Among the barren northern wasteland stood none other than Jecht Dragonheart appearing within his humanoid form; a human male with spiked chaotic brunette hair and violet-hued eyes , a muscular build to him and a smile drawn upon his lips. Jecht wore full wyvernscale mail over black gambeson and trousers with black jackboots. Worn over this was a long leather duster, a single blade at his right hip. Jecht had learned of the treasure map and had bartered for it's possession as it now lay wrapped in cord within his satchel. Jecht wasn't just standing at the edge of the forest however, his violet eyes peered forth as he waited to see his companion for this trek, a human by the name of Warren. It was the male's hope that the Squire of Draco Equis would soon make himself known, for otherwise Jecht waited here for naught.
The sound of boots trudging echoes from nearby, though soon the source reveals itself as none other than Warren. Warren raises his hand to wipe sweat from his brow and then reaches down and pulls up his Canteen to his lips, taking a swig and allowing the refreshing water to pass his lips while the large weapon slung on his back clattered against the round shield. Warren looked down to the scroll bag fastened to his other hip, knowing it was common for Squires of Draco Equis to carry these around on quests and assignments such as this to study them and learn the power contained within. Warren knew he hadn't even started learning the first one of these, so he quickly delved into his scroll bag and withdrew the first of it's kind for future learning. Finally, Warren responded in a light tone to Jecht as his shoulders hung low. "Sorry to hold you up... I was so excited, that I had trouble getting to sleep last night and... well.. year, I ended up waking up late too."
"You've not done that at all, Warren. I can understand your plight quite well as when I first joined Draco Nivis as a Squire much like you are now for Draco Equis, I also overslept on my first few assignments due to the excitement of finally being accepted into the knighthood and finally being sent out on my first assignments with my Knight. Of course that was sixty years ago but I still remember the time vividly. Just take a moment to gather your breath and we will set out. This would also be a perfect time to start to learn those scrolls in your pouch." Jecht intoned sternly, his lips drawn into a warm smile as he clapped one hand on the shoulder of Warren, bringing the parchment map closer towards the both of them to be seen plainly. As soon as Warren had examined the map well enough, Jecht released his grasp on the other and began to walk into the northern forest. While walking, Jecht thought about ways to improve his running speed and began to formulate the image of a cloud in his mind. Focusing intently, Jecht began to picture the images of clouds underneath the soles of his feet as he walked and started to feel less friction between his hidebound feet and the grass they now walked on. Jecht allowed his focus to slip as his feet touched down on the ground slowly once more. This time he attempted to learn the power by imagining a picture of himself in human form walking on suspended clouds in the air. Releasing the magical energy or Mana from within himself, he gave power to the spirit of wind and began to form the power into a cloud at midriff level roughly thirty feet ahead of himself and Warren. Jecht forcefully held his concentration until the two had reached the platform, and Jecht jumped up onto it. The cloud didn't hold for long and Jecht managed to gently set himself back down.
As they walk, Warren has taken comfort from his Sempai's words and takes a moment to review one of the scrolls in his bag. After certain he understands what he must, he puts the scroll away, then briefly shuts his eyes and mutters his thoughts under his breath as he moves along the path carefully, "Picture... The light... Cutting through the sky in an instant" Light starts to gather near his feet and he feels his steps becoming much lighter, he focuses so as not to let the feeling disorient him as he walks along. After holding the feeling for a moment, Warren takes a break to speak with his senior "Is it difficult to learn your first power?"
"Indeed, however your first Magic Power is truly a gateway into learning the path of magic. You've yet to truly experience the possibilities presented by bonding with a spirit to create Magic. That's not a sensation that can be taught easily, you simply have to discover it before learning new powers becomes second hand." Jecht responded to Warren as the squire asked him about learning his first magical power. Jecht had somewhat of a cheat when it came to that as dragons such as himself were born with an intrinsic connection to a singular element and could easily form magic in said element. Focusing his thoughts back to the training, Jecht began to turn to a run as his feet bound and brought him upwards while at the same time imagining the cloud once more. This time, Jecht was able to land on an invisible platform of air pressure, and look elated before settling back down. The two of them were starting to reach thicker portions of the Forest by the looks of it.
"We may have to create a clearing, which is something I've heard you are quite skilled in. I can conjure something that can help us as well, I'm sure of it."
Warren Zips forward in a flash of light, and seems dizzy for a moment as he is not yet used to this sensation. He is clearly excited enough to not let the result of his training dissuade him from speaking "Did you say something about creating a clearing?! I can do that! Don't worry, just point me in the right direction!" he says as he readies his Gunlance and is prepared to fire away.
"Indeed, the forest is getting denser and will soon reach the point where there won't be any room to walk forwards. If you can just clear a path north of us, that should be fine." Jecht responded morosely as he quickly moves up several platforms of air pressure, then raises both hands outwards towards the dense copse of trees blocking their path, fingers at the forefront as magical energy coursed through the body of Jecht, symbolized as a barely-visible layer of aura that manifests as he concentrates on his ten fingers. Jecht focused on the mental image he begins to draw in his mind, that of volcanic lava and rock being propelled from just after the tips of his fingers and outwards in needle-thin bursts. As he focuses upon this image and expunges the mana throughout his nervous system and out to his fingers, the forms of ten needle-thin projectiles of magma shoot forwards to land upon ten of the trees blocking their way. Jecht quickly performed the power again, sending three volleys in total into fifteen trees that were quickly burned and sloughed out of their way while making no sound rather than the light 'splat' as the magma struck the trees. Jecht awaited for Warren to utilize his Gunlance to further clear out the way, moving to the side and down another series of platforms made of air pressure.
A flash of light is seen and the magma in front of their path pulls away from the flash as Warren Rushed forward with his newfound power, the barrel of his Gunlance is glowing a bright Orange color as the cylinder rotates rapidly, "I love my job~" he chuckles with a glint in his wild eyes. The Gunlace then fires a huge explosion outwards that clears the immediate path ahead! Warren smiles and points his Gunlance to the sky twisting the grip to replace the spent payload.. The 6 empty shells clatter loudly behind him. He seems to really be happy with how his "Wyvern's Fire" Attack went through the copse without difficulty, though he'll have to wait a minute for the barrel to cool off before he can fire the Gunlance again.
Hearing the loud 'BOOM' that echoed from the Gunlance as it was fired and the great series of 'CRACK' sounds as the ballistic payloads struck their targets, the small tribe of Goblins were aroused from divulging into pouches of crowns that they had only this morning liberated from the pouches' original owners. Their arced and pointed ears sat up as the sounds caused each one to perk up and the look of focus on each of their faces transformed into sarcastic grins. There were eight of said Goblins here each a small green humanoid with beady crimson eyes, each wearing leather armor of common quality and with a variety of weapons from the dagger to the axe and one even had a musket on hand. As the group peered through the recently-hewn trees they sigted the two figures - one of which being Warren who might find trouble with the goblins while the other also seemed to be an adverage human. The eight goblins were joined by their leader, a tall six-foot high Minotaur wearing a chainmail hauberk and wielding a cudgel in one hand paired with a long ovaloid shield in the other hand, as they broke through the forest.
Four goblins charged towards Warren, two of which wielded daggers while one wielded an arming sword (a two-handed weapon for the Goblin) and another wielded a musket. The other four goblins now charging for Jecht all wielded hatchets and bucklers, and were joined by the Minotaur. The three goblins with melee weapons immediately ran forwards in an attempt to enter melee range with the Gunlance, while the musket-wielding goblin quickly aimed up and released a shot towards warren that would bury into his left shoulder should he remain stationary. Meanwhile the other four Goblins broke into a run towards Jecht with bucklers held forward while their handaxes prepared for strong downwards swings towards him, while the Minotaur broke into a strong overhand swing to the crown of Jecht's head as part of his leaping charge while maintaining the shield positioned in-front of him.
Learning: Volcanic Bolt (0/6 Points)
JECHT'S POST:
"Goblins are deadly smart so keep on your toes and concentrate on dealing with the three of them, I'll take care of the others. This might actually be a great training exercise for you now that I think of it but don't worry I've got your back." Jecht commanded as he noticed the approaching goblins and minotaur. Jecht was quick to react in the face of danger, reaching downwards and withdrawing the two-handed sword Anglachel from the meteoric iron scabbard with ease. Jecht brought the blade of Anglachel down into a low guard with a single hand, revealing his expertise with a weapon clearly made for two-handed swordsmanship. Jecht thought this would be the best time to advance his use in Magma Spray and began picturing the form of one powerful bolt of lava rather than five smaller needles and rather than simply striking the goblin would release into a radius splash of lava and volcanic rock. Raising his left hand towards the approaching group of Goblins, Jecht gathered mana at his fingers and released five needle-like magma projectiles and released them just as the goblins were five feet from the both of them. Magma needles struck squarely into the four goblins with handaxes and bucklers along with musket-wielding goblin.
As the Minotaur approached him, the black-haired man quickly spun his body along with the blade of Anglachel upwards into a crescent slash, carrying through the elongated ovaloid shield of crude iron wielded by the Minotaur. With the shield now cleft and lain on the ground the Minotaur attempted to bring the cudgel over and bash Jecht's head in, however the warrior brought his left hand to grasp the hilt of Anglachel and brought the sword flatly into a guard that batted the cudgel off to the side. Jecht then solidly brought Anglachel down into a singular motion that cut through several several linked chains the Minotaur's armor. The creature had suffered a nasty gash in his side and quickly retreated back in a single step, however Jecht pursued the Minotaur with a leap, bringing Anglachel into a thrust through the body of the Minotaur and felling the creature for good.
Name: Magma Spray Rank: E Affinity: Magma Requirements: n/a Description: Born of the elements of the Volcano, Magma is most known due to the avid practition of the element in House Tsuchi. The spell 'Magma Spray' is one released from some form of fine manipulation whether through the finger-tips or the eyes. Once released, the magma forms into needle-thin tendrils of volcanic lava which upon impact causes moderate burns, which in-turn cause great pain in the afflicted area, though this spell is one not intended to kill. Magma Spray is a simple cantrip that is basic in use, though the fundamentals are used in some of the more advanced powers of the magma element.
Warren raises his shield to deflect the bullet before it can reach his shoulder, he then lunges forward with his Gunlance, stabbing one of the creatures out for his blood, then swiftly backsteps while swinging his weapon to the side, striking the other goblins, after getting an extra bit of distance between him and his foes, Warren raises his Lance at the ready with a wild grin, "Bye~" he fires a single blast to intercept them as they try to attack again, he grins with wild glee as he prepares to handle the Musket wielding Goblin.
Warren's shield was splintered slightly with a small repair-able hole as the bullet passed through laminate wood and pas the face of Warren, grazing him and leaving a scar on his face. Meanwhile, his gunlance continued, rending into the armor of the handaxe-wielding goblin and sending the creature to the ground some feet away, face first in a trickling pool of water now tinged red with blood. All the while the goblin with the arming sword adjusts it's momentum and encircles Warren, while his gunlance's burst slaughters the dagger-wielding Goblin. The axe-wielding goblin quickly pulls himself up and runs at Warren from the front while the one wielding an arming sword grabs the blade with his gloved hand and half-swords as he approaches from the rear. Accepting his fate as death, the Minotaur brings the cudgel around to do Jecht in as well, attacking from point-blank range.
Learning: Volcanic Bolt (2/6 Points)
The form of a dragon folds into view of both Jecht and Warren, it's glittering scales of white hue with hide of royal blue a sight to behold as the dragon's wings raise high and then flap downwards, creating a powerful gust towards Warren that sends the two-handing Goblin stumbling to the left and missing his mark on Warren, while the dragon's tail moves to intersect the cudgel strike, the spikes digging into the weapon and catching it upon the dragon's tail. Twisting about, the dragon bound up and down onto the two-handing goblin, then ended it;s life with it's razor-sharp claws through the rickshaw armor and into the creature's heart. Two wings raise up and obscure sight of the dragon until it has become surrounded in snow-laden mist, becoming a human-looking female once the mist dissipates. She has snow white hair falling down to her ankles and with bangs concealing her eyebrows, wearing a simple white dress and a pair of golden and bronze goggles around her neck. She takes a step towards Jecht, her black leather hunting boots revealing themselves. Perhaps her most unique feature is her pair of pure crimson irises.
Jecht could barely assemble a reply as he slid Anglachel back into her scabbard smoothly, just a bit embarrassed. "Ahh, Laynaeth. I thought you were sent on duty to Frostvale, with the unstable state of the world as it is... Nice to see you though, dear."
"I guess you've not heard then, Emperor Kirin Tsuchi is on his way to Frostvale, in order to inspect the fortress and ensure no entry from those who bear Draconis ill intent." Laynaeth responded with a playful tone, finding it amusing that she would know something the Sacra Dragos wouldn't already know.
Warren feels a little bit shocked but is happy they are victorious, "wait.. So you know this beautiful girl?" He sputters and isn't sure how he feels about them being well acquainted already.
Flicking a finger Laynaeth sent a basketball-sized air blast towards the remaining threat that Warren had missed when he lost his focus, slaying the goblin without much effort at all it seemed. She began walking from Jecht over to the human Warren, taking only a couple of strides to reach her destination. Laynaeth spoke with a grin drawn upon her face, her tone a soft dulcet. "Ahh so you must be the young squire, cute. Well that is a given, I chose him during the bonding ceremony when he was nineteen and we've been together ever since. If you do well as a squire and work hard once you've been promoted to a full-fledged knight of Draco Equis, there is a chance that you will join the Elite Dragonriders of Draco Equis in the future at which point you could find your own bond with a Dragon."
"Laynaeth here is what you might call my wife. Dragons have a different term for it in their language, though the two words have similar enough meaning. She can be a tease though, but don't pay it much mind." Jecht explained simply as he pushed through the trees. Once the explanation had been given, he head deeper and to the small keep, finding the lockbox and cursing in the dragon tongue when he found what the treasure in-fact was. Jecht headed back to the pair, and then responded. His voice was drawn to a beligertent angry tone, but the anger was not directed towards either of them. "The treasure is another map. Let's send this back to the adventurer who gave us the quest."
A blushing Warren nods lightly, recovering from the teasing, "th-that's an unfortunate result of the outing... Perhaps the next map will grant us something better" Warren walks with his senior and the lovely looking Dragon..
Warren stops and realizes something, "Uh... Sir? Didn't those goblins come out of bags of gold? Are we just going to leave it there?"
"I've already gathered them, we will return most of them to the Merchant's Guild who will determine where the returns go. There are also some unmarked bags, and we'll get to keep those." Jech responded, withdrawing an unmarked pouch of crowns and tosses it towards Warren. He recalls the practice he had been doing earlier, and remembered that he still had work to do on that matter. Focusing intently, Jecht began to picture the image of a bolt of magma, one foot in length and five inches in width, as he channeled the power from the spirits of fire and earth, combining their energies into a single magic power. As he focused and sent energy to his pointer finger, Jecht began to gather volcanic lava and rock at the point, forming the blade of a spear-like bolt. A bead of sweat poured down the side of his face as he focused intently on forming the bolt, and then released it towards the ruins. The bolt tore through the sky leaving smoldering smoke as it slammed into the stonework and exploded into a five foot glob of magma that eroded what remained of the ruins. Jecht brought his focus back to the point of his finger once more, and this time found it easier to draw upon the energies and form the spear-like bolt of lava and volcanic rock. He didn't feel the sensation of exhaustion at all, and allowed the bolt to fade away as his focus ended. With this completed, Jecht head back towards the thinner portions of the forest and towards civilization once again.
Warren catches the bag and admires Jech's handiwork on the ruins a little, "don't suppose those ruins were all that important... I mean.. I hope they weren't" he tries to stay composed and wonders if there is anything to worry about with regards to what the dragon said as she had landed.. He soon shrugs off the concern and keeps walking along.
"The keep used to belong to the Aes Sedai organization back a long time ago, though now the organization is not seen outside of the city of Tar Volen. You don't have to worry about reprimand because of it's destruction." Jecht responded cooly to Warren, continuing on their way. As they passed through the forest, Jecht would send volcanic bolts this way and that, though they would fizzle out on purpose before reaching their destinations. He was trying to master his use of the Volcanic Bolt, not only in the manifestation but also in how many he could form at once. Eventually, this form of practice would end along with the three of them finally leaving the forest. Beyond the forest was a small shanty town where they had originally come from.
Warren nods lightly, "I hope I earn a dragon partner soon... That would be cool.." he seems to fantasize a little about having a dragon bride for a moment