The Hell's First (WAR and TRUTH 2.4)

[Bartholomew]

Bart stood on a bolder watching the fight being carried out. His clothes, hair, face, and sword covered in blood, but none of his own. He glanced towards his side, and watched as a new force came into the fight, the heroes, Kishu, and Lunar Knights.
"So, the enemy got new blood in their forces..." Bart said as he swung his sword, flinging all of the blood off of his sword. "Well, I guess I be- RAUGH!" He grabbed his head as it started to pulsate intensely. One of Bart's eyes rolled to the back of his head, the other one trying to join the other one.
"NO YOU DON'T!" Bart said to what appear to himself, then the eye rolled back in place,
"I might have to wait..." Bart said, "But I could send in some new blood for our pack." Bart hopped off of the rock, and used the stealth skills to vanish away from the battle for a little bit.

[The Other]

"Ah, finally. Now these mortals understand what combat is all about!" The Other shifted around the invisible line of scrimmage, always moving to observe the battle from the best angle he could. "To see these mortals fight with passion, with ire in their bones and blades, this is how mortals should fight. Remember all of you, you fight with only one life, so fight till you drop!"

He continued in this manner around the battlefield, alternating between merry laughter with each savage kill and joyous revelry as he egged on the fighters to continue onwards. The sight was pleasure to him, and his body tingled with the desire to join them. Yet something held him back, for now at least...

Bah, weak. I've seen these models before. He swept down and snatched a fallen corpse in his arms, looking into its empty eye holes for a brief time before crushing its torso in his hand to dust. No, there is far greater joy in seeing these ones fight. I can offer them all my attention. Who knows, perhaps they might even surprise me. He smirked at the prospect.

[Sahir Masbrati]

Taking after the group Sahir followed hot on their heels, her soft footfalls met by the thunderous and fleet sound of Dral keeping pace with her. Approaching Heaven's Last it was majesty and horror as one, as the beauteous building was marred by fire and blood all around. Even as the others charged forward, each driven by their emotions and will, it was her own emotions that halted her completely. She scanned the field of battle, Umbravox clutched tightly enough in her hands to whiten her knuckles to a pale copper.

There's only those same things from before. I can't fight them, not as I am anyways. Sahir examined beyond the scope of battle, surveying the surrounding area before scowling with a disapproving groan. Okay, looks like I'm stuck with only one option. I just hope this works. Raising her scythe over her head Sahir called out from under her veil, "Umbravox, gather forth the errant and bring it purpose! Your Unashue commands!" and then swung the blade down into the ground below.

At first there was nothing, her blade still hummed the same muted tone as always. Yet when curiosity caused her to pull at her weapon to see if the blade had changed as the scroll said it would she found it immovable. Knitting her brow she only stood and waited impatiently, looking onwards at the battle unfolding without her.

Dral growled, his desire to join growing with her own. "No Dral, we go together and we stay together. That's what we agreed on." He pulled back his neck closer to his body, digging his front claws into the ground as he awaited the signal to pounce.

[A.B.A.]

A.B.A. grinned when Enizo's flustered eyes were averted away from her to more pertinent matters. She'd chosen well in attaching herself to him, as she saw not a moment of doubt or dismissal in his eyes. Now she just had to play like a good girl and she'd be fine, at least till the action picked up again.

Of course no sooner was it thought than indeed action reared it's ugly, mannequin head once more. Staying close to the party she nearly snapped into Seigmand's geomancy stance to thrust out a wave of earth before catching herself mid-pose. Almost a fatal mistake, but one likely unnoticed in the quagmire of combat. Scolding herself she reminded herself of what Velestia was suppose to be; a healer. Crinkling her nose in annoyance she called out, "Take me to your injured!" and made for the defended front lines of the Allorum Guardians. Expertly weaving to and fro from those engaged in combat her motions were more muscle memory than anything, and from the unsuspecting young girl it was likely a surprising sight to any who cared to take notice.

[Enizo]

There was no shortage of wounded for Velestia, many men and women laid across the battlefield on the edge of their lives. Limbless or punctured by a blade, the green grass was stained heavily by the blood of the Guardians.

Suddenly massive boulders came flying from the treeline, smashing straight into the mansion. "Shit!" Enizo yelled as his voice was drowned out by the crunching of the wood, "They've got artillery-"

Enizo stopped himself from speaking further as something moved from the area where the boulders were launched. Two large and very familiar things showed itself from the treeline, it was the Hunter from Roccia.

Good thing was they had no stationary artillery, bad thing was that those Hunters were hellishly hard to kill.

[glitters]

Jasmine saw the worry in Enizo's movements, and to a point felt like she understood the rage he felt diving into the battle around the mansion--it was obvious this was a place important to him, and when something was that important to you, you'd be willing to fight for it. It was watching him as well as several of their other comrades like Bang and Kazan leap into the fire that sparked an odd desire to run in after them. People needed help, they were dying and she could do something about it.

'I'm not just a healer...go on, get in there!'

She bit her lip and somehow lost her sense of time, suddenly aware that she hadn't budged from her spot and it began to worry her how much time was passing, or had passed where she'd just stood here and done nothing for these people. She had no clue what was making her hesitate as much as she was, it wasn't like she hadn't been thrown into a mess like this before. She just did.

[annabelle]

Slower than the others but by no means weaker (depending on the situation), Annabelle was already making her way into the fray covered in a highly ominous glow as she muttered darkly under her breath. She only paused for a moment as she watched out of the corner of her eye her granddaughter stare and shake at the scene before them.

"This isn't proving Lares anything, child! There's nothing pretty about this, but it's a moment you need to embrace if you wish to continue," she spoke to Jasmine as she gave the girl a slap on the back, a bit of a shove in it to try to convince the girl to run on ahead. Annabelle's staff crackled with a deep green spark of magic as she marched onward, raising it high over her head.

"With Asmalat! God of darkness! War, zeal, and destruction!" she gave a creepy chuckle again as she slammed her staff into the ground and watched the ground rumble and tear as fissures erupted under groups of enemies, boney-looking hands made of green fog whipping out to grab her foes and drag them into the depths of what may very well have been Hell itself.

[Andy Jammer]

Andy saw the Hunters rise up from the distance and if last time was any evidence to beware, they had to move. He made his way to Jasmine, who found herself rooted to her spot with a sudden fear. It was there Andy was reminded despite Jasmine's growth there was still a part of her that could be rooted to the spot in fear, he'd usually be the one to run in there and save her...

but that's not what she wanted from him, she wanted a partner not a savior...so like partners, Andy needed to get her back into the game.

"Jasmine, stay with me okay?" he said, gesturing out to the attack. "This, this is no different from anything we haven't faced last year okay? Scary monsters aside, its another enemy and another situation to take on. Whether you are a healer or a fighter Jas, I don't care which side of you shows up on that field today, but I still need you okay? We all still need you, we need the Healer...and the Fighter in you Jas."

[glitters]

As she normally did, Annabelle startled Jasmine as she gave her a solid shove forward, Jasmine stumbling a few steps and then staring with mouth agape as her little old grandmother stormed into the field like she owned the land. Without any moment wasted she brought destruction and death upon their enemies, cackling away like a little witch without any care that she was murdering men and women in massive clumps. Somehow it just didn't seem right despite what side their enemies were on.

It was different for Jasmine to start thinking like a fighter. She'd been used to hiding behind the actual fighters, and now stepping up into their league at first she thought it'd be something like an honour...and it was! She found an odd liking for that thrill of danger and tackling her own enemies, but she hadn't killed anything. And somehow...

This was a bad time to think about it. Wait, no it wasn't. She was going to go in there and do what? Kill or make them wish they'd been killed? What was right or wrong?

She looked up at Andy, eyes wide with a clear look of worry as she took his words in. They certainly had a better effect on her than her grandmother's did.

"Let's go," she answered him with a nod. She wasn't fully satisfied with the idea of going in and killing anyone, but knew that at least she had her options. It was up to Jasmine to decide what she was going to show her friends and enemies once she was in there.

[Enizo]

The Hunters scanned the battlefield, looking for any Guardian that was willing to stand against him...

...There were a couple stupid Guardians on the field, still. One of those being Enizo, who in a fit of anger, charged straight for the two.

"Get the HELL away from here!" Enizo roared before firing off two massive balls of magic that simply seemed to annoy the two creatures. One leaped straight at Enizo, the force of the Hunter landing right next to Enizo was enough to kick him off his feet.

[Volkmar Gamlxltoe]

Volkmar stood slightly satified at his accomplishment defeating a large group, but then he noticed the Hunters near Enizo.
"Those look fun!" He said as he ran up to the Hunter. His swords flaring with his aura, he jumped and swung his swords at the Hunter's face, sending 2 massive arcs at it's face.

[Andy Jammer]

Andy nodded and ran down to the base, moving around the destruction and flames when he felt the ground shake from the Hunter attacking. Once he saw the massive then he narrowed his eyes, took off at a charge at the creature, drawing his sword and slicing in a huge skyward uppercut at the Hunters face. When he slashed it he then took his fist and punched the thing in its face, extra strength flowed through Andy as he punched it on where his slash mark is now.

[Kazan]

"CH'YEAH!"

Kazan brought his hefty blade down into the shoulder of a bandit, the weapon faced nearly no resistance whatsoever. It were as if the flesh, the muscle and the bone of the bandits body were nothing more than butter, melting away at the burning rage of Kazan's onslaught. The blade moved almost gracefully in a single cut, passing through the collarbone and the ribs, slicing organs in two like finely-cut meat, before passing out after smashing through the mans hip. The left half slid cleanly from the right and slapped into the ground weakly, whilst Kazan's shoulders heaved up and down, sweat forming on his forehead and determination burning in his eyes as he looked across at the Hunters now encroaching upon the battle. Despite the situation... He smiled.

"I'm coming, Old Man... Hold on."

He stabbed his sword deep into the ground and took a deep breath, before stepping towards the Hunters and leaving the massive blade where it was. He eyed up the giant creatures.

"In Roccia, I had to hold back... I couldn't kill innocents. But here..? In the open..? I have no reason to hold back." The clouds gathered overhead, bolts of vibrant pink lightning cracked across the sky like spears, but no rain fell... But it seemed to start snowing...

Black snow...

Ash...

"I guess here, I get to embrace what I am... I get to unleash what the Old Man spent so long hiding... I get to really let loose! Sakura Yaburu!"

One of the bolts hit Kazan, and he seemingly absorbed it. He looked up at the Hunters with glowing pink eyes, smoke poured from his ears, nose and mouth as he raises his hands in a single upward motion.

Creak...

Crunch.

CRACK.

TEAR.

The earth before Kazan exploded upwards in all direction, a giant wave of lava and molten rock leaped from the fissure, reaching high into the sky, a glowing beacon of power and might, representing all of those repressed years and time spent locking away his strength, but this is who he was, this was the monster within.

'Ahhh... Burn, melt, destroy... Mmmm...'

The last of the magma jumped into the air, disappearing into the clouds which parted instantly, the sky darkening red as Kazan grinned menacingly, before bringing his hands down again.

The magma followed.

Aiming for a Hunter.

[A.B.A.]

At last through her swift and careful movements through the battlefield A.B.A. came out from the fray that had clumped up near the broken walls leading to the training yards. Vaulting off the head of one of the toy-like creatures she at last came to a wide open area where the Guardians had managed to wall off the invasion for now. While muted by the sounds of clashing armaments and the far off howl of the Hunters, the agony of the injured soldiers was palpable all the same. Rolling up her sleeves she moved up with a fearless authority to a younger Guardian. "I can handle some of the injured here, but I'll be needing a room. Give me somewhere in the manor that's secure and sanitary." Perhaps it was just the urgency of getting his allies some aid, or perhaps it was the powerful way she held herself having long taken Seigmand's mannerisms as her own, but the young Guardian only opened his mouth to speak for a moment before shutting it and simply nodding instead.

As they retreated into the interior the man seemed to be looking back and forth frantically, at last seeming to have found what he was looking for when he backed right into A.B.A. and turned towards a door two steps back from where he'd been. "Thi-this should, oh sorry ma'am." He extended his hand to pull her up, and masking her annoyance she took his offer. "Sorry, I meant here should be a room that you can use."

The interior was sparse and simply decorated. A wide expansive room that was lined with cots about every five feet, it was plain to see that the young Guardian had brought them to the barracks. A.B.A. looked around hesitantly, eyeing over the room as the man watched on. Completely vacant by the looks of it. Good, this will do.

"Ma'am, will this do? I really need to get back out there and we should start bringing the injured in for you to care for." The young man was shifting his weight back and forth from his left foot to his right, a clear sign he was getting impatient. A.B.A. once more moved swiftly to his side, her eyes locked onto his.

"This absolutely will not. I asked you to bring me to a sanitary room, yet there's blood all over." She glance only briefly to the left before continuing to stare him down, her steps putting her just inches away from his tall stature. The man seemed once again looked flustered and seemed to shrink from her harsh words.

"I'm sorry ma'am, I-I don't see any blood. We clean this room every day. Honest."

"It's right there, are you blind?" A finger snapped to the left side of the ground, and as soon as his eyes followed her gesture, her right hand came up to his throat, a dagger delicately held within it. With his head turned it slid firmly into the side of his trachea. His whole body convulsed in reaction as he pulled back from the sharp pain, but her other hand had already pulled away from its feint and held on tightly to the neck of his breastplate. Off balance already it took only a simple sweep of her ankle against his and a jerking push of her shoulder and the man tumbled on his back. He tried to struggle and scream, but there was no air in his throat to call for help and no place to go as A.B.A. was already on top. A single finishing slide of the knife and the man's movements quieted before settling at last. The entire thing must have been an eternity to the Guardian, but it lasted only a few precious seconds.

"My mistake, I meant the blood is all right here." The simple plain beauty of Velestia was gone as A.B.A.'s dreary face appeared with a small coy smile upon it. Pulling the key forth from her temple she made haste as she plunged the magical ornament into the Guardian's, it's shape sliding in without a hint of resistance. A twist and pull later the key shone as it carried out the man's soul, it's effervescence lingering along it's teeth. "So much easier than asking a million questions. Now, let's see exactly what started this whole attack in the first place." A.B.A. placed the key back inside her, and with one more twist the young Guardian, one Arnold Hassinbeck, joined her collective consciousness, and all of his memories became hers in an instance.

[Enizo]

What ABA saw was a flush of violent events, the Guardian's base seemed to have been infiltrated by the bandits, which led to the main gates being opened to allow enemies to rush in.

She saw many bloody scenes that had clearly shaken the young man. The only thing that was note worthy was a briefly overhearing the words from a higher officer about the entire council being found murdered in their chambers... There was movement in the halls, as Guardians moved quickly around the area - she'd be caught over a dead body if she didn't move fast enough.

Meanwhile, Kazan's magma flowed quickly to the Hunter. It went to move when Volkmar's arcs slammed straight into its face, sending it back. Whatever skin the Hunter had lost to Volkmar's attack had regenerated. It roared, sending similar seeds from before flying from its mouth - on touching the ground the seeds sprouted to reveal humanoid plant creatures with mouths which resembled a flytrap....

Except, it was more like a 'human' trap, as it tried to vine and capture whomever was in its path.

The other Hunter followed it up quickly by digging its hands into the ground and ripping up a good bit of earth, sending it straight towards Volkmar and Kazan, aiming to crush them.