Mages of the Tricore

As Emirayha ambled through the streets nonchalantly, she wore a piercing stare which formed rifts in even the blithest of hearts of passerby. Her aura was languid and frigid, and so was the environment that she traversed through. Even though it was the middle of May, it wasn't a shock to Emirayha; death had become a way of life for her. Nothing was shocking or riveting anymore. A few blocks of ice and piles of snow were only a microcosm in comparison to the complex labyrinth that is human emotion. Regardless of personal opinions or global warming however, it was still a bit abnormal. But she didn't waste time pondering it. Instead, she stepped into a nearby coffee shop to warm up.

Emirayha may have felt something fly behind her as she opened the door to the coffee shop. She may have caught a glimpse of its reflection on the glass door; it was a young teen flying by on a snowboard. The snowboarder left a trail of ice behind, turning the street into a winter wonderland.
Kleis was in a similar situation, except with an ice skater. She threw her jacket over her head, shivering. Her necklace appeared to tremble as well, and the orange gem inside began to lose its shine. "Elise! The 'ell are you doing?!"
Elise gave Kleis a dull, empty stare, before going on her merry way.

When Emirayha opened the door at first, the coffee shop didn't feel much warmer at all. It actually seemed to be even colder. In the reflection of the door, she saw a brief glimpse of something. A bird, perhaps? "These animals are getting crazier with every year...." she thought. Emirayha decided to order something anyway, and take it to go. Once Emirayha got inside, aloof to her surroundings, she went up to the counter to order some hot chocolate. A mean, crusty old man with a half smoked cigarette in his mouth awaited. The scent of the cashier's cigarette filled the room, along with some burning pastries. "All we have is burnt bread, old-fashioned gum, some packets of sugar, and some cold milk. The usual cooks aren't here, and our heating is busted. If you have any complaints, then come back later. Order somethin' or GTFO." Emirayha just rolled her eyes and asked for a piece of gum. "That'll be 50 cents." After she paid him, he facetiously said have a great day and cursed under a raspy cough. The gum had no flavor, but it was chewy and it helped to moisten her mouth. Chewing the gum quietly, she cautiously peered out the window before leaving. It HAD gotten even colder. The snow had at least doubled in size since she'd come in the shop.

Kleis chased after Elise farther into the city, eventually running into the youngest of the Freemantle sisters, Evelyn. She quickly turned and stopped, picked up her snowboard and casually walked towards Kleis. They stared defiantly at each other, until Evelyn whacked the Dragonfly Mage on the head. "Stay out of my way."
Kleis hissed in pain, covering the top of her head. "If you're gonna do something like this, at least stay in your own territory!" The cold weather was doing a number on the insects in her forest, mostly on the crickets and the fireflies that kept people from getting lost.
Evelyn shrugged and flew past Kleis, further out of her own territory.

Emirayha just stared in awe at the snow for a moment, pondering the phenomena. She could think of no plausible cause, but she could sense a conflict coming up. Yes, her intuition forewarned her of a conflict rougher and more ruthless than those of wild lions fighting to death and more trenchant and harsh than a sword callously penetrating the guts of a, up until that moment, valiant soldier with hope on his side. There was no obvious sign of just what quite yet, but anyone could tell that a major event was going down soon. But what?

Kleis chased after the sisters, wadding through the two feet of snow they left behind. She wasn't dressed for this...
She pulled a cellphone out of her satchel and sent a text to all of the other Mages she knew about in the city about what was happening and what to do if they saw the sisters. She soon received a text back from the Mage who was in charge of the area around the hospital, telling her that the sisters recently visited, but avoided the area afterward. She made a U-turn and headed towards the hospital.

As soon as Emirayha started thinking about Kleis and the other Mages, her phone started vibrating. She had received a text. It told all about the malevolent trespassers trekking nearby.

Kleis quickly rushed to the hospital, but not before sending Emirayha a quick text.
I need you help take care of the forest and the old factory. You shouldn't be alone there, you should be joined with the Ink Mage. If anything happens, contact me ASAP.
She hit the Send button and left to meet up with the one in charge of the hospital area, the Teardop Mage.

Reading the urgent text she received form Kleis, Emirayha rushed over to the old factory and the forest, eager and ready to defend. An Ink Mage was supposed to be there to help out as well. She sent Kleis an okay and set off.

The amount of snow wasn't nearly as insane in the forest. However, when Emirayha approached the old factory, a pitch black force field appeared around it, camouflaging it with the night sky. If she touched the force field, she would find that it was composed of black ink, the same kind that you find in tattoos.

When Emirayha arrived at the factory, she noticed an obsidian colored force that seemed to coalesce with the night sky. It was moist and slick to the touch, much like ink. The Ink Mage, perhaps?

The force field soon dissipated, uncovering the factory and the Ink Mage. He appeared to be a little old to be a Mage, as he appeared to be in his mid-20s. He was dressed as a mime without all the makeup, but instead having intricate tattoos all over his arms. He held what appeared to be a Boo (yes, like the ones from the Mario games) with a snowflake symbol on its head in his arms, which struggled to get out of his grasp. He paid no attention to Emirayha, as he was too focused on controlling the Boo.

When the forcefield vanished, a Mage emerged. To Emirayha's surprise, it was a male, and an older one too. For some reason she had pictured a female. He held what had a semblance to a boo in his hands. Emirayha had always had an affinity for boos, and she almost urged a slight smile; it disappeared when she saw how he was struggling to keep it contained, however. She assumed that it meant bad news. She waited a minute before attempting to introduce herself and ask about the boo.

The Ink Mage eventually managed to get the Boo under his control. Ink leaked from the tattoos on his arms and surrounded the Boo, forming a cage around it. The Boo struggled a bit in the cage, breathing icy flames at the ink bars, before simply giving up and settling down.
The Ink Mage glanced over at Emirayha, surveying her. He shrugged, and without a word, picked up the Boo's cage and headed into the factory.

The Mage, aloof to her attempt to socialize, continued to struggle with the boo until he managed to get it settled down in a cage. He then just shrugged and entered the factory. This one wasn't exactly the social butterfly, but Emirayha wasn't much of a people person either. She was a loner, so this would be just fine for her. She entered behind him, aware and ready to attack like a house cat who awakens his wild instincts when stepping beyond the secure barriers of his home.

The Ink Mage headed for a pile of scrap metal, dragging the cage behind him. The tattoos on his arms grew into long tendrils that lifted up pieces of the pile, allowing him to place the cage at the bottom and hide it there. He glanced at Emirayha and finally said, "You're...Kleis's new partner...right?" He had a deep, monotone voice, and the way he spoke made it sound as if he was tired or bored. Or maybe that's just how he usually spoke, who knows.

Following the Ink Mage, Emirayha finally noticed the massive tattoos covering his arms. They grew into long vine-like structures that he used to conceal the caged boo behind a pile of scrap metal. Then, in a languid voice he asked if Emirayha was Kleis's partner. "Yes, I have been working with Kleis. I'm Emirayha. May I ask what's going on? Did you receive any new updates?"

"I'm Von..." the Ink Mage said, staring at the pile of scrap. The Boo was very well hidden in the pile, the only thing hinting to its presence is the fact that the air around the pile was somewhat colder. "...You know what Familiars are, correct...?"

"No, no...Standard Mages can have Familiars as well. They're usually half as strong as the Mage..." Von had a blank look in his eyes, as if he was blacking out or thinking really, really hard. He gestured to the pile of scrap metal. "...That thing was Evelyn Freemantle's Familiar...She and her sister will probably come here to retrieve him soon..."

"Oh, I see. They likely will, we'd better be prepared." Emirayha said, distracted by the deadlock in Von's eyes. His thought seemed so deep, that one could feel as if she were getting lost in the abyss of it just by looking. It was simultaneously mesmerizing and disturbing, so Emirayha just briefly looked away.

"...They're here," Von said, looking straight up at the ceiling. The sound of bending metal could be heard above, and it got noticeably colder inside the factory. The tendrils on Von's back twisted to form a bow and some arrows. He positioned himself underneath the forming hole in the ceiling and started shooting. Blobs of ink shot off his back and moved towards the entrance, quickly closing the doors and blocking it. "Watch the entrance, Elena's gonna try to come in from there."
The sound of someone trying to kick the metal door down echoes through the room, which slowly got colder and colder.

Emirayha rushed toward the door and began using her mirror shield to lock the door and help reflect attacks.

There was a buzzing noise as Von pressed something in his ear before turning back to Emirayha. "Change of plan. Just defend yourself, don't fight back."

The door eventually gave way, not to Elena's repetitive kicks, but rather to the saw blades she sliced the door open with. Some metal bits ricocheted off of Emirayha's mirror shield, knocking Elena back. She looked just like a figure skater, with a pink leotard and ribbons in her hair. She had two long poles with rotating saw blades at the end, which she used to try and cut Emirayha's neck. She left an icy trail behind her.

Von was keeping the other sister, Evelyn, busy by covering the hole she left in the ceiling with ink so she couldn't get through. However, the ink patch was ripped to shreds by another pair of saw blades, this time underneath Evelyn's snowboard. She fell from the ceiling and almost landed right on Von, if it weren't for the tendril on his back catching her and throwing her at the wall.

Just before the door gave way, Von informed Emirayha just to
defend herself rather than fight back. Two mages penetrated the walls of the
room via saw blades. They left icy trails behind them and their appearance
resembled figure skaters. Emirayha’s shield ricocheted the resulting metal bits
from the door, and helped to knock Elena back. She then attempted to decapitate
Emirayha using her saw. "How unpleasant and discourteous these two young
women are." Emirayha thought, as her eyes began to glow slightly. She
wasn't quite enraged— she rarely ever became infuriated— but she definitely
felt ready to fight. "Well, I suppose these witches want a fight. If they
want it dirty, then there will be no rules. And if I manage to get them near death
then there will be no rebut or clemency, lest they intend to be dealt with
violently and thoughtlessly like week old rubbish. This is the best way to get
things done, and now that they have crossed the line into strict war territory,
there is no more moral reason to hold back. This shall be fought like in the
wild, bloody and ruthless and end just as tragic. Even if not now, I shall get
my vengeance. What have I to lose?” With that thought, Emirayha set out to eventually slay the two
mages, but at this point she decided to play it safe and stick to plans. She continued to uphold her mirror shield, circumspectly dodging incoming attacks.