Tales of Alidaire: The Struggle

[The Kakuzato]

[color=#800000]"Hmph,"[/color] was the sound that came out of Loresai's mouth as the wretch who cut her cheek was overwhelmed by a massive flurry of brown feathers, [color=#800000]"I wanted to take him down myself. I suppose his cohort will have to do for now..."[/color] She then walked over to the man prodding the Rookie Bowman who was seemingly on her side.

[color=#800000]"You filthy scum,"[/color] she muttered as she approached the man, holding her parasol ready for a strike, [color=#800000]"May your death be filled with terror,"[/color] she hissed. [color=#800000]"Darkness shall overwhelm your heart as you die in agony tonight, and these words shall haunt your endless wanderings forevermore."[/color]

She then sliced upwards and diagonally, knowing that this strike wouldn't kill the man, but nonetheless her words rang out.

[Loresai moves to F8!]
[Loresai attacks Cash! 6 ATK damage!]

[Shadow]

The White Knight blinked as the flash nearly blinded her vision, which was currently suited for the darkness of the street. Hikari shrugged, and lunged to deliver the finishing blow to the Bandit in front of her, straight to the heart. The White Knight walked past the tumbling corpse, and stayed near the street lamp, just in case any of the girls needed her aid.


Hikari attacks Suarez! 6 Damage.

Hikari moves to G7 ([b]G5[/b] - G6 - G7)

[crazE]

[i]"What is this?.." Mai inquired to herself. It was the first time she had spoken since her calling of...something... And to that extent, she honestly didn't know why she was there. She looked at the strange girl that they had fought to protect. Why was she fighting for this girl?

She shook her head. Maybe the answers she was looking for would be answered after the battle. She knew that there was no hope for the bandits, so Mai slowly pulled in her power, soothing her body to a calm, neutral stance. She took the moment to stare at her felled opponent beside her, his mangled body torn in half from her blade. She smiled to herself at her accomplishment.[/i]

Mai waits...

[Flimzy]

(Bin waits)

Bin chuckled to himself as he saw the bandit he had paralyzed had also been blinded. He was about to rush over to help the fight directly; however, the white knight took out his punching bag. With the most of the bandits down due to the help of the stranger, and the final one surrounded, Bin decided to stay in place until he was needed.

[Eebit]

Helena spat blood into the face of her assailant; the twisted, ugly excuse of a bandit who thought that he was intelligent calling her out on a flaw that had been luckily prevented by the sudden appearance of the winged man. The girl with the parasol had come to aid her, as Helena nodded to her and stated, expressionless, [color=#407790][size=x-small]"Your assistance is appreciated."[/size][/color] She nocked another arrow, turning again to the bandit and stating, [color=#407790][size=x-small]"Run back and hide in your mother's womb, you undeveloped coward. One of the few places you [i]may[/i] belong."[/size][/color] With anger, she let the arrow fly into the depths of the other man's chest, aiming to pierce his heart or puncture his lung...

[color=#407790][size=x-small][b]{Helena uses Basic Attack on Cash (F9)! 5 ATK Damage!}[/b][/size][/color]
[color=#407790][size=x-small][b]{Helena waits...}[/b][/size][/color]

[Masquerade]

Suarez takes 4 Dmg!

Suarez KO!

Cash takes 4 Dmg!

HP: 2/10

[font=Monotype Corsiva][size=6][b]Chapter 00: Fated Happenstance[/b][/size][/font]

Location: Archaea - Business Front

Objective: Defeat all enemies and protect Alexandra!

Time: Approx. 3:00 in the morning.

[font=Courier]{r} {r} {r} {r} { } { } {p} {p} {p} A
{r} {r} {r} {r} { } { } {p} {p} {p} B
{l} { } { } {l} { } { } {l} { } { } C
{ } { } {[color=blue]M[/color]} { } { } { } {[color=green]?[/color]} { } { } D
{ } { } {[color=green]A[/color]} { } { } { } { } { } {[color=blue]H[/color]} E
{l} { } { } {[color=yellow]l[/color]} { } { } {l} {[color=blue]L[/color]} {[color=red]C[/color]} F
{ } { } { } {[color=blue]B[/color]} { } { } {[color=blue]I[/color]} { } { } G
{w} {w} {w} { } { } {b} {b} {b} {b} H
{w} {w} {w} { } { } {b} {b} {b} {b} I
{w} {w} {w} { } { } {b} {b} {b} {b} J
-1---2---3---4---5---6---7---8---9[/font]

Mai's Haste fades.

Mai's Hidden Power has 3 turns left.

[color=red]Enemy Phase.[/color]

Cash attempts to flee! (1/2)

[color=red]"Ah shit! Are you kidding me?"[/color] the last bandit standing shouted, his face a portrait of fright. He turned around quickly, obviously intent on running away.

Cash waits.

[font=Courier]{r} {r} {r} {r} { } { } {p} {p} {p} A
{r} {r} {r} {r} { } { } {p} {p} {p} B
{l} { } { } {l} { } { } {l} { } { } C
{ } { } {[color=blue]M[/color]} { } { } { } {[color=green]?[/color]} { } { } D
{ } { } {[color=green]A[/color]} { } { } { } { } { } {[color=blue]H[/color]} E
{l} { } { } {[color=yellow]l[/color]} { } { } {l} {[color=blue]L[/color]} {[color=red]C[/color]} F
{ } { } { } {[color=blue]B[/color]} { } { } {[color=blue]I[/color]} { } { } G
{w} {w} {w} { } { } {b} {b} {b} {b} H
{w} {w} {w} { } { } {b} {b} {b} {b} I
{w} {w} {w} { } { } {b} {b} {b} {b} J
-1---2---3---4---5---6---7---8---9[/font]

[color=green]Neutral Phase.[/color]

??????? uses Melodie Impacable on Cash! 16 Dmg! (ATK) [Chance of Sleep]

MP: 17/55

All allies are healed! [+4 HP Recovered]

The creature growled. [color=green]"Oh, this is my favorite part. The part where the prey realizes there's no way they can win and try to get away,"[/color] he said, crouching low. [color=green]"Except....there's no escape."[/color] With that, he burst into the air, opening his wings. His entire cloaked form began to be surrounded by streams of green energy. A wondrous tune filled the air as he soared higher until he reached a peak and descended, plummeting towards the thief that was desperately trying to get away. There was a flash of green light as the creature crashed into the thief. The green energy dissipated, swirling around the other people who were trying to aid the noble.

[color=green]"Not so tough now, eh?"[/color] the voice of the creature came from his original spot. He was standing there with his lance on his shoulder, loosely gesturing towards a heap that used to be the fleeing bandit.

?????? waits.

Alexandra recovers HP!

HP: 10/10

Alexandra waits.

[color=purple]"My....you're so strong, sir! I cannot believe how effortless you took these thugs out!"[/color] the young noble exclaimed, her eyes full of cheer. She was safe. Those who had come to aid her were safe. Everyone was safe, and she couldn't have been more happy.

[font=Courier]{r} {r} {r} {r} { } { } {p} {p} {p} A
{r} {r} {r} {r} { } { } {p} {p} {p} B
{l} { } { } {l} { } { } {l} { } { } C
{ } { } {[color=blue]M[/color]} { } { } { } {[color=green]?[/color]} { } { } D
{ } { } {[color=green]A[/color]} { } { } { } { } { } {[color=blue]H[/color]} E
{l} { } { } {[color=yellow]l[/color]} { } { } {l} {[color=blue]L[/color]} { } F
{ } { } { } {[color=blue]B[/color]} { } { } {[color=blue]I[/color]} { } { } G
{w} {w} {w} { } { } {b} {b} {b} {b} H
{w} {w} {w} { } { } {b} {b} {b} {b} I
{w} {w} {w} { } { } {b} {b} {b} {b} J
-1---2---3---4---5---6---7---8---9[/font]

All enemies have been defeated and Alexandra is safe!
CHAPTER COMPLETE!!

Experience:

+4 - Bandit x2 OVERKILL
+3 - Alexandra at Max HP
+2 - Marksman x1
+2 - Bandit x2
+2 - No D-Abilities used
+2 - Player Phase completed less than 10
+2 - No Items used
+2 - No Player Character KO

TOTAL EXP GAIN: 19

Helena: 0/10 --- 19/10
Level UP!
3 Stat Points gained!
Next Level: 9/10

Hikari: 0/10 --- 19/10
Level UP!
3 Stat Points gained!
Next Level: 9/10

Bin: 0/10 --- 19/10
Level UP!
3 Stat Points gained!
Next Level: 9/10

Mai: 0/10 --- 19/10
Level UP!
3 Stat Points gained!
Next Level: 9/10

Loresai: 0/10 --- 19/10
Level UP!
3 Stat Points gained!
Next Level: 9/10

Skill Points Awarded!

+1: Helena, Hikari, Bin, Mai, Loresai

The party receives 16 Gold!

Items found:

---Seal Bolt x1
---Cheap Ale x2

Edit your profiles, please~~

[Masquerade]

With the threats gone, everything on the street returned to a simple calm. The light that had been filled with mana returned to a subtle glow, almost as if nothing had happened at all. The cloaked stranger plunged the tip of his lance into the ground for a moment to straighten his garments before retrieving his weapon of choice and moving over towards the nearby bakery. No one had noticed before, but it was the only building on this front that had lights on in the windows. Smoke billowed out of a chimney. The business was obviously still going. The stranger opened the door and left it open. [color=green]"Well, follow me. Guards are gonna be here eventually. You don't wanna tangle with them,"[/color] he called out to the people in the street.

[color=purple]"We....should probably follow him,"[/color] Alexandra spoke quietly before trundling towards the bakery and entering the building through the open door. Knowing that the noble could still be in danger, the party had no choice but to heed the words of the voice they had heard and follow her into the bakery.

At the entrance, they were greeted by a blast of warmth and the fragrant smell of fresh baked sweets, littering the counter on fancy plates or resting within the display case right beneath the counter. On a wall was an entire cabinet full of them, visible behind the glass doors. The cloaked stranger sidled by the motley group and closed the door. [color=green]"Eh, rest at ease. Your safe here."[/color] At that, he removed his hood. What became visible must have been startling: the figure beneath was not a person. The head was that of a serpent, and his reptilian eyes were yellow with slitted pupils. He smirked, revealing two large fangs with an assortment of a few other sharp teeth within his mouth. On top of his head and running down his back were fine feathers, a dusty brown in hue. They were so fine, they almost looked like fur or hair of some sort.

[color=gold]"Trying to amaze everyone with your handsome looks, eh, Nothus?"[/color] a voice came from a room in the back of the bakery. There was a hallway leading to a door which opened to reveal the source of the voice. The man that had left the back room...was just as odd-looking as his assistant. He wore the standard clothes of a baker: fancy white shirt, nice white pants, white apron smeared with dough, etc. His hair was brown, chaotic in nature, and went down to just around the middle of his neck. On his face he wore a mask shaped like the wings of a butterfly, orange and gold and black in hue, the patterns and colors similar to that of a monarch butterfly. He walked down the hallway until he was in the front room with everyone else.

The snake thing snarled. [color=green]"Well, aren't you just full of false flattery?"[/color] He brushed by everyone else to stand next to the man.

[color=gold]"Hello late night visitors. My name is Masquerade, the owner of this bakery. And this is my faithful assistant, Nothus Viper,"[/color] the baker introduced himself and his apparent serpentine assistant. [color=gold]"Hmmm...something happened outside, didn't it? Care to relate to me what exactly took place?"[/color]

[The Kakuzato]

Loresai took a good look at the serpent-like creature named Nothus. While the creature did not frighten her, she could tell he was strong, not only by the way he defeated the wretched band of bandits earlier, but also in the way he kept himself poised. His ferocious appearance belied his majestic battle tactics from earlier. This she very much liked -- a fighter whose tactics were contrary to what they seemed they would be.

As the baker by the name of Masquerade himself came into the room they had been led into, she had to trifle a laugh. This man seemed better fit for some kind of Noble's ball dance, not rolling dough in a small shop. Then again, look who she fought to protect: a girl who seemed to be grossly unfit for the fray of battle. Looks could be deceiving however, so she kept this musing to herself. The baker and his assistant finished their petty argument, with the former asking what had exactly occurred outside. Loresai tapped on her parasol, as if impatient.

As the question rang out, Loresai decided that she should speak. [color=#800000]"This... girl,"[/color] she started, as if unsure what kind of being the Noble was, [color=#800000]"was attacked by a group of wretched bandits. I, at least, felt a voice calling me to protect her. So we sent them to an endless agony tortured by endless wanderings. I do not know what motivated me, personally, beyond the voice I heard, however."[/color]

Feeling that she was done, Loresai shifted for a moment, then realized that she had been so rude as to not introduce herself. [color=#800000]"If you wish to know my name, by the way,"[/color] she continued, [color=#800000]"it is Loresai Dantasia; omen of death on the darkest nights. And what a night this is..."[/color]

[Eebit]

Helena exhaled deeply as the last bandit fell. She slung her bow over her back, and screwed her eyes shut, blinking rapidly as the strange ally who had appeared seemingly out of thin air entered a building, gesturing for them to come forward and stating, [color=green][i]“Well, follow me. Guards are gonna be here eventually. You don't wanna tangle with them.”[/i][/color] Grateful, Helena walked in, smiling at their saviour and politely saying, [color=#407790][size=x-small]“Thank you for your assistance again, kind sir.”[/size][/color]

The bitter cold of the outdoors transitioned immediately into a wall of aromatic smells of the delicatessens of the bakery, as well as a delightful warmth that instantly flooded her limbs with feeling… and aches. She grimaced in pain as the cold outdoors made her eyes sting a little, but as her vision returned, she noticed that their ally from the battle prior had removed his hood, revealing that he was not human, but a strange mixture of serpentine- and avian-qualities. Helena remained stoic through this display, thinking to herself, [color=#407790][size=x-small][i]Much stranger things have been happening lately.[/i][/size][/color]

Silently reflecting upon the events of the night thus far, Helena zoned out slightly as the baker - named [color=gold]Masquerade[/color], a suitable name for one who wore a mask over his face in such fashion - introduced himself, and his assistant, [color=green]Nothus[/color]. One of her companions from the battle prior, the parasol-wielding girl who introduced herself as [color=#800000]Loresai[/color], began to recount the tale. She had mentioned a strange voice in her mind as well, which instantly piqued the attention of the young Rookie Bowman.

[color=#407790][size=x-small]“I, too, heard such a voice. My name is Helena Galangar. T'is a pleasure to meet you all. I came upon this scene as I wandered the streets late at night; a result of my late insomnia…”[/size][/color] She took a moment to gesture to the Noble, [color=#407790][size=x-small]“and happened to come across an attempt on this girl’s life. It seems that bandits have begun to degenerate more and more these days…”[/size][/color] Helena trailed off, allowing for the others to speak.

[Masquerade]

[color=purple]"Oh my. I'm sorry for getting you all wrapped up in my troubles,"[/color] the noble said and bowed her head sadly. [color=purple]"My name is Alexandra Valentine, the King Albert Valentine's niece. I have a bad habit of wandering about at night; my mother blames it on my restless nature,"[/color] she explained vigorously. [color=purple]"I want to extend my most sincere appreciation and gratitude towards you all."[/color] With this, she reached into the depths of her dress and pulled out a small burlap pouch. She turned to Helena and placed it in the girl's hand.

The party receives 500 Gold!

Masquerade snapped his fingers suddenly. [color=gold]"Alexandra Valentine?!"[/color] he exclaimed suddenly and pointed to the furnace which was ablaze. A sweet aroma was coming from it. [color=gold]"I'm baking the cake for your wedding reception tomorrow right now! I thought you looked familiar. It's coming along quite well."[/color] He held up his hand as she was about to speak. [color=gold]"Not now."[/color] His smile faded for a moment. [color=gold]"About this mysterious voice...did it speak to the rest of you as well? Surely it was not just Miss Helena and Miss Loresai who heard it."[/color]

Nothus hissed. [color=green]"Maybe they're just all going crazy...,"[/color] he said nonchalantly. Though he was just trying to antagonize, in his mind he knew that this couldn't have been a coincidence. Things like this didn't happen everyday. Five strangers who had never met, wandering the streets on the same night, hearing the same voice, and saving the same noble? Impossible. He eyed Masquerade curiously. Did the baker know something? There was never any telling what was going on in that mind of his...