiping to grab the lance from its grip. 

"They only want to play, you know," he heard muffled from within the creak of vines – there! He reached forward again, trying to dig into the vines to find the human-shaped space where Aphaea might be. The girl giggled again, kicking his hand gently. "Do you not like this game? Should we be playing something else?" 

"Well, perhaps it's merely that we don't know the rules," he needed to keep her talking, could not lose her location, "Why don't you ask your friend to let you out and you can explain it to us?" 

"Hmph," Sigurd could hear the pout in her voice, the turn-up of her little button nose. "Are you sure you aren't just a little slow?" 

@renaisguy

Whoa! Nice Creepy Doll You Got There

[bxldrsdraumar]

It heartened him, to see that his companions were not only eager to join in the fray, but capable as well. Though they all seemed to be at odds with their arms, they were working together effectively to mount a ferocious front against the sleek, striped beast - from the young knight who had made his acquaintance early, to the princess who had followed Sigurd's lead and taken a staggering retaliation, to the young healer who attended her.

"Yngvi?" Sigurd turned, the name of his countryman - of a dear friend - immediate and striking in his periphery. He felt the warmth of healing hands from so long ago, and his eyes raked over the young lady, a grin forming on his face. "Then we are neighbors! Once times are calmer, I should love to hear whence you hail - and a lady, you say? You do have the Yngvi look about you, don't you? Well met, then, my lady - I hope to serve you as I have your house for many years!"

Psychopomp activates!  Gricenchos 9.5/20HP takes -1HP, 8.5/20HP Sigurd 7/10HP takes -1HP, 6/10HP

He felt the tug of life at his heart, the thrum of strings in his chest that seeped the life of their opponent as well as his own, and he had to gasp at the discomfort - the tiger, for its part, hissed, baring its teeth at him.

"But first, I think, I shall attend to you."

He still did not have a handle on this whole magic business, but he knew death, and he knew pain, and he knew the emptiness that tugged at his gut as he strode across a battlefield and left red in his wake - pulling that sensation from his gut, he lunged forward and pressed his palms to the beast's side.

Sigurd 6/10HP hits Gricenchos 8.5/10HP with Death [Roll: 8 + 3 = 11] -1.5HP, Gricenchos 7/20HP Poison Strike! Gricenchos takes -1HP, 6/20HP

It roared its dissatisfaction with him, and snapped its jaws in his face, clamping down heavily on the juncture near his shoulder.

Gricenchos 6/20HP critically hits Sigurd 6/10HP with Fearsome Fangs [Roll: 19 - 4 = 15] -5HP, Sigurd 1/10HP +2.5, Gricenchos 8.5/20HP

Seasoned warrior though he was, Sigurd felt no shame that he screamed.

Eye of the Tiger Starts Blaring - Team 6 Bronze Round

[bxldrsdraumar]

And so too fell their charming red knight - Sigurd shook his head, gritting his teeth at the losses. From the start, their enemy had displayed a brutal efficiency, targeting them one at a time, dispatching them with shocking speed. First the young lady Yngvi, whom he had promised to protect - and failed - and then followed young Forde, whose likeness he could not have shaken from his mind's eye with another close to his heart.

The last remaining of their little troupe, the princess of the southern country Adrestia, rode up to him, sniping one of the remaining foes, and staring him in the eye with such intensity that he could not help but grin his agreement.

There was a side of him not oft seen - his Holy Blood seemed to hide it, the veneer of ease of a man such as he, that floated through the world on footsteps lightened by the promise of greater things - but when it came down to it, Sigurd was a man who craved challenge, who sought the thrill of combat, just as any man might.

And, yes, perhaps there may have lie a touch of the bloodthirst. He was a soldier, first and foremost.

"Your highness, if you would fight, then what would I be to back down? Cover your ears."

Let Fly! Sigurd uses all charges of Venom Blast on all enemies [Roll: 19], -2HP Umbral Beast 8/10HP, Umbral Beast is inflicted with Toxic Poison! Hegemon Husk 4/10HP**, Hegemon Husk is inflicted with Toxic Poison!

The words had no sooner left his lips than he had lit the fuse of his cannonade, shucking ball after ball after ball of sizzling, rank poison into the field of the enemy, shattering on impact with the ground and searing the shadowy creature and the tall, lanky monster whose likeness bore also the princess.

A mystery for another time, he supposed, as he hunkered down for the shadowy beast's retaliatory snap.

Umbral Beast hits Sigurd with Bite [Roll: 5], -0HP Sesshoseki! Umbral Beast takes -2HP, Umbral Beast 6/10HP

He could not help the throaty laugh as the beast winced, whimpered, skittered back from him with shattered teeth.

"Perhaps you would like my flesh? You might find it hard to find, but if you are tenacious you may get what you desire! Come, break yourself against me again, and find out!"

Hegemon Husk 4/10HP** misses and misses Sigurd 10/10HP with Crushing Swipe [Rolls: 3, 5]

His taunting had almost distracted him from the attack of the tall monstrous woman, but he shoved his bulk aside in time for her to stumble as well.

And then, the beast circled back, and tried again.

Umbral Beast hits and hits Sigurd with Bite [Rolls: 11, 8], -0HP, Sigurd 10/10HP Sesshoseki! Umbral Beast takes -4HP, Umbral Beast 2/10HP Sigurd cannot counter at melee

He was slow, he found, under all this armor - had never found a use for it, merely the speed of his horse and the strength of his body and blood enough to drive him forward. It had its advantages, certainly, as over and over, the attacks did nothing but cause the dull beast to whimper, but to try again, its impulse directed by a higher hand.

Umbral Beast hits Sigurd with Bite [Roll: 13] -0HP, Sigurd 10/10HP Sesshoseki! Umbral Beast takes -2HP, Umbral Beast 0/10HP

"Ah! Look out!" The final strike seemed to pluck at a chord within the beast, some trigger of its impotent rage, stoking the fires within it at its own uselessness that even as it died, it could not have done much more than splash uselessly against Sigurd's platemail.

With a shove, he tucked the young princess behind him, and bore the brunt of it.

Umbral Surge hits Sigurd [Roll: 9] and misses Edelgard [Roll: 3], Sigurd loses -2HP, Sigurd 8/10HP Umbral Beast has been defeated!

Seeming to seek out her mirror, the tall woman rushed forward, and with a power that called a familiar song in a different language, she cast some strange hex on him that shook him, his heart shivering in between the cage of his ribs, stoking the spine of the beast that lay dormant in his gut these long months.

Hegemon Husk critically hits and critically hits Sigurd with Twin Crests [Rolls: 17, 20], -2HP lmao Sigurd 6/10HP +1HP, Hegemon Husk 5/10HP** [Crest of Flames proc: 1, Sigurd cannot counterattack]

But he shook that off, too, just as all the other attacks.

Hegemon Husk hits Sigurd with Twin Crests [Roll: 9] -0HP, Sigurd 6/10HP [Crest of Flames proc: 1, Sigurd cannot counterattack]

Turning to the young princess, he allowed her a charming smile, and cocked his head. "I am in fine form to continue as long as you shall, your highness. I am out of practice in saying so, but, this is to your benefit - lead the charge, my lady, and I shall follow."

Toxic Poison! Hegemon Husk takes -1HP, 3/10HP**

walk on through a red parade - team 6 gold round