✧ It was to no surprise to the Guildmistress that war was breaking out upon the seemingly endless landscapes of Ishgar- if anything she was surprised another war hadn't manifested sooner due to the amount of darkness that shrouded the horizon these days, and though it was grim, she knew that there was a role she had to fill in order to restore the nation into yet another peaceful era. Having officially joined the ranks of the Luminous Covenant only a few weeks prior to the series of war-related events that were beginning to unfold a bit of a way across the borders, she had joined to fulfill the sole purpose of bringing the war closer to an end however that may be. Though the notions of war were something that had often fallen onto Desirée's shoulders in the past, such as the ongoing conflicts up within the crystalline atmospheric dimensions and beyond in relation to her father, this war was a bit different as she had sought it out on her own. No motives other than to help one side defeat the other, the queen of pink knew that if she placed herself within the front lines others would not have to, saving non-immortals from wasting their ability to carry out their lives for something so trivial. It was a divine plan of intervention in an attempt to cease the arts of chaos and murder, and utilizing holy crystalline structures that formed giant birdcages, she would make sure that nobody on the opposing side that she faced off against would fall into the slumber of death. She had urged her sisters to do the same upon their arrival in Minstrel, and though she had not quite made it across the borders as of now, she could not say the same for her magical cages. They would wait for the slayer's arrival beside a stellar warp pad that had been installed by one of Luminous Rose's ethereal technicians within the forests that wrapped around clearings and small towns near the country's borders, having arrived by magenta-hued carriages.
Floating above the clouds as the sun would begin to rise, the idol would tap at what would appear to be a pink-colored toy iLac, something she had found within the heaps of things she had acquired over the years in her room- it would activate upon typing any strand of numbers into the buttons and pressing call, triggering a song that would slightly be developed in static. Around her wavy strands of pink locks that would flow down her to her feet would appear resonance of small fragments of pink light, dissipating around her as they would be swept away by the winds that would race toward Sakuramori. She had ventured into the sky to think about what was to come in the extremely near future; her optics turning into a golden hue, she would stay calm and optimistic about her soon-to-be arrival in Minstrel, collecting her thoughts before descending in order to make her arrival upon the warps. Now that her gemstone had been established and she had become one of the royal diamonds of Chrysalis, the immortality that came with the role she played within space was something she could definitely use to her advantage across the nation- she was aware of this, just as she was the importance of not letting her gem fall into the wrong hands if she were to hit her breaking point. If luck happened to be on the Guildmistress's side today, one of her fellow guild members that had joined the faction alongside her would be preparing to make their way in the direction of the south.
Rapidly ascending downward from her previous spot within the clouds, the levitating crystalline queen would effortlessly pass through the bubble that resonated above the Stronghold of Roses and would begin to hover amidst the chasm, her hair fluttering around her alongside plentiful amounts of scattered light fragmentals and fluctuating pink crystals. Scanning the spiraling staircases and bridges that would connect the buildings littering the edges of Earthland's rocks, leading all the way down to the pink waters that filled the depths of the deepest parts of Luminous Rose territory, she would look for just what she wished for- someone that she had known to have joined the covenant that she'd be lucky enough to drag to war with her. Due to the sun still making its way up into the sky, it was to no surprise that not many guild members were up and running this early- except one, which her glistening golden eyes would spot making their way up a flight of stairs, appearing to be on a morning walk. Upon utilizing the enhanced senses of being a demon slayer, she would be able to recognize them to be one of her aces, Lyra Karant. Slipping the toy iLac into her fluffy white oversized hoodie's pocket, Desirée would begin to gracefully make her way toward the destination the stairs would lead to, allowing herself to maintain her levitation almost ten feet above where the fellow pink-haired mage would most likely begin to arrive.
Descending down to levitate right above the fellow demon slayer, she would rest her fluffy white boots almost three centimeters above Lyra's head, allowing herself to curl up into a ball and appear as if she was sitting on top of her. Around her would appear to scatter pastel pink rose petals which would fall down into the abyss under the bridge they had found themselves upon, waves of white and pink light scattering outward from her forehead diamond illuminating the surroundings- the spiraling roses that would line the exteriors of the guild's structures would appear to now host small glowing beads of light, mimicking holy dewdrops from the realm of Chrysalis.
"Lyra~ ♡" the demon slayer would speak to the girl that she would levitate above, her eyes maintaining a golden hue if she were to catch a glimpse, "you know hooow we are both in the Luminous Covenant? ✩ Well, my super-duper convenient gemstone cages made it to Minstrel this morning and I'm going to be heading out to be on the offensive~! Buuut,"
However the two would be facing each other at the present moment, the curled up mistress of light would begin to look around as her eyes would fluctuate into that of a lime green color, soon looking down toward Lyra with an almost puppy-dog eyes kind of vibe.
"I need someone I can trust there with me just in case I end up getting shot down from the skies, and you seem to be the best candidate in my eyes~! ♡" Desirée would exclaim, her eyes once again switching into the color of lustrous gold. While she did put quite a large amount of trust in Lyra's hands as of late, she failed to mention that Lyra was the only person she had spotted that had met the qualifications she was currently looking for in terms of someone to drag with her to Minstrel. Perhaps it was fate, who knows?
A spark within her golden gaze, around the girl would manifest even brighter formations of her demon slayer magic, taking the form of dazzling pink stars that would attempt to encompass the two in their own pink galaxy as they would spin around the two- a super fun idea had popped into the idol's head that caused her to squeal in happiness, resulting in her pulling out the toy iLac and pressing the buttons in order for the extremely childish song to begin playing once again. Raising it high as her arms would let her, she would look at Lyra with an intense yet jovial gaze and would giggle, the song beginning to form a beat within its static.
"P-p pink puddy powerpuff pastel powder smackdown squad~! ♡ The remix, run it up edition, featuring the lovely Lyra Karant and the shimmy shiny Desirée Blooms~! ✩ Whaddya say, are you in?"
This was a perfectly, stock-standard morning in the world of Lyra Karant. It was, in fact, a day like any other. Those who knew Lyra would be able to tell precisely where on any given morning she was at any time with an approximate five minute window of variance (specific events notwithstanding) and could locate her without any problems. This was the pink-haired way. This was how most people ended up finding Lyra whenever they needed to see the ace; her morning walks were almost precisely to schedule and this fact had been abused by a wide number of people in the past, up to and including her lovely besties the Faulkners. This was how life worked for Luminous Rose, and it seemed to be the best way for the rose quartz mage to operate her 'working hours' when people could come and find her without hesitation. Therefore, Lyra decided to keep that fact absolutely correct. She was going to keep doing her morning walk (or, when she was feeling particularly brave, morning run) until the day she died. Exercise was good for the soul and all that.
In fact, it was to the point that this morning, for the second time, Desirée Blooms would abuse this fact. The first had, of course, the day that Lyra had reached the storied height of an S-ranked mage, where the note that Desi had pinned to her door was placed whilst she was out for this walk, some time ago. There was a noise from above - the sound of someone displacing air at very high speed carried a sort of tone to it, and besides, Lyra's senses were working overtime to keep up with a powerful mage that was coming down from the skies. Emerald eyes darted skywards to see the brilliant guildmistress descend from the heavens like an angel, the gemstone queen coming down to bless the still freshly minted guild ace with her presence. This, therefore, was not an unusual spectacle, for the whimsical and beautiful mage of the stars was so likely to perform with such radiance that all eyes were upon her. Of course she was thatrical. She needed to be, in her line of work; very few knew that the queen of crystal was so incredibly popular for her music - yet the aces all knew about these careers. It seemed that Lyra was legitimately the only one without a life outside the guild (which was, of course, fine with her - she was happy to fight for a living), and that was okay.
Then, finally, with the guildmistress all but perched upon her head, Lyra offered her a kind smile. "Good morning to you too," the pink-haired rosette offered with a giggle.
The news that Desirée was heading to go and be with her crystal cages was unsurprising. Truthfully, Lyra had mostly signed up for this war in memory of her brother who served, but also for the fact that she knew that other fellow guild members had too - and she wanted to be there to support them, more than anything else. Lyra couldn't have lived with the thought that those she lived along side being trapped on a battlefield without help. She had promised a long time ago that she would do everything in her power to prevent exactly that, and the angelic pink mage would not be found to be an oathbreaker.
The sound and light display that followed the explanation wasn't a shocker at this point, either. The guildmistress had a very specific set of abilities, and a few domains over which she had perfect mastery - to see those domains woven into a request was absolutely on point, and Lyra just liked the display. The childlike glee with which Desi blasted her music from a toy phone and surrounded them with a shimmering pink galaxy of beauteous stars bespoke the very nature from which the woman who ran the Rose. She was glamour, she was grace, she was ethereal and shining - this was Desirée in a nutshell, and Lyra loved every second of this show, watching on with bated breath and nothing short of utter pleasure. She loved this. Of course she did. Who wouldn't? It was just so enthralling and wonderful and so fun - this was what a concert by the queen herself had to be like.
And with a name like that, how could she possibly refuse? "Of course I am!" she proclaimed proudly, lifting a thumb to her chest. "I'm pretty much ready to go any time, so let me know when you want to leave and we can go straight away!" The joys of all the equipment living in the aether was the fact that Lyra didn't need to lug huge amounts of weapons and armour to a battlefield - just herself, and off she went. Even Akasha, the giant pink moon crystal phoenix, was spiritbonded to Lyra so much that she could summon and dismiss her at will. It was such a convenient arrangement! There was no hesitation in her mind, of course. If a friend was marching off to war, Lyra would be right by their side. There was no way the pink-haired girl could give another answer. Those close to her would be protected, or nothing else mattered. This was the way she was. This was the very thing she'd trained for. Besides, two mages in the sky, fighting at high speed? Of course this was what she trained for, day in and day out. Nope, this was perfect.
A moment passed, then a ginger sniff of the air - Lyra had a stark realization a moment later. The smile that crept across Lyra's lips was a little sheepish. "Actually, maybe I should get changed. I kinda smell." And not untrue, either - sweat was not her idea of a good time, and she had run a little bit today.
TAG: @desirée WORDS: 989 TOTAL: 989/4,000 JOB: Link
✧ Strumming her gemstone-adorned acrylic nails through a rather long strand of her luscious pink hair, the gemstone queen would squeal in excitement as her fellow pink-haired guild ace would accept her proposal to team up on behalf of the Luminous Covenant, lowering the toy phone and slipping it into one of her pockets. Though she had not had the chance to fight alongside Lyra within the clouds of the world's horizons, it was something she had looked forward to for quite some time; combative arts within an aerial style was something that Desirée had grown extremely accustomed to upon taking on the crown of the crystalline realm, and as her guild ace utilized a similar style, the upcoming spectacle would be something she just could not pass up! Marking the grand event with an ethereal levitating rose above the two with a focus being held with her golden optics, the pink puddy powerpuff pastel smackdown squad, the remix, run it up edition would be official and nothing but true. A dazzling gleam of confidence would exclude from the girl of pink diamonds, almost as if there wasn't any feeling of fear for what could come from these notions of war in her mind- now that she had Lyra at her side she felt there would be no need for exuberant caution, knowing fully well that the holy gem upon her forehead would be protected and she would fully reciprocate for her mortal companion.
"This is so great, this is simply perfect~! ♡" the lustrous demon slayer would exclaim with excitement, raising her pink ombre vaporizer to her lips as she would listen to the hybrid slayer's expression of needing to change her attire before their departure. It wasn't uncommon for Desirée to push other people's boundaries when it came to her own plans, especially if they were to be at her side while descending into combative situations- hearing Lyra mention that she would be willing to make her way to Minstrel whenever requested would be the equivalent to agreeing to go right away, ultimately aligning with what she wished to accomplish at this very moment. In her eyes, it would be nothing but optimal to make an appearance on behalf of the Luminous Covenant sooner rather than later, hopefully sparking a quicker end to the unsightly events occurring across the borders.
Raising her hand and putting a cessation to the grand showcase of her magical pink blossoms and arrays of light, causing the fluttering magical energy around the two to slowly fade into nothingness as a light pillow of smoke would manifest into the surrounding air from her lips and would immediately be swept away from the ravine's winds. "By all means, take your time getting ready, love ♡," the diamond queen would speak to her ace as her eyes would wander to take sight of the three of her companions ascending from the staircase that led to the guild's warp pad, allowing her to quickly turn to wave at the trio. "Rose~ ✩ Lyra will be joining us on our trip to Minstrel~! ♡ Are the coordinates all set in our warp to bring us to the plains?"
"Yes, my diamond- the coordinates are fully set, making the warp pad in Minstrel fully functional. Entering the electron-transfiguration system within Chrysalis' mirrored interior moon will cause the bond to be completely sealed, the longest it should take for our complete arrival should be about two minutes, my apologies for not buttering up the gemstream before your use," the crystalline mire wolf would speak to her commandress while clasping her hands together, maintaining her typical human form. Around her head Desirée's other two companions would float, glistening with each movement they would take- the bioluminescents would giggle as they would find themselves in yet another playful argument about the taste of labradorite and fluorite crystals, something the pink-haired slayer had grown accustomed to tuning out, especially while acquainting with others.
"Perfect~! ♡ Lyra, while you're changing the four of us are going to warp on over and get the carriages ready, you've used one of the crystalline warps before, right? ✩ Since we'll be buttering up the gemstream it shouldn't take you but a couple of seconds to get on over! ♡" the idol would exclaim in her joyous glimmer, quickly taking another hit from her vaporizer as she would take a couple of steps to overlook the warp from one of the balconies near the impromptu group, "Lumi and Luna, get the diamond sponges ready~ We'll be waiting for you by the warp on the other side, Lyra! ✩"
Excitedly brushing off a few fluctuating waves of light that would begin to rest on the ruffles of her plush hoodie, the gemstone idol would lift into the skies once again, briefly resting on the edge of the once overlooked balcony before descending toward the warp pad. In the midst of her descent, the casual clothing of a plush white would become developed in light before bursting into a new form- within cascading fragmentals of crystal and light would shine one of the newer armors of the Chrysalis royal vault, a bodysuit from the upper of the neck down that would be completely encased in white and pink diamonds. It would appear to match the decadent set of rose-shaped diamonds that would adorn her gemstone crown on top of her head, holding back her seemingly endless strands of pink that would reach much farther down than her now studded heels attached to the bodysuit. It would function similar to a latex bodysuit, though made entirely of light and crystal fragmentals, allowing for flexibility and movement while soaring through the skies in aerial combat.
Landing atop the solidified mass of crystals that would host the ability to warp across the surface alongside other worlds, Desirée would nod toward the three of her companions before instantly activating the warp with a small emitted magical signal- encompassing the four would appear a pink beacon of sorts that would cause their bodies to immediately be swept into the electron-transfiguration system, maintaining the beacon as they would slowly float toward a bright light at the end of the pink glistening tunnel of sorts.
"Scrub, scrub, scrub~! ♡" the guildmistress would exclaim to the two bio-luminescents, which would appear to be holding glowing pink sponges made of some kind of coral-rock material? They would begin to scrub the sides of the glistening beacon that would encompass the four vigorously, spinning around the sides and causing it to glow even brighter with crystalline magic. Meanwhile, the humanoid gem wolf named Rose and the glistening queen would stand still within levitation, emitting magical light arrays from their hands to strengthen the force of the sponges. Who knows how many guild members would have to use this portal to get to Minstrel over the next few weeks? The light at the end of the tunnel would near closer and closer until eventually, they would drift through, appearing upon the surface of the Minstrel warp pad within a graceful stance.
Running her hands through the delicate waves of pink that would cascade all the way to the ground, Desirée would look around at their surroundings in an attempt to spot the location of the carriages and cages that were marked to have been delivered- the plains would appear rather mundane rather than magical, though the location of the warp pad was in a rather discreet location within a grotto that would overlook the plains from an uphill stance. There was a singular tree marked with a pink flag that would lead whoever warped into a larger expanse, further uphill, which would have to be the direction to get to the delivered goods! Shooting into the skies through the canopy of the grotto of trees to overlook the grand scheme of things, the idol alongside her companions would soon sight where the crystalline cages and their pink carriages would rest- however, it would also appear as if there was a trio of individuals assaulting them with the butts of their arcane rifles, presumably in an attempt to destroy them and their sigils of the Luminous Rose and Luminous Covenant. A small feeling of goosebumps would resonate upon her stellar skin under the gemstone bodysuit that encompassed nearly every surface of her skin other than her hands and face- though she understood that war was something that was often played dirty, she couldn't help but feel somewhat angry due to their unkind gesture. Hell, Lyra wasn't even here yet! Her once golden optics would fluctuate into that of a crimson red color as she would quickly advance toward them in the skies, raising her vape to her lips with her left as she would channel ethereal energies of the cosmos into her right hand, causing it to become developed in a shimmering bright pink light.
"What is the meaning of this, the three of you? ✩" the guildmistress of roses would shout toward the three, causing them to cease hitting the edges of the rather sturdy cages and look up at the pink marvel in the skies above, "I recognize that sigil, the three of you are a part of the Ironheart Pact! Put down your weapons at once and surrender to the Luminous Covenant, I do not wish to bring harm to any of you if it is not needed. ✩"
Two of the three would appear to be in a state of shock while the other would appear to laugh in response, cocking their arcane rifle and pointing it upwards into the sky. "It's the idol from Fiore we've heard about, fire!"
Raising their three arcane rifles at the gemstone queen as her eyes would maintain a deep ruby red hue, Desirée would quickly blast higher into the clouds as they would begin to shoot their ethereal bullets at her previous location. It would become apparent to the idol that the people she would be facing off today would not be low in morale when it came to fighting on the side that they were on- while it was quite saddening to see individuals serving in an attempt to bring murder upon themselves while completely unnecessary, it was now quite clear that the cages she had brought to Minstrel from the cosmos would be of great use if she was successful in her endeavors. She would have to fight to bring an end to this war, even if she was just one of the thousands fighting on the side of the Luminous Covenant- but her anger toward the three did not seem to cease, being that she had not been able to have a peaceful moment with Lyra before making their way deeper into Minstrel's plains. High in the skies, she would continue to dodge their bullets with her rapid speed of flight, maintaining the glowing refractions of pink light that would continue to develop in her hand.
"By the glistening depths of the gemstone seas and the endless expanse of the cosmos, I shall unleash the ethereal powers of the holy realm of Chrysalis," she would speak aloud, causing her voice to echo downwards through the almost empty plains that would stretch across the lands under her, "Flare of the Cosmos, arise. ✩"
Behind the back of the levitating guildmistress would appear a spinning pink magical circle, that of which would emit a great pink and white light- resonating with the now pulsating glow that would stretch across her fingers, she would raise them and would cause the magical circle to immediately activate, emitting a barrage of pink holy light and semi-solidified crystal masses from above. The three would catch themselves within the area of effect due to the lack of positioning they found themselves in while shooting into the skies, bringing all three into a quick state of unconsciousness. It would be the effects of the magical resonance that would come from within Desirée's gemstone and holy lacrima, being the ultimate wish to not bring anyone to their last breath; the three would fall into starsleep, having met their equivalent of a breaking point due to the exuberant barrage, a technique the queen would wish to utilize to her fullest extent while operating within this war. As the magical circle behind her would begin to dissipate into the winds that shot through the plains she would begin her descent toward the cages, finally uninterrupted. She hadn't expected to load the cages this early with those that she had defeated, though she knew this was only the beginning of what was beginning to unfold at the Minstrel and Desertio border- she began to feel much more cautious the closer she got to the ground, ultimately keeping her eyes open and constantly scanning around for anyone else that may have been lurking nearby.
Luckily, it seemed the trio of girls with those arcane rifles didn't manage to make even a dent in the structure of the holy crystals that formed the giant cages upon the decadent pink carriages of the Luminous Rose- but the butts of their rifles seemed pretty damn scratched up because of their slamming technique.
personal total wc: 3,532 tags:@Lyra Karant notes: x3 musketeer soldat defeated
The fact that Desirée was already sweeping around in a chaotic whirlwind of preparation was something that Lyra was not entirely ready for. After all, this was entirely a different world to what she was ready for; she was just a normal girl who so happened to have magic, as far as she was concerned. The fact that the guildmistress had all this prestige and power and title and influence set them worlds apart at this point; she was so high and beautiful and angelic and perfect and here she was just a regular human being who wanted to help epople as best she could by learning everything about the magic she had been blessed with. This was just how it was, and Lyra knew it. She knew it by sheer dint of understanding. The fact that the guildmistress of roses commanded respect and the fact that there were so many words that she didn't know just being thrown around casually, like buttering up a gemstream, this was entirely a crazy thing. The fact that she was
"I've used a warp before, but not one of these, and-" Lyra staid, trying to think - her encounter with Nita had been the primary real time she'd ever teleported, and that was a very wet experience - but she wasn't particularly experienced in the use of teleportation magic, which was an unfortunate reality of the situation that unfolded there. The fact that Lyra was now being exposed to both high level magicks and technology realms beyond her imagination was absolutely insane to her. She didn't know the first thing about teleportation magic, though perhaps she should have eventually learned it one day, given its prevalence all through the world and in the use of the guild. Perhaps as an ace she'd master its use one day. Nope. There was no finish to that sentence. She just wasn't able to comprehend all of this just yet.
Such being the case, Lyra looked down at her clothes - and then decided that she could excuse herself for ten minutes. The one upside to being a fire slayer was the fact that showering got very quick when you needed to dry yourself off, and both fire and wind together made for an excellent blowdryer for the hair - so the majority of her time was spent actually dressing into a fresh change of clothes, with her signature crimson jacket, a white tank top underneath, plus her red skirt; it would do no good not to be representing the guild on the battlefield correctly! Couple that with her knee high boots and she was ready to go. Her magic, unfortunately, was not as fantastic as her guildmistress' seemingly flawless ability to manipulate space and time. Perhaps one day she might learn those secrets, but this was not that time. For now, she was going to return to where Desirée had set all this up, and she was going to present herself to be ready to go.
By the time the shimmering mage crossed the barriers of space and time that were placed in front of her, Lyra found herself on the precipice of a battlefield that was only moments from erupting into abject chaos. By the time she materialised, Desirée was already going through the motions of pacifying the three enemies that were starting to attack the crystal cages. This meant that, without any hesitation on her end, there was going to be the opportunity for her to escalate into the skies and act as the reconaissance and observation that the guildmistress had intended for her to be. This was a wonderful opportunity, one that the scion of the Karant family could not have possibly passed up, given the fact that this was precisely what she had been requested to do for the sake of this engagement. Lyra knew that she could use her incredibly heightened senses to scope out the entirety of the battlefield, plus the smaller skirmishes that were taking place all around them. In this way, not only could the support mage make herself entirely useful, perhaps she could find a way to interject herself into the fights that were breaking out. After all, it looked like the crystal cages were well in hand at this point, given that the master of the guild of roses had dispatched three foes in bare moments from the sanctity of the skies. There was no disputing what had happened there, and that her fellow pink-haired mage had mastery of the situation unbridled and uncontested by all.
So, by choice, four crystalline pink wings sprouted from the shoulderblades of the far more timid mage, and she threw herself into the clouds with little more than a whisper, a dream, and a contemplation of the fight that was breaking out. Emerald eyes scanned the ground below and beheld the sweeping plains that joined forests as the roots began to scrabble into the first vestiges of desert, where the not too distant fiefdoms of the roaming Desiertan people began to stretch further out into the warm embrace of the desert sands. In the opposite direction, idyllic little villages built into the crooks of rivers and nestling near the loving bososms of mountains high sat picturesque and perfect. The two nations could not have been more opposite, in both ideology and appearance, which served only to spur on the vast chasm of differences that forced the way this war was to be undertaken. Lyra knew that this was how it was going to have to be in this particular instance. There was no reconciling these differences. After all, she'd seen what the attempt at reconciliation had wrought to begin with; despite the initial outpourings of information that it might have been a third party, the world was heading on this long, winding staircase leading down the path to destruction regardless of the outcome. Joya had been the absolutely unfortunate innocent bystander, and the scapegoat catalyst, that had brought on immutable change to Ishgar. How many innocent people died there, and would need to continue to needlessly be sacrificed, for this spiral of agony to cease spinning down?
Lyra could barely shake that thought as she gazed upon the truth of the fight. The place that the crystal cages had landed was secure at this point, especially given that the warp-capable grotto had been marked particularly as a safe warp place for those cages to be received. Given that the three unfortunate scouts had stumbled across it, Lyra knew that there'd likely be way more fighting towards the base of the hill that marked the inbound location of the two rose mages. Therefore, her eyes darted down towards the first pathway up the hill, tracing it back down towards the base of the mount such that Lyra could investigate it properly - to where her original theory seemed to be able to be proved correct. Even now, the forces of the Ironheart Pact were moving on whatever intelligence the scouts had brought to them; the amount of time they'd originally had to send a report back to their headquarters was sufficient for them to bring on a force that was going to come back in significant numbers. These cages, apparently, were going to be a hot ticket commodity; if the forces of the Pact could get their hands on them and reverse engineer them, then that was going to be an incredible problem for the Covenant, and more importantly, a black mark on the record of the Guild - which an ace and a guildmistress would not, under any circumstance, tolerate.
Her wings brought her back down towards the cages where her mistress awaited. In her fingers suddenly appeared the cryst-blade that her wonderful artisan friend had made for her, its resplendent pink crystal edge shimmering in the light of the sun. "The enemy is coming up the hill, and they're moving in numbers - we'll need to stop them from coming up to get to the cages. I'll go on ahead!"
Eager, perhaps, to engage the foe, but Lyra would not be caught out by the fact that this engagement would not be the easiest thing for her to manage. She knew she was going to be horrifically outnumbered if she attempted to fight them all at once without any assistance, for she was not the greatest fighter. Yet, this was not the plan. The plan was in fact to harass them, draw out their strike teams, and engage them in smaller numbers so that she could pick them off on her own terms. Was it a great plan? Probably not, but this was all Lyra knew how to do.
So, she took to the skies, blessed of the wind as she was, flying down at speeds that were multiplying upon themselves such that a sonic boom formed in her wake, four wings angled to give her the perfect amount of downthrust to bring her to the vanguard of the approaching speartip. Her first strike was only meant to be a simple warning for engagement, as she unleashed her opening salvo of luminescent blades of crystal, erupting as a beautiful blossom of her fleche. As the dancing weapons paraded their way through the skies down upon six unsuspecting armour-clad musketeer fencers of the Minstrelian army, Lyra barely had a moment to look down as she dashed past them, looping high up into the sky to see her enemies that were now running for cover as the dive-boming angel had attacked them so brazenly out in the open. Perhaps that was enough, as she channelled her defensive magic to create a shimmering field around her - one part to conjure the crimson battle-plate that was the steel rose heart of her magic, but also to form its actual barrier spells that came with it. With blade in hand, she was ready to engage more of those foes - but now they knew she was there, and far more would be coming soon enough.
Hopefully-- and Lyra meant hopefully-- her friend would not be far behind.
TAG: @desirée WORDS: 1,684 TOTAL: 2,673/4,000 JOB: Link
✧ Perching upon the tips of the grand pink cages with remnants of crystalline stardust in her wake, the pink-haired slayer would sigh as she would raise her vaporizer to her lips, her eyes resting in the colors of a deep rose. The three musketeer soldats appeared to be encased in a mystical veil upon their foreheads as they remained in their slumber underneath the holy stars; they now were in one of the giant birdcages, and though three were already inside, there was room for at least six more. Though she felt the tiniest bit of remorse for them, she also deeply understood that they were aiming with a purpose during their previous quarrel- and were certainly not holding back with the idea of putting a bullet into her crown of diamonds. But now she was currently anticipating the arrival of her friend and guildmate before she was to approach on the offensive, and since she held the title of a guildmistress, she knew she had to fortify her confidence.
Marked by a twinkle upon the horizon, Desirée would spot Lyra approaching within an aerial stance, armed with a blade of crystalline that seemed to refract the rays of the sun with valor. Immediately the optics of the gemstone queen would switch from the deep rose color they were resting in prior to a holy vibrant golden, shimmering under the sunlight as her forehead gem would illustriously twinkle within the slits of her pink bangs. She would be informed that the ranks of the Ironheart Pact were approaching upon the hill over yonder, prompting her to instinctually ascend a few feet above the cages she was resting upon- she would immediately direct her ascended crystalline mire wolf, Rose, to lift the cages with her magical abilities and relocate them to the edge of the fight that was about to ensue. Rushing to gain elevation on the encroaching army, the demon slayer would burst into the skies while still being able to sight the general aspects of the surrounding terrain whilst her companion would begin to follow with the entourage of pink birdcages on their floating chariots. Though within these moments the feelings of bleak nostalgia would begin to creep into her mind, only to bring her to an overwhelming feeling of the need to protect Lyra during these events- perhaps it was the stars telling her to remain confident alongside her ace, though she could only think of all the friends she happened to lose during the many wars that spread throughout many worlds throughout her lifetime. She couldn't let Lyra down like she did all the others. She wouldn't.
"I took a vow when I established Luminous Rose to never let down the friends I've made like I did all the others those years ago," the voice of Desirée's subconscious would speak within her mind, echoing amongst the sounds of wavering starlight, "to never stop becoming strong so that I could never have to lose a friend again because of such weakness."
The colors of the golden eyes would soon drift into the colors of a deep blue, followed by a sliver of crimson, and then back to the golden color they were in seconds prior. It was hard for the queen of the crystal realm to not blame herself for the loss of the things she loved in her life back in the lands of Earthland- she almost felt as if there was something wrong with the way she left things when she had to ascend into Chrysalis to fight the war her father was waging against her newfound queendom, and while the other Queens reminded her what happened to Crystal Swan and its prospects were not her fault due to the transfer in leadership she experienced before her ascension, she still somewhat refused to accept that and let it pass on into the forgotten. Desirée missed those close acquaintances from the past- but they were no longer in Fiore, at least, she wasn't able to find anything that would lead her into thinking so. Those old Wizard Saints, her cousin, the other guildmasters and mistresses from the guilds she once was close-knit to; if they just so happened to cease to exist, she wouldn't allow anyone else she considered even remotely a valued acquaintance to do the same as she knew she wouldn't be able to handle anything else of that nature.
Maneuvering under the clouds within the swirling winds that would shoot across the Ministrelian plains, the girl of the gemstone crown would burst toward the approaching army developed in fluctuating arrays of pink and white light, only picking up her speed when she would sight Lyra below her engaging in combat with her weaponry. It was within her nature that Desirée wished to express to her opponents her wishes for them to surrender rather than cause themselves to later be rendered unconscious by her magic, though they seemed to be too far gone into the cause to be asked of such things in war. The time was now for the guildmistress of roses to descend deeper into the lower skies to bring the war closer to an end by the use of her ethereal holy magic, and though her heart was beating extremely fast, her mind would slowly ease its way out of the painful remembrances of her prior acquaintances and focus on the primary objective. Now picking up her speed within the fluctuating stardust that would combust upon the sides of her diamond bodysuit, she would appear to the left of Lyra approaching the sides of the groups that were making their way closer to her friend. Unlike her companion on this journey into Minstrel on behalf of the Luminous Covenant, Desirée had different plans for pursuing the opponent as she wanted to focus on knocking them down as a whole rather than going after individuals one by one. Behind the ace of Luminous Rose, the mire wolf would lay down the carriages to rest about fifty feet in order to provide easy access in running bodies consumed in starsleep to the mode of transportation back from the battlefront. The crystalline mire wolf would be able to do so easily with her magic of crystal bubbles, and within the battle, she would begin looking for fallen soldiers to sweep them toward her with such ethereal essence.
Leaving a wispy trail of pink stardust and dissipating semi-solidified constructs of light and crystal, the guildmistress would raise her hand outward and immediately shoot plentiful beams of light toward each group one by one from their sides, causing them to be pelted with shimmer that would cause those lying on their exteriors to be pushed toward those in the middles. She would continue in a line advancing from group to group on the side deeper into their controlled lines, pelting at their sides, until eventually, she was at the back of their giant grouping- she would continue to pelt at them with her fluctuating stellar light beams that came out of her hand's grasp and would eventually pick up her speed and fire. While her speed was hitting the amount it would take a normal one's eyesight to wary upon keeping up, if one was able to spot her absolute placement it would be within a clockwise motion around the entire giant group from the aerial perspective, consistently causing light to waver toward them and pick into their defenses. However, doing damage within this stance was not her objective, though she was making great progress in relation to the time elapsed. Desirée's true motive was to push as many of those she was to face off against into a small area to make her next use of her magic easier and more effective, to which she was successful- due to the strikes coming from every direction from her rapid movement around the group she would notice most of their forces backed up to form a circle of defense with their stance forming entirely around one individual, likely their leader.
Raising higher into the sky while maintaining a clockwise motion of flight around the near entirety of the forces the Ironheart Pact had sent, the girl of the diamonds and roses would raise her hand outward mid-flight and speak a holy incantation quietly to herself, causing her forehead gem to sparkle amidst the fluctuating light that poured out of her presence itself. Once the incantation was complete, she would sporadically shoot out of her clockwise motion and would briefly hover over the giant enemy group to channel her magic into a circle that would rest just above them, spinning in a similar directional circle to its commander; upon doing this she would return to her same clockwise motion and would begin shooting fragments of rose quartz and diamond crystals at the forces in an attempt to keep them at such a defensive, taking their gaze away from the magical circle that spanned hundreds of feet above them. Within a giant twinkle of pink light would produce a rather-large crystalline fragment which would appear to resemble that of an actual shooting star, developed entirely in holy white and pastel pink fluctuating lights- it would waver out of the magical circle and shoot downwards at an immensely fast speed, and while some of the outer defensives would attempt to run out of its impending grasp, upon making contact with the surface it would cause an extensive explosion of pink light that would catch the entirety of Ironheart Pact's forces in the blast. Shimmering away into the wind that would sweep through the hills, the light would leave small dust clouds that picked up from the blast and a small crater where the shooting star came in contact with the surface, though it was not deep enough to trap any of the remaining forces.
As the shooting star that she had channeled with her magic was one of her strongest attacks, the crystalline queen would shoot upward to take cover in one of the few clouds momentarily to catch her breath before lowering back down into the fray- from above she could see Rose pulling a rather abundant amount of unconscious Ironheart soldiers into the cages with her magical bubbles, at least twenty-eight, fallen to the star that mirrored the one that caused Desirée to ascend into being that of a crystalline monarch. As for the rest of those that found themselves hit but not in the dreamy state of the cosmos, they seemed to be just as angry as they were disheveled- they had made their way out of the shallow crater and created a new formation, which seemingly consisted of three heavily-armored individuals and a differently-dressed individual from the rest, all wielding swords and centering themselves around the strangely dressed one. Their armor seemed to not be the best put together though, especially not after enduring that burst of cosmic energy- some of it was falling off of their bodies to reveal thinner attire underneath, and for what was assumed to be their leader, his clothes appeared to be tattered. The brief feeling of calmness would coarse through the guildmistress' veins when she realized there were only four hostile enemies left in the vicinity, though it immediately would fluctuate back to protecting Lyra during the remainder of the battle. From her aerial perspective, she would immediately adjust herself to float just over where her ace resided upon the battlefield and would descend downward to provide support in whatever way she could- and if Lyra was to go in swords blazing, Desirée would be quick to follow up with another round of a stellar light barrage.
At this very moment, the most important thing in her eyes was making sure that Lyra was safe and supported- she wouldn't let herself lose her like she did all the others.
personal total wc: 5,511 tags:@Lyra Karant notes: x18 musketeer fencer defeated, x3 musketeer vanguard defeated
The moment of switching into combat was always one of the most difficult transitions that Lyra had struggled with since she had inherited her magical powers - and inherited was the correct word for it, particularly because she had not been born with the inherent ability to manipulate ethernano as most of her compatriots had been. While Desirée made it looks beautifully effortless with her ability to weave magick as if it were little more than a wave of her fingers and the ability to carve ethereal masterpieces followed like it were little more difficult than taking a breath, Lyra on the other hand had such a hard time with that switching of modes that she knew that she was still only a little fresh-faced child amidst the power of gods. It was such a sobering experience to see someone who was simply her better in every respect. Sure, there was a certain classification system that said that Lyra had a particular amount of talent - but that was nothing more than potential ability. The guildmistress knew how to take hold of that talent and use it without hesitation or compunction - an ability that the pink-haired rose quartz was absolutely jealous of. For, as Lyra could feel the voice spill forth into her mind like a cascading waterfall of warmth and projected power, the crystalline queen was telling her a tale that spoke to the nature of her history and what she promised to do. It was, in its own way, almost heartbreaking to hear - to know that Desirée felt so strongly about not letting her friends and family down, that she felt that she had let those around her down such that there was little else to do but swear to become stronger such that this travesty never reoccur. Lyra could relate, truthfully - it was her own weakness that saw her brother's death, and in that moment she felt such a kinship to the pink-haired queen of Chrysalis that it was just powerful, that empathic wave of true understanding.
Then it hit her, like a truck - this, in its way, was the true origin of the oath of Roses. It suddenly hit her that this was why they swore the solemn obligation that they did, when they took on the guild mark; Desirée's feelings about being insufficient to protect those around her, and her following quest to gain as much power as necessary to protect and save the people in her circle and by extension then the world, falling only short of being strong enough to rival the military factions of the world, the Rune Knights included. Now that everything was falling apart around them as the shifting geopolitical landscape crumbled away into abject chaos, that comment alone made everything fall into place for the ace of the Rose. Strange that it took an offhand comment for the final piece of the jigsaw to fall into place, but it was the fact that this context explained almost everything about why the guild was born the way it was. This was why the idol sought her and her fellow guildmates to crusade for the strength to do as they felt necessary. It was a heartbreaking revelation. It hurt to know she felt this way. It hurt to know that they were kindred spirits. She didn't deserve that pain. In that instant Lyra swore, as her ace, to help her shoulder that burden.
"You're not weak," came Lyra's voice. Her lack of telepathic ability was compensated by the wind carrying her words, even as she felt a twinge of pain pushing her powers to such a limit. "I couldn't imagine you being anything but the strongest among us."
Sure, by definition, Nita was probably stronger - but Goddess damn it, Desirée was the luminous centre of the world. She, as she conjured insanely powerful shooting stars and the insane magical power of the crystal realm that she commanded to fight her enemies that sought to bring about the destruction of what was rightfully hers as a strategic military asset, there was a moment of awe. What power that was, to be the shining star of annihilation for their enemies! So too was her crysal wolf providing support, but the carnage was unmistakeable below them. The very earth seemed to tremble and shake at the queen's sundering, where the destructive power called forth of the girl borne upon the skies showed that she was a true force of nature to be reckoned with. Sheer power followed such that only the greatest amongst the Ironheart Pact's number seemed to remain standing after the starquake, and only barely so in that moment. Four of them, to be precise - a commander, and their retinue of three. Feeling that Desi was close enough to provide her support if she chose to engage, she made that decision to be the avenging angel of crystal pink that would seal victory for the two fighters of the Rose. This had to end. War was not a pleasant thing, particularly when the bodies of the defeated littered the hillside that they were choosing to fight on and if necessary die on. What wicked and twisted humour this was that fighting and dying was the only option that seemed to be available to them at this point - but nonetheless it was here, now, and the culmination of this combat had arrived that the two girls would be its final arbiter.
Upon the wind as Lyra sailed its currents on four crystal archaism wings, a word was whispered, the embodiment of the soul made manifest.
"Akasha!"
From within her soul, as a blossoming flower, a bright spark burst forth to make itself manifest as a pink bird, whose body was almost as large as Lyra's, shone its way into existence. The moon crystal phoenix borne of her efforts at the Faulkners' command took corporeal form, ready to provide its soul-bound master support to engage the enemies below her. She cawed in the next moment, its bass so deep it was as a lion's roar; in the next instant as she cruised air currents, five copies of that reflection appeared and shone as bright as the moon upon its fullest moment, then bloomed as bright as the sun to follow. Below, the fighters of the Pact raised their arms to cover their eyes to evade the glare, but it was too late; they could not see as the second combatant of the Rose followed suit, diving from the heavens with her blade resting upon her left arm, point drawn towards her foes as she charged. They would not see the woman who would defeat them for the folly of choosing to fight against them.
Behind her, forming in the high-speed wake that she was creating, chunks of pink crystal energy were forming. It began as a seed, then grew from that central point as it spread to create a hundred thousand shards to follow it; the channelled energy was enough to blossom outwards that Lyra was putting everything into this conjuration. She had to. She had to finish this, here and now, before her enemies had a single chance to raise their blades in protecting her allies and the people around them. She had to stop them from reaching the crystal cages and undoing everything Desirée had worked for. She had to stop them from hurting her. Or Akasha. Or Desirée herself, for that matter. She had opened her heart that day, and that kindness would not go unpaid. Her eyes, just as Desi's did, had flashed their own golden energy as she fell easily into the trance of the slayer, knowing that nothing short of every ounce of her energy consumed would be sufficient to write the final page of this book and close it.
Upon that realisation, the tidal wave of crystal poured forth from the wind, the hundred thousand shards shooting forward to pierce through the remaining enemies as lances through the skin. This was her strongest power, and upon its finality, Lyra could trust; she had no greater offensive capability in her arsenal than this. She was putting her heart and her soul into ending this combat, here and now. Every single one took a shred of armour on the Pact fighters below with it. Every little detonation against plate meant that the armour rusted away and fell into nothingness, before a following charge took with it skin, or drained the enemy of their will to fight - every moment here was just pure power as Lyra slipped into finding the end for their enemies. It was as if listening to the rain patter against a tin roof, where the tiny little noises all combined together to create a cacophanic rhythm. It was overwhelming to experience, or so Lyra hoped. She wanted this to be the end. She needed this to end, for if it did not, she had little else to give in this situation.
By the time the roiling wave of energy ended and the dust below her began to settle, Lyra swept her eyes-- now switching back to their traditional emerald-- across the battlefield. None of the Pact remained standing at the end of that destructive blast. Between the two of them, the angels of the Rose had managed to take care of each and every enemy advancing up the hill. None remained to oppose them, and Lyra silently thanked the stars that this fight had ended where it did. Were it to continue, she was not sure if she could have kept up that amount of destructive capability in order to continue halting their advance. She ahd come awfully close in simply engaging in melee combat to keep them distracted. Her feet touched the floor as she looked to the skies to find her guildmistress, catching her breath in the next instant. Her lack of experience with fighting showed as she fought to regain her composure.
"Are you okay up there? Did they hurt you?" Lyra asked, more out of habit than anything - she was a healer first and a fighter second, after all, but being forced into fighting by the way of the world was a new experience. A pause, then a smile followed. "Thank you for being here. I couldn't have done this without you." Even if she was the one brought along, it was true - she had not been the shining star her. Desirée was. As always, she was the shining centre of the universe - and Lyra would have it no other way.
TAG: @desirée WORDS: 1,770 TOTAL: 4,443/4,000 JOB: Link
