ECA 87-91

Today (omg posting at school lololol) I've got a drawing of Arlin to share! I drew this a while back in early December and got around to tracing, inking, and coloring this winter break. In this picture she is dressed in her "dreamer" attire; her clothing when adventuring on the Land of Dreams.

I kinda messed up on the legs and I think the fingers of the wand-holding hand are a little weird, but I was focusing on the costume design and think I did pretty well :). The giant belts were kinda inspired by Ezreal in League of Legends ;)

It wasn't mentioned anywhere in the story proper, but Arlin has been secretly adventuring on Somnia in her sleep. Her dreamer codename is Frostlight (pun on frostbite). Her summoning bracelet is an item that's been carried over from the mortal realm (although she can't summon Tagh on Somnia), and she rebuilt her Somnian wand to have the same stats and properties as her mortal one does. As usual, whether on the mortal world or dream world, she wears white boots. Her socks in this outfit are different lengths and patterns, similar to how she mixes and matches clothes for casual, "staying home" wear. The little symbol on her top is supposed to be a symbolic representation of her draconic familiar, Murantagh.

Hope you like the drawing! Comments welcome :)

For now though, please enjoy the first half of the final battle!

PREVIOUS SET (83-86)

87. Gunshot

An impossibly powerful blast of light-magic burst from the newly minted staff, threatening to consume the girls instantly. 

“Stop!” Anuna screamed in protest. “No!”

Her bow already strung and an expression of grim defiance on her face, Celestine launched the diamond pocketwatch to counter the blast. Energy radiated around the clock, shielding them and consuming the blast.

Following up, Rhys directed her four elemental summons at the four girls.

Under the cover of light and smoke that billowed from the impact, Elysia shot forward like a bullet from a gun, partially invisible despite the light that flooded the arena. 

88. Possession

As her friends fought, Anuna turned to her father. Around them, Elysia battled Rhys and Arlin and Celestine defended against Rhys’s summons and Lyciar’s newly -generated horde of energy-based minions.

“Father. Why are you fighting us?”

Her only reply was a wave of magic that swerved diagonally at her. Anuna hardly needed to dodge. “Father…you’re not yourself…your light is…distorted…”

Lyciar’s handsome features twisted suddenly and his laugh echoed with malice. “Of course,” a voice his yet tainted and not his boomed a response: “Your father’s not himself. He’s my possession. And you, princess ancilla, are next.”

89. Twilight

Arlin touched her topaz-charm bracelet, calling Murantagh. But for the first time ever, there was no reply. Confused at the unresponsive bracelet-vessel, she focused harder on the line between the paradox. Good, bad, noble, evil, black, white. She could feel that delicate yet unbreakable border.

But now…the division wasn’t so definite. It contained neutral, apathy; it was the gray band between black and white. Arlin touched her vessel again. “Tagh…this is the nuance you meant…not the clear cut division…but the blurred line: the twilight.” 

With this insight, Arlin summoned Tagh again, this time successfully.

90. Nowhere and Nothing

“Who are you, anyways?” Rhys murmured quietly in their duel. “What lineage gives you the legendary Sye’niar sword to wield?”

Elysia retorted evenly as she lunged forward: “Taurus is my patron and the Holy House is my family. That’s all I need.” 

The magic student responded with a scoff and fire barrage. “You mean you have no one.” 

A firebolt slipped past Elysia’s sword, burning her spelled cloth armor. 

“Aren’t you depressed?” The fire barrage turned into ice and water, stinging and ripping wherever Elysia left undefended.

“Behind that cool facade, behind your questions, Elysia, you are nothing, going nowhere.”

91. Answers

“Why do you oppose us?” Anuna demanded the mysterious force possessing her father. “You should know…without my ancilla abilities, I am useless to you.” 

Lyciar snickered. “You have other purposes, princess. You won’t touch the Curtain of Lights.” With a casual wave he sent her hurtling away. Luckily, Tagh caught her mid-flight.

“Curtain?” Anuna was confused. 

“It’s a slip,” Arlin whispered excitedly. “You haven’t mentioned anything about the Curtain.”

“I just want my powers back first….then I can fix it.”

“Right. You know where it is?”

Nod.

“Then go. Just touching the Curtain will restore your abilities.”

Comment Blurbs

87. Gunshot

Celestine prevents Lyciar’s obliterating laser from instantly finishing them off by using the diamond pocketwatch she got from the Room of Clocks as a shield and absorbing the power. The clock remains intact, but Rhys follows up immediately, directing her summons to attack. Meanwhile though, Elysia has oriented herself enough to know that there is a battle going on and she charges for her opponent, Sye’niar in her hand; the partial-invisibility the sword grants is working wonders for a sneak-attack.

(I just realized that I'm obsessed with obliterating lasers. This is because of Lux Crownguard. <3) 

88. Possession

As the other girls fight, Anuna questions why her father—who last she knew was trying to figure out how to repair the Curtain of Lights and revive the Queen—is attacking them. She has noted that his magic seems a little distorted, and when she vocalizes this, the force possessing Lyciar reveals itself. 

89. Twilight

Arlin can’t summon Tagh for some reason. She realizes that the concept she focused on when summoning him has changed and that her crisp line between good and bad has been blurred—has always been blurred. She refocuses her summoning on this gray area and this time manages to bring Tagh into the fight. 

90. Nowhere and Nothing

Rhys taunts Elysia about being abandoned and unwanted, with no future to look forward to outside of the care of the Holy House. Elysia keeps her face calm, but she’s obviously a little shaken by Rhys so directly pinpointing a fear. 

About the last line: “Behind your questions…”: Elysia really does ask a lot of questions. In writing her character I did my best to use a question whenever I could to indicate her speech. It may sound a bit arrogant, but I always thought of it as her way of expressing curiosity and interest.

91. Answers

The force possessing Lyciar slips up by mentioning the Curtain when no one has mentioned the curtain before in the battle. Arlin picks up on this quickly, realizing that the Curtain itself is the key to unlocking Anuna’s powers as an ancilla again. 

This was really hard to write T_T Another stalling point. 

NEXT SET (92-100)--The finale!
FUNNY STORY/ ADVANCE NOTICE: I thought of a new way to end the story last night. I'm considering changing the ending now. XD If I take too long to change it, 92-100 might be broken up into two parts! Hopefully not though. Have a fun and productive three-day weekend everyone!