Guadalupe
*A fair number of locals from the main festival had chosen to gather themselves just outside of town, nearest to the various hills that had been decorated and set up for the Wine Barrel Race - those planning to take part in the racer itself were asked to head up to the starting line. There each contender would be given a well made empty barrel that matched their overall size or height.*

*While all were getting ready for the race, Madame Yenasha would be taking her place upon the stage - a nearby mage would cast a spell that made her voice reach out more than normal. As if she were speaking into a tunnel, she would clear up her voice before beginning to speak.*
Jacques
"Warmest spring greetings to all of Miller Dale, I'm Madame Yenasha and I've been asked to host this first game of the Dawning Festival, the Wine Barrel Race!" *She called, of which got the crowd that had gathered cheering, she motioned their gazes upwards to the hill tops where the starting line was.*

"We've got a few contenders for this race all, each one will have to roll their given barrel down the bumpy hills all the way to the bottom - as for how they'll drive their barrel, that will be up to the contender! Will some play it safe or be true daredevils?"

*The race would begin once the contenders at the top of the hill were all lined up and ready to go.*
Ruth
*Marshal limbers up, he looks over to Sati and blows a kiss* "Ready to eat my dust?"
Mary
"Oh a race! I'm in!!"

*Liber goes through the crowd up to the stage*

"How can I join?" *They say, smiling out of exitement*
Etta
*AC would trot up to the starting line. By now, she would have changed into more typical 'adventurewear' that could take a beating if she took a tumble while steering her barrel, and she would have tied her poofy, curly, shiny hair back into a somehow even poofier pony tail. She unwrapped her whip and limbered it up, then struck a show-offy, prima-donna-ish pose for the crowd!*
"Here I am, y'all! Let's win this thing!" 
— — —
Darlene
"This is going to be interesting.*

*Severus got ready at the starting line why his eyes locked on his barrel. He glanced quickly at the other contestants, they were all promising. However, Severus got a good plan in my,* "Play dare..." *He slightly chuckled. He shook his wrists and his feet's tips slightly drilled the soft dirt ground. How did he even get there without causing anyone to panic? Such a mystery.*
David
She chuckled at Marshal's teasing as she stretched in front of the starting line, "Don't get too cocky," She said. "I'm not the only one you need to beat," She added, playfully sticking a tongue out at him.
Jacques
*The stage and crew with Yenasha had gotten the signal that the contenders had all arrived and were ready, so Yenasha cleared up her voice* "The racers are ready and at the starting line, so lets get rolling!"

"Racers to your barrels!" *She shouted, her voice carried by the spell - a flag holder nearby would steady their grip on the flag.*

"On your marks... Get set..." *She paused for just a wee moment, before shouting* "GO!"
Darlene
*Severus had always been a formidable warrior, having faced countless challenges on the battlefield... Or silly encounters. But nothing could have prepared him for the challenge of rolling a wine barrel down a hill.*

*He had impressive skills, but was still a mere mortal... Actually Undead was more accurate... Sometimes he would be caught off guard. Such was the case during a wine barrel rolling race he had entered at the local fair. At the top of a hill, ready to roll the massive wooden barrel down the incline. He had expected the barrel to be heavy, but the sheer mass of it took him by surprise, and he struggled to push it forward.*

*Suddenly, the barrel broke free, and it began to roll down the hill, picking up speed as it went. Severus was stunned as he was frozen in ice for a moment. Precisely! He had not anticipated the weight or momentum of the large container, and he was having trouble keeping pace with it. He tried to run alongside the barrel, but his heavy armor was slowing him down. He could feel his muscles bulging with the strain of chasing after the runaway container. The precious heritage of him was quickly burning like someone's money pouring out of their pocket. A second passed and he would use more than '3 second' of life energy... Even though he did not feel tired, he felt sorry for his precious life-energy being used for something like this. Therefore, it would not go in vain.*

"Stop it! You barrel!"

*He shouted and chased after the running away wooden barrel, with a hope that he could catch it. It was mindless. It would not listen to him. How could a barrel answer? "Barrel barrel"? If it cried like that, it would be ridiculous...*

*He did not even have time to check other contestants' condition as his was worse than anyone could imagine. Suddenly, the barrel made a booming sound and jumped into the sky. It hit a small rock. The barrel somehow survived but not for the Knight chasing after it. That small rock was rock at its job stopping running people. He was not an exception. With a familiar loud crash, the barrel landed safely and so did Severus. He rolled down the hill like a sturdy wooden wine barrel reinforced entirely with metal. If he were human, he would probably have become a Crushed Meat Knight...*
David
As Vasati heard the announcer call out that they should get ready, she leaned forward into a running stance, planted her feet and held her hands up in front of the barrel. She was careful not to touch it so she wouldn't be disqualified. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Marshal getting ready as well, and she sent a quick wink his way. 

The moment she heard the announcer yell "Go,' she placed her hands on the barrel and pushed. It was heavier than she had expected, but before long, she was able to push it from it's perch, and over the side of the hill. 

As it rolled down, she sprinted after it, not wanting to lose control over it. However to her dismay, just a few steps after setting off, the barrel was redirected toward one of the makeshift barriers on the hill. She ran after it, hoping to get to it before it lodged itself against the barrier, but she was too late. 

She groaned in annoyance as she reached the stuck barrel, and circled it so she would be able to push it off the barrier. It took quite a bit of effort to get it unstuck. Once it was, she scanned it to check for any breaks or nicks that might have rendered it unusable. However, luckily she found none. 

So she carefully repositioned it at an angle that would take it back toward the finish line and gave it a firm push.
Amanda
*On Yenasha's mark Marshal started rolling forward before hopping on top of the barrel, starting off as I light jog down the hill. He wobbles a little when he encounters a patch of gravel* "Fuck Marshall why did you get cocky!?"
Etta
*AC crouched in a three-point stance, her magical whip **Ecki** Held in her other hand, back and away and ready to 'attack' her barrel. She glanced each way, back and forth, eyeing up her opposition. What a widely-varying crew there was! But, she would be victorious. Strategy was just as important as size, strength, or speed after all!*

*Then the event organizer shouted **GO** And AC flipped forward then off of a handspring launched her whole weight boots first at her barrel to send it on its way! 
She raced after it, flicking out her whip to steer it this way and that, ... The problem with this is, now and then, it's hard to see around the barrel at the path ahead. And thus, our hero AC didn't see a rock in the path juuust big enough to send the barrel careening in a new direction, but not big enough for AC to see!*
"Aw hells!" *She sprinted to catch up! ... And caught up juuust in time for the barrel to hit another rock, bounce off of **That!** ... But this also slowed it up enough so that it caught up against a rock just big enough to ... Stop it.*
"Well ||bleep bleep bleeeeep||!!!" *AC cursed loudly.
She stepped around to see what the barrel was lodged up against — a rock that wasn't that large, but sheer bad luck had already slowed down her barrel so that circumstance had it on a downard arc on a bounce when it seized up against it.*
*Grumbling and shaking her head, she took a few seconds to consider her options as she watched the other competitors pass her by.*
"Son of a ..." *And she ducked down and gave the barrel another good hard kick to knock it over the rock, and onward it resumed its bouncing down the hill, AC charging after!*
— — —
Mary
*As soon as they heard the call out, Liber pushed the barrel with all of their strengh. *

"Damn that's a huge barrel. Whaddya guys stuff in those?" 

*Growling, they pushed and pushed! The barrel is going quite fast, thanks to a slope that's speeding it up but Liber manages to control the speed of the barrel quite effectively*

"Thank the gods it's manageable." *They thought, while they keep pushing their barrel towards the finish line.*
Jacques
"Well folks looks like we have some of our racers off to a fine head start, while others are a bit more rocky!" *She stated, watching the racers ride or guide their barrels through the track.*

"But they'll still got a ways to go, watch out for those twists and bends racers!" *The observing crowd would cheer loudly, many children watching in delight at the race. Let's see how the next bit of the race shall go, still have a ways to go before one reaches the finish line!*
Darlene
*The terrible scene of the Knight rolling in madness down the hill was horrifying. Those who were observing him would gasp in awe. On the other hand, the barrel gained speed and on it own went on an unpredictable and chaotic ride down the hill. But Severus was a knight through and through, and he refused to be bested by a mere inanimate object.*

*With a determined grimace, Severus pushed himself up onto his hands and knees, his body straining under the weight of his armour. He took a deep breath, steeling himself for what was to come, and then launched himself upward into the air. For a brief moment, it seemed as if time had slowed down, and Severus hovered in the air, suspended between earth and sky...*

*But then, with a powerful twist of his torso, Severus sent his body spinning and somersaulting through the air, catching the attention of the shocked onlookers. They gasped, not having expected such a feat from such a heavily armoured warrior.*

*As Severus reached the apex of his jump, he extended his arms, his metal-clad hands reaching for the sky. With a final twist of his body, Severus landed on his feet with a resounding "Bang," Sending a shockwave through the ground. His footprint printed deep in the Earth's mantle... Thought the ground did not shake like maniac. It was the infamous ground anyways.*

*The observers were stunned, their applause mingling with the echoes of Severus' impressive jump. But it was not over yet. Severus pushed himself up to his feet and smirked, his armour creaking and groaning under the weight. The race was not yet won, and Severus was determined to catch up with the runaway barrel.*

*With a determined stride, Severus set off after the barrel once again, his armour clanking with every step. But with his impressive jump, Severus had proven that he was not to be underestimated. Those flaming eyes were locked on the rolling barrel. It was like that he wanted to burn the barrel to ash, though it was his objective to win.*

*Ahead of the uneven path was gravel and some maleficent sand pits waiting for the barrels and its head-knight. Coincidentally, there was someone just happened to run at the very same speed as him and they were obviously next to each other.* || 

"Hey there!" *In a hurry, he shouted, he was not showing any sight of fatigue or exhausted after a great fall after all.*

"Seems like you got a *Horse* To catch," *He gave her a two-finger salute before getting ready to deal with the rough pathway incoming.*
Etta
*As AC dashed after her barrel, cracking her whip this way and that to steer her barrel, it bounced along nearer one of the other competitors and his barrel!
She glowered a moment as he showed off...*

. O O ( yeah, well ... A good thing I didn't. I would have landed on my face when we hit those rocks. High reward if it worked, but high risk if it hadn't. ) 
*She sprinted to catch up to her barrel, and she cracked her whip back and forth to steer it, a look of determined concentration on her face as her barrel bounced and rattled up alongside **Severus**'.
She glanced sidelong at him and his barrel for a moment,

*Then he spoke to her and she nodded a bit at his words, still trying to keep most of her attention on their barrels, snapping her whip here and there to make sure they don't collide or glance off of each other or something.* 
"I do, I **Do**!" 
*Her eyes sharpened a moment as AC briefly considered shenanigans ... But after a second or two of consideration ... She just couldn't do it. Instead, she leapt up and spun with a flourish to deliver a harder crack of her whip at the barrel to try to speed it up!* "Let's go, Ecki!" *She called to her whip, trying to pick up the pace!*
Amanda
*Now the gravel was out of the way Marshal picked up the pace as he glided down the hill, always half way done he was feeling motivated, his head turned to Vasati for a brief moment to see she was pulling out of the race, knowing we wasn't gonna stop this barrel now he nodded to her and kept going. As he passed the competition he looked at them smugly, noticing he was getting under this curly haired woman's skin* "How the fuck am I doing this? I gotta focus or I'll be eating the dirt" *He thought to himself, trying not to panic and stay calm*
Mary
*As fellow contestants tried and tried to overtake Liber, **THEY WAS TOO FAST BABY!!** Mustering all of their strength, they pushed and pushed the barrel as fast as they could, minding the bumps and turns. At one point they thought they were about to fall because of a pothole, but guess what? __IT AINT NO COOKING SHOW! It's a **RACE**!__*

*"Gadem. I'm strong." They thought, shocked about their own performance, pushing the barrel further and further. But lo and behold, they can win! They turned around and grinned at the other contestants. They yelled:*

 "Ayo, you slow-asses need to keep up! I'm almost bored, when would y'all speed up a bit? Entertain me, I don't know, do something, don't leave me up here, on top, challenge me!" 

*"God I hope they will." They thought to themselves. With an ever bigger grin on their faces, they focus on the race.*

"Let's go baby, the only place you can have now, tis the first one, ye ain't no looser." *They whispered to themselves.*
Jacques
"Well isn't this something! We've got at least two racers neck and neck, and second place is likely gaining on first place!"

*The crowd was really getting worked up, some were cheering for certain racers while Yenasha and others on the sage used small spyglasses to get a close up on certain parts of the track. All four were certainly picking up speed, while the 5th racer seemed to have swiftly dropped out to some disappointment.*
Amanda
*Marshal steadily kept up and going faster down the hill, he could see the fast approaching sandpits and was faced with an option, he decided to speed up and hope he can catch a lip of the ground to fly right over the sand, hoping he doesn't fall in the process. The wind in the face and the adrenaline running through his veins made him feel more alive than ever*
Mary
*Seeing the other contestants speeding up, Liber laughs out of excitement*

"Let's go! You lots do have sum' fighting spirit after all! Maybe this race won't be as boring as I've thought~~"

*They steadily anchor their feet to the ground, and gain speed, minding the bumps and turns, still laughing*
Etta
*AC couldn't help but grin cockily back at the 'heavy metal man' as she finally got her barrel on a straightaway and started to speed up*
"Hells yeah! Let's go!" 
*Her golden-amber curls bounced behind her as she cracked the barrel a few more times with her whip to get it rolling even faster, near to sprinting now to keep up with it, snapping her whip on each end of the barrel to steer it away from bumps and rocks.*
"Good thing I had that extra cuppa coffee this mornin'!"
Mary
"Look boss, we're catching up with those people in the lead!"
Etta
"... How's that one guy not fallen off that barrel yet?" *She giggled as she eyed the other two competitors ahead of her, and tried to give her barrel another boost!*
— — —
Darlene
*In the meantime, Severus smirked and was ready for an epic moment that would make the townfolks drop the jaws. A scene that they would never be able to witness once again. A legend would be cre-...*

"What on earth..."

*Severus stood there, frozen in place, watching the barrel rolling away and away from him. He did not expect that these sandpit would react so weirdly. With an unbelieving laugh, he stood there awkwardly.*

*His head turned at the sky, his eyes wide as he stared up at the bright blue sky. He was speechless, his mind too busy trying to process what had just happened for him to form any coherent thoughts...*

*Slowly, he sat up, looking around him. He was alone, in the middle of nowhere, and utterly confused. It was then that he realized that he had to figure out a way out of this mess himself, but he was completely at a loss as to how to go about it. No... None of these things were real. He was lost in his own fantasy, his own world of dim memory. It was too dim and blurry.*

*After what felt like eternity, the Dark Knight himself standing in the middle of a vast emptiness. It was nonger a dim and dark corridor. There was nothing but sand and sky around him, and the only sound was the occasional gust of wind that rustled the sand at his feet. He felt a sense of unease... When he looked around, trying to get his bearings, but there was nothing to see. He was alone, with nothing to do and nowhere to go. And yet, he felt a strange sense of purpose, like something was calling him forward, even though there was nothing ahead. The longer he stood there, the more he felt a pull, like there was something ahead of him that he had to reach. Then... Confidently, he took a step forward, then another, and another, but the landscape remained the same. The only sign that he was moving was the crunching of the sand beneath his feet. It was as if he was walking in place, but somehow, it felt like that he was getting closer to something. 

He continued on, feeling both strange and curious, until finally, he saw a light in the distance. It was faint at first, but as he drew closer, it grew brighter and more intense, until he could see a figure standing in the light, beckoning him closer.*

*He approached, feeling a sense of awe and reverence, as if he was seeing something that was beyond his understanding. The figure turned to him, and he saw that it was himself, standing tall and proud, with a sense of purpose and determination about him. The armour was shining as crystal under sunlight. Beautiful and generous... Unlike the real himself... Clad in darkness, blood and occasionally... Departed beings' souls. There were also something different in that other Severus... The weapons, they were shiny and bright. Even the sword Filthy Darkness was also emitting a beautiful light. A really welcoming sense coming from it. Besides the Waterfall Odachi and the Thornedheart Rapier flying around, there were also several different weapons... All covered in crystal light and the materials were diamond-like.*

*And then, just like that, the figure disappeared, and Severus was alone in the vast emptiness again. He was left with a sense of longing, like he had seen something beyond his comprehension, and yet, he felt like he had somehow grown from the experience. He couldn't observe and examine everything the Shiny Severus had... There were too many things. The Dark Knight stood there for a long time, contemplating what he had seen, and wondering what it all meant. In the end, he wasn't sure, but he felt like he had been blessed with a glimpse of something beyond the limitations of his understanding, and he was grateful for it...*

*The Dark Knight was quickly pulled back to reality by the noises of the townfolks cheering at the fastest runner. He left a sigh and a dry laugh, unable to comprehend what just happened. With a quick and forceful push on the ground with two hands, he roared noisily like a tiger trying to escape from the oppression of the bison. The sound didn't sound like tiger though. Fortunately, he could finally get back to the ground, his barrel without his control had already got stuck between two large stones. With a rush toward the barrel, he quickly got to position to push the barrel away from the stones back to its track... The race was not over yet! It was not the end.*
Jacques
"Doesn't seem like postions have changed much, our leading racers are clearly trying to overcome each other - but that third racer is starting to gain on their tail!" *She'd remark, using her spyglass to get a closer view on all the racers. She did notice the 4th racer seemed to almost pause, arching a brow before he seemed to come out of his daze and was quickly trying to get back into the race.*

"Its likely to be very close folks, hopefully you all made reasonable bets or none at all!" *Some in the crowd started laughing while a few sweated a tad.*
Amanda
*Marshal was neck and neck with this racer as the finish line was fast approaching, as racers got to the sandpit Marshal guided it to a small lip in the ground, he braced himself before going over the pits and landing with a thud and him almost falling off, the barrel gave way and splintered little but was still going, seemingly the last of the obstacles was behind him and was a final sprint to the finish line, Marshal was dripping with sweat and his hair was all frizzled but he didn't let it bother him, however he was getting concerned how this thing was meant to stop, it's like a runaway boulder*
Mary
*Liber sprinted towards the finish line, pushing their barrel, pushing themselves to their limits!* 

*"Damn I need to get faster" They thought, racing towards the finish line.*

*Turning their face towards the contestants, they see them keep up, and, even better! One guy was even next to him!*

*Liber chuckled*

"Gadem lad! You managed to keep up! What's your name?" *Smirking at the guy*
Etta
"Dammit! Ecki, we have to somehow pick up the pace!"
Mary
"Don't know what to tell ya, boss! As, other than cheating somehow, we more could we do?"
Etta
"Yeah, yeah, I know... Maybe we — ah hells, watch out for the sandpits!"
*What she hoped were were last obstacles were looming before them! But, AC scouted out a narrow path and cracked her whip to carefully steer the barrel past the yawning maws of sand that would bog down her barrel just as she was ...*
"We're gaining, Ecki!"
Mary
"Yeah, but not enough!"
Etta
*She whirled and cracked the whip at her barrel, and sprinted after the two competitors ahead of her!*
— — —
Darlene
*Severus was running again to keep up with the competitors. But suddenly, the barrel disappeared for no reason. He was quite shock of whag seeing happen, but did not know the somehow there was a hole which was completely fit for the barrel. Trying to check the situation, he didn't expect himself to fall into a hole again like the barrel. He was brought back to the Realm of Memory again... What...*

*Skipped all the remembering things and flashback things. Skipped all!*

"Ah..."

*Ah... Yes he got to get back quickly... But first he would have to get himself and the barrel out of the holes first.*
Jacques
"And here come the racers towards the finishing line, who will take the lead folks?" *She called, watching as best she could along with other locals that were acting as judges for the race. It looked like the leading two racers were nearly neck and neck - but whom would be crossing the line first?"
Amanda
*As Marshal had victory just in reach we turn his head to Sati in the crowd and blew a kiss as he crossed the finish line and very quickly jumped off the barrel before it crashed into a *Barrier, just about sticking the landing ||(Rolled a 12/20)||. Marshal was elated at his "Supposed win", all his years running across the Cretaine rooftops paid off for him today. However, his victory was short lived as she heard this woman behind her celebrating also, knowing he secured 1st he turn around and walked up to the woman and offered a hand out* "Great job in second, you came out of no where. That race is no easy feat"
Etta
*AC eyed Marshall while sticking her own victory pose, hair fluffing, whip in a dramatic pose behind her... And looked rather skeptical at her assertion.*
"What? Heck no! You must have been too focused on showing off to notice my amazing, dramatic catching up in the final seconds! **I** Got first! They all saw it!" *She waved with a stage-worthy flourish to the crowd, cheering for ... Who? Some were shouting Marshall's name, some AC's!*
"Seems half the crowd wasn't looking close enough!"
*She raised her voice, ready to work that crowd. She would put all of her tavern-stage-trodding, street corner manipulating skillz-with-a-z into this!*
"C'mon, y'all! Who do you love!" 
*... And half the crowd kept cheering the wrong person!*
"Well, hells!"
Darlene
*Severus was still running but could not make it in time. Easily taking the **Final** Place, he felt a bit disappointed. The feeling would cease to exist just a moment later.*
Amanda
"Too focused on showing off? Speak for yourself and your egocentric act" *Marshal couldn't help but crack a smile and snicker at this woman's... Display?* "It's like watching the Wednesday theatre back in Cretaine" *He leans down closer to her and whispers* "I know your type, does loosing bruise your ego that much? You're not the centre of attention" *He stands up and smirks* 

*Marshal wasn't interested in beckoning the crowd, he'd had his fill of that for one day, he turning his attention to the judges* "Madam... Yenasha? Was it? What say you?"