Upon the Wings of the Wind (Anyone, anynumber)

OoC: Ok, I need to have a battle using The Bedra. I've only ever fought with them once and that just won't do. So... yeah, anyone can join and as many people that seems practical. Please only intelligent writers, no n00bs (when I say n00bs I don't mean newbs, I love newbies! *Omandy runs and gives all the newbies a hug*). Have fun, joke around a bit, just don't be stupid.

My first post will be short because I want you all to use your imaginations and think of something utterly evil to write. But remember, both good and evil characters are aloud to post on here.

BiC: It had been a very uneventful day for The Bedra. Consisting of nothing more then a day long flight through the rolling green hills, playing games with itself and soaking in the scenery.
At the moment The Bedra's three parts were resting atop a large glacier rock, each preparing themselves for the night ahead. Kaz had already eaten their dinner and was trying to find a comfortable place to sleep. Shiri was crouched down trying to read the remainder of his new scroll in the dieing light. Zen was hovering just over the rock, with a big smile on her face as she slowly eased herself into a state of deep meditation.

This was the usual nightly routine for The Bedra. But tonight things would be different. Suddenly the wind seemed to change, not just in direction or speed or temperature, but in that still subtle way that only sensitive creature like The Bedra would ever notice. A change that cannot be described in mortal’s words, a change that meant something was wrong, VERY wrong.

Shiri, Kaz and Zen all jumped to attention. They were needed elsewhere. Innocence was being violated and it needed to be saved. Without a word the three leapt off the rock together and flew east as the wind directed it.

OoC: I think it's only fitting that I use Zephia. Link in sig.

BiC: Alone in her cabin, Zephia was sleeping silently. She was sleeping on her stomach with her head turned to the right side of her bed. Everything was peaceful, until her door flew open. She woke up and screamed. Then, a hand came from the door and silenced her. It was Lily's hand. Lily removed her hand from her mouth and Zephia let out a sigh of relief.

"You scared me there, Lily. Why did you knock?" asked Zephia in her peppy voice.

"Even in the middle of the night, you are still as hyper as ever. Anyway, I'm here because I need your help," said the Earth Elemental. Zephia had a puzzled look on her face.

"My help? Ok, then. What do you need?" The two young women exited the cabin and headed over to Blaze's house. Upon their arrival, Zephia saw the entire field was covered in a dark, stormy could. Blaze was sitting on the wet grass as the rain poured on his head. As soon as he saw the two girl over the horizon, he rushed towards them.

"Finally. I'm glad you here, Zephia," said the Fire Elemental. Zephia looked up at the storm.

"I'm assuming this is why you need my help." Blaze and Lily nodded.

"See, Blaze and me were training when this storm came. Blaze's abilities don't work with water. So, can you help us out?" asked Lily. Zephia smiled and jumped into the air. She floated above the clouds using her Elemental abilities. She then took control of the storm, and moved it towards the mountain. As she landed, Lily hugged her as a thank you.

"No problem," said the Wind Elemental. "Just make sure next time you knock. Ok, Lily." Lily smiled and walked back to the field with Blaze to continue their training. "Ok, time to go back to sleep." But as she turned around, she felt someone, or someones coming towards her.

OoC: Sorry if it's short, but I need to get a feel of your characters first. Oh, and later on, I might have Blaze and Lily join. If that's alright with you.

Zephia turned and looked out across the field, it was getting quite dark so it was hard for her to see much of anything, but she knew something was there, something was coming swiftly towards her. Then at last she saw it, or rather them. Three small creatures were flying in perfect formation zigging and zagging close to the ground, following the bend of the wind. One was bright red, the other canary yellow, and the last the shade of a robin's egg. They were approaching very fast, so fast in fact that their forms barely registered in Zephia's mind before they reached her side of the field and silently came to a stop twenty feet in front of her. Without a sound the three landed on the ground their eyes fixed on Zephia, glowing slightly in the dim light.

Both Zephia and the three dragon-like beings seemed to be frozen in awe at the sight of each other. Neither spoke for a very long, eerie moment. Then suddenly, as though they were quoting a rehearsed spell, the three creatures spoke together as one, chanting,

“Daughter of Wind, destiny calls you, destiny calls in this time of need. Prepare yourself, Angel of Storm, to help the innocent, to their cries take heed. Tonight we must fly, you and I, tonight we must fly to the aid of the lost. Succeed we must, do or die, succeed we must at any cost. Ride with me now, Wielder of Air, Upon the Wings of The Wind.”

OoC: I might have to change this last post later if we decide to go a different route with the story. Tell me what you think.

Zephia stared at the three little creatures with a blank look on her face. So enough, that blank look turned into a smiling face. She knelt down and grasped the three. "Oh, you three are so adorable!" She let them go and smiled. "So, what do you need my help with?" The Bedra looked at her for a moment, then looked at each other.

She is quite strange for a bender of the wind. Shiri telepathically said to the others.

I think she is funny, replied Zen as it began giggling

You think everything is funny, said Kaz.

Nonetheless, we need her help, responded Shiri. The Bedra looked up at Zephia again. Just as they sounded before, they chanted,

"Oh, one who bends the wind, come with us. Come with us to protect those lost in chaos. If you wish to help these forsaken souls, follow us to the place where the wind is distorted." With that The Bedra flew of past Zephia. Zephia giggled.

"They are so cute when they do that." She put her arms behind her and leaped forward. The wind blew beneath her and carried her forward. Soon, she met up with The Bedra and they flew side by side. "So, where is the wind distorted?" Before they could answer her question, she stopped them. "Wait, I can feel it."

She can feel it, the disturbance in the air, said Kaz telepathically to the other parts of The Bedra.

Which means she cannot be human, replied Shiri.

"It's there!" screamed Zephia as she speed up towards a field that was missing green.

OoC: I think we will need another person to come and play the villian, a good writer who knows what they're doing. I'll post an invetation in the out of character thread. But untill then I'll post something here real quick.

Oh! I just had a great idea! I'll PM you with the details so that you can tell me what you think.

BiC:
"You are very perceptive, young Elemental." Shiri comented.

"What is that up ahead?" Zephia pointed to the patch of land on the horizen where their was no green. There was a pause where no one said anything.

"We... are not sure exactly. But that is where the distortion in the wind is coming from."
"We only just felt it this evening." Zen piped in.
"You see, Wind Bender, we The Bedra are very sensitive to the changes that happen around us because an immbalence of the elements is a sure sign of trouble." Kaz explained, Shiri continued,
"All we knew when we set out was that the wind had changed, more may have changed then just that but wind is always the first to be noticed."
"We can't explain how but we knew that we had to find someone to help us, we did not know who we were looking for untill we found you."

"So, do you have any idea what we're up against?" Zephia asked, a little nervous but still smiling. The Bedra suddenly slowed and fell silent, it three pairs of eyes shut as though it was consentrating very intently.

"Can you feel it?" It asked her. "Close your eyes and feel. Wind creats a never ending blanket that covers the whole world. Even when it's not moving it is there. Now consitrate on the distortion in the wind. What do you feel?"

Zephia closed her eyes and consintrated, suddenly her eyes poped back open and she gasped,
"The wind! Part... part of it is... Gone!"

The Bedra sighed, "Exactly."

OoC: Sorry, I would add mote but I got to go to class. I'll PM you later.

OoC: Ah, there we go. ^_^ I think it turned out rather well. Be prepared, because my posts are usually at least six paragraphs. My finalès tend to be about the size of a very short story, so get ready for some heavy reading.

BiC:

The unusual wind elementalist leapt backwards, landing gracefully and thrusting out his arm to summon up a roaring howl. His runic clothes flailed in the wind, robes of purple and aquamarine satin; his young face was contorted in concentration, for his power over the elements had yet to reach maturity.

Curse you! cried Giathra inwardly, his hatred for this elementalist growing with every passing moment. He had been surprised to encounter one during his trek toward the nearby town. Crossing his arms in front of his face, feeling his hooded cloak flapping furiously, he began to press against the howling maelstrom. The corpse-walker could almost see his destination in the distance. Though hardly a small town at the base of a hill, after he was rid of this elementalist it would be his to consume. Law enforcement would be no problem; it never was in such miniscule villages.

“You shall not reach my home, foul perversion of men!” shouted the elementalist, his words carrying loudly in the air streams that he commanded. “I shall forfeit my life before I allow my friends and family to fall at your hands!”

Oh, that can be arranged, thought Giathra with a deranged grin. His progress against the wind was slow but steady. This elementalist was not yet strong enough to hold off an adult. Ah-hah! There, ten meters behind the boy, was a rounded stone. Giathra exerted his living energy, letting it roll forth despite the wind’s resistance, and enter into the stone. Taste your own blood, delinquent! Commanded by the corpse-walker, the stone rose into the air and hurtled toward the young elementalist. He heard the whickering sound too late, and its blunt edge slammed into the back of his head.

To Giathra’s relief, the wind instantly died. Falling to his knees, the boy began to convulse and cough up blood. Pathetic; he cannot even defend his own hometown, muttered the murderer as he strode forward and stood over the writhing juvenile. When the boy managed to choke up the rest of the blood, he looked up again to see the man standing over him.

“Die.” Giathra’s arm snaked forward, fingers sliding against the elementalist’s skull and gripping it fiercely. Flesh peeled away to reveal bone, which turned to fine powder when the corpse-walker grasped it. A scream of unrivalled agony poured from the boy’s throat as he tried to wrench away. But it was too late; Giathra had already grazed his brain, and his body instantly shut down from the shock of contact. Now… come to me! As the limp body fell to its final resting place with a thump, its life energy slipped out of its natural owner and Giathra devoured it as one would suck a noodle into their mouths.

Done with his short battle, the corpse-walker tightened his cloak and turned his gaze toward the small village which lay at the base of the hill on which he now stood. He had hardly taken a step when his senses alerted him to something behind his back. Giathra whirled around, ready to animate the rock that had aided him earlier, but there was not a soul to greet him. Odd… Who would be coming to such an unrefined village as this? His eyes flicked across the ridge of the hill, seeking out any sign of life that he could destroy or consume. Perhaps my stalker is further uphill, he thought. Why don’t I go and greet them?

The Bedra and Zephia flew quickly through the air towards the field. Out of nowhere, a dark figure leap out from behind a hill. The Bedra and Zephia backed up and examined the figure as it landed. It was a man, or at least what used to be a man for he had no skin on his body whatsoever.

"Are you the one who destroyed the peace of the wind?" asked The Bedra. Giathra smirked and said,

"Yes, I am. And soon, your energy shall be mine!" He replied. He turned his attention to Zephia who was staring at him. "What's the matter, girl? Afraid?" Zephia's mouth slowly opened.

"Tha-that's... so cool!" She ran over to the man, but he slowly backed up. "Please? Can I just touch it?" Giathra was dumbfounded.

Why is this girl not scared or disturbed by my appearance? It doesn't matter. As soon as she gets in close, I'll take her energy, thought Giathra. He nodded and Zephia walked over. She began poking the muscle tissue. Giathra slowly put his hand above her head. Suddenly, Zephia back flipped and L-kicked him down the hill. Zephia stood on the edge of the hill and looked down.

"You're gonna need to pay more attention in order to defeat me," said Zephia with a smile. The Berda flew toward Giathra at a fast speed. Kaz flew in front and knocked Giathra back. He got annoyed. He used the living energy he had and picked up a large rock and threw it a The Bedra. The rock fell on top of Kaz. Shiri and Zen flew over to Kaz.

That should take care of that annoyance, thought Giathra. Zephia jumped down and put her hand in Giathra's face.

"Whirlwind!" A strong blast of wind came out of her hand and pushed Giathra away. He landed on his back. A slight pain came to his back. Giathra pulled himself up and chuckled.

"Another amateur wind elementalist. I have already defeated on of you before, I can do it again." Giathra rushed at her, but Zephia jumped up and floated in the air.

"First of all, I'm not an amateur. I've had these abilities since I was born. Second, I am not and elementalist, I am an Elemental." Giathra grabbed a large log and, using his living energy, turned it into a sword. He threw it at Zephia. She created a wind barrier, which deflected the sword.

"Wind Elemental, we shall assist." Giathra turned around and The Bedra was right next to him. Zen let out a fire magic, which burned Giathra's flesh. He screamed in pain. Zephia was laughing, but then she was pulled back down to the ground by a vine that Giathra controlled. "We must be cautious. This man can control living energy and harness its power," said the Bedra.

"Yeah, I noticed. This will be kinda hard."

OoC: I hope you guys don't mind if I join. By the way, this is my first fight.

BiC: Zephia was still sitting on her backside, trying to put vine off her ankle when it suddenly writhed and trashed in her grip. Shocked, she released her hold on the newly animated plant. The vine immediately shot towards the unsuspecting Giathra, who had turned his back on Zephia and was raising his hands, as two large boulders simultaneously rose with them.
As he stared to swing his limbs downward toward to two unhindered Bedra, the vine wrapped around his head, covering his mouth. It then proceeded to retract, slamming him to the ground. Three more vines from a nearby patch shot forward in the same manner as the first one. The helpless Giathra was now bound on the ground around the head, ankles, waist, and wrists.
Off to the side of the withering body, a deep blue light appeared at the ground and rose up to about a mans height. As the light rose, so did a mysterious cloaked figure. A solitary hand clutching a steel double-ended trident appeared from under the forest green cloak and rose menacingly toward the struggling form on the ground.
"Prehaps, now, it will not be quite so hard".

Hey, Omandy. I've been watching this thread and I saw what happened. I'm really sorry. I'll be thinking of you and your family. Really sorry man.

Too many OoC posts! *Spins around dizzily* :confused: Seriously, Southern Belle, that belongs more in a PM than in a post...

And stop ganging up on the evil dude! XD I'm already feeling unsure about him, and having so many opponents isn't going to help my confidence in Giathra. That, and Omandy appears to have vanished temporarily. The host is gone, I'm about to get pwned, and the whole battle has more out-of-character posts than in-character posts! This ain't lookin' good for me... o_O;

BiC:

Curses! cried Giathra silently at the appearance of this new enemy. Now there are five of them! After giving the odd-looking creature a brief glance, he decided that fighting all of these foes at once would be unwise. He would have to draw them away from one another, fight them individually. But there was no hope of doing that on this hill; he would have to retreat into the village where there were many places to hide.

Giathra quickly turned his attention to the vines restricting his limbs. Exerting his power over living energy, he caused them to lengthen. He felt resistance on the other end, realizing that this new foe possessed power over the surrounding flora, and possibly the earth itself. Yet another reason to be cautious.

One of the dragonlike creatures surged forward, the red one, opening its jaws and angling to bite down on Giathra’s flesh. But just before the tiny dragon’s teeth snapped shut, the corpse-walker yanked the vine attached to his right arm into the path of its maw. Crunch! With his toxic arm freed, Giathra snatched up the vine on his left arm, melting through the thick extension with ease. In a moment, he had freed both his legs and bolted up to grab at the Bedra as it moved to bite him again. Its teeth gripped the corpse-walker’s right arm tightly, but the creature was met with a startling surprise. At the touch of Giathra’s discolored hand, the ends of the Bedra’s teeth suddenly melted away. Its eyes went wide as it retreated back in fear, watching Giathra carefully.

“Heh, heh,” chuckled the menacing skinless man at his prey. And with that, he turned and dashed toward the village. Several surprised shouts arose from behind him, but he paid his enemies no mind. Buildings arose in the distance, small and rural, but they would offer many helpful hiding spots. Still approaching his destination, he scanned the area for any immediately helpful spots to lay in wait. There! A barn off to the left of the village! Setting his sights firmly on that barn, he altered his course slightly to the left and put on a burst of speed. In only a few seconds he had reached the base of the hill and dived into the barn. Quickly casting around for someplace to remain hidden with his descrying ability, he singled out one cow among many in the stables. Moving as fast as he dared, he leapt over the stable door and squatted behind the foul-smelling animal. There was a ‘moo’ of discontentment, but Giathra ignored it.

A moment later, a female voice cried out, “I think he went into the barn!” There was a moment of tense silence, and then, “He’s not here! Check that way!”

Carefully, Giathra peeked out from behind the animal that had masked his presence. From the opposite entrance of the stables, he caught sight of a human head poking around the corner. “What is all that racket?” grumbled the man in a rich rancher’s accent.

Ah! thought the corpse-walker, dually pleased at the presence of a victim. Carefully, he stood and hopped over the stable door, his cloak rustling gently in a light wind.

The rancher’s gaze shifted toward the unorthodox traveler, and he bellowed a satiric grunt. “Who the Hell’re you supposed to be?” he asked as Giathra approached, unseeing eyes glinting wickedly.

“Your worst nightmare.”

A terrified scream echoed throughout the village as another life ceased to be.

OoC: Hey, sorry, but you can’t have the good guy fight the other good guys! And this is my first fight.

BiC: Upon seeing the vampire fleeing toward the village, Skif immediately foresaw trouble. He also foresaw the escape of the enemy if he couldn’t find some other means of transportation other than his own feet.
“Hey, you, The Bedra! Come over here!” Skif called out gruffly. The Bedra quickly scuttled over to the young man, who put his hand upon something around his neck, just under his cloak. As the Bedra came to a stop in front of him, he slowly shrunk until he was of a size comparable to the Bedra.
“Hoowww dooo youuu knowww what weee arrre?” The three asked in unison. The now small figure quickly scampered upon the crimson dragon-like creature and replied with a grin, “I have traveled to many places and have seen and heard many things.”
“Whaaat arre youu whooo cann changgge youurrr sizzze?” The red Bedra beneath asked curiously, as they quickly flew into the air in pursuit of the fleeing enemy. The yellow one above them answered for him.
“I believe that he is a Minish, and his ability to change size is from an outside source.”
The young minish looked up at him grinning and stated that he couldn’t have said it better himself. The four quickly flew high above the village, scanning the town stead for the vampire. As they swerved low over a silo, the minish’s keen ears heard a scream coming from a nearby barn. “Quickly! In that barn!” The young man yelled to his new alliances. As they swooped down through the open double doors, the man leapt from the red arrow that was the Bedra and grew quickly, fully grown when he softly landed on the straw covered floor.
The young elementalist immediately pulled out his trident and peered around at the stalls. Almost immediately, he noticed the pair of drag marks in the straw and dirt floor. Leaping backward against the opposite wall, readying his trident in a guard position. As the Bedra circled about the rafters, Skif strafed along the wall until he could fully see into each of the stalls along the opposite wall.
Without warning, the Bedra let out a cry of dismay and Kaz swooped down and crashed into Skif. Though Kaz was considerably smaller than Skif, he hit him with such force that Skif was sent flying sideways into a stall. Skif quickly crawled back out of the stall and grasped angrily at the Bedra. “What are you-”he began to hiss in a rage, but he cut off what he was about to say as he noticed the pitchfork quivering in the wooden wall where he was standing only moments before.

Well, my sister told me that he was a vampire and you didn't have a link where I could look him up. Which you should have in your sig by the way.

*sigh* Yes, she is, as much as I hate to admit it.

OoC: I love how you guys completely forgot about Zephia in your last two posts. I’m going to change this battle a bit.

BiC: Giathra flung the pitchfork at Skif using his living energy. Before it hit him, a sai floating in the air stopped it. The minish warrior looked up and saw Zephia standing on top of the barn. She jumped down and took the pitchfork and her sai.

"Thanks, " said Skif. Zephia turned around and smacked Skif in the face with the pitchfork. "Ow! What the hell are you doing?" yelled the confused elementalist. Zephia back flipped and landed to the right of Giathra.

"It just isn't fair, Five against one. I'll even that out by making it two against four," said Zephia. The Bedra flew out in front and spoke.

"But Bender of the Wind, he has disturbed the peace. This fight is not just a practice, it is to save those he wishes to consume," said The Bedra in unison.

"He's just trying to get his skin back. It is not his fault he has to kill people to do so," responded the stubborn Elemental. Giathra chuckled.

“Please, I don’t need your help girl,” he said sternly. Zephia rolled her eyes.

“Alright, I’ll just leave you to fight three dragons, each having an attribute that cancels out each others weaknesses and an Earth Elementalist with a double-ended trident. Besides, I’m sure your skinless body can withstand a straight on stab from a trident and boulders flung towards you from 20 feet away.” The corpse-walker stood in awe at the youngster’s speech. He shrugged and put out his hand.

“Ok, I promise not to steal your life energy if you help me.” Zephia shook his hand and they faced their opponents. Skif scoffed at Zephia. He launched a large boulder at the two. Giathra jumped out of the way, but Zephia just lifted up her knee and faced the rock. Before the rock could even reach her, the Wind Elemental kicked into thin air and a stream of air followed, which shattered the stone.

“Amateur,” said Zephia with a smile. “Let me show you how us Elementals do it.” She knelt down on the ground and did a headstand. Then, she yelled, “Wind Spin!” She spun into a head spin at a fast speed. Wind began to swirl around her until it formed into a tornado. Zephia jumped out of the tornado with her hands and it flew towards The Bedra. The three dragons became trapped inside the swirling air. Skif watched in horror as The Bedra was thrashed inside Zephia’s attack. He put his hands on the ground. Suddenly, roots emerged and traveled along the ground. They wrapped around Zephia’s legs. As Skif was about to strike with his trident, a pitchfork flew in and blocked his attack. Giathra stepped out from behind Zephia.

“Don’t forget about me,” he said. Giathra then kicked Skif back and freed Zephia. Just then, the Wind Spin subsided and The Bedra emerged completely unharmed. Shiri created an illusion of the three, which were the ones who got trapped inside the tornado. Zephia giggled.

“Sweet, now I get to fight you guys.”

OoC: Hey, just because we didn't include you in our posts is no reason to betray us! And why are you changing what has already happened?

BiC: Amateur?! Skif thought in rage. She dares to betray us?! "How dare you!" Eyes flashing in anger, he brought his hands together and slapped them on upon the ground. The earth shuttered and rocked back and forth violently. Suddenly the ground under Zephia opened up and she fell shreiking into the 10 ft hole that had materialized around her.
Just as quickly as it opened up, the hole resealed itself above Zephia. "How is that for amateur?!" He shouted at the ground in an angery satisfaction.
Ok, calm down, put a lid on your anger. There's still another one to take down. Turning to where the skinless man had been, he found........nothing at all. While he had been taking his revenge on the elemental, the Bedra and the original enemy had evidently left the barn. Shooting a last glance at the spot where Zephia was trapped, he turned and exited the barn.

Originally Posted by The Outcast

OoC: I love how you guys completely forgot about Zephia in your last two posts.

You'll be interested to note that Zephia was mentioned in my post. You have to pay close attention to catch it, though. Think about it, what's the only real feminine character in this battle? *Points to the words "female voice" in his previous post*

Very nice twist, by the way. I hope you don't expect Giathra to keep that promise, though. If you have such expectations, you obviously don't know my character very well.

BiC:

She was not the type to take anything seriously, Giathra had thought. But just when he thought he had the young Elemental figured out, she pulled an unexpected card out of her sleeves. Reflecting on the unprecedented action, the corpse-walker decided that he rather liked this girl. Too bad she had fallen into a hole; perhaps she could have become his slave. For a very brief instant, Giathra considered rushing back to help her. He had to shake his head to dispel such thoughts, and the action brought him back into reality. After retreating from the barn, he had rushed around the corner. Much to the corpse-walker’s dismay, the Bedra had been hasty to give chase.

Now the three dragonlike creatures stared him down, red, blue and yellow scales glistening in the bright sun. Giathra could feel the eyes of others, could sense their energy; once he had dealt with these three, that Skif character would be no problem. Then he could devour them all as well as the townsfolk. “Humph!” muttered Giathra audibly, and the red dragon bolted forward while a mystical glow encompassed the blue. Exerting his power, the skinless murderer caused the ground beneath him to shatter. Its molecules split apart, forming a ring at his feet, and then the ground shifted just as the air around him dropped sharply. Muffled speech filtered through the rock barrier, indicating that the Bedra were confused. Without hesitation, Giathra forced his power into the ground, causing it to give way beneath him, forming a tunnel back into the barn. Darkness surrounded him, but descrying caused everything to become clear. Swiftly crawling through the tight space, he shifted the focal point of his sight, seeing that the earth elementalist had joined the Bedra. The red dragon had shattered the rock barrier only moments after the corpse-walker descended into his hole; a narrow escape.

Giathra emerged from the hole, dragging himself out with his single regenerated arm. He descried the surrounding area and perceived the young wind Elemental beneath her earthy prison. Swiftly exerting his power over his surroundings, he caused the ground which sealed her in the dark pit to open up. Light filtered into the cracks, revealing her worried complexion as she dangled by one arm from a stone outcropping. As the sunlight broke through darkness, Zephia’s face seemed to light up along with her prison.

Giathra stepped back from the hole as a strong wind picked up and the Wind Bender soared out with a graceful mid-air spin. She landed, crouching, in front of the corpse-walker and gave him a curious look. “Thanks!”

Grimacing, the murderer accepted her gratitude. “Don’t get used to it, kid. This is your last second chance.” Inwardly, he thought, If nothing else, she can help me defeat these insolent whelps. With that, both turned their attention to the doorway of the barn as Skif appeared, face filled with a furious rage uncharacteristic of the Minish people. Behind the two, the earth suddenly shattered, and stony pillars rose up to block off the opposite entrance.

“Hah!” boasted the earth elementalist. “I’ve got you now!”

Zephia gave a worried scowl, but Giathra merely chuckled. “Cows,” he said.

Skif’s anger vanished, replaced instead with utter confusion. “What?”

“The barn is filled with cows,” clarified Giathra, turning his attention to three of the misshapen beasts of burden that stared stupidly from behind their stalls. So much energy emerged from the skinless being at once that it was actually perceivable. It appeared as if a wispy spirit had exited the corpse’s body and now entered with a sigh into the three cows. With a quiet, menacing growl, he said, “Come to me.”

The creatures’ eyes turned an ominous red as they began to snort. The Bedra now appeared in the doorway, and all now seemed terrified.

Giathra gave them all a sinister, maniacal cackle. “Something wicked this way comes…”

At first Skif was taken back, shocked even at such an unorthadox move. But years of training with monks had taught him to school his emotions and reactions, enabling him to see a solution to every problem in the heat of battle calmly and cooly. He simply stooped down and placed both of his hands upon the ground as the cows approached.

Despite the advancing cattle, Skif just crouched there, hands pressed spread the dirt. Suddenly the ground behind the bovines rised, while the ground in front sunk and leveled out. The cattle's eyes widened in alarm and shock, then they started backpedaling, the gound still tilting. Despite efforts fueled by desperation, the cows were unable to avoid sliding into the hole; and as they slid, the ground behind them rose, trapping them in yet another hole.

Skif just smiled at the angered expressions on the foes standing across the gap from him. He started to rise, but suddenly slammed his hands back down on the ground. As they made contact, sesmic waves shook the earth, knocking the startled foes to their feet. In the same constant motion, without giving them a chance to rise, the young minish grabbed two hidden daggers in his boots and flung them at the prone figures.

The first one just barely missed Zephia, embedding her shirt in the earth with the dagger, but the second one made a resounding solid thud as it peirced Giathra's skinless flesh, embedding itself deep into his hamstring. The wounded member let out a wail of pain and anguish that made Skif's ears ring. It was not a fatal wound, but it was one that would make it impossible for him to excape and might lead to his capture or destuction. With a wounded hamstring, Skif doubted very much if he could even stand.

OoC: Let's see how ya like this!

The pain was unfathomable! Never before had a blade pierced his flesh in such a way. As burning agony spread throughout his wounded leg, Giathra crumpled to the ground and grasped for the projectile embedded in his hamstring. It had submerged up to the guard, much to his dismay. He wrapped his fingers around the hilt and gave a sharp tug, and the pain suddenly intensified more than he thought was possible. With a cry of agony, he released the weapon and was force to relax his muscle in order to lessen the pain.

“It looks as if you shall not rise again,” muttered the three Bedra sagely in unison. Kaz bolted forward and landed on top of Zephia, wrapping around her and pinning her to the ground. The Wind Bender struggled in irritation, but was unable to pry the mini-dragon off of her abdomen. He appeared noticeably upset at the girl’s betrayal.

Skif focused his attentions on the immobilized Giathra, his hands on the ground and prepared to deliver another jolt to the earth should his foe attempt anything tricky. A complacent smirk marked his lips, grating on the corpse-walker’s nerves.

Despite the burning which was beginning to spread from his leg, Giathra was not too injured so as to lose the ability to feel hatred. In fact, hatred was his dominant emotion at the moment. They are going to kill me, he thought to himself. They will prevent me from gaining back my skin! His living energy escaped him, moving to the blade in his leg and giving the hilt a sharp jolt. The corpse grimaced in pain, but the blade slipped generously out of his hamstring, and the burning sensation began to subside.

With a veneer of disinterest, Skif observed carefully. He must have thought that he had the corpse-walker outdone; he was probably correct in that assumption. “Well, Bedra?” asked the minish warrior to the pair of dragons that were currently idle. “Shall we eliminate the threat, or capture him?”

The Bedra glanced at Skif, and then returned their gaze thoughtfully to the corpse, contemplating the answer. Giathra could only imagine what was going through their minds. I am too much of a threat to this world, he whispered to himself. Knowing what the dragons’ decision would be, he scowled with the utmost loathing forming on his tongue. He could feel his living energy twitch metaphorically as those beady, methodical eyes watched with thought so intense that Giathra could scarcely comprehend it.

After many long moments of silence, the Bedra finally spoke. “There is no other option…” they muttered, closing their eyes. “We must protect the land. Eliminate the threat.”

NO!

Something within the corpse snapped; every iota of living energy within his body scattered in all directions, grappling various objects around the landscape beyond the barn. Skif moved to slam his hands against the cold earth while Zen formed an orb of ice magic, but a rumbling distracted them. The three looked upward, and even Kaz turned his gaze to the ceiling. Zephia took advantage of the moment of weakness and thrust the red dragon away. She yanked the dagger from the cloth on her shoulder and rose to her feet, quickly retreating backward to stand next to Giathra.

A menacing cackle erupted from the corpse-walker’s throat, striking terror into Skif’s heart; the Bedra, in all its wisdom, would not be affected by the show of wicked power. “Fools!” snapped the skinless murderer, a sick grin spreading across his face. “I will not be downed by such powerless souls as yourselves.” Suddenly, tremors tore through the ground, shattering the foundation of the barn. Before the walls could come toppling down, a tractor smashed through the wooden ceiling and shot toward Skif as if shot from a cannon. The minish jumped out of the way, narrowly avoiding the vehicle, and it slammed into the ground with a thunderous crash.

Just as Kaz moved to knock the object away, an array of tools that lined the walls of the barn shook loose from the ill-placed nails that held them up. Giathra’s energy instantly moved to commandeer them in mid-air. Hedge clippers, pitchforks, saws, and picks suddenly hurtled through the barn, swirling in deadly circles like low-flying hawks. The hazardous objects swooped down low, one of the picks nearly catching Zephia in the chest. She bounded backward and dived into one of the stables for safety. Shiri darted aside to avoid a pair of snipping hedge clippers, but the flying garden tool gave chase. Skif was whapped in the head with a shovel, knocked behind the overturned tractor. “Phew!” he sighed in relief. “Finally out of harm’s way…” He looked up and to his utter shock, a dagger covered in blood was headed directly for him.

“That’s it… Feel my power, inferior beings!” Giathra’s energy expanded even further, grappling a fence beyond the barn. Posts broke loose and hurtled through the barns walls, tearing the structure apart and joining the garden tools that viciously attacked the Bedra. “You shall never defeat me!”

OoC: Alright, Omandy, it's to either your or Outcast. One of you post, and then the other. I must admit, I'm curious to see what you guys can pull out of your hats.

OoC: Hey everyone, I’m back and ready to move on. Okay, could everyone please delete all of your OoC posts? At least the ones pretaining to my uncle’s death. I appreciate all of your sympathies, thank you, but this is supposed to be a fun battle. I already went to one funeral; I don’t need more grief here. Thanks for caring.

BiC:

There was flying debris everywhere; there was no way to dodge the lethal objects in the air. Skif shuddered at the sight of the flying dagger heading straight towards him. Instinctively he reached for the medallion around his neck and shrunk to the size of a rat, making himself less of a target. He rolled under the tractor as the bloody weapon plunged into the ground where he had been lying. He was able to relax only for a moment before the dagger began to pull itself out of the ground again.

“Oh Great.”

Shiri and Zen each curled themselves into a protective ball, their wings wrapped about them like a shield, leaving only a small gap for their eyes to peer out. Like this they rolled and bounced to dodge the debris. Kaz was trying to look out for the others by blocking the massive objects that came flying their way. The situation seemed nearly impossible.

“We can’t continue on like this!” Kaz shouted telepathically to his counterparts just before he was whacked in the head by a stray rock. He tumbled to the ground and came to a rolling stop next to the others.
“Then we have no choice, we must join as one.” Shiri sighed, knowing that Kaz was unharmed.

Zen and Shiri uncoiled then the three Bedra leapt into the air, flying at top speed. Giathra’s maniacal laugh continued to shake to whole barn as The Bedra spun around each other and shouted together,

“Bedra Unite!” With a flash of dark light the three little creatures disappeared and in their place stood a black, nightmarish apparition: The True Bedra.

Zephia, who was still taking cover in the corner stall peered out at the beast, her face terror stricken by the sudden change in the little creatures. Giathra’s laugh slowed when he sensed The Bedra’s transformation. This would be interesting.

OoC: I hope this is a good comeback.

OoC: Just to remind you guys, Zephia can control the wind. She’s not just some girl who can fight. Also, you guys make her sound way too serious.

BiC: Zephia gazed at the creature with both astonishment and excitement. A small smile cracked and Zephia said, “Well, if you’re going to transform, so will I.” She stood up and looked into the six eyes of The True Bedra. She then jumped up and assumed a feeble position in the air as a sphere of air swirled around her. The True Bedra looked up at Zephia’s transformation. Giathra, however, was not waiting for her. He hurled several garden tools towards the True Bedra. It lifted one of its four arms and cast an ice spell, which created a shield of ice around it. The tools were deflected. Just then, a giant explosion occurred and a huge gust of wind blew the True Bedra back. Giathra looked behind him and said,

“That’s all?” Zephia was floating in the air. Her hair turned into a light pink and her iris turned the same shade of pink. “You went inside a sphere of air, you caused an explosion and all that changed was your hair and eye color?” Zephia pointed behind Giathra. He turned around and saw the True Bedra charging a fire spell. Zephia waved her hand and Giathra was pushed out of the way.

“Sonic Boom!” Zephia clapped her hands once and large blast of wind pushed the True Bedra against and through the wooden wall. She turned to Giathra and said, “You were saying?” Giathra rolled his eyes. “Can you walk?” she asked. Giathra shook his head. Zephia walked over and placed her hands near the ground. Suddenly, Giathra was lifted up into the air. He looked below him and saw a swirling vortex of wind suspending him up. Zephia walked out of the barn, as she did, Giathra was pulled towards her. The True Bedra was standing outside of the barn with Skif right beside it. Skif punched the ground and a trench opened up under Zephia. Instead of falling, she floated above the trench and hovered towards the two.

“Damn,” whispered Skif. Zephia smiled.

“You really didn’t think that I would fall for that twice in a row, did you? Pun intended,” she said as she started to giggle. The True Bedra thought to itself.

She maybe her same careless self, but she has become much more powerful. It turned to Skif. “Skif, we must be careful. Do not be mislead by her cheerful personality.” Skif ignored it and said,

“Doesn’t matter. She’s still a kid and after calling me an amateur, I have to show her what I can do.”