"He becomes nothing more than a beast, starved for blood. I tried to quell that nature, but it's quite engraved in him." Draven sighed.
"Your madness is starting to influence him," Remulus looked to have grown more wrinkles. "Still, what other weaknesses does this demon state have? Becoming a beast that can't discern friend from foe is one."
Draven stood up and cleared the table, dusting off his hands. He rubbed his chin in pondering before answering. "It's too much for him. The d...
2023-02-03 16:28:35 +0000 UTC
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Decided to put all the sketches into one.
So far, we have Celestina and Draven for the next round of sketches. Still have one more slot to go! If you want anyone else, please leave a comment below
2023-02-03 04:35:14 +0000 UTC
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"So this demon state–" Remulus cleaned out the rest of the snacks, making Draven clench his fist in frustration. "How does it work? What exactly changes about the boy?"
Draven slammed the table, scattering the empty plates and cups before they turned into dust. After this outburst, he sighed and set up a new table with fresh plates full of snacks and a pot of tea. "I suppose it's when he's truly at the backfoot and at a point where he can't back down. That sounds typical, but for Osca...
2023-02-03 03:57:29 +0000 UTC
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Orden's hammer rained down on Oscar and his deer anima like endless lighting strikes under a thunderstorm. Using his 'Flowing Mountain', Oscar mitigated as such of the heavy twenty-multiplied hammer strikes and shot forward with his 'Silver Lance' at Orden's exposed chest.
However, as before, Orden's hammer controlled Orden to surpass the prediction of Oscar's Prinstyct and destroyed his lance, sending reverberations of impact to his arm. Fortunately, with Edureisclad, Oscar avoided ser...
2023-02-02 17:48:24 +0000 UTC
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"The winner is Orden Aesn," Gol-4 announced, but Orden and Oscar did not react with the winner's enthusiasm and the loser's distress. Orden put away his hammer and held his hand toward Oscar, and Oscar returned the handshake with a nod. From the beginning, they both had an idea of who was better, but they wished to know how good the other was.
"Good match. You're an amazing fabricator." Oscar smiled.
"You as well. Who would have thought that you'd be this good? Your formation is l...
2023-02-02 04:34:34 +0000 UTC
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"Then I will stand by as the judge." Gol-4 nudged Oscar to place on one of the anvils and faced Orden, who had changed into his fabricator uniform.
Orden suddenly laughed and turned to Oscar, his eyes covered by the black glass visor. "I am shaking with anticipation. We will not craft armaments together because I want to observe you as much as I know how much you want to observe me. I will go first. Sit down and enjoy, Oscar. I know for a fact that I will."
Oscar, dressed in his f...
2023-02-01 19:14:36 +0000 UTC
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"Are you a moron?" Oscar's obsidian eyes reflected the light of the glowing foundry district surrounding him, but to Orden, it looked like a piercing gaze full of power threatening him slightly. "I still have to look for one more friend. I don't have time for this."
Orden stared down at Oscar's flat refusal and stared up into the ceiling as if he could see the night sky behind it. "It was short, but we've exhausted quite a bit, and it looks like shorty over there needs sleep."
Osc...
2023-02-01 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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Oscar stabbed his powerful silver lance into the beating forest heart, exerting his shattering wave to carry on and destroy it from the inside. At the same time, Orden swung his hammer down vertically with all his might, multiplied by twenty, and sent in his earthen echoes for the same reason as Oscar.
The forest heart was no match for their combined might and exploded in an explosion of a foul mixture of green liquid, which Oscar and Orden quickly dodged, wary if the liquid had any uns...
2023-01-31 21:22:49 +0000 UTC
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"We're screwed," Erik stated without hesitation, as if the future was set in stone.
"I agree this is reckless, but sometimes you must go for it." Orden swung his two hammers, meeting them in the center to meld into one. He juggled it around his wrist a few times to warm up. He had a wild smile that made him look terrifying with his wide and chiseled face. "More importantly, I want to prove that arrogant golem wrong."
"Get ready," Oscar had no time for such nonsense and got everyon...
2023-01-31 05:20:55 +0000 UTC
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The moment Oscar stepped onto the new district of Tectusen, he saw a blaze of flames sprouting from his friend, Erik, coming from the constant swirling of his gauntlet anima. Flames continued to build until they became an inferno that threatened to destroy everything. Feeling the heat and worried about Erik burning everything down, Oscar called out to him and ran forward.
"Erik!"
"Oscar?" Erik turned wide-eyed to see his good friend, Oscar, and cried joyfully. "Where the hell have...
2023-01-30 19:55:16 +0000 UTC
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Oscar dug his feet and hands into the ground to stop himself from being dragged down by Orden's sheer weight. He could feel the overused muscles of his trembling arm tearing as he held tight onto Orden's wrist. The darkness of the chasm below was still blatant in Oscar's distorted and fading vision; if he didn't reach out in time, Orden would have fallen to his death.
However, his arm could not hold for much longer, and he shouted to the dumbfounded Orden, who stared blankly upward. "Ge...
2023-01-30 04:18:59 +0000 UTC
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Oscar knew from an instant that this large Grovekeeper had incredible physical power, not just because of how it tore down the platforms but also how easily it flicked off Orden's hammer, which should have been heavier due to Orden's spell, and his bulwark which had a vast amount of Reis in its attack. But he had to fight here, or this monstrosity might try to tear down the mind shaft.
As the large hand that looked to be composed of gnarled branches and trunks slapped at him, Oscar felt...
2023-01-29 16:00:04 +0000 UTC
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"Gol-4, look at this," Oscar pulled out Gol-4 to show him the large mine shaft that reached up like a tower to a new area. The place above should surely be another district of Tectusen since they had walked on the same level the entire time. The chamber below resembled the bottom of the Ataer Pit, a vast open area with many tunnels across the edges and makeshift platforms for other levels.
"Nice find. I thought it would have taken you far longer to find one of the mine shafts, but this ...
2023-01-29 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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Gol-4's words were, as usual, devoid of emotion, but they irritated Oscar and Orden as more creatures stabbed out from the walls. Naturally, Gol-4 did not possess the up-to-date knowledge, but Oscar felt the golem didn't need to be so direct and potentially sarcastic about it. However, he quickly threw his grievances about Gol-4 to the back of his mind and faced the intruders.
Oscar observed the creatures. The creatures lacked eyes and any other distinguishable features of a face; inste...
2023-01-28 17:00:05 +0000 UTC
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Gol-4's warning snatched Oscar's attention for a brief moment and lowered his guard, and right nearby, an immobile purple vine, cut off from one of the spiders, sprang up and popped into the air. The wriggling and writhing plant shot toward Oscar's face, and he beheld its strange and unsettling nature. Rather than containing the familiar plant fibers and porous layers that stems usually contained, the purple vine had endless circular rows of thin feelers that wriggled around with sharp tips t...
2023-01-28 03:56:53 +0000 UTC
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According to Gol-4's summary from earlier, Tectusen, the Underground City of Stonehaven, was built as a deep place with a connection to the earth, true to the Divine Stone Clan's namesake. The central palace in the inner region was the most important place in Stonehaven, but Tectusen did not lose out in importance. The place was connected by a variety of underground chambers and systems of tunnels like the one Austin and Erik dropped into.
Oscar observed the stone dragon, tracing his ha...
2023-01-27 15:52:02 +0000 UTC
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Droplets of water trickled down the ceiling and fell on Oscar's face, which twitched and began to show reactions to the sudden stimuli after hours of being like stone. Oscar slowly opened his eyes, looking like two thin slits, and could only see darkness, not the darkness from losing his mind, but the darkness of a place that had not a flicker of light to brighten his world. His mouth felt dry like sand, and his hoarse voice barely exited with the air of his lungs.
"Where…am…I? Uhh!...
2023-01-27 04:17:31 +0000 UTC
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The Meld Stage was the second stage of the anima in which the anima fused into an armament or beast, revealing a new realm of power and potential that an Exalt could only dream of. Even more promising was that it wasn't restricted by grade or realm but mainly seen in older Exalts, who've had decades, if not centuries, by their anima's side with their armament and beast. However, that made it all the more shocking to Oscar as Orden brandished and swung around his great hammer created by the me...
2023-01-26 15:49:52 +0000 UTC
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Within the unending sandstorm encompassing the marshes, ruining the fragile tranquility of the environment, countless sparks brightened up only to be choked out by the obscurity of the sands. These sparks came from the exchanges between Oscar and Orden, Oscar's bulwark and deer anima scraped against Orden's two hammers, creating more red-hot sparks to become part of the sands.
Oscar clenched his teeth as his face became covered in sand, irritating his skin, but he kept his mouth shut to...
2023-01-26 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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The gray hammer floated between Oscar and the stranger; Oscar could feel the Ein around the hammer, indicating it was a hammer anima, one from a grade-seven Exolsia. Then the gray hammer flew back into the hands of the stranger who tried to ambush him, a tall and muscular man with a large frame that reminded Oscar of his father, Henry, towering over him. The stranger had a bed of shaggy brown hair and brown eyes on his broad face, wearing a black uniform with large black boots that stomped ov...
2023-01-25 16:49:17 +0000 UTC
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A wide breeze encompassed the outer region of Ashen Grove, flowing through and tickling the leaves on top of the great trees of the grove. The forests let out a whistling noise in response that permeated the area, adding to the slow, tranquil, and stagnant environment. Rivers of water flowed under the soft sunrays, shining upon the waters and the grass.
One could listen, feel, and observe these happenings and forget they were in a deadly region ripe with terrors, beasts, and hidden site...
2023-01-25 04:00:01 +0000 UTC
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Under Oscar's call, the bodiless golem woke up with a blue glow emanating from its eyes. Gol-4 trembled slightly in Oscar's hands before lifting off and levitating above Oscar's head. Oscar stared cautiously, readying his Ein on his hands, at Gol-4, who did a slow rotation all the way around back to where it initially faced; he still did not trust the golem fully.
"This region is where your illusions took place. The town under the Oen Fortress, where most workers and their families live...
2023-01-24 18:07:01 +0000 UTC
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One light step later, Oscar nearly lost his balance as his legs trembled in an attempt to stay up. He widened his stance to stay standing but did not look too pleased as he reexamined his conditions. Burns laden around 40 percent of his body in agony, a core depleted of Ein and also in pain from the destruction of his anima, and his body was so weak that there was no chance he could draw up Reis.
'I'm in worse shape than I thought. What about her?' His gaze met against Maia's, ...
2023-01-24 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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'Again? No matter how many times you try, it can't get through my snake's flames.' Within the view of her Prinstyct, Maia foresaw the flow of Ein on Oscar's hand, which she had already judged to be his ranged spell. The most annoying part was that Oscar kept out-predicting her as she moved to dodge, so she had no choice but to face the silver star and defend against it. Additionally, the silver star flew faster because of the Reis boost, but still, it was no threat, only a minor inco...
2023-01-23 16:50:45 +0000 UTC
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Flames continued to burn, scattered all over the area, burning away the vines, leaves, and trees to reveal the dark bricks of the ruins. Smoke hissed as the bricks became ash-white like coal, but they remained intact. Surrounded by the fires, scorched earth, and white-hot rocks, Oscar began to sweat all over, but the heat did not compare to the firepower of Maia's spells.
His bulwark deflected another large fireball, his hair blown back by the forceful winds that blew from the explosion...
2023-01-23 04:06:21 +0000 UTC
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Maia glanced at her two guards, dead on the floor. In the moments when her two guards had died, Maia saw nothing through her Prinstyct. The weak fist that landed on her guard's arm became deadly without a single hint or clue as to why, and the second foolishly lost his nerves and could not defend himself, resulting in two bloody holes as eyes.
The mystery remained with her about the unusual power this person in front of her exhibited. The incredible speed and immense power did not match...
2023-01-22 18:04:42 +0000 UTC
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The bewitching woman stretched her hand out, unfurling her fingers toward Oscar and the others, and spoke in a charming voice with a hint of pride that did not allow any refusal of her words. Her red eyes shone dangerously as a dense and overwhelming Ein flowed around her body, making Oscar frown as he understood that this woman possessed a grade-eight Exolsia core.
However, Oscar did not falter before her presence and shifted his stance for a firmer footing to weather through any storm...
2023-01-22 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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"Hold on!" Erik tugged on Oscar's jacket. "I want to help them too, but how will we get down in time?"
Erik's worry rang true for Oscar, who started tapping on the grass growing atop the branch. The fight below looked to be even, but only because the reds were buying time for their reinforcements to come, and that time would be soon. Oscar knew if they did not move soon, their allies would be slaughtered.
However, the distance down was very large and daunting. Any attempt to scale...
2023-01-21 16:03:20 +0000 UTC
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After Austin and Erik cleared their heads from the aftereffects of being stuck in an illusion, Oscar explained everything about the vault, the illusion, and the war between the Divine Stone Clan and the Forest Heart Clan. He saw Austin and Erik's faces become increasingly solemn as the realization of Ashen Grove's existence sunk in.
"Before I say anything, let me melt down this damned golem." Austin narrowed his eyes, gazing at the Gol-4 on the table.
"Stop it. I have many questio...
2023-01-21 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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