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Post by SlvrNight on Mar 1, 2016 19:23:54 GMT -5
Triste had to avert her eyes as she saw the explosion of light engulf Howl. It didn't seem to be a damaging attack, just one meant to blind the king's enemy and give him an opening. Although she believed such a thing wasn't necessary since he seemed to have the inhuman man on the ropes so long as he kept his distance. But, then again, the man was using a chainsaw and took several arrows already. A single blow from his weapon, at the right angle, would mean an instant end to the king. It was indeed best to end the battle however quickly he could. Triste stayed silent and continued to observe from her hiding spot.
Howl was surprised by the burst of light from the arrow within his chest, letting out a small grunt and taking a step back. However, it did little else. He was largely unaffected by it and charged forward to the king.
"A clever idea, your majesty. Unfortunately, I don't see like most of you do. My helm has not a single opening, there is no way for my eyes to see through it and, therefore, nothing to blind!"
The inhuman man then slashed his chainsaw in front of him, creating another rift.
"As for how I see..."
The sound of the whirring blade screamed out near Tael once again as Howl emerged several feet from his left through a rift opening in the air, opening another in the ground and disappearing again. His skin continuing to increase its orange glow as he emerged from rift to rift.
"That is my own business."
He repeated this, rifts appearing in different directions around the king and the inhuman man emerging to attack, only to disappear again. Once to the king's left, once to his right, once above him, again to his left, then behind him, then above him again, and so on. He was attempting to confuse him, to make him paranoid, to shake the king of Jin's focus and will.
The sound of the spinning blade roared as a rift suddenly opened right in front of Tael at his feet, less than a foot away, and the large inhuman man jumped out swinging his weapon in a horizontal slash at point blank range.
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Post by Jisui on Mar 3, 2016 3:41:30 GMT -5
Tael's eyes widened upon seeing Howl charge at him mostly unimpeded. Did that mean that his vision wasn't light-based at all? Or perhaps he didn't rely on sight from the very beginning? Regardless, it meant that his attempt to blind him had failed.
"Tch..." The king gave a grunt of annoyance upon seeing the inhuman man teleport about him in his portals, his eyes darting to and fro. Above them, arrows of water began forming and firing down at Howl in an attempt to hit him, shattering earth and stone about the king. Unfortunately, he was surprisingly fast, and the king ceased his assault after realizing that it was a fruitless effort.
Despite the frantic motion and whir of Howl's chainsaw, Tael forced himself to remain calm. Placing his bow back on his back, he placed a hand on a black sword sheathe that was lying on his belt. He thought about the man he was fighting and what he would likely do. The movements and fighting style of a wild beast. The fearlessness to charge into a storm of arrows without hesitation. Yes... the man known as Howl Zoloheim would surely attack from...!
The clang of steel rang out in the playground. Blocking Howl's slash was an ornate looking longsword gleaming a deadly silver in the moonlight. It was true that Tael was an archer. But there was nothing that said his skills were limited to just that. Years and years of practice had turned him into a formidable swordsman as well.
But his opponent's strength was also great. Even with a two-handed grip on his sword, Tael felt his feet sink into the ground from the impact of the blow, and his muscles scream in protest. Still, he managed to hold his ground despite the different in their frames.
"...You're good." The king grunted out, firmly tightening his grip on his blade. It was true. There were things that could only be conveyed through the exchange of blades. It was a splendid slash Howl had sent at him, heavy with the weight of fearless conviction that Tael had seen all throughout the battle.
"Its almost a shame that someone of your skill is using them for petty murder."
Saying no more than that, Tael once again channeled mana into the atmosphere around them. Familiar arrow-shaped projectiles of water began to form about the clashing duo, before they fired away at screaming speeds at Howl.
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Post by SlvrNight on Mar 4, 2016 20:13:37 GMT -5
Howl Zoloheim was not a man easily impressed nor surprised. He had expected the king of Jin to be a feeble leader whose only weapons were words. He had expected the tales of his skill with a bow to be exaggerated stories for the youth and sources of inspiration for younger generations. All of his expectations had been decimated and he had gotten what he was hoping for. A worthwhile challenge and a leader who could actually back up his words with strength.
Petty murder. The words of someone who was ignorant to their opponent's cause. Ignorant to their plight. But what could Howl have expected from a human king? He had not experienced the brutality humanity gave to demonkind. The many unjustly slaughtered, the many who were treated as second-class citizens, hurled into ghettos and left to rot under the foot of their oppressive and uncaring rulers. These thought filled Howl's mind and he audibly growled.
"You call it petty murder simply because you're ignorant to my cause. You're ignorant to your own naivete."
The water arrows surrounding the clashing duo then flew forward, the sound of them piercing flesh as blood spurt out from Howl's wounds. He growled and suppressed the pain, jumping away from the king and getting out of range of the storm of arrows. The numerous injuries were starting to get to him now. Lines of blood dripped down his arms and shoulders, staining his worn clothing red. The inhuman man looked at Tael and revved his chainsaw once again but said nothing.
He then released a roar, his gray skin flashing red, and stabbed the weapon's blade into the earth. A moment later a giant orange buzzsaw, roughly the size of a bus, ripped through the ground and charged towards the archer, tearing apart the earth and sending chunks of dirt and rock soaring.
Triste, however, had seen enough. This man simply refused to go down and while she had the utmost confidence in Tael's abilities, she simply didn't want the fight to go on any longer. The longer it went on the more likely one unlucky blow would strike the king. She took a deep breath, released it slowly, then breathed again. Her emerald eyes focused on the glowing nonhuman and the voices of the spirits within her become louder within her mind.
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Post by Jisui on Mar 5, 2016 19:15:07 GMT -5
"Hah... naivete?" The king of Jin scoffed, still locked into blades with his adversary. "Blame it on my ignorance as much as you want. Try enlightening me with words first instead of blades next time."
Tael leaped back at the same time as Howl, eyes narrowing at the inhuman man's endurance. Around him, the familiar swirl of his water armory moved around the king in a protective formation. What tenacity... he had received wounds that would have killed ordinary people several times over. Sheathing his sword, the king took out his bow once again in preparation for another ranged assault.
His question of why Howl had given up the close range advantage had been answered seeing the inhuman man conjure a gargantuan buzzsaw that was heading straight for him. Several arrows of water formed over Tael's head, slamming into the projectile in an attempt to slow it down to no avail.
"Tch..." With a curse, the king leaped to his right in an attempt to dodge the buzzsaw. While managing to dodge it, he felt felt rock and stone bombard his left side as the buzzsaw passed to his left. While most of it wasn't particularly serious, merely bruises and cuts, a particularly sharp piece of rock gave him a somewhat nasty cut on his forehead.
Ignoring the blood that was beginning to drip down his face, Tael merely aimed his bow back at Howl with an arrow nocked.
"...Its over, Howl. You and I both know how this will end if we keep going." The king warned. A high pitched noise began to fill the air as Tael's arrow began to glow a radiant gold. His mana almost began to emit outwards the arrow, blanketing those nearby in a comforting heat.
"I'll just say it once more. Drop your weapon."
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Post by SlvrNight on Mar 6, 2016 22:03:47 GMT -5
"I feel as if you're severely underestimating me. Or perhaps simply overestimating yourself." Howl responded, holding his chainsaw tightly and preparing for another strike.
He had long accepted the king was at an advantage when it came to ranged combat. Howl was able to fight from a range as well but his own attacks, while larger in scale and radius, were slower than his opponent's lightning-fast arrows. If the inhuman man had let loose from the beginning, instead of underestimating his foe, things would possibly be going better. But he couldn't go back and change that. He made this situation himself and he had to work through it. It wasn't an impossible situation anyways and Howl had been through worse.
"Once again you offer me mercy. I applaud your character, your majesty but I cannot surrender. I will not until my chances of victory are practically nothin-"
The inhuman man's words were cut off by a loud crack in the air, the sound of a gun firing. Immediately blood splattered out from his left shoulder and Howl stumbled to the side, quickly regaining his balance but leaning heavily to the right. He was silent as his mind tried to process what happened and he then looked towards the king.
"A sniper? You had a sniper watching our battle this whole time? Is that what you've really been doing? Buying time until they could arrive and get a shot off?" There was a hint of disgust in his tone. Being shot from his blind side like that was a cowardly and backhanded method of attack, but it was effective. He had to admit that.
A young woman with long brown hair then came floating down on wings made of black and white energy, a low humming emanating from them as they pulsated. She held a long sniper rifle in her hands, comprised of the same energy as her wings, and landed next to the king with a soft tap of her boots. The woman looked towards Tael, her wings and rifle dissipating.
"Sorry for jumping in like this, uncle Tael. I usually come here when I can't sleep so I've been here the whole time. I know you can handle this guy but I could tell he wasn't going to give up without a serious injury. Figured I'd do that while he was open to me."
Howl laughed quietly at this development, cursing himself for not noticing her sooner.
"Ah, the child of Carl Makkura. A pleasure to finally make your acquaintance. A shame it's not under better circumstances."
Triste returned his calm greeting with a quizzical look.
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Post by Jisui on Mar 9, 2016 2:39:51 GMT -5
"I don't say things I can't back up." The king retorted with a smirk, keeping a steady aim at the inhuman man. Tightening his grip, Tael prepared to launch himself back into battle before the sounds of a sniper interrupted the battle. His eyes widening, he snapped his gaze towards the location of the sound.
"Triste!"
Tael wasn't sure what to feel at the moment. He was thankful for the assistance, yet strangely disappointed that their battle had been interrupted. Admittedly he was also somewhat impressed by Triste's shot, but also wanted to scold her a bit for putting herself in harm's way. In the end, he settled for a brief nod and a quick flash of a smile to show his thanks before turning back to Howl. They could talk later. Now wasn't the time.
"...This isn't how I wanted it to go, Howl." The king admitted, a slight hint of regret in his tone. Howl had been a worthy opponent, and Tael would have been lying if he said he hadn't enjoyed their bout. But rarely were battles fair, as he had learned through war. Additionally, he hadn't liked the way Howl had addressed Triste, as if he was expecting to meet her at some point. This man was too dangerous to let go.
"But, I can't let you escape. Here I come...!"
The king launched himself back several feet, pulling back and angling his bow straight up into the sky.
From the very beginning, he had not been able to show his true strength.
After all, he was an archer. A soldier who specialized in attacks from a distance. Howl had pressured him enough so that he had very few chances to demonstrate his marksmanship. But the few shots he had fired had not missed.
This shot too, would not miss.
Tael's arrow continued shining a radiant gold. Mana literally began emitting off of it, blanketing those nearby in a comforting warmth. When the strain of his bow and the heat of his mana began to become too much, the king launched the arrow straight up into the sky with a screech.
Apollon.
The name of his strike which had once felled a dragon. Like its namesake, it soared into the heavens in a streak of light. The arrow that Tael had fired into the sky began to burn brighter and brighter, until it began to resemble a miniature sun than arrow. When it reached the apex of its peak, it began to fall down at breakneck speeds towards Howl like a falling star.
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Post by SlvrNight on Mar 9, 2016 20:26:29 GMT -5
Howl simply watched as the epic arrow rocketed towards him. Before it hit, it split off into several smaller shots which formed a circle around the inhuman man. He grunted as he felt his body tighten and found it nigh impossible to move. He had considered using his weapon to create another rift and send the attack back, but such a thing would not have worked for this kind of technique. He would have likely missed at least a few of the arrows. A bright sigil of holy light appeared beneath his feet and then, suddenly, it roared as it unleashed a torrent of holy energy that engulfed Howl's body in white. The raw power that was released cracked apart the earth around him and birds flew from the nearby trees as their sleep was interrupted, cawing as they escaped the park.
If Howl screamed from the pain, it was not heard.
Triste looked over at Tael in shock. She knew he was powerful, but to actually see the extent of it was something else entirely. While the attack may not have had a large range, the simple amount of arcane energy released from it was incredible.
"That's not even everything you have is it?" She asked the king.
As the dust cleared, the inhuman man's body could be seen. He had not been incinerated by Tael's attack but he was now down on one knee and forced to use his chainsaw to support himself. Indeed, without the weapon it was likely he would have been sprawled out on the ground. His body was covered in burns with the red meat beneath his skin clearly visible in some spots. His clothing was tattered even further and almost all of it was burned black, while his helmet had a deep crack that curved around the side of his head and partway across the top.
Howl's ragged breathing was loud and clear and his body moved with every painful breath. He had truly underestimated his foe. His helmeted head moved up and he looked at Tael and Triste. He then laughed quietly, ending it with a rough cough.
"It seems you win this battle, your majesty. I sincerely hope we are wrong about you and your desire to have peace between humans and nonhumans is genuine and does not vanish once the rabble come to tear you down from your perch. As for you, daughter of Carl Makkura..."
He forced himself to stand upright, stumbling back a step.
"You are not entirely human. The Infernal Heralds are fighting to keep our kind from being oppressed and wiped out. You have faced the Order of the Golden Cross, so you know exactly what I'm talking about."
Howl revved his chainsaw and slashed at the ground, creating a rift and falling through it.
"This fight should be yours as well, sister."
Just like that, Howl Zoloheim was gone.
Triste silently stared at where the inhuman man had just been, a focused look on her face as her mind argued with itself.
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Post by Jisui on Mar 10, 2016 0:04:15 GMT -5
"That's not even everything you have is it?"
"Perhaps..." The king responded with a chuckle, his breath somewhat ragged and uneven from the exertion of his blow. Trying to ignore his shaking legs, Tael finally fell to one knee with a grimace. Tch... he was getting old. It was true that he had poured a lot of mana into that attack, but such a thing wouldn't have caused his legs to give out under him ten years ago.
Wincing and ignoring the painful fire that was spreading throughout his lungs, the king regained his breath and looked over in the direction of Howl.
...It seemed he had underestimated his opponent as well.
Tael had truly not expected Howl to be standing in front of them now, much less speaking. If that blow had not landed, then the inhuman man might have beaten him in a battle of attrition. It was fortunate that it had connected. But it was unfortunate that Howl was still alive and breathing.
"...Shit. He really is tenacious." The king muttered upon seeing Howl disappear in a portal before their eyes. He had messed up by letting Howl escape. Tael truly hoped that it wouldn't come back to bite him, or worse, Triste and Suna.
Infernal Heralds...
For a moment, Tael felt a flash of recognition go through his mind. It was only the name, but he had sworn that he had heard it before. He had to check in with Elesia as soon as he could. But for now, it was time to focus on the aftermath.
The king turned a concerned eye to Triste, slowly pushing himself upwards off his knee. He delved into his mana reservoir once again, silently preparing a heal spell for himself and anyone else who might have needed it.
"You alright kid?"
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Post by SlvrNight on Mar 12, 2016 17:00:22 GMT -5
It took a moment for Triste's mind to register the king's words. She then looked at him and nodded. She was fine yet, at the same time, she wasn't. She was happy the battle with Howl had ended and neither of them were seriously injured, but his words and the fact he got away both disturbed her. The Infernal Heralds. It was a name she had never heard before. They were obviously a group of some kind and apparently they were fighting to keep nonhumans from being wiped out.
"That man, Howl. He mentioned he hoped they were wrong about you. That they hoped you really would fight to keep nonhumans from being wiped out. He said 'we' and not 'I'. I don't think him coming after you was completely his decision."
Triste turned to her uncle fully.
"This group he mentioned. The Infernal Heralds. Please tell me everything you know about them because I'm confused. Howl said they're trying to keep nonhumans from being oppressed and wiped out. Yet they had him try to kill you, someone's who's been very public about his desire for peace between humans and nonhumans. It doesn't make sense to me."
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Post by Jisui on Mar 13, 2016 20:52:10 GMT -5
The king took a moment to take in Triste's words while healing himself, waving a glowing hand over his forehead wound and closing the gash that Howl's attack had caused. It was a valid reason for concern. Howl Zoloheim was a dangerous man. Whoever the Infernal Heralds were, they could potentially be a huge threat in the future.
"Unfortunately I know just about as much as you, although I remember hearing about them by name." Tael admitted, grimacing as he began patching up the various cuts and bruises that lined up his chest and torso. Elesia wasn't going to like this if she found out. And she would find out.
"But, we can figure out a few things from what he told us."
"The Infernal Heralds are fighting to keep our kind from being oppressed and wiped out."
"Its pretty clear that they're a nonhuman supremacy group from what he's told us. If we assume that their creation is for the purpose of nonhuman rights, you'd be right to be confused, Triste." The king continued while still healing his wounds. Triste's logic was correct. Tael had invested quite a bit into trying to keep the peace behind humans and nonhumans, and more than once had spoken about nonhuman rights. But, her logic was just slightly off, tainted by a bit of naivete.
"You are a stick attempting to hold back the raging waters of an inevitable war."
"But you forgot about the method of how they'll achieve their goals. What if they're not too interested in peaceful coexistence?"
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Post by SlvrNight on Mar 15, 2016 13:27:43 GMT -5
"Then that doesn't make sense." Triste replied, disdain heavy in her tone. "That makes them no better than the Order of the Golden Cross. One group wants humans dominant and kills and oppresses nonhumans. The other wants nonhumans to be dominant and kills and oppresses humans. It's just some damn endless cycle that's gonna push everyone into an all out war. With everyone caught in between."
Her mind ran through all the possibilities she could think of of how badly things would go if that were to happen. The bigots in each city attacking their other kind, riots in every city, mass slaughter of innocents just because of what they were born as, and more. The amount of deaths and chaos would be staggering. Triste's fists were clenched so tightly that her nails threatened to draw blood. The spirits in the area felt her internal conflict and peril and their whispers entered her mind. She heard reasonable words, attempts to calm her down, to return her thinking to rationality.
The brunette took a deep breath and relaxed her hands.
"That can't happen. Eventually both of their groups need to be stopped, one way or another."
She looked at the ground in deep contemplation for a moment.
"But I can't do anything about that now. We should probably head back now shouldn't we, uncle? Mom's gonna end up waking up to an empty house at this rate."
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Post by Jisui on Mar 15, 2016 14:03:39 GMT -5
"..." Tael kept a careful eye on his niece as she spoke, seeing her internal struggle displayed clearly on her face. Finishing up his healing spells, the king let out a small groan as he stretched his tense shoulder muscles.
Well, it wasn't like he wasn't disturbed over what they had learned as well. Even more than the fact that another group in the world wanted him dead, the existence of another supremacy group was troubling. What's more, they had barely gotten any info on said group until Howl had showed up to assassinate him today.
Years of experience allowed him to remain calm however in contrast to Triste. There would be a time to worry about the Infernal Heralds another day. The king moved over to Triste and playfully mussed her hair as he did when they had met.
"That's right. That's what I've been trying to prevent for a while now." Giving the young woman a kind smile, he removed his hand and gestured to the exit of the park.
"But its not something that can be solved overnight like you said. Lets take small steps first. Like getting out of here before some poor kid sees that I blew up their playground..." Tael muttered, looking somewhat guiltily at the devastated area. It resembled a miniature lake in some parts due to his nonstop barrage of water projectiles. The crater made by firing Apollon didn't help matters. He'd divert some funds to repairing it later.
The king began to walk towards the direction of the exit before pausing as if something came to mind. Chuckling, he glanced back at his niece.
"Oh... before I forget. Nice shot earlier."
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Post by SlvrNight on Mar 16, 2016 13:51:48 GMT -5
Triste looked around at the devastated park and sighed. "Guess I'll have to find somewhere else for my private thinking time." A light blush then spread across her face at Tael's compliment. "Ah yeah...thanks. Wasn't really me though as much as it was the spirit I was working with."
Eager to leave the war-torn playground she quickly followed the king.
Makkura Household 5:12 AM
It took around thirty minutes or so of walking for the two of them to get back home. The humble household was a welcome sight for Triste, sending a feeling of comfort and relief through her body. In truth her mind was still processing everything that just happened. A demonic man attempted to kill the king of Jin and, in doing so, revealed the presence of an extremist group that was the opposite of the Golden Cross in that they were against humans and supported demonkind. The more she thought about it the more obvious it became. She should have expected such a thing. It was only natural for the oppressed to develop hatred born from the fear they held for their torturers. It was natural for that hatred and fear to give them strength and for them to band together in an effort to fight back. It was expected, although sad, that that group would become like their enemy and be just as merciless and brutal.
Triste was afraid. She knew it yet denied it. Of course she had seen her fair share of bloody battle before but simply thinking of what could happen because of the Infernal Heralds and the Order of the Golden Cross with their little feud sent shivers down her spine. She hadn't been alive at the time but she had hoped the scars of the Eight Hour War would deter people from such actions.
Then again, perhaps it was the scar of that war that spurred humanity on in its crusade to wipe out all demonkind, all of those different from then.
"Tael." Triste said as she moved towards the steps of her home's porch. "Should we tell my mom about this? She has enough on her mind already and I have no idea if telling her about this event will only make her condition worse or not."
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Post by Jisui on Mar 17, 2016 17:29:54 GMT -5
Tael attempted to think of some way to describe what he felt like during the trip back to Triste's house. He tried to do so in a way that was befitting of the king of Jin, and not a man who had been dragged into a death match at three in morning. Unfortunately, he failed.
He felt like shit.
No matter how strong a person was, throwing around so much magic with such little sleep was not good for the body.
While the king's body was aching however, his mind was going into overdrive. There was much preparation and research that had to be done on the Infernal Heralds when he got home. He hoped Elesia had more information for him.
"Ah... you've got a point. Granted, your mother will probably figure it out herself anyway." Tael admitted, thinking back on the green-haired woman's intelligence. If she found out about the park, Suna could probably piece together that Tael's magic had caused the devastation. From there, the questions would arise.
"Let's keep this to ourselves for now like you said. The less people that know about this, the safer it'll be."
A brief silence blanketed the pair as they made their way towards the porch, before it was broken by Tael once again.
"Triste." The king began, his voice notably more serious than before. "If you see Howl again, just focus on getting away. And if you think the Infernal Heralds are up to anything, don't hesitate to contact me."
Tael paused again, sighing and rubbing the back of his head before adding on.
"..Ideally, I'd probably just tuck you two away in Jin and pamper you. Figured you weren't the type to stay in one place for too long though."
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Post by SlvrNight on Mar 17, 2016 18:28:29 GMT -5
Triste was glad the king agreed with her. On top of his reasoning, she also simply lacked the energy to explain the situation to her mother. She wasn't the one fighting Howl of course, but the tenseness of the situation and the stress from its future implications was wearing her down.
"Triste."
Uh oh. The king's voice was serious. The young woman turned to him and cocked her head.
"If you see Howl again, just focus on getting away. And if you think the Infernal Heralds are up to anything, don't hesitate to contact me... Ideally, I'd probably just tuck you two away in Jin and pamper you. Figured you weren't the type to stay in one place for too long though."
She laughed quietly and smiled. She was genuinely touched by Tael's concern for her and her mother's well-being. However, he wasn't there when she helped Oberius and his family back in the capital of the Greylocke Kingdom. He didn't see how she could fight, how she could hold her own. All he had seen was a single, small demonstration of her abilities in the form of a single sniper shot at Howl and a brief use of her borrowed wings. Triste couldn't blame him for not knowing.
"I appreciate that, I really do. You're right though. I likely wouldn't stay. Wouldn't mind if you had my mom stay over in Jin of course. As evidenced by tonight, my brother's guardian eyes can't keep a watch on the city every second. JX City just isn't as secure as Jin I feel. Then again, haven't really spent much time in Jin anyways. As for me running into Howl again..."
The air around the two of them grew noticeably colder and tiny threads of black and white energy trailed from the young Makkura's body. Moments later various creatures walked out from nothingness and stood by her side. Their bodies were all composed of black energy with trails of white swirling around their edges and interiors. One was a man with spiky hair and a trench coat holding a pistol, who nodded to the king in greeting. A small fairy-like creature, a little larger than Tael's hand, with horns and long hair hovered next to Triste's head with large wings. The third, and final, held the silhouette of a knight and was armed with a sword, shield, and a crossbow attached to its wrist. It fell to one knee in respect and greeting to the king.
"Theses are the spirits currently within me, uncle. I know I'll cross paths with Howl again. I don't intend to let the Infernal Heralds run freely and he did say their fight should be mine as well. Wouldn't be surprised if he came back to try and recruit me. But I'll be ready. I know what he can do now after seeing you fight him. I may not be able to kill him but I'll at least be able to repel him."
There was confidence in Triste's tone. She fully meant her words and despite the fact she was indeed afraid of Howl, she wouldn't run from him. She had every intention to strike the inhuman man down should he ever try to harm her.
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