Intermission
Zone 3
Thanks to the combined work of the players in zone 3, the ice was slowly but surely dealt with. Due to the efforts of @Rivers Asteire, large ice walls were raised and used as a shield to protect the adventurers from the cold wind that assaulted their bodies. Meanwhile, @Corvella and @Raid heated the icy ground just enough so @Velka and @Aristides could break down the frozen landscape and throw it towards the fire. With a major portion of the tainted ice gone, the natural heat and the smoke from the other half of the obsidian area was enough to completely rid the zone of any tainted icicle.

Oho, look at that, queen. Don’t you believe the mongrels on that zone could become excellent slaves? How amusing. They can dig through tainted ice! I can picture them working on a glorious monument for me already. If they’re slaves, I won’t need to think about taxes, either… How tempting.
On the other hand, the group in zone 1 had a much more aggressive take on dealing with the fire. First, @Madison Freebird, in all her rage, casted a spell to grow magnificent vines that tore through the black crystal and extended towards the royal duo. Unfortunately, it wasn’t quite strong enough on its own — thanks to the combined effort of @Quinn and @Alric Stalwart, however, the vines had their growth speed increased and had more oxygen to remain alive for far longer than before. With the flames being controlled @Emil Trevelyan and a storm limiting the dark fire’s effect, the only flammable material (vines) was alight in a glorious black fire. It reached out for Astor, generating a blast of fire upon contact.

UAAAAAAAAARGH, AAAAA! It was very effective! -AAAAAHAHAHAHAHA! ...or not.
I, I can’t believe this, hahaha… The fire subsided and the vines were burnt to a crisp, revealing his disgusting and mocking smile. That plan had such a great execution, but to think this was the futile end goal…! He seemed very entertained.
I am impressed you considered that ridiculous plan of yours to work against me, mongrels! What a wonderful plot twist!
His eyes gazed another one of the hellish zones. Amidst the black fire, a pure white fought back the tainted flames. Through using a large quantities of her energy, @Yule managed to fight the fire from above and below. Her rain became even more powerful when @Daegon Malak utilized his black magic to drain the taint from the flames, forcefully turning them into your average fire — which was much easier to put out. Thanks to @Alkaid Zexis, the storm became even stronger, and because of that, @Sean Poteitoku could manage to control the flames around him a redirect them at Astor, though they puffed out on the way. The fire was eventually extinguished when @Nikephoros used his nature magic, which befitted of the storm tremendously.

Oh, an interesting collection of talents! I wonder if those mongrels would work for me as gardeners. Perhaps plague exterminators, hmm.
Fed up with his boring antics, D’vangeline decided to act herself. She readied her lance and shield before flexing her legs and jumping towards zone 3 in an instant — the amount of power behind her landing managed to crack the obsidian ground with ease. Eyes glaring at the adventurers present, she entered a battle stance.

Now then, let us begin~! Watching the world burn is no fun. I’d rather dance until death… Not mine, of course!
Zone 4 was a complete bore and Astor did not even give their attempt a glance. Through haphazard cooperation and effort that built off of one another, starting with the pretend knight, @Rudiford Gwyndel, punch-girl @Portia Ahrens and wannabe hero @Yule clearing the path for the rest of the party to help the unfortunates who were caught by the nasty ice, @Usagi was able to get her strange contraption to work in melting the ice, all with out malfunctioning. In combination with @Celestine funneling the cold air to the other side, the ice hindrance was mostly cleared.
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