Completed Dust to Dust

[Ricky Maze]

oocSorry for the long wait on this, definitely shouldn't be happening again. I also left it open to interpret however many more you wanted to pop up at the end of the post.

The Guard stood his ground as he watched the works of real magical power unfold, he looked over to the mage with a "what the petch" look upon hearing the incantations that were spoken, only to find that an amazing reaction occurred from the very earth itself in order to damage the creatures before them. Spikes. Earthen spikes that aimed to pierce the creatures flesh, within a matter of ticks two of the Yukmen had been disposed of already while a third managed to only receive a fatal injury to the chest, and both Yukmen that were left were about to advance forth. Son o' a bitch! Dat was a powerful spell! Even so Ricky couldn't let that distract him from the incoming creatures, the one that proved to be the alpha of the group started to chant more and more as loud as he could, in turn calling forth the aid of two more Yukmen that would then charge for them.

The closer one's attention was solely focused on Clyde more or less, the bleeding wound on the knocked down Yukman a prime example of which he saw more as a threat. Ricky of course wasn't going to let such a nuisance come to harm his ally while he was there, thus with as loud of a bellow as he could he made sure to taunt the creature to get it's attention. "Oi'm de one yew want! Come and face me yew bastards!" He roared as he held his shield up before him, Ricky waited as both Yukmen were faced with the challenge he sent towards them. They weren't focused on Clyde anymore, they had a loud and large opponent to see if they could silence now. The first one attempted to run at Ricky as though he were going to tackle and overwhelm the man, but the fisherman was being a watchdog in this case and knew he had to time the strike just right. He too charged forward slightly to challenge the force of the Yukman, the clumsy and slow creature a bit of a challenge to withstand even with the proper footing Ricky held. Damn! The second one was upon him now, any closer then Ricky would be overwhelmed by an opposing force. Which meant he had to execute a swift attack to dispatch of the first one.

Hold de shyke! He thought as an idea hit him, seeing as how he was dealing with an opposing force that was practically as strong as he was, that force could be used to gain a temporary advantage! He glanced at his feet and at the space behind him, there was enough room between him and Clyde to allow this action to occur. So... all Ricky simply did was shift his weight behind him and then step aside as he would let the force of the first Yukman guide him to the ground where he would fall with a hiss, the second one was right upon the fisherman now but that didn't stop Ricky from disposing of him. In the moment of moving aside he pulled his sword into a horizontal strike to slash the creature's neck wide open, yet even with a wound that should've put a stop to it the Yukman only slowed with gurgles as he reached forth. Shocked and disgusted Ricky kicked the creature at the stomach area, only enough to send it reeling back as he retreated a few steps. He'd almost forgotten that he'd sent the first one down on the ground until a powerful hand grasped at one of his ankles. De petch?!

His gaze fell upon the Yukman on the ground as it hissed up to him, the grip tightening as Ricky tried to jerk away. No good, the only way to release himself from the clutches of the Yukman was to bring the sword from a high point and thrust its tip down into the beasts skull, a sickening crack followed as the blade pierced through the top and and down out through the chin. That stilled the beast well enough to release Ricky, as he pulled his blood soaked blade out from the ground and the Yukman's skull, only to find that the second Yukman with the slit throat still remained on the ground as it bled out. That was two successful killings, although they were by far not the greatest from Ricky. Deep down he disliked to be doing all this fighting, yet it was far to late to turn back or even think about regretting it. "Yer next spell bout ready mate?" He would inquire respectively as he stood yet again vigilant towards the other Yukmen that were still about, he didn't exactly intend to take count again as he was by far just ready to see this done and over with.

[Clyde Sullins]

OOC: Warning, Clyde goes a bit feral in this post, and so its going to get rather bloody and violent. Mature content ahead. IC:Clyde's first attack had been small, well prepared, and restrained. It had been more of a test, a preparation, or even a warm up. While a fighter might stretch before a battle, a mage worked out the kinks and fine tuned their awareness. This first test had been useful. He'd gotten down the density of the ground beneath them, how it reacted to the res, along with the timing. One of the attacks had been off as he had not tuned himself to the timing needed by the earth below them. Now that his upper self and widened earth self was singing in cadence, he could actually muster an attack worthy of his skill. Clyde watched in a detached manner as Ricky fought. None of it concerned him unless he appeared to be losing. For now he trusted he would defend him, and instead continued to exude and focus his res, preparing for the next round. As the Clyde below them hummed with satisfaction, his back straining and tensed, they both heard a question from the man with them. "Yer next spell bout ready mate?" Both of the Clyde's turned to face Ricky for a moment. For the lower Clyde this took the form of a small puff of dust and dirt poofing upward from the res soaked soil in a wide swathe around them, and a slight rumble of the earth, as the res was shifted and stored and swished and prepared into a multitude of armaments. For the upper Clyde this took the form of a small grin as he faced the man with the metal sword standing upon his back. “Next spell? We've yet to use the first one...” Clyde did not explain who he meant by we, and he did not continue to look at Ricky. Instead his gaze shifted forward as motion caught up, as another rush of yukmen came at them. Two rushes. From the front their was a yell, as a dozen yukmen came charging at them head on, more organized than the last few. A single large one stood out as the leader, who was as tall as the humans and had a oddly shaped head. The others were similar in size to the ones before, but were far more numerous. From behind them there was another yell of YUK! as four yukmen charged them from behind. Clyde made no motion to move or flee, showed no fear, instead just looked at the invaders and watched them near. As he did, he began a new chant, a somewhat feral grin on his face. “Oh look oh look at the sad little yukmen. They've been measured and corralled and don't even know they're in a pen. They come to spill blood and they come to eat flesh. But they don't know they'll be the ones to make a mess. Their blood and their bowels will stain the hungry ground. We'll take their lives and beat them pound for pound.” As the first of the yukmen neared, reaching a area of djed soaked ground roughly fifteen feet away, Clyde finished his words. Of course just by looking one would not see the res, it was soaked beneath sight, but it was there, waiting and ready. The Clyde's let the lead yukmen take a step, take two, two steps onto the soil that utterly belonged to the Clyde's. A third and fourth step, a fifth, the yukmen was bit five feet from Clyde. The Clyde mated to the ground arched his back, and the Clyde above the ground imagined spears rising as he let out a yell of “Haaaa!!!!” All at once motion occurred, as the ground beneath the yukmen was torn asunder. Two spears of stone lanced upward skewering its legs just below the knees, smashing through bone and staking it in place. Two more spears rose up, one on either side. One tore into the yukmens right side, stabbing deep into its guts and forcing its way through its ribs, popping out below its armpit on its other side. The one on its left side rose up and stabbed into its neck, rising up through the head and tearing it clean off the shoulders, bits of blood and gristle falling off. The other yukmen kept going, simply following the first. By then they were all upon the earth owned by Clyde, all on the killing grounds. All at once dozens of long spikes of stone tore up, thrusting through bodies and flesh and skewering them. Unlike the first spears that had been more of a fire and forget attack, these were thick hunks of stone that could stand on their own, and which held the yukmen in place once they were skewered. Clyde had learned long ago that little trick, to Reimantically reinforce the stone to hold up the weight of what was on it. The spikes rose in groups, three or four at once, rising up in these groupings in groupings of their own. Three sets rose up and stabbed through random yukmen holding some in place by the random bits of earth lancing through them, some of them killing the yukmen or decapitating them. Then five sets rose up, lancing into the yukmen who had been a bit further back. Then another three, going up and threw the yukmen. As the sound of their steps echoed downward into Clyde's back, Clyde echoed in response with earthen spikes spearing the owner of those feet who had made sounds, the Clyde above and the Clyde below triangulating the directions of the spikes to hit on target, moving in unison. All the while Clyde sang more limericks, songs, and poems. “A one and a two and a three and a four. Your feet shall be pinned to the earthen floor. A five and a six a seven a eight. I hope this meals of stone your hunger they will sate.” Spinning about Clyde turned to face the four coming from behind. These had seen what had occurred to the other yukmen in a span of ticks, not even a full chime since it all started, and they were only now coming to a stop. If fear could occur in these monsters it was now. If not, instinct told them to flee, to run. But run they could not, as they were also inside of the domain controlled by the Clyde's. Groupings of spears rose up and stabbed into the yukmen from multiple sides, one caught a point to the brain and was killed instantly. Two were skewered through the chest repeatedly, and though their arms and legs twitched about they could not move, instead simply slowly bleeding out. The fourth Clyde purposely did not kill, a small bit of his back flexing and skewering upward through the yukman's right calf, and left thigh. Though it flailed about with its hands trying to tear its legs loose it was to no avail against the res reinforced stone. All of the threats gone, Clyde took in a deep breath above, and the soil settled and rested below, releasing the strain. Pointing at the one pinned by its thigh and calf, Clyde smiled at Ricky. “I saved one for you.” From around them came the sound of death, as many of the trapped yukmen died slowly and agonizingly. Of the twelve initial group, three were still alive. Two of these were so badly injured they could not let out more than a strained gargle of blood, and lamely twitched. The third was still somewhat mobile, straining and pulling to release itself, only managing to injure itself worse. It was not as seriously injured, but would eventually die if left alone. It was the only one of the front twelve to still be letting out a yell of YUK!!! Of the back four only one was dead, the first Clyde had attacked. The other two were pinned and seriously hurt, but still able to yell, even if they could not move more than a few inches without a stone spike catching on a bone and stopping them. The fourth and last was more or less unhurt minus the leg wounds, it might actually live if left to its own devices. Ricky could either attack and possibly put the beasts out of their misery, or he could do nothing. Either way Clyde would begin to reclaim his res soaked in the soil, the glistening silvery liquid slowly flowing back to him. He would save the res in the spikes for last, until the yukmen were dead, for if he removed the res in them now the spikes would likely break and fall without the res to reinforce them. Clyde's breathing slowed and came back to a normal rate, as the he that was the earth soaked back into him, and his semi-feral state of spell casting dimmed. For a moment Clyde glared at Ricky, and considered spearing him to, but Clyde was able to push away this momentary thought, falling back into the deep breathing exercises he had learned in meditation to calm himself.

[Ricky Maze]

At the response Clyde gave to Ricky the "we" threw Ricky into a loop as his eyebrows rose in a sudden nervousness, did Clyde fall into a state of insanity that the fisherman need to worry about? Was there a strong possibility the man had started to overgive from the previous exertion? He didn't know but the fact that "the first spell" had practically not been casted, he dreaded to find out just what exactly the end result would be. Which in turn was exactly the case. The fisherman stood back in bewildered awe as the numbers of the Yukmen, which had grown dramatically, soon dwindled as quickly as they'd risen with the workings of a powerful spell.

Earthen spikes. The field of battle was soon decorated with them as each and every Yukman was soon pierced by wicked and fierce impalement's that either hindered them crippled or executed them on the spot to begin with. Such a display of power is what made Ricky nearly drop to his knees, his horrified amazement at the scene a deep proof that he in fact knew little of the amazing powers a Reimancer could possess. Within a matter of chimes, even ticks, the battle itself soon drew to a close as the bloody scene of dying Yukman soon remained all around. Threats from both frontal and rear viewpoints were eliminated and thus Clyde left but one, or rather, several Yukman that Ricky himself would dispatch. How considerate. It would be apparent though that Clyde could see Ricky held a new found respective fear for him and for magic in general of course.

"R... Roi." The fisherman managed to finally say after finding his voice again, a quick nod in compliance to the idea that these left over creatures needed to be disposed of as well. He didn't waste time in acting on it in turn, as pitiable he would find killing the last Yukmen to be he held little remorse in the act alone. They were beings that not threatened just them but the city in turn, and while the first one was prone to snarl and yell "Yuk" at Ricky constantly, the fisherman in turn would flash his blade with a swift horizontal strike to cut out the throat a couple of feet away. The way their blood would spew out... it sickened the poor guy, the act of killing far from something he enjoyed, he definitely wanted to see this job done and over with so he no longer had to be here. The other few Yukman that were barely alive in turn met the same fate, swift executions that would result in beheading if possible so they wouldn't suffer as much. When the last one had been wiped clean and Ricky in turn felt enough blood covered his blade, and boots as well, he turned to face Clyde with a small frown on his face.

"Kayo. It's done finally. Is dat all we've left t' do t'en?" He asked with hopes that the hard part was over at least, whatever was left to do next would have to be wrapped up soon. As Ricky was ready to report back to his superiors and let them know the job was done, as well as provide all the intel he's gathered on these creatures today.

[Clyde Sullins]

Clyde let out a sigh, and looked upon the magic he had wrought. It was a considerable spell, perhaps even of the master level by class, or by his own classification system of the Major grade. It was still shy in size of a Grandiose grade spell, but that was more about restraint than ability. If he had wanted to he could have littered the entire swathe of land with similar spikes to what he projected upward in the specific spots. But this method of attack had been much more reserved, and had expended much less of his djed than such an attack. Perhaps such an attack would be necessary at some time, and he knew he was capable of it, but it had not been this time. Right now a few smaller instances of the spell, concentrated on certain areas where enemies were located, that was enough. After his work, Rickie's response was sustained, and somewhat timid. "R... Roi." One by one Ricky would execute the remaining yukmen, left alive out of some oddity of Clyde's own actions, of his decision making in his moment of power, not by chance as some might suspect. If they had wanted them all dead, they would have been dead, and nothing this Clyde willed in this clear moment would have hindered it. For in the depth of such powerful magic, reason was not so easily grasped, and restraint was not so easily managed. Magic was addictive, and not easily cast aside at such intensities, proven ever more by his momentary thought of killing the swordsman, of how easy it would have been. With a grim mind Clyde recalled the stray thought, glad that he had not acted upon it, and the fact that he had not even dove to the depth of his power, and did not like to think what he might be should he do so. "Kayo. It's done finally. Is dat all we've left t' do t'en?" Letting out a sigh, Clyde looked about, willing his res to return to him. Now that all the monsters were dead, Clyde willed it all back to him, and a slow trickle of liquid res would flow over the ground from all of the attacks, heading back to Clyde. The spikes fired and tossed earlier by Clyde, some still lodged in their targets. The larger thicker spikes thrust through yukmen, holding them in place, holding them up, and holding them together. As the res left them, some of the spikes lost integrity, and were no longer able to hold the weight of the bodies upon them. These stone spikes snapped, and the bleeding corpses upon them fell and splayed out, with the spears still thrust through them. Some of the denser ones held, at least for now, and continued to hold up the bodies in a macabre work of art. It was uncertain how long they would hold, if time would make them topple, or if something bumping into it would, if a strike would make it topple, or if perhaps it would hold fast to the tests of time as a monument slowly rotting away. Such things did not concern Clyde, as he would soon be gone, and others would come to clean up and remove the mess. “Unless there are more about, then I suppose we are done. Just don't forget, they need to be burned, burned to ash, down to the last one. They cannot be allowed to be reclaimed by the earth.” As he finished talking, the res continued flowing to him, soon enough it would all be back, flowing back up him and into his pores and his skin, becoming a part of him. Much was lost in the attacks, other bits were lost simply be existing outside of him, the inevitable decay of being outside of the vessel of his body. Little was lost on the transfer out or now back in, as at his skill his transfer rate was close to total. “I suppose you should lead the way then, lets be gone from here. Just don't forget what I have said. And don't think that Reimancy is a beast so easily tamed. When you stop respecting it, that is when you will be burned by it. Even with my skill, I still respect it and know I do not totally control it. As the wolf I feed day by day, I know one day it may turn and bite me.”

[Ricky Maze]

oocSo I figured this could very well wrap up our thread, if you feel the need to post afterwards your welcome to of course. Otherwise we've pretty much got a nice thread concluded! Much appreciated in writing with you mate, and I'll be tending to the placeholders that involve Ricky keeping his part of the bargain made in the previous thread too, so when those get done I'll let you know via pm.

After Ricky watched Clyde withdraw the used Res for the spikes he could only wonder just how much of the substance one could actually extrude, and how powerful one can truly get with the amount of practice devoted to the skill of Reimancy. It seemed to be a fearful concept worth delving into, only at a respective approach though seeing as how such a discipline was dangerous to explore. When the mage finally started to instruct Ricky on what to do next, the fisherman nodded as he understood the level of priority this required. These creatures were not meant to be allowed to spawn again, therefore he would have to make sure to be critical about sending a clean up crew to take care of this mess.

"Understood, Oi'll see t' it de Wave Guard takes every precaution t' prevent more o' dese creatures from comin' back." Ricky promised with a nod, he would rather see to it the pass remained a little more safer than littered with more of these creatures. After Ricky wiped the blood off his blade with the sleeve of his suit, he sheathed the weapon with a slight grimace towards the blood. What he did then was reach inside his pocket to pull out a small pouch, one that was stuffed with Nilo to be given as an award to Clyde for his services provided on behalf of the guard. "After takin' on dis job Oi asked if Oi could personally request yer 'elp, in return yer service t'day wouldn't go unpaid seein' as 'ow yew weren't obligated t' lend any aid t' Zeltiva an' 'er people."

He then handed the coin pouch over to Clyde, with a small but humble smile on his face. "Oi know Oi never mentioned yew'd git a reward, but Oi wanted t' see if yew were actually a man of worth. Money can buy dat o' course, but seein' yew make de decision ya did t'day wit'out knowin' money was involved, it's definitely 'elped me see yew are a good sort Mr. Sullins. On behalf o' Zeltiva an' de Wave Guard, Oi appreciate de good yew did t'day." Ricky was modest with his words, careful to make sure that what he said wasn't taken into different proportions like last time. Clyde had done a good and honorable thing today, and Ricky believed that deep down this man had a good heart somewhere inside.

"Let's 'ead back den, yew won't 'ave t' worry bout any more favors from now on. Oi'll be sure de Guard 'andles all future issues wit' dese creatures, an' rest assured Oi keep me promises. Yew won't go starvin' while yer in Sahova this an' next season." He reassured the man before he started to lead the way up the trail, when the time came where they were back in the city and went their separate ways, Ricky was damn right determined to be thorough with those he reported back to that day. He gave as much intel on the Yukmen and what all happened that day, and made sure that there were guardsmen sent to burn the carcasses to prevent more from ever spawning again.

[Gale Austin McCenry]

Ricky :

Experience

Persuasion	+1
Tactics	+1
Long Sword	+1

Items/Consequences

Item	Description
N/A	Since the payment to Clyde was from the Wave Guard and not Ricky's pocket which was approved by an ST, you do not have to detract the 30 Nilo from your ledgar. (

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Lores

■	Clyde Sullins: He knows Yukmen
■	Yukmen: They eat, kill, destroy, repeat
■	Silence in the wild equals trouble
■	Knowing ones role in battle
■	Yukman call: Means 'Bring backup'
■	Finding clarity through allies during battle
■	How to Get a Yukman's Attention: Just yell really loud
■	Protecting an ally through diversion
■	Tactics: Use strength and momentum against them
■	Reimancy: Respect it or get bit
■	Yukman: Must be burned
■	Battle Technique: Taunting

Comments

I said 30 Nilo for the gift because you said it was stuff but I had no idea how big the pouch was. If you feel like this is too much or too little, just PM me and we'll talk about it. I also only gave you one in Long Sword for where you killed those two Yukmen in the beginning since you're an expert in Long Sword. and in the end you did use your sword, but it was easy targets since they were stuck and all.

As for the writing, I feel like you put a lot of feeling and thought into your posts and you presented that very well. In the end, I had almost a perfect picture of Ricky's movement, feelings and of his thoughts all throughout the thread so you did a great job. ^_^

Clyde :

Experience

Negotiation	+1
Leadership	+1
Observation	+1
Tactics	+2
Composition	+2

Items/Consequences

Item	Description
+30 Nilo	Gift from Ricky

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Lores

■	Settling things now so it doesn't bite you later
■	Ricky Maze: Dives when danger calls
■	Plunging into Danger: The Tactic of a Fighter, not a Mage
■	Battle Chants: Keeps focus and drives you forward
■	Reimancy Tactics: Testing the ground
■	Testing the ground during battle
■	Using breathing techniques to calm your thoughts
■	Reimancy: Respect it or get bit

Comments

Ah jeez, where do I start. XD Clyde officially scared the crap out of me. Whether that's the response you wanted or not, I am definitely going to read more threads from you because I now know that Clyde is officially awesome. Not that he wasn't before, but holy cow, opened my eyes certainly. Haha! Great job Clyde. ^_^

Additional Comments

Over all, I think you both did a very good job representing your characters and displaying the scene. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to grade it, so bravo to you! Keep up the good work you guys!

Though, if you have any questions or concerns about the grade at all, please don't hesitate to contact me. Thanks for the amazing read you two!