The Dance of Chaos [IC-Fantasy-OPEN]

[Tracian Empire]

Somewhere else entirely
A meeting of Sin

No words escaped Pride's lips as the situation in front of him quickly started to unravel. He said nothing as Meta threatened Evangeline, as Sitri intervened, or even as Meta used her Authority to try to force the other Archbishops to kneel to him. But there was no way for him to not know what was going on, blind or not.. or was there? The white haired boy seemed deep in thought, as if he was careful listening to something, or to someone. It was only after Evangeline put on her mask and talked to him directly that he seemed to react to what was happening around him, as he smiled. And as he smiled, several things happened.

The cultists who had been sitting in a distant circle all this time, turned around at once and struck their wooden canes against the ground. At the same time, something invisible seemed to move through the air from above Pride's position, moving quickly, and they clash violently against the Lust puppet's three blades, a metallic clang echoing through the glade as the two defensive blades were thrown back and as the burning blade fell on the ground in front of her, frozen solid.

Still saying nothing, Pride took one step forward and hesitatingly managed to put his hand on Meta's shoulder, seemingly knowing where she was even in the darkness that was covering his eyes. "Thank you, Meta. For standing up for me.", he whispered to her, before he gently turned her around to face him and kissed her, to show her his gratitude and love maybe, or two defy the two Archbishops of the lowest sin, perhaps.

A moment later, Pride placed himself in between Meta, Evangeline, and Sitri, still smiling. "Please do not hold this against Meta. She loves me, and she wants to protect me and to serve me, so this is a normal reaction to her belief that you all have insulted me. It is my fault for failing to foresee that she might believe this, and for this, my brothers and sisters, I apologize.", he declared in a soft and calm voice, a more serious expression replacing his earlier smile. "Mea culpa.", he added, beating his chest.

"The only ones who shall be my enemies shall be those who will oppose me directly, and to those no mercy shall be shown. But to the others, who wish to see something before making a decision, that I can accept. Diligence and patience might be virtues, but even they can have their role. " The silver eyed boy smiled again. "As we are speaking, my cultists are taking action against the Faith, and by the first ray of the morning sun, the Haliarch will be dead, and the servants of the Sixteen will think he was killed by a hand of the Virtues. The chaos shall allow us to move more freely once again, to satisfy our sins without always fearing the Scriptures or the Virtues. And yet I know that this would not be enough." Pride looked at Evangeline. "As long as your cultists do not fight against me, they too shall have all the time in the world to make a decision. Similar patience will be awarded to all of your cultists, if your reign over your subjects is shaky or if you simply wish to grant them free will on this matter. But as for you, the Archbishops who wish for me to prove myself..", he looked back at Auryon for a moment, "Do tell me what you wish me to do. You are old and powerful Auryon, and I do not think you ignorant, nor do I wish to disrespect you. But what you have seen for so many years is stagnation. Some of my predecessors might have had temporary successes, but not much has changed since the times of the Three Emperors and the establishment of the Faith. We hide in the dark, and hope that the souls of the mortals will listen to the whispers of our masters, instead of chanting their songs of desire and sin far and wide. If you wish me to prove myself worthy, both of you, I shall in whatever way you want me to, for few things can be more important than following my master's desires. And if you just wish to wait and see what I will do, then I will let you go and see as long as you promise not to interfere."

And then finally, Pride looked down on Sitri, who was kneeling down next to him. "If you wish me to force you to swear fealty, "he told him, a magical collar of holy silver, marked with spells written in High Thyrian, appeared around Sitri's neck, the metal sending a burning sensation down his skin as its holiness clashed with Sitri's dual demonic and sinful nature, "If you wish me to punish you for your sins..", he continued, as the weight of the collar would have forced the demon to fall face down on the ground. "That can be arranged."

[Nea Videssos]

Sitri, Demon Prince of Lust
A Congregation of Sins

His neck now clad in a holy silver collar, the Demon Prince trembled and shuddered, moaning in an odd blend of pleasure and pain. As he did so, the four folded, purple-feathered wings upon his back seemed to quake in tandem with the rest of his body. As a tumult of expressions crossed his face, Sitri's eyes still held an unhealthily intense gaze that seemed to ceaselessly hunger for ever-greater suffering and powerlessness at the hands of others. The lingering sensation of Sloth's Authority imbuing his body and mind with weakness and despair was now accompanied by the scorching pain of holy silver coursing into his body, spreading from his now-collared neck to the rest of the feminine boy's kneeling form. With the blade of Meta still piercing his lower regions, Sitri's fall under the collar's weight was awkwardly skewed so that more of the sword ended up cutting into his hand and nether regions. At this point it was also gradually disembowelling him and carving its way through the Archbishop's exposed midriff.

The Archbishop's face hit the cold ash upon the ground of the burned glade, receiving a thick mouthful of the grey-white powder, which quickly filled his throat and induced an outbreak of coughing. The Fallen Angel cut a sympathy-inducing sight, covered in ash and increasingly drenched in the still expanding pool of blood courtesy of Meta's sword. This image was furthered by the fact that he was coughing, moaning and murmuring to himself, though it was muffled due to his face being down in the glade's chalky cinders. If one were to ignore the red-black colour of his blood, and the purple wings upon his back, it would seem as if a beautiful human youth had been collared like a dog and was being brutally tortured.

While the Demon of Depravity could not speak physically in his current predicament, it was a simple task for him to telepathically transmit anything he desired to say, in spite of his seemingly pathetic state. While Sitri's body would have been in dire straits for a mortal, the voice that emanated from his mind seemed less disordered and distraught than one would have expected. The oddly twisted desire that had been visible in his eyes earlier also manifested itself in the tone of his mind's voice as Sitri spoke to Pride. "As expected... Superbia did not choose one unworthy of Her blessing. This unworthy subordinate humbly thanks the First among the Sins, no... the New Cardinal of the Seven Sins, for his understanding, and holds no doubt that whatever punishment chosen shall be done so with great wisdom and keen judgement..."

[Fereni]

Anselm
Merckburger Fen
Village

"Pub-lic-ly acceptable?" Mireille voiced slowly. "What's that? No, I don't know. I don't care. I want sweets. And I want a personal knight. I want one, I'm going to tell Lisbeth and Konny that I want one." She looked over at the eclectic little group, and smiled. "I wanna play a game. I wanna play... I wanna play... I wanna play escargot!" She giggled. "Do you know how to play? You just have to hop into the middle!" With that, she tossed a fireball onto the ground, which spread out into the shape of a snail shell, separated into squares. Although the game she was thinking of was certainly a classic, the fact that the outline was marked by fire meant that anyone who chose to play would be at some risk if they missed a step. "If you get to the center then you get to keep a square for yourself," she lectured. "Then you can stand on both feet in it, but no one else can be in it at all. Otherwise you can only be on one foot! But you can't step on a line or lose your balance, or you have to start over again. Whoever has the most squares wins!" She clapped her hands excitedly, and looked at Daniel. "You gave me sweets, so you can go first!"

Somewhere else entirely
A meeting of Sin

The way the other rebellious Archbishops, save Sitri, refused to obey filled Meta with a deep anger, and she probably would have actually begun to fight them, if she hadn't felt that gentle hand on her shoulder, and heard his soft voice thanking her. She shivered with delight at that, and dismissed her sword. She knew, she knew she'd done the right thing. They couldn't possibly be allowed to rebel against him. And when he turned her to face him, and kissed her--she couldn't help but cling to him. Yes, this was what she wanted, to show them all that they belonged only to each other.

It was sad when it ended, and she was slightly bewildered by the way he spoke to the others afterwards. You're being too merciful! she wanted to say. They need to be taught a lesson, they need to learn their place. Such an insult should not go unpunished! Yet she stayed quiet, and let a soft, dreamy smile cross her face. She was still happy enough that she could restrain herself, and she reached up to touch the necklace still clasped around her neck, the cold stones reminding her again of his touch.

Yes, it didn't truly matter what the rest of them did. She, at least, would be loyal to the very end.

[Dragos Bee]

Daniel and Leon Perrin-Palaiologos, Anselm

Leon looked archly at Marina and said, "Not to be a child myself, but I told you so."

Daniel, meanwhile, took off his cape, rolled it up, and gave it to the nearest member of the party, which was either Leon, Lucia, or Marina. Then he walked over to where Mirielle is and said, "All right, Lady Mirielle, let's play. But to make it more fun, let's give who wins a prize!" He then grinned and continued, "If you win, I will be your Personal Knight for the day and you take me home with you. If I win, however, you have to make your Maid play a game with us and you shouldn't help her in any way. How's that sound?"

A side glance at Leon, a signal to rig the game in his favor, before he hopped into the Escargot line and began hopping and skipping, using only his natural agility for now, hoping that he drew Mirielle and that enemy maid's attention with his behavior, which inlcuded a wide smile.

Leon, meanwhile, waited a few tense seconds before going over to Lucia and whispering, "You're an Archbishop of Virtue - Can you cast an enhancement on Daniel so that he has a better chance of winning?"

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Auryon Rakhasa and Az'goxaak
A Sinful Encounter

---

"The only thing I wish for Pride to do to prove his worth is through action." Auryon said as she relinquished her magic influence on the area's weather and temperature, "You wish to advance beyond the stagnation of the past, then all I wish is to see it happen. That, and feed. The hunger demands it. If the Haliarch does truly die and the faithful look to the Virtues as the culprits, then the Cult of Gula will support you. But only as long as you feed our hunger with your success. If it looks like our hunger can not be fed and our survival is threatened by following, then we will cease support without interfering."

Pride with a sliver of humility, a contradiction, most interesting. was what Az thought as he saw the way the Archbishop of Pride went about defusing the situation. As for the plan of Pride, that did not go unnoticed by Az. Then there was Sitri being Sitri, and the Archbishop of Pride indulging him, to which Az was disgusted with to a degree.

This disgust simply added to the negative feelings Az had been stewing in with silence. Feels enhanced by the passive effects of the Authorities of the Archbishops who had just finished their squabbles. It was almost time, he could feel it burning, pushing, wanting to be released. But he held on, containing it, letting it build more so that on its release, his wrath would not go unnoticed as a declaration of his intent.

---

Pynus of the Wind
Merckbirger Fen, Anselm

---

"Not confident in your brother?" Pynus said to Leon as she stepped forward. With the arrival of these two possible enemies, Pynus had abandoned trying to speak with the plants, and turned her attention to them. She had been watching the events, and now decided to speak up. She smirked and looked at Leon, "I am not sure about Lucia, but I might have a trick or two..."

As she said that, she spiraled a finger in a circle and Leon would feel some wind wrap around a leg and create an updraft. Pynus then whispered, "The key is to maintain balance, and that is something I might be able to assist him with, just give the word."

[Elysian Kentarchy]

Evangeline
Conclave of Sin

If Evangeline has any reaction to what Sitri is doing she does not show it, but she does suppress her Authority out of politeness. She brings one hand up to the chin of her mask and places the other one on her elbow in clear thought. "Auryon largely says what I think, similarly I think such blaming on the Virtues would be a great move. Though I would have a couple things myself but they are things I think you would have no problems agreeing with, well more they are givens but I would still prefer to hear said aloud. Simply put you will not endeavor to steal our cults out from under us or replace us as Archbishops. I doubt you want our cultists so the first part of that is covered, as for the second it is ultimately to your benefit. The Cults of Luxuria and Gula have been under the leadership of Sitri and Auryon, and myself to a lesser degree, for longer than you have been Archbishops of your own Cults so any attempt to replace us will be detrimental to your war against the Faith, best to work with the Archbishops you have and not the ones you wish for. With an agreement of those two things in addition to the matter of the Haliarch I will willingly fall in line."

She pauses, mulls over her words, and continues. "But there are two last things," her tone takes on tinges of her inner sadism and she continues. "If the opportunity presents itself in the future, Princess Alexis de l'Azéma is to be captured and handed over to Luxuria's Archbishops. An admittedly difficult task but a great way to buy my complete loyalty, but that is completely optional. As for the second," beneath her mask she smiles not a sadist one but a kind one, "do what you can to take care of Meta. You don't need me to point it out but the girl loves you a great deal and deserves some happiness."

[Tracian Empire]

Grand Duchy of Wyzkia
Opalinski Castle


Rafal smiled gently, but a hint of worry seemed to remain in his red blueish eyes as he looked back at Alina. "You did not cause any inconvenience Alina, do not worry about it. It is my own fault for not making sure that the servant knew that she had to guide you directly to the Great Hall. The castle is too big and complicated even for me sometimes." Despite his apparent calmness however, there seemed to be something more, something beyond his concerns for Alina, a feeling of sadness. "And while I did come to look for you, I specifically came to the garden because I also had to.. see someone else." Such hesitance was very uncommon for him, but his eyes had already wandered away from Alina, looking at the older woman who was still tending to her flowers as if absolutely nothing had happened around her at all. "Mother..", he said softly, taking the few steps that separated them. "It's me. Rafal. I've returned home."

A few tense moments passed, as it seemed that Adelajda did not hear him, but eventually, she put her scissors on the ground, and turned around to face him, tears rolling down her cheeks freely. "Rafal..", she whispered, her voice choked by tears, as she hugged him. "You're here.. you've returned.. I knew.. I knew you would return. I knew you would survive. I knew that Aurora would listen to my prayers, and that this accursed war would finally end. You're safe, and you're here, and that's all that matters.." The red haired boy hugged her back, but he did so very hesitatingly, all while Anastazja didn't even dare to look. "Where are your father and brother? We need to celebrate!" And here, Rafal painfully hesitated. "They.. they haven't returned yet." Silence once again enveloped them, and Adelajda let go of him, turning around, picking back her scissors and continuing to tend to her flowers. The metallic sound of the scissors was the only think to be heard for the next few minutes, as Rafal remained where he was, like a statue.

"Oh, welcome, young man.", the older woman finally spoke, her voice different from before, looking at him but still continuing to work. "My apologies for not having seen you, I was focused on my flowers. How may I help you? " Rafal said nothing, until the silence had become so heavy that he could barely even breathe. "Thank you, my Lady. I simply wanted to take a look at your famed garden." The lady in question smiled. "Feel free to, young man.

As Rafal turned around and looked at Alina again, it looked as if he was on the verge of crying, but he was clearly making great efforts in order to prevent it. "Shall we go to the Great Hall, then?", he asked calmly, smiling yet again. Anastazja merely nodded.

The Great Hall was truly worthy of its name, larger than some of the smaller churches in Wyzkian villages. Its walls were painted and decorated, with scenes from Wyzkia's history on one side, and presumably portraits of Rafal's ancestors on the other, and in between them, a painting of Wyzkia's most important hero, Remigil, the first Emperor of Tharnria, wearing his Crown of Thorns and wielding a jagged blade. Compared with the lavish scenes on the walls, the medium-sized wooden table in the middle seemed completely out of place, but Elżbieta and a few servants were already waiting, some of the food already having been placed there. Rafal had been extremely quiet during their way here, just guiding them along the many hallways, deep in thought, but as they entered, and as Anastazja sat down, he rushed his steps and pulled one of the chairs back for the pink haired girl walking behind him. "You can sit here, Alina.", he told her, smiling again.

---

Somewhere else
Earlier
A blind boy and a girl with eyes of glass


He was no one, and he was nothing.

When he had woken up for the first time, still feeling the pain in his chest, gasping for air, he remembered it. He remembered it all. Who he had been, what he had done, and the final moments of his previous life. The burning sensation of the blade piercing his back and his chest, and then the slow death, his body growing ever colder, as he gasped for air, chocking in his own blood. He remembered why he had been fighting, and for whom, why dying had been worth it, the bitter knowledge of having failed to defend the people he loved.. but there was one thing he couldn't remember. His name.

Memories and knowledge of the past... why would they even matter? He could remember everything about himself, but not who he was. Without a name, he was no one, and he was never able to remember it. It was as if it was lost in the darkness that always seemed to surround him, always slipping away, always covered. Without a name, his being slowly slipped away, memories lost and broken, the very essence of his being was what he was losing, but he refused to accept a new name, afraid that it would change who he was, that it would just complete the death of his previous life.

Until now.

"And his name... his name is Kiryl."

It was as if his all of his fear, all of the anxiety that had been gnawing away at him for so many years, the cold fright of forgetting who he was running through his veins, the pain and tension of constantly mentally fighting against Superbia.. all of it.. just disappeared, replaced with a warm calmness and.. happiness. Being nameless was at the core of his fear of losing all of his memories of his past-self, so hearing it, hearing this name... it was like the light of the dawn ending the night, water filling a cup. It filled the abyss left behind by his cursed, forgotten name, and made him, for the first time since he had awoken in his new life as a servant of the Sins, feel.. himself again. Alive. Complete. Human. The name was absolutely perfect.. no, not the name. His name. He felt as if it had been his all along, even if of course, thinking that was foolish. Was it because it had been chosen by her? Was it because of the name itself? Or was it because it was her voice which had said it? All of it? He didn't know.. but what he did know, was that being right here with her, and holding her hand, made him happy in a way that few other things could.

"Yes.. I am Kiryl.", he answered confidently, a smile now on his face. The jeweler smiled back. "Very well, young lady, young lord, give me just a minute to finish the preparations." True to his words, the merchant soon presented them with the two completed necklaces, and following another old custom here, he gave each of them the other's necklace. Kiryl stood calmly as Meta put his necklace around his neck, and then did the same for her a bit more hesitatingly, partially because of course, he had to do so without seeing it, and also because she was just slightly taller than he was, the situation resulting in the white haired boy once again blushing a little. After thanking the merchant, they turned around and left, and continued to walk seemingly aimlessly on the streets. "Thank you... Meta.", he told her eventually, his voice low, but still smiling. "The name.. it's perfect." He would have been to embarrassed to thank her right then and there, and his acknowledgement of the name there wouldn't have been nearly enough, so he had felt her gaze on him as they had been walking. He couldn't see her, but her glass eyes were after all, magical items - he could feel them, and he could sense whenever Meta was looking at him. It wouldn't have been too difficult for him to understand why, and for him to finally muster the courage to thank her from the bottom of his heart.

Metaphorically speaking. His heart had been turned to dust long ago, so it didn't exactly have a bottom anymore.

Eventually, they reached the next step of their date, a small restaurant, belonging to an old and quiet lady, in walking distance to the town's central square. They were the only ones there, sitting a small table, and after a few more silent moments, the old lady brought them two glasses of wine, bowed, and left. Kiryl tapped on the table with his fingers until he found the glass, and gently grabbed it, taking one sip from the drink before sighing and visibly relaxing. He had never been a big fan of alcohol, but wine had its charm. He smiled, and looked in the direction in which he knew Meta was sitting. "You know I'm.. really happy to be here, with you. I always wanted to do something like this with you, back during the war.. but of course it couldn't happen. I never would have imagined that such a dream would eventually become true."

[Ceystile]

Alucard
Alucard allowed herself a pleased, somewhat smug smile at Blanc's praise. "Definitely...but the order may take a while, our wait list has gotten dreadfully long and there's only so many employees. Is there anything specific you'd like, any custom metals or stones or patterns? We can pretty much do it all."

Cecily
Cecily took a pen and notepad and jotted down the information that Dr. Kaufmann was giving them, turning to Roter and Zed at the mention of her sister. "Extra help on the quest would be appreciated, but I have trained soldiers for that. There's no need for you two to risk your lives. I can use your help and scanning the archives though, there's a lot of information to go through. Roter, you know this place like the back of your hand...far better than I do." A small playful smile quirked on her lips. "And that's not even including the restricted section."

Clover
"The sooner we rescue our subjects, the sooner I know they're safe...the sooner we can all rest easier at night. And more importantly, the sooner I can return home to my darlings." Clover told Spriggan as they left the tavern, notebook jotted down with everything that may be a plausible lead in the fae king's hurried, loopy scrawl. "I miss my children, Spriggan dear. I haven't been away from them for this long since the days they were born."
"They're in the best possible hands, Sire. Their own mother is with them." Spriggan rested a hand on Clover's back, trying to offer some measure of comfort to his friend. "I know, it's not that I don't trust Elayne. It's just...they're my babies." They were so engrossed in their conversation that they nearly barreled into a black-robed figure who caught herself just moments from tripping on her hem and colliding into them completely. "Hey, watch where you two are going next time!"
"How about youwatch where you're going!" Spriggan snapped. "Do you know to whom you speak...?!"
"Now now, dear. It was an accident, do relax." Clover faced the white beaked mask and straightened himself up. "You're..." His eyes grew suddenly guarded. "You're not a necromancer, are you?"

"Of course not! I'm a doctor...I'm actually on assignment!" The mask was removed to reveal the face of a young woman. "My name is Gabriela Steig, who may you be?"
"Clover, and this is my dear friend Spriggan. He's a bit grumpy but he's just protective, so you'll have to excuse him."

[Fereni]

Daniel and Leon Perrin-Palaiologos, Anselm

"That sounds fun!" Mireille said cheerfully. "Okay!"

Lucia, meanwhile, looked at Leon with clear disapproval. "You are asking me to help him cheat? Although I do not like the situation we are in, I will not engage in such deceit."

Somewhere else entirely
A meeting of Sin

From out of the darkness came the sound of footsteps, and then slow applause. "What a display!" The voice came from a man who had just moved into view, with blue hair and clothing that seemed a little too ostentatious. "Forgive my lateness," he said with a slightly mocking bow, knowing that the Archbishop it was directed towards could not see it, or the look of disdain on his face. "A case was dragging on, and since you didn't offer me any compensation to be here, I saw no need to rush things. But I see you've been busy without me." He raised an eyebrow. "You wish to become our true leader? I suppose I could fall in line, for a price. A high one, seeing as how I have no other reason to obey you." He looked over the other assembled Archbishops, some contempt still clear in his eyes when he looked at a few of them. "And I also see that you've been enjoying yourself," he added, looking between the white-haired boy and the green-haired girl next to him. He sounded... almost disgusted. "How very nice for you. I do hope you're planning to exercise caution."

Meta bristled at his words. "How dare you--"

"Don't." He looked her straight in the eyes. "Stop bothering to defend him. You truly don't understand... the kind of man that you're in love with, do you?" Pressing a hand to his forehead, he sighed. "But it's a pointless endeavor to try and convince you, I know that. So for now, I'll put it aside, and repeat my offer. If you want my loyalty, you will have to provide me with compensation."

Grand Duchy of Wyzkia
Opalinski Castle

She wanted to comfort him. She wanted to, but she didn't know how. It was such a horrible thing to have to endure, and she didn't know if there was anything she could do to help him feel better, so she merely followed him, in silence.

Before all of this, there had been a question that she wanted to ask him, but she knew that she shouldn't. Not right now. It wasn't a good time, she couldn't bother him. He was hurting, so she couldn't bother him, not with her pointless, selfish request.

The Great Hall was beautiful, but she couldn't properly appreciate it. The moment she stepped into the room and the aroma of the meal hit her, she began to feel nauseous. No, no, she thought desperately. You can't do this now. You can't cause trouble--you have to be okay. Stop it. Stop it. But it didn't work. Instead of feeling better, she just kept feeling worse. She couldn't hear Rafal's words over the ringing in her ears, couldn't see him through the black spots that clouded her vision. The room was spinning, and it wouldn't stop. She was cold, she couldn't stop shaking.

"Rafal," she found herself saying, despite all her desire to keep from bothering him--it was an instinctive reaction, a cry for help. "I don't--I--I feel--"

The last thing she registered was that she was falling, and then the world went black.

Somewhere else
Earlier
A blind boy and a girl with eyes of glass

She was nervous, hoping that he would like the name. She'd chosen it on a whim, not really thinking that much about it, knowing that she had to choose something quickly lest it become clear that he had no real name. So when he thanked her, and told her that it was perfect--she felt a warm glow deep in her chest. The chill of the necklace against her skin, the chill of his hand in hers, they didn't matter, they couldn't keep away the warmth. She couldn't help but glance over at him again, just enjoying looking at him, and at the clear signs of their relationship: the way his hair was braided, the green stones sparkling against his pale skin, things that spoke of her. And the white jewels around her neck meant just as much.

When they took a seat at the small table, Meta smiled, even though she knew he couldn't see it. The wine was pleasant enough, but it could have been horrible, and she wouldn't have minded so much. She was just happy to be with him. His words... there was a slight ache in her chest. She wished she could remember what they'd been like before. She only ever got brief glimpses of memory, and they fled from her quickly. Most of them were memories of death, anyway, and she hated them. She wanted to remember better things, wanted to remember him, and not the pain of dying.

"Could you tell me... more about that?" she asked softly. "About before... I want to remember it. I want to remember what we did together, what it was like... I don't remember what I was like, what you were like... Could you tell me? All I know is that I've felt the same way. I've been waiting... I've been waiting for so long, just to be able to sit and talk with you like this. To be happy, and normal... it's all I ever wanted. I wanted to have a normal life with you. I know that much, but I don't remember anything else. I don't remember, and I want to... so please, tell me."

[Dragos Bee]

Roter-Kaufmann Palaiologos and Zed Argentum

"All right," said Roter, "I and Zed will guide you to where the family archives are. Just remember to be careful as parchment can be delicate."

The Kaufmann-Palaiologos archive rooms were located in a dry and airy room at the back of the manor, where careful maintenance and subtle enchantments kept the damp and rot out. While that sacrificed safety, it did ensoure that the archives were more complete than their equivalents among rich merchants in Calaria and Anselm. That, and it made actually reading the archives much less uncomfortable than in a mildwed and dusty room. As Roter further guided Cecily towards the most recently-added sections, Zed piped up, "How old are these Archives? Since the founding of Arghyo?"

Roter shook his head, "No, the Palaiologoi were originally of Kartaran stock who settled in Arghyo two centuries ago as merchants - We used to deal in salt and whalebone, but managed to learn the ins and outs of finance easily. Eventually, we managed to get our own bank and our own silver mine - The one my branch of the family owns - but in exchange, well... Let's just say that we have little connection with our Kartaran roots anymore..."

Kyle Perrin-Palailogos, Arghyo, with NPCs in Duivene

Perigny, Chat Blanc

"Surprise me," was all Chat Blanc said. "Also, fair warning, but I have to go home soon - More business deals await and the Palaiologos boy wants his money..."

Kyle Perrin-Palaiologos, Arghyo, with NPCs in Anselm

Heyderkrug, Filippo

Filippo was in a bad mood as he waited for Gabrielle and her doctors and orderlies to return - Apparently, even with hunters searching for the mysterious undead monster killing his fellow kids, things were still tense, with what other gangs remaining growing bolder due to them sensing weakness. That said, some of his spies within the slave markets of Anselm have given him rumors of some Faeries (the magical creature, not a term for boys who liked other boys, which he was one) being captured through some mysterious means and about to be sold in some secret auction no normal kid can get in. Granted, those were only just rumors and could be incorrect, but knowing that Faeries are real and really powerful, Filippo would not put it past the scumbags of Anselm to try and enslave the Fair Folk...

Daniel and Leon Perrin-Palaiologos, Anselm

Apparently, cheating hadn't been the right thing to do, as Daniel found himself set on fire by the burning escargot lines. As the boy found himself rolling on the ground to try and put out the flames, he glimpsed his brother, Leon, smacking his own face with his palm.

As for Leon, once he was done face-palming, he stepped forward, saying, "Congratulations - You now have my brother to play with for a day. Now can you put out the fire so that he doesn't become a smoking pile of ashes any time soon? That way, you and he can have more fun."

Deep inside, Leon was fuming about how he had stopped Daniel from attacking Mirielle, but then considered that if they had all done so, him and his brother would be dead. So he looked for another way to manipulate this little girl - Daniel's plan had not been foolish or myopic in and of itself, after all. So he said, "Anyway, my name is Leon and I want to play a game as well - As you picked the last game we played, does that mean we get to pick the next game we play?"

He then looked at Adelheld and said, "Sorry for this foolishness, but as you can see, the 'Young Mistress' here clearly has magical powers which do not need words to shape. So it might be best if we humor her just to get this over with..."

Then to Pynus, he continued, "Can you help us think of a game? A game fit for magical prodigies like the 'Young Mistress'?"

[Fereni]

Daniel and Leon Perrin-Palaiologos, Anselm

Marina very quickly tossed a ball of water at Daniel, dousing the flames. Meanwhile, Mireille scowled.

"You're all quitting already? None of the rest of you want a turn? You're no fun. But if it's a really good game that you want to play, maybe I'll play with you." She still did smile, though, looking at Daniel. "I get a personal knight," she said happily, and picked up a stick from the ground, smacking Daniel on the shoulders. "I uh..." She seemed to be struggling to remember the words, before she finally gave up. "You're a knight now!"

[Ceystile]

Roter-Kaufmann Palaiologos and Zed Argentum

"All right," said Roter, "I and Zed will guide you to where the family archives are. Just remember to be careful as parchment can be delicate."

The Kaufmann-Palaiologos archive rooms were located in a dry and airy room at the back of the manor, where careful maintenance and subtle enchantments kept the damp and rot out. While that sacrificed safety, it did ensoure that the archives were more complete than their equivalents among rich merchants in Calaria and Anselm. That, and it made actually reading the archives much less uncomfortable than in a mildwed and dusty room. As Roter further guided Cecily towards the most recently-added sections, Zed piped up, "How old are these Archives? Since the founding of Arghyo?"

Roter shook his head, "No, the Palaiologoi were originally of Kartaran stock who settled in Arghyo two centuries ago as merchants - We used to deal in salt and whalebone, but managed to learn the ins and outs of finance easily. Eventually, we managed to get our own bank and our own silver mine - The one my branch of the family owns - but in exchange, well... Let's just say that we have little connection with our Kartaran roots anymore..."

Kyle Perrin-Palailogos, Arghyo, with NPCs in Duivene

Perigny, Chat Blanc

(Image)

"Surprise me," was all Chat Blanc said. "Also, fair warning, but I have to go home soon - More business deals await and the Palaiologos boy wants his money..."

Kyle Perrin-Palaiologos, Arghyo, with NPCs in Anselm

Heyderkrug, Filippo

(Image)

Filippo was in a bad mood as he waited for Gabrielle and her doctors and orderlies to return - Apparently, even with hunters searching for the mysterious undead monster killing his fellow kids, things were still tense, with what other gangs remaining growing bolder due to them sensing weakness. That said, some of his spies within the slave markets of Anselm have given him rumors of some Faeries (the magical creature, not a term for boys who liked other boys, which he was one) being captured through some mysterious means and about to be sold in some secret auction no normal kid can get in. Granted, those were only just rumors and could be incorrect, but knowing that Faeries are real and really powerful, Filippo would not put it past the scumbags of Anselm to try and enslave the Fair Folk...

Daniel and Leon Perrin-Palaiologos, Anselm

Apparently, cheating hadn't been the right thing to do, as Daniel found himself set on fire by the burning escargot lines. As the boy found himself rolling on the ground to try and put out the flames, he glimpsed his brother, Leon, smacking his own face with his palm.

As for Leon, once he was done face-palming, he stepped forward, saying, "Congratulations - You now have my brother to play with for a day. Now can you put out the fire so that he doesn't become a smoking pile of ashes any time soon? That way, you and he can have more fun."

Deep inside, Leon was fuming about how he had stopped Daniel from attacking Mirielle, but then considered that if they had all done so, him and his brother would be dead. So he looked for another way to manipulate this little girl - Daniel's plan had not been foolish or myopic in and of itself, after all. So he said, "Anyway, my name is Leon and I want to play a game as well - As you picked the last game we played, does that mean we get to pick the next game we play?"

He then looked at Adelheld and said, "Sorry for this foolishness, but as you can see, the 'Young Mistress' here clearly has magical powers which do not need words to shape. So it might be best if we humor her just to get this over with..."

Then to Pynus, he continued, "Can you help us think of a game? A game fit for magical prodigies like the 'Young Mistress'?"

Cecily
"These papers must be older than the High Priest. Heck, probably even older than Headmistress Mireilla." Cecily was surprised that there didn't seem to be a single speck of dust on either the papers or the tables, the archives in the Temple of Virtues seemed to be covered in a perpetual layer of dust as the High Priest thought it added "sophistication." More like it added dust allergies and lung problems." Heeding Roter's warnings to be careful, Cecily slid out a pair of silk gloves from her pocket and pulled them on before going to browse the papers. "We're looking for things on the Cult of Sins and demons, what section would that be in?"

Alucard
"Of course, tell Kyle I said hello...and you have a splendid journey." she said quietly, sipping at her own tea.


Clover/Gabriela
"Well, Mister Clover...you don't seem to be from around these parts." Gabriela said casually as she unloaded the supplies from the cart, sending Colombe to go inform Filippo that they'd arrived back.
"You don't seem to be from around here either, madame."
"Actually, I was born here...though I've lived in Duivene for most of my life. I decided to come back because the people could use a dedicated team of doctors, the bastard lords here are way too greedy to pay for things like necessities. I'm actually here to treat some ill children."

"What a noble calling, I love kids!" Clover grinned up at her, Gabriela found herself wondering...the man was unusually short. Not that there was anything wrong with that, but there was something about him. Something that didn't seem entirely human. His face suddenly grew serious...it changed like the wind, which was another odd thing. "We're here on business as well, I have some friends who have gone missing, and during my investigation I was told that they may have last been seen here. Would you happen to know anything about that?"
"Well, you haven't given me much to go off...what happened to your friends? And where are you from?" She noticed his ears, noticed the point. "You're not human?"
"I'm an elf."
"You seem pretty short for a Loroi. And I don't mean that as an insult."
"Half-elven. My friends were having a party in the woods, apparently we all drank too much and blacked out. I woke up, they were gone...I went back to my village and their families said that none of them returned home." Fae lied as easily as they breathed, the fuckers.

Gabriela's dark eyes widened, as if remembering something. This was supposed to be a secret hideout! But if she panicked, it would tip these people off. "You two may want to get away from here, the kids in this area have a highly contagious disease...so we're quarantining the whole area off."

[Dragos Bee]

Roter-Kaufmann Palaiologos and Zed Argentum

Zed shook his head, saying, "No, the Headmistress is much, much older than two hundred years old. Same for Arghyo too."

Roter piped up, "But we do have records of encounters with demons and the Cult of Sins in these archives - There's a section to the left detailing how various adventurers from our family, including my father Castiel, fought members of the Cult of Sins in the past. Said members were fairly minor in the heirarchy, though, so my father's journals might not be able to give any hints of the Cult's deeper workings or secrets."

It was Zed's turn to say, "Don't forget your stepmother, Roter - she fought some minor cultists too." Then he turned to Cecily, "Either way, Roter probably has a few records dating from eleven years ago, it's in the section to the left - I've been here before."

Kyle Perrin-Palailogos, Arghyo, with NPCs in Duivene

Perigny, Chat Blanc

"Thank you, I will," Chat Blanc said before he, his bodyguards, and aides left to go back to their coach...

Kyle Perrin-Palaiologos, Arghyo, with NPCs in Anselm

Heyderkrug, Filippo

Filippo received reports that Gabriella was coming - Good, perhaps he can discuss the recent crisis with the mysterious female undead with her...

[Tracian Empire]

Somewhere else entirely
A meeting of Sin

"Very well.", the white haired boy declared in a condescending voice, his hand still grasping the chain connected to the Demon Prince's collar. "I shall decide on a punishment for you when the time is right." For a few moments, Pride really did seem to ponder the issue, but his attention was sadly quickly distracted by the arrival of a new guest. The boy had heard the sound of footsteps from long away, and even if he could not see how mocking the man's bow had been, the same attitude was just oozing from the sound of his voice and from his applause. And yet despite that, he simply remained silent, a calm smile on his face as the new arrival talked with him, and more surprisingly perhaps, more of the same calmness even as he talked to Meta - when anyone else who would have talked like that to her would have most certainly ended up skewered by the invisible blades he so gladly used. And yet, underneath this facade of tranquility, the silver eyed boy was certainly pondering all the subtleties of Ira..

"Welcome, Archbishop of Greed.", Pride replied, his usually soft voice a bit more.. abrasive. "It is quite a shame that being rich does not inherently bring punctuality or good manners with it.. but one can not have everything in life now, can they?" The boy now looked in the general direction of where the blue haired man was, and he gently touched Meta's shoulder once more, presumably in order to try to stop her from getting into an argument with him. "Despite that..I do have to recognize that your help would prove to be useful for my plans. If you do agree to support and obey me, then you shall find your compensation to be most plentiful.. even for a disciple of Avaritia." The boy's smile disappeared. "However, there is one thing I must make clear. I hope that you will be planning to exercise caution also. If you will try to hard to interfere with the love between me and Meta.. the consequences will be.. interesting."

And then the boy smiled again. "But let us not talk about such things. Compensation, for loyalty. That is the deal. And issues between us can be postponed.. to a later date." The boy turned around again, and looked in the direction of Evangeline, which was once again, a form of politeness. He could not actually look at other people during their conversations, so it was pointless in a way. But it both made the discussion feel more normal... and it also let others know that even if he was blind, Pride was all too aware of were they were. "I most certainly do not care for the cultists of other Sins. Superbia after all is a lot.. stricter in its requirements for who may serve her. As for replacing you and the other Archbishops.."His smile turned into a smirk for a brief moment. "It is something that I considered, but that I ultimately abandoned. Your experience is to be expected, and even I can not insult two of the Cardinal Sins with my schemes. If you agree to my terms, the opposite will be true in fact - I will work to the utmost of my abilities in order to ensure your continued survival."

Pride then remained quiet for a moment, and two cultists, wearing black robes, hoods, and veils, walked up to him, stopped there, and placed two large, silver amphorae on the ground in front of him. "Now for the more enjoyable part of our negotiations, blood oaths shall be required. It is not that I do not trust the promises of my fellow sisters and brothers in Sin.. I do not trust anyone. Such is the world we live in. Those who are willing to obey me as the leader of the Cult of the Cardinal Sins shall swear it and shed a drop of blood in the amphora to my right. Those who are willing to merely swear that they will wait for me to prove myself worthy of being followed shall swear it and shed a drop of blood in the amphora to my left." His smirk returned as he looked at Evangeline again. "It shall work even in your position, my Lady. For even if it is but the blood of your doll, for the oath's magic it shall be as if you've shed your own." Not seeming to pay much attention to the state Sitri was in, or to the fact that he had already shed plenty of blood all around, quickly absorbed by the ash, the white haired boy pulled on the chain so as to force him back on his knees. "You too, Sitri."

And then, as if he suddenly remembered, the boy looked into the direction of the one who had been sitting and witnessing all of these events in silence. The other demon prince. "What will it be for you then, oh demon prince Az'goxaak?", the Archbishop of Superbia asked. "The master I serve has asked for your presence here specifically in order to gauge your intent. You are godless, and lack a purpose here in the mortal realm, but in the end, you are still a demon. You could achieve great things with us. So then, will you pledge your allegiance, or swear that you will not oppose me?"

---

Grand Duchy of Wyzkia
Opalinski Castle

Rafal had been deep in thought even as he had pulled the chair for her. It had more of an instinctive, mechanical reaction, molded in years of court etiquette classes, rather than an actual, voluntary reaction, which was understandable. He was able to deal with the sadness and the emptiness of no longer being recognized by his own mother only for fleeting moments, but he was able to do that by himself. Even for Anastazja, who had been with him all along and had known about it from the beginning - he never allowed her to be around his mother while he was also there, for anyone else to see this reaction. And yet, now not only she had seen it.. but Alina also. And of course, it wasn't shame that had made him not want anyone else to see it. What worth was reputation in such a context? No he just.. didn't want others to worry about him. Even something like this paled in comparison to what Alina had been through and what she had yet to worry about.. so much so that it nearly didn't matter at all. She didn't need to worry about him, or to feel bad about him.. but he knew she would. Despite all that had happened to her, she was a kind girl.

So during their walk back, his thoughts had alternated between ways to make her worry less, and just trying not to let himself be engulfed by the sheer emptiness that he was feeling every time he saw the spark of recognition disappear from his mother eyes. There was no wonder that he hadn't noticed her expression, or that she had started to shake... it was only when she had called her name that he actually looked at her, and noticed it. And then she fell.

When most of your childhood is spent trying to learn how to live and fight on a beast flying through the air, fast reactions are crucial. There are after all moments when grabbing someone or catching them can be the difference between life and death. The moment he noticed that the pink haired girl was about to fall, Rafal leaped forward, with no concern for his own safety, and managed to catch her, and nearly lost his own balance, but in the end, they both managed to avoid falling on the stone floor below.

Anastazja, Elzbieta and the servants all leaped and rushed to them as the red haired boy slowly lowered her onto the floor, and all of them started to talk at once, scared and worried, but they quickly quieted down as they saw the boy carefully listening to sounds her breathing, and they calmed a little as Rafal slighed in relief. He had no idea what was wrong with her, and he couldn't even begin to worry about all the things that potentially had gone wrong, but he was also afraid. Very afraid. Could this have been because of her pregnancy? She was very early into it, but he had absolutely no idea. Especially with all that she might have endured at the hands of Luxuria, he didn't even want to think about her. Breathing started to feel difficult as he also suddenly realized that he had to balance finding help for her with protecting that information, not only because he had to protect her honor but.. this wasn't his secret to share to begin with.

"What's wrong with her, Rafal?", the red haired girl asked him, kneeling down next to them. She was certainly the calmest around, as Elzbieta wasn't even able to look at the unconscious Alina, but a hint of worrying was all too visible in her eyes. "I..", the boy tried to say, feeling as if he was about to choke on his words. This was bad. This was really bad. Lying had never been his strong point, so much so that he had often been mocked for it, especially when it came to the concepts of him having to vote and debate things in the Kebra. And even worse than that - Anastazja knew him all too well. If there was anyone who could see through his lies, it was her. And beyond that.. well, she was his friend. The reasoning behind his lies would have been honorable.. but the lies themselves would have been dirty, as was betraying her trust.

But he had no choice now, did he?
Better for his honor to be sullied and for people's trust in him to be broken, than for her to have to content with all the hate and disgust the truth or even just a half-lie would have caused.

Quickly thinking a prayer to Aurora, Rafal continued. "I don't... I don't know. She is probably.. exhausted. We traveled for two weeks, and we barely made it out of the army's camp alive. Maybe it was just a.. sudden attack of weakness. I hope. Her rose eyes looked at him for a moment, but he had no idea whether she believed him or not. Still, she said nothing, as she took out a small bottle - filled with perfume and salts. "Hopefully she will be alright then..", she told him, still clearly worried, as she opened it and placed it in front of Alina's face, hoping that the strong smell would work. "Please..", the red eyed boy said, gently grabbing her hand, "Alina.. wake up.."

---

Somewhere else
Earlier
A blind boy and a girl with eyes of glass

"I don't know if.. remembering is the best choice.", Kiryl answered, a sad smile now on his face. "Not remembering.. might be a blessing. Those were hard times, times of anguish. There were good times, but there was much suffering. And they ended with us nearly losing each other." The boy once again hesitatingly took her hand into his, as if remembering something that had happened long ago. "If I could forget everything without forgetting the people I love, I would without a second's hesitation. If I could know for sure that after forgetting everything, I would still meet you, and that you would love back, I would.. I would forget it all.. but I'm afraid of it. Of forgetting who I am, and of forgetting my love." He remained silent for a brief moment, thinking. "I was afraid back then too. You were always braver than me. You always tried to comfort me and to make me feel better. I had trouble sleeping for a while, nightmares, so we used to stay away from camp at night, and talk. About our lives, about our past, and about our future, our hopes, and dreams. And you would help me fall asleep. Being near you always calmed me down, even back then, I never had a single nightmare when I was close to you. We were both lonely, and we were trying to cheer each other up. And to understand each other. Those nights were never fully calm, with the dangers of the war still around us, and the others not too far away, but they were an oasis of peace in those times. I used to try to stay awake, to keep talking with you so that you wouldn't feel lonely at night, but I would always fall asleep before the break of dawn." His smile grew a little happier. And his silver eyes, they were as always hollow, but for some reason, it felt as if he was directly looking into eyes now. It was so much easier for him now, to imagine her, and to know where she was. "And then one night, back when I was firstly trying to understand my feelings, I asked you if after the war, you wanted to come and live with me and my sister. I thought that... that it would make you happy. But I didn't actually expect you to accept it. Truth be told, besides from wanting to make you happy, I was also afraid. That I'd lose you once the war was over."

Kiryl sighed. "But you agreed...and that's when I realized, that I loved you. And that's when we kissed, for the first time. You were the one to kiss me. And I was happy.. we were happy. We had a dream now. Something beyond the war, something beyond its end, something that we could hope for. That we would one day be able to live our lives together, as normal people, and to enjoy our lives in peace and quiet, away from all the pain and suffering and ugliness that we had seen. And sometimes I still think about it, and I feel hopeful, just like I did back then..but then I remember what happened, and I realize that such dreams are just that. Dreams." And he smiled, but a lone tear started rolling down his cheek. "I have broken too many promises for it to even count.. but I know, that I will do whatever I can so that at least part of that dream can become true. For you."

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Auryon Rakhasa and Az'goxaak
A Declaration of Intent... A Declaration of War

---

"Godless? Yes. Lacking a purpose..." Az chuckled as he stood there, "I guess that is true from a certain point of view. But no, in reality it is false. My purpose in the mortal realm has been to live my life peacefully, away from the influence of higher beings. My purpose was my own peace, but giving recent events, it seems that purpose has shifted..."

"Celio." Az continued and looked to the necromancer, "You wanted to know my sins, well, let me tell you. My lust, not for the flesh of another, but for a life beyond the control of others. My gluttony, not for food overwhelming, or overindulgent pleasures, but for my isolation..."

It was at this point that an almost sinister aura could be felt coming from Az as he continued, "My greed, not for worldly treasures, but for those days of peaceful freedom. My sloth, well, that is simple, my refusal to perform my duties as a Prince of Hell, and those of an Angel before my fall. My envy, it was for the simple mortals, living life away from the politics of the Heavens or the Hells. My pride, demonstrated by my isolation, refusing to get involved in the world till now."

"And finally, my wrath..." Az said as he held out his right hand, palm up, fingers curled ever so slightly, as if he was holding some invisible sphere. After a moment, there was red sparks in his hand, and then it appeared. An orb, as dark a night that appeared to flicker in and out of existence, appeared within his hand. Red lightning shot out from it, and arched around it. It was unnatural, demonic even. It was something that perhaps Sitri would recognize, albeit much smaller than normal. Az smirked and tossed it into the air, and as it floated upwards, and stopped a few feet above him, Az spoke, "There it is, my wrath."

With that Az looked at Pride, "And allow my wrath to be my declaration. My declaration of intent. It shall be heard from the Heavens to the Hells. Az'goxaak lives, and he is taking the third option. He will no serve the Cardinal of the Sins, nor will he stand idle anymore while the mortal realm is torn apart by those who would see it consumed by destruction, darkness and wickedness. This is my declaration of intent... no, this is my declaration of war."

With that, the orb dropped to the ground in front of Az, and Az just smiled. As the orb contacted the ground, a massive explosion was triggered. An explosion of pure destructive power, highly concentrated by the negative emotions of Az and his infernal heritage. The surrounding 20 feet was engulfed in the explosion, whether the Archbishops avoided it, Az would not know, as he stood right next to the epicenter. He let the power swallow his body, burning and destroying it. Beyond the 20 foot area, the shockwave of the explosion continued on for a great distance. Once the dust settled, Hell-Fire raged across the area, and Az's body was nothing but ash.

Auryon escaped the explosion at the last second, teleporting out of its range. Before she escaped, the explosion took her lower left arm. The shockwave hit her after her teleport, knocking her through a nearby tree and into another, one of its branches impaling her in the process. Of course, these injuries were painful, but Auryon would survive, as evident by the fact that her arm had already begun healing, and she was able to pull herself from the tree. Auryon returned to where the other Archbishops were, and looked on the Hell-fire, deciding to wait to see if anyone else survived.

[Nea Videssos]

Sitri, Demon Prince of Lust
A Meeting Interrupted

As soon as Pride pulled him back to his knees, the dishevelled demon prince raised his free hand over the amphora to the right of the Archbishop of Superbia. Already bleeding from having held Meta's sword, a few drops of blood soon fell into the vessel. Alas, before anyone else could contribute, his fellow demon prince decided to throw a wobbler. Sitri quietly watched as Az went on a rant about how he wanted to be left alone. A faint look of curiosity tinged with excitement could be seen upon Sitri's face, as if he were watching a monkey perform tricks. Not that the Archbishop of Lust himself currently had a particularly dignified appearance, collared and leashed as he was in front of Pride. While he was still bleeding and covered in ash, his wounds had already visibly begun to heal after Meta 'dismissed' her sword.

Sitri continued watching quietly, and then, Az's raving reached its conclusion. The rebellious demon prince created a rather familiar-looking orb of magic, proclaiming it to be his wrath. Naturally, as soon as Sitri saw it, he recognised it. Knowing its destructive capabilities, he began readying his own defensive magic. Since he was no longer face-down in the ash, the Archbishop of Lust could speak, so he upon hearing his fellow demon's 'declaration of war' he murmured, "Bit melodramatic, no?"

Then Az's orb dropped to the ground, and a huge blast of demonic energy ensued. Since Sitri's collar was held by Pride, he naturally couldn't run off, so his only options would be to place his body's continued survival in the hands of the other Archbishop, or use his own magic to defuse some of the blast's damage. Purplish-blue Ancient Magic interspersed with a demonic red light, flickered into being from Sitri's left hand, whilst a similarly crimson light shone from his eyes. Since he was in front of Pride, he would naturally be the first to take the hit from the explosion. Not that he had any issues with that. As long as he didn't have to go to the effort of possessing a new body, he was more than happy to take a hit for someone else.

The flickering blue-red sorcery swirled in an arc from Sitri's left hand, forming a curved barrier that pulsed as it thickened, rapidly becoming almost solid. After the first layer, several more layers rapidly sprung up behind it, angled so as to help deflect at least a portion of the energy. Then the eruption of infernal black energy hit the shield. Needless to say, while it seemed to reduce some of the impact, the outer barrier rapidly cracked and shattered. Then came the next few barriers, one after the other. Then the dark energy mixed with red lightning reached Sitri's body, rapidly tearing through what little clothing he wore, reducing it to dust in spite of its enchanted nature, and beginning to burn his skin. Releasing his regeneration back to full force, it seemed as if Sitri's body was constantly burning, flesh continuously sizzling, melting and regenerating in a bizarre and macabre show. It was not for nothing that his regenerative power was considered noteworthy even by the standards of the Princes of the Eight Hells, and that was taking into account this was only a possessed body. It was not instant regeneration, of course, but it was nonetheless capable of at least temporarily enduring a remarkable amount of damage, even if the mortal body Sitri was in could not recover faster than the damage done. At this point, the rest was up to the Archbishop of Pride behind him.

[Elysian Kentarchy]

Evangeline

As Az'goxaak speaks Evangeline's expression behind her mask takes on surprise at what she feels, while she is not what Sitri is she is still not human and thanks to what she is she still has her connection to the divine, as warped as it has become, so she can sense something infernal is coming but not exactly what. At least not immediately. And when she figures it out it is almost time for the show, so she can only leave the body she is in right before the explosion, consigning the girl to a quick death before she could even realize what is going on.

After the sparks die down a petite teenage girl, a little over five feet and clad in the garb of a priestess, walks into the glade as if nothing has happened and comments, very clearly annoyed. "How annoying, I was rather fond of that girl, but I guess that is what happens at these kind of things. Everyone else okay?"

[Fereni]

Grand Duchy of Wyzkia
Opalinski Castle

It didn't take too long for Alina to stir, but she was still disoriented and confused, her thoughts hazy. She didn't know where she was, barely registered anything around her, only that someone was there with her. "N... Not now," she murmured, her voice thick with drowsiness. "Please... I'm so tired..." When her eyes finally fluttered open, though, one of the first things she saw was a pair of rose-colored eyes looking down at her. They looked... so familiar, to her clouded mind. "Mama?" she asked sleepily, before her thoughts cleared and she registered what was really going on. Oh, no. She immediately tried to pull away from everyone, scrambling to her feet, but dizziness overwhelmed her again and she fell to her knees, dry heaving from the lingering nausea. Stop it, she begged herself. You have to stop. They'll start asking questions--stop! Much to her relief, it didn't take long for her convulsions to ease, at which point she forced herself to stand up again, smoothing out her dress and attempting to look as if nothing had happened. "I apologize," she said softly. "We've been traveling for quite a while, and I haven't had the chance to eat much... I suppose it's had an effect on me." She prayed, desperately, that they would believe her half-truth. She knew she could never answer the questions they would ask if they didn't.

Somewhere else entirely
A meeting of Sin

"I already told you," Alexei said with a small frown. "I was working. Or do you believe that the wheels of justice should stop turning at your command? Superbia must be overjoyed with the pride you display." He let the subject of Meta drop for the time being--particularly as the blade at his side began to grow icy cold along with every word the unaffiliated demon spoke. Danger. He knew it perhaps before anyone else, and acted accordingly--the first thing he did was to place himself between the demon and Meta, throwing up a barrier with a quick and desperate chant. He didn't know many defensive spells, and most of them had serious drawbacks, but that didn't matter, not then. The explosion hit the barrier with incredible force, and he had to force himself to stand his ground, pushing back against it even as the force of the blast and the following fire rushed around him. If he didn't focus on it, or if he fled to protect himself, it would fall immediately, and he couldn't let that happen. I will not fail. And yet--she was moving. No! He tried to extend the barrier's width, but it fell just barely short, and he could only watch in horror as some of the flames pushed past the edge.

Meta had started moving the moment she realized what was happening, throwing herself entirely at Kiryl and pushing him as far as she could, knocking him to the ground and covering his body with her own. She squeezed her eyes shut tightly, waiting for the explosion to reach her, knowing that it would probably kill her. That was all right. At least she would shield him. "I love you," she whispered, her voice shaking. "I love you, I love you, I love you."

And the heat did come.

She couldn't even scream. All of the air in her lungs was knocked out of her from the first moment of impact, leaving her gasping for air. But it was all right, it was, because he was safe, her body blocking the flames from reaching him. But it hurt--it hurt so much--she could smell burning flesh and oh gods it hurt so much she was going to die she was going to die here and she'd never be able to be with him and it hurt it hurt it hurt--

And then it stopped, finally, and she sobbed, only then realizing that bloody tears were streaming down her face. She couldn't move. It hurt too much to move at all. Even breathing felt like it stretched the burned skin of her back too much, sending shudders of agony through her, and she could do nothing but cry from the unbearable pain. But he was safe. Her love was safe. That, at least, eased the pain of it, if only a little.

Somewhere else
Earlier
A blind boy and a girl with eyes of glass

For a moment, she thought--she might have caught a glimpse of what he was talking about. The stars, she remembered the stars, and his head in her lap as he slept--but it was gone in an instant. Even if she couldn't remember it, she still felt the same warmth and happiness that she must have felt then, and couldn't keep a smile off of her face. "So that's a dream," she murmured to herself. "I think I understand... just a little bit. But you know, I am the Sleep Princess... I let people dream. And you're my prince, so even if you aren't sleeping, I'll let you dream, too." She reached out with her free hand, gently brushing away the tear slowly tracking its way down his face. "Do you want to know... If I could dream, really dream, what I would dream of?" She waited for him to give his assent, and her grip on his hand tightened a little bit. "I would dream of being with you." She smiled again, even though she knew he couldn't see it. "I would dream of being with you, in a little house far away from all of this, where we could be happy together. I think... it would be somewhere quiet, and near water. And every day, I'd be able to see you, and be happy, and safe..." For a moment, she sounded a little bit sad, and she traced over where she knew the scar on her stomach was. "I would have wanted to have children with you, but... I can't. It's impossible... but as long as we're together, I can still be happy." Her voice brightened up again. "I think... I would grow roses. And I could sing every day, not for magic, but just because I wanted to... and we wouldn't have to worry about anything. Not a war, not the sins, not anything. If I could dream... that would be it. I don't need any of it, I only need to be with you, but I think... it would be nice, to have that." Her voice cracked, belying her words. Tristitia's words in her ear, and the icy touch at her throat, reminded her that she couldn't dream at all. But if she wanted to wish for something like that, even if it was hopeless... if she wanted a happy, peaceful future with the one she loved... that wasn't a sin, was it? And if it was, then she would gladly sin again and again, for him, only for him. Because she could still be happy, even without any of her other wishes coming true, as long as she had him near her.

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Karine Lacan and Az’goxaak
Death, Vengeance and New Life
Not far from Wyzkian-Anselm Border

---

Was this going to be it? Was this where she was going to die? That was all Karine could think to herself as she laid there, her blood pooling underneath her as the sword that impaled her was pulled out. She had left home to pursue a life of adventure, and to make a name for herself. Karine was not a rookie by any means, she had fought her fair share of monsters, both human and not. But to think her death would be at the hands of simple banditry.

It was underwhelming to say the least. Karine had thought that her death would come at the hands of some monster, or some great evil warrior. Not a bandit getting a lucky shot. It was embarrassing and enraging to Karine, especially since that bandit should have never gotten the chance to attempt that lucky hit. Karine was sloppy, and in these last moments of her life she recognized it. She had underestimated them, even after tracking them down over the past few weeks.

Now, she could only lay there watching the bandits going through her stuff as her life bleed away. At least she could take solace in the fact they were not doing to her body what they were notorious for doing. They laughed as they looked into the locket which they ripped from her neck. It was then that their leader turned towards her, smiling and holding the now open locket. Within the locket was a small painting of Karine’s younger sister.

“Look here.” the bandit leader spoke as he crouched beside the dying Karine, holding the locket just in front of her face, with a sickening grin, “Now she’s a beauty… Sister or friend? Doesn’t matter. Someone should really let her know you ain’t coming back… Perhaps me and the boys could do that? Now what do you say to that.”

It was as the dread flowed through her that the bandit leader got up, laughing as he turned his attention back to his followers as they continued going through her stuff. She knew she would die here, and she knew there was nothing she could do to stop them. Karine looked to the sky, praying for help. Of course, she did not think that she would get an answer from the gods, after all, what was one or two mortal lives to them?

To her surprise, her prayer was answered. Not by a god, not by an angel, but by something infernal. She saw it approaching from above, a black mist, only visible to her and not to the bandits. It descended till it was right beside her and took a humanoid shape as it looked at her.

”That’s quite the wound…’ she heard it say, ”No way a mortal like you will survive that… I assume those guys looking through that stuff did this to you?’

Karine could only nod.

”There is something more to it though.” The figure spoke again, ”The dread I see is more than just you dreading death… they threatened someone or something close to you, correct?’

Karine nodded again.

After what felt like hours, but was merely a moment, the figure spoke again, ”Perhaps, I can do something about that. But, before I can… What’s your name?”

“Ka… Karine… La… Lacan.” Karine whispered through the pain, “Karine Lacan.”

”Well Karine, my name is Az and I might have a solution for your problem…” Az gestured to the bandits, ”But I would require your body.”

How was Az here when he seemed to kill himself after unleashing his wrath upon the Archbishops of Sin? Well, it's quite simple, he didn’t kill himself. When he unleashed his wrath, he took the moment before the wrath exploded to abandon his former body, leaving an empty husk to take the explosive power of his wrath, while his spirit slipped away. His spirit then spent the next bit of time searching for a new body, and now, he found a prospective new body with Karine.

”Don’t worry.” he continued, ”I will wait till your soul passes. I have no interest in taking your body with your soul still present. I just require the body, after all, I can’t do anything on the mortal realm without a body. So, if you allow me to take your body after your soul passes and use it as my own, then I will make sure those who caused you this dread and death pay. I will also ensure the safety of those you care about…”

With that said, Az’s shadowy figure reached a hand out, ”With that said, do we have an agreement?”

After a long moment of thought, Karine took the hand of the shadowy figure of Az. There was no surviving this. If she did not take this deal, then her sister would be in danger. If she did accept the offering of this strange being that called itself Az, then there was a chance of no danger to her sister. So, she held the shadowy hand as her consciousness faded away.

Go… Az thought, as he watched the life leave Karine, And I hope you find peace.

With the body vacant, the shadowy figure that was Az turned once again to mist, and entered the lifeless corpse. A few seconds later, the hand of the corpse moved over the wound, and Az began to heal the wound, or at least just enough that it wouldn’t cause issues in a fight. The body rose, catching the attention of the bandits, who were understandably shocked, and held their weapons at the ready. Karine had passed, and now, Az had a new body, and a deal to follow through on.

“Well, hello there.” Az said as he, or rather she, cracked her new neck, “I’ll be honest, I’m in a real bad mood right now, so, how about we just get this over with quickly.”

“H-H-How? W-We killed you.” One of the bandits said, his sword shaking in his hand.

“That’s true.” Az said as Hell-fire appeared over her hand, “But I am not her.”

With that, Az pointed her hell-fire covered hand towards the bandits, only for a number of darts of hell-fire to appear behind her before firing towards the bandits. While most of the bandits were hit, causing them to be swallowed by the hell-fire. One avoided the darts of hell-fire, the bandit leader, who by now had pulled out his warhammer.

“I don’t know what you are, but I’m going to make you pay for hurting my boys.” The bandit leader said before charging at Az. He swung his warhammer, which looked like it was going to hit her. However, it swung right through her as the illusion faded. “What the-”

The bandit leader was interrupted by a longsword piercing his chest from behind. Looking behind him, he saw Az, holding the longsword that belonged to Karine in his back. Without a word, hell-fire erupted once again from her hands, and travelled down the blade. As the hell-fire jumped onto the bandit leader, and he screamed in pain, Az pulled the sword out. She watched as the body fell to the ground and burned to ash.

As the bodies burned, Az gathered up all the things that belonged to Karine, and walked away.

---

Kazimiera Baltozyte, The Archbishop of Industria
A Troublesome Vampire
Outside the town of Auvil, Duivene

---

“Damn it...” The vampire, a Moroi, said as he slammed the door behind him. He clutched at a wound on his shoulder. A wound that burned as if it was on fire, and was not healing as fast as it should have. “What did that bitch do to me?”

It was then that there was a thud against the door, and soon after, a sword pierced the door to the Moroi’s right side. This caused the Moroi to jump back, and prepared to strike at the woman who was hunting him. Electricity crackled as the door was opened, and the Moroi let loose some sort of electricity based magic. Magic that did not hit its mark, as when the door opened, no one was standing in the doorway.

It was only after the spell hit the wall beyond the doorway, that a figure stepped into the doorway. She was armoured, and wielding a single sword that could have been silver by its shine. A shine that was dulled by the inky liquid that she was smearing the blade with. The Moroi had underestimated this woman, originally he thought she was just some adventurer, albeit a very cautious one that had been watching him for a few days. But as their fight in this abandoned manor went on, it became clear that this was far from the case.

After all, this Moroi had the unfortunate coincidence of becoming the target of the Archbishop of Industria, Kazimiera Baltozyte. She had heard the rumours, and decided to investigate herself instead of leaving it to someone else. So, for the past few days, Kazimiera had been investigating, and identified the vampire. It was only tonight, after preparing her solutions and strategy that she acted.

The Moroi tried to hit her again with his magic, aiming to strike her straight in her chest.

“Surge forth and bring chaos.” Was all she said as he let his magic loose. The magic reacted, and flew off target hitting the wall beside her. As the magic struck the wall, Kazimiera rushed forward, her sword swinging for the Moroi’s neck.

The Moroi was able to jump back in time, but as he tried to reach for his weapon, he once again found that he needed to move. She was staying on top of him. Moving faster than a normal human, keeping pace with him, and forcing him on the back leg. While he was able to avoid most, some of them still managed to graze him. Despite these being minor cuts, they still hurt as if they were much more severe.

Eventually, the Moroi failed to avoid a rather devastating strike. Kazimiera’s sword slashed clean through his right leg, causing the Moroi to howl in pain and fall to the ground. He tried to strike back with magic, but like every other time, he found his magic failing to hit his target.

“How?” He finally said as he found the point of her sword near his throat. This was his attempt at distracting her, and buying time. Unfortunately for him, Kazimiera did not take the bait.

No words were spoken as she swung her sword one last time, taking the vampires head clean off. The Moroi was dead, and Kazimiera merely cleaned the blade before it reverted into a humanoid form.

“My lady.” Vilko said as he bowed, “Another successful hunt… He seemed a capable fighter.”

“That he was.” Kazimiera sighed, “Such a shame that he submitted to his thirst…”

With that, she reached into the satchel she carried at her side, pulling out a scroll. She allowed her magic to course through her and into the scroll, dropping it on the body of the Moroi. The scroll burst into flames, which then quickly consumed the vampire's body.

“I hope his soul finds peace.” She said, turning to leave the room as the body finished burning, handing Vilko her extra sword, “Come Vilko, I need to get a drink and a hot meal.”

With that, they left the abandoned manor, heading back to the tavern that they were staying in. Once they returned, Kazimiera sat down at a table, ordered a drink and a hot meal. All while Vilko stood behind her, watching over her and the tavern.

---

Nykolas Baltozys, The Archbishop of Patientia
An Unremarkable Day
The village of Bystravo, Zelkoris

---

“Ready or not, here I come!” Nykolas said as he removed his hands from over his eyes, “Now, where did you children go…”

Nykolas Baltozys arrived a few days ago, with the intent to stay for about a week. Why a week? Well, it wasn’t because he was tracking down enemies of the Cult of Patientia, or that he was on any business in relation to his position as the Archbishop of Patientia. No, it was purely personal. The village of Bystravo was within the province his family was incharge of, and the woods surrounding this village were his favourite place to go hunting.

In fact, his hunting trips to Bystravo were so common, that a number of the villagers recognized him with ease. This was really a feat because of how unremarkable Nykolas was, with and without his magic. Of course, this also meant that the children of the village knew him, and knew that he would always be happy to play some games with them. Hence why he was spending time today playing hide and seek with the children of the village.

“Are you behind… This tree!” Nykolas said as he looked behind a tree, “It appears not. Well, I thought I would have found one there… don’t you agree, Martas?”

“I thought I had you that time.” A child said as they stepped out from a bush beside the tree.

Nykolas simply laughed and rubbed Martas’ hair, “Almost Martas. Almost. Now, run alone back to the well at the centre of the village. I need to find the rest of you trouble makers.”

And so, Nykolas went on. He could have found them all pretty easily, but he decided to take his time. You know, make the children feel better about their hiding spots, make the game more fun for them. After an hour or so, he found them all, and said goodbye as he went into the woods for some hunting.

He returned in the evening with a few rabbits, taking them to the village tavern to offer them to the tavern owner. That, and get a drink and meal before his day was over. So, there he sat, in this small village tavern, with a good drink, hot meal, and great company.

[Tracian Empire]

Somewhere else entirely
A meeting of Sin

The silver eyed boy had barely even paid any attention to the demon prince, truth be told. He was just another pawn, another figure that was either going to pledge his loyalty to him or to wait and watch, cowering in fear as he was going to prove his worth. What was a demon prince for someone who had another demon prince leashed next to him? What was a godless demon prince blocked in a mortal body for someone who had once faced the Mage-Emperor himself? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. The boy hadn't even paid much attention to the demon from the very beginning, simply listening to and agreeing with those who had brought him and who had wanted him to be brought here. And in the end, Az was still a demon. It was sin that had caused him to fall from the grace of the Gods Above to the rule of the Gods Below. No matter how much he had tried to run from in, his soul was sinful. He had to obey.

So as soon as he had stopped speaking, Pride had immediately turned around with his back towards Az, looking in the general direction of where his cultists had placed the two amphorae, waiting for the Archbishops to come, shed their blood, and make their oaths. That was it. The beginning of his plans, the desire of Superbia, the future of the Cult of Sins, they all began there and then, with those two vessels, soon to be filled with sinful blood. As Sitri's blood fell into one of the amphorae, Pride's entire attention was focused solely on them, with golden lies of pride and glory poured into this mind and ears. For at the same time, all this time, Pride's attention hadn't merely been here. Unlike so many of the Archbishops who just submitted to their Sin, the white haired boy had been constantly stuck into a mental battle with Superbia, slowly giving in but trying to maintain his own free will for as much as possible. And even if he would have never admitted it, he had a limit too.

So as Az started to speak about his sins, the boy hadn't been really paying attention - they were just the mumbling of an ancient, deranged demon. It was only when the demonic device appeared that Pride's attention was attracted to it - and when he started to realize that something was wrong. But even then, his first reaction was outrage. How dared this demon bring something like this here? How dared he rebel like this? And this is where pride and arrogance once again overcame him. He could have joined the others into an effort to create magical shields to protect themselves from the explosion, and had he started to chant a spell right then and there, Az's defiance might have ended with the demon's own mortal body as the only victim. But once again, hubris can be the fall of the greatest of men. Why shield yourself from such a cowardly attack, when you can strike right before it even happens? So the Archbishop started to chant, but not to protect himself or the others. Though he had been refused the gift of sight by the Gods, he was able to feel, and in a way to even see magic. So as he looked at the magic of the orb, his own magic started to work, trying to decipher it, and to take over the spell before it could begin its deadly task. But no matter how powerful he was, no matter of how skilled he was in the arts of magic - it was too much. Way too much. Before he was able to finish it, the orb dropped to the ground.

And it exploded.

Pride himself had no way to react in time, but the others reacted for him. Two spells, one demonic, and one human, Sitri's and Alexei's, tried to create shields in front of him, or in front of the ones around him, but within a few moments, they were cracked by the sheer force of the flames. The sheer demonic magic in the flames was the closest the boy had ever been to experiencing the sensation of being blinded by a strong light, and although he could not see it, he realized in the last fraction of a second that the flames had reached Sitri and that they were going to hit him next.

But then, someone threw itself at him, pushing him on the ground, and covering his body with their own. And if he would have still had a heart, it would have certainly sank as he realized that it was Meta, telling him that she loved him. For a moment, he tried to hug her, he tried to push her off him and to do the same to her, to protect her instead of her protecting him.. but it was too late.


And as the explosion was over, the white haired boy felt tears of drop falling on his face, the girl he loved sobbing, wounded, in his arms.

It was as if something had broken inside of him. Completely silent, and unscathed but for his own tears now rolling down his cheeks, the boy slowly moved her to the side and gently placed her on the ground next to him, as he got up on his knees next to her and placed his hands over her, chanting a spell he had not dared utter since the days when he had been seeing the Gods. "Merciful angels, as I follow thy creed, I beg you, pay heed, and grant this one your peace, your saving grace." Again and again he chanted it, as golden magical circles appeared in front of his hands, and Meta's wounds slowly started to heal. This was his fault. All of it was his fault. Once again, he had failed to protect her. Once again, he had failed to notice the danger that was near her until it was too late. Once again, her blood was on his hands, and memories of him grabbing the cold and dying hand of a girl overwhelmed him.

But then.. the whispers started again. And he realized. This was not his fault. All he had done, was to demand what was owed to him. Obedience. It was the demon prince's fault. Az’goxaak. He had been the one to defy the mercy shown to him, he had been the one who tried to burn everyone else in an act of vainglory. But you do not outshine the sun. And he had promised. He had promised that anyone who would ever dare to try to hurt her again would pay.

And the demon prince was going to pay.

The boy stopped chanting, and stood up.

Still not saying as much as a word to the people around him, he removed his white chasuble and gently placed it over Meta, her wounds not yet fully healed but enough for her to be out of any danger. "I'm sorry.", he whispered, only for her to hear. "And thank you. Again, I owe my life to you." Deep in thought, the boy took a few steps and stopped right next to the wounded Sitri, with the silver collar and its chain still surprisingly untouched despite the explosion. It could disappear and be hidden, but there were few ways for it to be removed, as on its silver there were carved signs from the Silver Throne, when demons and beasts of evil were hunted as if they had been nothing. "And thank you too, Sitri, for trying to shield me." A glass bottle, filled with a silver-colored liquid materialized in Pride's hands, and he opened it, pouring its contents on the still recovering demon prince. It would hurt, as the potion was far too toxic for mortals - but it would have achieved its purpose, allowing him to heal his wounds just enough to be able to move again without having to wait. "Tell me what you wish as your reward for this, and as long as it is within my powers, I will grant it."

But then, the new doll of the other Archbishop of Luxuria appeared, entering the glade, and the boy realized that among the ashes now had to lie the bones of Evangeline. He had no way of knowing where her remains where, if any still remain, now dead and devoid of mana, but he took up a handful of ash from the ground, and looked again towards the direction were Meta was laying. "Nec error est.. nec criminor.", he whispered, as his breathing became ragged, as if he was trying to suppress something. He closed his eyes for a moment, and as he opened them, his silver eyes had changed, still hollow and empty, but now golden. And at the same time, the temperature in the glade started dropping rapidly, and the ash in his hand froze solid, a block of ashen ice. "Az’goxaak will pay.", he started speaking, without addressing anyone in particular. "I will not kill his mortal bodies, nor will I try to break his soul - this would be too merciful for someone like him. Instead, I will break his defiance. I swear it upon my blood, he will be returned to serve his deity, his accursed free spirit broken."

Only then did he seem to realize where he was, and that the other Archbishops were still around him. "And you will all help me. This is not a matter of negotiations." A frosty wind that seemingly came out of nowhere cleared a small area of the ash that had overwhelmed it, revealing the two amphorae that were still placed there. "You shall perform your oaths as promised before we were interrupted. And after that.." The boy crushed the ice in his hand. "You shall help me to take my revenge against Az’goxaak. I shall not act in haste or in recklessness, because I know that he has fled, but I will not tolerate or accept a refusal. He has..", and the boy stopped for a moment, unwilling to continue to emphasize how important Meta was for him after she had just been hurt because of him. "He has done something that I will never forgive. You shall all help me against him, separate from our oaths, and I do not require blood oaths for that. Tell me that you will help me in this revenge, or else once our blood oaths will be gone, I shall crush you like I shall crush him. The Cult of Sins can not, and will not tolerate such defiance."

---

Somewhere else
Earlier
A blind boy and a girl with eyes of glass



"It's beautiful..", Kiryl answered, a smile returning on his face as he continued to hold her hand. "It's a beautiful dream... and it is a dream. It does not matter that you can't sleep it, or truly see it as a dream at night.. it still a dream. And if you will help me dream, then I will help you dream too, my princess." He remained silent for a moment, pondering, thinking, imagining it. "It's alright, even if we can't have children. We do not need to prove our love, but maybe we could adopt children. There are so many who have also suffered during the war, and to whom we can grant happiness. But to live with you, in peace, and happiness, in a little house away from all of this, safe, surrounded by flowers and with songs, it would be heaven.. and we will have that. I can't see the future, of course, and I've broken so many promises in the past.. but I will do my best. To make your dream, no, our dream. To make our dream come true."

And for a moment, he believed it. It was so quiet and peaceful here, the two of them all alone, with only a few people passing by on the street. He could almost feel it.. such a future. But they were still stuck in the present, no matter how much they tried to forget it.

Kiryl was the one to hear them first. The sound of people wearing armor, running. He tried to ignore it, and to hope that it was something else, something that had nothing to do with them.. but hope was often pointless. Not before long, they were surrounded by a group of guards. Humans and Loroi of the Moon, wearing armors of silver, plate and mail, armed with short, stabbing spears with silver tips and small round shields, gray with a stylized white-rose drawn upon them.

"May I help you?", the silver eyed boy asked politely and calmly, even if he had clearly become at least a little tense, based on how he was holding her hand. "We are the Retainers of the Silver Rose, in service of her Grace, the Apostle-Princess of the realm of Arghyo. And we know who you are, nameless Archbishop of Superbia, and accursed Sleep Princess of Acedia.", one of them, presumably their leader, a Loroi with fair skin, long blond hair, and emerald eyes, declared, looking at Pride with disgust obvious in his eyes. "We do not know why her Apostolic Grace has allowed you to even enter this realm, let alone this peaceful town, but no longer. Your presence has already fouled the realm of the White Rose more than we can allow. Whatever your evil plans are here, slave of Superbia, they shall stop."

Kiryl simply continued to smile, as he and Meta both stood up, still holding hands. "Now, now, I'm sure that there is no need for blood to be shed now, is there?", he answered in a soft voice. "We shall simply leave, and not bother you again.."

"Kill the witch!", one of the retainers shouted before the white haired boy was even able to finish, and thrust his spear forward, towards her.

But the boy pulled her, and took a step forward.

And the silver tip of the spear pierced his stomach. Confused, the knight pulled his weapon back, and red blood burst forward as Kiryl lost his balance and fell.

---

Grand Duchy of Wyzkia
Opalinski Castle

The look of relief on their faces when Alina started to wake up was immediate and obvious, but it was quickly replaced with at least a hint of confusion, as Alina confused Anastazja with her mother, only to then quickly try to pull away and to stand up, but falling on her knees again. Rafal and Anastazja both reacted, ready to catch her if she would have fallen again, but she remained on her knees for a few moments, in silence, before rising up again, and apologizing. Everyone looked at her for a few moments, still confused, and probably pondering whether to believe her not, but then Rafal also stood up, and gently took her hand into his. "I'm sure you are weakened, Alina.", he said, in a calm voice, trying to mask his own worrying. "Please, take a seat, and let's eat. You have to recover your strength." The others hesitated for a moment, but Anastazja also smiled. "You're right! Food is important, especially after such a long and perilous journey. Let's eat!"

Everyone returned to their seats and the dinner properly started, and any lingering confusion was soon hidden behind the pleasant atmosphere of the dinner itself. Elzbieta herself seemed to want to compensate for all the complicated emotions that had marked the beginning of the dinner, so she pressured Rafal will all sorts of funny questions about his griffin, trying to keep the atmosphere light and happy. Eventually the dinner ended without any further incidents, and everyone returned to their respective rooms, tired after such a long day.

Not before long however, a few knocks were heard on Alina's door, and Rafal excused himself in, with a kettle of tea and two cups. "How are you feeling?", he asked softly, placing the kettle on a nearby table, pouring the tea in the cups and then offering her one of them, a kind smile on his face. But now that they were alone, it was quite obvious that the boy was finding it very difficult to hide just how worried he was - and it was just so visible in his eyes. "Alina..", he began to ask, hesitatingly, "Are you alright? I don't.. I don't want to pry into your past any further than.. I have to... so if you don't want to answer, you don't have to." His worried, blue-reddish eyes were looking directly at her now. "But..I really felt like.. I had to ask... Did.. did something happen to your mother? Did Stasja remind you of her, or..?"

[Elysian Kentarchy]

"Evangeline"

At that a frown develops on the young woman's face and she speaks with none of the amusement that is typical of her tone. "On that matter we are agreed Pride. Regardless of anything else such an act cannot stand and should be met with appropriate punishment." She says nothing else, not about how she is ever so slightly relieved Meta is alive, not about how she does somewhat appreciate what Pride did for the dead girl, or really anything. Just silence as her mind shifts gears. So much to do, so much to do.

[Fereni]

Grand Duchy of Wyzkia
Opalinski Castle

People seemed to believe her, much to her relief--or, at the very least, if they didn't believe her, they also didn't question her. Dinner proceeded without further incident, though Alina had a hard time feeling like she was really there--she managed to smile or laugh or frown when it was appropriate, and reply when she was spoken to, although if asked about the conversation later she wouldn't have been able to say what it was about. Making herself eat was also difficult, even though she knew she needed to. You have to recover your strength, Rafal had said, and whether he'd intended it or not, she'd read a double meaning into his words. Yes, of course. She had to keep up her strength, she thought bitterly, for the baby. But he was worried about her because he was kind, so she tried to eat, and found that she was actually quite hungry after all. She didn't have as much as she would have liked, though. She had to keep up her strength, but she also had to keep up appearances. If she was going to be married, then the expectations on her would become even heavier. She needed to make certain that everything was perfect, that she was perfect. At the very least, she could be a good wife to Rafal, even if he could never actually love her. She could try to make his life a little bit easier. And she'd been trained for this eventuality, so it wasn't like it was new to her at all. It would be fine, as long as she just held herself together.

Rafal knocking on her door that evening startled her quite severely--she'd been reading a book, but quickly hid it under the bedcovers as he came in, embarrassed by it. It was a fanciful sort of thing, an old romance that she'd found in her room, and she knew--she wasn't supposed to read things like that. Filling your head with useless dreams instead of things you really need to know. It was silly, anyway... stories like that, they were fake. She knew that now. There was no such thing as a happy, fairytale ending, and if there was, it certainly wasn't for someone like her.

She smiled at him, a little bit unconvincingly, but gladly accepted the tea. She'd always liked tea, and drinking it soothed her. "I'm feeling much better," she replied. It was only a partial lie. Physically, she was feeling better, but emotionally... that was a different story. But his next question--about her mother... she tensed up instinctively, but forced herself to relax, letting her brief expression of fear smooth over into perfect, placid calm. "Mama--I mean, my mother," she corrected herself quickly. "I suppose Anastazja did remind me of her, a little bit. It was her eyes. They're about the same color, at least... I think they are. I don't remember her very well, it's all a bit hazy. She disappeared when I was very young, so I didn't get to spend much time with her, but... I think she was a kind person. She loved me... When I think about her, I feel... warm, and safe." She had to blink back tears, at that. "I think she's dead. I remember... he would hurt her, too. I wouldn't be surprised if he killed her. I wouldn't be surprised at all. And she couldn't have just left, right? I mean... if she had, she would have taken me with her, I'm sure of it. She loved me. She wouldn't have left me alone with him. I can't believe that she would do something like that..." Her voice cracked, but she managed to keep from crying. "It's not... it's not easy to think about. If she'd been there... I think none of this would have happened. But it's not her fault, I'm sure of it. She would never leave me alone. She wouldn't... she would have protected me, and I... I wouldn't have been..." Alina swallowed hard, forcing herself to calm down. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I'm getting too emotional, I know. I'm fine, I really am." She smiled again, but the blank look in her eyes revealed her words as just another lie.

Somewhere else entirely
A meeting of Sin

The moment the explosion dissipated, Alexei ran to Meta's side, paying no attention to Kiryl at all, his focus entirely on the wounded girl. "Damn it," he whispered. "Why do you always--damn it!"

Meta didn't hear him. She didn't hear anything. She couldn't stop shaking, tears still streaming freely down her face, her hands clutching desperately at nothing. She didn't seem to register what was going on at all, mind overwhelmed by the pain of exposed nerve endings and melted flesh. Although the burned area wasn't as large as it could have been, it still spread over most of her back and shoulders, and extended a little ways down her arms as well. Kiryl's healing spell eased a great deal of the pain, but it didn't fix everything, and she still couldn't move properly. At the very least, she could hear him again, whispering to her. She wanted to reply, to tell him that it was all right, that she didn't mind getting hurt if it was to protect him, but she couldn't, her voice coming out only in a hoarse rasp.

When it came to the amphorae, Alexei shed his blood willingly, though he refrained from letting it fall into the amphora that signified unconditional loyalty. Although he had no interest in Kiryl proving his strength, or any such thing, he did require compensation. As usual, his true loyalty was a rare thing to receive. When he heard a heavy, rasping breath from behind him, he turned to see Meta trying to move, and immediately returned to her side.

"Stop," he ordered, though his voice was gentle. "I will take care of it." He brushed some of the blood from her face, and let it fall into the amphora that he knew she would have chosen. Her loyalty was both unconditional and unmistakable, after all. Once she saw him do that, her eyes closed, and had she been anyone else she might have passed out from exhaustion and pain. Unfortunately, such a thing was impossible for her.

As for the other oath... that one required no compensation whatsoever.

"I will gladly swear such an oath to you," he said, his voice now like ice. "That infernal creature has gone too far. I will not stand for his actions. For this... to prove my dedication, I'll even offer up the assistance of my enchantments, with no price save one condition. They must be used to send that demon back to the lowest corner of hell, where he belongs. It's quite a bargain, don't you think?" He laughed, cold and humorless. "Avaritia would disapprove, but I couldn't care less. This is my will, and my retaliation against that creature for what he's done. And even Avaritia will not be able to stop me."

Somewhere else
Earlier
A blind boy and a girl with eyes of glass

His acceptance of her dream... it gave her some hope. And it was true, the idea of adopting children wasn't a bad one at all. For some reason, though, she found herself feeling a little bit sad at the thought, though she couldn't figure out why. Still... it felt like something important was missing. Why?

The question became quite unimportant, soon enough.

The appearance of those armored people, and the way they spoke--she bristled with rage and disgust. But when they called her a witch, and tried to kill her, and he stepped in the way... that was when her mind emptied of everything except rage. And once more, it would be fine if she worshiped another sin, wouldn't it? Just for a while...

"A witch?" she asked, her voice eerily calm. "You have the audacity to call me a witch? You call me accursed? You say our presence is foul? And if that wasn't enough, you hurt him? You filthy beings." She smiled, and her sword appeared in her hand. "You are truly unfortunate, slaves of the Rose, and you should have left when he gave you the opportunity, because now you have made the last mistake of your lives. So for your sakes, I hope your last dream was a happy one, because you are never going to dream again. I may be the Sleep Princess, but you? You don't deserve a peaceful rest, so I won't give you one. Instead, I will kill you."

One of them tried to attack her while she was speaking, but her sword flashed up seemingly on its own, slicing through the spear as if it was no stronger than paper. After all, it was Zaria, the Silver Sword, and the things it could not cut were next to none.

She couldn't say she didn't enjoy the fear on their faces when they realized that their weapons were largely useless, and their armor even more so. "Do you understand now?" she crowed. "Do you understand what you've done? Right here and now, for your foolish arrogance, you will all die." Without waiting a single more moment, she let Zaria guide her, and the blade hummed with delighted, wicked laughter.

With her sword cutting through their weapons and armor easily, it hardly even mattered that she was severely outnumbered. She wouldn't have cared, anyway. She was no longer capable of thinking rationally, and only cared about killing them for what they'd done. They'd hurt him. They'd hurt the one person she loved, and who loved her, and she would never forgive them for that.

By the time she'd finished, she was quite covered in blood, soaking through her dress and making her look more like a ghost than a human. That didn't matter, either. She fell to her knees beside him, cradling him desperately in her arms, emotions and faint memories flooding back to her all at once. He couldn't die. She couldn't lose him again. Luckily, the wound wasn't nearly as deep as it might have been--it only needed a little bit of magic to heal, five quick notes. She held him tightly as she sang to him, and for a moment, she thought she remembered again, singing him to sleep underneath a vast, starry sky. This time, he would not sleep, not even for a minute--she was afraid that if he did, he might not awaken again, and though she envied him his dreams, she couldn't let him live in them forever. She needed him. She would do anything to keep him safe, especially since he'd been hurt trying to protect her. So she kept holding him close, whispering words of affection and gratitude to him, as his wound slowly healed. "They're gone now," she reassured him. "They're all dead, every single one of them, so don't worry, my love. They will never hurt you again."

[Remnants of Exilvania]

Anselm
Merckburger Fen
Village

Both Adelheid and Adele were frowning in relative disapproval of the scene that played out before them, albeit for different reasons. While Adelheid's disapproval stemmed from what she saw as a foolish endeavour that now cost her one of her party members as well as essentially indulging the enemy more than necessary. Adele on the other hand had hoped that Mireille would be more...forceful with the games she intended to play and would have taken care of the problem before them in one fell swoop. Instead one of this party had ended up under her protection now, which made him essentially untouchable for the moment.

It was Adele who interjected first, coldly stating:

"I believe it is best if we leave it at just this one game, Lady Mireille. These people don't seem to be too keen to engage in games they might lose, like their young friend here. Besides, we need to return home to properly dress your new personal knight and introduce him to Lady L-"

, she caught herself before saying any more, leaving the letter L hanging in the air like the initial of some mysterious person.

Adeleheid on the other hand was not exactly thrilled with what Adele was suggesting, stepping forward and dryly stating:

"For once I agree with you but could we perhaps appoint a specific day for young Daniel here to be her personal knight? We are currently on important business and in these dangerous lands I'd rather not forfeit one of my bodyguards."

Adele merely sneered at that, stating:

"Perhaps he should not have entered the game offering his servitude as stake then?"

Adelheid kept her groan of exasperation as low as possible as she turned around so Adele couldn't see her massaging her forehead. As it so happened, she now faced the rest of the group and hissed lowly:

"Anyone got any idea how we can get out of this? Preferably without anyone being harmed in the process, considering how civil things have been going so far but I am not holding out hope and am authorizing violence if required."

Anselm
City of Heydekrug
Unsterb Town Estate

The silver knife slid into the steak without any notable resistance, quickly cutting a piece out before the fork picked it up and brought it to Konstanze's mouth. It practically melted on Konny's tongue, which elicited a squeal from her as she caressed her cheek with one hand while chewing on it while extending the other and giving a thumbs up to her butler, Schröck Blech, who stood right beside her.

"My compliments to the chef, Blech. He has outdone himself today."

The butler bowed somewhat stiffly, stating calmly:

"It is your birthday afterall, milady. And, there is more than just an excellent birthday feast. A gift."

Konstanze was already busy cutting the next piece off her steak, dipping it for a moment in the sauce before putting it in her mouth and squealing in delight again. With her mouth still full but also curious about what sort of gift they had prepared for her, she asked:

"A hift? What'f that then?"

She regretted it immediately as she watch her butler grimace, turning away for a moment and finishing to chew before turning back and being presented with a metal cover, Schröck Blech's hand already resting on its handle, ready to remove it the moment she looked back, which he did, causing Konstanze to frown for a moment. It was a paper scroll. News perhaps? Hopefully good news because she had been quite eager for a proper birthday present.

Unrolling the scroll, she was greeted by hasty scribbles from one of her operatives in the south and reading the content of his scribbles made the corners of her mouth twitch while her eyes followed the lines:

To the Boss,

The slaves are revolting. Overall situation unclear, communications with the countryside poor.
Noble refugees, sometimes bloodied and with scorch marks or heavily traumatizd coming in daily.
There is talk about an Army of the Free Soil going about but could as well be a figment of imagination.
They are taking ships north, probably to request fast and decisive action to have their lands returned.

Smacking her lips once, Konstanze rolled the scroll back up before setting it on fire with one of the candles she had on her table. As she watched the flames consume the paper, a smile graced her lips as she ordered:

"I want men at the harbour. We will be offering to host any refugees in housing befitting of their station. Spread the word that I want some of our properties readied for occupants. I will also want to talk with these nobles once they return and get a better picture of the events down there."

Schröck bowed again before her, replying merely with an:

"As you wish, milady."

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Auryon Rakhasa, the The Bestial Butcher
Anselm
Blood, Rage and Hunger

---

"I'll survive..." Auryon said in response to Evangeline's question as the rest of the Archbishops recovered. She watched as the rest slowly got up and began recovering. It was a rather brutal attack, but it seemed fate smiled upon them, as it seemed none of them died. Sure, Meta was severely injuried, but she was not dead. One other thing came from the aftermath of the attack.

"Pride..." Auryon said as she made her way to the left amphora, allowing the blood from her still healing wounds to fall into it before looking at Pride, "While the Cult of Gula will wait till see if you are worthy of leading as the Cardinal, we... no, I will happily aid you in your crusade of vengeance against that demon... His flesh... Even if it isn't his, I need it... The hunger demands it."

---

Pynus of the Wind
The Merckburger Fen, Anselm
Time to Lie and Bluff Our Way Out

---

"Well know... this is quite the situation." Pynus said and gave Adelheid a play along sort of wink, "You, Adele was it, obviously want us gone, but we won't leave. So, you tried to have Mireille, as powerful and immature as she is, to force us to leave with her game. Unfortunately, her game was not what you expected, nor was the outcome. Now, you are stuck in a rather awkward position... as are we. Or we would be if not for the fact that the results of the game are invalid. Despite your intentions, it seems Mireille wanted to play a game in good faith. Unfortunately, there was some trickery going on. Some third party interfered with the game. Mireille did not win because she was better at the game, but because someone saw to Daniel's failure. Its like trying to run a foot race when your rival is missing their legs. Daniel could not have succeeded."

With that she looked at Mireille, "Is that really the kind of game you would like to win, or even play? A game where the outcome is decided by someone not playing? So, how about a way to make up for it? Not a game that can be interfered with though. How about a test of wit. A riddle."

Pynus smiled and looked at Adele, "A riddle that if you and your charge can solve, we will leave this village, and Mireille can keep Daniel as her personal knight for however long Daniel agrees to. But, if you can't solve it, you will leave us to our investigation in peace and Daniel will serve as Mireille's personal knight at a later date... If those terms are not agreeable, or you don't want to play around with riddles... then we can discuss the fact that Daniel was in no position to actually offer up his servitude. Up to you."

[Kingdom of Irhk]

(Image)
Kingdom of Duivene
Citadel of Chovers

[b]A few days later
Main Hall

The main hall of Chovers was pretty austere in comparison with the Great Hall of the Royal Palace in Perigny, it was still quite a sight to behold, richly ornamented with silver and lapis lazuli. There was no great ceremony organized there today, with most of the soldiers who had fought in the recent battle still busy repairing the damage in other parts of the citadel or burying the dead, but the most important people who had taken part in those events had been brought here in order to talk with the one they risked their lives to save. Eric, and the mage who had helped him in the courtyard, Melodie, some of the servants who had fought inside the Tower of the Augurs, and even the Achysian fire witch, who had been gently brought here by a group of knights.

"Kneel in front of her Royal Highness, Alexis de l'Azéma, Princess and Daughter of Duivene, Master of the Scripture of the Morning Star, Champion and Hero of the Light!", the announcer proclaimed, as the princess entered the hall. Surprisingly for those who knew her even vaguely, she was wearing a frilly, light blue dress, a stark contrast from her usual battle armor. Alexis was still a little pale, but she was looking a lot better than the near-death corpse she had looked like just a few days before. She was also walking by herself, requiring no assistance, but the two royal guards that were walking right alongside her were obviously careful to catch her if she were to fall, something that luckily did not happen. She sighed as she took her seat in the King's throne - a right awarded to her by her younger brother after she had saved him back during the War of the Crownless King. A few moments of silence followed as she looked at the people standing in front of her with her amethyst eyes, but before starting, she surprisingly enough gestured something to her two guards, and one of them - the older man who had identified himself as Charles during the battle, walked up to Illania and removed her cuffs, a soft smile on his face, before returning next to his liege.

"Speeches outside the battle have never been my specialty.", Alexis told them in a calm but tired voice. "And yet, no one can dispute the important role that you all played in the last battle. You stopped enemies from their cowardly and treacherous attach right in the middle of our citadel, you saved all those inside these walls who were unable to fight. You have protected your nation. And you have also protected and saved me. I still struggle to believe what happened, and I can not believe that the rot running inside the Faith was so deep, but I will get to the bottom of it, and I know that my safety and perhaps my very life would have been in danger without you all." She smiled too. "Tell me what it is you desire as a reward for your valiant acts, and if it is within my power and my right, I shall give it to you."

Eric de Villegaignon

Despite the healthier and calmer appearance, Eric was tired. Sleeping in Duivene, resting his head in the snake's nest, took a toll in his mental health that despite being foreseen, was a little bit heavier than what he predicted. His years weighed on him and the royal protocol certainly didn't help at all: the trumpets and banners reminded him of a life that was no longer his, in a time that he no longer could live. Yet once again, he stood in a royal hall, being known as an ally to the Princess and the Kingdom.

She was surprisingly alive and well, and still had the will to give them a retribution for the acts they did. His mind, however, turned to the matter that he trusted almost exclusively in the princess, and also worked almost exclusively with her. The enemies that surrounded her were unknown at this extent, and he needed to make sure that she would survive the next attacks.

"Princess Alexis, may I say before anything else that is a pleasure to see that your recovery is faster than your blade in battle. May you reach your full health sooner than any of us may expect, for the well-being of this Kingdom. I'd be dishonest if I said that I did what I did thinking about what would I gain in return, since it is particular hard to think about rewards when you are facing a giant golem...

But since you are so kind to offer, the recent events brought to me the urge to be a little bit more present. Therefore, I'd like to be named a Constable of your Royal Guard, Princess Alexis. However, I do understand that despite the recent events, members of your court might be reluctant to trust your judgement, which is why I'd like another trial regarding events of my past, with the witnesses involved. While you arrange this... particular trial, if you accept it, of course, a matter belonging to allies I made during my years away urges me to be present somewhere far from here, which is why I shall depart soon, but I give you my honored word that I shall return. If you want further explanations, Princess, I can give them to you privately."

Achilleas Galdrsson
Days ago, Kartara

Achilleas was a man worn by time and by his responsibilities as the leader of the Galdrsson clan. His hair, once a bright, vivid red that now had a slightly white hue, a sign of his premature aging, one which genesis could be traced to the stress of leading a clan that struggled to resist and push back against the Calarian invasion that marched against the doors. A long, white tunic covered by a dark green cloak with a golden outlining composed the outfit of the well renowned clan leader, as the messenger ran inside his hall, rushing through soldiers and people who looked at him to intermediate conflicts at the city who couldn't be solve in any other way.

"- Achilleas! Achilleas!
- There's no need to scream, I see you, I hear you, I know you just like I know your mother and your father! What is the reason behind this run of yours?
- The... the woman you spoke of... Lady Alessia Hightide... She... she wants to meet you...
- She wants me to join her offensive..."

He sat back at his throne, reading the letter as if he looked for words beyond the ones written, anything that indicated a trap or a ruse that could draw him out of the security of his fortress. However, his scouts backed up the claims of the letter: an honest invitation, yet one that carried the weight of her successes against the Calarians that pressed back their border. Calling a scribe and a scout, he took a deep breath, before ordering his hall to be cleared.

"- Scribe, write two letters. The first is to Lady Alessia Hightide. Tell her that I will accept the meeting and that she can come to my hall, as a display of my sympathy towards her cause.
- And the second?
- To General Eric de Villegaignon.
- But the General...
- I know what the General said, but I also know that we need him. Attach it to his bird, and the bird shall find him, as it always does.
- Yes, at once."