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    Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Aeron Krishna
    Aeron Krishna

    Player 
    Lineage : Vassal of the Cosmos
    Position : None
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 52
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Mentor : Mythal Ragnos
    Experience : 23,075

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Aeron Krishna 3rd September 2023, 2:16 pm



    I CREATED THE SOUND OF MADNESS
    WROTE THE BOOK ON PAIN
    SOMEHOW I'M STILL HERE TO EXPLAIN

    --- THAT THE DARKEST HOUR NEVER COMES IN THE NIGHT ---
    Life had been extremely busy for Aeron for the better part of the last year. Her sudden separation from Thana and Trinity – or Calliope, as she was calling herself now – as well as the subsequent realization that her entire life up until that point had been one big, delusional lie, had left the poor woman reeling for some time. A lot of truths had become apparent to her, many of them painful, but none more so than the knowledge that she wasn’t even a real person, merely a fraction of another woman’s psychosis that was strong enough to be ripped apart to form its own being, if she could truly call herself that.

    It had taken some time to adjust and regain some sense of normalcy, not that any part of her existence had ever been normal. She’d struggled for a while to grasp some idea of self, but over time, and with plenty of encouragement from Mythal and the others she’d suddenly found in her life, found the strength to press forward instead of just sitting around feeling sorry for herself. She still didn’t really know who she was, but at the very least she’d decided not to let that ruin the opportunity she’d been given. So eventually, she’d enlisted with the Rune Knights.

    The military life wasn’t an easy one, but in comparison to the environment she’d been raised in, it was the healthiest and most stable life she’d ever had. Not to say it was perfect, of course. There were plenty that knew who she was. Given the number of guards that had been present for everything with Thana, it was no secret that she was connected to the Warlord, and it had not taken long for word to spread. Most people were at least respectful toward her, and there were plenty that chose not to judge her, but for all of Mythal and Serilda’s efforts the Rune Knight leaders could never fully eradicate their soldiers of prejudice, and there were still plenty that didn’t hide their suspicions and mistrust of the former dark mage.

    While Aeron had made many strides in branching out, socially, she still had a habit of keeping to herself most of the time. Truthfully, the words and looks of those that alienated her weren’t all that bothersome. From time to time, maybe, but for the most part she could block them out, uncaring about their thoughts. The only one whose opinion she cared about at the end of the day was Mythal’s, and anyone else that Mythal liked and trusted. Determined, she had simply put her head down and focused on her own path and training, enduring everything else without complaint or comment.

    She’d made some decent progress as a result. It had been rough adjusting to a life without any magic. Or well, mostly without any magic. She could still shape shift, but her access to her former take over and nightmare magics was long since lost, Thana having retained both those magics for the brief period of time that she’d lived before Vandrad snuffed her life away. Not that Aeron had been conscious during that time, but she’d seen the aftermath of it. Try as she might – and she’d pushed herself to the point of exhaustion several times trying – she’d eventually had to accept the simple fact that she was no longer a mage. Yet that still hadn’t stopped her. There were plenty of soldiers in the Rune Knights that weren’t mages, or at least not conventional ones. She could learn to utilize magic weapons to help provide some sense of self sufficiency, and that’s exactly what she’d done, the brunette experimenting with many different styles of weaponry until she’d settled on a couple that she liked enough to put her focus on.

    Not that she’d stopped trying to regain some magic, though that was more Mythal’s doing than her own. The director was convinced that he could help her become a mage again, and had taken to trying to coach her in Darkness magic, an element that he was most comfortable trying to teach since he’d been using it practically all of his life. Aeron had yet to succeed in wielding any darkness spells, which made it hard for her to find purpose in the exercises… but if Mythal believed in her, she refused to give up, if for his sake more than her own. As far as she was concerned, she owed it to him. She owed him everything. They had even discussed the implementation of a lacrima of some kind, which Aeron wasn’t necessarily opposed to, but that was a big decision, and one that she wasn’t quite ready to make just yet. So on they worked, the woman slowly shaping herself to a reliable, if inexperienced knight.

    But today she was not operating as a knight. Mythal had asked her to join him on a mission, but had made it clear it was a personal venture. As such, she’d been instructed to be combat ready, but in civilian dress, not in her uniform. With only a small gulp, and surprisingly little hesitation, she knocked on the door to Mythal’s office at headquarters. “Mythal..?” When others were present she was always sure to address him appropriately, but the director had made it very clear that she was only to follow decorum when absolutely necessary, and at all other times was to be informal with him. The man hated formalities enough with most people, but he insisted that Aeron was his friend and she was to interact with him as such. “It’s me.”

    Presuming he called her in, she’d swing the door open enough to step inside. Aeron was dressed in comfortable civilian tactical gear. A pair of bright orange pants were tucked into a white and black armored bodysuit that sported some new and glowing device on her chest and back that Mythal would never have seen her wear before. She wore a cropped orange and white jacket with a popped collar, the sleeves rolled up to her elbows where her hands were covered with a sleek set of black gloves. A tactical harness was strapped on either thigh, sporting a holster on each side that both carried a matching set of pistols she’d become proficient with. A stylish pair of orange glasses – more like goggles, really – were set up on her head, pushing back the lengths of her hair that, while still kept short, had grown out a bit since she’d started her new life.

    It was only time and consistent exposure that prevented her stomach from breaking out into butterflies at seeing him, the brunette quite comfortable in his presence these days – even if she was painfully aware of the unrequited torch she carried for him. Aeron approached the desk. “What’s the plan? Your message was… almost ominously vague. Is everything okay?”
    deltra of gangnam style
    WORDS: 1154 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 3rd September 2023, 4:31 pm

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK
    1039 words || @Aeron Krishna || job info/job sign-up || short note here

    It was hard to imagine that the world didn’t just stop having issues when a full world-scale war was happening. And yet the sad truth was that, while the Rune Knights were the main military force of Fiore and were required on the battlefield, they were also the main police force and were still required to guard the homefront of closer threats. Some of those even required the intervention of superior officers. Usually Mythal was able to properly assign those tasks to others so he could further assist Serilda on the war committee but on very rare occasions, something caught his attention. Specifically when it was surrounded around something so personal to him.

    Lux had mentioned that, even with the Soul Stone, he was still lacking his true power. Whatever light power that the Seal possessed was merely a fraction, a taste, of what he was truly capable of. At some point in his past, his power had been taken from him, lost for reasons that either Lux didn’t remember or refused to expand upon. Knowing the Lightbringer, it was probably something terribly embarrassing and he refused to pay it any more attention than it needed. He’d asked Mythal to help him find it several times, insisting it would help their mastery of his lacrima and the stone but the Rune Knight Director had refused to pay it any mind. It wasn’t that he was against finding the power; it just didn’t take a higher precedence than the protection of the country and his other responsibilities.

    But a recent report had troubled him. Shadow Island was well known for being almost completely shrouded in darkness all through the year. The reason behind the shadowing was never truly solved and those that set out to find a reason either never returned or came back terrified out of their skin. It wasn’t something that Mythal had ever really cared about; there were lots of mysterious locations in Ishgar that went beyond comprehension. But there had been several reports lately of people going missing; men and women of all ages walking away from their homes. While that was concerning enough, there were also sightings of those same people, having joined up with some new religious sect that had been expanding since the beginning days of the war. They hadn’t provided any kind of name or official documentation but word spread fast of their numbers growing. Whenever they were asked about said missing people, they always claimed ignorance.

    Problem was, any further investigation couldn’t be completed because the zealots disappeared shortly after being spotted. They always seemed to be on the move, their reasons and philosophy only spoken to those that were willing to join up. By that point, they’d been labeled a cult and were to be treated with caution. It was a concern but in the grand scheme of things, there were others in the Rune Knights that could have handled it other than Mythal. That was until a new report came in from someone; a researcher who had journeyed to Shadow Island with the intent of trying to solve its mystery. Yet once there, he’d accidentally come across a gathering of said cultist zealots. And they had apparently been chanting about the power of the Lightbringer’s glory.

    Only person Mythal had ever heard being called a Lightbringer was Lux. And if they were worshiping his glory… well, it made sense that the Seal’s power of light could be the source of the darkening on the island. The idea that there was an entire cult willing to worship Lux and his power was not as comforting. Nonetheless, it was worth investigating personally. And he wasn’t going to do it alone.

    For quite some time, Mythal had stuck close to Aeron. The woman had been split apart from Thana and had taken time to find a purpose to her newly provided life. She’d opted to join the Rune Knights, much to Mythal’s delight, though she lacked the use of her former magic. Still, just because one was magicless didn’t mean that they couldn’t, once again, utilize magic given time and training. Considering her former connection to Kingdom Darkness, the Director believed that helping her to train in darkness magic was a good introduction to using magic once again. She hadn’t made any significant progress yet but Mythal was patient. And even if she didn’t manage to take control of magic again, he would still be there to support her.

    But as a Rune Knight, she still had to operate as a peacekeeper and investigator. And what better way to see how far she’d come along than with a mission. So he’d sent for her, asking that she come and meet him at his office. When he heard the door knock and her voice speaking his name, he called out. “Come on in, Aeron.” When she entered, she would find him quite out of uniform, though that wasn’t all that surprising. But he was even dressed a bit further down than usual; he was wearing a black, sleeveless vest that had a low V neck. Around his arms were added on sleeves that were tied to his limbs by belts. His belt was loaded up; the hilt of Curse hung from his left side, along with the leather whip he’d been given by Algerone. On the right side was the other, metal whip that was explicitly saved for being used against supernatural beings.

    “Yeah, sorry about that,” he apologized as she commented on the lack of detail in his summons. “Don’t want any information leaking just in case.  Here,” he said, sliding a folder over to her. “The cult that missin’ people have been flockin’ too? Looks like they might be holed up on Shadow Island. And they’re talkin’ about worshipin’ ‘the Lightbringer’s glory. Lux has pestered me about lookin’ for his power and, well, it sounds like it may have fallen into the lap of some crazed zealots. We’re gonna go and take a look. Don’t know if you know much about Shadow Island but it’s got all manner of nightmare creature. Closest thing to Sin without actually bein’ there. You up for what may end up bein’ a smash and grab?”



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
    Abilities Active: list them and their effects here
    Weapons Equipped: list/link them here
    Monsters Killed: list here
    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aeron Krishna
    Aeron Krishna

    Player 
    Lineage : Vassal of the Cosmos
    Position : None
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 52
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Mentor : Mythal Ragnos
    Experience : 23,075

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Aeron Krishna 3rd September 2023, 6:10 pm



    I CREATED THE SOUND OF MADNESS
    WROTE THE BOOK ON PAIN
    SOMEHOW I'M STILL HERE TO EXPLAIN

    --- THAT THE DARKEST HOUR NEVER COMES IN THE NIGHT ---
    She was used to seeing Mythal out of uniform. He hated wearing it at the best of times, and utilized his privilege of not always having to don it almost to the point of abuse at times. But today was a little different. There was a peak of the top of his chest showing through the open collar of his shirt, his muscular arms showing at the shoulders and straining through the snug fit of his detached sleeves. Aeron gulped slightly, but otherwise managed to wrest her eyes away to meet his own, practically commanding her cheeks to keep from blushing. Almost out of instinct, she reached up and lightly fingered at the amethyst jewel around her neck for stability – Darius.

    The mage wasn’t saying anything at the moment, but he was still there. Not a day had gone by since Mythal had returned the necklace to her that Aeron hadn’t worn it. For a long time, Darius had been her only company to break up the solitude of her life. While she didn’t feel it was appropriate to call the mage a friend, his presence was still a source of comfort and stability for her, despite knowing the power and danger of the shard that hung against her collarbone. That, and she knew it was ill advised to leave him unattended. She had protested at first when Mythal had insisted she keep it, feeling it was an artifact much safer in his hands than her own, but he had stubbornly refused to keep anything that he felt belonged to her. So she had begrudgingly taken it back, secretly relieved at having it in her possession once more, and vowing to do everything in her minimal power to keep it from ever falling into the wrong hands again.

    Approaching the desk, Mythal apologized for his crypticness, assuring her it was only out of a sense of needing to keep things as close to the chest as possible. Her cerulean eyes flicked to the folder as he slid it across to her, her gloved fingers reaching out to pick it up so she could flip through its contents. It seemed he was focusing on the cult that had started popping up recently. Aeron had only heard about it in passing a couple times, not really paying much attention to it since it didn’t really concern her. While she was a Knight, she was still barely more than a recruit, having finished basic not all that long ago – a few months at most. She was unlikely to be sent on any destination missions any time soon, most of her focus on run of the mill grunt work shadowing sergeants on the streets of Era and learning the ropes at keeping the peace.

    But her status didn’t account for the fact that she knew the director and field marshal personally, the former considering her a friend, and while she did her best to never act like that came with any kind of perks or special treatment – which typically it didn’t, anyway – there was no denying that it increased her chances to be called upon directly by the top brass. She listened as he explained that the cult was holed up somewhere on Shadow Island, her eyes scanning the pages of the file idly but doing more listening than reading. Reports had indicated that the cultists were worshipping someone known as the “Lightbringer”, which meant very little to Aeron until he reminded her that it was a title associated with Lux, the supernatural being with whom he shared a soul. It seemed Lux had been trying for some time to encourage Mythal to help locate the missing fragments of his power, and there was a very real possibility that these weird zealots had gotten their hands on it. Mythal wanted to investigate, if only to be on the safe side. The island had a bit of a reputation for being Sin lite, which at the very least meant that Aeron would find the setting to be somewhat familiar territory.

    “Of course,” she told him without hesitation when he asked if she was up for a mission that he suspected might turn into a heist. It was no secret that Aeron didn’t exactly like Lux. While she’d never said as much, the few interactions with the Seal were more than enough for Mythal to observe that he made the former dark mage uncomfortable, though much of that likely had to do with how open Lux was about his favorable opinion of Thana. But the fact remained that, much like Thana had been to Aeron for some time, it was simply impossible for Mythal to separate himself from the being as much as he’d likely want to. Their lives were intertwined, for better or worse, and her dislike of Lux paled in comparison to her trust and devotion to the man that had saved her life several times over. If he needed her help, the simple truth was that she would always be there.

    “If nothing else, it will give me a chance to test this new thing that the engineers gave me to try out.” She tapped the glowing plate on her chest. Aeron had gone to the engineering department with Mythal at the start of her recruitment, the director tasking them with helping her find weaponry and gadgets that would help empower her as a knight, and the scientists – always happy for an excuse to experiment – had been more than happy to help, continuing to throw a few things her way from time to time to see what sort of items stuck with  her. It was how she’d wound up with the pistols on her hips.

    Normally she knew that Mythal preferred to use his magic to teleport to areas, if only to save time, but she also knew that he could only create links to places he’d visited before. Since he’d never been to the island before, the most he could do was take them to the closest port: Morgate. From there, they would have to take a ship. When he was ready, she’d follow him through the portal of darkness he’d made into the desolate and abandoned city. No one lived here anymore, at least no one but criminals and dark mages seeking to live outside the law. The port certainly wasn’t active anymore, which led Aeron to wonder why Mythal thought they could use it as a launching platform for their mission. Even if there were trustworthy enough people they could barter transportation from, she highly doubted anyone was willing to ferry them to a place that was so similar to Sin.

    But it seemed Mythal had made arrangements in advance, utilizing Rune Knight resources to procure a private transport across the waters. They settled onto the ship and set sail. The trip was likely to take a couple hours at least, giving them some time to kill. Since it had been some time since she’d had any downtime with the man, she took the initiative to strike up conversation. “So, uh… how’s Serilda? And the kids?”
    deltra of gangnam style
    WORDS: 1192/2346 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 4th September 2023, 11:26 am

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK
    1011/2050 words || @Aeron Krishna || job info/job sign-up || short note here

    Mythal liked to think that he didn’t favor Aeron over other Rune Knights, but the truth was he did to a point. It wasn’t that he gave her any kind of special treatment; plenty of other lower ranking Knights had gone on missions with the Director, if only to assess their abilities and where they could make improvements. It was not only for his own benefit but for theirs as well; having someone there that can watch them with new, fresh eyes that weren’t their usual day-in, day-out trainers and officers. It was part of Mythal’s job description and something that he seemed to have a knack for, despite his anti-social tendencies. Yet he cared for Aeron as more than just a soldier or a fellow Rune Knight. They were friends and had gone through a lot together, up to and including her separation from Thana. He didn’t feel the need to coddle her, as that wouldn’t help her progress or evolve at all but he put more focus in helping her than he might another Rune Knight on a typical day. He just did what he could to avoid letting it impair any kind of judgment or cause any issues in the barracks. He was well aware that the other Rune Knights distrusted Aeron, due to her connection to Thana and her past as a dark mage.

    But he couldn’t exactly tell them to look past that. Morgaine was a member of the Rune Knights and he trusted her about as little as anyone could while being on the same side, technically. He understood that his bias against the servant of Ozorith was just that; a second-hand bias that was rooted sorely in who she chose to associate with. Her sob story, for lack of a nicer, more flowery term, had only convinced him that she was more dangerous than she seemed. In spite of that, he couldn’t deny the fact that his views against Morgaine were the ones that were shared by the other Rune Knights. There was nothing he could say or do to convince them otherwise because there was nothing anyone could do to convince him otherwise. The only thing that would speak to any of them would be action and results and Aeron was willing to put in the work.

    He presented the mission to her, giving her a very brief overview of what they were looking at and what the plan was. Without even waiting a beat, she agreed to join him. He nodded his understanding. “I sent Quentin to go let Lux know what we found and where we’re going. He’s off doin’... well, who the hell knows what. He might show up, given that it’s his own power we might be huntin’ or he might not. He’s a bit more… roamin’ these days, now that he has a bit more light power from me,” Mythal explained, tapping his chest where the lacrima and stone resided. “I appreciate you comin’ along. I know Lux is… well, unbearable in the best of times. But given how he…” He trailed off, reaching up to rub the back of his head awkwardly.

    Lux had truly liked Thana; the ‘why’ was beyond Mythal’s understanding. Maybe it was the same sense of cruelty and hatred for mortal beings that connected them. But he had been opposed to Thana being snuffed out, begging for Mythal and Serilda to show mercy. Even if they had considered it, Vandrad would not have and ensured that the former dark mage was vaporized before the dust had even settled from Mythal’s dangerous use of power. Lux hadn’t spoken about it much, nor had he directly said anything harsh or cruel to Aeron. But there was an aura of… displeasure that hung around him and his attitude had worsened because of it. After a moment, Mythal waved away the rest of his thoughts. “Doesn’t matter. We’ll just be prepared in case he does show up.”

    Aeron tapped on the glowing panel on her chest, indicating that the mission would be a good opportunity to test it out. He nodded in agreement. “And with any luck, seein’ that the island is almost completely in shadow, it might help ya get a better feel for darkness magic.” With that stated, he locked the documents on his desk inside their drawers and walked around. “We’re headin’ to Morgate. Not exactly the best place to launch from but Reaper Squad has a reliable contact there. They hooked us up with a boat that’s going to get us within a mile of the island. From there, I should be able to get us close enough.” Confirming that she was ready, he opened a portal of darkness and walked through, dropping them off at the port directly. Several lowlifes looked their way as they arrived, sneering and glaring as they were almost always wont to do. But they wouldn’t cause much more trouble than that; if they’d come in uniform, that may have been a different case.

    Nonetheless, it was only a short walk to the small tugboat that would carry them across. The captain was only a few steps above a sleazebag but he was cheap and reliable, stating again that he would take them as far as a mile off. With that they set off, the lacrima-powered vessel grumbling along through the water. Mythal set himself up on the front of the boat with Aeron, sitting on a pile of boxes and looking out at the water. Aeron spoke up once she had gotten comfortable, asking about Serilda and the kids. “Serilda’s alright. War’s still on so dealin’ with that bullshit is… exhaustin’. Kids are good though. I feel like it was just yesterday they were barely bigger than my hand and now they’re up and runnin’ around,” he said with a small, dad-like smile of pride. “You should come over soon; I’m sure they’d love to see ya.”

    “And how about you? Anythin’ new goin’ on with you? Feel like we haven’t had much time to talk lately.”



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
    Abilities Active: list them and their effects here
    Weapons Equipped: list/link them here
    Monsters Killed: list here
    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aeron Krishna
    Aeron Krishna

    Player 
    Lineage : Vassal of the Cosmos
    Position : None
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 52
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Mentor : Mythal Ragnos
    Experience : 23,075

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Aeron Krishna 4th September 2023, 1:08 pm



    I CREATED THE SOUND OF MADNESS
    WROTE THE BOOK ON PAIN
    SOMEHOW I'M STILL HERE TO EXPLAIN

    --- THAT THE DARKEST HOUR NEVER COMES IN THE NIGHT ---
    Aeron did her best not to grimace at the knowledge that Lux might wind up joining them, but she wasn’t terribly adept at controlling her face. There was a possibility he might not show, but given the circumstances the chances were low. Who knew if and when he would show up, though. The Seal wasn’t always actively around these days, now that Mythal had the means and power to let him roam a bit on his own doing… whatever it was that interested a being such as himself. Aeron shuddered to think what the Lightbringer’s interests might involve. But he was gone enough that Mythal wasn’t always able to contact him directly, having to send Quentin out in search of him.

    Mythal chose to acknowledge Aeron’s obvious thoughts on Lux, admitting that his nephilim counterpart was unbearable at best most of the time, but the director recognized that Aeron had even more reason than most to be wary. He seemed to falter with his words, rubbing the back of his head in thought as Aeron’s eyes darted to the floor. In the end, Mythal chose not to elaborate, simply stating that they’d deal with Lux if and when he showed up.

    The former dark mage nodded her understanding and the subject shifted with her remarking about it being a good opportunity to try some new tools she’d been lent by the engineers. Mythal expanded on that, hoping that the island’s shadowed atmosphere would help open her back up to the element of darkness that she’d once held a connection to, even if she’d never outright used it before, even when she was a mage. “Guess we’ll find out,” was all she contributed as far as that went. Aeron didn’t have much hope toward those kind of results, but it didn’t mean she wouldn’t at least try to give it her all.

    He packed up his office and they were off, stepping through a portal and into Morgate. Despite her history living and associating with the worst forms of lowlives – and even being one herself – Aeron simply couldn’t find it in herself to be comfortable with the eyes that were on them. Maybe once upon a time she had at least grown accustomed to walking among their types, but at the time she had also been a lot more powerful than she currently was. That, and while Elysium had been a dark guild it had also been more family oriented than one might expect, so there hadn’t exactly been a lot of infighting that she’d had to worry about, especially while she was an ace. Luckily, they seemed disinclined to pay them any more attention than it took to glower their direction, which was really more to the benefit of the criminals than anything else. Aeron was confident that Mythal could easily deal with them single handedly if push came to shove.

    Reaper Squad’s contact had come through, though in truth the captain looked about as trustworthy and reputable as anyone else they’d seen in the desolate city ruins so far. Aeron’s gaze was narrowed suspiciously on the man as Mythal finalized everything with him, but otherwise they were let on board without incident and off they had set.

    Rather than focus on her paranoia, Aeron chose to take the time to catch up with Mythal a bit, asking about Serilda and his daughters. He told her that his fiance was well, all things considered. The war was still a prevalent stressor, but not one that the field marshal seemed inclined to overwhelm her. His daughters were getting older now, old enough to be up on their feet and running him ragged. Mythal’s smile was infectious, though Aeron hadn’t realized that she was smiling too as she looked up and observed his moment of parental pride. He took a moment to invite her over soon, assuring her that everyone would love to ee her.

    “Yeah, sure. I’d like that.” As much as Serilda intimidated her, the noblewoman had never been anything but kind and compassionate toward her. Likewise, Aeron had next to no experience with children and was equally as intimidated by them, if for entirely different reasons… but she was happy to swallow her insecurities for a few hours to spend more time around her only friend and his loved ones.

    Mythal turned the question back around on her, lamenting that they hadn’t gotten to talk much lately. “Nothing exciting,” she admitted with a shrug. “I haven’t really gotten out much since New Year’s. Been focused on training. A couple of the women in my barracks bully me into having lunch with them from time to time, but.. I guess I still keep to myself for the most part. They’re very nice, but also a little more rowdy during their off time than I’m used to.” Military women, as she’d quickly come to learn, were far from shy. Aeron was easily in the minority in that regard. But she recognized that a few of them were taking more steps than they needed to, more than many were willing to, given her background, and she did appreciate that, even if she wasn’t sure how to handle it just yet. “I’ve been thinking about getting a pet. I know a lot of the others have some. I just… don’t really know what I’d get. I don’t exactly have a lot of experience with taking care of any animals.”

    She smirked ruefully at herself, and they continued to chat for a while until a small dark shape in the distance began to take form: the island. As they grew closer it gained more definition, though much of it was cloaked in a thick blanket of fog that clung to the island almost in spite of the warmth of the sun and the day. Through it, she could see the boughs of tall, but thin and scraggly looking trees that had managed to grow over the years but were clearly starved for proper sunlight. A shiver of unease sent a small spasm down her spine, but she had no intention of backing out now. She simply waited until the captain determined they had come close enough, readying herself to join Mythal on the eerie looking shores.
    deltra of gangnam style
    WORDS: 1044/3390 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 4th September 2023, 3:41 pm

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK
    680/2730 words || @Aeron Krishna || job info/job sign-up || short note here

    Their trip was going to take quite a lot of time; several hours in fact. The tugboat wasn’t exactly the speediest of vessels and even if it was, the island was fairly far out. So as the two Rune Knights got comfortable, Aeron asked him about his family, which he was always happy to talk about. For a man that had been alone for so long and seemed to prefer it that, Mythal had not only become accustomed to being a family man but seemed to thrive in. Serilda was doing the best she could, given the circumstance and the situation in Ishgar. The girls were getting bigger and more independent every day. It seemed like time was flying by faster than he could possibly understand.

    But rather than put all of his attention on himself, he turned the conversation back to her. He knew that Aeron wasn’t the most outgoing of individuals, nor did she really find any need or desire to go out and explore the world. She was content with her solitude but that didn’t mean she couldn’t have found something else to try. She admitted that nothing really exciting had happened recently, having stuck to herself since New Year’s. “I can only wonder why,” he inserted his teasing comment with a smirk. She’d already told him about her ‘date’ with the man she’d met at Halloween. How he had wined and dined her and then, at midnight, had managed to talk her into a kiss which then followed with her racing away in a full blown panic. Aeron continued, stating that some of the women from the Knights had bullied her into having lunch with them every so often, though they were apparently more rowdy than she was used to seeing. “Oh yeah, the men and women from the barracks love to party, ‘specially nowadays. They don’t know if they’re gonna get sent off to battle so they want to party it up as much as possible. Nothin’ too concernin’ from what I hear but I imagine that’s a lot. It’d definitely be a lot for me,” he said with a small laugh. He was much more comfortable drinking in solitude or with people he was comfortable with, rather than at a major party.

    Aeron admitted she had been thinking about getting a pet, though she wasn’t sure what kind to get or really how to take care of one. “Well you kinda have to look around to see if any of them strike your fancy. Some people are more dog people than cat people or the inverse or both. And takin’ care of them… well, the bare bones of it is makin’ sure ya feed ‘em and love ‘em. They can be a big responsibility, especially if ya get a pup or kitten or something still growin’. Just be ready to give a lot of attention. But not a bad idea; might be nice for ya to have some company that won’t talk ya ear off like people will.”

    They continued to talk the entire way to the island, right up until the dark speck on the horizon began to grow in size. As they got closer, so did the thick smog that was covering the island, hiding most of its content from outsider’s view. The tree tops that poked out from above the fog painted a dreary image of what awaited them though. Soon enough, the ship came to a stop and the captain informed them that he’d gone as far as he was willing. “That’s fine, this is close enough,” Mythal remarked as he stepped up onto the very tip of the ship’s bow. Summoning the darkness from the island itself, he jerked his hand back and a bridge of hardened darkness began to extend out from beyond the scope of the fog. It swiftly erected itself over the water until it came to a stop right before the Darkness Slayer.

    He stepped onto it and turned back to Aeron. “Let’s get to it,” he said, giving her a wave to follow him.



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
    Abilities Active: list them and their effects here
    Weapons Equipped: list/link them here
    Monsters Killed: list here
    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aeron Krishna
    Aeron Krishna

    Player 
    Lineage : Vassal of the Cosmos
    Position : None
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 52
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Mentor : Mythal Ragnos
    Experience : 23,075

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Aeron Krishna 6th September 2023, 4:31 pm



    I CREATED THE SOUND OF MADNESS
    WROTE THE BOOK ON PAIN
    SOMEHOW I'M STILL HERE TO EXPLAIN

    --- THAT THE DARKEST HOUR NEVER COMES IN THE NIGHT ---
    “Yeah, yeah, laugh it up.” Aeron muttered at his teasing comment, though the smirk on her face was in direct contrast to her tone – and her blush. Her “date” with Trevor had been… well, she really had enjoyed it. Even when he kissed her at the end, though that was difficult for her to admit. She’d run away like a child but only because she was too overwhelmed at that point to be able to cope with socializing any longer. She hadn’t talked to him since that night, but truthfully she wasn’t avoiding him. Or at least, she wasn’t meaning to. At first she had certainly needed some time to come down from her social anxiety and find some grounding again, but after that she’d just gotten too wrapped up in work and training. With the war going on, even a new private like her had plenty extra to do, so she just hadn’t made time to reach back out to him.

    Not that she’d know what to say.

    Luckily, Mythal didn’t plan on lingering on the subject, instead following up on her remarks regarding her barrack mates. She snorted. “Tell me about it. They’re so fuckin’ rowdy that half the time I feel like I’m back in Elysium. Nothing mean or dangerous, of course. Just the steps some of them will go through to scheme out a prank sometimes is baffling.” Aeron shook her head. All in all they were good people, though. Even the ones that clearly didn’t like or trust her. She’d never be able to say there wasn’t any bullying, but most of it was pretty mild, and very rare. Plus, for every person that gave a snide look or comment there were three more that made attempts to defend or befriend her.

    On the topic of pets, Mythal recommended that she simply shop around and see what all was out there, which might be enough to inspire her toward something. The most important thing, he informed her, was just making sure to feed and love them. They were a lot of work and could be very time consuming, particularly if she started with something that was still growing, but he also seemed to think it would be a good middle ground for her having some company that wouldn’t drain her social meter. “Yeah, I guess that makes sense. I’ll see if I can find some shops around or somethin’, see what catches my interest.”

    They continued to chat to pass the time until the ship slowed to a stop, the captain indicating they had reached the furthest they could go. Aeron stood up after Mythal, brushing herself off and straightening her clothes and her equipment while he approached the bow. With little more than a flick of his wrist, he used his magic to ensnare the darkness from the island, pulling it toward the ship until a bridge had formed that would be safe and sturdy for the two of them to walk across. Or at least, she assumed it was. It certainly didn’t look it, but looks hardly meant much when it came to magic. At his behest, Aeron stepped cautiously up onto the platform, pulling her goggles down around her eyes before she could forget to do so.

    It took them a couple minutes to walk to shore. When they did, the ground under her boots was hard when she stepped down, the crunching of leaves swallowed by the thickness of the atmosphere. Aeron turned a slow circle as she looked around, her visor scanning some readings back to her but nothing of any real interest. “Any idea what direction we’re headed?” she asked him, her voice muffled by the fog enough that it probably wouldn’t carry more than ten or twenty meters for anything less than a yell. On the one hand, they had a good chance of not being overheard as easily by any of the creatures that were rumored to roam the island. On the other, it meant that they also would have a more difficult time detecting the presence of those same monsters. Already her skin was prickling with unease, the familiar paranoia that kept her alive in Sin creeping back in like an old friend. She’d feel more confident if she still had her magic…

    But she didn’t, and there was nothing she could do about that now. Keeping her pistols holstered for now, she followed Mythal in whichever direction he picked, both of them keeping relatively silent now so they could stay alert, only speaking if they needed to.

    Aeron wasn’t sure how long they’d been walking before she stopped, her gaze panning around carefully. “Did you hear that?” she asked him, her voice little more than a whisper. The silence drew out for several long seconds, but despite that the hackles on the back of her neck only raised. More out of instinct than anything else, she reached down and loosened her holsters, both hands gripping her guns tightly. She couldn’t see more than a few feet in front of her through the fog, but her eyes stopped and focused on one spot. Were those.. Eyes? It was so faint she couldn’t be sure at first, but the longer she stared the more she was sure that there was a pair of glowing yellow eyes staring at them in the mist from several meters off. Another sound like a twig snapping drew her attention to her side, where another pair of eyes greeted her, and then yet more others. They were surrounded.

    “Ah, hell,” was all Aeron managed to get out before a dozen wolf-like creatures sprang from the shadows. They were thin and angular like they had been put on a stretcher, their fur short and coarse save for around their heads and tail. Their back paws were more or less what one would expect of a canine creature, but their forelegs had humanoid hands with fingernails so long they may as well have been claws. Tearing her pistols free, she fired off several rounds at the closest monster as it rushed her, its thick skin absorbing several bullets before it turned and made a temporary retreat. Her visor alerted her that two more were almost on her at her blind side. The equipment on her chest glowed brighter as a sound like an engine warming up rumbled from it before it blasted, boosting her speed tenfold as she sprinted out of the reach of their snapping jaws and leaving a trail of blue light in her wake.

    Wide eyed in surprise, she twisted and did her best to adjust to the unexpected strength of the boost, turning so she could continue to fire at the beasts as she ran circles around their small fighting grounds.
    deltra of gangnam style
    WORDS: 1132/4522 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 6th September 2023, 8:22 pm

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK
    892/3622 words || @Aeron Krishna || job info/job sign-up || short note here

    Aeron compared her squadmates in the barracks to her time in Elysium, as in that they all enjoyed to party it up and play pranks on one another. It surprised her just how far they were willing to go to plan out a scheme to get someone. Mythal chuckled and shook his head. He’d never really gotten a chance to partake in that, at least in the Rune Knights. He joined as they were restructuring and had been promoted quickly to a higher ranking position in hopes of helping to guide the Knights in a better direction. The only time he’d been part of any kind of raucous crowd had been at Fairy Tail and that hadn’t even been that bad. It was safer to say that he had been the more rowdy one, though that more entailed heavy drinking than actually parting with anyone.

    She mentioned wanting to find a pet and he gave her what little advice he knew about having one. Big Gren, as his faithful Star Wolf was lovingly called recently, was relatively easy to take care of but that care had come a lot from Serilda’s guidance and advice. Still, he was happy to pass on whatever knowledge he had to her and she figured she would check out some shops and see if anything caught her eye. “Lemme know if you want anyone to go with you. I’d be happy to join ya or Seri even, if I’m not available. She’s got a lotta knowledge about takin’ care of pets thanks to her family.”

    But soon enough, their idle chatter would die down as the island came into view and began to grow closer. When the boat captain came to a stop, Mythal stepped out onto the bow and used his magic to make a bridge for them to cross over the water. It was a relatively easy walk to the island, as the magical bridge was sturdy enough to hold their weight without even rocking. But as they got closer, the fog didn’t seem to waver at all. They stepped down onto the island, the soil hardened almost to stone. Mythal took a moment to look around and get his bearings, which was nearly impossible given the thickness of the smog. She asked if they had a heading and he closed his eyes, expanding his senses over the land. He focused for several long, quiet seconds before his head tilted slightly. It was faint but there was some kind of presence of light. “That way,” he said, blindly pointing in the direction before he opened his eyes.

    With their direction picked, he took the lead. He moved at a calm, casual pace, though he was anything but casual. Though his gait and stance looked lax, anyone that knew Mythal well enough would be able to read the tension in his body. Primed for anything to come jumping out at them, especially given the creatures that were rumored to live on the island. His eyes were constantly moving about, even as his senses reached in every direction they could. Soon enough, flickering, chaotic spiritual energy began to slowly move towards them, dozens of presences that had picked up on their scent through some miracle.

    He came to a stop half a beat before her. She asked if he’d heard anything and he nodded slowly. The residual spirit energies were circling, the oval about them beginning to close in. Slowly he reached down to his belt and withdrew the Curse’s hilt, holding it in his hand as spread his legs into a more ready stance. It wasn’t long before he could barely sense the slightest movement in the fog and yellow eyes began to slowly creep in from the limits of their vision. Aeron had half a moment of her own realization before suddenly the wolf-like creatures came rushing in, cooperatively charging as a pack. They were horrendous creatures, canine in several features but also having humanoid hands and fingernails. They launched themselves at the two Rune Knights. Aeron began firing as Mythal simply… moved to dodge them. His movements weren’t erratic or panicked; if anything, he looked like he was simply moving out of the way of harmless objects in his way. Like one might duck under a branch on their walking path or side step a root, he moved gracefully through the gnashing teeth and swiping hands.

    One creature believed it had adjusted itself to get him but as its jaws snapped tight on Mythal’s neck, it fell right through the illusion, crashing into the ground and spinning around to stare at the quivering image. In fact, there were several different versions of Mythal in the area, four to be precise, all moving about to dodge the wolf-like creatures. “Good work,” Mythal called out to Aeron, the Director more focused on her than the creatures trying to rip him to shreds. “Looks like that tech is workin’ pretty good.” If anything, it looked like he was looking out for her more than his own well being, despite casually moving about to avoid any kind of damage. And when it seemed like one of the wolves may have caught Aeron at a disadvantage, Mythal was quick to smash the end of his hilt into the creature’s head, knocking it to the ground and leaving it unconscious.



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
    Abilities Active: list them and their effects here
    Weapons Equipped: list/link them here
    Monsters Killed: list here
    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aeron Krishna
    Aeron Krishna

    Player 
    Lineage : Vassal of the Cosmos
    Position : None
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 52
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Mentor : Mythal Ragnos
    Experience : 23,075

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Aeron Krishna 7th September 2023, 7:22 pm



    I CREATED THE SOUND OF MADNESS
    WROTE THE BOOK ON PAIN
    SOMEHOW I'M STILL HERE TO EXPLAIN

    --- THAT THE DARKEST HOUR NEVER COMES IN THE NIGHT ---
    At this point Aeron was more than well aware of Mythal’s slayer abilities and some of the perks that came along with them, including his heightened senses. Though he wasn’t sniffing the air or anything like that, probably because all the fog was dampening most everything, she could only assume that he had some way of feeling for the magic or maybe the element of light due to his connection to it. She waited patiently for him to get his bearings before he pointed in a direction with confidence. Nodding silently, Aeron followed him through the strangled woods.

    After some time they found themselves surrounded by these gangly and disturbing wolf creatures, the duo forced to act before they found themselves being turned into puppy chow. Aeron activated her chest plate and wasn’t quite prepared for the boost of speed it had given her. Once upon a time she’d been able to run this fast through the use of her own magic, but it had been the better part of a year since she’d been able to do so. Plus, her current body had never channeled magic before, all that power and physical memory stored within the body that had been incinerated with Thana. Or at least, the power had. Technically Calliope was the original, so maybe she retained some muscle memory and would have an easier time re-adapting to magic. Aeron didn’t really know, since she hadn’t made much of an effort to keep in contact with the other woman, not really sure what she’d say to her.

    The point was that while her mind was familiar with some portion of the benefits these tools afforded her, her body simply was not trained with it like she once had been. It took her a few seconds to adjust, the brunette skidding awkwardly a couple times before finding her footing and gaining some nominal, if unsteady, control over her movements. She kept herself moving, knowing that it would be more difficult for the beasts to keep up with her if she was behaving unpredictably. At the very least her aim was decent, though Aeron had been moderately proficient with firearms before as well – something that had been much easier for her to pick back up than magic.

    As she zipped around the immediate area, Aeron was vaguely aware of the fact that Mythal was doing less fighting and more dodging, manifesting a number of illusionary clones of himself to distract the creatures while he did little more than swat them aside without much thought. His voice called out to her with encouraging words, complementing her efforts and remarking on the effectiveness of her new tech. “You know what work even better? Not having to put these things down by myself.” Aeron grumbled, but her tone wasn’t fully committed to the comment. By now, Mythal knew her well enough to know that making irritable remarks was just something she did to distract herself and cover up her insecurities when she was fighting. In her heart, she knew that he was only doing this because he understood she needed the practice. That, and if he felt she couldn’t handle it then he would step in. It was just her way of being playful, if one could really refer to her as playful at all.

    When the beasts were finally dead, Aeron stopped moving. Her breaths were coming in deep as she came down from the adrenaline rush of battle, the small woman leaning over and bracing herself on her knees while she waited for her body to relax. “Do you.. Remember… when I was a dark mage?” she asked him through her breathing, her voice ripe with irony. “You remember that? If I wanted… to do shit like this… I could… have just stayed in Sin… Happy in my isolated bubble… but noooo… no, I just had to make something of myself… Had to become a decent person... Gods, I miss being a criminal… At least then I only did this shit out of necessity… not volunteering for it like a fuckin’ moron.”

    Straightening back up, Aeron’s breathing had somewhat returned back to normal. She glanced around at the dead bodies, mostly to make sure they were actually dead, her visor not reading any signs of life on any of them. “I’m gonna go out on a limb and assume it’s probably too much to ask that these are the only monsters we run into today…”
    deltra of gangnam style
    WORDS: 745/5267 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 8th September 2023, 1:09 pm

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK
    765/4387 words || @Aeron Krishna || job info/job sign-up || short note here

    Aeron’s muttered remark was definitely not the first one Mythal had heard out of her, nor the first she’d made towards him. It was her way of trying to banter, to calm her nerves when the situation was far more stressful than she was comfortable with. He smirked slightly as he continued to weave among the attacking wolves, still only getting involved if it looked like the numbers game were going to skew too far. By the end, she had managed to put them all down, the pack down and out for better or for worse. His illusions disappeared and he reappeared beside her, just as calmly as he had just waded through the battle. She was panting heavily, gasping to catch her breath and bring her nerves back down to normal. She asked if he remembered when she was a dark mage, the Director turning his gaze to her as she reminisced about her time as an outlaw who could keep to herself and not have to get involved in such shenanigans.

    But rather than remain who she was, she had decided to change her life and do something with it. She was throwing herself a mini-pity party that was half-ironic and perhaps a tad serious. After all, being a Rune Knight saddled her with responsibilities while being a dark mage allowed her the freedom to do whatever she wanted without authority. He chuckled. “I remember that,” he said, hooking Curse’s hilt back onto his belt. “Not you bein’ a dark mage. I mean I remember that too but I also remember this,” he said, gesturing to her. “Cursin’ myself for gettin’ more involved, wishing I’d stayed an out-of-touch drunk who worked just enough to make enough jewel to get to his next bottle. I remember how mad I was that I was actually makin’ an effort. I’d tell ya that yer only gonna have that moment once but there’s at least nine or ten more moments of absolute regret before you start to move on. Important part is you don’t backslide; I had Seri to keep me from doin’ that. And you got me.”

    As she finally caught her breath and assumed that there were more creatures in their near future, he nodded. “Most likely. But I dunno about you but I ain’t about walkin’ around in the fog without havin’ any idea where I or any friggin’ monsters are.” His hand went around to his back, where another object had been attached to his belt. It looked like a disc, almost like a metal chakram and seemed to be a part of his belt until he unattached it. With a simple swipe of his finger, it began to quickly unfold itself in his hand. From the core, a long metal staff extended and expanded until it reached its true form; the Boscian/Bellian lacrima scythe. He twirled it up until it was held above his head, the flat end of the blade horizontal with the earth.

    He flipped another switch and activated the lacrima inside. Focusing on the air aspect of the lacrima, a funnel of wind ripped out of the core of the scythe and began to push thick air out. It wasn’t hard enough to knock either one of them over but they would feel it pulling at their clothes and hair as the fog was pushed away from them and the scythe, aggressively shoved in all directions. It only took a minute or two but soon enough, the fog had dissipated. He flipped the switch once more and the lacrima fell silent, the geyser of air fading away. “That’ll hold the fog back for a bit,” he remarked as he opted to keep the scythe out, holding it flush with his arm. He frowned as he looked at the dark, ominous forest that now lay between them and whatever light energy he could sense. “Kinda wish I knew it looked so damn creepy; might’ve kept the fog.”

    Still, too late to worry about that now. And no doubt the fog would start to pull back in sooner rather than later. All they could hope was that they were out of there before they were fully immersed in it again. “Best to stay on your guard. The monsters here are pro’lly used to hunting without their eyes. They’re gonna see us a mile away and think they’ve hit the jackpot. Let’s make sure they know that ain’t the case,” he warned Aeron before he continued leading them forward towards their target, now with a bit more confidence in his steps.



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
    Abilities Active: list them and their effects here
    Weapons Equipped: list/link them here
    Monsters Killed: list here
    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aeron Krishna
    Aeron Krishna

    Player 
    Lineage : Vassal of the Cosmos
    Position : None
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 52
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Mentor : Mythal Ragnos
    Experience : 23,075

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Aeron Krishna 9th September 2023, 2:26 pm



    I CREATED THE SOUND OF MADNESS
    WROTE THE BOOK ON PAIN
    SOMEHOW I'M STILL HERE TO EXPLAIN

    --- THAT THE DARKEST HOUR NEVER COMES IN THE NIGHT ---
    It was pretty common for Aeron to go on small self piteous rants during moments of high stress, though those who took any time to know her – mostly just Mythal, Serilda, and her commanding officer at that point – understood she wasn’t truly feeling sorry for herself. Given the choice, she would take her current circumstances over returning to her isolation as a dark mage every time, if only because she knew she wasn’t in any safer place than within the protective arms of the Rune Knights. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to bitch about it from time to time…. At least in front of Mythal.

    He chuckled and voiced that he remembered going through the exact same thing she was now. While Mythal hadn’t necessarily been an outright dark mage like Aeron once had, he had certainly lived a less than reputable life at one point, reminiscing over the time when he used to hold interest in little more than whatever work it took to feed his alcoholism. He’d made this exact journey once upon a time, hating himself for choosing to have morals and making an effort. He’d have encouraged her that the feeling would pass sooner over later, but instead chose to be honest and tell her that she would likely continue to feel that way for a while and experience at least a dozen more moments of self hatred before she’d fully learn to let go. He insisted the important part was to keep pushing forward, no matter the temptation to do otherwise, something he was there to hold her accountable for just as Serilda had done for him.

    Aeron.. Wasn’t fully sure how to respond to that. Not that he’d made her feel awkward or anything like that. It was more that she was taking his words into careful consideration, knowing it was coming from experience. It was daunting to think that her old habits would be so difficult to stamp down, the brunette mostly believing that she’d simply always live with the inclination to walk or run away from anything that went against her survival instincts, but if Mythal’s journey was any indication there was at least some hope that one day she’d learn to live more out of a sense of… compassion. Like he had learned to do.

    In the end, she merely nodded her understanding. “Well.. Thanks, for the heads up, I guess.” There was little else she could say, the comment half teasing but also half serious. Changing focus, she lamented that this was likely only the first of many such fights they were about to encounter, a statement that Mythal agreed with, though he was already tired of the fog hampering their line of sight. He withdrew his scythe, a weapon that Aeron had seen him use a couple of times during training, though it was rare. With the flip of a switch he activated a lacrima core within the weapon that ignited a powerful gust of wind. After a few minutes, he was able to use the wind to push back the fog by a great amount, leaving the forest around them clear. Though a byproduct of that was that the thin and scraggly trees were all the more creepy without the fog to disguise them, the director stating as much out loud.

    “Too late now.” Aeron shrugged. Sure, it was unsettling.. But after everything she’d lived through, an eerie looking forest wasn’t nearly as concerning as the unknown creatures that might live within it. Creatures that, Mythal admitted, were probably going to have a much easier time hunting them now. “Oh, great. That makes me feel so much better.”

    On they moved, and over the course of the next hour or two they did, in fact, run into several more carnivorous beasts that didn’t hesitate to attempt turning the two Rune Knights into their next meal. The pair fought several times. Or rather, Aeron fought while Mythal evaded and focused on the bare minimum to observe and support her efforts. As time went on, she steadily became more adept with the contraption on her torso that increased her speed. It wasn’t necessarily second nature or something she could use without thought, but after a time she started finding small ways to use it more creatively, if unsteadily.

    By the time they reached the mouth of a cave, Aeron could feel her skin was crusting with several layers of salty sweat that had built up and dried multiple times over the course of the last couple hours. She’d been dreaming of a cold, refreshing shower when Mythal led them toward the entrance of the cavern. A cursory look around was enough for her visor to indicate several readings back to her. “Safe to say this place is frequented by some of the locals,” Aeron said, nodding to the ground where there wasn’t necessarily any outright tracks, but there was a worn flat path that saw lots of foot traffic, either by people or beasts. She looked back up to him. “We going inside..?”
    deltra of gangnam style
    WORDS: 847/6114 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 9th September 2023, 3:22 pm

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK
    765/4387 words || @Aeron Krishna || job info/job sign-up || short note here

    Mythal knew that he could only guide Aeron as much as she was willing to let him. He wasn’t the kind to dig in deep and force her to move forward mostly because that wouldn’t work with her. It had only barely worked with him, with Serilda holding her sense of morality as a goal for him to reach. Granted, that was mostly because she believed she could see it in him even when he couldn’t. And Mythal did see potential in Aeron, so it was just a matter of staying with her on her path and offering advice. Honest advice too; not the kind of pretty words and corny speeches that were supposed to turn one’s life around without telling them the hardships and difficulty that came from such a journey. As someone that had been through it, the Darkness Slayer knew exactly where the pitfalls and triumphs lay and Aeron was only just beginning her path towards naturally-occurring better choices. She’d get there in time, he knew it.

    She thanked him for his words, mostly because what else was there to say? Mythal pulled out his lacrima scythe and used the wind aspect of the installed lacrima to clear them a smogless path, though in doing so, it opened their gaze to the haunting background of the forest. It also would allow any creatures in their path a perfectly unhindered view of what prey was heading towards them. Still, his laments were only partial and after a warning to her of what most likely awaited them, they were off. Over the next hour or two, they encountered several different variations of nightmare creatures. Monstrosities that had evolved and mutated under the harsh shadow of the cursed island. Much like their first fight with the wolves, Mythal let Aeron handle most of the fighting, utilizing his magic to throw off their enemies and bewilder them with illusions. He only stepped in when Aeron looked like she was getting ganged up on or one too many creatures were making their way towards her.

    Beyond that, he mainly observed her. Though she wasn’t attempting to use any kind of darkness magic, she was getting a better feel for the tech she’d brought with her. Near the end of the latter battles, she had found herself in a comfortable spot to be able to use the contraption with more creative approaches, allowing her to fight with a bit more flair, even if it wasn’t always with the most confidence. Before long, they found themselves approaching a rocky growth that looked like it was probably the tallest attempt at a mountain on the entire island. A wide, jagged cave mouth bore down on them at the base of the growth and there they took a moment to collect themselves, or rather to let Aeron catch her breath. She was still moving with purpose but it was clear she had gotten quite the workout.

    She used her visor to confirm that the readings could detect evidence of animals having come through. Mythal could smell them too; thick blood and musks of differentiating monsters that had either used the cave as a place to rest or a place to feast. But there was little doubt in his mind that whatever light energy he could feel was residing deep within the rocky growth and it seemed the cave was the most direct path inwards. “Yeah, we’re goin’ in,” he confirmed, waiting just long enough for her to catch her breath and bearings before heading inside.

    The cave echoed their steps back at them, along with the faint dripping of water from growing stalactites. The ground was well stroud, a definitive color change in the dirt that led them on a winding, narrow path downwards. They would only have to travel for a few minutes before it evened out, the tunnel ahead dark and ominous. Mythal had cast a spell near the entrance that had created a flickering flame of pure light, hovering a few feet in front of him to illuminate their way. But even against the shadows of the deeper part of the cave, the light could only breach a few feet. And just when it seemed they would be trapped against one another with a thin cylinder of light, the cave opened up into a larger portion that looked like a resting spot for creatures looking to hibernate.

    And right at the back of that cave was a glowing crystal. Pure white in form and nature, it seemed to hum with an unearthly sound as it hovered near the wall. Mythal slowly approached it, glancing around as he did so. The dust on the ground had been moved and stained and several square areas of cleaner dirt were lined up almost in rows. “Some kind of worshiping spot?” he wondered aloud, so that Aeron could add her thoughts.

    But before he could get any closer to the crystal, he heard the rushing of air. He stopped and took a step back, throwing his arm up to protect Aeron as a figure of light came crashing down from beyond the material plane, slamming into the earth before them. Mythal narrowed his eyes at the figure, clad completely in blinding light.

    “Well, isn’t this a surprise? Faera’s little experiment.”

    The figure of light burst into a thousand glittering pieces, illuminating the room to full brightness. Small fractals of the light transformed into candles that lined the ceiling, keeping the room bright. The figure remained where its shell of light had exploded from, revealing a woman. Her skin was a pale blue, her hair as white as fresh-fallen snow and draping down over her shoulders and back. Silver eyes stared at Mythal and Aeron with a wicked playfulness, highlighted by red eyeliner. She wore a top that lacked shoulders or conservation of privacy; a large window over her midriff and up over the underside of her chest. It was connected to a skirt and tights combined lower half, black and red in tones all across her outfit. A staff was held in her right hand, lazily held back behind her as she took in the sight of the two mortals.

    Mythal’s nose took in a new smell and the lacrima inside of him seemed to twist in fury. A demon. “Who the hell are you?” he demanded, glaring at the woman.

    She chuckled. “I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised you don’t recognize me. I doubt Ruzatz has mentioned anything at all about his ‘siblings’,” she hummed in amusement. “I am Maereal, the Gate of Emnity, the Third of the Coveted Gates under the Prime Sin of Envy, Azaur.”

    “And you are trespassing on unholy ground.”



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
    Abilities Active: list them and their effects here
    Weapons Equipped: list/link them here
    Monsters Killed: list here
    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aeron Krishna
    Aeron Krishna

    Player 
    Lineage : Vassal of the Cosmos
    Position : None
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 52
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Mentor : Mythal Ragnos
    Experience : 23,075

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Aeron Krishna 9th September 2023, 6:05 pm



    I CREATED THE SOUND OF MADNESS
    WROTE THE BOOK ON PAIN
    SOMEHOW I'M STILL HERE TO EXPLAIN

    --- THAT THE DARKEST HOUR NEVER COMES IN THE NIGHT ---
    Aeron wasn’t terribly thrilled about going into the cave, although she supposed it was better than being out and exposed in the open. She was on edge for a bit as they wandered, the woman keeping her eyes peeled as much as she could for signs of the cultists they were hoping to find – or of any beasts that might be lurking within the cavern. It was extremely dark inside. Even with the light that Mythal produced only gave them a few feet of illumination, like the shadows around them were swallowing up the light before it really had a chance to serve its purpose. The brunette did her best not to huddle too closely behind the director, but her anxiousness over the situation made her unwilling to fall too far back.

    Eventually, the way opened up to a larger opening where there was plenty of room for someone, or something, to rest in relative safety. However, she wouldn’t really get the chance to look around too much before a glowing crystal caught her attention at the back of the cave. It almost seemed to hum, the sensation making Aeron’s skin crawl. “Is that what you’re looking for…?” she asked as he approached the crystal, the brunette slow to follow.

    She wouldn’t notice the staining on the floor until he pointed it out. Glancing down, she realized she was standing directly on one of the squares and hurriedly shuffled out of its proximity like something was bound to happen to her if she stayed standing on it. “Worship of what? The crystal..?” By her tone, it was obvious she didn’t hold much of an opinion for that, though frankly Aeron didn’t hold much opinion for people who worshiped… well, anything. Religion in general had always struck her as asinine. It wasn’t that she didn’t believe in gods; maybe at one point she’d had doubts about such things, but her exposure to Mythal had taught her that gods and demons were quite real. It was more that she didn’t see the point in revering them. Ultimately, she shook her head. “I’m not gonna argue it. They’re clearly not here right now, at least. This place gives me the creeps. Let grab that thing and ge–”

    Her words were stopped dead by a sudden rush of air that caused Aeron to jump as much as Mythal’s sudden move to protect her had. Light filled the room so brightly that she cried out in pain, her eyes burning as she closed them and looked away with a grimace, her pistols held out haphazardly with shaking hands in the direction from which she heard a feminine voice.

    Soon the room was fully illuminated with countless fractals of light as it broke away from the figure, filling up the space like candles. Aeron blinked the grayness from her eyes, squinting at the woman until her vision fully returned. When it did, the brunette stared outright with a bewildered expression. Why was this woman blue? And why was she dressed like a skank? As she slowly took in the intruder’s posture and gaze, however, a heavy sense of familiarity and unease settled on Aeron’s features. She’d certainly never seen this woman before, but her body language practically screamed Thana in terms of her confidence and arrogance.

    Mythal demanded to know who the woman was, eliciting a chuckle from her. She expressed her surprise that he didn’t recognize her, though she conceded that Ruzatz likely hadn’t talked about his siblings much. The blue skinned woman introduced herself as Maereal, referring to herself as a… gate…? And working for someone called a sin?

    “Who’s Azaur?” Aeron asked Mythal without taking her eyes off of Maereal. The name Ruzatz she at least recognized, if only because Mythal and Serilda had mentioned their friend in passing several times, though the former dark mage held no deeper knowledge of the man beyond his existence. But the rest of the woman’s speech might as well have been Encan for all Aeron comprehended it. “And what the fuck’s a gate? Is this bitch supposed to be important, or something…?”

    Normally under these kinds of circumstances she likely wouldn’t have been so mouthy, but Aeron was rather irritated at having been rudely blinded not long ago. Plus, it was obvious that Mythal viewed her as a threat which was more than enough reason not to have any desire to speak kindly toward this woman, even if she didn’t give her major Thana flashbacks. She tightened her grip on her pistols, aiming them more directly at the newcomer and adjusting her stance to be better balanced and grounded for a fight.
    deltra of gangnam style
    WORDS: 777/6891 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 10th September 2023, 9:48 am

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK
    999/5386 words || @Aeron Krishna || job info/job sign-up || short note here

    “It… definitely has some kind of light-based magic attached to it. But I can’t… I don’t think it’s related to Lux,” Mythal explained quietly, still unsure if they were alone or not. As he looked around and noticed the odd markings on the ground, he wondered aloud if they were places that mats had been set down to sit on or kneel on. It made sense, the way the rows were set up facing the crystal. But that also meant they were facing the crystal and worshiping it… or at least, someone that had been near it. It was odd, he knew and given the way Aeron questioned it, she didn’t really put much stock in the idea, if only because of her personal beliefs. But she didn’t see any reason to argue it, suggesting that since they were alone they should grab the crystal.

    And it was there she was cut off. The arrival of the being of light had disrupted any further conversation, even as Mythal threw his arm up to put himself between Aeron and the figure. It took the thing several seconds to reveal itself, making a show of dispersing its light into glittering pieces about the room. And in its place was a woman that would normally have been attractive were it not for the smell of smolder and brimstone. He demanded to know who she was and she introduced herself as Maereal, a servant under the Prime Sin of Envy Azaur. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end; the last thing he’d wanted was to encounter any other gods or demons in the pantheon that he’d been thrust into knowing. Yet here one was and not some low-level demon either; he could only assume that ‘Gate’ was an honorary title bestowed to her rank, akin to the Trumpets, Omens or Hand.

    Mythal held his gaze on Maereal even as Aeron spoke up, asking who Azaur was and what the rest of everything she had said meant. “Azaur is a demon lord. One of the primary ones. Her ‘gate’ is a title, meaning that she is one of his elite soldiers.” Mythal relaxed his body slightly but only just. She pro’lly thinks she’s important.”

    “Well, one doesn’t belong to the vice of envy and not want or believe they’re worthy of being important,” Maereal admitted with a chuckle. “But as I said, you are in a restricted area, Mythal Ragnos. I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

    “Not without answers,” the Rune Knight Director shut down her attempts to be intimidating immediately. He nodded towards the crystal. “The hell is that thing?”

    Maereal turned her head to look at the crystal he was referring to. “Oh this? A smidgen of Lord Azaur’s power. He… well, it doesn’t matter what happened. Let’s say that it accidentally got separated from him. It’s actually been quite difficult to find but luckily, that special magic power inside of you lit it up like a beacon,” she explained as she tilted her head slightly. “Awfully bold of you to shove an Ataxian shard into your body. But it does seem to have meshed well with your biology… is it because of your genetics? How fun.” Her silver eyes flicked past Mythal to Aeron, narrowing slightly with scrutiny. “And you…”

    “She is just one of my Rune Knight companions. You don’t need to pay any attention to her,” Mythal spoke up once more. Already his senses had alerted him to Maereal lying; whatever the crystal was, it hadn’t come to that island by accident and the Gate knew it. But the last thing he needed was Aeron to be recognized by any connection to Thana. His ability to split them apart was impressive but it wouldn’t remove the lining of her soul, comparable to Thana and Trinity’s. There would be questions, more than likely investigations by the rest of the pantheon; things he didn’t want to put Aeron through. “And the cultists that have been worshipin’ this thing. You bring them about yourself?”

    “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Maereal said with a smug smirk. Yet another lie. “But Azaur is the Prime Sin of Envy. His power naturally will draw in those that want for more and humans are so very wanting, aren’t they?”

    In one swift motion, Mythal had pulled the chain whip from his belt and unraveled it, the head of it hitting the earth hard. “I’m done with your lies. Start tellin’ the truth or Azaur is gonna be out a minion.”

    Maereal’s eyes widened just a tad at the sight of the whip, her senses realizing what it was immediately. She was silent for a moment as she considered him… and then her eyes slowly slid over to Aeron. “Perhaps we should talk somewhere more… private. After all, your companion doesn’t need to hear everything I need to say. She is, after all, no one of import, right?” Her arm shifted forward, bringing the staff she was holding forward as well. “Besides, the creature that calls this place home is only moments away from entering back into its cave. It’d be rude if we didn’t provide him with a warm meal when he comes home.”

    Mythal hadn’t been focused on his senses beyond Maereal. As his eyes widened at the realization that something massive was nearly at the entryway of the cave, he spun around. “Aeron, you-” but before he could spit out another word, his entire image exploded into light fractals that dissipated into the air in front of her.

    Maereal chuckled softly as she looked at the Rune Knight private. “Good luck,” she gave Aeron a small wave before she, too, fractured into light and disappeared. Only a moment would pass before she would hear the low, rumbling growl of a beast from the entryway as some kind of red symbol sprung to life, glowing bright as the creature began to move into the light.



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
    Abilities Active: list them and their effects here
    Weapons Equipped: list/link them here
    Monsters Killed: list here
    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aeron Krishna
    Aeron Krishna

    Player 
    Lineage : Vassal of the Cosmos
    Position : None
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 52
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Mentor : Mythal Ragnos
    Experience : 23,075

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Aeron Krishna 10th September 2023, 2:52 pm



    I CREATED THE SOUND OF MADNESS
    WROTE THE BOOK ON PAIN
    SOMEHOW I'M STILL HERE TO EXPLAIN

    --- THAT THE DARKEST HOUR NEVER COMES IN THE NIGHT ---
    Aeron’s face scrunched in though as Mythal started talking about demon lords and their soldiers, relaxing only when she finally realized what he was talking about. It had been some time since he’d last discussed Faera, Ataxia, and the other gods and demons with her. Well over a year, in fact; when she was still squatting in the remnants of Elysium’s guildhall. They hadn’t really talked about it since then, not even since he’d split her and Thana from Calliope. This in spite of the fact that Aeron was directly connected to the pantheon in some form, a fact that she still accepted only begrudgingly. It wasn’t something any of them could do much about, and Aeron assumed Mythal probably was doing his best to keep her sheltered from the bullshit, which she was frankly okay with. But it did mean that it took her a moment to realize what he was explaining to her now.

    The Darkness King remarked that Maereal likely thought she was more important than she actually was, to which the demoness affirmed that she thought reasonably high of herself before insisting that they needed to leave. Mythal doubled down, stating that he didn’t plan on going anywhere without more information, demanding to know what the crystal was. She claimed it was a fraction of the demon lord’s power that he lost by mistake, a piece they’d been searching for which she claimed she’d only discovered now because she had been drawn to Mythal’s presence.

    A lie. Darius’ voice in her head was calm and plain. Aeron didn’t have Mythal’s ability to sense lies, but Darius almost always knew the truth of everything, even things he should not have been able to know. As such, he was able to at least give the former dark mage a leg up in keeping track of the facts. Not about it being a piece of Azaur’s power; that part is true. But she knew it was here already.

    Aeron’s brows twitched in acknowledgement, but she otherwise remained silent and continued to listen. Maereal stated her opinion on the fact that Mythal had fused an Ataxian shard into himself, curious and impressed that it had merged so flawlessly. The brunette became anxiously aware of the Ataxian shard that dangled around her own neck, the gem of which was thankfully tucked out of sight beneath the hem of her shirt. If they had discussed nothing else about the gods and demons, Mythal had made sure Aeron was aware exactly how dangerous the gem she carried was, and the kind of things that others might do to get their hands on it. Her anxiety only deepened when the blue skinned woman suddenly turned her gaze to Aeron again, and for a brief second the Rune Knight was worried that Maereal knew what Aeron carried.

    But, Mythal quickly pulled the demoness’ attention back to him, insisting Aeron was a nobody that was not worth her time. That seemed to be enough for Maereal, whose gaze lingered only a moment longer before returning to the director as he asked about the cultists. She denied knowledge of any cultists, which Darius also confirmed was a fib, before idly commenting that cultist activity would not surprise her, if only because Azaur’s domain attracted a lot of human interest.

    It seemed Mythal had heard enough. Withdrawing the chain whip from his belt, the weapon unraveled at the ready as he informed her that he was done listening to lies. Aeron smirked confidently as the demoness eyed the weapon with respectful reproach. Though Aeron herself didn’t know much of anything about Mythal’s weapons, she still recognized the concern in their enemy’s gaze, and Aeron was sure that Mythal was more than a match for this woman. After a moment of consideration, Maereal’s eyes returned to the former dark mage and suggested that she and Mythal take their interaction somewhere more private where Aeron wouldn’t be involved. It was then that Aeron’s smirk shifted into a scowl, her pistols humming with increased power as Maereal shifted to hold out her staff and remarked about a creature that was returning to the cave.

    “Don’t even think about it,” Aeron growled, but it was far too late. Even as Mythal attempted to say something to her he was gone in an explosion of light not unlike how Maereal had appeared. Aeron’s eyes went wide with panic at the now empty spot where the director had just been standing. “MYTHAL!” As Maereal wished her luck, Aeron snapped and unloaded several rounds of pistol fire in her direction, but the demoness was gone, the shot landing home in the wall behind where Maereal had been prior. “GET BACK HERE, YOU FUCKING BITCH!”

    Aeron–

    “IF YOU DON’T BRING HIM BACK RIGHT NOW, I SWEAR TO GOD–"

    Aeron, stop–

    “--I’M GOING TO.. DO.. SOMETHING… AND YOU’RE NOT GOING TO LIKE IT!!”

    Aeron, listen to me–

    “WHAT?” She finally stopped screaming at the memory of Maereal, turning her anger on Darius with exasperation.

    Mythal is fine. He’s still here. She merely transported them into a type of mirror universe. You can’t see him, but he is here and he will be fine. You need to focus on yourself. Aeron had been yelling so loudly that she hadn’t even heard the low growl of the beast behind her. But she did notice the bending of shadows as it stepped into the room, blocking some of the light.

    She sprang back and whirled around, bringing her pistols up before she balked, her eyes wide. “Fucking hell…” It wasn’t the biggest creature she’d ever fought, but that didn’t make it any less imposing. It stood nearly twice as tall as she did, it’s body a mass of rippling, bulky muscles and wild black hair that seemed to have a red glow coming from the roots. There was a bone-like plate over where its eyes should have been, with a strange red symbol burned into it. A mouth full of sharp fangs smiled at her as it flexed talon covered fingers, pacing slowly into the room with predatory intent as something like smoke or tendrils of darkness began to billow from its body.

    “I really should have just staying in fucking Sin.” It was the only rueful comment she’d be able to make before the creature charged with a snarl. Currently more angry than anxious, Aeron used her chestplate to give her enough speed to dodge out of the way, twisting as she ran to unload her pistols into the beast.

    Horrifyingly, her blaster fire did little more than irritate it, the great creature’s flesh and fur thick enough that the energy bullets stood no chance at piercing them. “Oh, come on..!” she complained at the realization that her guns were all but useless. Aeron was going to have to get creative, something she very much disliked having to do. The beast charged her again, practically leaping the distance between them in one easy bound and forcing the Knight to once again use her chest plate to push her out of the thing’s reach, where she continued to carefully evade the thing as much as she could to buy herself enough time to think.
    deltra of gangnam style
    WORDS: 1204/8095 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 10th September 2023, 4:28 pm

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK
    1624/7010 words || @Aeron Krishna || job info/job sign-up || short note here

    “... need to turn around!” Mythal finished the rest of his thought as he spun fully to Aeron. But suddenly she was screaming his name, staring right at him but looking like she couldn’t see him at all. Then she turned her attention to Maereal, her guns exploding into action as she attempted to pepper her with the magical bullets. But the demon was… well, she was still there but the bullets just went right through her like she wasn’t.

    Mythal spun back around to look at the Gate, who was looking quite proud of herself as she looked at him. “What the hell is this?” he asked as he looked around, Aeron still yelling in the background.

    “My own personal mirror dimension comprised of my holy magic,” she explained casually as she walked a bit closer. “We’re technically still in the same room as your dear little Rune Knight. Aeron, was it? But she can’t see us and you can’t interact with her.” She chuckled. “But that can,” she indicated towards the opening of the cave with a nod.

    The Darkness Slayer turned back around to see the lit up portion of the creature’s head as he moved into the cavern. It was massive and made up of some kind of shadow-like magic as it began to circle around Aeron, the predator slowly cornering its prey. Mythal jerked the whip in his hand and sent it rushing towards the creature… only for it to pierce through the image of the beast and hit the wall behind it, causing no effect.

    “See? You’re here as long as I say you’re here,” Maereal added as she idly swung her staff in front of her.

    Mythal turned back, his hand rushing forward and pulling the whip with it. The metal head came rushing back through the image of the creature towards Maereal, who spun around her staff and deflected it away. And if you kill me while we’re here, you’ll have no way of getting back. This isn’t your usual ‘kill the caster and the spell disappears’ kind of deal, Mythal Ragnos. This is a room with a key and if you break the key, there’s no way out.”

    “I’ve found my way outta worse places,” the Darkness Slayer growled as his hand twitched, bringing the whip back to rest at his feet. It was the truth… but he wasn’t exactly keen on finding himself trapped and having to experiment to get out. Especially with the creature bearing down on Aeron, rushing at her and missing as she dodged and fired upon it.

    Maereal smiled. “So, you said you had grown tired of my lies. Who says I was lying?” she said, cocking her head slightly to look at him.

    “I do. I can smell bullshit whenever I hear it and you’re a goddamn manure farm,” he retorted back.

    She chuckled. “You’ve quite a way with words. I imagine your little girlfriend there loves such bravado,” she teased him, nodding to Aeron. “Well, nothing you can do to me will inspire me to tell you the truth, I’ll be upfront about that with you. You’re scary, Mythal Ragnos -- whatever arrogance the other demons will showcase in front of you, you and Serilda Sinclair have the realms talking. Mortal strength like yours is rare and concerning for those without the hierarchy. Ruzatz has had quite the full plate, managing his fellow Prime Sins and his own realm and enforcing that the two of you are off limits.”

    “How do you know anythin’ about Ruzatz?” Mythal asked.

    Maereal chuckled. “The Lusty Titans are an information brokerage guild, Mythal. You can’t truly believe there aren’t one or two of them there that are willing to sell information on their guildmaster for the right price. Mortal men and women can be so easy to tempt and only a few can truly refuse their deepest desires being rewarded to them.” Sadly, it was the truth; Mythal couldn’t sense any deception in her voice. “I’m sure Ruzatz is aware of it and does what he can to keep the information in house. After all, one of his wives used to be an assassin and was quite good at making people disappear.”

    “Ruzatz wouldn’t just kill his own guildmates,” the Darkness Slayer insisted.

    She shot him a look of derision. “Then you truly don’t understand the depths the Prime Sin of Lust would go to protect his own and protect what is his. Contrary to what you believe, Lord Ruzatz is still a demon lord. He did not reach the peak of his realm by impressing other lust demons with his ability to copulate. No, underhanded tactics are always required to move up the food chain and Ruzatz is no different. He’s able to stand upon his morals now because he is boosted by the sins of his past. I’m sure he doesn’t speak about them now; he’d much rather be seen as the fun-loving, mortal adoring sex icon that he proclaims to be. But his wives know and we know; he is still an abyssal creature.”

    The worst part was that he didn’t sense any lie in her words. And it spoke to something Mythal had never really thought to confront within himself. He knew that Ruzatz was a demon and based on the minimal that the Prime Sin had revealed, the trials to become the strongest was a long and arduous one. He’d never asked more about it because… well, he wasn’t really sure he wanted to hear about it. But like with Aeron, Mythal believed someone should be weighed based on their merits moving forward, not what they had or hadn’t done in the past. The Darkness Slayer could sense evil to a point in people’s hearts and he knew that Ruzatz had always read as someone that lacked malice.

    Maereal recognized that that particular ammo hadn’t hit as hard as she might’ve hoped. “But let’s move on to what I am willing to tell you. And despite my nature, I’m even willing to provide it for free,” the Gate continued. “There is a change coming. Prime Sins and Absolute Divines alike can sense it; a shift in the balance of power. It’s a fact that you know yourself -- Faera is coming and there is nothing that can be done to stop her.”

    Mythal narrowed his eyes at the demon. “She’s locked away in Kingdom Darkness. Last I heard, your lot and the gods put here there after your locked away Ata-”

    “Do not say her name!” Maereal snapped, her eyes flaring and her playful smile lost under a wave of anger and panic. “There is a reason it was struck from records. Each acknowledgement feeds her, helps her wear down the prison she is in. But you mortals are far too curious for your own good. You see a mystery and wonder ‘why’ instead of leaving it alone.” She let out a sigh before she continued. “Faera will find a way out and she will bring Kingdom Darkness with her. It could be tomorrow, it could be a year from now. But the realms can feel it coming and we will be prepared for the outcome of her arrival.”

    Mythal stared at her for a long moment, his eyes meeting her’s and seemingly staring through her too. “Are you… saying that demons and gods alike are going to join in to fight her?”

    Maereal shrugged. “Some. Others are reinforcing their own borders and realms to ride out the storm. But all of them are doing the same thing; uniting together to inspire humanity to will them more power.”

    “How are they doing that?”

    Maereal gestured to the ground, where the discolored marks in the dirt lay. “Worship. We were all worshiped back in the day by not only our own realms but by humans as well. You must know this; there is a reason the Order of Souls and Dread Masters were formed, after all. Eventually the realms backed off; we’d harvested the faith we needed to keep the balance. But it will be nothing against the might of Faera as she is now. So representatives have been sent out to… inspire new followings. Organize humans in the faith of the divine and the sinful. Different variations, mind you, but all preaching the same thing; following their particular path for greater knowledge and wisdom. For instance, I inspire humanity to yearn for more, to always covet what they don’t have and find the means and methods to fill the emptiness they feel inside. The more they covet, the greater strength Azaur receives.”

    “So then we were right,” Mythal remarked as he glanced over at the crystal. “These are worshiping grounds. But it isn’t…” He stopped before he said too much. He wasn’t sure how much the pantheon knew about Lux or Victoria and he wasn’t about to give that information for free. His gaze flicked back to Maereal. “So then you all have been kidnapping people.”

    “No. Simply expanding their faithful horizons and suggesting they follow our paths. They leave of their own accord,” she said with a wry smile.

    Mythal’s hand tightened on his whip. “I’ve heard enough. Send me back so I can help Aeron.”

    “Come now; where’s the fun in that? After all, the best trials are the ones that push us past our limits. Perhaps she’ll come out stronger for this?” Maereal teased.

    “Send me back now!”

    “Hm…” Maereal hummed as she gently brought her staff back up.
    “How about you convince me? What do I get out of it?”

    “Your life!” Mythal yelled as his arm already swung into motion, sending the head of the whip towards her as he once more started a fight.



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
    Abilities Active: list them and their effects here
    Weapons Equipped: list/link them here
    Monsters Killed: list here
    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aeron Krishna
    Aeron Krishna

    Player 
    Lineage : Vassal of the Cosmos
    Position : None
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 52
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Mentor : Mythal Ragnos
    Experience : 23,075

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Aeron Krishna 10th September 2023, 6:22 pm



    I CREATED THE SOUND OF MADNESS
    WROTE THE BOOK ON PAIN
    SOMEHOW I'M STILL HERE TO EXPLAIN

    --- THAT THE DARKEST HOUR NEVER COMES IN THE NIGHT ---
    This really wasn’t good.

    Aeron attempted several more times to shoot the creature down, using her visor to scan his body for potential weak spots that might be more receptive to her ammunition, only to find it all landing with little to no effect. “You have got to be kidding me,” she growled. Around and around in circles she ran, the beast chasing after her and adapting frighteningly quickly to her movements, which were beginning to slow even in spite of her gear. She’d been doing the bulk of the fighting most of the day, and her weariness from it was beginning to show. Her aim was getting sloppy, her attacks more out of wild desperation than any sense of training.

    She was running without really looking where she was going, and as a result she didn’t notice the large rock jutting out of the ground until she was already tripping over it. The beast didn’t hesitate, whirling on the spot to backhand her with a massive paw and sending her flying across the cavern where she skid face first along the coarse floor, her pistols scattering in two different directions in the process. With a dizzy and dazed groan, she rolled onto her back just in time to see the creature standing over her. Aeron only had enough time for her eyes to go wide in shock before it slapped its hand on top of her, pinning her to the ground, its hand big enough to cover her mouth and neck together as it took her in a vice grip.

    The Knight screamed into its palm, the sound muffled by the flesh that covered it as she kicked wildly, her fingers desperately seeking purchase to try and find a way to pry herself from its grip. It was no use. Maybe once upon a time Aeron had the strength to beat this thing, and easily, but now… now she was powerless without the use of magical tools. And she tried – oh, she tried frantically in that moment to feel the darkness around her, to call upon it and control it like Mythal believed she could. It was useless. She simply couldn’t sense it, couldn’t connect to the element like he could. But she didn’t need to be able to sense magic to recognize that the creature was building up for a death blow, a thick cloud of smoky darkness billowing up and enshrouding the beast as it brewed a spell that was surely meant to take her life.

    In a last ditch effort and without much thought, Aeron charged up her chest piece, only this time she called on the thruster that was on her chest rather than her back. With a hum that increased pitch as rapidly as the glow heated up, the powerful gust from the thruster slammed directly into beast’s belly, launching the creature up into the air. Its powerful grip on Aeron meant that she was dragged up with him, but when its large body slammed violently into the cavern ceiling it was stunned hard enough that she felt herself released from its hold. Twisting in the air, she once more used the thruster to push herself to the side so she wouldn’t find herself trapped beneath the thing when they both fell to the floor, the former dark mage crying out in pain as she collided into the nearest cave wall behind her and slid roughly down to the ground.

    Her breath was coming in deep ragged gasps, her lungs burning as she fought to center herself, her cerulean eyes finding the creature to see what had become of it. It was still alive – because of course it was – and while it was taking a moment to recover, it was still in the process of forcing itself up onto its feet again. But something caught her attention: dust. Pebbles and smaller rocks that she realized had been loosened from the ceiling when the beast had hit it. Stubbornly, she dragged herself up and leaned back until her chest was pointed up to the roof, once more losing a powerful blast of sonic energy that both threw her backward and rattled the ceiling. Several large boulders pried themselves from their sockets and fell with a heavy thud on the beast, who shrieked… and fell silent.

    With a weary groan that was almost a whimper, Aeron sank to the floor as she tried to swallow down her anxiety. Unfortunately, her moment of respite wouldn’t last long.

    Get up, Darius told her firmly. It’s not dead. Get up..!

    Before she could even get a chance to question him, the pile of rubble shifted. “Oh, come on...” This just wasn’t working. Even if she made a move for her guns, they’d already proven themselves useless, and her chest gear would only help her so much. She needed something stronger. She needed magic. Not just for her, but for Mythal. There was no way of telling what he was going through while she struggled and flailed uselessly against a monster that she would have barely broken a sweat against not even months ago. She used to be able to keep up with the director; now all she was doing was falling behind, weak and pathetic, reliant on his protection like a child. That wouldn’t do. She refused to accept it. Even if Aeron didn’t believe in herself, Mythal did, she was determined not to let him down.

    “Fuck it,” she growled, dragging herself back to her feet. When in doubt… go back to your roots.

    Without stopping to put any thought at all into the stupidity of what she was about to do, she rushed toward the pile of rocks. Right as the beast burst free with a feral bellow, Aeron threw herself at its back. Latching on to its thick mane, she used what little supernatural abilities she still possessed to reshape her teeth into fangs as sharp as any other monster. Before it could even comprehend what was happening, Aeron bent down and bit into the meaty muscle of its shoulder. The creature howled in pain as a mouthful of its flesh was ripped from its body, leaving a bloody gash. Ignoring the disgusting taste of its blood as it trickled down the front of her face, Aeron chewed the mouthful and swallowed it, before taking another bite, holding on for dear life as the beast whipped and threw itself around the cavern in an attempt to shake her.

    By the time it finally jostled her loose by scraping its back along a cavern wall, Aeron had managed to devour several mouthfuls of its flesh. The beast scrambled away briefly to nurse its wound and take stock. Meanwhile, Aeron was on her hands and knees, reeling in pain and covered in deep scratches and gashes from the course rock wall that had easily torn through her clothing on her side and back. But the pain was far from her mind. Something else was coursing through her, a feeling she had all but forgotten: power. For it was not just flesh that she had devoured, but the energy that was seeped into every fiber of its being.

    The monster didn’t take long to recover, and with indignant fury it rounded on her with a bellowed roar that shook the cave around them. Before it had even finished, Aeron pushed herself up from her hands and knees to a kneel with one foot braced on the ground. Drawing in a deep breath, she roared back at it defiantly. Darkness burst from around her in thick tendrils not unlike the aura the beast had, and if the creature’s roar had shaken the cave her own was nearer to an earthquake. The creature balked, taking a surprised and involuntary step back in shock.

    Manipulating the darkness, she crafted two karambits, one in each hand with her pointer finger secured through the loops on either hilt of each blade, which flickered like smoke but was no less solid in her grip. Throwing all caution to the wind, Aeron charged the beast. It recovered from its momentary fear and rushed to meet her head on. Continuing to use her gear to evade its powerful strikes, she twisted and danced around its larger, bulkier form, carving it to pieces with the darkness knives. By the time it was finally, remarkably dead, Aeron was standing on its back, heaving with the adrenaline of her newly rediscovered power.

    The beast was dead, but Mythal was still missing. Mythal and that audacious bitch that had taken him. Aeron wasn’t entirely sure what a mirror world was supposed to be, but Darius had been clear enough that they were both still there, just not in a way that she could see or hear them. There was some kind of magical barrier separating them. She couldn’t feel it, but she knew it was there. The Knight scrambled for a moment in thought, trying to figure out any way to get to Mythal or at least to help him, when her eyes fell back on the crystal.

    From what she understood, the power inside was more connected to Maereal’s patron than to the demoness herself… but from what little she had learned from Mythal about all the gods and demons led her to understand that their minions drew power from their masters. Maybe it would help, maybe it wouldn’t… at the very least she knew it would piss the woman off.

    And that was more than good enough for her.

    Storming over to the crystal, Aeron raised her knives and, with a shout, stabbed each magical blade into either side of it. Darkness poured into the gem as she forced her power into it, causing it to corrupt. Before her eyes, it quickly began to lose its light, turning black and filling the room with a darkness that would permeate the air and, unbeknownst to her, weaken the walls of the mirror dimension that Maereal had crafted. The crystal fought her. She could feel it struggling against the invading force, but Aeron’s anger and determination were far too great, and just as every last flicker of light was swallowed by the blackest of night the gem exploded, shattering into a thousand pieces and hurling her across the room.
    deltra of gangnam style
    WORDS: 1721/9816 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 10th September 2023, 7:51 pm

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK
    1352/8362 words || @Aeron Krishna || job info/job sign-up || short note here

    The battle between Mythal and Maereal intermingled in the fight that Aeron was having with the bear-monster-thing. Even as the Darkness Slayer sent his whip flying at the demoness, his eyes would flick to Aeron, watching her fight the hardest she could with the limited advantages she had. Each impact, each moment she had where she was overtaken and fought back, increased his fighting speed. But Maereal was no joke; it was less of a fight and more of Mythal trying to hit her and back her into a corner and the Gate deflecting and dodging his attack with little to no effort. It bothered him because based on what he sensed, she didn’t seem all that strong. Yet he seemed to be on the bad end of being toyed with and each time she chuckled or smirked, it only made him angrier.

    It was the mirror dimension. It was her creation, her spell, so it must have been enchanted to either buff her abilities or decrease his. The real problem was that he couldn’t get a read on the source of the power or else he’d just absorb it as his own. He hated to admit it but at the moment, he kind of wished Lux was there. The Lightbringer would have been able to fight the source and take control of it. The mirror dimension shook as Aeron unleashed a blast into the ceiling and caved in a portion of the cavern, dropping rocks on top of the monster. Mythal’s head whipped around to look at her, exhausted, bloodied and beaten.

    “Mmm… a good attempt but not quite enough,” Maereal cooed as the rocks began to shift, the creature finding the fight in it once more.

    “Is this some kind of game to you?” Mythal hissed as he kicked the end of the whip at her, trying to catch her off guard.

    She side-stepped the metal top, as casual as stepping out of the way of an oncoming person. “A little bit, yes. Just curious to see how well your girlfriend does. So far she’s just about even with that beast… but how much fight is still in her?”

    “If anything happens to her…” the Darkness Slayer growled as he pulled Curse’s hilt off of his belt. He attempted to force magic into it, to bring Hopebringer into existence, but he found himself halted. So she was blocking his magic in here.

    “I’d be more concerned about getting yourself out of here first. Though I have been told exclusively not to kill you, there was nothing said about leaving you with all your limbs. Perhaps I should stop playing and start actually trying,” Maereal retorted as she shifted her staff outward to point at him. A single point of purple light flickered to life at the end of the staff before it erupted into a massive beam of curse power.

    Mythal barely had time to pull the whip back and send it flying into the head of the oncoming beam. The metal frame sizzled as it made contact with the curse power, igniting in flames before exploding, detonating the full length of the beam. But the explosion knocked him back and off his feet, the whip sailing out of his hand.

    “Now that was clever. Brilliant move, Mythal… Ragnos…” Maereal was beginning to chide him when her gaze shifted to Aeron. The Rune Knight had leapt onto the back of the creature and seemed to be… biting into it. Not only biting it but ripping off pieces of its body and eating it, chewing down muscle, fat and viscera aggressively as the monster slammed its body around to try and shake her off. “I thought this woman was one of your official Rune Knights. But she seems more wild than anything else,” Maereal remarked with a chuckle as she watched Aeron get tossed off the monster finally.

    Much to the surprise of both Mythal and Maereal, Aeron suddenly… began to show magic. As the beast roared at her, she returned the sound, darkness magic ripping off of her tendrils. As the ground shook in the real cave, the Rune Knight private forged the darkness into blades for both hands and charged the monster, using her technology to dance around as she carved it up. She came out victorious, standing triumphantly on top of the beast, blood dripping from her blades as she panted to catch her breath.

    “Well that was interesting, wasn’t it?” Maereal chuckled, glancing back at Mythal in mirth. “She has some skills, I’ll admit that. But she…” As the demon turned back to look at Aeron, she found she had moved. No, she was moving, charging full force at the crystal. “No… No!” The facade was broken, Maereal’s amusement melted away to anger. “I’ll vaporize her on the spot!” she hissed as she lifted her staff.

    The loud crack of a whip was all she heard before she was choking. Her free hand shot up to the leather that had tightly wrapped around her neck, her eyes bulging as she twisted her head around to look back at Mythal. The metal one was still feet away from him but he’d still had the regular one. He yanked on it, pulling her back a step and forcing her to pull her staff up as she tried to wrest herself free with both hands. In the meantime, Aeron had shoved her blades into the crystal and began to funnel her darkness into it, filling it with shadow. The realm around them began to flicker and dim as the unholy light was corrupted. “No! NO!” Maereal hissed with what little air she had. In one last desperate attempt, she twisted her body slightly and then jerked herself backwards to throw her staff at Mythal like a javelin.

    She felt the slack go loose, loose enough for her to step forward. But the Darkness Slayer had been waiting for something like that. Her step pulled him to his feet and into a guarded position. Around came his hand to block the staff with Curse’s hilt, the sharp point hitting the flat end and then deflected upwards. As Mythal let go of the leather whip, fully letting go of his control of Maereal, he leapt up and kicked the staff on its butt end, sending it rocketing back at the demon. She was knocked back as Aeron fully destroyed the crystal, spun around and then impaled through the shoulder by her own spear. Her body flew through the air and shattered the mirror world, the fragments of the former reality exploding everywhere as she slammed into the wall, embedded against the rocky frame.

    She reached over to grab the staff in a desperate attempt to pull it free. But something rushing at her caught her attention and she let out a scream just as the metal end of Mythal’s whip slammed into the wall right next to her, mere inches from her face. The Darkness Slayer, now fully returned to power, was standing before her in seconds, Hopebringer fully alight in his hand as he brought it up and held the sharp edge to Maereal’s neck.

    “You go and tell Azaur and the rest of the fuckin’ lot of ya that they’re gonna stop grabbin’ people. Or else I’m comin’ for you all and I won’t stop until there ain’t any pantheon for y’all to be part of,” he growled at the demon, pushing the blade closer so that it actually cut into her neck slightly. Then with another growl, he took a step back. Maereal didn’t need any further comment or hint to leave. Her entire form was overwhelmed with light and then zipped up into the ceiling, disappearing into the cracks.

    Mythal was already running over to where Aeron had landed. He slid down to his knees and pulled her onto his lap. “Aeron, hey,” he said softly as he placed a hand on her chest. Darkness flowed out of him, small tendrils that went to her wounds and began to heal them with magic. “C’mon Aeron, talk to me.”



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
    Abilities Active: list them and their effects here
    Weapons Equipped: list/link them here
    Monsters Killed: list here
    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Aeron Krishna
    Aeron Krishna

    Player 
    Lineage : Vassal of the Cosmos
    Position : None
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 52
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Mentor : Mythal Ragnos
    Experience : 23,075

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Aeron Krishna 11th September 2023, 10:46 am



    I CREATED THE SOUND OF MADNESS
    WROTE THE BOOK ON PAIN
    SOMEHOW I'M STILL HERE TO EXPLAIN

    --- THAT THE DARKEST HOUR NEVER COMES IN THE NIGHT ---
    She wasn’t unconscious, but she wished she was. Aeron’s body ached everywhere, from the numerous cuts and gashes to the many large bruises that she could feel forming all over. She was almost certain she had cracked a rib, given the sharp pain she felt every time she took a deep breath. Her face was covered in both the monster’s blood and her own, though admittedly there was more of the former. Not that she could tell by the way her head throbbed.

    Aeron wasn’t even aware that her hail mary had been effective until Mythal was pulling her into his lap, the former dark mage aware of him moving her even if she didn’t have the strength to move herself or even open her eyes. “Remember when I was a dark mage?” she asked him once again, throwing back to a conversation they’d already had only a couple hours prior. “That was a good time. Fuck you very much for turning me honest.”

    She groaned at the sensation of her wounds closing together as he used his magic to heal her, though in truth the pain was ebbing rather quickly. Coughing out a tickle in her throat that had formed from all the dust she’d breathed in and the crack in her rib repairing itself, she finally was able to blink her eyes open. “The next time I try to do something that stupid… do me a favor and just put a bullet in me.”

    As some sense of her strength returned from his energy, Aeron became keenly aware of her placement in his lap, as well as his hand on her chest. Not that his placement was anywhere inappropriate, of course; even if he had put his hand… lower down on her chest, neither of them would be able to feel it through the metal plate that was covering her. But as it was, Aeron simply wasn’t used to any kind of prolonged touch, let alone from a man that she admired and liked as much as Mythal. A noticeable blush rushed to her cheeks and she cursed in her head, knowing that it was there and he could probably see it plain as day. Yet unlike the last time he’d held her like this, back during their first meeting in Sin, Aeron didn’t throw herself away from him in a panic. She certainly avoided eye contact and he would be all too aware of how quickly her heart was pumping blood through her, but otherwise Aeron would wait patiently until he was done, doing her best not to enjoy her placement too much.

    The demoness was gone, at least. There didn’t appear to be a body of any kind, but a quick update from Mythal to explain what had happened on his end was explanation enough for that. The important thing was that he’d sent her packing, and that they’d destroyed a fraction of a devil’s power… though with that came the understanding that Aeron had likely painted a target on her back. The knowledge wasn’t exactly comforting, but there was little that could be done at that point. Instead, they chose to focus on the positives. They may not have found the part of Lux’s power that he’d been looking for, but a quick test was all it took to confirm that Aeron still seemed to have the connection to darkness that she’d stolen from the beast. It wasn’t exactly how she’d wanted to regain the use of magic, resorting back to the methods she’d used to gain power when she was a child and a slave, but given that she’d been backed into a corner, it was a decision she could live with. As such, there was almost a sense of relief about her as they gathered themselves up and made their way back to Era. Aeron wasn’t sure what the future held for her…

    …but for the first time in a long, long time she knew that she would never be powerless again.
    deltra of gangnam style
    WORDS: 670/10,486 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Path Toward Darkness and Light Empty Re: Path Toward Darkness and Light

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 21st September 2023, 10:39 am

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK
    352/8714 words || @Aeron Krishna || job info/job sign-up || short note here

    Well she seemed in… good spirits? That was probably the best description of how she was, covered in a mixture of blood and still giving him grief about making her honest. He let out a dry laugh as he continued to fuel the healing magic into her. “Please, we both know you could get just as bloody in Sin as you did here,” he teased back as her injuries began to stitch back together. As her eyes opened, she remarked about him stopping her from doing anything as stupid in the future. “Sorry, I ain’t in the friend murderin’ business. Plus you’ll definitely do a lot stupider things; that’s how it works out. You think you hit your stupid limit and then find a whole new place after it. It’s really dumb, trust me.”

    If he noticed her blushing, having just realized where she was placed, he didn’t comment on it. He focused on making sure she was fully healed enough. “Maereal is gone. Whatever you did to that crystal distracted her enough for me to actually get a hit in. After that, I was able to stop her with all of my power; bitch put a cap on me to protect herself. I imagine she’s gonna have some nasty things to say about the two of us but that ain’t much of a surprise. We’ll just have to keep an eye out for one another.” As he finished up the remainder of his healing on her, he would help her to her feet. It seemed her resurfaced magic had stuck, as she put on a small display to prove its remainder. He highly doubted she was pleased with the way she had to acquire it but… well, one can’t choose the path to power in most cases. They’re usually thrown on it without much consideration for their part.

    With the light crystal destroyed, it seemed their investigation into Lux’s power had reached yet another standstill. But if anything, at least she had finally found some of her former power or a version of it that she could begin to cultivate again.



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
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    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



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      Current date/time is 4th October 2024, 8:56 pm