The ancient castle shadowed the buildings of the Aniralian metropolis, as if they were mere blades of grass compared to the fortress's might. It was once a pinnacle of Aniralia's ancient culture, but it had been coated in a shade of black, an intimidating presence to spark fear. Just as it shrouded itself in shadow, it covered the city it floated over in the same, dimming even the brightest signs of its nightlife to nothing. A single figure stood at the top of its tower: Vitale Walker, looking into the horizon for signs of a certain bug to eliminate.
His eyes narrowed, as he spotted a single biplane speeding towards the fortress. That must be her... the flame-wielding girl that had been causing a lot of trouble among the others that had been whisked away into this land. The girl who had proven herself dangerous enough to the others to warrant using this fortress to seek and destroy her, as much as he disliked using this kind of power himself. Amber Lumen.
The biplane sped its way towards Walker's balcony, with Amber gripping the side of the plane in an attempt to withstand the turbulence in the air. "Sorry for making you take me all the way up here," she mumbled, knowing that the wind would probably make her words lost in transmission, anyway. But Finn Isseli shot Amber a thumbs up anyway as if he had somehow heard it all.
But out of the blue, a crack of thunder shot from the tip of the castle, and a lightning bolt careened into the plane's propeller and blasted right off. Amber jumped in her backseat, before trying to look for the perpetrator... there, right at that balcony where Walker was now pulling back. Now there was a guitarist, strumming furiously as booms and sparks shot out, raining the air with dangerous static that was threatening to bring the biplane down. Erika Klagelied.
Finn was forced to grip the controls of the plane with both hands, pulling up as hard as he could just to prevent the plane from plummeting-- but it was too late-- the broken aircraft was already in a spiraling nosedive--! Suddenly, a spiral of air shot up from underneath the plane, slowing its descent for a few seconds as Amber and Finn were suddenly yanked from their seats. They looked up to see two angelic wings acting as their savior: for a moment, they could feel a warmth emanate from Atmos Alae as he kept both afloat in the air with all of his carrying strength.
Amber released her breath. "That was close... thanks for saving our hides, Atmos," she shouted over the music. "But we're close enough that I can take it from here; you should get Finn to safety!" With a nod, Atmos let go of Amber just as miniature jets of flame shot out from underneath Amber's feet, propelling her upwards towards the balcony. She drew the White Blade from its sheathe, sparking it with the slightest of embers, as she made contact with the castle's walls and sprinted up them, reaching the balcony and dashing right at Erika!
But suddenly, a gallant armored man with a blood-red lance thrust his weapon directly in Amber's way, forcing her back with a strained yelp. Percival took a few more steps towards Amber, thrusting again and again to drive Amber to the edge of the balcony as Erika retreated herself. Amber managed to spot in the middle of the frenzy a young lady in glasses, someone she recognized as the one accompanying Percival no matter where he went: Clara Torre. Just how many people did Walker have against her here?!
Clara's eyes suddenly widened as she yelled to Percival to look out for-- Both Percival and Amber heard the cue fast enough to try and duck away, but Clara couldn't finish her sentence fast enough, as the floor underneath the two fighters suddenly erupted in an explosion. Amber managed to dodge in time, but Percival was sent falling, only barely avoiding plummeting off the entire castle by piercing his lance into the castle's walls to create a makeshift handhold. Amber looked down the newly formed gash in the castle to see a woman in dark armor holding her hand up. So Kaina Delgor did come to help Amber after all?
She wouldn't let the chance go to waste and proceeded deeper into the castle, trying to chase down Walker and Erika. But a sudden surge of water knocked her aside and into a wall, and as she scrambled to regain her footing, she saw an alligator suddenly pouncing on top of her, his mouth agape with furious teeth! It took all of Amber's strength to shove the dangerous maw of Cragnol away from her head, but with the alligator's weight, there wasn't too much she could do--!
But Cragnol's jaw suddenly froze, as if forced open! Amber opened her eyes to see a figure in rustic wear with a scythe balanced on her shoulder, kneeling on the ground in a prayer. Yam had come to help out, too? Amber looked back to Cragnol, who she could see was now being constrained by a series of vines and roots. Just in time, it looked like.
Just as Amber was about to get up and thank Yam, though, a man in a fedora and dusty brown jacket appeared from behind a corner and slugged Yam in the face with a flaming fist! Flint Fenghuang had seen his moment for an ambush and taken it! The mercenary grabbed Yam's roots in one hand as an ember ran down the length of them, incinerating them and freeing Cragnol--!
But now that Amber had some time to breathe, she had a chance! A burst of flame shot out from her hands and directly into Cragnol's eyes to stun him for just a little longer. As a retaliatory limb of water swung at her head, she shot flames from her feet to propel herself off of the wall behind her, driving a jump kick directly into Flint's face! Before a retaliatory punch could come, she jumped off of Flint and propelled herself towards the ceiling, flames boosting herself alongside it. She could see Walker just up ahead; if she could land a decisive strike on him--!
She held her knife at the ready and blasted herself at full speed towards Walker! "You're not going to cause any more trouble--!" she yelled, swinging her fiery blade just as Walker could turn around, his sword raised in an attempt to block--!
But the strike never came. A tsunami of golden flame suddenly erupted underneath Walker, engulfing him as it immediately surged towards Amber. With shock plain on her face, Amber tried to slow her dive into the flames, but in her startled state, she didn't notice a burly hand shoot out from the flames, heading right for her--!
His eyes narrowed, as he spotted a single biplane speeding towards the fortress. That must be her... the flame-wielding girl that had been causing a lot of trouble among the others that had been whisked away into this land. The girl who had proven herself dangerous enough to the others to warrant using this fortress to seek and destroy her, as much as he disliked using this kind of power himself. Amber Lumen.
The biplane sped its way towards Walker's balcony, with Amber gripping the side of the plane in an attempt to withstand the turbulence in the air. "Sorry for making you take me all the way up here," she mumbled, knowing that the wind would probably make her words lost in transmission, anyway. But Finn Isseli shot Amber a thumbs up anyway as if he had somehow heard it all.
But out of the blue, a crack of thunder shot from the tip of the castle, and a lightning bolt careened into the plane's propeller and blasted right off. Amber jumped in her backseat, before trying to look for the perpetrator... there, right at that balcony where Walker was now pulling back. Now there was a guitarist, strumming furiously as booms and sparks shot out, raining the air with dangerous static that was threatening to bring the biplane down. Erika Klagelied.
Finn was forced to grip the controls of the plane with both hands, pulling up as hard as he could just to prevent the plane from plummeting-- but it was too late-- the broken aircraft was already in a spiraling nosedive--! Suddenly, a spiral of air shot up from underneath the plane, slowing its descent for a few seconds as Amber and Finn were suddenly yanked from their seats. They looked up to see two angelic wings acting as their savior: for a moment, they could feel a warmth emanate from Atmos Alae as he kept both afloat in the air with all of his carrying strength.
Amber released her breath. "That was close... thanks for saving our hides, Atmos," she shouted over the music. "But we're close enough that I can take it from here; you should get Finn to safety!" With a nod, Atmos let go of Amber just as miniature jets of flame shot out from underneath Amber's feet, propelling her upwards towards the balcony. She drew the White Blade from its sheathe, sparking it with the slightest of embers, as she made contact with the castle's walls and sprinted up them, reaching the balcony and dashing right at Erika!
But suddenly, a gallant armored man with a blood-red lance thrust his weapon directly in Amber's way, forcing her back with a strained yelp. Percival took a few more steps towards Amber, thrusting again and again to drive Amber to the edge of the balcony as Erika retreated herself. Amber managed to spot in the middle of the frenzy a young lady in glasses, someone she recognized as the one accompanying Percival no matter where he went: Clara Torre. Just how many people did Walker have against her here?!
Clara's eyes suddenly widened as she yelled to Percival to look out for-- Both Percival and Amber heard the cue fast enough to try and duck away, but Clara couldn't finish her sentence fast enough, as the floor underneath the two fighters suddenly erupted in an explosion. Amber managed to dodge in time, but Percival was sent falling, only barely avoiding plummeting off the entire castle by piercing his lance into the castle's walls to create a makeshift handhold. Amber looked down the newly formed gash in the castle to see a woman in dark armor holding her hand up. So Kaina Delgor did come to help Amber after all?
She wouldn't let the chance go to waste and proceeded deeper into the castle, trying to chase down Walker and Erika. But a sudden surge of water knocked her aside and into a wall, and as she scrambled to regain her footing, she saw an alligator suddenly pouncing on top of her, his mouth agape with furious teeth! It took all of Amber's strength to shove the dangerous maw of Cragnol away from her head, but with the alligator's weight, there wasn't too much she could do--!
But Cragnol's jaw suddenly froze, as if forced open! Amber opened her eyes to see a figure in rustic wear with a scythe balanced on her shoulder, kneeling on the ground in a prayer. Yam had come to help out, too? Amber looked back to Cragnol, who she could see was now being constrained by a series of vines and roots. Just in time, it looked like.
Just as Amber was about to get up and thank Yam, though, a man in a fedora and dusty brown jacket appeared from behind a corner and slugged Yam in the face with a flaming fist! Flint Fenghuang had seen his moment for an ambush and taken it! The mercenary grabbed Yam's roots in one hand as an ember ran down the length of them, incinerating them and freeing Cragnol--!
But now that Amber had some time to breathe, she had a chance! A burst of flame shot out from her hands and directly into Cragnol's eyes to stun him for just a little longer. As a retaliatory limb of water swung at her head, she shot flames from her feet to propel herself off of the wall behind her, driving a jump kick directly into Flint's face! Before a retaliatory punch could come, she jumped off of Flint and propelled herself towards the ceiling, flames boosting herself alongside it. She could see Walker just up ahead; if she could land a decisive strike on him--!
She held her knife at the ready and blasted herself at full speed towards Walker! "You're not going to cause any more trouble--!" she yelled, swinging her fiery blade just as Walker could turn around, his sword raised in an attempt to block--!
But the strike never came. A tsunami of golden flame suddenly erupted underneath Walker, engulfing him as it immediately surged towards Amber. With shock plain on her face, Amber tried to slow her dive into the flames, but in her startled state, she didn't notice a burly hand shoot out from the flames, heading right for her--!
Amber Lumen could not breathe.
She grasped at her throat, trying desperately to pry to the fingers closing in around her, but to no avail. Because the fingers were hardly closed around her windpipe at all; in fact, the grip on Amber's throat was fairly loose on her throat, though still unyielding. And yet, it felt like the air she tried to breathe in was being set ablaze, ignited by a rogue flame and wasting away to leave only searing pain...
She tried to cough, but the pain only spread upwards to the top of head, as if her brain was being singed by a draft of scalding air. Her vision blurred, but she could see, plainly enough, whose hand it was around hers...
A burly figure, wreathed in a golden embers that fell around him like writhing autumn leaves. A slightly tattered golden robe, almost like an elongated judo uniform, with dancing red embroidery. Equally simple trousers of plain canvas cloth. Matted gray hair, and piercing, distant eyes from years of hardened aging.
Even though she knew what she had been doing stood against the principles of the Lumen clan, Amber hasn't expected the patriarch of the clan, Claude Aurum Lumen, to come after her directly.
"I would not expect someone of our clan to betray Aniralia so thoroughly," he growled, tightening his grip. Amber winced as the inferno she felt in her throat spread to her lungs, writhing as the heat wreaked havoc on her. "It was poor enough for you to act against the accords of the Lumen, but to actively stir this conflict among these unknown intruders in our land, rather than drive them out..."
The burning feeling in Amber's chest felt like it would burst any moment. She tried to scream - anything to survive, anything--!
Suddenly, the grip around her throat was released, and Amber found herself unceremoniously falling the ground. The touch of the cold ground, the rush of chilling air filling her lungs, almost sending her into shock... she sputtered and tried to pull herself up to her knees, wincing as her body ached, wanting her to lie on the ground and drift out of consciousness. But she hardly felt safe in front of the protector of her own family, as he glared down on her.
"I will leave it as your responsibility to repent," Claude warned. "Return the flame you stole from the Lantern and prepare to reform your heart. And if you do not return home to do so..." Amber could practically hear the clenching of Claude's fist, as he turned around and walked away without a word.
Amber coughed as she stood back up, before falling back onto one knee and clutching her chest. "Like hell I am just doing that..." she muttered under her wavering breath, as she felt the castle crumble around her. Kaina, Yam, Atmos and Finn has caught up to her, picking her up as they prepared to evacuate.
"Not now... not when I've gotten so far with...!"
She grasped at her throat, trying desperately to pry to the fingers closing in around her, but to no avail. Because the fingers were hardly closed around her windpipe at all; in fact, the grip on Amber's throat was fairly loose on her throat, though still unyielding. And yet, it felt like the air she tried to breathe in was being set ablaze, ignited by a rogue flame and wasting away to leave only searing pain...
She tried to cough, but the pain only spread upwards to the top of head, as if her brain was being singed by a draft of scalding air. Her vision blurred, but she could see, plainly enough, whose hand it was around hers...
A burly figure, wreathed in a golden embers that fell around him like writhing autumn leaves. A slightly tattered golden robe, almost like an elongated judo uniform, with dancing red embroidery. Equally simple trousers of plain canvas cloth. Matted gray hair, and piercing, distant eyes from years of hardened aging.
Even though she knew what she had been doing stood against the principles of the Lumen clan, Amber hasn't expected the patriarch of the clan, Claude Aurum Lumen, to come after her directly.
"I would not expect someone of our clan to betray Aniralia so thoroughly," he growled, tightening his grip. Amber winced as the inferno she felt in her throat spread to her lungs, writhing as the heat wreaked havoc on her. "It was poor enough for you to act against the accords of the Lumen, but to actively stir this conflict among these unknown intruders in our land, rather than drive them out..."
The burning feeling in Amber's chest felt like it would burst any moment. She tried to scream - anything to survive, anything--!
Suddenly, the grip around her throat was released, and Amber found herself unceremoniously falling the ground. The touch of the cold ground, the rush of chilling air filling her lungs, almost sending her into shock... she sputtered and tried to pull herself up to her knees, wincing as her body ached, wanting her to lie on the ground and drift out of consciousness. But she hardly felt safe in front of the protector of her own family, as he glared down on her.
"I will leave it as your responsibility to repent," Claude warned. "Return the flame you stole from the Lantern and prepare to reform your heart. And if you do not return home to do so..." Amber could practically hear the clenching of Claude's fist, as he turned around and walked away without a word.
Amber coughed as she stood back up, before falling back onto one knee and clutching her chest. "Like hell I am just doing that..." she muttered under her wavering breath, as she felt the castle crumble around her. Kaina, Yam, Atmos and Finn has caught up to her, picking her up as they prepared to evacuate.
"Not now... not when I've gotten so far with...!"