❀ pocket ❀ embers event solo group three ❀

❀ "Lyra?" ❀
❀ "Can you hear us..?"  ❀
❀ "What are you doing down there?" ❀
❀ "we wanna be with you," ❀
❀ "..we've been waiting to hear you sing," ❀
❀ "go, go, go, go... deep down," ❀
❀ "go deep inside," ❀



❀ "..do you feel that?" ❀

Lyra's hand would linger to feel the surface of her abdomen, just below the tattoo of the Silver Wolves that would smoothly fit into the skin. Upon gracing the stomach and maintaining a deep hold on her pulse, she would feel a murmur alongside her own heartbeat- was there something wrong with her body? Was this a warning from the fairies? It had to be.

❀ "Good.." ❀
❀ "...now let the whole world feel it," ❀



❀ Letting out a large-scale series of small fairy coughs, the petite-sized aspect of valeriya would shudder as she would shake out of the state she had previously been in and would begin to regain full consciousness- when the fairies would call out to her from the civilizations hiding within the ever-expanding forces of nature it would typically feel like this, all mysterious and grand in whimsy. Just what were they trying to tell her? The thought of there being something wrong festering within her seemed like something that she would want to worry about, but the white light they seemed to speak of just didn't make sense to Lyra. Could it be a blessing? A curse?

"Aye, you've been sleeping for quite some time now, haven't you, fairy?" one of the beast tamers would snicker as he would eye down at the girl, her hair fluttering as she would remain hanging out of one of the other's pockets.

"..I wasn't sleeping! I- was just dozing off is all," she would claim in a fluster, attempting to avoid just what she had heard within her thoughts.

Revealing to the horde of beast tamers the quirks of the ancient civilization and their ways of prophecy was something the fairy did not wish to accomplish during this war; she was here for a few reasons, and though the war was something the pacifistic girl of flora despised above nearly all else, the ideals of her youngest sibling had been something she had taken to heart in interest for the success of the vale and its inhabitants. Weeks prior to both of the siblings' arrival in Minstrel's eastern plains, though within separate parts of the crusade due to functionality with their different ways of utilizing magic, they had attended a brunch and had spoken about their thoughts on the war, which ultimately ended in a change of fate for the young fairy. Though she had not been planning to contribute to the war efforts other than brewing up plentiful potions for her sister and her allies, something that Desirée had said stood out to her quite a lot considering it had to do with the fate of her people and the grand prophecy itself. 'While war is indeed going to take prominence on the horizon and cause terrible damage, fighting to end the war is something we will need to ensure so the world can enter another peaceful era as soon as possible,'. Hopefully it would be that easy, but pondering this issue caused the fairy to begin to worry- if war were to ravage Bellum it would devastate the natural order of wildlife and the livelihood of all the fairies that called the region their home, something she did not wish to witness. Even though it was scary, she felt it would be best to prevent the war from spreading into further madness, however that may be possible.

Looking up at what would appear to be two giant birds that seemed to be native to the sands of Desertio, two of the tamed beasts of the horde she had been accompanying within the invasion, Lyra would stretch out her arms and flutter her wings within the pocket, causing a small buzzing sound.

"To think I've traveled so far from home to fight in a holy war only to be stuck with a puny fairy in my pocket," the beast tamer hosting the fairy would complain, causing her to pout as she would cross her arms and hang out the pocket as if it were the edge of a balcony.

"Well, I..," she would stutter as she would attempt to speak, clearing her throat, "if the Luminous Covenant hadn't assigned me to be heading here.. with the six of you, I'm sure I'd be much happier too..!"

The beast tamers would laugh as they would all take large gulps of their wine, which would appear to be held within ornate carrying devices suspected to the girl to be unique to the bazaar. These men and women were quite disrespectful to the fairy due to her foreignness to the rest of them- it made her feel quite upset, and though she wished to fall into another state of unconsciousness once more to avoid these feelings, she knew it would be important to be fully present in a potential battle if one were to come. She wished there was a way they could be more friendly to her- in the event something were to go wrong, she knew that depending on the six of them would have to be fate. Scanning the surroundings that inhabited the eastern plains, it appeared quite empty- to the left was a giant assortment of trees leading into a forest, something that could prove quite useful to the fairy if she was in a pinch. Behind the trio would be a giant carriage filled with two birdcage-like structures, something that the fairy had been given by her sister in order to contain defeated enemies in order to later bring them to Luminous Rose.

"Everyone, stop-" one of the beast tamers would quietly say to the group as they would lower down behind a large tree on the outskirts of the forest, their eyes poking out to look into the depths of the greenery.

Pointing in the direction of the north, a group of three that appeared to be dressed in the clad of the other side would begin to advance as they would look around the trees- blending into the forest was easy for the animals of the desert due to their mostly brown tones, and though it was the easiest for the fairy to hide of them all, she was by far the most scared.

"Get out there, bumblebee," one of the Desertio-natives would speak to the fairy as she would gasp at the thought, causing her cheeks to fluster.

"Come on," another would say, causing a tear to form in her eye as she would slip out of one of the tamers' pockets and glide into the thick foliage of the grass under all of their feet.

"O- okay! I don't fight much, but.. I'll try," she would reluctantly say as she would quickly zip into the canopies of the trees, fluttering her tiny olive-green wings behind her.

Causing small green and pink sparkles to manifest behind her with each flap of her fairy wings, Lyra would feel her heartbeat extremely quickly as she would make her way on top of the group of three- they would not seem to notice her presence in the trees, something that would make this nervous moment a bit easier for her tiny heart. Holding her hands out in-front of her, small dewdrops would begin to manifest upon all of the surrounding foliage within the thicket of the forest- she would maintain ariel advantage over the trio of weaponized Ironheart soldiers as she would begin to channel her magical power further into her hands, causing all of the dewdrops to begin to levitate a few inches off of their surfaces as they would begin to glow a brighter luminescence.


The sound of the fairies would echo through her mind as she would cast her magical energy downwards, causing a thicket of sharp rose vines to shoot downwards and wrap around the tallest of the three's feet- the other two would seem to be struck with rose petals that would begin to scatter throughout the wind around them, causing them to feel small pricks that would begin to manifest into true feelings of pain. Though her mind was cringing at the sight of this, causing her magical focus to begin to waver, she knew that the war needed to end no matter the cost in order for her to protect the longevity of the ancient civilization.

"Now!," the fairy girl would shout with all of her might at her current allies in hopes for them to engage, breaking her focus as she would dodge a gunshot from one of their magical artillery.

Though one of the gunmen was already down, the other two seemed to be in an attempt to shoot down the fairy with one lucky bullet- however, their aim seemed to not be as on-point as they wished it would be, as Lyra was successfully able to maneuver throughout the skies in an underconfident unstable flutter in order to avoid such danger. Caws of the two desert birds would echo throughout the splits in the forest trees as they would quickly and calculatedly soar through them, immediately reaching the two gunmen and quickly taking them down with agile swipes from their talons. Though one took a hit in the leg from one of the arcane rifles, it was quite easy for them to be taken down- for Lyra, it was much more difficult getting the men in the group to pick up the knocked out bodies and put them in the giant crystal cages so they could eventually be turned over to the Rune Knights.

Fluttering down from the cracks in the upper parts of the forest trees, the plant fairy would smile as she would hop right back into the same pocket she had been in last time- it was still warm, so much so that it felt even warmer with all the adrenaline that was coursing through her veins. Even though she was more used to utilizing her magic for the potent healing that came with its abilities, Lyra felt like it was far too easy for her to take out the three of those soldiers and place them in the bird cages. It felt like she was just playing a game, and the part that made her most disgusted in herself was the fact that she inherently felt proud of herself for accomplishing such an easy feat. The beast tamers were happier with her now- they had told her remarks that made her feel like she did a good job, and while she did do a good job, she did not feel like it was inherently good for her to be doing. Taking out the remaining targets in this forested area of the eastern plains of Minstrel would be a difficult task for the fairy, something she prayed would not turn her into a cruel and violent mage. All she wanted was for the prosperity of the realm, something that would come closer upon aiding in ending this selfish and greedy war. Hanging off the edge of the armored pocket that rested upon one of the beast tamers' lower parts, the fairy would puff off any tiny dewdrops that managed to make it onto her tiny armor set with dazzling winds that would come out of her lips in order to prepare for what was yet to come. The party of seven, not including each of their familiars, would slowly make their way through a road within the forest in hopes to catch yet another distracted party with whimsy and a hard-to-see fairy roaming around their back lines.

As the group of Luminous Covenant would begin to advance further down the road, Lyra would begin to spot many localized fauna and flora within the trees that she had never seen before- it was her first time traveling to Minstrel, and though she was occupied with serious responsibilities, she hoped that no harm would come to the environment that the war was occupying. It was controversial for the girl, especially when it came to damage from wildfires, as to whether or not she should worry about such things- after all, in the natural world nature seems to flourish after being scorched by a brush fire sometime after the incident, despite the fallout it would accomplish from witnessing such hot things. In the distance of the west winds, Lyra would be able to hear the sounds of cannons firing and a mix of magical and sword-clad fighting sounds, or at least what she assumed to be of such- just how many individuals were involved in this war? This was something that confused her, but it made sense that both sides most likely hired mercenaries to fight alongside their people. Success within a war was something that was often accomplished strictly by number and force alone- hopefully, the match the group was to face off against would not be higher ranking than she was. Hopefully, the plan of a series of sneak attacks would do the trick- when witnessing a group of six desert animals from foreign lands being trained by ordinary mages, it would be most likely one would look at the bigger beings before being able to spot a tiny fairy making her way overhead within a thin mist of dewdrops.

Following suit to the group of Desertio beast-tamers taking cover once more behind a small thicket of trees and bushes, the girl of the fairies would look out the small window of the opening of the pocket she was in- she would be able to see a pair of heavily armored individuals walking down the windy forest road with their swords drawn in one hand and a pulsating magical signature in the other. The beast-tamers seemed to appear stressed- one of them would seem to point out that blood was dripping from one of their swords as if they had just committed a fresh murder. Seeing this with her own eyes, Lyra would gasp before quickly forcing her hands over her mouth after she had realized she could have potentially blown their cover- but she would soon need to pull it all together, as it was now time to execute yet another sneak attack. Tears in her eyes, she would stretch out her wings once prior and slowly glide out of the pocket, landing behind a large blossoming tree. Now quickly shooting up the side of the tree's bark, she would sit on the edge of the road as the two would begin to approach under her without a clue of her true presence. It would seem that one would mutter something about detecting a magical signal nearby that they had not recognized prior, though it allegedly was faint-feeling through their armor.

Reaching her small fairy-sized hands out in front of her as she did prior, fiddling her wings in order to maintain a steady float within the air, as they would begin to advance away from the tree Lyra would begin to channel yet another spell. Once again, she would begin to channel the energy of magical dewdrops to form on the surrounding nature of the leaves- this would begin to reinforce her magical potency, something she would need if she were to break through the armor.


Echoing through her mind once more, the brown-blonde haired fairy would cast out her magical energies of Valeriya through her hands and would cause a downpour of floral petals, causing the two to be battered by ethereal energies- they would seem to stagger upon first being hit but would soon standstill once more, reinforcing the grip on their armor as their magic in their hand would begin to flourish. Lyra was now visible to the two- they would begin attempting to strike her down with the elements of water and ice, both manifesting in the form of shards, which she would quickly flutter around in order for them not to strike her. It would hurt her very badly if she was struck with the two now large-scale projectiles, something she was aware of quite well- however, upon attempting to strike her, the team of beast tamers would run forward in force and command all six of their beasts to strike the two at once while they were distracted by the fairy. Coming up behind the two, the array of desert animals would begin to thrash them about in a variety of different ways, causing their armor to slowly break off into pieces and their weapons to discard in the piles of surrounding flower petals. Now occupied in attempts to defend themselves, the armored individuals would kick and yell as they would try to cast the animals off of them but to no avail. At the end of the battle, the already injured bird would appear to be quite mangled but still holding onto its life- as for the other two soldiers, it would seem as if they had been reduced to rather unsightly piles of remains. This sight would make Lyra gasp once more, except it would cause a terrible feeling to form in her stomach- she did not want anyone she faced off against to die. This was the first time she had ever contributed to the death of another mage. Sure, she had slain monsters and colossus creatures prior to arriving in Minstrel, but mages? Tears would begin to form in her eyes, soon barreling down her cheeks.

"Pull it together Chika, the animals did what they had to do," one of the beast tamers would shout to the fairy, which would remain to levitate over the winding forest road.

"They got my bird! Aluzar," one of the girls of the group would begin to cry as she would fall to her knees in front of the wounded bird, which would appear to rest its head in her lap.

Raising her hands to her eyes, she would cover both of them as the tears would cascade outward- she did not want to kill anything anymore, it felt too dark. It felt too wrong.

"...No more killing, please! I.. I can't!" the fairy would cry, her companion looking up at her from within her pocket.

Floating down to reunite with the party, the fairy would look at the injured bird through the splits in her fingers and would begin to feel worried once more- she would not let this delicate creature pass on because of this war, no matter if it were to use her magic all up or not. Raising her hand to the bird's feathers, she would begin to channel the most radiant energies of the fairies in order to restore order to the bird's body; through magical means, the creature would become developed in what would appear to be sunlight and dewdrops, which would soon allow the bird to emerge from its wounded state unscathed. Its tamer would appear to be extremely appalled by this deed of the fairies- but miracles were something to expect when it came to the work of the fairies, extremely magical creatures that dwell under the trees and the stars. This was especially true when it came to ensuring the livelihood of those that also dwelled upon the lands of the green; it would seem as if the bird's time was not up quite yet. Still feeling tears fall down her face, while relieved she could have at least saved one of the victims of this quarrel, the group would begin their walk once more down the winding road, continuing to wheel the giant bird cages and supplies they had brought behind them. Unlike previously, Lyra stuck to the trees this time they carried on. She was far too upset to wish to sit in that comfortable, warm pocket.

"Looks like it's right up there," one of the men of the group would point ahead, which would lead to another clearing that looked to be occupied by a group of twelve individuals of the other side all in matching attire- they would appear to be donning glistening swords as if they were easily-maneuverable batons.

Behind them would appear to sit a singular man on top of a watchtower, a sword additionally in hand. Lyra's stomach would sink at the sight of the thirteen; she did not wish to kill anyone anymore, but it seemed as if the fate of the enemies was now out of her hands. The beasts that would accompany the six beast tamers, being twelve of them exactly, were obviously trained to kill within the war effort in a combination of natural instinct and the commands they would receive from their masters. It was a vicious cycle- she could see why trauma was often associated with war, and though it had only happened nearly an hour prior, she had definitely received hers and could feel it. But she also felt determined- it would seem like this would be the last of the targets in the area, as the road they had taken had been the only one from the clearing and all the other hostiles had approached from such directions. The seven would begin to have a conversation now that the fairy had pulled herself together- as the animals would surround them to listen themselves, they would make it clear that the plan was to defeat those in the matching attire before challenging the strange man sitting on the watchtower. Upon defeating them, all of the beasts and their tamers would surround the final enemy and collapse onto him- that is if Lyra is unable to defeat him on her own. The thought of taking on the man alone for a time was something that made her anxiety hit its peak- but above all else, she wished to return home and feel some sort of normalcy after doing what she had done moments earlier. She knew she'd have to, however that may be.


She would hear the voices ring in her mind, which would link it all together for her- was the white light a good omen?


The white light must be a metaphor from the fairies, at least, that is what Lyra had assumed- a metaphor for the usage of the white sack that remained tucked in the larger part of her traveling bag. It was a bag of golden antlion powder, which if used in combination with ancient fairy magic would be able to cause even the largest of dragons to fall into a temporary slumber. The fairy would have to invade the watchtower and sleep the noble before he would be able to notice the invasion that would happen moments afterward- though it sounded easy, she did not think it would be. But she would need to do it, and she would need to do it now.

"Hold on, princess," she would speak to the tiny frog that would remain in her fairy-sized pocket, which would be followed by a simple nod.

Zipping in a vertical direction directly up into the sky, the twinkle of her fairy dust appearing unnoticeable under the reigning light beams of the sun, she would head into the clearing with all of her might toward the watchtower. Upon reaching the sky above its roof, which would conceal the noble under it so he could get his "non-cancerous light exposure" or whatever those Minstrel rich men would call protecting your skin from ultraviolet rays that could give you skin cancer chile, whew, Lyra would shoot downwards in an attempt to not be seen. Landing at the bottom of the watch-tower, she would very slowly and silently pull out the small white bag of antlion droppings and would hold it in her shaky hands with an immensely tight grip. It would be no doubt to the girl that he would be able to sense her magical presence, but even if he was looking around, it would be without a doubt that he would be unable to sight her small size. However, his potential gaze would soon be met with the sounds of a war cry on the horizon- she had taken too long to do what she needed to do successfully so the beast tamers had initiated phase two of the plan, carrying out an attack on the twelve women in matching attire wielding swords. They would appear to form into a box-like formation, raising their swords in front of them as if they were pointing needles at the upcoming Desertio natives. On top of her, she would be able to see fragments of what would appear to be flame and magma swirl around the top of the watchtower as if it were honing into a black hole. The black hole, most likely being the noble at the top utilizing the magic of familiar descent.

"Aah, I have to do it now!" Lyra would think to herself as she would scatter the contents of the white bag upon her hands, which she would appear to not be affected by due to the affinity of her fairy wings.

She was quite petrified of the flames that would swirl above her, though with great might the girl would shoot upwards and levitate behind the noble- he would appear to be struck with a concentration on the horde of beast tamers, which were carrying out strategic attacks with their flock of birds from the sides of the sword-equipped team's formation, unable to sight the fairy floating tinily from behind. Channeling a single fragment of a tulip petal from within her magic, which she would utilize as a projectile, she would quickly cause it to shoot towards him and land on the back of his head. This would cause a golden twinkle to form on the tips of the strands of his white hair- he would gasp and turn around, which would cause Lyra to be met with his now drowsy gaze.

"You little goddamn," he would begin to say as she would scream and bolt towards him in an attempt to flee through the opening in his arm, which was resting quite fruitily upon his waist, causing his magical channel to cease around him.

Blasting through his arm with maximum speed, fluttering her little fairy wings as fast as she could, she would burst through his hands as he would try to grab her and would cause him to fall off the ledge of the watchtower during the process- he would thud on the ground and fall into a state of unconsciousness, met with the other twelve that had been taken care of by the horde of beast tamers. Three of the six beast tamers would remain unscathed, and though two of the beasts had fallen in battle, the others had all sustained mainly minor injuries that could definitely be healed with the help of a fairy's miracle.


Upon reuniting with the beast tamers, Lyra would burst into tears as she would quickly glide down from the skies and lay in the thicket of the grass beneath them- while organically beginning to feel more rested already, surrounding the group would appear a rain of dewdrops that would manifest out of the fairy girl's heart- it would allow all of those around her, even the enemies, be healed of their ailments and wounds. As for those that had fought on the opposing side, defending the plains of Minstrel, they would all fall into a deep slumber from their lack of consciousness due to blood loss and would easily be able to be loaded into the cages that had sat on the edge of the clearing. As for the two fallen beasts of the desert, they would appear to be swept away by the surrounding nature and freed of their bounds- they would pass on into a new life as a spirit of nature, running off into the trees to someday meet the desert they had hailed from. It felt good that it was finally over, even if it was just for a little. But now, all the little fairy could do was cry as she cradled her tiny frog in her hands, laying within a small daybed of the greenest of grasses. Hopefully, she would be home soon- but for now, she wanted to rest, she needed to rest.

wc: 4,860/4,000
enemies defeated & captured: weak (x3) normal (x12) boss (x1)
enemies defeated & fell: strong (x2)