Evolution

The turn of the year had come with a number of surprising, and not at all pleasant news. First it had been the news of how the war had turned. Despite the presence of the Rune Knights on the battlefield, and with said organization hosting some of the strongest mages that Nita had even heard of, despite the fact that there had been three Gods of Ishgar on the battlefield, fighting on the side of the Luminous Covenant, Bellum and her allied forces had been unequivocally crushed by the Ironheart Pact. It threw a great shadow of worry over contemplation of the war. Nita had been hopeful that with the presence of very powerful mages who were supporting the Luminous Covenant, a swift end to the war would be brought, and peace could reign.

While both sides of the conflict had their own issues, Nita had been happy to side with the Luminous Covenant for two reasons: firstly, the alternative was unacceptable. Even before the war had begun in earnest, when talks for peace were attempting to be brokered in the rather luckless Felidae City, the Pergrandian envoy had survived alone, of all the envoys who had been brought to Felidae, and he had been saved by a mage, no less. In response, the mage was incarcerated, and Pergrande used the tragedy of Felidae to declare war on Bellum, despite the fact that the Bellian envoy had perished in the catastrophe. In Nita’s opinion, there had been absolutely no reason for Pergrande to declare war on Bellum, but they did, obviously desirous to plunge the entire continent into war without care for who lived or died. Even though Pergrande was her homeland, there was no way she could side with such a tyrannical outlook. Besides, if Pergrande were to win this war, what would happen to the mages in the countries Pergrande dominated? Chances were that Pergrande would allow Minstrel and Enca, both nations with sizeable mage populations, some respite, as they were allies, but most likely there would be terrible pogroms in the other nations over which Pergrande’s iron fist rested. One could not even say whether Pergrande would turn on its own allies in a bid to control the magic users. Nita was unwilling to side a faction with such prospects for the future.

The second reason for Nita’s choice of the Luminous Covenant was that she had somehow found her way into the graces of Arcanos, the national god of Bellum and Ishgaran god of magic, and while she could not specifically say what Arcanos had been thinking, granting his blessings to the child of an enemy nation, one thing she suspected was that her patron deity seemed to be favoring the Luminous Covenant, and as a result, she would throw in her lot with them. With the support of a god, the Luminous Covenant was expected to be victorious, right? Unfortunately, it seemed that was not to be the case. Pergrande had, in an unexpected turn of events, turned Bellum’s finest into rags.

And there was the matter of Tim Timson, who had called her to a meeting with him, just to inform her that he had died. That was perhaps the greater woe. Perhaps, Nita felt, she had been a bit too presumptuous. With the gaining of her powers and her striving for improvement, she had probably made the mistake of believing that, thanks to her abilities, she could come to the aid of her friends in a moment’s notice, and save them from harm. Tim’s death had reminded her that in the end, despite having the powers of a deity, she was still human, and constrained by the same things that the average human was constrained by, the greatest of them being ignorance. She had been unable to help him, simply because she had had no idea that he had been in need of help. Perhaps this was the price to pay for hubris. Perhaps what made the death of her friend hurt more was that it wasn’t until the fateful meeting in Hargeon that Nita had realized that even though they had been friends, perhaps their friendship had been trying to grow into something more. Unfortunately, she thought, no one would know if something deeper could have come of their friendship.

These thoughts had plunged the Pergrandian mage into a vale of deep depression, and while she carried out her duties and tasks as well as was expected of her, there was no motivation to do anything else, anymore. And this was a dangerous thing. The reason constant improvement was needed was because everything deteriorated if left alone. To stay in a single place required energy; to move forward required even more. It was erroneous to think that stopping meant one was staying in the same place, for the world moved by, and left them behind, meaning that one was not in the same place if one stopped. Stopping meant regression, and Nita was stopping.

Maria could not have that.

One of the things that had galvanized Maria’s resolve to do something drastic in order to relight the fire under Nita was the observation that when the goddess had thought up her plan, and begun to carefully put it into motion, Nita had not even seemed in the least curious as to what she was up to. Maria had suspected that for this plan of hers to work, Nita had to be unaware of it until the last moment, and as such, had been borrowing Nita’s body from time to time, all the while preventing the girl from accessing memories of what had happened while the goddess had been in control. On a normal day, the normal Nita would have gone hysteric on the first moment of realization that Maria had hijacked her body and was hiding what had been done during that time from her. This time, Nita simply asked what was going on. And when Maria had replied that she would not tell, but that she thought it would be for Nita’s own good, the Pergrandian had just shrugged and moved on. The Nita Maria knew would have practically gone crazy until she had had an idea of what the goddess was trying to do. And while Nita’s indifference made Maria’s scheming easier, Maria was quite unwilling to have her host continue like this.

As was said, desperate times called for desperate measures. Such as the one being taken today. And while the scene of this desperate measure would take place in the Ancient Ruins, far out in literally the middle of nowhere, to set things in motion, Maria had come to a quiet, little, nondescript village, in search of her quarry, whose movements she had been trying to track for days now. She was hoping she would find the person she was looking for in this village, but in truth, it was not Armina that Maria was really interested in catching. There was a bigger fish that needed luring, and Armina would be the bait. Seated at a food stall in the village’s market, Maria, in control of Nita’s body, stretched out her magical senses, seeking her prey.

Hopefully, she would show up. Any moment now….


WC: 1206
TWC: 1206

@Medeia

It would be impossible not to see the noticeable bounce in the footsteps of the purple haired woman as she explored the various stalls that the village had to offer. It had been so long since she and her Mistress had gone out on a treasure hunt and after weeks of constant nagging and pleading, the maid had finally managed to convince Medeia to take her out on one. In their early days, the two of them had spent a great deal of time exploring the vast lands of Earthland, uncovering many mighty items and defeating the grandest of foes and yet as time had wore on, Medeia had taken on more responsibility, both within Errings Rising and The Ironheart Pact as well. The free time that her Mistress had been severely cut, a realisation that had somewhat upset the maid. That was not to say that Armina felt neglected, just that missed the freedom that had come from their earlier days. To finally have Medeia’s full attention upon herself again was a great comfort to the axe wielder and the smile that was plastered across her face could not have been wide. She was going to enjoy this trip and make the most of every moment.

There were other reasons for the busty beauty to be happy too, given the recent encounter that she and her Mistress had with the Guild Mistress of Silver Wolf. It had been one hell of a fight and although Armina had eventually been overwhelmed by the sheer ferocity of Leona’s attack, just being able to be a part of the fight had been enough for her. She had taken so much confidence from that battle and to see her Mistress clash with Leona had been an eye opening experience. Never had she been in the presence of two mages with that magnitude of power and her nerves had been on fire during the encounter contest. Now, Armina knew that she would never be able to reach Medeia’s level of power but that did not mean that had reached her limit. She had been training ever since, for the day where she would be able to fight against such a powerful foe, at Medeia’s side. Wins and losses no longer mattered the maid, it was all about the elation and bloodlust that she felt during it. There was no substitute for that, well, besides the loving embrace of her dark haired Warlord.

Another reason was the battle between the forces of Pergrande and Bellum, which had ended up being an absolute rout for the former. Armina had been forbidden by her Mistress from taking part but she had received the full story after the fact. Medeia had fought the Cardinal of Bellum and had held the advantage for the entire fight, constantly pushing her back and unleashing strike after strike. In truth, the dark haired witch had barely suffered a scratch in the contest and had also been able to unleash her mightiest form against the Bellum scum. She had destroyed so many with her ultimate attack, almost wiping the field clean of opposition. Armina simply wished that she had been there herself to see such a feat. That being said, it was simply another reason for her to grow stronger in her own right. Next time, she might just be on the battlefield herself.

Her attention was captured by a lovely woman who was standing behind a stall, selling what appeared to be trinkets of some kind. Without any hesitation, the tall maid would make a beeline straight for the stall although her gaze seemed to be more focused upon the woman than the items being displayed. Armina knew that she and her Mistress were supposed to be on the hunt for treasure but she doubted that Medeia would mind if the purple haired woman brought home a different kind of treasure. The woman behind the stall appeared to be a little intimidated by the gaze of the maid.

“Can I interest you in something? I have a wide assortment of trinkets that may capture your attention.” The lovely lady said, her green eyes showing just the slightest hint of worry.

“I reckon that someone already has.” The maid replied, her smile becoming a smirk, her gaze becoming more uncomfortable for her shopkeeper to maintain contact with. “How about you close up early and we spend some quality time together?”

“Erm…I….Err, I cannot. This is my father’s stall and I am covering for him today.” The flustered shopkeeper replied, her cheeks turning a bright shade of red.

The expression on the face of the maid changed rather quickly, turning from a flirty smile to a rather unpleasant sneer. “I do not care who you are covering for. The fact remains that I am taking quite the liking to you and there is a dear friend of mine who I am sure will too. Come with me now, before I lose my patience.”

Another presence emerged before Armina could do anything else, not to mention an unpleasant hand on her shoulder. Her reaction was instant and spinning on her heel, the maid would deliver a crunching punch that struck the interloper in the jaw. There was a nasty crunching sound as bones broke and the figure, a middle aged male, soon collapsed to the ground in pain, his hands covering his wounded face.

The maid would stand him over at that point, her expression rather similar to Medeia’s when she was angry, a look of cold fury. “You useless human!” She spat. “I should break your neck for having the audacity to touch me, not just your jaw! I have killed people for far less.” Her hand slowly moved to grasp the handle of the large axe that was strapped to her back. There would be no uncertainty in her eyes and death was just moments from claiming the moronic fool. No one in the near vicinity dared to make a move and simply watched.

(1001 Words)
(2207 TWC)

Between the two minds who shared Nita’s physical form, Maria was the less patient one, and even she could feel Nita’s consciousness shuffling in mild impatience, although there was still that blanket of despair over the emotion. Although the goddess was unwilling to admit it, it unnerved her as to how someone who had been so vivacious and eager to live, who would complain about being put on the backseat even if it was necessary that Maria took the reins, didn’t seem to care much anymore about the shenanigans which her tenant goddess had planned. It also irritated her that even though Nita was feeling bored from waiting for something of which she knew naught about, she did not even bother to ask Maria what was going on. With every moment that passed, the goddess’s resolve that she was doing the right thing grew stronger and stronger. A part of her was worried; what if things did not go according to plan? What if her actual intentions were not achieved? Well, if that was the case, she would simply find another way, then. But Maria was sure it was just the worry about having never done a particular thing before, that was getting to her. She had thoroughly done her research. The odds were greater that it would work. But while she waited, she needed to address something which she felt she could not bear any longer.

”Well?” Maria asked mentally.

”Well, what?” Nita replied, though she sounded as though she did not care for discussions. ”I can sense you’re getting tired, like me, of waiting, and yet you haven’t even asked me what it is I am trying to do, or for whom I wait. It is very unlike you, Nita.” There was a moment of silence, and then the blonde responded, ”Yes, well, I did ask once, and you were unwilling to tell me, so I haven’t the energy to keep pressing you for answers. You did say that what you’re doing is for my own good, and I know you cannot lie to me, so I’ll just wait and see what you have planned. And don’t worry about me; you’re more impatient than I am, and as such, the wait is more of an inconvenience for you than it is for me.” This ennui-infused Nita was really troubling. And it seemed there was more tiredness than boredom. People of her age were not supposed to feel tired. This was supposed to be what the poets referred to as the springtime of life, and Nita was already giving off old woman vibes. Even though Maria was not mortal, there was something she knew about mortals: when they felt this way, and they felt so for a long time, thoughts of death began to seem pleasant. That was unacceptable. There was much the Pergrandian had to accomplish, and Maria was bound to her fate. The goddess had no idea what would happen to her if Nita died, but she did not particularly care to think about such things.

The depressing feeling of talking to Nita was suddenly alleviated when Maria sensed a presence in the market. The waiting was over! Nita sensed the person as well, and recognized her from her magic signature. ”Maria, don’t tell me you’ve been waiting for that crazy maid,” Nita said, her tone making it clear that despite her depression, she was becoming wary. Her last meeting with Armina had not particularly ended well, and Maria had been to blame for much of it. And now, the goddess seemed to have been waiting for this bundle of trouble. In response to Nita’s inquiry, Maria gave no verbal answer, instead allowing a slow smile to spread across her face, as she slowly rose, glad that Armina had not noticed her. From the way the maid held herself, and the attractiveness of the woman to whom she spoke, Maria knew exactly what the maid was asking for, or more accurately, demanding. She watched as the middle-aged fellow made the mistake of touching the purple-haired mage, and got a smashed jaw for his pains. And even then, Armina was going for her axe. Finally, Nita seemed to be getting expressive. ”Are you going to just stand there and let her slaughter everyone in the market?” Nita asked sounding hysterical. ”Are you going to put the lives of people in danger like you did back at Cedar?” Okay, that last part stung. Maria had not forgotten her inability to save the people of that city from Medeia’s wrath, and she didn’t need to be reminded of it. ”Well, it seems someone can finally express something other than dull despair,” the goddess shot back. ”I’m sure you already knew this, but I am no fool. Leave me to my devices. In any case, it is rather cute how you forgot your own personal woes once you saw people in danger. Rest assured, I shall ensure no further harm comes to them.”

Communing a spell, Maria unleashed her Orison of Wrath: Oriflamme. A stream of runes would flow towards Armina, and if they touched her, the maid would find herself immediately pummeled into the earth by a bright column of light. One of Maria’s strongest spells, but she knew Armina was rather tough, and would at best only be knocked out. Maria had very short time. She knew Medeia would sense the assault of her maid, and begin to close in on her position, blood and revenge in mind. But there were a few things that needed doing, at least to safeguard the lives of these people. ”All of you are in danger,” the goddess intoned, as she strode towards Armina’s fallen form. She held out her hand, and used her Relativity God Reversal to heal the man with the shattered jaw. Then she continued, ”I will move you all some miles away from here. Do not return to the market until evening. And when you do, give thanks to Arcanos for his mercy.” And then she snapped her fingers, using Relativity God Blink, to move everyone in the market and its environs to a plain some miles away. Quickly picking Armina up, she made a portal and stepped through it with her quarry. It was time to spring the trap.

When Armina awoke, she would find herself in the ruins of an old temple, somewhere in the Ancient Ruins. She would find herself restrained by wood that had grown out of the floor of the temple and into the ceiling. The wood bound her arms together over her head, but had her legs spread apart and bound separately, keeping her off the ground. Yet the wooden restraints had been fashioned such that Armina would feel no discomfort, save having her arms held over her head. ”Are you awake?” Maria asked, walking into view, a placid smile on her face. ”Good. First things first….” Utilizing her Relativity God Reversal again, Maria would heal the maid of the injuries (or at least some) that had been caused by her spell. ”I would have apologized for the rough treatment, but I seem to recall that you do enjoy your slap and tickle sessions rather rough, yes? You look well, Armina.”

Nita, by now, was very much displeased. ”Are you trying to have us killed?!” she was screaming in Maria’s head. ”You know what happened the last time you laid hands on Armina. What are you trying to gain from this? I swear, it will be long before I allow you the reins over my body again.” Maria replied with an even smile, ”If things go according to plan, it may well be forever before you do.” Summoning her Pegasus spear and shield, Maria cast an enchantment on them, turning them into a single ornate knife, which she used to try to saw at Armina’s skirt. ”Oh my, but they do make your clothes really sturdy, don’t they. If there’s enough material, I should be able to use your clothes to restrain you, in place of my roots. Cloth should be more comfortable than wood, should it not?”

At this point, Maria was simply trying to rake up the rage in Armina, and consequently, Medeia. She needed a very angry Medeia, when the latter arrived.


WC: 1382
TWC: 3589

@Medeia

Her head was definitely spinning and as the maid awoke, all she could do for those first few groggy moments was just try to recover her senses. What on Earthland had happened to her? One second she had been about to chop that stupid male into pieces and the next she had been hit by something that had felt like an express train. There had been so little time for her to try and make a defensive move and so obsessed had she been with the thought of killing the fool that she had caught completely unawares. The only thought that had run through her head before falling into unconsciousness was that she could have sworn that the magic that had struck her had a familiar touch to it. That was all that had crossed her mind before the strength of the attack had knocked her well and truly out for the count.

Another touch of that magic helped bring her back to full awareness, as well as a voice that she was more than simply acquainted with. It was one that she had heard multiple times before and fairly recently too. The face of her captor became perfectly clear at that point, just as it seemed that the pain and weariness had disappeared, leaving her in her right mind again. Armina raised an eyebrow as the realisation struck her and naturally she tried to move her arms to try and defend herself. Yet, to her surprise, they would not respond to her, resulting in the maid glancing upwards to see that they were tightly bound above her head, with wood of all things. Her natural instinct was to try and break them, resulting in a short time spent tugging and wrenching against her bindings but to her disbelief, they did not even move, leaving her completely unable to move them. Now, Armina did not mind being bound by her Mistress but this was something else and a look of annoyance crossed her face. To make matters worse, her legs were stretched out and bound too, leaving in an awkward position where she was almost dangling in mid air, held aloft by the wood. She much preferred the soft touch of Medeia’s magical rope, that much was for certain.

There was something off about the way that Nita was speaking to her and the purple haired maid mused that perhaps it was not her in charge at that particular moment. It sounded like it was the legal mages other half, so to speak, which resulted in Armina becoming a tad more irritated. “Yes but I am fond of being given a heads up first. Could you not have at least said hello like a normal person before blasting me with your magic?” Despite her situation, a laugh escaped her as she mocked the blonde. “Do not tell me that you actually used such a spell just because I was about to teach that male a lesson? Surely a mortal life is not worth the interference of a primal. I must say that this does not seem like the form of punishment that Nita would approve of…What are you up to, Maria?”

The blonde would soon start fooling around with the spear and shield that Armina had faced the previous time they had met although the maid did not show any signs of distress. Torture hardly seemed to be in Maria’s repertoire and even when the dual weapons turned into a single knife and approached her, the maid still did not flinch, just giving the legal mage a slightly unimpressed look. “My outfit is magically infused if you must know and it will take more than a dull and poorly wielded knife to cut through it.”

Knowing it to be futile but trying anyway, Armina would briefly fight against the wooden bindings again, failing spectacularly to do much of anything besides flop around like a fish in mid air. “I must say that these restraints are not bad though they do not give a lot of room for manoeuvre. Softer materials are much nicer, you know, as they encourage the victim to struggle a lot more. Wood and metal are more painful on the wrists and ankle, resulting in the captive losing the will to fight against them. A feisty one is much more fun, after all.”

After a moment of pause, she spoke again.”I have no idea what game you are trying to play here but you must know what the result of all this is going to be. My Mistress is going to come, throw a fit and end up bringing this ruin down upon our heads. I cannot believe that you would be stupid enough to taunt her like this after what happened the last time. She is not going to be merciful this time around and it will be more than just a lesson that she will teach you this time. As obsessed with both you and Nita as she may be, that is not going to stop her from bouncing you from one side of this room to the other and you know it. Do you have a death wish or something?”

It simply did not make any sense to the maid and as she tried to get an answer out of the seemingly insane blonde, she then frowned. “You know that I am not going to be able to talk her out of this, right? She will wipe out every man, woman and child in exchange for you having done this to me. As for you, she will break both you and dear Nita, in a way that you will never have felt possible. Every moment of pain and torment that you two have felt will be dragged to the surface. Your minds and souls will be torn apart, exploited and ravished in the most heinous of ways. Every secret that you have buried will be dragged to the surface and shared with her. By the time it is all over, you will regret ever having met her in the first place.”

(1017 Words)
(4606 TWC)

Maria blinked innocently at Armina when the latter sked why she didn’t say hello like a “normal person” before going nuclear on the maid with her magic. ”Did I hear you say normal?” the goddess asked in mock disbelief. ”Don’t be preposterous, dear. There is absolutely nothing that can be considered normal about either of us, much less you, with your interesting habit of turning people into corned beef with that barbaric axe of yours. And you shouldn’t be too offended about me not giving you a heads-up. After all, you don’t seem too fond of heads-ups yourself, before you get into your heads-off moods.”

At Armina’s incredulous question about her attacking because she wanted to save the fellow with the broken jaw from Armina’s further wrath, Maria tsked. ”If you must know, Armina love, I simply did not want you staining your pretty dress with that poor sap’s blood,” she replied, keeping as straight a face as possible; if one hadn’t known anything about the goddess, it would be quite easy to believe that she was serious. ”Oh, and you do say the most ridiculous things. ‘Teach that male a lesson’? What sort of lessons are those which by the end of them, no one in your class is alive enough to use the knowledge gained? And knowing you, you have never taught a single lesson in your entire life. If you missed the memo, lessons are supposed to be for the sake of teaching. That’s why the word ‘teacher’ exists, and it sounds very much different from the word ‘butcher’.”

A part of Maria felt mildly displeased that Armina did not seem in the least bit bothered about her antics with the knife. ”Dull and poorly wielded knife? Your words cut me deeply, Armina.” The maid then suggested that softer materials should have been used to restrain her, to which Maria clapped her hands in glee. ”On that we agree,” she stated excitedly. ”Which is why I was trying to see if we could use the material of your dress to make your—ah, present condition, more comfortable. You cannot blame me for not trying. But here I will have to beg your pardon. When someone has been forged in difficulty, things of comfort do not come readily to mind. Perhaps if Nita had had a more cushioned life, she would have certainly worked on spells that could restrain a victim with the utmost coziness. I shall instruct her to do more research on spells of such a nature. But please, don’t let me dissuade you from struggling. There is something I find, loath am I to say it, mollifying watching you squirm.”

When Armina spoke again, her words were what Maria had been expecting her to say much earlier. The blonde remained with an unbothered expression on her face, as she gestured, a table and three chairs of wood growing out of the ground. The table even had three teacups and saucers, along with spoons, all made of wood. Taking a seat on one of the chairs, she smiled at the restrained maid. ”But you misunderstand me, love. ‘Stupid’ implies that I do not have the mental capacity to realize the most likely consequences of my actions. I may be many things, but please, do not refer to me as stupid. Stupid would be me walking into the Imperial Army Headquarters in Silagrad and requesting to take a shit.” She lifted a hand daintily to her mouth and giggled. ”Oops, pardon the gutter language. And as for the bouncing around the room, I daresay it may just be the fun I’ve been looking for. Nita has been such a bore these past few days.”

As Armina explained what she was sure her mistress would do, Maria stretched languidly, apparently unperturbed by the things she was hearing. ”Oh, that sounds like Medeia, alright,” came the reply. ”In any case, I’m almost absolutely positive you wouldn’t even try to talk Medeia out of anything if you could. You’re not the kind of person to take pity on others. Pity is more of Nita’s thing. And if you’re talking about that settlement in which you were already going to destroy because someone touched you, it’s not like we light mages can be following you all over the world, trying to make sure you didn’t scratch an itch by burying your axe in some hapless bumpkin’s face. Think about it, love, if by some strange design, I hadn’t been there to say hello in my own unique way, would you not have razed that village? So really, does it matter? And finally, I’m afraid I have to correct you on two things regarding the breaking of us in heretofore unimagined ways. Firstly, Nita is made of much stouter material than you think. Simply because the poor lass is always flitting to and fro like a sparrow when Medeia is about doesn’t mean she isn’t made of incredibly stern material, the nature of which I suspect might get to shock even me. But more importantly, I have figured something about myself which I was unaware of, which, to my detriment, I had not known of until that miserable event in Cedar. It is this: I do not break. I cannot break. It’s as ridiculous as breaking light, or fate, or the tides. Although I’m quite aware of the incredible powers which your mistress possesses, I would very much love to see her try and break me.”

There was a pause, before the apparently serious expression on Maria’s face vanished, replaced by a girlishly mischievous expression. ”Oh, but if it’s secrets, I can share a bit with Medeia. And willingly no less. But it shall have to be a tit-for-tat situation, just as proper gossiping is meant to be done: we exchange tidbits of information. Despite the negative light the more ignorant folks place on it, gossiping is, if I may say so, a rather academic venture. So secrets to be shared may be done without any grief or pain. The scholars shall leave more enlightened, and a blow shall be struck against the legions of ignorance all over the world.”

Maria yawned as she toyed with one of the wooden cups. ”So?  When is she coming?”


WC: 1044
TWC: 5650

@Medeia

The maid would have given Maria a rather rude gesture with her right hand if it were not for the fact that her hands were immobile above her head. Instead, she just tugged on her bindings in an annoyed manner. “I do give them a heads up, you know, by not just hacking away at them from the start. If they would just let me do what I wish without interfering then they might just live. Unfortunately they, like you, have this stupid desire to play the hero and always get in the bloody way. You should have let me kill the moronic fool, it was not as if he was important in the grand scheme of things. Just another mortal, one of millions.”

That would have been all she would say on the topic of the male, until she heard what came next which actually caused the maid to roll her eyes as though it was the most simple question in the world to answer. “He would have learned his lesson in the afterlife, Maria, once the monsters and demons down there got a hold of him. Butchering him would have only been the first stage of his education. Those who meet their end by my axe certainly do not ascend to the heavens, they only head in one direction. Down.”

The eyebrows of the maid rose as Maria almost seemed to agree with her assessment on her bindings. “If I did not know better, I would say that my Mistress has had more of an effect on you than I had thought. When she first met the two of you, bondage would have been a topic that would have turned that pretty face that you share a lovely shade of pink. The pair of you have spoken so much about how you refuse to turn to Medeia’s way of thinking and always deny the similarities that are obviously but you sound more like my Mistress now then anyone I have ever met. What is going on, Maria, have you finally realised what she has been telling you all this time?” Tugging at the wood yet again, she would then add. “I must say that you have become quite skilled though, even if the material is not a choice that I would make. It is a shame that you did not just ask me first, as it might just have saved you from Medeia’s wrath.”

As Nita took a seat and spoke once more, a twisted smirk crossed her features as she did so. “Enraging my Mistress is never an intelligent decision to make and if the only reason that you are doing so is that she can give you a spanking then you truly have taken her words to heart. That, or perhaps being struck by her most powerful spell has addled your brains somewhat? You were scared to death of her after being hit by it in Cedar and ended up teleporting away out of fear. I must admit that I am curious as to which of my theories is right.”

Maria seemed to answer her questions in her next statement, which resulted in the maid actually laughing in Maria’s face. “You do break and that is precisely what happened in Cedar. Watching all of those useless pieces of filth due left you both as little more than depressed and drooling wrecks who had their pride completely destroyed. Just one spell from my Mistress at her peak was enough to shatter both your magical and mental shields. From the way she tells it, you were one second away from becoming her bitch at the end, until you finally recovered your senses enough to teleport away. If I recall, it was you, not Nita who was the cause for your defeat. You made the error in pushing Medeia far enough to have her use her full strength and are making the exact same mistake now. You will crack under the pressure again and this time, there will be no last second teleporting away, with you finding yourself in the same position as me, once she has delivered the spanking that I mentioned.”

Not sharing Medeia interest in the scholarly side of life, Armina would just respond with a rather bored expression. “Slashing people is infinitely more fun than standing around talking and I confess that I do not see the appeal but I do not have much choice in the matter right now, do I?”

The last question was one that piqued her interest though and the maid would briefly close her eyes, attempting to get a fix on the oh so familiar aura of her Mistress. “I doubt that she will be long. Medeia was trying to squeeze a little information out of someone when I last saw her and given how closely we are linked, she will already know what you have done. Since you are so eager to meet her once again and I have no doubt that even though she is going to be annoyed with you, she will want to see you too. With that in mind, I will help speed up the process.”

With that in mind, she spat at the blonde, in an attempt to perhaps lure the legal mage into responding in a rather blunt way, before starting to pull at her bindings in a far more aggressive way. Not only was she attempting to anger the blonde into striking her but also to increase her own anger and rage by rubbing herself raw against the wood. She had to confess that the restraints were incredibly strong and as she started to scream and shout, her wrists and ankles soon began to turn bright red from the friction. “I will tear your head off when I get free of this! There will not be a hole deep enough that you will be happy to hide in to protect you from me! To think that I could be bound like this by the slut of the universe

(1006 Words)
(6656 TWC)

As Armina deplored those who attempted to be heroes, as they tried, most oftentimes in vain, to prevent her from doing what she wanted, Maria shook her head in mock exasperation. ”The moronic fool, as you described him, could have been quite important in the grand scheme of things, to use your words,” the goddess replied, leaning back on her chair and crossing her legs. ”Unfortunately, though, you are quite of a wasteful sort, my dear, something you, as well as your mistress, really need to do some serious looking into. Because someone or something appears unimportant, does that give you the right to dispose of them? Where then does potential come in? Take me for instance: the very first time I met Nita, I was of the opinion that she was absolutely inconsequential. She did seem so, after all. How wrong I was! And I’m surprised I’m having to tell you this, but when people such as yourself exist, who will do what they want at the expense of others, with no care about those who suffer for them to satisfy their depravities, there will definitely be people like Nita, who cannot stand to hear and see the suffering your mindlessness causes.”

Maria’s expression shifted from one of bored amusement to one of displeasure, at Armina’s statement about those getting killed by her axe being sent off to some underworld of torment. ”Hmm, that wouldn’t do at all,” she muttered, tapping her cheek as she seemed to be resolving something in her mind. Then her eyes focused on her captive, once again. ”It might please you to note that Nita reacted very strongly to that statement you made about your weapon damning souls. Due to the fact that we are connected, her displeasure rubs off on me. Otherwise, I’m not particularly sure that I care. I am curious about something, though. Is the damnation of these one as a result of your axe, or does it extend to simply anyone you kill? And here the humans out there are thinking that they have to jump through hoops to ensure themselves a comfortable stay in the afterlife.” A childish pout dominated the blonde’s features. ”You’re no fun. I want to talk to whomever is responsible for killing people and sending them to the heavens. I find it barely possible to imagine that you and your mistress are supposed to be angels.” The pout was suddenly replaced by a sly, almost manic grin. ”But looks are often deceiving, aren’t they?”

Maybe the maid was right; maybe Medeia was beginning to rub off somehow on Maria. If that was the case, it was a little bit disconcerting, but there was the adage that went, ‘set a thief to catch a thief’. Obviously, Nita would not have approved of her present strategy, but Nita wasn’t in control. ”You must know that I was a particularly nefariously minded creature before I got amalgamated with our favorite Pergrandian girl, so even though I find myself somewhat inclined to honor her morals, I did not particularly need to go studying Medeia to come up with something like this. But I’m sure your mistress will be honored to think that she has such a strong effect on me, wouldn’t you agree? I was thinking of some exercises that involved a riding crop, but Nita, bless her innocent soul, would not permit me to carry them out. You have her to thank for your present level of comfort. It could have been worse.”

Armina’s attempt to figure out what Maria was up to elicited a shrug from the latter. ”If it will make you feel any happier, Nita is convinced that your second premise is correct, that somehow my brains have been fried by that nasty spell. Due to my pride, I am wont to disagree, but you know, you may be right.” She looked more pensive as she seemed to give it some thought. ”Or I could be merely seeking revenge. Who knows what I really want? But I shall come out and be honest with you. The reason I have you here is because back in Cedar, there was a grievous error on my part. I wish to rectify it.” As to what the error was, or how the goddess wanted to rectify it, she did not explain herself. Still, the serious expression in her differently colored eyes was enough to tell Armina that whatever it was Maria had planned, she seemed resolved to see it to the end, as stupid as her plan seemed. ”In any case, rest assured. You will know what I am up to before the end of the day.”

Armina did seem quite happy to rub the shame of Maria’s defeat back in Cedar into her face, and the goddess sighed. ”One second away from becoming her bitch. She makes it sound so romantic. Yes, it was me who caused that unfortunate incident, not Nita. In a way, I am trying to make it up to her, the lovely girl. And your presence here will help me do it. But you are mistaken again, Armina. If something is done once unwittingly, it is a mistake. If it is done again with the full knowledge of what had transpired the first time, surely you cannot call it a mistake again. Did you know that a number of inventions were actually developed through the facilitation of mistakes? There is this gloopy thing that Fiorean children seem to love playing with- I can’t remember what it’s called- but did you know that it’s said that whoever came up with it did not intend to make a child’s toy? I think it was a different kind of soap or something, but you could say that he failed, and yet succeeded at something entirely different. But I digress. Apologies.”

At the statement that Medeia was probably not far, Maria smiled slightly, though she did wonder what the maid meant when she said she would speed up the process. And then a wad of spit hit her in the side of her head. The goddess whirled on her restrained captive, her eyes blazing with rage as she rose suddenly, knocking over the chair on which she had been sitting. ”You impudent scag!” she fumed, striding over to the maid and drawing her arm back, her fists clenched to strike. Then she seemed to consider a different option, and instead grabbed Armina by the neck, clenching hard enough to be mildly uncomfortable, but not quite choking her. ”If your attempt to call your mistress is to be achieved by annoying me, you have succeeded. And yet…” at this point, her grip loosened, so that she was gently holding the maid by her neck now, ”I am, to an extent, aware that your mistress has some interesting sway over anger; I learned this when we first crossed paths in Talonia. Getting me annoyed will probably be in her best interests and not mine, yes?” She turned the maid’s head to the left, not too gently, and an outgrowth of wood extended from the structure that restrained her, to hold her head in the leftward facing position. Having done so, the goddess knelt beside Armina and used her skirt to wipe the spittle on her face.

”You are so improper. Your mistress should teach you manners. And please, don’t think too highly of yourself. You are as dangerous to me as a fawn is to a lioness. It is your mistress in whom the threat lies. As for you, I could NEVER desire to run from you, unless we’re playing ‘hide and seek’. And please, your boorish insults ill become you. Nita has not merited them, and they do not faze me. But if you want to be more uncomfortable, please be my guest. See that crumbling wall over there?” She was referring to the wall that Armina was now forced to look at perpetually. ”I hear it’s quite entertaining to try making shapes out of the cracks and the patterns the gloom forms in your mind.”


WC: 1347
TWC: 8003

@Medeia

“The grand scheme of things? As usual, you overestimate the value of such beings. He was just your standard, limited, mortal with as much potential as a chicken with its head cut off. How many like him are in this world? Millions? Billions? His contribution to the world will be minimal at best and you know it as well as I do. He will never rise above the rest of the filth that surrounds him and will spend his pathetic life dreaming rather than doing. I was going to do both him and the world a favour of severing his head from his body.” She paused briefly, attempting once again to feebly break free from her bonds. “Nita is not normal though, is she? Magic flows through her veins and that is one trait that both my Mistress and myself consider important. Those without magic are simply sheep, whereas those with it are shepherds, capable of changing the world as they see fit. My Mistress is keen on nurturing the talents of those who are magically gifted, if you must know. Those who are not? Waste of oxygen…well, unless they are pretty females.”

Armina had not expected Maria to take an interest in her words regarding the ferrying of souls but she saw no reason as to not answer. “There was a time where my Mistress and I did decide whether a soul would rest in the heavens or the underworld. We would pass judgement and then carry it out, delivering them to where they would spend eternity. At first, we considered it our sacred duty but you cannot imagine the tedium that comes from such a task. Having to listen to the desperate pleas of the damned was enough to test even our seemingly unlimited supply of patience. To have that role eventually end brought more pleasure than you could possibly imagine.” A laugh escaped her at that point. “Now we or I, at least, just skip the boring bits and damn them instantly. It does not matter whether they are innocent or guilty, deserving or not, they end up in the same place regardless. A fitting punishment for getting in the way, I would say.”

Her amused expression did not fade as the primal spoke a little about herself either. “Oh, do not mistake me, Medeia will most definitely be pleased about your current behaviour. She has always believed that you were capable of taking the reins so to speak and I am sure that her eyes will light up when she hears all of your smutty talk. She has always been as interested in you as she has Nita and still speaks fondly of you, even after Cedar. You know that she still desires the pair of you and I doubt even having me here like this will change that. Oh, she will punish you and I expect that your bindings will be far more unforgiving than these but if you are taking a walk on the wild side then you will probably enjoy them. I confess that there is a part of me that is enjoying this.” Considering that she spent the majority of her time with Medeia, that was hardly a surprise.

Another laugh escaped her lips at that point, as a hint of mockery returned to her voice once more. “Your error was obvious and it is the same one that every mage who fights my Mistress makes. You believed that you could honestly stand up to her in a battle of raw magical power. If you had not egged her on, she would not have cast that spell. You know it, I know it and so does she. Medeia does not cast such spells unless she is pushed, otherwise this land would be nothing more than just a charred wasteland. Call her a monster if you wish but she does not desire the end of this world, she just enjoys giving things a little nudge from time to time when it gets stagnant.”

An eyebrow rose at that point. “You believe that by making the same moves, somehow things will turn out better for Nita? That is an amusing stance and I am curious to see just how that will work. Is there not a human expression that says something about insanity being about expecting different results from the same set up? It is hard to tell whether you are mad or not but I suppose it is going to fall to Medeia to find that out. I will say though that I am uncertain as to how having her arms around that lovely vessel is going to help poor Nita’s confidence. You know that is what will happen should your plan backfire, of course, as so nearly did the last time. She does so sorely wish that you would just give her what she wants in that regard but you two are well beyond that now. My beloved Mistress will have to take it.”

She had expected a rather aggressive approach to her sudden shouting and screaming, so was unsurprised when Maria ended up grabbing her by the neck. Armina did not even flinch, familiar as she was when it came to rough treatment and simply smirked, enjoying the anger and rage that she had managed to extract from the blonde. It was a look that seemed to say that she played the primal like a book and although she refrained from spitting at her again, her crimson eyes spoke volumes. Once she was released, her head would rather uncomfortably be turned away from the legal mage and towards the wall. “Well, that went better than I thought.” She retorted.

“Nita certainly handles insults better than you do.” She went on. “No doubt she would have uttered a witty rebuttal rather than throwing a temper tantrum like a five year old. It amuses me as to just how easy it is to get under your skin these days. All I was doing was acting as a beacon for my Mistress and if I did not know any better…”

There was a sound that began to reverberate through the ruin at that moment, heels clicking against the stony ground. Yet, it was the magical aura that went along with the sound that could turn the most resolute legal mage into a drooling and helpless mess on the floor. That enormous and heavy signature that signalled the approach of the most powerful dark mage alive. So few people who had felt the full fury of the witch's magical pressure had lived to tell the tale and even as the raven haired woman approached the large floor and placed a hand upon it, she had yet to decide as to what would happen next, options travelling through her irritated head. Her mind was a bubbling cauldron of anger and fury although for the moment, her expression was strangely neutral.

Except for the eyes.

The purple orbs of the Guild Mistress were windows into her psyche and as she destroyed the door, sending a shockwave through the ruin and making her presence well and truly known to those in the room beyond. This was the place and as she slowly approached the pair of women and took in the rather unusual scene before her, her expression darkened, a look of cold fury forming. If anger was something that could be seen visually, it would be like red hot waves of flame.

Turning her gaze towards the blonde woman, she would simply utter two simple words.“Explain yourself.”

(1260 Words)
(9263 TWC)

It became clear, as Armina explained the criterion with which she and her mistress judged people, that in the end, everyone seemed to be just the same. Maria was sure Nita would wholeheartedly disagree, but the goddess was beginning to wonder exactly what the difference between the Luminous Covenant and the Ironheart Pact was, except that they were simply two groups of humans who were fighting over the very same thing that had caused untold wars and the loss of countless lives in all of history: a difference in opinions. And while the Luminous Covenant did seem more in the right, than the Ironheart Pact, if one looked carefully at the countries that spearheaded each faction, one would realize, to varying degrees of shock, that they were not altogether different, and apparently Armina and Medeia, despite their proclaimed descent from the heavens, suffered from the exact same thing that humanity as a general seemed to be inflicted with: the concept of those who had, versus those who did not. In industrial nations, it was money and possessions that ruled the line. In more theocratic societies, it was the adherence to a particular belief system. In countries like Bellum, it was the possession of magic. In Pergrande, it was quite the opposite. Quite funny to consider that Medeia, who seemed to have that Bellian elitism, was siding with Pergrande. Maybe that was her way of showing herself as being above all the apparent lines with which humans tried to make themselves distinct. In the end, Maria realized, her problem with Nita was the same one she had with Medeia: they were too human.

The Primordial would have laughed if it all didn’t seem so rife with unending tedium. But then, it did seem that the mortal nature of her host was rubbing off on her. Matters unending were nothing to an immortal. Heaven only knew how long the battle between the Primordials, her original race, and the Divines, the second generation of gods, took. How many ages passed, how many civilizations rose and fell while the gods fought their own battles, embroiling their unwitting mortal servants to fight in a war in which their ancestors had no idea of the things that had caused this strife. As Maria could remember, it had been a relatively mundane thing that had caused the war: the younger gods deciding that the older gods had finished ruling, and needed to be overthrown. But if that was to be the way of things, who would determine when the younger gods had finished their own tenure of ruling, and it was time to be usurped? In the end, the answer was the one who had power, something many nations believed up till now, something Medeia and Armina apparently believed until now. Was she getting ennui? Did gods get ennui? Could gods get ennui? In the end, it seemed that Nita’s despondency had somehow reached her, and this was her way of dealing with it, of forcing both herself and her host out of that state.

”Fascinating,” she replied to Armina. ”Would you have imagined that not up to three years ago, Nita was exactly what you described the rank and file, garden-variety human? A sheep, so to speak, without even a single drop of magic flowing through her veins. And yet look at her now, suddenly so important, because of a vagary of fate. It is curious, though that with the conclusion of the last theater of war at the Bello-Pergrandian border, it was the miserable baaing sheep that crushed the exalted magic users. And while your mistress did play a notable part in that battle, from the news which Nita had been so judiciously following, I feel that even if she wasn’t there, the sheep would have crushed the shepherds all the same. Amusing that your mistress would align herself with the wastes of oxygen. But it isn’t in my place to condemn her preferences. Still, it makes me wonder, and you should as well, if humans without magic are really inconsequential, then what do you make of the way the war has gone so far?”

As Armina talked about a human adage on insanity and repetition, Maria snapped her fingers, as she recollected the saying, or whatever variant she had heard of it. ”It is madness to do the same thing and expect different results, or something like that, no?” she asked. ”And if that was the case, then all over the world, we engage in madness, and we seem not to be too bothered about it, unless of course you realize that it’s no longer repeating the same things when a few variables are corrected for, right? Take for instance, a scientist who desired to harness the power of lightning, as the stories go. He built a tower and a bunch of doodads, and waited for a storm. The storm came, a bolt of lightning descended, and burnt the tower. He tried it again. Built the same tower, put his doodads there, but made just a few tweaks. And by virtue of those tweaks, he was able to capture the next bolt of lightning. Now, of course, you would say that he changed some things, and as such wasn’t doing the same thing a second time. But you have failed to see, Armina dear, that like that fabled scientist, I am not doing exactly the same thing. For instance, last time, it was you that was on the offensive. I made sure it was otherwise this time. Also, we are not in Cedar. This can hardly be seen as repeating the same thing.”

Reacting to the rebuttal by the maid about how Nita took insults better than she did, Maria laughed. ”Well, you throw a temper tantrum like a five year old, so it’s quite hypocritical to accuse me of doing that, when you were going to do worse to someone who merely touched you, as opposed to spitting on you. Also, I’m not sure Medeia is above temper-tantruming as well. One could say that her final response to me in Cedar was a magic-charged, death-dealing temper-tantrum. You see, I think the problem is that we are all very vain; you, Medeia, myself. Proud creatures with an over-inflated sense of ego. Nita is much humbler than we are. I’m glad you appreciate that rather human side of her… or is humility the divine virtue, and pride the more human side?”

Any further discussions would have to be put on hold, as Maria felt the oppressive magical energy that assailed the place. Grabbing the jut of wood that had prevented Armina from turning her head, she broke it of from the main structure, so that the maid enjoyed more freedom in head motions, though she stayed to Armina’s side, to prevent another spitting episode. And then the doors exploded inward, and the most dangerous creature in all of Ishgar stood before her. The economy of words, if not the murderous aura or the withering expression on the Warlord’s face were enough to inform even a blind and deaf person that Medeia was enraged. If Maria took note of this, she seemed to be doing a good job of not responding to it. ”Medeia darling!” she announced, her voice dripping with mock fondness, as she spread out her arms as though coming for an embrace. ”I’ve missed you!” Then she stopped short, and took a step back, to stand beside Armina. ”Well, things must look very strange from where you’re standing, but let me assure you, all of this you see here,” she waved an arm dramatically to indicate the whole room, ”was to prepare a meeting place where we could enjoy each other’s company.” There was a pause. ”Except the door. You did the door, hon.”

Still keeping her eyes on Medeia, she cradled Armina’s face in both hands, gently but firmly holding the maid’s head so that Armina would be forced to keep her head straight. ”Your maid has been quite entertaining while we waited for you, such a lovely thing.” She giggled, then scrubbed the side of the maid’s face with her tongue, from chin to temple. ”She thinks I’m mad. Nita thinks I’m mad. The general consensus is that it was that awful spell of yours back then in Cedar that fried my brain. I partly want to figure out if that’s true, and if it’s a remediable condition. You know, as they say, the hair of the dog that bit one.” Still holding Armina’s head, she turned her gaze to Medeia once more, but her expression had become more serious. ”I also want to make memories. Have no fear, Nita will always be around for you to harass, but I might be having my last discussion with you as Maria, Primordial of the Cycle. So I want to be as insufferable as possible, to you, to Armina and of course, to Nita dearest. I seem to have succeeded with Nita, and I might be close to achieving the intended results with your maid. All that remains is you. So tell me, are you yet pissed off, Medeia love?”


WC: 1527
TWC: 10790

@Medeia

“I am uncertain as to whether she informed you of this but my Mistress and I despise our kin.” Armina replied, unable to pull off the shrug that she desired to. “The people of Bellum worship those who cast us out of the heavens in the first place. They pray to the exact same pieces of filth that caused us to suffer. That is the piece of the puzzle that you are missing, Maria. Medeia could have ignored the war entirely, as it would make so little difference to her but she decided that since these two countries were so set on destroying each other and since she despised Pergrande less, she would ally with them. I would say that it was the lesser of two evils. Her hatred for those who are without magic against those who worship those who caused her and myself such pain. To the humans, it may simply be a case of magic against non magics but she sees it from a slightly different perspective, as I am sure a primordial like yourself does.”

The maid gave a somewhat mocking glance towards Nita as she tried to justify her repetitive actions. “Semantics. That is what it all sounds like to me. All you have changed here is the location, no more, no less. You even have me in the same helpless position as the last time, as annoying as that is for me to have to say. The only other difference is that this time, you know exactly what is going to happen and poor Nita is no doubt the one who will have to suffer for your foolish decision making again. I hope that you at least explain your reasoning to her, as it would be rather incredibly unfair that she be left in the dark. The humiliation that she is going to suffer will be night and day compared to the last time, after all.”

It might have seemed as though she was sympathetic towards the primordial’s other half but she gave little in her tone of voice. To have two souls in one body was something that Armina could not quite fathom, a scenario that she had never faced, unlike her Mistress. Medeia had of course spoken to her about the relationship between herself and Priya, as it had been the latter who the maid had once known. It had been a confusing situation to say the least and had left her scratching her head.

In response to Maria’s comments about her own short temper, Armina simply tried to shrug again. “When someone puts a hand on me in a way I do not like, I am entitled to respond however I wish. That is what Medeia taught me and she does indeed follow the same advice. Too often have I had the hands of filthy males upon me and I will not allow it to happen again. You surely have noticed Medeia’s hatred of men by now, yes? The reason for that is because of the suffering that I have gone through because of their depravity. That is where hers and my own hatred stems from. You may call it pride or vanity that we act in such a way but it comes from our past experiences, not our sense of entitlement. The males of our sect were just as abhorrent as those who walk this world.”

That was the last statement that Armina would make as her Mistress appeared and a smile broke out across her face that she had been found at last. There was nothing more that she could do now besides watch the scenario in front of her and wait for her chance to escape her bonds. The hair at the back of her neck stood up at the sight of the furious Warlord but she was unafraid, knowing that it was not directed towards her. The smile did not, however, last long as Maria was soon taking a hold of the maid’s head and for some odd reason licking it. Her crimson eyes flashed with anger and she briefly tried to struggle against the woman, not that she got anywhere with Maria’s hand around her face.

It was just another source of annoyance in the eyes of the Warlord though and as the dark haired woman listened to Maria’s rhetoric, watching the sight before her, there was just the slightest pulse of magical power that channelled through the ground. It was not an attack so to speak, just a way of unleashing a little of the frustration that was churning inside the dark mage. An effective warning too as to what was to come and as she took a slow and deliberate step forwards towards Maria and Armina, those purple orbs of hers could have melted lead.

“To put it mildly, yes.” Medeia replied, her tone incredibly neutral considering what she was feeling. “I am so overcome by rage that I could quite happily tear you limb from limb without batting an eyelid or perhaps twist your mind in such a fashion that you truly will become mad although the latter does appear to have already occurred. It is difficult to argue with Armina’s assessment, when you are giggling like a child and acting like a circus clown. I confess that I am disappointed to see that you have regressed rather than grown. You showed so much potential in Cedar, even in defeat and I thought that perhaps one day, you might just become a true rival of mine, one that could push me to my limits. Yet, it seems that instead, our scrap has broken you mentally. Such a shame.”

Folding her arms across her ample chest, she would angrily sigh. “Regardless of my feelings towards you both, there is no other action that I can take besides smashing you into the ground. That is the price that you must pay for daring to treat my beloved maid in this fashion. The only person who will bind her is me and no other. You will fall to me again and this time, I will do whatever I wish with the pair of you. No games, no witty banter, just you, helpless and at my mercy. How it should have been the first time we met.”

Despite her words, she could just not help but ask anyway. “Before that happens though, I cannot help but be curious, as I always am when it comes to you and dear Nita. You talk as though these might just be your final moments. Why? Tell me that much, before your punishment is handed out.”

(1105 Words)
(11895 TWC)

Even though Maria was quite aware of the animosity that Medeia and her maid had towards males, she had always thought it to be an overreaction on the part of the two. Granted, she was aware of the fact that indignities, to put it mildly, had been suffered at the hands of whatever made up the males of Armina’s race, but to hate every male because of that was simply painting with strokes too large. One thing Maria was quite aware of was that in every race, there were always the good, the bad and the ugly. Whatever had made all the males of Armina’s race to be a bunch of abusive, randy, debauched perverts was probably something for the priests of their religion to dispute. There were other pantheons whose angels were not given to pleasures of any kind whatsoever, to the point of severity, most likely a stark opposite to what Priya and Armina were used to. And then there were those who were simply above any such triviality as desire, such as the true Primordials were. Maria, for her part, by her amalgamation with Nita, had undergone drastic changes; the last time she had come face to face with a Primordial, the elder god had written her off as fallen. Well, all of that mattered little. Medeia and Armina would do whatever pleased them, because they had the power, just like the males of their kind had done. While Maria would have been pleased to make a verbose reply, explaining why she thought the maid and mistress had chosen a foolish path, she decided to forebear for the meantime.

Armina did not seem quite convinced that Maria’s apparent recreation of the Cedar event was really any different than it was before. ”Ugh, so unscientific,” Maria said with an exasperated huff. But she decided not to try to push her point further. Arguing with Armina was fun, if the goal was simply to bandy words with an opponent and not really come to any place of lasting understanding between the two parties. Maria was convinced of Armina’s stubbornness. Sadly, she was also very stubborn herself, or maybe it was Nita who was the stubborn one, and that obstinacy had its way of rubbing off on the goddess, as many of her traits had done, and vice versa. At the hope that she would explain herself to Nita, the goddess smiled again, though there was some ominous aspect to the expression. ”Oh I shall explain myself, alright,” came the reply. ”Both you and your mistress might even be fortunate enough to figure out why I’m doing all this. Though I know that even when I succeed, you won’t be gracious enough to acknowledge that I had a very intelligent plan, and I saw it through as divinely as only a goddess of my caliber is capable of doing.” She could sense Nita in the background, angrily waiting for that explanation. ”The problem of you mortals is your lack of patience, though I fear that some of that impatience of yours has rubbed off on me as well,” Maria informed the annoyed Pergrandian. ”But very soon, you will understand my intentions. Whether or not you thank me for them is left to you, but I told you that this is with your best interests in view, and I mean it.”

Medeia’s arrival had made everything all the more exciting. It was a big gamble, really, this plan of Maria’s, but only a fool gambled when she knew she would lose. The dark angel’s response to her question of whether she had sufficiently angered the Warlord was positive. It was quite commendable though, how Medeia was still holding herself even after it was clear that the dark mage was almost bursting with rage. ”Well, to think that after all my planning and preparation, I came here to be reprimanded for acting like a child and a circus clown,” the goddess said with a pout. ”Some people can never really be pleased.” In any case, Medeia was fully committed to punishing Maria severely, and while that was normally a thing to be afraid or worried about, it was interestingly the intended fruit of Maria’s designs. ”I’m afraid, unless you can cure me of the madness you have smitten me with, that there will most certainly be witty banter, even if it’s going to be one-sided providing you don’t respond,” Maria replied airily, apparently unbothered at the prospect of the punishment she was going to take. ”Well, for a while….”

As expected, Medeia asked the question Nita had been hollering for a while now. ”Well, if I told you, that would ruin the surprise, I’m afraid,” Maria replied, letting go of Armina’s face and fondly patting the maid’s cheek, before stepping away from her. ”But as I promised Nita, you will most likely know what I’m going on about before the day is over.”

”You need to explain yourself now, Maria!” Nita protested. ”There’s been already so much that hasn’t been pleasant to me. Are you going to do some stupid murder-suicide attempt to kill Medeia?”

”Even if I knew how to kill her, I value you too much to sacrifice you that way. Just you wait and watch, and do what it is you’ve been so good at doing, and it’s going to yield amazing results.”

”And what is it I’ve been so good at doing?” Nita asked.

”Enduring, dear child, enduring.”

A smile with an almost sad undertone appeared for a moment on Maria’s face, as she seemed to be lost in the memories of a place and time long ago. Then it changed into a naughtier, defiant grin. ”Well, mommy, little Maria has been a naughty girl. I shall take my punishment with relish.” So saying, her Pegasus spear and shield, which had been enchanted to appear as a knife, were returned to their true shape, as Maria armed herself. ”May we begin? Of course, I shall try to answer any further questions you have for me. Now, have at thee!” So saying, she flung her spear at Medeia, though she was confident that the dark angel would not have any issue blocking, deflecting or dodging it. Almost immediately, she activated her Relativity God Equation Pi, activating all the preceding God Equations as well, in order to give her an incredible boost of speed. True, the spell was quite expensive as far as magic power was concerned, but Maria didn’t seem interested in conserving any magical energy today. Moving at top speed, she grabbed the still flying spear and shifted a little to the side, thrusting at Medeia’s torso, so that what had initially seemed to be a spear thrown at the dark angel suddenly became a thrusting stab, with Maria holding her spear. Her shield was also set before her, ready for a counterattack.


WC: 1145
TWC: 13040

@Medeia

On any other day, Medeia probably would have been greatly amused by the behaviour and actions of the blonde goddess. It was almost as if Maria was acting in a pantomime or something of that nature but unfortunately, today was not like any other and the Warlord had swiftly found her usually rather enormous supply of patience wearing thin rather quickly. None of this had been a part of her plan. The only reason that she was even here was because Armina had been so desperate to search for precious items or go on a treasure hunt as the maid put it. The Guild Mistress had not intended to commit any violent act, at least with the foolish humans who called the ruins home. It was just supposed to be a diversion for the pair, a break from the sudden amount of responsibility that had been placed on their shoulders, Medeia’s especially, now that she ran Errings Rising along with the Queen. Her free time had become surprisingly limited, which only increased the frustration that she felt towards Maria. Of all the times that the legal mage could have chosen to carry out her plan or whatever she called the decisions that she had made so far. It was almost as if everything had been preordained, a thought that Medeia despised. She made her own destiny.

One aspect that was painfully clear was the disharmony that there seemed to be between Maria and Nita. It was apparent from the primordial’s words that her partner was completely in the dark regarding the reasons for her actions, which aroused Medeia’s curiosity just a little more. As far as she could recall, the two had always been in relative agreement when it came to the decisions they took, besides the Cedar encounter and Medeia could not help but wonder whether it was that final one which had shattered the trust between the two entities. It would not have surprised the Guild Mistress, given the result and she could not help but muse about it although it was rather difficult for her to ponder too deeply considering every fibre of her being desired to smash Maria’s face against the floor. Anger was an emotion that the angel had an immense amount of experience with but that did not mean that she was entirely immune to its effects. She could control her own to a great extent and it was rare that the purple eyed woman shouted or screamed but it tended to result in her attacks having rather more venom behind them, which was just a slight issue considering the vast amount of power she possessed. One uncontrolled attack could turn her latest object of desire into a pool of blood. It had happened before.

She listened to every word that the blonde said, her withering gaze remaining locked on Maria’s multi coloured ones. Mad or not, there was usually some truth that could be picked out and even in her enraged state, Medeia’s keen slayer senses were on the hunt for information. A part of her, despite her previous statement regarding her disappointment in Maria, was actually rather pleased to see the primordial in such a state. She had always believed that there was a chance that one of the two personalities could be turned and from the sounds of it, her belief might just be correct. It was well worth looking into and given how eager Maria seemed to be when it came to punishment, Medeia doubted that she would be waiting all that long before she would be able to thoroughly examine her beautiful opponent. The Warlord knew that Nita would no doubt hate the idea of her doing such a thing but that did not matter to her at that point. Maria had caused all this.

Indeed, the blonde was swiftly on the attack, moving at an incredible pace and heading directly for her. At first, it appeared as though Maria was throwing her spear towards the witch but Medeia’s gaze remained firmly on the weapon, as her hand moved swiftly to her assortment of books and weapons, drawing a blade that Maria would be familiar with. It was a lovely red in colour and gave off the scent of roses. The Rapier Of Devotion was its name and when used to defend someone the user cared for, its power was all the more potent. Soon enough, Maria would grab the spear mid throw and change its trajectory, resulting in the throw becoming a powerful stab towards the witch’s body. The blonde had been practising and Medeia had no doubt that against most foes, the attack would no doubt be deadly.

Of course, the Guild Mistress was not an ordinary foe and her blade moved to intercept the spear with a loud clanging sound, the two powerful weapons colliding with one another. A good strike indeed and even Medeia found herself commenting. “You have certainly improved since the last time we fought, I almost lost sight of you then.” The emphasis was on the word almost.

Pushing Maria backwards with her formidable enough physical strength, the witch would then launch a counter attack, delivering a powerful thrust towards her opponent’s bountiful chest. Normally, she would never have aimed for that particular area, given her own fondness but anything went today and no quarter would be given. As the attack moved towards Maria, Medeia would utter. “Lover’s Resolve.” The blade would begin to channel with magical energy at that point and there would also be an uptick in Medeia’s already enormous magic power. She had used the ability in the previous fight and was curious to see if her opponent remembered the unique effect of her blade. That shield of Maria’s was about as useful as a paper one when faced with Medeia’s weapon.

As the two duelled, Armina could only watch, straining against her restraints as she desperately tried to enter the fray. She wanted nothing more than to deliver a beating of her own and to watch helplessly as Medeia fought was quickly driving her insane. There was not an awful lot that she could do to help but there was one weapon that she had at her disposal and one that had done fairly well against Maria so far. “What does Nita think of this bold move of yours, huh? I doubt that she thinks that it is a good idea for you to be getting involved with my Mistress again.”

It was a question that Medeia swiftly leapt upon, adding to it. “Does her opinion and desires even matter to you anymore?”

(1105 Words)
(14045 TWC)

As Maria went on the offensive, she noticed Medeia draw that same sword that had been used against her in their last meeting in Cedar. She had not forgotten just how powerful that weapon was, nor had she forgotten that despite the quality of her Pegasus shield, that troublesome rapier had bitten through without even the least obstruction whatsoever, when she had attempted to parry Medeia’s attack. While the goddess felt a bit of wariness on seeing Medeia draw the beautiful weapon, a part of her rejoiced all the same. Medeia’s selecting the weapon was an indicator that she was taking this fight seriously, and not toying around with Maria. Ever since she had gotten to know the Warlord of Lust, Maria had always been irritated at the way the dark angel had treated Nita, and by extension, herself. There was no doubting that Medeia was stronger than the Pergranti girl, but in most, if not all cases, even until Cedar, Medeia had never responded so swiftly to fight seriously, until today. It had been, in retrospect, Medeia’s toying with her that had dared her to provoke the angel’s ire, as she had wanted to be taken seriously enough. Because Medeia had never taken her as a serious rival, always choosing to laugh and play with her, and Nita had always been unwilling to break form and make the dark mage serious, perhaps because she was aware of just how much destruction Medeia could unleash. Maria liked to think she had outgrown that fear. Even if the dark angel did not think so highly of Maria’s ability to deal her harm, today, Medeia was taking her seriously from the get go. That was a victory, even if it was a little one.

Medeia successfully parried her assailant’s attack, and even commented admiringly on her attack, although the dark angel made sure to inform Maria that she still didn’t think that would be enough. ”Oh me, oh my!” Maria chuckled. ”To think you’d lavish praise on me so early. I must be doing something right.” Nevertheless, despite her flippant behavior, the goddess knew that Medeia’s counter attack was coming, seeing as Medeia did not seem to be pulling punches today. And she was correct. Maria could not deny that she was impressed by Medeia’s physical strength, as the angel pushed her back, causing her to slide across the floor of the temple ruins, though she kept her form upright and alert. And then Medeia was already upon her, making a thrust of her own, aimed for the blonde mage’s heart. Without a doubt, Medeia was in the killing mood today. To be making such a fatal attack so early showed that whatever Medeia said or did, she was out for blood. Even as the Warlord made her attack, Maria heard her utter those same words she had uttered when she had used the weapon on her for the first time in Cedar. The Pegasus shield was almost useless when that spell was at work.

And still, Maria was not entirely sure that her shield was altogether useless. After all, when the rapier had wounded her in Cedar, as someone who had some knowledge of rare artifacts and powerful weapons, Maria had expected her wound to be more grievous than what she had gotten. The quality and power given off by that blade suggested that it was most likely of one of the best weapon classes around. But it had not damaged Maria as seriously as expected. Meaning that the rapier had an enchantment of piercing. And using that information in mind, Maria made her defense, which seemed to be quite a daring, if not reckless gambit. Shifting so that the target of the incoming sword would not be her heart, as though she had forgotten of their battle in Cedar, Maria set her shield before her in order to defend against the thrust of the dark angel. As was expected, the rapier went clean through her shield, stabbing her in the left shoulder as though the shield had not even been there. But if anyone had thought Maria’s response stupid, or assumed that she had placed all her faith on the shield which had failed her, they would be surprised at what was happening even as Medeia’s rapier drew the blonde girl’s blood. With a grunt, Maria bore the pain, as she immediately made a counter attack of her own. Quickly reversing her grip on her spear, she thrust her own weapon at Medeia’s own heart, even as the latter’s weapon was engaged in her own body. A shoulder wound, though painful, was not fatal, at least not for someone such as herself with such high vitality, and even though she would probably not be able to use her shield arm for a bit, the rapier wielded by Medeia made using a shield a lot less useful than Maria cared for. Knowing that Medeia would most likely be able to match her speed if she dodged the angel’s attack, she had opted for this risky gambit to reduce her opponent’s chances of dodging.

Armina’s question, quickly followed by a statement of Medeia’s, made the goddess sigh, though she remained ever aware of the battlefield. ”Nita thinks the nine hells of this bold move of mine,” Maria replied, momentarily looking a bit sad. ”Of course, as far as that darling is concerned, anything that has to do with you, Medeia dear, is bad news. But think about it, with the way that poor child fears you, don’t you think she’s supposed to do something about that? After all, I suspect that one of these days, her exploits will come in full tale to the governing council of Fiore, and they may want to give her one of those fancy titles thy love throwing about, Wizard Saint, I believe. How would she in good faith call herself a Wizard Saint if she cannot dare to face evil, no matter how overwhelming it is? She’s not going to take ‘Wizard Saint of Courage’, that’s for certain. I think it’s already taken, though. Wizard Saint of Purity would suit her fine.” Maria laughed at the thought, given Nita’s dress sense (although much of that was really her fault, not Nita’s). ”Just think of the buzz such a title, for such a lovely young damsel, would generate. Makes my belly tingly!”


WC: 1065
TWC: 15110

@Medeia

There was a grunt of pain and moments after, the smell of blood could soon be detected, coming from the blonde’s shoulder. It might only seem a minor wound but due to the effect of cut, Medeia would slowly begin to drain some of her opponents vitality from her although whether Maria felt it or not was something that only the legal mage would know. The damage did not seem to be all that great but there was a brief look of lust that crossed both the angel’s and the maid’s face as well. They both shared an affinity for blood although only the former could use it effectively. One of a half dozen elements that were under the Warlord’s command and just the sight of the cut was enough to arouse the dark mage. An angry Medeia was a difficult enough opponent but one who was fully into the fight was even worse. She felt no regret about cutting the blonde today and by the time she was done, the master of takeover had no doubt that it would not be the only time that she pierced her opponent's body and what was more, the thought rather invigorated her. A sensation that she had not felt in quite some time.

Rather than move away, Maria decided to simply atack in return, a reckless thrust that from minimum range left the witch with very little time to conjure a defence. Yet, she was not a Warlord for nothing and the witch was able to utter the perfect words for the situation. “Petals of Sanctuary.” From her sword would burst a large amount of beautiful petals that would surround the witch, creating a barrier that would just about insert itself between the dark mage’s bountiful chest and Maria’s spear, resulting in a clash between the powerful weapon and stout defence although only just. If the angel had been any slower than the blonde might have run her through but the Warlord had absolute confidence in her own abilities and barely seemed to react. With both of her weapons abilities now in play, Medeia was pleased with both her offence and defence and what was more? She had not used a single drop of her magical reserves. Yes, it meant that the sword's abilities would not be usable again when they ran out but that was little more than a hindrance to the Guild Mistress. The fight could well be over by then and it was not as if she had nothing else to use against the Luminous Rose mage.

She listened as Maria replied to her and Armina’s questioning, with the blonde seeming to confirm that she and Nita did not agree on the choices that had been made. It was precisely what Medeia had expected or at least at first. As Maria went on to speak about her host possibly becoming a Wizard Saint, there was a noticeable raising of eyebrow from the dark haired witch. “It is not her facing me though, is it? Do you mean to tell me that your intention is to drag her kicking and screaming into being given that role? Should it not be her who is clashing blades with me? I do not believe that even the council, as ignorant and useless as they are, would give her anything if it was discovered that you were the driving force behind her actions instead of her. If you truly desire her to be worthy of such a title then let her face me and we will see what happens.”

There was a glint of dry humour that briefly passed the Warlord’s features. “I find it amusing that you mention that particular Wizard Saint, as I fought Leona only recently in Hargeon. She is certainly no saint and barely has the composure to carry a conversation, let alone defend the weak. As cold hearted as any dark mage, with her only answer to a question being ‘Shut up’ in a childish tone. Not only do I believe that dear Nita deserves better than that but I doubt that your suggestion for a title would be fitting either. Her purity will be gone by the time this fight is done although I must agree that she will make for a lovely damsel indeed.”

From her uncomfortable position, Armina would chime at that point, laughing, trying to rub the blonde the wrong way. “How do you think the council will feel when they receive a dozen photos of Nita in distress? Not exactly going to encourage them to reward her, is it?” Despite her own circumstances, the maid felt surprisingly at ease now, as the petals from her Mistresses spell had reached out and surrounded her too, being in range. “Oh, do not worry, we will leave her underwear on. Maybe.”

Medeia wasted little time in attacking again but before doing so, she would suddenly turn to sand, allowing her to move behind Maria, reappearing shortly after. She would then turn on her heel and launch an attack with her blade towards the blonde’s exposed back. It was a fairly swift manoeuvre although the dark haired witch would admit that sword play was not her strongest suit nor her favourite. Still, her most recent encounters had made it abundantly clear that many mages seemed to enjoy close ranged combat and she had adapted to that up to a point. She would much prefer to fight at a longer distance, as well as use her mind games but honestly, it felt right to go blade to blade today. The rage within her was too strong for anything else. She wanted the woman before her at her feet, gasping for breath and Medeia would do everything possible to make that happen. At this point, the Guild Mistress was uncertain as to whether Maria truly was mad or just following her own bizarre form of logic. The primordial had her own way of seeing the world, as Medeia did, something that the latter did respect.

(1005 Words)
(16115 TWC)

Upon Maria’s wounding, she saw the look that had crossed the dark angel’s face. Her enhanced senses informed her that the bound Armina, despite not being in the battle, had a similar expression on her face. Like wolves transfixed by the scent of blood from a wounded quarry. Except, it was not particularly a desire to draw blood… then again, maybe it was, except apparently mixed with something dirtier. ”Do you now see what manner of depraved monster you so willingly went up against?” Nita complained, not being in the least impressed with Maria’s reckless attempt at executing a counteroffensive. ”And we still haven’t gotten to the part where you explain to me exactly what you’re trying to achieve here.”

Maria sighed inwardly. True, she had not gotten round to explaining herself to Nita, but she presently did not need this. ”Be a dear and keep quiet for the moment,” the goddess replied, the edge in her mental tone evident. ”It is in nobody’s best interests for me to have to deal with you, while I’m trying to match Medeia’s dance moves. I have told you that you will, in due time, understand what I am trying to accomplish. For now, if you cannot wait in patience, then like Medeia and Armina, be pleased to think me mad, and let me do my work in peace.” Nita was silent, but she could feel the resentment smoldering. It was for the best. By the time she was done, Nita would have no resentment against her. But for now, perhaps feeling it could be some motivation for the goddess.

The plunging spear did not encounter the body of her opponent, as a proliferation of flower petals suddenly burst into existence from the magical sword wielded by the dark angel. Despite the apparently breezy form of the petals, with a loud ring, the Pegasus spear was turned as surely as if it had been smitten against a bulwark of the best quality. Unfortunately, Maria had apparently wasted her gambit, as Medeia had simply activated a shield which had defended against her attack. But while Maria did not have any hits she could boast of scoring, she did not mind. The wound she had been given would serve its own purpose. Part of her intention was to drive herself to her physical limit. Even so, she did not want to burn out too quickly. Which was why the feel of the injury caused by the rapier, though it was something she could easily shrug off, seemed to be more taxing than a wound of that severity should have caused someone of her robust vitality. Surely, there was some magic in that attack, like the poison in a snake’s fang.

”Me?” Maria asked in reply to the Errings Rising guild mistress’s question about forcing Nita to have the title of Wizard Saint bestowed on her. ”Oh, I might be vain, but I don’t give a single whit about those flowery titles and silly names, which are really nothing but mere nominal trifles traded for an expectation of responsibility. Nita seems to not be averse to such things. I, for my part, prefer more practical rewards. Hence my being here. But if really you think that most of Nita’s achievements as a mage are owing to my interference, then this is all the more reason I have to fight you. Even if she is weaker than you, you have much less respect for her than she deserves from you. If you must know, she has done quite a number of things of note, ever since she arrived in Fiore, and I merely sat back and beheld the proceedings. And don’t worry; she will face you, all right, but now is not the time. I fear that if I were to allow her control of this body, she would waste the opportunity by running away. I admit I have somewhat grown tired of doing that.”

So, Medeia had met the Wizard Saint of Courage? Well, that was interesting to hear. What Maria found odd was the dark angel decrying the Silver Wolf guild mistress as a cold hearted person with about as much morals as a dark mage. ”I am quite surprised to hear your evaluation of such a person,” Maria replied pensively, wondering what might have happened between the dark mage and the wizard Saint. But she decided not to ask any more questions for the meantime. Besides, she had an annoyingly chatty maid to respond to. ”Oh, I’m sure they will reward her, given the acts of valor which she has carried out, never mind the pictures. Besides, you know what they say, ‘no popularity is bad popularity’. Who knows, those pictures of yours might even make her more famous. Yes, she will complain, but eventually, she might come around. I’m not sure leaving her in her undies might be a good idea, though. It could cause several deaths due to heart stopping complications.”

In any case, if there was anything in Maria’s thoughts, it was her intention to do what she could to protect Nita, purity and what not. And even though there was a bit of talk being thrown back and forth, Maria knew that Medeia was still eager to break her, and as such she had to be careful. And not too soon, as the dark angel suddenly turned into sand. Immediately, Maria honed her senses, to determine whether the coming attack was going to be by reason of the sand, or based on something else. Almost immediately, she sensed the dark mage behind her, as the latter thrust with the flowery rapier at her unprotected back. If it had been something as wide as Armina’s signature axe, there would have been some performance of gymnastics to dodge the attack. A rapier’s primary attack style was thrusting, and even though that was deceptively fast, it did leave a wider window of dodging space. And Maria would use that knowledge to her advantage.

The goddess nimbly stepped to the side, just barely avoiding the thrust of the blade. Even with her speed drastically increased by the spell, she had barely avoided it. A wider attack would have most certainly hit her. In any case, she was not going to allow her opponent to recoil for another attack or break away. Even as her foot touched the ground as she stepped, there was a loud crack, almost like the sound of a miniature sonic boom, as a plasma storm exploded out from her back, aimed at Medeia. The Relativity God Storm, fired off in its directional variant, evaporated a large portion of the temple ruin’s walls, as they were blown into smithereens. Even still, she was prepared to make a response to whatever next attack the dark angel would attempt to unleash against her. But her choice of using this spell had not only been because of its incredible attack power, but also because of its ability to dismantle anything it came across, even on a conceptual level. Spending more magic energy than was normal for the spell, Maria targeted whatever it was in her shoulder wound that was making it more enervating than was expected, and the feeling of her energy sapping away ceased.

”Tit for tat, Medeia dear. You tell me why you think the Wizard Saint of Courage was so cold hearted, and I’ll tell you a story. You would like to hear a story, yes?”


WC: 1245
TWC: 17360

@Medeia

The dark haired witch replied. “You speak of these great deeds that she has accomplished but I have not seen nor heard of them myself. I do not hand out respect and if she truly wishes to earn it from me then she will have to show me her true strength. That is what I have been waiting for all along. I know that she had a formidable amount of magical power and it has been growing constantly since I first laid eyes upon her. I desire for her to become powerful and courageous, just as you do, as it will only make our contests more engaging and entertaining. I confess that I am curious about her adventures though, as I know so little about her besides what I have learned during our encounters. Up until now, running away does honestly seem to be what she is best at, which is hardly heroic or title worthy although I suppose that perhaps in the presence of weaker opposition, her constitution may be higher. There are few who face me with quite as much vigor as you do, Maria.”

Armina’s remarks seemed to draw a reaction and the maid was more than willing to offer a witty rebuttal, what more could she do in her current state? “Are you sure that dear Nita would be able to live with the shame? Not everyone is cut out to be a supermodel and your host has always seemed a little bashful whenever Mistress and I mention such things. Do not think that we are merely making threats though, as one look at Mistresses iLac will show you all the evidence you need to prove that we are serious. She has a bad habit of taking pics of every lovely lady she captures now.” The maid chuckled, knowing that she might end up getting a spanking of her own for that particular comment but it was fine. If it was Medeia dealing it out then she had no problem with it at all, one the contrary in fact. “I am not sure that the council are keen on bimbos becoming Wizard Saints, even such good hearted ones. They do seem to prefer the boring, monotone ones with no personality and a chest as flat as a pancake.”

Maria’s senses were still keen though and the blonde deftly dodged the Warlord’s attack with grace, an act that briefly caused the witch’s eyes to focus on the legal mage’s beautiful rear. Even now, in the heat of battle, Medeia could not help but admire the woman’s gorgeous form and that only caused the emotions inside the witch to increase in intensity. Once this fight was done, the Guild Mistress would have all the fun that she could muster with her overconfident opponent and there would be nothing that either persona inside her foe’s body could do about it. She could tell already that there was a sense of rushing in her opponents combat style, as though Maria was almost obsessed with fighting her but why? Where had all this sudden aggression come from and what was the blonde’s goal by fighting in such a way? Medeia would not be overpowered so what was the end game? Questions that required answers, one that the dark mage desired greatly.

The blonde was not finished either and fired a power spell in Medeia’s direction, resulting in the dark mage taking the step of turning to sand and teleporting, away from the blast and reappearing before Maria again. The Warlord could have tanked it but felt that perhaps it was better if she simply evaded it instead, just in case. Maria’s aggressive stance was worthy of more study and the raven haired Guild Mistress might have perhaps been a little more wary because of it. The blonde was burning through her magical power fast and Medeia mused that it could prove to be an important factor. Would Maria simply become more desperate, should her first few attacks fail? “You are so eager today. It is almost like you want me to find yourself and poor Nita, in my clutches.” Her tone contained just a hint of the typical Medeia, playful and teasing.

Deciding to change the pace of the fight a touch, Medeia would sprout a pair of magical wings and take off, using the large ruin to her advantage. She was certainly thankful that Maria had chosen such an enormous room, enough that even the angel could spread her wings. Summoning what would look like a purple lasso and collar, she would spin it around and launch it towards the blonde, aiming to wrap it around the beautiful woman’s throat. Like many of her more twisted spells, it would try and bewitch the mind of those if it struck and would try and try to bend them to Medeia’s will. A favourite spell of the angel’s and one that she adored using. What was more fun than having a beautiful woman like Maria doing whatever she wanted?

As she flew around, she would finally answer Maria’s request. “Alright then. If it will satiate your curiosity then I will divulge just a little. I encountered dear Leona in Hargeon, you see, just after a deal that I had struck with a group of pirates had unfortunately gone sour. I should have expected nothing less of them, I suppose but they did promise me a lovely group of catgirls. They are so expensive now, due to the war and hard to find too. As it turns out, they decided to sell to someone else and tried to cover it up by stating that they were unable to find any girls. One of the crew then came clean and explained the situation to me. I was upset as you can understand and the ship was shortly destroyed, crew and all.”

She resumed after a brief pause. “I was just about to let Armina loose on the town when Leona appeared, who gave me the usual heroic spiel about how she was going to stop us from doing what we wished. You know, the same kind that Nita enjoys using. She refused to let the matter drop and so we ended up fighting although naturally, I did my utmost to avoid dealing too much damage to her. She is a gorgeous blonde as well, after all, one who graced the front cover of that magazine. I still have a copy of that edition back at the castle, come to think of it. Anyway, I used my usual tactics against her, weaselling into her head and trying to find out what makes her tick. It turns out that there was not an awful lot in there, to be honest and it was only when I decided to transform into a catgirl myself that I managed to break through. She was there in Felidae, you see and I decided to play the role of a survivor of the explosion. I blamed her for the attack, threw all sorts of accusations against her and she barely batted an eyelid. It took an age before she would admit to feeling any sense of guilt for her failure. As it turns out, that admission was what finally broke her and she turned into an anger filled teenager, telling us to shut up over and over again. Is that the kind of Wizard Saint that Nita truly wishes to be? A woman so arrogant and prideful that the destruction of a city means nothing to her?”

Medeia laughed, a dark chuckle that could curdle milk. “Leona is no Wizard Saint Of Courage, just a child who has buried her feelings, one who will soon find herself in the same position as Nita will. I promised to capture all of Silver Wolves beautiful mages, you know and that is one that I intend to keep.” She then added after one last pause. “I have another encounter with a member of that group although I believe he is a God Of Ishgar now but I believe that you mentioned a story of your own that you wished to tell?”

(1357 Words)
(18717 TWC)

It seemed, from Medeia’s words, that much of Nita’s actions in Fiore had not been as pronounced as the Pergranti girl would have liked them to be. Well, that was a pity. It simply meant that she had to keep at making a name for herself, then. Although the desire to be famous had lost a bit of its original shine, compared to when Nita had first arrived in Fiore. Her greatest motivation presently was to protect the general people, those whom Medeia, as well as most other dark mages, come to think of it, believed to have no worth whatsoever. In any case, despite Medeia’s present intention to work some serious damage on Maria, she admitted to wanting Nita to get stronger, so that their encounters would be more entertaining. Like every true warrior, Medeia did seem to like a challenge, then. Unfortunately for Nita’s image in the eyes of the dark angel, Medeia simply saw her as one who preferred to run away, rather than stay and fight. That wasn’t very flattering, for one who was supposed to bear the title of hero. And it was Maria’s intention to ensure that such a thing became a matter of past tense for Nita.

”Well, you have heard it,” Maria said privately to Nita, ”Medeia is convinced that all you’re good at doing is running away. Aren’t you tired of all that?”

”You may have a point, but how does your going out of your way to antagonize an already dangerous foe help this situation?” Nita asked in turn, to which Maria replied, ”Well, since you’ve waited patiently like a rather petulant brat,” there was some protest here from Nita, ”I shall grant your request by telling you the goal of my endeavor, though it shall be a bit before you realize exactly how I am to get across to it: I intend for our amalgamation to be complete, much the same way the woman called Medeia and the angel called Priya have become one and the same, unlike us.” As the goddess expected, Nita responded with some degree of alarm. ”Isn’t that dangerous? And how will it work, seeing as we’re two extremely different people, both in thoughts and deeds? I don’t think Medeia was that much different from that depraved angel when they fused together.”

”Oh yes, there are more hurdles for us to cross, because of that,” came the answer, ”but that is why I chose both the occasion and the place for this event to occur. Do you think I was just randomly doing things because I felt like it? For shame, child. Now wait and watch. You may soon have some time to prove Medeia wrong about running away. And there is one thing I must inform you: in the end, the decision will be entirely yours, to choose this or reject it. Even if I’ve been a bit… forceful in setting this whole thing up, you’ll be the one with the last say in the end.”

”While Nita does have her… ah, reservations about your levels of debauchery,” Maria replied to Armina’s rebuttal, ”I’m sure she’ll manage to survive the shame. After all, Nita has come a rather long way from where she first was when I met her. A Bellian warrior-nun would have been considered lecherous compared to her. So what’s a little picture-taking going to do to her? And I’m quite sure that while Nita does strike a certain image in the minds of many, to call her a ‘bimbo’ is to do her quite a disservice, as I believe the other defining adjective of the word is ‘unintelligent’, which our favorite Pergranti lass is anything but. Eh, she can be quite vacuous at times, though.” The statement about the council preferring boring monotonous Saints with rather flat features elicited a short laugh from the goddess, although in part, much of the amusement stemmed from Nita’s vigorous response to being described as vacuous. ”Perhaps Nita will be the start of a revolution, then.”

Unfortunately, Maria’s spell missed, avoided by a well-timed teleport, which made it essentially harmless. That was a little bit frustrating, but Maria chose not to indicate that she was getting frustrated by her inability to even land a single hit. Her response to Medeia’s taunt was a smirk and a shrug. ”’Almost like’… but not.” As Medeia took to the air, Maria watched her warily, suspecting that the attempt to go airborne was to give the dark angel some distance between herself and her opponent, which could mean no other thing than long-distance attacks. There was also a bit of advantage to be had when attacking from a higher position than one’s opponent. Maria was not really bothered about this, however, as she had what she could use to even the odds of flight. The collar and lasso thrown at her were quickly evaded by use of the Pegasus shield, which was used to parry and swat away the thrown projectile, as Maria didn’t even want to imagine what such a suggestive attack was meant to do. Still keeping her guard up, Maria watched the angel as the latter flew around, agreeing to her request to be told what had happened in her altercation with the Wizard Saint. It seemed Leona had been the subject of more mind games by Medeia. ”While this Wizard Saint may be, in your opinion, a child, it actually surprises me that you would judge her as having no concern about the destruction of a city,” Maria replied. ”What you call heartlessness is merely her own coping mechanism to be able to rise up and defend against the next set of people who will destroy the next city with no care for the lives of those dwelling therein. What did you expect her to do? Sit down and start crying when you falsely accused her of being responsible for the Tragedy of Felidae City? And here I was, thinking that the pedestal standing and posturing was exclusively for light mages alone. But you have held your side of the bargain. May it not be said that Maria does not keep her word.”

As the goddess ended her statement, a pair of wings, seemingly made from plant life and some unearthly membrane, sprouted from the blonde mage’s back, as she lifted herself from the earth, so that she was on eye-level with Medeia. ”I’ll try to skip the boring parts, okay? Nita was born in Pergrande, as I’m sure you are aware, born as the first child of a magicless couple in the mountains that bordered Pergrande and Bellum. I’m sure you would have hated her dad. He’s the one who crammed Nita’s lovely head full of the morals you seem to find so irritating. On the flip side, he would never have abused or hurt anyone, if he could help it. He was a doctor, and it was his kindness that killed him, you could say. Well, actually, it was a Pergranti soldier. After a skirmish between Bellian and Pergranti forces, the good old doctor found a soldier of either side critically injured but alive. He nursed them back to health, and as soon as the Pergranti soldier was awake, the sod tried to kill the Bellian, who managed to escape due to the doctor’s interference. So he shot the good old doctor for being a traitor. In order to avoid her entire family being executed as traitors like her father had been branded, little Fortunita joined the Pergranti Armed Forces Academy, to prove that her family was still loyal to the empire.

There is, though, the problem that exists from being capable of independent thought, and Nita realized, to her disgust, that this war was not just, or righteous, or moral in any way. It was simply war, in which people killed and people died. No one was really right. This sank in more dearly when her mother and remaining siblings were killed in what had been called a Bellian attack, but she had found bits of Oblivium shrapnel in the walls of her destroyed childhood home when she had gone there, which most likely meant that a misfired Pergranti mortar shell had alighted on the house. And so Pergrande, the nation to whom she swore allegiance, had rewarded her by killing all her known family. Still, she persisted in the military, eventually joining the Diplomatic Corps, as her intention was to somehow bring an end to the fighting, or at least help to do so, without the end being Pergrande standing atop a broken Bellum. And that is where I come in.

Having graduated with honors as a member of the Diplomatic Corps, she returned to the region of her birth, in order to mediate a sort of ceasefire in the area to break a stalemate. Bellian forces had been isolated, but they had captured an important commander, and the Pergranti were unwilling to lose the fellow. So, they needed a silver-tongued diplomat to try and get the Bellians to surrender at the very best, which was impossible, or at least release the commander at the very worst. The Pergranti knew that by the time they called for reinforcements, the Bellians would have long since broken out of their besieged location and returned to Bellum, with the commander dead or in chains. But it was at this time that I passed the interdimensional curtain between worlds and arrived in Earthland. Unwilling to reveal myself and my nature large-scale to the beings of this world, I captured everyone in the area, which was perfect, as people going missing is a normal occurrence in wars. But due to the uncooperative activities of our favorite blondie, and some rather troublesome interference from a dissenting member of my thralldom, I found myself bonded to her in an accident that I had unwittingly precipitated. Using her newfound powers, Nita managed to free those who remained alive and return them to Earthland. But the Bellians knew she was Pergranti, and thus shunned her, and the Pergranti did not attempt to kill her there and then, only because they did not have her weapons. Separating both parties and leaving them close to the border, but at very different areas, Fortunita abandoned her original name, and took on the name Ms. Fortune, even as she took her journey to Fiore, a country she had heard of that was quite tolerant of all sorts of people, and was reasonably far from Pergrande.”

Maria paused for a moment, as her wings beat almost soundlessly, keeping her aloft. ”Since then, she’s been quite interested in the diplomacy between Bellum and Pergrande, and had been most pleased to hear that there were peace talks happening in Felidae. As a matter of fact, she even traveled there, and helped to stop a group of local terrorists from destroying stuff. But it seems that all of this was just mere fluff for what was going to happen. I’ve no idea if someone had been paid to do it, but everything degraded quickly into this pointless war, as you are well aware. As Nita decided, with a lot of heartfelt pain, to join the Bellian forces, it became clear that there would be little to no need for diplomacy in a long while. The girl has seen a bit of her fair share of the war, and though she was not present at the terrible battle that took place on the border, she did engage with hostiles in Minstrel, where, to her credit, not one life was lost where she was, simply because she singlehandedly took a Minstrelian fortress by herself, and teleported all the enemy soldiers to Era to be arrested by the Rune Knights. She’s so cute when she tries, isn’t she?”

At this point, Maria’s face became more serious. ”But then she heard of the devastation of the Bellian forces, and not so long after, lost a close friend. These have made her seem to despair of improving, which I will not have. I have heard rumors that you were on that battlefield, and if Nita had been there as well, would she have run from you? When the next theater of war opens up, will she be able to do anything with the way she’s presently floundering in despair? It is absolutely unacceptable. I cannot have that. And that is why I orchestrated this whole drama. I am afraid I cannot tell you the details of how I intend to get her out of these doldrums by licking the face of your maid, but I have a feeling you’ll figure it all out before the end of the day. And maybe from then on, you may respect her a little more the next time you meet.”


WC: 2133
TWC: 20850

@Medeia

Odd as it might have seemed, Medeia would actually chide her maid once Maria had replied to Armina’s latest outburst. “Dear Armina, what have I told you about using that particular word? I do not like the term bimbo, as you well know, it is one that is used against us quite regularly. Do not sink to the level of the moronic humans by using their vulgar and crude language. I confess that I agree with Maria, as Nita is nothing of the sort and is a delightful woman indeed. She is not stupid in the slightest and I will hear no more of that from you. Are we clear?” Honestly, the dark mage was frankly annoyed with hearing the blonde spoken to in such a way and would have to deliver some punishment to the purple haired woman later for her foul mouth. Turning to Maria, she would then continue speaking. "I for one would most definitely be in favour of seeing more spirited mages become Wizard Saints and let it not be said that I am not fond of a little revolution. If that is what she intends to do with the role then who am I to try and talk her out of it? I just hope that she does not end up bending to the council and conforming to their standards. It would be such a shame.” Somehow, she doubted that would happen given Maria’s influence but it was an unpleasant thought for the dark mage nonetheless. Positions of responsibility could do more harm than good to her person and she did find Nita so delightful.

In response to Maria’s comments regarding Leona, Medeia pondered for a moment before conceding the point a little. “I expected to see something in the way of regret from her but I suppose that I underestimated her resolve when it comes to such things. No matter how much I prodded and pried into her emotional state, she did not crack and cry like so many others have before me. She instead turned it into pure anger and used it as a weapon against me. As you well know though, anger is never something to rely on when facing me in combat. All it did was increase my power and our battle ended up being rather brutal. She is a strong combatant, I will give her that but as I said before, there is something not quite right about her, mentality wise. The woman is repressing an awful lot and one day, she is going to blow her top completely. I confess that I wish that I could be there to see it. Who knows? Perhaps I might.” After a pause though, she added. “I know that there is someone close to her heart although I was unable to get the name. I believe that they are the key to unlocking all of that pent up rage. Do you think a session with them in my arms would do the trick?” It was a rhetorical question but she posed it nonetheless.

The angel did not utter a word during Maria’s story, giving the primordial the time that she needed in order to say what she wished to. It was quite the tale indeed and the lasso that Medeia had cast previously would disappear, returning to the nothingness from whence it came, a sign that the Warlord was indeed rather enthralled by what she was hearing. Her blade remained activated though, prepared for when the fight would inevitably continue. The dark mage adored hearing the stories of those she met or at least those of mages anyway and had never yet been disappointed. The lives of typical mortals were immensely boring but there was just a spark to the lives of those touched by magic that delighted the witch. It did not matter where they decided to align themselves in terms of legal, dark or the grey area in between, every mage had their delightful story and Medeia desired to hear them all.

It was only when the blonde finally reached the end of her epic tale that the Warlord responded although Medeia took her time before doing so. There was a great deal to take in and parts that struck a chord with the dark haired witch. “She was betrayed by her country, as dear Priya was by her sect. I say without any attempt to deceive that I understand all too well how that feels. To have those who you once called allies turn on you and destroy your life is an unforgivable act and it pains me to hear that Nita has suffered that same pain. I confess that my reaction was rather different, as you are already aware of. Whereas Nita desired a peaceful resolution, I took a more bloody path, resulting in the end of my sect completely. I suppose there is something to be said about your hosts choices, as difficult and frankly baffling as they may seem to me. Neither side deserves anything but contempt, having both treated her as horribly as they did. By all means get in touch if she does desire revenge, I will most certainly aid her in her efforts. I do love a spot of revenge, after all.”

“I was on that battlefield, yes.” She continued with a nod. “Right in the middle if you wish to know. I fought the Cardinal of Bellum herself and would have soundly defeated her if the Marshal of our forces had not flown in and stolen the glory. There were many who died by my hand there and my holy form set fire to the battleground as it did in Cedar. I do not doubt that Nita probably would have fled from me there, as in that scenario, I would have had no option but to have unleashed my full might upon her. There is no fooling around on the field of battle and your poor host would have been helpless at my feet and no doubt dragged off to face Pergranti justice, not that I believe in such an ideal. All they desire is the death of all those who are touched by magic and refuse to bow to them. I do not fight for them because I believe in their cause, I fight for them because I despise Bellum even more. That is all there is to it.”

She moved towards Maria at that point, her wings flapping slowly in tandem with her movements, the cogs in her mind beginning to turn. “Losing to me again here will not instil her with courage, it will only cause her to run even faster. What she needs here is your courage and what you need is her stability. You both have traits that the other requires to become whole and I am wondering to myself if this is something that you realise too. As long as you two butt heads at every opportunity, you will never reach your full potential.”

The angel then laughed, her wings spraying out wide. “I have a hunch, Maria, one that I am ever so eager to discover the truth of.”

With that said, the Warlord would then dive towards her opponent, her rapier primed and aimed directly for the heart of her beautiful foe. She would allow herself to enjoy the fight, tapping into the anger and lust that radiated within her. The witch would push the blonde, mentally, physically, magically, to the brink and beyond. It was what Maria desired and as well as that, perhaps what Nita needed?

(1263 Words)
(22113 TWC)

Maria was mildly surprised at Medeia’s coming to her defense at Armina’s insult. She gave the maid a self-satisfied smile, perhaps only to mock her, as Maria was quite aware that despite Medeia’s speaking up for her, the dark angel was still keen on bashing her face in. The goddess even went as far as puckering her lips at the restrained maid in an air kissing gesture, before Medeia turned back to face her. Considering that relatively childish action, Maria was reminded of how much she had been forced to change ever since her bonding with Nita. It also was clear how much Nita had been forced to change as well, and so far, there had been some parts of the Pergranti girl that had been quite unamenable to accepting these changes. It had been that unwillingness that had brought them to this place; to be honest, Maria would have to confess that there were probably a number of other ways more acceptable to Nita by which Maria could carry out her design. Unfortunately, most, if not all, of these other options had the problem of being a lot more time consuming than this one, and the goddess did not think time was a commodity to be wasted in this present situation.

In retrospect, going by Medeia’s description of the Wizard Saint, Maria found it rather interesting that the young woman who had ended up becoming her host had been in so many ways like Leona presently was, prior to the accident that resulted in their amalgamation. She was very good at bottling things up, and Maria had to agree with the dark angel that too much repression would cause an eventual explosion. ”Would you be surprised if I told you that the Wizard Saint of Courage seems in many ways akin to the girl I first met in the cold Pergranti mountains?” the goddess asked, a pensive smile on her face. ”This cute, determined introversion expressed by a resolute frown, blonde hair, unwillingness to express herself freely, a strong and deep sense of responsibility, a consistent stubbornness to the breaking point of irritation, and here I’ll bet fifty thousand Jewels, as decent and proper in clothing choices as ever they come.” The goddess laughed. ”I’m afraid I’ve spoilt dear Nita quite a bit. Only as far as dressing is concerned, though. That stubbornness is still there. You should experience Nita in one of her obstinate ‘moods’. So adorable.”

Medeia then posed a question as to whether getting her hands on whomever Leona was interested in would make the Wizard Saint finally give in to her rage. The goddess responded with an innocent wide-eyed stare and a shrug of her shoulders. ”How am I expected to know anything about such matters?” she asked. ”I’ve never attempted to kidnap someone just to get under the skin of their significant other.” There was a pause as she turned to look at the form of Armina, still wrapped up snugly by the roots. ”Uh, okay, only once. This is my first time ever. But it seems to be reasonably effective. You should be honored, Medeia love. I learned it from you.” It was quite something to note that everyone had someone or something that they held in high regard, and an easy way of manipulating them as to go after that treasured thing or person. It was a trick as old as time itself, which was not surprising, seeing that the oldest tricks were the best, due to their effectiveness. Maria was certain that someone such as Nita would rarely ever stoop to such dastardly actions, unless there was some great matter at stake. Well, Maria could be excused, she told herself. The stakes were rather high here, as well.

After the goddess’s long tale, Medeia had remained silent, seemingly pondering on the story she had just heard. Then the angel responded, pointing out the similarities between her own life story and Nita’s. Unlike Nita, though, Medeia had gone on the warpath, slaughtering everything she could lay her hands on and bringing her sect to desolation. The goddess was certain that Nita would never do such a thing, simply because the Pergranti girl was hurt by the sufferings of others. When faced with someone who caused suffering, she would only kill them to remove the cause of the suffering, and even then, that was to be a last resort. ”Nita’s choices are confusing to you,” Maria replied, ”because the both of you are driven by two entirely different emotions. Yours is lust. You want what you want, and will get it at all cost. Anything or anyone that stands in your way will be torn to pieces, along with everything close by, or that even probably has the ill-fortune of resembling your grievance. Nita, however is driven by compassion. She hates seeing people suffer. That is ultimately what drives her. Were she to carry out her vengeance, people that have no personal stakes in the matter will eventually have to suffer, and that is a thing she cannot bear. Do you remember your tussle with Nita in Rose Garden? Did you see how she seemed to change from the bashful maiden to something more primal, when the people of that nearby village were threatened? As frightened as Nita is of you, something will prevent her from running away, once she realizes that people will most likely die if she does. While some people may stay to fight you because it is the right thing to do, or because they want to be heroes, Nita will stay to fight simply because suffering breaks her tender heart.”

Maria was not surprised to hear that Medeia had been on the battlefield; she had heard a number of reports which had confirmed that. But it was quite surprising to hear that she had been toe to toe with Bellum’s finest, and that the Cardinal had been withering before her. But if the Pergranti Marshall had swooped in for the kill, then it was certain that the Cardinal of Peace had been killed. That thought sent a shudder through her, although outwardly, Maria remained focused. She could tell though, that Nita was distraught by the news. While the wars of mortals did not matter that much to the goddess, she was only upset because Nita had been upset by that bit of information. It also did place Medeia’s prowess in a new light. Being able to singlehandedly face and defeat the probably strongest member of a nation’s military forces was speaking a lot. ”So you would actually leave poor Nita to the mercy of Pergrande if you struck her down on the battlefield?” Maria asked, disguising her mental distress with mock shock. ”What a cruel, cold, heartless thing to do. I thought she meant a lot to you.”

As Medeia approached the goddess, Maria watched her with a defiant eye. ”Metal is beaten on the anvil until it breaks or takes the desired form. Nita will not break. She will take the desired form. And I’m sure you will agree with me that she needs to be able to face you at least on near equal footing, as the chances exist that you may meet on the battlefield, and running away then won’t do. Think of what I’m doing as what mortals call ‘exposure therapy’. But I’ll give you this much, you may have the hang of what I want to do. You just may.”

The next attack came again, another thrust aimed to run her through the heart. Unwilling to use magic to defend against an apparently normal attack, Maria allowed her Pegasus weapons to float in the air around her, as she swerved out of the way of the incoming blade, just barely managing to miss the weapon, though it made a score in the fabric of her clothes. Grabbing at Medeia’s outstretched arm, so as to prevent the dark angel from returning the weapon on her, she lifted both legs in an attempt to wrap them round the angel’s neck, going for a standing triangle choke, if she succeeded. Maria suspected there was something rather unsafe about trying to fight Medeia at very close quarter range, but she would just have to find out for herself what it was. At least, with her present maneuver, the intention was to attempt a choke, while keeping the dangerous rapier away from her body as well as possible.


WC: 1410
TWC: 1410

@Medeia

“Are you sure we are talking about the same Nita?” The angel answered, amused slightly by the thought that Nita had even been similar to Leona in personality. “It is difficult to imagine her being like that and I am definitely thankful that you worked your magic upon her. I am uncertain as to whether I would be quite so fond of her, should she still be in that mould. You have done wonders with her in that regard, Maria and I confess that I am intrigued by these moods of hers. I have always found stubbornness to be rather endearing, up to a point anyway and to see Nita in a defiant one would certainly be worth seeing.” There was truth in her words there, as Medeia was always more intrigued by those who wore their hearts on their sleeves and expressed themselves. They were far easier to manipulate and toy around with, which made it all the easier for the witch to get her claws into them, figuratively and sometimes literally speaking. Introverts took a lot more work and sometimes it was a frustrating task to break through their defences, much to the angel’s displeasure.

The dark haired woman laughed in response to Nita’s response to her question about abducting someone to enrage them. “I think we can both agree that in this particular case, you were successful in irritating me. I am pleased to hear that you have learned this particular skill from our encounters and hope that you will keep practising. No doubt that Nita will be cringing at the thought but perhaps she will discover the pleasures for herself, yes? It seems rather apparent to me that you have enjoyed having my maid helpless and at your mercy so maybe Nita will come to appreciate it too?” She paused briefly and then added. “Hmm. No, I think that might be too much for our delicate flower to handle. Besides, I think that she personally enjoys being on the other side of it more. She does make quite the lovely damsel, no?” Flashes of their encounter with the two female luchadores came to mind at that point, where Medeia had almost had the beautiful blonde just where she had wanted her. Unfortunately, things had ended rather differently than what she had in mind but the witch had planted something in the blonde’s mind, nonetheless.

She listened with interest as Maria went on to speak about the differences between Nita and Medeia herself, resulting in her amusement finally crossing her features although the smile failed to reach her eyes. “Does that not seem like a rather potent weakness to you? If all that has to be done is for me to attack the innocent in order for her not to run then what stops me from doing that whenever I desire to spend some time with her. I adore her sweet and loving heart, I honestly do but she is simply asking to be toyed around with if it is that easy to exploit her. This sweetness of hers is going to get her into constant trouble and one day, I might decide to claim her for good. I appreciate the information though and I will make certain that when I wish to see Nita, I make as large a mess as I can in order to keep her close. Thank you for the useful tidbit, Maria.”

The war would come up again at that point and Medeia mused over the blonde’s answer for a moment or so before giving a response. “I would much rather she agree to fly off with me willingly, as I am sure you know by now but what would you have me say when we are fighting for different sides? Pergrande does not tolerate defectors and as soon as they recognise her then no doubt they are going to want to interrogate her or whatever it is they do. I would much rather they hand her over to me but there would be little chance of that. The leader of the Pergranti forces is a no nonsense woman, a trait that I somewhat admire and she will no doubt wish to meet dear Nita. So, for her sake, it would be ideal if we simply did not meet on the battlefield. Such battles are vast, after all, there are plenty of other opponents to fight.” A proposition? Maybe. “I certainly would rather not have to hand her over but if she leaves me no choice then that is what would happen. Do not mistake me though, I do adore your beloved host.”

There was no real need to answer the final statement, as it appeared that both beings knew what was occurring or what hopefully would. This was all for the sake of Nita’s growth and that knowledge easily helped in solving the mystery behind Maria’s actions. It was a method that Medeia understood quite well and one that she had used on her own students in order to push them. Sometimes, a soft touch was not enough and a far more forceful method was needed and clearly, that was what was necessary for the beautiful blonde. The Warlord had no issue with playing the role that was required of her and given her mood, it was one she would relish today.

Maria was quick when it came to countering Medeia’s thrust and the Warlord soon found her sword arm being grasped by the blonde. It was a familiar feeling for the dark haired woman, recalling Nita’s skill when it came to grappling from their Rose Garden encounter. Soon enough, Maria’s legs would rise too, looking to capture the Guild Mistresses neck between them, a situation where in a different scenario, might have felt rather nice. As she felt the beautiful woman’s lower limbs wrap around her, a smile crossed her features and without any hesitation, she tossed her sword away. The blade did not vanish and would be retrievable later but for the moment, the witch had something else in mind.

The hold was locked tightly upon her and time was rather short but refusing to panic, the dark mage would focus her powers on the ground below them and click her fingers. Nothing would happen at first but after a few moments, a massive purple coloured tentacle would burst out through the floor, tearing up towards the struggling duo, wanting nothing more than to grab hold of the blonde and do a little squeezing of her own. Janice, as she was fondly known as, had joined the fray and she wanted nothing more than to meet the grappling blonde primordial.

Speaking of squeezing, Medeia’s free hand would do a little exploring of its own, attempting to put the blonde off by travelling to whatever part of her body that the suffering Warlord could reach.

(1145 Words)
(2555 TWC)

Although Medeia described the change in Nita from a rather prudish and reticent individual to a much more expressive and social person as the working of Maria’s magic, the goddess was aware that if there had been any magic done on her part, it had been absolutely unintentional. The very definition of a twist of fate, so to speak, and something she had eventually come to be quite alright with. ”Oh, I’m sure you would be still fond of her, given your preferences,” Maria replied. ”I have a feeling that there’s that part of you that would like to do questionable things with innocent and beautiful maidens, regardless of what they want.” The goddess was slightly surprised that Medeia did not seem to like harassing introverts, although she was sure that the insecure, naïve and quiet ones who were wet behind the ears as far as the workings of the world were concerned, would be a field day for the lascivious fallen angel. ”And here was I thinking you’d chase every pretty face and shapely body,” Maria said in a mock disapproving tone. ”Though personally, I would like to see how you would respond to the dashingly beautiful but frigid and distant sort. Maybe I should have portrayed myself as that sort. I am, after all, a rather good actor. But I don’t think it would be as much fun as the unconventional figure that Nita cuts.”

”Sadly, I do not intend to keep on practicing these… ah, untoward behaviors that you are so notorious for, Medeia dear,” the goddess replied to her opponent’s hope that she would do some more abducting of people in the near future. ”Unless, of course, you are fine with me kidnapping your dear maid from time to time and practicing on her alone. Armina does have such a unique scent, so she shouldn’t be all that difficult to find. And with that mouth and behavior of hers, I’m sure she’s practically begging for punishment every other day. In any case, I’m sure she has enjoyed herself so far, although I apologize for the shoulder aches she is probably beginning to feel.” That was just to throw a few verbal barbs at the mouthy maid. Truth was, Maria was sure she would not attempt to ever take any other person hostage, unless the situation was one of great import, as she considered this one to be.

Medeia’s explanation of battlefields being very vast was correct, and the chances were very high that even if they weren’t too far from each other, Medeia and Nita would probably not have the space or time to face each other, unless they both had absolutely no challenges on the battlefield, which was a rather unlikely thing. After all, when the news came that the battle on Bellum’s border was soon to commence, Maria recollected that Nita had been hopeful for a victory, hearing that there were at least three Gods of Ishgar that had marched to the field of battle. If Medeia had faced any of them, chances were high that she would have mentioned it, being the rather self-confident person the Errings Rising guild mistress was. Which meant that they had had other rather pressing matters to attend to. Like the no-nonsense woman that Medeia spoke of, who had led the Pergranti host. Nita wondered just how powerful the woman was. It was very likely that she was an Esper. Even though Nita was from Pergrande, the workings of the Espers were quite a guarded secret, even among the people of the empire. Another person Maria was sure Nita would not want to meet on the field of battle.

As Medeia’s attack came in, and Maria successfully evaded it and managed to clinch the choke, the goddess felt a bit of elation, but something warned her to not be too happy. Even though chokes could quickly render their victims unconscious, the fact remained that Medeia was far removed from a normal opponent, and as such Maria could very well be wrapping her legs around a statue, for all her efforts were worth. But as far as she could tell, Medeia seemed to breathe, and likely had blood, which meant that circulation and respiration had to account for something. The goddess was somewhat surprised that Medeia had chosen to discard her sword so quickly, although she realized that it was a relatively practical thing to do, as the sword could not be used by the dark angel in her current position. It meant, in any case, that a counteroffensive was in the hatching, although from the way Medeia moved her free hand, it did not appear as though she was going to answer to Maria’s grapple with a melee response. If Medeia was going to use magic, perhaps this would allow Maria to know more of what kind of spells her opponent was capable of.

She sensed the tentacle, rather than saw it, as the strange purple appendage burst forth from the ground, lunging towards the goddess’s form as she grappled the angel. To break away meant that she would lose the present advantage, and it could take a while to entangle her legs from around Medeia’s neck, by which time the tentacle would grab her for sure. So the choice remained between releasing Medeia and letting the tentacle grab her, or staying fast to her hold and letting the tentacle grab her. Maria chose the latter, not giving in the slightest, even as the tentacle wrapped just beneath her ample bosom and began to constrict. That was troublesome, seeing as it would be difficult to breathe with her ribs being compressed. Maria bit her lip to keep from making any pained sounds, as she considered that Medeia had created a sort of race against time. Would the tentacle break her ribs first, or would the dark angel succumb first? The goddess was intent on waiting it out, seeing as she had been the first to initiate her grapple. She could endure a bit of pain as well, although she was sure her body would hurt like crazy by the end of the day.

That was when the goddess felt the roving hand of the lecherous dark mage. She gasped involuntarily in shock as her face reddened, which only made things hurt more, because she could not draw in sufficient air into her lungs, having expelled a bit with the gasp. But Maria stubbornly held on. Nita would have probably screamed and let go of her hold on the dark angel, in order to preserve her dignity. While Maria presently felt scandalized, she was not Nita. It would take a bit more than groping to get her to let go. The tentacle round her torso, however, was not being idle, and the goddess unconsciously let out a long moan of pain as its grip tightened around her. ”Well, that—was an undignified—sound…” she gasped, her face reddening even more, though she did not waver. She needed to do something about that tentacle, because she wasn’t sure how long Medeia would take to get knocked out. Fortunately, her Pegasus spear and shield were hovering close by, and with a thought, Maria sent the spear at the tentacle, the elegant weapon flying as surely as if it had been thrown from Maria’s own hand. Hopefully, if it damaged the tentacle, it would release her, or at least loosen its grip. She would continue to attack the tentacle with her hovering spear until it released her.


WC: 1255
TWC: 3810

@Medeia

Even with all the tension and frustration that she felt, Medeia could not help but find the words of the blonde charming. Maria was not far off in her view that the Warlord loved to chase after any beautiful woman. If the angel was honest, her favourite types were generally the sweet and naive, those who had yet to discover the truth about themselves. Yes, there was something to be said about the bombastic and flirty types too but there was just something special about the sweet ladies of the world. Sakura and Anastasia would be the two in particular that Medeia would think about. Both were naive to the world when the witch had come across them and the wonder that had crossed their faces when Medeia had worked her magic on them had brought the Guild Mistress such joy. They were still two of her favourites, even though it had been some time since she had met either of them. One day though, she knew that she would come across them again.

The angel chuckled as the primordial spoke about perhaps kidnapping her maid more often. Normally, she would have been rather angry towards that particular jibe but Medeia could not help but feel that maybe her maid was actually enjoying the situation. In truth, Armina did spend quite a lot of time in ropes anyway back at the castle, usually as a hobby rather than actual punishment. The Guild Mistress was definitely into the tying side of things, something that most people who knew her were aware of but sometimes the maid did have to beg her to do it to her. Medeia was also pretty sure that on occasion, Armina deliberately messed up in order to get her attention. Such was the confidence and courage of her dirty minded maid. Speaking of the axe wielder, she did not seem quite so happy and shouted at the blonde although her pink cheeks seemed to say something else. “I would much rather kidnap you instead and tan that massive rear of yours with my axe.”

That was about it when it came to conversation as the fight then took the complete centre stage of the encounter. Medeia was still locked into the uncomfortable choke, struggling for breath as she pondered her next moves. She did not look awfully desperate and the Warlord refused to panic just because she was in a tight spot. The dark mage had taken direct hits from powerful foes before and barely suffered a scratch, so she was hardly going to become overcome by fear because Maria was trying to suffocate her. Yet, there was another reason too. Death was not something that the angel was capable of facing and so she felt in no rush to escape. The worst that could happen to her was that she would be forced to regenerate although that in itself was unacceptable. Maria was not powerful enough to force her into such a state and the thought of her doing so annoyed her immensely.

That was why she had summoned Janice, who had seemed to have been successful in grasping hold of the blonde mage and delivering a little squeezing of her own. Now, Medeia was uncertain as to whether her tentacle was truly sentient but deep down, the angel hoped she was. The dark witch hoped that her creation was enjoying every moment that her slimy form was wrapped around the gorgeous primordial. The angel’s only regret was that it was not her arms that were clutching at her opponent's body. Still, Medeia was pleased by how effective her spell seemed to be, as it managed to result in a lovely moan from her foe. “That is not the word that I would use.” She managed to say, despite the chokehold. Even in her current state, her purple orbs were staring at her foe, dripping with rage and lust.

Unfortunately, the spear and shield that Maria had used earlier were still in the fight, which began to fly towards the large tentacle and start to lash out at Medeia’s creation. To be honest, Medeia was rather miffed at the sight of that, annoyed that Maria had decided to go after another minion of hers. It made sense though and struggling against the pain, Janice would start to flail around, resulting in the two mages moving around with them, which Medeia hoped would actually aid her. The scene would look just a tad farcical but that was unimportant to the dark mage at that point. She needed to get the Legal mage off of her, before the choke did even more damage to her.

With that in mind, Medeia’s free hand would deliver one final squeeze of the blonde’s body, a sign that she was still in the fight and having no intention of passing out, before she pointed towards the ground. There would be a deep rumble, before a powerful tornado of sand would fly up, attempting to ensnare the combatants in its grasp. Should they be unable to avoid it, which was possible given the situation, then they would find themselves surrounded by the foul material. It would shred their skin, get into their eyes and ears, make life completely dreadful for those unfortunate enough to get caught in it. The Warlord would not suffer much from it but Maria just might. Medeia was testing just how willing her opponent was into keeping her hold locked on.

The Warlord was not finished, however, surrounding her free hand then with flame, before trying to deliver a close ranged punch into the side of the blonde woman. She was going to make Maria suffer for every moment she insisted on remaining in this position and with her various spells in effect, it would be an uncomfortable position that the Luminous Rose mage now found herself in.

A smile crossed the Guild Mistresses face, despite the situation and she just about uttered a few more words. “Well, I did say that I was going to take a picture of you in your underwear, right? How about we let my sand do the stripping?”

(1025 Words)
(4835 TWC)

Medeia still had that scary look in her eyes, a look which bled both unbridled anger, as well as something a lot more perverse. Of course, Maria had suspected that the moan she had been forced to utter had been a thing most delightful to the dark angel, and it was in times like this that being right was rather displeasing to her. All the same, she would make Medeia work hard for any pleasure which the dark mage was expecting to receive. Even if she did not have the sufficient power to face Medeia on equal footing, she was fixed on ensuring that the dark angel would look at her with some level of newfound respect after this fight. Even if she did not win. Perhaps that would also teach Nita a thing or two about how to hold herself in a battle. She did not make any response to the Errings Rising mage’s words, as she was not quite certain that she would not be forced to express another embarrassing moan. But she would also not yield her hold on the throat of the dark angel. Even if its effectiveness was not as soon as the goddess had hoped, she perhaps would make a statement by her very tenacity.

Maria’s trusty Pegasus spear seemed to be doing some efficient work, for though it had not managed to sever the tentacle, it became evident that she was causing harm to the strange and slimy appendage, as the purple monstrosity began to twist and thrash about, swinging the goddess, and by extension, the angel to which she so fastidiously clung, like a pair of ragdolls sewn together with durable thread. And they might as well have been sewn together for all the success of the tentacle in separating Maria from her opponent. Simply zoning out the movement and shutting her eyes, the goddess focused on retaining the squeeze, although she was beginning to feel that it would not be the most sustainable task to keep at in a while. Hopefully, before that happened, she would be able to free herself from the tentacle thanks to her spear. In any case, even if she couldn’t, it was time to begin to think up a new plan with which to assail the dark mage, seeing as Medeia herself did not seem to be willing to remain bound by her grapple. Maria was sure there were other things she could do to move this battle along.

The angel flinched slightly, as she felt Medeia give her one last grope for good measure, and then the two mages were engulfed in a sudden sandstorm that seemed to spring out of nowhere. A normal sandstorm would probably not deal real damage, only being a nuisance. This, however, was no normal sandstorm. Each grain of sand seemed to be a potent blade, cutting her flesh, even as droplets of the young maiden’s blood were freed to swirl in the vortex of deadly sand. This strange wind was most likely the kind of demon wind she had heard of in tales in Desierto, which blew so violently that they stripped the flesh off the bones of travelers unlucky to be trapped in such an otherworldly storm. She shut her eyes tighter as she gritted her teeth, taking the pain head-on. She was much healthier than the normal mage of her rank, and she also had her own magical items which improved her ability to mend from wounds of most kinds. She could probably bear this, yes, but how much more could she take? Aside the fact that the sand was leaving her skin and clothes in tatters, it also seemed to be sapping at her speed. Normally, the sand was supposed to render her absolutely immobile and helpless, but the goddess had an indomitable spirit; such attempts to render her unmoving would only result in the suffering of her speed, not absolute immobility. And still, Maria sensed that her opponent was not near finished with her assault.

She sensed the dark mage clench her free hand, and felt quite some potent magical energy concentrate in that fist. If she took this hit, it was almost certain that she would lose her hold on Medeia. Immediately, the floral fairy wings on the goddess’s back spread wide, and a strange cloud of spores was suddenly released from the wings, spreading to cover the area. These spores had quite a number of interesting effects, but there were two major ones that Maria was counting on. Firstly, the spores had the effect of draining the magical energies of those who came in contact with them, something which would be helpful against the dark angel, with her rather vast stores of magic power. But the second effect of this spore cloud was meant for the fire-infused punch coming for the goddess. Maria drew on her own magic energy, and a spectral image of the strange head of a fey appeared, mouth wide ajar, to take on the incoming spell. As soon as Medeia’s flames touched it, they winked out into nothingness, like a candle which had just been given a strong puff of breath. By the time Medeia’s hand contacted the goddess, it would be just like a little tap.

Medeia’s statement about her sand stripping Maria of her clothes did not seem too far-fetched, given what the sand had done to her. In any case, Maria was more worried about her clothes than herself. She was a rather swift healer, both of herself and others, and if Medeia did not continue to assault her with those powerful spells, she was sure she would soon mend from her injuries. As for her clothes, she would have to use her Relativity God Slayer magic on them, to make sure that she still maintained her decency. ”I’m sure you’d love it if we had to have a battle in our undies, wouldn’t you?” Maria replied through gritted teeth, opening her eyes to stare into Medeia’s own, as she cast her spell at almost pointblank range. ”Night God Bellow!” This move marked the beginning of Maria’s endgame, or at least the end of round one. The Night God Bellow was one of her stronger moves, and one she did not just attempt to use on an opponent without enough consideration. Medeia was the most powerful foe she had ever met, so hopefully the dark angel would feel honored she was using this spell against her. If the spell hit home, it was likely that it would quickly separate the two combatants, though Maria had no idea whether she would be released from the tentacle as well. But if Medeia found a way to block or negate it, at least the goddess would still be holding on to the dark angel.


WC: 1135
TWC: 5970

@Medeia

It had to be said that Maria was holding her own rather well and the fact was not lost on the dark haired witch. Yes, Medeia had yet to access her most powerful forms nor had she used many of her highest ranked spells but the simple truth was that even her weakest spells were capable of mass destruction, given the amount of spell power that she possessed. It had reached the point in her life where she rarely ever needed to go all out, so to speak, as victory was generally earned in a couple of spells. It was both pleasing and yet anti-climatic at the same time which sometimes left her feeling just a tad apathetic. What good was all of her power if she never had the chance to test it out against a foe who could challenge her? Stamping across the land and destroying the lands of the mortals only could do so much to ease her frustration. Honestly though, that was not even truly her way of doing things anyway. She would much rather spend her time in a more intimate fashion, preferably with a delightful lady, using her other gifts to stroke her ego and give her that immense sense of control that she always desired.

That being said, it was a delight to see that Maria was handling her assault so well and even with the dark mage’s various combinations of attacks, the blonde did not seem all that close to yielding. Medeia could tell that her spells were clearly dealing damage and causing considerable discomfort and yet, she fought on despite that. So much the better. The witch did so dearly wish to see the full potential of her foe, without the hesitation of her host holding her back. She had seen a little of that in Cedar and that had aroused the curiosity of the dark haired woman. Maria had taken a beating at Medeia’s hands but that did not mean that the latter had been left unimpressed. The Warlord truly believed that there was the possibility of further growth although whether that could be done without Nita’s co-operation was the overriding question. If the relationship between the two personalities was anything like her own and Priya’s then there was only one way to proceed, seemingly something that Maria already knew. It was symbiosis that they required, a bond so deep and personal that two entities became one. The ultimate in co-operation and trust. Could Maria and Nita achieve that? Well, Medeia was going to find out, she knew that now.

Medeia’s sandstorm seemed to have been somewhat effective although her punch unfortunately was not, due to a fancy piece of magic from her opponent. There also appeared to be an unusual effect from the spores as the Warlord would feel just a little drained by the irritating things. Still, it was hardly enough to stop her from fighting and while it was an annoyance, Medeia was hardly out of magical power. She could fight for an age if she wanted to and given how much Maria was putting into the fight, that might just be required. There was no doubt that the blonde entity wanted to feel her full wrath and Medeia had no qualms with doing so. The fight had seemed to have wound down into one of attrition though and ground to a bit of a halt, something that the angel was not particularly fond of. She was somewhat limited due to the choke hold and was starting to struggle to concentrate due to the lack of oxygen. As powerful as was, she could last far longer than a normal mortal but still, there were limits, especially considering the fact that Maria was not a mere human either, with the strength to match.

Janice was certainly starting to struggle now due to the various forms of attack upon her and soon enough her hold on Maria would break but before it did, the tentacle would do her utmost to squeeze the blonde and deal as much damage as she could. The blasted spear was inflicting some horrible wounds to the creature and sadly, she was not immune to the sand either, leaving her in even more trouble. Yet, her stubbornness matched her creators and she held on for dear life, quite literally in her case. She would not go down until there was nothing for her to give. So, her goal would be as it had been since she was summoned, to squeeze the blonde woman and give her creator quite the lovely view while doing so.

“I am not sure if you have noticed but my choice of clothing has never been all that conservative.” She quipped in response, with as much humour as she could given the circumstances, her desert clothing being about as subtle as a pole dancer’s garb. “It matters not. Once I have beaten you, I will have all the time I want to admire your lovely choice in undergarments.”

The situation suddenly changed at that point as Medeia noticed the seriousness in the gaze of her opponent. Maria was channelling something far more powerful now and the Warlord was in a rather tight spot to do much about it. The name sounded like a roar similar to one that she could use herself, albeit one of different elements and the witch was under no illusion that it would be a powerful ability indeed. There was little time to think and so Medeia reacted on impulse, her free hand creating a sphere of powerful magical energy. “Rage Of Priya!” She called out as best she could. As Nita fired, the Guild Mistress would release her own attack, resulting in an enormous clash of power that caused the entire ruin they were in to shake violently. Cracks would appear down the walls and Armina would shriek as the ground quaked due to the force of it.

The combined magical strength was so great that Medeia was thrown away from her opponent, breaking the hold that Maria had on her and giving her some much needed breathing room. She managed to avoid slamming into one of the room’s walls but that did not mean that the dark haired woman was unharmed. Her sword’s defensive spell had not been enough to completely protect her and there was a rather nasty cut in the angel’s shoulder. She turned her gaze towards it and smiled, using the pain and scent of blood to amplify her own desire for combat. It did wonders for getting her into the spirit of things and her purple eyes turned crimson as she regained her composure, coughing once or twice as she briefly massaged her recovering throat.

Beckoning towards her sword, the weapon would fly towards her hand but rather than hold it up, she instead returned it to whence it came. Clearly, close ranged combat was not going to be her ally and she would instead focus on what she did best. Her two sword abilities would fade away due to her deactivating her weapon but Medeia was not overly concerned, she had other abilities, both offensive and defensive in nature that were far more potent. Janice was nowhere to be seen either, having been destroyed by the mighty blast.

It was only then that Medeia gazed in the direction of Maria, awaiting to see how she had handled the incredible collision of spells.

(1242 Words)
(7212 TWC)

It appeared as though, even though the spores released by Maria’s wings had managed to prevent her from taking damage from Medeia’s flaming punch, and were draining the dark angel’s magical energy, Medeia did not seem in the slightest fazed by the effects of the spores. It was a bit of a disappointment, even if Maria was not altogether surprised. It was quite unlikely that Medeia would easily run out of steam, as far as using magic was concerned; that seemed to be the dark angel’s forte, even though she was rather capable with melee combat as well. And even though, so far, her Pegasus spear was making some degree of progress against the tentacle which bound its mistress, Maria had to admit that she was quite surprised at just how durable the tentacle was. If Medeia had not been an enemy, the goddess was sure she would have told Nita to take pointers from the angel. She was sure that Medeia would actually not refuse, if asked for some training, but the goddess was sure that the dark mage would seek some lascivious form of recompense for her trouble. Besides, if there was a ‘Guidebook to Being A Good Guy’ manual, Maria was sure that one of the major warnings that would exist in the book would be not to ask favors from evil folk.

As Maria had expected, Medeia had cast as spell in order to counter her Night God Bellow. What she had not expected was that the spell would be a similarly offensive spell. It wasn’t like she was complaining, though. For Medeia to use an offensive spell to counter her own offensive spell, it possibly meant that the dark angel was apparently trying to conserve her magic energy, as Maria could remember one of her more powerful spells back in Cedar being reflected when she had tried to cast it on the dark angel. Reflection was somewhat expensive to execute, as far as the utility of magical energy was concerned, and Maria suspected that back there in Cedar, Medeia did not care about conserving resources, because she had not even considered the blonde much of a threat. Although Medeia had not said so, and could have chosen to cast the Rage of Priya for her own reasons, Maria hoped that it was because the dark angel was beginning to consider her not as apparently harmless as when last they met.

There were a number of effects resulting from the two spells clashing at practically pointblank range. Firstly, the tentacle gripping Maria was either disintegrated, or had been forced to let her go. Secondly, the two combatants found themselves flung back by the sheer power generated from the collision of these spells. Maria had no idea how far the explosion had thrown her opponent, but she had little time to worry about what Medeia was doing, as she found herself flying at frightening speed away from where she last was. Of course, all of the realization was done in less than a split second, just microseconds before her back encountered something rigid and hard, most likely a wall or the ground. She passed through said obstruction with so much speed that one would have assumed she had phased intangibly through it if the structure had not disintegrated into near powder, thanks to the shockwave her body generated when she struck it. Her mind was quite active, maybe because she seemed to have temporarily lost control of her senses. Yet Maria knew that all of this was happening in the space of mere seconds, and while that seemed to be a rather short time for events to unfold, in battles between opponents of high levels, the wasting of even microseconds could result in steep consequences.

The world returned to her. She was on her hands and knees, eyes facing the ground, as her head was bowed. Her back was in a world of pain, and Maria was only in this position because she had not yet been knocked out, and had reflexively pulled herself off of the ground, though she was finding some difficulty getting past rising from her knees. She had heard someone scream; had that been her? No; it was Armina. Perhaps the cheeky maid would show her some respect now. Or not. Maria allowed herself a chuckle, as with a lot of willpower, she forced herself to rise up on one knee. It seemed dark. Had her eyesight been tampered with, or was this the effect of some degree of concussion she was suffering from? Taking a quick look around, Maria realized this was not the case. The reason it was a bit darker was because she had passed through the floor of the temple ruins. That meant that whatever she had struck had not been a wall, but the ground.

If she wasn’t in the process of having herself stripped by sand and pulverized by an enraged and lust-filled angel, Maria would have gladly taken the time to explore her immediate surroundings. It seemed that the temple ground was actually the top floor, and there were a number of structures built beneath ground level. She was presently on a level directly beneath where she had been fighting Medeia, as half of the floor had fallen in. Maria’s quick examination of the place she was revealed that some sections of the floor of this lower level had fallen away as well, and there was a chasm that claimed the rest of the area; Maria could not discern the bottom of the pit. It was either the gloom was deep enough to obscure it, or the pit was incredibly deep. Most likely both. So far, it seemed that wherever Medeia had been thrown had not managed to fall in, or the dark angel, unlike Maria, had not managed to slam into an obstruction. Also, Armina seemed to be still fine where she was, as that section of the floor and walls where she was restrained had only suffered cracks. But some of the roots had been dislodged, and the maid would realize that she could probably free an arm and a leg if she tried.

Maria’s spear and shield quickly floated to her, and she grabbed them, arming herself as she used the spear’s shaft to prop herself up onto her feet. ”If it’s a consolation to you, Maria, even though I was depressed, I never did want to commit suicide,” Nita pointed out. Maria could sense that the girl was scared. Unlike Medeia, who had boasted of her immortality to the Pergrandian girl, Nita was not sure of herself being as undying. ”May I remind you kindly that if you manage to get Medeia to kill me, you will have likely screwed the pooch as well.” In spite of her injuries, Maria laughed. ”You’re such an entertaining child, Nita dearest,” the goddess replied. ”But never fear, I have no knowledge or intention regarding the screwing of pooches. You do remember that I told that badmouthed maid that I had chosen this place as the site of my fight with Medeia. If you reach out, you will get a hint as to why.” And Nita felt it: a soft, but evident pulse of magic, something foreign, otherworldly that seemed to have been buried long ago in this place. It was likely that the stone used to build the floor of this temple had been made from some special sort of magic-suppressing stone, which had prevented those standing on the ground floor from sensing it. But now that the floor had been broken, it seemed to call out ever so softly, almost as though it was calling from a world away. And it was almost certain that someone as finely tuned to magic as the dark angel was would be able to sense it just as well. ”That, dear Nita, is the catalyst to my end game. Get ready, I’ll be tagging out soon.”


WC: 1328
TWC: 8540

@Medeia