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[Mizukage]

(( for the record I didn't throw the spear, it was a thrust. the naginata was not designed for throwing))

With the strange monk's escape from the firy depths I was in a bit of a jam, there was nothing between the firebird and myself, it's focus had shifted to me, this would not end well.

I halt my charge and assume a mobile defensive stance.

"what options do we have?!"

[Queztatlapoca]

Seeing the sudden necessity to shift the bird's focus Aeric sprang into action. Going into a side long roll he grabbed a rock in either hand , threw one at the beast's general vicinity before ending the roll and picking up another stone projectile in the process, and jumped out of the roll in a backspin hurling the rocks at the head and body of the great phoenix. He wasn't expecting to do any damage but just giving the samurai a chance to get away from the beast uninjured. Aeric was sure he could make it back to the box of protection if he became the singular target of the bird.

[Megell]

((Sorry, had a lot of real life girl issues to deal with, there over now so back to posting?. *Slits wrists?* my life sucks. XD))

Alexis stumbled around in a trench a few meters away from his allies. One of the great beast?s wing flaps had stirred up a typhoon and sent him flying into the pit leaving him clean out of the fight for a good three minutes. He heard one of his team mates screaming for his help, another giving him instruction. Alexis swore under his breath. He was screwing the battle over.

He clawed his way up the side of the trench, and pulled his focus to the beast. Focusing a thing stringing barrier in the sky, with thin line like threads rolling down towards his fingers he in essence made a giant net out of his barriers. He yelled out in a his most powerful voice and he used these strings, and made the barrier contract and start to sweep out to capture the beast. ?Get down here yah self down here!?

The beast didn?t even have time to properly react, it just happened all to quickly, the net pulled down, wrapped around its wings, and it let out a screech as it was forced to the ground. It scrambled on the ground in protest.

The creature was powerful, so the barrier threads began to snap and break as the Alexis tried to keep it locked to the ground with all his will. Pulling himself out of the pit, he let out a holler. ?You?d better plex this varmint before he can get up and vamoose this situation here!?

[Rytiko]

((Awe, darn. You made him have to use it again...))

It was captured! Rejoicing, Mohan continued to climb. It was not even close to being over yet, but this game him more time. Continuing his climb undisturbed, at least for a few seconds, he felt the delayed reaction of the barrier user was made up for by this attack.... or rather, restraint.

It would last for a shorter time than any of them could have fathomed, though. Almost immediately after some minor struggle and realization, the phoenix began to shine a gold as it had done once before. It made it apparent to Mohan that it was going to repeat its opening attack. The attack that they wouldn't have stood a chance against without Alexis. As soon as he recognized the color, he let himself begin to fall from the wall. Kicking himself off of it, he ended up next to Alexis after a less-than-graceful roll over a bubbling pit of lava. Clumsy, yes, but effective.

There was no time to speak. The beast was prepared for a massive display of power from its wingspan that he severely doubted the net barrier to be able to contain. And as soon as its wings were to open, they'd all be dead if not protected...

[Queztatlapoca]

Aeric saw the bird glowing yet again. And did the only reasonable thing he could do. He went into a roll back towards the protective barrier. once inside he sat and tried to clear his mind as to what the four of them could do to possible harm this magnificent bird.

[Megell]

The net barrier broke all at once as the beast flapped its wings in rage, the golden glow that it had originally used to create the huge blast of fire returned in a startling rage. Alexis stood inside his barrier again, and swore to himself that he would get this bastard out of the sky if it were the last thing he did.

All at once the fire shot forward from the thing, like phoenix feathers it struck his barrier wall and make a short of screeching sound of nails on a chalk bored. The concentration, and range of the flames were much more then the prior attack, Alexis began to feel a drop of water running down his cheek. ?I?m losin? this battle? he thought as a crack appeared on the barrier wall. Like glass breaking under a heavy mans weight. He heard a distant rumble, as the crack grew and multiplied, it sounded like a swan song as it screeched out Alexis defeat.

Alexis being nearest to the barrier didn?t have time to save himself as flames began to burn through the cracks. So he then created a second barrier around his allies behind him as the last of first gave way. It seemed to explode in front of him. The jagged shards rushed pashed him and cut him deeply, a thin one passed right through his left leg and he heard a breaking sound similar to wood snapping. A few minor bits perforated his chest, but lacked the force to go all the way through. Another large shard whipped past his right arm, cutting through the flesh and severing several tendons in his arm, his staff fell out of his hand and was blown away in the gusts of fire.

Somehow, by pure miracle Alexis stood, the barrier behind him had saved his friends from any harm, but he on the other hand was left only a hair away from death. He fell onto his left knee in pain, and then coughed, a copper like flavour sat in his mouth, and he felt a warm sticky trail running down the sides of his mouth. It hurt to breath, it hurt to move, and it hurt to be alive.

He tried to get his right arm to form a hand sign to return his staff to his hand, but he couldn?t move it at all to where he wanted it. He looked at it, and saw the large gash in it. It was down to the bone, and the torn and ripped muscles were visible. A trail of blood ran down the rest of his arm from that point, encasing his arm in a red paint layer. Surprisingly though, it didn?t hurt in the slightest. Alexis moved his left arm and tore a thin strip of cloth from his shirt then quickly wrapped up the gash to prevent further breathing and restore mobility to his arm.

He stood back up, and adjusted his glasses with the palm of his hand, smiling he spoke to the group behind him in a tone of relaxed anticipation, ?You guys don?t mind if I finish this fight right here, right now? Suppose I?m kind?a getting? a little annoyed with our fire breathing bud here.? Smiling as he rose his hand to his face and grabbed the edges of his glasses, ?Cause once I start, this fight is gunna last a whole five seconds. You best be ready to attack him as I smack this here bumbling monster to the ground.?

[Rytiko]

"It is amazing that you are even alive," Mohan said in a tone of concern as the bird returned to its perch, still eying them. It knew that it had crippled their defenses. It knew that its power outweighed theirs by massive amounts. It knew that, unless there were some grand twist... it had won. "Please, cease from straining yourself too much. We don't know what we can do against that thing. And we don't know what it may do if we aren't prepared. For all we know, this entire volcano could explode. We need a change of terrain. We need to get to a more open environment where he can't dominate us as much as he is. We're nothing more than insects in the water bowl of this beast at the moment. Every attack is capable of hitting all of us here. We need to get out..."

It seemed the only way. What could a barrier master do to subdue this beast anyway? It likely wouldn't fall for another surprise attack. And somehow, Mohan had a foreboding feeling about the bird. This place was its domain. It had made its home in the fiery, molten pits of this place. It could survive where they could not. What would happen if it were to return to where it had originally emerged from?

"Do what you will, Alexis. But I think getting out of here is our best chance of success," he said, now taking his position in front of their wounded defender. The defender in which he hadn't even glanced at. He dare not face the horrible mutilation that he may or may not have suffered. He would rather not see the kind of sacrifice made until the battle was over. And he didn't want to feel relief in however minimal it may or may not be, as that would mean his defenses had fallen even further.

The flames had weakened the rock. Enough to break it apart on his own. He had a weapon and a shield, as well as a way out. It was now up to the others to decide the best course of action. The small pebbles slowly and difficultly rose around Mohan. They were still larger and harder to move than he would have liked. But they were all he had.

((Up to you to determine the level of damage you took, just keep in mind that healing will occur, so it's not like its permanent.))

[Mizukage]

Looking to the crippled mage, and the sandwarrior in quick succession I make the decision.

" I concur, it isn't dishonorable to retreat from a battle that doesn't fall in our favour. we should leave his arena to find ground of our own."

With that I stooped down and picked up the injured mage with great ease, turned to the sandwarrior and said.

" Lead on, you must have an idea, we are mobile enough to not need his glass until we reach the top, but you-" I turn to the other monk, It would be best if you do what you can to seal the wounds, his enemy is time, not the bird.

[Rytiko]

Nodding, Mohan began to move the rocks as quickly as he could manage. They were their path.

"I'm counting on your balance. I'll keep them closer than I normally would, considering that your legs are shorter than my own. I don't know how long I can hold them though, so the monk will have to carry him along with us. He has no weapons to tie up his arms, so he is the best choice for that... And once we get out of here we can do what we must. But my power is better used with many smaller objects rather than fewer larger ones. I don't have the kind of control that I can boast about. So please, regardless of your balance... Be very careful. If one were to suddenly drop, I think I've placed them near enough for you to grab another."

He had been moving long before he had finished. Leaping from the miniscule stepping stones in rapid succession, he saw the bird shoot them a look of distaste. He saw what they were doing, and it didn't take more than an instant for him to open his wings and prepare for flight once more...

[Queztatlapoca]

Aeric nodded in agreement. He gently took the mage from the samurai and looked back to see the phoenix rise into the sky

"We must move now and quickly!" Aeric stated. He would follow the group and move from stepping stone to stepping stone as the sand solider brang them about to the front. He couldn't stop to treat the severe wounds on the mage, and so needed to get out of the mouth of hell as quickly as possible.

[Mizukage]

"hmpf, you underestimate me, but I will let it slide this time. I have vanguard"

And with that I Turn to face the bird, striding smoothly behind my fleeing fellows.

[Megell]

Alexis saw the bird rising into the sky as he was carried on the monk?s shoulders. They would not be able to out run the thing in a thousand years, much less get to any point in which his injuries could be treated before he died. Alexis sighed, so this was how sweet piece was finally going to come around? His eyelids felt remarkably heavy, his body was cold, and the feeling like he had drunk way to much ran around in his head. The world was getting dark, his eyes slowly dipped down and started to close against his will. His mind just shut down.

Blackness.

Then calling in the blackness he heard a voice he hadn?t heard in a long time, she let out a sigh, he felt a hand touch his cheek and a soft whisper in his ear. ?Alexis, why so sad?? Alexis mumbled, ?Its just so soon.? The girl giggled, ?That?s always like you Alexis, Just non committed to anything. Why not just try this once?? He felt the hand rub softly on his cheek again, and a soft pair of lips on the back of his neck. The smell of sweet lilacs filled the air around him. The soft voice spoke again, whispering something down deep into his ear, ?Why not for me Alexis??

?Marline?? he whispered.

The world came back too him, he saw a fiery beast chasing them in the sky like some wicked avatar hunting down mankind to speed him to his eventual demise. The sounds of the fires crackling and moaning in the volcanic hell they were in. Alexis smiled silently into the monks shoulder, and then pushed himself off his carrier and onto the ground again. He stood, looking back at the beast that was bearing down on his newfound friends.

Alexis reached up towards his face and placed his hands on the sides of his glasses once more. At the same time, he focused several small barriers into his disabled arm; he would work it manually with these barriers, if needed, turn his entire body into a clockwork mechanism. He felt cold blood dripping down out of the corner of his mouth as he spoke to his team mates once more, ?Aeric, when the thing comes smashing to the ground, I need you to come pick me up, it won?t have that much fight left in it, but its bound to have more then me. Mohan, if you could please try to smoother the thing in bits of sand when it comes down, it might put out its flames for a minute. Nomi when it comes to the ground, you get as close as you can and try to take its head. I?ve got a plan ?ere people.? Alexis spoke clearly and precisely the entire time, he needed his words to be heard.

?And buds, leave the rest of this predicament to me. Just please keep meh glasses safe.? He then reached up and pulled his glasses off his face and dropped them to the ground. The sealing marks glowed for a brief second with a blue light, and then the runes around the frames vanished. He raised his hand to his chest and made a hand sign. At once his staff seemed to warp into reality besides him.

At this point, anyone in the area capable of sense any type of mystical powers, magic, or the like would have just noticed something a tad unusual. Alexis? power had just increased itself over ten times over. The glasses, themselves were sealing units, locking the bodies energy into the cells and also preventing internal damage at the same time from built up energies. In short, Alexis glasses had been allowing him to stock pile energies for years. A thin white glow of pure mana began to race around at his feet. Alexis then looked directly at the bird and said under his breath, ?Pay backs a bitch.? Focusing the aura into the cells in his body, he put his energies into running. He then started to sprint towards his target, the bird, he must have been moving lightening fast as it only took a second before he was close enough to it too start the second part of his attack.

Focusing a thing barrier at the bottom of his staff, he pivoted it the ground and then extended the barrier. Similar to a pool-volter and launched him self up, while at the same time consistently increasing the barriers length to keep himself shooting up towards the beast. He raced skyward, up, above the flying phoenix and then flipped himself to reposition himself so he would be falling into the birds face. All at once, the giant flaming god of fire became aware of his presence and let out a Roar, and built up the same orange light it had before. ?Not this time?? Alexis thought as he put his hand into the barrier making position. The beast then let out a burst of fire from its mouth.

The flames blew past him; he had created a thin, cone like barrier to let the flames pass harmlessly around him and dissipate. He dispelled the barrier and continued to fall. The beast?s inhuman eyes went wide, Alexis raised his staff above his head in a striking action, at the same time he formed a thin barrier around the top of the staff. And began to swing it down towards the creatures head.

The thing let out a primal last scream, at the same time Alexis Screamed out at the top of his lungs, ?ONE HUNDREAD TONS!? The barrier flooded with pure mana, it didn?t cange in size but became super dense and almost appeared as it was white, it had had so much mana stuffed into it, it indeed it weight 100 tons. It struck the beast with an unbelievably loud crash then left it rearing backwards a bit. At the same time Alexis landed on its head, his knees buckled and snapped under the force of the blow. At the same time he reset the barrier and raised his staff up once more. The bird let out one louder cry as Alexis swung the staff down once more, screaming out in an even louder voice ?ONE MILLION TONS?. The staff struck the head of the bird and smashed into a thousand pieces, the creature rocketed towards the ground, Alexis at the same time fell off its face and towards the ground himself.

He began to black out again as the aura boost faded. It was up to the others now; he had done his part. That bird would have to large of a break in it?s skull to fly anytime soon.

((Some one catch him for god sakes.))

[Rytiko]

((Just to clarify.. Please, TELL ME YOU DIDN'T DO THIS OVER THE VOLCANO! X_x))

[Megell]

((Just to clarify.. Please, TELL ME YOU DIDN'T DO THIS OVER THE VOLCANO! X_x))

((He was moving towards us, so very close, but not over.))

[Mizukage]

the feeling of heavy runic magic, then a strange breeze, like that of a fast moving object was all the notice I had, the beginning of the counterattack.

with the barriermage's words I was already rushing towards the bird, my naginata cast aside, and my mighty no-dachi raised for a killing blow.

the creature had moved surprisingly close, and the deathblow the mage had dealt it was more than enough for me to get close enough to do what I did best.

with the voices ancestor's voices raising to a climax in my ears, I reach the beast's prostrate neck once again.

{Banzai charge: subtract from defense and add to attack and damage = 20}


OBENKYO!

with my mighty warcry I leap up, with all my strength and cleave downwards straight for the creature's neck, a purely fatal blow with its connection. truly the heads would roll.

[Rytiko]

((Oh, thank God... ))

Mohan had nodded in agreement before Alexis had rocketed off. As had the others. It was odd, really - IN such a short time, the four of them had come together, at least at a minimal level. He guessed it was more out of necessity than will, but regardless, they seemed to have done what they needed to.

Nodding wordlessly to Aeric, who's role had finally been emphasized, he silently conversed the safety of Alexis with him. He would do what he must. He hadn't had time to plea with him to strike the beast in whatever way possible to subdue it before it became too dangerous, but he was sure that the Monk had worked that out on his own...

The moment the bird had struck the slope outside the volcano, it began rolling towards them at a rapid pace. They would need some strong blows to stop it, and another to finish it off. It was perfect.

"Nami... Well, "Off with his head" works as well as anything for you," Mohan said as he rushed towards the rolling bird. He gathered many particles and pebbles around them, most rushing towards the bired to smother it, as he had been told. Some were accumulating around his hand. Moving both the minerals and punching furiously towards the thing, who was slowly accumulating a golden flame upon certain parts of its body, he covered it and struck and undefended part simultaneously. The particles rushing towards the growing golden flames though fell and shattered like glass... And the flames were growing.

"Nami! Finish it!" he needlessly said to the ronin. And so it was that the birds head rolled off the creature. With his katar in its heart, there was no way it survived. The flames almost instantly subsided...

And it turned to ash. At the same time, though, a quaking could be felt... And a red gem emerged from the ashes, calling towards them... What was all this? What was happening...? And why did he have a sudden feeling that this was the most unsafe place they could possible be standing...?

"What now!? Are we supposed to grab that thing, or...?"

((And.. erm, prepare to die. To be honest, I'm not sure how long phoenix myths have been around. My character isn't one to focus on anything that doesn't apply to him, so maybe one of your characters would know to NOT let that thing's ashes touch the magma...

Also note that the gem doesn't need to be touched by all of us. Their trickery has risen to the level of "Soul Linking" of sorts. It gives us power, heals us... All of us. The four are linked now, just as the other teams are. What power is granted to one is granted to the other.))

[Queztatlapoca]

He eyes opened wide in terror as he witnessed the unfolding events. Nevertheless he did as was told and ran full tilt to catch the falling Alexis. And then he yelled "RUN, out of the volcano NOW" In his years of quiet reflection he remember coming across legends of such a bird. Never would he thought it actually existed. He remembered something about the ashes and heat.
"Mohan, try to keep it's ashes away from heat quickly now! Let us flee I have a feeling the volcano is about to erupt!"

[Mizukage]

(( so the chrystal takes care of us all? and it would seem that the volcano was about to erupt? great. I am unsure wether any of us know the tales of the phoenix, its a european myth, isn't it? maybe a hindu one. I don't know.))

with the apperant death of the bird a beautiful crystal appeared. shining with importance.

Ignoring the rumbling I sauntered nonchalantly towards the crystal and picked it up. a strange feeling rose through me, like the air in an opiate den. I was revitalized.

as was my team so it seemed. Then it struck me. this rumbling could mean no good.

Here! Catch! I yelled as I hurled the crystal to my team, as I ran back towards them, stopping to grab my naginata.

why are we still here? we completed the mission did we not? regardless, we shouldn't stand around here. this doesn't bode well.

with that I put my no-dachi back in its sheath on my back and returned to my claimed place of vanguard, facing back up the mountain just in time to see the cause of the shaking, a large plume of ash and soot erupting from the one as magma curled slowly over it's sides.

'Great.'

[Rytiko]

((Sorry, have to kind of backtrack to keep some things in order. It won't harm much.

Also, I looked some stuff up. It seems that there was a firebird similar to the Greek Phoenix in Egyptian mythology, mentioned in The Book of the Dead. So it could be known to someone. In this case, Aeric, the buddhist monk. Damn enlightened fools! (Just kidding. Buddhism is the most interesting "religion" out there, imo))

As soon as Nami had touched the stone, a rush of warmth much unlike the heat of their surroundings filled Mohan. The air around him seemed to stop entirely, as his surroundings faded away... And the gemstone shattered. WHen Mohan opened his eyes, feeling an enourmous uprise in his energy levels, he looked around quickly to see the cuts and burns that had previously littered their bodies vanished. IT had, however, distracted him long enough to not realize that the entire volcano was about to explode...

(Remember, I did say "Super Volcano" in the OOC topic... Oh, check it again as well, I posted again... Anyway, I was going to be amazingly cruel and have it explode on our side of the volcano, but honestly, the phoenix is boring me. Lets just get it over with... And excuse the lazy writing and description, but I'm tired...)

The earth shook, toppling them all. TAs the lava exploded into the air, blackening the sky with soot, the volcano crumbled. There was little that Mohan could do at this point but position a large amount of rubble over the ashes in response to Aeric's odd command. He didn't want to risk anything happening...

It couldn't have been more than a few meters from the four of them that an entire side of the cone exploded outwards. Magma from the top aproached slowly, but still fast enough to be of a great threat, as there were boulders falling from the sky and springs of magma all over the place. It was everywhere... There didn't seem to be much hope for escape anymore. What had the six men put them into?? Why give them a hopeless goal...!? Mohan closed his eyes in preparation of death...

Cold...? Was it actually cold? Had he been killed by a falling boulder, or somehow incinerated? What other explanation could there be for the rapid change in temperature? Opening his eyes, he saw a scarlet and gold rug...

"Congratulations to the those who have emerged victorious..."

((Alright, now, I'm wondering what you guys think - Another boss battle, or start the player written sequence, which is just the four of us writing out an entire battle on our own? I may make one of the other teams fail if you'd rather do another boss battle. This one I wouldn't cut so short, but I honestly REALLY didn't want the phoenix. AT all. It was easily the most annoying of the pillars. Check out the OOC to see what enemy I had in mind.))

[Queztatlapoca]

(yay for morality without a god )

They were back in the chamber. And all of them healed. Aeric gently let Alexis stand on his own, and looked around the room seeing all the other groups. All the warriors with weapons designed for killing...merciless monsters. He didn't hate them but rather felt a certain pity for them. Most of them strove to injure, to hurt or destroy. If only they knew the harm they were bringing to themselves.

But that was the irony of it all. Aeric knew the hate he harbored for Sikhs, knew in is heart of hearts that if he encountered one he would show as much mercy as they had shown his family. He knew, because of this, that he was no better then they were.

But he had made a vow to his dead family, one of redemption, if not vengeance. He would remove from this world those who sought to harm others for no reason other than personal gain. Whatever the cost to himself.