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Pariah Nevastine Vice Captain
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 Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2007 9:30 am
Azure only respnded briefly, but his response was enough to make him understand why Kuroha set off on his own. He only smiled as he came to realization as to why Kuroha would take such a risk.
"Now I understand." He said. "In the Nether Realm, there are three super powers which rule. Meridious, who controlled the largest portion of the realm. Yige Yingzi, his own Horseman who had been granted a portion of Meridious's kingdom, but he used it to raise an army on his own, and Meridious seemed oblivious to his intentions. And the third was Kuroha." He explained. "Unlike Meridious and Yige, who enslaved the souls of the dead, Kuroha was their arbiter, and ushered them into paridise or purgatory. As far as his own army to contend with Merisioud and Yige, their souls were not bound by his magics. They serve him of their own free will."
As Azure continued to explain Kuroha's plan, his hand slid to the scythe which had been forged with Nahota's soul.
"We are in the Forest of 1000 Souls, and yet the dead stray away from this villlage. Kuroha must be trying to figure out why." He said. "If that is the case, he will summon the dead to his aid, and shoudl they heed his call, this battle will get messy...and quickly. We'd best be prepared."
On the branches above the gate to the village, Kuroha had begun to chant lightly to himself. The Netherian energies that emitted from his body were hidden by the aura of the forest itself. He could feel the undead in the immediate area wanderring aimlessly, before he called out to them. His voice seemed to empower them to his command, and whatever barrier was present to keep them away from this village, it was easily conqured as they mustered on the path in front of the village.
"Those who have been cast into Limbo, your Arbiter summons you. Aid me in my battle to restore that which has been broken by mortal hands, and you may yet earn your freedom. Let it been known. The Arbiter has spoken."
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Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2007 10:35 pm
Since the rift had opened Khastur had been continuously having blackouts and fits of memory loss, keeping a journal in his travel pack he had managed to stay cognescant of who he was, but where and how were elluding him at every turn. His feet dragged him forward, his stomach always empty, his eyelids always heavy. His dreams brought him ever gasping from any flicker of slumber, shades and wisps of a woman he once knew before the rift. He would wake up with only the message, "Find Issildia, the one who walks the path between light and shadow. The one like you." and just as her image was in his mind it would fade away-- every morning he sketched some minute detail into the drawing he was making of Issildia in his journal, picking one feature to draw quickly to form a puzzle he may one day solve; piece at a time.
His sword, once mighty and teeming with unknown power seemed to dull and chip at his constant melees with wandering troups of the undead he encountered in his travels. Picking his head up from the dirt path, he saw a village before him. Did he black out again? Looking around him he saw the forest he had been walking through. 'No...But I have stumbled onto something very strange in this dark forest...' through the forest he would hear the moans of unholy creatures, and now he heard only silence. Dropping his head again he continued his lumbering pace through the village-- he wanted desperately for someone to be here but knew there could not be...
A soft sound broke him from his spell, Khastur unsheated his blade- trying to jolt himself awake he took a defensive stance as he quickened his pace through the village 'Who could it be? What could be in this village seemingly frozen in time?'
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Posted: Sat Jul 14, 2007 5:16 pm
Issildia averted her eyes slightly from the scene before them as she detected a distant aura that clung to a half forgotten memory.
For a moment it seemed that it would notreturn but then she uttered a single word under her breath.
"Khastur..."
She looked torn between remaining there to do what they must and searching for her former ally. But she now had a purpose beyond her own, one that concerned more than a single man. Still it was a choice that would prove to be a difficult one.
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Posted: Sat Jul 14, 2007 5:56 pm
Far-off whispers, was he going mad? Surely he must as his pace only quickened to meet the mystery. A voice other than the undead surely, unconciously Khastur called to it-- one long agonizing yell, the first time he had heard his own voice in months. The tip of his long sword dragged on the ground as he bolted through the village; even if he had to kill what he met he would face the unknown, and wring the secrets of this village from their dying lips if he must.
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Posted: Sun Jul 15, 2007 9:37 am
Upon the bitter echo of some poor soul's cry piercing the silence, Issildia looked at Azure only briefly, communicating only that she would return before her form disappeared in a subtle rush of silver flame. ~
He was not what he once was, Issildia noted inwardly as she came into being once again in the shadows clung to the edges of her former ally's vision. The state he was in was a testament to how the world's change would affect so many others, she had never meant for them to suffer, it only reminded her of their reason for coming here in the first place. Still she moved into view.
"What has become of you." she murmured quietly as she cautiously approached, aware that to him she too would only be a half wrought memory.
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Posted: Sun Jul 15, 2007 11:10 am
Khastur was struck by a piercing sting in his head, his eyes went wide as he nearly tripped over his own feet. His sword falling with a clatter he tried to spit out words that wouldn't come. It was her, Issildia.
"I...No...Forget me, I may only live so much longer. I grieve for our world Issildia.." Khastur tightened his hands as bitter tears made his face grow hot with the anguish of a wasted life. "What has become of our world? Is there any hope of making this nightmare end?"
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Pariah Nevastine Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun Jul 15, 2007 1:14 pm
At this point, Kuroha's volunteer army had been forming outside of the gates to the village. It had cought the attention of the guard outside, but they did not move to attack. Azure had appeared, next to Kuroha in the trees above, their movements hidden to the Nether Gate gaurds outside.
"I told you to wait for me." Kuroha stated.
"There has been a complication." Azure informed him. "Do not attack just yet. Let them grow just a little more restless, before you unleash your hell upon them."
"That man." He said. "He will soon be among them."
"Indeed, but as of now, he has an audiance with Issildia." Azure stated. "Once they have concluded, that will be the signal to unleash their wrath."
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Posted: Sun Jul 15, 2007 1:40 pm
"You must leave this place." Issildia said as she retrieved his blade from the ground.
"All will be explained in time, but for the moment...all you must do is survive. I won't see another of you lost." She said as she caught his hand and placed the hilt of his sword in it.
"You may feel as you are through with this world Khastur..." she uttered lowly before her voice grew softer. A subtle glow emitted from where her hand still held his sword.
"But this world is hardly through with you...We will see this nightmare to its end once more." Though he would not immediately notice it, any wounds that he had sustained were beginning to mend.
"I will find you when this is over, should you live long enough."
In the moment that she finished her words there was a faint flicker of light and she was gone in an instant. ~
~~~~
Issildia appeared a short distance from Azure and Kuroha, she remained silent as she regarded them with a slight glance. Her hand coming to rest on the hilt of a foreign blade at her hip, ready to face whatever their enemy had planned, though in the back of her mind she regretted having to leave Khastur alone once more. Hopefully, should he survive what was about to transpire she would be able to explain the full extent of what had happened to the world.
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Posted: Sun Jul 15, 2007 2:19 pm
Khastur turned slowly, for now he was not needed-- but every dog has his day. Walking away he made off until there were no eyes on him and quickly slipped behind a house in the village clutching his sword. The idea of monotony had been erased from his mind and he was itching for a fight. No matter what happened here he would live through it and prove he was in this for the long haul; the nightmare must end.
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Posted: Sun Jul 15, 2007 2:28 pm
It was when Issildia reappeared did the first of the line of undead choose to charge the enemy. Its screech signalling the charge, as the others followed suit. Ghouls, ghasts, wraiths and spectres alike all raced toward the gate in a glorious charge, that no words could describe. The seven outside of the gate, drew their weapons and returned the charge. They may have been stronger than they were before, however, in this forest, they had failed to realize that the undead...the thousand souls that wandered here, could not be defeated.
"Brother. The barrier." Kuroha reminded him.
"Yes." Azure replied.
From his position, Azure held his hand out in front of him, and watched as a barrier of light suddenly came into sight. It surrouned the village, and it was this barrier that had kept the undead from overtaking them in the past. The barrier's light hue had suddenly grown darker, and as the first of the spectres entered its borders, the barrier shattered, allowing Kuroha's undead army to cross over their threshold and exact their vengeance upon the Nether Gate village.
"If we are going to search the village, now would be our best opportunity."
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Pariah Nevastine Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2007 8:35 am
~
"Bloody insects..." Sylph cursed as she stumbled through the confines of the forest. She no no longer bore the carefully preened visage from her days in Keirdon, her dress was torn and disheveled and her hair was now bound back at the nape of her neck. Though in her hand was a finely crafted bow she had pilfered from one of Faltora's armories before the battle that sent her fleeing into the Wilds.
Her progress had been slow as she nearly starved in the first week until she learned something of the hunt, then she had been forced to avoid the larovian soldiers that had flooded into Keirdon after Reinsen Nevar's fall. It seemed that Darsha Nevar had his eye fixed on taking the conquered lands for his own now that his brother was dead.
But this place, this forest that acted as a barrier between Trenius Sekia and all others was to become the worse thus far for her, and perhaps the best.
Everywhere she walked, she caught the sound of half whispered words clinging to the wind, all of them foreign...that is until now.
One was a woman's voice that Sylph held no liking for, but the other caused her to hasten her pace, wondering as to her luck that he would still be alive.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Let's get this over with then, I am not fond of this place." Issildia commented. This forest was an enigma that defied the laws that the Avariera had set in place with the creation of the Veil. It held a distressing presence that disturbed her to no end.
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Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2007 2:29 pm
The action was a touch too far away, he shouldn't rush into this-- if Issildia wanted him to help now she would have asked. Sheathing his sword he began to move around the village, at the very least he'd follow them; if only because he had no where else to go. Just then, he heard a noise- distinct in that it was coming from behind him rather than the fray ahead. Khastur turned slowly, half-expecting the mystery person to allready be there. "Hello?"
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Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2007 8:29 am
Sylph's hands shook slightly as the grip on her bow tightened upon hearing a voice within the dark forest. She didn't know if this was another of the forest's tricks to rend her from sanity or actually a reality.
"Khastur..." She said as she tried to stretch her vision beyond the darkness. As a Valtera she did not have the superior senses of some of the other races unless she altered her shape, and present she preferred remaining in this form until she escaped this god forsaken place.
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Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2007 4:17 pm
Khastur didn't hear a reply from the nameless shadow but a need had taken hold of him, he kept moving, waving his arms over his head. "Who's out there?" As it wasn't moving towards him it must have meant no harm, Khastur moved in quickly- a secret fear that some undead thing may get to it first.
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Pariah Nevastine Vice Captain
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Posted: Wed Jul 18, 2007 10:24 am
Kuroha remained at his position monitoring the battle between the Nether Gate and his hundead minions. He had hoped that whatever was aiding thos assassins would reveal itself in the heat of battle, and until he figured out what it was, he would bide his time. Azure on the other hand, had made his way back to the village, using the treetops to masks his movements. Once he was overhead, he dove from the trees down into the village itself. His form disappeared midway through travel, but soon faded back into sight as he neared the ground. He kept the scythe holstered, and instead drew his blades, Dark Sentinel and Kamakaze from their sheathes. He joined them at the hilts, forming a double-bladed glaive, and proceeded throguh the village. He was heading for their temple as he could feel a strange aura emitting within...one that did not belong.
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