Adventure Zone - Old Kingdoms

    And old and civilized part of the world, the ruins of old cultures can be found all over this austere area. The ruins of mighty empires of old stand in mute tribute to the ambitions of their rulers, while new lords and leaders attempt to make their place in the world. This is a place for the ambitious and the civic-minded, and vast kingdoms can be found just beyond the next rise.

You've just crossed a long winding trail through a dark forest and past a few ruins till you see a more well kept area in the distance, admist a large cleared out area in the forest you see a stone carved town done in the ancient style with many of the building built vertically instead of spread out. There's baazars here and many a stone courtyard and square all about. Many of these structures look like they could easily be temples though upon arriving you see no signs of statues or murals of worship...mostly scenes dipicting heros and past battles and cronicaled events.

In the courtyard of one of these towns is an odd gathering. This group of people arrived only moments ago and made their way to the center of town, a few members occasionally stopping to harrass people in their path. Little noticable interest is paid to the temples, save that the leader of the group appears to be pleased that there seems to be no tangible diety of worship.

After reaching the courtyard many of the gathered minions branch out and start spreading word among the city. To say they are persistant is an understatement, their harrassment becomes downright aggressive. They spread only one message: "Join the Church of Zio, or face utter ruin."

Zio himself stands in the center of the courtyard. This is his first time in this particular world, and he's more than willing to destroy this town and move on if he needs to make a point to these people.

The people here are rather bewildered at this statement, giving the newcommers a wide berth. Soon there seems to be a small procession of scholarly or ancient attire govermental types approuching, "We have taken so long to rebuild what we have lost only a decade ago. And you demand that we join your faith or risk destruction. Our people work hard trying to regain control of our lives in the shadow of great danger. Outsiders, your violent message is not welcome here."

Zio steps up here, ordering his zealots to move back and give him room. Most fanatics who try to con people into joining their faith at least attempt disguise their motives. But with Zio's following it's clear that any destruction that will follow will be directly due to their action. Of course, the message itself is still technically true, join and you won't face destruction.

"Then it would be a shame if you were to lose all this so suddenly, wouldn't it?" Zio comments, addressing the public official who decided to speak up. He steps forward, pointing a gauntlet-clad finger at the official. "I merely pass down the word of our god. I am his humble vassel, and he has commanded me to seek followers in this region. Should he decide to punish your people for their lack of faith, then the fault is not mine. I am but a messanger."

Messanger, and executioner, perhaps.

The elderly man shakes his head, "There is much work to be done here, before we can begin rebuilding our faith and governing bodies. There is the wounded to tend to and the starving that seek salvation from famine. Perhaps if you would care to stay around and partake in the efforts we'd be more willing to listen to your message."

Zio actually laughs at this. "You would ask me to aid you with your trivial little problems? You obviously do not know your place in the grander scheme of things. Aid is not given freely to those who offer nothing. Only with absolute loyalty could you ever hope to see some semblance of a compassion from our god." Zio folds his arms and smirks. "I bring to you potential salvation, only if you choose to accept it. It is not a mortal's place to ask for conditions from a diety!"

Its about this time a young woman steps out from behind the crowds, with firey red hair done back in a pony tail, "I think you've said enough. You obviously know little of what hardships we've faced here and come in here demanding that we halt our efforts to rebuild and devote our time to worshipping your diety. This is a community, if the people of your faith show no interest outside of blind worship when it comes to the matters of this town. Then I feel there's little place for you here, strangers."

Grin. Zio knew it would come to this, it always does at first. If only people were more willing to accept his message from the start, he'd have a few more followers, and there'd be fewer smoking craters that used to be towns across Videoland.

"Then perhaps you all need a demonstration in order to see what fate awaits you if you decide to turn your back on me. I'm feeling generous, so I'll even give you time to reconsider before I complete the ritual."

Suddenly, Zio's hands catch aflame and he raises them into the air. the atmosphere around him grows dark and weighty, and anyone who had any inkling of psychic or mental power would get the sensation that something very evil and ancient was looming over them.

Alisia Dragoon wasen't going to wait around, she knew this guy was going to be trouble and raises her hands as well, "Sorry...we're not interested in a demonstraition." Energy like lightning arcs between both her hands as it leaps forth towards you.

Alisia Dragoon strikes Zio with her Lightning blast attack.
You have taken 13 damage.

Normally when Zio travels with his zealots, he lets his guard down. Because they typically jump in to take any attack for him. But they usually can't react fast enough with magic, so Zio takes the brunt of Alisia's spell directly. While it seems she was moments too late to stop whatever it was Zio was doing, she did have some affect. Zio was attemting to summon a visage of Dark Force, but instead only succeeded in preparing the portal to be opened. The sky remains darkened, that's all.

A few of the zealots begin to move, their sights set on Alisia, but a wave from Zio's hand sets them back in their place. "Good..." He says, returning to a battle-ready position. "I had hoped there would be some hero to step forward, that usually quickens the process considerably, when the people of a world see one of their saviors fall. Show me what you are capable of, girl."

Extending his gauntleted hand out, a small, but fast, fireball is shot towards Alisia.

Zio strikes Alisia Dragoon with his Foi attack.

Alisia Dragoon watches the fireball shoot directly towards her as she gets knocked back a bit, though quickly steadies herself before waving her hand as a reptilian creature appears like some striped lizard. Its about 3 feet long and curls a bit, its wings look more like boomerangs, "You will not succeed." She says while pointing towards Zio as the lizard begins to arch its back, causing its wings to split into more boomerangs that suddenly hurl themselves towards you!

Alisia Dragoon strikes Zio with her Boomerang Assault attack.
You have taken 20 damage.

Zio's heavy, black, armor is not built for dodging. It's there to provide adequate defense, but mostly to look cool. Alisia's boomerang does well to tear into it, though, but Zio remains mostly unphased. Mostly. "You don't know who you're dealing with. The power of Dark Force is beyond you." He waves his gauntleted hand again, and a violent blast of wind is shot towards Alisia. "If you cared for your life, and the lives of those around you, you would surrender."

Zio misses Alisia Dragoon with his Hewn attack.

Alisia Dragoon quickly runs out of the way, leaping up suddenly to avoid the wind as it comes rushing past, "I do care...and care not to stand by and let others be bullied by zealots and tyrants!" She dispels the boomerang lizard as a will-o-wisp type creature takes its place, sweeping its swirling flamed form across the area where Zio and his Zealots are standing...loosing a lot of its mass in the process.

Alisia Dragoon strikes Zio with her Ball'O'Fyre attack.
You have taken 18 damage.

As the flames descend on Zio, he raises his black cloak to cover most of his body and face. Doesn't do a whole lot of good, but it protects him a little from the flames. Keeping his cloak wrapped around him, he speaks. "I've heard all of this before, you're no different from any of the other self-righteous 'heroes' I've met. I offered these people a chance to be spared from the wrath of Dark Force, and you insist that they refuse out of some silly idea of pride." When he finishes speaking, he waves his arm foward, opening his cloak up once more, and sending a blast of corrosive dark energy towards Alisia.

Zio strikes Alisia Dragoon with his Corrosion attack.

Alisia Dragoon ughs! Almost falling to her knees as she shudders, holding herself tight before pulling herself upright again, lashing out with a brief bolt of lightning to interrupt the spell, "And I know your kind you serve as well....you arrogant puppet. Their dark masters are hunted like the rabid dogs they are and put down before they can wreak too much havor."

Alisia Dragoon strikes Zio with her weak Uncharged lightning attack.
You have taken 12 damage.

Zio takes the full brunt of the lightning blast, but it doesn't seem to slow him down. He is hurting from everything, but he has remarkable control over his body. Knowing that one cannot die allows one to exert fantastic control over oneself. Scowling, Zio walks over, and attempts to slap Alisia with the back of his (gauntleted) hand. If it connects, she would feel a sharp pain, not from the surface of the gauntlet itself, but somethign deeper, emanating from inside it. "You will not speak of my god in such a manner. When my world was dying around its people, it was I who tried to find the cause, and it was I who discovered the truth. And it was I who was chosen to be the avatar of Dark Force, over those lazy, ignorant masses who remained oblivious to their fates. I am merely trying to enlighten others to my calling."

Zio strikes Alisia Dragoon with his weak Backhand slap attack.

Alisia Dragoon agggghhhs! Feeling the sharp pain from the strike, more from its dark energy than anything, "I pity you...having to take such a path. But you've designed your own destruction because you merely delay what is to come." She reaches over and grasps his wrist, sending a direct current of energy through his conductive heavy plate armor, "Your enlightenment is a farce."

Alisia Dragoon strikes Zio with her shocking grasp attack.
You have taken 19 damage.

"Destruction comes to all things. But I designed my destiny in being the one who delivers it." Zio's message is cut short as he is on the recieving end of another lightning attack. His face looks pained for a moment, but he shakes himself out of it fast enough. "I chose to accept the reality of my world, and I was granted with the power to serve the one who controls its fate. The true extent of which you could not fathom." Waving his hand towards Alisia, he sends another fiery blast towards her. This time it is several fireballs, and they're considerably more potent than his first attack.

Zio strikes Alisia Dragoon with his Gifoi attack.

Alisia Dragoon frowns, waving a hand to cause the will-o-wisp to absorb most of the fire balls, but not all of them as a few strike her and scorch her, "I will not allow my people to be forced to live in the shadow of a feared demon!" She charges her lightning power till it comes from her body as a glow, soon two thick pillars of lightning blast forth and sweep outwards, targeting smaller arcs against all those who stand against her.

Alisia Dragoon strikes Zio with her rolling thunder smash attack.
You have taken 39 damage.

Zio is starting to really dislike lightning. Alisia is no slouch, that's for sure, and her attack sends the dark magician reeling. He's thrown away from her a few feet back, though through some miraculous acrobatics he manages to land on his feet. His stance is clearly shaken, though, but it's not enough to break him, nor his follower's zeal in cheering for him. Standing upright once more, Zio's hands catch aflame again, as black electricity crackles to life around him.

"Then you condemn them to DIE in the shadow of a feared demon!"

Zio's lost a lot of strength, so he doesn't have the power to summon the Nightmare like he attempted at the start of their scuffle, but that doesn't mean he can't draw on SOME power from Dark Force. The dark power surrounding him converges on one spot between his hands, and blasts forward Alisia with all the force of a malevolent comet.

Zio strikes Alisia Dragoon with his Incomplete Black Wave smash attack.

Alisia Dragoon ughs, getting thrown back by the massive blast of darkness that smashes into her, falling 10 feet away at the very least. She's pretty hurt after that one and while building her power back up she summons a gryphon looking bird...a thunder ravyn to fight in her stead for a moment. The creature dosen't attack itself, instead generates power in the form of several spheres of energy that rotate about it...these hover for a while before the creature drifts above Zio and his army..each of the spheres smash into one another, creating a terrible shockwave along with a numbing surge of power that ripples across the center of the square.

Alisia Dragoon strikes Zio with her Energy Crash attack.
You have taken 17 damage.

Still mentally reeling from the lightning strike, Zio is nailed again by another potent attack. He remains standing, though a few of his followers were thrown around. "You're stubborn, like a roach. But you'll die like one as well!" Placing his left hand on his right, he removes his gauntlet. Doing so, he exposes his right arm, which is visably rotted and decayed. His power seems more now like a curse, than a blessing, but still Zio smirks, as he points his skeletal hand towards Alisia. "No one has seen this hand and lived." From his hand comes another blast of dark energy, much less potent than the blast he had before, but still dangerous.

Zio misses Alisia Dragoon with his Minor Black Wave attack.

Alisia Dragoon gasps as she watches the wave of energy rocket forth towards her. She's ready this time, dropping to the floor on her chest as she avoids comming in contact with the deadly darkness energy that pours forth from your hands. She quickly gets back up and lets out another stream of lightning towards your direction, "I have trained long and hard to make sure messengers such as yourself do not threaten to subjucgate the people and the land!"

Alisia Dragoon strikes Zio with her Lighting stream attack.
You have taken 24 damage.
Zio has been knocked out!

More lightning. Zio has been pounded enough times in the course of the fight to no longer be able to resist another lightning strike. As the lightning strikes Zio there's a bright flash of light. The darkness in the sky which was summoned earlier quickly dissipates, and so does Zio. The man in black appears to be dissolving on the spot, but the expression on his face tells that he doesn't seem all that concerned by it. "Death is a meaningless concept to me. Savour your victory for now, but I'll return."

It's hard to tell if he was actually dissolving, or merely teleporting away. Perhaps a little of both. Either way, the offender is gone after a moment, and the minions of Zio scatter like fleeing rats. The sky is cleared, and any atmosphere of malevolence is gone. It shall take Zio awhile to regenerate, but for now his ambitions have been halted.

Alisia Dragoon pants tiredly, watching the sky lighten once again as the people come out as they were fleeing earlier. She looks about, seeing the followers scatter..let them go back to where they came from. It wasen't enough she had to worry about Baldour, but people like this were not tolerated here.

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