shadow feast

Morok exclaims, "Oh!"


Morok says, "Actually, this reminds me of something..."
He was working on something, was he not?

What a coincidence that he would encounter these two out here, of all things- but as much as Tea's presence is acknowledged with only a brief glance, it is fairly evident he's not here for them at all.

"Hello, Tea."

"I'm here for that drakanite over there. If you'd be so nice and step away from him while I sort out my business, that'd be very much appreciated."

So simple with this Archon. But then again..

When has he ever been difficult about things? As long as he gets what he wants...
(Morok)

Barrachan glances up at Morok in the air. His expression still rather plain.
(Barrachan Vatoris)


Barrachan Vatoris asks, "And what do you need me for?"

Morok asks, "I'll let you guess. There's no fun in telling right away, is there?"
While Tea is floating about kicking monsters, talking to Barrachan, and tapping things into her transceiver, she ends up being approached by...

Well, it was a vaguely familiar face. The device is tucked away and she drifts down to her feet, her eyes narrowing upon him.

"Not here with your pets for once? Either way, fuck off. I'm busy with him."
(Tea)

Tea assumes the Iron Fist stance!

After hearing the response of Morok, the green-haired Drakanite would raise his hand in front of himself and look at it briefly as the Energy Gem spikes in his spine activating the runes covering his body. He remembered Morok and all the things he did, even those rumored before his ascension. A golden disk of mana would appear in font of his palm as the runes shifted his appearance into that of his assassin attire.

"Maybe to corrupt with darkness again. I'm not against that, or for it, either way." He guesses firstly.

His raw mana begins to coalesce around his form at this point.

"Maybe to kill me. I'm neither against nor for that either." He guesses once again. The viridian eyes linger back onto the hovering Archon. "Tea already said her piece. Either way, I assume you've come to subjugate me like the rest. I won't simply roll over for you." He concludes.
(Barrachan Vatoris)

"Pets..?"

His gaze directs towards Tea. He wasn't exactly sure about what- or whom- she was referring about.

"I have pets?"

The Serpentine Archon, of all things, seems rather... perplexed by that notion. But it's not enough to really throw him off- instead, his gaze directs back onto the two, soon to speak out.

"Why is it always so difficult with you humans?"

"Always so stuck up for no reason... as far as I recall, this man isn't even your ally, Tea."

"Why you protect him is beyond me - but you're not my target, so.."

The shadows lunge towards Barrachan; they do not answer his question, and instead, attempt to snatch him up before Tea could possibly try and react.
(Morok)

Tea rolls her eyes and raises her fists, wholly unamused by the man's answer. Yet this wasn't someone she truly resented.

Simply a man who happened to annoy her.

The tiger tail she'd sprouted swings back and forth as she scowls. "Ally? I don't care if he's my ally or not. I'm not done with him."

It'd be an inconvenience for him to be taken now, if anything. Though him being harmed or not depended upon his own strength.

Only if he were to fall would Tea consider fighting.
(Tea)

Why did she decide to simply let this one suffer?

Is it the fact that she didn't truly care for Barrachan, or is it the fact that she could not really find it in her to find the Archon right this moment? As much as these thoughts briefly flash through his mind, these are not the thoughts that linger.

On his mind, there was only one thought.
To take what he wanted.

And while the shadows finally snatch up Barrachan, they carry him off to the distance in which the two could find themselves a clearing. Evidently, this seems rather amusing to the Archon.. if only because he was looking to face this drakanite for a while.

"I'm rather surprised."

"You held such fire in your heart to face me off before - but now, suddenly you seem flaccid and pitiful, like you lost your soul."

"What happened, Barrachan? Are you going to disappoint me today, after all that we shared so far?"

He finds it worth a smile. Worth the things that they've experienced... and most of all, it is here that he's revealed the very thing that might give Barrachan a clue as to why he's chased down like this.

A dragonslayer's sword. Now, bathe and gripped by the shadows- a relic that was being slowly turned into the fine mastercraft attuned to the Archon. Pulsating, vivid colors permeate across the fine blade in a spot-like manner, almost hungering in how it reaches out to the drakanite.

"Don't neglect this duty of yours now."

"If I am unimpressed by your results by the end of this, you might as well die."

After all, he sought to evolve humanity..

What use for him are those that fail to follow this script?
(Morok)

Once more Morok would strong arm his way into the Drakanite's pathway. His viridian eyes would focus on him as he approached. The golden disk of mana would suddenly expand as Uner influenced Barrachan's mana directly. As it expanded the numerous runes would read out a specific message that conjured a grand number of spells at once, all of which were attached to the Chains of Oppression : The Way of Subjugation.

Cosmic ripples open within the air as the shadows aim to wrap around him. A bright light of gold forms around him from within one of the ripples as the shadow locks around him. The whispers of the celestial body enter into his mind as he suddenly finds himself within a clearing. Even now, face to face with one of his long time foes and a member of the Demon Clan of Snakes, Barrachan's emotions could not be found.

While Morok spoke firstly, Barrachan would respond to him. "If you are expecting the fire from the Mountain, it was stolen away, but that does not mean I am so much weaker for it. My Rage may have been stolen, but I am still Barrachan, one of the blessed of Ryujin." He tells the Archon plainly. More ripples begin to form through the air as the steel weapons crafted by raw energy and given form by metal magic, revealed themselves.

"My life is not to entertain you, it is simply mine to live, until it is not any longer." He tells the demon, not proudly, but straight-forward. Even now, his soul was still that of a Draksnite even when wounded and leaking. He would not back down from the foe, even if he tried to keep himself from being transported.

Briefly, however, Barrachan smiles back to Morok. It was not a smile to simply fill the blanks like he gave all the others. He believed that he had seen the Balmung upon Morok's back when he first arrived in the area. At no point of his original arrival, did Barrachan overlook it, but he was still not one torun away. Even when those greater than him brought challenge, he brought them war.

"Death may call to you, but Fire will always answer me." He tells the Demon finally as ripples form around the demon to exude large gouts of cosmic fire.
(Barrachan Vatoris)

Can't he tell that Morok does not care for freedoms of humanity?

That those that chose to oppose him deserve to be dragged to this evolution, even if they're kicking and screaming... or perhaps, used in his own display of mastery and goals alike. While the drakanite is one of great power, it does nothing to convince the Archon to abandon his cause.

"Your life does not belong to you."

"It stopped being that way when you decided to lose yourself in the whirlpool of fruitless pursuit to eradicate my kind. You became just like the rest.."

"Pointless demon hunters that will never achieve the truth they walk towards."

How can one hope to eradicate the entirety of the demonkind, anyway? How can they hope to remove their influence, unless they work from a deeper angle? And even then, when this exchange happens between the shadows and the metal, the flames and the cosmic burns..

It is terribly close.
Close enough to draw a smile from the Archon.

For every drop of blood spilled, there's only a smile- satisfaction with the fact that this one has actually grown. And yet..


The shadows rend and rip his flesh.
Soaking up his lifeforce, draining him.
Only to be given to the blade.


At the very essence of this blade, it was slowly being turned away from its original- to turn from the dragonslayer relic, to vengeance that calls from beyond the grave - the vengeance now held within the hands of the Serpent.

"I'm impressed."

"Not good enough, of course, but you're getting there."

"Now come. This isn't over yet."
(Morok)

Why did he smile?

Arcane and metaphysical arts channeled through the darkness would be met with barraging weapons of cosmic light. The first dozens of weapons missing entirely until Barrachan is coated in the cosmic light of Uner. Innovation took him, and through the cosmic array he would descend upon Morok. A punch elbow directly slams into his chest, and just behind Barrachan the hurling weapons of metal and energy were racing towards him, being guided by the cosmic light itself.

He ducks his head and the weapons slam into the Archon to produce a sudden explosion of cosmic light, however Barrachan would not witness it. His very sight removed from his being, but the guidance of Uner had not left him alone. He moves with the relentless pursuit to subjugate his foe under his overwhelming might. The Drakanite re-appears just in front of Morok with the smile still present on his face as they collide far more integrally than before.

Magical spells caused ripples of destruction in every facet upon the battlefield as the cosmos challenged the Darkness head on back with the strength of a Drakanite. However, despite their best efforts united, Barrachan would find himself ultimately pushed back and skidding along the ground. Blood fell from both the Drakanite and the Archon alike, but both knew the battle had yet to come to an end.

The manipulated shadows rended his flesh, literally soaking out his very lifeforce, including the power of Alkaio, the fallen hero of Gehenna. A heavy cough exudes from Barrachan as blood littered the ground before him. Despite this, he knew now why he had smiled. This was something he had originally lived for, a piece of his essence that had been ripped away. The mending of cosmic light and the very being that was Morok reminded him of it.

Glory.

Before he had treasures, he sought glory for the weapons he wielded to be known to the world. Barrachan would slowly raiseto his feet keeping that smile on his face as he spit to the side. "Your kind, the Teraphim, Dun Task, all of you have stolen from my life. All of you have taken what was meant to be destiny, and destroyed it within your own rampage of ambitions....

No, my life will belong to me. I will not be overcome so easily, this cannot... This cannot still be my fate." The Drakanite spoke as the memories of Zozael's victory reigned over him. The moment of death, when Fidi bit into his flesh and paralyzed him.

"If I die here, if I fall here, then what was all of it for?" He inquires as he brought up his hands ripping a larger cosmic ripple within the sky. This did not carry a weapon with it, no, it was the fuel for a weapon. The cosmic energies coalesced and poured from the sky bathing upon Barrachan and the Energy Gem. Letting his weakened mana, trigger the full extents of the Energy Gem despite the risks.

Large blue wings began to emerge from the golden lights. Horns upon his head, and a spiked tail emerged. The very energy of his soul was manifested through the Energy Gem embedded into his spine, giving his blessing new life. The Chains of Oppression open in a more brilliant display upon the night sky, making it appear as if the very sun itself had risen again. Countless weapons emerged from within.

He was prepared for it now.... He accepted it, if it was to come, but he would meet it fighting until the end.
(Barrachan Vatoris)

Futile.

This is a futile task for Barrachan to try and pretend that he can contend with the Archon- for as much as he could ensnare him previously, such luck would quickly run out. Instead of even coming near him anymore, the metaphysical area all around them shifts - enough to barrage the drakanite with impossible flow of magics that disable his own efforts.

Can't he tell that he's in his realm now?
His domain?

"I gauged your strength."

"But I had enough of these games."

A revelation of the shadowy beast that he fights. The doubts, the fear, the overwhelming despair that he's faced against- it all intends to bombard his mind, to grip not only his lifeforce, but his very sanity. How can humans stand against something this perfect? Something that was created out of their nightaresm..


Does he see yet that his resistance is futile?
That humanity is doomed, until they learn?


"That's too bad, Barrachan."

"Had you possessed just a little bit more force, just a little bit more vigor behind your strikes, then perhaps you could actually bring me down."

"But this is clearly not enough at all."

The charge of darkness. One that sweeps him off his feet, devours him whole, taking from him- leeching from him for the blade that would need to be bathe in these shadows even more; the pulsating crystal of Lady Erie's Greed constantly beaming with every portion of the essence that it takes. Until..

A slash. Deep into his chest- intended to bring him down here and there; only by sheer luck he's able to avoid a blow into any significant area, and instead, it ends as a flesh wound against the scales of a dragon. Even then, he finds himself defeated.

Brought low before the Archon.


"That's so, so bad, Barrachan.."

"If you had decided to join me, then you could rejoin Veronica a long time ago. Did you think I was lying to you back then, in Theria? Did you think I was merely trying to poison your mind?"

"You fool. You absolute buffoon. You could've had it all, and still end up happy - but now, she hates you."

"Your life will never be the same."


Torment would be his companion, and punishment his living. In such manner, the sword is finally removed from his flesh, taking all of the essence into pulsating crystal that it could have- yet, the Archon looms over him...

Standing above the world.
Looking down upon him from up high.

"Pitiful, is it not?"

"I don't think I even want to hear your pleas or pledge anymore."

"I think I'm just going to take you next time."
(Morok)

Masses of golden weapons fired upon the Archon blocking out the night sky in a ethereal display of golden glory and dominance. It rained upon his position and yet the world moved through the metaphysical means of the Archon. The many weapons of golden branded steel slamming upon invisible walls and being completed relocated to alternate areas.

Even the chains of oppression themselves fired out, but when they did his sight was taken away. The runecasting is sent forth to control them through the star, but as they surrounding around the Archon and restrict him, he vanishes as nothing more than a mere illusion.

Taunts came from the demon, he spoke towards the Drakanite's ethereal form, powered by Alkaio's strength with authority. The many wounds upon the Drakanite's body from the claws of shadow begin to steam and close as the Energy Gem directly calls upon the power of the Twelve Labors to close even the most brutal of wounds. Determination was still not found within the eyes of the Drakanite as he looked at, Morok. Not even the passion that one may have expected, no such emotions spoke so loudly.

As they exchange again it is simply more of the same, the many potent attacks of the Drakanite do not reach the Archon, and this time the cosmic lights begin to fade away. The strength of the Labors requiring more mana than he could must, and far more than his body could handle from the star. Then came the nightmares, the revelation of the Archon whose might was unchallenged, whose ambition could not be reached. Lifeforce and sanity was ripped from Barrachan by Morok as he collapsed backwards on the ground.

The energy that formed his Draconian shift starting to fade away, breaking apart as he pushed himself to a weak stand, only to collapse back down as he spit out blood onto the ground. "Alkaio… I don't think my attacks can reach him." He speaks towards the spirit within the Energy Gem raising his gaze upon Morok as the next words came to him. Those words that had come just before his utter destruction as a warrior…

"You thought you could steal my most prized possession, and take my loyalty with it? Tame me with false desires?" He called out the Demon as an emotion finally reached him. Out of them all, it was the emotion tied to his heritage, to this essence. The Drakanite within him would not release its pride, even before the clear disparity. The battles he faced against Morok before and after his ascension haunting him, reminding him what drove him into the Darkness, what drove him into utter madness...

"I will not stay oppressed!" He yelled out launching a final attack of rapid barrages upon the Demon. However, it was in that moment that the deep slash slid across his chest deeply. Crimson liquid poured from the ground as the dozens of attacks slammed into the earth far behind the demon.

Morok floated above Barrachan now, giving his final taunt to the defeated Drakanite as the Energy Gem ripped against his essence, claiming the price of the Twelve Labors, drastically weakening his body further as the wounds upon his flesh begin to steam and close once again. He laid their defeated, the chains dissolve into cosmic light without his influence. The strength of Uner incapable of connecting to the area without its chosen host.

"You think you can break me again, but you're wrong....Fidi." He tells the Demon despite its demands, despite its threat.
(Barrachan Vatoris)

To stand upon the peak of the world.

This could be viewed as the greatest high. The feeling that the Archon is unable to shake off each time that he experiences this terrible rush of the essence seeping into the crystal of Lady Erie's Greed, connected to him as well. A glance is given unto a sword that he wields.

A smile. It's so close.

And yet, his gaze turns to Barrachan once more. Does he deem himself as some free spirit that cannot be broken, despite being broken down time and time again?

"Laughable."

"I do not think that I could steal your prized possession, drakanite." He already lost. Barrachan lost a long time ago, before they could even converge on a battlefield like this.

"I already did that."

It's far too late for him to go back to that. It's far too lateto really do anything.. and while he repeats the old name of a Demon, it seems to evoke a laugh from him.

"Hah."

"That name... it's reserved to the very few that are my allies and companions, Barrachan. It's the name that is called by those that recognize me for the greatness I hold."

"Care what line you tread, drakanite. Perhaps, you could be accused of that sooner than you think.."

But beyond that, he's more than certain they would meet again and again. How long would this play last, until its finale?

"I do not have to break you."

"You seem to be falling apart already. The question is.."

"What will we do with the pieces..?"
(Morok)

Fidi.

Tea hadn't known the truth. If she never had, there wouldn't be a need for her to do anything in this instance. But the mention of that one, regretfully familiar name happened to change things at once.

Unresolved, the grudge was one that festered in her heart.

He was a demon she'd long since known since her youth. They'd fought, she'd lost more than once, but ultimately she'd never forgotten his name. It'd only been further solidified in her mind when he'd uttered to her news of her brother's death some time ago.

In his transformation, Tea hadn't recognized him. How could she have?

However, she hadn't forgotten how he'd looked down at her nor his demeaning, humiliating words. The more she thought about it, the more rage stirred up in her heart as naturally as could be. Rhoynish bares her fangs and attempts to push past Elisha roughly, a charge made at the demon with no further hesitation.

"FIDI!"

She wanted to make him pay. Even if it was futile, she didn't care.

Tea never had.
(Tea)

"You think they haven't!?" Barrachan choked out loudly, the crimson spilling from his mouth as he responds to the potential accusation. "You made my people look like demon lovers... You made the mountain out to be a den of evil..." It hurt.. That coldness came back again. Why did it always get so cold when he spoke of this? Those viridian eyes stared Morok down from his broken and defeated state. He fought the weight of his body with only the strength of man, not a magi. The Energy Gem had been taxed to heal his body, and could not offer him mana of which to use now.

"Everyone keeps talking to me like they know the first thing about me. All because of you and an old man way past his fucking decline!" As the crimson drips to the ground he forces himself to a proper stand holding his side now as Little Tea presented herself to face the demon for her own reasons.

Barrachan kept reliving the nightmares of facing their particular clan. Each one of them a monstrous beast in their own right, but Fidi had truly come far. The beast had promised it would do so, and it did. The creature spoke only the truths of it so far…

Why was the demon more a Dragon than his kin?

That pain, no it was a deep chill upon his body. It reverberated through his form as he limped backwards. "You keep talking like you already know what comes next! I changed my fate once, I will change it again." He spoke towards the demon before him. "We are companions, Fidi. You and I…

Not in the form of allies, I wouldn't say that." His smile returned to his face despite all the pain, all the suffering, and reliving of a terrible fate. After years, finally having her returned only for the Darkness to have taken her completely. To have all that was strived for destroyed by the beast before him, and so eagerly it smiled now. It did not spark his anger, but it did spark on the pride of a Dragon.

"We are companions in the dance of fate. A tale that we will weave upon the world for a time, until one of us kills the other." He tells the creature. "So I will call you by your true name." Barrachan says ss he looks to the Rhoynish princess and her partner. Vatoris had done what he could, and it would amount to very little in the end. It was the girl's turn to challenge what destiny she saw within the demon before her. After all, what more could he say to Morok? The demons point had been proven, his might brought forth, and his manipulation seen. It was time for him to fall back.
(Barrachan Vatoris)

Elisha grows cold.

Pushed aside, as Tea charges towards the demon. Fidi, that name certainly makes things different. The half-breed closes his eyes, and flicks aside the unfinished cigarette, as he's well aware that stopping her is pointless.

Coming to accept, that most things, are pointless.

No matter how hard he tried, he failed. No matter the changes within, and out, he failed. Surviving only on the whims of others, his bond, or escaping through sheer luck.

Once again, he knows, he has to fail.

Some days, he truly wishes, the one of them would just make it end.

A steady hand finds itself within his cloak, pulling forth an athame. It's blade is pressed against his wrist without much thought. It didn't take much in terms of negativity to feed this thing, all he needs now is a simple shedding of blood.

Slice.

Crimson drips from the laceration. Lifeblood the bubbles, rises like vapor, and feeds upon the shadowy figure attached to his very being.

You know, they didn't bother to tell us about their intentions with the Vale. I'm not sure who I can trust these day, but with you? I'm glad our relationship is simple.

Give, and take.

He was ready to hurt for her, bleed for her, die for her, or die in general. Ready to make something, or someone suffer, if he could manage.

"...always, so reckless."

And that, much like his fate, wouldn't ever change.

(Elisha Avery Ghede)

How utterly misguided..

He still does not see the point. He still does not see what the Serpent truly wants- despite the fact that Morok has stated that directly a long time ago. And it is here, despite Barrachan's protests, he only remarks.

"Your people wanted their freedom. We were their answer."

"But I..."

"I will be the solution to it all."

Of all people, he should know what the Archon speaks of- the dreams of grandeur that would reshape Esshar as a whole. It is by far not something as dull and narrow-minded as merely exterminating humanity, it is not merely to kill as many as possible... it is not the proverbial 'doomsday scenario' as some demons dream.

Such dreams seem pointless to him.
Because they are.

"Perhaps, one day you will learn to listen less to the world around you and listen to what you actually desire, Barrachan."

"I'm disappointed that you would rather sacrifice all that you wanted, your happiness and treasure, for the sake of those that would sic you upon me as if you were a hound."

"Have you embraced this role this much? To be their hound?"

"If so, you will never arrive to the truth."

But then..

It is here that the Archon's attention turns. Towards Tea, of all people. She wanted her vengeance?

"Child."

"I have no quarrel with you - and I heavily suggest you do not start one. Another Archon might be a nuisance at best.."

"But I will drag you from the shadows when you least expect it."

Several other people have already experienced that. These disappearances, and even deaths... would she dare step forward to her own potential demise?

"Turn away."

"Your vengeance lies with those that sought to hurt your family."

It cannot be fear. The Archon is much stronger than Tea- and considering her current status, she would still be an easy picking for him.

"Or you will join the list of people that regretted ever crossing my path."
(Morok)

Fate worked in strange ways, even when exposing themself and reading what it had in store for others, their own was always up in the air.

It was unexpected for their path to diverge and cross to another's. Unplanned entirely. Rest then moving, that was the goal, and now their sights settle upon a familiar sight.

There's three people.
There's one demon.

Some people off to the sides.

Icy hues peer forward- It's unlike before when he battled three Knights and they held themself back, trusting in the Serpent's strength.

This is much different.

Digits twitch and sights settle upon a familiar lute carrying youth and his rather feral Princess companion. Two paths existed and intermingled. Sights settle at the back of a fiery red hair of hair.

This was supposed to happen.

"Do you plan to gang up on him?" The Drakanite fell and it seemed Tea was ready to strike. Small steps drew them forward as a chilling gaze kept to those who had a future death wish.

Vengeance comes about and they had an idea of what it was...

"Blind vengeance is just blind vengeance. But it fits a temperamental Princess like you. Continue and you'll regret it all."

Personally will that see that Tea's future is Hel on earth. Digits flex, tentatively reaching for their bow.
(Jianyu Xi)

"YOU'RE WRONG!"

It'd become about far more than simply those who'd harmed her family. Blind to even her own partner's suffering in the moment, the ire filled golden eyes of the redhead rest solely upon the entity before her. It exuded an aura that inspired fear yet Tea, for all that she'd fought and been torn apart from the inside out, knew little of the feeling at this point.

Her mind was a wilted flower and her fists the thorns that remained strong. Unhealthy as her obsession was, she'd continue to seek the blood of those she perceived to have wronged her.

She wouldn't allow him to look down on her, even if he presently had every right to.

Though Jianyu's words befall her ears, her focus remains on what's ahead of her- Morok. It was a wise warning that she falls deaf to.

Rather than waste any further time speaking, she dashes forward with tiger claws raised and seeks to tear into him at once.
(Tea)

"Hmph.."

Greatly unamused. To see her blindly charge against the Ascended Demon in such manner.. did she lose everything that could possibly remain inside her mind, or did she only desire to face death at this point? Of all things..

It seems that she never managed to truly, properly mature.

"Vengeance.."

The very thing that she desires; even then, the shadows already instinctively cloak him- a protection necessary to ensure that he does not become a victim to her assault, and instead, the pulsating crystal of Lady Erie's Greed already intends to take her essence as well.

To feed the shadows.

"Living your life without regrets, or fulfilling some sort of duty against entire species because of a single dead person.."

"That reasoning is as compelling as your mindless charge, Tea."

"And that will be your demise."

The shadows strike out the moment that she comes close- they will rend and tear her. Whether she will make it through?

That's a different matter entirely.
(Morok)

{RP BATTLE} You have WON round 1!

Desperate.

That's what she looks like when she charges in against him. The attempts of the Rhoynish entertain him little besides making the Ascended Demon soak into the shadows in order to avoid her blows, and while she intends to strike him time and time again..

Can't she see how futile it is?

She's grown- but he's grown at least twice as much. The endless presence of warping death that permeates around him as an aura of whirling demise suffocates her to the point of being unable to resist- to the point of falling before his hands time and time again.

She strikes..
But it does so little.

"Why do you humans insist on doing the impossible?"

"Why are you all so stubborn to admit that something is out of your league?"

A mistake. To charge upon him like that.. for while these blows are delivered- she soon finds out that she struck the shadows; the sharp end of a sword only stabs her in the back, missing the vital organs by an inch - already greedily taking in her lifeforce with all it could.

"Just like a fish that washed up on a shore, you're desperate to get back into the waters."

"But you do not understand that these waters are filled with sharks."

The shadows deepen- the pulsating crystal only hungers for more, and thus, only one resolution is possible.

"But I warned you once."

"I will not accept apology or grovelling now."

He charges at her first. The shadows are his companions, intending to strike at her true..

Intending to bring her down.
(Morok)

The result was always the same. Over and over again, no matter how hard Tea fought, nothing seemed to change. If only she’d given up long ago, Tea wouldn’t have to suffer anymore. Yet she’d made a vow to never falter and give in.

A vow that'd slowly broken her mind over time despite her body remaining in-tact.

As shadows push her back and life is drained from her, Tea grits her teeth and winces. "Who the Hel would surrender to a demon? I'm not like the others- I'M NOT WEAK!"

She was. It was why she struggled to prove them wrong about her and give meaning to her feelings and voice. For all that she'd lost, she wanted to take everything back and more. The strength he exhibited was both something she envied and something that infuriated her.

Strength that she'd always longed for. The strength to crush opposition and take whatever one sought.

Even though it was the logical answer, Tea couldn't back down.It was an impossible choice for her.

"I WON'T GIVE UP!"

With foolish feelings expressed in an enraged outcry, the reckless Rhoynish rushes in once more.
(Tea)

{RP BATTLE} You have WON the battle!

Tea has sustained a grevious injury in battle...

Tea has rolled 2 or under: they may be captured!

Does she not understand her situation?

That she would be overpowered by the Ascended Demon no matter how much she tried, that she would find herself on the losing side time and time again... that with all of her vigor, she could never amount to the greatness that stands before her. As much as she tries to injure Morok, it all feels in vain..

Those enhanced strikes?
Bruises and minor cuts, at most.

It is shown with how the vitality of the Serpent is just something that she cannot break through- while previously she might've shown relatively impressive results, now, it was clear as day that she would only fall before him; each shadow that rends her flesh, each strike that warps her mind..

It would be her own undoing.

"I have warned you, child, haven't I?"

"I advised that you do not start a quarrel with me - because you will regret it."

In what felt like a sudden warp, he shifts towards her with alarmingly impressive speed through the shadows; the sword driven right into her stomach, piercing her flesh the entire way through- she's practically skewered on the sword, the blood of the Rhoynish beginning to feed; greedy shadows extending from the weapon to take more- taking even from her possessions.


"There will come a day when Esshar is no longer the same."
"And I am Death, for Death symbolizes the beginning of the new."
"But for you?"
"No... no, you don't deserve a fate that easy."

Steadily, she's shifted closer; the sword remains still stuck in her body, twisting slowly against her flesh, only to inflict so much more pain.

"There are fates worse than death."


He leans closer..
And bites her at the base of her neck.

Badum.. badum… badum, badum..!

Can she feel it yet? The venom spreading through her bloodstream.. the way how it begins to warp her mind- everywhere and nowhere there are shadows that stalk her, the apparitions of Morok that holds up a sword - intending to charge against her, to execute her..

Until he disappears. Can she not see the severe hallucinations that linger in her eyes, the nightmares incarnate made real? With so many things happening infront of her, where the world seems to decay and fall apart..


What is real anymore?
How many times did Morok almost kill her?
Is she even still alive?


A broken record. That's what she's made by him- a broken record that replays the same song over and over again - a song that only she can hear... the image that only she can see.

Only eventually do his fangs part from her neck, the shadows that have long stripped her from all that she's worth now hanging her infront of himself.

She's still alive..
If that can be called living.


"You will learn."

"All in due time."

(Morok)

Tea's world was an unfair, cold place.

No matter how hard she fought, it wasn't enough. Her anger, her pain, and everything that held meaning to her meant nothing to those who stood before her. In the end, her refusal to relent only ever seemed to instill greater agony upon her.

It was the something that she wouldn't let anyone take from her, but at what cost?

Though her claws are swiped against the demon's flesh, little blood is drawn. His form had become substantially stronger whereas her own was still lacking. He had every right to hold himself the way he did, didn't he?

He was powerful. More dangerous perhaps than even Tyranny himself.

A sense of instability digs deeper into her being with each and every strike from the shadows. Lost within her anger, however, there's no effort to resist it. She simply wanted to make him suffer as she did.

How far they'd come since the day they'd met nearly a decade prior.

What ended it all is a sword that makes its way into her stomach. Blood is coughed up and a tormented scream follows against her will, her entire body shivering. Those greedy, filthy shadowy hands rose to claim more, and more...

She couldn't stop them.

"Y-you..." A vengeful whisper passes through her lips, pained eyes alight with rage that persists even now.

Fangs dig into her neck to silence her and she whimpers as venom taints her mind. For the first time in a while, Tea was forcefully subjected to feel fear. It was something she'd recently struggled to overcome and yet now it'd come back to haunt her.

How many times did she need to lose parts of herself before it was enough? What was it that still remained behind?

Tea didn't know anymore.

Her eyes grow hazy as those haunting illusions fill every corner of her mind. She struggles, but little strength remains behind in her body.

"NO! STOP IT!"

A piercing, panicked cry wrought with desperation. Her hand grips at the blade lodged into her and she pushes her body away to get free. Unable to see the truth, Tea drowned in a world of lies. A hand clutches at the wound upon her stomach that stained through her armor and caused her to grow disturbingly pale.

Death would've been mercy.

Nevertheless the Rhoynish slowly staggers on, desiring to live no matter the crippling sensations torturing her. His words dwell in her mind against her will even as she sought to make her escape though there seemed to be nowhere to run.

She wondered what there was to learn, yet she wouldn't let it distract her from surviving at all costs now.

If everything were lost, she wouldn't be able to achieve vengeance.

Her world had become one of nightmares.
(Tea)

"I wouldn't call it fun, but I do yearn."

As the battle wages, he couldn't look, nor watch. Knowing how it'd end. Tea would get lucky, or be in the hands of Morok. Fighting the demon would be pointless, as he'd fail to save her, yet he'd engage in the futility.

Again, and again, and again, if he must.

"Not from me. She's worth more than most." Any sense of self worth had long since been trampled on. The decisions made by his fellow Blackcloaks were just the straw that broke the proverbial camels back.

As the other draws closer, the specter affixed to his being does little. It draws on the terror, feeds on his guilt and shame, but never did it involve itself in his personal matters.

Not unless the topic is death.

"I know." He'd bleed for her, and he knows it. The new scar on his wrist is nothing compared to the hundreds already attained. At this point, what's another? Another scar on the spirit, another scar on the body, another scar on the soul?

Nothing.

Yet, the question posed doesn't result in violent actions on behalf of the Ghede. He stops moving, all together. Not resisting the touch of Jianyu. She'd taken from him, from Tea, so how could she understand?

"When she's gone...?"

It was an easy answer right? Revenge wouldn't solve anything. Making those who'd taken from him hurt, it's what he'd do, right? "I-" Elisha tries to answer, but finds himself choking on his words.

He'd lose, to all before him.

If fighting meant keeping her, he'd fight. If hurting others brought joy, he'd savor it and mask the pain.

But, what about, when she's gone?

Dead eyes stare at the woman, unable to truly give an answer. It was one he thought he knew the answer to, butas time goes on, it all feels so pointless.

His hands don't move as those circles are trailed. Only whispers carry on in response to that final command.

"I have-"

Looking over his shoulder is a mistake he comes to regret. It'd have been easier to have blind faith in the Rhoynish, but it's clear that her luck his run out. The image before him is sketched into his mind, and would remain embedded their forever.

Marks in her neck, and her belongings greedily snatched away by the shadows. It's all too clear as his attention is stolen away from the fortune-teller, to the predicated fate.

There is no time to think on what he'd do, and thus, he acts.

Casting aside his own desires, for the thing that made pursuing them so worthwhile. He aims to move, to make it by her side, and do what he must to make sure that he remains there. Fight, flee, scream, betray, lie, steal, murder, suffer.

It didn't matter, so long as she remained.






(Elisha Avery Ghede)

Did people believe in their predictions now?

Jianyu's attention kept to the Ghede they attempted to sow a bit of doubt into as his beloved Princess fell. Metal pierced through flesh, dotting the ground yet they do not look.

His face and lack of attention says it all, the way he starts to move.

Fate operates in such a strange way. "I told you that you won't be ganging up on him."

They wouldn't allow for that satisfaction of at least trying to defending his Princess, fighting in her name and honor. It would put a sort of expression on his face that simply couldn't be faked.

Dealing with the most unfortunate paths of fate.

Jianyu moved quickly, attempting to block Elisha's own progression forcibly.

"I think she's dead." Lips remain curved into a more devious smile as their bow drew. "It's your fault, too. You didn't stop her."

Elisha killed Tea.
(Jianyu Xi)

"Move."

Elisha's attention lies not the demon, but the one stabbed and bleeding. Challenging Morok is hardly a thought that forms within his mind, but the moment his attempt to reach her is impeded...

He snaps.

"Out of my way, out of my way, out of my way."

Either hand reaches for the neck of the lute. Not wielding it like an instrument, holding it more akin to a club. He wasn't thinking straight, and the thought that he's responsible for this? Makes him sink lower.

Lower than he'd ever felt, as this all could have been stopped before it even began. The first time he failed her, is the moment he accepted her fate as his own. And he'd carry that guilty until the Rhoynish could rest.

If he had to fight his way to her, then so be it.

No pain could ever amount to losing her.
(Elisha Avery Ghede)

There are times in which the greatest despair could be felt.

He envisions that despair to be something that Elisha feels right this moment, to see somebody whom he loves and cherishes to be in the grasp of a demon. But while he intends to charge ahead, while Tea is held up in the air with the shadowy grip, he remarks.

"Teraphim."

"You have two choices right now - surrender yourself to be drained off your essence for creation of my blade, or contest us in strength."

"If you submit yourself willingly, both of you will be free by the time I'm done."

"If you choose to contest us - pray that you are strong enough."

A situation that is by no means a good one for the Teraphim. Even then, the stern snake-eyes remain upon Elisha. Would he be just like the rest of the people?

Would he distrust the Serpent, and only live to regret it, for he's only said the truths before?

"Choose wisely."
(Morok)

Gemini does the thing he does best.

He begins to sew the seeds of doubt within the minds of those less fortunate. Off to the side he stood, whispering to himself, just barely loud enough for Elisha to hear.

"Surely he doesn't think he'll let him go after, right?" It's whispered to himself. And yes, he does reply to his own whispering with, ".. But what if he can beat him? Wouldn't that buy him time to save her?"

There's so much going on right now. Tea, on the ground, bleeding; the Ascended one standing above her victoriously. Jianyu taunting the poor boy, telling him that his beloved was already gone. That he had been too late. That it was all his fault. And now Gemini, almost egging him on to keep fighting.

To keep swinging that weapon. Clubbing through the opposition.

Only because seeing him struggle would be fun.
(Gemini)

In the dreadful scape of Tea's head, those images continued on- visions of her attempting to pry herself free from his blade only to be felled repeatedly in various cruel ways. No matter where she ran, no matter where she sought to go to escape him...

Only death awaited.

In reality, Tea was hanging limp in the grasp of Morok's shadows. Terror had melded with her anger and left the vengeful Rhoynish a pathetic sight. "No more..." Her desperate words were barely a whisper.

The potency of the venom went without question.

Reality had regretfully slipped away for the time being. What fruitless battle remained was solely in her mind.
(Tea)

She's dead. She's dead, and gone, and he knows it. He doesn't care. He can fix it. It's what he spent all that time in the clinic for, right? Slaving away, mending unthankful souls day in and day out, to be capable of mending any and every wound she'd endured.

That wasn't for nothing, was it?

Elisha isn't strong enough, and he knows it, but he doesn't care. Any sense of logic and reason is drowned out by the wraiths screaming. It feasts on his pain, and Elisha's own shadow dances.

This wasn't about the Vale, or a budding need to lash out at those who'd did this to him.

He needed to atone, for failing her, and die at her side.

Taking his own life wasn't an option, but if he could make them hurt, even a little....

And join her in the depths of Hel.

That time they shared, would be worth it.

No words escape him, as he swings, mad and crazed. Giving in entirely to the despair.
(Elisha Avery Ghede)

Choices?

There is no choice in this situation. Like a barrier, Jianyu stood between Tea and Elisha.

"I can't do that, Teraphim. Face the consequences of your actions. You let her fight an impossible fight and now she'll have to die for it."

Their bow rose, wishing to see him full of nothing but despair, for his eyes to cloud with tears and his mind to lose all reason.

It happens when faced with an impossible obstacle and all in front is naught but pain, suffering, unfortunate for all there.

"You should die instead. Join her. I'll take you to where she is and for the rest of eternity may your souls intermingle in the depths and pits of Hel."

Mercy, really.

To live without Tea?
Is it really living?

As promised, they will dance. Electricity flies...

Seeds of doubt sown by Gemini and Jianyu to whittle down a poor, poor soul...
(Jianyu Xi)

Tea struck and Morok accepts it.

He wouldn't be denied of such but their sights settle on Elisha. Not too long ago, he brought a blade to wrist. When looking at Gemini, then Elisha?

This boy was crazy.

Lips couldn't help but curve into a smile. "From being foolish. What has he taken from you? From what I can see, there's nothing worthy from the two of you combined."

Take both of their lives, tear it to shreds and combine it and it still amounts to little. A Rhoynish Princess and whoever Elisha was.

"Though..." When hands cover his face, they're reminded of a cowardly individual with a similar appearance to his own. The Fortune Teller moves forward, closer to the Ghede with no clear intent. Their smile remains.

"You'll have to bleed quite a bit for your Princess. She's going to get herself killed at this rate."

Dainty hands reach out for him- Will he grow hostile? They don't seem quite ready to strike even as sparks dance along their frame.

"At the sight of her breath leaving her, what will you do? When you cannot save her, what will you do? Will you die?" Hands make for Elisha's own. "Will you kill yourself when you can no longer hold and have her?"

Fate wove itself quite strangely.
Something told them that Tea may die today.

Of course, it's a hunch.

"Let those thoughts guide and push you... Fall..." Digits trace along his hands, trailing circles, if he hasn't already pushed them away.
(Jianyu Xi)

The result was always the same. Over and over again, no matter how hard Tea fought, nothing seemed to change. If only she’d given up long ago, Tea wouldn’t have to suffer anymore. Yet she’d made a vow to never falter and give in.

A vow that'd slowly broken her mind over time despite her body remaining in-tact.

As shadows push her back and life is drained from her, Tea grits her teeth and winces. "Who the Hel would surrender to a demon? I'm not like the others- I'M NOT WEAK!"

She was. It was why she struggled to prove them wrong about her and give meaning to her feelings and voice. For all that she'd lost, she wanted to take everything back and more. The strength he exhibited was both something she envied and something that infuriated her.

Strength that she'd always longed for. The strength to crush opposition and take whatever one sought.

Even though it was the logical answer, Tea couldn't back down.It was an impossible choice for her.

"I WON'T GIVE UP!"

With foolish feelings expressed in an enraged outcry, the reckless Rhoynish rushes in once more.
(Tea)


Does she not understand her situation?

That she would be overpowered by the Ascended Demon no matter how much she tried, that she would find herself on the losing side time and time again... that with all of her vigor, she could never amount to the greatness that stands before her. As much as she tries to injure Morok, it all feels in vain..

Those enhanced strikes?
Bruises and minor cuts, at most.

It is shown with how the vitality of the Serpent is just something that she cannot break through- while previously she might've shown relatively impressive results, now, it was clear as day that she would only fall before him; each shadow that rends her flesh, each strike that warps her mind..

It would be her own undoing.

"I have warned you, child, haven't I?"

"I advised that you do not start a quarrel with me - because you will regret it."

In what felt like a sudden warp, he shifts towards her with alarmingly impressive speed through the shadows; the sword driven right into her stomach, piercing her flesh the entire way through- she's practically skewered on the sword, the blood of the Rhoynish beginning to feed; greedy shadows extending from the weapon to take more- taking even from her possessions.


"There will come a day when Esshar is no longer the same."
"And I am Death, for Death symbolizes the beginning of the new."
"But for you?"
"No... no, you don't deserve a fate that easy."

Steadily, she's shifted closer; the sword remains still stuck in her body, twisting slowly against her flesh, only to inflict so much more pain.

"There are fates worse than death."


He leans closer..
And bites her at the base of her neck.

Badum.. badum… badum, badum..!

Can she feel it yet? The venom spreading through her bloodstream.. the way how it begins to warp her mind- everywhere and nowhere there are shadows that stalk her, the apparitions of Morok that holds up a sword - intending to charge against her, to execute her..

Until he disappears. Can she not see the severe hallucinations that linger in her eyes, the nightmares incarnate made real? With so many things happening infront of her, where the world seems to decay and fall apart..


What is real anymore?
How many times did Morok almost kill her?
Is she even still alive?


A broken record. That's what she's made by him- a broken record that replays the same song over and over again - a song that only she can hear... the image that only she can see.

Only eventually do his fangs part from her neck, the shadows that have long stripped her from all that she's worth now hanging her infront of himself.

She's still alive..
If that can be called living.


"You will learn."

"All in due time."

(Morok)

Tea's world was an unfair, cold place.

No matter how hard she fought, it wasn't enough. Her anger, her pain, and everything that held meaning to her meant nothing to those who stood before her. In the end, her refusal to relent only ever seemed to instill greater agony upon her.

It was the something that she wouldn't let anyone take from her, but at what cost?

Though her claws are swiped against the demon's flesh, little blood is drawn. His form had become substantially stronger whereas her own was still lacking. He had every right to hold himself the way he did, didn't he?

He was powerful. More dangerous perhaps than even Tyranny himself.

A sense of instability digs deeper into her being with each and every strike from the shadows. Lost within her anger, however, there's no effort to resist it. She simply wanted to make him suffer as she did.

How far they'd come since the day they'd met nearly a decade prior.

What ended it all is a sword that makes its way into her stomach. Blood is coughed up and a tormented scream follows against her will, her entire body shivering. Those greedy, filthy shadowy hands rose to claim more, and more...

She couldn't stop them.

"Y-you..." A vengeful whisper passes through her lips, pained eyes alight with rage that persists even now.

Fangs dig into her neck to silence her and she whimpers as venom taints her mind. For the first time in a while, Tea was forcefully subjected to feel fear. It was something she'd recently struggled to overcome and yet now it'd come back to haunt her.

How many times did she need to lose parts of herself before it was enough? What was it that still remained behind?

Tea didn't know anymore.

Her eyes grow hazy as those haunting illusions fill every corner of her mind. She struggles, but little strength remains behind in her body.

"NO! STOP IT!"

A piercing, panicked cry wrought with desperation. Her hand grips at the blade lodged into her and she pushes her body away to get free. Unable to see the truth, Tea drowned in a world of lies. A hand clutches at the wound upon her stomach that stained through her armor and caused her to grow disturbingly pale.

Death would've been mercy.

Nevertheless the Rhoynish slowly staggers on, desiring to live no matter the crippling sensations torturing her. His words dwell in her mind against her will even as she sought to make her escape though there seemed to be nowhere to run.

She wondered what there was to learn, yet she wouldn't let it distract her from surviving at all costs now.

If everything were lost, she wouldn't be able to achieve vengeance.

Her world had become one of nightmares.
(Tea)


"I wouldn't call it fun, but I do yearn."

As the battle wages, he couldn't look, nor watch. Knowing how it'd end. Tea would get lucky, or be in the hands of Morok. Fighting the demon would be pointless, as he'd fail to save her, yet he'd engage in the futility.

Again, and again, and again, if he must.

"Not from me. She's worth more than most." Any sense of self worth had long since been trampled on. The decisions made by his fellow Blackcloaks were just the straw that broke the proverbial camels back.

As the other draws closer, the specter affixed to his being does little. It draws on the terror, feeds on his guilt and shame, but never did it involve itself in his personal matters.

Not unless the topic is death.

"I know." He'd bleed for her, and he knows it. The new scar on his wrist is nothing compared to the hundreds already attained. At this point, what's another? Another scar on the spirit, another scar on the body, another scar on the soul?

Nothing.

Yet, the question posed doesn't result in violent actions on behalf of the Ghede. He stops moving, all together. Not resisting the touch of Jianyu. She'd taken from him, from Tea, so how could she understand?

"When she's gone...?"

It was an easy answer right? Revenge wouldn't solve anything. Making those who'd taken from him hurt, it's what he'd do, right? "I-" Elisha tries to answer, but finds himself choking on his words.

He'd lose, to all before him.

If fighting meant keeping her, he'd fight. If hurting others brought joy, he'd savor it and mask the pain.

But, what about, when she's gone?

Dead eyes stare at the woman, unable to truly give an answer. It was one he thought he knew the answer to, butas time goes on, it all feels so pointless.

His hands don't move as those circles are trailed. Only whispers carry on in response to that final command.

"I have-"

Looking over his shoulder is a mistake he comes to regret. It'd have been easier to have blind faith in the Rhoynish, but it's clear that her luck his run out. The image before him is sketched into his mind, and would remain embedded their forever.

Marks in her neck, and her belongings greedily snatched away by the shadows. It's all too clear as his attention is stolen away from the fortune-teller, to the predicated fate.

There is no time to think on what he'd do, and thus, he acts.

Casting aside his own desires, for the thing that made pursuing them so worthwhile. He aims to move, to make it by her side, and do what he must to make sure that he remains there. Fight, flee, scream, betray, lie, steal, murder, suffer.

It didn't matter, so long as she remained.






(Elisha Avery Ghede)



Did people believe in their predictions now?

Jianyu's attention kept to the Ghede they attempted to sow a bit of doubt into as his beloved Princess fell. Metal pierced through flesh, dotting the ground yet they do not look.

His face and lack of attention says it all, the way he starts to move.

Fate operates in such a strange way. "I told you that you won't be ganging up on him."

They wouldn't allow for that satisfaction of at least trying to defending his Princess, fighting in her name and honor. It would put a sort of expression on his face that simply couldn't be faked.

Dealing with the most unfortunate paths of fate.

Jianyu moved quickly, attempting to block Elisha's own progression forcibly.

"I think she's dead." Lips remain curved into a more devious smile as their bow drew. "It's your fault, too. You didn't stop her."

Elisha killed Tea.
(Jianyu Xi)



"Move."

Elisha's attention lies not the demon, but the one stabbed and bleeding. Challenging Morok is hardly a thought that forms within his mind, but the moment his attempt to reach her is impeded...

He snaps.

"Out of my way, out of my way, out of my way."

Either hand reaches for the neck of the lute. Not wielding it like an instrument, holding it more akin to a club. He wasn't thinking straight, and the thought that he's responsible for this? Makes him sink lower.

Lower than he'd ever felt, as this all could have been stopped before it even began. The first time he failed her, is the moment he accepted her fate as his own. And he'd carry that guilty until the Rhoynish could rest.

If he had to fight his way to her, then so be it.

No pain could ever amount to losing her.
(Elisha Avery Ghede)

There are times in which the greatest despair could be felt.

He envisions that despair to be something that Elisha feels right this moment, to see somebody whom he loves and cherishes to be in the grasp of a demon. But while he intends to charge ahead, while Tea is held up in the air with the shadowy grip, he remarks.

"Teraphim."

"You have two choices right now - surrender yourself to be drained off your essence for creation of my blade, or contest us in strength."

"If you submit yourself willingly, both of you will be free by the time I'm done."

"If you choose to contest us - pray that you are strong enough."

A situation that is by no means a good one for the Teraphim. Even then, the stern snake-eyes remain upon Elisha. Would he be just like the rest of the people?

Would he distrust the Serpent, and only live to regret it, for he's only said the truths before?

"Choose wisely."
(Morok)

Gemini does the thing he does best.

He begins to sew the seeds of doubt within the minds of those less fortunate. Off to the side he stood, whispering to himself, just barely loud enough for Elisha to hear.

"Surely he doesn't think he'll let him go after, right?" It's whispered to himself. And yes, he does reply to his own whispering with, ".. But what if he can beat him? Wouldn't that buy him time to save her?"

There's so much going on right now. Tea, on the ground, bleeding; the Ascended one standing above her victoriously. Jianyu taunting the poor boy, telling him that his beloved was already gone. That he had been too late. That it was all his fault. And now Gemini, almost egging him on to keep fighting.

To keep swinging that weapon. Clubbing through the opposition.

Only because seeing him struggle would be fun.
(Gemini)


Type /help for a list of different prefix commands you can use.

In the dreadful scape of Tea's head, those images continued on- visions of her attempting to pry herself free from his blade only to be felled repeatedly in various cruel ways. No matter where she ran, no matter where she sought to go to escape him...

Only death awaited.

In reality, Tea was hanging limp in the grasp of Morok's shadows. Terror had melded with her anger and left the vengeful Rhoynish a pathetic sight. "No more..." Her desperate words were barely a whisper.

The potency of the venom went without question.

Reality had regretfully slipped away for the time being. What fruitless battle remained was solely in her mind.
(Tea)



She's dead. She's dead, and gone, and he knows it. He doesn't care. He can fix it. It's what he spent all that time in the clinic for, right? Slaving away, mending unthankful souls day in and day out, to be capable of mending any and every wound she'd endured.

That wasn't for nothing, was it?

Elisha isn't strong enough, and he knows it, but he doesn't care. Any sense of logic and reason is drowned out by the wraiths screaming. It feasts on his pain, and Elisha's own shadow dances.

This wasn't about the Vale, or a budding need to lash out at those who'd did this to him.

He needed to atone, for failing her, and die at her side.

Taking his own life wasn't an option, but if he could make them hurt, even a little....

And join her in the depths of Hel.

That time they shared, would be worth it.

No words escape him, as he swings, mad and crazed. Giving in entirely to the despair.
(Elisha Avery Ghede)

Elisha Avery Ghede displays their perms: They have consumed 50, their perm count is distributed as
(vit,agl, spirit, mdam):

(0, 50, 0, 0)


Choices?

There is no choice in this situation. Like a barrier, Jianyu stood between Tea and Elisha.

"I can't do that, Teraphim. Face the consequences of your actions. You let her fight an impossible fight and now she'll have to die for it."

Their bow rose, wishing to see him full of nothing but despair, for his eyes to cloud with tears and his mind to lose all reason.

It happens when faced with an impossible obstacle and all in front is naught but pain, suffering, unfortunate for all there.

"You should die instead. Join her. I'll take you to where she is and for the rest of eternity may your souls intermingle in the depths and pits of Hel."

Mercy, really.

To live without Tea?
Is it really living?

As promised, they will dance. Electricity flies...

Seeds of doubt sown by Gemini and Jianyu to whittle down a poor, poor soul...
(Jianyu Xi)

Elisha Avery Ghede's eyes glow a pale blue.


Irkalla says, "... Shesh. So much, going on. But no time to watch..."

Irkalla asks, "Less either of you do?"
Jianyu Xi has engaged Elisha Avery Ghede in Dangerous combat, with a capture roll of 2



The purpose is to test humanity.

To see how much they could do, to see how far they could go in order to save their loved ones - or potentially even die with them. But even then, the Archon only watches what would come out of this.. to an extent, he only judges the foolishness of Elisha.

But to another, this is bravery worth of something.

"Even when your loved one is at the hands of another.."

"You would rather throw yourself to the battle, for a chance to get her back?"

"Very well. I'll allow this test."

"Only cattle awaits to be slaughtered, after all."

The shadows grasp her, holding her up in the air- the Ascended Demon's arms cross, watching how Elisha would perform.

"Impress me."

"And she will go free."
(Morok)

[JIANYU BARELY WINS THE RPB]
[ELISHA ALMOST WON]

If given the chance, would they kill Elisha? Death, again, is a mercy for him. The better outcome is him living on while Tea met a rather untimely fate to demonkind.

Will hate fester?

Or will he cave and end his life on his own terms? A blade already danced along the flesh of his wrist. Whispers invaded the very depths of his mind.

There's a lot to be done but thoughts push themselves as the two fight. It's by no means an easy triumph. The Fortune Teller drew to a chilling silence.

Because Elisha is so strong is why they placed themself between him and Morok. Be it confidence in their past victory over the Ghede or not.

If it meant weakening him then it would be done.

Unforgiving winds seek to toss them over so he can get to what he truly wants. Jianyu wedged themself here as an obstacle for a fight for a dead body.

Or as dead as it can be.

Pulled and tumbled through and fro. Winds slice and break skin, drawing crimson as the two went on. Much, much stronger than before...

Did he have hope? The ground rumbled, as though thunder clapped when a torrent of bolts shot from their bow. "Your luck has run out along with hers. Can you forgive yourself?" Icy hues lock with Elisha, flickering slightly with a pale glow that tainted with the color of blood as the bolts crash against him.

Electrocuting him.

High voltage bolts course through his body. Those present could swear that they saw an image of the young man's skeleton when he went flying back. His body reeked of burnt flesh and occult.

Did he die, too?
(Jianyu Xi)

"She's dead, but she's mine. I know it's my fault, but give- her back. Don't-" It's difficult to muster words, but he must try.

...and try as he might, it wasn't enough. Prepared as he can be, yet it wasn't enough. Winds of plague clash as he nigh mindlessly swings. Aiming to push her aside, and reach the body that is his. Uncaring if he's met with warmth, or the chill that only death can bring.

She is his, through life, or death.

The moment her luck ran out, was the moment his no longer mattered.

For a second, not even that, a sliver of hope flashes within those bright shining eyes. Aiming to rush onward, to blast her aside with a barrage of sound, and run. It plays out within his mind, and he clings to that image.

An image that is taken away as bolts come crash into his frame. Elisha's hair stands on end while his entire body writhes. Reeking with the occult, as he flies backwards. Propelled and tumbling through the grass.

Any semblance of the wraith's presence as lost, as his final actions are simple ones. His hand rises, digging into the dirt, to try and crawl towards her. Towards Tea, and the serpent. Making it no more than a few inches before the damaged nerves give out.

Wind pushes through his circuits, pushing his nigh lifeless corpse towards them. Even if not half a foot of distance between Morok and Elisha is made. All the serpent can witness now, is a broken being, who moved tried to move even in death.

Faint words carry on through the vibrations in the air, before his head drops. Moving no more. Words that reach Morok, and no other.
(Elisha Avery Ghede)

Elisha Avery Ghede whispers to Morok: I want her, back. I built a stage to bleed, I performed! I suffered, I danced the dance, but when the curtain closes , will it only be me? I failed, again. Take me, where she goes. The realm beyond is large- me. Too. I can't-

The Ascended Demon always watches.

To see just how well- or poorly- he performs against Jianyu. Of all people, Jianyu was actually a powerful one - and most underestimate them as merely a fortune teller, meanwhile they were potent in their own right. Here, he observes what would almost be destined to be..

And that's the defeat of Elisha.

Is he even surprised at this notion? He would be far more impressed if he would be victorious, but this was a test to see just how far he manages to reach; of all things, his intention was always to push humanity towards something greater.

Some people call him mad, insane.
But this was not insanity in his eyes.

To let people who would rather kill him remain alive. Why does he do this, then? It's because he doesn't fear - he knows, that one day, he will die. The purpose, the goal that he strives for, it is far more important than his own life even.

Until he manages to reach it, nothing else truly matters.

"Hrm.."

The snake-eyes stare. They watch after performance of Elisha; there's a promise that he finds within the fervor with which he fights- with how he's ready to throw his life on the line, so long as it would mean that he will have her back and safe.

Until..

Much like a Lord would, he raises his hand. A gesture to both, until his arms cross again, leaning back upon the force that allows him to levitate.

"I've seen enough."

"I am satisfied with this result."

The shadows move Tea; whether she was rambling, unconscious or already growing asinine due to the constant hallucinations, it didn't matter to him. She challenged him out of her own volition..

And she paid the price for it.

"She's alive, by the way."

"But I advise both of you learn the meaning of respect - lest next time I'm not going to consider giving your life a chance."

It was all a test. An eternal search for worthy specimen, ones he would take from and potentially evolve - and if he cannot, then he would use them for growth of the others.

"Take her."

"And leave my presence."

For now, he was satisfied with all that he's seen.

With all that he's felt and took.
(Morok)