Quoth The Raven [job]

Maybe Raven chose to realize it late or maybe he didn’t want to realize it at all when she first laid her eyes on the bright moon shining sinfully down on the group of five. It was red and full, as if screaming hungrily to get a glimpse of blood. More importantly, it resembled the night Raven murdered her own kin the first time all those full moons ago. The reddening sky told her further that that night would be the night that history repeated itself. She knew yet she didn’t want to acknowledge or venture further down into that path in her thoughts. It would just be too depressing.

Pulling aside the fact that she was once again destroying the possible chance for her kind to survive, Raven knew she had no reason to be guilty of this night and that possibly, it wouldn’t haunt her conscious once again later. Unlike the last time she did it, Raven undoubtedly had a reason this time. If it was her broken conscious that lead the first assault on her own kind, this time it was her duty as the only member of royalty still alive and also as a member of Sabertooth which taught her the life of human beings and their strength. She wasn’t, in no way, going to let another world fall apart to save hers. Even if it meant crushing its only chance to survive and grow further. What was the point in letting them live an empty life under Ikaros’ control anyway?
 
Sinking deep into that ocean of thoughts was her only salvation while releasing the firm hold she held in her abilities. She had to remember that being in her home ground did give her a few advantages compared to others. In fact, under the thorny vines that Raven bound herself with, the chance for her to lose control like a long time ago was a high possibility. So by the time the dark waters of duty and sensibility chocked her, Raven was already on battle mode, drawing her liquid black wings closer to her lithe body. She didn’t give her previous thoughts a second glance when her wings took their place, hardened and took aim at the approaching Ravens.

“I have killed you before. I can do it again even though this time, I can properly tell you. I’m sorry…"
 
Black feathers pierced the silent wind. It was sharp like the sword of a military commander who went in and out of battle every day. It was also strangely beautiful and majestic. Initially, the feathers twisted and turned but all of them later came to meet at one point, striking the enemy at a single point one at a time. She saw them falling one by one, not only because of her own attacks but also thanks to the others who had agreed in helping her with the task. Raven had to remind herself to thank them later, hopefully, without passing out before doing so.
 
But the battle had only begun. Behind the front row of ravens were another row of monsters of the same kind, pushing themselves against the wind and approaching the five guardians, she would call this team up that for now, swiftly, silently and boldly. Raven wondered if they knew what they were doing. Did they know they were being used by Ikaros? Were they able to think that further? What was it that bound them to Ikaros anyway? What kind of magic did Ikaros even use to bring them back to life? No, they were not alive. No, they were still very much the corpse that Raven left them as. They were just moving again and to fill the void in their purpose, Ikaros gave them all something to do. As it was, they were nothing more than some loyal dogs he was using to weaken Raven with. All they had to do was take the bullet for their master. They were sacrifices because Ikaros knew they were no match for Raven.

It was all just a game for him. It was his way of showing Raven that he plans to have his cake, and yes, he plans to eat it too…the same cake that should have been Raven’s.

Battle:

The member 'Raven Kurosaki' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

'Monster Dice' :

Oh! the white haired man exclaimed in his mind as a mindless bird tried clawing at him from his front. Almost got me he thought again before pushing upwards and kicking it back. Nobody decided to get up close and personal with with, which disappointed the recreationist, I guess you can't win them all. At least they have my back from afar. Projectiles and darkness filled the air around him, Kihia's ship destroying whatever Raven monsters were around him with accuracy. He knew that the ship wouldn't be able to hurt him, unless it malfunctioned of course, but what were the chances of that happening. Zenshin was left standing in the aftermath looking at his party. They took out these enemies with efficiency, now there was only a matter of getting to the castle. Like Frederik, Zen didn't think that the ship could withstand a mass of enemies, so he'd make a mental note for a proposition to Fred.

Behind him, another murder formed, most likely to do just that to he and his team. First a loud caw, then he reared his head so that he was face to feather with the black birds that infected the once great land. Well, according to the organizer of this party anyways. What's that other sound..? his ears asked, and he answered by turning around once more to see black feathers flying towards him. Uh oh! he thought ducking as quickly as he could and watching them go over head to pierce the monsters to his rear. "A warning would before you maim me would be nice Raven!" he called out, slightly annoyed at the lack of care she had for him. Zen would forgive the infraction the one time, only for Raven who was sure to be thinking of past events which would undoubtedly cloud her combat judgement, though he'd be sure to be more cautious when he was in front of her.

Groups on enemies that could fly were definitely not his specialty, but he would try to combat them as best he could, so as to not make himself seem like some kind of freeloader in the group; however, he was sure he'd get his time to shine when they met up with Ikaros. Until then, the birds flocked and he fought, slicing one straight down the middle and fending another off with the end of the shaft until he was properly positioned to crush it in one swift movement. From the looks of it, that's all they'll offer me. I need to retreat he thought before quickly turning tail and running back towards his group. Those two ravens that he picked off were eager for flesh, separating from the group and destroyed by their ravenous hunger. The others, on the other hand, weren't so reckless. They traveled in a giant band and weren't going to make the take mistakes as their undead brethren.

Sure that the rest of the gang would make quick work of the reaming birds, Zen would come u p with a plan that was sure to work, at least in his mind. Once it was all over and they were safe for the time being, he'd tell the group his thoughts. "I'm sure as all of you know, this is definitely, undeniably, a trap. I have no doubt in my mind that Ikaros is waiting for us to come on that huge, completely conspicuous ship so that we have no way of escaping, to which he would send all of the ravens to bring it down. I'm sure it's sturdy, but there's no way it can withstand a world of demons picking at it from all angles. So, I suggest that Frederick and myself travel on foot to the castle and leave nothing standing in our path, distracting whatever Ikaros had in store for us and spreading the monsters just a little bit thinner. We'll find a way onto the castle and we'll meet you three at the entrance. Sound like a plan?"

Another flock, another wave of enemies. Only this time it was significantly larger then the first wave.

With each raven having the size of a small dog, the new group of enemies descended upon the small party of mages. That even though they were with only five members, easily dispatched the first wave. Which wasn't that strange considering the amount of power they had combined. Even the vessel Kihia had brought with him, a contraption that Frederick found rather dangerous to be standing on all together on such a mission. Had its merits.

Raven on the other hand used a more refined tactic to dispatch the enemy, as she created a large mass of black feathers that gave off an ominous presence as it scourged through the air. Branching out and following their own path until each branch would meet up at the flying ravens. That were shredded apart by the sheer collision and sharpness of each feather.

But as said before, the second wave almost followed up immediately after mages had managed taking care of the first one. Their wings flapping loudly as the birds pressed on against the wind, with two of them flying faster then rest. Surely the very concept of fresh and living meat was a welcome treat to them. And for a bird it was only natural that they wanted to be as fast as possible at their meal, definitely when there was an entire flock that also carried a starving hunger.

While those two birds aimed directly for Zenshin, Frederick focused on the larger group. That appeared to stick together, making them a far more difficult opponent then a single raven.

However Frederick had a solution for this, which was divide and conquer. A concept that the others were probably familiar with as well, if not already thought so themselves.

Without even a movement to indicate his attack, Frederick would split the black mass apart in two separate small entities and send it for the large flock of birds. Each of them following their own path, while they homed in on their targets.
Yet instead on focusing taking a few out as Frederick did on the first blast. They separate masses would just cross several times through the flock, dividing the bird from a whole and making them easier targets for Frederick's companions.

As expected the other were more then strong enough to take out the other enemies fast enough, for each of them to actually catch a quick breather. And even come up with a suggestion, which followed the same principle as Frederick's own concept of divide and conquer.

'It's not that I don't appreciate a bit of bloodshed' responded Frederick sarcastically 'but why would I put my life on the line by drawing out the enemy. While you just as you said the ship practically calls out to every being out here in this realm. I mean unless that thing can become invisible or look like something else entirely, I still see why the enemy won't flock towards it. While we are steamrolling our way through what I assume maybe thousand, if not more of demons'

Kihia listened intently to all that was being said outside of his ship from his companions. Kihia frowned and pushed away, “Icer… Take over… Disengage top turret and open up the top hatch…” Icer only let out a small beep as the controls and turrets started to target the demons and fire at a slower rate, A circular hatch opened up at the top of the ship as Kihia walked past Ukan and then Ryo’s wolf and then jumped out onto the top of the ship. He opened his eyes and examined what was going on with his own eyes. They were doing well, in short of insulting the Ikarones the Demons were not much, as they were easily dropping like flies. Kihia then stood up and unsheathed the Geruks and looked at his companions, “The Ikarones is a combat worthy vessel… much so than you all realize… it would take a lot to break through the magic shields she has been equipped with…” He then walked forward to the bow of the ship and started to send magic power to his weapons, “and did you already forget… the one you call Raven said it is incredibly difficult to get to that castle without flying… and besides…if we stand on top of the ship as she steadily flies towards the castle… we can use her as a mobile assault platform… draw the enemies to us and the defeat them in droves…”

He then raised both his hands up and started to rotate them as if he was turning a wheel, he then whispered, “Sacred Crystal Chained Partisans….” A trail of whitish blue crystal moved down his hands and onto the Geruks which it then started to form a chain on each weapon, each chain forming at four meters in length and a crystal partisan blade formed at the end of the chains. Kihia twirled these crystal weapons up to the point they finished forming and then pulled back the Geruks and spun in a clockwise direction as the two weapons whipped around with him and then sliced through two of the raven demons, and Icer managed to take down two more with the turrets, “Icer… save your power and let me handle this…” At those words The turrets ceased there firing and Kihia then spun around once more whipping the two Partisan blades forward as they pierced two of the trapped ravens and then pulled back slamming them into Frederiks Darkness, he then stopped for a moment and looked at his companions, “Yes your concerns are justified that the Ikarones will draw the attention of the enemy to it… but she can take the beating…” He then lowered his arms and looked at the castle, “My proposition we use this to our advantage…. I can draw their attention with the Ikarones… fly over the castle and drop you all in pods directly into the courtyard…. While keeping the majority of the demon forces on my tail… I can rejoin you all when I have dealt with whatever may be chasing me… what do you all say…?”

Ryo sighed as he saw even more of those damned reanimated ravens. He was starting to get very, very tired of slaughtering dead opponents. As Frederick scattered them Ryo took advantage of the fact and began to throw card after card into the flock striking Raven after raven. Thankfully his cards had gotten stronger with his own rise to strength but it still took no less than three cards a piece in order for him to sack one of the ravens. He hated the idea of using more of his spells not knowing what he would be facing in the castle, and not knowing how much of his magic he would actually need. Still upon seeing that he still had a fairly large host to deal with he began to stop throwing and start drawing cards filling both of his hands once more. He wouldn't use his new power yet. Not that he could even if he wanted to without being a danger to himself. Still he had to wait and it wouldn't be long now before he could strike with it of that much he was certain.

Still now he had another matter to attend to. He put away the cards he wasn't going to use and then filled both of his hands with playing cards. With his right hand he swiped the cards in the air in front of him and spoke "Wind's Edge." from the slash emerged a slash of wind that looked almost like a miniature tornado that was spinning on it's side. This went straight into the group of raven's slashing through some of them that had already been hit with playing cards earlier, but not enough to fell them. This however wasn't his only attack as his left hand held nine cards and he let these form into a magical circle and from that magic circle emerged Six bolts of lightning. All of these bolts flew into the flock of undead ravens and each and every single one of them found a mark and hit it well. With this spell cast he was able to cut down the flock that had once been mighty to size to only a handful. It took him only a few more moments to eliminate the remaining with his playing cards and when he had finished the others were starting to speak about a plan.

Ryo listened to everyone's opinion on the matter and then nodded his head "I believe that this thing is indeed sturdy. We ought to take advantage of it. I know for a fact that the few spells I can use that will allow me to fly will be of better use to us at a later date. As for the sudden deployment it should indeed help us get a bit of a jump on the enemy. They do know we have a ship, but I don't think they know that we can deploy with any kind of rapid succession. However, I will not subject Gora to such a fate. I would prefer it if you kept him with you until you could deploy in a different manner. That way if you had him with you he would be able to track the three of us. He is familiar with all of our scents as we are from Sabertooth and he has scented us the most. He can find us even here. Just remember if any harm befalls him under your care...well it won't be pretty." he warned looking to the flying ship worried for his Dire Wolf companion.


MP:95/100
HP:100%
Gloves MP: 80/100
Flaming Cards: CD 1/4
Projectile Cards: CD 1/5
Lightning Strike: CD Begin
Wind's Edge: CD Begin

“I’ll fly there,” Raven answered them without even having to think for longer than a second. There couldn’t possibly be anyone within the party that could figure out this sky as much as she could. “Like Kihia said, I’ll lead. Splitting up will be a difficult task especially in a place where all of you can get lost. I’ll fly ahead while you men follow,” she told them with a nod before flying straight ahead. Raven knew the easiest route to her castle and though it was quite a difficult path to even dream of taking with lots of twists and turns, it was also one of those paths that took you to your destination within minutes. The broken land could act as means to cover the ship up although it would still draw in some attention.

She drifted slowly to the left right behind a large mass of floating island. It was big enough and since it had something like a hill on it, it managed to hide Kihia’s ship for a moment. “This is called the Revolving Island,” she started in a voice just high enough for her party to hear. “It’s called so because this piece of island seems to revolve around our castle much like planets to the sun. However, it is faster and doesn’t take years; only a few minutes. More importantly, at a point, it comes very close to our castle as well. So you know what we are supposed to follow,” Raven informed them as she leaned back and slowed down just so that she was keeping up with the island. “Plus, it can hide the ship a little. As long as Ikaros doesn’t have any ravens stationed around here, we are safe. But keep your heads up. This path isn’t as easy as you think either. There would be other floating islands that could drift towards us at a fast pace. We need to avoid them as well as take all the turns this island would take. Be ready for anything”.

Meanwhile…

Ikaros held a glass of red wine to his smirking lips, his red raven like eyes falling on to the previous king of his realm. “I remember my promise, Kaitou…” sinful, amused voice echoed through the throne room of Raven’s castle. “I told you I will reunite you with your daughter, didn’t I?”  Followed by the sound of bitter laughter, his words fell on deaf, lifeless ears. Kaitou could only kneel for his new master…for the one who brought him back to life but not his memories.

On the other side of the castle:

Kaitou crushed his sword into the stone floor of the castle’s entrance. “Go, Kaitou! Go meet your daughter and make sure you bring her to me alive,” were the last words his master had bequeathed him with. Every time he tried to remember the face of this person he was supposed to defeat, all Kaitou got were empty pictures and a feeling he couldn’t quite put a name on. It told him he was going to commit something he shouldn’t but on the other hand, the control Ikaros had over him kept repeating his last words in the previous king’s head. “Defeat your daughter”… “Your daughter’s life is mine to take”… “Go! Take her to me!”

“Father…”

"Fair enough Raven. I'll follow your lead, but I won't be boarding your ship Kihia. I have my own means of flight, and as much faith you have in your ship, I don't want to take that unnecessary risk that Ikaros has monsters lying in wait to ambush us. Probably also has raven's stationed around the possible routes to the castle, but at least on this, they'll have a harder time hitting me" he said, extending his hand and recreating a broomstick. Looks like that job I did in Seven paid off after all he thought before putting the piece of wood and straw between his legs and taking off, hovering a few feet off the ground. Sure, he was paranoid, its what kept him alive in times of high danger, but Raven was right, she knew the easiest route and it would be better if he followed her.

Once they hit a certain point, Raven explained what some kind of island was once they passed it. It was some kind of sattelite, revolving around the castle very quickly in relation to their planet and the sun. The island was large enough to conceal the monstrously large ship: The Ikarones, and definitely large enough to hide Raven and Zenshin, flying in close proximity. At any moment he was waiting for a swarm of half dead crow demons to come out of the the space behind the hill on the floating land form, he'd be ready though. Not like he would have to do much with that aforementioned ship around. Assuming it couldn't stop every last one of them though, he was as ready as he was going to be. Raven then warned about other floating islands getting in their way and possibly colliding with them. Again, Kihia mentioned the magical shield that his ship had, though Zenshin was a little skeptical that it could block an entire island the size of the ship itself or larger.

Once again, his weapon of choice began to glow and pulsate. It was filled with enough power to transform once again, and Zenshin wasn't going to wait until he needed it. He wanted to be prepared, so naturally, he transformed it into its penultimate form. The scythe shifted into more of an ax shape than scythe, though that didn't matter, what mattered is that he wasn't caught in a rough spot in order to change it. "How hard exactly would it be to sprinkle those revolting demons around the orbit of the Revolving Island? This seems a little too easy" he said cynically. More paranoia. Was it worth the worry? Probably. Did it make him anxious? Definitely. He didn't like to not know things, though if he was being honest it was a bit of a rush since he was used to knowing whatever he wanted, whenever. To get it off his mind, he thought of Fred. Zen thought of Fred as a decision gone right. This was exactly what he thought about when he decided so bring him into the guild. They'd be saving the world together side by side. It was a wonderful change from the first day they met. [i]Yeah, times have changed.

The outcome of their little discussion was anything but good in Fredericks opinion, especially since he himself didn't had any other means of flying transportation. Which in case of magic was actually quite strange, considering the many mages who did have such a skill. Like Zenshin for instance, who actually had a broomstick to use as a means for transportation. Others could sprout wings and use those to take off into the air, while some of the more magic focussed mages used levitation abilities. Allowing them to float and even propel through the air. Hell Frederick even saw a fire mage use his fire to blast himself off into the sky, and actually pursue a target with the sheer force of continuously ignited fire from the sole of his feet.

Truth was, simply that Frederick didn't like flying, especially on a ship. To him it felt unnatural, as he always rather had both his feet on the ground. At least there he could have full control over his own fate.

'Fine... just don't crash this deathtrap!' he'd eventually said with an annoyed voice, while boarding the magical vessel. But not without the loud mumbling of what could only be curse words or even insults. While doing so.

While taking his place somewhere in the back, leaning against what he assumed was the captains cabin outer wall. Frederick observed the sky in front of him closely. Gazing at Raven who flew in the lead, with Zenshin following her just a mere meter or two behind her. Two people who seemed perfectly attuned to traveling that way. While he himself, had chosen a spot that wasn't to close to the ships railings.
It didn't help his attitude though, as the ship started to move. He only became more and more agitated.

Raven lead the small party towards what seemed to be a floating island. One of many Frederick assumed. And as she pressed on she started to explain the purpose of the landscape, which resulted in a pretty sound plan. Going this route, would provide them and the ship enough cover to not be spotted right away. And would bring them close enough to board and raid the castle.

'Say Ryo...' Frederick eventually said, with a low enough voice to be sure that no one else could hear him. Not that they probably could, with the ships engines and the air current in the sky even talking in a normal voice would overrule anything the others could possibly hear. At least not until it was right besides them. 'Any observations on our Lamia Scale mage? He seems capable and all, but still... I don't like working with unknown factors..'

Kihia nodded as Raven presented an idea that possibly didn’t involve fighting, he then watched as Zenshin formed a broomstick with his magic and got on it and started to fly, Frederik then said not to crash the ship which caused Kihia to gently smile, Someone doesn’t like flying… Kihia dispelled his chained partisans and sheathed the Geruks, he then waited for a moment in case Ryo boarded, then he would jump back down into the ship as the hatch would seal itself. Kihia looked back and saw Frederik taking upa spot near the back wall, not a bad spot but no handholds, Kihia felt he would be better in one of the passenger seats but he wasn’t going to press.

Kihia then walked over and got in the pilots seat, “Icer, return to manual control,” There was a small beep as Kihia took full control when he heard Frederik quietly start to talk, He heard exactly what was said and he understood his feelings, however he wasn’t going to sit there and not say anything. “Frederik… I understand where you are coming from… But unknown factors are sometimes needed to keep the enemy guessing just as well… if we were to detail our fighting capabilities in perfect detail… it could put us at risk… I promise you, on my honor… I give you my word I will assist you all in this venture… my shield is for you all more than myself at this point…” Kihia then went quiet and focused on the path Raven flew, he then pulled the throttle up a bit going forward at a speed just enough to keep up but not over take the Sabertooth Guildmaster, I haven’t even showed them what magic I use… I guess that is enough reason for them not to trust me…

A few minutes later they arrived at the island, Kihia carefully maneuvered the Ikarones between two floating landmasses and adjusted the thrusters to copy the movement of the movement of the islands. He then pressed a button to engage self-managing auto pilot and got out of his seat, Kihia opened up the top hatch and got on top and sat down as he waited for word of what was next, This bleak world bugged him, more so of the fact he was a Demon Slayer than anything else, he actively sensed the demonic aura that permeated through the entire area.

Kihia then sighed, No use to let that get to me… As we fight I am certain we will be putting the undead to rest for good… as well as this Ikaros…. Kihia looked at his right hand, underneath the armor was nothing but ice, but that ice has always been perhaps his greatest gift, and his greatest strength. Kihia then looked at his companions whomever may be out in the open, “So what is the plan for the assault of the castle… We still have an unknown amount of demons to deal with… as well as Ikaros…”

With the decision finally made Ryo jumped on board the ship without a moment's delay. He wouldn't be left behind and as he arrived Gora was quick to move towards him nuzzling him clearly looking green and weak in the body. Ryo knelt down and held onto the great dire wolf stroking his head gently and affectionately "I know boy, I know. Be strong and we shall be off of this thing before you know it. Just lay there and keep your stomach. We can't have you making the inside of this craft dirty." Gora looked up at him nodding his head lightly "yes sir...I shall." Ryo smiled and kissed the top of his head nodding "I am very proud of you. There is a chance you will be partnered with Kihia. You will guide him to us if that happens. You will use your nose, and I will leave you trails. I am counting on you." The lupine looked up at him nodding slowly "I will do this if I have to. I will not let you down." Ryo chuckled standing up slowly "I know you won't Gora. I know you will be perfect as always."

As he stood up and walked around he found Frederick and heard him call his name. It was a bit off putting as he hadn't heard frederick talk to him since their job together. He walked over and stood next to his teammate listening to his question the intergrity of their host. He thought a moment and was about to speak when Kihia spoke up. He sighed and looked to Frederick "I do not trust him. I do however trust Zenshin, Raven, and my friend inside of his guild Talen. I trust that their judgement of him is correct and he is someone to be trusted. In light of this I offered up that plan to keep Gora with him in case he got separated from us. Gora is very important to me." He spoke up a bit louder as he said his next statement so Kihia would know exactly what the expectation was. "But he hasn't earned my trust, nor distrust. I shall choose to give him a wavering form of trust for now. However if my plan is taken and Gora is in his care then he best be careful. I raised Gora from a pup when i found him lost and alone. He is like a son to me, and I am a very superstitious man. So if some unlucky accident should befall my son. If he's over taken by these damned Ravens, Left behind to die in this realm, or if he should be struck by a bolt of lightning. Then I know his shield is as useless as his honor and his word, and that I will not forgive. But that aside he has thus far shown himself to be trustworthy, and capable. I will believe in his abilities until he falters and gives me reason not to."

Ryo gently put a hand on Frederick's shoulder trying to be a bit friendly "I trusted you when we did our job together knowing about your general past, and despite you're....interesting character. I trusted you would keep me alive and help me and I wasn't disappointed. We must all be given a chance to show our quality before being judged." he said with a smile looking to Kihia at this point "The plan for the assault should be a blitz. We need to take the castle before the enemy inside of it can call in reinforcements and should he we need a plan to keep them from getting inside and cutting us off."

Raven stilled and ducked just in time to avoid a boulder flying past her. It barely grazed the tip of her hair but Raven suddenly realized that her plan included cutting through a sea of rocks and boulders of varying shapes and sizes. It was like a meteor shower aimed solely at her and the others. If she hadn’t known any better, Ravn would think Ikaros was controlling the lands of Raven world too. What made it highly unlikely was the fact that if anyone could control it, that would be either her father or Raven herself. Outsiders were not granted to do whatever they wished with their world. Why do you think Ikaros was hungry for her blood? He hoped that by killing off her father, he would be able to take his powers. Unfortunate for him, the ancient power that passes down through blood flew straight into Raven who was only five around that time. Well, imagine Ikaros’ anger when he found out that he risked his life killing the king only for a five year old child to prance around with the powers he desired. As if adding salt to injury, the realization that Raven also possessed the Goddess’ ancient power didn’t help any better in quenching Ikaros’ distaste towards the violet haired girl. In the end, it all boiled down to Ikaros cursing Raven’s very existence and yada yada yada nw Raven was on a mission to kill him and set everything straight; Easy, right?

She shook her head at the thought. She had not once seen a person holding a grudge for as long as Ikaros did. He might be a cruel noble for everyone else, but in Raven’s eyes, that man was nothing but childish. His life was spared by some luck before and he could have used the chance to move on and find a new life like Raven did. Instead, he had let his hate take root deep within and during the years it had definitely grown into something no reason or words can stop. To him, unless he saw her blood, he wouldn’t be satisfied and for that, he was willing to play any dirty trick under the sky.

“The island will reach the point closest to my castle within a few minutes. I want you guys to move quickly when the time comes. I don’t think the castle grounds will be free of trouble so keep your guard up,” she spoke softly, almost scared that if she spoke any higher, something dreadful would jump out of the corner. She was starting to act like a small girl again. What a confusing person she was even to herself. One moment, she could take on the whole world and in another, she was scared and expecting the worst. Having four other strong mages with her did nothing to calm her senses. The hopeless feeling of something going horribly wrong only increased with the decrease in distance between then and the castle.

When her eyes landed on the castle grounds, Raven gave signal for all of them to move. She flew ahead of them herself in hopes of checking everything out but…To Raven’s surprise, there was nothing protecting the castle. It was empty save for one powerful aura coming closer to them as seconds passed by. But more importantly, why was it so familiar to her?



Note: Time to start the mini boss battle between Raven and her father!!!! We can take it slow too of course xD

Raven gave the command and Zenshin followed closely behind her, naturally, and ended up on the island that the castle sat on. He came prepared for a fight, but there wasn't one to be had. "I don't like this at all." he remarked, almost absolutely positive that this was a trap. Not because of the ambush that had just converged upon them, but the lack of any kind of creature that could be classified as threatening. Just how sure is this Ikaros character that he can take us all on. Clouds above them were as thick as ever, blocking whatever sunlight this plane had left and almost inviting them to go inside. He could feel it, and chances were that Raven could feel it too, the power. It was the most immediately noticeable aspect upon arriving on top of the island, the dense aura.

Once again, his weapon glowed and shifted its form like it had done once before, this time into what appeared to be a more ax-like form. It was the penultimate stage of its changes, and one that Zen could rely on in sticky situations such as this one. He did it preemptively, as he felt a bout was coming, a bout which he was looking forward to since the start of this job. Once Fred, Ryo, and Kihia arrived, it would only be a matter of time before the castle gates opened. The recreationist took no moments to think, only acting on his immediate instinct and walked forward. If there was anything he knew, it was that hesitation in battles or other dangerous situations led to death, so he allowed his gut to take the wheel. The dark wooded, gold brimmed, colossal doors of the castle opened up to a marble chiseled floor, a tile pattern was easily made out in the stone.

No expenses were spared building such a palace he thought while looking at the surroundings. In front of the doors was a red, satin carpet which led all the way to steps up to an elevated surface not too far from the ground level. There, sat a magnificent throne under a skylight which emphasized the seat itself as well as the one sitting in it. Pillars made of quartz which were generously spaced parallel to each other on either sides of the carpet were the support of the building, keeping it from falling. The mage looked to his left and right while slowly walking forward and took notice of the stained glass windows etched with figures whom he believed to be the old ruler along with flocks of ravens. It's a lot brighter in here another thought. He looked above. There, sat a massive, intricate chandelier made of gold and supported by a steel chain. Many wax candles sat comfortably within the holders built into the decoration, and it glittered like most other things within the castle.

What really caught his eye, though, was the man sitting in the chair. After admiring what he would, Zenshin would focus solely on the seemingly corrupted figure sitting in the throne, a throne that did not belong to him. He was seemingly normal looking, except a bit twisted. Kaito, Raven's father, sat in the throne. He was expecting them, more specifically, he was expecting Raven, though if he believed she was coming alone, then you have another thing coming

MP: 94% (+4% The Coat / -10% The Chance)

Even with having contracted vampirism didn't diminish he man's sensibility. At least for now, one does never know what the long lasted effects were of that disease. Maybe Ryo would stay himself,for the next forty to fifty years, or even for eternity. Or maybe he would gradually turn in the one of the vicious creatures they'd encountered. Either way, for now it seems that the man was still himself. As shared Frederick's concerns but also managed to use logic to qualm his troubling thoughts on the stranger in their midst.

Frederick was about to respond to Ryo, until he rudely got interrupted by the very man they were talking about. Which just fueled his doubts and caution on the man again.
Just now, Frederick and Ryo had been speaking softly. Enough so, that only the two of them should have been hearing each other. Yet this managed undoubtedly heard every single word they uttered.

'Tch' Frederick responded with a hissing voice, obviously troubled and insulted by the fact Kihia managed to overhear their conversation 'Just don't get in my way when we're fighting. Because as of now, I still can't distinguish you between an enemy or ally.'

The remainder of the voyage, continued mostly in silence. As Frederick turned away from the other mages only to find a place where he could continue to brood alone with his angry thoughts. And Kihia returned to his steering wheel, so that he could easily maneuver his vessel between the large land masses that passes each other just barely.
This period of time was like the silence before the storm, as if you were waiting for the results of a medical exam and the clock was just nerve wrecking ticking away the seconds. And the tension on the ship didn't made it any better. So when the moment actually arrived that Kihia's ship actually landed at their destination, Frederick was more then happy to be the first to jump off.

Slowly he followed Raven and Zenshin further into the large complex which unfolded in front of him. A gigantic and majestic palace that could only belong to royalty. Its entire floor was paved with marble tiles. Polished so clean that it brightly reflected the editing light from the grand chandeliers. That for some reason felt as an ominous presence as it hung above their heads. Exactly in the midst of this large grand hall, was a velvet red carpet. Fabricated from the finest cloth. That reached all the way to a surface which laid significantly higher then the rest of the floor.

As Frederick continued to follow his fellow mages, he as well started to feel the immense pressure weighting down on him. A sickly sensation that forebode nothing but ill intentions. It made him instantly wary as he summoned forth the well known black aura to surround himself and his fists with.

Slowly they closed in on the entity, and when they were finally close enough. It came to an surprise that Frederick didn't saw the fiend he was expecting. No instead of Ikaros, the being he fought together with Raven once. There was another man, who was the continuous source of this ill feeling Frederick was sensing till now.

Kihia watched as Raven flew over to the castle gates, and then raised his left wrist to his face, “Icer take over and land just ahead just beyond the gate, where everyone is landing, then shut off the engines and be on standby” There was a small beep on the bracelet as the ship then maneuvered itself and sat down right where Kihia had instructed it to. The gangway opened up and Kihia saw Fred immediately disembark. Kihia however jumped back down into the ship and grabbed Icarus, ‘Ukan.. Lets go…” Kihia then disembarked with the wyvern slowly walked out of the ship with Kihia as they joined the others.

Kihia examined the castle gates and the walls that surrounded them, the dark grey stone of the walls were aged and tainted. Kihia then watched as Raven flew up and over the walls to go ahead and then Zenshin walked forward and opened up the gates and walked in, Frederik then followed suit. Kihia however stood there for a moment and closed his eyes, opening up his other senses. He heard nothing, no other movement aside from his companions, This is strange… there is this absurd amount of power coming from some point in this palace… however I do not hear anything within the outer courts… Kihia then opened up his eyes and reached around to his back and grabbed onto Icarus, “What is it Kihia?” Ukan looked up at him finally having the effects of his motion sickness fading away. Kihia unsheathed his weapon and immediately released all twelve shards that started to hover along the length of Icarus, “Be ready for battle Ukan… it probably will be best for you to start off at your standard combat size…” Ukan then nodded and slowly started to grow until he was five meters tall, six meters long, and 1.6 meters wide. “Lets get this started then,” Kihia nodded at the wyvern and started to walk forward into the courtyard, holding Icarus with his right arm, with it going across the length of his arm and across his back, the shards hovering on the outside in a straight line, keeping the same distance from the weapon.

Ukan walked in his low walking stance, his eyes darting from one spot to another to try and spot any sign of the enemy, however they then continued walking getting to the door of the entry hall without any resistance. Zenshin to opened up these doors revealing what seemed to be a thrown room. Kihia followed everyone inside with Ukan not to far behind him. Kihia then stopped sensing the incredible amount of dark twisted energy coming from the back of the hall. This feeling caused the hair on the back of his neck to stand on end, he narrowed his eyes and saw the figure sitting on the throne, “Kihia, you haven’t told them what your magic is yet have you?” Kihia sighed, “I am afraid I haven’t Ukan… you know how I am when it comes to meeting new people… even if they may be future allies…” At these words Ukan sighed, “You know, Iciriak is right, you are to serious for your own good at times Ice Demon Slayer,”

Ryo sighed as Frederick exchanged a bit more with Kihia before going off and brooding. It wasn't what he wanted, but being that Frederick had taken a long time to warm up to the card Mage, Ryo would have to just make sure he could warm up to Kihia. Still it would make things harder if the mage managed to harm Kihia with his magic. After all Ryo had been in closer proximaty to Frederick's magic and had almost managed to get himself injured in the process, but thankfully he had moved away and gave the dark magic user space to work. That lesson kept in Ryo's head, and he would have to make sure that the guild master of Lamia Scale wasn't in harm's way when Frederick began to work.

As the ship landed and the doors opened both he and Gora were out of the ship quickly. Gora couldn't wait to get off of the flying machine. He shook himself off growling and trying to regain his composure looking back at him "I hate that thing...It's not right...I makes me sick..." Ryo smiled and walked over to his partner gently petting his muzzle "I know boyo. I know. It's okay. Hopefully you will only have to be on it at most once more. Now this is no time for masks, or weakness. I need you to be ready to fight at a moment's notice." With that Gora's whole body suddenly burst up growing in size and his fur seemed to take on the crystaline apperance of ice shards. He stood at least a meter taller than Ryo and he looked even fiercer than he already did if one could believe that to be possible. He and his partner followed everyone and as they saw Ukan grow in size Gora frowned huffing softly as he felt a bit underwhelming next to the wyvern. Ryo could see it and he just smiled and pet his partner's side nodding his head lightly showing he understood what his partner was feeling. Moving through the castle however Ryo couldn't help but feel impressed and awed by the structure. It was clearly an impressively built structure, and what was even more amazing was the fact that Raven used to live here. Truly some people had all the luck rather than the meger beginings that Ryo himself had. Somtimes life went and reminded him how unfair it was and this was certainly one of those times. Still he wouldn't complain to anyone present about it.

As they arrived at the throne room however Ryo's eyes went black in color as the evil presence sent his vampiric blood to a boil and he frowned his fangs growing slightly as he reached into his card boxes and filled up both of his hands letting the cards float above the palms of his hands as he got ready for what he thought would be quite the fight. He looked to the rest of his team and he wondered if they all felt the same way that he does, but presently he turned his attention back to the throne being ready to kill whatever occupied it. Although it seemed to him that the throne was facing away from them.

The architecture was completely baffling. He had to ask Raven about it afterwards. As someone who helped design homes and other buildings, he could learn a thing or two from the sheer scale and atmosphere that this building gave off. His guild master immediately explained the situation at hand. How the man before them was not Icaros, but rather her father who should be dead. This was no hero of his people, no true monarch. No, he was merely a puppet disgracing the memory of what Zenshin was sure was a great man in his life. Kaitou paid no mind to anyone but Raven, though what he had to realize was that she did not come alone. If he wanted to get to her, already a powerful mage in her own right, he would need to kill himself, Frederik, Ryo, and even Kihia if he shared the same beliefs as they did. As part of Sabertooth, it was their sworn duty to protect their guild master with their own lives if necessary, though Zen had no plans of being defeated by this instrument of psychological terror.

"I don't reccomend touching her unless you want to lose that arm" he said, his left hand extended with razor wire made of his own mana wrapped around the ex-monarch's arm. In his right was a massive ax that shouldn't be ignored by any enemy, especially those that took comfort in the dark. Then again, it wasn't like he was acting on his own will. Zenshin could almost see the strings coming from the different parts of his body. No matter what kind of man he was in life, nobody deserved a fate of becoming enslaved to a higher power. That was a fate unbefitting of even the worst criminals locked away in the Capital. He pulled with his left hand and brought his weapon down in an attempt to slice the arm that touched Raven's hair, only to be blocked by Kaitou's free hand. Powerful. I'll need both my hands for this fight. he thought before something surprising happened.

Their enemy pushed hard on his sword, staggering the Recreationist and took the opportunity to cut the strings and step into a powerful snap kick into Zen's gut. The hit alone was enough to tell tales of the strength of their opponent, who was now bleeding from his arm. He had been sent back a good distance, though not before close his hand into a fist to send his mana wires into the creature's skin. He was not a raven humanoid any longer, his attacks were a lot more... reckless than he expected from a man who had ruled over a kingdom. The dark energy within him unnerved the scythesman. It was disturbing to say the least, a man who could do this to a monarch was to be feared. No wonder Raven is worried about our confrontation with Icaros. He was sure that somewhere within that dark husk was Raven's father, though he was no longer in control of his actions and was beyond saving.

The abyss that was Icaros had consumed yet another. He was in control of every living, or rather, every once living thing in this Kingdom, and it was sickening. Zenshin's aura exploded around him while his ax transformed one last time, a transformation that no one had seen yet. Surprising to someone, perhaps, it shifted into the shape of a sword that looked as though it was impossible to wield with one hand, though that's how Zen preferred to use it. It was an embodiment of his anger, allowing him to utilize all the power he had effectively. With a single swing downward, Guilt tore the tiled floor of the chapel and sent a shock wave straight at Kaitou.

MP: 78% (+4% from The Coat -20% from The Sentence)

Frederick couldn't believe what he just saw, his former guild master Zenshin. A mage who he considered equal or even more powerful then himself, was just being pushed back with a single blow. What was even more frightening then the monarch's sheer strength, was the way he fought Zenshin head on.
There was no defensive stance, or any sign of martial arts at all. No instead the creature formerly known as Raven's father just intercepted Zenshin's strike with a single hand. Regardless of the damage it could wreck onto his body. This creature was definitely on a whole different level, and then to imagine that he was merely being controlled by Ikaros.

A moment that felt like an eternity arose as Frederick stared at his former master. Zenshin who was actually being send back by someone else and in response revealed a fraction of his real power.
The pressure in the room became heavier, as the man's aura bursted around him in a pure white color. While the blade he used to wield shifted into a weapon Frederick never had seen before. An enormous sword, similar to a zweihander yet wielded in one hand with ease.

'He had that all along?!' A nervous chuckle escaped Frederick as he remembered and realized his own battle with the powerful mage. How could he ever imagined fighting and defeating such man, in fact Zenshin never even used such a weapon, instead he had fought him with an avatar opposing Frederick's own. Did Frederick miss something back then? Something important to why Zenshin decided to fight him in that way instead of summoning such a ferocious weapon.

Regardless of the underlining purpose Frederick might have missed back then, Zenshin already swung his blade high up into the air and down to the ground. To which Frederick immediately reacted as well, following his former masters lead. Frederick bursted his own aura as well. Yet instead of the cleansing white that surrounded Zenshin. His was the direct opposite. An all swallowing blackness surged around him, literally eating the light away that surrounded Frederick.

Simultaneously with Zenshin's attack, Frederick released his own attack onto the monarch. A move that most of the mages in the hall were more then familiar with. It was the Thorns of Demise, a group of thick and long tendrils, that originated from the darkness that surrounded Frederick and could move at attack as if it were actual parts of Frederick.

'Reprise!'

At his command, Frederick released another aura burst, and would strengthen his current attack by a tenfold. Channeling his newly reached power level, through the actual tendrils. Who instantly grew in size and numbers. And reached a speed to match the shock wave Zenshin had send forth.

Only to come  together to a crashing and devastating halt, right were Kaitou was standing. It was like a short orchestra, the shock wave surged all the way into Kaitou. Destroying the entire floor around him, while the fifteen tendrils Frederick barraged in that location as well.
Dust and debris filled the air, taking away any visual on the monarch and his fate. In fact the moment after the attack was so silent Frederick started to assume Kaitou had fallen to their combined attacks already.

'Just as I thought..' he said from within the darkness surging around him 'a mere puppet aft- impossible!'

Frederick held in the rest of his words, as he saw the slowly revealing silhouette of Kaitou still standing in place. Right were the combined attack hit him. And as the dust settled there was not a single scratch on the man except the, bleeding from earlier. Yet one thing was different, in right hand he now carried a long golden clad blade.

Ryo stared at their opponent and he realized just who and what it was. He was hard pressed to even understand what was happening before his eyes much less accept it. Still he couldn't let it hold him back. He watched the exchange of attacks between his allies and their foe. It was no secret that their enemy was incredibly strong, but Ryo had a feeling that they could pull out victory if they were careful and smart about their moves. He looked to the cards that were floating in his hands and smirked nodding his head as he finally had pieced together a plan of attack for this foe. He selected the cards he needed while the others flew from his grasp back into their respective card boxes.

As soon as Frederick's own attack had finished Ryo surged forward to move. He couldn't let the moment pass and he quickly pulled the the cards in his left hand shooting them forward. As soon as they flew a short distance they caused a great explosion in front of Kaitou that was made of pure blinding light. Ryo's own eyes had grown accustomed to such a thing so he didn't have to advert his gaze. However he was sure that Kaitou had suffered at least some damage and would have to take a moment in order to regain his composure. In that time Ryo brought up the three cards in his hand and focused his magic once more "Attack Combo: Light sword." in his right hand slowly began to form a sword that was made of a very similar light that had just exploded in front of Kaitou's face.

At this point Ryo turned and charged into the light as it slowly began to fade and he brought his sword down to try and slash at Kaitou's head. He was stunned however as he saw and felt his blade collide against another. He tsked as he held his blade steady against the demon's own blade. Yet the demon wasn't one to be easily out done he reached a clawed hand towards Ryo who only backed up with his blade still in hand. He rushed forward once more trying to vie for a better angle on the situation unfortunately he wasn't capable of doing such a thing. Kaitou was perfectly able to reach his movements and then counter them with his own in perfect timing. Still Ryo wouldn't give up. He launched himself directly at Kaitou letting their blades clash time and time again. Each time he slashed down at the demon's head he raised his blade up to block it.

If Ryo came in from the sides there was a vertical blade there to block the strike. It continued on like this for a long time or so it seemed, but they had back and forth clashes and Kaitou was clearly the better swordsman. Still Ryo held his own and finally he won out as he ducked under a slash and slashed Kaitou's chest although the cut wasn't very deep it was still effective and he quickly began to jump back creating distance between him and his opponent coming to stand in front of his guild mistress panting softly from the effort he had just exerted.

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