rp: side story Side Story: A Quest for Kraerhil

[Neptune]

“Yes… I’m fine…” Daedrin assured Izanagi, one hand massaging his chest right above his aching left heart. The pain was beginning to disappear, and he hoped that his heart was getting back on track. He just wished he did not have to run so soon after having a heart failure. The running had taken more out of him than he would have liked. Absently, he nodded his head in agreement to Izanagi’s suggestion to get back to the horses. Lucky was no doubt spooked by what had happened and Daedrin couldn’t blame her. Daedrin followed his friend along the wall to where their mounts were waiting for them, twitching his head to the side slightly at the question. He then frowned a little before he looked at the still collapsing building,

“It could be possible. I know I certainly didn’t do anything to destabilize the structure of the building…” He trailed off as he concentrated on the building, his sharp vision able to see details that would be lost to most species. After all, his vision was designed to allow him to see individual grass blades from high up in the clouds. He frowned a little, “It almost looks as if the building is… aging, at a quick pace.” He looked back at Izanagi, “Perhaps they were using the relic to keep the building intact. After all, before Torak was defeated, he would have been the one to keep the place in one piece. With him and the relic gone, there’s nothing to stop it. I know you might not have been able to do much because you mentioned earlier that your powers were disabled. So the relic is the only thing I can think of… because I doubt the Disciple had enough power to keep such a large building intact.” He paused when they came to the gate, not bothering to be quiet as he opened it causing the metal to screech. He winced a little as it penetrated his sharp hearing, but he knew that with the noise of the building collapsing, no one would pay it any attention.

He moved over to Daegrin and patted his neck before moving over to the other gate and opening it up. He went back over to his Aelda and lead him outside, where he looked around. He could see some torches in the distance, milling around, “We need to be careful. I can see some cultists moving around. If they spot us, they’re sure to attack… especially after what we did.” He mounted up onto Daegrin and took his reins in his hands, “Come on. This way.” He said before turning Daegrin around and nudging him into a trot away from the mansion. 

[Akira]

As we kept making our way to our horses I couldn't help but think about what Deadrin just told me. The building was aging super fast? that is why it suddenly crambled like that? *Oi Odium, you heard him right?* I began a quick conversation with Odium *Yeah, the mansion collapsed because it aged really fast... do you think this might have something to do with the rune's power?* I mentally nodded in response *Yes, I believe that if the relic was the thing keeping that enormous mansion in one piece, then that probably means that the rune can manipulate time in some way... or something of the sort at very least...* *That also means that the rune is really really powerful. Which is dangerous. Something with this much power will likely have some sort of negative effect when used as well. We can't afford to be careless with that rune. Whatever it does...* 

Before we could get any deeper on the subject however, we arrived at the gate. Which Deadrin wasted no time in opening it. Needless to say, I didn't protest. Being steathy was the least of our worries right now. We quickly got to Lucky and Deagrin after passing through the metal bars. While Lucky was understandably nervous and maybe a bit scared when we got there, as soon as she felt my hand patting her neck a little bit she quickly got a lot calmer. Deadrin and I both quickly mounted our respective horses and bagan to gain distance from the ever increasing pile of rubble that was a mansion not long ago. *Say... how much do you trust this weirdo friend of yours?* Odium asked once we were at a considerable distance, causing me to mentally sigh at him *Look, if you don't like him much that is fine, but at least call him by his name alright?* the demon simply grunted in response, which was his way of saying 'fine...' *Well... he knows both about my true self and you and didn't try to kill us. That alone is way more than damn near everyone we met so far. Plus, he is really honest and, even though we disagree in a few aspects, he understands me pretty well... I would trust him with my life. Why do you ask?* *Nothing, I was just... wondering about something...* That sort of behaviour isn't really common with Odium.  He is usually more focused on acting instead of thinking, then again even the most basic levels of human relationships was something he couldn't understand at all, maybe he was trying to understand a bit more about it.

Edited February 5, 2019 by Akira

[Neptune]

Due to the fact that the cultists and Hounds were distracted by their now destroyed mansion, Daedrin was able to lead Izanagi away from the centre of their worship with minimal encounters. Daedrin was relieved to get out from underneath that perpetual cloud that hung above the mansion. It felt good to have the warmth of the sun once more against his skin. It had been so gloomy beneath the cloud cover and both of the horses seemed to perk up when they had left. Thankfully, now that they were past Ashaba, it wouldn’t take them long to reach their final destination. He looked up through the trees and could see the looming peaks of Enutpen’s Glory. Despite the fact that they could see them, they were still a few days travel from their base. While not as sprawling as the Therarr peaks, this mountain range was taller, with their peaks penetrating the clouds. They were so large and imposing that they affected the very layout of the land. They were the very reason for the existence of the Dynx Desert as the mountains prevented any rain moving from the Rosayia forest up north. 

For several days, Daedrin lead Izanagi through the winding paths of the forest. With the mountains in view, it was easily to make their way towards them. Even an amature navigator could not lose their way with such beacons. Now that they were so deep into the forest, their chances of encountering dangerous monsters was significantly higher, and the two had a couple of run ins with persistent monsters who thought that the two would make an easy meal, only to find out the hard way that they weren’t. The hunting was good at least, and Daedrin knew enough about the local fauna to pick edible plants to compliment their meals. 

On the evening of the third day since leaving the mansion, Daedrin pulled his mount to a stop and looked up at the mountains that had gradually grown in size until they had almost completely taken over their view. He turned his head towards his travelling companion and said, “We should be leaving the forest soon. The location we will need to go, to mine the Kraerhil is a little distance into the mountain range. Thankfully we won’t have to go too far in. The mountains can be just as dangerous as this forest…” He sighed through his nose before giving a slight smile, “We’ll set up camp here for tonight. We should be able to reach the location the day after tomorrow if we set out in the morning.” He dismounted from Daegrin and lead the Aelda over to one of the nearby trees that looked like it would be a good spot to set up camp. Immediately, he set about making the fire and setting up a pot to cook a hot stew, figuring that a good hearty and hot meal would do them good before tackling the mountains. He looked up from what he was doing and asked, “Mind finding some meat for the stew?”

[Akira]

As time passed we kept going towards our destination: the Kraerhil mine. Over time my wounds and bruises acquired during my battle against the Hierarch were healed, but I was still unable to activate or discover the power of the rune I got from the pod found inside the mansion before it collapsed down. It wasn't for lack of trying, though. Every day, while Deadrin was sleeping and I was changed with watching the camp both Odium and I would try to activate it, but neither of us was able to get any results. Still, we were making progress, after two days we found out that there half of the rune meant 'time'. Should we find what the other half means we might be able to use it or at least undertand it.

On the third day after our ''little adventure'' in the mansion we were clearly approaching the mountains. They were an incredible sight so say the least. Throught all these years traveling around I had seen my fair share of breath taking sights, but that surely was something memorable. My attention was quickly taken by Deadrin who told me that our destination was somewhat close from our current position, but we should still be careful since the mountains wouldn't be any less dangerous than the forest. I gave him a quick nod in response to that. Then we proceeded to set up camp so we could spent the night. While Deadrin was setting up somethings things he asked me to go look for some meat for our dinner "Sure thing." I quickly answered in a calm tone and headed towards the deepts of the woods. I quickly activated my Soul Eye to amke my job of hunting an animal easier. After walking a little bit however, I found a small river. It wasn't very deep and it was located at a considerable distance from our camping site. Thanks to my Soul Eye I was able to quickly spot a few decent sized fishes swimming around in the water. With a mental command I opened three portals above the water, figuring that it would be enough, and waited for right moment to attack. In blink of an eye I fired all my chains and maneged to pierce through a total of three good sized fishes. They had light grey scales and were about 25 cm. 

Satisfied with my success, I commanded the chains once again and brought them all towards me. I calmly took all of the fishes in my hands, dispersed the chains and made my way back to the camp. When I arrived there I noticed that pretty much everything was in place, including the campfire. "Hey, look what I got." I said with a smile while approaching Deadrin and handing him the fishes "Should be enough for the both of us right?" 

[Neptune]

While Izanagi disappeared off to hunt for some meat, Daedrin set up the campfire and constructed a spit which he hung their cooking pot from. He took their sleeping bags from the horses and lay them down near the fire, closer to the protection of the tree but allowing them to benefit from the heat that the fire generated. He then returned to the fire and began to prepare their stew, pouring water into the pot from their own water supply. Luckily, he knew that there were several fresh water streams in the mountains that they could take advantage of. Certainly tastier than river water, that was for sure. As he was preparing them, he looked up as he could sense Izanagi returning. His red eyes lit up in appreciation at what his friend brought back, “Those are some fine fish you have there.” He commented with a grin as he took the fish and looked at them closer, “Certainly enough for the both of us.” He said before laying them down on a nearby rock. He finished what he was doing with the vegetables before picking up a flattish rock. He inspected it for a few moments before brushing it clean and putting it close to the fire to heat up.

He then turned his attention to the fish, pulling out a dagger. At first, Daedrin used the blade of the knife to descale the fish as he knew that wouldn’t be particularly appetising. He then sliced the fish open, gutting it to remove the guts and other unpleasant organs that they wouldn’t want to eat. He then neatly sliced the flesh off, taking off as much of it as possible before slicing it up into smaller pieces. He placed them on the flat rock, giving them a slight sear on the surface before he threw them into the pot. Once he had finished all of the meat, he threw the rest of the ingredients into the pot and put the lid on, “A good fish stew. I haven’t had one in a long time.” He said before he picked up the leftovers of the fish and carrying it a distance from the camp. Using telekinesis, he dug out a small pit before burying the disgards. He then returned to the camp and washed his hands before taking a long drink from. 

He then returned to the fire and sat himself down, turning his red eyes towards the mountains as if drawn to them. A slight smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he felt a feeling of nostalgia rise up inside of him. Without even realising it, he started to speak, “I have a very special love for mountains, you know. I grew up in a mountainous valley, in a castle keep. It was a very peaceful place, and I feel quite privileged to have grown up there. It was so beautiful. The mountains were always capped with snow, no matter the time of year. And at the very bottom of the valley was the clearest lake you could have ever seen. So clear you could see the bottom of it, and all the fish that swam within it. And just beyond the valley was a forest that stretched as far as the eye could see… I rather miss it.” He let out a soft hum, not taking his eyes off of the mountain before he then added, “I will go back, one day. It won’t be for a very long time, though.” 

[Akira]

I simply sat by the campfire as Deadrin began to prepare the fishes, saying that it had been quite some time since he ate that type of white meat before. I smiled a him gantly and nodded a bit in response "That makes two of us then" I said with a slight chuckle "My homeland was located in an island and was quite well known in the region for having really good fishing seasons. Back when I was a kid I used to eat fish almost every day. Of couse, ever since I fled home I..." I sighed a little bit due to the bitter sweet memories of my time with my mother and father, back when I still had a complete and happy family "Well... anyway. Yeah, it has been quite some time since I ate fish too." Simply urned my gase to the fire, watching the flames dance over the burning pieces of wood, heating up the pot over it and cooking our dinner. *Hey Odium, do you think we can use the wrathful flame to cook something?* I began to wonder as my thoughts took flight due to boredom *Are you seriously planning to use one of deadliest powers in our arsenal to cook a stew?* The demon responded in a indignant tone *No... well, not to cook a stew anyway...*

As we were waiting for dinner to be ready Deadrin began to speak his mind about how much he loved the mountains, which was something we shared even though he probably liked them even more than me. I simply kept mysefl where I was, closely listening to my friend talking about where he grew up, how beutiful that place was and that he was planning on going back there some day for a visit, even if it was a short lived one. By the time he was done the stew was ready, so I grabbed the two bowls and spoons nearby and served us both a generous amount. I handed Deadrin his meal and then sat again near the campfire "I have to agree you with you, the mountais sure are an incredible sight. I saw a lot of impressive things through my time travelling around, but these sure are special." I chuckled a before taking another spoon of stew "As for the visit... I think it is a very good idea. Everyone needs a break every now and then to relax a bit and keep his head in the right place. And hey, if said place can be same place you spent your childhood that is even better right?" I smiled softly and my friend and kept eating a bit more "Sometimes I think about going back to my homeland... to see what happened, if the war ended and... how my mother is..." I sighed a bit clearly a bit saddened by thinking about what happened to my mother and how left her "I often find myself wondering if what I did was right, but I guess it doens't really matter now anyway... it has been so long after all... I don't even know if can go back and face her... well, nevermind. I might have spoken a bit too much." I rubbed the back of my head a bit before finishing my meal and setting the bowl aside, placing it near the campfire. "So, if I recal correctly is your turn to watch the camp first right?" I stretched my arms a bit and made my way to the sleeping bags "Good night" I said as made myself confortable inside my bag and closed my eyes, quickly falling asleep.

[Neptune]

Daedrin looked back over at Izanagi as the man began to talk, responding to his comments about the mountains. He smiled a little as Izanagi commented that a visit would be a good idea, as everyone needed a break now and then. The problem was, was that Daedrin couldn’t visit his homeland. Not for a very long time. Izanagi would be long dead by that point. Granted, from his perspective, it would be no time at all compared to his life span. But he still had to wait for a while. He continued to listen, rolling his stew in the bowl before looking back up when Izanagi mentioned his mother, and his wonder as to how she was. It made him curious as to what had happened between mother and son. An argument perhaps? Or he had run away? Even though it wasn’t really any of his business, he couldn’t help but to be curious but he didn’t ask any probing questions. After all, if Izanagi wanted to talk about it, he would. Not sooner, or later. He focused back on his food, almost finished by the time Izanagi questioned about night watch. He nodded, “Yes. It is my turn for watch.” He confirmed, watching as Izanagi moved over to the sleeping bags and settled in his own, “Good night. Sleep well.” Daedrin said, turning back to the fire as he finished eating the stew. He looked into the pot and saw that there was still some left, and decided to leave it until morning. They could use the heat of the fire to warm it back up to be more edible.

He gathered up the bowls and went over to their bags where he washed them and put them aside to dry. He then stood up and looked up at the tree, analysing it. It was a straight up trunk, with the first thick branch at least four metres from the base of the trunk. Perfectly climbable. He glanced at Izanagi to make sure that he was asleep before he stripped off his gloves and carefully stripped off his shoes before climbing up the trunk of the tree and settling on the thick branch. He stretched his legs out before him as he pressed his back against the trunk as he stared off into the distance. It was freshly dark, with the only source of light being their dying fire. Daedrin had decided to leave it as it was, as it would soon die on its own merit before the night time monsters started to become active. He crossed his arms against his chest, his sharp gaze shifting through every inch of the forest as he kept vigil for his sleeping friend. 

[Akira]

While I was in a deep sleep Odium had a different idea in mind. I was something he had never done before and he wasn't really sure if it would work, but he simply didn't have many options. Plus, now that he was sure that I was in the dream world he felt like it was the right opportunity. Slowly but surely the dark energy that appears on my skin when Odium takes over began to flow through me, however, instead of covering my entire right side like when we were attacked by the Hounds a couple of days ago it only covered my head and right arm. Odium, now in control of my body, slowly got up from the sleeping bag and began to scan the area around truing to find Deadrin. His eyes were emitting a soft orange glow as a sigh of his control over his vessel. Soon enough he grew tired of waiting and simply decided to call out for the one he was looking for. "Oi weir- I mean... Deadrin. Came out. I wish to speak to you." he said while trying to not be too loud, not wanting any unnecessary attention. 

Once Deadrin revealed himself Odium couldn't help but wonder where had he been, but he quickly shrugged it off since his time in control of the sleeping was limited. "I don't know how much time I can hold in this state, so I'll try to be as direct as possible." he began to speak in a direct and serious tone "Even though I fail to understand why, that numbskull vessel of mine trusts you. Maybe because you are one of the very few who don't despise him even after learning about his real self, but it's still not enough to convince me. Now... you do remember that fight against he Hounds a few days back correct? I told you this before, but I'll repeat myself. You have no idea of what Izanagi is capable of. You might not see him a anything special while he is in control, but I assure you. Should he lose said control and give in to his anger, both him and I will be converged into something different; something that not even I can control; something that would make even the most powerful dragons cower in fear. A creature known as the Wrathful Blazerker." Odium gave a quick pause at that point so deadrin could process every thing he had said "Now that you know this, human, I have two questions for you. First: what do you think of Izanagi? and Second: if he transforms in that monster what would you do?" His tone was still calm, but he was even more serious than before.

[Neptune]

Daedrin felt the glare of energy, and froze for a moment before he looked over the branch and down where he could see Izanagi moving around. He then noticed the strange markings around the man's head and right arm. He resisted the instinctual urge to shift form, and merely sat very still, observing the man. He was barely even breathing, making his sound signature very small. He wondered what Izanagi was doing, and decided that it would be best to just watch him in the meantime. When the man called out, Daedrin tilted his head to the side. He caught that the man just almost called him ‘weirdo’ which suggested that it was Odium that was in control. His eyebrow rose when Odium expressed the desire to speak to him. He hesitated a few moments, before he shifted and allowed his legs to hang over the edge of the branch before he pushed himself and dropped down. Despite the drop being four metres, he didn’t even feel a twinge of pain. 

When he straightened, he tilted his head slightly and stared down at Odium, patiently waiting for the man to speak. He listened carefully, since he figured that Odium wouldn’t even want to talk to him if it wasn’t important. Daedrin gave a slight nod when Odium asked him to remember the fight against the Hounds. His eyebrow rose again when Odium said that Daedrin had no idea what Izanagi was capable of. He had already figured that, that was not the height of their powers. Not that he could even figure out what the height of that power would be. Although it was nothing that either Izanagi or Odium could control, then it couldn’t be anything good. He frowned a little, feeling more than a little worried and not just for Izanagi. 

At the two questions, Daedrin crossed his arms across his chest and narrowed his eyes slightly as he analysed Odium closely with sharp eyes, his gaze penetrating. After a moment he said, “I consider him a friend. I think he is a good man, if troubled. I don’t really want anything bad to befall him. If he transforms into this Wrathful Blazerker, then I will do everything within my power to help him return to normal. Even if I have to make a plea with the Divines themselves. That is, if it is even possible to do so. Is it?” He then asked.

[Akira]

Odium kept eye contact with Deadrin the whole time. Despite the fact that when it comes to understanding other people he was even worse than Izanagi himself, even he could tell by the look on Deadrin's eyes that the man was being completely honest. Odium was also paying close attention to every single word coming out of Deadrin's lips. They were all direct, clear and unyelding. The sort of thing that not even Odium himself could really question. Deadrin's question also got his attention "I can't tell for sure." he began to speak again "To be honest I hightly doubth any Divine would go out of their way to help a simple demon like me or Izanagi. Plus, I am the incarnation of one of the seven deadly sins. That puts us in a position that is not really advantageous." Odium the sighed and turned his attention towards the now extinguished camp fire "Forunelly, there is another option, even though I don't really like it"  He calmly made his way to the pile of ashes, burned wood and rocks, picking up, with his right hand, a single stone from the area that was just a bit smaller than his hand and then proceeding back to his previous location. 

"Now... I want you to pay close attention to what I am about to say" At that moment Odium's hand began to emit a soft white glow as it began to heaten up a faint 'fssssst' like sound could be heard as the stone began to burn due to the high temperature in his hand. "There is one thing known among demons called Demonic Null Rune. It can only be made by high level demonic creatures such as me. Once used, it can completelly strip any demon within the area of effect of it's power for a limited amount of time. I am immune to most of said runes because there are very few who are both as strong as me, or stonger, and have the required knowledge to make one" Odium then opened his hand, revealing the stone that was now dark grey and a single white demonic rune covering most of it's surface "I made this one myself, so it will affect me." He then stretched his arm, handing over the stone to Deadrin "I don't like the idea of giving this to you, but my options are very limited and Izanagi trusts you, so... don't make me regret this" he then turned back to the direction of Izanagi's bedroll "To use it, all you have to do smash the rock, but be aware. It also has a very limited effect radious. It will only work if you are at most within two meters away from us" With that said Odium made his way back to my bed and layed back once again. The marks on my body dissapeared as I returned to my normal state. Soon, the one who was there was me once again, simply sleeping as if nothing had happened.

Edited February 25, 2019 by Akira

[Neptune]

“You might be surprised.” Daedrin said softly at Odium’s doubt in regards to any kind of God helping him. But then, he knew that Odium knew nothing of his own Divines. Who they were, and their power. He knew they would come to help if he asked them of it, and he was half Daedra. Half a demon in the eyes of many who would know. So he did not feel the same doubt that Odium felt. But he tilted his head a little, following Odium’s gaze to the extinguished fire. He raised an eyebrow when the man said that there was another option. He watched, keeping quiet as the demon moved over to the campfire and picked up a single stone before returning to stand in front of Daedrin, who was watched with avid interest.

He raised his eyes, locking them back with Odium when he said that Daedrin needed to listen carefully. So he did, paying attention even to the way Odium spoke. He nodded his head slightly in an absent manner as Odium spoke about the Null Runes. He understood the basic concept of them, even if he had never encountered anything like them before. When Odium opened his hand, Daedrin looked down to see the changed stone and his blood red eyes glimmered in interest. When Odium offered it to Daedrin, he glanced up at the demon who spoke of his reluctance. He nodded and said, “I understand your reluctance. I would in your position. I won’t abuse it, I promise.” He took the rune from Odium, tucking it safely away so that it was out of sight. The last thing he wanted, was for someone to steal it from him and turn it against Izanagi and Odium. 

“I understand.” Daedrin said when Odium explained its use and limitation. He pressed his right hand against his chest, over his left heart before bowing his head slightly in a respectful gesture. He then watched as Odium went back to the bedroll and went back to sleep. Daedrin watched him for a few long moments before he climbed back up into the tree and settled himself back down to keep watch. He had a feeling that while Izanagi trusted him, Odium certainly didn’t. At least not yet. It must have taken a lot of convincing of himself to give Daedrin that kind of power over the two of them. And Daedrin could certainly understand that reluctance. It was putting control over yourself, to someone else. He was similar to his father’s. He preferred being the one in control, especially over himself. It would take him a lot of pride for him to hand over something like a Null Rune. It wasn’t as if he could repay the favour, either. Daedra didn’t work like that, and as he was a natural born Daedra he knew how to control his abilities. The only way he could lose control, is if he went into an Eldyr’s rage and ended up attacking everyone, and anything. Friend or foe. In that state it mattered little. And there was little Izanagi could do to stop him if that were to ever happen. 

There was one way, but he lacked the resources for it. A powerful enough sedative would stop his rampage and he would wake up in control of himself once more. But he didn’t have said sedative on him. Then there was the problem of a delivery. The safest way would be to use an arrow of some kind but if he shifted to his Eldyr form, that might not even be enough unless Izanagi was somehow able to get a barrel of the stuff down his throat. And considering the kind of fire the Eldyr’s used, Daedra corrupted ones at that, it was extremely dangerous. He shook his head a little, finding such thoughts a little fruitless. He would just have to make sure he kept his anger in check, that’s all. 

When his watch was over, he climbed down the tree and pulled his shoes and gloves back on before he woke Izanagi, “Your watch.” He said before moving over to his own bedroll and rolling in it himself. He decided that he would not tell Izanagi about the Null Rune. He wasn’t sure what knowledge this Wrathful Blazerker could pull from Izanagi. And if he knew Daedrin had the Rune, it would make it harder for him to use it. It would be his and Odium’s secret, for now.

When morning came, they reheated the remains of the fish stew and ate it before they broke camp. Daedrin, as always, made sure that there was little evidence of their presence here. While there was only a few humans that were foolhardy to delve this deep into the forest, he was a little paranoid what remained of the Hounds and Torak’s Worshippers tracking them down on some kind of revenge quest. That would become very annoying, very quickly. Once their horses were saddled, they left their camp and headed towards the mountains once again.

Daedrin lead the way, travelling along some of the tracks that the forest game had left. It meandered through the trees and often split off at places, but Daedrin kept to it. The land began to slope up and the forest began to break. The trees were becoming more sparse and shrubbery and grass became more common. They then emerged from the shade of the forest into a grassy plain. The mountains rose up before them, majestically reaching into the sky to disappear into the clouds that danced around the huge peaks. Daedrin looked at his travelling companion and said, “Not long now. We should reach the mine either tonight, or tomorrow morning.” He turned back around and started across the large, grassy plain that marked the boundary between forest and mountains. 

[Akira]

After Deadrin woke me up I stretched a little bit before covering my mouth with one of my hands and letting out a soft yawn "Alright..." I said in a somewhat lazy tone and got up from my bedroll. I took that apportunity to roll my bed again a place it near Lucky without waking her up. Since I wasn't going to sleep again until the next night. My shift was pretty calm and quiet. Except by having to deal with a few birds that were trying to steal the remains of our fish stew, nothing really interesting happened during it, which was a bit surprising but also very appreciated. When sun showed up again, bringing its warm light to the forest once again. I woke Deadrin and we both ate what was left of out dinner last night as breakfast. Soon, we were on our horses once again and making our way towards the mountains.

After some time travelling through the dense woods I began to notice that the trees were slowly but surely getting smaller in numbers as we steadly left the forest behind us and finally reached the mountains. Their majestic forms were covering the ground with shadows as the very sun was partially blocked out by them. We were now in a open field, mainly accupied by grass and a few bushes here and there. As I admired the new area we found ourselfs into Deadrin cought my attention by saying that we were almost at our destination, with nothing but a day's worth of travelling in separating us from said location. I simply nodded at his comment and kept going. Little did we know about the intense battle that would soon take place there.

As we kept travelling through the open grassy fields we eventually reached an area with a single massive rock in the middle of the field, which seemed to be a bit out of place to say the least, but that was the least important part. Even though we were about 5 meters from the object we were still able to see that there was a person sitting at the top of it, with it's back pointed towards us and it's head pointed up as if looking at the sky. It seemed to be a woman, judging by the long dark purple hair and the the blue robes she was wearing. I pulled Lucky to a complete stop and asked Deadrin to do the same "Please stop for a moment" I said in my usual calm tone before getting down from my horse, handing her reings to my friend "I have a really bad feeling about this one, but I am too far to use my Soul Eye, so I am not sure about what she is. I'll go have a look, you just wait here for now ok?" With that said I began to approach the mystetious figure over the rock.

Once I had reached the base of said rock I calmly took the sheated sword out of my back as a means of precaution "Hey, I hightly doubt you are simply someone who got lost around the area, so what are you doing here?" I asked in a clam and serious tone "My my, what do we have here?" She quickly shifted herself in my direction and got down from the stone "I could make you the very same question my dear~" her voice was soft and alluring, she was clearly trying to make feel confortable around her, probably hoping to make me put my guard down, but wasn't going to happen "I asked first, so cut the bullshit and answer me" I wasn't being friendly to her, mainly because I knew she had second intentions "Oh my, that is not how you should treat a pretty lady you know?" she was getting more serious now, noticing that her game wasn't working on me "Oh I know, fortunately you are not one of them" (sick burn!!!) That last comment made her lose all of her patience and quickly materialize and dagger made out of some sort of dark purple energy and try to stab me. Without even unsheating my sword I defected the attack and jumped back to get some dispance between me and her "Deadrin! Back off!" I shouted as I noticed the smoke, that was the same color as the dagger, beginning to surround her body. Knowing that my only choice was to fight her and that there was no point in holding back I activated my Soul Eye so I could understand what she was. My eyes widened when I saw that she had no soul at all, which could only mean one thing: a soulless. Upon acquiring that info I immediatly merged my body Odium's as much as I could without losing control. My right arm and leg were completly covered with the back energy once again, with the chaotic orange lines all over them."Keep your distance, she is a soulless!" I shouted one last time to my friend. In response, the soulless woman discarded the dagger and manifested to dark purple axes, one in each hand, in preparation for the combat.

"Hell's Chain!" I manifested countles protals in the air and fired at my opponent, to my suprise, she maneged to dodge and deflect her way out of the affected area and rushed towards me with her axes ready to strike me. With the sword in my right hand and the sheath in the other, we clashed our weapons together, creating a small crater around our feet and a strong burst of air around us. With our faces being so close to each other she noticed something interesting. "Oh... you look a bit familiar" I pushed her back and coverd my right leg with Wrathful Flames before kicking her in the gut with enough strenght to make her collide with the boulder behind her and make it crack. However, at the very last second before my foot came in contact with her body she hardened the smoke around her, creating a shield that absorbed almost all the impact. Needless to say, it didn't do much on her. "I have never seen you in my whole life." I responded as I made the chains that had missed the target and the flames on my leg to dissapear. "You remind me of a man whose soul I absorbed a long time ago in a country very far from here" That information cought my attention, but I didn't have much time to think about it. She discarded her axes and made a bow with the same color as her previous weapons and began to fire energy arrows at me, which I was able to deflect with relative ease "If you are powerful enough to keep up with me in this form, then I am sure you already took countless innocent souls away" My response caused her to chuckle a little bit while still firing arrows at me "You are right, but that one was special. He tryed to resist me until the very end. I guess that is what war does, it can turn even a normal person into a resilient soldier" at that moment my mind was flodded with with the possibility of that soulless woman being the responsable for my father's death. I was barely able to react when my enemy rushed me once again and punched me in the chest with enough strength to push me a few meters away and forme me to drop my sword and sheath.

Now that I had no weapon in my hands, she eas expecting me to give up the fight and beg for mercy, however... "What was his name?" I asked in a cold and calm tone as I regained my balance, a murderous aura already beginning to surround me "Come again?" she asked in a confused tone, since the man that was suppsoed to be beggin for his life was making a seemingly out of place question and looking more and more dangerous every moment "I asked. what. was. his. name?" "I don't remember correctly... it was something like Du... Dugum...?" "...Durum..." I said in a even more manecing tone "His name was Akihiko Durum, correct?" "Oh yeah! That is the one!" she responded in a surprisingly cheerful tone "Did you know him my dear?" "Father..." tears began to roll down my face as I recalled the very vague and few happy memories I still had with him and my mother "You.... killed... him..." my voice was failing me and the light sobs where making harder to speak "Awn don't worry my dear, I'll soon reunite both of you~" she replied once again in her cheerfull tone, her bow was quickly dispersed and another axe took it's place. The soulless woman began to make her way towards me, ready to take my life and soul, but that would never happen...

(Alright. Sorry for interrupting the story, but I highly recommend hearing this song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvSNYSzASww during the transformation sequence, you might want to skip to the 0:10 mark as well. Hope you enjoy it!)

"YOU KILLED HIM YOU BITCH!!!" I shouted at her, creating a sudden and really powerful burst of very hot air that pushed her back a few meters. A 1,50 meter wide crater was created under my feet and a blood red demonic magic circle of the same size as well. The temperature around me skyrocketed and burned the grass within a 5 meter radious of my position. The soulless woman jumped back a few times to get some distance due to the unbearable heat and simply watched in horror as her dimise began to take form. I shouted once again in pure hate and anger at the culprint of my father's death. "rrrrAAAAAAAGHHHH" a sudden tornado of fire formed around me and envelloped my form. It was made out of a mix of my blood red Wrathful Flames and a mysterious pitch black flame as well. The tornado began to get even more intense and taller in a matter of seconds and the very ground bellow our feet began to shake while emiting a faint 'vrrrrrrr' like sound. The gentle sun light covering the fields was slowly but surely being blocked by the dark clouds taking over the sky. 

At the core of the inferno I was being transformed. My mind, body and soul were giving in to the pure rage racing through them. This time there was no laugh, no mantra, or anything of the sort. There was a but simple murder intent fuelled by wrath in it's purest form. The tornado suddenly evolved into a comple fire geyser that only lasted for a few brief moments before dissipating in the air, resulting in lit ashes falling from the sky as if it was snow. In the location where I was, a thick smoke cloud was keeping my new form a secret, the only thing that could be seen were my eyes, since they were emitting a strong blood red glow. From within the smoked area it was possible to hear the sound of a growling beast, ready to take it's prey down. And then suddenly... "ROOOOOOOOAAAAR!!!" the unleashed roar was so powerful it immediatly dissipated the smoke, revealing the creature within it. It had pitch black skin, a muscly body, a pair of horns in it's head that were the same color as it's skin, spikes on it's shoulders, legs and forearms and had it's whole body covered by the Wrathful Flame. The woman felt a shiver running through her spine as the Wrathful Blazerker finally revealed himself. It was at this moment that knew... she fucked up.

(Transformation ends here and so should the music if it is still playing... unless you want to keep hearing it... I won't stop you...)

With swift moves the Blazerker dashed towards the unfortunate target of it's fury, the woman tryed to dodge, but her moves were way to slow and she got hit by the demon's fist straight in the face. Her magic smoke shield proved to be almost useless now, as she was sent flying until she hit the big rock she was sitting on not long ago. The impact was more than strong enough to reduce the rock to a pile of rubble and still drag her body against the ground for a solid 7 meters leaving marks on where she had passed. With slow moves, she struggled to get back up on her feet, once she finally did, she coughed up a lot of blood on the ground and began to pant heavily. The area of her skin that had direct contact with the Blazerker's fist wasn't bleeding very much because it had been completely cauterized. The demon however, didn't follow up with another immediate attack, it wanted to take it's sweet time and enjoy the feeling of making the soulless woman suffer. On the other hand, she had her own plans "You are pretty impresive, I'll give you that, but I will not die like this" as if on cue, two white magic circles appeared in thin air in front of the Blazerker, and from them two big sets of chains in the same color as the portals were fired at the demon's direction, both pierced straight through his chest at the same spot, the impact was enough to actually force the chain's victim to take a step back. The woman wiped the blood from her chin and laughed a bit, thinking she now had the upper hand. "As much as I hate to copy someone else's attacks, those chains you used not long ago were pretty intersting. Hope you don't mind me using them in your place from now on" her voice was no longer the same from before, she was talking in a way serious and cocky tone. Her 'victory' would be short lived. The Blazerker simply grabbed the chains with both of it's hands and began to growl again, the part of the chains that was making direct contact with the demon's body quickly began to change color to red due to the insane heat. Soon, the Blazerker pulled the chains and broke them, unleashing another powerful roar in the process. The chains immediatly dispersed and the soulless found herself in disadvantage.

"Fine, it seems I'll have to use my ace to take you down" her smile and cockyness were nowhere to be found this time, she was dead serious and clearly going for the kill. Suddenly, a very intense white glow began to emit from her body and she also began to grow in size. The Blazerker didn't bother to even try to interrupt, it wanted to chush it's victim while she used all of her power. By the time the glow had fadded away the woman had transformed herself in a 15 meters tall dragon with shinny purple scales, blue horns and green eyes. With the tranformation complete, she expanded her strong wings and took flight. At first it looked like she was trying to flee from the fight, but as she hit she same altitude as the dark clouds blocking the sun light she created a ball of white energy in front of her open mouth, she was clearly focusing as much power as possible on that attack. Down on the ground, the Blazerker didn't show any sign of trying to dodge the attack, it was planning on simply tanking it. After a few seconds, the white dragon roared and fired the condensed energy ball at her enemy.

The sphere hit the target full on, an intense explosion of white energy was created as result, the radious of the blast was about 5 meters and a couple of seconds were necessary for the energy to disperse completely. Once it finally did however, the Blazerker simply emerged from the dust cloud without a sigle scratch and seemingly unfazed by the attack. The demon calmly lifted it's right arm with it's hand open and aimed at the still flying dragon. The Wrathful Flames dancing on his arm grew more intense and an orb made of the blood red flames quickly formed at the palm of it's hand. The orb itself was just a bit bigger than the palm of the hand of it's caster. Without any warning or delay, the demon fired it's attack at the dragon, who tried to fly out of the projectile's way, but her big body made impossible to move fast enough, plus, she had just spent most of her power on the last attack and was extremely tired. The red orb reached it's target and caused a massive blast of Wrathful Flames as result. The explosion was at least 20 meters in radious and powerful enough to completely obliterate it's victim. The sheer pressure created by it quickly wiped out the dark clouds in the sky, resulting in the sun light shinning over the battle field once again and leaving a thick ash cloud in the area of the explosion once the energy had dispersed. 

Against all odds the soulless woman actually survived the explosion, but she would soon wish that the opposite had happened. She was forced back into her human form and fell from the sky, hitting the ground at a location that was just a few meters away from the Wrathful Blazerker. Her clothes had been almost completely desintegrated and her body had blood and serious burns all over. She was already as good as dead, barely conscious and unable to move a single finger, but that wasn't enough for her enemy. It wouldn't stop as long as she was able to breathe. The demon slowly but surely made it's way towards her, only coming to a stop once it was right in front of her. With a cold look on it's fiery power filled-eyes and a horrifying murderous aura around it, the Blazerker grabbed the woman by the face with it's right hand and lifted her up until she was about the same height as her aggressor. The intense heat of the demon's skin was already burning it's defeated enemy even more, even though she wasn't even able to scream at that point, unfortunately for her, there was still more in stock for her. The flames on it's right arm began to grow more intense once again, the demon was ready to finish her off. After a few brief moments another blast was fired from the Blazerker's right hand, but this one was way smaller and weaker than the previous, but it was still more than enough to burn a hole on its victim's head. The soulless woman was already dead, but her body was still weakly twitching a little bit. Ready to put a definitive end to her, the demon punched the abdomen of the dead woman with enough strenght to impale her with it's left arm, then the Blazerker lifted her even more, positioning her horizontally above it's head, placed it's free hand at the edge of the hole and, with another powerful and furious roar, ripped the dead woman's body in half. The remais of her blood and guts were now spread all of over the crater that was created by the last attack. Finally, the demon felt some measure of satisfaction, but it wouldn't last very long.

After a brief moment standing still and simply enjoying the feeling of gratification the Blazerker quickly jerked it's head to the side and locked it's eyes on Deadrin. Without a second though, the demon immediatly rushed towards it's new target, leaving behind nothing but a blazing trail of flames and death. Once Deadarin used the Null Rune, The Blazerker stoped dead on it's tracks, it wasn't moving a single muscle or even twiching anymore. The only thing comming from it now were slight growls that grew weaker by the second as the pitch black energy covering it's body began to fade away and reveal Izanagi's normal body from under the mass of demonic power.

After a short while, the traces of the energy were gone and I simply fell to the ground unconscious, my body was still very hot and it would still take a short while for it cool down after all that action.  

Edited July 24, 2019 by Akira

[Neptune]

When the two of them reached the area with the large rock placed in the middle, Daedrin was able to immediately see that there was someone sitting on top of it due to his hawk-like vision. He narrowed his eyes slightly as he observed her, seeing her purple hair and blue robes. There was something about her that made him instinctively want to shift form and snarl at her. But he held himself in check. He also didn’t mention anything about the woman, to avoid questions from Izanagi, like how he could see the woman from so far away despite her being but a small speck on top of the huge boulder. He kept Daegrin abreast with Lucky as the two drew closer and Izanagi was able to see the woman. He pulled the Aelda to a stop when Izanagi asked, still eyeing up the woman with a measure of distrust. He nodded at his friends request, “Alright.” He said as he took the reins of the horse, holding onto them tightly. 

The way the woman’s voice was being soft and alluring, it made Daedrin want to draw himself and the horses back. It was too sickly. Too fake. He had interacted with many people, and had learnt how to easily spot such fake platitudes. He was glad to note that Izanagi didn’t fall to it, either. He would have been disappointed if he had. When Izanagi whipped the woman back in place with his smartass comment, Daedrin couldn’t help the snicker that escaped him. But it seemed that neither of the two noticed. Despite his urge to help his friend, he did as he was asked and drew back, bringing Lucky with him as the two of them started fighting. While he was sure that Izanagi could handle himself, it still made him want to help his friend. 

His identification peaked his interest though, and he observed the feminine figure a little closer. His father would certainly be interested in her, to see how she operated. He longed to join the fight, but his instincts were telling him to stay out of it. That this was between the two of them. He had drawn himself some distance away, and had dismounted from Daegrin, still holding onto Lucky’s reins. He was no longer able to hear what they were saying to each other, but whatever she was saying seemed to be angering Izanagi. He shifted, getting an uncomfortable feeling. A feeling that Odium’s precaution could not have come at a better time. His free hand moved down to his pocket, feeling the Null Rune before he slipped his hand into his pocket. 

His bad feeling turned out to be right as he watched Izanagi shout something out before there was a sudden burst of air that pushed the feminine figure backwards. His eyes flickered down to the ground, seeing the grass burning to a crisp due to the intense heat. He could see the demonic magic circle appearing before everything was hidden from view by a sudden tornado of fire that formed around Izanagi and stretched up into the sky with an intense roar. He looked up as the land around them began to dim, and he saw that the sun was being hidden from view. Lucky let out a nervous whinny sound, and Daedrin petted her on her neck to try and calm her down. 

He could almost sense the change that overcame his friend. He could almost taste the rage that seemed to pour off of the man like a tsunami. If he was not as hardened as he was, he might have ran as fast as he could away from the scene. But he had seen the worst things in the universe, and had seen raging Gods. The two horses were not so composed and were shifting nervously behind him, but he kept a hard grip on their reins. The tornado suddenly erupted like a geyser before it dissipated, causing ash to float down almost like innocent snowflakes that danced on the breeze. He tried to see what was doing on, but not even he could see through the thick smoke. He shuddered a little at the sound of the roar, filled with so much hate and rage, before he could finally see what had become of his friend. There was almost nothing recognisable about him. His stomach lurched in uneasiness, not liking what he was seeing. 

“So this is the Wrathful Blazerker…” He muttered to himself, watching the scene very carefully. Odium had told him that neither of them could control this beast. It was the pure rage. Pure hatred. He could almost feel sorry for the feminine figure, had she not attacked them. The fight now seemed to take on a whole new level as the two seemed to use even more powerful attacks. But the blows that the feminine figure was dealing, seemed to have little to no effect on Izanagi. She was using up her energy while he seemed to merely tank the hits and come out of it with barely a scratch and without a drop of sweat. 

He became even more nervous when she began to glow and enlarge in size. He glanced down at Izanagi but he didn’t seem bothered in the slightest, which meant that he wasn’t concerned about what she was doing. When she had finished her transformation, Daedrin’s upper lip curled in a snarl. He resisted the urge to shift into his own Eldyr form and attack her. But he decided it would be best to leave the two going at it. And he was right to do so. Because even though she attempted her most powerful attack on Izanagi, it didn’t do anything. He watched as the demon fired some kind of projectile that hit its target straight on, causing a massive explosion that caused Daedrin to wince. But to his shock, the dragon survived the attack. He watched as her tarunoid form fell back to the ground, but she looked to be unmoving, her skin burnt. Daedrin was glad he wasn’t close enough to smell the burnt flesh, and he was certainly glad that he was standing upwind, rather than downwind. 

He watched, not even flinching as the Blazerker made sure that the woman was most definitely dead by blowing a hold clear through her head before impaling her through the abdomen before ripping the woman in half. If she wasn’t dead before, then she certainly was now. If she had been alive, then ripping her apart like that would have been intensely painful. He then became very alert when he could feel the Blazerker’s attention on him. The Aelda and Lucky seemed aware of it as well, as Daegrin let out a nervous sound. Lucky was not so restrained and let out a fearful whinny as she tried to tug at the reins, but Daedrin held them firmly in his grip. He did not flinch as the demon suddenly tore towards them. He pulled out the Null Rune, holding it within the palm of his hand. He splayed open his fingers, before using telekinesis to cause the Rune to float in the air. He remained rooted in his spot, waiting until the last moment before he clenched his hand into a fist, using the strength of his telekinesis to shatter the Rune.

To his relief, it worked just as Odium said it would and the power of the Blazerker was ripped from the figure before him, and Izanagi fell to the ground unconscious. He then turned to Lucky, making soothing sounds as she still continued to try and pull at the reins. But after Izanagi was knocked out, she quickly calmed down. Daedrin patted her on her neck before he moved over to Daegrin and tied her reins tightly to the Aelda’s saddle. He then turned and moved over to Izanagi, kneeling down next to him. He reached out to touch him but stopped when he could feel the heat pouring off of the man. He was far too hot to touch. So he had to hope that the man would be okay. 

He stood back up and looked back towards the battlefield before moving over to it. He looked around, and to his amazement and relief, he found the sword and sheath that he had given Izanagi. They looked a little worse for wear, and in need of repair, but at least they were intact. He picked them up and returned to the horses, pushing the sword into the sheath and placing it on Lucky’s saddle. He then turned to Daegrin, who looked back at him, and said, “I’m going to need to carry Izanagi. I will try and stay out of Lucky’s sight, but please try and keep her calm. Go in that direction. If you spot a cave, let me know.” He pointed towards the mountain. Daegrin looked at the mountain before snorting and turning back and nuzzling Daedrin’s chest before he started off at a brisk run, pulling Lucky along with him.

Daedrin waited for a little while before he looked back down at Izanagi. He then sighed and shook his head slightly before he shifted, turning into his Eldyr form, his red scales glittering in the meagre sunlight like wine. He made himself large enough to carry his friend, but not too large that he would attract too much attention. He could sense the two horses moving further away, and kept a tenuous link with Daegrin so that he could be alerted if they found what they needed. Using telekinesis, he lifted Izanagi’s prone form and gently put him on his back, mindful of the ivory coloured spikes. He could feel the heat through the scales, but since he was able to easily handle lava, this was nothing to him. He then spread his wings, crouching low before launching himself up into the air. His wings, far larger than the length of his body, snapped open to their fullest for their first important stroke that made them airborne. 

They quickly moved away from the scarred battleground, getting closer to the mountains that reared up ahead of them. He hoped that they would be able to find some shelter soon, before Izanagi woke up. It would be a little awkward to have to explain why he was riding on a dragons back. Daedrin would prefer to avoid those questions. After all, he wasn’t meant to be revealing who, and what he was. Thankfully, it wasn’t long before he felt Daegrin calling for him through their connection and he turned in their direction. He spiralled down before he could see an entrance to a small cave in the mountainside. He couldn’t see either Daegrin or Lucky so he assumed that they were already inside of the cave. 

So he swooped down, flaring his wings as he landed, his claws clicking against the stone surface. He shuffled his wings, folding them back to tuck them against his side. He craned his neck, turning to look at Izanagi with one large, red eye before he telekinetically lifted the man from his back and placed him gently on the ground. He then shifted into his human form and moved over to Izanagi and checked how hot he was. Thankfully, he was cool enough to touch now, as the cool breeze created by their flight, and the ease at which his scales absorbed the heat had cooled his body down. Daedrin picked Izanagi up, throwing him across his shoulders before he moved into the cave where he found Daegrin and Lucky waiting for him. He gently put Izanagi down against the wall of the cave before going over to Lucky and untying her reins from Daegrin’s saddle. He then pulled off Izanagi’s bedroll and spread it on the most comfortable spot on the floor before he went back over to his friend and picked him back up and taking him over to his bed so that he could get some proper rest. He tucked the man in before he moved over to Daegrin where he pulled out some of the sticks that he had saved for a fire. He used some of the rocks within the cave to make a small ring, before he made the fire so that it could keep them warm within the cool cave. Once that was done, he sat himself against the wall of the cave opposite Izanagi as he waited for the man to wake up. He had no idea when that was going to be, as Odium had not been too specific on that. So he was forced to simply wait.

[Akira]

I was completely unconscious during the short lived flight to the cave. My mind was submerged in darkness this time, there was no dream or vision, simply... nothing. Not even being tossed over my friend's shoulder and then placed by the wall of a cave was enough to bring me back. Only time would be able to do that... however, Deadrin would soon have to deal with a unexpected situation. The ridiculous amount of demonic energy released by me and the Wrathful Blazerker during that fight was more than enough to get the attention of a few angels who were quietly scouting the area for any demons that could have sneaked their way into the human world. They reached the devastated battle field not long after Deadrin had left the place with me on his back. Thanks to their ability to track dark and demonic energy they were able to eventually reach the very same cave where Deadrin was. Usually, low level angels such as these don't have really notorious energy sensing capabilities, but since the amount of demonic power released during that fight was absurdly big, even they were capable of following the trail. 

Upon arriving at the area the cauitiously looked around the area, not wanting to risk getting cought by surprise by the demon who had cause so much destruction not long ago. They were in a group of three, all of them wearing basic light weight silver armor and wielding low level angelic spears. One of them took the lead and looked inside the cave first. He was surprised by the fact that the first thing that he saw was a human instead of a demonic creature. The othe two soon followed him and looked into the cave as well, taking notice of the horses in the back. They looked at each other a little bit with confused expressions on their faces that couldn't be seen due to their helmets. "Could it be possible that we are looking at the wrong place?" one of them asked to the others "No" one of the others replied looking my unconscious body before pointing at me "That is the demon were are looking for, it likely took a human form to make it harder to be found" he the directed his attention to Deadrin before speaking with serious and authoritarian tone "You, human... do you have any idea of who - or rather, what that... creature is? huh? Don't know just how powerful and dangerous it can be?" 

Edited February 28, 2019 by Akira

[Neptune]

Daedrin, ever alert as he was to keep an eye out for danger, could feel three unfamiliar minds coming closer to their cave. His hand shifted, curling around the handle of his sword as he turned his head towards the entrance of the cave. His blood red eyes narrowed for a moment when three figures came into view. For a moment, he thought that they were Celestials but his sharp eyes noticed the differences between these angelic figures and the Celestial’s he was more familiar with. Slowly, he stood up, turning to face towards them as they spoke. He glared down at them, not liking the disdainful manner in which they spoke about his friend. As if, by the very virtue of what he was, he had no sentience. No right to life, and no feelings like some kind of low life monster. Much in a similar way that Izanagi had treated that troll child. And if he wasn’t going to let Izanagi get away with it, without challenge, he certainly wasn’t going to allow these angels get away with it either. He didn’t like the dismissive way that they referred to him either, as if they thought of him as stupid. Infantile. It rattled him deeply, and it took every effort of will not to simply lash out at them. 

Instead, his tone was light, showing none of his inner feelings, “Why yes. Yes I know exactly who, and what he is. I know how dangerous, and powerful he can be.” His smile was pleasant, the corner of his eyes wrinkling slightly. However there was a subtle shift, and his smile turned as sharp as a knife and his eyes hardened, looking like a pair of hardened rubies in the darkness of the cave, “But he is under my protection. If you intend him any harm, or wish to perform an action that will bring him harm, then I will have no choice but to defend him, for he is my friend and I will not allow anything to befall him.” His voice continued to remain light and pleasant, but there was an undercurrent of confidence, as if he was sure that he could defend a demon from several angels. He knew that he was at an advantage here. They, like most people, thought of him as only a human. The Daedra side of him both recoiled from the angels, and yet hungered to taste their blood. His Eldyrannth side would prefer to end this peacefully, and yet was prepared to defend his friend if necessary. He hoped that they wouldn’t try and force his hand, though. He had no idea what effect their weapons would have on him. 

[Akira]

The angels found themselfs absolutely speechless by Deadrin's words. A human who actually befriended a demon and is disposed to protect it? That was something incredibly rare to find and, in the angel's case, it was a big problem. "Fool! Do you actually have the nerve to stand against us?" one of them said in an angry voice tone. "You humans are even more stupid than I originally though." He pointed his spear at Deadrin in a manecing way "Very well then. I shall take you down myself and put an end to both of yo-" before he finish his speech however, one of his brother-in-arms behind him placed a hand on his shoulder to get his attention. "Brother, stop it. We should leave." The peeved angel simply looked back at his companion with clear confusion "Why? what makes you think it is a good idea to simply leave this two here? extermination of demons is our duty and we just found a perfect opportunity to finish off a powerful one right here." "Because of him." They all focused their attentions on Deadrin once again "I can't really explain, but there is something about that human that makes me feel like we shouldn't fight him" After a second of silence the angel reluctantly recoiled his spear and turned his back to Deadrin and the others within the depts of the cave "Consider yourself lucky human" with that said, the three creatures of light left the area, but they were still planning on reporting what they saw to their supperiors.

After a couple of minutes I was finally able to open my eyes a little bit. My vision was blurry and my head was hurting like hell. I slowly sat up and took a look around, quickly noticing that I was on my bedroll and that there wasn't much light in the area, but I also noticed Deadrin nearby, which made me relax a bit. Seeing a friendly face, specially under those circuntances, was always nice. "Ow, my head.... what the hell happened...?" I said while rubbing my temple a little bit in a futile attempt to reduce the pain "Where are we?"

[Neptune]

The moment the threats flew and the spear was pointed at him, Daedrin’s pulled his sword slightly from his sheath, intending on defending both himself and Izanagi from these bloodthirsty angel. He paused in the act of drawing his sword although, when another angel stepped in and stopped him, stating that they should leave. He watched the angry angels protestation before the other angel explained that they felt that there was something to Daedrin and that he shouldn’t fight him. He was relieved that the angel was able to have some sense about him. He knew that once he started fighting, he wouldn’t stop until the three of them were defeated. Whether by death or submission, it mattered not. He had already had a long day today, with the Wrathful Blazerker and he felt unusually tired. That had been an excitement that he had hoped would never come about after he learned about it form Odium. He watched with a steady gaze as the three angels retreated, leaving them alone in the cave. He slid his sword back into his sheath and relaxed his posture but not completely.

He turned back and looked down at Izanagi, tilting his head a little. He still wasn’t entire sure he believed what he had seen in the clearing. He had never seen a creature like the Wrathful Blazerker before. It seemed to have the power of a Daedric Hydra in human size and Daedric Hydra were not a joke to go up against. Even Daedrin would hesitate to do so. He was just relieved that Odium gave him the means to deal with him, otherwise that could have turned into a messy fight and the last thing that Daedrin wanted to do was fight his friend in such circumstances. Spar, yes, but a fight like that? No. He would be at a disadvantage because he wouldn’t want to harm Izanagi while the Wrathful Blazerker would have no such restrictions.

He was brought from his thoughts when he heard Izanagi’s voice. He immediately came forwards and knelt down next to Izanagi. He reached out, pressing the back of his hand against the man’s forehead to check his temperature before pulling it back and saying, “We’re in a cave in the Enutpen’s Glory mountains. Don’t you remember what happened?” He then asked, looking closely at his friend who seemed a little out of it. He glanced out of the mouth of the cave, relieved that he could no longer sense the angels.

[Akira]

My vision was slowly getting better after I blinked a few times, but my mind was a completely different story. It was still an absolute mess. My memories were mixed like a deck of cards that had been recently shuffled. "Not much..." I responded Deadrin while I was still massaging my head a bit to make the pain go away, or at least reduce it. "Just... give me a second to put my mind in place please..." I began to take deep breaths, slowly calming myself down and allowing my mind to slow down a bit. I was able to remember a few things. The view of the mountains, the moment we met that woman and... that woman... I remembered what she said and what she did. I remembered the uncontrollable rage I felt, but I made sure to not dive too deep into it this time to avoid the possibility of said negative feelings taking over me again. "I remember a bit... that woman... she...* I looked down and moved the hand that was previously massaging my head. It was now covering my face, mainly my eyes, in a attenpt to hide the tears that rolled down my face. I didn't want Deadrin to see them. After all this years as a demon, even I began to think on tears as a sign of weakness, but at moment like this not even I was able to hold them back and I hated myself for it. "she... killed him... my father..." I tried really hard to contain the slight sobs that escaped my voice every now and then, but they were still coming out, even though they were pretty hard to hear "He died because of her... dammit!" I punched the ground with my free hand, but the impact was very weak, it barely made a 'thud' like sound.

During those brief moments, I wasn't Izanagi the embodiment of wrath. I was simply a men who had lost his family and everyone precious to him a long time agao, but was still dealing with the painful scars that were yet to heal. *Dammit Izanagi! Demons don't cry. You stop that right now!* I though to myself while trying to pull myself together. I didn't work very well... "I lost control, didn't I? Just like the night I was turned into... this." I puched the ground once again with a little more strenght this time "Goddammit!" My breathing was heavy and despite my best efforts I was still unable to stop my cries. 

[Neptune]

Daedrin remained still and quiet as Izanagi struggled to pull the memories together to remember what had happened. He knew it was not a good idea to try and push the man. It would likely only end up making Izanagi draw in on himself. His feeling turned out to be correct when Izanagi began to lose his emotional control. Even so, he said nothing as he allowed the man to unload the fears and the grief that he was clearly feeling as he revealed that the woman that they had encountered had killed his father. It suddenly made sense why he had lost control the way he had and Daedrin completely sympathised with him. If Daedrin were in his situation, he knew he wouldn’t be able to keep control of himself either. He tilted his head a little at Izanagi, not even flinching when the man punched the ground beside him. He didn’t bother saying empty platitudes. For a start he knew they wouldn’t work, and he respected Izanagi too much to play with him like that. Daedrin also didn’t want to draw attention to the fact that Izanagi was crying, because he knew that Izanagi was someone who likely didn’t like showing his emotions so freely. 

He reached forwards and gripped Izanagi’s shoulder, squeezing it gently as he said in a soft voice, “You did lose control, yes. But I can certainly see why now, though. I think I would have struggled to control myself if I were in your shoes. While I haven’t seen my father in a long time, if someone had killed them I would stop at nothing to find those responsible.” He pulled away before standing up and going over to the horses. He then returned a moment later, offering Izanagi the water skin, “At least she will no longer be able to rob sons of their father’s. Despite trying to use every powerful move she had, she could not best you. And you killed her. I doubt you’re happy with yourself for losing control, but take comfort in the fact that you avenged your father’s death.” He paused for a moment before saying, “It seems Odium saw this happening, though. He gave me the means to pacify you with what he called a Null Rune which I used to snap you out of the Wrathful Blazerker… state. How is he, by the way?” He then asked, wondering how the demon was fairing after such an experience.

[Akira]

I actually gasped a little bit in surprise when I felt Deadrin's hand touching my shoulder and squeezing it lightly. That wasn't exactly the reaction I was expecting. In fact, I was so incredibly focused on trying to hold by tears back that I didn't even consider for a second how he would react. I took a few deep breaths to calm myself while I heard the words coming out of my friend's mouth. He was... sympathising with me. I was a sort of weird feeling at first, after all, that wasn't something I was really used to. It was one of the reasons why I hate to expose my feelings like that... it makes me feel too vulnerable and a lot of people took advantage of that over the years. Still, in a way I was sort of glad that it happened. It was a relief that I haven't felt in a really long time. Once he stood up and backed off, I used the hand that was covering my eyes to quickly wipe out the tears in my face. Deadrin quickly returned, but this time he had a water skin on his hand, which he offred me and I gladly accepted. A refreshing sip of water sure was welcomed. "I... thank you... Deadrin... really" It was best I was able to say in that situation, that sort of thing had always been something difficult to deal with for me... to say the very least...

It was conforting to know that I was able to kill that horrible woman, but what really got my attention was when Deadrin mentioned that Odium had predicted that possible scenario and gave him a Null Rune, which allowed Deadrin to bring me back to normal without having to actually fight me. "Heh, that bastard... I swear he just loves to keep secrets from me..." I responded in a somewhat playful tone "I was planning on telling you about the Wrathful Blazerker eventually but... well, seems like fate decided to pull another trick on me" It surprised me a bit when Deadrin asked about Odium, I didn't really expect him to be worried about the demon, but before I could even think on a response... *Oh please! Tell that weirdo it will be a cold day in hell before he has to worry about me* I mentally rolled my eyes at Odium *Odium, give it a break will you? he just saved my ass... and yours too you know?* *Are you kidding me? I saved him by making that Null Rune remember?* I simply sigh as a sign of surrender and responded to my friends question. "He is fine, don't worry about him" I handed back the water skin to Deadrin and slowly got up. Streching my body a bit to see if there was anything wrong. I was feeling a bit... different after all.

[Neptune]

Daedrin took the water skin back, giving a sharp nod of his head, “Good. Glad to hear he’s alright.” He said, standing up again and putting the water skin away. He then returned, sitting back down next to the fire and stirring it by adding another stick to it. He remained quiet for a moment, relishing the warmth that the fire spread throughout the small cave. He looked back at Izanagi and said, “It seems that Odium was a little quicker on the ball in telling me than you were. It was a good thing to. I think he just wanted to make sure you were safe, and to make me the back up plan just in case you did lose control.” He said, before giving his friend a slight grin, “It was quite the fight, though. I haven’t seen anything like it. No matter what that Soulless did to you, you shrugged it off as if she was merely poking you. I have seen a lot of strange and wonderful things in my days but I think that rates in the top five.”

He then paused, considering whether or not to tell Izanagi about their little visitors. He couldn’t be sure that they wouldn’t come back to track Izanagi down, and it would be better to know than for him to move around in ignorance and completely vulnerable to a surprise attack. And on another level, Izanagi deserved to know that his little demonstration attracted unwanted attention. He crossed his legs, running his hand along one thigh which settled on his knee before he tilted his head at his friend, “We had some… visitors while you were unconscious. They appeared to be angels of some kind. It seems that your fight attracted their attention, and they followed us all the way back to this cave. They arrived not long after I had gotten you comfortable, and the fire started. They seemed quite intent on killing you. But I told them that I couldn’t let that happen, and that if they tried anything, I would defend you. They decided that, for now at the very least, they would retreat. I’m not sure if they intend on telling anyone else, or if they intend on returning later. Either way, I advise watching your back.” He said, thinking back to the hatred in the angels eyes when they spoke about Izanagi. He privately hoped that they would not make a return, but he was not naive enough to expect that to be the case.

[Akira]

I was farely amazed at Deadrin's comment about the Wrathful Blazerker. From my pont of view, it nothing but horrifying creature that had to keep under control at all costs, since it would certainly go out in a rampage if it was let loose, but not even I could deny that the creature's power is indeed impressive and also something I wish I could control even if it was just a little. I couldn't help but to let out a small chuckle in response before taking a seat near the fire and speaking to my friend "Heh... well, I guess that one way to put it. As powerful as it might be I unfortunately have not control whatsoever over the creature. It is very different from Odium. He does a consciousness and his own thoughts, which allow me to talk to him, and I try to keep him... shell we say... satisfied as much as I can. In fact, I like to think of him as a partner instead of a burden." I spoke honestly before smiling playfully "Despite how inconvenient he is sometimes..." *Oh fuck you* I laughed a little bit at Odium's response before continuing "The Wrathful Blazerker on the other hand, is nothing but a mindless and mercyless killing machine, which makes impossible for me even try to negociate or talk to it..." 

We both stood silent by the fire for a few brief moments. I was wondering if there actually was a way for me to use the Blazerker's powers without loosing my mind like that, but the chances and options to that end were... severely limited to say the very fucking least. I was brought back into really however, when Deadrin told me about the angels that 'visited' us while I was still unconscious. I was thankful for having someone to watch my back when it happened, otherwise I would most likely be dead by now. "Thanks man, you are a life saver." I intentionally repeated the same words Deadrin said to me a few days back at the mantion while giving him a playful smile. It was short lived, though. I soon broke it and sighed a little bit "I am honestly not surprised. Angels are second to none when it comes to tracking down demonic energy and, even though I don't remember much of the fight while the Blazerker was in control, I am sure that a lot of energy was released during it." I simply nodded at Deadrin's advice of being cautious about them. I couldn't agree more. Now that they had a rough idea of my location they would likely begin to search even more at the area "Well, if they decided to go away instead of fighting you, I can only assume that they were low level angels. Which means that they will likely report what they saw to their superiors. The bad news is that they will probably come back to try killing me again and the good news is that angels have a towering sense of pride and duty. In other words, they will mainly resort to direct attacks instead of cheap and dirty tricks. Well, most of them anyway..."

Edited March 12, 2019 by Akira

[Neptune]

Daedrin’s eyes glistened with interest when Izanagi describe his relationship with Odium, as he found it quite interesting. Ultimately, he didn’t think that his friend was a bad person. Most people would assume he was due to Odium’s presence. But then most people assume that demonic always equalled evil. However, Daedrin was aware that things were never so black and white. Still, he found it curious that Izanagi thought of the demon as some kind of partner and her certainly treated Odium like a friend, such as his playful banter that held no bite or malice behind it. He assumed that Odium’s voice was only heard by Izanagi unless he took control of his body, and he wondered if Odium had said something to make the man chuckle. He didn’t think of it as strange, though. Afterall, he had his own companion but they were not as vocal as Odium seemed to be. He avoided that line of thought, and instead continued focusing on Izanagi. He gave a slight nod at his friends description of the Wrathful Blazerker. From the sounds of it, Izanagi didn’t seem particularly happy with the thought of this creature taking him over and making him lose complete control. Daedrin knew that he hated losing control over himself like that. The more Izanagi spoke about it, the more Daedrin could see similarities to himself. If he flew into a deep rage, he lost complete control of himself. He becomes a mindless beast that attacks everything and everyone around him, including friends. The only thing people could do is either knock him unconscious or wait until the rage had subsided. In a quiet tone, he said, “I think I understand.”

Daedrin continued to stare into the fire as they lapsed into silence until Izanagi responded to his warning about the angels. He looked up towards his friend, watching the light of the fire flicker across the man’s handsome face as he spoke. Daedrin couldn’t help but nod his head in agreement when Izanagi made the comment that while he didn’t remember the fight while he was the Wrathful Blazerker, he was sure that a lot of energy was released which clearly made it easier for the angels to track him down despite being flown here on Eldyr-back rather than travelling along the ground. A fact that concerned Daedrin. He brought his attention back to his companion as he continued talking. Daedrin frowned a little at his words, as his worry that they would either come back or report to others was justified. From his description, these angels sounded remarkably like Celestial’s. Overpowering pride and stubbornness. He sighed a little as he said, “Then we can expect to see more? How… irritating… I hope we can somehow get them off of our trail…” He trailed off with a slightly thoughtful frown. He really hoped they would not come back because he really didn’t want to have to deal with more trouble. 

He then shifted, feeling himself become more alert than before. There was a creeping sensation that ran up his spine, causing chills to radiate through his body until it reached his back where the hairs stood on end. He could the overwhelming sensation that he was being watched and he had to resist every urge to not shift into his Eldyr form and snarl. He felt as if he was being eyed up by a dangerous predator and he was trapped, with nowhere to run. He straightened his back a little and casually looked around but he couldn’t see anything. And he knew Izanagi couldn’t see it either, but he knew it was there. He doubted his friend could sense it either, but he had a strong suspicion as to what it was. It made him want to get out of there as soon as possible. Trying to keep his composure, despite his sharp and alert eyes, he turned his head to look back at Izanagi, “Ready to travel?” He asked. He didn’t voice what he suspected to be there, sharing the cave with them because he knew the moment they knew it would be the end of both of their lives, and there was nothing either of them could do to stop it. 

[Akira]

Deadrin was understandably irritated by the idea of the angels chasing us. And as someone who has been dealing with those holy douchebags for years now, I couldn't blame him. "I agree. We should probably keep your eyes open for any signs of holy magic for a while. Fortunately, I can keep the usage of my demonic powers to a minimum. That should decrease their chances of finding us" I said before getting up and walking over to Lucky. Even though I didn't know how she reacted when I transformed into the Blazerker a few hours ago, I can only assume that she didn't like it very much. I gave her a few gentle pats on the neck. Which she seemed to enjoy a bit. It made me smile a little, I actuaclly getting quite found of that horse, after all the shit we have been through together. However, my mind was once again taken by the weird sensation going through my body. That feeling had been present ever since I woke up and it didn't show any sign of going away. *Odium, you are feeling this too, aren't you? this... sensation is strange...* *Yeah, I know* the demon responded without delay *My theory is that your body was somehow able to absorb a small fraction of the Blazerker's power during the transformation. It might have made you stronger...* I placed a hand on my chin and hummed softly, thing about said possibility. I was cut out however, by my friend asking if I was ready to leave. As much as I wanted to leave, I also tought I was a good idea to make a little test and see if Odium's theory was, in fact, correct. "Pretty much, yes. There is but a small test I wish to make before that. It won't take long, don't worry" I responded in a calm tone before making my way to the cave's entrance. Once I was just a little outside of it, I stretched my right arm and focused my energy. I got slightly surprised when the Evil One appeared at the palm of my hand, usually only Odium would be able to manifest the demonic sword, but it seems that, due to our recent bonding, I was now able to use it on my own. "Huh... interresting..." *It seems you can now use my sword on your own...* I nodded slightly before putting myself in battle position and calmly pulling the serrated blade out of it's sheath. I took a deep breath and swingged the sword playfully in the air. I had used pretty much no energy at all on that move, but it was still strong enough to bend the air around the sharp edge and create a wind blade that was powerful enough to cut the very air and ground it touched, leaving a mark on the ground and making a considerable noise "Well... I didn't mean to do that..." I commented in a calm tone as I made the Evil One dissipate. I then turned back to Deadrin inside the cave and walked pass him. I quickly began to gather my things an place them on Lucky's saddle "It seems I really did get stronger after the transformation..." I said after everything was in place, waiting for Deadrin so we could depart. 

Edited March 14, 2019 by Akira

[Neptune]

Daedrin tilted his head slightly when Izanagi calmly informed him that he wanted to do a test. He curbed his irritation, though. With the thing watching them, Daedrin was feeling the urge to move as quickly as possible in an attempt to get out of their searching gaze. It was irrational, though, because he knew there was nowhere they could hide from it. They either had to wait it out, or Daedrin was going to have to find a way to destroy it. He glanced towards the entrance where Izanagi was before he reached up and allowed his gloved hands to trace a golden necklace that was around his neck. With a sigh he brushed dirt onto the fire causing it to die out, before he spread the remains so that there was little trace of their ever being there. He then stood up, stretching his tense muscles before he paused and looked out of the cave as he heard a powerful blast of wind. He remained where he was, listening carefully before cursing slightly. He wishes that Izanagi was not showing off his abilities. Not now. Not when they had too much of the bad interest. The angels were, to him, small fry compared to the beast that lurked invisible. When they made camp again, and he was alone, then he might try and ask for help. 

He jerked a little when he heard Izanagi’s voice and he realised that the man had walked past him and was gathering his things. Daedrin coughed a little, low in his throat, “I suppose that’s something good that has come from this… incident.” He said, moving over to Daegrin and stroking his cheek before gripping his reins and leading him out of the cavern. Once they were free, he mounted up on the Aelda and nudged him forwards at a walk. They were in an area where the path was a little treacherous, and he didn’t want Daegrin or Lucky to slip and fall. With any luck, they would reach the mining sight by evening. 

However it seemed that luck was not on their side. Daedrin pulled Daegrin to a stop when he saw a large boulder that blocked their path. They couldn’t move around it, at least not with the horses. The boulder was so large that it completely blocked the path. Unfortunately, this was the only way to the mine, and there was no alternative route. He looked over at Izanagi and asked, “Is there any way that you can take care of that?”