Standard Mission: What Lies at the Finish Line

Setting up a barrier this large, even a temporary one, was no easy feat. But it was harder yet when all the noise made it hard to concentrate.

Sighing, Erice turned and scowled over her shoulder toward the figure standing in the center of the village square, her deep voice ringing across the cobbled stone as more and more of the villagers began to gather to hear her.



"With crisis comes opportunity!" the woman from the Ring of Gaea called out. "Now is your chance to throw off the shackles that bind you and hold you back! Do legs not weaken if you refuse to stand on them? Do arms not wither if you refuse to lift them? Your reliance on the shrine goddess' blessing and the ritual have made you weak and lazy!"

Some of the people began to scowl and complain, but others began to mutter and nod to themselves.

"The Ring of Gaea has made me strong, just like it can make you strong! Find your own strength, your own power, your own will to defend what you love! Reject this ritual once and for all." She pointed a finger in Erice's direction. "And reject the proffered hand of the Order of Messians! Yes, with one hand they would lift you up, and with the other shackle you to them."

Erice made to stand up, but Kuda settled heavily on her shoulders and forced her back to her knees. "But-"

Kuda nipped her ear gently. "You're here to do a job, not to argue philosophy."

She grimaced but couldn't argue that, and thus returned to her work. But just as she did, the woman's next words caught her attention.

"Ah, yes, and even now come the illustrious Vanguards of Chaldea," she called out, and the people turned to see the approaching group. "Don't think they're any better. They clearly believe in finding one's strength and using it... but only to make others dependent on it. They're more than happy to make everyone else sit and wait helplessly for them to come along and save the day, then leave them just as helpless and dependent as they found them. The Vanguards are a bandage fix, nothing more! I offer you a strength that's your own and always there when you need it!"

At Erice's gesture, Kuda flew over to the Chaldeans and encircled them a moment. "Took you long enough. Come this way... unless you have something to say to the Gaean first."

[A: Confront the Gaean.
B: Ignore the Gaean.]

Samael

Samael's mind was in a haze, being flung from one mission to another many towns seemed to be having their defenses broken lately. It kept things interesting, but it was concerning the least that they hadn't had a chance to take a break.

"Though, I feel a lot more at peace when I'm working." Samael muttered to himself before his eyes lit up at the Gaea heckler who was talking about power and becoming strong. He can understand that for sure, but breaking the barrier to do it?

A) Confront the Gaean


"What you're saying has merit, but acting too rashly will only cause those with potential to die before they bloom." Samael stated with a solemn and stern voice his concerned eyes shifting to all the worried and scared villagers "So, if you want to inspire people to create their own strength then do it after the others are safe. After all, the barrier won't stop those who want to leave and grow strong from doing that."

Samael gave a nod of acknowledgment towards the group and waited for a few moments for the ring of Gaea member to respond out of respect before swiftly turning his head towards Erice and Kuda to see if they were heading out.

"Bloom hu? I see I've rubbed off on you a bit." Tulip stated with a wink and a quick brush of the flower on her head as pollen slowly drifted out of it into the air. The demon was standing next to Samael with her arms crossed with a big gleeful look on her face. Almost like the flower demon had just one the lottery and was about to collect her prize.

- Vayu -

They had just arrived in the village and immediately their attention was drawn towards the Gaean in the center trying to rile up the villagers. Vayu sighed. This was something they had been seeing in quite a few villages now. And they were not even trying to be subtle anymore.

B. Ignore the Gaean

Was he gonna say something? No. They were here for with a different mission and getting into a discussion with a Gaean in front of the villagers wouldn't get them anywhere and just waste the precious time the had.

Samael didn't share his thought and made a reply. Glancing back, Vayu ignore the scene and followed Kuda towards Erice.

"What's up?"

Village Square

- Samael -

[+1 CF]
The woman narrowed her eyes at Samael's words, even as the village people who'd been murmuring on her behalf now started nodding at him.

"Yes, very wise and practical," she said. "In a vacuum. In practice, it's just putting off to tomorrow what should be done today. And you know what will happen tomorrow? The same thing. If action isn't taken now, it never will! Humans are too easily lured into slothfulness and apathy, letting others do what they should do for themselves."

Some of the fickle villagers now returned to wagging their heads in agreement with her while others still shook their heads and glowered.

"Go back to Chaldea!" the woman snapped. "If you truly want to help, that's the best thing you can do."

An eldery woman, her grey hair in two braids, hobbled up to her from behind and smacked the side of her leg with a cane, causing the Gaean to yelp.

"That's not your decision to make, Kagetora," the old woman snapped, wagging the cane in the Gaean's face. "You have the right to caterwaul here as much as you want, but I'm still head of this village, not you. And the Chaldeans are here on my request, so leave 'em be!"

Kagetora pursed her lips and waved off the village elder. "Fine, old hag. Play with your pets. Meanwhile, I'll try to actually help these people."

The elder ignored her, took Samael's hand, and hobbled over toward Vayu and the young woman setting up sutras. "Come on, boy, I didn't invite you here to start philosophizing."

-------------------------

- Vayu -

[+1 LF]
Erice looked up as Kuda returned with one of the Vanguards in tow. "Hi, there. You must be one of the Chaldeans, right? Erice Utsume."

She extended her hand in greeting and smiled.

"I met two of your fellows a little while back. One of them was named Gad, I think? Anyway, I'm glad you're here. The Order of Messians sent me here to help out, but it's all I can do to put up these sutras to try to give the barrier a little more time. They're going to need you to actually get this ritual going."

"Not just them."

Erice and Vayu turned as the elder approached, prodding Samael forward with one hand while corralling another young man with her cane. He was lean and fit, a good build for a runner, with dark hair and gloomy eyes.

"I'm Kaede, the elder of the village. And this is Nilo, our chosen carrier for the ritual," she said while the young man nervously nodded. "He will bear the torch to the two shrines east and west of the village and light the pyres. You will be his escorts and keep him from harm or from dropping the torch, which cannot be dropped or put down once the ritual begins."

Nilo sighed and rubbed his arms, already anticipating the ache.

"We've been seeing an infestation of demon boars in the area lately," the elder sighed. "They're strong and aggressive, often in packs, so be careful. If you can cut down their numbers while you're at it, you won't hear me complaining."

Erice sighed and looked longingly at the trio. "I wish I could go along and help, but..."

"You're doing plenty already," the elder said, poking her in the side. "Now, keep at it."

Chuckling, Erice nodded and pulled out another sutra before pausing and considering them. Then she stepped up to Nilo and gently placed the sutra along his arm. "This should keep it from tiring out."

He flushed and averted his eyes. "T-thanks."

Erice beamed and returned to her work as Kaede regarding the three young men. "Well, any more questions? If not, get to it. We don't have much time."

Village Square

- Vayu -

"Vayu" he replied and took Erice's hand. "Yeah, I know Gad," he added.

Then the village elder appraoched with Samael and another young man and explained their mission.

He nodded. It sounded simple enough, but as they had learned - it was never that easy.

"My name is Vayu," he said to Nilo, trying to make eye contact with the young man, who looked increasingly shy. "And this is Samael." He gestured to his fellow Vanguard.

"We'll keep you safe while Erice keeps things afloat here. Lead the way when you're ready."

Samael

Samael's eyes seemed disinterested in the response of Kagetora's words almost as if they were hazed over a bit with disinterest, he didn't think it would of gotten through to them...  However, his eyes slowly shifted back as his mouth shifted into a annoyed frown at the sight of other villagers agreeing with her.

Soon, he found himself dragged along by the elder, who Samael didn't resist leading him along at all, as he shifted his head back towards Vayu and began moving along with the elder in pace. Tulip was somewhat falling behind while keeping a suspicious eye on the Ring of Gaea member.

"Right, come on Tulip, I said what I wanted to." Samael commented in response as, Tulip flicked her head around the flower flowing in the breeze like out of some sort of beauty commercial that highlights some brand new hair product.

As the boy and Vayu conversed, Samael was most silently simple observing the conversation from the sidelines and once everyone had shifted their gaze away he had quickly shifted over to the appearance of the boy with his sword now appearing to be a torch in his hand.

"This is acceptable right?  Just in case some demons show to go after the torch better to confuse them a bit." Samael stated his voice now mimicking the torch runners voice exactly, but still sounding very different compared to the runners meek voice from before due to the tone.

Still he found himself looking at the boy's attire, analyzing the various fabrics and garments even though his hands would just phase through it and touch his real clothes.  It seems acceptable though, for someone who's going to be running a lot, I guess.

Samael took a deep look at the boy, his posture seemed to be a bit sluggish probably because he was nervous about the whole deal.  He would need to mimic that to the best of his ability, was he standing too tall?  So much to consider when acting as a double.

"Anyways, don't worry about it, we'll keep you safe." Tulip stated in the same voice as the same sounding voice as Nilo but in a very cool and suave style the mandrake running her fingers through the flower petal, as Samael's face turned beat red for a second before Tulip's voice turned back to normal.

"Sorry, sometimes if people get too close they'll get into my sound alteration spell range.  But no questions, lead the way" Samael stated rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment with the other hand still holding onto the 'torch'.

Village Square

- Everyone -

Nilo had vaguely nodded at Vayu's promise to keep him safe, half his attention seemingly on Kagetora, who'd returned to preaching the virtues of the Gaean way. When Samael spoke to ask him if something was acceptable, he tore his gaze away from her, then gave a yelp and jumped back as he stared into his own face.

"What the..." He craned his neck around and moved slowly, as though expecting the doppelgänger to mimic him.

From below, someone also spoke in his voice, and he gave another start and glanced down at the flower demon striking a suave, confident pose.

"Alteration spell?" Nilo repeated, glance back at himself. "So you can make yourself look and sound like me? Or like other people? Woah..."

For a few moments, he seemed lost in thought. Then, his cheeks began to color.

"Does it..." He averted his eyes. "Does it copy everything? Or just what you can see? I mean, if you changed into..." He glanced toward Erice, growing redder, and shook his head. "Nevermind."

"Nevermind is right." Kaede jabbed him with her cane. "Start running your legs, not your mouth, boy."

"All right, all right," he grumbled, shoulders slumping. "Let's go then."

Taking the lead, he gestured to Vayu and Samael to follow as he headed toward the village's western gate. Erice watched them go as Kuda settled onto her shoulders and hummed low in his throat.

"I hope they'll be all right," Kaede said, her voice softening once they were out of earshot. "Even with those spells of yours to bolster it, the barrier won't last long enough for another run."

"They'll be fine." Erice smiled. "I've seen the Vanguards in action. They can face anything."

Kaede peered up at her. "Sounds like you admire them. Why are you with the Messians then instead of them?"

"It's not that simple." Erice smiled and pulled out her next sutra. "But I wish it wasn't an either/or." Her eyes drifted to Kagetora, and she shook her head. "Vanguards, Messians, Gaeans... we're all humans. We should all be on the same side."

Kaede shook her head and leaned heavily on her cane. "Wishful thinking, girl."

"Maybe." She shrugged and continued her work. "Maybe that's what we need more of."

-------------------------

Village Gate

- Nilo/Vayu/Samael -

Nilo stopped within the threshold of the gate, gazing past the flame of the torch in his hand to the path leading straight out before them. It carved its way through a dense forest, leaving a wall of trees on either side.

"All right, Vanguards. The fate of the village is on our shoulders." He sighed. "No pressure or anything."

And with that, he tentatively started down the path.

Samael

Samael couldn't help but smirk at the comment about it copying 'everything', as it became clear what he was thinking after looking at Erice.  He shook his head, showing that he didn't technically copy everything.

"Only what I can picture in my head, the illusion can also extend to others but then I have to replicate the background scenery to make it consistent... which is very tiring and requires constant observation and guess work." Samael's place his hand under his chin thinking to himself for a few moments, before holding up a single pointer finger   "Unless we want to walk around together as a singular giant demon, that would be easier"

"No." Tulip responded flatly, as she turned her gaze towards the vanguard then over in the distance in the direction of one of the shrines, something seemingly running through her head that made Samael pause and look at her for a few moments.

Samael didn't comment on Erice's working together comment.  He would want to say they all want to protect humanity, but after dealing with so many deluded people.... their idea of what protects humans might be very warped and strange.

-------

Samael nodded, placing a confirming hand the Nilo's shoulder before following behind the runner. One second he was a confident tall vanguard, the next he was a more nervous boy.  He was glancing around at the forest but tried not to overdo his act to be too obvious.

Tulip seemed to be hanging around the forest itself using the fact that she was a flower to mask and better hide herself in the forest to keep her undetected.  The only sign it was her was the fact the flower that poked out topped with go ease under the foliage for a few seconds before popping up somewhere else slowly almost like the wind brushing the leaves and grass aside had revealed it like it almost has always been there.

"Keep your hand near your waist. It'll give the impression you're cautious, prepped to draw a weapon so they'll think you're the fake." Samael noted with a slight whisper, as he glanced over at Vayu to see if he had noticed anything yet.

Path to the western Shrine

- Vayu -

"A little warning would've been nice," Vayu muttered towards Samael after he had changed his appearance. They hadn't been one many missions together and seeing his skills was at times a little unnerving. Apparently he wasn't the only one given Nilo's reaction.

They were at the threshold of the barrier and Vayu looked up at the sun, trying to gauge how much longer it was going to be up. He was pleased that they were headed to the western gate. Depending on how long it took, it would've been a disadvantage to walk into the sun later today.

After taking a deep breath, Nilo started down the path, looking increasingly nervous. Samael fell in behind him while his demon disappeared in the woods.

Vayu actually fell into a light jog to pass both of them. It didn't seem like the smartest strategy to have the person they were trying to protect be in the very front. And he was confident that he could get a barrier up in time. He followed suit and also summoned one of his demons, the High Pixie.

"Are we walking until we get attacked or should we pick up the pace?" he asked in a low voice while his eyes were scanning the forest around them and the High Pixie fluttered up high, to get a better look of the path ahead of them and the surrounding forest.

Zephyr Arc - Village

For better or worse, Zephyr had fallen asleep on the carriage here... which lead him to miss the Gaean's speech and most of what went on after. Probably for the better, actually. Who knows what he might have gotten up to if he was allowed to be part of that little encounter.

He yawned as he walked towards the western gate, Cherry tugging him along furiously by some stranda of hair on his forehead. He had been informed that this was the gate his cohorts and quarry had used not too long ago, so he'd quickly made his way in order to not fall any further behind.

Once he reached the end of the village, he planted the blade of his spear firmly onto the ground, causing it to dig in slightly from the force. "Cherry, brace!" He called out, causing the startled pixie to quickly zip to his shoulder and hug his neck in a deathgrip. Just as she got herself settled, the spear shaft lengthened rapidly and Zephyr pushed against it with all his might, causing the two to vault into the air at high speed.

Zephye crashed into the middle of the party from the air while Vayu was mid-sentence. "Faster is probably better... sorry I'm late, someone fill me in?." He declared while dusting himself off.

Samael

"Sorry, guess I'm in the habit of changing appearances when no one is looking or around." Samael stated a tad apologetic as his hand seemed to running through something invisible the area flickering and lightly gleaming in the fake lighting, as he continued analyzing his surroundings.  

Vayu passed them by moments lately as Samael watched a vanguard pass with a thoughtful look. Vayu was right, they needed to pick up the pace and this guy was a runner after all.  If someone is gunning for them it's dangerous to stay in the same spot for too long since they'll most likely just call more.

"We should, if you notice something suspicious let me know... I need to converse maga but if it gets heated enough I can endure it to keep us hidden." Samael responded as he began to pick up the pace going ahead of the target with a slightly faster jog to pick up pace with Vayu but not completely catch up.

Speaking of suspicious....

The sound of the ground being slammed into by a sudden propelled vanguard erupted from Zeyphr hitting the ground, as an annoyed 'flora' popped out of the grass glaring at the sudden 'crash' site individual.  Samael quickly held out his hand, and a surge of maga surrounded Zeyphr, causing the sound of his crash landing to fall short of alerting the surroundings, but the noise that hit them was ear piecing with nearby branches crackling and dust flowing into the air obscuring his vision.

"ZEYPHR?!"  Samael gasped in surprise, as the vanguard had ended up right in front of them.  He had thought he had gone ahead after the last mission, but apparently he had fallen behind given the direction he came from before asking for a summary of the situation.

"Uh, To be brief, we're trying to get Nilo here to the east and west shrines to light the pyre." Samael commented pointing in the two directions, as he glanced over to Vayu to see if he wanted to interject anything. A worried look crossed his facing, hoping that wouldn't frustrate the other vanguard too much considering how he reacted to his sudden illusion.

Western Shrine Path

- Nilo/Vayu/Samael/Zephyr -

Nilo frowned at Samael's advice to change his posture, though he did follow it.

"The way you guys are talking, you make it sound like we're being targeted. You guys think it's more than just demon boars?"

When Vayu suggested picking up the pace, Nilo shifted uncertainly and looked around.

"I mean, it would obviously mean getting done faster, but... too much noise might alert the demon boars, right? I think-"

He cut off in a scream as someone crashed right into their midst and fell back to the ground. The torch sprang free from his grasp, and he lunged to catch it. It bounced off his hands once, twice, before he caught it just before it could hit the earth. Face-down in the dirt, he coughed and spluttered before sitting up, staring in a mixture of anger and fear at the man before him, acting as though he'd done the most natural thing in the world by falling from the sky.

"The... the..." He thrust a finger toward Zephyr, his face going red. "THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!"

No sooner had he loudly blurted the words out than a stirring came from the underbrush, and he clapped a hand to his mouth, eyes wide.

A series of low, grunting snorts burst from the cover of the woods, and a herd of black shapes tore onto the path. Tusks raised and eyes gleaming, the demon boars surged toward them with reckless fury.

Spoiler:

Zephyr Arc - Western Path

Due to a bit of unexpected turbulence, his descent had become a bit erratic. As a result, Zephyr crashed into the ground loudly, his shield out front to take the brunt of the blow and making the entire affair quite a bit loud. Samael seemed to take the entire thing in stride, probably used to his shenanigans by now.

Zephyr dusted himself off as the boy, Nilo from what he was just told, asked what was wrong with him. Looking at the boy slightlt quizzically for a moment, he replied. "Nothing, just a slightly breezy landing. What about you? Doesn't look like those legs are doing great..." his tone implied all of his reply was simply matter-of-fact, and anyone familiat with him probably realized he meant everything he said literally. This, of course, earned him a tiny pinch in the cheek by the pixie on his shoulder.

Then came the rustling. Zephyr quickly fixed his shield back on his shoulder as it shrank back to its normal size, then swung his spear in the direction of the bushes, Boost activating simultaneously. "Looks like trouble already found us either way. I guess faster really was a good plan." he commented as he threw the first blow.

Path to the western Shrine

- Vayu -

"You. are. a. moron." Vayu said Zephyr, his voice tense. "We could’ve killed you.” Thankfully, the High Pixie had recognized them soon enough and given a short warning, seeing how fast Zephyr had approached.

Unfortunately it wasn’t enough to keep their presence hidden, especially after Nilo lost it for a moment. They could hear the rustling in the bushes and a moment later a herd of demon boars burst forth.

“Shit!” Vayu muttered under his breath. “I think you can drop your disguise,” he called over to Samael. “That ship is sailed. Try to keep them at bay, we’re going ahead.”

He grabbed Nilo by the shoulder and hoisted him up. “Start moving, I’m right behind you.” The High Pixie had descended, fluttering above Nilo and Vayu. With a few swift moments, he cast the High Protection of the Fairies on them.

Taking off after Nilo, he swiped his hand towards the boars casting a Confusion Wave towards the first row of boars.

Samael

Samael's eyes widened the moment the loud bang from the boars slamming behind them could be heard.  He watched as Zeyphr begin his plan of attack towards the stampede but Samael paused and took a few steps back instead, as he seemed to be making some gestures towards the tulip in the grass that dropped out of view again.

"Got it" Samael responded to Vayu with a quick nod, as he glanced in their direction for all but a moment noting to make sure that nothing was following the two of them.  Scanning the trees for even the slightest bit of unnatural movement, as he didn't want some demon to take advantage of this chaos.

"Such a waste of maga." Samael muttered in annoyance, as the disguise seemed to shift from Nilo to Samael's usual appearance with a flick of his risk.  His eyes narrowing on the demon boars while his arms were raising up like he was trying to stop all the debris from hitting his clothes that were now covered with various wood splinters from the foliage that had been torn apart from the boars immense stampede.

"Stagnant Air!" Samael muttered as he took a deep breath and unleashed a noxious cloud of disgusting flumes that blew towards the boars, as he tried to time it perfectly so it would hit the front row at the same time Vayu's confusion wave would hit.

Western Shrine Path

- Nilo/Vayu/Samael/Zephyr -

As Zephyr blew past the others to throw the first blow, the demon boar spearheading the herd thrust its tusks up to meet Zephyr's attack. As it did, maga surged through its tusks and spiraled outward like two spears. The blow knocked Zephyr's weapon aside, and the boar rushed in to knock him over.

As the other boars followed suit to stampede the fallen Zephyr, Samael and Zephyr's Stagnant Air and Confusion Wave fell on the herd. In the resulting chaos, they began to rush in all directions, knocking into each other and attacking each other in reckless abandon.

Nilo stared in shock as Zephyr disappeared beneath the chaotic mass of boars, barely noticing the High Pixie fluttering around him as he bobbed along on Vayu's shoulder.

"Is he...?"

But before he could finish, he gave a gasp as the area around the boars began to form a swampy black fog, its fingers creeping forward along the path toward Samael and the retreating duo.

"Miasma," Nilo muttered. "Some of the previous runners mentioned it. It's bad stuff, poisons your body and messes with your senses. We'd better get clear of it!"

Zephyr Arc - Western Shrine Path

Zephyr brandished his spear and took point, knowing well from experience that Samael was no frontliner, and Vayu likely wasn't either. Charging forward, he extended his spear using Shift. Just as it struck a boar's tusk, it bucked and cast a spell... which was quickly absorbed by Spell Eater. However, the force knocked his spear back, and he used the force to stash it in the holster behind his back.

There were far too many boars for Spell Eater to handle, as there was no way for him to absorb all of their attacks. Instead, the shield on his shoulder dropped to his arm and he struck the bladed point into the ground while using Shift to blow it up, forming a one-man shield-wall.

Dropping his stance, he left the grounded shield at an angle. The mass of boars reached him at the same time as the two waves of debuffs from his allies. Cherry, sitting on his shoulder, took the chance to use High Protection of the Faeries for the first time as well. Knowing full well that this series of spells may not be enough, Zephyr also added Overdrive to the mix, completing his iron defense to try and hold the line.

Path to the Western Shrine

- Vayu -

Vayu could hear and feel behind him a wave of defensive spells colliding to stop the onslaught of demon boars.

“Don’t worry,” Vayu said to Nilo. “They’ll be fine.” A moment later Zehphyr reappeared with a vengeance.

Then a swampy black fog started creeping towards them. “Well I’m not keen on trying it out,” Vayu replied with a half-grin. “So you better keep running.” For now he easily kept pace with Nilo, the High Pixie still fluttering above them. The fog was still at bay, but Vayu was ready to cast another spell to give them another advantage.

Samael

Samael's eyes darted to the dust clouds that had formed where Zeyphr should be the moment the boar swarm had passed through.  Some boars rushed by but it seems the spell worked, as they weren't running at them more aimlessly at this point as long as he remained alert he would be alright... but Zeyphr on the other hand was too close and still struggling with some boars, but since he was in front of Samael it gave him time.....

Spoiler:

An angry tulip quickly leaped out form the brush onto but someone gingerly landed on Samael's shoulder.  Samael adjusted his posture digging his right foot into the ground to stop himself from leaning over from the sudden force hitting him, but Tulip didn't seem phased from the slight shift, as she did a slight curtsey as if greeting her audience.

"Get ready for a concert!" Tulip stated with a 'sexy' wink while finishing her curstsey, as Samael nodded in response his body reacting to the phrase instantly almost like it was a trained military formation. Soon after, Tulip took in a deep breath reeling her head back like she was about to shout.

"LAAAAAAA" Tulip sung out releasing a paralyzing shout, as Samael held his hands up towards Zeyphr who was holding strong against the rampaging boars as he shot out maga casting a noise manipulation spell to leave Zeyphr and himself out of the dangerous melodies influence while also stopping the concert noise from traveling out and alerting other boars in the area.

"And to think, those rampaging boars almost ran over THIS!" Tulip stated in utter hatred, her voice only dimmed from the fear talking too loud would draw some boars back, as she ran her hands down her side gesturing her plant like body, as she wagged her finger in Samael's face "Be more careful next time, I have a paralyzing attack for a reason that should of been used first!"

"Zeyphr quick use the opening and run! I can tell that fog is bad stuff, and we need to catch up." Samael commented as sprinted in the direction Vayu.  Samael's maga tingled in his hands for a few seconds as he debated using it to catch up, but the two haven't gotten that far and maga is a lot more precious in this situation and he used enough as is.

Western Shrine Path

- Nilo/Vayu/Samael/Zephyr -

When Nilo and Vayu moved far enough away from the herd of boars, they paused and noticed that the miasma could only extend a certain range around the boar pack, as it simply thinned out and vanished before too long. Now at a safe distance, they paused to check on the others.

Zephyr’s defenses appeared to protect him well enough, as the stampeding herd bucked into his shield, knocking their fellows aside, or otherwise charged around it. As they poured around him like a rock in the center of a river, they fixed their attention on Samael. Fortunately, Tulip came to his rescue, her song sends the boars squealing and scattering into the underbrush. Whether it would scare them off for long, it was hard to be certain.

As the miasma around Zephyr began to clear, Nilo carefully approached Samael and Zephyr, looking at the latter in particular. “Maybe the boars are going back to their nesting grounds. If someone went after them, they might be able to kill off the herd. Or, at least, keep them away from the path for a while.” He added under his breath, “Until they die…”

[A: Pursue the boars.
B: Stick to the path.]

Western Shrine Path (Samael)
---------------------------

Samael breathed a sigh of relief as some boars narrowly missed his thanks to Tulip's song. However as if instinct kicked in, they fled before her song could take any effect.

"Tsk, It would of been nice to take out at least a couple of them." Samael stated in annoyance as Tulip and him shifted their gaze towards Nilo who came back to talk to them, giving a new and interesting idea, but not applied in the way Samael would personally.

"Fighting the herd or holding them back isn't a good idea, the vanguard will be overwhelmed. So if anyone goes it'll be more of a stealth based mission to keep an eye on them and alert the main group if they get close." Samael responded, offering a new suggestion to the rest of the team, "So, either Zeyphr or I would need to do that, as Zeyphr could hide with his size manipulation while I could try and blend in with my illusions."

B) Stick to the path

Samael shook his head though, as he didn't like humoring the idea for long. They were given a mission to escort the runner and he didn't want to waste anymore time or divide their resources into different avenues.

"But, I'd much rather have us stick together at this point and move before those aliments wear off." Samael stated frankly, as he raised his hand towards the direction of the shrine to gesture to Nilo to keep moving.

Western Shrine Path

- Vayu -

B: Stick to the path

When he heard the explosions and collisions of spells behind them, Vayu slowed down, watching over his shoulder to see if Zephyr could get out. “Slow down Nilo,” he called up to the runner ahead of him.

When boars ran squealing and scattering back into the forest in face of Zephyr and Samaels’ defenses, Vayu stopped, allowing the others to catch up to them.

“I agree with Samael, I’d rather not split up,” he agreed. “Our job is to get to both shrines and we’ve managed to scatter the boars once.”

“If there is need to completely destroy the herd, we can do it after the mission.”

He waited at Zephyr’s answer and then jogged ahead, falling in place ahead of Nilo so he was between him and Samael.

Western Shrine Path

- Nilo/Vayu/Samael/Zephyr -

Nilo seemed relieved that Vayu and Samael, at least, were sticking to the path with him. As Vayu took point, Nilo trailed after him.

After they'd continued down the path for a little while, Nilo cleared his throat. "So, umm, I noticed you arguing with Kagetora. You know, the Gaean," he said to Samael, then glanced at Vayu. "But you didn't seem to have anything to say. Do you guys really think she's wrong? Or do you think she has a point?"

Samael

"To a degree" Samael muttered glancing back at Zeyphr to make sure he was coming or at least let them know that he was going to do something rash, as he continued to say "It's good to head out and chart your own path and become strong, it helps the people grow more independent and less reliant on a barrier that might fail.  But their solution is like using a tidal wave to put out a house fire."

Samael stated looked back at Tulip on his shoulder who had her arms crossed with the plant nodding in agreement.  Samael seemed to tense less a bit at the acknowledgment, as he turned back towards Nilo with a calm, focused, and determined gaze.

He wagged his finger in the air as a tiny illusionary grouping of houses was crushed beneath a torrent of water. Some people ran out of their homes and escaped while others were hidden by the waves, fates unknown.

"It'll get the job done sure, but also destroy the house and any nearby ones in the process.  But since the people who make it out are stronger.... well you get the rest." Samael stated, as he snapped his fingers and it instead showed the house being carefully put out by a makeshift water elemental.  The houses slowly rebuilt and once the homes was secured people began to venture out into the area outside of the illusion while some stayed behind.

"You can see, once someone reaches a point where things are stable.  They can establish a calculated plan to grow that's safe for everyone." Samael commented as the illusion animation ended and the vanguard began focusing back on the area in front of them.

Samael left out the part that he spoke kind of from experience.  After all his family always relied on the forest to keep them hidden and protected, but when that came crashing down... he didn't want to see that happen to someone again.  He wanted to make sure they could make their choice.