The Aura Wake Series

*the wolves' paws skim the surface of the water, causing it to spray up at everyone. Several mer-people surface, playfully racing each other and the wolves. But before everyone knew it, Harbura was barely in sight. The beam from the centered pillar still glowing brightly*
Aero: OH YEAH! THE FESTIVAL IS STILL GOING ON!!!

Noah: THEN LETS FIND THE KIDNAPPERS QUICKLY SO WE CAN ENJOY THE FESTIVAL!

Mercer: I HEAR HARBURA HAS SOME TASTY FESTIVAL MEAT!

Ai: IS THAT ALL YOU THINK ABOUT, MERCER?! FOOD?

MERCER: YEAH! AND I DON'T CARE!

~Harbura~

Justice: *his chopper is parked outside the city gate. As for Justice himself, he is walking in the streets, looking around* Harbura.....haven't seen this place in years. Alright....where are those bloody heathens hiding? *he walks up to a random female teen and pics her up with one hand. He then shows her the wanted poster* YOU! HAVE YOU SEEN THESE PEOPLE?!

*a boy walks up to Justice and pushes him away*
boy: WHat are you doing to my sister?!

Aero: Luna said that this was to be done carefully! not recklessly!!!

Justice: *first, he glances at the boy. Then, he glances at Aero and them, seeing that Aura Wake finally arrived* Hmph....*he drops the girl* And here I thought I'd find the targets before you Spell-Dogs!

Mercer: Step away from the girl and boy, Justice.

Justice: Hmph. No matter. *he turns away and walks off*

Noah: Sheesh....when they're zealots, the Celestial Faith is really pushy.

Mercer: You're JUST realizing this, tidbit?!

Ai: *she walks over to the girl and offers a hand and a smile to help her up* Are you alright?

boy: Sis, you alright? did he hurt you?
Aero: relax. She seems to be fine. although the way she was just treated was not right at all...

Noah: That wasn't right at all....

???: You're right, little Celestian. It wasn't. *standing there is a man in black space-age knight armor. He walks over to the group and examines the girl* Yes, she'll be fine. The Faith has gotten far too arrogant in the past 20 years....

Ai: Are you a professional knight or something, Mister?

Mercer: He's a Fortasian.

Noah: A what?

???: A Fortasian. We're one of the three sentient species on Icecrown. We are literally born in our armor and it grows with us. We are a battle-hardened race who live for war and peace keeping. Those like me who are born with black armor are sent to Icecrown's capital to train and join the king's army, the Black Legion. We, the Fortasians of the Black Legion, are those who fight in the name of the King of Icecrown and his retainers in order to bring skulls to the Skull Throne and blood to the Blood God! However, my adoptive parents on Icecrown were immigrants from Iciaura. They taught me Iciaura's ways and I came here to revel in the festivities and honor their memory.

Noah: So do you have something against the Faith? Also, what is your name?

Raven: My name is Ashen Raven. And yes, I do. See, have any of you heard of the plight on Icecrown that sprung up in the recent years?

Mercer: Yeah. I did. King Delques Bane is terminally ill from the Vampire Killer's Disease, Porphyritic Hemophilia.

Raven: Yes. King Delques soon shall pass into the Life Stream and sit upon the Skull Throne as did his father and so on.

Ai: Skull Throne? Blood God?

Raven: Icecrown's religion holds 4 Gods. The God Emperor, who is the King after death when he sits upon the Skull Throne and watches over his soldiers in battle. The Blood God, to whom we give ourselves upon injury or death. The Gravelord, to whom our bodies are presented to in order to join our God Emperor's vast legion, and finally the Soul Mother, who breaths life into all who inhabit Icecrown when they are born. The Celestial Faith, however, feel that our beliefs are blasphemy. Should Lord Delques die, the Celestial Faith will try to take the capital and convert all of Icecrown to their beliefs. However, King Delques has appointed his second in command, Sayuri, as his successor. Once he passes to sit upon the Throne, she shall act in his stead and lead Icecrown. The Faith will not take this kindly. Most likely, war may break out on Icecrown.

Mercer: A war between the Faith and Icecrown? But wouldn't the Government be upset. Hell, why aren't they upset that the Faith is trying to push on a planet?

Raven: Because Icecrown broke from the Government long ago. We are allies, yes, but our affairs are none of their concern. Yes, there are Icecrownians in the Government as citizens, but Icecrown herself is a completely different system.

Noah: I heard Icecrown's warriors were among the finest. Who in their right mind, even in the Faith, would try to challenge them and conquer them?

Raven: An Icecrownian who is a member of the Faith. To be exact, he is a member of the Ten Commandments. He was a hero on Icecrown once, for slaying an Elder Dragon.

Ai: An Elder Dragon?! But their the largest, most ancient animals in the galaxy! And he slew it single-handed?

Raven: Yes. He is a Gold Fortasian, the rarest type of all, and the most gifted type of our race. He was even a member of the King's personal guard, the Dawn Breakers. His name is Orenstein. He is the only Fortasian alive to ever hold the mantle of Dragon Slayer.

Noah: If this Orenstein guy respects the King so much, why does he stand against him?

Raven: Because he follows the Faith, and has pledged his blade to them. When a Fortasian pledges his blade to something, he will follow it without hesitation and without regret. He faces Delques because his honor binds him to do so and the King understands this, even though the King is a Vampire. He looks at Orenstein as a worthy adversary and the feeling is returned. Soldiers under Orenstein and under Delques both understand this and respect their decisions. On the day that King Delques dies, much blood will be spilled and much glory will be claimed. Until that day, we wait. Now, is there something I can help you with? Judging by the way you carry yourselves, you must be students at the College of Avalon. One of Lord Delques's Thanes, Lestad, teaches there. Anybody who is a comrade of Lestad is a comrade of mine.

Noah: Thank you. *he takes out the poster* Have you seen these two? We think they may be involved in a string of kidnappings.

Raven: Yes. I saw the girl not long ago. She was talking to a few boys from the High School here on Iciaura. She lead them into a back alley on the corner of the street. *he points in the direction* It was not even ten minutes ago. If you hurry, you can still catch her.

Noah: Right, lets go! *the group runs off* Thank you, Mr. Raven!

Mercer: Thanks, Lambshank!

Ai: Thank you very much!

Aero: *she bows respectfully* Thank you. OK guys. Lets get 'em! *she runs for the alley, but slows when she reaches the mouth. Quietly, she pulls out her bladed wand and readies her trigger dagger.she puts a finger to her mouth and slowly makes her way down the alley*

*in the alley is 5 guys and the blonde girl. She is standing there, her hand on her hip, smiling.*

Guy: So, you're really going to take care of all of us?

Alisona: Oh yeah....I'll take care of all of you....*she holds up her hands. Suddenly, small threads restrain the boys, causing them to be held like bugs in a web. On her fingers are fingerless gloves with the threads coming from each knuckle and wrapping around each finger. She walks over to the boys and bites her thumb, causing blood to come out* Now you boys are gonna get something amazing...*she drops a drop of blood into each of their mouths. The boys begin to thrash violently and then stop. When they look up, their eyes are black, like they are under hypnosis* Good little Blood Thralls....Now go to Warehouse 46.

Thralls: *they are released and begin to walk back to the Warehouse district of the Capital City*

Alisona: Easy pickings....

Noah: *whispering to Aero* That was Blood Magic! So Maleficarum are behind this!

Aero: *she shudders* so... how should we go about doing this?

Mercer: We have her by surprise. If we attack now, it'll give away that we're here. I say we tail her and find their base. Then we infiltrate and take the blood mages out.

Noah: Good plan.

Ai: There can't be that many.

Alisona: *she follows the Thralls out of the city*

Mercer: There she goes. Move it, tidbits! *they sneak off to follow her*

Aero: *she too follows the girl*

*after about an hour of sneaking and walking, they arrive at Warehouse 46. Alisona opens the door, the Thralls following closely behind. She walks in and closes the doors*

Alisona: BOSS SHURIKEN! SETH! I'M BACK!

Seth: *he walks out and pull down his hood* there you are! Sheesh, more guys?! why can't you bring in some hot female Thralls?

Alisona: I can't help it that guys like me! *she and Seth are glaring at each other when a pair of fingers snapping shuts them up*

Shuriken: *he is sitting on a crate with his elbow on his knee and his head resting on his fist. The urn he uses is sitting next to him where his free arm is resting* Knock it off, you morons. Master Volsung is here....*behind him is a tall Celestio-Sapian man with a red mask similar to Arch Mage Savanos's blue mask. His robes are torn and red with lighter, blood red stains on them. There is a mist coming off him, like he is too cold for the surrounding area. He glances around. Standing around the warehouse are at least a hundred or so Thralls*

Volsung: Very good, my young pupils. This amount should be plenty. I will have them transported to the base. You all will be greatly rewarded. Shuriken, Master Vokun will be especially pleased with you.

*outside, the group and Aero had been by a window, watching and listening to everything*

Noah: Volsung.....why does that name sound so familiar....

Mercer: It should. Back when the College was first founded, it was in a long war with the Blood Mages' forces. The leaders were Celestio-Sapian blood mages that were called the Bloody Priests. Volsung of the Bloody Ice and Vokun of the Bloody Flame were two of the Priests. But...they were beaten by the Arch Mage years ago...

Ai: They must have survived somehow....Aero, what should we do? Should we storm in and attack or sneak in and try to take them by surprise?

Aero: *she looks back into the window* Surprise i hink is our only real friend...

Noah: Alright....

Mercer: I see a broken window on the other side of the building that is only a short hop away from some crates. Perhaps that is our best bet?

Ai: I think it might be.

*a shadow moves behind them, but then disappears. The only flash visible by anyone other than the Aura Wake team was a lynx-print tail.*

Noah: Lets go then! *he and the others sneak over to the window and climb through, landing on the crates softly enough that they were not heard.*

Aero: *She spreads he wings slightly when she goes through the window, so she lands with no sound whatsoever. She takes a deep breath and focuses*

*as soon as Mercer takes a step, he nearly trips. His foot had just touched a thin wire. Alisona looks up and pouts*

Alisona: We've got company...

Seth: Oh boy! A fight maybe?!

Shuriken: Don't get your hopes up, Seth...

Volsung: This is disappointing. I will leave them to you, Shuriken.

Shuriken: Yes, Master Volsung.

Volsung: *blood red snow comes out of nowhere and swirls around him. When it clears, he is gone.*

Shuriken: *to Alisona* Well, don't just stand there. Stop them.

Alisona: Alright, alright! Jeez....*she jumps up onto the crates and lands about 40 large crates away from the group* Well well well! Little rats got into our warehouse!

Noah: Crap! Spotted!

Ai: Not good....

Mercer: She's alone. I think we can take her....

Aero: *she peeks out from behind the crates, making sure to not be seen, and looks around. She sees Shuriken and her face turns a bright shade of red. She shakes her head, ridding herself of the blush before anyone could notice, and focuses on the mission* What should we do...?

Alisona: so then, whose first!?

Mercer: *he summons his blades and charges* You're dead meat, morsel!

*right as Mercer slices, his blade is blocked by a hand covered in crystallized blood that looks like a bladed claw. Seth now has his two blood claws in a deadlock with Mercer*

Seth: You look strong, ya jerk! I wanna fight ya!

Mercer: Ha! Bring it on, ya bloody lambshank!

*the two of them begin to slice away at each other, countering each slice with a slice of their own. It seems that Mercer and Seth, on terms of speed and strength, were pretty much equal.*

Alisona: Stupid Seth! I wanted to fight him! *she pouts and stamps her foot. Then she looks over at Ai and Noah* I guess you two will have to do! *the threads on her fingers shine in the light as she readies to fight*

Shuriken: *he finally speaks loud enough that everyone can hear him. His voice is fairly deep, yet has a bit of a chime-like melody to it* Alisona, leave the Celestio-Sapian boy alone. I want him.

Noah: ME!?

Shuriken: Its not every day that a Celestio-Sapian crossbreed like myself gets to fight a fellow crossbreed. *he stands up and places the urn on the ground.* I believe our people's customs dictate that I introduce myself. Shuriken Romana, blood mage.

Noah: Noah Marcusson. Battle Mage.

Shuriken: Good. I find your etiquette refreshing! Now, lets begin, shall we? *he opens the urn and claps his hands together in a prayer form* Crimson Tide. *the urn shakes and out flows an ocean of blood. The crates that everyone is standing on become buoyant and start to bob as if they were in the ocean. Shuriken is standing on top of the blood's surface as if the surface was solid while Noah stands on a crate*

Noah: Wow.....is this all...?

Shuriken: Blood. This is all the blood I gather from my foes. As a Crossbreed, I don't have an infinite blood supply like other Celestio-Sapian blood mages. So, I created this urn with a temporal warp spell and more defense spells and wards than any normal mage would need. With it, I can store countless gallons of blood to make up for my genetic cripple.

Noah: On any normal circumstance, I would find that awesome....but right now that seems more threatening than awesome....

Shuriken: Then you're smarter than most that fight me. *he holds up his hand and blood flows around it. as it spins, it gains velocity and suddenly bursts into red flames* I am a mage of the Bloody Flames. Show me what you got, Noah Marcusson.

Noah: *he holds his staff at the ready and a few fireballs form around him. He smiles and points the staff up* I CALL UPON YE THE ENVOY OF FLAMES! ATRONOCH OF FIRE, COME FORTH! FUEGO!

*out from the fireballs around him comes a female figure with fire sparking. Her whole body is made of flames and her eyes are cinders. On her frame is red Daedric metal armor.*

Noah: Meet Fuego, my Flame Atronoch!

Fuego: *she is floating in the air, lounge style. She yawns loudly, as if Noah was boring her*

Shuriken: An Atronoch Battle Mage?! Now this is a treat!

Fuego: *she floats over to Noah and cracks him comedically upside the head* What do you want, ya brat? I was on a date with my boyfriend and now you call on me?!

Shuriken: *a sweat drop forms on his head* ......

Noah: ;_; ow! Oh come on, Fuego! I'm sorry! I just need some of your help fighting this guy!

Fuego: Shut up, ya brat, before I burn ya alive!

Aero: *she is perched on top of a crate, wings out slightly to keep balance. She stares at her reflection in the blood then looks up to watch Noah ad\nd Shuriken's battle* COME ON NOAH! KICK HIS ASS!!!

Fuego: *she hears Aero and turns, yelling at her* SHUT UP, YA ANNOYING PARROT!

Noah: *he looks over and sees Alisona moving towards Ai* Aero! Ai's in trouble! The blonde is going after her!

Shuriken: *he glances up at Aero. Suddenly, he feels his face getting hot. The way her wings are bent out, the way her eyes gleam in the light, he felt as though he was looking at an angel. He almost looses his concentration on his blood fire when he shakes his head to snap out of it.* No....*he points his hand at Noah* CRIMSON BLAZE! *a torrent of blood flame flies out from the fire ring on his hand and flies at Noah*

Noah: *he turns in time to see the flames* FUEGO!

Fuego: Ugh! Fine! *her legs disappear into a wispy, genie like tail and she wraps one arm around Noah, grabbing his arm lightly with the other arm.*

Noah: *flames spin around him and he points his staff at the torrent* FLAME WALL! *his normal flames form a massive wall even stronger than the ones he did before*

Shuriken: Impressive. My Bloody Flames are strong enough to pierce wards, yet you blocked them with a Fire Wall spell?

Noah: Atronoch Battle Mages are able to have the Atronochs boost their magical power and supply. With Fuego out here, I think I can take you just fine, Shuriken.

Shuriken: I see. Well then, let me go all-out then! *blood from the blood ocean begins to swirl around him, making a large blood flame ring around his body* CRIMSON BLITZ! *The blood flames engulf him and he rockets up into the air. He then flies right at Noah at high speeds with a lot of fire power behind him*

Noah: Anything you can do, I can do better! Fuego!

Fuego: You annoy me, brat....but fine.

Noah: *using Fuego and his energy, flames wrap around him in a cloak of fire* FLAMING COMET! *he flies right up at Shuriken, staff pointed ahead, and the two fireballs collide. *

Mercer: *he is jumping from crate to crate, looking around* Damn that bloody lambshank! after that ocean of blood showed up, he jumped in and disappeared for a while.....He can't stay down there forever, but still....he's been in that blood without surfacing his head for a while. Only thing that could be his was a red crystal shark fin that cut a crate near me clean in half....*suddenly, Seth explodes out from the blood covered in blood crystal armor. On the head, feet, hands, and back are blades that look like fins as well has his blood claws. He spins like a drill and tries to tackle Mercer, which would cleave him in half. Mercer sees him coming and uses his blades to block. The two deadlock and Mercer flings Seth back into the blood*

Seth: *his head comes out and he shakes blood off his face.* No way! How the hell did you block that, ya jerk!? Knowing Warlocks, you would have gone for the Bound Shield or something!

Mercer: After seeing you break apart a crate just by swimming calmly, I figured that attack would pierce any armor I'd use. I bet you were counting on that. So, I instead used a slash of my own to deflect you instead of full-out tanking the attack. Face it, I ain't going down, tidbit.

Seth: Oh yes you are, ya jerk!

Alisona: *she is walking calmly towards Ai, her strings at the ready* I'm gonna slice that pretty little face of yours up real nice...

Ai: *he knees wobble from fear, but she keeps her wards ready* I-I-I won't give u-u-up!

Alisona: I can already tell just from looking at you that you're a support mage. You don't have any attacks, there fore how can you even hope to beat an opponent if you have no attack spell? *she whips her strings at Ai. The strings glance off the ward harmlessly* What?! Strong wards...

Ai: I m-may be a Support Mage, b-but I can take a-anything you throw at me!

Alisona: You'll still run out of magic energy eventually if you keep the wards up. Me, I'm not using magic right now. These strings are just weapons. *she keeps whipping at Ai* I'm gonna whip you till you're magic runs dry and you beg for mercy!

Aero: *she jump crate to crate, landing in front of Ai.* You leave her alone. *she turns to Ai.* I won't let her do anything to you. *turning back to Alisona, she draws her bladed wand. Aero narrows her eyes and growls* Will you back me up Ai?

Ai: Got it, Aero! Acuteness! *she points her hands at Aero and a red aura forms on Aero, increasing her attack power* Mage Armor! *blue aura now forms on Aero as well, increasing her defense. With this new purple aura, Aero was more defended and had higher attack power*

Alisona: Hmmmmm? A cute little birdy come to play? *she whistles and out from the crates crash 2 coffins. The coffins spring open and standing there are two bodies in Chinese kung fu cloths with black cloth covering their eyes. She pricks her fingers with her teeth and red strings of blood come out, the strings on her left hand attaching to the left body and the right to the right body. She moves her fingers like a puppeteer and the bodies spring to life, walking in a robotic fashion like puppets* Bloody Marionettes! Kill them! *she moves her fingers and the bodies both fly at Aero*

Mercer: *he is leaping from crate to crate, dodging Seth as he flies at Mercer. Mercer then jumps up and summons Crux and Volmat* CRUX! VOLMAT! GIVE ME SOME COVER!

*the two demons appear on the rafters of the warehouse, far up from the blood ocean*

Crux: Right!

Volmat: I hate taking orders, but fine! *the two begin to rain fireballs down at Seth*

Seth: *he looks up and gets hit by a fireball, which flings him a few feet. Another fireball hits him, causing him to keep getting flung by explosions* NO FAIR! GETTING HELP IS NO FAIR!

Mercer: FAIR THIS, LAMBSHANK! *he makes his Bound bow appear and aims a Fel Flame arrow at Seth. He fires, hitting Seth square in the chest. The explosion flings Seth into a wall*

Seth: *he hits the wall with force, but looks back at Mercer. He dives back into the blood and swims with great speed at Mercer. He leaps up and goes right over Mercer. The fireballs that were trailed on him explode, causing Mercer to be flung into the blood as well*

Mercer: *he opens his eyes to see he is under the blood. He looks around in time to see Seth jet right at him and punch him in the face. Only this time, Seth had no armor on. Mercer begins to think and them realizes whats happening* ~The blood! He can't form hardened blood armor while swimming! He has to put the body part he wants to form above the blood's surface!~ *he smiles and tanks the next punch. He then grabs Seth by the neck and launches himself out of the blood using Fel Flames from his feet. He lands in the rafters and is dangling Seth above the blood* You jumpy, slippery little bastard....I got ya now. *he begins wailing on Seth, sending punches into Seth's face and body.* If I cut ya, you'll use the blood as a weapon! Not gonna happen, tidbit!

Shuriken: *he breaks the deadlock and leaps over Noah. As he does, his crimson flames lick around Noah, burning him*

Noah: Gah! *he clutches his calf, seeing it was burned he feels a weird sensation under the wound, though* What is this?...it feels like my blood is...

Shuriken: That's right. My Bloody Flames are more than just cool looking. They cause the blood inside a wound to boil, inflicting further burn damage.

Noah: *he grips it and then remembers a spell his father taught him* I hate using this...but I have no choice....Icy Wind! *a small amount of Ice magic causes the boiling to stop and the burn to stop feeling too painful* Ha......

Shuriken: Very resourceful! *the blood around him rises up above his head and forms burning clouds* Crimson Storm! *Blood red fire flies out from the clouds and right at Noah*

Noah: *he remembers Tolfdeir's lesson on Flame Wall* ....it can absorb flames! Fuego, help me channel!

Fuego: Work work work! that's all I ever do! *the two of them channel a flame wall large enough to block the flames. Suddenly, the fire storm is absorbed by the Flame Wall and the wall grows larger and stronger. The heat off it is so intense, the blood ocean begins to boil*

Noah: EAT THIS! FLAME WALL! *he launches the wall at Shuriken*

Shuriken: *he calls the urn up from the blood ocean and tries to use it to block. The wards on it glow* YOUR SPELL WON'T BREAK MY URN'S WARDS, MARCUSSON! *suddenly, the urn begins to crack* WHAT?! *the urn shatters and the blood begins to evaporate. Shuriken is hit by the full force of the Flame Wall and is flung back into a wall, leaving a giant dent in said wall* GAH! HOW....DID....YOU?! *he passes out and falls to the ground. Just then, a thud is heard and Seth lands right next to Shuriken. Mercer drops down and lands next to Noah, dusting his hands off*

Mercer: Glad to see ya got through it, Noah!

Noah: You two, Mercer! *the two fist bump and look over at Ai and Aero's fight* Should we help?

Mercer: Nah, Aero can take that werewolf chick easy.

~Outside the warehouse~

*sitting on a crate outside the warehouse is Morpheus. One of his staffs is leaning against his shoulder. Justice approaches, almost surprised to see Morpheus*

Justice: Morpheus Hellheim. What are you doing here?!

Morpheus: The Arch Mage sent me to make sure the kids wouldn't have any trouble.

Justice: Ha! YOU?! All I see is you sitting on a crate, doing nothing, which is all you Spell-Dogs are good for! Tell me, what have you done here that is so worth- *before he can finish, a red cloth blows past him. Its a cloth from Blood Mage robes, and its torn up and destroyed. Behind Morpheus is hundreds of blood mage tatters and a pile of hundreds of Blood Mages and Thralls, all unconscious by either being asleep or paralyzed. Justice's eyes widen and he backs up speechless* You.....did this?!

Morpheus: I made sure the kids' fight would go uninterrupted by Volsung's reinforcements. Now, are you going to interrupt them?

Justice: I'm not dumb enough to pick a fight with one of the S-Ranks without another Ten Commandments member with me....I'm out of here! *he whistles. Jackal rides up and he jumps on, taking off for the Space port*

Morpheus:.....and good riddance.

Aero: *her smirk turns into a semi-insane grin* So you like to play with dolls? How stereotypical for a little baby~ *She launches several bolts of lightning at the marionettes, trying to stun them. She immediately starts to charge a large bolt of thunder then launches it too* How about growing up and playing with real toys! not little dolls!!!

Alisona: *the marionettes get shocked, but after convulsing a bit they both dodge the large bolt. Alisona leaps out of the way, only to have the blood strings attached to the right one cut.* Crap! *she makes the left marionette charge at Aero while she tries to regain control over the right one. The right marionette tries to punch Aero, but Ai jumps in the way and uses a ward to block. She then closes her eyes and the ward points like a spearhead, driving through the marionette's arm. The marionette is forced to back up by Alisona* No way! Making a repelling spear head using a ward on your arm?! Impossible!

Ai: *around her is an aura consisting of blue, red, and yellow. Speed, Attack Power, and armor on her are all up. She runs at the left and puts her hand in a spear formation, causing the point on the ward to sharpen. She punches through the marionette's chest, causing it to disintegrate. The left, now with only one arm, appears behind Ai, about to strike her* AERO!

Aero: JUMP! *she drops down to her hands and windmills, sending the one armed marionette crashing into a wall. as soon as she stands, she charges an ice spear and launches it at Alisona*