"Peasants like you are undeserving of names. You are nothing more than slaves, dirt underneath our boots! You don't see the dirt groveling over names, now do you?"
That's what the nobles said to each and every peasant who wanted to be like any other peasant outside of the castle boundaries. Those outsiders were different, free to do as they will. But the nobles warned them that the outsiders were also savages, murderers, wild like the wolves and bears in the forest. People that nobody should aspire to be.
No, the best peasants were busy ones, working as slaves as they worked at the few factories the nobles acquired from the great Shark God. The conditions were filthy and horrible, almost unbearable with the little time they had to eat, sleep, and spend time with their families. But it was better this way, so the nobles said.
The child had no name. He had worked much like his parents and their parents and the ancestors before them. They were assigned to the windmills, told to turn the great big wheel so that the fan could move and this wonderous "electric energy" would power the castle. Of course, they had no choice. It was either do as the nobles said or get fifty lashes of the whip and no dinner. It was grueling, boring work, pushing a wheel around and around with thirty others, in the hopes that the windmill would generate enough energy to please the nobles.
As he grew up, though, his magic began to develop. He found himself with strings around his fingers, which moved around almost on their own. It made the day's work easier, as the strings carried the weight of whatever they held, taking the pressure off the small boy's hands and body. He used them whenever he thought the watchmen wouldn't notice, sometimes even taking the place of two other slaves as they took a rest.
He was not lucky forever. One of the watchmen noticed what he was doing and reported it. He was allowed to continue, but as a result, none of the other slaves got food. "No work, no dinner," the nobles said. The boy protested over and over, but the nobles would not budge. If he wanted to do all the work, fine. However, the others would starve, and that wouldn't be very good, would it? The boy became more and more desperate in his pleas until, in a rage, he lashed out with his strings at one of them.
The strings attached to the noble's arms, legs, head...whatever they could reach. And like a puppet, the boy controlled the noble's every move until he gave in. The slaves would be allowed to have a break, as long as the boy took their place for however long they rested. Pleased, the boy accepted the proposition, eager to see things improve.
Someone had other ideas.
It was easy going, for a time. The boy's power grew as he did, the strings handling more and more weight on their own before snapping. He could control little dolls, and he did so to keep himself company at night while his parents worked. He would always pretend that they were having adventures out in the wild, saving villages and slaying demons. The boy longed for freedom, just like the outsiders.
The nobles caught wind of this and offered him another preposition: if he could control at least one slave, he would be free in a week's time to do whatever. Naive as he was, he accepted and did so, helping out with work indirectly. It was harder to control a person and took more energy, but it was alright, right?
One slave became two. Two became five. Five became ten. He was made to control more and more, and he noticed that afterwards, not only did he feel exhausted, but the other slaves had no memory of what happened. He wanted to argue against the nobles, but they had his parents, ready to slit their throats if the boy didn't do what they wanted. The boy was forced to control all the slaves at the windmill so they would never ask for sleep or breaks, just work mindlessly until the nobles were pleased. The sheer strain of it all left the boy extremely tired, yet he could barely get a wink of sleep. Watching as his own friends walk around as complain of headaches and unable to remember much terrified him, as he knew he was to blame. Their misery was his pain.
When he could take it no longer, the boy snuck out in the middle of the night and ran, ran as far as his legs could take him. Far, far, far away from the windmill, the farms, the factories, the castle. Far away from the life he was forced into.
The boy lived off the land after escaping, picking berries and making tools out of what he could gather. He stole cloth and sewing materials from nearby towns so he could make his own puppets, each developing a personality of their own. He had no money to his name, no place to stay. Not even a name.
Now, though, the Puppeteer performs for others, leaving the past in the past as he does silly little ditties with a little red devil. The coin it brought wasn't much, but as long as he had food, the Puppeteer cared not. Word on the wind was that a trial in the Netherworld would begin soon, and people who succeeded in them would be rewarded handsomely. The puppeteer thought about how much gold that would be, and imagined a grand feast, like how fairy tales decribed a victory celebration for a great triumph over evil. That would last him a lifetime!
Eager to do these trials, the puppeteer headed toward the Netherworld with his puppet. Eager to escape the past and break free of Fate's strings...
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Friday, March 21, 2014
Heavy Artillery
Every day, music.
Every night, music, with a bit of sleep.
Music, music, music.
Belinda prefered more bombastic pieces to play out in public. The brass, the percussions, the strings and the woodwinds, all blending in harmony to inspire hope, to excite the heart, to leave people with a feeling of confidence or accomplishment. It was her greatest joy to see both nobles and peasants together, together like melody and rhythm, listen to her outdoor songs. They marveled as, with a wave of her baton, instruments would fly out of her case and somehow be played on their own, as if ghosts or poltergeists cooperated for the sake of putting on a show.
Sometimes, all she needed was a piano. She would have to go into Regalt Castle to play the grand piano, but it wasn't too far from where she lived. Belinda begged that peasants should be allowed to listen in. The king disagreed at first, thinking them as worthless wastes of space that would ruin the atmosphere of the castle. He relented, however, after her more charismatic friend pulled a few strings and got on his good side. And so, lower and upper class could see her walk upon the stage, her head of red hair tied up in neat bun, her black and white dress trailing across the ground as she walked, her head held up high as a smile played upon her lips.
Every day, her music would soothe the hearts of men, take away their worries as her fingers gracefully moved across the piano keys, her own heart beating like a ticking metronome. One with the music she made.
One day was different, though. The piano echoed through an empty auditorium as Belinda played alone, practicing for her next performance. When the doors burst open, she expected her charismatic friend to come by to say hello.
Sadly, she was greeted with blades, guns, and magic. At the head of this unexpected audience was the King, holding a scepter tightly in his hands and looking all the world as if he were about to pop a blood vessel. "You witch!" he hissed, venomous hate seeping through his tone. "You snuck your way in here to try to spy on me! To ruin my relations with the Great God Yursarsh! You dare stand in the way of his grand vision of greatness, rebel scum?!"
Belinda played on as if she didn't hear him.
"Answer me! You're part of that underground rebellion, seeking to destroy the one thing that gives us prosperity, are you not?! You and your little friend!"
Notes still echoed on. The king held onto his scepter ever tighter, gritting his teeth and furrowing his brow hard.
"Perhaps a little punishment will loosen your tongue! FIRE!"
The gunners aimed at the elegant woman and fired all at once. As they did, the king smirked. Not even a giant could survive so many bullets at once, nevermind a plain old piano player. He thought of all the praise and rewards he would get for killing a high ranking rebellion officer; a little spy of his own caught wind of how deeply she was involved. This punishment would show her-
An absurdly loud chord rung out, taking the king and his knights off guard. The playing stopped, but their ears were still ringing when they looked at the piano. For a split second, they saw a barrier of sorts, bullets stopped in midair before they dropped uselessly on the floor. The pianist stood up and turned the piano towards the group and smiled.
"I'm sorry," she said sweetly, a hand reaching up to her bun and letting her hair out. "I couldn't hear you over all the noise. Now, what was it that you were talking about... Ah, yes, rebellion. What of it? Only thing I am for is turning that dissonant god away and replacing his dischord with lovely melodies and consonance. I will not let that harsh noise, his words, reach out to any more people and turn them towards darkness."
"You insolent little-"
A light blast of wind smacked him in the face. "Don't talk while I'm talking," Belinda said sternly before sitting down at the piano. "Now, where was I? Oh yeah, you serve a dark god out of greed. Such a shame that you went down that path, but even people who were the best of men can turn to darkness. A king Alex and Xavier once trusted, until you ratted them out and crushed their chances of defeating Yursarsh. Such a shame..."
"They offered me nothing! Their little team of ragtags couldn't even offer me treasure or prosperity! Yet Yursarsh, he offered me everything: Power, riches, prosperity beyond my imagination! And who can I trust more: some filthy, foolish ragtags, or a god?!"
The room was so quiet, one could hear the tension between the king and the musician. Only when the musician sighed loudly was the silence broken.
"Dissonant from the very beginning. Wonderful."
"I care not for your backtalk. Your end is here!" The king pointed his scepter at her. His knights charged in and attacked, ready to claim her head. Again, a chord rang out and this time, they could clearly see the barrier of sound she made as their weapons, bullets, and magic bounced off.
She still had her smile as she opened up the piano completely. Slowly, cannons arose from within the piano, all pointed at the guard. As Belinda shook her head and ruffled her hair, she smirked.
"Is that all you idiots got?" she laughed. "Well, if ya'll got nothin', I'mma give you what you deserve: a big serving of karma!"
Belinda started to play the piano again, much like she did at her performances. However, she channeled her magic through the keys, through the strings, over to the cannons. And with each key she pressed, particular cannons would fire off note-shaped energy balls and lasers, wrecking whatever and whoever happened to be in their way. The knights panicked, unsure of how she got a hold of such technology, nevermind managed to fit cannons in a piano.
She couldn't be approached from the front or the sides, what with those weapons firing off every second. The King used the seats as cover as his knights took a magical beating. He got closer and closer and tried to sneak behind her, pulling out a knife from his belt and lifting it up, ready to strike her heart.
The music stopped abruptly, the cannons smoking with magical energy. The auditorium was in ruins. Knights, mages, and gunners alike were knocked senseless or unconcious.
And the king?
His face was smacked with an instrument case, nose broken with the force behind it. Belinda, standing upright, put her whole weight into pushing him back and using the case to smash his abdomen repeatedly.
"NEVER."
SLAM!
"SNEAK."
SLAM!
"UP."
SLAM!
"ON.
SLAM"
"A LADY, YOU FILTHY COWARD!"
After knocking all the wind out of the poor king's lungs, Belinda stopped her smashing and slung her case over her shoulder, breathing heavily after that little outburst. Just in time for her expected visitor to stroll in.
He looked at all the carnage before staring right at Belinda. "What happened? Did someone kill your pet poodle or something? Or did they insult your dress?" he asked, eyes wide in shock.
The virtuoso dusted herself off before walking over bodies to get to her friend. "Oh, I just couldn't take the fact that this man sold his soul to Yursarsh just for some power. So I gave him a taste of my own. Got a problem, Mr. Lyon?"
She could see Juan shiver as she smiled. Juan grumbled, "You could at least go easier on these guys. They're scared senseless... And fear doesn't have very good results most of the time."
"Well, if they can't handle me, they can't handle Yursarsh. Not the kind of allies I'd like to make," the musician snorted. "Besides, I don't want friends who sided with a cowardly, stupid king and never tried to talk sense into him." She sighed before shrugging and saying, "Well, what's done is done. Can we go back now? I'm tired and I could use a little friendly fight with Edwardo."
"By fight, you mean arm wrestle, right? You know you keep losing, barely. And I don't think you should be arm wrestling after expending a lot of your magic."
Belinda sighed dramatically before strolling out, Juan following behind her. "Well, whatever. I just want to be near nicer people. People who won't sacrifice friends for power."
And as the virtuoso and the empath left, the virtuoso took a flute out of her instrument case and played a more hopeful tune, hoping that the rest of the nobles and the peasants in town would take that to heart instead of sweet, yet dissonant promises of power.
Every night, music, with a bit of sleep.
Music, music, music.
Belinda prefered more bombastic pieces to play out in public. The brass, the percussions, the strings and the woodwinds, all blending in harmony to inspire hope, to excite the heart, to leave people with a feeling of confidence or accomplishment. It was her greatest joy to see both nobles and peasants together, together like melody and rhythm, listen to her outdoor songs. They marveled as, with a wave of her baton, instruments would fly out of her case and somehow be played on their own, as if ghosts or poltergeists cooperated for the sake of putting on a show.
Sometimes, all she needed was a piano. She would have to go into Regalt Castle to play the grand piano, but it wasn't too far from where she lived. Belinda begged that peasants should be allowed to listen in. The king disagreed at first, thinking them as worthless wastes of space that would ruin the atmosphere of the castle. He relented, however, after her more charismatic friend pulled a few strings and got on his good side. And so, lower and upper class could see her walk upon the stage, her head of red hair tied up in neat bun, her black and white dress trailing across the ground as she walked, her head held up high as a smile played upon her lips.
Every day, her music would soothe the hearts of men, take away their worries as her fingers gracefully moved across the piano keys, her own heart beating like a ticking metronome. One with the music she made.
One day was different, though. The piano echoed through an empty auditorium as Belinda played alone, practicing for her next performance. When the doors burst open, she expected her charismatic friend to come by to say hello.
Sadly, she was greeted with blades, guns, and magic. At the head of this unexpected audience was the King, holding a scepter tightly in his hands and looking all the world as if he were about to pop a blood vessel. "You witch!" he hissed, venomous hate seeping through his tone. "You snuck your way in here to try to spy on me! To ruin my relations with the Great God Yursarsh! You dare stand in the way of his grand vision of greatness, rebel scum?!"
Belinda played on as if she didn't hear him.
"Answer me! You're part of that underground rebellion, seeking to destroy the one thing that gives us prosperity, are you not?! You and your little friend!"
Notes still echoed on. The king held onto his scepter ever tighter, gritting his teeth and furrowing his brow hard.
"Perhaps a little punishment will loosen your tongue! FIRE!"
The gunners aimed at the elegant woman and fired all at once. As they did, the king smirked. Not even a giant could survive so many bullets at once, nevermind a plain old piano player. He thought of all the praise and rewards he would get for killing a high ranking rebellion officer; a little spy of his own caught wind of how deeply she was involved. This punishment would show her-
An absurdly loud chord rung out, taking the king and his knights off guard. The playing stopped, but their ears were still ringing when they looked at the piano. For a split second, they saw a barrier of sorts, bullets stopped in midair before they dropped uselessly on the floor. The pianist stood up and turned the piano towards the group and smiled.
"I'm sorry," she said sweetly, a hand reaching up to her bun and letting her hair out. "I couldn't hear you over all the noise. Now, what was it that you were talking about... Ah, yes, rebellion. What of it? Only thing I am for is turning that dissonant god away and replacing his dischord with lovely melodies and consonance. I will not let that harsh noise, his words, reach out to any more people and turn them towards darkness."
"You insolent little-"
A light blast of wind smacked him in the face. "Don't talk while I'm talking," Belinda said sternly before sitting down at the piano. "Now, where was I? Oh yeah, you serve a dark god out of greed. Such a shame that you went down that path, but even people who were the best of men can turn to darkness. A king Alex and Xavier once trusted, until you ratted them out and crushed their chances of defeating Yursarsh. Such a shame..."
"They offered me nothing! Their little team of ragtags couldn't even offer me treasure or prosperity! Yet Yursarsh, he offered me everything: Power, riches, prosperity beyond my imagination! And who can I trust more: some filthy, foolish ragtags, or a god?!"
The room was so quiet, one could hear the tension between the king and the musician. Only when the musician sighed loudly was the silence broken.
"Dissonant from the very beginning. Wonderful."
"I care not for your backtalk. Your end is here!" The king pointed his scepter at her. His knights charged in and attacked, ready to claim her head. Again, a chord rang out and this time, they could clearly see the barrier of sound she made as their weapons, bullets, and magic bounced off.
She still had her smile as she opened up the piano completely. Slowly, cannons arose from within the piano, all pointed at the guard. As Belinda shook her head and ruffled her hair, she smirked.
"Is that all you idiots got?" she laughed. "Well, if ya'll got nothin', I'mma give you what you deserve: a big serving of karma!"
Belinda started to play the piano again, much like she did at her performances. However, she channeled her magic through the keys, through the strings, over to the cannons. And with each key she pressed, particular cannons would fire off note-shaped energy balls and lasers, wrecking whatever and whoever happened to be in their way. The knights panicked, unsure of how she got a hold of such technology, nevermind managed to fit cannons in a piano.
She couldn't be approached from the front or the sides, what with those weapons firing off every second. The King used the seats as cover as his knights took a magical beating. He got closer and closer and tried to sneak behind her, pulling out a knife from his belt and lifting it up, ready to strike her heart.
The music stopped abruptly, the cannons smoking with magical energy. The auditorium was in ruins. Knights, mages, and gunners alike were knocked senseless or unconcious.
And the king?
His face was smacked with an instrument case, nose broken with the force behind it. Belinda, standing upright, put her whole weight into pushing him back and using the case to smash his abdomen repeatedly.
"NEVER."
SLAM!
"SNEAK."
SLAM!
"UP."
SLAM!
"ON.
SLAM"
"A LADY, YOU FILTHY COWARD!"
After knocking all the wind out of the poor king's lungs, Belinda stopped her smashing and slung her case over her shoulder, breathing heavily after that little outburst. Just in time for her expected visitor to stroll in.
He looked at all the carnage before staring right at Belinda. "What happened? Did someone kill your pet poodle or something? Or did they insult your dress?" he asked, eyes wide in shock.
The virtuoso dusted herself off before walking over bodies to get to her friend. "Oh, I just couldn't take the fact that this man sold his soul to Yursarsh just for some power. So I gave him a taste of my own. Got a problem, Mr. Lyon?"
She could see Juan shiver as she smiled. Juan grumbled, "You could at least go easier on these guys. They're scared senseless... And fear doesn't have very good results most of the time."
"Well, if they can't handle me, they can't handle Yursarsh. Not the kind of allies I'd like to make," the musician snorted. "Besides, I don't want friends who sided with a cowardly, stupid king and never tried to talk sense into him." She sighed before shrugging and saying, "Well, what's done is done. Can we go back now? I'm tired and I could use a little friendly fight with Edwardo."
"By fight, you mean arm wrestle, right? You know you keep losing, barely. And I don't think you should be arm wrestling after expending a lot of your magic."
Belinda sighed dramatically before strolling out, Juan following behind her. "Well, whatever. I just want to be near nicer people. People who won't sacrifice friends for power."
And as the virtuoso and the empath left, the virtuoso took a flute out of her instrument case and played a more hopeful tune, hoping that the rest of the nobles and the peasants in town would take that to heart instead of sweet, yet dissonant promises of power.
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
Witch
Tea. Tea was all she wanted. Maybe a bit of biscuits and cheese to go along, but drinking tea in the middle of town, outside a three star restuarant on a sunny day? That was a blessing. Brother was probably keeping an eye out somewhere, just in case. Sonia didn't have a care in the world, though; she just basked in the sunlight, Maple draped around her neck like a fuzzy, warm, purring scarf.
It was a shame that even while she was having tea time, men pointed their swords and knives at her like she was some sort of criminal. Men bigger than she was, wearing vests of wolves fur or iron armor, grinning. Good to see they were as happy as she was, but she would have to wipe their smiles off their faces, no? Maple yawned and turned her head, glaring at one of the men. When he spoke, his breath reeked, as if he had recently devoured a skunk.
"Oi, wee witchie," he said, "how long are ye gonna ignore us, eh?"
"At least let me finish my tea," Sonia replied, lifting the cup to her lips, not even gracing the man with a glare. "A girl has to have her tea, yes?"
"Ah, a little time to say yer prayers, eh?" His grin widened. "I'll give ya 3 seconds before I cut yer pretty lil head off, lassie. 3... 2... 1!"
There was the sound of a tea cup falling and breaking. There was also another sound, one that the men could not describe. However, they could probably describe the injury their ally sustained as "a huge bloody hole in his chest". The reeking man fell over like a limp doll, Sonia's head still on her chubby neck.
Was it her hex that caused the wound? A curse? Witchcraft?! They did not have a moment to think, as Sonia looked up at the rest of them through her spectacles.
"Seems like tea time is over, much like your headhunting days. Lets get this over with, shall we?"
Before they had time to run, they heard her rhymes:
"Heart made of crumbs, brain full of lead,
Make these men into stale loaves of bread!"
Screams fulled the air before they were quickly silenced. Where there were men, there were loaves of bread. Maple stretched out and bit one of them before mreowing loudly. Even her teeth couldn't sink into bread that stale. As the pink witch stood up and picked them up, a man much larger than her, clad in paladin armor and carrying a steel cross on his back, poked her in the back. "You alright, Sonia?" he asked her.
"Almost died back there, but none worse for wear," she replied happily before turning to the dead headhunter. "I think you overdid it with the laser cannon function of your new toy, though."
Kyoske scratched his head, ruffling his short brown hair. "You expect me to understand how to work weapons made by the Star People? You expect too much of me!"
"I kind of expect you to ask me, Kyo. I mean, I aaam the only one who manages to ask them for this kind of stuff. I mean, look! Your cross has a laser cannon, a machine gun full of holy bullets, pistols, and even has an additional case to hold all those pancakes Lennard made! I asked them specifically for that. You know how hungry you can get when we're traveling, no?" Sonia winked at him, Maple yawning and curling back up in the sun.
Kyoske groaned. "I could do without the pancakes, Sonia. Gods know I had enough of them." He turned towards the aftermath of the witch's spell and groaned even louder. "Ugh, must you turn people into food? Last time, you turned them into carrots."
"Hey, I needed ingredients for my chicken noodle soup!" Sonia retorted, crossing her arms and puffing up her cheeks. "What better way to do that than to turn the headhunters into carrots?"
"But you already know how much of a bad reputation witches get, and you're not helping it! Hell, I bet you just raised the price on your head again! Haven't you remembered the days where witches terrorized the lands?! The Haruspexes?! You can't keep going out like this and hexing every headhunter you see!" Kyoske held his head before taking a deep breath. His voice quivered as he said, "Don't you remember what you did, that nearly took you away from me, sister?"
Sonia stared. She remembered. She remembered all too well. The church Kyoske and herself ran away from. Those forcing their religious beliefs and slaughting all who did not follow their ways. How they burst into their home, eager to drag her brother away on a stupid, stupid religious war. How she read the worse hex she could possibly find and...
"You turned the priest inside out...literally," Kyoske said out loud, in hushed tones. "From that moment, we couldn't return home. You were branded, Sonia. And nearly killed, if I hadn't protected you."
The pink witch looked her brother in the eyes before giving him a firm hug. "It'll be okay," she said. "I'm a big girl now, you know? I'm not gonna let some stupid headhunters take me out. Besides, that church is rotten to its core and deserved that stupid thing anyway." She paused for a moment, her cheeks turning red. "Er, sorry, Kyo. I'll try not to hex too many more headhunters."
"Promise?"
"I can't promise that, you dummy," Sonia grumbled, crossing her arms. She could see people starting to stare at her and whisper. "Let's get out of here, though. I think I caused too much trouble."
And with another slick rhyme and a meow of protest from Maple, witch, paladin, and cat disappeared, much to the confusion of the townspeople.
Where would the witch go next? And would anybody be able to capture her?
It was a shame that even while she was having tea time, men pointed their swords and knives at her like she was some sort of criminal. Men bigger than she was, wearing vests of wolves fur or iron armor, grinning. Good to see they were as happy as she was, but she would have to wipe their smiles off their faces, no? Maple yawned and turned her head, glaring at one of the men. When he spoke, his breath reeked, as if he had recently devoured a skunk.
"Oi, wee witchie," he said, "how long are ye gonna ignore us, eh?"
"At least let me finish my tea," Sonia replied, lifting the cup to her lips, not even gracing the man with a glare. "A girl has to have her tea, yes?"
"Ah, a little time to say yer prayers, eh?" His grin widened. "I'll give ya 3 seconds before I cut yer pretty lil head off, lassie. 3... 2... 1!"
There was the sound of a tea cup falling and breaking. There was also another sound, one that the men could not describe. However, they could probably describe the injury their ally sustained as "a huge bloody hole in his chest". The reeking man fell over like a limp doll, Sonia's head still on her chubby neck.
Was it her hex that caused the wound? A curse? Witchcraft?! They did not have a moment to think, as Sonia looked up at the rest of them through her spectacles.
"Seems like tea time is over, much like your headhunting days. Lets get this over with, shall we?"
Before they had time to run, they heard her rhymes:
"Heart made of crumbs, brain full of lead,
Make these men into stale loaves of bread!"
Screams fulled the air before they were quickly silenced. Where there were men, there were loaves of bread. Maple stretched out and bit one of them before mreowing loudly. Even her teeth couldn't sink into bread that stale. As the pink witch stood up and picked them up, a man much larger than her, clad in paladin armor and carrying a steel cross on his back, poked her in the back. "You alright, Sonia?" he asked her.
"Almost died back there, but none worse for wear," she replied happily before turning to the dead headhunter. "I think you overdid it with the laser cannon function of your new toy, though."
Kyoske scratched his head, ruffling his short brown hair. "You expect me to understand how to work weapons made by the Star People? You expect too much of me!"
"I kind of expect you to ask me, Kyo. I mean, I aaam the only one who manages to ask them for this kind of stuff. I mean, look! Your cross has a laser cannon, a machine gun full of holy bullets, pistols, and even has an additional case to hold all those pancakes Lennard made! I asked them specifically for that. You know how hungry you can get when we're traveling, no?" Sonia winked at him, Maple yawning and curling back up in the sun.
Kyoske groaned. "I could do without the pancakes, Sonia. Gods know I had enough of them." He turned towards the aftermath of the witch's spell and groaned even louder. "Ugh, must you turn people into food? Last time, you turned them into carrots."
"Hey, I needed ingredients for my chicken noodle soup!" Sonia retorted, crossing her arms and puffing up her cheeks. "What better way to do that than to turn the headhunters into carrots?"
"But you already know how much of a bad reputation witches get, and you're not helping it! Hell, I bet you just raised the price on your head again! Haven't you remembered the days where witches terrorized the lands?! The Haruspexes?! You can't keep going out like this and hexing every headhunter you see!" Kyoske held his head before taking a deep breath. His voice quivered as he said, "Don't you remember what you did, that nearly took you away from me, sister?"
Sonia stared. She remembered. She remembered all too well. The church Kyoske and herself ran away from. Those forcing their religious beliefs and slaughting all who did not follow their ways. How they burst into their home, eager to drag her brother away on a stupid, stupid religious war. How she read the worse hex she could possibly find and...
"You turned the priest inside out...literally," Kyoske said out loud, in hushed tones. "From that moment, we couldn't return home. You were branded, Sonia. And nearly killed, if I hadn't protected you."
The pink witch looked her brother in the eyes before giving him a firm hug. "It'll be okay," she said. "I'm a big girl now, you know? I'm not gonna let some stupid headhunters take me out. Besides, that church is rotten to its core and deserved that stupid thing anyway." She paused for a moment, her cheeks turning red. "Er, sorry, Kyo. I'll try not to hex too many more headhunters."
"Promise?"
"I can't promise that, you dummy," Sonia grumbled, crossing her arms. She could see people starting to stare at her and whisper. "Let's get out of here, though. I think I caused too much trouble."
And with another slick rhyme and a meow of protest from Maple, witch, paladin, and cat disappeared, much to the confusion of the townspeople.
Where would the witch go next? And would anybody be able to capture her?
Monday, March 3, 2014
Harpy Harps on Bravely Default, ver. 2.1 (SPOILERS)
As I near the endgame with most of my classes between level 10-14 (jesus christ Valkrie), I think I can talk mostly about everybody now. And most things. I'll try to avoid spoiling as much as I can, in order to slowly rope in more people into playing this game and working towards WORLD DOMINATION.
Okay, maybe I won't dominate the world. I lack the forces that Eternia has.
For the story, its your usual, typical crystal story: Crystals have turned dark, monsters residing within. Vestals, their protectors, scattered. A chasm opened up right in the middle of a town, swallowing up all but one. Winds have died. The oceans rot. Fires rampage out of control. Earth... I haven't seen much of Earth's influence. The crystals dimmed simultanously, the same day the chasm opened, and a certain Vestal is determined to close the chasm it caused.
As the crystals dim, the world is in danger of another threat. Eternia, the great empire to the Northwest, surrounded by mountains and home of the Earth Crystal, has invaded every corner of the world. Their influence spreads wide, and not exactly for the best. They hunt the Wind Vestal, as the Crystal Orthodoxy (a religion dedicated to being in touch with the crystals) was banned and every last worshipper was to be exterminated. Unfortunately for them, she's a quick one.
Soon enough, four would rise to solve both issues:
Tiz Arrior, whose entire life was swallowed up and lost to the darkness of the chasm.
Agnes Oblige, who lived her entire life in the solitude of the Wind Temple until the darkness swallowed the crystal up and was forced to live her life on the run.
Edea Lee, an Eternian Princess who sees the world in black and white, once ignorant of the world around her.
And... Ringabel, who lives an orphaned existance, memories lost to the depths of his subconcious. Ignorant of himself.
These four would laugh and cry together, toil and struggle together. Live. Laugh. Love. All for the sake of the crystals.
Its a simple story given complexity, as every situation with the crystals is different, and the towns involved having different crisises. Its refreshing, compared to other RPGs. Even those of long days past. Not that you really expect complexity from stuff like the original Final Fantasy. It explores the whole problem of the black and white duality, and man's ego. Each city has their own issues, from greed to narcissism to pride...
The characters, too, are kind of simple. Sorta.
Tiz Arrior (Dubbed: Sir Tizstroyer) : He's probably the sane one of the group, keeping an even temper and making sure Agnes didn't blatantly give herself up to the enemy. He's the moral support, the determined, the bold. His village of Norende kinda got swallowed up, and his brother went down with it, but buries it under a brave face. He also ends up overseeing Norende's reconstruction.
In my game, he's a melee kind of guy. No enemy stands against him; they all fall to his katana, much like Apollo's arguments are cut down by Simon Blackquill's sharp wit. I wouldn't put Blackquill up against Tiz, though; he might lose his pretty little head.
Agnes Oblige (Dubbed: Tap-Dancing Fire Slinger) (AKA: GET OUT Lady):
The prettiest damn character in the game. I wanna give her a hug.
Oh wait I have to say more, right? Okay, fine. Oblige is a shared last name between all the Vestals, even though they aren't related. She is an important of the Crystal Orthodoxy, offering her prayers to the crystals so they may shine bright. However, those plans went to hell soon as the darkness swallowed up the Wind Crystal, and she was forced to get the hell out. She's pretty naive, as she lived her entire life within temple walls. She values life over all and dislikes meat, prefering to vegetables and fruit. She also has a terrible sense of direction, so I wouldn't trust her to drive a car. She's sweet and nice, but her confidence starts off at an all time low. That and her naivette almost result in an instant disaster. She wants to carry every burden on her shoulders, in the hopes that all suffering can end...
Her trademark line is, "Unacceptable." Its so cute, yet firm. She will not become sex bait for you guys. Nope.
Edea Lee (Dubbed: MRDERERRR) (AKA "Death doesn't mean anything!") :
2cute4me
She was an Eternian Princess who was introduced as an enemy, up until her teammate tried to set people on fire indiscriminately. Then she teamed up with the Vestal to beat his ass and then determined that "hey fuck this bullshit time to be on the best side". She has a forceful personality
and tends to sort things out in Black and White, even having lists for both. She loves extravagant things, being fashionable, cutting enemies into itty bitty bits, and sweet things. Really sweet things. She'd probably give Sarah a run for her money. She's stubborn and sticks to her guns, even when that means going against her own homeland...
Ringabel (Dubbed: Sky High Valkrie. Boss Slayer. Judgement maker. Mr. Suave. ) :
His name's not really Ringabel. Or at least he doesn't remember. He's an amnesiac, so I can't say
much about his past. He just shows up in town and swoons the ladies and tries to find out about himself, with only a prophetic journal with him. He's suave, a bit of a doofus, and the resident
womanizer. Its blatantly shown that he likes Edea, but whenever he goes on to say something terribly pervy, Edea is the first one to tell him to shut up. At first I didn't like him, then he grew on me. He made puns! PUUUNS.
I also like him because his Valkrie attacks pretty much fucking crits everything. He sees the damage cap more often than even Tiz. Its a tradition with me: Spear wielders will fucking demolish EVERYTHING.
Hmm, am I forgetting someone? I don't think so-
"Hey!"
Oh, oops, I forgot someone. But you can find out more about her in game! She's pretty much a stubborn, hot headed fairy. She got sass, ya'll.
I really like the dynamic the four have together, and with other minor characters. I wish Ringabel's personality was expanded on more aside from "Suave Womanizer", but... If you check the journal...
Well, was he supposed to exist? Is everything in this story as black and white as it seems?
Well... Pick up a copy and see for yourself!
Okay, maybe I won't dominate the world. I lack the forces that Eternia has.
For the story, its your usual, typical crystal story: Crystals have turned dark, monsters residing within. Vestals, their protectors, scattered. A chasm opened up right in the middle of a town, swallowing up all but one. Winds have died. The oceans rot. Fires rampage out of control. Earth... I haven't seen much of Earth's influence. The crystals dimmed simultanously, the same day the chasm opened, and a certain Vestal is determined to close the chasm it caused.
As the crystals dim, the world is in danger of another threat. Eternia, the great empire to the Northwest, surrounded by mountains and home of the Earth Crystal, has invaded every corner of the world. Their influence spreads wide, and not exactly for the best. They hunt the Wind Vestal, as the Crystal Orthodoxy (a religion dedicated to being in touch with the crystals) was banned and every last worshipper was to be exterminated. Unfortunately for them, she's a quick one.
Soon enough, four would rise to solve both issues:
Tiz Arrior, whose entire life was swallowed up and lost to the darkness of the chasm.
Agnes Oblige, who lived her entire life in the solitude of the Wind Temple until the darkness swallowed the crystal up and was forced to live her life on the run.
Edea Lee, an Eternian Princess who sees the world in black and white, once ignorant of the world around her.
And... Ringabel, who lives an orphaned existance, memories lost to the depths of his subconcious. Ignorant of himself.
These four would laugh and cry together, toil and struggle together. Live. Laugh. Love. All for the sake of the crystals.
Its a simple story given complexity, as every situation with the crystals is different, and the towns involved having different crisises. Its refreshing, compared to other RPGs. Even those of long days past. Not that you really expect complexity from stuff like the original Final Fantasy. It explores the whole problem of the black and white duality, and man's ego. Each city has their own issues, from greed to narcissism to pride...
The characters, too, are kind of simple. Sorta.
Tiz Arrior (Dubbed: Sir Tizstroyer) : He's probably the sane one of the group, keeping an even temper and making sure Agnes didn't blatantly give herself up to the enemy. He's the moral support, the determined, the bold. His village of Norende kinda got swallowed up, and his brother went down with it, but buries it under a brave face. He also ends up overseeing Norende's reconstruction.
In my game, he's a melee kind of guy. No enemy stands against him; they all fall to his katana, much like Apollo's arguments are cut down by Simon Blackquill's sharp wit. I wouldn't put Blackquill up against Tiz, though; he might lose his pretty little head.
Agnes Oblige (Dubbed: Tap-Dancing Fire Slinger) (AKA: GET OUT Lady):
The prettiest damn character in the game. I wanna give her a hug.
Oh wait I have to say more, right? Okay, fine. Oblige is a shared last name between all the Vestals, even though they aren't related. She is an important of the Crystal Orthodoxy, offering her prayers to the crystals so they may shine bright. However, those plans went to hell soon as the darkness swallowed up the Wind Crystal, and she was forced to get the hell out. She's pretty naive, as she lived her entire life within temple walls. She values life over all and dislikes meat, prefering to vegetables and fruit. She also has a terrible sense of direction, so I wouldn't trust her to drive a car. She's sweet and nice, but her confidence starts off at an all time low. That and her naivette almost result in an instant disaster. She wants to carry every burden on her shoulders, in the hopes that all suffering can end...
Her trademark line is, "Unacceptable." Its so cute, yet firm. She will not become sex bait for you guys. Nope.
Edea Lee (Dubbed: MRDERERRR) (AKA "Death doesn't mean anything!") :
2cute4me
She was an Eternian Princess who was introduced as an enemy, up until her teammate tried to set people on fire indiscriminately. Then she teamed up with the Vestal to beat his ass and then determined that "hey fuck this bullshit time to be on the best side". She has a forceful personality
and tends to sort things out in Black and White, even having lists for both. She loves extravagant things, being fashionable, cutting enemies into itty bitty bits, and sweet things. Really sweet things. She'd probably give Sarah a run for her money. She's stubborn and sticks to her guns, even when that means going against her own homeland...
Ringabel (Dubbed: Sky High Valkrie. Boss Slayer. Judgement maker. Mr. Suave. ) :
His name's not really Ringabel. Or at least he doesn't remember. He's an amnesiac, so I can't say
much about his past. He just shows up in town and swoons the ladies and tries to find out about himself, with only a prophetic journal with him. He's suave, a bit of a doofus, and the resident
womanizer. Its blatantly shown that he likes Edea, but whenever he goes on to say something terribly pervy, Edea is the first one to tell him to shut up. At first I didn't like him, then he grew on me. He made puns! PUUUNS.
I also like him because his Valkrie attacks pretty much fucking crits everything. He sees the damage cap more often than even Tiz. Its a tradition with me: Spear wielders will fucking demolish EVERYTHING.
Hmm, am I forgetting someone? I don't think so-
"Hey!"
Oh, oops, I forgot someone. But you can find out more about her in game! She's pretty much a stubborn, hot headed fairy. She got sass, ya'll.
I really like the dynamic the four have together, and with other minor characters. I wish Ringabel's personality was expanded on more aside from "Suave Womanizer", but... If you check the journal...
Well, was he supposed to exist? Is everything in this story as black and white as it seems?
Well... Pick up a copy and see for yourself!
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