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Nov 25, 2021 9:19 AM
#101
| The plot thickens..., but always with a cliffhanger. I'm curious to find out what's going on with the Madison impersonator and what the gang will do about it. Likewise gonna be interesting to see how our little armored fox will handle her sister and continue her plan. I also liked the history lecture and exploring a bit how the human powers that once existed vanished entirely. |
Nov 25, 2021 12:52 PM
#102
| Well, now, this is a very interesting chapter. Nicely done on the theories of angelic evolution... and it makes perfect sense that even an expert like Minori isn't sure about how many different types of angels there are. It's likely that other types exist on islands that haven't been opened up for stories yet. And now for a couple of notes: 1) I still see places where names aren't capitalized. Proper names are always capitalized, no exceptions. 2) The first section of the chapter is narrated from third person perspective while the rest is narrated from first person. That shift is a bit jarring. It's better to pick a perspective and stick to it. If you go with first person just be sure to give clear indications of who the narrator is in a given section. |
| "When you have bought your own load of hooey, you know exactly what it is worth." -- Bruce Sterling |
Nov 26, 2021 2:03 PM
#103
| Fake Madison, does seem seem to know a lot about real Madison. I wonder if some sort of befuddlement spell was used to make the group members initially nt question why she was there in the first place. Seeing how surprised and seemingly unprepared the sister seemed by Ala's explosive entrance, I doubt the door was left open because they were expecting Ala. Maybe some other shady business was expected. Who knows if that makes a timely arrival as well. All in all a nice update. I liked the bit of theory crafting by Minori on the ancient history of this world. Though her giving the angels a couple coins for their modelling was kinda BM, then again it would fit with a slightly aloof personality. Some remarks: - I don't think red-light district" is a term that would be used in Arcadia, given the absence of electric lighting. Maybe brothel district would be a better term to use to describe the area - Proper angels are supposed to be really rare, even in Asgard, so maybe change the plural to singular when you describe the people they see in the docks after leaving from the ship - The dark variants of the angels would not be called fallen angels, but would rather be referred to as "dark angels" or "mamono angels", something along those lines. The whole part in the MGE about the gods is not a thing in the MSG (no gods, and no demonlord there), and therefore much of the MGE entries for the angels are not really applicable. As a result the dark angels are a separate species in the MSG rather than a regular angel who has "fallen" (=grew horny) |
MetallumOperaturNov 26, 2021 2:50 PM
Nov 26, 2021 2:36 PM
#104
MetallumOperatur said: - I don't think red-light district" is a term that would be used in Arcadia, given the absence of electric lighting. The term "red light district" actually predates electric lighting -- it goes back at least as far as the Old West -- but since it has an origin associated with railroads (which don't exist on Arcadia) or dockside facilities that served sailors mamono either wouldn't use the term or will have adopted it from humans. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-light_district |
| "When you have bought your own load of hooey, you know exactly what it is worth." -- Bruce Sterling |
Nov 26, 2021 2:49 PM
#105
tygertyger said: The term "red light district" actually predates electric lighting -- it goes back at least as far as the Old West -- but since it has an origin associated with railroads (which don't exist on Arcadia) or dockside facilities that served sailors mamono either wouldn't use the term or will have adopted it from humans. Today I learned :-D |
Nov 26, 2021 10:18 PM
#106
mugen91 said: The plot thickens..., but always with a cliffhanger. I'm curious to find out what's going on with the Madison impersonator and what the gang will do about it. Likewise gonna be interesting to see how our little armored fox will handle her sister and continue her plan. I also liked the history lecture and exploring a bit how the human powers that once existed vanished entirely. One of these days there will be a no cliffhanger episode... maybe... probably. As for the impersonator, why there's a very good and logical reason for it :> you'll just have to wait and see what mysteries it unfolds into As an aside, I hope it's clear now why Ala had such an expensive item like that- to ward off lightning magic that her youkou sister is so fond of using :p tygertyger said: Well, now, this is a very interesting chapter. Nicely done on the theories of angelic evolution... and it makes perfect sense that even an expert like Minori isn't sure about how many different types of angels there are. It's likely that other types exist on islands that haven't been opened up for stories yet. And now for a couple of notes: 1) I still see places where names aren't capitalized. Proper names are always capitalized, no exceptions. 2) The first section of the chapter is narrated from third person perspective while the rest is narrated from first person. That shift is a bit jarring. It's better to pick a perspective and stick to it. If you go with first person just be sure to give clear indications of who the narrator is in a given section. Thank you for the compliments, but I think it could have been done better, your notes are helpful as always, I keep checking and even still miss them. Before I send it I've just gotta ctrl f all of the names. As for the other angels- I do wonder :3 who knows maybe he'll get to see more of them, maybe he'll get to see the opposite side in some demon girls, who can really tell? |
Oct 16, 2022 11:38 AM
#107
| __ chapter 18 An - oh boy it's been a while, hasn't it? Not to fear though, my next chapter has arisen, and with coming to the end of the first arc, I'm excited to see where it goes from there- there's a lot of rewriting and clerical stuff for me to do in the future, but hey, that's what I love about this, is making something the best you can. So with that out of the way~ Her sister's response was to spit on the ground - the inside of her own home - and charge up another bolt of lightning to throw at her sister, her hair standing on end from the static energy that permeated her body with the charge, her face twisted in a snarl. “You’ve made a poor choice to come here, Whore, especially on such a special night” she growled, flinging another bolt of lightning at her sibling. This one was blue and had much less power, but Ala knew to avoid it. She stepped to the side again, but the bolt followed her, adjusting its course to hit her in her new position. It was only a split second, but she had a choice to take it or dodge to possibly get hit with a follow up, the decision being made in a fraction of a second as she threw her body down, ducking under the bolt at the last second. As fast as the bolt was, it couldn't make such a tight turn and ended up splintering into a spiderweb of plasma and sparks against the wall, a small hole burned where Ala could see, the stone of the wall dripping before it cooled. “Mn, I wasn't exactly expecting a welcome home party” the white haired fox quipped as she pointed the sword at the youko, her axe held close in the same hand that was strapped to the heater shield on her wrist. It too was metallic but insulated, practically every bit of her was that way, this set of armor a counter to her sister and her damned lightning magic. Her tail puffed up from the static in the room now, still not within range of attack. Ala was a melee fighter, her sister a ranged mage. The two were polar opposites, almost as much as the differences between an inari and a youko, it showed quite clearly in their styles of fighting. “Oh don't worry sis” the mage growled “I’ve got a big one planned just for you!” she tightened up her stance as she said this, her hands coming into fists, held low next to her waist. It was a stance that looked familiar, but Ala couldn't put it together…. That didn't bode well, of course her sister would improve in her time away… but it wasn't in her nature to adopt someone else's fighting style, nor take the time to learn something like a martial art. Her fists charged with lightning and crackled over with ice, covering the woman's dainty hands with a thick armored shell that popped and crackled with tense energy. Ala wasnt quite stunned, but she was surprised and concerned. She knew quite well that electricity was stronger the closer to the source you were, and whatever her sister had done with the ice magic meant that the moisture would be sticking to her with any impact and the power of such a hit would only further increase the already deadly nature of her sisters magic. Lords why was she such a prodigy? Ala shook her surprise off, lowering her shoulders into a more defensive stance- right before she charged headfirst into her sisters grasp. A left punch was the first to come- her sister was left handed and favored the side over her right one. Ala’s shield arm came up to collide with it, the ice empowered fist having much more force behind it than was expected, and the charge filled the air with burnt wood as the shield had several thousand volts of energy pushed through it, the plasma concentrated into the punch evaporating the ice around the shield, putting far more force down than was mammonoly possible. Nonetheless Ala held true where her shield faltered, landing a blow across the side to her sibling with the axe in her hand. She briefly thought about the implications, the fact that she would come to blows with her sister like this in such a violent way. After a moment of thought and backing away from her sister, she decided she didn't really care, this was enough of a distraction for the other two to work their own magic as she fought. She discarded the shattered, broken shield off to the side, the metal frame bent and charred- It was entirely useless now, better to discard the weight rather than keep it. It hit the ground with a heavy thunk, drawing the youko’s attention away for enough time for ala to step in. the axe in her hand flipped as she changed it to an unorthodox hold, her knuckles in line with the hanging blade, the haft in her hand like one might hold a baton. She ducked low, her metal clad knee hitting the ground as her sister threw a punch to make her get away. The youkos eyes went wild with fear as Ala launched an uppercut, the blade of the axe cutting through her clothing and leaving a deep gash across her stomach where she was unable to avoid it, the dress now falling open as it dangled off her arms. “You WHORE!” the fox shouted, angered immensely “DO YOU KNOW HOW EXPENSVE THAT WAS?!?!?” she bellowed, even as blood gushed from that deep wound and stained the clothing around the cut a deep crimson. She was growing fatigued now, Ala could tell. There was a severe difference in what the sister in front of her did to maintain her shape and what she herself did to maintain her abilities, and it was already showing in this short brawl. Ala didn't bother with a response to her sisters yelling, instead bounding away with a few quick hops, putting more distance between them for her to re engage. “Holy Lords that hurts” the injured fox-woman growled out, her power weakening from her inability to focus through the pain, her wild, incohereint eyes glaring at her sister as a bolt of energy lanced forth- slower and less powerful than before, easily sidestepped by the armored woman. Alas eyes narrowed and she stepped back in, getting a yelp from the distracted girl as she sent out a pulse of energy. It was a costly move, but an unavoidable one on Alas behalf. The wave of shocking force rolled over Ala, leaving her stunned for a moment, but that moment was all that was needed for the angered fox to close the distance with a fierce stomach punch, folding the girl over her fist as the electrical and magical force transferred into her body, picking the girl a few inches off the ground as she let out a cough of what remained in her lungs, intermixed with blood from the sudden organ compression. If neither of the wounds got looked at soon, they both could have life altering damages… but it wasnt incapacitating, not yet. Ala was still stunned as she reeled from the impact of the punch- and she found it increasingly hard to breathe. She couldnt quite figure out the cause, her hands feeling around the impact zone as she took in labored breaths, blood dripping from the corner of her lips down her chin as her eyes remained wide and dilated. The armor fastenings and plates had become dented and bent, scorching to the touch, the heat making them more malleable after all the extreme cold of the biome- steel was just steel after all, and, like mamono, it too faltered. “Looks like.. Its my… win…” the fox still standing muttered out, raising both fists over her head to finish off her downed sister. Thunderous footsteps caused her sister to suddenly look up rather than down at her, and In a blink, the girl was gone from Ala’s vision. All that remained was the heavy, striped fist of a certain tiger woman, her face now appearing as it peered down at Ala ehod been laid out by her sister. "Ih… told you" the panting fox wheezed out, her hands pulling at the buckles on her sides, the strain nearly causing them to snap as her cbest-piece popped up and stopped compressing her abdomen, leaving her in a state able to breath. "I had it" ----- “Mn, I suppose I gave myself far too much credit, Didn't I?” the woman who wasn't Madison said to herself, her voice dropping a few octaves into something dark, almost sinister. Minori seemed frightened by the shift, now more worried for grace as she slunk backwards. The figure grace held to the wall continued to smile, her lips parting to speak. “What gave it away? The singing?” she asked, seeming genuinely curious, even as the knife continued to bite into her throat. The larger Grace continued to bear down on the newcomer who was most certainly not the girl she pretended to be, I couldn't hear it but the clench in her jaw made me think she was grinding her teeth. “Exactly- madison never wanted to sing in front of others” she said, her arm pressing deeper into the girl's shoulder as she spoke. The woman smirked softly and her hands began to move despite grace pressing into her throat- the womans windpipe must have been crushed, yet she looked as smug and cheerful as she’d been before, even with the thin red line of fred dripping down her neck. “Now dear, you’ve already caught me, theres no need to lie about how” she said, able to see through the lie that even I hadn’t been able to detect. Grace grit her teeth and seemed to be debating weather or not to kill her or speak the truth of the matter about it, her hand wavering against the girls neck. “‘S the tail and ears, i can’ see them” she muttered, flustered as she spoke. The woman seemed to have an “aha” moment, nodding along. “I thought it was weird she felt so strong- here I was thinking she was human the whole time” she said to herself, pondering on the body she inhabited. “Well, either way~” she purred as a black fog began to roll forth from her body- then collapse in on itself. I could see the panic in Graces eyes as she seemed to fall forwards, her elbow glancing off the wall with a thunk as the knife made a soft spark. The girl was… gone, just poof, vanished. I looked left then right down the alleyway, wondering where she’d gone and just what she was up to- it was unnerving that she could just… be someone else and even the closest people wouldnt know a difference. “Goddammit!” Grace shouted, whipping around in a rage, her chest heaving as she glared back at us, clearly intent on speaking up in her anger- though a voice from above cut her off. “Mn, there's far better ways to keep someone trapped than with your hands, grace” she said, sitting daintily, her legs dangling off the roof. Now she was someone else entirely, deep red eyes that seemed to glint in the darkness, with long black hair that trailed down her back in a mess of curls. It looked almost violet where the sun hit it, and her skin looked pale as death now that we were looking at her. She had an athletic build, not quite someone who didn't work, but not quite to the valkyries either, a happy medium between the two, with two large rounded breasts pressing up against the now loosened uniform, showing off more cleavage than Madison normally would. Two large inky black wings fluttered open behind her as she sat, peering down curiously. Grace herself looked absolutely livid at this, switching the knife in her hand in preparation to throw it, but she was halted by minori as the fox dashed up to her. “Are you okay?” she asked, frantically “are you hurt, did she bite you or poke you anywhere?” she asked, flitting about the larger woman like a parent to a child. I chuckled at this, getting a glare from the two of them for entirely different reasons, coming in closer to the two and further into the alleyway. The woman was unnerving, sure…. But she would have acted out against us much sooner if she’d had it out for us… “I commend you for figuring me out so soon, but I have a message for you lot from Lady tara she wanted me to deliver” the woman said, finally revealing her intentions. She reached into the open cleavage of the buttonup she wore, fishing around for a moment before she pulled out a rolled up piece of parchment. She let out a soft yawn as she let the roll slipp between her fingers, bouncing off the roof and spinning through the air towards us three. Grace was instantly hostile at the paper infringing on her airspace, and she looked ready to burn it with her gaze. The letter likely wouldnt have survived had I not lanced an arm out to snatch it before the tanker could get her hands on it. I cast my eyes back up at her, taking in what she was after a moment, a dark angel of some kind… a valkyrie perchance? There was no telling just what would come of it. “Mn… From here on You can call me…. Lorelei~” she cooed, raising her fingers in a teasing wave, her wings flapping behind her as they disintegrated into fog, fading her white clothing into black swirls of mist, that teasing, playful grin on her lips as it too slowly began to fade. “We’ll meet again soon, I'm sure of it~” she purred, a deep, playful rumble in that voice as she melted into nothingness. A yelp off to my side made my heart jump as I turned to look back at the other two, Grace had her fist a few inches from a cowering Minori’s head, the wisps of fog trailing away with another playful laugh. “T-the tramp kissed me!” Grace shouted in a rage, pulling her hand back and swinging at the dissipating fog as if it may solve some part of her issue. “I’m gonna kill that woman” she growled out, grinding her teeth. “N-now now” the frightened fox said, trying to calm the human down, her tails waving behind her as her tall ears lay flat on her head. “S-she’s a messenger- a-an… uhm… I don't know what she is, she was using m-magic to conceal her-I’llstoptalkingnow” the fox had begun to speak, lasting about as long as Graces anger ran before the taller, scarier girl glared at the healer. “Oh leave her be” I said, pulling at the ribbon that tied the letter together. This caused her ire to turn to me, closing the distance in a few short steps. "You've no right to tell me what to do." she growled, clearly shaken up by the apparent powerlessness in her situation- her body was extremely tense, her jaw tight and her fists clenched. Her arms were even wavering in her shock or fear of the situation. She looked at me with hateful eyes and reached out to snatch the letter from my hand, though I pulled it away from her grasp. Even so the paper slipped from my fingers as the fox stole it and spun so neither of us could read it over her shoulder. "I hope this letter found you well- it was hastily written and sent out rapidly as a Change of plans occurred, but still it should make it in time. Over the course of today, several hafnas of valkyries will be training in the outer courses- proper hafnas, not the pretty duels you see in town, but actually squad on squad training. Unfortunately a majority of the officer corps in this group is old fashioned." She paused there for dramatic effect- causing some of graces anger to go away as she clenched her fists. "They believe a man is to be protected from the outside world at all costs, no mamono or other influence shall touch him, and thus, they are the group that highly dispises the creation of this new mercenary group. They've been a pain in my ass for a while now, ill not divulge what, just know that it is a very improper use of resources." She paused and squinted her eyes at the next part of the paper, mumbling through it before re-reading it. "Either way, a man wanting to strike up a mercenary group will irk them to no end- even more so if you can take their colors and prove your worth. Petty behavior, but I'll reward you for it- snatch the flag and someone may come your way for help-" the fox finished, flipping the paper over to look for more. After another moment of flipping about, the paper began to disintegrate, causing the fox to yelp and drop the paper, crumbling to dust as it fell to the cobbled alleyway. This caused grace to sigh and I couldn't help but let one out either. This was probably going to get weird… "Well, what's the plan then, blake?" Grace asked, looking up at me. She seemed to have calmed down a little now, no longer bristling with anger or rage, rather looking at me with a soft gaze as she noted the situation. "It's a letter from your contact- even if I hate the messenger, I still think she's worth working for, wouldn't you?" Sbe asked, leaning against the cold stone wall now, her cloak draping off her legs from the angle. "I would agree- there's probably a lot thats going on behind the scenes here… and it's always good to have an information specialist on our side, so if we can keep in her good graces, I don't think taking this offer is too bad." I said, thinking about it as I thought about the letter. "Plus, it sounds like she's got work for us if we can pull it off, so I think it's a good call" I continued, getting graces nod as well "I can see that and I agree with that assessment… mn, I suppose we go look for any marching legions towards the outside of town, huh?" She asks, looking out towards the crowd. "I suppose we do" I said with a nod, before turning and starting to walk- this was going to get fun, that much was for certain. --- "Riight" the jinko responded, pulling her fist back down tight to her body. "You had it like I could fit through that alleyway" she countered, a glare down at the grounded foxfire before a hand was thrust out to her. Ala took it with a slight flush and pulled herself up with the help of the tigerfolk, sighing as she looked down at her sister. Youkos were strong, but a jinko fist would rock any mamonos world, ala would be surprised if she made it out without a concussion. "Shut up and bind her" the fox said, checking to make sure the key was still there. When she found it, she sighed in relief, bringing it out and quietly stepping off towards the back door. She gently eased it open, and paused at the sounds of voices coming from down the hall. She peered through the crack she had made and saw the valkyrie talking up the headmistress from behind the counter, a perfect distraction for her to slip in. She glanced back at the jinko restraining the other fox then slipped in, her feet quiet on the thick carpeting of the floor. She pressed on until she'd passed two doors, pausing at the third door- the exotic room, one of their main goals. She gently pushed it open and the heat wafted over her from inside. She grimaced and slipped in, gently closing it behind her. "Oh?" The hellhound said, lounging on one of the stones- apparently trying to entice the next customer into feeding her over the others. "It's only been a few days since I've seen your face- back so soon?" She asks with a sultry tone. Ala blushed at the girl descending on her verbally, but shifted the key to her other hand now, catching the hellhounds eye. She snarled and was down in a bolt of flame from her mouth as she cornered the fox against the door, her feral nature coming out as she realized immediately what the girl was bringing a key in here for. "You're going to give me that damned key" she growled "and you're going to do it *now*" she continued, cornering Ala with no room of escape. There was a desperate plea deep in her eyes, and ala knew this wasn't an intentional act of aggression, rather one of desperation. "Hold on hold on" she said, keeping the key away from the grabby hands of the hellhound, getting interested gazes from the rest of the occupants. "I'll be letting you free… but you need to promise me something first" "Hrmph. I don't do deals" the hellhound growled, pulling away with a huff as she glared at the fox. "I *do* the salamander piped up, clearly ready to get out of this hellhole she was trapped in. "What do you need from us?" She asked from across the room, her flames burning a little hotter. "I just need assistance escorting the men above you back to asgard" she said, getting the ear of all mamono present. "Well…" the hellhound muttered. "If mates are involved I think I can make an exception" she said, her eyes burning with hatred and aggressiveness… she was likely to go feral the moment the collar stopped keeping her in check. Even so, ala placed one finger under the hellhounds collar and inserted the key, turning it and causing it to click open. Suddenly the hellhound snatched for the key, growling as she easily overpowered Ala from this close- and ala thought it was it for the other girls…. Yet the hellhound backed off and moved back to the others, beginning to open their locks one by one. "I didn't know hellhounds could be team players" she muttered, watching as each girl got rescued one by one. When they were all free, ala counted a manticore, a hellhound, a hinezumi, a minotaur, a sphinx, an anubis, and a salamander. All had perks to working with them, so their assistance would be intergal to the plan. "Alright" she said, shifting to look at the door. "We've got some precious cargo to secure" she said, placing her hand on the door to open it. |
Oct 16, 2022 2:12 PM
#108
| Wow, three story posts in one weekend. Nice to see so much new content. Much better on the capitalization of names this time around! One note, though, on, "their assistance would be intergal to the plan." The word is integral -- same root as "integrated" and "integrity." |
tygertygerOct 16, 2022 7:42 PM
| "When you have bought your own load of hooey, you know exactly what it is worth." -- Bruce Sterling |
Oct 16, 2022 5:14 PM
#109
| Ahhhh, I thought that was spelled wrong, but spellchecker didn't correct me, so I figured it was right, thanks for the heads up |
Oct 17, 2022 4:51 PM
#110
| Good to see another update and to see your writing improve. It appears a challenge has been issued and accepted, curious to see how that group is going to pull of the flag heist. I've got a feeling that brute force ain't going to cut it. |
Oct 18, 2022 3:37 AM
#111
| Well, this really was quite the weekend for content in the club. Good to see another update. Also looking forward to how the group will handle yoinking that flag and how that old-fasioned officer corps will react to the attempt. |
Sep 21, 2023 9:35 AM
#112
An- it's been a while! Almost a year, and I have a lot to show for that- kinda. I'm not the happiest with some parts of this chapter and I've only really done a cursory glance and I'm having some problems with the editing and flow of it- of course it doesn't help that work has been very busy. Speaking of, I'm about to be in the middle of a month long training exercise so I won't be able to make much progress to this. I think k I have it mostly palettable, and with the understanding that it's likely going to be bad, I request some help in pointing out things I've missed. It's not the prettiest chapter but it is long and there's a lot to digest, hope you enjoy! Chapter 19 false flag Me and my two companions for the day made our way back out of the alleyway and onto the main street, and while I was looking all about the place, grace and Minori were leading me out of the city proper. “The valkyries devote a majority of their time to training” Grace said as she led us along. “I’ve seen them train sometimes, they do large field trainings and a lot of mock engagements- If I had to place their tactics… Id place it somewhere between viking skirmishers and knightly footmen” she explained as we walked, and her words took my focus from the surroundings to what she was saying. If I was going to assist Tara in her mission of petty thievery against her rivals in the army, we were going to have to think up a good strategy… surely this was something that the hafnas were prepared for- and simply asking for the flag to be taken down certainly wouldn't work. "So they're light fighters as a whole then?" I asked, glancing over at grace, she seemed to have seen some of their combat before, so it was probably good go listen to her on the details. "Mhm, they have a front line of heavy troops to hold the enemy line then the back line launches up and over, dropping onto their foes from above- I have to say, its a devastatingly effective strategy for the time period. Hell, I'd have to say nearly any army would be absolutely devastated by it." She said, crossing her arms as she thought. "I see- it does sound like a good tactic" I responded, glancing about the street at the various angeloids walking around. It was still weird to see all the winged people- and nothing but woman, either…. My mind was ripped from that thought by a horn sounding from down the street- a sharp, sudden sound causing the crowd to smoothly part and cut to the sides of the main road. The hum of conversation died down, and I could hear the steady beat of a drum down the road- though the density of winged women made it difficult to see anything. The drums grew louder and I glanced at the group with me before pushing forward through the crowd. They seemed to notice me after a moment and a thin path parted to let me up to the front- I guess that was a privilege of being one of the "protected races" on the island. The drums were at their loudest now, and I could see the flags raised up above the crowd in the path people had made down the center of the street. Grace nudged her way next to me, looking out at the crowd curiously as the legion came into view. Their flags were fanciful- a gold crest of a fleur-de-lis surrounded by red feathered wings, encased in the violet flag. The legion itself was a massive number of the winged women- all perfectly in step with one another and the beat of the drum. The ranks of the formation were eight abreast, with columns of 8, as well, a perfect square formation with a space to the rear where it would leave room for the next formation. The commanding element stood to the rear of the formation in the space, from what I could tell. Every piece of armor that I could see was polished to a shine, gleaming without a scratch on it for a single one of the maidens marching along. Their gambesons were a deep violet, with studs of metal in close set intervals to help ward off blades as well. “Eugh, these guys?” she muttered, looking at the legion as it marched on past us, never even flinching or moving apart from the drums steady ring that pushed their feet forwards. “They’re so stuck up- we ran into a group at a bar when we first got here, holy hell did they patronize me and madison for being humans” she said, now thruoughly ticked off as she remembered the encounter. I cast a glance her way and turned to look at her fully, curious about her run in with our supposid adversaries. “So you’ve met them?” I asked, prodding her for more information. “Met them?” she scoffed “they were practically crawling over one another to get the seat next to us- they bought us so many drinks we couldnt drink them all… which was nice but it was in a “oh you poor human here, drink the sorrows away” kind of way” she grumbled, biting on one of her nails as she watched with clear displeasure. “Sounds like the pretentious assholes we’re looking for, doesnt it?” I asked, watching the next rank of perfectly preened valkyries move on by. “Agreed” grace nodded “and they wear purple, which is a telling sign of their feelings towards actual combat” she sighed. Then minori pushed her way up to stand with us, huffing after having to shoulder through the crowd. She glanced out over the formations and frowned. “They look too…. Clean” she said, crossing her arms as she looked at the formations pass by. Of the purple clad ones, there were six platoon sized elements, which made the whole unit a company, more or less. If I had to guess about their numbers… somewhere between three hundred and four hundred, guessing off the rough math in my head. “I can agree to that” I commented, watching them go by. There was another, smaller formation trailing behind them- their drum set to a faster, more upbeat pace. Their flag was a more subdued color, a blue stripe with a light grey on either side, a black sword and shovel set atop the colors. Their uniforms were lighter overall- with a chestpiece of armor that stopped at about the ribcage- probably for ease of movement- as every one of the girls carried a pack with a shovel and a mattock strapped to it. Their armor was far more scuffed- and though they kept in step perfectly, there was still the air of nanchelantness that held over them. “What about those girls?” I asked, motioning with my head over at the second company coming up the rear -causing minori to look over and smile. “Oh them? Those are sappari, they build fortifications and maintain the seige weapons used in the case of an assualt- they get a lot of their training by building various buildings and roads around the island, but they don't get much recognition as an actual combat job within the winged leigon.” she explained, continuing to watch as they marched by. “Well, I s’pose we should follow em” grace said, reaching up to scratch her head. “After all, theyve gotta be who the letters talkin’ about, right?” she asked, looking up to me. “I think thats a fair assessment” I agreed, shifting to step into the collapsing bubble made by the formations passing through. We’d follow them up to the training zone to really get a glimpse at what this was going to be like. --- We stood out in the wind of the sea and looked out over the dirt covered training field- the valkyries were set up and had begun to do infantry combat for their first drill while me, grace, and minori watched from their command point. When we’d arrived, the valkyries had already dispersed to set up camp- the sappari had raised tents in minutes and the normal fighters just- lounged about. It somewhat irked me to see them just letting the sappari just do everything for them, even setting up the main command tent with all the maps and diagrams. There were other angels there too, starting to file in from the followers, filling in a kitchen and a maintenance tent for their weapons and armor, as well as an area for spectators such as us. The flags were posted in the center of the command center, the tall purple banner held high by its post, and the more modest grey one resting next to it, shorter by about a foot. There stood four guards by the flags at all times, two clad in grey, and two clad in purple. They were eyeing each other more than they were eyeing outsiders, though, so I presumed this was the game I was being invited to play, whether or not we could steal the flag would depend on the units themselves. As it was, the platoons rotated out on work, some having shed their armor to stretch, others in the midst of what seemed to be a choreographed training regime- as it was a series of carefully placed attacks and blocks, yet not a scratch got on any of the violet maiden's armor. The grey clad girls weren't afraid to get dirty, though. They dug trenches and built defilades with shocking speed and efficiency, cutting deep into the earth and disappearing in tunneling training, before they’d pop out somewhere else entirely, only to begin furthering their expansive network of holes and lines of trenches. While not as useful for melee combat- the idea was sound, especially for the enemies of the valkyries, who would certainly expect the angels to come from the sky. “Its refreshing to see something different after all those years of modern training” I commented, causing grace to look up at me, then back out at the sappari. “I’d have to agree with you, though they don't have the weapons to really make that tactic effective, they have the right mindset about it.” she commented. “I wonder about that” I hummed in response, accidentally locking eyes with one of the sappari and causing her to blush as she hurriedly dug another trench. “What could they do with knowledge and details of those kinds of weapons?'' I asked, idly thinking about the concept of valkyries if they had access to modern tech- artillery and rifles…. It wouldnt bode well for anyone against them, that much was for certain. “I dunno, but its not like we can do much of it from here- not yet anyways” she said, grunting as she stood. “Alright, I’ve got a plan in mind, but lets have a little fun first, why don't we~” she half purred, outstretching a hand to me. I couldn't keep the smile off my face as I took her hand. “What do you have in mind?” I asked as she hoisted me up off the ground with relative ease. “Well I was thinking a little sparring wouldn't hurt, this is a training field, after all” she said, reaching up and pulling her hair up into a bun- a small length of paracord on her wrist being used to keep it where it was. “That is, if you think you can handle little ole me~” she said with a teasing smile. “Oh it’s on” I grinned back, shifting a little away from the spectators so we wouldn't be getting in the way. “What're the rules, you’re challenging me, you set em” I said, confident enough in my own skills. She was strong, sure, but I had a feeling I had a leg up on her when it came to raw power, and maybe some application of skill would be enough to let me come out on top. “No closed fist strikes to the face- no cheap shots, no hair pulling or eye gouging, and try not to break anything” she said, grinning as she brought her fists up into a defensive stance. “Understood” I responded, crouching lower into my own stance, shifting both of my arms up into a defensive stance as well, the same guard she was using, the same one we’d both been taught. This was going to get fun- it had been years since I had last sparred with someone who actually knew what I had learned. our stances drew some gazes, it was light at first, a resting sappari stopping to watch with amusement, the hushed whispers of two of the purple clad girls, it stayed light like that for the first moment as we shifted away from one another. the both of us dropped our guard for a moment, her hands slipped down to her belt where her sustainment packs were held, pulling them free of her belt, alongside her sword. she held them out in her right hand and dropped them in a pile, a grin towards me as the onlookers began to watch closer. I began shedding items as well, throwing off my cloak, vest, and backpack, dropping them on the hard earth to the right of me, just as she had. with that, we both stepped back in towards each other, raising guards once more as we came within arms reach of one another. “i wont be going easy on ya” grace hummed, putting both fists out in front of her face with a feral grin. “so ya better not go light on me” she said, shifting her weight on her feet, standing higher on her toes. “wouldn't dream of it” I shot back, grinning as I put out my fists, bumping hers to signal the start of the match. it was another second of staredown before she made her move, stepping into my guard with a low blow towards my stomach, blocked by shifting my guard lower, causing her blow to loose power as it was broken by my elbows driving into her wrists. I pressed forwards with my right arm, throwing an elbow into the side of her body as she fell back, adjusting positions and making the blow light against her side. the exchange was brief, and the contact was minimal, but we were already focused in on one another now. i went on the offensive now, stepping into her guard for a brief moment, causing her to shift her weight to her right leg. her left raised and i took a step back, bouncing in and out of a stable position as I tried to bait her into over extending with an attack. she realized it and slid back into her neutral stance, shifting back as she kept the weight closer to her right side. she slipped forward and went in for a low kick to my left leg, a kick I dodged with a back step, causing her to halt mid move and step back into a neutral stance. combatives were far more faints and deceptions than most people realized, as any engagement could go bad with any slight push. it was best to wait until you could guarantee a golden opportunity for a win. I couldnt see that opportunity in her defense, but she must have seen one in mine, as she lanced in for another low kick, one she went through with even as i stepped back. her kick flowed into a shoot through, a move that caught me off guard as her front leg buckled and her rear leg slid across the dusty ground, planting behind my forward left leg. her weight shifted and her shoulders smashed into my hips as her hands grabbed low on my waist, lifting up and away. resisting it would only put myself in a worse situation, so I went with the fall, kicking my right leg up and looping it around the back of her head. my back hit the ground and I grunted as I pulled and twisted, getting a noise of surprise as she went down with me. the roll disorentated her and gave me some time to catch my bearings, but it wasn't quite enough. she easily recovered nd slipped free of my tanglling leg, now with me on my back and her in the mount. I wrapped my legs around her waist in a half guard, bringing my forearms up to protect my face as she sat back, out of my reach. I Took two swipes at her to keep her at bay and to keep her from getting too comfortable, but she’d already begun the next part, what we were always taught from day one of combatives, bypass the guard. she slid one arm under my leg, grabbing at one of my arms, i resisted but she forced it into the ground with contemptuous ease, a twist and a snap of her body had me face down in the dirt with her at my back- and it was over from there. her arm snaked around my neck and, though I got an arm up to block her from getting a full choke, it wasnt quite enough to keep her from getting full purchase and she was slowly starting to overpower me as the pressure built on my windpipe. when the edges of my vision began to fade, I finally tapped, my free hand tapping against her thigh, instantly relieveing the pressure on my neck as she stepped up and away. “round one goes to the logistics sergeant” she teased, crouching in front of me as I caught my breath. “i had to let you win the first one, else it would just seem cruel” I shot back with a grin, raising a hand for assistance. she chuckled and took my hand, heaving me upright with ease as she peered over at me. “Whatever helps you sleep at night, corporal~” she hummed, stepping back to start a new fight, another feral grin on her lips as I too settled into a stance- far too engrossed in her to worry about the crowd that had begun to form. It seemed humans fighting other humans was a rare sight indeed… and though it made me a little distracted, I stole a glance over at the purple clad officers, who were looking at our little ring with disgust. well we didn't really care about their opinion anyways, so it didn't really matter. ____ ala pushed on the door, sliding it open and peering down the hall to see what was going on now- down the right, the valkyrie and nekomata were gone, to the left, the big jinko was standing guard by the door they had come in. perfect. with any luck this would be a quick in and out. She glanced back at her tagalongs, the hellhound and the manticore were closest behind her, claws out and ready for a fight,while the other species began to collect themselves and move alongside them. Ala stepped out and darted to the right, moving down the hall with speedy caution before taking a left and slipping up the staircase in a few bounds, now having fae more focus on the job at hand rather than what was to come. Surely the guard would be here soon, with such commotion something was bound to happen soon, so they needed to act as fast as they could. Her heavy boots thundered down the hall now, echoing off the walls as she came to a halt in front of the first door- a resting room for those off duty. She pivoted on her hip again and lanced out in a kick just below the doorknob, throwing it open as the lock shattered the wooden catch it has been resting in. It wasn't meant to stop mamono, it was only meant to stop a human, so it was contemptuously easy for the inari to shatter it. Within the room were simple beds, dressers, drawers, and other cheap living space items, a candle for light was blown out and the inhabitants of the room jumped up, terrified by the entrance of Ala in such a violent fashion. The door fell flat a few feet into the small room, the inhabitants huddling off in the corner as the armored woman slipped into the room on top of it. The sight of the fearful men brought a scowl to alas face and she wondered why she hadn't done this years ago… “Oh perfect~” the hellhound purred from around her shoulder, causing the men who knew what the woman was to shirk back as she advanced. “These must be the mates you were looking for~” her predatory advancement was halted by Ala’s arm being pressed into her path, a cold glare in her eyes. “Don't touch them” she said forcefully, causing the hellhound to scowl again, her flames burning brighter, hotter as her anger surged. “They’ve had enough wrenched from them already” “Like I give a damn” the overeager hellhound snapped back, shovingAlaout of the way- a force that she had no chance of resisting in her weakened state- not to mention the physical strength of a hellhound, being shoved off to the side in a stumble as the hellhound stepped into the room. The hellhound took a few steps towards the huddle of captives, an eager, sadistic smile on her lips as she took in all of the energy that lay bare in front of her, perfectly open for the taking…. Up until the point her feet left the floor. The hellhound was confused and her feet kicked as her hands came up to her neck grasping at the new clawed hand that gripped around the back of her neck. “My, did you forget you weren't the only one here~” that sing-song voice hummed from behind as Nalta continued to hold the girl off her feet as she flailed in the manticore's arms. Ala’s eyes fixated on the manticore, agape with shock and relief. The surprise had been part of it sure, but the unnatural strength with which Nalta held the hellhound was mildly terrifying. Manticores were known to be sadistic and cruel, so a manticore with her strength…Alahoped to never be on her bad side. The hellhound couldn't break the grip of the manticore, and she looked frustrated to have been turned on by someone she'd probably assumed to be in league with her true thoughts. “You- bitch” the hellhound got out, causing nalta to snicker before suddenly yanking the hellhound back. There was a soft thump of skin on skin as nalta brought her in tight, her arm looping around and closing about the ashen skinned woman's neck, cutting off the blood flow to the head as the hellhound retaliated with elbow strikes that probably would have put Ala down for the count, yet nalta was just… taking it. The Salamander and the hinazumi stepped in and snagged the hellhound's arms, easily holding them with the assistance of nalta. Perhaps this was the difference between a fully charged mamono when compared to someone with an empty stomach like herself. In the time it took to think about those things. The hellhound was out cold, limp in naltas arms. Nalta let her slump down slowly, placing her on the ground so as to not wake her, before she stood up and cracked her knuckles. “Anyone else who wants to go against the plan can talk to me” she purred, glancing at the rest of the mamono, now having a broad, sadistic smile that slew all thoughts of wrenching away these humans right where they stood. Unfortunately, the only three that remained were the salamander, the hinazumi, and Nalta herself- so her sadistic one liner fell on already compliant ears. “Alright, '' Ala said, now upright and back together, her eyes scanning the empty hallway behind the four. She paused and turned to the group of men, looking at them closer. They showed clear signs of fear, worry, and apprehension. They glanced among one another and had a hushed conversation- not that Ala couldn't hear them. “Are we sure this is much better?” one asked, glancing between the group. “I mean they fed us at least- kept us healthy… better than the ones that picked us up” “I mean there's not much choice- they’re the ones with the swords, '' another commented. “Fighting them hasn't really been the best-” “We could run- windows got an overhang under it, it’d just be a bruise” another one- “You’re crazy, we’d die if we ran- we should just go with them” the last one- that there were four of them was mildly infuriating to her- they could amass such wealth off of the suffering of those defenseless… She shook her head and looked to speak to the group. “We aren't going to hurt you” she started out, holding out a hand “we’re going to get you out- and move you to valhalla- there you can avoid the… eccentricities of mamono.” she said, glancing at the room. It was barren and spartan and overall disgusting in the eyes of anyone with the thoughts of modern comforts on their mind. "You can take your chances with them, I think it's about time I get away from these crazies" the one who spoke about the window commented, getting a harsh glare from one of the others. "You happen to still be chained, they have the keys- really it's a no brainer" Ala rolled her eyes and stepped forwards "yes- and we don't have time to argue, that is, unless you want to be hunted down as ‘property’ from the resident crime lord” she finished casting a glare at the fiery man. The man faltered at her words, growling something under his breath before he stepped up. "Unlock me- I'll take my chances out there" he spat, venom in his voice. "Don't listen to him, he's an otherworlder, he doesn't know what he's talking about-" another man, one of slight build… he was exceptionally small for a human, without the typical height of the otherworlders, it was easy to tell who had been born on the island and who hadn't. The young man of slight stature, clearly spent his life subservient to the mammono… and that disgusted her. She grabbed the defiant man by the collar and pulled him closer, though he fought it every inch, holding the thick iron collar as she slipped the key into the lock, turning it, the collar popped free with a shine of a magical rune. Ala slipped her pack off of one shoulder as she released the man, sliding the collar into her pack for later. If they could find a runesmith, they could likely figure out who was supplying the collars to the slavers. Suddenly there were sounds of shouting and violence downstairs, the clashing of steel and steel ringing through the building as the occupants turned to look towards the stairs. There were several low snaps, and it was clear Lyra growled out in pain, before there was another powerful thud that shook the whole house. The defiant man took that as his cue to vault the windowsill and fall with a yelp of panic as he went over the edge. "Ala- get them to safety" nalta said in an excited tone, lowering her stance as she let loose a feral grin “I have some stress to relieve~” before Ala could even formulate a response, much less stop her, the manticore was already darting down the small staircase and into the fray that was happening beneath them- more than likely mercenaries hired as guards. She chewed her lip in frustration- before pointing to the men. “Follow me or don't- I’ve broken your chains- you can find somewhere to live that's better” she said, looking pointedly at the uncooperative one as she gave up on saving them all. Three of four was still a better ratio, if he wasn't going to cooperate, so be it. She stepped up to the others with as much gentleness as she could, inserting the key and twisting to unlock the collars one by one. With that done, she glanced at them again and nodded, before stepping over the hellhound's body and making her way back to the hall. The salamander and hinezumi watched for a brief moment, looking at the men and then to Ala. “There is a sanctuary in Valhalla, right?” the salamander asked, looking at the kitsune “I mean, they will accept us, right?” “Of course” Ala said “there's a district for those of non angel descent, you two will be safe there” Ala confirmed, getting two sighs of relief from the duo of mamono. “Now,” the kitsune muttered “follow me, and keep them between us, we’ll meet the others back at the ship” she said, crouching low to dash down the stairs and away. --- Lyra’s head was splitting- she couldnt remember exactly what it was she was doing- why was she so angry, what was… she opened her eyes and took in her surroundings. Why couldnt she breathe? What happened in the last five minutes? She blinked at the open door shed been standing at- hazy figures stalked through the doors- hooded figures, the glimmering of steel in their hands, bucklers, raipiers, longswords, fanciful weapons that glinted brightly in the light. The lead woman held her sword aloft, crimson blood dripping down its length. “Ah, it seems the brute didn't die- a shame, her body would have sold well” the woman commented- producing a rag to wipe the blood from her blade with a simple flourish “It still might” another one added in, a mage, placing her hands on her hips, wrists laden with heavy silver bangles, her staff leaning in the crook of her arm as she peered at lyra. “If i poison her she wont have any other wounds, the important bits will remain good- necromancers will enjoy the bones- and the fur should sell well” Not good. this was very not good. Her weapons were out of her hands- whatever had hit her had knocked them loose- likely a spell from that mage. She grunted as she placed a palm to her chest, feeling the heat and ash come away on her big paw. Yeah, that was the mage for certain. She stood with a clawed hand on the wall, gripping it and hefting her bulk to stand fully- towering over these much smaller beings. Lyra noted there were four of them. Four against one was going to be a rough fight, but there wasnt much to be done otherwise. Honestly she hadnt been expecting a fight- just a quick snatch and grab. Ah well, the lords gave her a fight- who was she to deny the adversaries their fun? They didn't seem to have much worry about the injured Jinko. That would most certainly be their doom. They entered carelessly, seeing her as a single guard and a presence that was a hindrance to their plans- whatever they may be. “To think the deal would be leaked on the day of- the luck of these vixens” the lead woman said, placing a hand on her cheek in a disapproving manner as her dark purple eyes landed on the standing tiger mamono "A pity truely" the mage responded, bringing her staff back to bear. There was a soft chime as the tip of the staff tapped the ground, and Lyra could feel the pressure in the room increase as the mage began casting her spell. Lyra grimaced. She wasn't going to make it to the mage before the spell finished, so she needed to give herself the most range possible to give herself the time to dodge it. Poison spells usually required contact or a dart, right? Luckily she would never have to find out. While Lyra was preparing to dodge and the mage was solely focused on her, a sudden furious shape crashed through the doorway. Everyone in the room had their gaze directed elsewhere as the sharp click of claws across a hardwood floor skittered into the room. She was silent- in a feral big cat cornering a mouse kind of way. The mage had no time to react as nalta closed the distance with fangs and claws bared, tackling her into the alleyway with an evil laugh of joyful bloodlust. She never got to complete her spell. Now there were three left, looking shocked at the disappearance of their mage- and Lyra moved to capitalize on that. She too lumbered into a charge, her steps not as graceful or as quiet as naltas, a thunderous powerhouse that would rock anyone she came into contact with. An equally feral grin split her lips as she closed the distance- any day that she got to show off her hand to hand prowess is a was a good day in her mind. _____ The next few matches went by much the same- we weren't quite equally matched, but so far it had been a win for a win, loss for loss, and as it was we were at a standstill. Both of us were breathing heavily, but I could tell she still had energy left. Good for her that I was running out. "What's the matter doc? Got a problem keeping up with some real combat arms?" She asked with a grin as she sank back into her low stance, forearms protecting her face and feet offset to give her the mobility she needed. "Says the logistics Sergeant turned tanker- I'll bet you just kept track of the shells rather than firing them" I quipped back, getting her to scoff and close the distance herself this time. She went for grappling again this time, and I was more than happy to meet her in the tangle. She pressed the assault low and fast, her hands coming to break my guard and slip in for the win. Light jabs and elbows were thrown at my chest as she grappled closer, her legs interfering with mine as I retaliated with a few light body strikes of my own. I got ahold of her with my right arm wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her in tight to lessen the impact of her blows. She grunted and twisted out of my grasp backing up a few steps. It seemed she was on the defensive now, so I pressed the advantage. When I would step into her guard, she would back off with a few light jabs, an attempted leg sweep, or another distracting movement. She didn't want me to get ahold of her and I could tell she was planning something, but pressing the advantage and being aggressive was better suited at this point. She continued to back up, out of the space we had been fighting in, and I started to wonder what it was she was up to. I followed with light jabs and an attempted grapple to slow her down, but she kept dancing out of my grasp with each attempt. We had gathered a crowd now, the sparring apparently interesting to the resting angels, and they stood or sat in a large circle around us. We were getting close to them and they started to move out of the way as grace continued her dance out of my grasp, moving straight back rather than turning in a circle like she had before. I found it odd, but I missed the importance of it for far too long. Suddenly she changed directions, and I'll admit it caught me off guard, I had figured she was going to keep moving, and so I was still moving forwards. She went low, her hands wrapping around my waist as her shoulder smashed into my hips, just below the joint. She braced as I tried to stop my momentum, but it was far too late as my world got turned upside down. It happened so fast I couldn't comprehend it, one second I was following her the next I was looking at her back as she forced my bulk up and over her shoulder. There was a loud snap as my back collided with something and it hurt like hell.he'll. Whatever it was I had collided with snapped under my weight and I felt it give as I slid down against it. It took a moment of realization as the wind was knocked out of me on the floor, the fluttering of cloth and the clank of a wooden pole hitting hard ground and vibrating as it flexed. Suddenly the crowd descended, whatever had been going on halted as those closest rushed to check on the wounded human- a panic spurned so greatly that I almost missed the sly movements of minori tucking both the gray flag and the purple banner into her satchel amidst the crowd- and even I only barely saw it amongst the feet of the many angels suddenly rushing to help. I turned my gaze to grace, who only gave a smile and mouthed a non-believable apology in my direction. I was fine to just lay there in the ache of what had just happened- the little side question complete- at the cost of my damn spine |
Sep 21, 2023 11:32 AM
#113
| No need to be so negative. I quite enjoyed this chapter and how Grace finissed Blake into taking down those flags together. The first fight scene between Blake and Grace was a little hard to follow and might benefit from being split up into one or two more paragraphs, in addition to some more grammar checks. (Though I suppose if you prepped this on your phone it's very understandable. I couldn't even imagine writing on my phone) Anyway, was good to see another update. Even if I had to have a look at the previous two chapters to remind myself about where the story was before :) |
Dec 26, 2023 12:53 PM
#114
| AN - this chapter came faster! i felt like I had something good with the beginning but i think i lost it towards the end- im not happy with the last scene as much as i am with the first set of scenes and im not 100% sure how to adjust it to how i like. writing those different characters is a struggle, but im enjoying it. If anyone has any suggestions on how to make the last conversational scene flow better I would greatly appreciate it. I feel better about the capitalization and punctuation this time, but im still a bit iffy on some scenes all together. it gets the point across and it lets me move towards some of what i want to do, so heres this chapter, i hope you enjoy it! The chaos was running rampant and I was an unfortunate casualty of the mob’s fear- there were harsh shouts at grace for injuring me and I was rapidly hefted off my feet by several of the Valkyries- one of the sappari, one of the normal infantry-women clad in purple. I attempted to assure i was fine, but they were having absolutely none of it. I was getting treatment whether i liked it or not. The two ladies had me beat in strength- so I couldn't really fight it even if I wanted to. I was dragged over to the medical tent- grace and Minori trailed along behind with snickers and our things gathered in their arms, whispering back and forth amongst themselves. The angels didn't just drop me off at the tent, no, they decided to carry me in and lift me into a cot- in spite of me feeling mostly fine. I could have walked over and climbed into a bed myself… but I think the girls just wanted to earn some brownie points for being helpful. The nurse herself wasn't busy, she was in the middle of setting up the tent whenever we had walked in- laying out the different items they used on a cloth strung between two poles, stretched and taught to make a table, of sorts. It was enough for her to work with, for she nodded and turned towards us as we stepped in. She wore neither gray nor purple in her white clothing- and she wore little in the way of armor as opposed to the rest of the Valkyries. She was much softer compared to them, so I suspected she was an houri… or maybe even a proper angel as opposed to the Valkyries, cherubim, and sunbrides that made up the army of asgard. Her eyes were kind, and, for once, devoid of the hunger that had filled many of the other mamono and angels that had laid eyes on me… or I suppose any human really, there was nothing special about me in particular. I was about to speak up to tell her I was fine, that they were just overreacting. I could still move and talk so it clearly wasn't bad- even if it did hurt like a bitch. Unfortunately the purple clad Valkyrie spoke up first. “He hit his back- hard, could you take a look at it?” she asked respectfully, tipping her head to the white winged woman and taking a step back. “Of course” the angel said, a soft smile crossing her face as she gathered up some items and shifted over to me. “You gals get far too rough with the humans, you have to remember they’re not as resilient” she said, looking down at me with those soothing eyes. I didn't know what kind of angel she was- but I had to admit she was cute- such was the staple of any nurse working with the wounded, it always seemed to go that way. I decided there was no point in arguing it, I was already here and- being fawned over wasn't bad. It did hurt after all. Minori and Grace stood off to the side, and the fox girls tall ears dipped into my vision as she leaned over my face to look at me. She didn't say anything at first, just looking over me- her gaze focusing on my eyes. “He looks okay and cognizant, probably just some bruising on the back” she commented, looking up to the nurse in white. “Well that's a good sign- we still need to provide for him, and it's a good thing to go through the motions” she said, a soft smile as she moved over to the side of the cot, peering down at me. “Mh, yes, he looks fine indeed,” she said, shifting her wings. “I need him to roll over so i can get to his back though- can you do that, sir?” she asked. I obliged her, shifting to roll over onto my stomach, laying my head on my arms as I did. “Full range of movement, wonderful, can you bend your legs?” she asked, and i complied with it, curling my legs up to press against my butt. “Good, no lasting damage-” she hummed. She placed her hands on my back, gently sliding one down to press my legs back into a lying position, the other sliding up the back of my shirt. Her hands were ice cold and my body jolted involuntarily as she ran that cold appendage up the length of my spine. Then her hand got incredibly hot at the base of my neck, not to the point where I would be burned, but something close to those electric heating pads. It was soothing, the ache and pain from my back began to fade, and I could feel my spine decompressing. It was as if I were hanging from a bar, the slow, subtle shift of decompression as she worked her magic. Her warm hand ended at the base of my spine, and the soothing heat settled over my entire back, slowly spreading out as the nurse continued. I closed my eyes and just let her work her wonders. “Leave him with me for a while, get back to training” she said, and I could hear the smile in her voice. “Ja-Kona” the two Valkyries said, a shift of their armor with the thump of their leather gloved fists against their breastplates in what I could now recognize as the salute for the Asgardian forces. They shifted and began to walk away, though I didn't watch them leave, instead enjoying the warmth spreading through my body. I heard the creak and shift of the bed next to me, and a cracked one eye open to look up at who it was. Grace had sat on the cot gazing down at me. “You look comfortable” she said, a half tease in her voice as she crossed her legs and leaned back on her hands to support herself. “And you look entirely unapologetic,” I shot back at her, though I wasn't entirely angry with her. It had been fun and she’d definitely gotten the better of me, I couldn't rightly complain. “I would apologise but ah- since you’re not in pain I'm just going to gloat over how much stronger I am” she said, chuckling to herself. “Yeah yeah, you win this one” I conceded, sighing as she continued to beam. “On a serious note” she continued “what now, we’ve completed what we need to, and I recommend skipping out before they stop pointing fingers at each other… do we head back to the island?” she asked, shifting to lean more forwards, placing her elbows on her knees and leaning into her hands. “That’s probably the best way to do it,” I agreed “it’ll give us some time to prepare if they want to fight for it back- hopefully the others will be back by then to assist in case it comes to that.” “I don't think it will” Minori commented from the side. Both me and grace shifted to look at her, and she smiled shyly. “W-well i mean, the Frea are both leaders, old leaders who have been in the position for a while… they’re not going to cause violence towards a human, it would damage their image… no they are probably going to sweet talk you- possibly try and talk you into giving the flags back…” she trailed off as she glanced up at the nurse, though I couldn't see her behind me. “Oh pay me no mind, darlings” she said with a chuckle, “I'm sworn to confidentiality as a caregiver” she said, her voice light and playful. It seemed like she found what had happened amusing- though I suppose from her eyes it likely was. “Anyways,” Minori continued, bringing my attention back to her. “The most that I see them doing is a duel” she said, nodding. “A duel” grace parroted, “against a…” she paused to raise her hands for air quotes “‘weak human male’”. “Not a duel of Combatives- likely a duel of leadership, Blake is working to form a mercenary company, that puts him at least at the level of a Frea. they’re likely going to pull that equal stance card knowing he doesn't have a following yet, and challenge him to the wargames. He has no army, therefore he cant fight, so they save face and win their flag back, its the most logical way to do it.” That caught my interest, and i shifted a little bit to look at her, “ wargames?” I asked, prompting her to continue with what she was talking about. “Ah, yes, wargames are a method of training for the Hafnas here, its where the army will split into two units and they will fight against one another at full strength- though weapons are blunted and arrowheads are removed. Its a way to test tactics and logistics while also training the warriors.” “Ah” I said, nodding along with what she said. “Yes, we did similar things on earth… though I'm not the most confident in my leading skills… I can certainly see how that would make most people fold” Truth be told it sounded like a fun event, I always did enjoy field events when I had been in, but as it were, Minori was right, we had no leg to stand on if it came to such a head. I thought about it for a moment, if we could get some recruits before the ‘duel,’ then we might be able to hold our own… Although they are an entirely trained army, we would need numbers, trickery, or a siege to be able to hold it. “How big is a hafna?” I asked Minori. “A hafna is 64 Valkyries, but the wargames are typically an entire Systralag, which is six Hafnas.” she explained. “Most Systralogs are commanded by a Stallara, but for the sake of wargames they sometimes appoint a frea to see how they handle themselves. Duels too, a stallara may support a frea, but the actual commander is the duelist. In essence, we would need to come up with either an entire systralag or three hafnas, depending on the nature of the challenge… of course, thats if this even happens.” Grace snickered at that. “Don't you know murphy's law? Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong, we should prepare for the worst.” “Start recruitment then?” I asked, glancing up at them. The heat began to fade, so I figured it was fine to move around. I sat up and swung my legs to the side, looking at the two now as i sat on the edge of the cot. “Not a bad time to- plus if the request for this little outing goes well, then there will be plenty that we’ll need the extra hands for. How should we go about it?” “Right now? Local recruitment, perhaps some of the valkyries will be willing to join, maybe some disgruntled enlisted, you know the type” Grace said, still contemplating herself. “Though we don't know the extent of our reach, we may be able to pull mamono from the mainland or from the rest of Elizabeth, Asgard may be its own island but there are plenty of people we could pull from.” “Either way, we would need to wait for the rest to get back to really discuss it with them” I said, sighing as I pushed myself up off the bed. “We should look at readying the camp for now, though, I guess we don't have any funds.” I said, scratching at the back of my head. “Funds? We don't need funds, we have you!” Minori said, giggling to herself as she held out my things. I couldn't help but scowl as I put my cold weather gear back on. “She has a point there, you’re worth the most, I'm certain we could pay a construction company with your time” she snickered. I just sighed and waved my hand at her dismissively. “Right right, it'll work out somehow I'm certain- though i hope you know you wont get away if i get sold off” I shot back at her. She only nodded with that teasing smile and leaned in closer. “I suppose you’d have to catch me for that threat to be valid~” she laughed as she danced away from my lunging arm, my fingers didn't even brush her she was out of my reach so quickly. Ah well, it seemed her girlfriend wasn't the only vixen there. --------------- The trip back was rather smooth, all things considered- the campsite had devolved into a rolling fight between the purple and gray clad hafnas- the shouts and yells clearly indicated they both thought the other had stolen their flag. All in all it made for a rather easy exit- and true to her word the nurse never brought any alarm or attention to our exit. The road back was much calmer and we threw recruitment ideas back and forth, as we were going to need recruits whether or not this duel actually happened. Part of me was hoping it would, it would be a nice way to show off the troupe and get our names out there- if we could win we’d get favor as a mercenary group who beat an organized army, that alone would bring fame and contracts… really the more i thought about it the more i wanted it to happen. But we had to be ready for it… so we would have to wait until the time was right. We landed back on the island and immediately got back to work on the fortress- as it were it was just the walls for now, with simple tents in the center, but we would need to build it up a little bit. I asked Minori where we could find someone to put together temporary housing and a plan for what would eventually become the fortress itself. “Well, it depends on what you’re looking for, a stone-masons' work would last longer, but a lumberjack's wood would be cheaper…” she had said. “Well, what if we were to trade information on better stoneworking materials?” I asked, causing her to turn contemplative. “That might work, but it depends on the mason… so it would be better if you had some of the material on hand to show her…” “That’s fair… so we’d need to find ourselves someone who can work with wood for a temporary job- then a stonemason for when we need the more permanent fixtures?” I asked “Mhm, that would be my recommendation” she said, nodding as she sat up further, “So how should we proceed for now?” I asked her, since it seemed like she didn't agree with the thought of making more permanent things. “Well, the tents are a good idea- once we’re done with them we can use them for the canvas or whatever else we might need them for.” she said, nodding. “I’d look into getting some bigger ones, once it gets colder we can set fires in some tents and we can set up to sleep in warmth.” I nodded at that, making a mental note for now. “Right, I know the kind you’re thinking of” I said “anywhere to get it on the isle?” “Well, maybe, I’d have to look around, but your best bet would be the general store. It has a number of bits and bobs that don't have a dedicated shop on the island.” she explained. That seemed to catch Grace’s ear, and i looked over at her as she leaned forward to ask a question “general store? In this day?” she asked. “Of course” Minori said, “why wouldn't there be?” her head tilted to the side in that cute way that made her tall ears flop over to the one side, she looked well and confused by the question “On earth general stores didn't come in until about the 17th century, the technology here seems to be much earlier than that… it seems so odd. There are some things that seem so modern here, yet other things are just so far behind.” she said, seeming to mull it over in her mind. “Well, not everywhere has come around to it, but it seems like a decent idea. You can get many goods in one place- most general stores have deals where they buy product in bulk at a lower price then sell it to the population. The general store owner makes net gain, the producer doesn't have to bother with selling, and the consumer has everything in one store. Its quite ingenious.” Minori stated “Well, yes… that was a very common thing back on earth but… well the idea seems a little ahead of its time. At the same time as general stores were coming about, we had canning, black powder, the steam engine, the telegraph, and the stove. There were more but that’s what I remember off the top of my head.” grace said, leaning back on her palms as she slid a little closer to the fire for warmth Her explanations seemed to set a fire in Minoris gaze, looking at grace with renewed interest. “So you think that mamono could accomplish these things if we wanted to?” she asked. “Sure- but I would guess mamono don't see the point.” she said, looking back up at Minori. “How so?” the fox-girl asked. “What's the point of a telegraph if you can use a messaging spell- or an electric stove if you have flames at your fingertips.” she put out for a theoretical comparison “So you think mamono haven't innovated the same that humans might because of the energy? Really, that is an interesting thought.” she said, thinking on it herself “I may have to go back into some notes on the old world… perhaps humans were more advanced than we mamono would know.” she said, the theories turning in her mind. “Yeah, something along those lines” grace agreed, watching as Minori began to see things from another angle. Our conversation on the theoreticals of human advancement compared to mamono magic continued for the next hour, up until the flapping of feathered wings broke out from the wind. We looked up in time to see Odis and Savis coming to land softly by the fire. “Welcome back ladies, mission successful?” I asked, standing to greet them as they shook out their wings and brushed their clothes back into place. Odis was the one to speak up first, dropping to a knee and bringing her fist to her chest in the typical Asgardian salute that they did, her wing folding over alongside it. “The mission went well, we rescued three of four- and the last one went his own way.” she explained. “Don't- don't salute that’s weird” I said, waving it off “no rank structure is even formed yet.” She chuckled and stood back up to her full height. “Maybe not, but I still feel it is respectful.” she said, beaming a bright smile. Savis came to speak next, “we have them in the local inn for now- they're getting used to their freedom, alongside the others that came with us. There's an interesting story there but we’ll let Ala tell you.” I nodded “well, thank you for stopping by to inform us- If you’re heading back into town could I get you to pick up a large tent from the general store? We’re going to shift some things around to start making this into an actual encampment.” I explained, throwing out the idea we had discussed earlier. “Of course, though your tab is quickly rising there, Mercenary” Odis said with a throaty laugh. “Don't you cry when I collect” “Wouldn't dream of it” I shot back with a smile of my own. “Need anything else? Any reason for me to tack on more is a good day” she said, crossing her arms as she stood by the fire for a moment longer. “Oh,” grace spoke up “ if you could find some heavier winter clothes for me and Madison we’d appreciate it… on his tab of course” she gave me a sly side eye and i could only shake my head. “That has to count as fraud somehow” I said in an attempt at defense from the woman. “What was that?” Odis said as her wings opened in a woosh of air “sorry couldn't hear you over the wind” she half yelled as she shot up and away, laughing all the while. Savis grinned and waved at us as she leapt up after her larger counterpart, rapidly closing the distance between them since she was so much lighter and faster. I shook my head and looked at the others. “Alright, lets get back to work.” ---- The rest of the day went by rather smoothly, we cleared out an area for the large tent the Valkyries would be bringing back, and set up a fire to set for it. The other tents were left out for people that wanted privacy, but we figured the majority were going to be in the group tent. The remainder of the afternoon was spent on the interior of the wall once more, we went through what was left behind in the section we were digging through and parsed out what was good and what wasn't. All of the wood was bad for certain, but the metal wasn't in awful condition. Some of it was rusted, but there were swords that were well oiled like the previous time, and we began piling everything up in categories. We didn't count them just yet, as there were many segments of the wall to go through, but it was going to be useful. We stopped a little before sunset, and the flapping of wings once more caught our attention as the rest of the group came back from town. Odis had a large cloth bundle wrapped in her arms, with one foot hooked around the long end of it. Savis had another bundle, smaller and rounder, though she was also carrying several large poles in the crook of one of her arms that her foot was also keeping pinned closer to her body. Then there was Rota, who was carrying Madison in her grasp. She looked scared out of her mind as she practically clung to Rota's arms, and the Valkyrie just looked amused. Finally there was the last duo, Ala being flown by a bat winged girl. It took me a moment to realize it was Nalta that was carrying the armored fox girl, almost about the same time that it took them to hit the ground. Madison practically collapsed once they were back on the ground, her fright now over, while the others were more casual about it. Odis and Savis dropped their equipment by the fire, before stretching out their wings and arms. Nalta dropped Ala close by and immediately began her way over to the fire. She couldn't have been cold, given what she was, and her eyes were locked on me the entire time, so i had a good idea of what she had wanted. Lucky for me, Ala stepped in to intervene a little, and they had a muted conversation that distracted the manticore from her prey. With everyone back, we quickly set up the tent, made much easier with the winged girls ability to hold the canvas up for us to lay out the struts. With the tent up, we moved our sleeping gear into the larger space. It would keep the wind and rain off of us, and now it would be warmer with the fire inside. We put out the first fire and moved the coals over for a decent bed, before we relit the one inside for warmth. With all of the immediate things done, we finally got to sit down and have a breather by the fire. Minori began cooking some food that the Valkyries had brought with them, while Grace and Madison were shimmying into some cold-weather dresses for themselves. I would have been in the same boat as them, if it weren't for the heating pad that was Nalta practically wrapped around my side. Alas words had only dissuaded her for a short time, and now she was wrapped around my arm and purring. It was a surprisingly cute sound from someone with a body like hers… though I suppose I shouldn't complain. “I wanted to thank you for doing what you did to get me out” she whispered into my ear. Every little thing she did was seductive- and it was hard to tell if she was doing it on purpose or if it was just the way she was. “I could have done it myself, but that doesn't matter anymore~” her breath was hot against the nape of my neck, and I couldn't help but flush a little from her actions. Ala looked amused from where she sat, and she drank a weak mead from a canteen like the rest of the party around the fire. “On that note, what happened to the vials of venom we collected? We were supposed to sell them once we got over, but that kinda slipped away once we actually got to Valhalla.” she said. It was a good point too, I had almost forgotten about them, and as things were they were sitting in my bag, waiting to be used. I scratched the back of my head and glanced at the bag in question. “Well, we still have them, they’ll probably sell well to the general store here since it’s a rare item, it’ll be a nice way to gain some funds for the time being… A to pay off my debt to Odis, B to procure the rest of what we need for the camp.” I said, thinking aloud as I looked at my own canteen with mead in it. Nalta looked a little unhappy though, and she let a huff of air flow from her lips. “Since it’s going for your improvement I'll think of it like a payment for the rescue, but you wont get off lightly next time you sell a part of me~” she practically purred into my ear as she continued to lean on me. Well, that was good… even with her threat, the amount of venom that was there would sell well and net us the funds to get that foothold. Though as debts went, Nalta was certainly not who I wanted to be on the bad side of. Shed dropped all pretense of sweetness that she had before- and there was the ever present predatory grace that she moved with. Even now her arm draped across my shoulder and I could feel the pinpricks of her claws against my collar as she flexed her hand. There was little chance of escape either way- though she ranked high on the crazy to hotness scale, so there was a win there. The food from Minori was good, roast fish, some potatoes, and some hard tack bread. Meat, starch, and grain. There was no dairy that night, it seemed that was something that was rarer here on the Asgard isles. Most of the food and farming was imported to the area, the farms on the isle weren't producing this far into winter, either. There was a dryad that lived in town, but she could only produce so much. Most people had a preserve set up, but with our newcomer status we had nothing. All in all the night was mostly relaxing after the long day, even with the manticore pressing herself against me the entire night. I luckily got away long enough to settle into my bedroll. It wasn't long for me to slip into a relatively dreamless sleep, finishing out the first night of our troupe as a whole. Tomorrow would be back to more early work, but the first mission of our company was a success. |
Dec 27, 2023 2:29 AM
#115
| Happy to see this update came much earlier than before :) I quite liked it, though I fear the MC might be a bit overconfident about his ability to prevail in a wargame against units that are familiar with one another, especially if he still hasn't even really got a plan about recruiting a suitable number of people that will need to work together :P Anyway, glad you're back on track with the writing and am looking forwrd to more. |
Mar 30, 1:39 AM
#116
| It's interesting to see the comparatively high amount of woman on woman action in this one. That said, I'm expecting to see Ala eventually get her much deserved powerups. Also this may be helping me get over my hangups about lewding angelic types. |
Mar 30, 3:04 PM
#117
| I feel like it makes more sense in a world of mostly women they would turn towards affection in the ways that are accessible rather than fantasizing over a male that may or may not appear- with the chances being so low overall. I feel the same would happen in the reverse scenario too, as in this case, most mamono and humans in general are social and need some kind of affection. There will always be those outliers but I think it paints an interesting picture. |
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