It had taken some time to get into contact with some of the enslaved people in the closest city which used to be the capital of the Turtenani. Turns out sending tiny spiders as messengers was great until they got noticed and the flatted by whatever the recipient had on hand. From there we had the Turtenani we had saved communicate and galvanize their people. The plan had only a few moving parts as I was confident in my my ability to strong arm anything should the plan go awry.
We would be moving with most of the puppets with only the non-combatant support puppets following safely behind the main army. They would help to stabilize the city after liberation. I watched from a rocky protrusion as my army marched, the mismatched haphazard pieces we where scavenging from our enemies had been replaced by my glorious metal work. Our march had already stirred a response Anastasia's puppet spys had already confirmed that the other cities where mobilizing their armies to protect the central temple complex where their leader the Quetzal lived.
It was a reasonable idea to think we would march on their capital. However, I had no intention of doing that rather I would march upon the cities leaving a defensive garrison and a named puppet to protect.
Soon the city of the Turtenani came to view, and I saw grand walls with large gaps missing and parts crumbling under the weight of time. From what the forward scouts had reported the first rows of the city where nothing but ruins with nothing but there skeletons representing what had once been. According to the Turtenani this was mainly due to the city being built for a much larger population that they hadn't had since being conquered by the Scalefolk. The City was apparently built to house about 15,000 and some change but the population of the Turtenani was barely above a thousand.
I heard the ring of a bell as the Scalefolk warned of our advance. Although I could already heard sounds of the revolt from the poorly reconstructed gate. The Disciple simply kicked down the central gate, and the following push of the combat was laughably easy as the untrained Scalefolk found themselves caught on both sides.
Meanwhile I stood at the start of a grand temple, it reminded me of an Aztec ruin but in its hey-day the murals at the sides depicted the fall of the Turtenani. The Murals were inlaid on the stairs such that you could clearly look at the one a few steps ahead of you, brutal and bloody and as it showed several ways of torture and death.
The final step showed a single figure, a Scalefolk cloaked in feathers and a golden light behind him reviling in the gore.
"So you are the one behind my recent troubles?" A Scalefolk hissed. Looking up I saw a one richly adorned in gold and pure white clothes.
"Are you one of the Priestesses?" I asked her.
"Why would I answer that, if I say yes will you kill me?" The Scalefolk said hauntingly.
"Well if you don't Im gonna assume and kill you anyways" I deadpanned.
"Hmm, then yes I am one of the four Priestess of the Divine-Blooded Quetzal, and you shall die for the inconvenience you've caused" the Scalefolk hissed trying to get the drop on my as she sent a purple flare from her hands towards me. Rasing my shield so that way it covered my head I charged towards the Scalefolk. However she appeared to be nimble evading my charge and returning fire with twin lashes of the same purplish energy. Dodging one and blocking the other I twirled my longsword in one hand to distract her as I kicked into the floor with my left foot sending rock flying towards the priestess. Layering on a sword stroke as I continued my assault. She was fast and nimble and her serpentine body allowed her bend in directions that other enemies I had fought where incapable of.
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Even while dodging my attacks she continued to push with her own. I hadn't realized how dependent on magic I had become until after I had to fight without. My physical abilities were beyond superhuman but it was only half my wheelhouse. The Priestess sent a long slash of energy before following up with another strike right where I had been planning on moving towards.
The storm hit me in my side and although my armor was dented by the attack It held. Returning the favor I drew one of my daggers from my ring and When she wasn't ready threw it at her as hard as I could... Just to miss. Apparently I had overestimated my knife throwing skills. Pushing into the fro I sent a strike upwards and shield bash to try and catch her dodge however she had elected to set up a barrier.
...
[Aliment Active]
You have been inflicted with the rank Two aliment of [poisoned] due to an enemy skill
...
[Bloodline Trait Activated]
Your Bloodline Trait [Gorgon's Blood] has activated negating the aliment [poisoned]
...
Dismissing the notification I continued into my attack. She used the barriers sparingly moreso as a lady resort. Slashing upwards I attacked with a full thrust pushing forward as I was rewarded with a nick to her side as she slowed on the dodge.
Not letting up I transitioned into a slash shifting my feet as I slashed to side biting further into her side she retaliated with an arsenal of purple energy lashing outwards I had to pull back and block before I continued with my assault. We circled for a moment as we looked at each other trying to find weakness in our guard, me to attack, her to escape. I palmed my other dagger from my ring that I had packed I lobbed it as distraction knowing it would miss before moving into the attack. I moved past her shocking her until I twisted and brought my blade across the back of her knees right as she jumped to escape my wildly thrown knife.
Falling to the ground I put my foot on her back to stop her from moving.
"Now, I have some questions for you, are you going to be cooperative?" I asked her and she looked at me balefully.
"You're just going to kill me after you get your answers" She replied and I thought about for a moment, she was the one in charge of this... This place and I had no intention of leaving her alive. So unceremoniously as Liberated this city I was liberating her head from her neck.
...
[Tutorial Quest Update]
Kill the Quetzal: (0/1)
Kill the Priestesses:(1/4)
...
Dismissing the window I overlooked the city that was had calmed down. Apparently all of the Scalefolk in this city where soldiers or slave masters and had fallen either by the rebel Turtenani or the puppets.
Soon I found myself In a long ruined square the remaining Turtenani wearing cheering smiles as they where free.
...
In the Divine Realms, Noble's P.O.V
...
The constant ebb of the Scalefolk Ritual was like a perpetual itch but a minor one. I obviously agreed with Kien's plan of action considering we were kind of the same dude. Otherwise things were pretty chill, the Giants liked watching their kids spar against each other and reminded me of the Highschool Football dads.
However my concerns were different then theirs, firstly I had to prepare for some divine hunt, and two I had a new bit of paradox energy to forge with!
The Hunt would give me a understanding of where I was compared to the other daemons and it would also give me a great source of new material.
Speaking of new material I looked at constantly shifting piece of energy that was obviously foreign to this dimension. Paradox Energy didn't like staying in one state it would act like a cloud, a liquid, a solid, or even plasma rarely and so was a huge pain to store properly. Due to its connection to Lux this particular paradox energy had the appearance of a nebula, darkness with random blots of light that would randomly appear.
What to forge, what to forge? Thinking back on Lux's while pirate thingy I thought of something, a trident the perfect weapon for the high seas. Picking up the paradox energy I placed it into my forge and imbued order into chaos forcing it to stay in a solid shape. The energy resisted but as I brought my hammer down again and again the stubborn material was brought to heal. Once it turned into a metallic substance I began to the process of actually forging. Shaping the handle was easy enough but the trident prongs was a pain. Making sure that each end wasn't to thin otherwise it would snap and not to thick that it would top heavy. Slowly though I finished the weapon of the seas, a trident.
