Complete 18+ Private ✪ Finweald The Long Quiet

[MAI]

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Armana - one of the many tiny villages scattered around Finweald. Ever since the magia went berserk at Szofrit's command, this place has been completely abandoned. With the lullaby of subjugation echoing through the land, magia starcalled who occupied this place have lost the control of their bodies, leaving with a violent outburst to join the mechanical army defending the red egg, nearing its completion. With the destruction that they caused, all others have fled, and none dared to return, especially with so many leaving the nation altogether after the fighting had died down. All that was left now were empty wooden houses, some half-destroyed, others slowly showing signs of nature taking over, now that the regular presence of landers and starcalled alike were nowhere to be found.

That was until now. Three distinct voices could now be heard among the rotting wood, moving about as they seemingly searched for something. Then, perhaps, it was also their presence that explained that the place seemed even more desolate and destroyed than before, with signs of a struggle all around them. Arrows sticking from loose pillars and walls, gashes opening up the mud-covered stone road, scorch marks everywhere. The three, however, were most certainly not fighting. Not among themselves.

"Stay sharp. She's here somewhere, finally driven into a corner... as soon as we find her, this ends."

". . ."

"D-do we really have to keep fighting? It doesn't look like she wants to hurt us, maybe we could just leave her alone..?"

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that."

They looked like your typical adventuring party. A leadership figure, a beastfolk with horns, perhaps a bull. A titan of a man with a menacing mask covering his face and a claymore in his hands, remaining quiet as he looked around. And finally, a much shorter beastfolk girl with a bow tightly grasped in her hand, though she was visibly shaking as well. Even if they were on the same side, it felt as if there was some tension in the air, perhaps a disagreement of sorts. And, whoever they were looking for was nowhere to be seen for now.

@Kyanna Wynne

 

[Kyanna Wynne]

Kyanna was travelling through the a particular path, one leading to the main part of Finweald, the capital. She wore her big backpack, with a tiny magitech owl resting on top of it, hooting and twitching its mechanisms as she moved closer to a slit on the path, with a three signs giving a path: One aiming to move forward, signed to be to Finweald, while other two pointed to the left, one signing to be Armana, and another signing to be to another village.

"We are almost there, Noctua..." She sighed, wiping her forehead with her handkerchief, and gesturing her UI to open, peeking at the path to Finweald with a sigh, and checking her stats.

Soon, however, a notification showed, and her eyes blinked twice in disbelief, and widened in surprise when it was confirmed. Gasping, she reached for the contact, and quickly opened it for a voice mail...

Voice Mail

MAI!

Where have you been? You haven't been online for a while...

You seem to be in Finweald, Armana? I am nearby, let's meet up!

Sparkly, Kyanna's eyes even began tearing up. For a moment, she had thought she would've lost her...

Kyanna's lips pursed, quivering for a moment before it turned into a tiny smile, and she grasped the Star Crystal necklace that dangled and rested on her chest. She was there... After all this time.

Rushing, the witch didn't even wait for a response, turning away from her original destination, and moving toward Armana...

 

[MAI]

‎

Mail

Stay away!

That was all. There was no further context, elaboration, or anything at all. A simple warning, order, or maybe even a plea. There was nothing at all.


Whatever the reason for such a message was, it was not MAI who'd Kyanna run into when arriving at the village. It was the trio, having their conversation. And, in their vigilance and the witch's rush, they were quick to notice her. The green-haired boy with horns, very quickly turned toward the girl and raised his hand, holding a lantern that quickly started glowing.

"W-w-wait, that's not-!"

". . . !"

The masked man swiftly grabbed hold of the lantern-holding hand and redirected it, causing one of the nearby houses to suddenly explode and erupt into flames.

"Dammit- why is there..? Hey, girlie! Get out of here, it's not safe! I almost just blasted you to bits because I thought you were someone dangerous! Armana is off-limits for the foreseeable future!"

@Kyanna Wynne

 

[Kyanna Wynne]

Kyanna was still rushing toward the village, not looking at her User Interface until she was about to near the entrance. As she brushed her hand to the side to open her messages, MAI's warning came as a surprise, one that Kyanna didn't even have time to answer to, with a sudden approach of a trio, with one of them sending a blast that exploded a house snapping Kyanna out of her worries, and startling her, and the owl flapped its wings, scared.

"HEY!" She opened her eyes widely, looking at the house and gasping, only relaxing when realizing that the house was empty... Though, her stress didn't fade when she felt like she was being scolded by the one that had nearly exploded her.

"There is no 'don't trespass' sign or anything, you should be more careful!" Kyanna retorted, tightening her grip around her staff and looking at the other two.

"Why is it off-limits? What happened?" The witch frowned, concerned and confused. @MAI's message was ominous in a way, and adding the near ambush she had just received and this man's words, it seemed like something very nasty was happening in the surroundings, and if it was, it could mean MAI would be in danger. Kyanna couldn't allow it!

 

[MAI]

‎

The green-haired man stared at Kyanna in frustration, tightening the grip on the lantern. But before he could say anything, the smaller feline beastfolk stepped forward, doing her best to smile despite the clearly hostile environment.

"W-we're terribly sorry, Miss. Solos didn't mean to attack you, he's just on edge because of-" (she got stopped by the man)

"Don't speak on my behalf, yeah?" (Turning toward Kyanna, he glared again.) "We're not obliged to tell you, little girl. But seeing how you people never leave with just that, know that there is a very dangerous individual hiding here, and they could strike at any moment. So just run along and don't get in our way."

Turning away from Kyanna, he then decided to express his frustrations to the rest of his group, albeit in a lower voice.

"She has to be in one of these houses. It's not like anyone is going back after the magia raid, let's just raze it all to the ground and turn her into a pile of scrap already-!"

@Kyanna Wynne

 

[Kyanna Wynne]

Kyanna's expressions softened when the smaller beastfolk appeared to apologize, but the man's retort made her frown again, making her sigh and shake her head. "You really should learn a thing or two from your friend about being polite." She said, narrowing her eyes when he turned away to speak with his group.

The wording was concerning, and the mention of the dangerous individual... It couldn't be... Right?

Her lips pursed, and she glanced aside, trying to spot a good position for her to keep going and then just giving a few brief words for the group. "Anyway, if that's all, I will be going, the loot won't be taken by itself... Thank you for your worry, little miss, don't let this guy teach you to be lame." She said, and then glanced to the masked guy. "And thank you for saving me, if you hadn't turned that thing away, I would've been turned into dust, I think."

Kyanna offered them (except the horned guy) a bright smile, and moved away, waving before taking a sharp turn, quickly waving her hand to hastily send a message, this time a written one-

Mail

@MAI? Are you being chased? There is a very shady guy here talking about turning a girl into a pile of scrap, what is happening?!

She didn't waste time standing still, however, soon trying to find a building to get in, hopefully having some good viewof that group through windows and wall cracks.

 

[MAI]

‎

The little kitty didn't hesitate to wave back at Kyanna, while the masked guy merely nodded without a word, presumably too determined to play the big and tough guy act. The one with horns merely mouthed 'whatever' as he turned away, and the whole trio headed a bit further into the village.

The message Kyanna sent received no response. At least not in the immediate moments. And as she snuck into one of the homes, she could hear the trio talking again, though it was rather difficult to make anything out. Then again, perhaps there was no need as it was quickly followed by the sound of the feline beastfolk yelping and a sudden explosion. If Kyanna tried to get a better view, she'd see the horned beastfolk indiscriminately using his lantern to hurl pyromancy spells at the houses around him.

"S-stop! If you keep going, the flames will get out of control! Please, surely we can just let her-"

She didn't get to finish before a purple blur emerged from one of the exploding houses at high speed.

"There! Kill the fucking bitch!"

As soon as the purple color moved clear of the smoke, it became clear who it was. Touched down, MAI briefly turned toward the three, quickly moving her hands up just in time for gravity to shift and a greatsword stopping mid-air only a few centimeters short of her head, thrown by the masked man. As the weapon reversed and flew back, the owner would catch it again, but the other man was already attacking in the meantime, sparks gathering around the magia before detonating, leaving only a brief moment of her forming a hexagonal barrier around her.

@Kyanna Wynne

 

[Kyanna Wynne]

Kyanna frowned at the explosions coming from outside, frantically checking on her UI, hoping to see @MAI's message. That wasn't looking good, not at all. Even if there was at least one person in that group remotely against the hunt down, it was very clear what was happening.

The consequences of months ago, for sure. She didn't know if these were Landers or Players, but she wasn't going to just let MAI get attacked without retaliation.

Especially when the one she was looking for finally revealed herself, trying to escape from the attacks.

Kyanna felt her heart nearly stop when the claymore slashed so closely to her beloved, and a scowl grew on her face. "It can't keep going like this..." Approaching the door, she aimed her staff on the ground. "Abracadabra!" A large mushroom suddenly poked out of the earth, and Kyanna flipped her staff, sending another spell.

"Presto Changeo!"

And beneath the mushroom, grass and dirt connected to each other, with a large hog growing under it, letting out an ominous-

"Oink, ooooink!"​

And with a gesture of Kyanna's staff, she ordered the hog to charge toward the druid, hoping that it would disrupt the attention of the group, while the mushroom on its back began releasing a drowsy cloud of spores.

 

[MAI]

‎

"What-?"

Sure enough, the druid's attention was disrupted. However, it was the other two members of his group that took action. As soon as the boar got anywhere near close to them, the masked mountain of a man suddenly disappeared and re-appeared right in front of the mushroom hog, his bare left hand grabbing its head and slamming it into the ground with little effort. Crackling energy moved through his rippling muscles and bones. And as soon as the drowsy fog was noticed, the small feline quickly took a bow to her hands raising it to the skies and firing an azure blue arrow.

Once it reached high enough, it shattered, releasing its own fog that quickly condensed, forming an energetic rain that fell onto the group and dispelled the witch's attempts to put a sleep spell on them. As this tussle moved along, the druid kept on attacking MAI, one fire spell after another. All of them blocked by the hexagonal holographic shield, the two of them locking eyes. But MAI's... were tired, and meek. Finally, one of his spells managed to make its way through, searing the girl's shoulder and briefly sending her down to her knees. The exchange was wordless, yet intense at the same time.

@Kyanna Wynne

 

[Kyanna Wynne]

Kyanna's lips pursed as she noticed that her attempt to defend her friend was in vain. Spells weren't working, and handling three at once wasn't going to be a good idea, but it seemed like it was the only option she had at hand... At the very least, one of them weren't that inclined to fight, so perhaps if she rushed in, she would at the very least be one distraction to what was happening.

"Stop that!"

She called, hurrying forward as she brought forth two myconids, that sprouted out of the earth as they followed the witch, forming a 'meat wall' in front of the kneeling magia.

"What are you doing?!" Kyanna frowned, opening her arms widely as if trying to block any incoming attack with her own body. "Are you crazy? Why are you attacking her?" She said, with the myconids wiggling their mushrooms, sticking together to their master.

Her lips pursed as she looked at the group.

"And three on one too? That's a coward move!"

 

[MAI]

‎

When Kyanna got close enough, it became apparent that MAI's breathing was heavy and erratic, the usual almost expressionless visage replaced by a mixture of fear and despair. Her mouth opened as if she wanted to say something, but no words escaped. The opposing party, on the other hand...

"I don't know what the deal with you two is... but listen here, little girl. That bitch you're trying to protect is a murderer!"

The feline's expression grew darker and sadder as she looked away, appearing even more defeated and unwilling to fight than before. MAI remained quiet, her small body shaking uncontrollably.

"Heh... not even gonna deny it, huh? There you have it then, little witch. Pack your little... weird... pets, or whatever those are, and be on your way. This is an eye for an eye business."

As he said so, he took a step forward, the light in his lantern flickered.

"I will rip her apart and fuck her up beyond recognition for what she did..!"

@Kyanna Wynne

 

[Kyanna Wynne]

"Don't talk of her like that!" Kyanna shook her hand fiercely, clasping her staff against the ground and glaring daggers at the druid. She didn't miss the sight of the beastfolk girl on the back, which made her lips purse. What was with this mindless seek for revenge? They didn't look like landers at all... Or at least didn't act like landers.

"She would never murder someone..." A brief memory of what happened months ago echoed in Kyanna's mind, and her teeth gritted. "The one you think she is, wasn't the one she actually is. She wasn't-"

The flickering lantern didn't give any good signs, and much less gave them too much time to talk.

Kyanna wasn't going to risk @MAI trying to talk things out.

Waving her staff upwards, the myconids both charged toward the druid, while a barrage of vines sprouted out of the ground, spreading across the grass while Kyanna turned around, reaching for the magia's hand. "MAI! Hurry up!" She tried to snap her out of it, tugging her away while tossing her staff forward, with it slowly becoming broom-like for her to attempt a flight escape.

 

[MAI]

‎

The fact that Kyanna managed to correctly guess what might have been going in regards to Szofrit and what had happened just before the siege on the Dragonship earned a surprised look from MAI. Though, on the other side of the aisle, it might have come across as if she always knew, much to the anger of the druid. And they certainly weren't going to let this go.

As soon as the witch tried to act, the masked man swung his greatsword, enveloped by flames coming from the lantern. It quickly became apparent that he was, by far, the strongest one from their group. All it took was but one slash to turn the myconids to cinders, ground scorched, and the heat generated harsh on the exposed skin.

"You don't understand." He took a step toward them. "We won't let her escape again. Heh, even if you somehow managed to, we will find her before long... she cannot be forgiven! Because of her, my girlfri- our friend got UI-locked. Do you even understand what that means?! It means that her parents, worried that she overslept, had to find her corpse! It means that we will never be able to hang out outside of this godforsaken place! That we-"

He bit his lips. He clearly wanted to continue, pained expression replacing the anger. He might have only stopped himself because he couldn't take the very words he was saying, reminded of the reality. MAI's hand, grabbed by the witch, hung low, limp. Her whole body wouldn't budge.

"Leave..."

It was a meek plea to Kyanna.

@Kyanna Wynne

 

[Kyanna Wynne]

Kyanna remained focused on the escape attempt, uncaring if her spellwork had actually worked or not. There was no actual hostility in it, after all, only obstacles.

However, the magia halted her steps, and Kyanna's eyes widened, turning at her and opening her mouth to say something, but the druid's words stung the witch, that frowned her lips while her worried stare turned into a glare.

"Do I even understand..?"

She scowled, with a rush of memories running over her mind again, except this time, she had something else to worry about, keeping her from completely losing it.

"I've found my mother dead on her bed, she and her device, the same one me and you are wearing right now." Her free index pressed against her temple, and she took a step toward him. "I still haven't found her, I don't even know if she is still around here." She fiercely waved her hand, with the other squeezing the magia's. "I almost lost her too. Because of some robot that mind controlled every magia. Mind controlled, do you know what it is? Unless you are mind controlled right now, you sure can stop and think about it for a moment. You have brain signals, this device doesn't work otherwise."

She tapped her finger against her temple thrice, with quivering lips before her eyes that now brimmed with faint tears turned vaguely opaque.

"Stop pretending like you are the only one that understand anything. You don't even understand what your friends want to do."

Her gaze briefly shifted to the beastfolk girl, that was clearly unwilling to fight, and then at the large man, that was mysterious, but clearly not as hostile. Kyanna then looked at @MAI. "I won't leave you." Her hand thrusted forward, with her staff broom hovering back to her hand before Kyanna forced herself in front of the magia.

 

[MAI]

‎

Even as MAI stood there, frozen in place, shaking... her hand squeezed, the feeling of Kyanna's hand brought comfort. A kind of comfort she had not known until now. Even if she was suffocating on her own feelings, it was keeping her just barely above the waves.

"Then you should know the pain that we feel right now. None of us will get to see her outside of this place ever again."

The words were harsh but held the truth. It caused both of his companions to look to the side, as if they could not bring themselves to look straight ahead anymore. Then, the druid's teeth clenched.

"It doesn't matter! Szofrit is not here! She cannot be reached! And someone has to pay for this! She should have been stronger to not succumb!"

Fear, anger, frustration... emotions stood on the opposite side of reason and logic. Together, they formed an important balance. Applying nothing but pure logic caused people to make faulty decisions just as much as being driven by emotions alone. And right now, that wrathful fuel was all that burned within the man's chest and mind.

"My heart won't stop aching until someone pays! Look behind you, that bitch knows what she did - she wants to die just as much as I want to kill her! This will be your funeral pyre!!"

As he screamed, the area heated up considerably, and sparks started flying, as if the entire village was about to suddenly combust and be reduced to ashes. The spike in power being used clearly alerted even his companions as they suddenly turned to him, as if they were getting ready to physically stop him themselves.

...

..

.​

The spell never came to its conclusion. In an instant, something crashed into the ground between Kyanna and the druid, causing a shockwave that sent just about everyone to their butts, effectively canceling any and all concentration required to finish the attack. All the dust that was kicked up settled soon enough, revealing a figure of the person who came crashing down from who-knows how high up above them. The large man with a mask was the only one who managed to keep his ground without falling over, and was the first to react.

"Neon..."

"What? Why-"

The druid scrambled himself up onto his feet, only for a fist to collide directly with his nose, sending him back down again with a grunt of pain and a small blood splatter. As the assailant's form finally came fully to view, it was... a little confusing at first, seemingly sporting features of both a beastfolk and a magia. But it was unmistakable the one about whom this whole thing was.

"Aha, finally caught up with ya~"

". . ."

"N-Neon, we-"

None of them could get in even a full sentence. It was as if the bestial magia took full control over the situation in an instant.

"-got dragged along, I know. What a mess you've made~"

She looked over, resting her eyes on MAI and Kyanna, though it was almost as if she didn't know what kind of expression she should be making.

@Kyanna Wynne

 

[Kyanna Wynne]

Kyanna wasn't one to get angry so easily, but the man's words... The cowardice, the lack of accountability... The priorities he had.

The fact her beloved one was being threatened, looking horrified.

As soon as he decided to charge a deadly spell, Kyanna held the magia close by wrapping an arm around her body, still using herself as a shield while her gaze locked on the druid.

Her staff roared with an ferocious power as she forced a step forward, muttering words that echoed from the past. "Quia pulvis es et in pulverem rever-" But before she could end her chant, the sudden interruption caused her spell to cancel, along with the pyromantic power of the druid.

Unsure of what had happened, Kyanna instinctively covered @MAI against it with an embrace and her own body, frowning her lips as she tried to recover from the abrupt impact, shaking her head and turning to face the responsible for interrupting what was probably going to be an action Kyanna wouldn't be able to forgive herself for any time soon.

The punch on the druid was satisfying in a way, but surprise overshadowed it. "H-Huh?" Kyanna blinked, unsure of who the girl was at first, but quickly assessing MAI. "Are you okay?"

Her eyes shifted to the girl again, pursing her lips. "What... What happened? Are you..?"

The 'girlfriend'?

 

[MAI]

‎

MAI nodded to Kyanna's question, but once her eyes met Neon's, it was as if her entire being froze for a few moments. And, once those few moments elapsed... tears simply started flowing down her cheeks. Even those fake synthetic eyes of a magia could produce them, it seemed...

The other magia looked at Kyanna as well, but did not really answer her question. After all, the answer was pretty obvious, was it not? Instead, she too looked at MAI, pausing for a brief moment.

"Haah, so it has come to this... I really... really hoped I would never have to see you again. Emotions are a pesky thing, huh?"

The druid slowly got back up, holding his bleeding nose, staring directly at the newly arrived woman. It some effort on his part, but he was able to speak again eventually.

"Why- why'd you-"

"Oh, you know why, you dumbass! Stop pretending that you think I would ever approve of this. You two as well, pack your things and off with you!"

Both the tall man and the small beastfolk nodded, little unnerved. Clearly they didn't want to get in the way, else they would risk one of those fists being aimed at them as well. It might have not seemed as such, but the one they called 'Neon' was clearly quite strong.

"We're doing this because of you! Because of how you were- I mean- you were crying all the time, talking about how you want her to experience the same pain as you, and-"

"Yeah, what else was I supposed to be saying at that time? I was freshly UI-locked, the realization slowly creeping in. That I would never see ma or da again... and many of my friends."

Her gaze at Kyanna and MAI grew a tiny bit colder.

"Actually seeing you here makes me feel like I could get some sort of revenge... but what would that accomplish, exactly? It's not like it was your fault. I was the one who kept playing even after I died two times already. I knew the risks. But anyone would be emotional right after an experience like that."

Suddenly she turned around toward the druid, hand moving forward almost too fast to see, grabbing onto the man's nose.

"OWWWWWWWWWWWWW-!!"

"But you went entirely too far! It's only because I like you that I won't teach you a lesson right in front of them! So, what do you say, little miss Witch? Will you allow us to leave and pretend like none of this ever happened? I'd ask your magia friend, but she seems... well, let's be honest... the two of us should probably stay at least a country apart if possible~"

@Kyanna Wynne

 

[Kyanna Wynne]

The sudden new development left Kyanna watching it unfold with a mostly quiet expression and behavior, not really wishing to talk too much about it, desiring to stay quiet and to say anything, to stop herself from ending up escalating a situation she didn't intend to.

It didn't take long for the answer to her question be responded indirectly, and Kyanna's expressions remained pensive and saddened, even more so when the girl spoke of her own experience.

She wondered if her mother was feeling like that.

The slightly cold gaze, and the concerning words that escaped the other girl made Kyanna become wary again, and even if she was saddened by the situation overall, she was still protective of @MAI, especially seeing how her tears were rolling down relentlessly.

Kyanna pursed her lips, nodding. "We don't want any trouble... A lot happened already... And not just today."

Her gaze lowered briefly. "I am sorry."

Those words were directed to the girl, and the other two friends that were caught into this situation only. To the druid, she had to contain a disgusted expression, gently tugging MAI. "Let's go..." She muttered, resting her staff down to make it become a flying broom once again.

 

[MAI]

‎

While some shouts could still be heard once the village's border was crossed, none of them were audible enough to make out what the group from before was saying. Perhaps it didn't even matter. After all, MAI was stood right by Kyanna's side, tightly squeezing the witch's palm. Her tears have lessened in their intensity, though still visibly present. That said, the magia was a bit wobbly as she walked, and short of breath. Her mind was a mess of many thoughts warring over her immediate attention, and most of them were not good. It was almost as if she could barely even acknowledge that she was no longer alone.

Still, even with her shaking legs, she would walk anywhere Kyanna would try to lead her. But she did not start a conversation. Her lips were quivering, and she did not know what to say, either. What could she say after a situation like that? When all of this started months ago, she wanted to keep the raven-haired girl out of it. That was the goal... but her single feeble message trying to urge her to run away was hardly enough to accomplish that, and now they were here. Out of harm's way, but with many questions surrounding them.

What was she supposed to- what could she do right now..?

@Kyanna Wynne

 

[Kyanna Wynne]

Kyanna waited for the two of them to gain enough distance. It was dozens and dozens of minutes walking away, with the witch keeping her mouth shut for most of part. Her priority was being somewhere where @MAI would be safe first and foremost... And as soon as they were finally far away enough, she tugged the magia away from the main path, sneaking into a faint clearing a few steps into a treeline before suddenly embracing the girl tightly.

A long and slow gasp made Kyanna take all breath she could, and the embrace tightened as the emotions she was suppressing all the time the conflict had surged slipped all at once.

"I missed you so much..."

The witch said between a sob. She knew the emotions that she would have seeing MAI in front of her, compared to just seeing her online and sending a message were going to be much more intense... But after seeing her being targetted with such a big hostility, Kyanna couldn't hold back the tears.

Not parting the hug, Kyanna leaned her face away, locking her gaze on MAI's, if her beloved didn't avert her eyes.

A hand rested on her cheek, and her lips pursed. "You should have told me... I would never leave you alone, MAI..."