Diane kept her eyes peeled and remained focused even as the murmurs among the confused dancers tried to drown out her own thoughts. Though that proved to be a secondary concern, as this sudden mist began to leak into the room from the ceiling. This rather odd, just barley visible light purple mist drifted down from the rafters. Soon enough, the mist drifted to the head of few of the dancers which exposed them to it.
Indeed, the bizarre perfume-like mist seemed to bring with it a sense of increased drowsiness to those who took in it's oddly pleasing fumes. Before long, some of the first few dancers who had been exposed to it collapsed onto the ground. One by one the mist spread as Diane, who had been in a spot furthest away from the oncoming agent, acted quickly as she clasped her hands together and whispered up a spell.
Diane generated a gas mask that she wrapped around her mouth using light platinum crystals to trap clean air for her nostrils and mouth to breath in before she moved under a table to hide herself under. Diane figured that it would be foolish to expose herself in the open as she needed to know who had launched this chemical attack on the people.
Before long, the formally buzzing ball had been transformed into a collection of scattered slumbering bodies. The sounds of snoring were all that could be heard now, as Diane kept view from under the table while her eyes appeared to have widened and her hair began to stand on edge. Between this, the subtle shaking of her limps and the lone drop of sweat that dripped down the side of her face it appeared the Fairy Tail fangirl began to realize just how real this situation had been. And the realization that it, and the danger that could come with was more than just words on a page of her favorite story all came crashing down. Diane shook her head as she tried to calm herself, taking deep breaths in and out to try and shoo off these visible nerves.
Alright, calm down Diane. Calm down. You can do this, you can do this. This is….this is what being a Guild Mage is all about, nobody is gonna have any respect for a frightened little girl who has a panic attack at the first sign of trouble. Least of all Fairy Tail. You just need to pull yourself together and…
The first figure, a slender man to the left with rather long blonde hair that had been tied into a ponytail and reached past his shoulders. He seemed to have emerald green eyes covered by an black eye-mask, and wore what appeared to be a black jump suit with a violet “M” logo planted on the chest.
To the far right was another male figure, though he appeared to be even more of a slender figure than the other man. Almost too skinny, and he stood about a head taller than the other man; his eyes black with what appeared to be a pair of cat ears and visible whiskers. He wore the same uniform with the same symbol & eye mask, though his sleeves seemed to have been cut seemingly as an excuse to display his animal like “paws” with sharp claws on full display.
The figure in the middle, by contrast, had been a woman with a slender yet curvaceous figure. She had long flowing red hair, with some of it partially covering one of her two sapphire blue eyes. She had the same uniform, eye mask and symbol on the chest and all, as the odd mist that had put the crowd to sleep seemed to seep from her body or rather the exposed skin of her rolled up sleeves before it dissipated. Diane’s eyebrows frowned as she scanned the trio with a curious gaze.
That’s them! The Midnight Bandits, and if I were a betting gal, I’d wager she is the ring leader. But what is that stuff coming from her, her magic?
“Alright boys, remember what we came here for. Secure the diamond, after that….feel free to make off with whatever our generous patrons here are willing to donate to our generous cause.” The woman, Valerie if Diane remembered the poster correctly, said as both the other members grinned as the moved to the center of the ballroom where the oversized diamond had been on full display. Diane herself frowned at this, and realized the moment she had envisioned since her arrival here had come and she needed to act now.
Diane whispered as she produced a ruby bow and multiple sapphire-tipped arrows. Diane had never been in a proper fight before, well never one with stakes as high as this she clarified, but this was her golden chance to make a first impression unlike any other. And even with her nerves, she was not about to waste it.
Diane made her declaration as she rolled out from under the table; she was in a crouched position, resting on one knee for a stable shot as she pulled back three arrows and had them all aimed at the three criminals. This got their attention, as the trio glanced at Diane as Valerie noted that the gas mask she wore protected her from the soothing sent that placed the rest of the party to sleep.
“Well well, seems we have an unexpected guest boys.” Valerie said, with a sly smirk as she seemed far from intimidated by Diane. In spite of the initial shock of seeing the girl with arrows appear, Valarie could sniff out the inexperience; the subtle twitches her body made, the lone drop of sweat Diane tried to mask by wiping it away. The signs of nervousness, fear which only caused Valarie’s sly smirk to grow. Which was soon mirrored by both Brutus and Purlin, as Diane frowned a bit but kept her arrows held up as she pulled back on them in response.
“I wouldn’t be so calm, I am not afraid to use these if I must. So why don’t you three low lives make it easy on yourselves and just surrender. There would be a lot less pain involved before you answer to the City Guard.” Diane said, as she had made her open threat that did not appear to be taken seriously; as the trio seemed to chuckle amongst themselves in response.
“Oh how adorable. Little girl wants to play the big hero. Well boys, I say we give this girl a first class lesson on what happens when you try to live out your delusions of grandeur in the real world.” Valerie said as Brutus and Purlin glanced at each other with matching smirks; Purlin extended his claws while Brutus undid the ponytail as he allowed his long hair to flow freely. Diane’s eyes widened as she decided she needed to strike now as clearly her attempt to try and get them to back down without a fight failed miserable.
Diane fired her arrows at the pair, as Purlin charged ahead, his body coated with magic that caused his claws to shine.
“Consecutive Claw Strikes!” Purlin called out as he used a spell of his own magic, Claw Magic, to deliver high speed slashes as the claws sliced through two of the three arrows with ease. While the third seemed to fly true as it aimed for Brutus, before his own hair began to glow.
“Golden Hair: Hair Brand!” Brutus called out, as some of his hair came alive and wrapped itself in a secure brand around the arrow just before it could strike Brutus. Brutus squeezed on that arrow, and snapped it in two before Purlin charged ahead. Purlin’s claws seemed to extend out and become elongated which caused Diane’s eyes to widen, as she quickly discarded her bow and generated an emerald shield as she hid behind it before the claw attacks struck. The shield held strong, even as the repeated claw strikes left visible scratch marks, but Purlin had been quick to deliver a hard kick which sent Diane and her shield tumbling back. As Diane worked to get back to her feet, Brutus decided to follow up as he sent his hair charging at her.
"Golden Hair: Thousand Hair Whips!" Brutus called out, as several collective strands of hair formed whip-liked appendages and charged Diane, which caused the young mage's eyes to widen as she had to act quickly as she held her shield up and began to form a new construct.
"Gem-Make: Diamond Sword!" Diane called out, as she formed a sword and began to slash at the hair whips that came for her, while she blocked other strikes with her shield. This combo seemed to work well enough, as she managed to hold back the assault. But much to Diane's horror, she found that no matter how much she cut the hair seemed to grow back just as quickly. And soon enough...
Eventually, whip strikes began to sneak through Diane's guard and counter strike; a cry of pain followed each successive blow before she was smacked across the face with a rather hard strike and had once more been sent flying back. Diane again worked to her feet, only to see both Purlin and Brutus charge at her which caused Diane's eyes to widen before she closed them as she held her shield up in defense while her body seemed to freeze in fear. Her options seemed ever more limited as her situation grew more bleak.
Diane’s eyes remained close, as she anticipated the strikes that never came, her eyes cracked open and soon enough what she saw left her stunned. A figure had jumped between Diane and Brutus & Purlin as the newcomer had sent the pair flying back with a pair of hard kicks. Kicks that seemed coated in what appeared to be lava talons. This had stunned Diane, but as the two thieves had been sent flying back to an equally stunned Valerie whom managed to look past the sudden arrival and took note of who this person had been that seemingly showed up from nowhere.
Back from the dead! School has kicked my rear end, but I managed to get a new chapter out right before Thanksgiving Break. Hope you enjoy.
Special shutout to the always amazing editor @SS-I Never thanks a ton.
And now tags!
@Crims0n
@Rhabby
@Sarah316
@Rohan Kishibe
@Excalibur Queen
@Platinum_
If anyone who happens to read this wants to be added to the tag list, just let me know in the comments down below. Constructive criticism and general feedback is always appreciated. Have a good read
“What th….what is this stuff?”
“I don’t know, but it smells so pretty!”
“Yeah, but….*Yawns*….I’m getting a little tired…”
“I don’t know, but it smells so pretty!”
“Yeah, but….*Yawns*….I’m getting a little tired…”
Indeed, the bizarre perfume-like mist seemed to bring with it a sense of increased drowsiness to those who took in it's oddly pleasing fumes. Before long, some of the first few dancers who had been exposed to it collapsed onto the ground. One by one the mist spread as Diane, who had been in a spot furthest away from the oncoming agent, acted quickly as she clasped her hands together and whispered up a spell.
“Gem-Make: Gas Mask!”
Diane generated a gas mask that she wrapped around her mouth using light platinum crystals to trap clean air for her nostrils and mouth to breath in before she moved under a table to hide herself under. Diane figured that it would be foolish to expose herself in the open as she needed to know who had launched this chemical attack on the people.
Before long, the formally buzzing ball had been transformed into a collection of scattered slumbering bodies. The sounds of snoring were all that could be heard now, as Diane kept view from under the table while her eyes appeared to have widened and her hair began to stand on edge. Between this, the subtle shaking of her limps and the lone drop of sweat that dripped down the side of her face it appeared the Fairy Tail fangirl began to realize just how real this situation had been. And the realization that it, and the danger that could come with was more than just words on a page of her favorite story all came crashing down. Diane shook her head as she tried to calm herself, taking deep breaths in and out to try and shoo off these visible nerves.
Alright, calm down Diane. Calm down. You can do this, you can do this. This is….this is what being a Guild Mage is all about, nobody is gonna have any respect for a frightened little girl who has a panic attack at the first sign of trouble. Least of all Fairy Tail. You just need to pull yourself together and…
“I must say my dearest Valerie that was quite the display. As per usual.”
“Yeah, you were real knock-out!”
“Thank you, thank you. I can never get enough of your humble praises.”
Diane’s train of thought had been cut off, as three figures descended from the ceiling; if Diane had moved her head from under the view of the table she would have seen that the ropes they used came from the vents above, the same place that odd mist descended from as soon enough Diane would see the feet of the three figures land in the middle of the ballroom floor. Carefully, and with great caution, Diane would peek her head out from under the table to get a view of these figures in greater detail.“Yeah, you were real knock-out!”
“Thank you, thank you. I can never get enough of your humble praises.”
The first figure, a slender man to the left with rather long blonde hair that had been tied into a ponytail and reached past his shoulders. He seemed to have emerald green eyes covered by an black eye-mask, and wore what appeared to be a black jump suit with a violet “M” logo planted on the chest.
To the far right was another male figure, though he appeared to be even more of a slender figure than the other man. Almost too skinny, and he stood about a head taller than the other man; his eyes black with what appeared to be a pair of cat ears and visible whiskers. He wore the same uniform with the same symbol & eye mask, though his sleeves seemed to have been cut seemingly as an excuse to display his animal like “paws” with sharp claws on full display.
The figure in the middle, by contrast, had been a woman with a slender yet curvaceous figure. She had long flowing red hair, with some of it partially covering one of her two sapphire blue eyes. She had the same uniform, eye mask and symbol on the chest and all, as the odd mist that had put the crowd to sleep seemed to seep from her body or rather the exposed skin of her rolled up sleeves before it dissipated. Diane’s eyebrows frowned as she scanned the trio with a curious gaze.
That’s them! The Midnight Bandits, and if I were a betting gal, I’d wager she is the ring leader. But what is that stuff coming from her, her magic?
“Alright boys, remember what we came here for. Secure the diamond, after that….feel free to make off with whatever our generous patrons here are willing to donate to our generous cause.” The woman, Valerie if Diane remembered the poster correctly, said as both the other members grinned as the moved to the center of the ballroom where the oversized diamond had been on full display. Diane herself frowned at this, and realized the moment she had envisioned since her arrival here had come and she needed to act now.
“Gem-Make: Bow & Arrow!”
Diane whispered as she produced a ruby bow and multiple sapphire-tipped arrows. Diane had never been in a proper fight before, well never one with stakes as high as this she clarified, but this was her golden chance to make a first impression unlike any other. And even with her nerves, she was not about to waste it.
“Freeze!”
Diane made her declaration as she rolled out from under the table; she was in a crouched position, resting on one knee for a stable shot as she pulled back three arrows and had them all aimed at the three criminals. This got their attention, as the trio glanced at Diane as Valerie noted that the gas mask she wore protected her from the soothing sent that placed the rest of the party to sleep.
A mage? Well, this is a surprising development…
“Well well, seems we have an unexpected guest boys.” Valerie said, with a sly smirk as she seemed far from intimidated by Diane. In spite of the initial shock of seeing the girl with arrows appear, Valarie could sniff out the inexperience; the subtle twitches her body made, the lone drop of sweat Diane tried to mask by wiping it away. The signs of nervousness, fear which only caused Valarie’s sly smirk to grow. Which was soon mirrored by both Brutus and Purlin, as Diane frowned a bit but kept her arrows held up as she pulled back on them in response.
“I wouldn’t be so calm, I am not afraid to use these if I must. So why don’t you three low lives make it easy on yourselves and just surrender. There would be a lot less pain involved before you answer to the City Guard.” Diane said, as she had made her open threat that did not appear to be taken seriously; as the trio seemed to chuckle amongst themselves in response.
“Oh how adorable. Little girl wants to play the big hero. Well boys, I say we give this girl a first class lesson on what happens when you try to live out your delusions of grandeur in the real world.” Valerie said as Brutus and Purlin glanced at each other with matching smirks; Purlin extended his claws while Brutus undid the ponytail as he allowed his long hair to flow freely. Diane’s eyes widened as she decided she needed to strike now as clearly her attempt to try and get them to back down without a fight failed miserable.
Woosh!
Diane fired her arrows at the pair, as Purlin charged ahead, his body coated with magic that caused his claws to shine.
“Consecutive Claw Strikes!” Purlin called out as he used a spell of his own magic, Claw Magic, to deliver high speed slashes as the claws sliced through two of the three arrows with ease. While the third seemed to fly true as it aimed for Brutus, before his own hair began to glow.
“Golden Hair: Hair Brand!” Brutus called out, as some of his hair came alive and wrapped itself in a secure brand around the arrow just before it could strike Brutus. Brutus squeezed on that arrow, and snapped it in two before Purlin charged ahead. Purlin’s claws seemed to extend out and become elongated which caused Diane’s eyes to widen, as she quickly discarded her bow and generated an emerald shield as she hid behind it before the claw attacks struck. The shield held strong, even as the repeated claw strikes left visible scratch marks, but Purlin had been quick to deliver a hard kick which sent Diane and her shield tumbling back. As Diane worked to get back to her feet, Brutus decided to follow up as he sent his hair charging at her.
"Golden Hair: Thousand Hair Whips!" Brutus called out, as several collective strands of hair formed whip-liked appendages and charged Diane, which caused the young mage's eyes to widen as she had to act quickly as she held her shield up and began to form a new construct.
"Gem-Make: Diamond Sword!" Diane called out, as she formed a sword and began to slash at the hair whips that came for her, while she blocked other strikes with her shield. This combo seemed to work well enough, as she managed to hold back the assault. But much to Diane's horror, she found that no matter how much she cut the hair seemed to grow back just as quickly. And soon enough...
Smack!
Smack!!
Smack!!!
Eventually, whip strikes began to sneak through Diane's guard and counter strike; a cry of pain followed each successive blow before she was smacked across the face with a rather hard strike and had once more been sent flying back. Diane again worked to her feet, only to see both Purlin and Brutus charge at her which caused Diane's eyes to widen before she closed them as she held her shield up in defense while her body seemed to freeze in fear. Her options seemed ever more limited as her situation grew more bleak.
This is bad. This is bad. This is bad. Come on, think…think….think!
“Talons of the Magma Dragon!”
“Talons of the Magma Dragon!”
Diane’s eyes remained close, as she anticipated the strikes that never came, her eyes cracked open and soon enough what she saw left her stunned. A figure had jumped between Diane and Brutus & Purlin as the newcomer had sent the pair flying back with a pair of hard kicks. Kicks that seemed coated in what appeared to be lava talons. This had stunned Diane, but as the two thieves had been sent flying back to an equally stunned Valerie whom managed to look past the sudden arrival and took note of who this person had been that seemingly showed up from nowhere.
Marcus had made his arrival.
================================================================
Back from the dead! School has kicked my rear end, but I managed to get a new chapter out right before Thanksgiving Break. Hope you enjoy.
Special shutout to the always amazing editor @SS-I Never thanks a ton.
And now tags!
@Crims0n
@Rhabby
@Sarah316
@Rohan Kishibe
@Excalibur Queen
@Platinum_
If anyone who happens to read this wants to be added to the tag list, just let me know in the comments down below. Constructive criticism and general feedback is always appreciated. Have a good read
