Fire Rescue! [EXAM]

Akemi was pretty confident that not everyone was happy about the decision she'd made. Hostage situations were always considered some of the most sensitive of scenarios, so for her to snatch the task and declare that her apprentice would be taking care of it to prove herself competent had earned her more than a little doubt.

But so far as she was concerned it was a good opportunity and, more importantly, she'd seen Nymara's progress. The firebrand was still a bit too wild for her liking but she should be perfectly capable of rescuing all the hostages as long as she took the task seriously. The fact that the hostages were being kept inside a forest was just a bonus, as it meant Nymara would also learn about the importance of avoiding collateral damage.

Still, if the hostages actually came to harm she'd receive more than just some complaints, so even before Nymara arrived the assassin had already scouted the area. If worst came to worst she could take over, although that would mean that Nymara had failed her exam and would have to wait for another opportunity to prove herself.

Currently she had abandoned her physical form and was residing in the shadows at the edge of the forest, waiting for her apprentice's arrival. Given that Nymara still didn't know how to traverse long distances without relying on transport she imagined that it would take a bit longer before the fire slayer had recovered to her usual bombastic self. It was in the middle of the day so the shadows weren't too long, although inside the forest there would be dark aplenty for her to spectate Nymara from.

Hearing Nymara and Lucky's arrival Akemi would watch the two approach, the knight exceed and the fiery redhead. While the changes were minimal Akemi could tell that Nymara was different from when she'd arrived at Fairy Tail: her passion could be troublesome at times, but it also meant that she trained hard with the appropriate motivation.

After the two younger Fairy Tail members had their conversation Akemi would manifest herself behind a tree and walk out, raising an eyebrow at Nymara's last comment.

"Now's not the time for hide and seek."

She could have stepped out of Nymara's shadow as she'd done before, but she suspected that her apprentice was beginning to get used to it. Instead she just came to a halt in front of the two and folded her arms, nodding towards Lucky before focusing her full attention on the hopeful examinee.

"You'll be proving whether you have what it takes to raise your rank as a member of Fairy Tail, but at the same time you'll also be undertaking a mission with actual stakes. If at any point you start thinking you've got the luxury of goofing around remember that if you fail there would be consequences not just for yourself but others as well."

Akemi didn't care that much whether the hostages got out of this alive or not, but she wanted Nymara to be at her most focused. She'd have to be if she wanted to take care of these thugs without burning down the forest in the process. Once she had Nymara's full attention she continued.

"You'll be rescuing hostages which are being kept inside of this forest. They were on a train to Era when bandits ambushed them." She indicated the forest behind her with a small movement of her head. "Guards from Morgate have already tried to rescue the hostages, but apparently these bandits have access to magic that made it impossible to find either them or the hostages. You'll have to figure out how to avoid getting lost once inside."

Turning around she walked towards the nearest tree, placing her hand against the rough bark protecting it from the elements.

"It goes without saying that whether you pass or not depends on whether you can bring back the hostages unharmed. However, since this forest is important to the Mountain Village nearby you'll also be penalised if you burn it down in the process." She looked at Nymara over her shoulder. "I won't disqualify you if you burn down a couple of trees, but if I decide that you're not even trying to be careful it'll affect my final verdict. As for the bandits..." She shrugged. "The authorities want you to deliver the bandits to them, but I won't mind too much if you decide to kill or ignore them. The safety of the hostages is what really matters, along with proving to me that you can do the job even when you have to be careful."

Current Appearance:

WC: 775
PWC: 775
TWC: 1,608

@Nymara

Akemi gave Nymara a look as her apprentice referred to her as a "cheeky bastard", but decided to let it slide. She'd already shown enough familiarity with the firebrand that it wasn't surprising for her tongue to slip occasionally. "I don't skulk usually."

It was good to see that the fire slayer paid close attention as the assassin explained the details of the exam. Boisterous and passionate as Nymara was, it seemed that her time as a member of Fairy Tail had helped her develop some focus and an understanding of when she could afford to goof around and when things were serious.

Also, when Akemi would tolerate a lack of attentiveness.

"Funny that you'd bring up the Rune Knights." Holding her bandaged hand in front of her, palm upwards, ephemeral dark smoke would seep out from between the bandages and form an animated display of two armies clashing, albeit on such a small scale that it all fit on Akemi's palm, relying on Lucky's and Nymara's sharp eyes to make out the details. "Under normal circumstances they would take care of this, which is why this doesn't happen often. Just like the arms deal we had to protect before this could be seen as a consequence of the international conflict that has broken out: the Rune Knights have gotten themselves involved in that mess, so their presence within Fiore's borders has weakened." Closing her hand the smoke dissipated. "If it wasn't for that, these brigands would never have taken this chance, or if they did they'd quickly have been taken care of."

While technically there was a time limit to this mission Akemi didn't think they had to hurry that much: the kidnappers needed their hostages alive to extort a ransom, and the hostages were all civilians who'd obediently stay put until someone capable came along to save them. No rookie adventurers or hotheaded fools who thought they could take care of the situation by themselves.

"Just don't let anyone else hear that you referred to the hostages as bodies. They might take offence." After that dry comment she continued in a more serious tone. "There should be around forty hostages: they ambushed a smaller train meant for high-profile passengers. Easier to get a good ransom from those, and if the train was too big they risked losing control of the situation. I'll let you know when you've recovered all the hostages."

From the sounds of it Nymara was taking the situation seriously, considering her options and earnestly admitting that the ease with which she'd complete this mission would depend on how successful she was in remaining undetected. Given that the brigands didn't really benefit from harming the hostages Akemi didn't think Nymara would have much difficulty recovering those: she was strong enough that the brigands shouldn't stand a chance in a straight-up fight, so the only risk was that the firebrand got outsmarted.

The bigger concern was how the forest would fare, at least from Akemi's perspective (who didn't rate the hostages that highly anyway).

"You'll have to carefully manage your stamina." To keep the forest uncharred Nymara would have to rely on close-quarters combat (or very precise ranged attacks), which meant that each bandit would require more energy to take down than if she could just roast them all with a breath attack.

She could practically feel how the thought of killing the bandits made her apprentice tense up. Nymara was a brawler and a fighter, but she had nearly no experience with seriously hurting what she considered to be people. It almost made Akemi want to pit her against a dragon to see what the redhead would do. For now, however, she turned around to face her apprentice once more. "As I said, what you do with the brigands is up to you. Neither local law enforcement nor the Rune Knights will just leave them be if you decide to solely focus on the hostages."

The forest would quickly swallow Nymara once the firebrand decided to start her mission, increasingly large trees surrounding her until the outside world was little more than slits of light behind her. The canopy was dense enough that the blue sky was reduced to a spotted pattern of holes through which sunlight illuminated the world of brown and green. There was little to no wind, only the thinnest branches swaying ever so slightly to make the shadows squirm.

"She's already doing better than I expected, so we'll have to see." Akemi responded to Lucky. With a quick nod she acknowledged the exceed's statement that he'd spectate from above. The forest was dense enough that she doubted he'd be able to completely bypass the difficulties of this mission even with his aerial view... especially once the brigands' magic got involved. "Pay close attention then." The assassin herself dissolved into shadow, dispersing so she could act as spectator without interfering with the mission.

As Nymara ventured further into the forest she'd notice that it was abnormally quiet. Her sensitive hearing allowed her to hear critters digging through the ground, and the occasional flapping of wings in the distance, but beyond that it was like the world had fallen silent. Her sharp eyes allowed her to clearly survey her surroundings even with the trees throwing a complicated pattern of shadows across the forest floor, but nothing seemed to move aside from her own body and the fallen leafs and twigs her feet crushed and pushed aside. The lack of wind meant that there was not even the faint sound of air flowing past the wooden giants that dominated the terrain. Her sharp nose picked up the scent of dirt, rotting leafs, old bark and the numerous insects that gnawed their way through said bark, but a distinct absence of anything else.

However, all of this was simply the nature of the wilds, away from civilisation where people filled their lives with activity and noise. It was only after walking for several minutes that she'd discover that she couldn't tell which direction was which. Every tree looked the same, and looking back she'd find that there were no visible traces of her own trail. Even if she placed markings to help her navigate she'd find that the moment the markings left her immediate vicinity she could no longer remember where they were.

From above Lucky would see that Nymara's movements were... odd. Flashes of red hair revealed her serpentine path, twisting and winding between the trees with an aimlessness that contradicted with the mission the firebrand had dedicated herself to. And while for Lucky the sun hung high in the sky the foliage of the trees prevented Nymara from using the sun to orient herself.

If Nymara kept walking she'd eventually find that the slits of light that indicated the edge of the forest were now in front of her, her attempts at finding her way through the forest somehow ending up with her getting turned around. If she focused she might realise that even for the magic-saturated lands of Fiore the background magic of the forest was slightly higher than average, but there didn't seem to be a single source to direct herself towards. No winds to give away direction either, only stale, acrid air that lingered between wooden giants.

From the shadows Akemi watched as Nymara tried to navigate through the forest. She'd told her apprentice that the brigands used magic to prevent the guards from finding them, so the first challenge the firebrand had to overcome wasn't violent opponents but the trickery deployed by crafty criminals to confuse those who tried to locate them. Akemi had prior experience with such magic and thus had countermeasures, but Nymara was a straightforward fighter: how would she find her target when the forest was actively preventing her from orienting herself using ordinary means.

Current Appearance:

WC: 1,309
PWC: 2,084
TWC: 3,968

@Nymara

Akemi frowned as she observed Nymara's progress from the shadows. As expected, the firebrand was having severe difficulties challenging the magical deterrent the bandits had laid out to hide in the forest. There was nothing for her to fight, and the sharp senses she normally relied upon appeared to be useless this time around. Sharp eyes didn't help when all trees looked the same, and sharp ears only worked when there was sound to detect. Here in this enchanted forest there was no direction and no distinctions... at least, none that could easily be detected by a human.

If it took too long for Nymara to figure out how to proceed Akemi might have to drop a hint, but she was going to give her apprentice plenty of time to prove herself. The redhead did have a functional brain, she just needed to apply it in a situation where fists wouldn't suffice. As exasperated as Akemi might be at times she did have high expectations of the slayer: if she didn't she would never have presented this challenge as the exam the enthusiastic firebrand had to pass.

And there was one way of figuring out the path forward which Nymara could use but which a human might not think about. That acrid scent clung to every tree, faint but ever-present, irritating the nose even as it was the clue which Nymara would need to move forward.

Enchantments like these which befuddled the senses needed an access point. In this case the enchantment the bandits had woven to hide themselves would anchor itself to the psyche of everyone that entered this forest through their sense of smell, something which humans rarely paid as much attention to as their sight and hearing. But for a slayer, whose nose was significantly better than average...

As Nymara began to navigate her way through the forest with her nose upfront she'd quickly realise that while the scent was almost non-existent near the edge of the forest it'd grow stronger the deeper one went. The difference was mild enough that a human might not notice it, but for her, it'd be possible to tell the difference. This time she would not be greeted by the bright sun beyond the treelines.

Instead, the world around her only grew darker, until almost no light hit her closed eyelids any more. And now other scents were also creeping into her nostrils, the acrid smell no longer suppressing all the others. The scent of trees, the scent of feather and carapace, the scent... of humans, leather, and metal.

Akemi could bypass the effects of the enchantment by spreading her awareness far enough to cover a sizeable amount of the forest. As Nymara was making progress she followed, intangible but ever-present, only the faintest darkening of shadows a hint towards her existence.

The enchantment only existed to keep intruders out, so once Nymara made it far enough into the wood's depths she also moved outside of the affected area. At first the forest might seem the same as before, if darker, but now she'd have no difficulty distinguishing between the various trees that dominated the terrain, and various sounds from the critters that lived in the overgrown landscape also found their way to her ears.

But getting past the enchantment was only the first step. Now she'd have to find the bandits and their hostages, to free the latter and decide for herself how to deal with the former.

Her ears would alert her to the sound of leather scraping against wood. There was nobody in sight, but nevertheless, someone was there. No spells flew forth to greet her, no weapons were aimed at her, but no longer was she alone. To her left there was a gully, the flanks covered in patches of green and a small creek at the bottom. To her right there was a mess: a large tree had fallen over at some point in the past, its thick branches entangling with those of its neighbours so it remained at an angle, allowing some more sunlight to spill into the forest.

Unbeknownst to Nymara, but not to Akemi, there was a guard post not too far in front of her, only separated from the firebrand's position by several hundred meters. The guard post had been placed in the branches of one of the trees, from which a watcher could survey the surroundings clearly. If Nymara moved any closer without being aware of this she might end up being detected before she even knew where the enemy was.

As it was Nymara was close to the edge of the guard post's line of sight. Fortunately for her, while the watcher's altitude meant they had a clear view of their direct surroundings the other trees in the area kept them from gazing too far out into the distance.

Still, she'd have to somehow get past this if she wanted to rescue those hostages.

Current Appearance:

WC: 824
PWC: 2,908
TWC: 6,459

@Nymara

Nymara's choice to climb the tree meant that she risked getting spotted, as the sunlight would make her vibrant hair visible like fierce flames. However, as she was swift and nimble enough to ascend quickly without any difficulties no alarms were sounded: the guard's position in the branches meant that for him to notice Nymara he'd have to be looking in her direction at the right time in the short window it took her to reach the treetops, and as fortune would have it his gaze was aimed in another direction for long enough. Once she was amongst the branches the dense forest would keep her hidden, as well as her high altitude that placed her above the guard post.

Akemi wondered if Nymara was aware that humans had a common failing of not looking up when keeping an eye out. It was something she herself often made use of if she couldn't rely on invisibility or shortcuts to get past wary watchers. Given that humans were kin to apes and monkeys it was rather curious that they had to be taught to look up rather than knowing to do so instinctively, but in the end, it made the job easier for assassins like herself.

Regardless, once Nymara was high enough in the treetops closing the distance to the guard post was an easy task, her physical abilities allowing her to move from branch to branch with little difficulty. Dragon slayers were more physically inclined than most magic users, and while she didn't make a point of it Akemi was pleased that Nymara took to that aspect of her abilities so naturally. There existed dragon slayers who'd focus fully on magic without applying their bodies at all, which was a waste of potential.

Nymara's sneaky approach was aided by the fact that she wasn't up against well-trained and experienced enemies: these bandits had enough know-how to successfully ambush a train and take away all the passengers, but if one were to compare their skills to that of your average Rune Knight they'd come out looking like oafish clowns. The guard in question was trying his best to keep an eye on his surroundings, but a lack of discipline or experience meant that for the most part, he just looked around, a crossbow leaning against the tree trunk behind him as he suppressed a yawn. The bandits had sent out a demand for a ransom, but until they received an answer they were stuck waiting, not knowing how long it would take. It was difficult for even disciplined soldiers to remain alert under such circumstances, but for some thug it was borderline impossible.

That said, it wasn't like he was completely without caution: once Nymara got close he frowned as he subconsciously picked up on her presence, even if he wasn't sure what exactly had him on edge. When she spoke out behind him he reacted quickly, grabbing the crossbow and spinning around to meet his foe... only to get hit squarely in the face by Nymara's boots and knocked to the ground, the crossbow falling out of his hand as he let out a surprised and pained cry.

With his back on the wooden floor of the guard post the thug tried to get up and grab a small horn, but Nymara's quick and decisive actions forced him back down, grunting before her hand covered his mouth and a firm boot prevented him from lifting his dominant arm. He struggled against her, trying to force himself up despite the slayer's body on top of his, but discovered that despite his larger built the slayer's supernatural strength was too much for him, leaving him at her mercy.

The flames that appeared in her free hand quickly got his attention, his angry gaze turning to one of fear as his eyes went wide and his cheeks pale. He shook his head as she brought the flames closer, letting out muffled sounds and trying to pull himself away from the flames even as Nymara's strength held him in place. When she removed her hand so he could answer her questions he took a deep gasp before replying.

"I won't lie, just don't burn me!" She clearly had done a good job scaring the daylights out of him: most people would have a hard time keeping their cool when they were suddenly pinned down and faced with the prospect of getting burned alive. While he had a fair amount of muscle he looked quite young: not much older than Nymara herself, in fact. His attire was a mix of simple linen clothes and pieces of crude leather armour. Aside from the crossbow he also had a dagger and a shortsword at his waist, although both were now well out of reach with Nymara restraining him.

"W-We've got 17 people counting me. Resmir, Thovis, Irvo, Lanif-I mean Lanith, Berk, Wyrode, and Pell can use magic, b-but Berk isn't very good at it."

In his haste to convince Nymara to not burn him he was stuttering and getting tongue-tied answering her questions. Like a prey animal caught in the gaze of a predator he lay there, terrified that even the slightest movement may make the scary flame-haired girl with the reptilian eyes and the sharp fangs decide that he wasn't being cooperative enough.

"W-Wyrode is in charge but Pell... Pell's magic should've kept you-kept you out. C-Can you please l-let me go? I didn't, I haven't hurt anyone, I haven't done anything wrong!"

Nymara's sharp senses would tell her that the man's heart was pounding in his chest and his voice was wavering, and he smelled of fear and desperation. With him being so openly terrified of her thanks to her violent introduction and her credible threat it might be difficult to know for sure if his stuttering and sweating was because he was lying or because he was scared shitless. The fear, at the very least, was completely genuine: there were few humans who could fake their emotions to this extent, especially without the usage of magic.

Current Appearance:

WC: 1,012
PWC: 3,920
TWC: 9,081

@Nymara

The man kept glancing from Nymara's face to her flames, apparently torn between not wanting to take his eyes off the threat and not wanting to somehow offend the person who might just decide to burn him if he pissed her off. The fact that her expression didn't change at all only made him more frantic: he couldn't tell whether what he was saying appeased her or not, so he could only do his best to say whatever she wanted him to say in the hopes that she'd leave him unharmed.

While this man supposedly had been part of a successful attempt to waylay a train and capture several important figures he didn't have a smidgen of bravery or courage in him. Then again, maybe that wasn't that surprising: bandits weren't known for their noble traits, after all.

Her words made him frown in confusion, uncertain of what she meant by "interesting". However, he didn't have the luxury of asking or figuring it out, because suddenly the fire dragon pulled him up by his collar, the thug flinching and trying to pull away from the flames which were now close enough that he could feel the heat on his face.

"P-Powers?" He yelped as suddenly that fiery fist slammed into the boards that made up the guard post the two of them were in, squirming in Nymara's grasp as he tried to make some distance while the flames licked at the wood which slowly turned dark and smoky as the moisture within was preventing outright ignition... for now.

"W-Wyrode makes swords fly! Berk controls water! Resmir creates smokescreens! Thovis heals people! Irvo snares targets! Lanith has farsight!"

Words were spilling from him as water flowed from a river, a rush without pause. Clearly he wanted to give Nymara the information she asked for before her flames got close enough to actually burn him, sweat making his face shiny as his eyes were wide in fear.

Through the shadows Akemi could listen to the conversation, and compare it with the intel she herself had gathered while she had the opportunity. It looked like Nymara was taking the situation seriously and not assuming that she could beat the bandits without breaking a sweat, given that she went through the trouble of learning what she was up against instead of just running in.

The next question, then, would be whether Nymara could make good use of the information the thug had provided. As Akemi's presence spread out she settled in to observe the rest of this exam, dark shadows throughout the forest giving her a front-row seat to everything that was happening within.

The bandit wasn't sure what Nymara meant until she knocked him unconscious with a headbutt, the thug ironically becoming more relaxed once he was left completely helpless. His eyes rolled up into his head as he collapsed, limp on the ground as if all the tension had left him at once. This left Nymara with no resistance as she burned the horn, preventing him from warning the others even if he did manage to wake up in time.

As Nymara advanced her sharp senses would clue her in on the situation: the guard post she'd just left behind was part of a large encirclement of posts, the radius large enough that the dense forest prevented her from visually identifying the other positions. There were at least two other posts.

Beyond that, there were quite a lot of humans in what presumably was the centre of the ring of guard posts. Given that they were all clustered together it would be difficult to identify them at a distance, but clearly enough that it had to be the hostages Akemi had mentioned, unless there was another group of humans present in this forest. Along with the smell of humans there were also the scents of leather, cloth, burned wood, and polished metal.

If she kept moving towards the large group of humans she'd quickly find several tents of brown and green in groups of two's and three's, barely visible in the dark forest except for the small campfires that accompanied them. In total, there were ten tents, roughly forming a circle around several large trees which had been linked with strange, silvery rope, forming an enclosure within which the captives were all tied up.

Around this encampment the bandits had embedded large stakes into the ground pointing outwards, creating a hostile barrier which would give the bandits an edge if they were found by standard guards or low-ranked adventurers.

Eleven thugs were present in the camp: four of them stuck close to their makeshift prison in groups of two, occasionally looking at their captives but seemingly more interested in what lay beyond their barricades and keeping one another from getting bored to death with casual conversation. Two others were creating more stakes to strengthen their fortifications, one helping hold a thick, long branch in position while the other carved a sharp tip at the end. Another was seated in front of one of the tents, seemingly nodding off even if he had a crossbow in his hands. Another Nymara couldn't immediately see, but her sharp nose and ears told him that he was inside one of the tents closest to the edge of the camp keeping his spirits up.

The last three had formed a circle around one of the campfires, with two of them sitting down and focusing on something between their hands while the third was standing straight and looking around in an absent-minded manner.

Thanks to her high vantage point and sharp senses Nymara could spy on the bandits from a distance without getting spotted, but she'd still have to somehow get in there and rescue the captives.

Current Appearance:

WC: 959
PWC: 4,879
TWC: 10,729

@Nymara

As the day progressed and the shadows grew longer others would find themselves having difficulty perceiving their surroundings, but for Akemi, such handicaps didn't exist. Whether light or dark, she could perceive all that wasn't hidden with formidable magic. While Nymara was making her way into the area the bandits had claimed as their own the shadows followed, their owner seeing without being seen. She was but a spectator, although if worst came to worst she could also step in: a failsafe in case her lovely apprentice made a mistake or circumstances simply spiralled beyond what the fire slayer could reasonably deal with. Akemi had made sure to gather enough intel beforehand so the latter shouldn't be an issue, but only a fool wouldn't at least account for the possibility of the unforeseen.

So far everything was going well. Nymara's approach was a bit rough, but that was within Akemi's expectations given her apprentice's preferences and talents. The fire slayer was probably never going to become a stealth specialist, and forcing the issue would only stunt Nymara's growth. As it was this exam was just a way to remind the redhead that brute force couldn't resolve all issues, if only because sometimes secondary objectives would get in the way. As long as Nymara showed that she was capable of adapting to the situation and abandoning her preferred methods when necessary Akemi would consider this exam a success.

From above Lucky would have a hard time seeing what was going on inside the forest: the trees were both big and grew quite close here, and as Nymara travelled deeper the visibility from above only grew worse. If it wasn't for Nymara's bright red hair she would be impossible to track at all, but as it was the exceed would see flashes of red occasionally, enough to help him keep track of his partner even if the details of her mission eluded him.

Nymara's approach to the camp would reveal more information to her. While the captives were all bound and contained within the makeshift prison they didn't seem injured beyond the occasional bruise and a ruffled appearance which most likely was the result of getting dragged into the depths of the forest without warning. The bandits did snarl warnings at any captive who got too close to the silver threads that formed the boundaries of the prison, but that was about the extent of it.

More important information was the magic she felt emanating from several of the bandits. Of the three forming a circle around one of the campfires the one who was standing and looking around had greater magic power than Nymara herself, and the same went for one of the ones sitting and focusing on something. The third, also seated, was a bit weaker than Nymara, although the difference was minor.

One of the four bandits guarding the prisoners also contained enough magic power that for the fire slayer to overwhelm him would most likely require most of her reserves. Lastly, the bandit who was seated in front of his tent and nodding off was significantly weaker than her.

With two mages possessing more brute power, two of similar strength, and one weakling even if Nymara were to stop being stealthy and resorted to her natural style there was no guarantee she would be victorious. It would boil down to exactly what abilities these bandits possessed and whether their skill matched their magic reserves.

There was no reaction in the camp as Nymara left the treetops and dropped down onto the ground, approaching the tent in which one of the bandits was trying to unwind. The prisoners were more concerned with the armed thugs keeping them captive, and the bandits themselves were focused on the world beyond their perimeter, not what happened inside of it. Her scent was also covered by the stench of alcohol that wafted from the tent she'd chosen to approach, along with soft grunts and heavy breathing. Whoever was in there was completely ignoring the outside world, trying to achieve some inner piece with the assistance of copious amounts of alcohol.

When Nymara spoke up there was a short shriek, followed by someone fumbling around inside the tent as if searching for something. "Y-Yes, hold on a second!" Some more fumbling later and the back flap was undone from within, a large hand grabbing the tough fabric and pulling it aside as a burly man with dishevelled clothes stepped out to see what the fuss was about. His face was flushed and he reeked of alcohol, but when he spotted Nymara his eyes widened quickly and he reached for the dagger at his waist. "Y-You! Who are you!" His rough voice quickly rose, and if Nymara didn't act quickly the man might end up alerting the rest of the encampment with his flustered shouting.

While the fire slayer was dealing with the drunkard the man who was seated in front of his tent opened one eye, then the other. Sighing, as if already knowing that what came next would be a nuisance, he pushed himself upright, checking whether his crossbow was still locked and loaded before walking over to the campfire where the three magic users were gathered. As he joined them his voice was low, and it was only a combination of Nymara's sharp hearing and the wind that allowed her to pick up some details.

"Ty... sleep... post..."

Current Appearance:

WC: 906
PWC: 5,783
TWC: 12,541

@Nymara

The man's eyes watered when, before he'd even had a chance to do much more than be surprised, suddenly he was struck in his most vulnerable spot. Bending over he clutched his groin, unable to do more but let out some gurgling groans even before Nymara cut him off by grabbing him from behind and silencing him with her hand. While the man did try his best to struggle the extreme agony he was experiencing combined with the awkward position he was in meant he could only really flail about, unable to shake off his assailant or focus enough to think clearly. As Nymara's hand prevented him from breathing he'd slowly become weaker and weaker until eventually he collapsed, blissful oblivion taking him away from the agony and the panic.

Of course, such close proximity to the bandit meant that Nymara also got a nose full of the scent of sweaty drunkard, assailing her enhanced senses. As a trained fighter and someone more than a little accustomed to the temptations of alcohol it might not faze her that much, but it would still be a relief when she could finally let go of her victim and instead move him somewhere quiet that he wouldn't be found.

Thanks to her cautious approach so far nobody appeared to have noticed the struggle. The man standing at the campfire with two others was still talking to the other who had approached him, his voice annoyed. The other man nodded before placing two fingers at his temple and focusing. One of the two bandits who were making more stakes to help fortify the camp blinked and let the stake drop, leaving the other swearing and cussing loudly. However, he quieted down as the first bandit said something, then stood up and headed over to the campfire which was now becoming quite busy with five bandits present.

This distraction did, however, give Nymara time to carry out her plan. While the bandit standing tall talked to the other bandit, mentioning the same things as the crossbow wielder, the fire slayer could make her way around the camp, stealthily dousing several tents with the strong alcoholic substance to make them flammable. Given that it had been summer for some time now and the weather had been very generous air was dry and the fabric was as well, so the alcohol would quickly drench it and make it much more susceptible to ignition.

By the time she was finished preparing the fifth bandit at the campfire had turned around and was walking towards the edge of the camp, heading straight in the direction from which Nymara had originally arrived... the direction of the guard post where she'd left her first victim unconscious. But before he could leave the camp the fire slayer's magic ignited the tent, making all the conscious bandits and their prisoners cry out in surprise. The leading bandit would immediately shout for someone to go and put it out, only to be interrupted when yet another fire broke out in a completely different location. Soon enough all around the edges of the encampment flames were dancing merrily, devouring the tents which had given birth to them and eagerly reaching out to attach themselves to anything else they could feed and grow from.

The prisoners all clustered together in their prison, as if doing so would prevent the flames from eventually reaching them. The bandits rushed over to the fires and tried to put them out but, with so many different fires erupting at the same time, fuelled by alcohol and dry fabric, find themselves unable to keep the situation under control.

The leading bandit then swore before raising his voice and shouting loud enough for everyone in the camp to hear.

"Everyone, down! Berk, put them out!"

Upon hearing these words the other bandits all dropped the ground almost immediately, except for one of the bandits who'd been sitting at the campfire, the one whose magic power was comparable to Nymara's. This one, looking rather nervous in response to the leader's command, nodded before placing his hands together and focusing. His magic power quickly surged,  and a flash of blue light would serve as a brief visual warning before his magic activated.

Out of nowhere, a massive torrent of water erupted from Berk's hands. With a loud roaring the water surged in every direction, smashing against trees and immediately soaking everything within the encampment. The tents closed to Berk were flattened, and the bandits only managed to avoid getting washed away by clinging to the ground, dirt turning into slippery mud. The prisoners, within their confinement, weren't quite so lucky: the water failed to destroy the silver threads that formed the prison, but the people inside got knocked into those threads, quickly wrapped up and struggling in a futile attempt to free themselves.

The explosion of water didn't last long, but once it was done the effects were very definite: all the fires were snuffed out, everything within the encampment was now drenched, and Berk was the only person left standing. Nymara's decision to remain in the trees had left her untouched by the deluge, but with all the fires extinguished so abruptly the rising steam clouds were now interfering with her vision of what was going on below.

"Lan you idiot! Tyron isn't asleep, he got taken out! There's someone here!"

The leader was the first to get up, looking around angrily as he pulled one of the nearby thugs upright. The sword that had remained sheathed at his waist so far now hovered in the air over his shoulder, following his movements flawlessly as he kept searching for the arsonist.

"Get up and go find them! Resmir and Lanith, as usual!"

One of the bandits who'd been watching over the prisoners before Nymara's stunt had alerted the entire encampment nodded and quickly cast a spell. Within seconds thick smoke rolled out from him, covering the camp entirely. The smoke was thick enough that even with Nymara's sharp eyes she'd have a hard time seeing anything but vague shapes, along with the cries of panicked prisoners before the leader of the bandits told them to shut up.

The bandits were moving around inside the smoke, which was now spreading out more slowly to shroud the area around the camp as well. Nymara's arboreal position had left her unnoticed for now, but another magic presence was now quickly approaching the camp. The fire slayer's senses would tell her that their magic power was weak, but at the same time they were moving awfully fast...

Her position in the shadows allowed Akemi to observe the escalation peacefully. Having merged with the shadows the water had left her untouched, although she'd now have to avoid emerging from any spot where the water had formed a small pool. Most of the water had soaked into the ground, turning the entire encampment into a muddy field, but there was plenty left for the moment.

She couldn't really blame Nymara for her decision either: driving the bandits into a panic and getting them to reveal their abilities wasn't a bad idea by any means. It was just unfortunate that when the guard had described Berk's water magic he hadn't meant that Berk was weak, but rather that the water mage had very little control over his vast reservoir of magic power.

She was curious how Nymara would deal with the new situation, where the bandits were on high alert and actively looking for her, but had yet to spot the fire slayer because of her being high up in the trees rather than down on the ground.

Current Appearance:

WC: 1,278
PWC: 7,061
TWC: 15,008

@Nymara

Akemi observed the situation from within the shadows, some concern rising in her mind as she took notice of the way the bandits were moving. For them to cover the entire encampment in smoke didn't make sense: if they were up against a single troublemaker they'd have a harder time finding her than she would have finding them, especially since she probably already had an idea of where they were. Yet their movements didn't seem confused or disorderly (at least, no more than one might expect from a bunch of criminals). They were spreading out throughout the camp without any of them stumbling across tents or stakes or anything else that should have been an obstacle in such thick smoke.

The assassin hoped that Nymara was also paying attention to this. While these were mere criminals they had managed to raid a train and kidnap all the high-value passengers, so they weren't completely worthless. The fact that their leader had more magic power than Nymara should already be a good indicator of this, as one didn't obtain such power easily.

But for the moment it was up to Nymara to figure out what the bandits were doing and how she should deal with them. And it looked like her apprentice had decided to use the smoke to her advantage, abandoning her position up in the tree to sneak about inside the dark clouds that shrouded everything. Akemi remained inside the shadows, but expanded her domain as she suspected that she might have to get involved quickly if things went wrong from here.

Nymara's sharp senses allowed her to mostly ignore the smoke: her eyes might be next to useless, but she could still hear the movements and the voices of the bandits, feel the ground underneath her feet, and smell the tents, the campfires, and both the bandits and the hostages. If she didn't have these enhanced senses she would've been in serious trouble, as it didn't take long before the smoke had become so thick that she could barely see a meter in front of her. Even her own feet disappeared behind the rolling grey that obscured her vision on all sides.

Her first target went down without much of a struggle, only letting out a short cry before Nymara's knee found his face and knocked him out cold.

However, that was also when the trouble started. If she was still paying attention to the other bandits she'd notice that the moment she attacked her first prey their behaviour all shifted: after coming to a halt for a couple of seconds they all began to move towards her, slowly but surely forming a web around her current position which become smaller and tighter. Their movements were cautious, but despite her swift and secure takedown of the bandit now lying on the ground they had somehow figured out that their opponent was there.

Hiding inside of the drenched tent she'd hear the closest group pass her by, moving towards where their comrade had fallen. None of them reacted to her presence, right up until the point where she grabbed the one in the back. As if one person the rest of the group turned around, raising their weapons as they yelled out that they'd found the intruder. The man inside Nymara's grip wasn't in a position to fight back, but he furiously twisted his head until he managed to lock eyes with her, after which she'd hear the leader's voice in the distance.

"Don't let her escape! Res, move me in position!"

A strange magic resided inside the man's eyes even as Nymara choked him out, making them glow eerily amidst the fog that shrouded everything. His companions were quickly encircling her, still moving cautiously, so the slayer would have a short window to decide whether to try and disable this man entirely or to escape before she was trapped.

The magical presence she'd sensed before had now reached the camp, quickly heading for the position of the bandit who'd released the smoke screen. The most powerful of the bandits, the leader with the floating swords, was also there... until suddenly he disappeared. And if it weren't for Nymara's sharp senses and his strong magical presence she might not have been able to tell that he was now a mere dozen meters behind her.

Akemi tensed as she realised that Nymara was now in a really bad position. These bandits had some method of keeping track of one another within the fog, so even with her apprentice's admirably sneaky approach they could guess at her position by the bandits she disabled. Worst of all, somehow the leader had instantly moved from one point to another, cutting off Nymara's easiest point of escape.

For herself this would still be doable, as she was an expert at slipping in and out of heavily defended areas. For Nymara, however, she feared that there was little option left but to start fighting, unless she was even more resourceful than Akemi gave her credit for.

Current Appearance:

WC: 840
PWC: 7,901
TWC: 17,160

@Nymara

While the man struggled to try and keep his eyes on Nymara he couldn't resist as she knocked down the tent, using the canvas to blind him and suffocate him to the point that his eyes rolled up and he lost consciousness. With his vision gone the bandits could no longer determine Nymara's exact location, but they knew enough that the net of bandits kept tightening around her location, especially now that the leader was also there, his sword making no sound as it floated next to him in preparation.

As the firebrand fought fire with fire, or rather, fought smoke with smoke, the addition of more literal smoke made several of the bandits cough as they covered their mouth and nose while stepping backwards to avoid inhaling more of it.

"The bitch made her own smoke!"

"She went that way!"

"Stay calm! Irvo will catch her if she tries to leave! Spread out and watch your backs!"

The leader's authoritative voice kept the bandits from panicking as Nymara escaped under the cover of her own smoke. Spreading out once more they moved more cautiously than before, now also constantly looking behind them so the fire slayer wouldn't have as easy a time sneaking up on one of them as before.

Whatever ability they had to find her didn't appear to help them as long as none of them could see her, so as Nymara moved behind the tents the bandits were left unable to do much but make their way through the whole camp, searching every nook and cranny to try and track down the red-headed assailant.

"Pell, prepare to disrupt."

Akemi watched from the shadows as the situation kept developing. With her quick thinking Nymara had managed to escape the snare of the circle of bandits, but that didn't mean she'd solved the problem. The bandits were going to keep searching until they found her, and if she tried to escape the camp she'd probably be hunted down as well. In truth it would have been better for the bandits if they'd dispelled the smoke screen so Nymara couldn't use it against them, but from the looks of it the leader didn't want to give up on it.

However, as it currently stood they were in a stalemate, and one which worked against Nymara. Eventually they'd find her, at which point her apprentice would be forced to either flee or try to take them all out. Akemi wouldn't have doubted that her apprentice would be able to pull off the latter if it wasn't for the leader and the one called Irvo: even now he was moving through the camp at high speed, mostly unhindered by the smoke even if he couldn't find Nymara.

Her musings were interrupted when she noticed something strange around Nymara. The shadows were... moving towards her. While the moving of shadows wasn't new to Akemi she wasn't the one responsible for this, and she also knew that none of the bandits could or would do this. And Nymara wasn't a shadow mage, which left... nobody.

Yet it was still happening, and as Akemi observed Nymara's body was changing as if trying to match the shadows. The assassin would have raised her eyebrows if her current form allowed for it. Curious as this phenomenon was, it was clearly also distracting Nymara, and even as the fire slayer got distracted by the shadows the bandits were closing in.

"Found her!"

The fast one appeared in front Nymara almost instantly, a dagger in each hand as magic coursed through his limbs, drastically increasing his physical abilities. From what Akemi had seen so far even Nymara would have a hard time keeping up with his movements even if she stopped trying to be stealthy.

With Nymara's position having been discovered all the bandits began to converge upon her once more, the leader calling out for Resmir to move him, promptly followed by him approaching the tree Nymara was currently standing against from the other side, blade at the ready. The spider mage in front of the firebrand didn't waste time waiting for his companions to arrive, immediately slashing at her shoulders with his daggers with the clear intent of weakening her so they could capture her alive.

With how tough Nymara was a simple dagger wasn't going to immediately disable her, but if the situation kept going like this Akemi would have to interfere. Given that she didn't want her apprentice to fail this test she wasn't going to act until the very end. While the situation was dire there were still moves Nymara could make: the vision, smoke, and illusion mages weren't moving much, as they had to focus on their magics. If Nymara could shake off the leader and the spider mage she might be able to turn the tides, and the shadows that were clinging to her might do the trick.

Current Appearance:

WC: 817
PWC: 8,718
TWC: 19,034

@Nymara

Nymara's words, along with her behaviour, made it clear that she wasn't doing this intentionally, in fact believing that it must have been her mentor who was responsible for this strange development. Akemi, however, did nothing but watch, as curious as her apprentice about the strange way that the firebrand's body was mingling with the shadows even if she had a better idea of what the cause might be. Under different circumstances she might immediately have intervened to study it more thoroughly, but even this unexpected development wouldn't put a stop to the ongoing exam, or the hostage situation that Nymara was supposed to take care of.

The bandits weren't inclined to back down either, as proven by the one who found Nymara and immediately tried to incapacitate her with his daggers. With blurring speed the sharp metal cut through the air, only to find that their intended target wasn't as easily cut. The bandit almost stumbled as he found no resistance to his slashes, and by the time he recovered he could only raise his blades in a defensive posture as Nymara's shadowy form moved right through him as if he didn't exist at all. Even as he turn around he swung his blades, intending to strike at his opponent at the earliest opportunity, but once again his daggers found no flesh, as Nymara had wisely taken the opportunity to escape the grasp of the bandits once more and disappear into the smoke.

"She can turn into shadows!"

"But she also used smoke didn't she?"

"Everyone remain on guard! If she can use more than one magic none of you can take her alone!"

The leader turned away from the spot Nymara had disappeared from, his voice loud enough to override all the others.

"Irvo, go and get the others! Pell, how's that disruption coming along!"

"Almost ready!"

The illusion mage's voice seemed warped as it travelled through the air, making it difficult to figure out the origins. That said, the three magic-capable bandits who were responsible for the chaotic situation throughout the camp were all close to the centre, where the captives were still trapped within the cage formed of silver threads. That they were sticking close together made their combined magic presence stand out even in the midst of all the fog, giving Nymara a beacon to focus on as she searched for them.

The one with the daggers quickly disappeared from the camp, heading out in response to the leader's command. This left the leader and the magicless bandits to once again slowly make their way through the camp, sticking close together to avoid Nymara picking them off one by one. The leader's movements remained steadfast and confident, his floating sword now flying around to investigate potential hiding spots by itself.

As Nymara moved towards the one responsible for all the smoke she'd sense the buildup of magical power from one of the other mages, and a familiar acrid scent entered her nose. The illusion mage was building up to something big, taking his time to carefully craft a spell of significant power and complexity.

Current Appearance:

WC: 519
PWC: 9,237
TWC: 20,388

@Nymara

With Nymara's strange shadowy transformation in full effect the bandits were left with little choice but to watch one another's backs while combing the encampment once more, cursing and swearing as the intruder seemed to have an endless bag of tricks to escape her just comeuppance. The leader with his floating sword kept them in line, but the smoke was hindering them as much as it helped, now that Nymara had slipped from their grasp and apparently had revealed some new means to move about unhindered.

From inside the shadows, Akemi could keep track of her apprentice even if the bandits couldn't, as Nymara's strange new ability only made her more visible to someone like the dark assassin who was closely attuned with all shadows. After this exam, they'd have to look into how Nymara ended up being able to assimilate herself into the shadows, and the assassin was already considering how much influence this development should have in future training. From what she could tell it wasn't like Nymara had a talent for shadow magic: this ability was more instinctive and isolated. It also didn't suit Nymara's usual style, although that was an issue that Akemi had already been working on so far by teaching the firebrand to focus more on skill and strategy than raw strength.

Still, having multiple tools available could prove to be invaluable, and she imagined that Nymara herself would also want to learn about this new ability of hers and how to make use of it. Even if Akemi doubted that it would become a core of the fire slayer's style some training so she could use it properly when necessary wouldn't go amiss.

For now, she watched as Nymara quickly approached the three mage bandits who'd been trying to help capture the intruder through their magical talents. The smoke mage was moving bandits throughout the camp, his breathing growing heavier as relocating his allies through his smoke combined with keeping the entire encampment covered started to burn through his stamina. The farsight mage was quiet, his own eyes closed and his hands on his crossbow even as he kept the bandits all connected.

The illusion mage, Pell, was visibly hurrying his magic, muttering incantations to himself as between his hands an increasingly elaborate symbol began to take shape. As the symbol advanced so did the magic power rise, a clear beacon for Nymara to target within the time window she had before the illusion mage finished his spell and whatever advantage she'd gained through her sudden shadow form would most likely be lost.

Fortunately Nymara's enhanced physique allowed her to get the drop on the illusion mage first. Her leg sweep caught him by surprise, the man letting out a surprised yell as the spell he'd been preparing fizzled out, the condensed magic power pushing outwards in a ripple that stirred the smoke but achieved nothing beyond that. It certainly wouldn't be enough to save Pell from Nymara's follow up strike, her fist sending the man flying until his body smacked into a tree and he hit the ground groaning and curled up.

Pell's sudden takedown had the bandits spooked, all of them now heading for where the illusion mage had fallen. Before the smoke mage could bring them all in to gang up on Nymara, however, he suddenly felt her hands grabbing him and lifting him up. He only had time to curse before he was sent flying, smashing into the farsight mage who'd already been lifting his crossbow to aim at the shadow-imbued fire slayer. The farsight mage managed to pull his crossbow out of the way in time to avoid his companion colliding with it, but the two ended up tumbling across the ground, their magic dispelled as the efficient if brutal methods Nymara employed put them out of commission.

With the three mages disabled the smoke quickly began to fade away, leaving only the patches of dark smoke that Nymara had produced herself but which were also quickly dispersing. The bandit leader grit his teeth as he saw the intruder next to the bodies of three of his most valuable and trusted minions, his floating sword quickly spinning into position.

"You should've run when you had the chance! Get her!"

The bandits seemed rather disoriented as their linked vision had been cut off, but quickly regained their bearings and all turned their focus to their single opponent. Daggers, swords, and axes were brought forth, and two of the bandits lifted crossbows to take aim.

But they were all small fry compared to the leader himself. His sword shot straight towards Nymara with such speed that the blade cut the air, a sharp whistle following the metal projectile aimed at Nymara's stomach. The leader himself wasn't far behind, his speed not far behind Nymara's own speed and that of the double-wielding bandit who'd left the encampment to gather the guards. Pulling two daggers from his waist the smaller blades spun around him, forming two rings of sharp steel that crossed one another at the front and at the back.

Nymara had been successful in getting rid of the three mages, but now there would be little opportunity left for subterfuge or subtlety unless she managed to somehow surprise both Akemi and the bandits once again.

Current Appearance:

WC: 885
PWC: 10,122
TWC: 22,021

@Nymara

With the smoke dispersing it was easy for everyone to see that Nymara was now distinctly different from before, her healthy skin turned ashen and her fiery mane of red hair turned dark as the night. It wasn't unusual for enhancement magic to also affect appearance, which prevented the bandits from becoming intimidated by the change. Akemi, however, could see further into the change than them, and if it wasn't for the fact that she currently was inhabiting the shadows she'd have smirked.

The bandit who went by the name Irvo had already reached one of the guard posts, his absurd speed making him an excellent scout and messenger on top of his formidable combat abilities. Akemi could both watch Nymara take on the encampment and the spider mage zipping between the trees, wondering if maybe she should give Nymara a little help in keeping that man from joining the fight before her apprentice had taken care of the boss. To take down the boss would already be a significant task, but to do it while that man was also assailing her was possibly a bit more than she could reasonably expect her apprentice to handle.

It was a good thing that Nymara had at least disabled the smoke mage: Akemi could tell that after the boss and the spider mage he would have been the most trouble. The rest of the bandits, while possessing some useful tricks in their own right, should not be able to stand up against Nymara in an actual fight.

With her speed Nymara successfully dodged the crossbow bolts and the telekinetically controlled sword which had sought to pierce her, the boss quickly spinning around to face her once more as the flying sword came to an abrupt halt, like it had struck an invisible wall. It then quickly swept around the boss in a wide arc, so fast that you could see it leave behind a steel-blue trail for just a moment. Fortunately Nymara's roll and fire kick put her low enough that the sword went over her head, giving her time to recover and face the boss once again.

The bandits, suddenly faced with a wave of flame, cried out as they tried to either duck to the ground to evade or jump behind whatever cover was available. The exception was the one whose magic power almost equalled that of the boss, who put up his hands and desperately tried to cast his magic. Before he could finish casting the flames washed over him, his spell disrupted together with his concentration as he fell to the ground, rolling around to try and put out the flames that licked at his clothes.

Some of the other bandits weren't much better off, having been too slow or trusting fragile tents as cover in the face of Nymara's draconic fire. Those who'd hit the ground fast enough or who'd been close enough to a tree escaped relatively unscathed, one of them busy reloading his crossbow while the others tried to cautiously approach while clearly afraid that another wave of fire would catch them if they were careless.

The boss, clearly an experienced combatant, was already waiting when Nymara rushed in this time. His sword came to his hand, fingers tightening around the hilt as magic flowed from him into the blade and back, as if the metal weapon was an extension of his body. He anticipated Nymara's attack, but when he swung his blade with such force and speed that it summoned a gust of air he found that his opponent had pulled a fast one on him, sliding underneath his attack and his blade barrier to grab him by the leg.

"You little-!"

The two spinning daggers came to an abrupt halt, their tips pointing straight at the firebrand before slicing through the air in an attempt to stab her before she could finish whatever she was planning to do with the boss's leg. The muscles in his arms also went taut as he stopped his immense swing, signalling that Nymara only had a split second to pull off her plan before a downwards slash threatened to split both her and the ground in two.

Current Appearance:

WC: 700
PWC: 10,822
TWC: 23,379

@Nymara