Clairomagno’s Footnotes in the Search of Token Scarcity (Bronzian Drafted: Translated)

“There is something in my heart I cannot move nor throw away. May my arms be strong for rip and tear, and let my flesh be weak to be ripped and torn. I thought it was ridiculous that pain could ever consume the soul, yet here I am as proof. Let the moon be ugly tonight so I can stop thinking of tomorrow’s sun.”

It was a dance of light against the darkness, the moon hanging in the sky, big, bright, and beautiful, and its light has never been so violent. It was a moment to moment sound, a roar of thunder, ear shattering pressure, a fragile crack. They heard screams, and it’s loud, multiple, and all at once silenced. Similarly, monsters—namuhs, are twice as loud, multiple, but unlike the screams, they were not at all quiet.

Their body would’ve turned to retreat, but they were never built for that. So, they ran towards it, weapons ready and pollum in their veins. Their arrival was inelegant, but they arrived nonetheless.

The post was in chaos, dwellers left and right fighting for their lives. Earth dwellers protected those they could, summoning shields from the ground below, then area specific seismic waves, which temporarily staggered the namuhs. Bolts of lightning reigned from above, but most came from callused hands—darting out from human fingers, paralyzing all that approached, only for the paralyzed beasts to be hit by a barrage of fire balls, which were enlarged, spread, and redirected by blasts of wind—the namuh were more than a bit singed. Water soon came, putting out the fires that reached the buildings.

Retaliation followed, for the beasts showed a rise in aggression. While there were many dwellers, it was evident that their numbers were greatly reduced, and so was their strength. The namuhs came in droves, too many to count, where if one died it wouldn’t make a fraction of a difference.

Scarlet’s eyes darted around, calculating, a twinkle of recognition. There were five namuh types in their vicinity. Luckily, they were experienced with their kind. However, the namuhs sheer number prevented the girls from steamrolling the assault. But luckily, the environment was on their side today.

Tall buildings and houses were in close proximity to each other; they could get an eagle eye view of the post, as well as quickly navigate from one side to the other of its inner sanctums. They got to work, adrenaline in their veins as they finished the namuh with OU-like finesse.

Alodia as always took the tallest spot of the area for a full 360° view to deliver the quickest of snipes. Cassandra and Scarlet made a beeline for a couple of slow, but large Maalatgens. Its stomps shook the walls, crumbling the post’s defences, however, the earth dwellers counteracted with a series of familiar hand signs, stabilizing the earth below to raise them back up, stone around its cracks.

Cassandra skated using her ice loops to deliver swift scalpel-sharp swipes at its most vulnerable parts, covering all degrees, while Scarlet chucked her scythe into the cut up flesh, angling it sharply. The namuh attempted to shake her off, flailing its entire body, but her sneakers anchored well with the maalatgen’s armoured skin that circled even down to its belly, scales thick and rugged, jutting out in a decorative manner—a touch of beauty against its monstrous nature.

She pulled a trigger that released a high speed hookshot towards Cassandra’s newly created ice wall. The strong recoil pulled her, and only her, towards the wall, for the namuh’s body was split in half, its bloody guts exposed, before quickly disintegrating into shards.

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Azazel and Tricia were in another part of the map, dealing with the faster, high double digit hordes. Warphas were easily identified by their wolf-like features, save for their horse-like size and open stomachs, where their yellow ribs were in full display, dripping a dark red liquid, creating a disturbing harsh contrast. They stand above graves, shards in its place. It was a reminder—a human death akin to the namuhs, caused by the namuhs, nothing to differentiate them from the beasts, besides the clothes they leave behind.

Tricia strategically threw a new set of origami plane bombs, shifting from one building to another to avoid collateral damage. Azazel took care of those left unharmed, utilizing the chain to extend past her targets, catching the warphas into a headlock, pulling the chain tighter to steady it further, then stabbing their chests with the two bladed ends of her spear, dirty fur hiding iridescent stones infused with their flesh. While Tricia was readying another set of bombs, Azazel dealt with the other hordes.

First, she coated her blades with a liquid from a bottle, its inscription illegible: ‘Han’s g...po...r [d... no....ch]’, it said. Then, she moved past them in incredible speed, violently spinning the double edged spear, her grip tight on the chain. Her blades hit most of her targets; however, they didn’t pierce through their armor flesh. With a call from Tricia, who vaulted over to another building, Azazel made haste to join her.

Tricia got into position, one familiar to Azazel. A professional sportsman's javelin-like throw instantaneously wiped out the sliced horde, an explosion that a single origami plane couldn’t have caused, “Always works like a charm.” Azazel said, grinning.

“Indeed, but please, just ask for permission next time.” Tricia sighed, wiping the cold sweat from her brow.

“Can’t make any promises. Besides, am I really your teammate if I don’t attempt to surprise you?”

“Your attempts are getting more predictable, and incredibly destructive. Maybe something more pleasant next time?” Tricia hopped to another building, utilizing her strings to swing across a larger gap. “However, I’ll keep that in mind if by any chance you happen to be replaced by a clone.”

Alodia had her sights set on the Tulongluha. It was long, its body draconic, and it moved with the fluidity of water. It would split its body in half, and curve around any attempted swings and elemental projectiles. The fire and lightning dwellers were the most equipped to fight it in this case—but occasionally the beast showcased some level of intelligence, or at least developed an understanding of the dwellers’ plans. Eyes, inhuman and prey-like, a pale green, littered its body, blinking, darting, and all-seeing. However, some areas, with the discoloration of its see-through lids, were no doubt the result of the dwellers’ onslaught. However, it was far from dead.

First shot, missed, hit the ground instead. Second shot, grazed its translucent armor. Third shot, three eyes down all in one go, blue blood squirting out. It writhes, then attempts to pull itself up, stretching its full height, taller than the walls surrounding them, but not as tall as the building she was on. Her fourth and final shot was found straight in its beating heart, just below its face. The explosion of iridescent shards became a temporary rain, a namuh trait that is all at once beautiful and horrific.

Team CASTAL darted around the place, helping those they could. Dwellers took notice, but they did not halt their assault just to catch a glimpse of those who fought with them, lest they lose focus where a well-placed strike from one of the creatures could mean the end of them.

It was a slow and arduous process of elimination. But finally, the siege seized, the fiends annihilated. The streets, rooftops, and the rooms with open windows drowned in shards, reaching past the ankles. Many regrouped to high ground, while others took refuge in the shard filled streets, searching for clothes stained with blood, for there was no body to be left behind. They scavenged through the shards, piecing the belongings left behind before being thrown into a wicker basket.

They heaved shards into the cauldron—where, once lit, swirled into a fire that grazed the few clouds that blocked the heavens.

Together, their lips moved in prayer. There, her name goes again—Goddess Amnesia.