xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Tamarisk Forest, 9:04 a.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"And that is basically what I did back at the Balsamicos and why we are out here." Bernard said as he held up an envelope with the insignia for the Fiore royal family.
Within a small open area within Tamarisk Forest, several miles from the castle of Count Balsamico, was Bernard, who was sitting on a tree stump as he told back the story of what happened at the castle the night prior with their run in with Claudia Vanderheem and her minions. Sitting on a set of knocked down logs, minus Anatoli as he was sitting on his ball as usual and Baurs as she stood around, was Camilla, Pietro, Marlene as well as Corvus and Vulp, each having wide eyed expressions on their faces in surprise and still sporting their Psycho Circus collars.
"Let me get this straight..." Anatoli said with a surprised expression. "You fought against this artist chick and her cronies but she threatened to kill everyone so you stopped and gave her the kid as a trade off." He said, stating back what Bernard said.
"Yup..." Bernard said casually.
"Then you fought some sculpture that came to life, destroyed some of the room to make it look like the fighting was more violent than it actually was so you could twist the story to make it look like you struggled to save the child and all of us to make the Balsamicos seem like they could trust you and let us handle the rescue and not the Magic Council." Camilla said with a raised eyebrow.
"Uh huh..." Bernard mumbled casually.
"Then to further the reasons why the Magic Council should let you handle this, you flashed them the envelope you got from a couple days ago from Princess Hisui to make it seem like you have the authorization, effectively lying to the government..." Marlene said, just as bewildered as the rest of the Psycho Circus wizards were at Bernards planning.
"Just so you could get some revenge on this woman and rescue the clients infant child." Pietro said.
"And didn't tell us this plan until just now..." Corvus said with a shocked expression as he sat on top of Baurs large lizard head.
"Should I just repeat the whole thing back again?" Bernard said as he held his head down, growing increasingly annoyed at everyone.
"That's... Actually incredibly impressive." Camilla said as Bernard raised his head with a raised eyebrow.
"Deviously awesome." Corvus said with surprise.
"Downright genius." Pietro said with an impressed expression as he looked at Bernard.
"So cool." Marlene said with an honest tone.
"Evil and manipulative... I approve." Anatoli said with a thumbs up as Bernards eye started to twitch from the compliments.
"I didn't tell you all of this just so you guys could be impressed..." Bernard thought with annoyance. "Alright, now that everyone has gotten the gist of what happened, does anyone have any questions?" He said as Marlene and Anatoli raised their hands and Baurs raised her tail in questioning.
"Who are we dealing with specifically?" Marlene questioned.
"Why are we in this forest?" Anatoli wondered.
"Are you acting as the leader of the group finally?" Baurs asked, prompting Bernards eye to twitch once again.
"Okay, first of all, I'll answer Marlenes question." Bernard said as he scratched his head. "I got this info from the Magic Council representative that showed up at the Balsamicos after I flashed him the insignia. So I don't have to tell you already we are dealing with a dark guild." He explained.
"That much we know already but who are they?" Pietro said as he rubbed his chin in intrigue.
"They are called "Pazuzu's Easel." They are a dark guild that came about under a year ago after the Alvarez War and they have been becoming infamous for high amounts of thefts and kidnappings from what I was told." Bernard explained.
"Pazuzu's Easel? I've never heard of them." Anatoli said with confusion.
"They try to be discreet. They go to places or find targets they want and then attempt to steal or take what they desire as quickly as possible so they don't leave a paper trail. Hence the time stopping camera their leader had." Bernard continued.
"I couldn't feel like I could move or sense anything when that camera went off..." Marlene said as she rubbed her arm in worry.
"Then that's a sign of what we are to expect; sneak attacks and sucker punches." Camilla said as she folded her arms.
"That's one thing. As for why we are in this forest, I asked for any kind of leads as to where Pazuzu's Easels hideout could be and the guy from the council said that they used magical detectors to try and track down some of their lesser members and found they are hidden somewhere here but they only got as far as where we are standing right now." Bernard said as he stood up and looked around at the trees in the forest.
"So we are in the heart of their hideout?" Corvus said with a raised eyebrow.
"Or we are at the front gate..." Pietro said with a serious tone.
"Either way, we are probably the closest anyone in Fiore has ever been to getting anywhere near where they operate out of." Anatoli said as he looked around at the woods.
"Excuse me?" Baurs said, speaking up.
"...Yeah?" Bernard said with a raised eyebrow.
"Aren't going to answer my question?" Baurs said. Following her question, the Psycho Circus wizards all formed smug looks on their faces as they all turned to look at Bernard, who was looking at his allies with a troubled expression, awaiting his answer.
"...No." Bernard said bluntly with a blush of embarrassment forming on his face. As he refused, Anatoli formed a mischievous smirk on his face.
"Alright then! Let's take a vote! Everyone who votes for Bernie to be "acting commander" say "aye!"' Anatoli said loudly as he raised his hand up high to Bernards surprise and chagrin.
'"Aye!"' Everyone, besides Bernard and Vulp, because the fox can't talk, muttered enthusiastically as Bernard was reaching a tipping point with his annoyance.
"Seriously!? Why the hell should I be in charge of this whole thing?!" Bernard complained.
"You were the one requested to entertain that kid before everything went awry." Pietro said with a shrug.
"Then felt like acting like a "big deal hero" and convince the council to let you rescue the kid yourself." Marlene said smugly.
"So what?! You expecting me to handle this all myself?!" Bernard questioned in his frustration.
"I mean, yeah, me and Vulp and the big rock lizard could help like normal buuutttt…" Corvus said, expecting Bernard to give them a certain answer.
"...Camilla? You're the S-class wizard here..." Bernard said to his technical girlfriend.
"Oh? I'm not on the clock here sadly, isn't my job request honey." Camilla said with a smirk as she looked away from Bernard, his aggravation becoming more and more apparent.
"...Pietro?" Bernard said with half closed eyes and a desire to punch his friends in the face slowly rising.
"...Be a good learning experience for your eventual succession of your father, don'tcha think?" Pietro said with a smile as he acknowledged the rage forming on Bernards face.
"I hope a horse kicks all of you to death!" Bernard shouted loudly towards his friends and pets, who were chuckling over his overreacting.
"Calm down, we're only kidding." Camilla said with a smile as she laughed as Bernards face started to soften. "All we're saying is that we want you to handle this and have us support you at the same time." She said with an earnest tone as he looked at Marlene and Anatoli who nodded in response.
"If it helps, consider this the same as when you are teaching us routines at the guild, only this time it's not performances, it's tactics." Pietro said, giving advice to Bernard.
"...How about you?" Bernard said with a raised eyebrow towards Corvus, Vulp and Baurs.
"You know I have nothing better to do than to follow your barking. Hehehe." Corvus joked as Vulp nodded in compliance.
"As part of our agreement, I will do whatever you say." Baurs said with a casual tone.
"The last thing I want is the responsibility of taking care of all these peoples like some leader but they keep throwing it in my face..." Bernard thought troubled before sighing and then looking around at his team. "...Fine but one rule: no referring to me as "leader" or "captain" or "master." Got it?" He said sternly towards everyone.
'"Got it, boss!"' Everyone exclaimed jokingly as they all stood up from where they sat.
"Or that!" Bernard madly shouted. "Anyway, I want everyone to divide up into the teams I've thought up to begin combing the forest for any signs of Pazuzu's Easel. Anatoli, you're with Corvus." He exclaimed as he pointed at the monkey-like wizard and the crow Celestial Spirit.
"Awww! Why am I with the chimp?!" Corvus complained as Anatoli looked at him with annoyance.
"Both of you have the ability to fly, you guys can work together to search above ground more easily than anyone here. And no complaining." Bernard explained sternly.
"What are we looking for anyway?" Corvus said as he flapped his wings to get into the air.
"Any sort of structures in the woods, like buildings or hideouts that could potentially be their base." Bernard explained. "Marlene, come here. I got something for you." He said towards the chameleon-like girl as she approached him.
Turning around and rummaging through a sack, Bernard pulled out a belt with loops and pouches and handed it over to Marlene.
"What's this?" Marlene said with surprise.
"Seeing Claudia have one, I figured this could be useful for you. You can use it to store some salves or potions or elixirs from plants in the forest." Bernard said as Marlene started to put the belt around her waist.
"Wow, this is actually very thoughtful of you." Marlene said with a happy expression as she adjusted the belt.
"Seeing as how we are both the weakest members of the group, I figured you should have the help with something on hand in case of emergencies." Bernard explained as Marlene made a surprised and confused face at his reaction.
"I know you're my friend and I am not much of a fighter but you could've not said that..." Marlene thought with annoyance from Bernards acknowledgement of her lack of skills with combat. "So what do you want me to do?" She asked.
"Baurs." Bernard said as he turned towards the giant rock lizard. "I want you to have Marlene ride on you and take her through the forest so she can scavenge some herbs and flowers she could find useful. Protect her and while she does that, look around for clues to the base like Anatoli and Corvus are doing." He explained.
"As you wish." Baurs said with compliance.
"Oh! And I'll use my Camouflage Magic to make us invisible in case we see anyone or anything suspicious for cover." Marlene said.
"I was just about to suggest that. Now get going, all of you." Bernard said as Anatoli and Corvus flew into the air to begin searching as Marlene hopped on the back of Baurs as she used her magic to make the pair of them invisible as they rode off into the woods to begin their own searching mission as Bernard turned and saw them ride off.
"Okay, they'll be searching and now- Huh?" Bernard thought until he noticed a pair of slender arms intertwine with his left arm as he felt a soft sensation cling to his side. Turning his head, he locked eyes with Camilla, who was giving him a look of expectation and arousal.
"Soooo..." Camilla said with a smile and a seductive gaze towards the surprised Bernard. "Next step in the "big masterplan?" As if I couldn't already guess. Hehehe." She said with a chuckle to Bernards confusion.
"Excuse me?" Bernard replied.
"Don't think I couldn't guess what you want. Go tell Vulp and Pietro where they are going so I can stay here and be your "bodyguard" of sorts." Camilla said with a smirk as she got close enough to Bernards face to whisper in his ear. "I promise I won't let anything bad happen with you and me all alone... Hehehe." She said in a flirting manner as she breathed a cool breeze of air from her mouth into his ear, causing a tingling sensation to shoot up Bernards spine..
As she clung to him, Bernard looked down and noticed Vulp had approached the pair and started to sit against Bernards leg, gently nuzzling his soft fox head against Bernards leg like a loving pet towards their owner would, as if to curry favor with Bernard.
"Can both of you stop it? You're both a team too." Bernard said, surprising Camilla and Vulp.
"What?! Why?!" Camilla exclaimed in surprise as Vulp looked up in equal shock at Bernard.
"I need you two to act as backup for the other teams. Vulp, your shapeshifting is incredibly useful and can help save Marlene and Baurs if they get into trouble so go follow where they went. Camilla, I want you to follow Anatoli and Corvus because your Barrier Magic might keep them from dying if they fall out of the air." Bernard explained as he backed away from his overly clingy companions.
"But then what are you going to do?" Camilla questioned.
"I'm going to have Pietro protect me, I need to talk with him about some things too." Bernard said as he turned towards Pietro.
"Oh?" Pietro replied with intrigue.
"...Ugh. Fine..." Camilla said disgruntled as Vulp lowered his head in a sad expression. Noticing their unenthusiastic states, Bernard sighed before coming to a resolution.
"Look, if you both just do what I ask and we can get this over and done with as quickly as possible... When we get back to Hemlock, I'll do something for the both of you, that good?" Bernard said with a blush of embarrassment on his face as Camilla and Vulp perked up upon hearing his words.
"Deal!" Camilla said happily as Vulp eagerly nodded in response to Bernards offer. "Let's get going then." Camilla said as she turned towards Vulp, who nodded in compliance as Camilla proceeded to approach Bernard and kissed him on his cheek.
"Hey, what the?!" Bernard replied in response to Camillas sudden smooch.
"For good luck, bye!" Camilla said with a cheery attitude as she walked off into the forest towards the direction Anatoli and Corvus flew off to. As she walked away, Vulp approached Bernard, as if to request something.
"I know what you want..." Bernard said tiredly as he begun to pet Vulps head as the fox Celestial Spirit enjoyed the feeling of Bernard displaying a sign of affection before turning away and following after Marlene and Baurs, leaving Bernard alone with Pietro.
"I'd call you a "lucky man" but I'd think you'd come up with some roundabout way of saying you don't like having close friends, a lovely girlfriend and loyal pets like you have. Hehehe." Pietro joked as he sat back on his stump with Bernard sitting down as well.
"It's not like I don't appreciate it but my mind is elsewhere right now and sudden displays of affection and loyalty aren't my concerns..." Bernard said with a serious expression towards the old strongman.
"That the reason you wanted to talk to me?" Pietro questioned.
"I'm... Nervous..." Bernard said honestly as Pietro raised an eyebrow.
"I'd be too if I suddenly decided to take matters into my own hands and would go on a dangerous mission like this." Pietro replied.
"Back in Hargeon on that slaver ship, I left everything up to Corvus and Vulp and I barely knew them so I didn't feel so worried about anything happening. In Crocus, there was the Hungry Wolf Knights, who I barely knew, to help too. On the island at Nereid Lake, it was Baurs. Every time I have dealt with some serious garbage like this, I had help from outside sources I barely knew..." Bernard explained.
"And now you are feeling worried because everyone involved here is a comrade or a friend of yours. The whole "I don't want to be a leader" schtick you have been displaying is becoming more and more difficult because all you have is people you are worried about at your side." Pietro stated as Bernard locked eyes with him.
"...Can't believe I am doing this but I could use some advice..." Bernard said with a look of concern.
"The leader asking a subordinate for advice? Sounds like a joke your father would make." Pietro said with a smirk to Bernards confusion.
"That's not very helpful..." Bernard said with furrowed brows.
"Let me ask this then; why do you want to save that kid? Is it because you won't get the payment for the job you were originally supposed to do? Or is it because you want to help Psycho Circus get some recognition for attempting to save a kidnapped child? Or is it something else?" Pietro questioned to the quiet Bernard. "Could it be... You don't feel like letting yourself down again?"
"...Huh?" Bernard mumbled.
"Like you said, you gave up the child to save everyone at the party last night and perhaps you feel guilty about giving up the kid when you could have fought harder. But that's not you, you were always the "thinker" when it comes to situations like the one we're in. We wouldn't be out here if you weren't sure we could save her and all this planning wasn't worth it." Pietro explained as Bernard continued to look at him.
"...There's just so much riding on me here, this is more serious than I ever expected a wizard job to get..." Bernard said as he took off his beanie and begun to scratch his head.
"All part of being a wizard and all part of being a member of a guild. It's responsibility, no matter what way you swing it. Jobs have always been diverse, sometimes it's simply collecting mushrooms and scaring off weretigers and then next thing you know, you get a job like this to rescue kidnapping victims. It definitely happens." Pietro said.
"I said I wanted advice and all I am getting from you is stuff I already kinda figured out..." Bernard said with annoyance as he put his beanie back on his head.
"As your friend and mentor figure, it's my job to remind you of these things until I don't need to tell you it anymore." Pietro said with a smirk as Bernard made a smirk back at his comment.
"So what about you? What's your take on being told what to do by the guild masters "ne'er-do-well" of a son?" Bernard asked.
"Don't talk about yourself like that." Pietro stated bluntly.
"Huh?" Bernard muttered in surprise of Pietros sudden response.
"To be completely honest, this is a moment I'm frankly proud to see." Pietro said honestly as Bernard raised an eyebrow. "I've been expecting you to take over for your father for years and I always got the feeling you would come back and act like a man, even after you left the first time. I've known you since your birth and always knew you had a good head on your shoulders but this... Using everything you could think of to usurp the Magic Council and to mount a rescue of a child from a sociopathic dark guild. What more proof do I need that you earned my respect and loyalty?" Pietro said as he extended his hand out for a handshake.
"You make me sound like a hero from a crappy novella..." Bernard joked as he extended his hand as he and Pietro shook eachothers hands in comradery.
"Besides that. You're the only other sensible option to be the guild master. You have a biological link to the guild master so you are first in line, only other person who is up for debate is the S-class wizards."
"We only have two S-class wizards in Psycho Circus. And we both know Camilla would rather me be on top of her then the other way around... In both sense of the term. Hehehe." Bernard joked as Pietro chuckled in response to the bad joke.
"And the other option is..." Pietro said before speaking the persons name.
"...Definitely out of the question… Ugh..." Bernard said as he shuddered in response to whom the pair were referring to.
"If he was in charge, the guild would go under from scandals..." Pietro said as he put his hand on his face.
"And all the pregnancies too..." Bernard muttered.
"Hard to believe he is one of the guilds best wizards..." Pietro said with a bothered expression forming.
"Enough! Talking about him is just going to affect our morale so let's just get back to the matter at hand." Bernard said, interrupting.
"So what's the plan when the others find the base?" Pietro said.
"I have some ideas but to simplify things, we are going to have a distraction on hand to allow us an opportunity to sneak in." Bernard said. "Then when we get inside their base, the plan is to look for the kid immediately, we can't get distracted by enemies." He explained.
"She said she was going to "make innocence in physical form" right? Any idea what that means?" Pietro questioned.
"...I might have an idea. She kept spewing platitudes about art and everything so my guess is that she plans to make an art piece with the baby..." Bernard with a serious and concerned expression.
"...What makes you think she hasn't already done this?" Pietro said as he rubbed his chin in intrigue.
"It's all speculation but... I think if this Claudia person is as convinced as she is that she is some "master artisan," she's taking her sweet time to come up with an idea to turn the kid into something... But like I said, it's all guessing at this point." Bernard said, assuming the odds.
"So we're against the clock now too..." Pietro stated.
"Yup..." Bernard replied.
"Then there's no time left to worry until they get back." Pietro said as he and Bernard stood up. "Don't let the fear of the odds cloud your judgement. That's when you need to rely on others to help with the decisions." He said as he approached Bernard.
"Wow, look at you giving decent advice." Bernard joked with a smirk.
"Wow, look at you smiling. Hehehe." Pietro joked back as the pair overheard footsteps approaching.
"Hey!" Camilla exclaimed as she and Vulp had returned from inside the woods. "Anatoli and Corvus found something." She said as Bernard and Pietro nodded and begun to follow the S-class wizard and fox Celestial Spirit into the forest.
Deep within the woods, the others stood around a sect of the forest looking upwards into the trees as they noticed something unusual about the nearby area. With Bernard and Pietro joining in, Bernard looked up with confusion as he begun to see what the others looked at.
"Are you seeing this?" Corvus exclaimed as he continued to stare with the others.
"Never seen something like this before..." Marlene remarked as Bernard stepped forward.
Reaching his hand out, Bernard placed his hand against the air but noticed an oddly hard surface against his palm. Putting both hands up and tracing the air, he noticed that the feeling of the air was the same as a canvas painting with trees and grass forming an illusion of further space within Tamarisk Forest.
"The hell?" Camilla stated with confusion.
"It's almost like a massive painting was erected here." Pietro said as he walked forward and touched the canvas.
"Corvus? Anatoli?" Bernard said as he turned towards the crow Celestial Spirit and chimp-like wizard.
"When we flew over the forest, we noticed the trees looked incredibly flat from the air." Anatoli explained.
"Almost like they weren't really there." Corvus said.
"...So it's a box... Made of forest paintings..." Bernard thought as he pondered the massive forest painting cutting off the forest. "I think I know what this is..." He stated.
"Tell us then." Baurs asked.
"Behind this painting might be their hideout. This giant mural is meant to hide the place within the woods so as to make it not stand out amongst the foliage. It's also probably a sign of what these idiots are all about; vain artwork practices." Bernard said as he theorized Pazuzu's Easels motivations.
"You think they are crazy artists?" Camilla said with surprise and confusion.
"Might be possible. That Claudia girl you mentioned is supposedly their leader and she wouldn't talking about stuff like that." Pietro said with intrigue.
"So by that logic, if we can get around this painting, we will find our way into their base." Baurs stated.
"Alrighty then, easy enough! All we gotta do is find the front door." Corvus said with a smirk as he flew to one side to start searching with the others ready to split up before Bernard spoke up to stop them.
"Wait, hold up." Bernard said as everyone turned to look at him. "I have a better idea." He stated.
"This should be interesting..." Anatoli remarked as Bernard looked at him with an odd look.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Bernard said with a bothered expression.
"Oh nothing... Don't mind me." Anatoli stated sarcastically as Bernard turned away while rolling his eyes. "Bout time you started acting like the boss, Bernie..." He said with a mildly impressed smirk forming.
"What we need is the element of surprise, they're more than likely going to be using it too so we are better off fighting fire with fire." Bernard said as he reached under his shirt and begun to press on his Lacrima pacemaker. "So I got the next best thing..."
"Formosa? How's that thing going to help here?" Marlene asked as Bernards body started to ooze slime as the giant monstrous fluid golem had emerged.
"Okay, I want everyone to follow my mark, so get behind a tree and wait." Bernard said as he begun to point a lot of magical energy into Formosa. As he commanded, the team of creatures and wizards begun to hide behind several trees as he continued to feed Formosa his powers.
Meanwhile, at the home base manor of Pazuzu's Easel, two red cloaked members of the dark guild were casually walking through the hallways of the manor, holding paintings.
"You think Master Claudia will like the work I've done?" One of the red cloaked members said.
"Totally! Look at the color distortion you did on your piece, it looks fantastic." The other red cloak said.
"Oh don't be so modest, look at yours! That reflective effect off the sun with the paint you used is really- Huh?!" The red cloaked member said until he turned his head towards a nearby window and noticed something peculiar.
The giant mural that protected the Pazuzu's Easel base from being seen was starting to become destroyed as a massive creature of fluid and bone-like spikes was beginning to destroy the painting that concealed the dark guilds home. Stomping its massive frame forward through the painting and approaching the base, the giant monster Formosa roared loudly as its sounds percussed through the manor.
"What is that thing?!" A red cloaked Pazuzu's Easel member said in shock as the others watched the giant arrive.
"Get the other members! Warn them!" Another red cloak member screamed as the lesser members scrambled around with some exiting the guild with notepads and glowing markers in hand.
"Everyone! Use your Picto Magic! We gotta stop this thing!" Another red cloak member of the dark guild exclaimed as they all started drawing on notepads with the glowing markers as magic circles formed.
"On that note... Move." Bernard said as he and the other members of Psycho Circus and the creatures begun to use the distraction as a way to get inside the manor. Sneaking by the cloaked members of Pazuzu's Easel, the team had slinked through the front door undetected into a foyer area that had several covered paintings in it.
"Alright! We're in!" Anatoli said enthusiastically.
"Good work Bernard!" Camilla said with a happy expression as she looked at her boyfriend who was beginning to check the doors within the hallway entrance.
"Celebrate later! We don't have time to waste right now!" Bernard said angrily as he begun to check for unlocked doors.
"Right! Everyone start looking for the child!" Pietro stated as the group nodded in response. Suddenly, a buzzing noise begun to be heard in the foyer as everyone looked up and noticed a speaker system begun to activate.
"Testing! Testing! One and two!" Said a female voice that was familiar to Bernard reverberating throughout the room.
"Who's that?" Marlene said.
"I recognize it... Claudia..." Bernard said with an angry expression.
"Well, well, well! If it isn't "Mr. Pacemaker" and his band of circus freaks. I guessed that large liquid freak of nature outside scaring my workers was your doing. I'm also not surprised you remember my name after last night and were introduced to my true greatness as an artisan! Color me impressed that you managed to find my home this quickly as well!" Said the disembodied voice of Claudia Vanderheem.
"You were easy to find! I sniffed the smell of your crappy paint stench all the way here!" Bernard said in an insulting tone.
"Childish insults will get you nowhere... But being as I am a person of a generous nature. I will, at the very least, give you some mental reprieve; the child hasn't been transformed into a sculpture of immense beauty just yet!" Claudia said over the intercom.
"Good... My gamble was correct..." Bernard said softly.
"Whatcha mean?" Camilla asked towards Bernard.
"I'd think if Claudia was anything like me, she would take her sweet time coming up with the best possible thing to make. Wouldn't want to rush "perfection," you know?" Bernard explained.
"Yuck! Did you just compare me and you as "similar beings?" Please... My genius and artistic merit far exceeds whatever pea brained sideshow act you could come up with!" Claudia insultingly exclaimed.
"Enough talk! Where's the kid, lady?!" Anatoli screamed as he stood on his ball.
"Oh? You're looking for the child? Why didn't you say so? Let me help you find her..." Claudia said over the intercom as magic circles begun to appear within the foyer area.
As the circles appeared, so did the cloth over some of the paintings in the room disappear as well. The paintings depicted black voids as the magic circles begun to appear over the pictures as the still images suddenly became animated as the dark voids spun violently.
"What the hell?!" Corvus said in surprise as everyone in the group begun to notice their bodies started to transform into liquid paint-like substances. Melting down and drawn in towards the paintings in the room. The Psycho Circus wizards, the Celestial Spirits and the Earth Elemental suddenly disappeared from the room as the magic circles disappeared and the painting vortexes stopped spinning.
Dear lord, the tension is getting so thick, you could cut it with a knife and serve it for dinner. With Bernard using his cunning wit to usurp control of the situation into his hands, The Psycho Circus team goes to battle with the artisan dark guild known as Pazuzu's Easel, hidden deep within Tamarisk Forest. With their base uncovered and their primary forces distracted with the rampaging giant Formosa, things were going well for Bernard and co. until Claudia sprung into action. Has the team already been defeated or could they still be around to fight back and save the day? Who knows... Well someone does but he isn't saying a damn thing until next time... Til next time...
Authors Note: (Happy New Year! Next Chapter is a cut down! Woo!)