Fantasy &nbsp; [Private] El Stories

Late · Jun 30, 2018

Eosforos

The angel stayed quiet for a moment after Lento assumed he was a leftie. He glanced over his missing right arm and eventually flashed a smirk at the man.

"No, but I have someone to write for me. So, nothing to worry about," the angel responded. He slightly hopes the man won't see him suspicious since really, what can he use the carrier pigeon for? Of course, it wasn't really any of his business. "Well, I'll just go ahead and pick one out. I can't waste any time standing around like this," Eosforos said as he walked by Lento to get the pigeon.

Once he got a cage with the pigeon, Eosforos retreated back where he once was in front of Lento and stare at the man with a squint of his eyes and a smirk on his face. "I'm curious, Lento, and be brutally honest with me. What's your opinion of me?" He asked, with the pigeon cooing next to him in its cage.

MementoDei

Lu and Ciel

The two are quiet and patient, making sure everything was taken care of from the rear and catching up with the others. They did not say a word to one and other but silence wasn't always bad. They can understand each other well enough to know what they are thinking, how they feel, and so on. When the finally reached to the big guy, Uno Hound, Ciel slowly took out his firearm to ready himself when the signal is given out as Lu squinted at the large demon. She listened to their conservation, rolling her eyes at the larger demon's words.

Once they started to attack and Rena giving them the signal, Lu and Ciel jumped in immediately. First, Lu threw out her spectral spears towards any nearby enemies, one of her spears hitting the larger demon. With the nearby enemies taken care of thanks to their allies working, Ciel was safe to use his firearm. He aimed his weapon towards the Uno Hound as it hums into life and started shooting the brute down with his magic bullets.

MementoDei · Jul 1, 2018

Darhan

He was left alone in the new training room, and the dummies were no longer static targets. Without warning, deformed hounds with humanoid hands dashed towards him at such speeds that sometimes he could've sworn they had teleported right behind him. There was nothing but darkness around him, and he had never relied on his enhanced hearing as a tool to judge an opponent's distance or its movements.

Time seemed to have frozen, but the first wave of enemies costed him, quite literally, the loss of his left arm his left foot was left dangling by a single tendon. The marks the monsters' teeth left didn't heal that easily. Darhan didn't think he'd be forced to focus most of his mana into healing and just fend off the monsters with the little mana he could gather.

After some time, his foot recovered enough for him to stand again, but his arm was far from healed. Some blue marks began to spread around it, but once he learned to cope with the constant stinging pain, he began to notice something interesting. Those blue marks were filled with a more primitive and raw form of mana. It was very different from Ishmael's energy, but if he could find a way to harness it, he would be able to fight fire with fire.

Before he could think further his plan, the second wave of monsters began to crawl their way towards him. He fired a spear behind his back and a deformed leech was pierced by it. Its body fell two steps away from him, screeching and twitching as it spilled its blue blood. Darhan formed another spear to throw to his right, but as he killed the first, another leech came from behind him. Its snout, shaped like a tulip bud, opened in four sections, showing hollow fangs.

The elf quickly formed a shield around him and the leech screeched as it spit towards him what Darhan assumed to be some sort of poison. The blue drops he parried slowly consumed his shield, and although he was taken aback by this, he rushed behind the monster before impaling it with another spear. The trail of blood that emerged from its head, bizarrely, lit up part of the darkness around him and he noticed that at least a dozen other monsters lurked all around him, waiting for their turn to strike. If he was in the real Void, this moment of rest would be unlikely, if not impossible. If that masked man saw him again, he would send every beast to kill him. There had to be a way to end those beasts in one strike.

His arm was almost completely healed, but the blue markings seemed to be there to stay. Darhan tried to focus on the mana flowing from the marks, but he couldn't absorb the extra mana within the marks. It was a separate flow of energy, so different from his own that it could weaken him if he wasn't careful. After all, Henir's energy was the opposite from Ishmael's. He was growing tired, and looking at his feet, he realized that the same marks covered his heels.

If only he had the time, he would figure out how to kill those beasts with their own medicine.

Other deformed hounds ran towards him, disappearing from sight before appearing closer to him.

Right behind him.

He charged his fists with mana and punched the first hound. He tried to synchronize the mana overflowing from his hands with the skeletal structure of the beast, in order to break its skull with one strike, but something strange occurred instead.

The hound's body seemed made out of jelly, and it was pushed away from him but without sustaining any significant damage. Many others surrounded him, turning around in circles, growling and howling before they looked back, directly over a cube that was getting more and more deformed. He took a deep breath and used the divine powers he had been given to end the five hounds, summoning eight light spears, one after the other, followed by a consecutive rain of light bolts.

The cube shattered and some of its fragments flew towards him, causing minor cuts and making the blue marks around his arms grow. He didn't notice this change right away, but felt that his left arm had now healed. A spot of blue and black rose from the remains of the cube and a giant oval shape landed in front of him, barely floating above the ground level. Some blue eye-shaped crystals shone at the top of the giant object. It was as tall as a four story high building and its center was held by a silver chain.

The black cover began to crack around the chains, revealing navy blue flesh irrigated by light blue veins. The chains rattled and broke themselves. The colossus's arms freed themselves first, they were shaped like fallen wings. Their ends were like bandages that floated along an imaginary breeze. At their tips, a blue light circled glowed faintly, giving the monster a menacing halo. The beast let out a low growl and the rest of the chains broke, liberating its massive legs. The monster finally fell down, cracking the ground beneath its feet. It sniffed the air and Darhan finally saw its head. It was a relatively small, beetle-like, armoured head. Its mouth was still sealed by a lock and chains that were tougher than the rest.

He let out a nervous chuckle. "When you said training, Ishmael, I didn't think you'd mean a slow and painful execution."

When he gathered mana again to flow through his circuits, Darhan noticed a slight change in his perception. For a split second, he could've sworn that everything around him contained an ever growing source of power.

"Göttliche Wahrnehmung" he murmured.

A prison of light fell around the monster and its bars got closer and closer to the monster, burning some of its carapace. The monster's arms targeted him, knocking him off the ground. Another hit sent him flying, his surroundings spun with streaks of blue and then, his back crashed against a cube. His breath was cut short and his vision blurred. He coughed and had barely the time to roll away from another hit from the trapped monster. It roared and a spur of dark blue energy broke the light prison in a matter of seconds. The monster ran towards him, covering itself completely with its carapace.

Darhan had no choice but to evade it, jump as far as he could and hope the beast would knock itself down against the multiple cubes around it. He spread his wings and flew over the beast as it broke down six cubes in a row before falling to the ground.

It was his chance.

"Därmmerungs-Urteil!"

Five spheres of mana formed around his wings and flew towards the monster, they broke as they hit the monster, pushing its body further and further into more cubes. He formed a circle of divine energy to send a spear of light directly above the immobile beast, but he had no mana left.

The beast got back up and spread its wings, liberating spirals of dark energy directly at him. Darhan flew higher to avoid being hit, but the shockwave of the attack knocked him out again.

"Damn it all. At this rate...all of this will be worthless." he thought.

"Then destroy it all, Darhan." a voice whispered in his head.

It was Lara's, but that wasn't something she would say to him. Once again, he felt that everything around him was a source of power. Raw and cataclysmic power, made to turn it all into nothing. The monster sniffed the air again, looking for him. He was so far away that the beast almost looked to be around his size. He lifted his left arm and saw that the light blue markings over it were spreading and glowing brighter.

"Interesting. A power that can talk. Ishmael really made this place like the real void."

The voice giggled. "Ishmael has a pact with the Henir followers. This is the real Void. You were not wrong to say that she wants you dead. You are too human-like to serve her."

Darhan got up and let out a small grunt. He didn't dare to look at what he assumed to be broken bones, slowly regenerating.

"Too human-like, huh? Unfortunately for her, I'll make it back. Regardless of what your masters or whoever told you to kill me here. I can't die until I've done what I promised myself to do."

The marks were now covering completely his arm and part of his collarbone. His skin stayed the same, but now he realized that the Void energy around him was too strong to be simply a simulation. The monster was charging again another attack and he flew a few kilometers behind the beast.

"You are a funny creature, Darhan. We thought that your promise is pure madness, but who knows, you might make it happen. We are not against it. It does not put us in danger."

The elf chuckled as he charged a bolt of golden energy at the monster. "Are we getting to form a pact here, Void?"

"We have no name, but we once were part of where you come from."

The monster charged again at him, but he was quicker to fly away and send spears towards its carapace, even if they did little damage.

"Old angels, huh? Interesting."

"No. Lost El energy from the explosion of the El. We mutated to adapt to the Void, but so little of our nature remains now."

The monster got up again and sent again its arms to knock Darhan, but he was expecting this. The beast had a pattern, he only had to memorize it. He evaded the heavy blows and leaped towards it, a spear in his hands.

"Saubere Schnitte!" he yelled as his weapon barely grazed the beasts' armour. Smaller spears appeared and stabbed the unprotected torso of the monster before exploding. It made it bleed very slightly before the wounds recovered.

"Fight fire with fire, as you said, is the only way for you to survive. Let us become your fire."

Darhan flew away before the beast charged another powerful spiral attack. This time, however, as he flew over the monster, its wings sprung upwards and what he thought to be a ray of energy was in fact a rain of small and pointy shards that cut him and pushed him away again.

He coughed again and wiped what he thought to be sweat from his face. It was blood.

"There's a catch to that pact, isn't it?"

"If you can handle this much Void energy without turning into a freak monster, then we don't think so. You need us to live, and we need you to regain our nature. Let us help you defeat the skin splitter and we'll help you forge a new weapon. A blade that doesn't exist."

Darhan coughed a mouthful of blood, but couldn't get up this time around.

"Schwert...des Alten..." he wheezed, choking on his blood and saliva on each syllable. Once the golden blade appeared, he clenched its handle with his right hand and used it as a cane to get up.

"At this rate, you'll die, Darhan. We can heal you if you accept our pact."

"You're healing me already, so don't play dumb with me. You said it yourself, without me you will stay trapped in this place for another five hundred years. At best."

"We are healing you, but the skin splitter does much more damage than what we can heal now. Accept it, you need us as much as we need you. Noble ideals won't get you very far to attain your goal."

Darhan used his mana to regenerate his wounds as fast as he could. "Without noble ideals, all goals are meaningless."

His golden blade began to turn silver and the blue marks over his left arm spread towards the blade, forming old runes as they followed the blade. Then, only geometrical and precise traits remained.

"You will be my weapon, but never a part of me."

"The contract is sealed. We accept to be your blade, Darhan Irisse, the true warrior of the forest."

Darhan scoffed at the unnecessary translation of his name and charged once more at the Skin splitter.

****
Lento

The newest commander of the Velder forces raised an eyebrow at the question the angel's lips had formulated. There was no doubt in his mind that Eosforos wanted something out of him, and he would try to do something depending on his answer. However, he had a hunch that the least information he told him, the better it would be for him.

Eosforos had taken part into the execution of countless people that Ishmael deemed to be heretics. His intentions were always unclear, and if it only depended on him, he'll leave him to his death.

"I haven't known you for long. It's hard for me to have an opinion on someone I've barely seen around." he calmly said before taking a bag of small grains and he filled the pigeon's empty feeders again.

Late

****
Eve and Alec

The two Nasods targeted the giant monster. Eve sent forth electrical attacks along Oberon's rapid attacks, while Alec covered his blade in flames and helped Oberon reach the skin underneath the monster's armour.When there was a hole in it, Alec transformed his blade into a weapon similar to Ciel's and charged a bolt of electrical energy at the monster. It roared in pain and it charged towards them.

"Everyone! Spread out!" Eve yelled.

The group ran to the sides and Alec took that opportunity to cut again the monster from behind, this time, he aimed at the Achilles' tendons and his red-hot blade did its job. A deep cut to the giant's heels brought it down, as it knocked itself out with the stones of a three-story high residential building.

"It's now or never! Cover me!" Alec ordered to the rest. Part of his calves hid to reveal a set of small jet propellers. The Nasod guardian turned them on and, with each step, he reached higher speeds. A trail of smoke was all that everyone around him could distinguish. Then, the smoke went upwards and the sun shone blindingly over his blade. He slashed down Uno Hound's head as the demon was barely getting up. It parried the hit with its heavy forearms.

"Heaven's fist! Pressure!"

A giant Nasod hand fell over Uno Hound and crushed the armour over its head. With this pain, the demon lowered his guard for a split second. It was enough for Alec to find an opening to the beast's heart and plant his sword in it.

The colossus had fallen.

Fume

****
Lara

The white desert didn't have much to offer beyond its ruins, eternal night and strange silver flowers. She glanced down at the bed of vines and flowers that had held her prisoner.

There was a white flower. A small, dried out flower decorated the bottom of her old prison. They were different, not only because of their colour, but also the mana. Everything around her was made of Lento's mana, but not that flower.

She knelt at picked it up, her fingers slowly touched the petals and she realized it had been made with creation magic. She closed her eyes and a small memory appeared in her mind.

"Do you mind me staying here for a bit? I just... have this feeling that I should at least. Heh, here I am talking to a statue... What would you say to that, Lara? Bet you'd say that I'm crazy or stupid for even doing it."

A small laugh interrupted the man's words. He had pointy ears, dark skin and chains around him. "Hey, I know this is strange, but… I hope you're in a better place than out there."

The flower vanished and her fingers began to tremble. That unknown man, another person, called her by her name, referred to her as a statue.

She looked at the burnt vines and let out a deep sigh. "Same body...is it? It has to be."

"Glave...take me back to the Darkness." she whispered.

No one was there to hear her prayers, no one but the red moon above.

Late · Jul 2, 2018

Eosforos

"Ah...I suppose you're right about that," the angel replied as he watches Lento's movements. "Then, I'll just tell you this. Back in my days of a dragon rider, I have a knack for getting to know everyone that is in my group. Or at least try to. It helps me to know who I should trust and rely on, who I should protect and how to guide them through their troubles, and for me to know what's their weakness. So, I hope you don't find it weird for me to say that I want to get to know you better and I pray that I don't seem like an ill character to you," Eosforos said with a small smile. "I am doing...well, my very best," he gestured to his missing arm, "to fit right in. Since I am out of the game, maybe permanently, I just don't want you to feel suspicious of me whenever I lurk around the camp and trying to get to know everyone else better." He stared at Lento, still smiling after talking. "That's all I want to say. See you around." Eosforos finally turn around and walk away from Lento, starting to search around for Xavier.

MementoDei

Eventually, he found the man, who was reading to Aisha. Apparently, the mage wanted someone to read to her for a change and Eosforos happens to come in on time since Xavier just finished reading a chapter to the woman. Xavier looked up at the angel, looking calmer than before as Aisha gave a small smile at Eosforos in greeting.

"Good book?" Eosforos asked.

"Yeah, it's not so bad," Xavier responded, bookmarking where he last left off. "I'm assuming you're here because you need my help?" The man asked as his dragon next to him let out a tired yawn.

"Just help with writing...it's probably going to take awhile for you to help me with it."

Xavier has a small confused stare but he eventually nodded his head and gave the book back to Aisha. "I guess we'll keep reading at a different time."

"Honestly, I was getting a little bit sleepy near the end of the chapter. This is not such a bad time to rest my eyes," Aisha responded with a small yawn.

"I hope you don't mind Komodo staying here then. It looks like he was sleepy for not understanding the story," Xavier said, cracking a small joke about his dragon.

Komodo yawned louder than before and slowly got up to move closer to the mage so he can rest next to her.

"It's fine," she yawned, petting through the dragon's fur as she gets herself comfortable to sleep.

"Rest easy," Xavier said to them and followed Eosforos out of the tent. "So...writing help?"

"Yes, but its a bit more complicated than you think," the angel sighed, holding up the cage to stare at the bird. "You're going to write in a different language for me. Don't worry, I will try to lead you on how to do it. Since, well, this language as a particular style of writing to it."

"..." Xavier was silent as he already guessed what Eosforos wanted to do. The man noticed his stare and huffed loudly.

"What? I was a righty! If I write with my left, it'll look like a child wrote it..."

"Ah, ah, but you need to start using your left."

"No...no. No way, I'm not going to embarrass myself based on my left-hand writing skills!"

One Hour Later, Somewhere Else

"This...what is this."

A pair of glitter demons stare down at a piece of paper, squinting at the scribbles that was written on. They would often glance up at the pigeon that was perched on the lowest branch of the tree, waiting for them to do something with it yet the two soldiers were having a troubled time understanding the message. They would have to keep reading it in order to figure out what the letter was trying to say to them.

"It almost looks like a child wrote this."

"A child probably did write this."

"Though, look. It's signed by the angel, Lucius."

"Hrm..."

Since the previous battle, the group of demons who abandon their commander has set up a small camp in an area that was never marked by the demon forces. They were known to be traitors to their kind for siding with the angel. Yet, the soldiers figured they were doing a good thing, for themselves. Most of the group were younger in age, having a few elites in the group to look after them and helping them to train better with the weapons they have currently. They were really lacking supplies to survive on their own now that they left their commander, so it often comes down to hunting and looting through nearby buildings. Yet, it won't be long that they'll exhaust that method.

"It looks like he was badly injured in battle, against both commanders Joaquin and Dust," the glitter said out loud for ears that were listening. "He is planning to visit us eventually but he needs to know what we need here. Such as food, water, weapons but he can not guarantee on the weapon part. Also...apparently he got what he needed in the first place and wants to talk with us in person to go back to the demon realm."

"I suppose that'll fuel our hope for the day," one of the demons grunted, putting his weapon down to rest as he was sparring with another soldier. "Though, I have to ask, do anyone us here regret siding with him?"

"Hm...He is suspicious but he never betrays his word to us so far," one of the readers responded.

"What if he does in the end? Maybe he just needs a lead on how to get back to our home and then he'll leave us here to die," the demon growled, obviously frustrated.

"At ease, Ace. I know you are tired and frustrated, everyone here is. Just what choice do we have here? If we try to go back to the others, Joaquin will surely have our heads clean off of our shoulders. I rather take the chance of Lucius helping everyone here rather than the death option," the other reader grumbled, being one of the archers that first met Eosforos.

"Yeah...I just hope they won't kill our families for being traitors," someone mumbled in the group. The sudden thought quickly spread panic in the group and the archer immediately jumped for their attention.

"Let's not think about the worse! I highly doubt they would do such thing. Perhaps the better option for them to know is that we died in battle and that we fight with honor. Please, have hope about this matter. We'll respond back to the angel with what we need here and I pray that this right here won't last long," the archer said to them.

Eventually, the demons slowly calmed down and gave each other stares. One by one, they eventually shouted that they needed here and the archer looked over to his friend to make sure he was writing this down. After that was taken care of, they rolled up their message and inserted into the small tube that the pigeon was carrying. The archer made sure it was secured and let the pigeon fly off in the sky. Everyone else starts to resume back to their daily tasks, quiet with each other. A young soldier walked up to the archer as the demon watches the pigeon disappear back to where it came from.

"Sir? You think...you think our family will be alright?"

The archer blinks and looked down to the younger demon, noticing the sad look in his eyes. "Without a doubt, Lucas. Just stay strong for them, and surely, you'll get to see them soon."

"Okay...I just miss my mother," Lucas mumbled quietly, almost as if he was ashamed for even saying it but the archer patted his head reassuringly.

"Don't think too much about it. Come on, let's spar together, alright?"

Ivy and Octavia

"We're here," Ivy announced as they landed on the ground, being at a few miles away from Velder.

They figured to land at a safe distance, not wanting to possibly scare those who were at the campsite and they could simply walk their way. The scouts will surely spot them from afar and won't deem them dangerous for not charging into their territory. The two walk up to the entrance, in which was guarded by soldiers who were staring at the dragons. They definitely weren't expecting more dragons to show up though as they weren't aggressive, they just kept their weapons at their side as Octavia leaned down to talk to them.

"Hello, this is Velder, right? We are part of the group of dragons that are residing in there," Octavia said to the soldiers.

"Oh...I didn't think there was more," the soldier responded, showing that he was slowly relaxing. "I guess the word went out then?"

"What word?" Ivy asked and she carefully sniffed the air. She could smell her fellow friends, yet...Aragorn's scent was the only strongest here. The other two were faint and fading away, causing the nature dragon to suddenly feel nervous.

"I...ah...I guess you haven't heard," the soldier replied, his voice slightly quiet. "Well...uh, we'll let you in. Men, let them through," the soldier said to the others and they move aside for the dragons to walk through.

Octavia wasn't sure what was going on but Ivy does and she was deathly quiet about it. She was first to walk through and Octavia quickly thanked the soldiers before following after the older dragon. There was something wrong, but the water dragon hoped it wasn't what she feared.

Phant0m · Jul 2, 2018

Xiopetec tried to busy herself during the day while she hoped that her priest was actually resting so that he could take a step in the right direction for his recovery. When the sun was starting to set, she had abruptly made her departure from a conversation that the other nurses had dragged her into to check in on Phantom.

He was wide awake and sitting up in bed.

"Did you even sleep?" Xiopetec asked as she made a disgusted face at the sight of his bandages, "Those need to be changed before we leave." And she started to unwrapped the soiled bandages before the priest could respond.

"Ow!" Phantom hissed, flinching as the goddess gently pulled the bandages off, "It wasn't easy. I took a nap."

"And you stared at the tent canvas all this time?"

"I'm not even 100% sure that I can walk on my own!"

"This is why you don't punch men with dragon tails, child."

The priest rolled his eyes and clenched his jaw as his wounds were washed once more and Xiopetec started to place the fresh bandages. "What did you do all day?"

"Wasted my time. I was doing some mindless tasks until one of the nurses decided that she wanted to talk to me and her friends got involved...I hated every second of it. Half of the conversation was...what was the word again? Gossip?"

Phantom chuckled. "You don't like gossip?"

"No, it's a waste of time but they wouldn't let me just leave."

Silence ensued until Xiopetec was done with her handy-work and she stood. The goddess put her hand out to Phantom, who took it and used his goddess literal strength as a crutch to get up. She released her hold on him, hovering nearby in case he stumbled as Phantom took a couple of steps. Upon noticing him wobble a bit, the goddess chuckled and offered her arm.

"I think you'll need a bit of support, my child," She said.

The priest accepted her arm in a heartbeat, looking up at his goddess and giving a small playful pout. "Well, you're certainly using your height to your advantage, huh?"

"Women usually aren't this tall? ...By me, you humans are so tiny."

Phantom laughed as they exited the tent, and he quickly quieted as their situation hit them. A quiet exit would suit them the best, he figured and his smile disappeared. When he noticed that the other people were starting to violently whisper to each other, the pair stopped.

"What's going on?" He asked Xiopetec.

"Oh...looks like there's more dragons, child," Xiopetec answered, turning around.

"What?" Phantom turned around to see Ivy and Octavia walking in and he instantly perked up. "Ivy!" He sprinted over to the Nature Dragon. "Ivy! It's so good to see you!"

Xiopetec blinked."What the-for the love of me, he's going to faceplant and hurt himself even more. That child couldn't even walk! What the hell!" The goddess ran after the priest with an exasperated sigh.

The priest caught up to the dragons, hugging Ivy's leg without any shame. "It's been forever! I really missed you!" He started to look concerned. "Did something happen in Altera?" He looked at Octavia. "Hi Octavia! ...don't tell me that something bad happened too..."

Fume · Jul 4, 2018

"Ugh... Caught off guard... Human strong... Demon strong... Human like strong... Hehe... This a good death..." Uno said as he bleed himself to death. "Ah... Commander Chloe... Commander Dust... Until... next... ti... me..." With his last words the demon fell for good. No movement or air left in him. The rest of the demons didn't know what to do except for one.

"Damn it all! Let's go everyone! Plan B is in motion! I repeat! Plan B is in motion! Scatter! Warn the others and return to the bridge! NOW!!!" A glitter spearman yelled the others to the others. "Avoid these people! Treasure your life as commander Dust said before! Avoid them at all costs and flee!!" They began to spring out of there as soon as he finished his orders and the group was there, now with the remains of a few demons and Uno Hound.

"Maybe we overthought this with how our group became this big. Anyone understood what those demons said?" Rena halfheartedly laughed at the situation since they were having a hard time to deal with the large demon.

"True, but it's better this way. Reduces our chances of getting an injury and increases our chances to help around." Raven replied to her as his air vents closed off. The Veteran Commander then stretched his arm before putting it down.

"Guess the mission is complete, how about we head back into camp and warn the soldiers. I bet that they'll be ecstatic to hear good news for a change!" She turned upbeat to make the situation a bit more positive.

MementoDei

Late · Jul 4, 2018

Ivy and Octavia

Ivy perked up when she heard a familiar voice calling out to her and someone hugging her leg. Her vines instinctively wrapped around Phantom and lift him up so she could sniff him. Despite his voice being familiar, his scent was different from the last time she remembered. Not to mention that there was a few other different scents on the priest. Then there was the bracelet.

Ivy reeled back in slight surprise as her nose twitch and slowly put down Phantom. “Phantom...it’s nice to know that you’re alive and well,” she greeted him as her vines patted his head. “Unfortunately, something bad is happening and it will get worse with time passing by,” the nature dragon mumbled to the priest.

“Oh hello, priest,” Octavia greeted the man as she leaned down to see him up close. “It’s been awhile, hasn’t it?”

Ivy let the water dragon talk and she immediately tensed up when she caught Aragorn’s scent. She was trying to smell for the others yet it was faint and fading. This starts to worry her. Eventually, Aragorn showed up and was surprised to see them here yet he happily walked over to them. Octavia lightened up when she saw her friend and greeted Aragorn with an affectionate knock of her head against his.

“Octavia, Ivy, it’s so good to see you two,” Aragorn said, his voice heavy yet happy. “Both of you look healthy.”

“And you look like you been through hell,” Octavia grumbled as she pointed out his scars. “Where is Cornelius? Or Athena? I figured one of them would’ve showed up before you did!”

Aragorn’s happiness faded away and Octavia noticed the sad look on his face. His silence confirmed Ivy’s assumption. Both are dead.

“I...really tried m-my best to protect both of them...” the fire dragon mumbled quietly.

The two female dragons were quiet, Octavia being the one with built up tears in her eyes. Another family lost, and they are just the three left. Ivy felt sick with the news as she shook her head slowly.

“And their bodies...? We can at least try to...”
Ivy started to say yet stopped when she sensed Aragorn’s heat building up.

“Whatever was left of them is gone. Demons used them to their advantage, making them into weapons...and a gift,” Aragorn hissed the last part at Phantom, causing Ivy to step forward and pushing the priest away from the fire dragon.

“......” For once, Ivy has no words to say as she can feel Aragorn’s heat of anger and sadness. At the very least, she finally understands what was Phantom wearing around his wrist.

“Another thing...” Aragorn huffed as he slowly started to relax. “...Xavier is back.”

“What?” Octavia whimpered in sudden panic.

“He’s fine. Trust me, he is very fine. Just different.”

Ivy sighed as she made sure Phantom was still safe away from Aragorn. “Let’s see the boy then. I’m sure he got a lot to tell us...”

“He is no boy. Trust me,” Aragorn mumbled and he walked away to get Xavier.

Octavia eventually laid down to wipe away her tears, mumbling under her breath. Ivy let out another sigh and turn her head towards Phantom. She sniffed the priest again and noticed he has an injury. Not to mention of picking up another scent close to the priest.

“You must have gone through a lot...” Ivy said to him, starting to lay down.

Phant0m

Lu and Ciel

Lu listened to what the demons said about plan B, making her concerned of what else the demons have in stored for the humans. She would mention this to the others, yet everyone seem pretty happy with their efforts. Maybe when they report back to Velder she’ll discuss it with Rena. Since she is the leader here after all.

“Good job, Ciel,” Lu praised her butler with a smile.

“Likewise, Lu,” Ciel replied with a nod of his head. “Im assuming you want tea and cookie when we return back.”

“Ah, I could definitely kill for tea right about now,” Lu sighed, stretching out her arms after her magic gauntlets disappear away for a moment. They waited until Rena gave the word that they can return back to camp, both happy with the results.

MementoDei · Jul 4, 2018

Hennon

The most powerful Henir fanatics were gathered around the Temple of the Oracle, watching as Darhan faced with a silver blade the Skin Splitter. He, their leader, tapped his fingers over the edge of the arms of his throne. Dark elves were always a problem. But this elf wasn’t like the rest of his kin, he was part of Ishmael's followers.

Hennon would rather have him killed with his bare hands, but the elf was too weak now. It wasn’t worth it to delay the inevitable.

“He’ll turn to a monster in no time.” A masked priest to his right murmured.

“No. He’ll realize where he is and will beg us to become part of us. It’s the only way he’ll escape alive.” Another answered.

The conversation gave him a chuckle and he clapped his hands once, turning all the heads of the room towards him.

“Perfect. Then, let’s make a bet. All of those who think he’ll die to the beasts, raise your hands.”

A moment of silence followed, the fanatics looked at one another and, only four out of the twenty-five raised their hands.

“Good.” Hennon said with a smirk. “If you are correct, I’ll ask our god to raise your power and you’ll battle to take Luto’s place. We still need someone worth of his position.”

The four concerned glared at each other and two of them took out their spectral lances. Hennon clicked his tongue, took out his lance and hit the floor three times with its long handle. The priests felt the sudden rise of mana and it sent chills down their spine.

“Not now, you greedy fools! Enjoy the carnage while it lasts!” the General of Henir’s Order seethed.

All around him, except for Glave, bowed at him before staring back at the giant screen, reflected on an ancient monolithic black crystal. According to Luto, it was the stone Henir’s first follower used to harness the God’s power.

“Glave!” Hennon barked. “Come here for a minute.”

The Administrator glanced at him and nodded. He got up from his chair and stood to his right. The General glanced up to meet Glave's mysterious golden eye and he used his best knowledge of old pthumarian to share his thoughts anonymously. Apart from Luto, Glave and him, none of the higher ranked priests knew how to pronounce this extinct language. Even those who could read it with ease were rare.

"This elf...you saw him before, didn't you?" he said, looking back at the screen.

Darhan's body was full of bruises and his clothes were revealing parts of his skin. From where he could see, Hennon thought that the marks of the Void had already consumed his arm and chest. Maybe it had gotten close to his heart. Yet, the natural navy blue tone that the Void made the skin take was absent. The Elf seldom used his silver sword to cut, but rather as a source of power to cast more spears. Even the sword's edge was dulling, but the spears the elf cast were no longer green or golden. They rained in silver and blue and did at least twice the damage of his previous attacks.

Glave nodded, but didn't utter another word. This deepened Hennon's frown and he let out a short sigh. He couldn't see beneath Glave's mask, but his eye beamed with a reserved curiosity, the kind that would make him grin. Glave was having fun, and didn't seem at all interested in answering him. He had to end that mockery fast. He looked at the second-grade priests gathered in an oval around the monolith. Those Oracles were the ones that not only kept the image on the screen, but also called forth the beasts to kill the angel.

"Oracles! Double its power."

The head of the Oracles turned his hooded head towards him. "Master Hennon, with all due respect, if we do that, the Skin Splitter might go beyond our control. You must know very well that the more powerful Void creatures get, they can develop-"

"We are Henir's faithful followers, Oracles. What is the kind of power we believe in?" he said, raising his voice so all people could repeat the Credo once more.

"We believe in the power of Chaos, the ever changing power of destruction and its unaltered control over time and space itself. This Order was founded on Henir's teachings and his enlightenment to reach a unified universe under his reign. All worlds begin in the Void and will end with the Void. Chaos is the ultimate destination for all life. That is Henir's will. That is our will." The priests chanted.

The head Oracle lowered his head and Hennon smirked victoriously.

"Chaos, Oracles! Chaos is the ultimate form of anything! So what if it develops a conscience?! It will bring Chaos to that angel's life. And it will end his existence." He preached, raising his hands towards the ceiling before pointing his right finger at them. "Double its power."

"...As you wish, master Hennon."

They mumbled prayers in Henir's language and a ray of energy from the Void's dead sun poured its power over the monster. Its last chains broke and its body became like one of a monstrous creature. Its legs took a more muscular shape, growing dangerous claws and its armour had no longer any weaknesses. Its arms' tentacles united to form reptilian arms like its legs. Despite standing in four legs, it was growing bigger. A sharp, mace-like tail appeared to its rear and its beetle-like head got bigger, deforming under its carapace. It almost split in half as four eyes appeared to each side. Its mouth opened to reveal a set of uneven sharp fangs, its blue jawbones were visible to each side. The angel was nothing but a small dot of silver and blue compared to the enhanced Skin Splitter. Hennon applauded the Oracle's effort and soon the other priests followed, that is, every priest except Glave.

"You either tell me who the hellish he is or I'll find a way to end your little fun faster than the time it took you to turn her soul into dust." he menaced.

The Administrator let out a chuckle. "General, it's said who the hell or, if you wish to be more vulgar, who the fuck. Not who the hellish."

"Stop screwing around for once, Kerberos." he hissed.

****
Yullr

The night was approaching, and while he was meditating, he sensed that more dragons were near. They were certainly not at the level of those who had died, but their presence could perhaps boost the soldier's morale. He noticed that Phantom was near one of them and he frowned. He was already at the outskirts, and he had made a decision he would regret.

"...I hope Dust at least tries to protect that brat from the darkest projects the demons have. He is an elf, at least he should keep half of what he was like in those days." he thought as he broke his meditation.

"Sir, you have visitors." one of his men said.

"Visitors?" he repeated, squinting his eyes as he got up. He looked behind his subordinate's shoulders and saw a very familiar white hair. "Let them pass."

The soldier nodded and opened the tent's entry to let Alec and Lento pass. He wasn't expecting Lento to be there, but considering that the Nasod was away until recently, this meant that some news on the battle for the third residential area were on their way.

"Lento, it's been a while. How are things going?" he asked the commander as he shook his hand. It was rigid. Something had happened.

"That's what we'll discuss today. Commander Elesis will join us in a minute, once the nurses finish her therapy."

Yullr nodded and pulled out two chairs for the two to sit. Alec looked at them and he extended his hand towards him, expecting a handshake. Yullr frowned and gave the Nasod a brief handshake before telling it to sit down. He took out a chair of his own to sit in front of his two visitors and began the conversation.

"Well, I believe there must be something very important going on for both of you to come and force commander Elesis out of her sick bed. Can't she be informed of this news later on? I remember that last time she got out, it was-"

Lento looked down, still frowning and he interrupted him. "Alec has come here to give us his report on the combat. After that, he'll go away and we'll discuss future strategies based on his report."

Yullr was no fool, unlike the Nasod, and he knew very well that he didn't need to bring Elesis personally here to simply discuss military strategies. Nevertheless, he followed Lento's game and nodded.

Phant0m · Jul 4, 2018

Phantom almost leaned into the vine's touch as it pat his head, his grin growing to the point it was starting to hurt his cheeks and he opened his mouth to respond. Then that grin died when Aragorn arrived and the priest shut his mouth and went silent.

He gave a cold glare to Aragorn's back as the dragon left. "Hm?" Phantom hummed at what Ivy said and that was when the pain hit him. He wobbled a bit before a familiar set of arms embraced him to steady him. He looked to see Xio and he gave her an appreciative smile, almost raising an eyebrow at the goddess's silence.

Xiopetec just shook her head and supported his weight.

"Yeah," The priest said, "You can definitely say that. Especially recently. But...um, I didn't do what I promised unfortunately. After Athena, I went off to do some training to make myself more useful and when I came back I was too late..." The admission sort of lifted a small weight on his chest. "And I got into a fight, so that's why I'm busted up right now." He sighed, "So... I'm leaving. I was shitty at my promise, and the army has enough healers."

He looked at the sky before looking to see if Aragorn was making his way back with Xavier. Phantom hugged Ivy's leg again. "Please...stay safe Ivy," He said and he pat her leg, "Sorry to make this reunion short but I really need to go."

Xiopetec grabbed Phantom once more and she squeezed him arm in reassurance. With a final goodbye, the pair made their way through the outskirts and when they were a good distance away, the priest turned to his goddess. "You were quiet."

"That was not my goodbye to say, child," Xiopetec answered as they trekked through. The goddess leading the way to a barricade that she knew vaguely where it was.

Phantom nodded and continued in silence.

Late · Jul 4, 2018

Ivy and Co.

Ivy was confused, not sure what the priest was talking about and never got the chance to ask due to the fact of him walking away. She wanted to call back for him, concerned on what was going on yet she snapped her head around when she heard Octavia abruptly getting up.

“Xavier!” Octavia cried out, in surprise and in relief.

Aragorn returned back with Xavier and another man, Xavier running towards Octavia and practically slamming himself on her for a tight hug. Octavia pulled Xavier close as if she was afraid to lose him and Ivy walked over to greet him.

As she leaned down to get a sniff, Xavier was completely different. Not to mention there was a strange frosty scent that slightly sting her nostrils. Yet, she knows that this was still Xavier. Ivy affectionately rubbed her snout against his head, messing around his hair. The two dragons were huddled together with the man, happy to know that their little boy was safe.

Meanwhile, Eosfóros blinks a couple of times when he saw Octavia...and Ivy. He haven’t heard much from them so for the two showing up caught him off guard. Aragorn stayed quiet, making it difficult for the angel to figure out what goes on in the dragon’s head.

“Wait...that smell...” Ivy suddenly said in slight panic, moving away from the two.

Xavier looked up in confusion of what Ivy meant and he swiftly glanced over at Eosfóros who was taking steps forward.

“Wait, Ivy,” Xavier started to say, hoping she would focus back to him. Yet Ivy ignored him as she sniffed hard and her lips reeled back to a snarl.

“Oh, why this doesn’t surprise me...” Eosfóros said as he stopped his advancement and froze in place.

Ivy’s vines whipped out and snatched up the angel where he stands. Eosfóros was surprised how far she could reached and was dragged closer to her. He struggled against the vines yet they got tighter in reaction. Up to that point, he stayed still as Ivy lifted him up upside down.

“Nice to see you again, Ivy,” Eosfóros grunted.

Ivy growled at the angel in response and in sudden anger, she ripped off one of Eosfóros empty sleeves.

“...well, its old clothing,” Eosfóros mumbled as he squinted his eyes at Ivy hissing at him.

“You! I thought you were dead long time ago!” Ivy snarled. “Are you the reason why Cornelius died? Why Athena died?”

“Well if I’m going to be honest...maybe.”

Ivy squeezed him tighter at his answer as Eosfóros winced and start to have trouble breathing.

“Wait! Ivy! Stop!” Ivy heard Xavier yelling at her, tugging her vines for her attention. “Listen to what I have to say!”

“Did he also changed you into...this?” Ivy demanded as her vines grazed on his tail carefully.

“Yes but please...just don’t kill him...” Xavier begged.

Ivy was silent afterwards as she had a snarl on Eosfóros. Her heart was raging yet she snorted and whipped Eosfóros back to the ground. Dirt was picked up when the angel was slammed back into the earth, even a crack was heard from how forceful Ivy was. Yet, Xavier knows Eosfóros was fine. He can hear the angel groaning and mumbling into the ground.

Fume · Jul 5, 2018

Rena

"This is terrific news! We'll dispatch two squads to make sure the area is clear of the demons, hopefully all of them retreated to the bridge as you said mister Raven!" A soldier responded to the Veteran Commander as he hurried along the way to warn the others.

"Mmm. Guess that settles that for now." He said towards the elf and the Nasod, despite all that happened, he feels tired. "I'm heading to the Inn, this made me more tired than our last expeditions."

"I hear you... I'll go with you too. I need the rest." Rena agreed before looking at the demons. "The missions over, thank you for helping us out." She did a small bow to them. "We're having dinner tonight, if you want, you can join us." She invited them just that to be nice, despite not liking the demon girl.

*****

Dust

He walked the bridge with Chloe, supervising the soldiers, seeing which ones were the most tired and the most energetic. Now this was Chloe's forces, hence Dust could not order them. He already done so once, and that was one slip from his heart. He couldn't let those soldiers die in vain, so he put matters into his hands and not on Joaquin's.

As they walked a bunch of soldiers started to come by the bridge, hurrying as fast as they could before saluting commander Chloe.

"Report in." She commanded them before one stood out.

"Ma'am! Uno Hound has fallen in combat by an ambush from strong forces! We've identified them as the following! An elf! A human male with a Nasod arm! Two Nasod being! And two demon looking humans, ma'am!" He announced to her to which she looked displeased, as she should be. She then noticed that a few of the forces were missing.

"What of the rest of you?" She asked them to which they instantly replied.

"They have gone with plan B, ma'am! As suggested!" To this she smirked.

"Good. At least that'll buy us enough time to mobilize our troops and increase security." She said as she walked around in a circle.

"So, you ordered them with plan B should he fall. Cunning, aren't you." He said almost feeling proud of her.

"We do what we must in war. After all, everything is fair." She responded back to him with confidence of her statement.

"Though might I ask a small request from the ones guarding the entrance?" He asked to which she cocked an eyebrow and let him continue. "To make this even more fair, let's do as the following. If a human approaches, warn them to back off. Fail to do so after the third warning and you are clear to engage. That should be fine, no?"

"You know, Dust, lately you've gone soft." She commented on him.

"Nonsense. I'm just abiding what I teach to my squad. Save all that you can first, negotiate second, force them third and when everything fails and you're out of options, end them. In a way, by letting them have a chance to retreat we are saving them from certain doom."

"I'll never understand that way of thinking of yours, but I'm not complaining. You lot heard him? Give the enemy a chance to flee. After the third warning, just kill them if they don't leave."

"Ma'am, yes, ma'am!" They responded before rushing to warn everyone.

"Now we can see how they act with this." She almost sounded impatient to see some action.

MementoDei

Late · Jul 5, 2018

Lu and Ciel

When they returned back to camp, the soldiers seem to be pleased with the results and weren't thinking sour about the two demons as they praised the group for doing a good job. Lu finally felt accepted and listened to how the soldiers wanted to make sure that the area was clear of demons. She nearly wanted to call out to stop them for a moment, still feeling uncomfortable about the demon's plan B yet they already hurried off. The humans were very pleased to finally have some sort of good news and Ciel gave a concerned look when Lu looks frustrated.

Before the man could ask what's wrong, the elf invited the two for dinner. Immediately, Lu answered with a smile. "Dinner you say? How nice of you!" She said happily. "I'll be happy to come over for dinner, and I'm sure Ciel here feels the same."

"...yes," Ciel eventually agreed, nodding his head and smiling at the elf.

"Though, Rena, I do need to talk to you about something urgent and concerning. It's about what the demons said back there," Lu said to her. "I am a bit worried for those troops who are going to check in that area..." Normally, she would try to go with them herself with Ciel yet she still feels like it may be out of the question with the humans here.

Fume

Xavier and Co.

"..." Ivy faced Xavier after the man finished telling his story about Eosforos to her, sitting on Octavia's arm as he talked. Ivy was still irritated for some reason, perhaps still upset over their losses. Or not even convinced that Eosforos is trying to be a different person than before. The angel didn't say anything, only looking upset due to the fact his nose was bleeding once again and having a few scratches on his face. His hair was a bit messy too, though a lot worse before Eosforos fixed it around. Up to this point, he might as well take a bath.

"Ivy, I know a lot more than you do," Xavier said in which the dragon scoffed in response. "So please, don't try to kill him. I'm...sure Cornelius would agree with me. His dying wish wasn't for his rider's death but for his happiness..." Xavier got up and pet Ivy's arm in a comforting manner. "I'm sure you know that feeling..."

Ivy growled low as she suspected Xavier was talking about her own dragon rider. She continues to stay quiet as Octavia and Aragorn were staring down at Eosforos. Hearing the story about Eosforos relation with Cornelius was a first for the two young dragons and they were quiet about it. Eventually, Ivy's growl slowly died down and she lifts her arm over Xavier to pull him for a hug.

"...fine," Ivy mumbled out. "If he tries anything, however, best of luck of trying to hold me back..." Ivy sighed. "Yet, I pray that would never happen." Xavier hugged Ivy as he grew a bit quiet himself, glad to feel this close with the nature dragon once again, his hands feeling her soft scales. "...Phantom left. I saw the priest and he didn't make much of an effort to talk with me. Did something happened to him?"

"...I don't know," Xavier sighed, pushing his head against her scales. "I really don't know what's wrong with that idiot."

"We could force him to talk with us. He might walk far but you know how strong I am with my nose," Ivy grunted yet Xavier shook his head.

"If he had issues here, then he is a coward for leaving and not facing them."

Ivy decided to not push anymore and sniffed over at Eosforos. The angel only leaned back in response, still obviously upset. The nature dragon huffed loudly and used her vines to move his hair in the opposite direction, earning a loud sigh from the angel.

"Well, I'm going to clean myself up. Completely," Eosforos grumbled as he got up from the ground, patting himself from the dirt. He didn't bother to fix his hair this time and looked over at Xavier. "Once I'm done, we're going to eat and afterward we're going to resume your training"

"At night...?"

"Yes, at night. It gets cold at night. I'll fetch you when I'm freshened up from these bad vibes," Eosforos said as he gestured to the dragons giving him stares.

"Alright. I guess I can try to catch up with you guys..." Xavier said to the dragons, his voice suddenly lightened up.

Eosforos let them be, putting a hand over where his empty sleeve was once attached just to carefully feel around the healing injury. Of course, it stings, and he still feels like he could touch his fingers from his right side but nothing was there. Only bandages to keep his injury safe. This was probably a good time to clean it. Eosforos continued to walk into the camp, praying no one would ask what happened to him as he stopped by the infirmary to pick up fresh bandages and anything he needs before heads towards the building that provides showers.

MementoDei · Jul 5, 2018

Mutated El Energy

The elf's body had been blessed by Ishmael, they felt it. It was such a strange energy, an endless source of light they wanted to absorb for themselves. Five hundred years, he had said. Five hundred years had passed since they were trapped inside the Void. It didn't seem that long for them. They had been trapped for what could be considered a few hours to a human's perception. The more they relished inside the elf's mana circuits, the closer they wanted to reach his heart. Yes, if they left him have a will, he might not fulfill his part of the deal. Just like they wouldn't simply let him manipulate them as a weapon. They had to make him absorb more, get his anger to revolt inside of him. Chaos. Every mind around them resonated with that simple will, so why wouldn't he? They searched within his memories and pieced together an illusion that would make that elf angry enough to bend to their will. The image of a mix-blood elf appeared first. She had blue eyes and smiled at him, extending her hand. They made the image disappear as the Skin Splitter's paws closed near them. The image appeared again as the elf avoided being hit and the mix-blood was crushed underneath.

"NO! LARA!" they heard him cry as he rushed back towards their mirage. The monster had crushed nothing but small shards.

He wasn't angered. He was desperate to let her breathe. He used once more their power to lift the titan's claws with raw strength, but while the monster did lose his balance and fell, they showed it hold its fake prey closer.

"Dar...han…." they made their illusion whimper, and he took her hand to get her out.

"Shh...don't talk, don't talk. I'm gonna get you out, I swear! We'll get out of this together! I'm not gonna let you go. Keep your strength to run, ok? I will protect you from these monstrosities, my love."

His voice was full of fear, it got faster because of his desperate attempts to move the imaginary claw. It wasn't enough. They needed just a bit more to take over. They sensed that more hounds were on their way, and they knew exactly what kind of energy to emit to make the smaller monsters salivate. The elf could cut many, but the wolves came in the dozens and six of them pushed him away from the mirage. The real behemoth got slowly up again. Too soon. The elf noticed that there were two beasts and it only took him a couple of minutes to realize their trick.

"You bastards." he told them. The gateway to devour his soul got further and further away from their claws. His voice began to rise before dying out in a murmur full of hatred. "You have no heart, huh? You like to play dirty, don't you?! You're not El energy, you're no different from all these monsters."

They felt something similar to bitterness when he accused them to be no different from any other kind of energy found in the Void. Yet, they kept their calm as any further arguing between them and the elf could poison their only source of energy.

"Let us guide you, Darhan. They way you are, you won't reach enough power to achieve anything. We were trying to warn you." they implored with the mix-blood's voice.

This angered him, but instead of lowering his defences, they got stronger. His anger was directed at them and the nature of the Void. No emotion could be further away from the path of corruption they wanted him to walk upon.

"Don't ever use her voice again." he ordered, his voice was full of menace and the divine energy they feasted on began to turn into a sour poison.

The Skin Splitter used again its tail as a mace, but he evaded it perfectly before forming another conjuration circle to summon another shower of spears, swords and arrows. He was using his memories to form that magical arsenal from nothing but the hybrid mix of corrupted El and his own divine mana.

"We have no voice of our own. We can only imitate the voices you have heard." they replied with a man's voice.

The elf huffed. "Is that so? Then keep your mouth shut. We have a deal, don't we?"

With their power, he could now crush the hounds' skull in one strike. Three mana-enhanced punches and three kicks was all it took him to be liberated from the smaller Freaks. Indeed, they had formed a pact, but they could not trust him as long as he still talked as a different entity from them. The blue skin their power had formed over the his fingers stopped growing and, in order to avoid being poisoned too much, they had to shrink its size to his fingertips. He was a tough one, but as long as they could take in corrupted energy from his wounds, they wouldn't stop trying until he accepted to surrender.

"Didn't I tell you already? You are my weapon, not a part of me."

They were surprised that the elf had, for a second, seen their silent thoughts. Ishmael's energy began to become so poisonous they had to retreat within the confines of his blade. Although it was made to be a temporary weapon made with creation magic, their enhanced energy had turned it into a permanent blade. Its original golden shine was almost no more. It was growing darker, with the same colours of the Void.

"They won't let you out if you focus our energy into this blade, Darhan."

The elf scoffed. A part of the Void had corrupted his mind and they knew it, but they were too far away from his soul to take advantage of it. They couldn't let others take over like that.

"Who cares what they would or not do? I'll get out of here whether they like it or not. I'll bring Chaos to their souls. No, I'll bring Chaos upon all worlds!"

"Darhan. You've been bitten over fifty times by the hounds. Ten more and you're done for."

He was silent and focused all his power to attack his opponents. His two-handed sword lost its edge and became long enough to be mistaken from afar like a short spear. Meanwhile, they used the foreign Void energy that was slowly taking over him to flow back into his body. They ate the invaders before they reached his heart, but once they tried to reach the great prize for themselves, they were pushed back. He had become immune to them.

"...You cleansed it, didn't you?"

They remained silent.

"Immunity, huh? I don't think so. Henir's and Ishmael's energy are far too different. Your nature is somewhat familiar."

They were enraged. They didn't think that his body would grow immune to their power so quickly, maybe their former nature was to blame like the elf had pointed it out. After all, they were part of Ishmael's power. The goddess and her warriors could very well manipulate the El's power with their mana. Yet, this elf had little in common with what they knew about warriors. He did not receive a blessed weapon from Ishmael's hands. Everything he used came from his creation magic, barely enhanced by a fraction of the El's power. It was a very inefficient way to deal with any strong opponents, but considering that he was surrounded by hundreds of weak ones, they could see why he was still standing. He deflected with his wings the acid that the leeches threw at him, but he was running out of mana to continue to cast lances made of energy. He summoned a weak deformed bolt instead that barely missed from hitting the Skin Splitter. It turned towards him and sent again its heavy tail like a mace towards him, or so they thought. The beast charged a heavy ray of Henir energy at their only vessel. He had not the time to evade it all, his heels dug into the ground, sending even pain to them. Pain. They were now sharing pain with him while his conscience was slowly drifting away from combat. His complete corruption was near, but they didn't have to let others in full control, they could always direct them.

With or without the angel's help, they would get out of that place.

****
Darhan

He was looking through old letters, quietly in his room, when the shadow of a head hid the afternoon sun from his window. He glanced at the odd-eyed elf scout that was hanging head-down from what he assumed to be the ceiling's gutter.

"Just a minute." he said, turning back to his reading.

"It's the prince's birthday, and you've told me that for at least half an hour now." The female scout sighed and in less than ten seconds, she was sitting on the window sill. "...You're reading those again?"

He quickly folded the letters back and put them back in the drawer, closing it with more strength than was necessary.

"...I'm sorry, Darhan." she said, looking for a sign that he hadn't taken her words badly.

"Don't be. I'm sorry for snapping at you like that. Now that you're here, why don't we head together to the party?"

He put an elegant black silk coat over his shoulders and took out a simple wooden suitcase. It still had his name on it, barely visible after all those years. The scout entered his room and looked over his shoulders as he changed the name on the suitcase with the help of a simple spell. She still seemed worried about what she had said, her steps were more hesitant as she approached him. He couldn't keep the frown on his face to someone that had nothing to do with his brief anger. After all, that same person had a fair point. He had to stop turning back to that oak tree, hoping to find shadows of people long gone.

"We better not go late and empty-handed. Isn't that right, Alma?" he said as he glanced at her, with a sad smile on his face.

"Darhan, isn't that your-" she began, surprised to see him give away the last gift his mother had given him.

He looked at the gift and tightened his grip on the handle.

"I'm not using it, Alma. I've thought on what you've said before, and you're right. I should stop being stuck on the past, and..." he let out a long sigh, the ones rainy summer days alone knew how to draw away from him. "This is the first step. I don't think I'll be able to throw the letters."

She put a friendly hand over his shoulder and they headed down to the palace, with its stone walls where some vines crept up and their wild flowers bloomed. He swore that, in the horizon, he saw the same tree where he used to pass time with his older sister, Sylfir, before she was selected to walk down the same path of their mother. Those priests for Resiam only went to the village to take one woman away. A woman they claimed to be the next saviour. The way he saw it, through the washed away ink of increasingly sparse letters, the more they embraced their so-called destiny, they more they forgot. Everything.

"Darhan… I know it must be very hard for you." For a second, he swore that he heard Sylfir's voice. A better glance at the hand that was over his shoulder soon broke this daydream. She was his age and left eye was made of a bright pink, almost red-looking, while the other was of a deep purple, almost indigo. Fuschia eyes. Like the flowers hidden deep in the forest.

He combed back imaginary strands of hair and he nodded before going through the party hall. Darhan expected the young prince to be standing at the end of the hall. Yet, the throne was still occupied by King Thyll, and to his side stood the queen, looking around worriedly. He glanced at Alma, who was as confused as he was, but they didn't have the time to speak further, as Alma's mother, Evri Myrlenn, took her by the shoulder. She couldn't protest, none of them could. If his father approached him, he'd also be forced to go wherever he wanted him to. As if he had seen the future, Ylra Irisse walked towards him and put a hand over his left shoulder.

"You're late. And barely presentable." he sternly said as his cold golden eyes scanned him from top to bottom.

For a royal festivity, his casual black pants, long-sleeved white shirt and his simple coat would never gotten his approval, specially when his hair was not fully combed backwards in traditional hairstyles, which his father would often say to be worthy of their position. Unlike what Ylra would've liked, Darhan had made it a habit to tie several locks of his hair into loose braids that fell over his chest while the rest of his hair waved freely on his back, reaching a little further down his armpits. That hairstyle was one of the rare things he liked to copy from the neighbouring human tribes.

"Sorry, father. I was still deciding on what to give our young prince."

His father huffed. "Do you even care about the duty that rests on your shoulders? On our family's name?"

Darhan nodded and couldn't help but to look for Alma, but she was already gone. There was no escape from this, it was certain.

"Then you'll prove your resolve at this very moment. The prince has snuck out from the party, some say that he headed to the forests. You better make sure that the young Myrlenn won't have to accomplish this duty instead."

He nodded and headed out, feeling again a heavy burden sink his gaze to the ground. He hid his hands on the side pockets of his jacket and it was the only way he could lift his gaze to the forests in the horizon. The task would be hard, all things considered, but if Alma was called to retrieve him, then she would bring back a former heir. He wondered nonchalantly through the multiple paths of the forest, and without he noticed it, Darhan was in front of the old oak tree Sylfir used to read away from their family's cold glances. They talked honestly about anything here, from their sadness when their mother went away, to their own aspirations, away from what their family limited them to do. He sat down, his back laying on the Oak's trunk and he glanced up. There was someone, or something, on the branches above. Higher than what he had climbed when he was younger.

"Excuse me?" he began. "Are you alright? Can you get down on your own?" Darhan used his hands as a makeshift megaphone so whatever was up there could hear him. A pair of teary, angry purple eyes turned back at him.

"Leave me alone!" the child cried before turning away from him. Darhan could've sworn he had heard that high-pitched voice somewhere else, but he couldn't quite remember where. The boy looked barely six, in human years.

"Alright, I'll leave you be. You're a big boy. I'll just sit here to rest." he said, with a louder voice so the child could hear him. "You climbed all that by yourself?"

"Yeah. None of your business."

The boy sounded calmer, and just knowing that made him smile. He didn't talk to his younger sisters often, despite having two of them. For once, he was feeling like a big brother.

"I'm impressed. I couldn't climb that high, even when I was your age."

Some leaves fell over his shoulders and he glanced up to see the boy peel a branch away from its green, his eyes were lost in the horizon. "It's not that impressive. This tree is simply very strong."

Darhan nodded. "Is it? They say that the strongest trees give you the best scenery to look at. Do you think so?"

The violet-eyed boy nodded, wiping the traces of his tears. "I can see everything from here. The tower, the smoke of the campfires, you know, the ones that humans make..."

As he enumerated everything he saw, from the stars to the birds flying in groups, the boy's voice grew more enthusiastic. When he was finally done describing what he saw, he looked at him.

"Where did you hear that saying from, mister?"

Darhan couldn't help but feel a bit uncomfortable to be called "mister". In human years, he was barely eleven, but he supposed that the child was simply being overly polite with his elders.

"My sister told me that one. And you can call me Darhan, mister."

The boy was a bit angered to be called mister back, but when he saw him smile, the universal sign of a joke, he relaxed. Darhan looked back to the trees around him and felt some fragments of bark rain over his head. The child had probably begun to climb down.

"Dar...han?" the child said as he reached the lower branches, holding his breath as he swung down to the ground. He landed perfectly on his feet and raised his arms. Darhan clapped.

"Thank you, my fellow knights." the child said as he bowed. "You have seen your king, Yullr Mirwynn, ascend to the highest spheres of the spiritual power! Yggdrasil has chosen me!"

King. Yullr Mirwynn. That child was the prince. They had to make it back, but his duty didn't have to stop this instant of happiness. He still had his wooden suitcase, and he hesitantly passed his fingers over it.

"What's that, Darhan?"

He huffed, closed his eyes and managed to smile through the memories that ran through his mind. He wasn't getting rid of those memories, he was giving a child the happiness that he hadn't felt in a while.

"This, your highness Yullr Mirwynn," he said in the most solemn voice he could muster. "This is the blessed sword that Yggdrasil has blessed for you."

Yullr's eyes brightened and he grinned excitedly to see his new weapon. Darhan opened the suitcase and a wooden single-handed sword, whose handle was carved with old runes, a prayer for Yggdrasil. The blade was straight and Yullr took it with great care before swinging it upwards, the sun kissed the dulled edges and made the Prince's eyes beam even brighter.

"I will take this sword to the hills and march to the kingdoms above them!" Yullr said, grinning at him. Then, he hugged the sword close to him, looking at it in the closest detail.

It was such an honest smile that it was contagious, despite how many times he told himself that he couldn't feel honestly happy anymore. How glad he was that this moment proved him wrong.

"Then, let us return to your kingdom! We must tell your people of your ascension!" he said, hoping that Yullr would follow him, but the boy stood in the same place and crouched with his sword. "What's wrong?"

"I don't want to go back. Those nobles made fun of me."

Darhan walked back towards him and crouched to his right. "Let me tell you something, Yullr-"

The child was surprised to hear only his first name. "Ah, sorry. You don't like being called by your first name alone, do you?"

Yullr looked down. "hmm. Nobody has called me that before. But I like it, Darhan. It's shorter."

Darhan nodded. "Alright, then I'll call you that from now on. Yullr, I have an offer for you."

"Offer?"

"Yes. We go back, together. I'll stay by you and if one of those pesky nobles tries to make fun of you, you show them this sword and we'll chase down those traitors. How about it?"

A mischievous grin appeared on the prince's face and he nodded. Once they were back in the hall, dusk was well settled in the sky. Some sons of other clans snickered at them, staring at Yullr. The prince walked towards them and showed his sword, challenging to a duel. They looked at each other, hesitating to do something. Darhan told them that if they didn't accept they were cowards, and that was enough for them to rush back to their homes to get their wooden swords. Once they were back, they formed two groups and, surprisingly, Yullr's group seemed to rally better around his leadership than to the other group, led by Alma's younger brother. Darhan had fun being the only attentive audience of the children's combat, cheering for Yullr and booing at the losing side. Once night settled, Yullr and him were still smiling at the combat that had taken place, and despite his small bruises, Yullr seemed to be more radiant than ever. His nanny, however, soon came to get him and apologized for the trouble he had caused Darhan. There was nothing to apologize for, and Yullr knew it too.

When he walked back his home, Alma landed from the high branches as gracefully as a cat. She had a broad smile on her face.

"What's the occasion? What kind of miracle happened for you to be so happy?"

"I saw you guys. It made me happy too."

At the time he didn't fully understand the weight of her words and by the time he did, she was Yullr's fiancée.

"You foolish angel."

He raised his head and saw that his memories were getting tainted with blue.

"You gave up on fighting? What about your promise? Stop drifting away and give your soul to us, not to them."

****
Lara

Ever since she discovered the white flower, she kept looking for traces of mana that were not Lento's. The search proved to be a lot tougher, but she wanted to know more about the other Lara, the one she had taken over with her own spirit. She got close to a dune, where the sand seemed to have been moved around. Another trace of the same mana of the flower along someone else's.

She focused twice as hard as she tried to unveil the memories hidden within the small area. The image of another dark-skinned man, with silver hair and mauve eyes appeared next to the chained man she had seen before.

"How rare for you to take a day off like this." the silver-haired man said, putting some dried leaves on a wooden object. Then, he summoned a weak flame above where he put the leaves and puffed from his mouth a cloud of smoke.

"I can't help it, Phantom needs some rest. How's Lento doing?"

"Still unconscious, but better. He needs to regain control fast if he doesn't want to reanimate someone else."

"Reanimation? I didn't know you knew about that magic. Does it...does it bring a person back the way she was before?"

The silver-haired man took a few more puffs from his strange instrument, liberating a long and curvy trail of smoke into the air. "I didn't think that a man of your caliber would ask me that. You know, working for the demons and all. But to tell you the truth..."

The man began to speak in a language she couldn't understand, with rolled r's, aspirated h's and closed vowels, as if they were whistling them. She found it beautiful, but apparently, the chained man didn't think so. He lowered his head.

"I see. Well...at least it will better for her, all things considered."

"You knew Lara too, Dust?" the smoke seemed to die out and he let out a heavy sigh. "Talk about a dangerous and resourceful woman."

"You could say that, Yullr. Honestly, she..."

The memory faded away. There were still some fragments around this same spot, but she had to focus again. She perhaps lost her focus at the mention of those two names. The man with the chains. Dust. Silver hair. Yullr.

Phant0m · Jul 5, 2018

Xiopetec stopped when the bridge came into view and she turned Phantom so he would face her.

"Are you sure about this Phantom?" She pleaded, "Absolutely sure with everything in your very being? You still have the chance to turn around, child."

The priest stared into his goddess's eyes, an almost unreadable expression on his face.

"I really wish I could hear what you're thinking," She huffed and dropped to her priest's height, "Look. I'll be by your side, and I won't think any less of you if you back out now. Just remember that you can't undo this once it's been done. You only change sides once and that's it. You'll have to face those consequences, you can't go back if you don't like what they have to offer. You have two commanders as your friends on this side. You only have one where we're going. So, please...be sure."

"...I'm sure as hell not turning around. I've put up with enough of having shit thrown at me despite doing everything I could to try and prove to them that I deserve respect. I just want to," The priest looked away during the pause as he clicked his tongue. His eyes looking through a mental dictionary to find the right words to what he's about to say, "To start over."

Xiopetec didn't like the tone her priest used, like an uncomfortable prickle that grazed over her skin but she grabbed his face and stroked his cheeks. She gave a small smile as if to encourage the priest. "Alright then. Come on. I don't speak demon so you better be persuasive."

"No pressure right?"

"Of course."

The pair giggled at their own sarcasm before quickly composing themselves. Phantom's grip tightened on his goddess's arm as he took a deep breath, the bridge coming closer to view.

"Halt!" A demon guard barked at the barricade, the tip of the lance pointing at the pair.

Phantom raised his uninjured hand slowly in a peaceful gesture. "We didn't come to fight," He assured the demon.

"So you speak our tongue. Why you're here doesn't matter. Turn and take your leave, this is your first warning."

"Humans so soon? Wow-" Another demon scoffed before freezing before the pair. He pulled off his helmet and he gave a wide grin. "Well, we meet again priest. Phantom, right?" He nudged the demon armed with the lance. "Dexter, stand down. You have a life debt to this man."

Dexter lowered his lance and turned to his friend. "This guy? Really, CJ?"

CJ playfully shoved Dexter. "Don't be so rude!" He leaned on the barricade, giving Phantom an easy smile. "What brings you and your friend here?" He eyed the bandages. "Man, you got pretty roughed up too."

"I came here to speak to Commander Dust if possible."

Both of their eyes widened.

"Commander Dust?" Dexter narrowed his eyes. "What business do you have with him?"

"I want to speak to him about joining your side of the war," Phantom answered, "Can you take us?"

Dexter and CJ looked to each other, uncertainty in their expression.

"If it makes it look better, you can act like we're being taken prisoner. We're unarmed, and in no condition to fight anyway."

"Would this settle our debt?" Dexter asked, putting down his lance and moving closer to the pair.

Xiopetec's posture tensed but Phantom squeezed her arm, and she got the silent message. Only relaxing a bit to not seem like she was about to strike.

"It would. I guess," Phantom answered.

"Very well. It seems you're going to have to translate for her what's going to happen. A show isn't needed," Cj pointed out as he moved towards Xiopetec.

"Hey Xio, we're gonna play like prisoners," The priest informed his goddess.

"That's the best we're gonna get?" She asked, looking down as Cj mooved behind her.

"I honestly thought I wasn't going to get this far. They're gonna take us to Dust...hopefully."

"There better be no hope in that statement. If someone threatens you, I won't-as you would so crudely put it- give any fucks about the plan."

Phantom hissed when Dexter roughly pinned his arms behind his back.

"Have to make it look believable," Dexter said in an apologetic tone and the demons started to push Xiopetec and Phantom beyond the barrier and into the demon territory.

Fume · Jul 6, 2018

Dust

Night would soon come, many of the arc glitter soldiers were hoisting the torches up for everyone to see, despite their good vision. Still, it was needed for the others, or simply a habit of theirs. Despite the conditions of the bridge, it held sturdy in it's age filled days. A few tents were put up, for the soldiers, those that worked the night shift would sleep during the day and vice versa.

The occupants were being examined one by one, by both commanders, more towards Chloe than Dust, for he was only keeping a watchful eye on the others. As they walked, the female dark elf kept barking others to the others, making them focus on the current task.

"I want you guys to make sure no surprises come from below! You see anyone down there not a demon or dark elf, you kill them no questions asked, am I clear?" She ordered to which they replied a quick and loud 'Ma'am!' before running under the bridge, despite having Morfos down there as well.

As they kept walking from station to station, Chloe called Dust over. She seemed content with how things were for now, as the demons light the bridge up.

"Everything is fine on this side. What about yours?" She asked, just to be sure.

"They've got their orders straight. Got to say, this is defensively powerful, though in terms of attacking... It's lacking." He informed his concerns to her.

"Hey, don't worry! Leave those things aside, besides this is only to make sure that the humans don't take anymore of their territory!" Damien appeared casually with a smile as he saw the bright side of this plan.

"Still, I think we... No. You're right. It's best we leave the rest of the troops to rest." He retracted his opinion, it was probably for the best to leave things as they are as of now. "This isn't my place to act. This is your invasion, not mine. I ended mine with Feita."

"Knowing when to intervene and when to stop. that's something that I appreciate about you." Chloe said to him to which Damien hummed to her saying that. "What?"

"Oh nothing at all! I just thought that you seem more at ease with my commander, that's all." He responded pointing towards her attitude.

"We've known each other for a few years. It's bound to happen." Dust explained as they looked at each other. "Still remember when you were around this high, heh, just remembering it..." He lightly chuckled at that memory.

"What are you laughing at, you dolt." She responded back with slight embarrassment on her cheeks.

"Sorry, sorry! I mean, when you were this high I just couldn't contain myself and remembering your cute self, until before me you became a fine woman." He complimented her, to which the Ikus pointing his two fingers at him, tilting slightly to his side.

"Oh, oh ho! Dense Dust is finally started complementing girls about their appearance! Am I dreaming? Tell me I'm dreaming! If I'm not, then I'll eat mystery X!" Damien proclaimed before Dust pinched him on his cheek. "Ow! What was that for!"

"You aren't dreaming." He replied to him in a monotone voice to which the Ikus fell on his knees distraught.

"Damn it!! Why did I had to say that! Ahhhhhh~!" He moaned in pain to that.

"What's mystery X?" Chloe asked, disguising her fade of pink pretty well.

"That would be..." Damien just groaned even before Dust said what it was. "Glitter soldier Alaani. She's... known to be a very bad cook. To the point that it can be considered poison just looking at it."

"Ugh!" Chloe held her mouth before turning to the side. "Yeah... I know what you're talking about... Never again..."

"You don't have to do it, you know." Dust said as he bent his knees to lower himself to Damien.

"Really!? Honest to god, you can let that slip?" He asked like a puppy that got his hope restored.

"You know me already. I wouldn't let you eat that even if she gave me the angry stare." He replied before Damien pounced on him, making him almost fall on his back.

"My master, oh merciful master! Thank you, my good commander! My sweet and kind Dust!" He said with tears of joy.

"Would you cut it out? Even I need to keep an image for myself." He responded back to him as two arc glitter soldiers arrived with two humans.

"Sir, we brought here two humans that want to speak to you! They wish to join our cause, sir!" The glitter informed while handling the two people like prisoners.

"Phantom!? What are you doing here? What about the deal that we had?" Dust asked incredulous to the priest appearing with Xio by his side.

Phant0m · Jul 6, 2018

Xiopetec huffed. "I'll tell you exactly what's he's doing here," She said with a pointed glare at her priest, "This genius punched someone important in the face, got hurt in the process, and he called that his breaking point."

"Xio!" Phantom whined and he hissed again when the pain flared.

"Don't take that attitude with me, child. It's your bed you're lying in."

"Well if I wasn't being used then.." He muttered.

The goddess rolled her eyes. "Yes, yes child I know," Her tone became genuinely sympathetic.

"The deal is still on. Just...a change of plans?" Phantom hissed again and he tried to crane his neck to look at his bandaged arm.

"Those didn't last long now I have to change them again. Oh boy, it's good to be back in a body and back in business."

Late · Jul 6, 2018

Eosforos

The angel was rather brisk when washing himself up. Though, he made sure to be careful with his right side as he doesn't want to accidentally injure himself. After that, Eosforos discarded his coat and just kept his shirt to wear for the top. When he was fulled clothed, he didn't bother to dry up his hair and focused on applying new bandages for his injury. It was healing, yes, but it still has a strange sting to it that Eosforos only wish to protect it a bit longer. Maybe after a few days, he won't need to keep using bandages. After he was done and making sure he still has his sword as well pendant with him, Eosforos walked out as he every once in awhile would run his hand through his wet hair.

It was pretty dark now and the villagers were setting up the lights, allowing the man to get a good look around and spotted the armory. He recalls back on the message that the demons sent back to him and maybe, it would be possible to get them the new weapons. Yet, Eosforos doesn't like his idea so much as it mostly depends on his manipulative voice. Maybe this one couldn't hurt. Eosforos made a mental note to get started tomorrow and start to walk back where he left Xavier and the dragons.

He passed by a group and he perked up when he heard a familiar yet somewhat of a high tone of voice. The angel casually slowed his steps just so he can glance over and gave out a loud gasp when he saw two human demons talking to the elf. The smaller demon seems to hear his gasp as she turned around with a peeved look and that look instantly vanished when she saw Eosforos standing there with wide eyes. The taller male noticed his friend gone quiet and looked over with curiosity and confusion.

"Lu? Are you alright there?" The man asked the female demon as he looks at Eosforos. "Do...you know this man?"

"..." Lu didn't respond as Eosforos started to approach the two of them.

"...ah! You two must be the demons the soldiers were talking about!" Eosforos said, breaking into a friendly smile. "It also looks like you two came back from a fight too! The help is always appreciated and I'm sure everyone is happy for your efforts."

"I don't mean to come off rude, but who are you, sir?" Ciel asked, worried why Lu was still quiet.

"My name is Eosforos Goldwing. Ah, but I also go by a different name which only my closest friends would know..." Eosforos said with a smirk. "Yours?"

"Ciel, my name is Ciel," the butler responded. Lu was still quiet and the man took this chance to nudge her arm with worry. That was enough to snap her out of her gaze and shook her head.

"Son of a bitch," Lu spatted suddenly in her tongue, causing Eosforos to bit back a laugh as Ciel looks bewildered.

"Demon's language always fascinate me. Though, fair warning, not best to use that here," Eosforos chuckled, resting his left hand on his sword handle. "Hey, mind if I steal you two for a bit? I'm sure the elf here wouldn't mind," Eosforos said as he gestured to the elf. She seems a bit relaxed or thrilled at his words.

Ciel looked down at Lu to see what she wants and Lu nodded her head, still unable to find the words to speak. "Very well. We shall join you, Eosforos," Ciel said and he looked over at Rena. "Perhaps next time?" He questioned with a smile.

"Excellent! Follow me then, I have to grab us a table and hell, even a lantern," Eosforos chirped, starting to walk away. Eventually, the two demons left Rena and the others to follow after the man, Ciel still confused on why Lu was being so quiet.

It didn't take long for Eosforos to get themselves a table and chairs and he left momentarily to fetch someone due to the fact that he wanted to get Xavier in the first place. The angel was careful around the dragons when he tried to get the dragon tamer, having to come back at the wrong time as Ivy seems to be talking to Xavier about something urgent. Eosforos felt very awkward to interrupt as the dragons gave him dagger eyes. Xavier noticed him returning back and briefly said to Ivy that he'll tell him what's happening. The nature dragon didn't say anything yet she slowly nods her head as Xavier got up from where he sat and walks towards the waiting angel.

"I got thrilling good news," Eosforos said to Xavier with a smile, the two walking away from the dragons.

"And I got some bad news," Xavier replied to Eosforos. "It's about the missing Earth El."

When Xavier said that, the angel's smile thinned. That was right. It was gone from Elrios and into the demon world. That alone actually made his heart skipped a beat and he had to stop for a moment.

"Did...something happen? Or..." Eosforos started to say.

"Ivy felt the changes in Altera. Eosforos, the floating island is slowly sinking down. Plus, Octavia already witnessed changes up where the El Tree is. It's going to get worse..."

Eosforos sighed, tapping his fingers on his sword handle. That is troubling news but what can they do to fix it? If the island is already sinking down, then they are on a time limit. The Earth El has been gone long enough and it will get worse within minutes up to this point. Eventually, the man put his hand on Xavier's shoulders with a sigh.

"We'll figure this out, I know there is a solution for it," Eosforos said to him. "For now, focus on reclaiming back Velder land. The demons have control of the territory where the Earth El once was. When we get that back, finding a solution is going to be our top priority." His words convinced Xavier enough to nod in agreement and to relax.

"Alright...what's your good news?"

Eosforos lightened up at that and lead Xavier back to where he left the two waiting demons. Ciel already got the tea sets out on the table, having the flat surface cleaned and covered with a tablecloth since Eosforos was gone. Lu seems to be a bit more relaxed now and straightened up when Eosforos came back. She glanced at Xavier in which the dragon trainer gave a confused stare as he noticed these two were demons.

"My good friends, this is my....apprentice, Xavier," Eosforos said to them. "The tall one here is Ciel and this little, small, tiny-"

"Don't push it," Lu growled suddenly, her cheeks slightly tinted pink as Eosforos cracked a smile.

"Xavier, before you was once the queen of the demon realm," Eosforos said to him.

Xavier finally nods his head in understanding, staring at Lu even harder. "I see. Luciela R. Sourcream. Your old friend," Xavier sighed.

"Now, he isn't so much of a friend. Especially if he leaves you hanging for hundreds of years," Lu huffed and thanked Ciel after he poured her a fresh cup of tea.

"You're exaggerating," Eosforos beamed as he took a seat, Xavier sitting next to him.

"Enough of that," Lu said, a bit demanding. Mostly towards Eosforos. "Many years passed since we last met."

"Yeah, definitely. You got small," Eosforos casually commented.

"I'm pretty sure you know what happened to me," Lu growled in annoyance.

"...you're right," Eosforos said, his tone slowly got serious. "...unbelievable...it really is," he sighed. "I really thought you were dead after I haven't heard from you. Your reign really did put a pause on the demon invasion to Elrios. Now everything has gone to hell. Though, I am surprised to see that you made a contract with no other but a human."

"He saved me from death. I knew I could trust him after he nurse me back to health and he practically gave his life away for me," Lu said, smiling up at the butler. "To think that we'll make it this far, I very much want to owe him everything he has done for me."

"Nonsense, serving you is enough of a payment," Ciel said with a nod of his head.

"It looks like you choose a fine partner, too," Eosforos beamed. "You two worked hard already to gain enough power to dominate through the war, and now the humans here are using your help? Well, Luciela, just know that I completed my mission." Lu raised her eyebrows at his words and stare in shook as Eosforos took out the dark pendant. "I truly pray that this will be good enough to set things right."

"Well, I am very impressed. I guess it literally did cost you an arm though..." Lu mumbled.

Eosforos gave a sad smile and a shrug of his shoulders. "I'll explain later about how that happened. Though...I do need your help more than ever."

"To get back into the demon realm," Lu guessed and received a nod from the angel. She glanced over at Xavier, noticing he didn't drink his tea and still have a strange, glare on her. The stare was familiar yet the dragon tamer doesn't look like he would try to do anything funny. "...it's going to be impossible," Lu sighed, sipping her tea. "I am already an enemy from my homeland and having only us three...no, you can't fight anymore at all! Not to mention, I doubt you apprentice here will help us."

"I do have...a small group of demons I rounded up from Joaquin," Eosforos confessed.

"Still...that won't be enough...I'm sorry, Lucius, but right away, I can't help you. We need more support, we need someone to even help us to open the portal to the demon realm. If Stirbargen was still alive-"

"It's not confirmed that he is dead," Eosforos interrupted.

"If he ended up in the same situation as me, then he too would be missing his demonic powers. It's more likely that he died in the end, and even if we do find him somehow, he won't be powerful enough to reopen up a demon portal," Lu sighed.

Eosforos stayed quiet, troubled by her words. Both Xavier and Ciel didn't say anything for awhile and after noticing the angel has gone quiet, Xavier cleared his throat.

"If anything...we can keep the plan in mind. To go back into the demon realm. Right now, it's probably best to keep helping the humans here and gather up more strength. Up until the demons are weakened and the plan is likely to be possible. You two only could try to improve the group of demons, so they at the very least could survive longer and be more beneficial to help you two. That's...just my thoughts," Xavier mumbled.

"...I would have to agree with Xavier here," Ciel interrupted. "We gained the human's trust here. Maybe in the future, it could provide us with a better advantage the more we help them. Thus, a better way to mend their thoughts about demons."

"...I guess that what we'll have to settle on...for now," Eosforos sighed.

"Oh shoot. I never told Rena about the demon's plan B..." Lu said suddenly, nearly spilling over her tea.

"Plan B?" Xavier questioned and blinks a couple of times when she mentioned the elf's name. (cue the old ship).

"Yes. We paired up with Rena's group and took back a territory yet the fleeing demons said something about plan B. It worries me since they recently sent human soldiers to sweep around the area."

"You know what? Xavier, change of plans. How about we go for a stroll?" Eosforos asked the dragon trainer who perked up at the idea. He knows Xavier has been doing nothing within the past days so he knows Xavier wouldn't deny such offer.

"Really? You're going to check it out...? Without an arm?" Lu questioned, with her eyebrow raised.

"Hey, I'm not completely useless without my arm you know. I still got spells and potions to use," Eosforos huffed. "Why not come along? We're just going to make sure those soldiers won't be under any harm if you're so worried about the plan B."

"...but we just got back," Lu groaned, reaching over for a cookie on the table.

"Fine, we'll go by ourselves! Come along, Xavier," Eosforos said to the man, getting up from the table and walking away. Xavier got up as well, following after the angel as Lu and Ciel were left alone.

"..."

"..."

"...I'm going to hate myself if plan B was really nothing in the end," Lu sighed, nibbling on her cookie.

"Just let me know if you want to go or not," Ciel said, going ahead to take a seat as he already poured himself some tea.

Fume · Jul 7, 2018

"For the love of..." Dust could only say out loud to what he just head. "I leave you alone for a couple of days and this happens, and yet I'm not surprised." He smirked at that. "That's you simply being you."

"You know these people? And what's this about a deal, commander Dust?" Chloe asked suspicious of her equal in power, although he was mysterious in certain aspects, he did share a few things that were only meant for his squad only to her.

"Tall woman..." Damien said as he looked at Xio with his mouth open. He's saw a lot of big women, but this never ceases to surprise him. He looked at her from top to bottom before nodding his head. "Yep, she's a cute one. DUST! Where the hell did you fine such a fine woman!? Every! Freackin! Time!" He screamed towards his superior with a few tears of mockery.

"My deals are mine to deal with. There are always special cases that always need a new look. To see if they can become stronger or if they can help in anyway possible." He responded back to her, while still concealing the deal.

"You're avoiding the question. What was the deal about, Dust." She sounded it like an order to him, yet he replied back with a simple phrase.

"It's my business only, Chloe. Are we clear?" He asked her with some hostility to her, he has done so in the past, which means if she interferes she might regret it gravely. She nodded to him reluctantly. "Good. Glad we got the point across."

He looked at Phantom and saw his wound from a few angles, from his days as a combat medic, he could see that his mana flow was cut, which means spells from the outside and the user himself won't be usable. For such a thing to happen, means that it was either something from above or something from Henir. And since it was from an important person, he could only guess that it was one of the angels.

"Private Dexter and Private CJ, return to your posts. You two, follow me. Damien, come." He ordered as they passed through the bridge, with Damien saying 'Yes, sir!' in reply.

As they passed through the tents, multiple demons took a glance at the humans being led by the commander, it was an unnerving situation, only because dealings with this commander were tricky in itself. You always gain something, but you need to do an unusual task to get it. Usually to eliminate, steal or hide something. Of course, it was always a fair trade, yet they wouldn't dare speak word, solely because they had to make a deal with him as well.

They arrived at a tent, which was more spacious than the ones in the rebel camp, with a table and a few chairs around, except there was only two chairs. Dust sat on a makeshift bed while he signaled for Phantom and Xio to sit down.

"Damien, guard the tent outside." He ordered to the Ikus.

"Yes, sir! Give me a hollar if things get dicey." He joked despite the situation, standing guard just outside.

"Now then," He took out some medical supplies from his handy sack, before spreading them on the table in order. "Let's take a good look at this wound before we begin talking." He carefully took out the bandage while Phantom hissed in response. Despite what it looked, the wound still bled, although it seemed to settled for a minor bleeding.

"Hmm... It's a good thing you came to me. This kind of wound isn't looked after in Elrios, since it mostly dwells with Ishmael or Henir. Though treating it is rather easy with the medicinal plants that grow in the Demon Realm." He explained as he grabbed a purple leaf and some alcohol, mixed it together with some substance he had before putting some darkened grass, creating a type of healing salve.

"Of course, there are special cases where either Elrios or in the Demon Realm have a person or two that can use these types of wounds. Either they were blessed when they were birthed or received it as a mutation. Though they don't go very far in life, unfortunately." He rubbed the salve on Phantom's arm, there was an audible low pitch sound on it as steam slowly rose up from the wound. He then grabbed a special bandage and finished the treatment, after a while of waiting around, the bandage showed no bleeding whatsoever.

"That should do it. Your mana will start flowing soon enough. Expect a tingly feeling, kind like on how blood rushes through your limbs after they go to sleep. Just to be on the safe side, suck on this blood bead, it'll restore some of your strength faster, at least you'll be able to move again." He offered onto his hands the small red sphere before gathering his materials and putting them back in place.

"Now despite hearing the summarized version from Xio, I wanna know why did you come here Phantom. You do know that this is the enemy lines, as soon as you walk past that gate, every human will aim their swords at you, making you public enemy number one. Dexter already filled me in on you wanting to join us, but are you sure you want to do this? I'm asking not as a demon commander nor as your mentor from back then, but as a friend. You do this and you're going to lose everything that you've done so far.

You'll be against Lento and Yullr. You'll be against every human. You'll be against your family, the dragons, Ishmael and everything in between us. Not to mention that if by any chance you join us, you won't be accepted right off the bat, you'll probably be targeted by a lot of demons just being curious about you.

What you would know of a normal life can go out the window, with how different that world is, how the demons act towards one another and how advanced their civilization has become after gaining valuable knowledge into their side, What you would call calm times here would be nothing more of a dream there, with how things are ruled by nobles and us commanders. It's chaotic at best with how things look less bleak now on the citizens and how they would love nothing more to find something to escape that oppressive nature, heck having a few places to eat or turning their eyes to faith helps them somewhat.

I can provide you some relief by joining my squad, but after that, you need to prove the demons that you are on their side. Are you sure, from the bottom of your heart, that you want to join us. There is no going back if you say yes now."

Phant0m · Jul 8, 2018

Xiopetec made a "go ahead" gesture at Phantom. "Well child, go ahead. Do tell him why you're here," she said. The goddess made a mental note about that plant after she watched Dust's movements, her instincts bordering paranoia about her only follower being vulnerable in foreign territory.

Phantom rolled his eyes at his goddess before sighing and looking at Dust. "I'm absolutely sure that I want to do this. I've had enough of the bullshit with the human side all because I was too nice, and it's not like there's much for me there anyway." He started to list off things on his fingers. "My family disowned me-and as far as we're concerned they're dead to me-all the dragons save for one hate me, the humans don't giving a flying shit about me unless I'm being useful and even then I'm obviously a heretic so I'm lucky that I even got this far without being someone's target practice, fuck Ishmael. The only thing I'm regretting is going against Yullr and Lento but they're only part of the few who I would consider to be on my side." He paused. "I'm done giving everyone else chances. I'm done being a pushover. Besides, I was already branded as a traitor the assholes just didn't survive the archers to spread the news."

Fume · Jul 8, 2018

"So that's how it is..." Dust responded while taking a moment for himself. "While I'm okay of you not being a pushover by this decision, it doesn't mean not to give someone a chance. Look at me, I gave you a chance to improve even though I was risking my hide in the enemy camp.

I'm not asking you to forgive the people that wronged you, but if you deny who you are, then you'll never be the you that you want to be. If Phantom doesn't want to be Phantom, then who will? No one, that's who. Whoever, there is a way to do it." He stood up in front of the priest, Xio was eyeing him suspicious, before he put his right knee down and grabbed both of his hands.

"And that is to become someone anew, someone that is still him but at the same time different. So for now on, you'll be part of the demon side, part of the family that I raised since so much time ago. Part of my squad to fight, to heal, to live. For this day forth, you are no longer merely Phantom, you are Phantom Samay, the one to begin something new. With this, the ceremony of a new ally is done. Welcome, to our side, my friend."

"I heard that!!" Damien burst through, since he understood human language. "So these are our two new recruits! Oh man! A pretty boy and a cute tall woman! Man, today is a blast!" He said excited for the two new people to join their side.

"I think you should introduce yourself first, you little brat." He chuckled at his enthusiasm.

"Right, right! My name is Damien! Pleasure to meet the both of you! I can be considered commander Dust's right hand man! Who might you two be? Hmm? Specially you miss! I mean, if Dust hasn't noticed you have the height, you have the air, you have the fair, you have the hair, you have the eyes AND you have the body to make little me take a double take!"

"Don't get too attached to this guy, he's an Ikus, a fallen Incubus. If he starts acting too intimate with you, just warn me or give him a slap, that usually works."

Phant0m · Jul 8, 2018

Xiopetec was hiding a shit-eating grin behind her hand as Phantom raised a questioning brow at Dust getting down on one knee. Something that can tease him with later she supposes, but the goddess appreciated the gesture for Phantom's sake.

He really does need a family around him, not just her.

She looked down at Damien, uncovering her smile. She gave a maternal chuckle before standing. "Xiopetec," She introduced herself, "Or Xio if you prefer. I'm Phantom's goddess." She pat the Ikus's head. "And unfortunately, I am not interested. But your compliments have made my day. You did more in a second than Phantom has done in years."

"Oh ha ha, excuse me. I didn't take you to be the one to want me to grovel at your feet," Phantom said in a sarcastic tone.

Xiopetec tugged his ear with a scoff. "He called you pretty too but obviously I'm the prettier one."

The pair laughed and Phantom looked to Dust. "So...um, what now?"

Fume · Jul 8, 2018

"That is a good question, Phantom. I've been thinking on what you two could do as we came here, as well as other things like if the both of you would like to become part demon or not, but that discussion can be made another time.

At the moment, the troops from the last battle are being treated from their wounds, a good portion is recovering well since we arrived well enough, using our supplies when needed. I'd hate to ask this just after you two arriving here, but could you help the demons stabilize their vital signs? That'll be much appreciated from our side, not to mention to decrease your suspicion on yourselves.

After the both of you done that, I want Phantom to come to me by the gate, there's something that he needs to do there, you'll enjoy it, trust me. Bad boy." He smirked at that. "Damien, I want you to stay with Xio and be her interpreter if I'm right, she doesn't know demon language yet." He received a nod from her. "Afterwards, familiarize her with the bridge layout, tell her where our forces are laid, so she doesn't get confused on the wildfire.

Oh and also, you'll need these scarfs." He reached in his bag and drew out two scarfs, both black with a white pentagram like chain engraved on it. He then handed it to them. "For now, wear them how you wish, but that pentagram needs to be noticed by all, that way the demons can be somewhat relaxed when talking with the both of you, and for them to know that you are on my squad. That is imperative to be on, understand?" He explained to the both of them.

"So you're not gonna tell me why she proclaims to be a goddess? The same types of gods that you have a beef with?" Damien asked before looking at her. "Oh woe is me! The pretty woman said no to me!! Curse you denial!!!" He screamed to that before doing a 180. "There are more fish on the sea... Though it's a shame, a bleeding shame! What about you Phantom? Want to have a ride wit-" He quickly got slapped on the back of the head.

"Stop with those things, Damien! Those pranks will one day backfire on you!" He tiredly yelled at the boy.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I just can't help it!" He chuckled as he rubbed the back of his head. "So mind filling me in? Why is this goddess, this good looking, otherwordly, tall of a sexy woman here with you not having to give two curses under your breath?"

"Same reason why Phantom is here is with us. I've changed a bit of my view on humans and gods. At least a little. These two will become strong people after they've spend some time training, not to mention that when the time comes, we'll depend more on them than we'll ever think." He responded to them.

"Whoa, the commander is putting the both of you on a silver pedestal! Guess I have to think you two as a big deal as well. This deserves a celebration, right?" He asked as he shakily brought his maracas, making them rocking in place.

"I think we celebrated enough, Damien. Not to mention that some demons are trying to sleep for tomorrow." Dust replied to which the Ikus still wouldn't back down.

"Please! Just three shakes! I promise!" He pleaded as was nearly tearing up to him. The demon commander sighed as he gestured him the okay.

"Yay~! Shake! Shake! Shake! Shake your body to our new brother and sister! Welcome you two!" He danced a bit before hugging the two of them from behind with a toothy grin.

"Now then, the both of you should start and don't get frightened to explosions, plan B is in motion after all." He responded as he left the tent making his way towards the gate.

"Hey, hey! How about we get a move on as well? A lot of our friends are in a bad condition, even one of them tried to laugh with me, but he said that laughing hurt. Actually many of them said that, we cannot let them have any pain! Laughter is a blessing!" He proclaimed with a pose before wiggling his maracas for a more dramatic effect.

Late · Jul 8, 2018

Xavier and Eosfóros

It took a bit of time to catch up with the deployed soldiers, hell, it took awhile to talk through the guards for them to leave camp. The guards were uncertain about their reasonings of following after the soldiers into the recently cleared area yet after awhile, they finally let them through. The time they caught up with the other men, they were about to enter through the residential area.

“Ahoy you two. I wasn’t told that we left two men behind,” one of them said, supposedly the captain of the group, as he holds a torch in his hand. He moved it in front to get a better look and squinted. “Oh, Ishmael’s soldiers. I’m not sure it is wise of you to be out here, angel,” he mumbled to Eosfóros as he gestured his right arm.

“Trust me, I am still rather useful without the use of my right arm,” Eosfóros said with a smirk. “We are here because we have an urgent message from those who ran through here earlier in the day. They heard that the demons had a secondary plan, though they do not know what are the demons’ next plan.”

“Now why weren’t we informed about this earlier?” The captain huffed in annoyance, tightening his grip on the reins of his horse.

“Well, our friends still felt out of place in the army as they are demons. I believe, even if their best efforts, no one would trust their words,” Eosfóros explained.

“Eh? And you trust them?” The captain scoffed.

“Of course. They are on our side after all. They already took the time to help others to recapture a territory in which other human soldiers seem to be having trouble with in the first place.” The men frowned at his words yet Eosfóros wasn’t fazed by this as he kept smirking.

“...fine then. It’s best to proceed with caution,” the captain sighed, shaking his head. “Slow and steady, boys. Can’t let those demons get the best of us this time around!” He yelled at his soldiers and stares at them to make sure they got his word. He then looked back at Eosfóros and glanced over at Xavier. “Did you just came here to warn us that?”

“We’ll be on the lookout for you and your men. Well, mostly Xavier here,” Eosfóros said as he patted the dragon trainor to start moving. Xavier nodded his head and dashed away to be up at higher grounds so he can scout out further ahead. “As for me, if things get dicey, I’ll try to set up an illusion to keep the enemies distracted and for your men to flee.”

“A trickster, eh? Fine by me. Stay close,” the captain said to Eosfóros and signaled everyone else that they’ll continue moving forward.

Phant0m · Jul 9, 2018

Phantom popped the red bead in his mouth and started to suck on it after chuckling at Damien's antics. He tied the scarf around the high collar of his robe while Xiopetec tied the scarf around her waist, adjusting it to make it look like a fashionable belt while the pentagram was obvious to look at. The pair nodded, although the goddess watched her priest's expression very carefully. Nothing was cluing her in on his apparent sour reaction the last time he was asked to heal and she relaxed a little.

"Will do," Phantom said, shaking his newly healed hand. Oh yeah, he starting to feel the tingle and it was coming with a vengeance, "A different perspective might help with the recovery process."

"Yeah, and you get to do something fun after, child. So behave. Do I make myself clear?" Xiopetec asked, giving a sharp pinch to her prest's cheek before standing beside Damien.

"Xio and I will definitely help with that Damien," The priest assured the Ikus, "Sounds like some bruises in the way of laughing."

"Already diagnosing and you haven't even seen them."

The goddess ducked her head a bit to clear the tent entrance as the trio made their way over to the injured. "How many critically injured are we looking at exactly?" She asked the Ikus, "We can start by looking at who's the worse off among the others."

"Hopefully less than what the other side has to deal with," Phantom chirped as he massaged his arm, "They're still licking their wounds big time. It's a clusterfuck."