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The Ties that Bind
Posted: 29 Dec 2006 10:59 AM |
"She will control you. This is all she wants..."
Valethrion reflected on his own whispered words; the true words he'd spoken to Sulanna.
And, he feared, the last words.
Valethrion had spent that day in a variety of phases. First, contentment. Nothing, until midmorning, had occured. Then, Balthor Mountainhand had sought him out, asking about Naillamne. Valethrion answered with the very little he knew, and the dwarf left.
Afterwards, another few hours of solitude and then Sylune entered. A pleasant surprise, given the lack of a reply to his latest correspondence. The pleasantness was quickly dispelled by both her sickly appearance and the presence of a distasteful dwarf. Sylune, at that point, ran towards the bathroom. Valethrion mostly sneered at the ill-mannered creature and soon left to comfort the Bardess.
After a quiet, awkward talk Sylune, Valethrion left her to rest and went about his own business. He spent a good hour or so haggling the prices of his stored gems, then left towards the Cafe del'Mar, seeking solitude. Coincidentally - no, ironically - he found Sulanna instead. The much-sought after woman, whom had apparently flown off the face of Vives, for all that she left of her absence.
Another talk ensued, this puncuated by Valethrion's need to calm himself, and ended with an agreement to take one last trip together; a trip to the secluded Glitterdell, where they could speak in peace. Sadly, it was not meant to be. A walk towards lower Port Royale was summarily halted by the appearance of Alyssa. Sulanna summarized to Alyssa what was spoken with Valethrion; though Alyssa had something to add.
What this entailed, Valethrion did not know, for he had left the two women - the two lovers - alone, as they no doubt wished to be. In any case, it lead to Sulanna seeking refuge in the hellish halls of Fiirhallen: Naruth's domain.
Valethrion had, by this time, conceived some suicidal plan to enter Naruth's domain; to leave a mark of some kind on the despised Goddess before he himself fell; if not to the blades of the Fire Giants, then to depression.
He managed to enter Naruth's domain after Sulanna; and since she was not hindered by the urgency to run, Valethrion caught a glimpse of the Naruthian-to-be as she entered the heavy door that lead into Fiirhallen.
Valethrion entered on her heels and watched her for a long, agonizing moment. He debated with himself, trying to decide if he should speak or if he should let the woman doom herself. To the man, it was a heart-wrenching decision; but he decided on the latter.
''Too much has been sacrificed on her account,'' he would later reflect. ''If she has yet to realize that, then she is better ruining herself.''
Valethrion shooks his head angrily at himself, then, and rushed on. The first door, a heavy slab made of stone, slid into the ground as he approached. The first of the Elf's many victims lay there, unaware of Valethrion's fury, anger, and love.
What might have been minutes or hours later, Valethrion stood over the body of Naruth's High Priestess. The preceding battle seemed over quickly enough; but the battle that followed was not. The ground rumbled, causing Val to fight to keep his balance. The ceiling quivered and the lava pool nearby spilled over onto the stones on which the Elf stood. A sense of dread filled him and he fled the room, thinking to summon a portal to that strange, windowless tower that had sheltered him more than once.
The existance of a Fire Giant disabused Valethrion of being able to do that safely. The way the giant held his blade and himself suggested he was not the untrained brute that was more common; but was, instead, a master of his chosen weapon.
Valethrion struggled against the creature more than three times his height, his own swords stabbing and slashing into the giant. The tremors seemed to intensify suddenly, and then a second sword, larger than any Val had ever seen, came down atop him; shattering many of his protective enchantments.* This moment is a blur: Valethrion recalled calling out the words to a spell, and then all was dark. Horribly, utterly, dark. And at that moment, the last thing Val would see was an Elven woman, golden hair reflecting the heat of the chamber, blue eyes resting straight ahead.
The next instant, Valethrion found himself by the door that allowed him into the chambers. Acting quickly, he summoned an Elemental of Earth to his side, recast many of his enchantments, and then charged against the weapon masters; who had, by this time, accumulated a third member.
The Elemental was taken down quickly, and the Giants turned their gazes onto the lone Elf. Valethrion tried to fight them down, but was quickly outmatched and beat a hasty retreat. Forced to enter this part of the structure one at a time, Valethrion was able to cut them down and return to the chamber. It was sadly empty; devoid of the presence he had seen - no, felt - and thrilled at.
Still, in the light of what Valethrion thought to be utter betrayal, he felt bound to her. He shook his head angrily and continued, slaying more of the giants before being forced to retreat by the King of the creatures, himself. Afterwards, on the steps of the halls of Fiirhallen, he questioned his actions. Why did he run? Was it not death that he sought?
In any case, he could not return to be slain. For, as soon as he closed the doors of Fiirhallen behind him, a wall of pure, white fire appeared and forced him away from the steps and onto the thin walkway, suspended over the river of lava.
Valethrion barely held back a shudder as it seems the hand of the Goddess of Fire wrote upon the stone.
"L...E...A...V...E" it read, though painful to look at.**
His actions, he thought grimly, at least had caught Naruth's attention. Still, it was not enough. He declared, barely loud enough to be heard over the roaring of the molten rock below, that he would not leave.
"Not without Sulanna. Not without knowing."
And thus he sat, in the relative coolness of the side opposite Fiirhallen, eyes intent on the far door. For all his silence, his mind reeled, reliving the memories shared with Sulanna. It was this, the memories that had shaped Valethrion over the last few, long months, and his love for the woman inside, that bound him to his precarious post.
And it was these same bindings that ripped and tore and sundered, one after the other, as Valethrion prepared to let go.
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{( Now, I'm sure Sorrow_maker (Sulanna hisself) will want to add something to this, and to berate me for my lazy writing style (I honestly could write better! Honest! Just...Well, Craig Ferguson's been distracting me the entire time...). I'd like to thank Barnas again for giving me cause to write this and for not letting a bug kill Val off prematurely. )}
* : The Weapon Masters had bugged up; after Val managed to pull off the Concentration Check required to cast Time Stop, he was chopped into small bits. Barnas was kind enough to simply spawn me near the area transition; thus my improvisation.
** : The letters weren't actually straight across. Naruth must need glasses; or should learn to write smaller and neater. :P |
WE APOLOGIZE FOR THE INCONVENIENCE |
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Defeat
Posted: 29 Dec 2006 09:38 PM |
A day had passed. That day was agonizing, filled with both a longing desire to see the door open in the distance and a dread of what would emerge. Neither feeling was realized, however, as the door remained shut and sealed. Perhaps it was nothing more than an illusion, but it seemed the wall of fire - and the word of Naruth's will - had vanished; leaving no mark on the ground of where the flames had burned so fiercly before.
The dawn of the second day brought despair. Not that Valethrion could tell whether it was night or day; he trusted his body, his internal clock, and judged from his usual time of reverie, that it was morning. This fact did nothing to sooth his mind or body. Already had his water rations vanished; the flask doing nothing against the intense heat of the crater.
Valethrion licked his dry, cracked lips and stared hard at the door. Pockets of heated air rose from where he stood the day previous, distorting his view of the barrier and playing tricks on his eyes.
He understood, then, that he was not going to survive another day of waiting. That he could stay and perish from the heat for something that would never now be his, or he could leave; to live long enough to see what Alyssa had created.
Valethrion had been wrong about the time. The dawn greeted his back as he trudged down the slopes of Naruth's Fury. It seemed almost cold compared to the inferno that was Fiirhallen.
After a long walk from the center of the crater, Valethrion found himself, dazed and confused, in the freezing snows of Whipsnade Pass. He sank down and wrapped his arms around himself, unaccustomed to such a drastic change of climate. He shivered there in the snow, the nearby wolves sniffing around hungrily for the scent of barely-cooked meat.
Long minutes passed and Valethrion slowly began to regain himself. He dipped his hand into the snow and ate it; wincing at the cold feeling, but relishing the water. He ate a second and a third handful, then slowly managed to push himself to a stand.
Shivering as a gust of wind blasted through the Pass, Valethrion slowly made his way through Icy Vale to the hot springs just outside the town's borders, intent on recovering. |
WE APOLOGIZE FOR THE INCONVENIENCE |
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Cry fair, part one.
Posted: 30 Dec 2006 08:03 AM |
Dance to the twisted tunes, dance to the pain.
Dance to the dim light of love cast in vain.
Nay. For vision fools and shows not the truth.
Pay. In darkest night no light left to sooth.
Fear. All sentient being's most basic emotion. Fear. Found in as many forms as life itself.
- Suspicion will grow to mistrust, blossom into scorn to finally bear the ripe fruit of fear in each heart. Man will shelter suspicion and mistrust to changes, to strangers, to those who are different. “So is it my fate in life to be feared? Despised and scorned for that which lies beyond my power to undo..”
Her right hand clenched, causing her nails to dig into her smooth, waiting skin. – But was it nails and skin? Bewitching, azure blue eyes roved yet again over the texture of her right hand, for truly, texture was to be found where a smooth complexion had once been the one cornerstone.
Armoured plates of scale, no thicker than the veil of a silken dress covered most her hand, ending in her crimson coloured nails, but this distinct colour had no past in fashion accessories. A frown settled over her fair face as she once again contemplated the distinct likeness to claws her nails had taken in form lately, yet, then it was as if she’d an invisible, mental barrier, for she stood still without remembrance of such an action.
~ She stood still, at Naruth’s very doorstep.
Eyes closed to the world, thoughts roaming free. “So it’s come to this…seeking aid from that which you despise the most?” She smiled oddly at herself as she spoke lowly with words echoing true. For if it’s one thing she despised more than anything else, it is those seeking comfort and protection in a god. – Where is the pride? Where is the sense of self to stand up and solve your own problems?
~ “Weaklings..that’s what they all are.”
A soft outlet of breath pressed past perfected lips that just seemed to ache to be kissed, reassured..yet, she stands alone.
Her lips stayed delicately parted, for her thoughts strayed over a specific part of her memory, regarding a man, regarding happiness. She thought of what could have been..what happiness they’d have shared over the coming centuries..watching times come and go, winter by winter held in each other’s arms..smiles and laughter…a child…..
~ No! She tore her thoughts away from such stray paths, assured in mind and heart by now that such a path had been wrenched from her hands as soon as the very time she was brought into this world by her despised mother.
“No..my path lies ahead…no turning back..” And so it was that Sulanna Rhyness, a jadeheart* and heir in the third generation to her cursed gift opened her eyes anew at the door to the future, eyes filled with a new purpose. – Determination.
“I…have come seeking my kin.” She spoke on entering, yet, her presence seemed to be ignored till the very moment she’d entered the halls where the goddess reigned supreme.
Something was amiss. She could feel an odd tingling sensation in her stomach, in her very essence and being.
~ Entranced by this new sensation she cared little for the heavy steps behind her. Cared little for the giant guards taking position around her. Cared not even for the blow to her head that sent her unconscious..with the reason, she was later to learn, that the loved one she finally understood she could not live in the same world as, had come for her.
Say that you know all, say that you do.
Say that your bleeding heart wasted was to.
Lie. A candle can't burn in the northern wind's blow.
Why. With a cold reptile heart, her love cannot show. |
"You can own the earth and still, all you own is earth until, you can sing with all the voices of the wind." |
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Cry fair, part two.
Posted: 31 Dec 2006 06:43 AM |
Darkness. Why is it so dark? She didn’t want it to be dark. She started to peck at her surrounding shell instinctively with only a wish for light in her mind. “If I’m stuck here I’ll die..! I have to get out..! Out..!” On and on she pecked at the enclosing shell that barred her from the world, uncaring of the blood the task drew from herself.
And so, finally, daylight met newborn eyes with the following of a frightful, pained squeak at that very thing she had sought, at life. Yet, as she slowly and with little elegance crawled out of her hatching egg’s broken shell she knew this was right. For the strong will prevail and see through life whilst the weak would perish.
Albeit her eyes were hardly fully developed or accustomed to the light falling onto the mountaintop, she could still see that already many of her kin were doomed, unable to break through and embrace life. Pity! They’re weak, and don’t deserve a chance. Mother would make a meal of them once she returned to feed her and the others, and maybe she would even let I’Kanesii have some of their fluids..
Sulanna’s eyebrows flickered and tensed, and ever so slowly her eyelids fluttered open to let those azure blue eyes greet the world once more. “Hm..?” She felt she was lying on a bed of soft pillows, and her left hand found it’s way to rest to her forehead, trying to remember what had happened; Yet, her thoughts would still linger on her dream. It had been long since she’d dreamt of being born, yet it always amazed her how she felt and understood the fight for survival it was. For that dream to resurface now..was it a sign? Coincidence? And that name..she knew, deep inside, that it was her own. “I’Kanessi…Kanessi..”
Slowly things came back to her. The volcano..Naruth’s halls..giants…then darkness. Had she fell unconscious?
She slowly rose to a sit to regard her surroundings, only to find them faintly familiar. She knew this place..! It was here she’d first learned of her heritage, of her cursed blessing, from Alyssa. “Alyssa..” Sulanna shook her head firmly. This was no time to dwell on her.
Little had changed since her last visit, things stood where they used to in the small middle-room, and the heat was all the same..yet, it was pleasant.
She rose to inspect her surroundings, to find whoever had brought her here; Yet, it was only when she’d given up and returned that she was to receive company.
Sulanna couldn’t help her eyes being held by the priestess that approached her with a knowing smile, hips stood in fluent motions with each step in a seductive manner to put it best to word. She was blessed with a long, curved hair-fall of flame red locks that framed a perfected, fair face. Her whole body and being was as having been shaped delicately by a master’s hand, her presence in itself exuding the promise to complete a man’s every dream.
She was no man, but she still held ground; Enraptured perhaps by surprise, uncertainty, or by means of her charming aura.
“- My..I see our esteemed guest has woken from her sleep..” The priestess had closed, and was now tracing the fingers of her left hand gently over Sulanna’s cheek; And whatever bewitching power lay in that soft touch, she could not help but let her eyes close in pleasure at it.”
Yet, the high priestess’ interest lay not in mortal pleasures at the moment, nor in granting them upon others; And she instead sent her hand to let her fingers entwine with those of Sulanna’s, leading her astray.
Many questions Sulanna answered that day..of Valethrion..herself and more, and many sights did she see as she wandered through the pleasant atmosphere of the temple and residential areas where the sole female followers of Naruth resided.
The atmosphere was pleasant, friendly even..a bit to friendly at times, she noted at the clear tension between certain priestesses; Yet, it seemed normal, and none reacted ill at it. Rather, she could not help but think it encouraged, taken the conditions as they were.
- Why where things so different out in the world..? Why where things not like this for herself and Alyssa? “Alyssa..”
Sulanna gave a light sigh as she lay down on the soft bed she’d been given, closing her eyes for now. – Who knew what the coming days would grant? All she knew, was that she felt at peace here..at home, and as if she truly belonged. Yet still..she could not come to senses with the odd feeling in stomach..
Odd is the future, odd is the world.
Odd is the place into which she is hurled.
Yet. Beauty blooms in lack of scorn.
Let. Growing light to heart so worn. |
"You can own the earth and still, all you own is earth until, you can sing with all the voices of the wind." |
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