It started all the same as any other night in Northend. The sky was darkened, its winds cold and unforgiving, the snowing clouds making no situation outside in the wilderness any better. Whenever a certain amount of time passed without the weather changing, a good night's sleep was guaranteed for them; and so they lowered their guards. With complete surprise to them, their camp got blown to pieces by a raging snowstorm.
Alana saved Godrick just in time, grabbing hold of him before flying away.
His eyes bulged out slowly when he began to comprehend the situation. His face became hysteric within reason as he floated in the air held by Alana's clasp. No one could prepare to wake up in such a manner; it did, however, cause him to reach for his personal texts and Grimoire securing them before they were forever lost. Alana, in the meantime, pushed through the storm; stabbing her sword at an awkward forward angle to push herself and Godrick onwards. They were inching to the only mountain and cave that remained in sight, seeking refuge in its strong natural rock walls; a barrier against the cold of the storm.
Pressing onwards, the storm proved too much for Alana who collapsed from a rising fever. Exhaustion was present in her, due to acting like a weight for both, once she fell it was Godrick who took the torch. He grasped her waist, grateful that her compact, muscular build of around five feet two inches could be lifted effortlessly thanks to his near six-foot height. They were still buffeted by the blizzard's storm and snow --so Godrick chanted. Channeling the invisible power of mana that he had begun to sense through his words and motions.
The power built up from his diaphragm to the stomach, then the heart; and throughout the whole process his body became numb. Its Feedback is still a problem he thought, acting unstable while functioning, and the pains happening for reasons not yet understood. He did notice that the more he cast any spell, the fewer obstructions he felt while manipulating certain parts of his body.
'Mana Sphere', was the name of the spell in question, it worked by admitting the symbols for mana through whatever magic language one spoke.
It acted like a variation on the even simpler Arcane bolt, the reason being its conversion from the word Mana to Mannae in the primect. His hands could be seen moving in countering, clockwise circles the final chanting of the words, "Balior Mannae encant", activating the construct of the spell.
The properties of the sphere became apparent quickly enough. To Godrick it was as if an invisible barrier had been formed; in Alana's mystical sight, she could see two opposite winds, rotating bluish energies that opposed the other's direction. Somehow they still existed congruently, despite their opposing forces. And it acted as a shield against the buffeting snow, it's biting cold unable to penetrate inside.
He continued Alana now on his shoulder and the cave nearby to their position. He stepped inside excusing her towards the floor whilst procuring some wood and kindling from the bag strapped to the right of his Grimoire. A hand passed through the front bangs of his brown hair, all the way to the back of his head, he looked at the logs noticing he lacked the flint required for sparks. He did not lets this stop him, however, he muttered a low chant in the primect towards the makeshift campfire. 'Fieru' and embers flew from the tip of his fingers towards the logs.
Instantly, the kindling caught fire from the excess of sparks and combusted the logs. Alana now looked calmer away from the chilling winds and closer to a fire her refusal to coat herself properly had been her undoing in this case. After she stated that her Northern Blood would not allow her to bundle herself heavier he tried to explain acclimitization to her in failure. Uninterested in his explanations sure of her Blood, she had not stopped shivering since coming to.
Hours passed and still the storm refused to desist, a yawn escaped from Godrick's mouth and he looked towards his companions her fever broke fairly quickly and her color had become less pallid. She rested comfortably on the ground as he guarded over her beggining to drift through the sands of sleep himself. It was late now, his eyelids heavy with sleep, hand on his left cheek he swayed unsteadily. Finally, he fell to the sands; sleep gracing him to the realm of dreams.
But his rest would not come yet, the echoing of the cave resounded with the original owner of the cave's roar. A large bear walked in ferocious and bestial, its face filled with scars down to its massive body. Godrick woke immediately, sleep becoming less important to him as he conjured four highly condensed blue streaks that pierced into the bear yet dissapeared the wounds with barely trickle of blood escaping them. "ROaARgh" the projectiles had frightened it for all of a second, before it pounced nimbly towards Godrick, its speed and grace terrifying the lone Pilgrim. A slap from its paw pushed him across the cave and into a wall, its claws not only impacting him with force but leaving a gash on his robes and chest. Blood spewed from his mouth as it trickled from his chest.
"Blergh" The vile mix of blood and puke left him winded and Godrick felt a fear unknown enter him. 'No' he tought this could not be how his story would end, he was merely in the begginings of his pilgrimmage the secrets he sought still far away from his grasp.
Expecting to meet the face of the bear head on he wearily lifted his head, still gasping from the blow. Instead he saw as it curiously poked at the unconscious Alana, a sense of duty came upon him at this sight. He stood up immediately the air around him humming with power as he channeled his energies into his words and movements. The bear's maw was about to bite into his companion mouth wide as it was to clamp its jaws upon her. 'Mana Sphere', was cast and its mouth deflected from the invisible shield. Godrick hummed exhaustedly his reserves nearly spent from lack of rest, the bear striking furiously at the sphere confused as to why it could not bite upon the vulnerable prey in front of it. Each of its strikes would exhaust the emptying reserves of mana that the Pilgrim still contained within, unable to measure how much was still left, he began to panic throwing a barrage of 'Arcane bolts' aimed at the only spot he could Identify as a weakpoint its head.
"Come at me, you foul smelling scabies infested, mongrelling vermin." The heat in his voice spread through him, his leftover mana cycling potently in his body. Any obstruction inside of him broke down, joining the cycle that fed his vessel.
Comprehension dawned on the Bear a furious roar of anger erupting from the beast. With a single jump it bounded towards the pilgrim who was casting once more, each hand thrumming with the powers of mana. Godrick had tapped into the fruits insights with the experience of life and death nearing, its madness was the least of his worries so he embraced it allowing a flood of doubt to attack his mind.
'Useless' the first of the onslaught came, 'worthless oathbreaker' they stacked on him now, 'unworthy, unliked, a disheartened fool chasing after dreams of inconsequence, you are nothing but a callous youth whose oath was as fragile as his faith. Death would be a blessing to one such as me' They came endless, attacking every point that he could not stomach.
'your village, the elder, the community, your people, your family, mother and father dead at your worthlessness' all of his unresolved traumas came back to hound him. 'Give in, the best you will ever do is become the waste of a beast such as this ursine. Become useful for once in your life and let yourself become mulch to nurture nature, so that you can finally contribute something to this horrid world.' The thoughts were dark, scathing, and derisive a true blow to one's ego. Godrick was close to losing himself before noticing a madness creep upon the entirety of the chamber, the bear ever closing in on him.
"Balior Mannae encant, Arcan flem Mannae, Fier ir ru Mannae" His shield came first, halting the bear's attack and repelling its foul breath as it foamed at the mouth, foamy saliva dripping from it jaw. Arcane bolt was formed but he halted its release by holding the last hand gesture. His last one was an incantation he had practiced for the longest time, completely new if you excluded its origins on the elders incanting. It was not a true spell yet but a mere Proto-spell a cantrip that barely wasted mana. But with the addition of some supplanting words and the inclusion of Mannae into its construct a more concentrated burn of explosive force was created.
Three consecutive spells were cast one to deflect, one to attack, and one to support. The flame pushed behind the Bolt and an explosive force was felt, the shield shattering unable to resist the bears attacks and the explosion created by the supporting cantrip. For the first time the bear was pushed back, the spell had been aimed at its stomach since it remained standing as it swiped with its claws. It was pushed past the flames towards the spot were Alana once lay falling onto its back with a pained whimper.
"Aooaahuu!" It's cries were filled with a pain that had dug through its think hide and fur the spell having pierced deeply into its chest.
The sound of cutting wind was heard, metal severing through flesh and bone, and cutting deeply into the stone floor beneath the bear. The beast itself remained lifeless, decapitated as its lifeblood drained on the floor. Alana had woken her fever broken and reitalized once more after her long rest, she looked at the beaten down and exhausted Godrick who was wobbly standing on his feet.
"Oh wow, I'm impressed Heretic. Ya darn managed to knock a Grizzler Ursine on its back. Ya sure, ya nearly half dead but good job." She gave him a thumbs up with the bear in her hand smiling at him pleasantly.
"Haha" a weak laugh escaped from him and it was his turn to rest as he fell on the floor exhausted beyond all belief.
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"That is what you recall as a hard one, we nearly died you brute." Godrick said as he stoked the dying flames of the fire with a wave of his hands and a whisper of Fieru.
"Nonsense, ya damned pansy. I bundle up now and you solidated that there magic o your's no? Fair deal, errbody knows life and death battles hone the will and spirit ain't yer fancy magic depend on them." her reply came in a patronizing manner that would have irked anyone that did not know of her.
"All did end well and remains in the past so you are not without merit in your words." Conceeding to her statement he finished entering the account into his Grimoire.
"I believe, I have reached the limits of my wakefulness will you assume the first watch or should I?" Another yawn escaped him but he would happily light another fleurel and drink his latest potion that he had developed from a special brown bean that stimulated his blood flow.
"Or ya could come hither and gain warmth in my beddings. Flesh to flesh, heat on heat, the road has been hard no?" She pointed to her bedroll, giving him a surreptious giggle filled smirk.
"Thank you for the first watch." His reply came cooly already in his bedroll.
"Oh ya bore. Goodnight punk." Standing up and away from the fire she walked a small perimeter ending when she tossed another look at her companion.
Not brave but dutiful, uncomprimising yet considerated, changing yet constant he was a riddle alright but what person was not she thought. Laying back down she looked towards the stars her gaze happy as she stared at the Marni, following into the Cynthia and then the Mouse, there was another constellation next to it that was not discussed before. Her focus became concentrated, finally, she began being able to connect the stars slowly into the patterns that godrick had showed her and it locked into a serpentine yet bestial form. She felt power from it, unimaginable strength and hours seemed to pass as she stared at it; until finally her relief came.
"Its time did you already fall asleep star gazing Alana."
"Oh no thank ya, goodnight,"
"Goodnight my friend rest well."
"Yeah... thanks" She said quietly, her emotions stirred with a hunger from her glimpse of the beast.