Winter Is Coming [SSC Dominion of Midvinter]

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Thurion Heavenshield"], [member="Coci Heavenshield"], [member="Nima Tann"], [member="Connor Harrison"], [member="George O Rourke"], @Auden Sykes everyone else


And so the horde of the undead charged. Their numbers were legion, their aura one of unfettered, pure chaos driven by sheer rage and a desire to drown the living. The horns sounded, then the archers let loose with a volley of flaming arrows towards the massive horde, aiming to break up the formation they were charging in. Kaida calmly put out her cigarette and flicked the butt as the charge began. The Valkyri cavalry was making a break for the flanks of the enemy, who would hopefully be disorganised from the flaming volley. It was not an inferno yet, but it could be soon. She gave Aerin a nod after the shieldmaiden had spoken, then dismounted her mare, whose eagerness to join battle was palpable.


"I'm ready," she said softly, emotionlessly, and with that she began drawing upon her Sciia. Powerful, raging winds could be conjured up by her power. Granted, the battle in the forest had tired her out a good deal, but she had gotten some rest and there was something else that gave her fuel. A deep-seated, strong need to find something to smash, to break and crush. Because of the horrible fate that would befall Kaeshana. Now here she had something she could out her pain on.


And so she did. The storm was coming literally and figuratively as something inside her lashed out. The winds were already strong, she only added to them. The driving force behind many powerful storms are jet streams, powerful winds extremely abundant high in the atmosphere. Upper level clouds were pulled into the mix, the aforementioned winds guided downward, gaining speed. All of this helped feed and drive the powerful vortex that formed in the distance. Winds blossomed into a powerful whirlwind as the vortex took shape due the instabilities and turbulences. Once formed, the funnel would spin across the ground as it was pushed by the wind.


To put it in simple terms, the zombies were being hit by a storm conjured up by a right now absurdly brutal cryomancer with potential mental stability issues. Throw in the fact that they were also being struck by volleys of flaming arrows and the trench was being ignited. The result? A massive firestorm. This hurt the zombies. It would tear many apart. Not all, but a great many. It took all of Kaida's concentration to direct the storm and ensure that it did not get out of control and smash into the Valkyri cavalry, but she persisted, even as it became physically painful and she got a case of a bad headache. Pain was just weakness leaving the body.

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

[member="Kaida Taldir"] | [member="Connor Harrison"]

Aerin pushed her mare forward several paces, she stood high in the saddle and threw her bow over her shoulder. For a moment it would look as though she was doing nothing, but inwardly Aerin summon the force to her, focused on the fire now roar on the carts and barrel and anything that would burn. The heat was strong but she would make it stronger, altering the flames to burn hard and fast the radiate heat increase tenfold and coupled with the firestorm the Horde will combust before they even reached the flames.

The wind from the storm danced in her long red hair, the face a glow with the flames and her eyes boring into the the yellow of the fire. To the woman of the storm she spoke "Send the storm to the forest, burn the trees .. let them return to the hell from which they came".

When the woman of the storm turned her attention to the forest, Aerin will alter the fire and surrounding forest will consume them within.

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

[member="Thurion Heavenshield"] | [member="George O Rourke"]​

She had no time to reply to George, or her husband for that matter. The horns sounded and sent a chill down her spine. "George stay close", was all she managed to say, her natural reaction to protect her Padawan.

Coci followed her husband to climb up to the gatehouse, "Into the fires of hell", she said in a whispered to Thurion, "So be it", as she looked down into the field that began to burn with the flames of the shieldmaiden and [member="Kaida Taldir"].

Her blood began to pump hard, the words of her Thurion filling all that heard him with strength to face the undead. Such inspiring words full of vigor and fire of his own soul and blood, no longer the Jedi stood atop the wall but a man of his ancestory and oh how she loves him for it.

Below them the Undead made toward the wall, some dispatched by the inferno created, others within the forest had not even made foot to the grass of the field but yet they came, more and more as if springing up from the ground around them.

Along the wall, Coci could see many Valkyri and Jedi, one she knew as [member="Audren Sykes"], a Padawan she had met before, "Not exactly rounding up wolves", she said to him with a slight grin. She had the feeling Audren had pondered on how Coci had known his name even before meeting him, but since she is a Silver Shadow and so they have files on each and every member of the Coalition within the headquarters of the Dark Heart, she knows more about him than he might care for.

Coci's saber hilt the palm of her hand, "If we are to stop them getting to the wall, we cannot do that by standing on it", she said as she turned to Thurion with a smile and without any word, Coci placed a hand on the top of the wall and vaulted over it. Using the force to cushion her landing she hit the ground and began her charge toward the oncoming masses of Vinterbound. From Coci came a blood curdling war cry from the depths of her stomach, which pierced the air and strengthen her limbs and crossing the field with force enhanced speed, her saber held in a double grip, she began to cut through the Horde.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzEZ6CSl6aE​

 

[Nima Tann]

Objective: Find the relic, Mind Rape!
Location: Tower
Allies: Team Mind Rape! ([member="Sumiko Tanaka"]), Silver Sanctum and Friends
Enemies: The White Walkers

Atrisian green tea? She never heard of it, actually. Yet of course she didn't know that many cultures and their foods and drinks, never had the chance to take a vacation to be honest, yet tasting it, she concluded that it was pretty good for the cold and was put into her must-buy list. "Probably the wise choice. Don't want to be drunk while trying to enter brains." She said in a sarcastic voice slightly, yet it was a true fact also as opposing Sumiko's tone while saying those words. Messing with brains were already difficult, and being drunk while messing with heads, it was like a joke that should never happen. So, as her body temperature was going down slightly again as the warm tea slowly lost its effects on the girl, she realized how could the tower was again. Yet, it wasn't going to stop her doing her job, not yet until she froze to death.

The woman was talking about dark magics, to be honest it was a bit disturbing that she talked about cutting herself in such a casual voice, and if they were playing Jedi and Sith right now, she would not let the woman do that, especially with blood. She heard from the academy that blood magic was forbidden and dangerous for both the user and the ones near to them, yet of course she didn't have the strength to oppose her right now, so she just nodded and concentrated on the zombies whose dark auras slowly started to disturb the woman from entering into a meditative stance, as if the relic understood someone's trying to find it and trying to prevent it from happening. If she was her old, strong self she wouldn't be so concerned about it, yet if she wasn't careful her brain would also be controlled by the relic and of course she didn't want that happen. So she took a big breath, and let the cold wind shiver her whole body again.

And as the woman joined her mental assault with saying some weird words and the dark aura started to get all over her, she could feel that the pressure she felt on herself was decreasing as the seconds passed, she thought that the relic was trying to defend its location from both, so it was the time to push back to give the time Sumiko needed to find, since her job was distracting the relic from finding Sumiko. She, as feeling the dark aura grow and grow every second, started to send the pulses more frequently, not only to confuse the whole horde, yet to this time weaken the bond they felt for each other as she felt the link was being hurt by Sumiko as Nima started to feel pain with confusion in their brains. And it seemed like the zombies got into some trouble, since they didn't send any pulse back towards the girl. It meant only one thing, the people were fighting back.

"I think they are attacking the village." She said to Sumiko who looked out of the place already. "Going to pretend like I am trying to find the relic's position to take its attention towards me. I suggest you to be quick, not in a very strong position right now." And she did, she started to place her talons to the wounds Sumiko opened in the zombies' links and tried to reach the relic, as she continued to send pulses. Not very long later, she started to take feedbacks from the pulses, and counter attacks to her own mind, which she thought that it was the relic itself. With every talon she placed in the wounds, she sent a big shock, and felt the pain in her own mind also as an effect of her own attack. This little distraction attacks would give the woman enough time to track its location, yet she hoped that she would be quick about it, as she started to create a big mind wall to reflect the counter attacks that the relic was applying to her.

[member="Thurion Heavenshield"] [member="Coci Heavenshield"] [member="Connor Harrison"] [member="Syala Daivik"] [member="Ren Colvet"] [member="George O Rourke"]

 

[Darth Libertas]

[member="Nima Tann"], [member="Coci Heavenshield"], [member="Thurion Heavenshield"], [member="Connor Harrison"],


The dark words leaving her lips were like a symphony. As the ode of archaic Sith continued without pause, the Dark Side responded to her call. It was like an orchestra in the hands of a skilled conductor. The energies flowed in accordance with her desires. With each syllable, they crept through her being and her desires sunk into the minds of the beasts. They would learn to dance to her tune. The mental barriers of the zombie hive were weakening strongly. Indeed their minds seemed even more chaotic than before. This could only mean that they were engaging the Valkyri. Even in the full immersion she was in, she could not help but notice the massive storm that was raging across the battlefield rowards the forest.


Good. It would weaken them and make her job a good deal easier. Pain surged through her mind as shockwaves and mental talons assaulted it. Her mind reeled under the massive pressure and the talons seemed to be slicing through her defences. This could only be the relic trying to fight back as it began to understand what they were doing.


To touch it was to try and gain purchase upon the mind of a being so far removed from human thinking. One could only compare it to the unadulterated chaos and agency of a massive, out of control crowd, for every mind assimmilated into the zombie hive was absorbed by it. That was fine, for she could deal with chaos.


"Understood," she said, though her voice sounded alien, as if it were not here truly speaking. Gripping the knife tightly with her fingers she sliced down deeper across the palm of her hand. As blood seeped out of the open wound she cut down even further, slicing through her wrist. Blood flowed and with it, the Dark Side was appeased. In her mind she perceived the relic, a fathomless void, darkness beyond darkness, a hunger that would not halt at devouring an entire planet.


"All flesh must be devoured.


You resist the inevitable.


Bend to me."

​

​

She felt the siren call inside her mind as her mental defences were battered, as walls began crumbling and her nose started bleeding. Excruciating pain surged through her being, and she responded. "Tell me, do you feel pain?" A tidal wave of energy had gathered inside her and she unleashed it. "You will." Then she cut the strings. Many, many of them. A new concert was now playing inside the minds of hundreds upon hundreds of zombies. Hers.


"Assuming direct control." Suddenly zombies began falling upon zombies, tearing each other apart in a cannibalistic frenzy of blood and gore. The number of the undead under her control were still inferior to those who were still bound to the relic, but it was enough to cause a great deal of confusion, chaos and violence. Enough to be a big help for the Valkyri and Jedi defenders. Most importantly, the sudden experience of being violently cut off from so many of its slaves blew in a breach into the mental defences of the relic.


As they were connected to it, so it was connected to them. In her mind Sumiko could see what could be best described as an ocean and, without hesitation, she took the plunge and dived in head-first. Even as the strands were being cut and the relic tried to shore up its defences, she followed the threads of the Force, deeper and deeper...she could see the dark tendrils of the relic stretching out across the tundra and followed them. For a moment there was a flash in her mind as she perceived a ship, crashing so long ago it had been lost to memory...deep beneath the sea, buried under the freezing waters.


TLDR: Mind raped zombies. Lots of them are now killing each other. Discovering relic's location.

 

[Kaida Taldir]

@Ærin Firebrand, [member="Coci Heavenshield"]


Waves of fire roared over the carts, barrels and anything even remotely flamable. The heat became unbearably strong as the shieldmaiden pyromancer used her power to alter the flames so that they might burn even harder and
and with even stronger intensity. The zombies would be roasted in a beautiful firestorm, on top of being mind raped or simply crushed by the force of the storm.


The wind kissed Kaida's skin and danced across her short blonde hair. Her eyes were a crystalline blue and her face was covered in frost pearls. Examination of her body temperature would have undoubtedly given the unitiated observer the impression she should really wrap up somewhere nice and warm and see a doctor, for it was terribly low. Cold steam escaped her mouth when she breathed. She heard Aerin and gave a simple nod of affirmation.


The Seraph breathed in heavily as she harnessed her kindred element, then drove the storm to the forest from which zombies were still charging. Undead gripped by the vortex would be hurled across the snowlands into the forest, and with it would come fire. Very soon trees were ignited as they caught flames. The force of the wind itself made burning trees bend and sometimes topple over, breaking undead beneath them. In short it would be an inferno, especially once Aerin exerted her power.

 

[Thurion Heavenshield]

Objective: Defend Fafnersvik

When his wife so willingly lept over the ramparts into the ranks of undead, Thurion followed suit and landed with a heavy *thud* right on top of a walking corpse, crushing it beneath his weight. He then spun around with blade in hand, decapitating the surrounding Vinterbound and leaving their bodies to haphazardly fall over and bump into whatever they came into contact with. Their numbers were seemingly infinite, however, and those who were not busy fighting the few Jedi who stood in their way merely ignored them and began scaling the walls. Behind the undead army the forest was lit up by the combined efforts of [member="Ærin Firebrand"] and [member="Kaida Taldir"], and would at the very least keep them from retreating or send in reinforcements. Somehow Thurion doubted they ever intended to do either.

Back to back he fought alongside [member="Coci Heavenshield"], both of them now covered in snow, blood and muck. They carved through the Vinterbound with ease, successfully keeping them from reaching the gates, and yet they just kept coming. Fatigue would settle in long before they could ever hope to dispatch them all. The undead used their bodies to form ladders, and were now assaulting the defenders on the walls. "Bring them down," he cried out just before unleashing a torrent of telekinetic energy towards one of the 'man-made' ladders, knocking them over and those busy ascending it, ripping limbs from torsos and rendering them immobile in the process. They never held together that well to being with.

 

[George O Rourke]

Objective: Defend Fafnersvik

With the enemy hoard seeming infinite in number continuing to assault the village George saw the raging flames emanating from behind the forest. Something that would hopefully deter them from sending more in. Not like they had enough as it is. Anyhow, by this stage more Jedi had bounded over the wall and began taking the fight to the front lines. Two in question were the Grandmaster [member="Thurion Heavenshield"] and Master [member="Coci Heavenshield"]. Fighting heroically on the front lines this further inspired George, ignoring the fatigue that was setting in.

More of the undead set in, many moving past George but many also wanted to sever his head from his shoulders. But George could not have that. He had come too far, slain too many of the undead to be defeated now. With more enemies attacking and more blades being thrown at George's head he decided to take a more defensive stance, Changing from a Niman style of Jar`Kai to a more defensive counter attacking Djem So form. Parrying the incoming attacks with one blade and immediately replying with a slice from the other. The reduction of energy spent doing this allowed George to focus on the wider area, seeing what else was going on around him. Seeing the undead creating a 'undead' wall of sorts climbing over each other to reach the top.

With the Grandmaster destroying one with his telekinesis George spied another and retreated from his current front line to destroy it. Bounding backward, back flipping and half rotating so his was facing the wall. He drew his blades straight out in front of him as he neared the wall. He started from the top and let gravity do the rest. Forcing the blades down through each of the undead below, reaching the ground gently using the corpses of the undead he had just destroyed. But it continued, they continued, the undead never stopped and fatigue was starting to kick George around. His arms getting heavier with each parry and every strike. He need to retreat and recoup, but finding an exit point was proving difficult. Spinning around with his lightsaber extended right out, slashing at the incoming tide he wiped out the first line, giving him some time. Extinguishing his blades and dropping them allowing the force to guide them to his belt he turned to the wall and began running up it vertically. He couldn't keep his moment up long, three steps in he pushed off the wall sending him up further. With his arms stretched right out he managed to get a grip on the wall. Using the rest of his upper body strength he pulled him self up. Puffing and panting he was well spend. He needed an new strategy, after he had caught his breath of course.

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

A moment of reprieve in the fighting, Coci stood panting trying to gather in energy once more. Her hands and arms covered in rotting flesh, the stench almost making her heave, the burning flesh of those undead that fell to the flames, wondering around on fire, aimlessly while other undead began to turn on each other and devour them, [member="Sumiko Tanaka"] and [member="Nima Tann"]'s combined powers turning the tide to their advantage. The whole scene was horrific, the stuff of nightmares.

Thurion standing beside her, her rock in life as well as purpose and neither of them would leave each others side unless necessary. She turned toward the wall to see the undead scaling it toward the Valkyri and Jedi that stand atop to defend the wall and the village .. their last line of defense under siege. Thurion's power will bring down the 'living' ladder, but more must be done, they are endless in numbers. "Thurion it is time to deploy the snow balls, and we must create light, shield your eyes, I am going to do what I can".

Turning her back to him once more, until she should feel his physical presences against hers, Coci raised both arms palms upward and from her came the a blinding flash of light, issued direct from the light side of the force, effectively blinding those Vinterbound close to them. Rendered without sight, they stop confused and without direction, they become immobilised and easy pickings for those Jedi around them. She catches a glimpse of her Padawan, George, excelling the battle he will make a fine Jedi Knight soon.

She could feel it, the build up of power within her beloved only seconds before he unleashed yet another wave of energy toward the undead. The two are becoming tired, the force within a sentient is limited even for Masters. But they have one last skill, combined Thurion and Coci could unleash the lightside of the force in all it's purity. Only Jedi can do that.

​

[member="Thurion Heavenshield"] | [member="George O Rourke"]​

 

[Connor Harrison]

The burning rage devouring the forest was a scary sight, as if Hell had cracked open the snow below and seeped up onto the planet to destroy anything in its path. Connor didn’t have long to look at it, as a spear whistled overhead, which he followed the trajectory with his eyes to see a group of the Undead moving to the village wall.

Springing forward, hopping over a burning corpse, Connor sent one of the Vinterbound down with a swift impale of his saber, and then decapitation of the head. His gauntlets sprayed a thick blood – or mucus, whatever ran in their body – from the second and easily cleft his body open. Connor grimaced against the mixture of blood and snow as he watched the third grunt move onto the wall.

He turned partly, and then threw his saber with a command of the Force up towards the scaling Undead grunt and satisfyingly rendered it armless, falling to the ground below with a thump and meeting the heel of Connor’s boot as he silenced the being forever.

”Pull it in tight! Secure the wall!”

Connor shouted the obvious to those around them, allowing the fire to control the oncoming horde and for forces to remain tight together to prevent stragglers.

He seethed at the sight of them acting like wild animals, tearing flesh and acting like nothing could stand in their way. Now, Connor stood on the incline up to the wall, and took his saber up from the ground, activated the blade once more and switched it to his left hand before pushing out with his right.

Arcs of violet Force Lightning rose from inside him and out his fingers, a conduit from the dwelling darkness inside him that shot out to fork between a horde of Vinterbound moving up to him. The animalistic sounds they emitted curled his lip in a satisfying smile, and remembering to syphon the Lighting off like a river – allow it flow from him and out without stopping abruptly to ease the pain, he did so perfectly. They stumbled, steaming and hopefully in pain, and a downward strike with his blade helped Connor take another pocket of the seemingly endless creatures to the floor.

He swallowed – the first show of a stronger Force power in front of others had happened. It got the job done; it was for the greater good.

[member="Ærin Firebrand"]] | [member="Kaida Taldir"] | [member="Thurion Heavenshield"] | [member="Coci Heavenshield"] | [member="Nima Tann"] | [member="George O Rourke"]

 

[Audren Sykes]

Objective: Defend Fafnersvik
Location: Fafnersvik Walls
Allies: The Silver Sanctum, Valkyri Natives
Enemies: Vinterbound
Post: [5/20]
Gear: QQ-15L-3 | QQ-83n | SMG | Lightsaber

George was swiftly followed over the wall by what appeared to be yet another youngling. Who was the brilliant being who allowed younglings onto battlefields like this? Padawans like George and himself could be understood, they may not have the same experience level as Knights or whatnot, but they were at an age of accountability. The two younglings he'd seen, this one especially, not so much. Despite that, the young one managed to hack and slash his way through the horde. There was a chance he'd survive.

From there the battle went all out. Next over the wall was Coryn, who was wielding a rather large Valkyri blade. Then fire erupted, wind joined it, and the forest started burning. Coci and Thurion were next, Coci making the comment that this situation wasn't much like rounding up wolves, a reference to New Prosperity. No, this was very much a different situation, but the reference made him grin slightly. Then...something through the Force, something that caused the Vinterbound to fall on each other. Then Connor joined the fight, a fountain of lightning bursting forth from his hand. There was a massive range of attacks taking place, some more effective than others.

Pristine snow turned red and black with the fluids spilled from the undead - what snow remained after the firestorm. Blades of metal and energy separated pieces from bodies, arrows made leaks, muscles flexed to tear limb from limb, and massive blasts of telekinesis ripped apart undead bodies. Even blaster bolts did their part, as the wounds didn't cauterize completely. All that resulted in a lot of blood and gore. Fire seemed to be the only method of not staining the ground. Even with all the power brought to bear, still more zombies shambled in. The fire limited the directions they could come from in a given arc, yet despite the tactical cunning shown before and the organization shown recently, they still rushed from the obvious direction.

Distraction.

The scream was the first real indication that something was wrong. It came from behind them, inside the village, and was a scream of mortal terror, not a call to charge. In a flash, the Sephi was on his feet and running along the top of the wall. Without him even thinking about it, his feet were finding solid places to step. Ten meters further down, he hopped onto another platform, using it as a springboard to hurtle down into the village itself. The snow cushioned him somewhat, and the rest of the falling energy was bled off by a shoulder roll. That took him onto one of the main pathways between village buildings, and a few seconds of sprinting got him to the source of the screams.

A glance gave him what he needed to know. One Vinterbound was on the ground, extremities twitching despite the lack of head. Another two were cornering a Valkyri boy holding a sword, no doubt too young to join the main defense. A girl, younger than the boy, stood by the first of the undead, staring down at it in wide-eyed shock. Footprints in the snow showed where the boy had backed away. Audren was close enough.

A flick of his thumb switched the blaster to fully automatic, and he pointed the barrel at the Vinterbound and held down the trigger. With the extended stock braced against the crook of his shoulder, even the abnormal recoil couldn't do much to spoil his aim. Bolt after bolt slammed into the two Vinterbound, pushing them away from the boy. None of the shots were kill shots, that would have taken tremendous accuracy. The sheer volume of blasterfire however, ate away at the metal armor on their torsos. Lucky shots hit and separated joints, causing limbs to go flying. Seconds of sustained fire later, the blaster gave out. The powerpack was empty and the barrel was glowing white-red, yet the two still barely stood. The barrel hissed in the snow as it was dropped, and Audren's vibroblade sang to life, ending both Vinterbound in one fell swing.

"Behind you!"

The shout came from the boy, but the Padawan was already ducking. He spun as he did, whirling his own blade at shin level, and took another zombie to the ground. As he rose, he pulled the blaster pistol once again and put a killing bolt in the Vinterbound's head, ending it. Only then did he stop to look around, spotting the crack in the wall where a particularly slim Valkyri might slip through. Or a Vinterbound unconcerned with physical damage to the rib cage. Another bolt stopped the undead creature currently trying to wriggle its way through, temporarily plugging the gap.

"Get inside before more show up. Go!"

This needed to end soon or the entire place would be overrun, leaving a large number of Jedi and an entire village nothing more than memory and greasy remains.

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

The forest alight sent a golden glow across the scene. The crackling of the wall of fire on the carts and barrel, began to die down, it could not last for long anyway. And soon the Vinterbound would be able to go through it rather than be forced around it. By all the Gods of Midvinter it is a ghastly sight, never had she been in a battle such as this, and hoped she would not again. Far better to face a foe living and would die at ones hands but this tested her resolve.

Before the undead could regroup, they seemed to have some sort of organisation around them, from where it stemmed was hard to say. Was there a leader? even if so, one could not determine which undead that would be. The mind assault from an unknown person to Aerin was working to great effect, some of the undead had eaten themselves and others, sickly to say the least. More burning walking corpses wandered around only to finally fall to life eternal. In a way .. they are the lucky ones, finally finding rest and walking the Halls of the Gods. So many questions arose within her as she stood atop her mare. Where or what created them? So unnatural it had to be an evil hand at work.

Aerin looked around for her Clan, they are fighting with valour and many have fallen to the unnatural foe, but now is the time. "Riders of Rildonmark! Form up to me", she said as she pushed her mare forward and in the center of the field. Heeding her call, they came from all directions form a column of ten across and deep behind. Aerin looked along the lines noting the depletion of the numbers, they would drink to their fallen when the time comes, if they are able. She took solace in knowing they are one with the force and if the Gods of Midvinter exist, they have entered the halls of glory.

"We charge!, ride like the wind that falls from the mountains, spare not one until our day is done!". She held her sword high rode along the line, before her battle cry sounded the charge. The formation of riders split, divided they rode to the right and left. Under their trampling hooves, many Vinterbound perished, swords cutting removing heads and the archers set them alight with blazing arrow.


[member="Kaida Taldir"] | [member="Connor Harrison"] | [member="Thurion Heavenshield"]

 

[George O Rourke]

With George exhausted on the wall of the village he lent with his hands on his knees panting, trying to get as much oxygen into his lungs as possible. As he regained his composure he looked over the wall at the Vinterbound bellow. Many had succumb to the force of the Jedi mind tricks. Something George had limited knowledge of. Anyhow he watched them now feeding on themselves and each other. "Well, thats some sort of relief." He muttered to himself as he watched the undead tear each other to threads.

As George observed, it wasn't all of them who did this, just a fair majority. Leaving them with a huge advantage. The numbers that were heavily against them turned even. The number of Jedi and Valkyri compared to Vinterbound was slowly changing it was still not in their favour, but close enough. As George watched the changings on the ground a huge amount of energy could be felt. Only before a massive bright light attacked the battlefield. George dropped down to the floor of the wall, covering his eyes as they stung with the bright light. He took several minuted to return his eyesight to normal. It was extreme, but fortunately there seemed to be no long lasting effects. Something George was quite surprised with. Must be something to do with the feeling of the force I felt moments prior to it. He thought to himself as the battlefield dynamics changed once again.

[member="Coci Heavenshield"] | [member="Thurion Heavenshield"]

 

[Vakarian]

Objective: Defend the Town​

Location: Fafnersvik​

Allies: [member="Thurion Heavenshield"] | [member="George O Rourke"]​

[member=Coci Heavenshield]​

Enemies: The Vinterbound​

Post: 5/20​

​

The fight with undead was chaos in its purest form, fire and wind, force and blade, all tools of the Jedi that had assembled in defense of the town. They were guardians and sentinels against the dark, it was their place to be here. They had a duty to protect the galaxy from what it could not protect itself from, it was their way of life - their creed. These things are what filled his mind as he fought, slashing and slicing. Each undead creature that fell seemed to be replaced from two more, much like the Hydra. It was then that he felt a stirring in the force as wind and fire ripped across the battlefield, and the forest behind the creatures erupted into a raging inferno. He was awed by the spectacle, but he didn't have much time to consider the staggering amount of will power that it took to enact such a display of power, before another stirring began, this time much darker than what he had witnessed.

His sapphire eyes turned towards the walls of Fafnersvik just as a wall of Lightning erupted from the fingertips of [member=Connor Harrison]. Despite its dark nature, Coryn couldn't deny the effectiveness of the lightning as it ripped through the mass of undead scaling the walls. The undead were too many, and the Jedi were stretched too thin. Much of their former strength was fading, anyone could feel that if they focused on the presence of the Jedi in the force, their lights were dimming.

Fortunately, the Force seemed to favor them as yet another ripple erupted through the force, and the Vinterbound began to tear one another to pieces. Again, he was awed by the spectacle and it filled him with a new source of hope that they may yet survive the fight against the creatures. He looked over towards the friends who had joined him and the other two padawan that had he joined on the battlefield itself, Masters Coci and Thurion. He was not surprised to see them together, they did not often stray far apart, so far as he could tell in his time on Midvinter with them.

He watched as Master Coci leaned into her husband, nearing complete depletion of her energy, but prepared to enact some grand feat. Her presence in the force was enough to lend credence to the fact that she was gathering all her power to unleash against the undead, it was building around her, causing her to shine brighter than the rest. It gave him new hope, and a new purpose. He could feel the strength of those around him fading, and his energy had long since been replenished from the previous fight in the forest. He had a yearning to help those who had helped him, and something deep within his mind responded, something that would unleash tendrils of power through the Force and towards the other Force Users.

He imagined, in his mind, that tendrils of pure light were flowing across the snow towards the masters and other Jedi on the battlefield with him. He imagined the tendrils fusing themselves with the blip of light that was the presence of each jedi on the field, and he loosed his own energy into the Force, the tendrils taking his energy and directing it towards those that needed it more than him. The effect was taxing, sweat beading up on his forehead as his own Force energy left his body and entered the bodies of those around him.

He was a Padawan, but even they had access to abilities that they wouldn't otherwise normally have access to when they were inspired. It was a common occurrence in the history of the Jedi, and it seemed that Coryn would be no different - allowing his energy to flow into those assembled near him on the field. He let as much energy as he could flow through him and towards the others before he shut off his connection to the force ability, Revitalize. He hoped that it would be enough to give them strength to continue the fight.

His vision blurred, but he forced himself to remain standing, leaning heavily against the Valkyri sword as it was embedded into the ground. After several moments of rough breathing and dizziness, he was able to stand on his own, but his legs still felt like jelly, his mind felt stretched, and his energy was all but depleted. But, he took comfort in the fact that he had helped in some degree.

 

[Connor Harrison]

There was a sudden lull – not totally, but the cries of those around Connor seemed to die down. Looking right, he saw the bridge down and faces he recognised heading into the village. Glancing left, steaming bodies sickly rolling down the scorched incline, Connor moved with his glowing blade held upright. It seemed the Undead were finding each other more appealing than their opposing forces, which was interesting, and he smirked at the dark magic at play. [member="Sumiko Tanaka"] and [member="Nima Tann"] – what were they up to.

His eyes peered out from behind his weapon as he decided to converge with the others inside the village now the barrier was down to allow allies – or enemies – in. Keeping his body turned as he quickly moved over to the wooden bridge, he held his saber out to keep an eye for airborne projectiles or Vinterbound leaping to score a surprise kill. The smoke from the burning forest was thick, and the flames had eaten away most of the ground it ravaged.

A group of horses charged past, and watching them race past, he noticed a face from the Shadows - [member="George O Rourke"] – knelt down. Moving towards him, Connor lowered and hooked his arm under the Padawan and helped him up, looking to gain eye contact.

”George, are you alright? Get into the village – you’re no good dead or disorientated.”

He gently nudged the Nautolan onto the bridge as he followed, eyes covering their retreat. A flaming horde of arrows screamed over head to take down a lumbering number of Vinterbound running towards them.

[member="Ærin Firebrand"]] | [member="Kaida Taldir"] | [member="Thurion Heavenshield"] | [member="Coci Heavenshield"] | [member="Audren Sykes"] | [member="Coryn Raxis"] |

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Thurion Heavenshield"], @Aerin Firebrand, [member="Coci Heavenshield"], [member="Audren Sykes"], [member="Coryn Raxis"], [member="George O Rourke"]


The roaring tempest raged across the battlefield, gripping zombies with powerful might and flinging them across the land. The forest was alight with fire and none of the undead inside it could escape the inferno, especially now that the flames were spreading so strongly. However, the wall of fire was starting to die down and this was an opening the undead did not leave unexploited.


But then the zombies fell upon each other in a cannibalistic frenzy of gore and violence, for it seemed that a great many of them suddenly found each other more appealing. Unlike some Masters, Kaida did not excel at Force Sense but she was neither blind nor deaf to the ripples in the Force as she felt what she believed must be a mental attack of some sort, one designed to warp the thinking of the undead. Being the girlfriend of a top tier mentalist came in handy in such matters.


The Valkyri cavalry charged across the battlefield, hitting the the zombies in the flanks. Kaida did not gallop with them, for her skills as a rider were probably not up to the task, but she advanced nonetheless. The sharp crack of the Mark One Bolter firing was matched only by the percussive crump of the explosion a second later. There was something to be said for having a semi-automatic grenade launcher at your disposal when being swarmed by a horde of the undead. Bolt after bolt was punched out of the gun and zombies were blown to pieces. Further ahead the Heavenshields were unleashing their light show, blinding zombies and making them easier pickings, which made Kaida grateful for the fact that she was wearing a helmet with various vision modes, since otherwise she would have trouble seeing anything.


As the beasts came closer she switched to buckshot. Boom. One of the undead decided to test whether her gauntleted hand was edible and chowed down on solid durasteel, leaving teeth behind. Gun knocked out of her grasp, Kaida simply rammed her ice encased fist into the beast's head with such force it burst. Despite being bitten, scratched and suffering sword blows, she fought on. She did not have the energy and was too tired to summon another whirlwind, but there were fun things she could do that required less exertion. Breathing in the cold air, she stretched out with her mind to manipulate the molecules, influencing them towards her desires. Ice spikes, ice spikes everywhere! A hailstorm of them manifested seemingly out of thin air and by her power was driven at massive speed through the skulls of zombies right into their brains.

 

[George O Rourke]

[member="Connor Harrison"] | [member="Coryn Raxis"] | [member="Coci Heavenshield"]

As George recovered from the extreme amount of bright light that took over the battlefield he heard a voice and felt a hand reach in under his arm. Pulling him to his feet and guiding him back over the bridge into the village. "Connor?" George muttered as he looked at the man helping him over, his eye sight was coming back but his head was pounding making it almost impossible to keep concentrated. But indeed it was Master Connor to the rescue. "Thank you Master for the help." He spoke quietly face showing the pain within.

As the pair of them made it inside the village walls he stopped walking and lent up against a small house. Shaking his head trying to relieve the pressure on his head. Closing his eyes and trying to calm his mind he tried to ease the pain. Working slightly he stood back up and looked at Connor. "Alright, I'm good now Master Connor. What now? How is the battle going? I'm not sure what happened after that Light attack." He said eager to get back into the thick of it, even with the pain throbbing in his head, he pushed it to the back of his mind, ignoring it like a true warrior.

 

[Connor Harrison]

Connor looked to [member="George O Rourke"] and felt him push up, as if to move away from the wall he rested on. With a gentle hand, Connor pushed him back on the shoulder.

”Don’t rush, George. You’re in pain, but use it. Embrace it. It will make you stronger – use that pain you feel as a lesson learnt where you faltered and to ensure you’re more prepared for what lies out there.”

Turning the look at the mixture of orange, black and white from the fire burning outside the village, lines of Valkyri were taking arms to barricade the village on their steeds. Connor looked to him again, noting that resilience and strength burning away.

”We hold the village as we were told to do, but don’t be afraid to speak your mind if you feel unsure or uncertain. You fight well out there, and you’ve got a keen mind.”

With a gentle pat on the arm, Connor nodded and stood back, and looked over towards where the two Masters – lovers and confidants – were standing. Together. As usual.

”The Heavenshields have everything where they want it right now so don’t worry about them, you just stand your ground and look after number one – yourself. If you ever need help or guidance, you just come to me, alright?”

[member="Ærin Firebrand"] | [member="Kaida Taldir"] | [member="Thurion Heavenshield"] | [member="Coci Heavenshield"] | [member="Audren Sykes"] | [member="Coryn Raxis"]

 

[Nima Tann]

Objective: Find the relic, Mind Rape!
Location: Tower
Allies: Team Mind Rape! ([member="Sumiko Tanaka"]), Silver Sanctum and Friends
Enemies: The White Walkers

"Bow to me. Stop her."

"Don't let her find me."

"STOP HER!"

A big headache hit as she could hear that the relic's voice was getting louder and louder each second in her head and changing into a demonic one as Sumiko continued mind raping the whole horde of zombies to find its location. The relic was a big, dark presence and taking its whole power and attention in her head to make sure she had time to find it with her electric pulses weren't an easy task, especially in her situation that she almost run out of power since she used the Force a lot. Yet, her mind shield continued to hold the gates closed to its control for now, no matter how difficult it was. She didn't realize that she started to breathe faster, not only it was difficult, yet it was exhausting as well. "You are going to be destroyed. You are just trying to prevent the inevitable." She said telephatically to the dark presence she felt. "Just let us find you. We will end you quick and painless." Then another headache hit, since the relic sent some demonic messages to communicate with the girl again.

"We can not be stopped. We can not die." Then, she could feel the relic's talons slowly placing themselves to her brain. Yet her defense wall was still there to protect her. "Sumiko, it's trying to get into my head." She warned the woman if the relic would manage its way into her brain that she should be careful. Then she telephatically continued to talk to the relic to distract it as she was still on a mission and she needed to gain some time for the woman who continued mind raping the zombies until finding a good adress. And the dark aura in the air was growing and growing as the process continued, she thought it was probably because of the dark magics she was applying. Yet, if it worked, then she wouldn't say anything. She was never the enemy of the Dark Side unless it was used for bad things.

And then... she felt nothing, a blank, nothingness has filled the area instead of the screams, and the smell of blood. It either was bad news, or good news that the woman managed to get into the relic's brain. Or she was just slowly fainting because of the exhaustion, that was a possibility too.

[member="Thurion Heavenshield"] [member="Coci Heavenshield"] [member="Connor Harrison"] [member="Audren Sykes"] [member="George O Rourke"] [member="Coryn Raxis"]

 

[Darth Libertas]

[member="Nima Tann"], [member="Coci Heavenshield"], [member="Connor Harrison"], [member="Audren Sykes"], [member="George O Rourke"], [member="Coryn Raxis"]



Darkness beyond darkness, power beyond measure. A fathomless abyss, a void deeper than the eye could perceive. Thousands upon thousands of voices crying out in unison in a crescendo loud enough to shake the heavens, for they had all been assimilated into the relic upon rising again as the living dead. With every second that passed the voices grew louder and louder. Maybe it was just a trick being played on her mind, but it felt like the tower itself was being shaken by tremors and quakes.


To her, this was a sign that the relic was hurting.


"You exist because we allow it and you will end when we demand it.


We are the darkness in which all life dies.


Your allies are being slaughtered. With every one that falls, we grow stronger.


We ARE DEATH."


Blood was seeping out of her eardrums and her head felt like a massive club had been applied to it. She was freezing cold and clattering badly as icy coldness spread across her body. She had long given up on trying to use the Force to regulate her body temperature and keep out the oppressive cold. Then nothingness filled the area instead of the screams, for the relic was weakening. By now she had penetrated the relic's mind and was driving her will through it, though this was like taking the plunge into a vast, dark ocean. A very cold one. It felt like she was drowning as liquid was filling her lungs. Another illusion being played on her mind, but a very real one. Shockwaves of pain smashed against her mental defences and slowly blew her walls apart as the relic lashed out. All those voices rising...


All those voices. All those minds that had been absorbed by the relic...therein lay the key point. Souldrinker fuelled her and she gained some clarity, even as she sliced down ever more across her flesh. Then at least as she stopped pushing and ceased her attempts to swim against the massive stream, she could hear the whispers.


"Free us."


Her grip around Souldrinker's hilt tightened as she drew upon the power of the sword. She stopped resisting the pull and seemingly allowed the shadowy tendrils to ensnare her, pulling her mind ever deeper into the ocean. To all intents and purposes she was yielding. Then she blew up the mental chains with a shockwave. Through victory, my chains are broken. The Force shall free me.


The Force shall free me. Part of the Sith Code had some merit, though much of it was bogus. "Fight it." The crescendo of voices rose ever stronger, but now it was being redirected against the relic. It could of course not wholly annihilate its mental influence, but it thrust the hive mind into chaos. "Crush it." One could compare it to a dam being blown up and a massive flood ensuing. All this was now slamming into the mind of the dark relic as its absorbed souls were turned against it in a wave of psychic energy. The immediate and most apparent result would be that the zombie army would be thrown into chaos, something only increased by the Light Show that the Heavenshields were unleashing, as the relic lost control and zombies turned insane, killing each other.


Sumiko slumped to the ground as her vision turned dark, bleeding.