[Endgame: rise or DROWN]

[warpweft]

[How long have you been exploring Nessa's palace now? You've met her family, viewed her memories, learned how to fight as a witch and tried to find the source of her power and the Treasure of her palace: the Voidheart. And along the way, you've tired your best, with mixed success, to avoid the incarnation of her eldest cousin and the representation of her trauma and fear, the Nightmare of Esmau.]

[Wherever you are in the Palace right now, you feel the ground briefly shake under your feet. Little shakes here and there haven't been out of the ordinary - Esmau is trying to blow the place down to the studs, after all. But that felt different. That felt....worse.]

[Your phone beeps as you receive a message.]

Comments

[voidhearts]

[Parry Roll:
Esmau rolls 1d20: 14
Minato rolls 1d20: 5, Esmau wins

Esmau knocks Balmung out of the way with her left arm and THRUSTS her glaive with her right, slamming it into Minato's shoulder. It pierces him, then the impact sends him flying across the temple for 25 damage. He manages to get his Guard up before the Void Eruption hits, mitigating the worst of it for another 8 damage.

Minato: 44/100 HP]

[messianic]

[ oh

that was a Mistake.

He can only really process that for a moment as her glaive skewers his shoulder, and then he's off flying--and he's barely able to throw his arms up to protect himself as much as possible from the second attack.

And then he kind of... slumps a bit for a moment, stunned.

Ow. ]

[survivaltricks]

[fortunately, his parry was successful, so. . . once Esmau reels from his counter, he turns sharply on his heel and bolts towards the other wild card, panic etched onto every feature]

Minato! Minato!

[he skids to a halt next to Minato and immediately reaches for the wounded shoulder]

[voidhearts]

Minato!

[Nell is immediately running over as well.]

A-are you okay?!

[messianic]

[ Minato is wincing, definitely hurting despite himself, but he starts to push himself up immediately as soon as he sees Akira. ]

I... I'm okay. S-sorry--she came at me too fast.

[ He manages a weak smile for Nell too, trying to reassure her. ]

[survivaltricks]

[light is already glowing in Akira's hands-- thank goodness Minato charged his Well of Life earlier-- as his gaze flickers almost frantically towards Nell]

Nell. . .

[anyway time to cast that healing spell Well of Life again!!]

[voidhearts]

D-do you want me to heal him again?!

[Green sparks are already building on her fingers. She might just do it on her own, tbh.]

[messianic]

[ Minato just winces, looking between them. ]

... Sorry. Is everyone else okay?

[survivaltricks]

[to Nell]

Please.

[and then, to Minato]

Yeah. . . you were hit the hardest.