"Death solves all problems, no man, no problem."-Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili

  POV Ky'th Mazurio, Queen of Mazurio

  While talking with Nylchai and Larkta in the , I suddenly feel a heavy weight settle on the mana in the air. I'm not the only one who noticed it either, as others in the css look around in fusion. The professor simply looks stunned, aedly starts flexing his hands.

  "Alright css, something is clearly going on, everyone please stay calm and head for the theater. Evacuations are mahere." The professor leads the way out, and through the hallways. Other s are also moving, with their teachers simply signaling their fusion to each other.

  When we he theater, all hell breaks loose, as men in cloaks start wildly bsting a whole menagerie of magical attacks oudents. Many jump through the windows to escape, but I see oside even more cloaked men p in. We are surrounded.

  "Css get beh-" The teacher dies as he draws a sword. An arrow stig out through his throat.

  "Everyone, get ihe theater!" Eden's shout is heard over the panid every one of our css makes a break for the theater. Before the st of us make it through, the people at the rear are hit by a massive fireball.

  "Celdium!" Alice joins the cries of m screams, I feel like I have been here before, but something is missing this time.

  The students begin to disperse throughout the theater, desperately trying to find hiding spots. Except for Eden, Cathy and Carmil standing oage. I hurry to join them.

  "What's the pn here?" Cathy mao look mildly annoyed, Carmil looks deathly afraid, and Eden gives me a grim look.

  "I was hoping to use the tral position of the stage to draw their attention for as long as possible, that way the guard might arrive on time to rescue at least some people." So he nning on killing himself, great.

  "I have [lost/missing/gone] Lady Esstrey, I nning on standing here so I would be visible to her." Shit, Esstrey was in the cafeteria with some others, I hope they mao find their ow.

  "I-I don't know! I was just following you guys!" Carmil is probably the most scared out of anyht now.

  So no one has a pn? Well, Eden's pn might work, but it obviously needs some improvements. e on, think Ky! Think! You are the Demon Queen of Mazurio! Mana is being disrupted in the air, but not inside our bodies. That means whatever they are doing is not a plete nullification of magic, but rather a rge resistao it. I 't force much magic through on my own, but... but I might be able to with the others here.

  "I have a pn! We will ritualcast a basic barrier of pure mana. It will be highly ineffit, but it's the only way we could get a barrier up right now. Stack up on me, and prepare to be the toughest distra in the school!" The trio quickly fall in position, bag me up with their mana. A deceptively strong barrier forms out of the mana of a vampire, the prince, an interdimensional being, and the demon lord. It will however not be enough for a determined assault.

  Our barrier formed just in time as cloaked men start p into the theater, one who looks to be their leader takes off his hood to gloat.

  "The rest are hiding, find th-" He's cut off as Alicia jumps for his throat, stabbing him in a major artery with a hidden dagger.

  "YOU KILLED MY BROTHER!" As the screams are heard throughout the theater, Larkta jumps iween a group of the troops, wildly tearing at the assassins. Alicia is quickly killed by the surrounding people, but Larkta mao take down a few with her before being shot by multiple crossbows. The men, much more cautious now spread throughout the theater while maintaining eye ta the podium. They occasionally throw attacks our way, but quickly stop as it bees clear they need more than that to break through.

  The men find a few of the human students hiding behis, and promptly execute them, but as anroup of the assassier, they are ambushed by two southern sword dancers. The sword twins rapidly carve a path through them, catg them by surprise. As a few of the men turn at the otion, Cathy grabs one of the men who got a little too close, and drags him screaming into the barrier. He tries to resist, but is slowly getting crushed while his screams fill the theater. More people get distracted, and two people in religious garb choose this moment to ambush an isoted group. One padin, and one minotaur crushing armored, and unarmored oppos in equal.

  A sed fireball hits the entrance, and one of the southern twins is sent screaming to the ground, while the other falls dead on impact. More assassins pour in as the blockage is resolved, and start bsting magi all dires. Some of those dires are clearly meant more to clear out anyo hiding, but he areas where Urist or Nylchai are hiding. Bessielle and her padin friend aren't so lucky, Bessielle gets hit directly with an ice, and multiple crossbow bolts, while the padin takes a lightning bolt. The tter falls dead to the ground, while Bessielle takes cover in the smoke of bat.

  The screaming of the man Cathy caught finally stops, as she twists his neck. "It would seem we have beeed, it was [nice/acceptable/good] while it sted."

  "As expected of the primary target, you got quite a few of us at the end." One of the assassins looks at the surrounding age, looking quite displeased. Then he looks to Eden.

  " prince Eden, we are from the Shadow Hand. We have e to deal with the enemies of the empire, you e with us now." Ederayed us? I gre at Eden, and Cathy is already preparing to kill him before he move.

  "He's lying, I sense his heartbeat. The only thing in that sentehat wasn't a lie was addressing Eden." Carmil suddenly gaihe ce to speak up, and Eden is visible sweating.

  "Thanks Carmil, I would be lying if that didn't put my balls in my throat." The assassin looks mildly dismayed, but turns to the entered mages.

  "Delta team, what took you so long? We lost Alpha team, aeam has taken signifit losses." The mages are already spreading out in a half-circle, ready to destroy our barrier.

  "We entered resista the cafeteria, the lich just left as we ehe pirate was leading the greenskins against Charlie team, and mao severe damage to them, they are holding off the guard as we speak." The Beta team assassin looks shocked.

  "And what of the pirate?"

  "Beheaded, Charlie should have taken the briefing on her more seriously. Our beor will be disappointed." They... got Esstrey? Cathy shows emotion on her for the first time, tentacles drooping downward, and generally looking depressed.

  The men waste no further time, and the Delta team lead charges up a ritual attack. With ic weakened, we won't st long, and as his attack reaches its cresdo...

  ...*CH* A shovel sticks out of Delta lead's skull, dropping him and killing him instantly. For a moment, the whole room looks at the theater entran shock, and the rgest mermaid to have ever existed enters. Using a halberd to bance herself, as her movements twitnaturally. Esstrey looks truly awful, untable wounds spread across her body, and her head attached to her body by a strahick ring of blood. Esstrey locks eyes with us, and opens her mouth as if to say something, but the only thing to e out is a guttural groan, followed by her puking up a rge amount of blood.

  "That's rey, that's a ghoul. She has beat. Xygar must have raised her." As Carmil says that the ghoul engages in bat. Using the halberd to pole vault over some seats, and nds on one of the casters to eat him alive. The casters try to reform their formation, but some get too close to the barrier, a snatched by Cathy, who looks thhly pissed. One of the casters attempts to cast a fire spell on the rampaging ghoul, but instead a bolt flies from uhe podium, and hits the pyromage in the brain.

  "NOW!" I stop charging the barrier, and start charging the assassin. I might not have my magic, but the demon lord is the greatest Mazurian, not just the greatest caster. The swordsman in front of me goes for a wide horizontal ssh, but I parry him mid-strike with my palm. Before he recover, I wrench the word from his hand, and throw it towards Eden. He use it better thahe man looks at me, and the realizatios in for him, as he just got signed up for a fistfight with the demon lord. I jam my whole arm through his gut, destroying his liver. That was for Esstrey.

  "KYLA!" Ja appears bow in hand at the entrance, along with a familiar skeleton hiding behind him. The remaining assassins try to flee, but are ruthlessly shot down by a bination of crossbow bolts, arrows, and a leaping ghoul. At some point, ic returns to us as well.

  When the assassins are dead, Eden calls us to the podium to discuss. Urist and Nylchai emerge from below the podium, both holding dwarven crossbows. Bessielle also limps to us from behind cover. Everey-ghoul joins us.

  "I'm guessing the real Shadow Ha with the magic disruptor, they probably expected that if we were still alive having ic returo us would be the same as them resg us." Eden gives me a pointed look while he says that, but I don't care for Eden, and give Xygar a deathgre even the lich fears.

  "YOU TURREY INTO UNDEAD!" I grasp his thin, fragile bones. She should be resting in peace, but is now instead bound as mindless undead. A ghoul even of all things.

  "W-wait! I didn't! I thought Carmil raised her!" I stop shaking the lich, and turn to Carmil. She is iaking a very close stare at Esstrey. The ghoul responds by opening her mouth again.

  "???? ?????" Carmil's eyes go wide in surprise as the ghoul murmurs something.

  Spoiler??????? ?????

  [colpse]"By the goddess, she's still alive!"