The trail of the witch he had been hunting now was leading Ken into a place he would have rather avoided. As Ken looked ahead the look of the Blackened Forest ahead of him gave him a feeling of foreboding he couldn't quite explain. This forest was infamous for being in a constant state of darkness, obviously given away by its name. If this witch had chosen a place such as this to reside in, it was more than obvious she'd hold the advantage here, but he had no choice. When taking this bounty he thought it'd be fairly easy, so he decided to take half of his payment up front, and the other half after the deed was done. Seeing as he took this payment he was now bound to complete his task. Though he could have always decided to back down, he was never that type of person. When he gave his word, he kept it, and no amount of foreboding would make him go back on that. After all, all we really have in this world is our word. If you lose that, then you've lost everything. After regaining his bearings Ken finally moves forward into the forest, following the trail into the darkness.

As he got further into the woods it was apparent from the trail something was going on. He could see from the trail that something wasn't right, and the most likely guess was that this witch knew she was being followed. The footprints seemed to become erratic in their placement, as if she was now toying with him. Ken stopped his movements completely for a bit and took a look around. It he hadn't expected to be sniffed out so soon, but if the time for a fight had come he more than welcomed it...but not from the position he was in now. If this witch was aware of his whereabouts this wouldn't bode well for Ken at all, seeing as he wasn't aware of hers. The forest as well as being pitch black, was also silent. If he was going to find this witch he'd need her to make a sound before he did. Kneeling down slowly, Ken picked up a rock and surveyed his surroundings once more before he tossed the rock. It took a few seconds before a "knock" rang out, sounding as if the rock had hit a tree or some other wooden surface. If the witch reacted to this sound, hopefully she'd make a sound of her own afterwards, alerting him to her presence.


WC: 427

Cassandra had felt a presence following her for quite awhile now, but was unable to pinpoint the exact location. Meaning the person who was following her wasn't going to be a pushover. A thought came to her when she thought about her destination. What if she were to use the forest to reverse the situation and ambush him. The name of this area was the Blackened forest. It was constantly shrouded in darkness and even though normally people would have issues seeing in such a place she knew she wouldn't. After all she had access to fire magic at all times. Now the reason she was heading to such a place was to locate a certain item that had gained her interest and was hopefully going to fetch her a nice price or maybe if it was pretty enough she would keep it herself. Either way that came second after fighting whomever was following her and as it currently stood she was unsure if the person was a supporter, witch, or a witch hunter, but time would soon tell.

She grinned as she entered the dark forest and embraced the darkness. "Nova, light the path without too much light." The command was done without a response, but what had heeded the order was not to be seen. She had entered the forest around ten minutes ago now and decided now would be a fun time to play a trick on him she changed her tracks with magic changing the direction and pace of where she was really heading. She figured he/she would follow the tracks she had created and disappeared into the brush to lie in wait for him or her to pass and then proceed to attack.

Around five minutes passed before she began to hear the foot steps of whom she figured to be following her. It was a man. Meaning zero percent chance of being a witch. A smile formed as she figured her job just got a lot easier. "It is time for some fun!~" She said silently to herself in excitement. "Just be careful madame; There have been very powerful witch hunters that can fight on equal or better terms than witches."

What he did next confused her slightly as he picked up a rock and threw it into the forest ahead of him. It made a small knocking sound for a second and silence followed briefly and then the wild life once again began to make it's usual sounds. Apparently he was expecting something, but she was entirely unsure as to what. She waited for a minute before he started to move and she knew it was time to strike. "Tempest Flame's, I summon thy storm to strike the foe before me." A red circle of about a 10 foot radius appeared below Ken's feet. Lighting up the dark forest as it radiated a brilliant red light. The next second the circle erupted upwards in flame, burning all within the circle. "I won't take any chances." Cassandra said as she smirked throwing a red crystal into the fire pillar before her. "Nova, I'm being careful just like you said so answer my call and have some fun with me... If he is still alive that is...." Some of the trees were now on fire as well due to the spell she had cast, but that didn't bother her. At least if the entire forest burned down it wouldn't be dark anymore.

The crystal shattered in the flames, releasing a bright light that blinded just about anyone or anything if they looked directly at it. The light it produced only lasted for a second though and what appeared was a large beast that looked completely unearthly and fire spewed forth from it's jaw's. On it's left arm was a shield like object that was actually part of it's being, but it gleamed as if it was made from metal. The monster let out a large roar that could be heard for miles. "Ahh, it feels great to be in this form again. You should really let me out more often." The thing called Nova said. "Yeah, I would, but you stand out soooo much. I can't simply do that everywhere, otherwise every WH in the surrounding like 1489035739 miles would jump on me and I doubt we would win. Anyways for now let's focus on our prey shall we?~" The flames subsided revealing a silhouette of a person. Apparently the person had lived through her Tempest Flames, meaning he was not a normal person. She smiled as she realized this and knowing he would at least proved her with some fun. Nova did not wait for an order as he charged forth towards him. Nova raised it's fist and brought it down onto the enemy with a good amount of force.

Tempest Flames: 20 mana=40 damage
Nova Basic attack: 5 strength + 5 speed=10 damage


HP: 25
Strength: 25-5=20
Speed: 75-5=70
Stamina: 25
Mana/Energy: 100-20=80

WC:1,455

Ken remained in his crouched position as he waited for a sound to emanate from wherever the witch was if she decided to react. To his disappointment there was no sound other than the resounding wild life around him. He continued to stay crouched though, trying to discern where the witch could be hiding. But the feeling of her eyes on him stabbing him like daggers, he could almost tell she knew exactly where he was, and it was only a matter of time. While this thought and many others played through his head he was interrupted by a loud snap of a branch. Before he could stand up and give away his position and react to the snap, a white wolf ran past about a few feet ahead of him, scurrying off quickly as if to get away from something. He breathed in deeply and let out a sigh of relief, " I thought that was the Witc-", and almost on cue a bright light formed around him. Raising his hand to his face, he hoped to stop himself from being blinded before he took a look at the ground, only to notice a giant ring now surrounding him.

Acting quickly, Ken leaped into the air, trying to get out of the radius of the circle, but alas, it was far too late. An immense pillar of flames shot up from the ring, the blast soon making it's way to Ken's body. "Shit!", Ken quickly crossed his arms out in front of him before what appeared to be a large disc of water appeared out in front of his arms. The flames crashed into the shield, the water holding back the flames, yet the pressure of the immense attack sent Ken sprawling higher through the air as the flames of the attack died down. Going into a back flip, Ken attempted to regain his composure as he flew through the air, his feet soon impacting against a hard surface, the texture of which allowed him to assume it was the side of a rather large tree. Because of the light from the Witch's attack, he could tell the general location of where she was, though he wasn't 100% certain of where she was in that location. Using the momentum he had stored up from landing against the side of the tree, and his position high above the ground, he'd use this to leap off and attack from above, hopefully catching this woman off guard.

But as he looked up and tried to commence his plan, his eye's widened as he saw what was coming towards him. A gigantic fist flying at him through the darkness. Though he couldn't make out what exactly the fist belonged to, he was more than sure this was the doing of the Witch once again. Using his stored up momentum, Ken flipped over the fist a mere second before it crashed into the spot he was just at, shattering the tree as it were a mere pencil. While in his flip, Ken decided this would be the perfect time to mount an offensive, starting off with a counter-attack. His body still in the air above the creature's arm, Ken reached down and grabbed hold of it before spinning his body. Mustering all the strength he could into the spin, he could feel the beast's body spinning along with him before he let the creature go, throwing it down in the general direction of the Witch. Hopefully she'd be crushed under the weight of her own supporter. Deciding not to leave anything to chance though, just as it appeared she hadn't, Ken extended his right hand out in front of him, creating the shape of a "gun" with his fingers while his left hand gripped his right wrist. At the end of his index finger, a small sphere of water began to form before it grew larger and larger. The "gun" aimed at the direction that the beast had fallen soon fired. " Hydra's Revenge!". The large sphere of water soon shot forth off of his finger and hurtled through the air towards the Witch before it began to take on a metamorphosis, the sphere soon turning into a twin headed dragon composed completely of water. The dragon continued to make it's way through the air towards their foe before both heads opened their mouth, each forming a large sphere of water before shooting the blasts, both sphere's of water colliding in midair and combinig into an immense one. "Water Grenado!".

Blocked Tempest Flames: -40 stamina
Countered Nova's Basic Attack: -10 stamina to block - 10 stamina to counter = -20 stamina for a counter attack of 20 damage
Hydra's Revenge: Type: EFFECT, Allows the user to spend twice as many stats in 1 post through usage of the Dragon. (Meaning instead of a 20% limit on strength in mana yours is now 40%) The Dragon can also spit water to attack, allowing it to use Water Grenado. Since im level 10 it costs 5 mana a turn for three turns
Water Grenado: (After being amplified by Hydra's revenge) 60 mana = 120 damage


HP:20
Strength:0
Speed:0
Stamina:80 - 60 = 20
Mana/Energy:150 - 60 - 5 = 85





WC: 767

Cassandra watched in amazement as Nova was somehow flipped. In all honestly she could not believe what she was seeing. After all Nova weighed an immense amount and towered over humans and witches alike. Not only did he spin Nova, but also directed it towards her. In a split second Cassandra lifted her hand and chanted something under her breathe. "Nova get a hold of yourself." Nova crashed into an invisible wall which Nova slide down leaving Cassandra unharmed. The witch hunter wasn't done just yet either as he began to produce liquid from thin air. "Nova, activate mirage now." Nova returned to his feet. almost immediately upon the impact against Cassandra's defense. Without a reply the entire area began to heat up immensely within a split second. Nova was now entirely on fire and the air was starting to become very humid and then it happened. Cassandra split into two from Ken's perspective. She didn't waste time in attempting to move out of the way of the oncoming water dragons which now merged into one. However she was already gone and out of the way as it struck her fake and blew into the earth making a small crater where she once stood.

She walked back and examined the whole he made briefly. "I'm impressed... You have a lot of power for a mere human. If I didn't dodge that I might have died. On top of that you managed to spin Nova... Which defies all logic mind you." She was tired and from dodging that last attack and it probably wouldn't have been possible without the usage of mirage, which was still going. "You're probably feeling really hot aren't you? I doubt you've ever trained your eyes to see through mirages. Unlucky for you. Tempest Flames." Cassandra said non-nonchalantly surrounding the area the mean had landed so he was dead center once again. Even more trees were now on fire from the intense heat Nova was producing and the earlier fire from before had spread. "Nova we need to hurry before the forest is burned down. Go my supporter!" Cassandra lifted her arm and point towards the man who stood in the circle. Without looking Nova charged forth hoping to not allow the man anytime to recover from anything. Nova's fist once again was extended towards the man who was now caught in the blast of Tempest Flames once more.


Mirage activated(Halves dodging costs for the user.)-5 mana per turn active.
Tempest Falmes: 20 mana=40 Damage
Nova basic attack: 10 Damage
Blocked counter: Uses 20 stamina
Dodged Hydra+Grenado with mirage active: 60 speed

HP: 25
Strength: 25-5=20-5=15
Speed: 75-5=70-65=5
Stamina: 25-20=5
Mana/Energy: 100-20=80-25=55

WC:403

Ken could hear a loud bang as the gigantic supporter crashed into something, but he couldn't tell exactly what. All he could hope was that it handed on it's intended target. While he waited for his Water Grenado attack to land as well, he could see the gigantic supporter suddenly burst into flames, the flames enveloping it's body entirely. Ken could feel the shift in the temperature fairly quickly. It was now extremely stuffy, the air becoming so humid now that the light he could see emanating from the Witch's supporter was now becoming refracted. It seemed that Ken's Hydra was having a hard time with this refraction as well as it shot off it's attack, trying it's best to aim at whom it perceived as being the correct Witch and not merely a mirage.

Soon enough the Water Grenado attack slammed into the ground, causing a large explosion, one which Ken hoped desperately had finally put an end to his foe as he landed on the forest floor. Though this fight had been going on for merely a few minutes, it seemed as if it had been dragging on for hours and all he wanted now was a conclusion. He could feel himself growing weak, his stamina dwindling but he managed to keep his composure. He waited for a few minutes in the darkness, staying on the defensive. He couldn't afford to underestimate this foe, as it seemed he did that in the beginning. He allowed himself to be ambushed, and he needed to make sure it didn't happen again. If it did, he wasn't so sure he'd be able to survive.

A few more minutes passed and soon a sigh of relief passed Ken's lips, followed by him dropping his defensive stance. But almost as if a cruel joke was being played, he heard his enemy begin to speak. "I'm impressed... You have a lot of power for a mere human. If I didn't dodge that I might have died. On top of that you managed to spin Nova... Which defies all logic mind you.". As his foe spoke these words, Ken could feel a cold sweat roll down his forehead. The feeling of foreboding he head felt prior to even entering this dark, forsaken forest returned all at once. Ken inhaled sharply and exhaled slowly, calming the fear that managed to rise in him once again and letting it all go. Though fear was something that every human held, it was also something that Ken loathed. Fear is a disease that eats away at logic and reason. Allowing fear to grab hold of you is crippling... debilitating. He could never allow anything to control him in such a way. If today was the day he was to die, he'd do so with no fear. But as long as he was able to stand on his own two feet and held an ounce of will in his body he'd fight

As Ken prepared to follow the voice, the Witch spoke once more. "You're probably feeling really hot aren't you? I doubt you've ever trained your eyes to see through mirages. Unlucky for you. Tempest Flames.". As these last words were spoken, the forest lit up in a bright light once again, and for a few moments it allowed Ken to see the devastation the forest was in. The devastation was terrifying, yet at the same time phenomenal. Though not only did the light allow him to see the damage of this battle, but it also allowed him to see his attacker for what Ken would have to assume would be the last time. With a smirk towards his attacker, Ken crossed his arms, creating a disc of water in front of him once again as the immense pillar of flames burst forth, enveloping his body.

The force of the flames seemed to be even stronger this time around as they veraciously ate through his defense of water, evaporating the water quicker than he could produce it before it broke through his defenses. The power and force of the attack didn't leave Ken the chance to even scream out in pain before hit him with it's full force, sending him flying into the air. He could feel himself teetering on the edge of consciousness, but to further add insult to injury that same gigantic fist from before made a reappearance, and this time Ken was in no position to counter, or even defend himself. His brain could yell out all the commands it wanted, but his body refused to move, as if it fully comprehended the futility of these actions more than his brain could. The fist soon slammed into Ken's already broken body, sending him sprawling through the air and crashing into a tree, splintering it completely before his impact onto the forest floor.

Every bone in his body felt broken as he laid there, face first on the ground, blood rushing from his mouth. He coughed violently as he attempted to breathe, the blood almost suffocating him before he could cough it all out. While he tried to cling onto consciousness, the world around him slowly became a blur, the objects in the environment around him seeming to blend into one another. The agony that his body was going through coupled with this disorientation was taking it's toll on him. The world around him soon went black as the light from the world he once knew slowly faded away from his sight. Each breathe that he inhaled hurt with excruciating pain and was even harder to catch than the previous one. He could feel his conciousness slipping, and with it, he knew he'd lose his life as well. It had been a long run...19 years to be exact, but it seemed this was the end of the road. "So this is death.....I guess..I'll have to remember it...."

Partially blocked damage from Tempest Flames = 40 damage - 20 stamina = 20 damage




HP:20 - 20 - 10 = -10 HP
Strength:0
Speed:0
Stamina:20 - 20 = 0
Mana/Energy: 85




WC: 994

She breathed a sigh of relief as her foes shield disintegrated under her flames. "For a moment it looked like he had another trick up his sleeve and to be honest there was no way I would have the energy to dodge another attack like before..." Nova's fist then slammed into the figure that was enveloped in flames and sent it flying into a tree, which splintered under the blow of the man's body flying into it's trunk. She watched as his body stayed embedded within the tree for a moment and then slowly began to peel off the tree and fall to the forest floor. She stood there a moment to see if he was still alive or at least to the point he had any will left to fight, but the body did not move. She commanded Nova to release mirage which almost immediately cool air began to rush in and the temperature began to return to normal.

Hesitantly she walked over to the body with Nova by her side. Smoke could be seen rising from his body from the flames he was just hit by. As she looked over him she noticed something... This person did not wear the seal or the uniform of your typical everyday witch hunter. Yet this person clearly displayed skills of a typical witch hunter. "Oh-ho, I'm interested now. I wonder why he was after me?" She flipped his body over so his face was now facing the sky. She examined him briefly and realized he was still alive, but barely. "Hmm... Nooooovvvaaa... What should I do? This guy interests me, but he was just trying to kill me." She asked her supporter in a weird voice. "I believe you should kill him, but if you wish to spare his life then I have no quarrel with your choice." She thought for a second and finally came to a discussion. "I'm curious as to who he is and who he works for.... Also if there is anyone else. I can get information from him if it comes down to it. So for now I say we take him with us." Nova replied by picking the man up off the ground and placed him on his back. "Let's get out of here before the forest catches on fire entirely... I can assure you that people have probably already noticed the smoke." She coughed a few times from the smoke and waved her hand in front of her. With that they left the forest with the man who had been stalking her with some intent to kill.

A week had passed and the man was still alive, but still unconscious from the battle. His wounds had been tended for and most have sealed up fine. At most he would have a few scars and a couple burns, but other than that he was fine. His breathing was stable and color had returned. "This guy just does not wake up does he?" She asked herself loudly and she looked over his wounds, making sure the bandages were in good shape still. She reminisced on the battle before thinking over the fight carefully. It was fast, but it was difficult. He was truly skilled for a human and it would be a shame for him to die before he reached his true potential.

She sighed and left the room. She stepped outside and gazed around her taking in the scenery around her. Their current location was on a mountain to the north of the now burnt down forest. This was her house that she took for herself when she found it years ago abandon. Ever since no one tried to claim it as theirs either. "I love this place it always has such a beautiful view..." She said while stretching and gazing out towards the distance. The time was around 1PM and the weather was perfect. Birds chirped cheerfully and the area seemed devoid of any type of chaos or anything of the like.

WC: 693

A painful rush of air filled Ken's lungs, causing him to to begin coughing. The feeling of his lungs expanding as he took in so much air at one time hurting his bruised ribs. Soon enough his coughing fit began to stop and his eyes slowly opened, looking straight up above him. His eyes were greeted with an unfamiliar sight as he saw the roof above himself. He stared at the ceiling for a few moments in confusion before he gently placed his hand on his chest, soon letting off a light smile. He could feel his heartbeat, something he had taken for granted for far too long. Earlier he had felt the cold embrace of death, and now he was conscious. Though he was happy he was alive, it actually made him happier that this wasn't the afterlife. If it had been, it was way blander than he was led onto believe it would have been.

After a few moments of being thankful that he was still alive, the question of why he was alive soon began to creep in. Why exactly had he been spared? The last thing he could remember was being struck by that fearsome supporter the witch wielded and after that everything went blank, until he woke up here of course. The most logical explanation was that there was another Witch Hunter that managed to save him in the nick of time. Or perhaps the witch had left him for dead and a passing villager rescued and nursed him back to health. Ken sat up slowly and inspected his bandages and scars, nodding to himself as these thoughts came to him. At the very least he needed to thank whomever it was that showed such kindness and hospitality. He wasn't sure exactly what he could do that could match the magnitude of saving a life, but he was willing to do much of anything to express his gratitude. In times like these it was always rare to see people helping one another, especially people who were in dangerous situations as he had been.

Moving slowly, Ken began to make his way out of his bed carefully. He wanted to make sure that any sudden moves he made didn't reopen any wounds that his host had bandaged while at the same time he moved slowly out of pain. His body was still very weak and sore, but the pain he felt now was minuscule compared to what he felt during the fight in the Blackened Forest. He'd need to grow stronger, and he was glad he now had the opportunity to do so. Turning his body in his bed, his legs now bent over the ledge, Ken attempted to stand up. In a few seconds after this, his knees immediately buckled causing him to fall forward. Reacting out of instinct, Ken reached his hand forward, catching himself on the wall but knocking down a framed picture in the process. "Damn it...". Ken couldn't help but feel an immense amount of guilt. Here this person had just saved his life, and Ken was already accidentally breaking their belongings. "Think, think, think...I've got it. I'll just fix it". A smile crept across Ken's face as this thought came to mind and he slowly bent down in order to pick up the broken frame. He wasn't exactly sure how he'd fix it, but as long as it was fixed to the point where this person couldn't see the damage, all was well.

As Ken picked up the frame, he couldn't help but look at the picture that the frame protected. It seemed to be a picture of an elderly woman with two young children at her side. They all seemed very happy, and Ken had to admit he was very jealous of it. "Those must be her grandchildren.". He could only imagine what having a Grandmother must have be like, and the joy that one must have to have one. These two children were very lucky, and from the smiles on their faces they wouldn't have traded her for the world.

He looked at the picture for a few more moments before he heard a very faint sound. From where Ken was it almost sounded like speech, and it was coming from outside. "That must be her outside...she's probably out tending her garden or something". Ken couldn't help but chuckle to himself at this thought. He had always imagined the elderly as either tending some garden, or reading a book in their past time, but regardless, it was about time he thanked this woman for her hospitality.

Limping slowly, Ken made his way towards the front door of the house, and turned the knob. As the door opened he was greeted by the beautiful sight of the outdoors around him. The scene was so serene it was as if an artist sat down and painted what someone could classify as a perfect day. Ken closed his eyes for a few moments and breathed in calmly, the fresh air filling his lungs and with it he felt reinvigorated, that is, until he opened his eyes again and looked a bit to his left. A cold sweat dropped from his brow as he saw the woman that had nearly killed him. Why was she here? Where was the Grandma who had saved his life? Had she disposed of the old woman in a search for him? All of these thoughts flooded his mind, but before he could think even more about the situation he found himself reacting too quickly. "Why are you here?! What did you do with them?!" The thought of someone losing their life because of him filled him with a feeling of rage and sadness that he had never felt before. If this Witch had done harm to the woman that saved him, he'd use up every ounce of life he had left in order to take her down.


WC: 1011

A crash came from within the house, but it wasn't a serious one and it sounded like it wasn't a big object either. She thought carefully if anything of value could have been broken, but nothing came to mind and instead of going inside to see she waited patiently outside. After all a conversation in the open would do him a lot more good rather than speaking inside. After a minute or so he finally showed himself and stepped out from the house. For a moment it seemed as if he was dazed as his eyes looked around at the scenery.

Then finally his eyes stopped on her. "Why are you here?! What did you do with them?!" That was not the reaction or words she was expecting and she lost her composure for a second when he asked. "Why am I here you ask? This is my home of course." She stood there in her normal human look, which he must have realized by now. Her hat was gone and her clothes looked more ordinary as well. "Also what did I do with who?" She thought to herself for a quick moment and realized he must have seen the picture on the wall. "Ah, that picture is what was left behind from the previous owner or owners. Regardless this place was vacant when I found it and never bothered to take it down." She paused and examined him carefully. "It is good your wounds haven't opened. It means you are healing quickly, which is good. Don't worry though, I have no plans on killing you unless you wish it to be. That is of course if you were thinking such thoughts. After all why do you think you are even still alive? The answer is because I decided to save your life out of my own curiosity. But never mind that... I wish to know why you were after me. You do not wear the Witch Hunter's symbol, yet you show power of one. Are you after me for some personal vendetta or what?"

WC 345

Ken's eyes widened as his listened to the woman's reply to his outburst. It appeared that his assumptions about the situation had been wrong, but all those assumptions still made more sense than this Witch deciding to save him. Though she said this, he still held a bit of doubt in the back of his mind about her answer. There had to be a reason she wished to help him recuperate from their battle, and soon enough that answer came to the forefront. She wanted information. Information about why exactly he had been after her and where exactly he came from. Though he was reluctant to reply, if what she said was true then he owed her an explanation for his actions, at the very least. "No...I wasn't after you for a vendetta or anything as complicated as that. The reason I attacked you was merely business. You had a bounty on your life, and I simply aimed to claim it. And the reason I don't wear the symbol of a Witch Hunter is because I'm not one...they've always been too restrictive for my taste." Ken paused for a few moments as he thought of the words to say next. He could feel a lump forming in his throat. "Also..I'd like to thank you for sparing my life back there. Though you had your own reasons to do so, I appreciate it."


WC: 241

She listened as the man responded to her question, answering each without hesitation. To be honest she was a little disappointed in his answers as she hoped for something a bit more exciting, but this wasn't the case. "A bounty on my life eh?" She paused and thought to herself for a moment. "I see, I guess my actions are reaching witch hunter HQ and they are lacking witch hunters that they are even willing to take on mercenaries. Interesting to say the least, but the reasoning lacked flavor..." She looked over him and debated what to do. Her decision came quick. "Well, it doesn't matter too much. I only saved you to satisfy my curiosity and now I know not only your typical uniform witch hunter will be after me. Well, I'll leave you here. You may stay as long as you like, just don't make a mess of my home. I have to go back to the black forest to achieve my original goal. Which was delayed and possibly destroyed thanks to my little fight with you. By now majority of the forest is gone due to using all that fire magic." She simply waved and turned away from him and began walking towards the black forest from whence they came. After all her original mission was far from over...

WC: 222

Ken was a bit taken aback as the woman replied to him so nonchalantly. Where someone may have been mad, or upset about finding someone tried to take profit in attempting to assassinate them. Something about her attitude intrigued him, but her words about this "goal" she spoke of intrigued him further. He began to feel guilt, something he hadn't felt in a long while. Here he was, a bounty hunter who ended up being saved by his target. He tried to ignore it, but his pride had taken a heavy blow. He needed to make this right. He needed to repay her for the kindness she had shown him, even if he was only spared out of her own curiosity. Facts were facts, and he was still alive. He couldn't ignore that.

The same lump from before began to form in his throat as he tried to will himself to speak, but he just couldn't manage to form the words. That is until the woman began to walk off, making way back towards the Blackened Forest. "Wait...!" Ken began to scratch the back of his head shyly after this outburst, surprised he had even said it. "Umm...you said something about having a goal in the Blackened Forest. I...I wouldn't mind accompanying you if you needed help. Not implying that you need any help, but...it'd be the least I could do".

WC: 240

As she began to walk away the man called out. "Wait...!" The man said with unusual voice. "Umm...you said something about having a goal in the Blackened Forest. I...I wouldn't mind accompanying you if you needed help. Not implying that you need any help, but...it'd be the least I could do". The man offered and she was surprised to say the least, but not entirely. "There are only two reasons why you would offer such a thing. One being you are still after the bounty and will try to use this as a chance to ambush me in some way or form. Two, you are genuinely interested in aiding me. In your current form I doubt you could do much anyways, but if you insist on coming I shall not deny you. But be warned if you fail to kill me in said ambush, don't expect me to let you live. That is of course if you chose the former. Also I'll give you this piece of advice, Nova is watching."

The trip was a slow one. There were constant breaks due to the man's injuries. It took two days before they reached the forest once more. This time around though most of the forest was just blackened trees from the forest fire she had created. "I hope it is still here..." She said to herself. "Don't worry madame it is surly here. I can still feel it's presence. I'm quite surprised at the young man's healing potential. He has sped up and doesn't seemed as bothered by his injuries anymore. At this rate he may not be useless for the next step." Cassandra nodded in agreement and then turned around to face the man whom she did not know his name yet. "You are persistent in following me here. Since you are so persistent I think it is finally time for introductions don't you think? My name is Cassandra Rose, I am an independent witch and currently have no will to participate in this war that is going on. Though apparently I am still a nuisance to the witch hunters since I have a bounty. Probably because I've killed B-Rank Witch hunters, innocents, and have stolen many important objects. If you continue to wish to assist me, just be warned you may not end up in a favorable position yourself. Now onwards to the reason why we are here. I am after an object of value called the Sky Pendent. Well... It is more of a medallion shape as it is a circle that was divided into three pieces, each has a gem embedded into it and each piece itself is valued to be around the same price as medium sized castle. Now since it has been separated into three pieces and as it stands I only know the current location of two out of three. I will need your help with the second piece and locating the third. Now you may wonder why I have not included the third. That is simple, that is because the first piece is here in this forest. It may have been a good thing that I burned down the forest as the forest itself was considered the guardian of the first piece. It should be located somewhere in the middle of this forest. It will be underground so help me locate these stairs. It won't stand out mind you, as it is only stairs itself that will act as the only landmark towards finding it. Now before we start that is of course if you are still willing to... What is your name mysterious witch hunter?"

WC:608

"There are only two reasons why you would offer such a thing. One being you are still after the bounty and will try to use this as a chance to ambush me in some way or form. Two, you are genuinely interested in aiding me. In your current form I doubt you could do much anyways, but if you insist on coming I shall not deny you. But be warned if you fail to kill me in said ambush, don't expect me to let you live. That is of course if you chose the former. Also I'll give you this piece of advice, Nova is watching.". Ken listened intently as the woman spoke to him, and nodded silently in agreement. He could understand completely why she would have such doubt in him, after all, he had already tried to kill her once. But this gesture was truly one of gratitude, and not of yet another convoluted plot on her life. He was indebted to her for sparing his life, and helping her with a task that he had interrupted was something he felt he at least owed to her. The woman soon began to walk off yet again, but this time Ken followed behind as a comrade.

About two days had passed since Ken had begun to follow the witch and her supporter to their destination back to the Blackened Forest. From their starting point in the mountain it was taking longer than they apparently had expected, and Ken was the reason behind this. His injuries were holding them back, but he was glad they continued to be patient, allowing him to heal up along the way there.

As the finally made it back to the Blackened Forest, it seemed the forest was now "Blackened" in more ways than one now. An impressive percentage of it had been burned down because of their previous fight, but it seemed some of it had managed to withstand the blazes of the fire. While he inspected the forest ahead, the woman began to speak. "You are persistent in following me here. Since you are so persistent I think it is finally time for introductions don't you think? My name is Cassandra Rose, I am an independent witch and currently have no will to participate in this war that is going on. Though apparently I am still a nuisance to the witch hunters since I have a bounty. Probably because I've killed B-Rank Witch hunters, innocents, and have stolen many important objects. If you continue to wish to assist me, just be warned you may not end up in a favorable position yourself. Now onwards to the reason why we are here. I am after an object of value called the Sky Pendent. Well... It is more of a medallion shape as it is a circle that was divided into three pieces, each has a gem embedded into it and each piece itself is valued to be around the same price as medium sized castle. Now since it has been separated into three pieces and as it stands I only know the current location of two out of three. I will need your help with the second piece and locating the third. Now you may wonder why I have not included the third. That is simple, that is because the first piece is here in this forest. It may have been a good thing that I burned down the forest as the forest itself was considered the guardian of the first piece. It should be located somewhere in the middle of this forest. It will be underground so help me locate these stairs. It won't stand out mind you, as it is only stairs itself that will act as the only landmark towards finding it. Now before we start that is of course if you are still willing to... What is your name mysterious witch hunter?".

Cassandra had told him quite a mouthful, but it had pretty much summed up every question he had about the Witch and what her goal exactly was. Deciding that being silent at this point was immensely rude, he decided to move past his shyness around people and speak up. "Well, my name is Ken. Ken Ishimaru. And like you I'm independent as well. Though I'm a Witch Hunter, I don't answer to any of the main branches, though I do still accept missions from them, as long as the pay is to my liking. Being a bounty hunter certainly isn't the proudest occupation, but I'm content. "

WC: 768

She stood in silence and waited for the man to speak up and finally he did. "Well, my name is Ken. Ken Ishimaru. And like you I'm independent as well. Though I'm a Witch Hunter, I don't answer to any of the main branches, though I do still accept missions from them, as long as the pay is to my liking. Being a bounty hunter certainly isn't the proudest occupation, but I'm content. " She thought to herself for a moment in silence as she reviewed what she had been told. "Ken Ishimaru eh? From now on I shall call you Ken, I hope you don't mind being on a first name basis. Well, you're a bounty hunter and I'm a treasure hunter of sorts..." She silenced herself for a moment and thought to herself again. "Anyways Ken, in the middle of the forest like I said there is the stairs that leads to where the first piece of the Sky Pendent sleeps. Inside will be the true surprise." She smiled as she finished the last sentence.

With introductions out of the way she turned around and began to walk down the path they had once walked when the forest was still living. All that was left now was charcoal, dead plants, and blackened trees. Though, there was various exceptions where some greenery and life still remained. It took only a couple hours to reach the destination. Luckily Cassandra was well versed in the direction and location the stairs were. "Welcome to the City of the Lost." Cassandra said as she climbed down the stairs. As she began to descend she snapped her fingers and her witch hat reappeared on top of her head and also her clothes changed with the the appearance of her hat. She simply chanted a few words and upon the completion of the chat flame appeared in her hand, lightning the way before them as the descended into the dark depths.

It took another five minutes of slowly climbing down the stairs before the sight the had been waiting for had been seen. The stairs lead into a huge open chamber and the site before them could only be said as a once in a life time opportunity to see. And entire underground city filled the chamber. The buildings made from stone and the architecture was very nice, but it was clear the entire city was now deserted and various places had began to crumble and break. Various holes letting light in from the ceiling is what revealed this scene before them. "Truly magnificent. Don't you agree Ken? Before you lies a city where humans and witches lived in peace for centuries without conflict. It is also the final resting place for various treasures, but especially the first fragment of the Sky Pendent. Destroying the forest definitely benefited us though. It allowed the holes to become unblocked and thus let light in. Sadly though since the forest is gone these ruins will most likely be plundered and vandalized soon. The good news is it seems we are the first to come here since the forest was burned to say the least. I can tell due to there being no prints in the dust. Somewhere in this fast place is the piece we seek. I hope you're ready for a long search as this may not be a short one." She may have known the location of the city and the fact the Sky Pendent piece laid within, but she was unsure as to the specific location of said pendent was inside the city and thus the search began.

The plan was simple she summoned forth her supporter Nova and tasked him with lighting the area for Ken and to keep an eye on him while doing so. Essentially splitting the group into two to cover ground twice as fast. Even with this it had taken them three days of carefully searching until they found what they had been looking for. A vault. The vault was made from an extremely dense material and it would not be easy to get in.

So there they stood in and underground room underneath an ordinary looking house in the underground city. The look and location of this vault must of have been made as to hide it from and intruders who dared to attempt to steal from them. Now the room they stood in and carefully examining the vault that stood before them was wide and tall. About 100 feet in width and 50 feet in height. The vault door itself was around 15 in radius and thus was of a enormous size and must weight a ton. Cassandra doubted her supporter would even be able to open it. "Interesting this is far larger than I could have expected... Nova will not be able to break through this door through sheer strength and I doubt I would want to pressure it too much as this place may be unstable and thus make the ceiling crash down upon us. I doubt we would survive such a blow, but I must say... I am really excited... Beyond this door is the first piece..." It was then when it happened. Before they had anymore time to examine the door and attempt in finding another method of entering the vault. Something moved in the corner of the room and not at a normal speed. It was a reptile of sorts and it took a moment before Cassandra was able to identify it. "Dragon!" Cassandra screamed in surprise. Nova moved forward intercepting the creature with his bare hands and halting it's movements. "Who dares enter this vault that is ours?" The dragon hissed. "Yours? Don't make me laugh. You have no need for such thing and a creature such as yourself does not exist. So that brings me to a question... What are you really?" Cassandra asked with a stern look on her face. The dragon responded by twisting it's neck in an attempt to bite Nova's arm, but Nova moved out of the way evading the bite, but thus allowing the dragon to back off and rethink it's attack. "I am a support of the great witch Vernia. I was charged of protecting this vault until I do not exist anymore and thus since I still exist this place is still under my guard and I shall not let you intruders pass."

The stalemate of staring each other down felt like an eternity, but in reality was only a half a minute. "Interesting... I'm surprised you still have any mana left within you. It has been a long time and your master is dead. If we must we will eliminate you for us to pass." The dragon hissed at Cassandra as she spoke those words. "How dare you say such things. I refuse to move until I am no longer of this world." Cassandra's lips formed a smile. "Hmph, if that is what you wise. I hope you're ready for a fight Ken. Tempest flames x 2." A circle appeared below the dragon and on the wall behind the dragon and within a split second the erupted forth, catching the dragon off guard and completely enveloping it in flames from her spells. They stood in silence until the flames had vanished, but when they were gone Cassandra was disappointed. The dragon stood there with smoke rising from it's body. "It will take more than that to kill me." It hissed harshly towards them. But that wasn't all as it was now charging towards Ken with jaws wide open, preparing to take a large bite out of him. "Ken watch out!" Cassandra yelled, unable to do anything else. Ken would have to dodge or somehow halt the dragon in it's tracks as she would not be able to cast a spell in time after casting tempest twice in a row like that.

OOC:I apologize if the quality is bad as I was half asleep while writing. As a matter of fact as soon as I complete this, which is now mind you, I shall fall into a deep sleep. So Gnight and sorry for any badness in quality.

WC:1317

Ken nodded once more as she explained again where their goal was located and he followed intently. It took a lot longer than Ken was expecting it would take for them to reach their destination. With a lot of the forest actually burned down, in actuality it was entirely easier than had the forest still been alive. It would be next to impossible for one to make their way through it and navigate anywhere through the sheer darkness that used to exist here.

A few hours passed and finally the duo had found their way to their destination. Looking ahead, Ken could see a stairwell that descended down far into the ground before he heard Cassandra's voice. "Welcome to the City of the Lost." . As she said this she made her way down the stairs without hesitation. Ken though was a bit more reluctant. A place called "The City of the Lost" didn't sound too welcoming, but alas, he made a promise and he couldn't back out now, not that he would want to. Though something like this sounded a bit eerie, it actually intrigued him even more. Though they searched for piece of the Sky Pendant, what other treasures could a place like this have? Being a bounty hunter was well and good, but this venture could potentially net him money the likes that he'd never seen before. With some greed bolstering his confidence, Ken silently followed Cassandra down the stair well.

As they finally found their way at the bottom of the stair well, it opened up to a beautiful view. They now stood in a huge chamber which housed what was known as the Lost City; a truly grand sight to behold. "Truly magnificent. Don't you agree Ken? Before you lies a city where humans and witches lived in peace for centuries without conflict. It is also the final resting place for various treasures, but especially the first fragment of the Sky Pendent. Destroying the forest definitely benefited us though. It allowed the holes to become unblocked and thus let light in. Sadly though since the forest is gone these ruins will most likely be plundered and vandalized soon. The good news is it seems we are the first to come here since the forest was burned to say the least. I can tell due to there being no prints in the dust. Somewhere in this fast place is the piece we seek. I hope you're ready for a long search as this may not be a short one." Ken listened intently to her words as she spoke and couldn't help but chuckle a bit as she spoke. It was funny, but he had never imagined that he'd ever be taking history lessons from a witch, or be indebted to a witch for that matter, but it seemed anything was possible. As she spoke about the plundering the ruins might endure as the path to them was now opened up, he began to feel a bit bad. As his plan after all included a bit of....plundering after they acquired what they came for. But just taking a look and admiring these beautiful ruins gave him a respect for them. He couldn't deface something like this by causing more harm than removing this pendant would cause. He'd stave off his greed. "Yeah...I hate scavengers...they're such jerks..."

Soon enough, Cassandra summoned her supporter. Ken felt himself get a slight chill as he laid eyes on the beast again, remembering the giant fist that came flying at him through the darkness, but alas, they were allies this time. With his body still recovering, Ken felt more at ease knowing that he had this "Nova" to rely on as they split up and searched through the city for the remnant the pendant. Time moved slowly, and it felt as if it moved even slower as the longer they searched through the city, the larger it seemed to become. The fact that a city of this magnitude could exist underground was simply mind boggling, but the question of what happened to the residents of this city was an even bigger question that tugged constantly at the back of Ken's mind. After three days, the group finally found what they had been looking for...a vault. Looking back on things, this had to be the most obvious place one would expect a treasure to be hidden. But now he was simply glad that they were now one step closer to finishing their task. But the problem that arose now was how to actually get into the vault. They had no key, and as Cassandra had mentioned, it was much to large for Nova to break down, and if they did break it down with sheer force, it could cause this entire place to collapse. With these realizations disappointment began to set in for Ken, but it seemed Cassandra was excited in simply knowing that the first fragment of the pendant. The fact that her resolve had yet to be shaken, even in seeing an obstacle that might be impossible to overcome, gave him some hope. "So how do you propose we get through? Is there a way we can tunnel under the--" but before Ken could even finish his sentence he could hear Cassandra yell out, "Dragon!".

Acting instinctively, Ken summoned an orb of water into his hand as he looked up to see the deadly beast quickly making its way towards them. Luckily, Nova was quickly able to intercept the beast, holding it in place before it was able to retreat and rethink it's strategy. It seemed from the conversation that Cassandra and the Dragon were having that it was the supporter of a long dead witch. The fact that it was still able to move and function after all of these centuries was simply astounding. This witch had to have been amazing during the time that she lived. It was pretty obvious that if they wanted to enter the vault, they'd have to make their way past this dragon, but for some reason the thought of doing so mad Ken a bit sad. Though this was a beast that just attacked them, it was not out of contempt, but out of duty. It was tasked to guard this place by it's deceased master, and after all of these centuries, it loyally kept its word. Though it seemed while Ken thought of how loyal this supporter was, Cassandra had already moved onto the offensive as she quickly unleashed her deadly move "Tempest flames" on the dragon, but it seemed that the desired effect had not been reached as the dragon merely scoffed at her attempt and charged towards them. Well, not "them" as much as this beast was only headed towards Ken now. Ken cursed silently to himself, but he had to admit that strategically this was the wisest move for the supporter. Ken was at his weakest at the moment, and attacking the weakest link first only makes the most sense. Though Ken was injured, he was far from defenseless, and he'd prove that now to the dragon.

Ken extended his right hand out in front of him, creating the shape of a "gun" with his fingers while his left hand gripped his right wrist. At the end of his index finger, a small sphere of water began to form before it grew larger and larger. The "gun" aimed at the direction that the supporter now flew in his direction from. As soon as the orb of water grew larger and larger in size, Ken shot it off. "Water Grenado!". The sphere of water hurtled through the air, towards the beast, and Ken could only hope it would explode directly in the monster's mouth, which might end in it's head being blown clean off of it's neck, but it seemed that that was too much to ask for. The dragon seemed to notice the danger that came from the attack, and turned sharply, but causing the attack to slam into the side of it's long body before exploding, a spray of water and mist covering the battlefield before it cleared, revealing the dragon floating high in the air above them. "That was more than I expected from you...but once again it will take more than those simple attacks to harm me..."

WC: 1415