![Novice [250]](https://i.imgur.com/lrYlde6.png)
CRYSTAL SWAN
ELVIRA ARCADE
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| 1244/1000 words | tagged |
The warm sea breeze gently caressed Elvira's face as she leaned over to rest her elbows on the outer rail of The Luck Dragon. The ship was aptly named; it must be kept afloat by sheer luck, since no amount of fresh wood could ever patch all the cracks in it's rickety hull. Still, they did give her a lift.
We're 'ere miss!" The very stereotypical looking sea captain shouted from the upper deck.
"Thank you captain! How long do I have?" She inquired while removing her clothes to reveal the swimsuit underneath.
"We'll be just a few yards over yonder with the nets down all day, make sure ye don't get caught in 'em on your way back!" He shouted in reply.
She gave the usual smile and nod, the combination that typically signaled she was done with the conversation. Elvira re-secured her card case to her thigh and slid her iLac into the strap around her bicep. With a flick of the wrist a card appeared in her hand. The wizard smiled to herself while looking down at the beautiful siren depicted in the art. Slowly she channeled her energy into the focus between her fingers; the siren stretched and swam forward, pursing her lips. Elvira leaned down and pressed her own lips against the card --she always enjoyed the salty-sweet taste of the siren's mouth; she wished she could have known the creature while she lived. The young wizard inhaled deeply: Her lungs filled while her body felt warm and energized.
She slid the card into the top of her bikini and spread her arms before diving gracefully into the sea. Although she hadn't swum in anything larger than a pool for some time, her long hours spent in the academy aquatic facility were evident as she swam gracefully downwards, guided by the strange feeling in her chest. The wizard, aided by the siren's magic, quickly descended through a patch of vibrant, exotic, plant life and emerged to see the ruins of a large temple before her.
The sunken structure was pyramid shaped, with a single large entrance flanked by eroded stone columns. The expert stonework of the temple's outer walls had largely yielded to a luminescent blue-green algae that seemed to give the entire area are eerie glow. Of course everyone in Hargeon knew about the temple, it was a popular dive spot for tourists --still, she couldn't help but feel something inside had been...overlooked.
She floated for a moment, letting the subtle current push her body to and fro, there was a subtle sense of apprehension in the sea. Elvira retrieved the card from her top and took another deep breath before swimming through the temple's entrance.
After doing the breaststroke through several murky tunnels and quickly passed one very territorial fire eel, Elvira emerged into one of the temples, large, air filled chambers. Water dripped from her body as she adjusted the brightness setting on her iLac to bathe the room in cool light. Treasure hunters had been down here off and on for the past 20 years; it was hard to imagine they'd missed something, but, she knew it was here somewhere. She stepped gracefully from stone to stone, her petite feet making nary a sound as she moved carefully in a spiral throughout the chamber. She finally paused, standing above one of the cobbles that made up the chamber floor, and looked down. Crouching, she felt around the stone's edge, eventually managing to haul it slowly free while thanking the stars she enjoyed squats. The stone lifted out and smashed into pieces as she hefted it aside. Below her in the newly created hole a gold bordered card floated, just below the water table. She fished it out and looked it over; the card depicted a man...no, more like a featureless mannequin, in a noble's regalia seated on a throne. A long line of identical, featureless mannequins in armor seemed to be walking straight out of him, marching in a single file line away.
The wizard had never heard of this one, maybe she was the first collector to discover it, that'd be worth something she thought. As she smiled to herself a woman walked out of the shadows in the corner. Elvira's head snapped up to look at the interloper, her eyes going wide with confusion: It was...her, Elvira. There was no mistaking it as she stared down her own mirror image; slowly she lifted one of her hands, only to have her double match her movements precisely. Next she hopped from side to side, only to be copied again. Finally she let her guard down, convinced this was nothing more than some sort of bizarre illusion; that was when a decidedly wicked smile crossed Clonevira's face: she flicked her wrist and promptly drew out a card; the warlock.
"Oh no..." Elvira murmured while immediately drawing her own copy of the card. The spells cast simultaneously, filling the room with the forsaken mirrors that would surely mean both of their deaths, but to the surprise of the women; nothing happened. The mirrors slowly cracked and dissolved --harmless to either of them. In a flash both the Elvira's began furiously trading spells back and forth, each completely unable to hit the other: It was quickly becoming apparent they were equally matched. The battle continued unabated until the room practically hummed with the energy of all the magic that had been exchanged. In a final act of desperation both women drew their swords and clashed together, practically dancing through the temple as each countered the other's moves over and over.
"She's me." Elvira said to herself. "Or at least close enough that we are completely evenly matched...which means she must know that as well. We can't keep this up..." However, Clonevira seemed undeterred as she continued to hammer her sword into Elvira's, sending silver sparks in all directions. They tried everything to hurt or defeat each other: Tactics ranging from advanced swordplay to psychological warfare. When their sword's faded they resorted to punching one another. At one point Elvira tried tricking her evil twin into angering the fire eel circling in the pool below, only to discover the woman shared not only her magic but her memories as well since Clonevira clearly knew the eel was there. Next they moved to attempting what they both thought they would never attempt in battle. Clonevira tried to pummel Elvira with a rock, Elvira grabbed her twin and kissed her on the lips..no matter what they always knew what the other would do. Finally, they both sank to the ground, feebly slapping at each other, every ounce of strength gone as they panted heavily. Elvira had just come to the conclusion they were both going to die down here when suddenly, Clonevira's eyes widened and she blinked out of existence.
Alone once more after an hours long struggle; Elvira was completely stunned. She simply lay there for long time, trying to recover, before staggering to her feet as she realized the boat would leave soon. As she prepared to depart she stumbled around; searching for the card, the prize, the reason she'd almost killed herself literally. It was then the strangest thing happened: She picked up the golden card, drew it close to her face as her expression turned to one of shock. All the faceless mannequins had been replaced with copies of Elvira, who now resided on the throne.
We're 'ere miss!" The very stereotypical looking sea captain shouted from the upper deck.
"Thank you captain! How long do I have?" She inquired while removing her clothes to reveal the swimsuit underneath.
"We'll be just a few yards over yonder with the nets down all day, make sure ye don't get caught in 'em on your way back!" He shouted in reply.
She gave the usual smile and nod, the combination that typically signaled she was done with the conversation. Elvira re-secured her card case to her thigh and slid her iLac into the strap around her bicep. With a flick of the wrist a card appeared in her hand. The wizard smiled to herself while looking down at the beautiful siren depicted in the art. Slowly she channeled her energy into the focus between her fingers; the siren stretched and swam forward, pursing her lips. Elvira leaned down and pressed her own lips against the card --she always enjoyed the salty-sweet taste of the siren's mouth; she wished she could have known the creature while she lived. The young wizard inhaled deeply: Her lungs filled while her body felt warm and energized.
She slid the card into the top of her bikini and spread her arms before diving gracefully into the sea. Although she hadn't swum in anything larger than a pool for some time, her long hours spent in the academy aquatic facility were evident as she swam gracefully downwards, guided by the strange feeling in her chest. The wizard, aided by the siren's magic, quickly descended through a patch of vibrant, exotic, plant life and emerged to see the ruins of a large temple before her.
The sunken structure was pyramid shaped, with a single large entrance flanked by eroded stone columns. The expert stonework of the temple's outer walls had largely yielded to a luminescent blue-green algae that seemed to give the entire area are eerie glow. Of course everyone in Hargeon knew about the temple, it was a popular dive spot for tourists --still, she couldn't help but feel something inside had been...overlooked.
She floated for a moment, letting the subtle current push her body to and fro, there was a subtle sense of apprehension in the sea. Elvira retrieved the card from her top and took another deep breath before swimming through the temple's entrance.
After doing the breaststroke through several murky tunnels and quickly passed one very territorial fire eel, Elvira emerged into one of the temples, large, air filled chambers. Water dripped from her body as she adjusted the brightness setting on her iLac to bathe the room in cool light. Treasure hunters had been down here off and on for the past 20 years; it was hard to imagine they'd missed something, but, she knew it was here somewhere. She stepped gracefully from stone to stone, her petite feet making nary a sound as she moved carefully in a spiral throughout the chamber. She finally paused, standing above one of the cobbles that made up the chamber floor, and looked down. Crouching, she felt around the stone's edge, eventually managing to haul it slowly free while thanking the stars she enjoyed squats. The stone lifted out and smashed into pieces as she hefted it aside. Below her in the newly created hole a gold bordered card floated, just below the water table. She fished it out and looked it over; the card depicted a man...no, more like a featureless mannequin, in a noble's regalia seated on a throne. A long line of identical, featureless mannequins in armor seemed to be walking straight out of him, marching in a single file line away.
The wizard had never heard of this one, maybe she was the first collector to discover it, that'd be worth something she thought. As she smiled to herself a woman walked out of the shadows in the corner. Elvira's head snapped up to look at the interloper, her eyes going wide with confusion: It was...her, Elvira. There was no mistaking it as she stared down her own mirror image; slowly she lifted one of her hands, only to have her double match her movements precisely. Next she hopped from side to side, only to be copied again. Finally she let her guard down, convinced this was nothing more than some sort of bizarre illusion; that was when a decidedly wicked smile crossed Clonevira's face: she flicked her wrist and promptly drew out a card; the warlock.
"Oh no..." Elvira murmured while immediately drawing her own copy of the card. The spells cast simultaneously, filling the room with the forsaken mirrors that would surely mean both of their deaths, but to the surprise of the women; nothing happened. The mirrors slowly cracked and dissolved --harmless to either of them. In a flash both the Elvira's began furiously trading spells back and forth, each completely unable to hit the other: It was quickly becoming apparent they were equally matched. The battle continued unabated until the room practically hummed with the energy of all the magic that had been exchanged. In a final act of desperation both women drew their swords and clashed together, practically dancing through the temple as each countered the other's moves over and over.
"She's me." Elvira said to herself. "Or at least close enough that we are completely evenly matched...which means she must know that as well. We can't keep this up..." However, Clonevira seemed undeterred as she continued to hammer her sword into Elvira's, sending silver sparks in all directions. They tried everything to hurt or defeat each other: Tactics ranging from advanced swordplay to psychological warfare. When their sword's faded they resorted to punching one another. At one point Elvira tried tricking her evil twin into angering the fire eel circling in the pool below, only to discover the woman shared not only her magic but her memories as well since Clonevira clearly knew the eel was there. Next they moved to attempting what they both thought they would never attempt in battle. Clonevira tried to pummel Elvira with a rock, Elvira grabbed her twin and kissed her on the lips..no matter what they always knew what the other would do. Finally, they both sank to the ground, feebly slapping at each other, every ounce of strength gone as they panted heavily. Elvira had just come to the conclusion they were both going to die down here when suddenly, Clonevira's eyes widened and she blinked out of existence.
Alone once more after an hours long struggle; Elvira was completely stunned. She simply lay there for long time, trying to recover, before staggering to her feet as she realized the boat would leave soon. As she prepared to depart she stumbled around; searching for the card, the prize, the reason she'd almost killed herself literally. It was then the strangest thing happened: She picked up the golden card, drew it close to her face as her expression turned to one of shock. All the faceless mannequins had been replaced with copies of Elvira, who now resided on the throne.
deltra of gangnam style
