As soon as they burst into the room, Kat understood exactly what was going on. It wasn't what Kat had experienced, but was pretty much just as bad. Maybe even worse. At least Kat would have survived her ordeal, theoretically.
Her face turned into a mask of anger, as she immediately knew what she had to do. Free everyone she could and ruin the day of all the others. As much as she wanted to go for the more dangerous looking members in the room, Kat wouldn't waste time on them until she was sure the other Magias were safe. That was priority one.
Surveying the room, she figured she could get the two in the middle and left, and turned to @Hanno Futaba. "Alright big guy, you take the ones on the right, I'll save the Magia in the middle and left and take out that guy. We'll figure out the lady in the back as we go. Let's go!"
Having doled out her orders, Kat was gone in a blink, basically teleporting on top of the Magia in the middle of the room thanks to her sheer speed, quickly slicing through the straps that held the Magia to the table, carefully making sure not to do any actual damage to them. Kat smiled at them, and patted them on the chest, "You're free! Go get 'em!" Before disappearing just as quickly as she had appeared.
Screaming like a banshee as she appeared out of the shadows near the Executioner on the left, "Pick on someone your own size!" Which was extra ironic since Kat was easily half the man's size.
Rolls
(BA) Rover
You may move -> act -> move this cycle. Dynamism | Kat Otsu | Accidental Jail C1 2nd
-10 HP from Jailer retaliation
Failed DC 80 Reflex Save - Prone -50 HP from Jailer -80 HP from Executioner 1 +10 HP from Healer Magia 5 Damage Mitigation from Self
"?!"
The Mage was caught off guard when @Kat Otsu charged into the room, quickly releasing one of the magias that were held hostage, in a speed that made it look quite easy.
"Mmmmph-!! Pwaah-! Th-Thank you!"
Freed, the magia rapidly took the cloth out of her mouth, and reached for the nearest weapon she could find: One of the sharp tools that were being used to torture her friends, and snatching it to her hands, she glared at the Executioner, that was too distracted with the shadow artist that was taunting him.
"Hmph... ACK-?!"
The strike was flawless, with the tool sinking deep into the Executioner's stomach, making air escape from his lungs while he stumbled back. It was hard to see his face, but it was clear he bared his axe with anger, and with a clean swing, he tried to reap Kat's legs, trying to cripple her as he attemped to fend her off.
Meanwhile, Hanno nodded in agreement with Kat's plans, darting off toward the healer magia that was on the edge of an execution.
"Get off HIM!" He shoved himself against the Jailer, bashing the shield on him and trying to stumble him away, separating the hostage from the rotund guard that was holding him, and the Executioner that was forced to back off to not be trampled by the weight of the Jailer.
While the men were still trying to recover, Hanno gripped the rope that was keeping the healer magia tied and pulled it immediately, freeing him.
The magia didn't waste time, opening the palm of his hand and sending a pulse of energy against the Jailer, making sure to knock him ever further, before breathlessly looking at the faerin.
"Who... Who are you?!"
"Are ya sure this is the conversation ya wanna do now, buddy?" Hanno asked rhetorically, but his ears soon perked up, noticing an incoming danger and pulling the boy close to him by wrapping an arm around him, and raising his shield to block a dark projectile that blew against it, making Hanno slide a couple centimeters on the ground.
"AH! W-Woah... Thanks..."
Hanno frowned his lips, lowering his shield to spot the culprit- The Mage woman, of course.
The attack didn't hit the magia, nor the faerin, but it opened his defenses enough for her lackeys to charge in against the knight.
"You... Be... DEAD!"
"..!"
An unexpected swing made Hanno push the boy away from the incoming attack, but didn't give him room to dodge it, sending Hanno straight to the ground, with his shield sliding away as he groaned... And the Executioner nearby, didn't waste a second to approach, raising his axe and swinging it down to try and finish the faerin off-
Hanno threw his arms to deflect the axe, gritting his teeth as he felt the impact on his gauntlets, and the strength of the man trying to push him down against the ground.
The Mage, satisfied with the knight being brought down, soon shifted her attention to Kat and the freed magia.
"You are forcing me to do everything in the bad way..."
Her voice sounded exasperated, but paying no more mind, she hurled two other projectiles, both of them striking the back of the magia that has just been freed, followed by a larger sphere, this one released with full strength, only not hitting the girl fully because she had managed to side step- But it was still not enough to avoid all the pain it would bring.
"Arrhh- Damn it!"
She hissed, gritting her teeth and trying to take cover, while the magia that was still tied, struggled frantically, with eyes growing wide open as he saw his friend being wounded.
"Mmmh! MHH!"
Frustrated, he looked desperately at Kat, pleading with his gaze for her to free him.
TORTURE AND EXECUTION CHAMBER
Time: Early Evening
Weather: Cold
Mechanics - Cycle 1 Results
Mage
❰ 300 / 300 ❱
❰ 200 / 200 ❱
Taunt DC: 500
Moved to A3
1st Action: Evoked a Fireball at Defiant Magia, dealing 56 damage. 2nd Action: Hurled 1x Necrotic Bolt on Healer Magia, dealing 10 damage, and 2x Necrotic Bolts on Defiant Magia, dealing 20 damage.
Twice in a Cycle, the Mage does one of these actions, with the second action having all its values halved, and cannot be the same as the first one:
Fireball. The Mage evokes a fire ball, exploding it near a random target. The target receives 80 damage, and they may roll a Reflex Save to mitigate this damage to the value equal to the roll.
Necrotic Bolt. The Mage hurls three dark bolts, with each of them hitting a random target, dealing 20 damage each. The target must pass a DC 80 Will Save to avoid receiving -10 on their rolls during the next cycle for every bolt that has hit them.
Healing Surge. The Mage heals a total of 100 HP, this value is equally distributed between her and all her allies, only counting those that received any type of damage. If there are leftovers, it all goes to the one with the lowest HP.
Passives:
Mage deal take 10% of their current SP in damage as retal whenever she is attacked.
Mana Shield. The Mage mitigates HP damage by a value equal to her current SP, whenever the dice roll of the attack is an odd value.
At 0 SP, this enemy becomes Vulnerable and all her passives deactivate. When Taunted, she targets the taunter especifically.
Jailer
❰ 0 / 100 ❱
❰ 172 / 400 ❱
Taunt DC: 200
D3
Attacked @Hanno Futabawith a Trip. Dealt 50 damage on him, and he must pass a DC 80 Reflex Save to avoid becoming Prone (Hanno Failed).
Retaliated @Hanno Futaba by 10 damage.
Once in a Cycle, Jailer does one of these actions:
Capture. The Jailer targets one random target and Restrains them, dealing 50 damage with the immobilizing grip. The target must pass a DC 80 Fortitude Save to free themselves, if they can't be freed, in the next Cycle they are Fully Restrained.
Trip. The Jailer targets one random target and force them Prone, dealing 50 damage. The target must pass a DC 80 Reflex Save to not be stepped on and lose all movement until the Jailer is either killed moves/is moved away from the target.
Passives:
Jailers deal 10 damage in retal whenever they are attacked.
At 0 SP, this enemy becomes Vulnerable. When Taunted, he targets the taunter especifically.
Executioners
❰ 100 / 100 ❱
❰ 250 / 250 ❱
❰ 100 / 100 ❱
❰ 180 / 250 ❱
Taunt DC: 100
Executioner 1:C3
Executioner 2:D5
Executioner 1 attacked @Hanno Futaba with Cleave, dealing 30 damage. @Hanno Futaba is prone, triggering Execute, 50 damage. Executioner 2 attacked @Kat Otsu with Sadistic Reap, dealing 10 damage and taking 1 movement away from her.
Once in a Cycle, the Executioners does one of these actions:
Cleave. The Executioner swings their axe in a deadly strike on a random target. The target receives 30 damage.
Sadistic Reap. The Executioner slashes its axe focusing where it hurts on a random target. The target receives 10 damage and loses 1 Movement. If the target recovers 20 HP, they recover 1 Movement.
Passives:
Execute. They deal 50 extradamage to a target that is Restrained, Grappled, Prone, or has their Movement dropped to 0 in any way.
At 0 SP, this enemy becomes Vulnerable. When Taunted, he targets the taunter especifically.
ALLIES
100 / 100
??? (Magia): A healer Magia, caring and concerned for his allies. All allies heal by 10 HP every cycle.
He attacks the Jailer (Vulnerable), dealing 20+20 = 40 80 damage.
Healed everyone by 10 HP.
Received 10 damage. Was mitigated 10.
49 / 115
??? (Magia): A defiant Magia, ready to attack and help to free her friends. All allies receive a +20 damage bonus.
She attacks the Executioner 2, dealing 50+20 = 70 damage.
Received 76 damage. Healed 10 HP.
HOSTAGES
??? (Magia): A protective Magia, ready to fend off attacks from enemies. Upon saving him, the enemies' retaliation damage passives has their damage halved.
[hp=100]100[/hp]
[status]Put your status here, along with the damage or heals you had during the cycle.
[/status]
Post goes here
[action]
[move]Moved from A to B[/move]
Rolls and actions go here
[/action]
Build Sheet
In this Homebrew, Pull, Push and Carry are Base Bonus Actions (Everyone has access to them, by default).
Pull & Push
Base, Bonus
You may pull or push a target within your reach, forcing them 1 zone away or 1 zone closer to your current zone. When using on an enemy, you may pass their Condition DC with a Mastery Check to be successful. Some creatures, especially bosses, can be immune from being forcibly moved.
If the target is in a condition where they are stuck, be it by restraints or obstacles, you may also make a Mastery Check against the DC of whatever has them stuck, to successfully be able to move them.
A target can only be affected by a push or a pull once per Cycle.
Bonus. You push or pull 1 target.
Main. You push or pull 2 targets.
Carry
Base, Bonus
You may carry a target that is in the same zone as you. Carrying a target costs the double of your movement and your carried target is not affected by the zone hazards (unless specified otherwise). When using on an enemy, you may pass their Condition DC with a Mastery Check to be successful. Some creatures, especially bosses, can be immune from being forcibly moved.
If the target is in a condition where they are stuck, be it by restraints or obstacles, you may also make a Mastery Check against the DC of whatever has them stuck, to successfully be able to move them.
A target can only be affected by a carry once per Cycle.
Bonus. You carry 1 target.
Main. You carry 2 targets.
Cover
Base, Bonus
You cover your an ally in the same zone as you from an incoming damage. When covering an ally, you take part or all of the damage the targeted ally would take as flat damage. You may choose two options when using this bonus action:
Partial Cover. You split the damage in half between the you and your covered ally. (They receive normal damage, and you receive flat damage).
Full Cover. You take all the damage your ally would receive on their place.
Use Racial Trait
Free Action
You activate or use one of your Racial Traits, triggering its effect in flavor, and giving you a mild advantage on a relevant check. Depending on the Trait's effect, or on the Circumstances, the Trait may trigger an unexpected event, or may turn a failure into a partial success.
The Default is to receive an 1d20 bonus on a roll related to the Racial Trait. Like a 1d20 to a Presence Check by using Primal Aura, or a 1d20 to an Awareness Check using a relevant Enhanced Sense, or an 1d20 to a Knowledge Check related to your Homebound skill. More abstract effects can be achieved such as managing to endure not drowning using Amphibious, or attracting a metal object or unit with Magnestism, or the Keyless that may summon a portal that can trigger multiple different events.
-10 HP from Executioner 2 +10 HP from Healer Magia
Kat couldn't help the child-like grin that was plastered on her face as she watched the chaos unfold around her. Giggling like a madwoman as the Magia she had just saved got up and immediately stabbed the executioner she had taunted for good measure. The man was enraged, swinging with wild abandon at the two of them, managing to even connect a blow with his axe, or so he believed.
In reality, the giggling Kat standing there was just an illusion, dispelled by the blow in a puff of shadows, as if had been barely held together at all. In reality, Kat was behind the man, slicing the ropes from the only captive left, before pulling the cloth from his mouth and patting him on the cheek with a smile. "Don't worry, everything will be fine now," she assured them.
In almost a stark contrast to her point, the axe came down on her head, cleaving her in two, but missing the only recently released Magia. The Magia would have been watching Kat die in front of them, except, there was no blood. The cleaved Kat sat motionless for another moment, before again exploding into a puff of shadow right in front of both the Executioner and the Magia.
Another ruse, as Kat wrapped her legs around the Executioner from behind, her small frame barely noticeable at first as she held onto the man, her hidden dagger held ready to strike. "You didn't honestly think it would be that easy, did you?" Kat giggled again, a much more sinister giggle this time, before cleanly inserting the blade directly into the man's jugular and watching him struggle to both breathe and remove the small woman from his back to no avail.
As the man crashed to the ground, coughing up blood as the life drained from his eyes, Kat let go and stood next to the two Magia she had saved, looking across the room to @Hanno Futaba. But, thanks to the table in the middle of the room she couldn't see him. "Hanno?" she called quickly, "you okay big guy?!"
Rolls
-1 Movement From Executioner 2
New Total Movement: 3
Vulnerable -10 -5 HP from Jailer retaliation -20 HP from Mage -20 HPfrom Mage -30 -60 HP from Executioner 1
Saved against Will Save
Saved against Reflex Save (Avoided all damage) +10 HP from Healer Magia
"I am... Over here! ... I am... GREAT! Can't you see?!" He chuckled nervously as he struggled-
"Die... DIE!"
The large man crushed Hanno against the ground with his weight and a stomp, forcing Hanno to struggle to maintain his guard, until he managed to take a firm hold of the man's feet, twisting it and forcing it upwards, using all of his strength to push the large man out of him, while sending his enemy to the floor with a loud thud, quickly following up with a single straight punch that connected with his throat, making the Jailer cough and turn pale as he felt his throat crush.
Taken aback, the Executioner retreated two steps, but seeing him being surrounded by enemies triggered a fight or flight instinct... And the former was the one that took over him, and with a swing of an axe, the thick blade went down to Hanno's shoulder, partially protected by the pauldron, but not being enough to hold back the pain that run through his shoulder and body.
"Grhh- D-Damn it." His teeth gritted, glaring at the Executioner, that held firm on his attack and tried to push the faerin down.
But the magia next to him didn't allow the Executioner's plans to go for long, thrusting a magically enhanced fist toward the hooded enemy, and sending a point blank blast of mana that made the man yelp and stumble back.
"Let... Let him go! Surrender already!"
As wounded as the Executioner was, he refused to stop fighting, which was when the defiant magia, holding her weapon, decided to intervene.
"You are good at it, my hero~!" She grinned at @Kat Otsu, aiming her eyes to the leftover Executioner. "But let me show you what I can do too!"
Darting off, the magia wasn't as quick as the blonde, but she was certainly nimble and acrobatic, improvising the sharp tool as a true deadly weapon as she sank it deep on the Executioner's side, twisting it and forcing one last groan of pain from him, before kicking him limp and dead to the ground.
While the combat continued to unfold, the last hostage was freed, and relieved and still in shock, he stood from the table he was laid on.
"Thanks- I owe you one..."
He smiled to the blonde, and then locked his angry gaze on the mage from afar... And in a similar fashion to the defiant magia, he grabbed the first thing he could improvise, carrying chains with him as he charged at her, throwing the chains as if it was a lassoe, trying to entangle it on the mage's limbs to disrupt the gestures for her spells--
However, it was met with a magical barrier, that shimmered upon impact.
"She has magical defenses! We need to disrupt it or overpower it!"
He yelled, and the Mage tried to gain distance after the attack was deflected.
"Tch... Your insolence has no end..."
Her hands glowed with power, one with a fiery mana, the other with a dark mana.
"But you. You will have an end. Today."
Channeling her wrath, she thrusted her hand forward, blasting a fire sphere toward Hanno, making the faerin force a dodge and push the fire away with his shield, that wiggled her tentacles to dissipate the heat.
The Mage's eyes narrowed, but she knew how to detect one's weaknesses, and with another thrust, this time with her other hand, she released a flurry or dark bolts, one aiming at the defiant magia, that was already quite wounded, and the other two aiming at Hanno.
"Fuck-!"
Not thinking twice, Hanno stretched his shield toward the targetted magia, shielding her from most of the strikes, but ending up leaving himself out in the open, which resulted to two bolts striking right on his center of mass, sending him stumbling on the ground while his shield escaped his arm, struggling to get back to his feet. "This... Hurted far more than I thought it would..." He gritted his teeth, groaning as he tried to recover.
"O-Oh gosh, are you crazy-?!"
The magia's eyes opened widely, looking at the knight falling.
"Now. Be gone."
Taking the opportunity, the Mage began charging another wave of offensive spells, this time focusing entirely on the faerin that was severely wounded.
Rolls
Ultra Hinder
2d100 (80 + 13) + [50] + 25 + 25 + 20 = 213 213 SP damage
You are Vulnerable. Guard Arts | Hanno Futaba | Accidental Jail
(F) Alter Hinder
You may distribute HP and SP damage however you'd like when you use Hinder and Ultra Hinder. Hanno Futaba
86 172 HP damage on Jailer (Vulnerable) 100 SP damage on Executioner 1 -27 54 HP damage on Executioner 1 (Vulnerable)
(F) Guardian
Mitigate 15 damage from Defiant Magia.
(BA) Savior
Give @Hanno Futaba, Defiant Magia & Healer Magia, 25 to a save roll next cycle. Aura | Hanno Futaba
(F) Taunt
(213 * 3) = 639 threat Hanno Futaba
Aura | Hanno Futaba
Movement: Standing up with 2 Movements
Save
1d100 (67) + 50 + 25 = 142 Will | Hanno Futaba | Accidental Jail
Save
1d100 (85) + 0 = 85 Reflex | Hanno Futaba | Accidental Jail
TORTURE AND EXECUTION CHAMBER
Time: Early Evening
Weather: Cold
Mechanics - Cycle 1 Results
Mage
❰ 250 / 300 ❱
❰ 200 / 200 ❱
Taunt DC: 500
Moved to A1
1st Action: Hurled 1x Necrotic Bolt on Defiant Magia, dealing 20 damage, and 2x Necrotic Bolts on @Hanno Futaba, dealing 40 damage. 2nd Action: Evoked a Fireball at @Hanno Futaba, dealing 0 damage.
Twice in a Cycle, the Mage does one of these actions, with the second action having all its values halved, and cannot be the same as the first one:
Fireball. The Mage evokes a fire ball, exploding it near a random target. The target receives 80 damage, and they may roll a Reflex Save to mitigate this damage to the value equal to the roll.
Necrotic Bolt. The Mage hurls three dark bolts, with each of them hitting a random target, dealing 20 damage each. The target must pass a DC 80 Will Save to avoid receiving -10 on their rolls during the next cycle for every bolt that has hit them.
Healing Surge. The Mage heals a total of 100 HP, this value is equally distributed between her and all her allies, only counting those that received any type of damage. If there are leftovers, it all goes to the one with the lowest HP.
Passives:
Mage deal take 10% of their current SP in damage as retal whenever she is attacked.
Mana Shield. The Mage mitigates HP damage by a value equal to her current SP, whenever the dice roll of the attack is an odd value.
At 0 SP, this enemy becomes Vulnerable and all her passives deactivate. When Taunted, she targets the taunter especifically.
Once in a Cycle, Jailer does one of these actions:
Capture. The Jailer targets one random target and Restrains them, dealing 50 damage with the immobilizing grip. The target must pass a DC 80 Fortitude Save to free themselves, if they can't be freed, in the next Cycle they are Fully Restrained.
Trip. The Jailer targets one random target and force them Prone, dealing 50 damage. The target must pass a DC 80 Reflex Save to not be stepped on and lose all movement until the Jailer is either killed moves/is moved away from the target.
Passives:
Jailers deal 10 damage in retal whenever they are attacked.
At 0 SP, this enemy becomes Vulnerable. When Taunted, he targets the taunter especifically.
Executioner 1 attacked @Hanno Futaba with Cleave, dealing 30 damage. Then died by Defiant Magia. Executioner 2 died by @Kat Otsu
Once in a Cycle, the Executioners does one of these actions:
Cleave. The Executioner swings their axe in a deadly strike on a random target. The target receives 30 damage.
Sadistic Reap. The Executioner slashes its axe focusing where it hurts on a random target. The target receives 10 damage and loses 1 Movement. If the target recovers 20 HP, they recover 1 Movement.
Passives:
Execute. They deal 50 extradamage to a target that is Restrained, Grappled, Prone, or has their Movement dropped to 0 in any way.
At 0 SP, this enemy becomes Vulnerable. When Taunted, he targets the taunter especifically.
ALLIES
100 / 100
??? (Magia): A healer Magia, caring and concerned for his allies. All allies heal by 10 HP every cycle.
He attacks the Executioner 1 (Vulnerable), dealing 20+20 = 40 80 damage.
Healed everyone by 10 HP.
54 / 115
??? (Magia): A defiant Magia, ready to attack and help to free her friends. All allies receive a +20 damage bonus.
Moved to C4, She attacks the Executioner 1, dealing 50+20 = 70 140 damage.
Received 20 damage. Was mitigated 15, healed 10 HP.
125 / 130
??? (Magia): A protective Magia, ready to fend off attacks from enemies. Enemies' retaliation damage passives has their damage halved.
Moved to B4, He attacks the Mage, dealing 30+20 = 50 SP damage.
Only the Mage Remains!
Hanno's Taunt activated a Taunt Buster. If the Mage's HP doesn't go lower than 50% by the next Cycle, she will unleash all her offensive actions against him.
Code:
[hp=100]100[/hp]
[status]Put your status here, along with the damage or heals you had during the cycle.
[/status]
Post goes here
[action]
[move]Moved from A to B[/move]
Rolls and actions go here
[/action]
Build Sheet
In this Homebrew, Pull, Push and Carry are Base Bonus Actions (Everyone has access to them, by default).
Pull & Push
Base, Bonus
You may pull or push a target within your reach, forcing them 1 zone away or 1 zone closer to your current zone. When using on an enemy, you may pass their Condition DC with a Mastery Check to be successful. Some creatures, especially bosses, can be immune from being forcibly moved.
If the target is in a condition where they are stuck, be it by restraints or obstacles, you may also make a Mastery Check against the DC of whatever has them stuck, to successfully be able to move them.
A target can only be affected by a push or a pull once per Cycle.
Bonus. You push or pull 1 target.
Main. You push or pull 2 targets.
Carry
Base, Bonus
You may carry a target that is in the same zone as you. Carrying a target costs the double of your movement and your carried target is not affected by the zone hazards (unless specified otherwise). When using on an enemy, you may pass their Condition DC with a Mastery Check to be successful. Some creatures, especially bosses, can be immune from being forcibly moved.
If the target is in a condition where they are stuck, be it by restraints or obstacles, you may also make a Mastery Check against the DC of whatever has them stuck, to successfully be able to move them.
A target can only be affected by a carry once per Cycle.
Bonus. You carry 1 target.
Main. You carry 2 targets.
Cover
Base, Bonus
You cover your an ally in the same zone as you from an incoming damage. When covering an ally, you take part or all of the damage the targeted ally would take as flat damage. You may choose two options when using this bonus action:
Partial Cover. You split the damage in half between the you and your covered ally. (They receive normal damage, and you receive flat damage).
Full Cover. You take all the damage your ally would receive on their place.
Use Racial Trait
Free Action
You activate or use one of your Racial Traits, triggering its effect in flavor, and giving you a mild advantage on a relevant check. Depending on the Trait's effect, or on the Circumstances, the Trait may trigger an unexpected event, or may turn a failure into a partial success.
The Default is to receive an 1d20 bonus on a roll related to the Racial Trait. Like a 1d20 to a Presence Check by using Primal Aura, or a 1d20 to an Awareness Check using a relevant Enhanced Sense, or an 1d20 to a Knowledge Check related to your Homebound skill. More abstract effects can be achieved such as managing to endure not drowning using Amphibious, or attracting a metal object or unit with Magnestism, or the Keyless that may summon a portal that can trigger multiple different events.
Once everyone was released, they all began to work like a well-oiled machine, as if they were a party of adventurers who had been doing this for ages. Kat heard @Hanno Futaba's voice and watched as he managed to wrestle himself back to his feet, and everyone dogpiled on the men around him. Kat cheered for them as she watched only to have her heart sink as she saw attack after attack after attack bring the knight to his knees.
And with each attack, Kat grew angrier. And when the mage motioned to hit the Faerin with a final blow, Kat had had enough. Overcharging everything, she knew she had one chance to save Hanno's life. One shot to remove the mage from the equation before she could harm her new friend any further. This was it.
"You think you can hide from me?!" Kat screamed as she watched the mage attempt to retreat into the back corner of the room. Kat ran, as fast as her Dynamism and legs would allow her, as shadows trailed in her wake. But soon, the shadows overtook her, and she overtook the entire room in inky blackness.
No sound. Hanno would find it reminiscent of the guard fight that just happened, but Kat would do things differently here. Dark chains could be heard latching onto the woman, her shield proving to be entirely useless against the small assassin. The darkness would be dispelled from her so that everyone could see the woman chained up against the corner she had set herself into.
"How does it feel to be chained?" Kat asks, walking behind her as the chains bring the woman to her knees as if this woman hadn't just been in control only moments before. "I don't know who you people are, or what you think gave you the right to harm my people... but now you'll pay the ultimate price."
Regardless of whether the woman begged, screamed, cried, or simply stayed silent, Kat felt not even an ounce of pity for her. Kat walked around the woman, speed no longer being an issue. Kat had her where she wanted her. Kat walked up to the woman, and put a hand under her chin, looking into her eyes. "Maybe in the next life, you'll think twice about messing with someone like me."
And with that, Kat thrust her dagger into the woman's heart, stopping it forever.
Rolls
(BA) Rush
Double your total movement count this cycle. Kat Otsu | Accidental Jail C3 2nd
Hanno gritted his teeth seeing the spell forming, slowly taking shape to eventually hit him. There was little to no room for him to escape, not when his legs didn't seem to obey him at that moment.
However, before the spell could be erupted and reach to him, the Mage was interrupted by the magia assassin.
"It... Can't be..."
The Mage struggled, but the chains didn't budge, and when @Kat Otsu held her by the chin, the calm and stoic facade fell, with teary eyes taking place on her expressions, even if she didn't plea for mercy or anything of the sorts. And with the clean stab, she gasped, until she fell lifelessly.
Hanno winced at the scene, but at the same time, he felt a relief that things didn't escalate horribly. The magias were safe, and there were no losses, aside from their enemies.
"Are you alright?"
One of the magia asked, resting a hand on Hanno's shoulder. He looked up at the magia, showing a small smile. "Yeah, I am." He then turned to look at Kat. "Thanks to you, buddy." Hanno winced, taking a firm grip on a chair and forcing himself to stand back again, while his shield crawled back to him, using her tentacles until he could reach to pick her up.
"Tch... This freaking witch and her lackeys. If it wasn't for you guys..."
"Yeah! I thought we were goners... It is almost as if you two had heard my prayers..!"
Relieved, even if a bit shaky, the magias looked at the other two with grateful expressions. The healer magia tried to recover Hanno as he could, but the faerin insisted for him to help the defiant magia first, as she was the most hurt one between the hostages. Soon, he stood up, ignoring the wounds for a moment.
"We can't waste much time here... It is only a matter of time before the patrol find us..." He looked at Kat, that was the one who took care of keeping her eyes on enemies as they were looking for a way to the hostages.
After all was said and done, Kat quickly made her way over to the party that seemed centered around the injured knight. Kat made her way to Hanno, completely ignoring if he tried to stop her from helping him, and pulled one of his arms around her shoulders for support. "You can count on me as much as you need to, Hanno, but... for what exactly?" Kat asked, doing her best to support as much of the man's weight as she could with her petite frame. Thankfully, he was the same size as her, so it wasn't as much of a struggle as if he had been taller.
If one hadn't been paying attention, they wouldn't have believed that this girl had been the same grim assassin that had just taken out the most powerful mage in the room in one fell swoop. Kat was positively grinning, and smiling at the other Magia who were celebrating, and showed no signs of having done anything so dire as murdering someone at all.
"I hope everyone is okay," she said to the group, "I have no actual healing magic or powers, so I can't help with that. But I have Dynamism, so I can help us get out of here faster. But I mostly need to help Hanno here, so I ask that you guys help each other too, and we can all get out of this together."
Kat carefully pulled @Hanno Futaba to turn towards the exit, not wanting to let him go for fear that he would just collapse from his wounds. No matter how much bravado he had, she wouldn't take no for an answer with helping him.
"To get us to leave here without being spotted..." Hanno said with a wincing grin, looking at @Kat Otsu with a grateful gaze when she gave him a support to stand, just as he fluttered his wings to release the soothing and healing dust once again. "Thank you, buddy."He was never one to reject help, not from someone willingly helping him out. He did his best to try and maintain his own weight, to not strain the woman nor to become too much of a burden for her movements.
"Can... We really leave this place without being spotted though?"
"I am a walking tin can that does clank clank noises... And she managed to get me here without being seen, I am sure we can... I believe in her. But... We need to be extra careful... It is a lot more people." He sighed.
"We don't have a lot of choices, it is now or never. I don't want these guys to surround us again."
The magia was clearly concerned, and the defiant one was eager, looking at Kat as the magia speeded up to the exit with Hanno.
"Let's go then! Worst case scenario, we beat up whoever that shows up."
Leave the Dungeons and Escape
Everyone in the group will make a collective Knack Check.
@Kat Otsu is leading the way, so her Expertise Check result will be doubled.
@Hanno Futaba is hurt, and is being carried. His Expertise Check is made with disadvantage.
Each Magia will roll a Knack Check, with the roll being a flat d100.
[ 0/350 ]
If the group fail to meet the threshold, another event will be triggered.
Kat was thankful that everyone was handling things well, at least as well as could be considered. But @Hanno Futaba was right. There was no real time to waste.
But, what Kat wasn't expecting, was just how heavy Hanno was. She was by no means a strong woman, or at least hadn't built her character that way. So holding him and his armor, and trying to focus on staying quick and quiet, was quite the challenge. Hanno was trying his best to heal himself, no doubt to ease the burden, but there was only so much he could do with the time given to them.
Nonetheless, Kat pressed on, muffling Hanno's armor with the silence of the shadows, snuffing out lights where there didn't need to be, and carefully peering around corners and open areas as she went. Carefully, Kat made their way, and while she didn't feel like she had done an amazing job, she also felt like it certainly could have been worse, provided their tag-along ragtag group could keep the pace and keep quiet.
Kat would cast them what shadows she could, but given her focus on Hanno, there was only so much of her to go around. Kat would use her free hand that wasn't holding Hanno to motion to the group when to stop, and when it was safe to move, all without any verbal cues needed, so as not to make things any harder.
They just had to make it out. Kat could feel her heart running overdrive, and she swore if she had been any more nervous at this type of pressure, she was sure her beating heart would be loud enough to give them away. But thankfully, it just pounded in her ears, and not anyone else's.
Hanno knew he was making @Kat Otsu hold back a lot of her speed. Even with Ghast, his shield, helping him to keep a bit of his own weight with her tentacles, while he tried to ease the burden the magia girl was having to deal with, there was still a lot of corridors they had to go through without catching anyone's attention.
They were making sounds, even with the efforts of the magia ninja, there was only so much she could do before the metal armor clanked, and the sounds of the other magias became obvious. The most nimble magias, Kat and the defiant one were still quiet, and perhaps it was the two of them that avoided making their escape that obvious-
Faint moonlight from the outside world were the sight that they were finally managing to get outside- And when they finally slipped to the outside, it was the most intense moment.
The guards didn't spot the group right away- Or rather, they didn't notice they were prisoners escaping.
"Let's just keep rushing out-" Hanno muttered, speeding up and ignoring the guards that were patroling without a care in the world.
The guards noticed the silhouettes escaping from the outskirts, but it took too long for them to realize what that actually meant.
"HEY! STOP RIGHT THERE!"
One yelled, prompting a curse from the magias, that hurried up.
"Fuck- Kat, let's hurry-! Take care of the magias!" Hanno hissed, and now being a bit more healed, tried to get himself away from the magia's clutch, trying to run on his own feet and as fast as he could despite the wounds... If she didn't let him go, he would do his best to not be a dead weight for her.
The other magias similarly ran as fast as they could... And thanks to the darkness... They managed to escape, even if the pursuit didn't end completely...
...
Eventually, they reached the place Hanno was using as a camp, hiding in a small cave that thankfully wasn't big enough to comfortably fit a bear, which left them safe. A wagon was resting by its entrance, and two tied horses were resting as they finally got there, as it was already evening.
Hanno got inside the cave, breathless, and throwing himself on the ground again, ploping his back on the wall of the cave. "Finally..." He chuckled, tired.
"Gosh! I thought we were going to be caught again-"
"R-Right? I just hope they didn't follow us... A-And are waiting for the right time to attack."
"Don't worry, I think... They are gone now."
"They should be..." Hanno said, turning to his shield and nudging it. "Ghast... Keep a watch out there, is that okay?"
The shield rumbled, wiggling her tentacles to move outside while keeping her central eye wide open and watchful, which prompted a few weird looks from the other magias, but they soon focused on setting everything up, with the initiative of getting the campfire going, and tending to any wounds or bruises caused by the chase.
As the group made it to a makeshift campsite, Kat knelt in the dirt, huffing and puffing from their escape. It had been intense, but she was glad that it was over. She was also fairly certain she wouldn't be happier to never see this area of TerraSphere again, given this entire ordeal. She had firmly decided a while ago that she would go somewhere decidedly less racist, wherever that ended up being.
As the group rested, and @Hanno Futaba and the rest of the group worked to set camp, Kat watched for anything with Ghast. Kat still had no idea what kind of entity the shield was, but it seemed to operate completely independently of Hanno, which was interesting. But, these thoughts just wandered around her brain as she scanned the countryside for anything of note. As she did so, she worked to hide any sounds and lights that the group produced behind a curtain of shadow, not wanting their little cave camp to even appear as a blip to any would-be pursuers.
But the fact of the matter was, they needed to rest. They had all been through an ordeal, and Kat wasn't sure if these Magia were players, so she wasn't sure how honest she could even be with them. Sitting down next to Ghast, Kat pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. Occasionally she would renew the effects of her shadowy curtain. Occasionally she would continue to keep watch. But at the end of the day, all Kat could focus on was the wonder that maybe Ryou was right after all. And that made Kat want to cry.
"Ghast..." Kat started, not even sure where to begin, "I... I have no idea what you are, or if you would even understand... but I feel like I just need someone to listen. I feel like I messed up. Not just like, with this. I think this went great. But... I feel like I messed up by coming here... again. This game has been nothing but dangerous since the first time I played, and yet I keep coming back, even forsaking those I love. Does that make me a terrible person? I can't explain why I've done it. I just... feel compelled to keep trying. Like I want to prove to myself that the next time I play will be better, you know? And then it isn't..."
She was crying now. She didn't know when she started. She just stared at the countryside in the darkness, tears rolling freely down her face.
When @Kat Otsu called for Ghast, the shield trailed her big central eye at the magia girl, locking on the eyes of the girl and listening to what she had to say.
Her eye remained eerily still, without a single blink or moving, with only the wiggling tentacles of the shield keeping its idle movements as a sign of the shield still being 'conscious'. Whether she was understanding everything that Kat spoke or not, it was impossible to tell, at least for now, but a sound rumbled from her as she noticed Kat slowly going through a break down.
A tentacle stretched, wrapping around the girl's shoulder and pulling her close, with another wrapping around her side and squeezing her softly while the shield rumbled quietly.
"Kuuu..."
Hanno, that was taking care of a few things, gave a few instructions to the magias, though at the same time he couldn't completely focus on it, noticing the way his newfound friend was at the distance. "Hey guys, I am sure y'all are hungry, right? I knew our escape would be kinda rushy, so I had prepared something for us beforehand." He smirked.
The other magias grew excited, and after casting one last glance at Kat, Hanno moved to prepare a bowl of the food he had left under a low fire, that at this point was very small. Thankfully, it seemed like the cave had done a great job at keeping the wind away from it, not making it fade completely or become stronger. Everything was still a bit steamy.
Filling a bowl for each of the group with a meat broth, potatoes and carrots, Hanno decided to also take a few fruits and slice them into tiny cubes, making a fruit salad for them. As chirpy as the ex-hostages were with the reception, Hanno still had to give some to the one that had caught most of his attention and concern.
"Hey buddy." Hanno smiled as he approached the small figure, that now Ghast was... Hugging?
The sight made Hanno half chuckle at the shield, but then focus with a gentler expression to the girl. "I guess it hadn't been easy, huh?" He kneeled close to her, offering the bowl of broth and a smaller one of fruit salad, and as his hands were free again, he would reach for a handkerchief, offering to her.
"I like your sharp smile more, so why don't you eat something and get the spirits high again? You've been watching our backs too, so you should rest now. I can take it from here."
Kat certainly hadn't expected the shield, whatever entity it was, to understand, let alone end up hugging her. It had been quite some time since Kat had allowed herself any sort of embrace, friendly or otherwise. Quite some time since she had that big fight with Ryou that left her alone, both at work and at home. The bar had become so deafeningly quiet without Ryou's drunken ramblings and aggressive protection of Kat from all the men in the bar.
Kat accepted the hug from the shield entity, putting a hand on one of the tentacles and leaning gently into the hug as best she could without pushing herself onto the entity. "Thank you..." she muttered, trying to mask the surprise in the sadness from the empathy the creature shared.
Idly, she wiped her eyes with her other hand, trying not to let anyone else see her so upset. She may have been too late at this though, as Hanno seemed to see right through her, offering her some food and some kind words. She accepted the food, admiring how good it looked for something camp-made, and she wondered if there was more to Hanno than met the eye.
"I'll at least keep the shadow curtain up for a bit..." Kat managed to get out, as she gave Hanno her best melancholic smile. Despite her being overturned for joy, it was difficult for her to tap into that right now. She wished she could explain it to the man, that it had nothing to do with what happened here today. Perhaps she would get around to that.
She took a moment to begin eating the food prepared for her, still taking pauses to maintain her shadow arts to keep them hidden. As she ate, she had forgotten that her in-game avatar as a Magia couldn't taste food. She frowned a bit at this realization, but given the fact that she hadn't logged into the game for so long, her in-game self was starving to the point of desperation and ended up vacuuming up the food regardless.
"Thank you, Hanno. I'm sure... that tasted amazing. It looked amazing. I really wish I would have thought things through when choosing Magia as my race since I love food so much and can't taste it." Despite it all, Kat found herself giggling again at this, and she smiled at the knight who had been so gracious and kind to her. @Hanno Futaba
His eyes shifted to Ghast, smiling faintly at the care she was giving to @Kat Otsu, but not leaving it uncommented-"You sure are being cuddly, Ghast. So why are you being so shy and is still hidden in the shield, huh?" Hanno smirked to the shield, that narrowed her gaze and locked on him.
"... Silence, Futaba."
Hanno rose his hands, shaking them as if teasing about 'having a badass over here'.
However, his attention soon returned to the magia, and the sadness in her was clear. Of course, after everything that had happened, a lot was probably in her mind, and Hanno knew he didn't know how deep it was. Hell, in all that situation, it could've probably even triggered a lot of traumas, considering that people generally slipped into this game to escape a harsh reality... But unfortunately, many were simply met with another harsh reality, a lot of times.
"You don't need to overdo." Hanno reassured, sitting next to the girl and looking at her."We are recovering now, if they get in here, we can manage it. I would rather you to rest a bit more... And you can have seconds too, if you want. I thought there were going to have more hostages, so I exaggerated on the portions." He chuckled, making himself a bit more comfortable, feeling that probably any barrier of reservation they had between them was probably down now, or at the very least, not as big as before.
"I am glad my food is good enough that even someone that can't taste is eating it so fast." Hanno admitted, perhaps playfully, so he didn't mean that much about it.
"Magias are great though, they have plenty of cool things to do-- And they can taste, as far as I know. But you gotta download it in your system or something? At least that's what I've heard from a magia guy back then." He rubbed his chin, reminding himself of the conversation he had.
Despite @Hanno Futaba's reassurances, Kat hadn't moved from the spot she was in. She still had her arms around her knees and had been eating like that. At this point, she was using her Shadow Arts to maintain the curtain to their cave mostly out of habit from having done it the past few minutes. A habit, a distraction, it was hard to tell the difference right in this moment—anything to keep her mind off the pain in her heart.
When Hanno talked about the idea of getting the download for taste for her system, Kat was a mixed bag. On one hand, it was what she had wanted since starting this game. To experience the tastes that this fantasy world had to offer. On the other hand, that was something that she and Ryou had promised to do together, and it brought the tears bubbling back to the surface. She managed to gulp it down, clearing her throat as she held back the tears and looked at Hanno with her bright, glassy eyes. "That... that sounds like a great idea for an adventure, Hanno. If you'd like to go sometime," she said, trying her best to smile to hide the pain.
She looked back at the food bowl in her hands, empty besides the small scraps of food too small to be picked up with a spoon. She gave up on the shadow curtain. Letting the facade fall from the cave entrance, as she contemplated the bowl in her hands. She didn't want seconds. Eating would just be something to do.
Slowly, she looked back to Hanno, before handing him the bowl, "I'm okay on seconds. I think I'm going to get some sleep," she explained as it was pressed into his hands, and she stood, brushing the dirt from her kimono. She looked to Ghast, unsure of how to approach her yet, but simply gave a polite Japanese bow to the shield, and thanked her. The pleasantries out of the way, she made her way past the ex-hostages who were busy eating and chatting by the fire and into a nearby tent, not giving them the chance to interact with her at all.
She would take the time to figure things out later. For now, Hanno was right, sleep would do her good. She curled up with the nearest blanket and didn't give anyone else the chance to tell her otherwise, as she closed her eyes tightly shut, and forced herself to be allowed to shut down, and finally rest, after the entire ordeal.
