Aloria Story Progression Death Breeds New Life

It was a day of relative peace. The Dragon Worshippers were intertwined within society and there had been no chaotic outbursts by the Arken in several days. However, despite the quietude, there was a twinge of uncertainty in the air as several resistance groups formulated plans to stop the Arken menace that now plagued their daily lives.

On the fringe of the Regalian park, three Silven spoke with one and other. Shiori Draylas, Mae Draylas, and Tullion Kearney shared typical banter amongst themselves, sharing snacks of various wild berries. Though they were not present for typical reasons as they waited for a host to join them.

Slowly the trees of the forest sagged and faded, their leaves turning stiff and decayed as the once vibrant green shown in them turned to a murky brown. Similar changes occured to the flowers and shrubbery which wilted and decayed in turn. The large fountain the three Silven were standing near began to emit putrid odors of rotting death, as though a cemetery had been unearthed nearby. The water ran brown and murky while the river rolling by bubbled with a filmy layer upon it. The stones of the walkways cracked as various insects stamped their limbs to life and flowed out from the earth, like blood from a fresh wound.

As the scent of death began to permeate through the air, an unknown runner began his trek through the decaying park; the pace of his feet worked in tune with his beating heart as he breathed out loudly. The plan had worked so far. By bringing this group of Silven together, they were able to lure out the Arken Gabriel, now they needed the force to enact this plan. Finally the boy made his way to the imposing gates of the Black Tower and called out to the waiting troop of guards in the courtyard, led by Vulmar Ravenstad. The Arken had arrived as they planned.

Back in the park the three Silven stood and listened while the Arken whispered to them. The Arken Gabriel spoke of his knowledge of the trap and cursed them of the betrayal they had committed. As his speech grew louder the sounds of clanking armor could be heard from around the back corner of the park. The Hightower Order stationed themselves a fair distance from the Arken, waiting for Vulmar Ravenstad to give their next orders. Finally the various insects that were scattered along the decayed stonework sprouted wings from their backs; they flew up into the air above the park fountain, forming a large mass that twisted and convulsed as long ragged cloth flowed out from the mass. The Arken formed himself, his body twitching and flailing as he looked down upon the trio of Silven.

Shiori Draylas, Mae Draylas, and Tullion Kearney each began to move backwards as the Arken manifested himself. In a similar manner, Vulmar Ravenstad barked orders to the Hightowers present to advance on the rear of the Arken. They formed a wall of tower shields, behind these stood archers, ready to take aim on Gabriel.

As the resistance took their positions, the Arken extended his arm, a magical force taking hold of Shiori as their body was lifted into the air, closer to Gabriels own levitating form. Suddenly the magic would shake Shiori violently: their joints bent in unnatural directions, causing loud popping and cracking to be heard as his body crumbled and contorted. After a few moments the Arken would cast his arm to the side, the force sending the body of Shiori crashing into the stones, their ribcage shattered and poking out of their body.

Several medics would be present on the scene who rushed towards the body of Shirori, attempting to treat the injuries by use of Celestial magic. But they soon realized their efforts would be useless so long as the Arken still lived.

Just as Gabriel set his sights to the two remaining Silven, Mae Draylas initiated her cast of Wellen, sending a torrent of flame in the direction of the Arken. A large flock of moths rapidly manifested from nothingness and threw their bodies against the flame, absorbing the damage so that Gabriel may remain unscathed. As this occurred, orders were issued for the Hightower Order to fire their crossbows at the Arken. A volley of bluesteel tipped arrows would be released at the body of Gabriel, whose limbs would shift and contort, phasing into a void of blackness that took in the arrows.

As the Arken retook their shape, the arrows that were meant to damage him were cast back out in a variety of directions, their speed unmatched by the eyes of any as though a magical force enhanced them from entering the Arken’s voided form. These arrows would be returned to the Hightower guards, ripping through shields and plate like tin, impaling several of their men. One such arrow struck the chest of Marianne Speziale. Another would be shot at the two Silven, hitting Tullion Kearney in his upper right thigh, passing through his now-cast barrier light with ease. The attackers would realize their defenses were ineffective against the Arken. Despite this, Gabriel remained focus on Mae Draylas, fear in the eyes of the Arken as the Wellen flame persisted.

As the Hightowers ducked behind their towershields once again, the sounds of marching feet could be heard as members of the Vigilant Shield as well as the First Recon appeared on the scene, having heard of the Arken sighting from fleeing citizens. One member of the Vigilant Shield, Edmure Howlester, would see the Hightowers, moving to hurry across the field to join them. But as he left his group, a magical force would take hold of the Howlester, lifting him into the air much the same as Shiori had experienced at the beginning of the encounter. His armor would be crushed and crumbled, twisting and breaking the bones in his body while others were strained to their limits. He was then dropped back down on the stone, incapable of movement as his armor trapped him inside like foil.

Many more parties took aim with various bows and crossbows, oblivious of the damage these weapons would cause upon themselves. As they fired, Jocelyn von Duerr also made himself present, seeing a blind spot at the rear of the Arken and casting a jar of Anaflexi at the Arken. However, despite these next efforts, Gabriel continued to evade the attacks --his body twitching and phasing into a shadowy void, taking in the arrows and jar before casting them back out. Arrows would strike more members of the Hightower Order as well as Vigilants and members of the First Recon. Jocelyn von Duerr’s jar of Anaflexi would be returned to him, smashing against his chest, though no flame emerged as though entering into the void caused the Anaflexi to become useless.

Mae Draylas continued to cast her Wellen. The moth shield Gabriel initiated began to fail as the mage held on for as long as she could, her body growing exhausted as her continued cast was draining her energy. At last Mae could no longer upkeep her cast, and the Wellen dispersed. She could only keep the Arken at bay for so long before she looked up to Gabriel, before noticing him acting odd.

The Arken’s face would be locked in an expression of pure fear and anxiety as it looked down. At the corner of his ragged clothing, a lone cinder of flame had emerged, no bigger than the end of a matchstick. Gabriel would begin to contort his body and phase back into his voided form, but this only caused the flame to grow. Before long the Arken form was in a constant state of convulsing as the entirety of his body became engulfed in the stray flame. The Arken was dying.

Several people began to raise cheers into the air, even being so bold as to insult the Arken dying; but this would very quickly turned against them. Of these speaking insults were Tommen Howlester, Marianne Speziale, and a girl by the name of Amelie, amongst others present. Each of them would experience a tingling sensation inside their hands. As they looked down, intense pain would be felt as the bones inside of their hands shattered, their fingers twitching and popping before growing limp.

At long last, the form of the Arken began to fold in on itself, the flame diminishing as nothing remained of Gabriel but a charred skeleton that turned to dust in the air. As he disappeared, many looked upon the girl Amelie, who was making more insults of the Arken when her left arm abruptly exploded, spraying blood on several medical attendants and others around her. No one dared insult the Arken, despite him being gone, out of fear of suffering a similar fate.

As the dust settled, the remaining insects on the ground would crawl back beneath the stones. The decay began to slowly undo itself, leaving many wounded and others relieved that another Arken was now dead. The wounded were brought away would realize that the wounds were incapable of being healed by light magic: a final reminder of the strange powers that the Arken possessed. Despite the damages sustained, everyone would survive the encounter, including Shiori Draylas, whose ribs had magically reformed themselves inside of his body without anyone noticing. As the various parties dispersed, all that remained was a lone cockroach that scuttered away into the shadows…

Epilogue-

In the days following the twitching Arken’s death, life began to return to the Noble District and the Park. Spring flora began growing over what was once decayed and rotting roots, and bushes returned to full health in a matter of days. The Arken Elleia had not been seen since the hours after Gabriel’s death, when she was struck by a small resistance and a fire mage who had charred her in the park. Many citizens had returned to their normal ways of life, relieved that the magical anomalies appeared to be disappearing. However, it would soon become clear that the threat had not yet passed.

Only a week after Gabriel’s death, the newly awakened plants in the Regalian Park inexplicably grew higher and thicker, littering the floor with almost jungle-like roots and vines. The typical oak leaves turned a darker, richer shade of green, while exotic and previously rare species of forest animals began to take up residence in the fields. The entire ordeal appeared to happen overnight, and none present in the area were able to claim seeing the feat. The only hints left as to who the perpetrator was were the carvings that had been etched into the trunks of the trees, reading “Murderer”, “Betrayal” and “Death to the stone walls”. It would be eerily clear that there were still battles left to face.


OOC:

• The Arken Gabriel has been killed. Two known Arken are still alive.

• Various people were injured from the attack. Those mentioned in this post are required to role play ith their injuries for one OOC week after the posting of this thread.

• Those not mentioned, but were present may also role play out similar injuries, those being the shattered hands from insulting the Arken, or an arrow injury from the counter fire. The one OOC week period will apply to this as well.

• There were many people present so please do not leave comments saying “Why wasn’t I mentioned?” The simple answer is that there were a lot of people there and you were overlooked to keep the progression short.
  
  
• The Regalian Park is now overgrown with plants and filled with woodland creatures. While harmless, it is now incredibly difficult to traverse the area outside of the stone paths.