Private Redchron A lesson in Hemomancy from a Demoness

Ginevra Delaney · Sep 5, 2022

Most people would have balked at the idea of becoming the student of some UI-locked player's inner darkness, or whatever Darkness actually was, but Ginevra had taken one look at it all, realized how cool and dark it was and decided that she wanted a piece of that action. And even better, Darkness seemed to be something of an expert when it came to magics that would be considered as taboo by others, such as Dark Magic or her more recent aquisition of Hemomancy, though she hadn't really taken her new blood magic for a test drive yet.

That was pretty much why they were there, as well as to expose her to Animancy too, since she'd be picking that up the moment that she had an opportunity to. The agreed upon meeting place were these red plains, the taint of taboo magic, Corruption and death sticking to them and dyeing the green grass crimson, as if blood had seeped into even the very soil and tainted it red.

It was awesome!

When she arrived, the demoness was sat on top of an undead that was on all fours, trimming her nails and looking bored. Ginevra grinned at the sight, looking around at the horde.

So, teach? What's the lesson plan for today? We're working on my Hemomancy, right?

@Kaede Hoshi

Darkness · Sep 6, 2022

160 / 160

Darkness adjusted her legs, moving one onto the other as she then took a moment to wave at the hoard of undead around her. Moving then to stand up as the Undead she was sitting on would move to take the half focused offered nail filer to resume the Demon's previous task she had been doing so she could focus more on the matter at hand.

"Rather simple. You are to fight against these Undead using only Hemomancy as your offence, any attempt to use something else and I will have the next wave of them start early. Should you be rendered knocked out before the four waves are concluded I will count it as a failure and our deal will take effect. I do hope you fail.~ Would love to see you with white hair and red eyes.~"

Darkness would move her free hand to signal the undead to begin moving towards Ginevra. A handful of Skeletons would be her first threat to face. Easy to kill, and little damage but the largest of waves in terms of numbers. The second that got ready to approach was zombies, the two first waves having no weapons or real armor unlike the third that would have both. What could be the forth wave though was not made clear just yet as the Demoness would summon another mostly intact undead to be her new seat as she watched.

"This is also doubling to show some of the uses of Animancy with your other masteries. Namely Dark magic, Animancy, and Corrupt being used in tandem to bring these bodies of fallen back to serve you. Animancy on it's own is mostly forced to be used as a support uses like mending wounds, extending one's life by taking from others, and the sort."

Wave 1: Skeletons | -15HP retaliation

❰ 200 / 200 ❱

Rolls

Nothing

Ginevra Delaney · Sep 6, 2022

200 / 215

-15 HP from Retal

Well, that didn't seem like it would be too bad. Fighting a bunch of undead was fine, though having to only use her currently very lacking skills in Hemomancy to do it was going to be a pretty big challenge. She was going to have to take this a little slower and work her way up from the basics. After all, she couldn't be certain that she would be spared by Darkness if she underperformed. There was every chance that her teacher would just let the undead rip her apart.

Which just meant that she was the kind of awesome teacher a protagonist like Ginevra Delaney deserved! Though apparently it wouldn't be lethal, considering the deal that they'd made. Why Darkness was obsessed with making her hair white and eyes red, Ginevra had no clue.

Right! Only fight using Hemomancy! That doesn't sound too hard! Bring it on!

And that was when Darkness made a gesture and skeletons began to move towards her, high in number but supposedly very brittle. Ginevra focused, feeling her blood, feeding magic into it, heating it up and energizing it, before she used it to empower her body, beginning to slowly batter the skeletons one by one as they approached her, though they in turn landed a blow or two of their own.

Rolls

Steady Attack
6d20 exploding (20 + 6 + 11 + 12 + 17 + 12 + 19) + 0 + 10 + 10 = 117
117 damage (Explosions: 1)
Hemomancy | Ginevra Delaney | 1227C1

Wave 1: Skeletons | -15HP retaliation

❰ 83 / 200 ❱

Darkness · Sep 6, 2022

160 / 160

"We shall see how long you will keep thinking it is not that hard.~ If you think you need help, I'll 'heal' you when asked, Cant have my Lust being defeated by mindless undead. Course the more I heal you, the less in control you will remain until you recover normally and fully losing control well, is my victory.~"

Darkness hummed the words as she adjusted her seat moving both hands forward while the undead moved to massage her shoulders and allowed her to focus on bringing out the final wave threat. She did not bring this one out often, mostly because there was rarely a need to call her former student out as she rarely crossed people that could go toe to toe with her in the past. That said having former fight current was to good a chance to pass up.

That said though Darkness wondered how much pride the knight would have before asking for healing, how damaged would she allow the Demon's toy to become before requesting mending? Darkness wondered more as to why she was playing the whole game to begin with. When they first met she would have had no issue dominating and controlling Ginevra but the more time passed the closer the woman would get and Darkness herself could not exceed her current strength due to the confines of the game.

One part wondered if maybe she should call off the game and simply take the woman as her servant and call it a day with that. The other wondered if maybe she could play a different route. Sure she did plan to one day take the woman and make her a toy and her Lust, but she could always allow the girl freedom like she had her previous student. The difference, she would keep the leash tighter, and make sure Ginevra knew her place even if she got close to or equal to her teacher. It was all thoughts for now though as she hummed and kept working on the final foe.

Wave 1: Skeletons | -15HP retaliation

❰ 83 / 200 ❱

Rolls

Nothing

Ginevra Delaney · Sep 6, 2022

185 / 215

-15 HP from Retal

Well with the offer of healing on the table and the knowledge that she wouldn't just be left to die if things went badly, Ginevra could focus solely on fighting the skeletons and practicing with her Hemomancy, learning the ins and outs of the defensively oriented magic. It was strange, considering that her usual fighting style was to just overwhelm enemies with raw Dark Magic and Corruption, changing from such an offensive style to something more defensive and restrained was difficult.

Her blood hardening inside of her, increasing her resistance to the strikes that the skeletons gave her, before she pricked her palms with her nails, allowing razor thin wires of blood to leak out, flailing around her like an out of control whip, shredding and snapping bones until the skeletons were all defeated. Ginevra grinned.

What's next?

Rolls

Steady Attack
6d20 exploding (11 + 19 + 3 + 11 + 18 + 18) + 0 + 10 + 10 = 100
100 damage (Explosions: 0)
Hemomancy | Ginevra Delaney | 1227C2

Wave 1: Skeletons | -15HP retaliation

❰ 0 / 200 ❱

Darkness · Sep 6, 2022

160 / 160

"Well done, though only using attacks will likely be your downfall in the fights to come.~"

Darkness shifted her head as the second wave of foes would go on the offence. A few zombies, while not as geared in more then commoner clothing and simple farmer tools for weapons she did not expect much from them outside being useful to wear down the student before the next wave. Sure she could send both the second and third wave together as they did not look much different aside from third had light armor and real weapons in poor condition.

But, Darkness was having a little to much fun toying with her playthings as of late. Blaming the bad habit on her weaker half who was trying to become someone else's plaything when deep down she enjoyed the control she had with Darkness and her working together to deal with issues. An annoyed sigh as the Woman Undead was fully reconstructed and stood before her former mentor now master bowing as it seemed to growl against the action.

"The fuck... Yes... Fuck you... Stop... Fucking... with..."

The undead still retained some of the former students mind, not like Darkness minded it as she had full control if she wanted. Allowing it to talk back was fine as she forced the undead to sit on the floor between Darkness' legs and watch Ginevra fighting the next wave while Darkness worked to 'return' the weapons of her former student now that she would not be able to try and turn them against her master all the while humming.

"Shut up with the ill tone to your master puppet. You had the chance to beat me but lost, now your nothing more then a puppet and know damn well I can strip even that little luxury of talking back away should I feel the need."

"Go to hell, then I'll stop talking... ...What is your desire from me mistress?~"

Wave 2: Zombies | -20HP retaliation

❰ 300 / 300 ❱

Rolls

Nothing

Ginevra Delaney · Sep 6, 2022

165 / 215

-20 HP from Retal

Well the problem with only using attacks being her potential downfall was that she didn't really have any other options, did she? It wasn't like she'd actually been taught any defensive uses for her blood, though she could maybe experiment with using it as a shield or something, she had no clue if that would even be effective. It was better to just pick her punches and be cautious whilst she learned the ins and outs of using it.

Though as the Zombies began to surge towards her, she noticed that Darkness seemed distracted by something else. Another undead, one that was a bit better kept and, if she was hearing things right, could actually talk! There was time to consider that later, though.

For now, she continued to fight, those same whips of blood slashing into the zombies, though their rotting flesh and clothes offered them some small protection, whilst their farming tools offered them greater reach with which to hit the Dark Knight.

Rolls

Steady Attack
6d20 exploding (16 + 14 + 3 + 3 + 1 + 17) + 0 + 10 + 10 = 74
74 damage (Explosions: 0)
Hemomancy | Ginevra Delaney | 1227C3

Wave 2: Zombies | -20HP retaliation

❰ 226 / 300 ❱

Darkness · Sep 7, 2022

160 / 160

"I'll be having you fight my newest pastime over there. She is a student like you had been before you tried to take my throne. Fitting if you ask me you are now used for her improvement or subjection should she fail to win."

"Verywell, I presume you summoned me early to get ready?"

Darkness would shake her head no in response to the question Tapping her shoulders as the other undead would vanish and leave the task of messaging the demoness to the new arrival who with very clear hate and rage in her face moved as she was commanded to. A light hum as Darkness watched both fights around her, that of her student who kept on the offence and only such, and that of her former student trying to gain control of a body that was no longer her own.

If Darkness thought it over, her former student was one of her best creations now. A former high tier player with three deaths turn into ashes that could be used to force them to serve using all her magic in tandom to one another. Sure should she have had Spirit magic over Chronomacy she could have kept the body in tact and even had her mind belong to the demon but she was robed of that by her other half who still had some fight in her.

Laughing some as she considered there was three fights with the third being her own against her other side. So much going on around her and she simply hummed, the undead student growling as they massaged the Demon's shoulders and watched the current student fight against the zombies. Who would come out on top of each battle, that was where Darkness' mind drifted as she watched on.

Wave 2: Zombies | -20HP retaliation

❰ 226 / 300 ❱

Rolls

Nothing

Ginevra Delaney · Sep 7, 2022

155 / 215

-10 HP from Retal while Protected

The zombies moved slower, shuffled rather than marched towards her and it gave Ginevra an opportunity to trial more things with her Hemomancy than simply shredding them with those blood whips that she'd made, not that it had done much to begin with, considering that the zombies seemed vaguely resistant to her slashes and the movements of the blood whips in general.

So she focused again, the blood whips curling up and gathering around her arms, forming a pair of thin crimson bucklers, small shields that she could use to both block swipes and crushing blows from the zombies as well as throw her own attacks, slamming the blood shields into the undead. Briefly, she caught glimpse of Darkness getting a massage from an undead.

That was so cool! She wanted to do that too!

Rolls

Protect
1d100 (23) + 0 + 10 + 10 = 43
43 damage
Give 1 ally in your zone the Protected status
Hemomancy | Ginevra Delaney | 1227C4

Wave 2: Zombies | -20HP retaliation

❰ 183 / 300 ❱

Darkness · Sep 7, 2022

160 / 160

Darkness watched, the student was learning without much need for verbal help, and she did not exactly feel like giving insight as if the girl did not come to natural growth there was no hope she would last long in the world. Her undead finishing the massage and moved to sit on her knees beside the demon on the left, it was a double edged punishment as she once called the girl her right hand soldier but was now nothing to the demoness.

Hand moving to turn the frown on the face to a smile as she herself gave a demonic hum making her undead act as she wished straitening up and looking excited to get the luxury to sit beside and not crawl beneath or lay at her feet like some others would have been. The thoughts shifting as Darkness wondered what she would do should her student managed to beat each challenge before her, maybe give her words of advise and thoughts on the training process?

In all honesty the Demon did not want the woman to win, she needed more tools to fight her other half even if she was buckling to another woman the might of their shared body was still terrifying enough. Sure the one she was bowing to was not as strong the issue rested should a fight break Darkness would be at the disadvantage less she got help or aid and so far Ginevra was the best shot so the Demoness truly was hoping her student would fail and become her puppet.

Her mind then shifted to how or rather what would be the first thing she would have her new puppet do, sure she wanted to end the skirmish with her other half sooner not later but the fight would not start yet and the puppet and or student still needed training. Humming as some of the ideas made her undead tip it's head only to be forced to keep watching the fight as another demonic growl rumbled from the Demoness.

Wave 2: Zombies | -20HP retaliation

❰ 183 / 300 ❱

Rolls

Nothing

Play Sheet Link (PSL)

"Darkness"

"Nightmare"

Ginevra Delaney · Sep 7, 2022

145 / 215

-10 HP from Retal while Protected

More and more she used her blood shields to fight off the zombies, the undead cracking and shuddering under the force of her blows. She was getting the hang of things a little bit, enough that she could use the blood that made the shields to propel her arms faster and with more force, causing bones to crack and crumble as she continued to parry attacks and then retaliate when she knew there were safe openings.

Of course, the blows still hurt and made her arms jolt even when she blocked them and her defense wasn't quite impeccable enough to block all of the damage. Each block chipped away at her HP slightly, but she didn't quite feel like she was in danger just yet anyway. And she was making good progress on culling the Zombie numbers.

She could handle whatever came next for sure. She wasn't too certain about what would come after that.

Rolls

Protect
1d100 (71) + 0 + 10 + 10 = 91
91 damage
Give 1 ally in your zone the Protected status
Hemomancy | Ginevra Delaney | 1227C5

Wave 2: Zombies | -20HP retaliation

❰ 92 / 300 ❱

Darkness · Sep 7, 2022

160 / 160

So her student fought on, Each dodge or attack thought over a bit likely due to the slowness of the zombies. This was partly in their nature, and the other because one could only divide attention so much without recourse. But with each one that was dropped the others seemed to pick up speed, move to give the student less time to plan counter attacks while the numbers slowly trickled down. The second-to-last wave going slightly impatient as they shambled around outside strike distance and around the Demoness.

Her former student adjusted to stand and get the other undead in line to stop the unneeded noise at the will of the Demoness. Watching her current student made the Demoness wonder just how it would take to break her down the old fashion way or if using magic to speed the process be more ideal. Sure the old would give the student a chance to grow stronger and try to oppose like her former had, but it also allowed for a more tailored puppet and toy that the Demoness wanted from the ordeal.

The other hand forcing the change, was and could allow her to write them over and adjust as she wished at later times. not liking how they speak, adjust it. Not liking how they walk, adjust it. It had far more pros to the con that the person they had once been would be far removed and what likely drew Darkness to enslave them to be lost and make them little to no different then the undead masses as used when needed and set away and ignored until needed again.

Yawning lightly as Darkness considered skipping right to the last wave and to unsummon the other zombies, wondering if she could still manage to make her current student fail or be close enough to it they felt there was far more to learn from the teacher and to not cross them. Wondering if Ginevra took a moment to consider why none of these Undead used magic, ranged weapons, or Darkness herself not stepping in just yet to make it more difficult. It was a mind game, but who knew if the power hungry thought as deeply into things as Darkness did.

Wave 2: Zombies | -20HP retaliation

❰ 92 / 300 ❱

Rolls

Nothing

Play Sheet Link (PSL)

"Darkness"

"Nightmare"

Ginevra Delaney · Sep 7, 2022

110 / 215

-10 HP from Retal while Protected
-25 HP from Exceed

The more of the zombies that she managed to bring down, the faster the remaining undead seemed to move, though Ginevra wasn't sure why that was. They hadn't even begun on her lessons with Animancy yet, so she was still having to guess a lot of these things. Maybe the power from one zombie went into the rest when it was killed? Or maybe it was a case of dividing focus or something like that?

Still, this was starting to get frustrating! There were still too many and just beating them to death was starting to take too long! She snarled, figuring it was time to do a big attack to wipe out the remaining zombies, drawing more blood out of her body until it sprayed out and began to lash out around her, like a series of bloody tendrils, slamming into and crushing the remaining zombies. Ginevra hissed, grimacing.

Ow. Okay, what's up next?

Rolls

Protect
1d100 (48) + 0 + 10 + 10 = 68
68 damage + 30 exceed
Give 1 ally in your zone the Protected status
Hemomancy | Ginevra Delaney | 1227C6 | Exceed 25

Wave 2: Zombies | -20HP retaliation

❰ 0 / 300 ❱

Darkness · Sep 7, 2022

160 / 160

A slow clap, from both Darkness and the former student as they watched the last of the second wave fall. The demoness waving to have the remaining undead vanish and instead called out four in better gear and weapons. Limiting her focus to them as the former student fell 'lifeless' to the ground as Darkness hummed and had the four charge at Ginevra. Each donning shield and mace clad in heavy armor. They would not be so easy to fell and as Darkness hummed it seemed she had more planned.

"I'll lessen the number for you, since your starting to look a little battered.~ Sure I love how you struggle, but Do know I very much dislike getting my toys handed to me damaged or broken before I get to play with them much."

Darkness spoke in a cruel and twisted tone as she reached down to the lifeless body of her former student setting it on her lap as she half focused toyed with her arms adjusting them back fully and recalling the fight the two had to cause the injuries. She would not do such to this student, no should Ginevra rebel she would simply trigger the curse hex on her and make her into Lust without a second thought. Should she try to take it down would give her reason to trigger it also.

It was the funny truth behind the 'deal' they had made. One could always come up with something new to teach forever keeping this game going, and any attempt to end it would give the Demon the victory leaving her the winner no matter what happen. The girl bound herself to someone who knew the rules of the game better then most and as Darkness hummed wondered when Ginevra would request the first bit of healing as the fighting continued and the final fight was worked on.

Wave 3: Elite 4 | -25HP retaliation

❰ 400 / 400 ❱

Rolls

Nothing

Play Sheet Link (PSL)

"Darkness"

"Nightmare"

Ginevra Delaney · Sep 7, 2022

98 / 215

-12 HP from Retal while Protected

Well it seemed that her finishing move there had been impressive enough to receive a slow clap from Darkness and the undead that had been tending to her, before that specific undead fell to the floor like a puppet that had severed its strings. Instead, four undead with better equipment were apparently going to be her next opponents. It was going to be a lot tougher to deal with a lesser number that had better equipment than it would be to deal with a horde of meat-shields.

Still, for now she could do nothing but prepare another blood buckler and a blood whip, glaring out at the four undead that were to be her enemies, eyes sliding over them. And then she lashed out at one with her sanguine whip, slicing into it.

Rolls

Protect
1d100 (51) + 0 + 10 + 10 = 71
71 damage
Give 1 ally in your zone the Protected status
Hemomancy | Ginevra Delaney | 1227C7

Wave 3: Elite 4 | -25HP retaliation

❰ 329 / 400 ❱

Darkness · Sep 7, 2022

160 / 160

Darkness watched, one hand moving to keep the struck zombie from falling down and out of the fight so early. The needed to force at the very least one or two request for healing before Darkness would just allow them to rest outside her control to bring back again. Former landers who fought against Darkness now used as tools to help her break down another was their only purpose and she refused to have them fail her like the failed to stop her.

Watching as the one struck staggered but did get back to their feet, watching the wound send small bits of ash out the broken armor hinting it was already falling apart after only a single strike. It was the issue with keeping them in ash form not as they had been when slain. Sure it made moving them around unnoticed far easier but made them far less useful as the Demoness returned her focus to her former student finishing the first arm and admiring her work.

She had torn the arms off her student before killing them, so all the work she had done was custom work burning her own lifeforce to make it happen as the area around them was long dead and used up. She was willing to make the gamble to ensure her current student became a puppet, and was more then ready to let her keep some sanity for making the Demoness go to such extent to ensure her downfall. That said though she still needed to do a lot more damage to the puppet to make her kneel as she wanted.

Hand waving as the falling apart zombie would give everything it had to try and deal more damage while another rushed to assist it and the other two focused on trying to spread the damage evenly to them to keep all fighting or the very least the three. The more Darkness had to put in effort and not just overrun, the more she wanted her as a puppet, no needed her to become one as she switched from humming to focus intently on the fight now.

Wave 3: Elite 4 | -25HP retaliation

❰ 329 / 400 ❱

Rolls

Nothing

Play Sheet Link (PSL)

"Darkness"

"Nightmare"

Ginevra Delaney · Sep 7, 2022

86 / 215

-12 HP from Retal while Protected

She'd been sure the first slash would bring down the undead that she'd struck, it had felt like she'd put a lot of force behind it, but instead the creature staggered, before getting back on its feet, even with the thick line she'd carved into it with her blood whip. As was leaking from the broken armor, which made Ginevra blink. She'd never heard of ashen undead before, but this was totally badass!

Sadly, she didn't have much time to admire it before it was back to attacking her again, another one assisting it whilst the other two began to try to intercept blows. She snarled, her blood whip shortening and becoming harder, less flexible, but sharper, forming into a shortsword made of blood.

She caught another blow on her buckler, causing her to skid backwards as her feet planted, before she swung with her blood shortsword, decapitating the one she'd struck with the whip, before turning her attention to the one that had been assisting her first victim, a series of slashes beginning to cut at the weakest parts of its armor.

Rolls

Protect
1d100 (61) + 0 + 10 + 10 = 81
81 damage
Give 1 ally in your zone the Protected status
Hemomancy | Ginevra Delaney | 1227C8

Wave 3: Elite 4 | -25HP retaliation

❰ 248 / 400 ❱

Darkness · Sep 7, 2022

160 / 160

Darkness could only growl on the inside as she watched her undead getting attacked and dropped doing little to no damage back. She was going to have to pull every stop with the final fight to least make it clear the girl still had a ways to go to reach her level, sure she could be 'restoring' the injuries of the four now three remaining but she was trying not to show her full hand as she moved to focus on the other arm and command the zombies differently this time.

The injured would be assigned to defend at the cost of it's own life while the other two went full attack without worrying about defense. She needed to keep knocking down the defense of her student until she started to admit to healing and she could make things more in her favor. Clicking her tongue as she made a mistake with the nerves of her project and had to remove and restart the section costing her more time off her own life.

Darkness made a mental note to go attack a small group of people later to get some if not all the time she had wasted making all these undead back. It was the annoying side of Animancy eating the time of the caster if nothing else could be offered to it as payment unlike other magic that used energy or the other meters the woman had all but forgot how they looked but knew her limits more then enough to judge what was at where.

All said and done she would need to speed up her work soon seeing as Ginevra was cutting down the few quicker then she expected considering she was focused more on defense then before with the hoards. She still had her other cards and ace up her sleeve so she was not extremely worried, and worst case her student got stronger and would be far more useful when turned into a puppet or toy based on her mood when the time came.

Wave 3: Elite 4 | -25HP retaliation

❰ 248 / 400 ❱

Rolls

Nothing

Play Sheet Link (PSL)

"Darkness"

"Nightmare"

Ginevra Delaney · Sep 7, 2022

74 / 215

-12 HP from Retal while Protected

Damn it. They changed tactics again. The wounded one began to focus solely on defending the other two undead from her strikes whilst the other two that had been defending now began to attempt to assault her, both of them working together to pressure her defense and attempt to break through.

She growled as blows rained down, using the blood in her veins to boost her body as best as she could, whilst she caught every attack that she could on her buckler to keep them from doing her any serious harm. She could handle this for a bit longer! She just needed to hold on and focus! She could take all of them down and really make her teacher proud and impressed! She could see how much more Darkness was focusing on the fight now!

Another parry, an attack sliding off of her buckler, before her bloody shortsword extended into a longsword, slashing out and instantly cutting one of the attacking undead in half at the waist with a mighty battlecry.

She could do this! She could get past this wave without needing help!

Rolls

Protect
1d100 (80) + 0 + 10 + 10 = 100
100 damage
Give 1 ally in your zone the Protected status
Hemomancy | Ginevra Delaney | 1227C9

Wave 3: Elite 4 | -25HP retaliation

❰ 148 / 400 ❱