Phantasmagoria — Ewigkeit in Wiedergeburt

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Foolish. Simply foolish. Melody couldn't believe her eyes as she witnessed the kindhearted naivety of the oddity whom called herself Aurora. Assuming there was a foreign Witch trapped in the prison of flesh was one thing, but mistaking it for one of her close allies? Just what exactly was going on in the little one's head? Likely nothing.

Regardless, the Manablight had no mercy for fools such as Aurora. Just mere moments after the trap had been set, the two hands interlocked with each other. No matter how much Aurora pulled, the Monster wouldn't budge. On the contrary, as flesh started to shift and form. The fingers, no, tendrils becoming longer and longer as they quickly engulfed more of Aurora's arm. Ultimately, She was the one being pulled further and further inside - paying no attention to the indifferent green-hair besides them.

It was supposed to be fast.
It was supposed to be merciless.
It was supposed to be over in a second.
Aurora was supposed to die.

Yet, despite the girl's naivety, she was not alone.
The sharp eyes of Mina and the quick thinking of Eirlys.

With the Flowiron already prepared, it was over in seconds as the metal tore and ripped the flesh apart. An interplay of crimson and silver that was both grotesque, yet beautiful. Pieces of flesh and blood had been splattered all across Melora and Aurora as the few remaining tendrils dangled from the girl's arm. Still wriggling, but without any power. Nobody had been hurt - at least physically.

"Good Job." Melody was the first to break the silence. "The Manablight, your enemy, will employ all kind of means to make you drop your guard. It's not just about being able to overpower them with force, but it can also be cunning. It was a near perfect copy, wasn't it? If not for your allies, that could have ended very badly for you, Aurora. Being too kind will only get you killed." Despite her dark words, the Witch smiled as she had nothing else to say. They still had some distance to cover, and the heartbeat suddenly having increased in intensity was a clear sign that it did not like what just happened.



Louder. It became louder and louder. As the group continued along the disgusting flesh-corridor, each beat was now strong enough to vibrate through their entire being. It was unpleasant, ugly, and - in a strange way - molesting.

Each and every single beat that pulsed through the group felt as if something was peeling off a layer of their soul. More, and more, as if a thousand eyes and a thousand mouths looked at them, laughed at them, making fun of every little secret they had. It was hard to explain, yet humiliating nonetheless.

Yet, sooner rather than later, the Witches noticed a sudden shift in the air. A gap, further ahead, opening in what seemed to be a larger room. Despite the potential for another trap, another adversary, another trial, they could feel it. They could hear it. They were at the end of the Gaping Maw. Their target was close, and it knew.


  • Next post after this one might take a bit. But that doesn't give you an excuse to post slower D<!
  • Check the Discord for additional info!
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It all flashed by in a moment, yet each grusome piece lasted an eternity. As soon as she was loosed, Aurora stumbled backward, shaking the nasties off her arm. "Ewwewwewwewweww," she shrieked.

Rushing up at superhuman speed to check on the shellshocked girl, her faithful golem inspected her for a few seconds, finally deciding Aurora was okay. With that done, Rune glared at the stupid witch and shook her head in disapproval. She ignored it. Instead, Aurora turned around to awkwardly face Melody with a flustered blush on her face.

"Too... kind..." she repeated through shivers? "S-sorry... Melody..." Too embarassed to even acknowledge the others who’d helped, Aurora sauntered along quietly, head down to the ground. In fact, she was so absorbed in wishing she were invisible, she didn’t even notice how far the sleeve of her shirt had been torn, revealing a patch of blue skin conceiled near her shoulder.

Action: Angst
 
"You really need to be more careful," Mina said to Aurora with a sigh. Really, where they were, it was a very dangerous place, even if she only just caught things herself, and not soon enough to actually stop it. Or would have likely done the same thing if she didn't manage to spot that crucial lack of detail. "Come here, let me see if I can patch you up a bit."

Mina rummaged around in her bag for a strip of bandage, brush, and ink. She started quickly covering the bandage with runes, and, once she was satisfied with her work, reached out to grab Aurora's injured arm. She wrapped it around the other witch's arm, and with a touch infused it with a little magic, quickening the runes inscribed on is surface. The bandage adhered to Aurora's skin, and her arm was filled with a warm, soothing feeling as magic began to heal her wounds. "Don't pick at it or anything, ok?"

As the group moved further on, the oppressive feeling of...wrongness intensified. Mina felt like she was somehow being sullied, and also was far more naked and exposed than she ever had back in Phantasmagoria. It was not a self-awareness she was accustomed to.

With the immediate crisis past them, Mina finally answered Melora's question. "I dunno, Mel. Probably it ate someone already, or otherwise saw the tattoo somewhere? That makes the most sense to me, at least."

Action: Heal Up Aurora
 
Eirlys winced when she heard Melody's short lecture about kindness. It hit too close to home for the Witch, because she too, thought of rescuing the person trapped behind the wall of flesh. She only thought better because she had seen the terror along with the dream-traps her Metal Sea could offer, so she could not claim the credit. But to think the Manablight would use such underhanded methods... the young Witch started to see it with a new eye, especially given how it could warp her surroundings.

This was more dangerous than she thought, Eirlys summarised. She did not know much about battle, however, she had learned that terrain could be worked to one's advantage. Extremely powerful Witches made extensive use of manipulating the battlefield... So she had to be wary, as the Manablight could, apparently, do the same. Fortunately, it was more obvious about it, not that this eased Eirlys' heart overly much. Because she felt sure they were being lead into some sort of trap, where defence was paramount.

Her decision made, the Witch took a deep breath.

WillofMasterProtectherFriends.

Reaching inside her moonstone, Eirlys called out to Corvina and directed her Historia's components while pouring Flowiron into the machine. At the same time, she opened her channels of magic completely, letting the device draw from her as much as it needed to complete the task. So while the group walked, Corvina worked, weaving symbolic structures from the material given to it. It would take some time, but Eirlys gave it her full focus. She only spoke up when they arrived in the foul chamber.

"E-e-e-everyone. P-p-p-p-please." Her voice trembled as she reached for Corivina, retrieving a set of four decorative pins. Thin and small, one would think they were fragile... yet the way her muscles strained under their weight indicated anything but. "I... umm... errr... erh..." Her lips dried out. Her throat refused to conform to her needs. Anxiety built in Eirly's body as she realised they would be confronting a great enemy.

Words simply failed her.

So she used her sketchbook instead.

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Action: Eirlys gives everyone a small, but surprisingly heavy pin, which protects them from attacks by redirecting Flowiron from Eirlys' control when the user is in danger.
 
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Eirlys really didn't have to explode that hand. Wow that was gross. Though... Melora took out her notebook and made a note. Aurora will always try to help. Do not let her do so unless absolutely safe. Manablight loves traps. Deadly ones.

As they carried on, Melora kept a neutral face on. Judgement's time limit eventually was reached, and she was dismissed. Melora took that card and put it at the bottom of her available cards. She was not going to grab the wrong card.

She pulled out Magician and Hermit. These two might keep her safe if played together... but Hermit would be best saved for in the fight itself. With all these eyes judging and measuring like they were, she didn't want to take any chances.

Melora was glad to put on the mask again and let the card take effect. The purple bled from the card into the mask, slowly letting it merge into one. Magical power surged at her fingertips, and Melora let the beginning of a lightning spell form, sparking off her fingers as she walked forward.

Once that was done, Melora caught sight of a patch of blue on Aurora's shoulder. Interesting, indeed. Perhaps it was related to her golem? This was a question for later. For now, there was an attempt at an answer for Melora's previous question.

"Mina, that means this thing is going to be tough. It's fought other Questing Witches and killed them. Don't underestimate it."


Eirlys spoke up offering up... pins? Melora was first to arrive and grab one, testing the weight. Fragile... but heavy. Those two things weren't commonly together. Still, Melora happily pinned it on.

"Thanks, Eirlys. You be careful too. This thing is not gonna pull any punches. So neither will I."
Melora let the lightning continue to spark its way up her fingers to show off. "I'm pretty sure that it wants us to suffer, so don't let it inside your head. No helping anyone unless they're safe to help. No letting this place think that you're vulnerable. It wants us afraid so it can kill us. Don't be afraid. Now, I wanna go explode this ugly beast."

Action: Prepare
@Luma @Villamvihar @R-9 Pilot
 
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The group of five plus Rune allowed themselves only a short moment of respite. With Aurora despairing further after the small lecture, the other three witches quickly underwent some preparations on their own before finally pressing onward. The foul room was rather spacious, yet nothing out of the ordinary. A mix of tendrils, flesh, and other disgusting things were placed alongside the wall, rather idly, as well as various holes on the ceiling and walls. Varying greatly in size. In the centre of the room was their target. The heart, which resembled more of a fleshy sphere with translucent skin containing something - the source of the sound - inside, was held tightly in place by hundreds of fleshy tendrils creeping from around it from above and below.


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Name: Womb of Flesh
Class: HE-6
HP: ???

???

It was quiet. Too quiet. Despite the thing in front of them clearly being the source for the body-shaking heartbeat that had accompanied them, now louder than ever, there was no sign of aggression. No threat. Nothing that immediately screamed 'I am going to kill you now!'. It simply continued to be.

Was it another trap? Just buying time? A sign of peace? What did it matter? After what the group had been gone through just recently, and Melody reassuring them that this was their target, the first of the group attacked, with the other three following shortly. They just had to kill it...

The Witch Squad dealt 231 damage to The Womb of Flesh!

The Gaping Maw screamed.
The Womb of Flesh cried.
The tendrils twisted themselves in pain.
The heartbeat weakened.
Slower and slower.
Weaker and weaker.
And then... it stopped.
Silence. This time, complete.

Had they won, before it even began?
H o w b o r i n g .

Ba-dum
Ba-dum
Ba-dum
Ba-dum

A faint melody. The rebirth of life. This was not the ending. But merely the beginning.

Ba-dum
Anger.

It all happened at once. Beating now uneven and violently, the tunnels that were big enough to allow for an escape just suddenly closed themselves off. After that, hundreds of small, flying, lumps of flesh started to swarm the room from the still open holes. Roughly half of them armed with a solid stinger of the same size as their body. Four particular more giant eyes were all fixated on Melody as a mass of fleshy, very thick, looking tentacles now extended from the ceiling. Their movements without pattern, yet firm.

And, lastly, their target itself. Its beats now slower, deeper, and more sinister. But above all, it hurt.

"This is what you've prepared and trained for! You're all strong. Even stronger united. So, do not despair and go kick some ass!" Melody tried to encourage them!



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Name: Womb of Flesh
Class: HE-6
HP: 231/??? HP

Deals 5 damage each cycle passively
???


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Name: Beta Cell
Class: TETH
HP: 100/100

Swarmer: Made up of many, many, entities. Health correlates to the amount present.

???


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Name: Gamma Cell (Spiked one)
Class: TETH
HP: 100/100

Swarmer: Made up of many, many, entities. Health correlates to the amount present.

???


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Name: Seeking Gaze
Class: ZAYIN-S(pecial)
HP: 20/20 each

Eyeing Melody.
???


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Name: Fleshy Tendril
Class: TETH

HP: 50/50 each

A never ending mass...
???


Aurora regains 10 HP through some first-aid!
Eirly's prepared a defensive charm for the group!
Melora prepared for bonus damage for the next 3 attacks!
The group took 5 damage from the Womb of Flesh!

  • As usual, check out the Discord for the other important informations~
  • Have fun and don't despair
 
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Melora looked at the surroundings. Things were worse, but also somehow still really dull. Once they charged in, it was really just this big... fleshy thing. Still, she should be on guard. Firing off a lightning bolt seemed effective at first. However, it became rapidly apparent that this was not the end of the manablight. Well, if this thing was going to be annoying, Melora aimed a small bead of fire at the tendrils, deciding right then and there that she was not going to deal with that.

"Sorry, big ugly! Guess we're not playing today!"


The small bead seemed to do nothing at first, then flared to life in an impressive display, lighting up and setting fire to most of the mass. But Melora wasn't certain that would do much more than hold it up. With all the cells flying around too, best they could do was stall it for a moment. Hmm, she should probably hit the big center of it all next.

"Oh and uh... Melody... sorry but I think you might be on your own with those eyes. They seem to be watching you... so keep your head on, yeah? I don't have to tell you that though. You're a professional and all."


Next... another lightning strike? Nah, maybe ice this time to keep it on its toes. Melora's hands spilled ice and frost out, as she prepared for the next round against this thing. It would pay for all this heartbeat nonsense. That hurt, and that just wasn't fair, now was it?

@Skyswimsky
 
"'Join a Questing Witch squad,' she said. Join a Questing Witch squad. 'It'll be fun,' she said. 'You'll meet all the people, and see all the pretty things.' Stupid Aurora... your head's always so stuck in the clouds you can't see Questing for what it is: a job. An ugly, horrible, disgusting, dangerous... disgusting job!"

Aurora's worrisome murmuring went on.

...and on and on and on and on and on and on
and on
and on...


After several minutes of constant, self-deprecating jumbles of words had streamed from Aurora's lips, Rune actually found it difficult to ignore. So difficult, she laid a hand on aurora's shoulder for comfort, though she downright ignored it.

"'Huh...?" Aurora finally snapped out of it a little bit by the time Mina had already wrapped her arm a few times. "'Right..." she answered in the most generic fashion possible, allowing her to finish before suddenly recoiling in shock, tugging the ripped parts of her sleeve over the strange blue patch of skin to hide it.

"'You-- you didn't..... I...." words failed her, so she simply turned away, face growing abnormally pale, even in the fleshy light. "'Thanks."

The rest of the trip was dedicated to holding the rip in her sleeve in place. After watching several failed attempts at pinching it together, Rune finally grabbed the torn pieces and tied them together in a knot. As usual, Aurora gave her no thanks, and just kinda 'acknowledged that it happened,' returning her gaze to the floor.

...

Everything in this room hurt. The sound... the beat... the spikes that looked like they could impale someone's head clean through... they all HURT! Voices in her head told her to stop, to run, to stay, to fight. Were there nothing deadly in this room, she might have been paralyzed, but through pure adrenaline, and the expectations of the others, she willed herself forward, twisting her fingers and her lips just so to product a ball of fire around her hand and then.....

Plfft...

It fizzled out as she 'threw' it, having no more effect than a piece of burning flash paper. Unable to handle this idea of failure, Aurora took to it the same way she handled all her problems: try again!

Plfft...
Plfft...
Plfft...



Was it possible for witches to malfunction like golems? On days likes these, Rune couldn't help but glance at Aurora wishing she herself was a golem too. They could fix each others malfunctions, they could have some golem bonding time, maybe she'd even get some proper respect from this mopey girl she'd been irrevocably tethered to for the remainder of her existence...... well that was a sobering thought.

The most Rune could do was to continue down the tunnel of nastiness and hope she snapped out of it when something wrong happened. At least when she was mopey, she didn't run forward to grab manablight hands. Thankfully, Rune's hopes came to pass. Satisfied that Aurora would just sit there letting herself be impaled, Rune rushed forward toward the big foe, a small cannon extruding from her arm. From the barrel, a bolt of electricity blasted forth, snapping on the surface of womb.

Action: Atacc Womb of Flesh (+50)
 
More so than anything else, Aurora worried Eirlys. Though the walls of flesh along with the ethereal sensation, which pulsed under her skin, unsettled her, the witch's actions almost seemed as though she had lost her hope. Or at least a large chunk of it. Eirlys wanted to reach out so badly and her hands clutched the glass robin, almost shattering the tiny thing linking the two of them together. But as always, as always, words refused to come. They stuck in Eirlys' throat even though she wanted to so desperately-

MasterisWorriedFriendinTroubleHelpfollowsVictory

Out of all the things, Corvina jolted her out of the self-deprecating cycle, allowing Eirlys to sense an unpleasant wall of force. Her hands wrapped around the moonstone, golden images shifting around it as she refocused on her goal. Her Historia made sense: she needed to make it out alive if she wanted to reach out to Aurora, just as Aurora had reached out to her. The unpleasant wall of force before her had to be dealt with, it needed to be...

"Eleminated." | EndedbyMaster

Even if she had not studied much combat.

That, she decided, was something she would remedy as soon as they finished with this job.

Thoughts burning, heart set alight with determination, Eirlys brought her hands together as they crossed the distance. She need not ask her team-mates for opinions; she saw they shared her desires. All wished to end an abomination before it could cause damage. So she brought her hands together, a white-hot drop of Flowiron burning in her palms. It held within it countless seeds, exploding outwards as she cast her arms forward and outward. Droplets flowed with her right as it made a circular motion, floating above her left as she raised it. Metal came into existence behind her, tiny fragments catching on her index fingers.

They traced a maddening spiral in the air as Eirlys spun around, launching into an elaborate dance. Hands worked in sync with feet and moonstone to engrave symbols within thin air, setting up a lace of metal embroidery. Rolling tidal waves of material moved with her, gathering into projectile after projectile.

And exploded forth.

Spheres, bullets, spears, spikes, hammerheads, weights and thin slices of blades rained upon the Womb of Flesh, attack after attack breaking it open. The dance all but consumed Eirlys; focused as she was on her art, she chained movement into movement without missing a beat.

Action: Attack the Womb of Flesh [56]
 
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Damn, that's a lot of stuff Mina thought. Way too many targets for them to just ignore, yet most of the team immediately fixated on the nucleus of the enemy. She should have said something sooner, actually directed them better. As it was, they were in for a bad time and there wasn't much reason to worry about her own failures as a leader just yet. It was time to go to work.

Mina quickly activated as many of her own protective and strengthening enchantments as she could, and took off in a run. Using Mysteltainn as a vaulting pole, Mina launched herself high into the air, and somersaulted to add momentum to a swing at one of the tentacles. Her staff cut deeply into the flesh as she passed. And, of course, the young witch stuck the landing.

Now separated from her peers, Mina turned to face back into the rest of the room and carefully observe as much about their enemy as she could. She probably let the wrong strategy begin already, but as soon as the situation changed, she'd need to be ready to direct the group.

Action: Attacking one of the Fleshy Tendrils [55]
 
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Now disorganized, but strong, the Witches of Phantasmagoria did not hesitate to laying waste to their adversary. The Manablight monstrosity seemed to cry out in anger and pain as both Eirlys' and Aurora Rune got to work. Slicing and frying layer upon layer of skin. Yet there seemed to be always more, never enough.

Meanwhile, Mina and Melora swayed away on the tendrils. Seemingly having more success as one of the Witches cut cleanly through one while the other laid waste via the power of the elements. Yet, despite their best efforts, there were many more. Too many, in fact, as the remaining tendrils now seemed to spring into action. Halting their movement for just a moment, they adjusted themselves to face Melody now before suddenly bursting forth at high-speed.

"Wah-" The Witch had already been on guard ever since Melora's warning. Thus, it came to no surprise as three of the tendrils crashed against a magical barrier with enough force that they imploded on themselves. Yet, the damage had already been done. With the magical barrier showing visible cracks all over, it crumbled seconds after as Melody looked nearly scared. "A-Another one of these and tiz could have ended really badly..."

Nonetheless, despite five tentacles being taken care of, new tendrils slowly descended from the walls, and the eyes were locking onto new prey.

Amidst all this, the various clumps of flesh finally sprung into action, too. With the stinger-less one's swarming around the Womb of Flesh, attaching themselves and growing bigger; the Gamma Cells were a lot more offensive orientated. Like little projectiles they suddenly burst forth at accelerating speed: Ready to pierce and slice the group of Witches under a constant, merciless, fashion - if not for Eirlys' gift.

And amidst all this, the Heart? The Womb? The Monster? Continued to beat. Ever so painful.


  • The Womb of Flesh takes 106 damage!
  • Slimy Tendrils took enough damage to not skewer Melody!
  • Beta Cells restored 50 health to the Womb of Flesh.
  • Gamma Cells dealt 20 damage to each character.
    • Damage was blocked by Eirlys' gift.
    • Eirlys' gift/protective barrier broke under the brutality of the attack.
  • The group took 5 damage from the Womb of Flesh!


4TsSO7f.png

Name: Womb of Flesh
Class: HE-6
HP: 287/??? HP

Deals 5 damage each cycle passively
???


zXH8sHD.png

Name: Beta Cell
Class: TETH
HP: 100/100

Swarmer: Made up of many, many, entities. Health correlates to the amount present.

Heals Womb of Flesh by [HP/2] health.


zXH8sHD.png

Name: Gamma Cell (Spiked one)
Class: TETH
HP: 100/100

Swarmer: Made up of many, many, entities. Health correlates to the amount present.

Deals [HP/(Amount of targets)] damage.


WegkwnI.png


Name: Seeking Gaze
Class: ZAYIN-S(pecial)
HP: 20/20 each
4 present

Eyeing Eirlys.
???


Kum6xiw.png


Name: Fleshy Tendril
Class: TETH

HP: 50/50 each
5 present

A never ending mass...
Focuses on a single target(?).
 
With the assault over, Mina had a much better idea of what was going on. "Ok, I've got a guess at what we're up against," Mina shouted across the cavernous chamber. "Those spiky things have to go first, they'll tear us apart before we can deal with the rest if we don't bring them down fast. Then the other ones that are fusing with the core." Of course, the attacks on the tendrils failed to do anything lasting, though it did seem tor educe their overall effectiveness, so that was definitely something she couldn't ignore. And if not for Eirlys' foresight with theose defensive charms, the fight might almost be over for all of them already. Clearly, they couldn't afford to wait and see what the enemy was capable of in the future.

"I think the eyes are some sort of targeting thing, so watch out Eirlys, you're probably next. If that attack swarm's down, someone might want to try hitting one." With that warning out, Mina set about making her own dent in the swarms of creatures swirling around the room, conjuring a fireball and hurling it into one of the ribbons of bladed Gamma cells, where it explodes, sending several of them flying in all directions.

Action: Attacking Gamma Swarm roll of [34]
 
While Rune tried her best to focus on her attacks, every few seconds her eyes would dart back to Aurora flailing her arms about and hoping some sort of decent magic would come of it. Time and time again, it kept on fizzling out, exploding midair or just doing nothing. Even worse, she was barely paying any attention to the things around her.

Noticing a powerfully sharp stinger headed straight for her maker’s head, Rune let out a lightning-fast sigh and rushed for it. With superhuman agility and strength, she lept off into the air and smashed the cell with a quick punch, inches before the sharp point could reach Aurora.

She turned and simply nodded to the indignant golem as if to say ‘yep, you did that,’ before continuing her fruitless attempts at being useful.

Action: Attack Gamma Cell [18]
 
Melora put up her hands defensively, but the cells with stingers all burst against some barrier. They fell to the ground only to swirl back up, unharmed. However, their mistake was that Melora was unharmed. Melora took a deep breath and her hands were once again covered with frost, some kind of spell coming to life with no effort. She was about to attack another fleshy tendril when she heard Mina.

Hearing Mina's declaration, Melora pointed her hand at the cluster of Gamma cells instead, taking note of how many had been taken down by Mina. With a sweep of her hand, several froze in place, falling to the ground and shattering into pieces. With Melora's attack, the last of those had been taken care of. Next would be the healing cells. The fat ones attaching themselves to that ugly Womb thing.

"Man, these things are ugly! Let's wipe them out quick so we can all take a bath when we get home, because I'm over all this Womb of the Gross business."
Melora said, preparing for the worst.

The beating of the Womb was starting to hurt. Eirlys might need help if that targeting eye thing really was connected to the tendrils. Plus, it might target someone else next. They got a free pass with Melody, but Melora doubted Eirlys would be able to put up some kind of barrier like that. Plus, they had no idea what those eyes could do.

Attacking Gamma Cells. Roll of [44].
 
As she danced her coordinated storm of steps, Eirlys felt a subtle shift. The next moment, a hurricane of things blasted forwards from their positions, crossing the air and almost shattering it in their wake. Red, gruesomely deformed, deadly and filled with a portion of pure hate, they slammed into the group before she could as much as put up a defence. However, she had prepared for exactly this occasion: the four pins yanked away most of her Flowiron just milliseconds before the impact.

But it was only barely enough.

A hastily constructed circuit for her magic, the pins strained under the assault, shattering under the weight of the symbol network stretching across their surface. The magical energy had simply been too much for it to handle, but at least the pin performed its job amicably: The attack smashed into smithereens on Eirlys' as well as her teammates' Flowiron shell. Of course, this meant she did not have enough of the material for the moment to mount an attack, so she arrested her current movement. Hands fell in front of her to begin the process from zero - she had no time to think about creating another set of defensive bubbles - and instructions tore through her battle trance as knife tore through flesh.

The others attack the cells with the... stinger-spikes... while she built up her reserve of Flowiron. Step followed after step, Eirlys' dance of death resuming its inevitable rhythm, but by the time she was done, most of the opponents were simply gone. Killed by Mina, Aurora and Melora. So she lengthened one of her steps, preparing to sweep at the other gro-

MasterupAttention!

Her head snapped upwards and her eyes met...

...

...

Eyes.

Remembering Mina's orders, Eirlys changed her pattern, almost twisting her ankle in the process. Symbols warped in response to the unexpected crash, crawling along invisible walls so the Flowiron inside could form three javelins, sharp and menacing. Implements of destruction over anything else, the weapons surged forwards and Eirlys shut her own eyes as they penetrated the abominations peering at her.

Action: Attacking Eyes [60]
 
UMrFP01.png

With another brutal assault of fire, ice, and some good old force, the stingy

Only a few seconds passed as the witches continued with their assault of fire, ice, metal, and even some classical brute force. But only a few seconds were all they needed, luckily. The oh-so threatening spiked cells fell to the ground shattered and burned alike, unable to go for a second assault after their first failed.

The eyes were not spared either. It was quick and efficient. A single javelin was all needed for a single eye as it pierces them smoothly through the middle - with only one eye left. They could hear the Manablight cry out in fury as the eye narrowed and the tentacles sped forth. Just like it happened with to Melody, the mass of flesh accelerated at frightening speed as every single one of them... missed. Shooting past Eirly's and burrowing itself into the opposite end of where they came from. It was a close miss, but a miss nonetheless.

With some of the dangers dealt with, and the non-stinger cells continuing to patch up the Womb, the group of Witches could feel a shift in the air. An emotion akin to anger as the heartbeat of the womb became slower, and slower, and slower. Yet, somehow more painful. Nonetheless, while they couldn't explain why, the group knew:

Something was coming.


  • Slimy Tendrils missed Eirly's!
  • Beta Cells restored 50 health to the Womb of Flesh.
  • Gamma Cells destroyed!
  • The group took 10 damage from the Womb of Flesh!


4TsSO7f.png

Name: Womb of Flesh
Class: HE-6
HP: 237/??? HP

Deals 10 damage each cycle passively
???


zXH8sHD.png

Name: Beta Cell
Class: TETH
HP: 100/100

Swarmer: Made up of many, many, entities. Health correlates to the amount present.

Heals Womb of Flesh by [HP/2] health.


WegkwnI.png


Name: Seeking Gaze
Class: ZAYIN-S(pecial)
HP: 20/20 each
1 present

Eyeing Womb of Flesh.
Commands fleshy Tendrils.


Kum6xiw.png


Name: Fleshy Tendril
Class: TETH

HP: 50/50 each
5 present

A never ending mass...
Focuses on a single target.
Currently burrowed.
 
In life, there are moments of fear, and moments of cloying, choking despair. Where your bones hurt so deeply that you know if you don't do something now, it's going to be terrible. Melora recalled the vision from The Moon card earlier. She couldn't be more grateful for the mask concealing her face. No doubt her face had to be twisted up in fear.

Melora took a breath, deeply exhaling and inhaling. Remain calm. The card on the board and the cards in hand. Justice wasn't charged yet, but... she could use The Moon to protect them from...

Melora drew the card, but didn't activate it yet. Instead, her hands glowed softly, extending light out from her fingers to Aurora. The light stretched out and spread between Aurora and Rune, softly stitching up the wounds and scrapes between the two. Melora looked as though she were connecting strings between the three of them, and she was the puppet master. As quickly as it came, the strings vanished.

"Better not waste, it you two!"
Melora joked.

Already thinking to the next move, Melora pulled The Moon close to her heart. She wasn't going to let it show in her voice. Melora wanted this. She volunteered.

Action: Heal Aurora (& Rune) for 10 Hp
@Luma
 
Just when Aurora seemed to finally spawn a half-decent fireball, a myriad of string surrounded her, causing her to stumble and toss it off to the side. She forced a weak smile Melora's way as she tried to replicate the effect.

Rune on the other hand, seeing the chaos around her, ran up to Aurora and plunged her hand into Aurora's satchel. Before Aurora could shake her off, she exploded into a flurry of plasma and lightning, snapping up to the womb faster than one could even blink. As Aurora cried a series of complaints about wasting flow, Rune whirled around the opponent in a tornado of sparks and flashes.

Action: Reckless Attack Womb (123)
 
Things were definitely taking some sort of turn, and Mina wasn't sure what to make of it. She didn't like the look of the eye no longer focusing on them, however, so there was one obvious thing she had to attempt. "I'm going to take out the last of the eyes," she said to her teammates. She couldn't muster much of a spell in a hurry, but she managed to strike true with a blast of energy which should be enough to take the eye out of the picture.

Action: Attack on the remaining Eye [25]
 
The Womb of Flesh slammed her like a tidal wave. A river of hairline cracks ran from the fingers of Eirlys to her elbows, fabric and blood shredding in equal quantities. Her scream died on silent lips, executed by sheer force of will, eyes blocking out the world so as to make the pain bearable.

It had to stop.

It had to end.

Sooner or later; and she would rather it be sooner.

Eirlys had the will to make it so.

Two steps forward - one to the side, pirouette to the left - backwards - hands thrust to the front, slammed together - spread out in blessings - weaving Flowiron lace - a terrible storm.

Eyes burning with silver fire, Eirlys put every mote of her strength into her intricate dance. A wall of grey metal sprung around her, enveloping her almost though as it were a cocoon. But then it rushed and swept forwards, tearing a ravine of carnage through the flesh cave. Weak muscles along with skin or fat were no match for its inherent might. Even bone could resist for only a fraction of a second; the Flowiron wave seemed to consume all matter before smashing the Heart.

And not a moment later, Eirlys dropped onto her knees, utterly exhausted.

Action: Reckless Attack against the Womb of Flesh [69]