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Fantasy [Private] El Stories

Alec

He looked off into the distance, seeing Xavier just standing there. Alec did not know how to take it, he couldn't see anything but negativity coming from him, "What have you become." He looked back at the ruins, no signs of Elesis or Eos were in the area. He safely assumed they had managed to escape from here. When he thought of what to do next, one option was to return to Elesis, he could find her location if she kept the goggles he gave her. The other option was to rescue the hostages. "This could be my only chance. I have the necessary tools." He thought to himself. Glancing once more at Xavier he could only shake his head. "Forgive me Xavier, those civilians take priority," Alec mumbled, he knew no matter what Xavier would be fine all alone. Rushing back down into the ruins Alec ran past the corpses of the demon soldiers, the smell was beginning to pick up all around here. When he reached the cell area he made quick work of the demons blocking his way with minimal sound.

Looking at the civilians the seemed fearful of his wolf helmets appearance. the purple glow that the dark el gave it didn't help much. "Do not worry, I'll take it from here." Alec placed a hand on their heads, sending them into an unconscious state. "This should make things easier." He examined the magical structure of the runes written on the collars. From the studies Alec had in his database there are many ways to override the effects of a magic circuit. One of the ways was the use of blood, the blood acted as an error to the magic circuit causing its effects to be rendered useless. The only issue was the blood needed to be one of a strong creature, if Alec had blood it would prove to be stronger than this magic. "Maybe the spriggans blood." Alec rushed back down the hallway, collecting the blood of the spriggan, one of the corpses had blood that was already mixed with the dirt, but the other luckily Alec didn't cut him up so easily. Taking the corpse back to the cell area, Alec rewrote the magic circuit in the language of the Debrian, the spell proved to be useful. But only to lessen the power on the collar. Without the demon language, not much could be done. All he was able to do was remove the tracking the collar had, not the pain they would experience once they way. This was better than nothing he assumed. If he could bring them back they could be put into a stasis state until an expert arrived.

Alec carried out their bodies one by one towards a house off in the distance a bit farther from the ruins. When he pulled up his map he expanded the area to the kingdom of velder and saw that Elesis and Eos were not that far off from his location. Alec reactivated his beacon. Hopefully one of them notices. He did not know if his area was clear, Xavier wasn't that far out and he looked bloodthirsty and with all that happened in the ruins, Alec wouldn't be surprised if reinforcements arrived.

The worst outcome would be if one of the captives awoke and gave out their location, they could even have a tracker among there ranks that could sniff out these humans. The demons did have wyverns, they were good for being scouts. Maybe even right now a wyvern was patrolling this building. All alec could do was hold on tightly to his blade. "Even with the dark attribute, I can't hold out forever. Creator, why did you seal me away? If I was meant to end a war why wasn't I used?" This was the first time Alec questioned his existence, in the few days he had been in this war he has seen how helpless he could become, even with an extraordinary power his body could not take it. Was he not complete? Was there more that his creator had in store? Could the answers be in the sealed data he had found? Alec had so many questions that he kept asking himself while he waited for a sign of hope for these captives held in this death trap.

MementoDei MementoDei Late Late ​
 
Xavier
​
Since the angel left his sight, Xavier found himself a new prey to hunt on. The demons surrounding him were being so careful to not get any closer but with them cluttering up together, it was hard for them to run away when the man started to go after them with bloodlust eyes. He created his ice field to slow down the demons in their place and went ahead to go forth with his killing spree. All he can think was to hunt the living, crush them until they stop moving. Yet the longer he kept up with his savage ways, the more he felt tired and spent. His muscles were screaming at him to stop yet it was hard to listen when his instincts told him to keep going.

"Xavier....Xavier...stop..."

A strange voice spoke to him in his head. It distracted him and it was good enough for the demons to move right in.

"The potion! Get the potion!" The demons spoke in their language as Xavier hold his head for a moment. When he realizes that they were getting closer, he started to raise his tired arms to defend himself.

Suddenly, a glass bottle was thrown at him, smashing his face which strange liquid exploded all over him and turning into a cloud of gas. He coughed as he inhaled the smog, shaking his head as he felt his mind going muddy, feeling his tail dropping down. As he tried to escape from the gas, the demons rushed in and tackle the man down, pulling out chains and cuffing them around his arms, neck, and legs. A mage walk towards the struggling pile to mumble out a spell and the chains tightened up around his body, making him immobilized. Xavier let out an angry growl as he tried to set himself free yet the chains that were digging into his skin were too much for him. His whole body was too tired to move.

"I'll kill you all!" Xavier yelled at them, his spirit hasn't died out yet. The demons backed off for a moment at his anger but quickly recollect themselves as they grabbed the loose chains to start moving him.

"Let's get him out of here. The potion should knock him out any time soon," a demon said to the troops as they pull him away. "Joaquin will be happy to study him when he is not kicking and biting."
 
Phantom gave a flamboyant salute. "You got it!" He cheered and he sprinted to the bathhouse. He stopped, caught his breath and go his shower break going.

"Can we have a talk now Xiopetec?" HIs voice suddenly really quiet...and vulnerable. It trembled a bit at the end of his question.

Of course child...but relax. Your anxiety has always been your greatest foe, Xiopetec tried to soothe with what little presence she had in her priest's head.

"What's happening? I checked your mana reserve...and it's really small. I haven't used it since the training started so what's wrong?"

Xiopetec gave a low hum. I...I'm taking my mana back.

The priest's eyes widened. "W-what? Why? I'm....you're going to...you're leaving?"

No no no! Chi-Phantom...I'm not leaving you. Never. I don't abandon my followers, never had and I never will.

His stiff posture relaxed and he continued bathing. "Then...why? Did I really mess up that badly? I..."

I know why you're training. I know why you want to use your own mana, and I...I'm glad that you insulted me in a way. You forced me to think about my actions....and I forgot how to be a proper goddess in a way. You were right. I was stuck in the past, and you're not the Phantom back then anymore. So...I'm getting rid of the temptation of repeating our previous argument. So...if I take back what I forced on you, it'll be easier for the both of us to have you become more independent.

"But...I..."

Consider this a test then. You promise to still be faithful to me, so heal in my name but with your own mana.

"You're going to stay in my head...right?" Phantom started to scrub the blood out of his hair.

I thought you hated me being in your head, Xiopetec teased with a raspy chuckle, Yes, Phantom. I will. But everything else...I'll take back. Unless...you still want the snake eye?

"I'll keep it. Maybe I can learn how to conceal it to look normal so I don't look so off-putting if I want help patients...and the mark too. I really like having it."

Xiopetec laughed.

"So...we're good? I'm sorry for insulting you like that Xiopetec...I shouldn't have put salt on that wound."

You're forgiven, child. Now...what nice clothes should you have now that your robes are ruined with blood?

Phantom looked at his sullied robes and he sighed. "How about after today's training we can worry about that. I don't want to ruin the new clothes when I go through that obstacle course again."

The priest tried his best to scrub the blood out of his robes, well where the stains were obvious. He was relieved that the majority of his outfit was black, and after deeming the robes presentable without making him look like a murderer, he got dressed and returned to the obstacle course. This time around, he moved with more ease only pausing to catch his breath. Phantom kicked the side of the last dummy, making its posture crooked and he raised his arms in the air, panting too heavily to say anything but just pumping his fists.

Fume Fume
 
Darhan​

The following day, he headed back to the library, where he found Ren, reading a book on chess strategies on a comfortable armchair. He sat down in front of her and, soon enough, she asked him if he wanted to play another game. Darhan nodded and materialized a crystal chessboard, where marble white and black pieces stood aligned at the two ends of it.

As usual, Darhan placed the white team right in front of him. This time, however, Ren asked him to play with the black team. He didn't see any problem in it and changed the colour of the pieces with his magic.

"I might defeat you this time around, Darhan." Ren said.
"The white team does have some advantages, but that doesn't decide the outcome."

Ren pouted and moved the pawn in front of the queen by two spaces. Darhan let out a scoff and copied her move, stopping Ren's advance over the chessboard. She answered by putting another pawn to the left of the one Darhan blocked.

"Has the war begun?" The green-haired angel asked.

Darhan took the pawn in front of the king, but only made it advance one square. "It's hard to tell."

Ren raised an eyebrow, and continued by moving the knight close to the queen to menace the pawn that was blocking her. "I call bullshit on that, Darhan. You've been getting stronger, yet she left you here for years here, without any order, until yesterday. There's must be a reason. I'm part of her warriors too, you know?"

The elf moved the black bishop forwards by one square. "It's better not to get impatient, Ren. Nor too ambitious."

Ren scoffed as she moved her other knight to protect the pawn in front of the queen. "I don't want to hear that from you. You literally passed the past decade just getting more ambitious for power."

Darhan, who was staring at the chessboard since the beginning of the game, lifted his gaze to meet Ren's. "Is that so?" he continued before putting the knight close to the king next to his black bishop, cornering its right diagonal. "I don't think I've trained for ambition. I just like to serve Ishmael well."

Ren rolled her eyes and moved her black bishop in front of Darhan's knight, menacing it fiercely. "Is that truly your choice?"

He glanced at her and focused back on the board to move by one space the pawn in front of the turret close to the king, menacing back the bishop. "Yes. What is yours, Ren? Did you choose to become an angel too?"

His opponent frowned and took the head of her menaced bishop and ended the life of Darhan's knight. "Why do you ask me that?"

Darhan shrugged and took revenge on his knight by killing the bishop with his own. "You asked me first, Ren."

Ren let out a deep sigh and stretched her arms. "...Fair enough, I guess." She moved her queen in the white left diagonal to strengthen the attack of the centre. Now, two pieces menaced Darhan's most advanced pawn. Whatever he did, he'd have to sacrifice it. He chose to eat one of Ren's pawns and let the white queen take her revenge. It didn't matter much, now he could better defend his king with a castling.

The movement of pieces continued, Ren took a few more pawns, but when she tried to approach the most important pieces, she found herself putting in danger hers. It only took Darhan five more movements, where he took her queen and knight, before Ren called for a draw.
"I would've won, if we continued, but very well."
"How do you do it? Playing so passively and just...taking back much more than what I took?"
"That's not the right question, Ren. The question is, how much can you push a cocky strategy without measuring the risks you take? I believe that even without a chessboard, it's possible to understand many things about a person."

Ren looked at the board once more before Darhan destroyed it. She raised an eyebrow and the elf and crossed her arms. "Are you lecturing me, Darhan?"

"Not really. I'm just thinking out loud."

****
Elesis​

She smiled weakly. "Yes, my brother meant a lot to me. I admired him, even if he rarely came back. It was just the two of us, back in those years, our father was a very busy man. Travelled a lot, saw a lot of things and sometimes came back to us. When my brother turned thirteen, my father took him to his travels and...one day, they never came back. I was left with a condolences, a funeral and some pats in the back."

She closed her eyes and remained quiet for a few seconds. "And because I lost someone that meant a lot to me, I want to protect others from suffering the same, Eosforos. As much as I can."

She improvised a bed with the long grass and put her jacket over her as a blanket. She stared at the sky and saw a distress signal rise from the direction they had been fleeing. She quickly got up and stared at it, watching it lose its brightness until it faded away under a trail of smoke.

"Eosforos...you don't think Xavier could've..."

Late Late
 
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Alec

The sounds of conflict resounded through the night sky. He guessed that it was probably Xavier, when he looked at his map he could see Xavier's light go out. "They got to him huh. I'm sorry Xavier, my mission will always come first. No matter the cost." Is what he thought but Alec wasn't designed like other nasods. He did not have to follow commands blindly. He had emotions put into him for a reason. He was meant to choose his own way of living. When night had approached the sounds of footsteps could be heard outside. They were probably stragglers from the unit that captured Xavier.

Alec had the plan to assault the unit when they least expected it but right now he had over a dozen captives unconscious and scattered all about this small home. "My decision making must be malfunctioning." Is what Alec believed but all it was is just him not relying on the numbers given by the data he collected. He was bound to make a huge error in his calculation which would cause the lives of the captives he tried to protect.

When the demon unit had left the area two hours had passed. One of the captives seemed awakened. In that same direction, Alec could feel magical power in that area. When he checked it out the captive was talking to someone on shown through a magic portal of sorts.

"We are still near the ruins..just as you predicted the silver haired nasod showed up trying to rescue the hostages....I've activated the magic scroll as you requested.."

"Lovely! That's what I wanted to hear. That thorn on our side will finally be dealt with. You've done well human..our leader will properly reward you for helping us get rid of this nasod." Their conversation seemed to be ending when Alec appeared around the corner, an anger in his chest burned deeply when he saw what was transpiring.

Alec gripped skofnung as he slammed the captive against the broken wall. "You would betray your own kin for a reward! You, humans, stood together to destroy my people just to destroy one another!" Alec raised his blade up high ready to strike down the man filled with fear but before he could the sounds of chanting filled Alec's ears. "Meteor Shower." In the next moment, the house Alec was using as a base was consumed in fire. The sounds of Cockatrigles could be heard getting closer.

Under all the rubble and ash, Alec raised himself holding onto a piece of cloth that belonged to the man he was just talking with. "....In the end...you were betrayed...without there goal being achieved and the lives of innocents gone.." he looked all around him, looking at the corpses that were crushed from the building falling, some burned to a crisp. The scene he saw before him Alec made sure to burn deep into his memory. "I fucked up again." he said to himself. He had so much anger, so much anger at himself but he had even more anger for the demons circled around him. Without noticing he had entered his awakened state but his helmet took a more aggressive appearance. He howled like a beast as skofnung became two shorter blades. "[Alternative: Fenris EX]" Was he going to lose himself to the anger? How did people hold in such rage he wondered. This was all new to him. Alec only had one answer. "I'll just have kill, kill and kill till the hunts over."

MementoDei MementoDei Late Late ​
 
1 week has passed, luckily it was just enough for Phantom to master the art of Coating. Lento however fell asleep for two days straight after the last time, having only 5 days to try and master both Coating and Connection. He still has some difficulties, but they would be dealt with in time. The number of chains on them increased as well. Phantom having 2 and Lento 3.

"Phantom, Lento. Stop training for a moment." He caught the attention from the two of them, Yullr just gave a glance at him. "I know that the two of you been training hard enough. I've seen that you understand the concepts at hand long enough to have a grasp at it." He held his hand up with two dice floating on top.

"Now it's time for a change in scenery. For you two to get the knowledge of spells and skills long lost." He let loose a small spark of mana and both dice made a temporal crack in space.

"Follow me, into the Inter Dimensional Library. Home to all knowledge." Through the crack, there was a hallway with a bright blue color that stretched as far as one could see, with cyan lines pulsating through the bookshelves. Multiple symbols of floated in the air. Equations, old magic and modern magic hanging in the air.

And the most eye catching pieces that was on the other side. A table in the middle with an orb and books neatly ordered. Above what looked like the ceiling, were rows after rows of books being inscribed with countless words. To the side of the table a mirror that was covered with a blanket.

"There are a few rules before entering in here, but first... Library! It's me Dust! I'm bringing 3 guests with me." He announced as he entered. As if recognizing his presence, the magic in the air illuminated for him for a moment before returning to it's tamed self.

"Don't look under that mirror over there and don't head into the door behind the table. Besides that, ask the Library itself for what you're looking for." He established the ground rules while leading them inside. "I'll be at my old workplace and ask the Library about a few things to help on Phantom. Don't ask it to view your story, you'll feel stupid for even asking it."

MementoDei MementoDei Phant0m Phant0m
 
Cornelius
​
"It seems that you have gotten very popular...especially if Solace, the sun master, wanted to talk to you briefly..." Cornelius grumbled as his rider returned back to him.

"What? I thought it was normal that words can have an effect on people," his rider purred in response, grabbing a chair to sit next to Cornelius.

"Yeah? What you two were talking about, you don't mind me asking?" the dragon asked him.

"Hmm~ All he wants was words of confidence. The man wants to take his job seriously and I simply offer him the words of courage. Henir zealots are getting bolder for every attack."

Cornelius nodded his head and watch how a crowd of people walk by, the majority giving his rider a happy glance or a wave. The dragon never attended to his speeches before, starting to feel curious what his rider was saying to these people. Especially if it caught Solace's attention.

"May I ask where you go off to later in the day? Besides giving speeches?"

"Hmm...that is a bit personal...I rather keep that to myself, Cornelius. Sorry..." There was a strange, sad tone from his rider's voice, causing Cornelius to glance down at the man. Yet his rider didn't bother to look up and simply waved at the people walking by.

"...if that is what you wish, Lucius. If that is what you wish."

Eosforos
​
"Killed? No, and if he did, that puts shame to my pride and to his teachers themselves," Eosforos responded and tries to get back on his feet. Though he leg gave away as it was weak and needs more time to recover. He was quick to catch himself from having his face smashed against the ground. "I'm hoping that the demons have him captured," he grunted out. "The signal could be from Alec, he needs help obviously but damn this leg of mine!" He sat back up with a scowl on his face, feeling cold as he was further away from the fire. He started to shuffle back to the warmth, the angel feeling upset that he was starting to be more of a burden thanks to his leg.

MementoDei MementoDei
 
Lento​

He frowned a little at the mention of the Library, but Yullr seemed rather interested in it, although he remained as quiet as ever. He followed Dust and, once the demon commander left them alone, Lento found himself alone. Phantom and Yullr had spoken to the library and headed down the doors that the quiet place made appear for them.

"Just what am I supposed to ask to learn in this place. The mirror..." Lento stared at the hundreds of vanishing doors and reminded himself of Dust's advice.

The mirror he talked about was an artifact to view one's future, but no Lost Soul, as far as he knew, could see anything in it. Their existence was an anomaly, and the only thing that the mirror ever showed to them was the moment of their original death. Lento let out a sigh. He'd been progressing too slowly after bleeding out a week ago.

"Library...show me the secrets of mana manipulation." He said.

His words echoed through the empty halls and an imposing grey door slowly appeared in front of him. Lento simply put his hand over it and the door opened wide, showing not only a huge collection of books, but also a small arena where different dummies. Lento stepped in the room and a chill went down his spine.

This place was familiar to many souls, it was built with their experiences and some had parts of themselves sealed away in this place. It was the perfect place to truly perfect his training. The Knight walked down the aisles and took many tomes on mana connection. When he noticed that the old runes were changing to letters, he asked the library to revert the translation. Instantly, the old languages came back on the paper and he continued his read, understanding perfectly what they said.

****
Elesis​
"Alec, huh?" She mumbled. "Why would he send such an obvious signal? We can't go back like this without any backup." She continued, looking at Eosforos' injury.

"Even if we did, it could be a trap. We can't rest here any longer. Eosforos, use the scabbard of my claymore as a cane. We're heading back to Velder as planned."

She offered the angel the long and sturdy wooden scabbard and offered her shoulder to help the angel to use it as a walking stick without losing his balance in the process.

Late Late
 
As Dust approached the table, he noticed the books that he had studied a long time ago. His research on a way to beat a god, but the only thing he could find was just information that he already knew. That's because the Library wasn't allowed to show that kind of information to him, he couldn't research things that were impossible to be searched.

"Library, can you start showing the intermediate, expert and master tier of spells concerning the elements? If possible, spells that can be used together and also a book to show me the way to make it so that mana can be amplified with a simple chant or requisite or technique?

And not to mention some information on the goddess named Xiopetec. There's something I want to learn from her that only you can show me. And Perkisas, the greed dragon as well!" He finished his requests and the Library gave a slight hum as multiple books were starting to float around and putting in order on the table.

First the elemental books that he wanted, orderly put from Fire to all the way darkness. While it arranged neatly, Dust projected six different orbs, each of them with a different attribute, floating on top of the respective books.

He was given a book that slowly floated to his hand, while making him quickly pass page through page.

"No... No... Not that either... Huh? I didn't know that happened... Oh. Oh! Oh!! Is that true? If I'm right, then Phantom is going to see this with that goddess, a shame really. She's going to be truly disappointed with the truth." He continued to skip some pages while reading it's contents until he found what he was looking for. "Ah! So it's right here. Library could you pass me the ritual magic from the old days?"

As he asked, a book containing multiple magical scribbles in the ancient tongue came onto him. Opening the book, he did a quick scan and found what he was looking for. He grabbed his notebook, now considered a journal for putting the current progress of Phantom and Lento and some curiosities that he wanted to remember later.

He quickly scribbled down the ritual circle down and wrote the spell incantation in the demon language, just in case someone wanted to peek at his words.

"Let's see now... Perkisas... Perkisas..." A book of his life wasn't handed to him, but 5 books came down, 3 concerning of people's witnesses, one priest that was with the subjugation party and finally the one book that he wanted to know the most.

"Hmm... No... No... Not what I'm looking for...? What's this?" He paused on one page as he found some interesting information. "Hmm... I should've known that Glave had something to do with his disappearance in the past centuries. But this is... Hmm... Maybe I can use this to my advantage."

Again, he brought out his journal and wrote down his findings in an ancient demon tongue this time, it was something that caught his interest.

"That boy with the angel. I need to educate him a bit. No, let's do something much more evil. After all, he stirred these embers." He mumbled to himself as tapped down with his fingers as he wanted to learn something else, but he didn't allowed himself. It's not nice to look at the life of a dead person, especially hers.

"Library, take these books back. They helped plenty." He said as he waited for those three to come around. As he finished his order, the books flew back from where they came from, leaving him alone at last.

Or so he thought. The Library was still there and commanded the symbols floating around to put on a small show for him to pass the time. He didn't complained, it did seem fond of him, especially after spending decades in this place.

Phant0m Phant0m MementoDei MementoDei
 
Eosfóros
​
“Hm, very well,” the angel said, grabbing hold of the scabbard. He used it to help himself to get up and smiled at Elesis as she offered her shoulder to help him balance himself. “Hopefully those two will be alright at the time when we come back with more help.” Eosfóros used her shoulder to help him steady himself. He took a moment to look back with a slight uncertainty in his eyes. It made him look worried but the angel was a bit curious about what the demons will be doing to Xavier. If he is correct, they'll like turn against him and would try to kill him in the next battle. With the help of Xavier, especially now that they got his blood on his tail...

Cornelius
​
Cornelius had trouble time on trying to sleep. He couldn't dream no matter how much he tried. The only question he asked himself was how Eosforos, or Lucius, still alive? His memories eventually lead up to the point when Cornelius discovered that Eosforos helped Solace build a machine along with other unknown resources that the dragon couldn't figure out. He discovered how Eosforos planned to trick Solace about the usage of the machine, as the sun master seem to lured by his voice. Cornelius wasn't sure on how Eosforos could sway people with his words, believing that his rider ventured into things he shouldn't be looking into. Besides that, he thought he would see the last of the man for good after the incident.

"Lucius...stop." Cornelius stares at his rider, stopping the man from his tracks of leaving the area. Behind him was a large machine, built for something that Cornelius can tell it won't be good. "This is madness...on the day of the harmony festival? You truly have gone insane..."

"Well, I guess you figured me out a good while ago, Cornelius," the rider said with a sigh, folding his arms.

"It's not too late to turn back now...please stop following after this dream of yours. Nothing good will come out of it."

"Heh, I'm sad that you think you can help me turn away from this. I was hoping you would support me...I guess not," Lucius said as he has a sad smile on his face. "Maybe it was silly of me to put a marking spell on you."

"You did what?" Cornelius was confused on what Lucius did to him. Yet he can't let his rider activate this machine! "Well, whatever you did to me, I will happy to die in order to protect others!"

Cornelius lunged towards his rider yet with some hesitation in his flight. Lucius eyes widen in slight surprise and took a couple of steps back, accidentally activating the machine.

"No, not when I am in here..!" Lucius said with panic as the machine whirred into life.

From there, everything was in a haze. The structure of the building where the machine held was too unstable and Cornelius had no choice but to fly off. He even tried to save Lucius yet the man darted off into a different direction as if he didn't want to be with the dragon. Long before he confronted his rider, he already warned his fellow dragons about Lucius and his machine, asking them to gather as many people to get them out and away from the area. When the explosion occurred, it hit him like a wave of energy. It felt like something sucked out of him, remembering how he lost control of his flight and his mind going blank. That was when his scales shifted into a black color, losing the light he always had within him. The explosion was so massive that Cornelius highly doubted Lucius got away safely. He never heard a thing from the man since then.

But now that Eosforos is here, with a pair of wings, there were many questions that run through his mind. What was the man plan on doing this time around? What has he been doing when Cornelius was hiding away from the outside world? With Xavier at his side, he can assume that Eosforos saw the potential out of him as he was able to use the el energy. Eosforos perfected him to make him a lifeless soldier, having no emotions to distract him from his job. A guard to protect Eosforos from any danger.

Cornelius figured it was best to stay low for a few more hours before trying to find his way back to Velder. He needs time to think and how to tell others about the devil in disguise.
 
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Lento​

He took a notebook from a table nearby and took note of every spell he found particularly complex. He trusted his memory to remember the simpler ones, he had even the chance to use elemental coating on himself and the ground on the training arena. He had discovered that mana fields had been, centuries ago, a flexible attack and defence tool for many mages who had lost their sight or hearing.

With enough knowledge on this discipline of Connection, he could not only compensate for his lost hearing, but also transform it into an advantage over most opponents. Lara had taught him how to form the field and manipulate very roughly, but the Library offered so much more possibilities. He was writing down in old Pthumarian runes the exact words of a spell when the page contents transformed into modern words saying: "Mr. Dust is waiting."

"Library, can you let me finish to write this down? I'll get out as soon as I finish. It's only one spell." The book slowly turned back to its original content and Lento read out loud the final incantation as he frantically noted it down. "...And from the hands of Prometheus, alloweth the eternal flow englut everything. Ab Æter..." The page suddenly turned blank. "Library! Please, let me finish to copy it."

The book then showed a single sentence: "Your time here is over, stranger. Mr. Dust is waiting for you."

The Knight closed the book, a bit annoyed, and headed out of the room with the notebook in hand. Minutes later, he saw Yullr come out of a door at the end of the empty corridor. The elf seemed absorbed in his thoughts and looked at his own notebook, writing down even more things down.

"Yullr, you found something useful here, right?"
"...And that's how the theory on homunculi evolved. It's a crying shame that all that knowledge was lost. Not completely, of course, but considering that the demons-"
"Uhh...Yullr?"
The elf lifted his eyes from his notes and looked at him. He closed his notebook put it behind his back.
"Oh, sorry, Lento. Did you say something?"

Lento didn't want to tell him he had understood what he had said, but his frown let Yullr know that he knew more things than ever before.
"Lento. I'm a necromancer and this library has knowledge that I've never imagined seeing in my lifetime. That's all there is to it. You've also found things, from what I see." Said the elf, glancing at the pen and book in his hands.
"Yes."
"And you'd be willing to agree with me that this place is a goldmine, perhaps a bit too good to be true?"
Lento nodded, but stopped himself from telling Yullr the reason why he knew the sad reality behind the knowledge of the Library, let alone why it was sentient. In fact, he felt that Yullr had found clues about it, now that he had declared that he was a necromancer.

"Good. As long as you're aware of it, you'll be more critical on what awaits us. Now, we need to wait for the other two."
 
Phantom's jaw dropped at the number of books and he drank in the sight.

What do you want to learn about, child? Xiopetec asked.

Phantom felt a presence over his shoulder as if his goddess was peeking over his shoulder to look at the books. He gave a small hum, folding his arms across his chest and leaning on his heels. "Um...Library? May I have a book about Xiopetec please?" He asked, albeit in a hesitant and awkward manner.

A book floated in front of him and the priest took it, opening it with care as he started to read.

You want to know more about me? Why? I've told you everything I know.

"You told me that you have fuzzy memories...maybe this will be a nice refresher?"Phantom stopped on a page and he frowned.

What? What do you see?

The priest's eyes widened as he continued reading.

Xiopetec, a goddess who was the mother of the art of assassination before she quickly found the domain of healing to be more interesting. How she turned on her original purpose and started a following of healers, spreading her power and gaining more devoted worshipers than she ever did. Her original worshippers, her clan of assassins, feeling the sting of betrayal as their "mother" turned her back on her roots and abandoned them with every new temple devoted to her healing obsession that was constructed across the land.

Phantom furiously moved through the pages, engulfed in the tale of how her assassins used the skills Xiopetec taught them against her: posing as the healers to infiltrate the temples and forge teachings of how Ishmael should back down from the art of healing in order to make room for Xiopetec's healers to take upon the mantle. They spread rumors of fake plots to eradicate Ishmael's followers, wrote to Ishmael's followers themselves accusing them of trespassing on territory they had no right to take part in. The assassins planted the "evidence" in a convenient spot where one of Ishmael's angels was going to find it, and their plan finally went into action.

The priest already knew how the massacre happened: Xiopetec drove those details home with her vivid recollections of it. Knowing the details already didn't make them any less gruesome, and his stomach turned as he read about the horrors inflicted upon the healers. The assassins finally relieved that Xiopetec was being "cleansed" from her sins, excited to finally have their mother back to praise them for saving her and return to their old ways...

Only to find that they were caught in the hunt as well. Their attire matching the colors that adorned the healers, Ishmael's vengeance didn't spare anyone and the leader watched in her final moments, her beloved goddess dying. She was fading as quickly as her time was ending, and the book ended the account saying: 'in that night, a great accomplishment was made for the clan of human assassins...for they essentially struck down the greatest target yet-a goddess.'

Sensing that he finished reading the book, the Library returned it to its original place on its shelves.

That can't be right! That book must be lying! Ishmael was always jealous of me and my followers! She couldn't deal with my popularity and decided to murder them all! Xiopetec denied.

Yeah a book from the magic Library that knows everything is lying about why you were fading. Riiight. Phantom scoffed.

It's true!

Have you ever really considered why she reacted as she did? Jealousy doesn't seem like enough of a motive to kill everyone that worshipped you.

Silence.

I...I need a moment to process this...

Her presence left once more.

Phantom sighed, his expression somber for a moment before it lit up when he saw the orbs and books on Dust's desk. "Is this the next step in the training Dust?" He asked, examining the fire orb carefully and going to touch it.

Fume Fume MementoDei MementoDei
 
Eosforos
​
Both Eosforos and Elesis head back to Velder as fast as they are able to. A patrol of men eventually found them and guide them back to the base. From there, Elesis went ahead to discuss with her troops about the demon army which captured two allies as well forming a rescue plan. Eosforos got himself his alone time just to heal is own wound close. He didn't feel comfortable doing this in front of Elesis in the first place.

Once he was able to walk, he went ahead to walk around the camp. To his surprise, there was only one dragon left here. Aragorn. Personally, Eosforos does not know much about this dragon, as well the little one. He wasn't sure how much they know about him but given the fact that Cornelius hasn't found out who he is, he can guess that it wasn't much. Or not at all. The angel smirked to himself but the smirk went away when someone walked up to him.

"Ms. Landar," the angel greeted her.

"Where's Xavier?" Aisha asked him, obviously worried. They have been gone for some time and coming back with a smaller group can be troubling to others.

"Oh...you worry about him," Eosforos said with his eyebrows raised. "He was captured by the demons but don't worry, our commander is going to plan out a rescue mission to get him back." The angel carefully studied the mage before him. His thoughts start running when he thinks back the time he encountered Glave. He finally remembered what was so humorous about Aisha's concern, forcing him to hold back a smile and a chuckle. "We will do all our power to get him back, Ms. Landar, don't you worry," he said to reassure her, putting a hand on her shoulder. Aisha still holds her worried look and only gave a small nod. "Actually...you might be a good use to us when we go back for him and Alec. Come along, I think I have a plan to purpose to Elesis about those uncontrollable flames."

MementoDei MementoDei

Xavier
​
He wasn't sure where he was. His mind was still whacky, unfocused, but he can hear demons talking to one and other. Especially this particular one that stands out to the rest. Xavier felt his tail being scrapped, causing him to slowly shift his head to see that a few demons were carefully collecting the strange dried blood he managed to get when trying to go after Eosforos. They seem to be close to finishing, giving the larger demon the samples they collected. The large demon walks away after speaking to them, holding the samples carefully. His vision slowly cleared up as he watches their boss walking towards a lab table.

"...." Xavier wants to say something but he wasn't sure what he can say. His mind was simply moving slower than it should, yet his body was starting to become rigid. The demons seem to notice he was awake and one of them grab hold of a needle. Xavier's body tensed up even more and he was about to struggle yet the strange voice returned back to his head.

"Don't move."

It was quiet and weak, but Xavier's body reacted as it started to relax. The needle touched his skin but it seems to snap off when they pushed further.

"You may have forgotten but you took enough damage to your body to harden up with el energy. Of course...it won't be long that the effect will fade away due to the fact it consumes your mana. At the very least, it's going to take a good while. Perhaps enough for us to talk..."

Xavier's brow furrowed, confused on who is talking to him. The demons started to talk to each other until their boss returned back to them. He seems to not be worried that Xavier is awake, he was still immobilized. Though there was some concern in his voice as he held up a liquid in a tube, gesturing them to follow him out. The demons did what they told and they eventually left him in the dully lit room.

"They're gone...good. Once you are able to think for yourself, we can try to catch up..."
 
"I wouldn't touch that, if I were you. That orb of mana is imbued with fire element, you might get burned." He warned him a bit too late as Phantom recoiled a bit by touching it.

"Actually, all orbs floating on top of the books are the respective element of the books below them. The Library was kind enough to make a copy of the spell books for each element, not only that a quick introduction on the element that you choose." He informed as he took a notebook on top of the table, one that was his before.

"Here, this notebook has my findings when I first started out on mana manipulation. It's a lot more detailed and easier to understand than what you're used to.

Despite agreeing teaching you, there's a point where I can't explain it to you on how things work. I handle more on the physical side of teaching, so this will in a way help you understand things if you ever get stuck on a part. In hindsight, I should've given you this book first, but that would mean me cramming knowledge into your skull.

But, I took a different approach. Instead of creating an outstanding soldier, I want to help you mold into an outstanding person. And from the looks of it, I think I made the right choice." He smiled at the human in front of him.

"These books are for your choosing kid, but you can only take 3 elements. I don't want you to shirk your training just because you're interested in other elements." He warned him as he looked back. Still no sign of Lento or Yullr.

"Library, if it's not to much to ask, could you bring Lento and Yullr towards us? I don't want them to be lost over here, since I brought them with me." The Library gave two flashes for him. "Thanks sweetheart." Phantom looked at him with a mix of emotions towards him, more prominently confusion.

"Don't ask... If you stay here for a couple of decades, even you'd feel a bit lonely. Plus, the Library is a good person to talk to, though when I started... the Library liked to act funny. Actually that's a lie, I can bet that she still acts like it." As he finished that, a book hit him on his side. "Yeah, yeah I get it. I'll shut up."

Phant0m Phant0m MementoDei MementoDei
 
Phantom started laughing at the Library's antics, hugging his sides as he did so. "Oh I very familiar with those antics," He said as he wiped at his eyes. "I'm not planning on shirking anything after getting this far." The priest walked down the line of books, examining each orb and give a hesitant touch. He quickly passed over the water and wind orbs without examining too much and barely feeling them. He took the Light book, remembering that Dust mentioned that the element was the best suited for healing.

He touched the Dark orb and after a shiver, he recoiled from the element and went up to the Nature orb. Phantom stared at it wistfully, longing filling his expression as he reached out and felt the orb. A small smile twitched at the corners of his lips, and he grabbed that book as well. The priest tilted his head side to side as he stared at the Fire orb, giving a small hum as his eyes danced between the orb and the books in his arms. He grabbed the Fire book slowly and straightened his posture. "Yeah, I think these three are the lucky ones," He said more out loud to himself than to Dust. He adjusted the books so the Nature one was on top and he opened it to the first page, his face showing how concentrated the priest was as he took cautious steps.

Be careful child, or- Xiopetec's voice suddenly cautioned.

Phantom jumped in the middle of a step and he yelped as he lost his balance, hugging the books to his chest. He clenched his eyes shut as a loud 'thud' echoed across the library. "Ow," He grunted.

Aaaaand you tripped.

Fume Fume MementoDei MementoDei
 
Yullr​

He could no longer be surprised by the moving corridors and the gates that appeared or vanished in a matter of seconds. If he had to guess, Dust had called for them and he followed Lento through the only corridor left to turn and opened the door at the end of it. He saw Dust and heard something hit the ground.

Lento continued to walk straight, paying little to no attention to the person that had fallen.
'Lento. You should look down. Seriously.'
The Knight didn't pay attention to his message and he greeted Dust. His left foot stepped on Phantom's robe. It seemed like he could keep his balance until he took the next step. If his right foot reached far enough, his lack of hearing would pass undetected.

"Hello, Dust. Thank you for-"
The step that would doom Lento's balance, as expected, didn't reach far enough and thus the Knight tripped over Phantom's leg. Just as he fell, he let out a short "Oh, Shi-" that was interrupted by the hit of his fall.

"Pfft." Yullr could hardly contain his laughter and he chuckled as Lento and Phantom got up, visibly embarrassed. Dust looked confused and Yullr decided to give a little explanation after controlling his laughter. "Lento....Can't hear a goddamn thing."

Fume Fume Phant0m Phant0m
 
Dust simply stared at the two man and he was just astound that Phantom would trip, but not only that Lento disregarded his comrade and fell as well. Yullr then explained to him that Lento was deaf, but he already knew that.

"I've seen the expression, ignorance is bliss, before but still..." He gestured to the both of them and put both of his hands on his head, trying hard to not laugh, until he finally said the word that was on his mind. "Oof. As the young ones sometimes say back at the demon realm."

He got up and started to head down the hallway where they came.

"Library, we're leaving for now. Thanks for the help. I'll visit you some other time, okay?" The Library flashed him two times as an agreement, before he took out his dice and opened the portal back into the desert. "Come on the three of you, we still have a lot of ground to cover, we can visit the Library some other time, when we're not pressed for time as we are. Not to mention that the 3rd month is upon us, you better start deciding on what you wanna do with that mana sphere over there Phantom-" Just as he was about to finish, a book went flying at his face. "Library... Could you not..." He looked at the book that was open that said: "Good luck."

"I'll need it..." He responded as he passed through the portal.

Phant0m Phant0m MementoDei MementoDei
 
Xavier
​
'Who are you?' It took at least an hour for Xavier's mind to clear up. Strangely, the demons haven't returned back to him in which he has no idea why and what may be important about Eosforos' blood. There was a strange guilt for cutting the man in the beginning yet he couldn't control himself at that time. If only his headache didn't slow the reaction time of his sixth sense.

"Who I am? I find that insulting that you forgot who I am before," the voice growled in his head. "Yet, that's nothing new. Especially in this..damn...dimension." There was irritation in the voice. Xavier noticed how deep the voice was and as well ragged. Almost like a dragon.


'Well...how are you in my head?'

There was a groan in his head, in which it almost felt like his head was being rattled. "They really brainwash you good. You know what, questions about me can be saved for a different time. Let's just say I was always with you since...well since...gah." The voice in his head paused for a moment, almost like the voice wasn't sure what to say. He feels like there was something or someone thinking along with his thoughts. "Where to start...damn it, let's just start when I woke up. It is strange to say but I have to thank the demons for it. Whatever they injected you caused your instincts to shift and forcing you to attack anyone within sight. It as well affected me to wake up from the cold slumber I was forced to be in. Something tells me the chemical reaction against the El energy inside of you are bound to have unpredictable side effects and it resulted that luck was on my side. Unfortunately...I can't do much to help but to speak."

'Why is that?'

"I really don't know, I am able to do anything as I want here-"

'What is that supposed to mean...'

"But I am unable to control you for that matter or lend over my strength. There...is a strange boundary in your body. Your memories are all locked up, your soul is so stiff, and your heart is frozen. I can say though, your soul seems to loosen up the more I talk...maybe my words can help us to go back how we were back then."

'You're not making any sense to me, dragon,' Xavier growled in his head, confused on what the beast said to him.

"Heh, at the very least you figured out my species based on my voice," the voice chuckled yet it paused when the demons returned back to the room. They came back with different materials and needles. Xavier felt his heart dipped for a moment, realizing they are going to experiment on him. "This doesn't look good...for the both of us. Just when I woke up too...damn it. I have so many things to share with you but it looks like that'll have to wait."

'Any ideas what they want to do with me?' Xavier questioned the voice, watching how they were setting up around him. The chains around his body kept him still so he couldn't do anything to help himself.

"No...not yet anyways. I think he wants to talk to you..."

Xavier looked at the larger demon of the group, holding out a hand to the others for them to stop what they are doing. The demon went around him just to get a good look on his face. Xavier grimaced at the smell of the demon's breath, unsure what he wants to say to him.

"Your...angel friend...he's an interesting man, yeah?" The demon spoke, Xavier realizing he was speaking in his language. The demonic accent was rather thick in his voice but he can understand him well enough. "My name is Joaquin. I will be doing experiments on your body. I will make you a mindless weapon of our own to push back the humans. I as well plan to make you a weapon towards the angel kind. Immortal they are, but they still bleed. Nothing but immortal souls bound to living bodies. It is good that your friend helped us in two ways: bringing us a dragon's body we can revive and staying long enough in this world," Joaquin chuckled. Xavier's eyes widen slightly about the dragon's body, thinking about how Athena mysteriously disappeared after killing her. What was going on here? "You see, angels can't stay long in this mortal world, they can fade away rather easily unless they have something they can bind themselves to. Such as yourself as you are full of immense El energy. The two of you were separated enough for the angel to start showing signs of vulnerability and I was happy to get blood samples!" Joaquin kept on chuckling, gripping his cane to hold himself together.

"Something tells me that whatever next comes out of that scum won't be good to hear..."

"You know, at first I wanted to ask you this: why an angel would want to help us? It bugged me so many times and unfortunately, I discovered some of my men seem to like him very much. That angel managed to get in their heads and turn the card against me. My troops are a shorter number now and I swear, I think he almost got me too. His words...that voice...I almost want to listen to every word he says! Yet it simply angers me that he thinks he can toy with us like that. Someone like him must be stopped. I feel like it is so forbidden to walk around with a voice like that!" Joaquin gripped on his cane harder, trying to contain his anger. "We discard the plan that he wanted us to follow...no...we only changed them. We got you captured, yes, but with his blood in our hands and the power of alchemy and dark magic on our side, anything is possible here. He is a fool thinking that we wouldn't turn against him!" Xavier glared at the demon. Knowing Eosforos, even if he did work with the demons for a moment, it was likely that the angel knows betrayal was around the corner. Yet there was something else in the demon's eyes, something that almost looks like...fear.

The demon leaned in close to him and Xavier tries to lean back but he only shifted slightly. The breath was simply horrible. "It looks like you got something you want to spit out..." Xavier mumbled, staring at Joaquin.

"I am angry! Now tell me, human, how can a man like that be an angel? His DNA...his blood... it is all mixed! An angel's blood, the faintest trace of a human blood...and something that is rather interesting! A blood that is closely similar to ours," Joaquin said with excitement. "Now, I don't want to say that he is a demon but rather close and similar to one. It just feels so weird to know that there is someone like that who is an angel! Maybe that's the true reason he is helping us, maybe that's the truth here! Like I said, he is an interesting man. I wonder...I really wonder what else there is to discover about him..."

"You...must have studied the blood wrong. I killed demons with this tail as well, the blood must have mixed together," Xavier grumbled, not wanting to believe the demon. Joaquin was probably trying to trick him.

"You think I am that stupid? With this face??" Joaquin snapped at him in anger. "I know what I saw! I have been in this job for years. From the looks of it, the angel is not telling you a lot either. I figure there was a lot of trust between the two of you but I guess I was wrong. Only a mindless dog and his owner...a dog that'll turn against his owner." Joaquin turn to his men, moving away from Xavier. "Set him up on the table! Let's get this experiment going before that two-face returns back to his pet!"

Even though he has done it before, Xavier tried to struggle in the chains he was in. No use. "I guess we will have to endure this bullshit, ice cubes."

'Ice cubes?'

"Your new nickname."
 
Lento​

They came back to Lunæ Lumen as soon as Yullr stopped laughing and a new rhythm of training began for each one of them. Lento focused on connecting the mana around him and the energy within him to strengthen himself. With the knowledge he had from the library, he progressed faster than before. Yet, every time he gazed at the last page of the notebook he took, Lento felt that he had wasted a great opportunity to learn one of the most intricate spells he had known.

The Pthumarians were really in another level, their mana manipulation techniques were beyond what anyone could achieve nowadays. That final spell, the one that remained incomplete, was used to transfer a part of a mage's own mana and mix it with the surrounding mana, transforming it into a bubble where all external spells would erode and replenish the caster's mana.

Some called it the ultimate barrier against mages, but another equally skilled mage would seek to unbalance the fragile mix of mana. Yet that would only result in the creation of a mad orb that would absorb everything in its path before exploding.

"Ab Æter...." Lento muttered. "If it gets out of control, it will become one of the most destructive spells...Supernova." He added that line as he remembered how Glewin had died to save Atlantis' treasures from a greedy Pthumarian mage.

The more he thought about the spell, the more it obsessed him. His mind inevitably tried to recreate the mana bubble, but without the full incantation, it quickly dissolved into nothingness. Two weeks passed and, compared to the preceding ones, he could control his power better, even if he still injured himself slightly when he pushed his limits to match Phantom's elemental control.

Lento could either produce a ridiculously small projectile that barely did anything to the training dummies, or he let out a destructive ray of energy that burned his targets and reshaped the dunes. However, he suffered almost no injuries during physical combat because of his mastery of Coating. His mana field, when it was close enough to him, was like a shield made of the strongest steel. He could parry most sneak attacks and repost with a strong kick or punch.

Inevitably, he visited Lara's grave and was surprised to see that her shell was resting over a bed of wild flowers. Vines tied her silhouette to the ground, and the white sand around her was slowly turning black. Soon enough, Lunæ Lumen wouldn't be her world, but his. He knew it all too well. In a few decades, perhaps, the desert would transform into the forests of his childhood.

Fume Fume Phant0m Phant0m
****
Elesis
​
After two days, they finally crossed Velder's gates and she put herself straight to work. Elesis thought once more on a strategic plan. She spoke with the Vanessa and the other generals and, from their experience, they knew that the demons had fire elementals under their ranks thanks to the dark elves.

"Can those spirits overpower the control of a fire mage?" she asked.

Vanessa lowered her head, deep in thought, and finally gave the Commander an answer:

"Yes. We lost one of our elemental mages to those elementals during an scouting mission. He had practiced the Art for more than forty years, but those spirits, the Kenaz, turned his magic against him like it was nothing."

Elesis let out a deep sigh and asked if it was possible to deal with those spirits, or at least capture some of them. One of Vanessa's generals nodded and he dispatched a small unit the following day to hunt and capture the Kenaz. Elesis was surprised to find out that, after only five days, the troop returned with three unconscious Kenaz. They looked like the fairies in the children's books she read, but something about them made her think that the peaceful fairies had been controlled to side with the dark elves.

Whatever it was, she was only interested in finding a way to use the spirits to become immune to their control over her element. To do this, she called Allegro, Grail and the best mage around: Aisha Landar.

"We don't have a long time to work on a solution, but we need to find a way to use these fairies' power to make our troops immune to their fire. If we don't find a way, this rescue mission will become near to impossible to carry out. In the name of the Knights and in the name of our captured allies, I ask for your help."

The two alchemists and the mage nodded and got to work. In the meantime, Elesis continued to patrol the streets and train without using her flames. She had to prepare a plan even in the worst possible situation.

She had given her word to Eosforos.

Late Late
****
Darhan
​
"Are you sure you want to go out alone?" Ren asked him as the gates towards the human world opened before him.

He turned around to see her carry her sword and shield, somewhat worried when Ishmael had announced Darhan's mission officially in the Counsel. Darhan believed that, although Ren had good intentions, his goal was too delicate to be handled by two people.

He looked at the blue cross that hung to his neck and he turned back towards the night sky that the gates opened to.

"I'll be fine, Ren. The full moon is looking after me and the stars...well, the stars will guide me back to the skies."

He heard Ren drop her weapons and he opened his wings before letting himself fall into the endless night skies while Ren silently swept a few tears from her face.

"...You idiot. You shouldn't have accepted that mission." she whispered into the emptiness as the imposing gates that connected both worlds closed with a loud bang.
 
In between the element training, Phantom would walk over to where the large condensed mana sphere floated and...stare at it. Then start pacing it, observing the sphere.

You still want to go the hard way? Xiopetec asked, and Phantom jumped again. The past two weeks she was sporadic in when she would speak and be present, and it set the priest on edge. She would leave as soon as he tried to ask her about what they found in the library, so he just avoided the subject altogether.

"I don't know," He answered and sighed. He put his face in his hands. "I mean, I'm not struggling much now but it's still really difficult. I mean, of course, it should be or I wouldn't learn anything, which is a lot. Like, boy reading about those three elements-"

You're going on a tangent, child.

"Right...I mean...I just want something to be easy, but then I just...keep thinking about what to do after this training. I have to do the favor, and I think I should be at Dust's level- or close to it -if I have a chance to actually get the job done."

We'll figure it out when we get there.

"If you were still an assassin goddess, at least you would have given me some pointers," Phantom said in a blur and he held his breath.

I don't remember anything about that. Fading away took all of that away from me...even after reading that book, I didn't remember anything important. I only have bits and pieces of memories of..them. And a name at the tip of my tongue. But nothing useful.

"You have always told me healing is useful. Maybe, you're better off now? Like...you're practically reborn, right? You have a fresh start with me."

...I can always count on your...brightness. Xiopetec gave a gentle chuckle as Phantom felt ghost lips kiss his marked eye.

"Brightness?" Phantom chuckled.

You have a...bright attitude. I would say it's positive but you're cynical at best so that wouldn't fit. You...just have something about you that can brighten people's days. Especially with patients.

Phantom hummed and he stopped pacing. "You know...I'm gonna go the hard way. Go big or go home right?"

You don't have to be so hard on yourself, child...are you sure you can handle that?

"I've handled a lot of difficult things...this will just be another to add to the list."

Are you sure? You need to know your limits too, child. Pushing yourself too far will backfire on you.

The priest played with the pendant in his hand, a tick he picked up as he slowly left his staff alone. "Thanks, Xiopetec, but I'm not gonna push myself too hard."

Alright...just, remember to take care of yourself. You were always putting others before you, and even though you're not stuck in a battlefield where you have to be worried about that...you still have that mentality.

"I'll make sure to take care of myself, Xiopetec. Any other things to mother me about?"

Xiopetec laughed. I think that's it, my child. I'll see you later.

Phantom gave a small smile as he felt his goddess's presence grow into a faint hum, a background noise to his thoughts. He stared at the sphere once more, nodded and returned to Dust. "I finally made up my mind. I like to take a shot at absorbing that mana sphere," He paused, "If...we have the time to get that done that is. We're almost done with the 5 months right?" Another pause. "What are we going to drop ourselves into when we go back Dust?" The priest looked at his mentor- well Phantom can definitely say Dust became a bit more like an older brother. "I've also been thinking about the favor...and what you said when we first met. When that time comes around...how can I tell who's innocent or not? You told me that not all demons are bad guys, and..I don't want to get them caught in a crossfire." He gave a half shrug. "Or maybe I'm just worried about this a bit too early but those thoughts have been stuck in my head recently."

Fume Fume MementoDei MementoDei
 
"The hard way, you say... I think that's for the best. It holds more benefit for you, who still has a medium mana pool inside of you." He agreed with him about that.

"True, we're much nearer into the 3rd month, but I'm fairly confidant that you'll be able to do it. You've been practicing and practicing, training and training even hard, studying and learning things that it would've taken you years, maybe decades to learn. I have faith in your progress and in your being, kid." He answered him with a nod and then when he heard him what they were going to drop themselves into, he could only give a bitter smile.

"I've been in this game the longest, Phantom. In the battlefield, you can't differentiate from right and wrong, who's innocent or who's a murderer. It's so chaotic that sometimes you start seeing things that aren't the truth. In the beginning, when the heat of the war is high, you'll start seeing that your own friends and comrades are the enemy, that they are the monsters.

But those are only fabrications that your conscious makes. And when it comes to it, war can make men mad. Us demons... We're desperate, kid. The higher commanders, above Chloe and me, they've started to dispatch even kids and started to train them, when they should still be playing with other kids back at home with their families.

Despite my excessive complains that we should leave them be, they simply respond that 'we need to enlarge our military might to crush the humans'. That's not the right way to do things, and because of that mentality... I'm the only one that can apologize to those mothers and fathers that have lost their children. Do you know how it feels, to tell a family that their child died in the act of war that was either on your squad or on another? It's heartbreaking..." He remembers vividly on the tears, the grief and the sorrow that they displayed, not to mention the anger of losing something as a precious as a child.

"Your thoughts are accounted for kid, but even you know that we can't save everyone, from either side. Blood will be spilled whether you like it or not. Because war doesn't discriminate nor does it forgive anyone that enters it." He gave him some insight that he had gained throughout the years, this depressed Phantom a bit.

"If you were a warrior, I'd tell you that what you're fighting is to fight back for your home, for your people, for all the sacrifices that were wasted in a pointless war that could've been done with politically, but demons of greed wanted more than simply talk. They incited the war, wanting to do something great so that their names would be bore to history. Those aren't my objectives, not in the slightest.

I'm fine fighting a war, but when that war is unjust, then that's where I cross the line. I'm telling you this now, Phantom, and you might hate me later on, but this something that needs to be done in order for the war in our side to end." He took a small pause and then continued.

"I'm going to be a rebel and end this madness one way or another. I won't fight with the humans, after I've killed so many of your kind without remorse, it's only natural. I've started gathering troops that share the same mind as me. A revolution will soon be upon the demon realm, but we can only take small steps at a time, or else we might lose our edge. Scars and Karis' army are still too powerful for the Glitter soldiers to face them alone. But that is just a matter of time as well, before I take those troops into my hands and then face my superiors in a coup de grâce.

Of course for anything to work, sacrifices are needed. And I'm very sure... That this war is enough to spark the citizens and the troops to march against the council and end their tyranny. After all that... They'll probably want me to take the empty crown. But I can't, it's not my place to take something that isn't mine to begin with. It's not my place to lead the people of a nation, that's the work of a king or queen. I'm no more than a soldier like me and Lento, someone that can be forgotten and then be branded as a traitor without minding it.

Once everything has ended, I can safely say that whatever you do in the battlefield can be justified, to sacrifice those troops to an end. It is never justified, if you lead your troops into death willingly and waste said lives.

For now, Phantom, the best I can give you to rest those worries of yours is training, but after that... I can't do no more. If by chance you take the innocent life of a demon, you can try and tell yourself that it was self defense, after all, in war it's kill or be killed their mentality.

I could teach you the language of the demons... but then you'll be judged by the other humans about communicating with the enemy and then being judged as a traitor to your kind, you might even be condemned to death if that comes or life in prison.

But I don't wish that fate on you. You are a priest, a healer. You are meant to heal on the battlefield, meant to heal humans like you. If by chance you see an enemy that is friendly being hunted down, not wanting to kill or be killed, then turn your head from that scene. If you hear a demon crying out loud either in pain or sadness, cover your ears. If you see a person like me gravely wounded, ignore me. If you feel sad for my death, then don't be kid. That is war and we can only bear and swallow our humanity down.

It's unfair, it's ugly and it's unforgivable. Such is the way that things are." The reality was that and no matter how one sugarcoats it, it will always been a sad truth.

"Like you said, it's a bit too early for you to think these thoughts. But when the times comes, have the resolve to keep going kid. It's the best thing you can do for yourself and your goddess." Dust responded as if he was telling a young Rena this. He started to miss that elf.

"I think we've wasted enough time on this! Why don't you try going for that concentrated mana sphere now? It'll help you be distracted for the moment." He advised as to not depress his student for the time.

Phant0m Phant0m
 
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Aisha​

"...I think for the soldiers to be immune to the fire magic from a Kenaz is for their armor to be magic proof."

It took a lot of thinking and researching about the faires. For Kenaz to control fire magic, even from their opponent, it was simply best if they don't try to use any fire magic against them. That or the user will have to be in better control of their fire magic against the Kenaz. For now, they want to focus on the soldiers as a majority of them are vulnerable to fire magic.

"Perhaps we can make a fire repellent for the army..." the dog of the group, Grail, rubbed his chin and picked up his cup of tea. "Like Elesis said to us, we really don't have a lot of time to work on this. I don't have enough supplies here to make elixirs for the army though, there are many of us here." Grail paused to take a loud sip of his tea.

"Yeah...he is right. It is rather risky too if we use up all our available resources here and it fails, we may not be able to push the demons out of Velder once and for all," Allegro sighed.

"Maybe...we don't have to use up all our supplies. Just enough for those who are going up front. We only need to take out the Kenaz around the area. Plus, we have allies who are resistant to the fire," Aisha said.

"Oh...the lizardmen tribe that came along with Feita. You know what, maybe they can be the answer to our problems," Grail said as he stands up straighter. "Living in such hot climate makes them strong against the heat, especially fire magic. They can be our shields against the Kenaz as well. Perhaps their mages know a solution to make the elixirs more effective and help the soldiers to bypass the magic."

With that, they went ahead to talk to the lizardmen briefly about their issues. It took some...understanding as the lizardmen didn't fully understand their language and the talking puppy confused them even more. Often times whenever Aisha is talking, Grail would take a loud sip of his tea, interrupting the lizards' focus and giving the poor mage a headache. Finally, the mage of the army seems to understand what they need help with. The three of them lightened up when the shaman walked up to them, looking like he had something to say. The lizardman took out a fire el shard from his bag and held it out to them.

"You want...fire el?" The shaman asked.

"...no..."

"Not exactly..."

"I mean...we can probably use it for your elixirs to strengthen them up...right?"

Aisha, Allegro, and Grail stared at the el shard hard enough to make the shaman feel nervous.

"It looks like you need some help with that." The three of them shift their attention to the different lizardman, the one who personally does sign for his chief. "I am sorry I haven't stepped in before, I happened to be enjoying myself to watch you three trying to seek help from us." The lizardman chuckled in amusement. He then turns to the shaman and started to talk to him about what they need help with. Meanwhile, Grail took another loud sip of his tea, likely on purpose. The shaman eventually understood what they wanted and was happy to help.

With the fire el shard, the small fragment was enough energy to make fireproof elixirs for the army. They were able to not use up all their supplies and gave it a test with a lucky soldier. It seems to prove to be efficient after Aisha used her fire magic on the soldier, the man reporting that he was able to feel fine against the fire attackers. Even the heat doesn't bother him too much.

"These elixirs won't last for too long, unfortunately, but I think we solve our issue for now. So about you and Elesis..." Allegro said as he stared at Aisha with uncertainty.

"I know that I won't use my fire magic against them but I'm not sure what we can do about Elesis. She is a strong knight so I was surprised to hear that she couldn't control her fire very well," Aisha mumbled.

"Hmm...I am assuming she is training at this very moment? Well, like you said, she is strong. Perhaps when everything is going out of control and not according to plan, she starts losing her focus and then her confidence, thus making her unable to control her fire properly. I believe she needs to strengthen her confidence on her own. Plus, now she will be having the more help than before. I don't think she'll feel stuck again," Grail said.

Aisha nodded her head in agreement, sighing. She hopes that the loss of allies won't bother Elesis' focus. Perhaps the same goes for herself. The mage feels like she has a special bond with Xavier and the fact that he is in the demons' hands made her worry and giving her anxiety. It was getting hard for her to focus on her own job.

Eosforos
​
With his leg healed up, the angel felt significantly better than before. Yet with Xavier gone by his side, he couldn't help but feel a bit vulnerable. Not like anyone knows about his secret, but Eosforos feels safer by having someone next to him. The black dragon still hasn't shown up and Eosforos as well noticed others were missing as well. Phantom, Lento, the elf who is always around him, and the other man that laid magic traps around the city. He never got the chance to see this man so he has no idea what was going on between the group. For the group to be gone, Eosforos wants to confirm that they are together...somewhere.

"It kinda looks like I am the only one noticing this...no...that dragon is always looking around," Eosforos said to himself as he looks over to Aragorn and Komodo.

They were really the only dragons there.

"That's rather annoying...I can't worry too much about this though. I need to focus to prepare for the next battle, I stayed too long in bed. Those demons will likely give it their all and Xavier...I need to get him back in my hands," Eosforos sighed, picking up his sword.

He went ahead to find a place to train on his own, outside of the city. Even though Xavier isn't there to protect him, Eosforos was glad to have allies on his side. After walking further away from the city and making sure no one was around or close by, he was seeing some familiar faces who approached him from the shadows.

"So, you really left Joaquin...and brought some new faces along with you," Eosforos said to the demon archers and stare at the other soldiers behind them. The demons were wary when confronting the angel but they haven't shown any signs of hostility. They only gave him curious stares.

"Is it true about your blood? Joaquin discovered that you are some sort of demon...we are curious about you, angel," one of the demon archers said, glancing at his kin. Eosforos raised an eyebrow at them and flashed a smile of amusement. "What side are you on, exactly?"

"Side? ...I can be on any sides in this war, but truly I am on my own side. I have my own goals out of this war, I only help the humans to get me closer to my goal and to be honest, I toy around the demons just to make things difficult for the humans. I think I am helping both sides but really, I am just helping myself out," he said to them, folding his arms.

"...what is your goal then?" The demon asked, frowning slightly at him.

"...well, at this moment, to retrieve back Xavier and the Earth El. If you truly want to know my main goal from this war...then I think we need to build up some trust between you and I before I tell you. So stick by me if you want, I can promise everyone here safety and away from the danger of the battles. When the time is right, I will be happy to share you demons everything about my connection with your kind. I will even share on what happened to the demon king himself." This caused the demons' eyes go wide in surprise and a few gasps escaping from their mouths.

"An angel knowing about the demon king? That's impossible!" One of them shouted, starting to have a suspicious feeling about Eosforos.

"Now don't have your tongues inside out on me, I have proof right here," the angel sighed. He began to roll up his sleeves. "I stayed away from Xavier long enough for this to start showing..." Eosforos revealed a black and red tattoo on his arm, it looks faded but almost as if it was reappearing. It was a sacred symbol, a symbol in which demons recognize it very well.

"The symbol of the demon king's royal court..."

"I can't believe this..."

"How...I don't u-understand! You're an angel!"

Eosforos nodded his head, understand their confusion. It was really so long ago that he kind of almost forgot on how he got his wings in the first place. "Sometimes I need a bit of help to get me where I am. I built a lot of trust on both sides, and I pull off a lot of tricks with magic and even science. I suppose you can say that I am an illusion of what I really am. Unfortunately, I don't wish to convert back who I was before," Eosforos grumbled, looking at them. "Not yet anyway. Like I said, we need to build up some trust here. I will be happy to answer your questions as long as you help me on my quest. Trust me when I say this, my friends, I seek for a world where there will be no wars, no starvation, no racial discrimination, only happiness and a perfect order. I am sure all of you are tired of this world and want to rest for a change. I will be happy to have you all under my wing, all I ask is for your cooperation."

Eosforos held out a hand for one of them to shake. "There is a reason why the demon king has me in his court. I am certain he will be happy to know that I'll have the kin of his people support me."

The demons glanced at each other but the angel knows that they were convinced of his words. He was telling the truth after all, though their safety may not be one of them. It wasn't long when one of them finally reached in and shook his hand.

"We will help you on your quest...whether its the good or the bad for our kind," the demon said to him with a nod of his head.

Eosforos smiled as they shook hands and he pulled back his hand afterward. He was rather impressed, only having to use a small amount of his charm magic for them to trust him. "Excellent. It's rather nice to have more than four demon archers on my side now. First order of business, we need Xavier back. The man with the tail...no, we need to kill the dragon Joaquin has. I have a feeling that the slug will make the dragon the source of command for Xavier."

"Joaquin already experimented on the two so you're not wrong. Their minds are linked together and the man will only listen to the dragon's commands. Joaquin as well made the man stronger than before and enhanced his gauntlets for it to be effective against the angel thanks to your bloodline. Yet he is having difficulties in making Xavier consumed by the dark el as if there is something else fighting back inside of him."

Eosforos frowned in concern. "Looks like we gotta act fast then. Alright, come close then, this is what we will do..."
 
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Darhan​

A travelling troubadour was playing absent-mindedly his guitar, sitting down the long bench of a humble cart. A few other artists and poor merchants accompanied him, most of them were already asleep under the notes of the guitar's lullaby.

He had time to thoroughly prepare for what awaited him. Ishmael gave him enough power to carry this mission out, but that wasn't enough. A couple of years ago, he hadn't identified the real goal he had to accomplish, not did he have any eyes on the outside.

Because of this, he had done some work on the inside, despite if it had been difficult. Negotiating with everyone was her forte, not his. But with enough good arguments, being nice and talk with emotion was unnecessary. He had learned that some deals went through better with a cold and detached attitude.

He had been given almost everything: an undetectable cover, a call for backup and enough intel to begin his move. The only thing that he was missing was time, or rather the unknown delay he had left.

The gem of his bracelet began to glow and the silhouette of a hooded man appeared.

"How are things going?"
"Better than expected. There's been a small change."
"Send it to me."

The figure disappeared and a vision of a location appeared briefly in Darhan's mind. He let out a sigh and kindly asked the rider to stop. He got off the cart, waking some other passengers briefly. When the carriage was out of his sight, he let his wings out and flew away to a place nearby.
****
Yullr
​
The months passed and he took the time to keep his findings safe. He looked up at the Red Moon and got out of the tents put by Dust. He walked aimlessly through the debris and noticed that some small forest plants were growing on the edge of some dunes. He had never witnessed such a high level of power coming from a Lost Soul.

His steps brought him to the origin of all the plant life inside the desert: a statue of extremely pure Diceon that had, visibly, stood the passage of many centuries, perhaps for more than a millennium.

He approached the peculiar relic and saw a hole in its chest, it was not simple vandalism. It had still the faint remains of...Henir's own magic.

"So it was her...she looks very similar to what you mentioned." He knelt and looked closely to her face "They named you Lara, huh? Were you the Child of the Ocean, or simply a very indiscrete woman? You are now Tacita, daughter of Silence, but I can make you speak one last time. No need to keep secrets between allies."

He put his hand above Lara's face and focused a part of his mana, murmuring an incantation. After some seconds, he stopped and frowned.

"You held some dangerous secrets, Lara. I'll keep your warnings in mind. For all of us."

He got up and walked back to the tent to sleep. He looked at two books he always carried with him, opened them and put them before him. He flipped the pages and read rapidly through the lines before closing them and returning to sleep.
 
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Phantom had to hold in a bitter scoff when Dust told him how heartbreaking it was to tell families that they lose someone precious to them...and he nodded along as he listened. He knew that not everyone can be saved, and living with the majority of his family being healers he had to swallow that large pill when he was old enough to understand. His father wasn't a healer, but he was the one who gave the "death talk" when his mother was too busy with his older sister's spirit episodes. How his sister was haunted by the dead, something that she thought she could handle when she took on the lessons.

Then, he insisted he became a healer like his mother. Phantom was taken into the homes of the families who could afford their services and learned how to heal with and without magic, and his mother was really proud of him back then. His healing...was more focused on helping his patients pass on, or he was able to give an accurate prognosis. He was never wrong with his predictions on how long someone would live, or whether if they would survive and illness or spell. So...he became "Bad News Brayden."

You...never really told me this, Xiopetec stated, interrupting his thoughts.

Phantom gave a small shrug. There's a reason why I'm good at dealing with dying patients. I was forced to tell families that good ol' BIlly was sick and won't make it. My mother wasn't...empathetic or sympathetic enough to deal with the families, and my brother wanted to focus more on reversing conditions with his magic-like Mother-so...I was stuck with giving the "bad news" all the time.

Don't dwell on them now. You're Phantom now...my faithful child who does what he can to help. Your humanity...is your greatest strength...and your weakness. One of these days, someone will use it against you.

It's not that day yet, huh?

The priest hummed and he placed a hand on Dust's shoulder. "I'd...like to learn the demon language. I wouldn't worry about the consequences regarding me when I've already been a 'target' of sorts because I'm a nomadic priest who doesn't fit the typical priest stereotype...but," He said and he gave Dust's shoulder a squeeze to convey his sympathy and understanding, "I'll get right to that sphere." Phantom gave a small wave and walked away towards the sphere.

Fume Fume
 
Later on that night, when everybody else went to sleep, Dust remained seated next to the campfire, poking it with a stick, from time to time it merely functioned as a distraction, now it was almost automatic.

Finding that his action didn't mattered anymore, he threw the stick in, letting the fire burn a little while longer. He took out his notebook and started to write today's' events.

Day 81 of training

Today, Phantom tried to absorb the mana sphere that I put in the beginning. However it proved difficult and he gave up at the fifth attempt. I gave him the rest of the day off, since I was hoping for him to absorb it today. It can't be considered a total waste, I gave him the demon's alphabet and some words of reference for him to study their language and he trained a little more on his elemental magic.
Lento continues to grow as the days pass, training coating and connection to become a hell of a soldier, though I hate to admit it, he might have a higher insight on connection that me at some point in the future. For Yullr... I can't say much for that dark elf. Most of the time, he spends with Lento and training his mana while putting more seals to limit the amount that can come out of him. He doesn't need training from my part and I'm okay with that. Then comes the training chains that put on the two of them, Phantom was able to rise to 3 chains not so long ago and I'm sure that Lento sooner or later will be able to reach to 4. Despite me raising the number of chains, they feel that it's normal for their mana and gravity to be at that level, I wonder how they'll truly feel once I take them out for the first time.
Will start teaching them materialization, tomorrow.

End of today

He reviewed on what he wrote down and deemed good enough, putting it back in his pocket. He continued to look at the fire and thinking on how he gave Phantom that speech, how it looked like he was telling Rena this for the first time and how she'd take it.

He leaned back and thanking at himself for the tents to be so far away, that he finally let himself relax as he stared up at the moon. He slowly blinked as more thoughts came rushing in.

"Hey Samael... could you come out for a second?" He spoke on a normal tone as the chains rose up.

*Clink*

"Were you asleep? Sorry if I woke you up, partner." He apologized to which he replied with a don't worry about it.

*Clank*

"If you don't mind, I would really need someone to listen to me... I just... I'm starting to lack the confidence in myself, Samael." This made his weapon a bit preoccupied, so he set down on his legs to make himself as comfortable as he could. Samael then gestured him to continue.

"I feel so tired, partner... so, so tired... I'm tired of fighting so much for the sake of the demon realm, for the sake of me becoming stronger. People keep saying I'm strong, but I'm really putting up a farce, a mask around my heart. I might be the person with the most will, but I'm also the one that has suffered too much, too many heartbreaks, too many dead corpses on my hands...

I'm sure as a suns ray that hell is going to open it's arms to me when I die... I'm a murderer, a god damn murderer! I became exactly what those Elders back in the elf realm did to me and our parents! Those sons of bitches took our lives! Made my life a living hell! Cursed my existence because a stupid goddess wanted to get rid a hybrid between elves! All because she felt disgust for seeing our family happy despite our differences! ALL BECAUSE OF A FUCKING TABOO!" He yelled at that moment with rage, he slowly calmed down and tried to keep his voice low, he didn't want to wake those three up.

"I thought that being in the army I could do something meaningful, something that could help the demons that took care of me like family... but then the nobles came into the picture. Taking everything that they want, do whatever they want just because they had a higher rank than the others, treating us like fodder and throwing people to do suicide missions or they'd lose their daughter or wife, sometimes both. And even if the demon succeeded and came back alive, they'd die right in front of their family just to make an example of their power. Even in my position... I can't make retribution come to those bastards..." His rage was starting to build up again, but he took a few deep breaths to himself. "How many kids were left in my care... how much of their blood are in my hands because the higher ups told me to send them to their deaths in the battlefield... I lost count already...

Not to mention, I'm not even sure if I can pull this revolution. We need it to overthrown those bastards for the people to be free from their reign, but Karis' and Scars armies are too influenced on them and fighting them straight away would be a massacre on the spot. I don't want anymore demons under my belt to die needlessly... If possible I'd take the fight alone, but that would be my stupidest move...

Ah... I can feel the dark El in me starting to feel annoyed with me... Sorry, but hold it in for a little longer, okay? Let me just this once... just this time... feel so weak..." He asked, yet it sounded more like a plea. The dark El seemed to understand him and calm down for now.

"Thank you, my friend." He thanked him as he continued to look at the sky. "I'm so weak... aren't I Samael? But I can't lean onto someone else, because I'm their confidence... but who'll be my confidence then? Who'll be there for me when I have nothing left, who'll see my last moments before I stop breathing? Who'll hear my final words? Will I be able to tell him, how proud I am of him? Will I be able to tell her... how much I love her before I go away?

I swear to no god and pray to no one. I'm a nobody from the beginning and I'll be a nobody 'till I die, but if there if there is someone out there that could grant my only selfish wish... Is to give me enough strength for me to say my last words to them before my embers turn to grey..." Only Samael could see how many tears Dust let loose that night and he had already known about his feelings, yet he could do anything except hear him out and just be there for him.
 
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