Purge of Toria: Light and Dark

[Vorgin]

OOC Topic

 

Light and Dark are the Primordial Elements that encompass the world of Toria day in and day out. These forces are in constant conflict, and you are are part of them...

 

The side of Light are warriors of justice, protectors, those who walk the right path. They boast they are winning the war against the Dark Scourge. Those who have fully been enveloped by Light are either part of the Circle of Lords, or their guard the Chosen, angelic robotic soldiers that lack emotion or relationships. They only obey the Circle, as their past life is no longer a factor.

 

The side of Darkness are refugees, survivors, a gathering of individuals that only fight because they lack any other option. They are the Hunted.

Then there is the Consumed, individuals who have been engulfed by darkness and turned into mindless demonic beasts that wander the wilderness. They will kill anyone in their way, Light, powerless, and even Dark.

 

Power has a Price. The line between Light and Dark to Good and Evil is blurred, and the truth will come to show.

 

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Welcome to Toria!

 

You are a Disciple of Light, or Dark. A human with control over the element that you serve. Your status is shown with a physical feature. A wing, horn, halo, white or black arm, or a mixture of them. The more you have, the more powerful you are and the more you embody the element.

 

If you are a being of Light, you live in Daylight City, a large and well fortified city that shines as the beacon in the darkness of night. The most noticeable feature of the city is the central tower which functions as a lighthouse, meeting place of the Circle, training school and home of all Disciples of Light, and the Armory of the Light Army. The rest of the city is a majestic assortment of homes and businesses that function under the Circle's protection.

 

If you are a denizen of the Dark, you live in Nightfall Lagoon, a tropical paradise hidden between a cluster of barren mountains. Protected by sandstorms and lightning storms, the city survives with the help of the Lagoon which provides fresh water, fertile soul, and tie to the element of Darkness. Most of the city is wood and crude stone structures, the Hunted have used their dark power to create this paradise from the outside world and have lived here for over a century. There is no defined hierarchy, but the Hunted act as guides, leaders, hunters outside the Lagoon, scouts, and warriors against the Light army. Darkness training is usually done in an apprenticeship system in hopes that experience is passed down, enhanced by the individual, and then passed down in even more depth.

 

[Vorgin]

World of Toria

Map

 

Light controlled:

Daylight City- The Capital of Light, a magnificent city that shines bright, even at night. It is the center of the Light's territory, and the home of the Circle.

 

Light's Reach- The Light's secondary city, a quiet and peaceful port city that is a primary market hub. Whether you are looking for food or jewels, Light's Reach is the place to go.

 

Steelcore Village- The primary mining town of the Light, Steelcore digs deep into the mountains to obtain metals used for Daylight City's buildings, and it's army.

 

*Grey Town- A neutral town caught between Light and Dark, but is frequently raided and policed by the Disciples of Light. It's a bland depressing town, but it's assortment of inns, goods and services, and strong citizens make it a haven in the deserts that surround it.

 

Dark Controlled:

Nightfall Lagoon- The Capital of Darkness, an Oasis hidden in the barren mountains, Nightfall thrives because of the magical Dark infused Lagoon that created a jungle environment around it.The safest ways of entry and exit is the underground caverns and tunnels that lead into the desert to the South and West, or behind the mountains to the North and East towards the sea.

 

Star Crossing- Star Crossing is a Port surrounded by swamps. While technically Dark turf, the smuggling operation that runs the town is more interested in coin than in factions and elemental war.

 

Oak Port- Darkness' claim to the sea. Oak Port is a big importer to Nightfall, and have thrived from it. It is well maintained, defended, and overseen by a private organization.

 

More to come!

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Light NPCs:

 

Name: Jacus Dawn

Gender: Male

Age: 35

Position: Light General and primary fighting teacher to Light initiates.

 

Name: Ceyx

Gender: Male

Age: ???

Position: Member of the Circle, one of the only Circle members who speaks to the public and initiates face to face. He is very kind and welcoming.

 

 

Dark NPCs:

 

Name : Vorgin Dusk

Gender: Male

Age: 35

Position: Dark Hunted head guide, primary army organizer and tactician.

 

Name: Amisi

Gender: Female

Age: ???

Position: Dark Shaman. Amisi has bound herself to the Lagoon to access her full dark power without becoming a Corrupted, she is a medicine woman. She acts like a mother to the Hunted.

Edited May 5, 2017 by Dotzrus

[Vorgin]

Characters

 

Username: Dotzrus

Name: Grix Falling

Light or Dark: Light

Gender: Male

Age: 26

Appearance: Grix

Personality: Grix is the definition of Paladin. Strong, brave, and a gentleman, Grix strives to be the bulwark of city to protect the people. Grix is very friendly to his fellow Light Disciples, but when training or fighting the Hunted, he turns it up to 110%. While he is friendly and open to those around him, he is not the best at dealing with emotional or personal conversation in which he can get flustered or freezes up.

Physical Element Trait: Grix has glowing white runes that cover his chest and go up his right arm and the right side of his neck.

Other: His Light power usually encompasses creating Shields, sword projectiles, and creating a Lion made of Light for a powerful AOE blast.

 

Username: Dotzrus

Name: Xel

Light or Dark: Dark

Gender: Male

Age: 21

Appearance: Xel

Personality: Xel like many Hunted is a rebel. Fighting is a way to get his blood pumping, it's something he enjoys, sometimes too much. When not in a fight, he likes it quiet. He relaxes to the point of being lazy, so to him friends are an after thought. He wishes he could meet people who get him.

Physical Element Trait: His left hand is completely black and clawed. The skin is also durable like a blade so he uses it as a weapon. He also has a demon horn hidden in his spiked hair.

Other: His uses his dark power to fire bladed projectiles, fly, and melt into shadows for quick movement.

 

---------------------------------------------

 

Username:Padfoot

Name: Poppy Liou

Light or Dark: dark

Gender:female

Age: (18-28) 27

Appearance: Poppy

Personality: Poppy is a bubbly individual with a skewed moral compass. She tends to use her powers for the wrong reason rather than tto further the fight of the kingdom. She prefers to stay away from a fight but isn't compleatly helpless.

Physical Element Trait: her hair behaves like thick smoke.

Other: Her power is smoke based

 

Username: paddy

Name:Caleb Valandus

Light or Dark: Light

Gender: female

Age: (18-28) 25

Appearance: Cal

Personality: Cal likes to be alone during her day to day life. She finds other people tiresome in large quantities. She will often use her powers to remain hidden. She'll be nice to anyone, it's when she starts to get mean is when you know she likes you. that being said, she can still distest you if she is mean to you. At that point it's probably your fault.

Physical Element Trait: her skin is iridescent.

Other: Her power is Particle Physiology based

 

-------------------------------------------------------

 

Username: redfox

Name: Rey

Light or Dark: Light

Gender: female

Age: 21

Appearance: Rey - she has a halo over her head.

Personality: emotionless and cold at first and then is really sweet and kind once she gets to know someone a bit better. a bit mysterious at times, can be shy but not often, and doesn't really talk that much.

Physical Element Trait: Rey has a tattoo of a snake-like dragon on her right arm that goes down to her wrist but isn't seen when she's wearing her assassin hood.

Other: is a trainee assassin. she'll probably like/love someone later but she's more focused on training at the moment. her favorite weapon is a bow and a quiver of arrows but she can also use daggers and a staff as well.

Edited May 5, 2017 by Dotzrus

[Vorgin]

A large thunderstorm swept the land, a great wind shook the forests, and lightning crackled in the sky... these storms have been more frequent as of late.

 

In Daylight City, the Circle had assigned Disciples to making a large shield, so the rain and wind never reached the streets. It was a dazzling sight, lightning streaking through the darkness of the sky, the rumble of thunder breaking the silence. If not for the shield, the city would have been in a panic.

 

In Nightfall, the mountains provided protection from the wind and rain, so all that was left was the blasts of lightning that threatened their home. The Lagoon Witch, Amisi, paid the lightning no heed, and that in itself calmed the people.

 

The night was long over the land, but the storm finally settled, the sun rose again, and the air smelled fresh. The rain had cleaned the world, it was the start of a new day, and something more.

 

------------------------------------------

 

Grix stepped into the Spire, the central tower of the city. After many years of training here, missions taken, and victories secured. He was ready for his next mission. He had heard rumors that he was taking a team to Grey town to scout, patrol, and cleanse any Dark filth they encountered. He made his way to the training ground, it was near time for graduation, something he experienced only a few years ago. He gave a bright smile as many initiates looked at him in awe, a symbol of what they could become once they finished they time here and were able to leave the walls.

 

---

 

Xel sat on the edge of the Lagoon, his black hand dangling into the water. He was napping, a common activity for one of his status. He was a fighter, and there was nothing to fight. It wasnt long until he got a boot to the head. Xel sat up with a start.

"OWW!!"

A snicker, "Oi, Xel, we got a task for you."

Xel growled and stood up, "Can't it wait Vorgin? I'm sleeping."

Vorgin smirked and handed him a backpack, "I need you ready at all times, so I decided to send you on an errand to Grey Town to keep you active. Finish this and I'll leave you be for at least... 2 days."

"Three."

"...three it is."

Xel sighed, "So what's the job?"

Vorgin turned his back on Xel and started walking, "Pick up a package at the Tempered Horseshoe Inn."

"What's in it?"

"It's for Amisi."

"Nevermind..."

Xel knew better than to snoop on the Witch's inventory, she had odd trinkets that did even odder things. He slung the bag over his shoulder and headed for the Dire Bat treehouse.

[padfoot]

Poppy had left Nightfall almost a week ago and was now hold up in a tavern in Grey Town. Grey was a small settlement in comparison to the other cities to the north and south but it was definitely larger than the towns and villages she passed over. It had taken her so long to get there. Five days compared to the normal two or three days.

 

Her hair billowed down her back in a cloud of impenetrable black smoke, it's tendrils evaporating as they trailed down her back. She called the tavern keeper over to pour another drink and she obliged. A small bell from the front of the tavern made her pause with her glass to her lips. It was them. She recognized their voices as they took seats somewhere at a table behind her. She took a sip and listened to the two men.

 

Poppy was not on a secret mission for the Dark Army. She was not a spy. She certainly wasn't a member of the Army of Darkness. She was doing this for her.

 

Exactly five days ago, Poppy had spotted a Light recon squad scouting around Nightfall. Something about people spying on her hometown irked her so she stuck around to watch them watch the lagoon city. It didn't take long for them to send two members of the team back to Daylight to report to the boss. Poppy hadn't even decided what she was going to do or why she was doing it. Maybe she was bored with her current way of life.

 

She risked a glance across the bar at the two soldiers and her heart jumped. Only one was at the table! As calmly as she could, she scanned the bar until she found him. He was slipping out the back. Most likely to have a smoke or piss in the alley. Poppy saw her chance and before she knew it, she was walking her shadowy ass towards the door and into the alley.

 

Outside was a beautiful day, it had rained the night before and the evidence was in the pools on the street and the humidity in the air. She locked up once the muggy breeze washed over her, suddenly she had forgotten what she was going to do. This left her standing there awkwardly for a moment before patting her pants for her cigarettes. She stuck a crooked cigarette between her lips and then searched for her matches. She felt the paper book in her front pocket, "Excuse me? do you have fire?" she asked, motioning to the cigarette dangling from her lips.

"Do not speak to me, Dark" the soldier spat

 

The Light and Dark stood leaning against the wall of the tavern in heated silence.

 

"Here" the soldier said, passing Poppy his booklet of matches with his head hung.

 

"thanks..." she said, striking one and lighting her cigarette.

 

There was another awkward silence as they both smoked.

 

"So...you on...vacation or something? It's weird to see a soldier this far out" she said, trying to loosen him up, "Well...I guess I wouldn't really know. I have only been to Grey Town a few times"

because, you know, racial oppression she thought with a sweet smile

 

"I'm just a-... nevermind, I'm just passing through." He said, shaking his head, " I always hear stories about The Grey from the other guys on the guard. Guess I had to see it for myself"

 

"Cool....Cool" Poppy replied. She fell silent after that. After all, she still didn't have a plan.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Cal was invisible is a place she didn't belong...But that's how she normally was. She was using her Creator given power to bend outgoing light around her body, allowing her to have a type of adaptive camouflage. She was wandering around a very wealthy person's house and admiring all of their expensive things. She was in the city....somewhere. It was so easy to get lost when you could travel at the speed of light. She just happened to pass through a window in a fancy building somewhere in the middle of town. Or at least, that the general direction she was traveling when she started. It was also difficult to see when you are traveling lightspeed...and your eyes don't exist anymore.

 

As Cal rounded a corner, a amalgam of voices began to rise in the distance. She stopped and listened. It wasn't moving and sounded like it was coming from outside. She walked to the nearest window and peered outside. Nothing in the yard below. She shrugged and kept walking the direction she was headed.

 

There is was again. That distant chatter of many voices somewhere in the building. It was grating on her curiosity until she couldn't stand it anymore. Cal stepped to the closest window again and vanished in a flash of light.

 

In a second, she was reformed and a mile above Daylight City. the shimmering buildings spanned in all directions. She looked directly below her and found exactly where she had snuck in. It was the Spire in the center of town. A literal and metaphorical beacon to the city. As she began to fall, she converted her atoms into photons and zipped back towards the monolith of a building.

 

she landed on the warm, rounded roof and peered over the side. the distance to the ground was dizzying as she tried not to think about how long it would take for her to hit the ground. as She waited for the vertigo to pass, she noticed the training ground had an unusual amount of people filtering onto it. Something big must be going on. Cal couldn't just ignore an opportunity to crash a party.

 

Cal lept off the Spire, converting into lightwaves and zipping around the outside of the tower. She couldn't perceive anything around her in this state so every so often she would solidify to make sure she was still going the right way. She was aiming for a walled archery range off to the side of the crowd.

 

Once she arrived at her destination she turned invisible again. Cal pulled herself up onto the wall to people watch. She hoped they would bring out refreshments sometime soon.

Edited May 5, 2017 by padfoot

[redfox]

Rey walked silently into the spire where the graduation for the new initiates was taking place and stepped up to be next to Grix in an attempt to make him jump in surprise. He was currently looking at the initiates so him jumping at her arrival wouldn't be hard. She rarely said anything at all but would if she was spoken to. She sometimes did talk on her own but not as often as she used to. Her attention was on the crowd and estimated there to be close to 200 graduating but she could be wrong about that. It just looked like a large number from her vantage point.

 

((if she's supposed to be in the crowd, I'll edit))

Edited May 6, 2017 by redfox

[Vorgin]

Grix took in the sight with a chuckle, he recalled this year's class was graduating about 250 students. He turned to continue his walk and bumped into Rey. He tensed up and blinked, "O-Oh! Sorry about that, I-I didn't see you there." It was easy to tell his guard was down, both verbally and physically. A couple of students noticed and chuckled.

 

Xel quickly grabbed the reigns of a Dire Bat and took to the sky. He barely made it over the mountain when he saw a light. He squinted, that wasn't natural. His eyes went wide as he realized what it was, Light scouts, 4 of them. He knew this was something he couldn't risk letting slip. Flying up high, he jumped off his mount and melted into shadow. The shadow quickly fell and fused into the shadows on the ground. Quickly and quietly darting closer to the four, the shadow fused into one of the shadows a scouts cast. The scout went rigid, gasping for air, but unable to speak. The other 3 turned to him in shock. The ground below him turned black, then a large spike impaled the trapped scout. The remaining scouts drew their weapons as Xel reformed from the ground, sword in hand. These scouts were not prepared...

 

Xel had a grin on his face as he flew the Dire Bat towards Grey Town, luckily the scouts spilled info before spilling their guts. Now he had two missions.

[padfoot]

The rest of Poppy's time outside was spent in silence with the light soldier. She smoked silently as she tried to think of something she could do. She didn't want to kill him. Not yet anyway. She wanted to see if he learned anything important while spying on Nightfall Lagoon. Whatever she was going to do, she needed to do it quick. His cigarette was almost out and he would be going back inside.

 

She finally thought of a plan but mentally kicked herself for considering it. If it doesn't work, which it very well might, this young man would kill him. She had only ever tried this once...on a cow...and it died. She had to decide fast, the soldier just flicked his cigarette into a nearby puddle,

"Well...nice to....nevermind. Get out of here if you know what's best" he said as he started to walk past.

 

Poppy shot out her hand and snagged the man's forearm, "Wait!" she cried.

 

The soldier glared at her, 'You will pay for this Dark scum. I will-" The man couldn't finish his sentence. Poppy opened her mouth and poured black smoke over the man's face and chest. As she exhaled, her body seemed to deflate. She was completely converting her body into smoke that was currently sending the soldier into a coughing fit. the man sputter and dropped to his knees. Poppy's smoke was slithering into every orifice it could. The man's lungs filled with Poppy as he tried to catch his breath. The man dropped to one side and stopped struggling.

 

a few moments later, the man gasped deeply and broke out into another fit of coughs that ejected tendrils of smoke into the air in front of his face. It hung in the air like a living thing before forcing it's way into his ear. The girl and the smoke was gone.

 

The man touched his face and looked at his hands in awe, "Oh...my god" he said quietly, getting to his feet carefully, "It ****ing WORKED" he whooped. This soldier may look like a servant of the light but that was no longer the case. Poppy had poured herself into his body, fusing with the darkness inside him and stretching herself to every space available. This man could no longer control his own body. He was hers now.

 

The back door of the pub opened again and the light soldier walked confidently back to his table and sat with the other light soldier.

"Everything go alright? You were out there a while" the man said. Poppy searcher through the crevices in his brain until she found what she was looking for.

"Yeah yeah, Mike. I just had a run in with a of the dark. Thought she could seduce military secrets out of me" he spat.

The man looked for the door and started to stand, his hand on his hilt, "We should go teach her a lesson then"

"No no no. that's alright. I already took care of it" he said in an attempt to calm him down.

 

It seemed to work, the man glanced back at what he thought was his partner and smiled, "Oh? So you're finally coming around to how filthy the Dark really are?" he sneered.

Not-So-Poppy laughed, a sound unfamiliar to her, "Of course. I thought you were all exaggerating. Now that I met one in person, I know where you guys are coming from"

"I'll drink to that" the man said, picking up his class and clinking it against Poppy's

 

Both men drank, one completely oblivious to Poppy's disguise.

That's right, keep drinking. We need to get this show on the road she thought. She needed to remain patient. She could still mess this up after all.

[redfox]

Rey smiled slightly under her hood when she heard what Grix stuttered out before lowering it to reveal dark raven black hair pulled back in a braid and bright emerald green eyes.

"It's okay and I stood here without a sound on purpose to see if I could surprise you. It's fun sneaking up on you," she said with the slight smile still on her face. She then looked out at the graduates and said and asked casually, "I've heard rumors of you taking a small team to Grey Town to scout and patrol while perhaps also cleansing a few of the dark scourge that might be around there. Have you thought of who you might be taking if those rumors are true?"

Edited May 7, 2017 by redfox

[Vorgin]

Grix's body relaxed as the conversation changed into mission details. He smiled with relief, "Ah yes, the General decided it would be good to bring along some fresh initiates so they could finally get a feel for the world outside the walls. You would be a perfect fit, Grey Town is a shady place with many places to hide, if given the honor of gathering people for the mission, you would be top on the list my friend." He chuckled, his heavy plate armor clanging a bit. On Grix, it weighed like nothing, hard to be a paladin and not be able to lift heavy armor. He turned and slow walked to the Barracks. "You are welcome to join me for the meeting, if you interested, showing them that you are would increase you chance to be assigned. If not, you can return to your skill of hiding in plain sight." With that he made it to the Barracks door and opened it.

 

Xel looked up at the cloudless sky as the Dire Bat quickly and silently soared over the desert. They have been travelling for some time. He had mixed feelings about this. For one, it was a great place for a quiet nap, he earned it after his little four on one murder fest. Thinking about it brought a smile to his face again, he needed more of that to freshen up the day. He gaze returned to the ground, to the barren wasteland that surrounded Grey Town. If not for the small lake oasis, they town would have been blown away by storms weeks after it's construction. Xel's thoughts stopped as he saw a tiny trail, two sets of tracks carving a line through the dunes. Flying lower to the ground, he saw they we going towards town. He was close to both his goals now, that smile returned to his face.

[padfoot]

Poppy hidden away inside of the Light Soldier, finished her drink with her friend. All the while, she searched through the man's mind for what they learned about The Lagoon. So far she wasn't having any luck. The man was keeping things from her. She would break him sooner or later. After all, it was a long trek back to Daylight City.

 

The other soldier, Mike, was finally finished with his drink. This man really liked to talk and insisted on regaling him with hilarious stories from his time in training. Poppy just nodded and laughed where it was appropriate.

 

"You about ready to go?" Mike asked, jerking his thumb towards the door

"Yeah, we better" Poppy replied, rising from her seat and following Mike outside.

 

As they neared the stables, some of her host's memories began to emerge. There was a party of six men sent to Nightfall. Four sent from The Spire, and two already stationed in Grey Town. These men were being sent to tell some news to the higher ups but they do not have horses.

 

 

In no time, they were saddled up and on their way out of town.

[redfox]

Rey listened to everything he said with interest and nodded before saying in reply, "That seems like it might be up my alley. I'll think about for a little while and get back to you before the meeting starts." She then also walked away but in the opposite direction to head back to the room she was staying in while at the Spire. They thought it would be better if she stayed there instead of in the barracks. They were afraid of what she'd do to those men if they tried to take advantage of her so they thought it would be better to keep her separated from them just in case. When she got to her room there, she sat on her bed, and thought about what Grix offered.

[Vorgin]

Grix nodded as she walked off. Seeing her gone now, he walked into the meeting. The General stood in the center of the room, talking to other high ranking officers. Leaders of the Assassin branch, Paladin branch, Pegasus branch, and Mage Branch of the Light Military. The meeting had yet to officially start, so Grix made his way to the refreshment table and drank a tall glass of water. More people filed into the room, about 40 total. Meeting to begin in 15 minutes.

 

 

The town was in view, and Xel's smile faded as he looked at the ragged old town. Powerless going about their lives, an occasional Light policing the streets. He actually liked this place. He and a few other Hunted came and wiped out every Light stationed there, but in response the Powerless paid as more soldiers flooded in, enforcing stricter laws, and being more severe with their punishments. Xel was instructed never to clear the town again, or else lose any support they had from the Powerless there. Copying his move on the 4 scouts, he melted and used the shadow of the Dire Bat on the ground to quickly reform on the ground. Standing at the town's entrance, seemingly coming from around one of the buildings, Xel hid his black hand into his jacket, and looked as any Powerless there did. He felt the presence of Light scattered around, but two unusually close ones were his target. He began to move towards the stables.

[padfoot]

Poppy and the Light Soldier left Grey Town behind and were now following the wide road back south. Mike filled their time with idle conversation but Poppy wasn't paying much attention. Apparently, this guy Arthur was like this anyway. His name was the only thing she was able to get a sure grasp on. These Light soldiers are tough. Poppy figured they went through some kind of psychological training for a situation such as this.

 

The landscape was open and made poppy nervous. There wasn't anyplace for her to hide if things went bad. Plus, open spaces meant strong winds that could scatter her in smoke form. Not to mention that there would be checkpoints the closer they got to Daylight.

 

Cal moved unseen towards the thing she had been searching for. She had finally found the refreshments table. She leaned against the wall behind it and picked through the small snacks and drinks. To an outside observer, it would appear as if food was just vanishng from the table.

[redfox]

After a few more minutes or so of thinking if she wanted to go to the meeting, Rey decided that she did so she got off of her bed, and made her way to the hall where she thought it was going to be held. She found out that she had gone to the right place soon after stepping into it when she all of the leaders of each group there. She went over to the refreshment table and got a few crackers and slices of cheese to eat before getting a small cup of lunch to have with them while seeing both Grix and Cal there as well. She nodded to both of them and then started to eat the crackers and cheese.

[Vorgin]

Xel saw them. Two men on horseback the just left the stable and left town. On one hand, Xel cursed himself for not being fast enough. On the other, out of town meant not drawing as much attention to himself. Regardless, he needed to catch them before they got too deep into enemy territory. One checkpoint could spread the news to another 30 soldiers. Even Xel couldn't hunt down that many people. He ran to the building which its shadow he formed from, and whistled. With a screech, the Dire Bat appeared from the dusty clouds. He melted into it's shadow to shot upwards into it's clawed feet. Flipping onto it's back, he flew fast and low to intercept. This time there was no stealth, the bat was and view of them, and gaining fast. The sinister grin returned to Xel's face, they weren't getting away now.

 

Grix smiled as Rey returned, "Ah! My friend! You decided to join us. I'm glad you did." He walked over to her, "Now don't eat too much, I heard that they have a nice dinner planned for those going to Grey Town, something to strengthen our bodies and minds as there is not much fresh food out there." He chuckled, "It's nothing to worry about. Take a seat and the General will start soon. I look forward to seeing you afterwards." He gave her a nod and grin.

[redfox]

Rey smiled back at Grix before hearing everything he said and nodded in understanding about not eating too much. "I won't. I just thought that I'd get a few snacks to eat beforehand and not each much afterward," she said in reply before finishing eating the crackers she had gotten to eat earlier and then got a few more before sitting down in a seat near the former.

[padfoot]

Poppy was too busy searching through the soldier's mind to be paying attention to the situation around them. It was Mike that shouted a warning.

 

"Dire Bat! Get down!" The soldier cried, dropping from his horse on one side and rolling to his feet. Poppy didn't have time to react, the next thing she knew she was laying on her side in the dirt. The bat spooped low, it's little clawed feet scratching at the air at the place she was moments before.

 

POP! There was a hiss before area lit up with with green light. Mike had fired a extremely bright flare into the sky which exploded into a lingering design. He was calling reinforcements. Which was bad for Poppy. She might have been able to fool Mike that she was not his friend but she doubted she could fool so many higher ups.

 

It was all the stupid Dark's fault. What was he doing coming in so hot in light controlled territory? Poppy didn't have time to think about it. Mike was already on his feet and ready for the next attack. She did the same, drawing the long, polished sword from the sheath at her hip. She was still undercover so she had to make it look good.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Grey Town? Why is the light moving to Grey Town? she wondered as she drifted closer to the two discussing military information.They were taking a squad to Grey Town for something. That was interesting. She wondered if she could stow away somehow.

[Vorgin]

The General of the Ground Corp stood at the podium as the rest of the room sat down. He cleared his voice, "The Dark scourge has been causing issues in Grey Town more than a simple patrol can take anymore. Not only take, at times it takes a single powerful Dark to clear the town of our men. We need a stronger foothold, and that is why we are readying a task force to purify the town, and maintain our presence there indefinitely. We have the resources now to support a new force there, and once cleansed, we will build a fort to house the new garrison. More details to come before the day is over. Those of you who know they are going can ready the caravan assembling outside the city walls. Those who are interested in coming, talk to your Corp General. Dismissed."

With that he walked to a small table and sat down. A line quickly formed to him and the generals of the Air Corp and the Assassin Corp.

 

Grix got up and smiled at Rey before heading to the caravan to help pack. His strong build helped with heavy loads they were bringing with them.

 

Xel laughed, "Your flare might add a timer to this fight, but it also makes more shadows for me!" Suddenly his shadow started to bubble as it grew physical spikes that shot out of the ground. Like a porcupine, they launched towards the two men in a rain of dark spikes. All the while Xel was charging closer to them, the Dire Bat flew overhead now, heading towards the flare.

[redfox]

Rey smiled back at Grix after the General's speech and then was one of the ones in line in front of the general of the Assassin Corp. When it was her turn to go up to him after the other ones in line in front of her had gone, she asked his permission to go and told him her interest in going. He listened to all that she said before nodding and saying that she could go and would tell her father so that he wouldn't get worried. She nodded in understanding and with a happy smile before going back up to her room to pack. After that was done, she went outside and helped Grix and a few other people pack the caravan with supplies.

[padfoot]

Miles away at te next Light controlled checkpoint, commands were going out to send a team to the distress flare launched moments before. The soilders mounted their winged horses abd took to the sky.

 

Poppy backpedaled when the dark warrior launched a barage of arrows arcing towards the two men. Poppy turned and fled while Mike stood his ground. He clicked a dial on the bronze gauntlet he was weaig on his left wrist. There was a mechanical whirl as a thin arm extended off the end and dropped and convex lense in front of his fist. His light blast, refracted by the lens, spread out in an funnel over his and protected him from the deadly spikes.

 

Becuse of Mikes age and inexperence, he was outfitted with a refraction module. It was basically training wheels for his powers until he could learn to control them better. Mike wa limited to only shooting beams of light from his fists, the R-mod gave him the basic tactical needs that the Scout Corporation needed.

 

Mike's eyes widened with fear when he spotted the warrior approaching fast. He twisted the dial o his R-mod and dropped another lense in front of his fist. This one was concave.

 

Mike fired a concentrated beam of light called a light lance from his R-mod. The beam burned a trail into the dirt road as it traced towards the foe.

 

Poppy tumbled off the road into a ditch, the barage of spikes barely missing her legs as she dove for cover. She ran through her options while Mike fought bravely for his people. Poppy on the other hand, was currently cursing the hot headedness of her people. chould I mae a break for it? The tree line is pretty far from here. This guy is an elite dark soldier and there is no way I can face him in this body. I haven't even figured out how my junk works her mind raced. Sh always knew that plan B was to get the hell out of this Aurther guy and run for it.Poppy looked upwards when a shadow passed across the ground in front of her. The DireBat was soaring, climbing in altitude to reach the flare. What is he doing?

 

Poppy didn't have time to worry for long, She needed to act. Poppy darted offf the ground and broke into a hard sprint for the treeline.

 

 

 

[Vorgin]

The caravan was coming together. By time it was ready to leave, they have 30 soldiers from each corp to hold down Grey Town, the central line of the war. 90 men and women strong, on horse, Pegasus, and even some Oxen. The caravan was ready, and the 90 were called into the great hall of the Spire for a celebratory feast. The food was of the highest quality, and in vast quantities. Grix had taken his seat and ate to his heart and stomach's content. Others joined in as well.

Being inside the Spire, security was tight. Light Mages sensed the movements of Light power all throughout the massive tower. Sneaking in would not go unnoticed here.

 

Xel's head snapped towards the runner, He knew that he time was running short. The Light beam was cutting towards him and he needed to move. He looked up to the Dire Bat, it flapped in position directly under the flare as it burned in the sky. This caused an eclipse effect, making a larger and darker shadow over the ground. Just as the beam reached him, he melted into the shadow. Laughter echoed from the darkness as a bulge in the shadow darted towards the running Light Scout. A black clawed hand emerged from the shadow and grabbed his leg mid run.

The other scout had another problem, a circle of spikes formed around him and slowly began to close in. One wrong move or waste too much time, and he would be impaled in place.

[redfox]

Rey had helped Grix and the others that were going on the trip to Grey Town pack up the caravan and then joined everyone in the eating area for the large meal that they were going to feed them before the journey they were going to go on. She filled up her plate and then sat down next to Grix and a few others before starting to eat also to her heart's content. "Mm this is very good food," she said in between bites before eating some more.

[padfoot]

Poppy sprawled out when something caught her ankle mid stride. Her sword spun away, impailing itself in the soft earth. An intentionaly spooky laugh echoed around her as Poppy looked back to see a clawed hand rising from the ground and grippig her ankle. She growled the look in her eyes twisted in confusion and horror. It was as if the man lost control on his face for a moment.

 

"You moron. I'm on your side." She growled, her voice raspy as smoke trickled from the corners of her mouth.

 

 

Mike twisted the dial on his R-mod and fired aother flare. This time he fired it at the ground in front of him. He shielded his eyes from the flash that followed. The shadow constructs dissolved in the intense light, allowing Mike eough time to escape the trap.

 

the burning flare in the dirt made it difficult to locate the dark attacker or his partner. Mike sprinted for his horse and lept on it's back.

 

 

[Vorgin]

Xel watched as smoke emerged from the man he had grabbed. It was a rare dark technique, but right now he didn't have time to apologize. The other scout was running to his horse, and Xel was starting to feel fatigued. He would not fail and allow the city's location to be found out. He gathered himself, grabbed Poppy's host body, and threw it between the second flare and the running scout. The result was another long shadow, but Xel couldn't waste time on constructs. His legs melted into darkness and he slide across the ground at an inhuman speed. He drew his blade from his side and let out a battle cry as he leaped to slash at the man and his horse.

 

The feast was wonderful. The soldiers mostly seemed content at the meal given. After it was all done, the generals ordered everyone to get a good nights rest and to be up early tomorrow. Grix grinned as he stood up, looking at Rey, "My friend, I hope to see you rested and ready tomorrow. The trip will be long, but the rewards will be great for our city. An expansion of our light into the dark desert." His zealous confidence beamed off him.