Gialpha

Yevoc walked the halls of the castle. This was where he was raised, though he could hardly call it home. He was the youngest of ten children, it seemed his father couldn’t even kiss his mother without getting her pregnant. As the youngest a majority of his upbringing came from his brothers, as a member of the Snow Elf royal family the remainder of it came from the servants and other staff around the castle. His father was rarely able to give his sons the attention they deserved and it was true that he did pay more attention to his favorites, but Yevoc knew that his father still loved him.
Yevoc finally came to the royal blacksmith’s work quarters. He had received word that his specialty order had finally been finished. He had a reserve of ice sapphire, and the royal blacksmith was the best for miles around. The sapphire was forged into a pair of twin short swords. The ice sapphires were often used by the Snow Elves as a means of magnifying and intensifying their elemental ice magic. Yevoc, however, was the first to come up with the idea of forging them into weapons. These were the only ice sapphire weapons in existence. He took the blades and could instantly feel his ice powers being drawn through the hilts into blades. He sheathed them and strapped the sheaths to his back so he could draw them easily.
“Thank you, Damel.” He said as he bowed in appreciation. “These are the finest blades you’ve ever forged for me. It couldn’t have been easy working with sapphire instead of metal.”
“You’re right, your Highness, the ice sapphire is not an easy stone to hone, but laser cutting and sub-zero plasma quenching make the job easier. They also made those blades harder and sharper than diamond, they should never need sharpening.”
“You’re truly a master of your trade, I will cherish these.” He replied as he took the exit that lead out into the castle courtyard. He didn’t want to make a big fuss about leaving so he only told a few people.
He went to the stables and got on his horse, a jet black steed named Shade Runner. “Ok, kid, let’s get going.” He said as he gave him a pat on the neck. They flew off in to the south in the direction of Frosthiem, a smaller city that was home to a large Nordic population as well as a few Snow Elves and a tribe of Therians that were related to snow leopards. Word had reached Polara about the trouble they were having with an ice troll who was attacking every shipment of supplies that was coming into the city. It wouldn’t be long before the people there would run out of produce and other supplies that could only be shipped in. Killing this troll would be his first adventure in what would hopefully be a long line of them.

Vanarak finally felt that familiar calm fall upon him, His breathing was still rugged and the pain was still fresh through his body. His senses was slowly regaining, A quick look around told him that he was back by the entrance of Frostheim. He had taken a short break from his battles in this nordic city, the cold only did good for him. He had quickly picked up on the Ice Troll which had been terrorizing Frostheims trade routes. He had taken it upon himself to do it quick and easy and execute the troll, An opponent his own size would be fun. But the memories was still very fresh, The troll had taken control of the nearby Goblin tribes, probably just ate the chieftains. Vanarak was impressed by the intellect of this troll. It had faced him directly on, But to his suprise Vanarak had found himself completely flanked by the goblins. It proved quite quickly to be incredibly difficult to a slug it out with a troll while at the same time being pelted by goblin arrows from behind. The comical amount of arrows still stuck in Vanarak's back witnessed of that, It was also clear that Vanarak had received a mean whack directly to his chin. In all honestly Vanarak looked quite roughed up.

Vanarak took on quick step to the side, Setting himself down by the wall surrounding Frostheim. He was no longer bleeding but the arrows were still too painful for he himself to remove. Steam was regurly escaping his snout trailing of into small clouds. Vanarak's gaze was directly pointing at his lap, at his large axe which was currently peacefully laying in it. In all honestly he made quite the intimidating figure sitting by Frostheims gate.

Serrina strutted from the nearby brush and approached Vanarak with a swagger in her slow steps. She leaned against the hard stone wall and stared at him with a smile in her eyes. She held something poorly concealed behind her back.

Right now, she was going to be calm and confident. She steeled herself.

"Hey buddy," she said to get his attention, "looks like you could use..." she paused for dramatic effect, "...a hand?" She asked.

She raised a blackish-blue, severed goblin arm into eye view. She could no longer contain her laughter, "Get it!? C-'Cuz it's a hand?" She cackled, and waved it around in front of him, apparently paying no mind to the flecks of dark blood she splattered about.

Not that the blood really mattered anyway; her gauntlets, boots, and metal-spiked staff were coated in enough goblin goo that a few droplets would hardly have made any difference.

It took far too long for her laughter to die down.

"Oh, I've been waiting so long to use that one," she sing-songed, pretending to wipe a tear from her eye, "Whelp, c'mon, let's go," she gestured, and bounced up from the wall.

Vanarak didn't notice the small Elf that approached him, not until she was directly beside him. It bothered him slightly that his senses had been so dulled by his injuries. But that could be dealt with later, This little Elf already seemed quite... Fun.. "Hah, I'm not all that used to being approached. Especially not by someone swinging a severed arm around me. Vanarak's tone was tired, rugged, Yet there was a cheeky undertone to it.

Vanarak did not move a single muscle, Only his eyes now focusing on the Elf. "I should apologize, But... Vanarak suddenly rose from his seat, His body screeching in disapproval. He barely made it to his full height before one of the many arrows in his back cracked making a ugly noise. With a sigh Vanarak sat back down. ...I cannot move with all this".

Vanarak swung his head in a gesture very familiar for a Minotaur. He then pointed at the large amount of goo covering Serrina "Atleast you avenged my back, Those little mongrels seem not to have had an all too fortunate encounter with you!"
Vanarak released a small gruffy laugh his posture easing up slightly.

Serrina barked out a sharp laugh.

"What are you more used to? Severed legs? Fingers? 'Cuz I could probably find some if it made you more comfortable," she said in a silvery tone, bouncing on the balls of her feet in feigned anticipation.

"Trust me, those goblins I killed weren't for you," she teased, and lightly bumped her shoulder against Vanarak's. She paid little mind to his injuries, "But really though, I've seen guys like you handle twice that much. If you're still talking and breathing, a few little arrows shouldn't stop you, hm?" She tried to encourage him, but she wasn't even convincing herself.

"Listen, I got a good look at that ice troll, and it's neck didn't look as protected as the rest of it. If you could just," she woosh-ed her arms out to her side, "toss me up there, I could give that nastiness a few good whacks with my lovely friend here, and boom! Problem solved! No more ice troll," she said, and held out her staff for further proof of how simple her plan was.

It was foolproof, like all her plans were. At least, when she actually made a plan. Honestly, she usually chose winging-it over anything detailed or thought out, but this idea was too juicy to ever pass up.

"Whatcha think?"

Yevoc was nearing Frosthiem and he heard the screams of goblins being torn apart in battle and the strained grunts of pain coming from a creature that sounded large. He got off Shade Runner and began to fallow the tracks in the snow that seemed to be running away from the city. There were also thick globs of brownish goo in the snow that was definitely goblin blood. Something in the town had sent a large group of them running and had injured most of them. Yevoc remembered that there was a couple of goblin tribes in the area, but they usually kept their distance from the major cities because they usually had heroes guarding them. They also weren’t organized enough to mount an attack like this on their own. Someone or something was directing these little terrors into an organized unit, and that was dangerous.
Yevoc drew his swords, his magic instantly being channeled into the blades giving them a pale blue glow. He heard a loud growling coming from the steep hills that bordered the wall that sounded the city. He looked up to see a small cave not far from the city entrance. He had no doubt that the troll was up there, but the rock face looked pretty steep.
He heard conversation coming from near the gates to the city, but he ignored it as it seemed calm and he was focused on the troll.
Yevoc re-sheathed his swords as he got to the base of the hill, though it looked more like a small mountain, and the grumbling and growling from the cave got louder. He began to climb the steep face of the hill and he was having a hard time finding good footholds and handholds and some of the rocks were loose. As he grabbed a larger stone about half way to the cave the ice troll burst out of the cave letting loose a loud howl and startling Yevoc. The rocks he was hanging on to shifted and he lost his grip as he fell backward in fright. He plummeted back to the ground landing with a thud. The wind was knocked out of him and he struggled to catch his breath. He kept his eyes on the troll above expecting it to jump down and beat him to death with his own limbs after dismembering him. This was no ordinary ice troll. The ice troll grabbed a boulder and threw it down at Yevoc. It landed on his legs crushing all of his bones from the waist down. He let out a howl of pain. And lost his view of the troll.

“Well, well, well, looks like you’re in a bit of a predicament aren’t ya?” He heard a smug voice asking, though he couldn’t see where it was coming from.
“Who’s there?! What do you want? Please just help me get this boulder off of me.”
There was a poof of blue sparkling fairy dust and a small fairy appeared on Yevoc’s chest.
“Now, now, it’s not that simple. You see if I get you out of this you’re free, but I don’t get anything out of it. No, I’m going to need something from you if you want me to save you. Or you could wait for the local towns folk to come save you, but even if they did brave an angry ice troll and get to you before you bled out, there’s still the matter of your legs. There aren’t many doctors around that wouldn’t amputate. I can’t remember the last time I heard of an adventurer that went around with a wheelchair.”
“Okay, what do you want already? I’ll give you anything just fix me.”
“As you wish.” There was another poof of fairy dust and then he was kneeling next to Yevoc as a human sized fairy with a contract and a pen. “Just sign on the line and this will all go away.”
Yevoc took the pen and scribbled his name on the line. “There, now fix this please!”
The fairy snapped his fingers and the boulder was instantly gone and Yevoc’s legs were back to normal without a scratch.
“Thank you, kind fairy.” He exclaimed as he stood up and inspected his legs to be sure they working properly. “Now the matter of your reward, what am I to give you to repay your kindness?”
“Oh gods, do all you royals talk like that? It’s so pretentious. But anyway, if you were to have read what you signed, you would have seen that you will be giving me half of something that’s incredibly valuable to you.” the fairy grinned devilishly as he handed the contract to Yevoc.
Yevoc looked at the contract reading the last few lines out loud. “As payment for Ash Jinxwisp removing aforementioned boulder and saving my life, I hereby grant him half of the credit for any and all future adventures. As such Ash Jinxwisp will continue to be my adventuring companion until I either die, am unable to go on anymore adventures or I help him find and kill the one who killed his parents.” He read. “What the hell is all this?!”
“It’s simple buddy.” Ash replied throwing his arm over Yevoc’s shoulder. “You get to go out and make a name for yourself as an adventurer, but I get to go along with you on all your adventures and get the credit along with you. Or you could help me with one adventure and kill the therian who killed my parents and we’ll call it even. Your choice.”
“Well, buckle up kid, you aren’t getting out of this that easy. Sure I’ll share the credit with you, couldn’t hurt having a fairy along for the ride. And when I’m done with all the adventures and quests I want to do, then I might consider helping you with your little vengeance plot.”

Vanarak was throwing long glances towards the Elf, She seemed pretty interesting.

His gruffy laugh escaped once more "Haha, I like your spirit! But that troll is a rough one, He'll not go down easily and in all honestly, I take your words as a challenge..." Vanarak knew very well that his injuries was no joke. This amount of damage would be more than enough to kill an Orc. But if there was one thing that Vanarak believed in then it was his ability to simply enough never die.

And thus he slowly rose again, The arrows in his back no longer caused pain, They were only being annoying, A restraint. "..Let's show this troll some blood... " and in the moment of those words being muttered a lone yell echoed from the hills in which Vanarak had fought the troll, A yell from from someone neither troll nor goblin. "...And it seem we are not the only one wanting to try that." Someone seems to have had the same stupid idea as Vanarak. His grip around the axe tightened and in one motion he swinged it up on his shoulder, passing dangerously close by Serrina's head.

Without giving a single look to her Vanarak started a jog towards the hills, From the small impression she had given he knew that she would come along wether he liked it our not. Without looking back he addresed her shortly "Mind doing me a favour and getting these arrows out? I think that we are going to need to be at our best soon." A small smile appeared on Vanarak

Tikal

"I don't get it.."

"I just really don't understand it.."

The day was young but everyone was already on their toes. Elves, Therians and warriors alike. When the giant troll had first appeared, terrorizing the small villages on the outskirts of Polara, challenegers from the Kingdom had come in droves. Even the royal armies had made a small showing, thinking that it was just another troll that stumbled too close and was now stupidly angry at all of the negative feedback for its arrival. Now their glistening armor was strewn about the impromptu battlefield and one or two bodies lay amongst the undergrowth.

Tikal frowned at the sight and kicked her legs gently. She was sitting, in her tiny state, on one of the many middle branches of a tree that surrounded the area. Her chin was in her hands and her wings lazily opened and closed. Her Spellbinder was open beside her. On the left page was half finished writing and on the right was a sketch of the Troll culprit howling at the sky with two scrabbling warriors in each grubby hand. Her blue eyes glanced down at her book before she commanded the item to her lap and summoned her pencil to her hand. She filled in a few more footnotes along the margins of the sketch, drawing lines to the subject of the foot note. Still though, she sighed. Her dilemma wasn't that since the flow of challengers had died down dramatically, she couldn't get a good look at the beast. Her dilemma was that she couldn't figure out what was allowing the beast to rule over the local goblins and tiny trolls in the area. It was fascinating. They acted as an angry swarm of bees protecting their queen. She just craved to know why and how.

She recieved little reprieve when she watched yet another warrior come charging up to the hill that led to the temporary dwelling of the menace. She silently wished him the best of luck until she witnessed a boulder tumble down the hill, crushing his legs to mush. The sight was just awful. Not to mention the sounds. The crunch of bone and the squish of muscle made her want to vomit and his squeals of agony made her wings shudder. "Poor soul.." she pout. But she hadn't moved a muscle. One of her cousins was nearby and had quickly aided the elf. Earning a tiny applause from Tikal.

Then she was back to staring at the Troll Hill, tapping her pencil on her shoulder as she thought. Vaguely she registered the sound of chatter and the approaching swish of feet through the grass and leaves.

"Uhhh... I swear I walked by here three times already..."

Lailah sighed, looking between the map in her hand and the ocean of foliage around her. So dense, so homogenous! It had been a week since the young fencer departed from her cozy boat home in the Far West Ocean, a week since her dear father tasked her to seek out the Kingdom of Polara. And a few days since she first started getting lost.

Lailah's suit of chain rustled and clinked with every step. The bushes brushed against her faded brown leather boots, damp soil embedded on her soles. Over and over again, the fencer stared at her map with gaping blue eyes. Pointlessly, since no matter how she looked at it, she had no idea where she was. Or where she should go.

She chided herself. "Damnit, Lailah! Focus!" She had heard of the recent troll trouble this area had gotten into. She was confident of the locals' ability to face the monster, and thus sought not to go out of her way to hunt it down. She was late enough already. She hoped the snow elf royals were the forgiving sort (though somehow, she was skeptical of it). A sudden, high scream in the distance caught her ear. With wide eyes and without further thought, the fencer bolted to its source.

"Hellooooo?! Is anyone there?" she shouted at the top of her lungs. Her right hand reached and gripped onto the hilt of her rapier, wary of incoming trouble.

The sound of clanking mail soon alerted Tikal the fairy of Lailah's approach below. Loud, unsubtle, the very antithesis of a jungle inhabitant. The young woman soon slowed to a halt right underneath the fairy's tree. She panted and lurched forward, both hands on her thighs, azure cape fluttering behind her.

The fencer stopped, stood straight, then looked around.

Only to realize that she had gotten herself even more lost than before.

"Agh, I swear! This Forest looks the same everywhere...!" she whined, slapping a hand to her forehead. All the while, she remained oblivious of a certain fairy's presence overhead.

“Well, now, your highness, I have a question for you. Why did you come down from the Elven high kingdom to Frosthiem?” Ash asked with an arrogant tone.
“Obviously to kill this ice troll, but I get the feeling there’s a different answer that you’re looking for.” Yevoc replied.
“Ah, yes. Very observant of you. Tell me, does this troll act like a typical ice troll? What has he been doing? What’s his goal?”
“No, he’s organized the local goblin tribes and other smaller trolls. He’s leading them on raids against the supply shipments that are going into the city.”
“So what does this tell you?”
“That there’s either something on the supply shipments that the troll is looking for, or he’s trying to starve out the town’s people.”
“And why would he be trying to starve out the town’s people?”
“There’s something in Frosthiem that he wants and he can’t get to it when the town’s people are attacking him.”
“Exactly. Now I ask again, is this typical behavior for a simple ice troll?”
“No, they aren’t that smart, they act on basic instincts, there’s no way a troll would be able to do any of this unless he was being controlled.”
“And who ever or whatever is controlling the troll wants something that’s in Frosthiem, and I’d be willing to bet whatever it is they’re looking for is in the ruins of old Frosthiem under the city.”
“So what do we do?”
“Well if you plan on killing the troll you might want to do it soon. We’re about to have some company, sounds like something big is coming this way as well as a few others, not to mention one of my own kind hiding in the trees.” He sneered as he pointed to the branches, though she was too small for Yevoc to see from that distance. Yevoc looked off in the distance and saw another elf and a white minotaur walking up to the hill.
“Maybe they could help us kill the troll.”
“Sure, I guess. If you don’t mind sharing the credit with them too.”
“You know I’m not just in this to make a name for myself, don’t get me wrong I like the idea of getting some notoriety, but that’s not the only reason I’m doing this. There are people out there that help others because it’s the right thing to do.”
“Okay, whatever you gotta tell yourself.”
“Hey, you guys, are you here to fight the troll too? We could use some help if you are.” Yevoc called out.

A heavily armoured figure moved through the forest, greatsword at the ready and wings folded close to his body to avoid catching them on stray branches. During his journey northward into Polara, Alexander Typhen had heard from the last couple of villages he had passed through about an ice troll terrorising the surrounding countryside. And with the aid of goblin minions, which struck him as quite unusual. His curiosity became yet another reason to track the beast down.

Thaumatic servos quietly whirred as he strode through the undergrowth, relying on his size and powered armour to wade through and create a new path where none were readily available. His greaves had become stained with mud during the long trek, and his tabard was in a similar, slightly tattered condition. He would give these due attention once his business was concluded here.

Just then, a voice. Alexander stopped dead in his tracks. A maiden's voice, all the way out here? He grew suspicious, expecting fairy trickery at play, but not long after came another voice elsewhere, this one male. Staying still for some time as he decided upon a course of action, the sky knight finally chose to head towards the source of the girl's voice, as that one sounded much closer. While he made an attempt at trying not to be spotted, he was hardly the most subtle thing to be found in the forest, unless the eyes and ears of the forest happened to be blind and deaf.

A hush came over the people of Frosthiem as Dark Elf on her shadowy mount entered the gates. Behind her on her horse was the wrapped up body of a man that only hours before still drew breath. The rider looked to the corpse her mind flashed back to the night before....

"You can't do this! I did nothing wrong!" The young human male begged
"You can't worm your way out of this murderer." Answered the cold uncaring voice of the dark elf
The man's eyes went wide in fear " Murderer? I..I have never killed anyone...I swear"
"Save your lies for someone that gives a damn you're coming with me!"
"Never!" Cried the man as he charged the dark elf...
His last mistake as he was met with a bolt of shadow cast from the dark elf's hand. He staggered back right to where the dark elf now appeared, embraced him and slid her dagger across his throat.

The dark elf shook herself back to the present. She tossed the body to the road and said, "I am Nyx and I claim the bounty for this man."

A few moments passed as the officers confirmed the kill and gave Nyx her pay. One officer then turned to Nyx and spoke "If you wish to help our city and fill your pockets more there is a matter of a troll nearby"
Nyx thought for a moment, said "I'll think about it"
She then rode from the city

Vanarak continued his slow jog up the hill, He had no intention of being quiet, Anyone nearby would easily hear him. And that was quite apparent since somebody was already calling him out, Was it the one who screamed earlier? His hearing already witnessed of several people being up by the hill, perhaps they are trying to ambush him. It seemed his earlier intuition was wrong since the elf had stayed behind. It didn't bother him since the clanking of heavy armor could be heard above.

Reaching the summit Vanarak took a moment before cresting it, A thought struck him to actually be smart and scouting out what he will encounter on beforhand, But he quickly pushed that thought away, He would use his usual approach. Doing this he made one sudden charge up the hill, kicking up a large cloud of snow around him, The arrows in his back barely bothering him anymore. He swung his axe of his shoulder as the snow settled around him. Honestly he was mostly attempting to look a mighty combination of Intimidating and Majestic. With the snow and arrows an untrained eye could easily mistake him for a monster.

He grunted slightly as he looked around, An Elf and a Fairy was before him. The fairy didn't look all that threatening but they rarely do. The Elf on the other hand looked like he could atleast put up a fight. He walked slowly into the clearing, No words. He knew very well that there where more people around, This could perhaps just be some kind of robbery...

Tikal settled down with a tiny sigh and laid back on her branch, disrupting some of the snow around her. It was cold in Polara but within her first week of being here she'd learned and mastered a simple spell for warmth. Being bundled up didn't do much good for flying. Closing her eyes, she placed both hands on her stomach and began thinking of subjects that made her relax. Knitting, flying, doodling.. "Hhmm.." she exhaled. A good idea could hit someone in the face, but for some people it had to be coaxed out and convinced that it was indeed a good idea. But Tikal was only allowed rest and relaxation for a maximum of 10 minutes before someone came bursting through the trees. They didn't physically make much noise, besides that squeaky sound that snow made, but vocally they made her sit up and look down. "Huh." Tikal huffed, watching the girl with a flowing blue cape. She listened to her aggravated plee about being turned around, smiling a little. Human misfortune was often funny. "Poor soul.. Ah well." She kept her voice low so that the girl couldn't hear her speaking to herself. Not that it would be easy to find her in the first place. She was still tiny.

Soon after having a laugh at the female, on the other side of the branch, that elf and her cousin began talking about the Troll King. The name just popped into her head. Summoning her binder and pen she labeled her doodle just that. But as she listened to their conversation they made a solid point. A Troll, especially a big one, wasn't very smart. So they wouldn't be able to rally even more dumb trolls and goblins and make them attack as one coherent group. Outside forces and magic seemed to be the only option.
Sitting up, she snapped her binder shut. "This will make for a very good story. And as a plus, when they kill it, I can examine it closer!" She giggled maniacly for a bit before clearing her throat. "Easy Tikal.. just stick to the sides and keep it cool.." she did a little woosa before continuing to observe the feild.

After a while of observing, a third player entered the game! Well not really a game because there was a strong possibility of dying.. But still. The thing made a grand entrance. It charged up the path, throwing snow into the air and creating a puff trail behind it. Tikal stuck her upper body over the branch, upside down to see what the hulking figure really was. Another goblin? This one sure was brave! But when the snow settled her breath caught and her eyes widened. Oh.. Oh my.. What is that... What is that.. What is that?! Quickly, she summoned her book and scrabbled to stand up, distrupting more snow on her branch and causing it to tumble to the forest floor. Her wings fluttered as she took off down the length of her branch to get a better view of the white bull that was now quietly entering the field. Tikal felt her excitement travel to her hands and could hear her wings humming. She was shaking for a few moment before she snapped out of it and quickly began doodling, but only taking up the top half of the page when she did. She was going to study this white bull. Yes yes. She was going to study him down to its favorite tune and bathroom habits. She giggled excitedly and began bouncing knocking more snow to the ground, but she would still be out of sight, especially to the eye untrained for tiny-fairy spotting.

After inhaling deeply, Lailah slumped her back against the tree and slid down slightly, at lost at where to go, or what to do, even.

"I knew I should've taken up that elven guide's offer...," she thought aloud.

Before she could wallow in further woe, however, she could feel a presence approaching. Something heavy, by the sound of the footsteps. Heavy, yet steady. Ever vigilant of the wild's dangers, Lailah hopped away from the tree, dug her feet deep into the ground, and drew her blade, pointing it to an approaching silhouette.

A tiny gasp escaped the maiden's lips. Her eyes widened. But her stance did not falter.

A very large silhouette. Armored, by the looks of his round pauldrons and what seemed like a winged helmet. Oh, and actual wings too, on his back. Surprisingly unarmored. But perhaps that would have been too cumbersome.

"R-reveal thyself, gargantuan one!" she proclaimed, her voice and wrist slightly shaking.

The fencer tilted her head, her eyes squinting to admire the craftsmanship on his armor. Her sharp sight could vaguely make out ornate runes on his vestments. Perhaps a noble, not unlike her?

"...Or-or would you like me to go first?" the fencer asked. With the clearing of a throat and a nod of the head, she continued, "I am Lailah, daughter of House Telias, from the shores of southwest Whitebeach. A pleasure to meet you!.... I hope."

As the white minotaur got closer it became apparent just how much larger he was compared to Yevoc. He didn’t respond but had rushed up to him in a show of grandeur. Ash, coward that he was, shrank back down to his smaller size and fluttered up onto his shoulder.

“Not to be a downer or anything, but didn’t the Snow Elves enslave a bunch of minotaurs, like 400 years ago as labyrinth guards? Not saying that this guy’s holding a grudge, but you might want to be careful around him.”

“Oh shit! I completely forgot about that.” He gasped as he instinctively raised his arms up and crossed his swords in front of himself in a defensive position just before the minotaur stopped inches in front of him.

Kaldon glided across the blue black night sky over Meadhold, his black wings fluttering majestically in the wind almost invisible. He pulled them in close and landed on the beach with a muffled thump as he hit the sand. The shores of Meadhold were lined with one tourist trap after another, from ice cream shops and arcades to taverns and fancy beach front restaurants. Kaldon had only one place on his mind, though, and he weaved his way through the tourists as he made his way to a small tavern away from all the major sights of the city called The Baited Hook. He walked into the barely populated bar, the bar tender was a tall skinny woman with long dark brown hair, he green dress hidden behind a stained bar apron that was once white. She was Human in race, native to Meadhold. A tiny bell above the door rang as he walked in.

“What’ll it be?” She asked without looking up from the bar she was whipping down.
“Hello, Brandie. How about some information, oh and an Elven vodka?” Kaldon said in a voice that had a cautious tone.
“You bastard!” She shouted as she looked up at him. “You got a lot of nerve showing up here after what you did to me.” She came from around the bar and slapped him across the face.
“Okay, I might have deserved that.” He admitted, rubbing his cheek.
“Might have?! You left me at the altar you piece of”
“Hey now!” He interrupted. “I didn’t leave you at the altar, it was an arranged marriage and I told you a week before that I couldn’t go through with it.”
“Yeah and now my sister is married one of the worst blacksmiths in all of Bloodcoast.”
“Look, it never would have worked, we didn’t love each other. But, anyway, that’s not why I’m here. I need information. I need to get in touch with Landon. Have you seen him lately?”
“Why do you need to talk to him? That dirty gilled pickpocket hangs out around the tourist bars, you know that.”
“Look, I found something and it’s got some power to it. It’s giving me visions; I need to talk to an oracle.” He said as he pulled out the hilt and showed it to her.
“He was here about a week ago. Is that thing what I think it is?” She said as she grasped the severity of the situation.
“I don't know for sure, but I think so.Did he say where he was staying?” He asked.
“Under the docks by the arcade.”
“Thanks.”
“This isn’t over yet, Kaldon. There’s still the matter of the cancelled wedding.”
“Yeah, sure I’ll talk to you next time I’m in town.” He said casually as he walked out the door and practically ran off to the docks.

Drake missed his room. That warm, cozy, welcoming room at Comfy Igloos. What a way too appropriate name for an inn up in Polara... He dismissed the thought and instead focused on how much he hated the cold. The southern regions of Gialpha were closer to the equator. They were near-tropical, warm nearly year-round, and the people were simply carefree and life-loving. He swore the Nordics and Snow Elves were colder a people than the actual weather up here in the north.

Whatever. Polara was cold, water is wet, and the townsfolk were having an issue with a troll on the outskirts of their city. Nothing new, necessarily. Last he heard from the people, however, was that he wasn't the only one looking to tag and bag the beast for a reward. Which was good, to say the least. Drake wasn't so keen on going toe to toe with a monstrosity like an ice troll all by his lonesome. Really the only good thing to come from that would be not needing to split the reward. The image of the townspeople hoisting him up in their arms, chanting his name, and calling him savior of Frosthiem danced around in his head. He shook it. He'd rather the gold than the appreciation in the hearts and minds of the people. At least gold was physical and had its uses. The abstract would be gone with time, and likely sooner than most would think.

Wrapped up in a heavy jacket and white cloak, a new hat to cover his ears, and snowboots to deal with the cold mud and freezing snow Drake continued to march through the forest in search of this troll. At some point he came across some tracks in the mud and slush. The footprints were large, larger than his at least, but they weren't a troll's footprint. Come to think of it, they're more like bootprints... Perhaps they were one of the people in search of the troll.

After several more minutes of walking he came upon what looked to be a rather heavily armored Avian and some... girl? Was that a girl? Might as well have been some teenager in a blue cape. Didn't matter. Drake maintained a small distance from the two as the girl was apparently introducing herself like some nervous wreck. He kept a hand on the hilt of his sword in a casual manner to avoid appearing on the offensive, content simply to observe for now.

Vanarak was ever so gently smiling to himself, Certainly, That was very hard for anyone to notice. It seemed he had found someone who would be a much more enjoyable fight than standing off against a troll surrounded by damn goblins.

The Elf seemed suprisingly steady as he took a combat stance the moment Vanarak made his approach. As standard among Fairies the one accompanying that elf immediately dissapeared into a cloud of dust, How unusual. Those damn fairies was always so difficult to spot.

As Vanarak approached the elf, His body itching for a fight the thought struck him of those earlier ambushers he had heard. They seemed to lay low, Well suprisingly "Un-low" as voices could be heard from them along with a small, Hard to spot, Flutter among the trees.

None of this bothered Vanarak all that much. If they truly planned to attack him then he would atleast grind this elf down to the bones first. Getting suprisingly close to the elf, Close enough to clearly see the Fairy on his shoulder Vanarak released a large cloud of steam from his nose, Practically spraying Yevoc. Lifting his axe slightly, Touching the suprisingly ornate and well made swords that the elf wielded

"Do you know how to kill with these?"

The minotaur was intimidating, there was no question of that. Yet, in spite of this, Yevoc looked up into the creature’s eyes with a glare that let him know exactly how insulted he was by the question he had just asked.
“Considering the fact that these are the only two swords of their kind in existence, it goes without saying that I would know how to kill with them.” The blades began glow a pale shade of blue as he channeled his power into them.
“The better question would be: Do I want to kill with them? And given that you’re obviously the warrior type, you would know by my defensive stance that I don’t want to kill with them. However, that’s not to say I wouldn’t if I had to.”
With that he pointed one of the swords at a tree a few feet away and a beam blasted out from the sword freezing a small section of the tree’s trunk within seconds. The wood became so brittle that it snapped like a twig under its own weight. It fell in a way that it would have landed on Yevoc but as it fell he slashed through it like it was butter and knocked the debris away with the other sword.
“As you can see, I know how to handle my weapons. But, judging by the goblin arrows sticking out of your back, I’m guessing you’ve had a run-in with the troll and his minions as well. I'm guessing I'm not the one you came here to fight.” He said confidently as he sheathed his swords in a gesture of trust. “Looks like you could use some help removing those, there’s no way you can bend your arms back to get them. Don’t want them to get infected.”
“Why the hell did you put away the swords? This guy wants to murder you and you’re over here offering to pull arrows out of his back?!” Ash practically yelled into Yevoc’s ear.
“He doesn’t want to kill me. He just doesn’t trust me yet, that’s why I put the swords away.”
“Whatever, it’s your funeral.”
“Trust me, you annoying blue firefly, this guy isn’t bad, and he could be a much more valuable asset as a friend than an enemy.” Yevoc insisted. He suddenly realized that the minotaur had been watching and listening to the two of them talking the whole time. He looked up at him grinning sheepishly.

Nyx dismounted from her horse and whispered "Home Reaper."

The horse winnied and vanished leaving Nyx alone at the edge of the woods. The ground was covered in a blanket of snow pure and white. Nyx entered the woods one tree blended with another it seemed as she walked deeper and deeper into the woods.
" You've gone and got yourself lost dark elf? We love the taste of elf....And a female...We will have fun tonight boys" laughter broke out as the speaker and his fellow goblins four all together stepped out.
"Oh good minions of the thing I seek must mean I'm close" said Nyx with a dark grin
The speaker goblin laughed "you will never reach the master you or the other tools that seek him!" He then turned to the others " kill the elf bitch!"
"Kill the bi.." one goblin started before a bolt of shadow hit him sending him flying into a tree.
The other goblins looked on in fear " Witch she's a witch!" They cryed as they fled only to be followed by shadowy bolts from Nyx's hand meeting the same rate as thier friend.
All but the leader who choked out weakly, " Please I have map to master's cave take it and spare me?"
" I'll take it from your corpse!" Nyx yelled as she thrust her dagger into the creature's heart.
I now have all I need thought Nyx as she took the map.

It had taken a few shuddering breaths but Tikal had finally managed to calm down and focus on her craft. She was studiously quiet while sitting on a branch close to the pair. Her hand moved quickly, making soft edges or long lines with her drawing untencil. Every few moments she would look up and study the white bull, while her hand continued to move, before looking down again and either making adjustments or adding more to her drawing. When she was nearly done, it was clear that she was making a detailed sketch of Vanarak with equin muscles bulging, tattoos clearly defined, accurate dress code, his weapons in hand and the intimidating arrows potruding from his back. She even added soft shading around him to portray the snow cloud he created upon his entry. When she would sketch her discovered beasts she would always draw short directory lines around it, pointing to parts of her subject that she deemed interesting and ending in stars and numbers. To the side of the sketch she would make a legend to indicate what made the stars and numbers important.

Tikal's wings hummed softly, fluttering like a humming bird's wings move. But they were so thin that it was like they were moving, but one couldn't be quite sure. She stayed stuck in her 'Sketch-mode' all through the conversation between her white bull and elf until she was satisfied with her work. On the right page was the sketch and on the left page was a space for the bull's story, which she was becoming increasingly excited to hear and document. She gazed at her work, absorbed in it and quietly fantasizing about all the time she would spend with her white bull. The possibility of being rejected away was there but she rarely payed much attention to that. Those with ambition never gave up! Tikal smiled and happily snapped her book shut before dismissing the item to who knows where, it simply vanished from her hands.

Just when she was standing up to make first contact, she paused at the sound of crackling and creaking. "Huh..? Wha-..!!" Out of nowhere, well if she had been paying attention she would have seen the elf's display of magic know-how, a tree was hurtling towards her. Screeching in terror, she darted out into the clearing and quickly poofed into her human size. She tumbled through the air and to the ground, wailing the entire time. She landed right into a mound of snow, tossing the powder into the air She hit the natural cushion just as the destroyed tree took out the branch she was on and even maimed a bit of the trunk.
Now laying in the snow, she voiced her trauma. "By the magical gods! One moment I'm hhh..! And then boom!" She got up and dusted snow from her apparel, panting while her now transparent wings fluttered to release the snow on them. "That would of been the end of Tikal.. You bet your best enchament it would of.." she sighed, checking herself for injury.

Vanark was Amused, Suprised and Shocked. The elf had responded the way Vanarak had expected him to. Seemingly angered, His blade was clearly of the highest quality, and the elf seemed to consider himself the same. After showing his powers freezing an nearby tree Vanarak was prepared to lop off his head right there and then. But the elf did something.. Interesting. He sheathed his blades, turning to speak to his fairy friend, Showing his confidence. That was... Very new for Vanarak, And it honestly stunned him.

But it was only slightly as stunning as the woman who fell straight out of the tree that had been earlier demolished, Diving head down into the snow with a soft "Puff". She was the fairy that Vanarak earlier had seen fluttering about! These people.. They seemed so exhausting, Yet fun. Vanarak's axe slightly slided down along his hand, The end of it touching the ground as Vanarak suddenly threw his head back. A loud echoing laughter erupting from him. Several seconds passed as Vanarak's laughter continued. He was visibly shivering from laughter as it finally died down. "Y-You people. Hehehe..."

Vanark took a large step completely turning his back to the three. his laughter had finally dissapeared as Vanarak's voice grew gruffy again "Sure, I'll play along with ya, Now I'm atleast sure you won't try to kill me" Vanarak suddenly sat down in the snow, The many arrows in his back moving slightly as his wounds started opening from the movement. "But It will be the little one... Vanarak swung his left hand upwards, Using his thumb to point towards Tikal ...That will help me with the arrows. You should know, Elf, That you have a terrible intuition, I'll be no asset. Nor a friend for that matter. So since you have those fancy kitchen knives, Could you please keep a watch for that damn troll? I would like to avoid being blind-sided by any boulders"

Completely unaware to the previous trauma which Yevoc had suffered Vanarak sat quietly, He was clearly attempting to act tough, But it was pretty clear for both Yevoc and Tikal how painful the arrows must be. Many of the wounds seem to have been forcefully "Pried Open", In a very distressing way.

Inevitably spotted as he made his approach, Alexander watched as the maiden drew a type of sword with a thin blade. Curiously, she stood her ground and did not run despite being alone and facing a being that was much taller and heavily armoured compared to her.

He listened intently as the maiden introduced herself. A noblewoman. That explained her choice of attire. Such garments were not a common sight among the peasantry. Satisfied that she was not a threat, the sky knight lowered his sword.

"I am Alexander, son of House Typhen, from the woodlands of eastern Forestien," he responded in kind. "Likewise, it is a pleasure... but what is a young maiden from a noble house doing all the way out here without so much as an escort?" Before he could listen to the girl's answer, however, his hearing picked up the sound of footsteps coming their way. A human male, clad in something more suited for the snow.

"And who might you be?" Alexander calmly asked this newcomer, slowly raising his sword in case the man proved hostile. "Friend or foe?"

"Nobody," Drake replied. "And a potential friend." He remained nonchalant with one hand dug into his coat pocket for warmth and another resting on the hilt of his sword. He strode forwards so the armored figure apparently named Alexander and the noblewoman Lailah so the two could see him better and know he intended nothing derived of malice. "I'm looking for an ice troll around these parts. It's been terrorizing the outskirts of Frosthiem."