Oh! Hey! What about this one?

As usual, Lycia and Milah were found together in the world of TerraSphere, this time standing in front of a notice board in the centermost portion of Vinterguard. Ever since the World Boss, Lycia had stuck to the major cities, doing small quests and helping NPCs to the best of her ability. Everyone seemed super thankful, too, and everyone else wanted to shake her hand or hug her. One off-duty guard even bought her dinner.

It was really, really odd.

Milah had explained it was because of the World Boss and the Title that the two had gotten. Confused for the first time ever since starting this game, it took her sister to show her the section of her palm menu which detailed Lycia’s heroic exploits. There currently wasn’t much there. But the title – Dissonant Martyr – stuck out like a sore thing. She bit her lower lip, wanting to ask what that word meant, but hesitating. Milah was most certainly the smarter of the twins, and while Lycia knew that, she didn’t want to reaffirm it.

Here, it says that there are some bandits raiding a nearby village. She stood on her tip toes, one hand extended, the index pointing to a section of yellowing parchment that described the quest in detail. “Any help Adventurers could give in scaring off these ruffians would do much for the rebuilding of Astorea!” At least, that’s what it says.

Blinking wide purple eyes, Lycia turned to her sister with a smile, her head tipping inquisitively to the right while her tail flicked calmly behind her. Whatcha think? I think Princesses can scare off bandits easy enough! Plus we’ll be helping out the common people…er, that’s what some of the older – well, the adults – have been saying. She shrugged her shoulders. Apparently all this King stuff has gotten people really upset.

The interworking’s of political power and status were lost on the young Felis bard. And even if it hadn’t been, it didn’t sound fun and all Lycia wanted to do was have fun…well, fun within reason. She wasn’t a fan of dying and didn’t want to experience that again.

She glanced again at the board filled with quests, behests, and more. It was while she was scanning these that her attention veered off to one side and she saw the familiar shock of white hair in the crowd. Squinting, she gasped before tugging on her sister’s hand while simultaneously waving her free hand in the air to grab his attention.

Hey, I think that’s Yukisa!​

@Milah @Yukisa

 

Slowly but surely TerraSphere had become part of Milah’s daily routine. It was uncommon for the girls to not be connected and playing at some point in the day, and as time had gone by Milah had become more and more proficient with the UI and other aspects of the VR game. Of course the Felis still had quite the way to go; Milah wasn’t naive enough to think that just because they had participated in the World Boss event, and completed a couple of quests successfully, that she and her twin could take on any challenge. There was no denying, however, that the best way of learning was by doing and thus the twins found themselves looking about the posted bounties for something to tackle.

Mmm… I feel a few of these would be better to tackle with more people. It’s a pity Autumn couldn’t log in today.

Amber hued eyes moved away from a quest regarding some nobles, entirely bypassing the dissonant goop and whatever else was related to Titanius. Milah and Lycia were both quite aware they’d gotten lucky throughout that whole event… and she wasn’t keen on placing herself and her twin in a position where they could experience death a second time.

Bandits, huh… Yeah, I think we should be able to tackle ourselves.

It was still awkward whenever an NPC stopped them just to thank them for the whole Tits thing, neither girl feeling like they particularly did anything to deserve the awe and adoration that shone in many of those strangers’ eyes. Far as Milah was concerned they had just done something logical--anyone else that wasn’t a douche would’ve no doubt reached the same conclusion as them in such a situation after all. Quietly an eyebrow was raised as Lycia referred to some of the NPCs as the “common people” in her speech, a shrug given to the blonde Felis in response.

Adults over complicate everything... still, rumor has it that the King was stepping down and switching to a more democratic approach. I bet that probably ruffled many feathers in some of those old feudal lords and whatnot around.

Just old dogs set in their way, too used to living a comfortable life by working the people bounded to them--at least from the history books Milah had read that seemed to always be the usual modus operandus. That would explain the other request nearby regarding nobles, and bandits… well, it was no surprise the opportunistic vultures were resurfacing after such an event--no doubt trying to take advantage of the chaos and the guard forces being spread thin all over the place.

Before her train of thought could continue Milah felt the familiar touch of her twin as Lycia’s hand grasped her own and tugged, excitedly waving in the distance to some figure Milah hadn’t gotten a good look at.

Who...? Oh that boy from the mansion, right?

Her attention turned to Yukisa as her sister beckoned him towards them, her free hand raising to wave lightly in greeting… welcoming, but not as energetic as her twin.

 

When someone fights until their final breath, sacrificing their life to strike down a world-threatening demon of corruption, one generally wouldn’t expect any more out of them. Even a virtually immortal hero needs rest from time to time.

Yet despite what would seem like proper manners, when the NPCs realized Yukisa held the title “Dissonant Hero”, they interpreted it as “Free Manpower.” Rather than receiving the break he deserves, he was bombarded with requests for assistance. Build here, escort there, and so on and so forth. And he should’ve refused them, saying that he only came to purchase some supplies and would really like some time to be alone, but of course all that left his mouth was a keen “Sure, no problem!”

So the white-haired male was redirected to the local quest board, and even from a distance he could see that there were many requests waiting to be fulfilled, but little adventurers choosing to take them up.

A sharp pang struck his heart, and his eyes shone with slight grief. He knew exactly what the reason for both of those was.

Titanius.​

It had been around a week ever since the world boss had been vanquished. Yukisa was killed during the battle, using the last of his strength to deliver a final blow to Titanius that both contributed to the beast’s demise and, above that, protected his dear person, Portia. After feeling the pain of death, Yukisa’s player, Isao, had decided it was time to take a break from Terrasphere. He needed to clear his head.

However, returning to such devastation made him feel extreme guilt. If he had still been around, he could’ve helped hundreds of NPCs recover from the destruction Titanius wrought.

A sigh escaped the hero’s lips, and with a deep breath, a look of determination appeared on his face.

‘There’s no point in dwelling over that now!’ he thought to himself with a confidence he knew not before his talk with Zeus. ‘It’s like he said. I need to have heart, and do what I can to protect the weak, while I can.’

But as the cub lifted his head, which was well above the majority of the crowd, he spotted an overly energetic Felis hopping about in the distance, completely distracting him from his original objective of questing. He tilted his head in confusion, unsure as to whether the girl was waving towards him or- no, she was definitely trying to catch his attention, but who…

Then, the realization struck him, and the look of sudden comprehension on his face was so obvious, it was as if he had a lightbulb over his head.

“Lycia!” Yukisa called out with enthusiasm that could rival that of the girl three years younger than him, a smile appearing on his face which contradicted his previous emotionless expression.

He made his way over as quickly as possible, and unfortunately, his haste was almost his literal downfall as he nearly tripped several times, just barely catching himself thanks to his proficient acrobat.

As he approached, he noticed that the other felis from the mansion back then was also present, and that simply lifted his excitement further. Without the slightest bit of consideration for the twins’ personal space, he spread his arms out and wrapped them around their waists, lifting them slightly from the ground and giving them a good squeeze.

“It’s so good to see you~” Yuki told them happily. They had not gotten the chance to meet ever since the Extermination quest, and he had grown fond of the pair despite the short amount of time they spent together, so coming across them coincidentally was like a blessing.

It took a while, but he finally let them out of his death grip. “How are you two doing? Did, uh… everything work out between you and Madison?”

@Lycia @Milah

 

Yukisa was such a good hugger!

There were so few people who knew how to lift and squeeze just enough for that feeling of comfort and warmth to spread from one body to another body. But Yukisa had mastered it perfectly, so much so that Lycia squealed in enjoyment before allowing a deep purr to rumble through her chest. She blushed, not only because she wasn’t used to the sound, but also because she had no idea how she did it in the first place. It just happened…kinda almost like fart—

Yukisa! It’s really good to see you! she exclaimed, eyes bright and tail waving back and forth in excitement. She hadn’t seen the white-haired youth since the whole rat thing had happened and Lycia wasn’t entirely sure just how long ago that had been. Days almost seemed to blend together here and the more she played, the more she wasn’t sure about her methods of keeping track of time. But, hey, who cared!

Yes, everything worked out fine. She said she was looking for a cute for a bunch of plague creatures near a university or something and she needed mine to help a cure so I gave it to her. I got a pretty bottle filled with gold flecks in trade! From her inventory, she pulled for the Liquid Bottle of Luck and gently shook it so the flecks of gold within could be seen. She wasn’t entirely sure what the bottle did, but she hadn’t yet felt the urge to use it. And Luck was normally good, not bad, so it had to have a good effect…right?

Milah and I were going to head to one of the nearby villages, she continued on, glancing to her sister while she put the bottle away. Bandits have taken to raiding the village and stealing stuff and just being mean. So, we’re gonna run em out of town! Oh, would you like to come with us? I can show you some cool, uh, air-uh-mancy spells that I’ve learned! I decided that your trick with the tornados was way too cool for me not to learn how do to do that.​

 

Milah wasn’t a physical contact type of person. She liked her personal space and keeping her distance from others, even her father could testify to that, and the only exception to that unspoken rule in Milah’s life was her twin… until Yukisa decided to lift both sisters up into his arms in a tight hug without any warning. While Lycia seemed to respond with an involuntary purr, enjoying the affection, her sister’s reaction was quite the opposite as a startled yowl left her lips.

Y-yeah, it’s quite the surprise...

Felis ears were pinned back against her hair as her tail swaying side to side in rapid and jerking movements, the fur covering it standing partially on end. Milah didn’t have anything against the boy of course, the only one in that mansion that had earned her dislike had been Madison after all, but neither did she knew him well enough. Unlike Lycia she wasn’t so trusting of strangers; one of the reasons why Milah had followed her sister to TerraSphere in the beginning.

They were finally released by the taller player, Milah unconsciously taking a step further away from Yukisa just to keep herself out of physical range while the other two caught up and her sister filled Yukisa in on their bounty. Having him come along sounded like a good idea in Milah’s book, he did look like an experienced player, and it would ease her worries just a bit knowing there would be someone else that could help keep Lycia safe if things went south.

You’d think after a giant calamari damaged so many places people would at least put thieving on hold for a bit...

She let the thought finish itself, raising her shoulders in a shrug. Once a thief always a thief, right? Still it meant more practice for Milah and her mastery, moving targets at that--and she didn’t have to feel bad about sticking a couple of arrows in them.

 

‘An earthquake?!’ Yukisa thought in a slight panic as sudden rumbling began to shake his body whilst he still gripped onto the two girls.

He was quickly relieved, though, as he realized that it was not Mother Nature unleashing her wrath upon the already devastated denizens of Astorea, but rather, it was the unrelenting purrs of a joyful catgirl.

Yuki’s already bright smile shone with an even more brilliant radiance from that. He had always been fond of pets, however, they tended to take a dislike towards him. So seeing how delighted @Lycia was by getting his attention made him feel extremely happy himself. @Milah , on the other hand…

He glanced towards her just as she stepped away uncomfortably, and a frown decorated his lips instead of his grin. Clearly, she wasn’t as excited as her twin was about such intimate contact.

“Ah, sorry…” he apologized to her profusely, giving her an apologetic bow. The last thing the white-haired male wanted to do was scare off his newly acquired friends, especially considering he had yet to acquire many companions to share his adventures with. “I got a little excited there… please forgive me!”

Once he had conveyed his sincere, and perhaps excessive, remorse for making her distraught, he turned to the blonde felis and listened to her explanation. His expression seemed to return to its previous cheeriness. It was relieving to here she hadn’t gotten into any further conflict with Madison, and a sense of pride swelled within him when she mentioned taking up Aeromancy. Did she really choose it because of him?

“I’d be more than happy to see your new skills!” Yukisa told her enthusiastically, and without much thought, reached up and began rubbing her head affectionately, like one would when petting a cat. Somehow, with all the energy buzzing around the trio, he managed to forget that this was an actual person and not some pet kitten. He just couldn’t help himself from treating her like one.

But his patting slowed down when he realized what she had proposed. She was suggesting that they fight bandits… something that he had done in the past and come to regret, not because he failed, but because the success lead to hundreds of deaths.

On one hand, he really did want to help. People causing trouble to others needed to be dealt with, however… he didn’t want to cause any more death.

“I’ll help, but… we’re not going to kill any of them, ok?” Unlike before, he sounded surprisingly solemn. It was as though his attitude had done a 180 from just moments ago. “We can teach them how to be good people, instead, I’m sure!” he added, a sliver of hope in his voice.

 

• 077 HP
  

  MAX 112 HP

• 118 EN
  

  MAX 128 EN

-05 HP from Assault Squad
-10 HP from Ranged Squad
-20 HP from Area Damage
-10 EN from Attack Action

Oh, yes! For sure!

Lycia was already nodding in agreement. She wouldn’t mention that she originally was just going to kill them because that’s what you did in video games. Yukisa had a point. They weren’t necessarily bad people, they had just a bad thing. They could restrain them, knock them out, and hand them over to the proper people to be put into prison or something.

…Maybe not that Witch Oops prison though. That little witch had been annoying and mean.

Hey, I think they’re heading out, she murmured, peeking around Yuki’s taller frame and watching as a few other characters seemingly teamed up and began leaving the city. There was a bunch of them, more than Lycia could count, but with they seemed to vibrate with energy and she was drawn to them like a moth to the flame. C’mon! It’s better to travel in a large group anyway. That way, nobody gets lost or jumped by other bandits!

She grabbed Milah’s hand and Yuki’s hand and darted off after the group, a smile stretching her face, her blond locks blowing in the wind.

Except, the end destination wasn’t the village on the edge of the Astorean border being pillaged by pirates. Their destination ended at the gates of a large castle, the drawbridge currently pulled up while archers shot at the approaching player characters with short and longbows.

Uh oh. I…uhm, I think we’re in the wrong place.

Of course, as soon as she said that, an arrow went whizzing by her, the tip scraping her shoulder and drawing a bit of blood from the wound. She hissed and frowned, turning her sharp eyes to the battlements where the archers were. Coalescing the familiar lightning energy within a single hand, she pitched it forward like a baseball and watched as it detonated against the chest of one of the ranged attackers, tiny sparks shooting off his armor and landing on his buddies.

Let’s help out here and then head to the village, okay?!

Attack on Ranged Squad (Roll)
65 + 25 = 90
Defensive Squad: 400/400 HP/CP
Assault Squad: 250/250 HP/CP
Ranged Squad: 110/200 HP/CP

 

• 77 HP
  

  MAX 112 HP

• 94 EN
  

  MAX 104 EN

-10 EN for attack
-20 HP from enemies
-5 HP from Assault Squad
-10 HP from Ranged Squad

“H-Hey, hold up!” Yukisa blurted out as he was grabbed by the wrist and dragged after the overly hyper blonde felis, struggling to keep up on his legs that he was still struggling to get used to. The party she had decided was heading out to take care of the bandits was just a random group of strangers - they could be doing any number of things rather than bandit hunting. Not to mention, the group was rather large, and seemed to consist of players with relatively good equipment... But his words seemed to fall on deaf ears as @Lycia continued skipping along, taking her two companions with her. The male couldn't help but look sideways at @Milah and give her an awkward smile in this situation.

To no surprise, the trio found themselves not at the small village which the bandits had been harrassing, but instead they stood before the gates of a massive, well-protected fortress. Squads of armor-clad knights, spear-wielding warriors and archers stood in formation outside. It seemed they were preparing to march somewhere.

“Uh, yeah…” Yuki mumbled in response to Lycia’s words. This was definitely not where they had planned to be. He glanced sideways, spotting the group they had been following engaging into combat with one of the many squads of soldiers. “I’m not sure it’d be a good idea for us to stay here… maybe we should tur-”

Fwip.

As the white-haired male spoke, about to suggest that they leave to their original destination, an arrow whizzed by and just barely nipped at Lycia’s shoulder. It seemed that the arrow, along with many others that were now raining down at them, had come from atop the fortress, where rows of archers stood.

Yukisa’s jaw tightened. He hadn’t planned on fighting these guys, unsure as to whether they’d really be able to handle this many enemies, however with Lycia already going straight into combat, and the fact that he wanted to protect her with everything he had, they couldn’t turn around now.

“Right,” he agreed with the felis. As the sparks bounced about the ranged squad, the Aeromancer took in a deep breath, eyes trained on the ranged squad above. The particles around the archers would begin to charge with energy, so much so that the air itself would let out a faint buzzing. What had been Lycia’s tiny sparks began to increase in intensity, until the electricity turned into something akin to lightning. Bright blue glowing could be seen upon the battlements as the soldiers experienced thousands of volts of electricity coursing through their bodies.

Then, the light disappeared, followed by the thuds of a dozen soldiers falling to the ground along with their equipment.

“They should be alright…” he muttered as he winced at the sound. ‘I think, at least,’ he added to himself.

Before he could get too concerned about the wellbeing of the soldiers, the squad on the ground decided it was about time they want on the offensive. With spears pointed ahead, they rushed at the three muscateers, aiming to kill. Though for the most part Yukisa managed to evade their attacks, a few cuts that he barely felt began appearing along his body.

“Milah!” he called out to the twin catgirl. “Try to get these guys, ok? And please don’t kill them!”

Giving the ranged squad the good ol' taze (Roll)
91 + 25 (Expert Aeromancy) + 25 (Rare Magic Tool) = 141
Defensive Squad: 400/400 HP
Assault Squad: 250/250HP
Ranged Squad: -31/200 HP

 

• 96 HP
  

  MAX 121 HP

• 121 EN
  

  MAX 136 EN

-05 HP from Assault Squad
-20 HP from Area Damage
-10 EN for Stable Attack
-05 EN from Damage Supplementation

I-It’s fine, no harm done...

There was an embarrassed blush across the cheeks of the Felis, a nod given back to Yukisa though Milah kept her distance. She really meant no offense to the other player, the teen was just not used to sharing her personal space with someone that wasn’t her twin. Besides he didn’t seem like a bad person so far, at least not from what little Milah had interacted with Yukisa thus far, so as long as he didn’t insult or attempt to take advantage of Lycia then the brunette figured she was fine with him tagging along and whatnot.

A faint chuckle escaped as she watched the male pat her sister, and Lycia’s apparent pleasedness over it.

That’s fine, we’re not really looking to kill anyone unless there’s no other alternative.

Killing monsters was one thing, but after seeing how lifelike people in this game were… yeah, Milah wasn’t exactly thinking about just offing them first up. However that did not meant the brunette would hesitate to snuff their life out if they threatened Lycia--after all these weren’t the nice soldiers that were helping them defend and defeat Titanius before, but people that had actively been plundering and stealing from other NPCs.

Soon enough the trio was on their way, with the blonde Felis leading the way… which gave Milah a bit of concern although she didn’t outright voice it. Her twin wasn’t always very fantastic with directions, but maybe it would be different since they were in a game--after Lycia did love games a lot more than Milah did.

Yeeeaaah, I think we might’ve taken a wrong turn--Lycia?!

A menacing hiss naturally left Milah’s vocal cords as she watched her sister be grazed by an arrow, a few more shortly following and nicking the surprised trio. Mentally the brunette scolded herself for not paying better attention, how could she have even missed spotting this danger?!

Be careful Lycia and keep your distance from them if you can!

With practiced movements her hands reached for one of the many arrows in her quiver, nocking it against her bowstring as she took aim. During that split moment Yukisa had managed to control the remaining members of the ranged squad and, after a nod of appreciation to the white haired boy, Milah turned her eyesight to the incoming assault force nearing closer and closer. Pinpointed what looked to be the leader of the charge the Felis let the arrow fly through unhindered, finding its mark in the man's shoulder as Milah Aimee for a non lethal area.

Stable Attack on Assault Squad
(3 + 33) + 6 + 15 + 15 = 82 Total
Roll
Defense Squad 400 / 400 HP
Assault Squad 168 / 250 HP
Range Squad Defeated

+6 from Damage Supplementation
+15 from Proficient Range Mastery
+15 from Uncommon Ember Short Bow

 

• 052 HP
  

  MAX 112 HP

• 093 EN
  

  MAX 128 EN

-05 HP from Assault Squad
-20 HP from Area Damage
-25 EN from Aoe Buff

It was hard to do as her sister was asking her when people with long polearms were jabbing at her. She tried to dance around them, to dodge out the way, but a few of those sharp ends snagged on her soft linen pants. A few rips appeared on her thighs and legs, a small nick on her arm bleeding enough that her lower arm was covered in crimson.

Oh, that wasn’t good. She swallowed, glanced at her sister and Yuki, and used her free hand to put pressure on the wound. As long as they didn’t see it, they wouldn’t freak out. It was just a tiny scratch after all…

Dancing quickly out of a jab that would have run her through the stomach, she melted back into the crowd, making sure to keep her sister and Yuki within sight at all time. She exhaled, the adrenaline of the battle making it hard to concentrate. The sounds of battle were a distracting cacophony in her ears and she barely managed to block it out. Instead, she listened to her heartbeat, using that as her metronome to base her music magic around.

Her finger cymbals chimed in tune with the thud, thud of the organ, her exhale allowing her to focus even more. She opened her eyes and directed the magic to wrap around her sister and Yuki, filling them with a passionate battle rhythm that they would be able to feel in their very bones.

It kinda sounded a little bit like “Holding Out For A Hero” from Shrek…

Aoe Buff (Roll)
03 + 09 + 06 = 18
+6 Damage Buff to Milah // +12 Damage Buff to Yuki

Defensive Squad 400 / 400 HP
Assault Squad 168 / 250 HP
Ranged Squad Defeated

 

• 52 HP
  

  MAX 112 HP

• 74 EN
  

  MAX 104 EN

-20 EN for reckless attack
-5 HP from Assault Squad
-20 HP for general damage

For a moment, Yukisa simply stood there in a defensive stance, panting from the effort of evading, blocking and parrying countless attacks that came his way. Though he should have been focused on fighting and his own wellbeing, he couldn’t help but be plagued with concern for the two felis who, relatively to him, were the newbies here. Sure, he trusted they could hold their own, especially after seeing some extent of their abilities, however he still felt a lot of responsibility for the safety of the young girls.

As such, his eyes unconsciously drifted towards where he had heard Milah’s voice come from. Relief washed over him as he saw she that, though she was somewhat scathed, she seemed to still be in fairly good shape. Not to mention, she was hitting the Assault Squad pretty well with precise arrows. At this rate, they should be finished in no time.

So that was one catgirl accounted for. Now, to check up on Lycia-

Before he could turn his gaze towards @Lycia , out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a spear heading straight for his abdomen.

‘Woah!’ he thought as he parried the blow aside with his lightning rod, causing the spearhead to just barely miss. It still left quite the gash on his thigh, but at least he hadn’t been impaled.

While Yuki’s opponent was still staggering, the male used the opportunity to engage in another attack. Utilizing the wobbling soldier as a launch pad, he hopped into the air, twirling his magical tool in both hands. It began to charge up with crackling lightning, until the metal coarsed with intense electricity.

As he descended back towards the ground, a strange melody began playing in his mind, similar to how one gets a song stuck in their head. Was this… Shrek?

His thoughts were cut short as the ground below grew ever nearer. He stopped spinning the rod about, and instead held it still in both hands, aimed straight downwards. Beneath him was a soldier, who seemed to be the target of the Aeromancer’s strike…

Except, when the man dodged, it was exactly according to what he had planned.

The metal pole struck the ground, and all of the energy that had been trapped inside was instantly released into the air. A chain of lightning formed between the members of the Assault Squad, electrocuting those that had survived Milah’s attacks and promptly knocking them out.

Yukisa, still panting, turned towards the catgirls.

“We’ve almost got this!” he shouted with slight excitement. “Just take out those knights!”

CHAAAAIN RIGHTNING (Roll)
69 + 37 + 25 (Expert Aeromancy) + 25 (Rare Magic Tool) + 12 (Lycia's Buff) = 168
Defensive Squad: 400/400 HP
Assault Squad: 0/250 HP
Ranged Squad: -31/200 HP

 

• 71 HP
  

  MAX 121 HP

• 96 EN
  

  MAX 136 EN

-05 HP from Assault Squad
-20 HP from Area Damage
-20 EN for Reckless Attack
-05 EN from Damage Supplementation

Milah tried to stay close to her sister, though it proved harder than what she had bargained for. As the assaulting squad closed the distance and brought the fight to them the Felis found herself having troubles dodging as well as she would’ve liked. Being a bow user, and given her mastery choices, the Felis was at a heavy disadvantage--though there were no complains muttered by the brunette. Still the Ember bow had proven to be made of some fine material, managing to aid Milah in parrying an incoming sword before another nicked at her thighs and caused the Felis to hiss in both pain and anger.

Catching sight of Yukisa’s snow white hair the Felis noticed the static beginning to build up around him and the incoming soldiers, instinctively dodging backwards and placing some distance herself to give the other player unrestricted chance of attacking. Already the teen could feel the familiar buff from Lycia, and she smirked confidently as Yuki’s lighting blast took care of the remaining assaulting squad.

Wow, that’s a really cool attack right there… Can’t wait until you can do that too, Lycia--

The previous excitement that had danced through Milah’s features quickly ebbed away as she looked back and finally registered the sight of her twin, crimson staining her arm and the clothing tattered here and there from the soldiers; jabs and attack. Anger filled the Felis, the adrenaline managing to push away the pain she felt on her own thigh and from her own wounds, before determined amber eyes turned to look forwards at the remaining battalion.

There was panic spreading through the ranks, though they were quickly pulled together by whomever was in charge. Shields raised and ready they began marching in unison towards them--thinking that perhaps the only reason the first assaulting squad had failed was that they had been too exposed. Milah gritted her teeth, reaching for her quiver as two arrows were pulled and nocked in unison.

She inhaled, holding her breath for a few seconds, and on the exhale both arrows were allowed to fly away; the accuracy in her shots still holding as they managed to pierce through the small gaps in between the shields and fell two soldiers.

Let’s finish them before they can get any closer, Yukisa!

Reckless Attack on Defense Squad
(71 + 37) + 6 + 6 + 15 + 15 = 150 Total
Roll
Defense Squad 250 / 400 HP
Assault Squad Defeated
Range Squad Defeated

+6 from Lycia’s AoE Buff
+6 from Damage Supplementation
+15 from Proficient Range Mastery
+15 from Uncommon Ember Short Bow

 

• 032 HP
  

  MAX 112 HP

• 083 EN
  

  MAX 128 EN

-20 HP from Area Damage
-15 EN from Single Target Heal

Lyica offered a smile in her twin’s direction the moment their eyes met. She saw the worry, the flicker of anger that engulfed Milah’s brown eyes. Glancing down at her wounded arm, Lycia winced at the amount of blood that seemed to squirt through her lithe fingers. She didn’t think the wound had been that bad when it had first happened but now, well, her crimson life fluid was dripping onto the green grass of this Lord’s land and straining it red.

The Bard winced as the stomping steel boots from the Defense Squad began to march against these players striving to take the land and the castle from the controlling lord. She didn’t know any names or what his house sigil was or even if he was a nice Lord. She only knew that he was protecting something that she and her friends were trying to take from him on order of the King.

At least, that’s what she overheard from the players around her.

Another step back, her purple eyes wide and slightly afraid. But Yuki was looking to be in rougher shape than she was, so she allowed the music to bubble up through her, wrap around him, and soothe his grievous injuries. No one would be dying on her watch!

Yuki Heal (Roll)
05 + 09 + 12 = 26

Defensive Squad 250 / 400 HP
Assault Squad Defeated
Ranged Squad Defeated

 

• 31 HP
  

  MAX 121 HP

• 71 EN
  

  MAX 136 EN

-05 HP from Assault Squad
-40 HP from Area Damage
-20 EN for Reckless Attack
-05 EN from Damage Supplementation

She didn’t quite feel sympathetic towards the guards or the lord of this area if Milah was honest with herself, after all it wasn’t like they’d even attempted to talk to the trio of adventurers before launching their attack. Was this the way they had been handling the patrolling of these lands since the King’s announcement?

We’re probably doing the people around here a favor then taking all of them out...

Though she understood politics the teen never cared much for the game, too much plotting and backstabbing while nothing else got done. At least that’s mostly how it worked in RL, so the Felis had little hope that it would work better here in TerraSphere--a thought this lord and their guard were quickly cementing and giving validity to inside Milah’s mind.

Ears flickered as they caught the change in tune from her twin’s cymbals, catching the healing magic flutter around Yukisa and close some of his wounds. Mentally the Felis nodded in approval, he did look rougher than all of them, though the momentary distraction was enough for Milah’s body to remind the girl that she too was wounded.

Her thigh ached and pulsed painfully, red already seeping into the fabric of her pants, but the brunette bit down the inside of her cheek to distract her mind in response. It was all Milah really needed,a few moments of clarity to aim and fire, and soon enough another duo of arrows slipped through the incoming formation and the soldier’s shields--two other figures hitting the ground and breaking from the group as they cried in pain.

Just a bit more, we can finish this!

Reckless Attack on Defense Squad
(34 + 39) + 6 + 15 + 15 = 109 Total
Roll
Defense Squad 141 / 400 HP
Assault Squad Defeated
Range Squad Defeated

+6 from Damage Supplementation
+15 from Proficient Range Mastery
+15 from Uncommon Ember Short Bow

 

• 38 HP
  

  MAX 112 HP

• 74 EN
  

  MAX 104 EN

-20 EN for reckless attack
-40 HP from general damage (reckless)
+26 HP from @Lycia 's healing

This was it. The last squad. Once they’ll knock them out, that would be another threat to innocent lives gone from Astorea.

‘At least… I hope that’s the case,’ Yukisa thought, his running coming to a stop as doubt began to plague his mind.

Was this just a repeat of what had happened during the raid on the bandit’s fortress? Up until now, he had convinced himself that was not the case since he did his utmost to avoid any casualties, however… was this any better? He was surely sentencing them to a life in prison, and he didn’t even stop to think what their motives could be… just like he did during Reclamation.

Let’s finish them before they can get any closer, Yukisa!

Snapping out of his regretful thoughts, the white-haired male tuned to look towards the felis that had called out to him. Her injured form caused his eyes to widen and fill with concern. The urge to protecc her, as well as her equally injured twin, overwhelmed him.

That’s right… those things didn’t matter right now, did they? What was more important was that he had something… no, someone to protect. Whether or not this fight needed to happen was irrelevant, because they were fighting and it was Yukisa’s responsibility to get them all back safely. And if he let such guilty thoughts get the better of him, then he would have truly messed up.

A warm smile crept onto his lips, directed towards @Milah and @Lycia in turn.

‘Nobody’s dying here today. Not our enemies… or us!’ he thought with determination.

“Yosh! Let’s do this!” he called out to the two with a courage he did not display previously.

Rather than pull his lightning rod out of the ground, Yukisa knelt down to it and placed his forehead against the still hot metal surface of it. Closing his eyes, he tried his best to focus what was left of his magical energy into a final attack.

Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breat-

A sharp pain struck his shoulder, and he opened his eyes to see that one of the knights had rushed ahead and struck him. He quickly made a sweep of his feet at the man’s legs, causing him to fall to the ground, heavy armor clattering. The sword that had been in his hands flew up and smacked him square in the forehead with its hilt. Yeah… he wouldn’t be getting up. If not out of pain, then out of embarrassment.

Once again the Aeromancer turned his attention towards his rod (hue). But with the pain that wracked his body, focusing was virtually impossible.

‘Come on, come on…’ he thought frantically, images of what might happen to the already severely injured girls should he fail here flashing through his mind.

A soft melody broke him out of his ill thoughts. Warmth began to flow through him as the notes to the gentle song floated around him, and with his head hung downwards, he noticed that his wounds were gradually sealing up.

His gaze drifted towards Lycia, and he gave her a grateful smile. Man, these two really did save him. He’d have to get them a present later… cats liked cardboard boxes, right?

With the pain nearly gone, he returned his focus to his final strike.

Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out…

Storm clouds began to brew overhead, lightning crackling between their dark forms. The masses swirled slowly, until the entire sky above the defensive squad was painted a dark gray.

Then, as the air charged with just enough electricity, bolts of lightning flew down towards the ground, each hitting a small group of the armor-clad knights. Unlike normal lightning, these magically imbued ones didn’t just strike: they lasted for a good few seconds, frying those who were unfortunate enough to have put themselves inside a metallic shell that doubled as a lightning catcher.

Finally came the thunder, and with it the forks of light vanished and the storm cloud dispersed. Yukisa finally fell to the ground, exhausted and wounded, but still smiling.

‘I did it…’ he thought happily. ‘They’re safe.’

He lifted his hand in a thumbs up to indicate that he was all good, before shutting his eyes and passing out.

And with that, the battle concluded.

BZZZT (Roll)
39 + 88 + 25 (Expert Aeromancy) + 25 (Rare Magic Tool) + 0 (Power of Friendship BS) = 177
Defensive Squad: -36/400 HP
Assault Squad: 0/250 HP
Ranged Squad: -31/200 HP