Darkness descending long ago, the night was possessed by the sort of ominous stillness that was considered uncharacteristic for the conclusion of the cold spring they had encountered. Deprived of light by the appearance of a new moon within its sky, there was not a breath of air entering through the draft in the window that could shake the curtains nor the flame of a candle to distinguish even a vague shadow upon the floor. However, Cazer was awoken from his deep slumber on this night by the sound of the sheets rustling anxiously next to him. The woman’s back turned towards him, there was the subtle clink of a limiter around her ankle as she slid her legs closer to the edge of the bed. Recognizing her intentions to depart from the bed, Cazer reached over to his disquieted wife. Finding that his hand glided smoothly over her naked body as it had been stripped bare of most objects that might impede its progress during their love making, Cazer came to seize her by the waist. His arm snak
The staunchly immovable walls of Alliance holding steadfastly despite the tremor which passed through them. Allen rushed down its winding maze of interconnecting halls amidst a sympathy of noise. The wall of sound almost as impregnable as the Alliance walls, he could no longer distinguish his hurried steps beating against the tiles nor the pounding of his heart as it throbbed heavily in his chest. Allen’s progress impeded by a stampede of Alliance Guardians as the corridor he was using joined another, he entered into the fray of the frenzied mob. Suddenly called to action deep into the night, each fought against each other like salmon traveling upstream as they struggled to reach their posts. Grunting as he pushed past the thick array of bodies in order to search for his partner who was yet to be accounted for, Allen felt their panic feed into his own trepidations surrounding the ordeal. The attack, unexpected at this time, was made all the more jarring by the perceivable calmness o
“Shit!” Chiri croaked, her throat hoarse after having awoken to find herself amongst the familiar oppressive darkness that was the Abyss. The atmosphere thick with the malice of the shadows that had been cast there for eternity, she coughed from the extreme discomfort of breathing it in. Grasping her chest as she gradually adjusting her breathing to accommodate the thick soup that was considered air, Chiri fought hard to choke back a wrenching sensation in her throat. The silence being that of extreme desolation, it swallowed the words that Chiri hissed into it in her vengeful mood, “That man has a hex coming his way.” Her satisfaction at having received the best sleep she had experienced in weeks, outweighed by the irritation of being in one of the last places on hell or earth Chiri wished to discover herself in, she slid her hands from her chest onto the place she had been deposited onto. Unsure of how far it extended, Chiri surveyed the darkness carefully whilst dragging her torso
The palatial hall of the main building coursing with activity as the clerks and Guardians, busied themselves with the everyday movements of their tedious tasks. Weaving in amongst one another as they traversed the length of the room in a repetitive dance, it was a scene Allen could longer feel inspired by. The walls of the Alliance, acquiring a vacant air about them since the loss of his partner, he had spent most days mimicking the motions of daily life without caring much for their outcomes.Days passing slowly, it had been nearly a month since Chiri Krane’s death. Coming to be hailed as a hero for preventing the cataclysmic opening of the Moon Gate during the rebel siege, it was an honor which Allen considered himself to be entirely undeserving. Remaining nothing more than one of many glorified shams within the Alliance, this achievement only proved to be a constant reminder of the crime he had committed. Each attempt he had made previously to deny praises of his efforts falling on
The light of a deep orange and crimson sunset streaming through the large glass windows of the Crouse estate, they painted the pale paneled walls of the manor with broad strokes of their intense hues. The rays of the steadily descending sun, falling over the ornately drawn leaves and flowers drawn found there, the golden foliage shone more pronouncedly as they proceed in their climb towards the ceiling. Each illustration’s elegant assent winding around the odd frame of the portraits dotted amongst them, they rose up far above the head of the person who discovered themselves once again traversing the unchanging halls on the manor.His heels heard clicking through the corridors in a slow and uneasy procession at the conclusion of what had seemed an endless day. Horus Crouse took each step as though he were walking on the shattered illusions of his childhood. Summoned back to the somber corridors of the estate by his father, it had merely been for the purposes of stressing the importance
“You really do cling to life like a parasite, Chiri Krane.” A man’s voice remarked from near to where she laid. Chiri’s eyes still clamped shut against the pain as she remained sprawled on her side. The voice playing out many times through her subconscious in recent months, she did not need to open her eyes to know to whom the melodious voice belonged. Recognizing that its meter had been thrown off mildly by his apparent vexation towards an issue she was not yet aware of, Chiri remained unapologetic for her tenacity. Her skin cold and coated with dried blood, she pried open one eye. Finding herself lying on the cold cobble stones of what appeared to be a cavernous cellar. There were many arched doorways, which led off into secret corridors in the oval shaped convergence that surrounded her. Their darkened gateways peered at Chiri’s agony indifferently from their regimented positions along the foreign dome of the space. Only able to make out the rogue leader’s face partially in the gl
Hardly a sound to be heard aside from the rustle of trees and the melodious chorus of birdsong in the grounds of the estate. The serene garden, whose buds relished the comfortable heat of summer, seemed at odds with the sullen entity they concealed. His form sat slouching against a pillar of the stone gazebo located near the center of the garden. Conveyed to him by the gentle current of a warm breeze, Ryker Crouse breathed in the sweet scent of the roses that encompassed the little structure. The flowers fragrance reminding him of the alluring decay of perfume, the boy screwed up his nose upon taking in the garden’s pungent bouquet. However, still chose to occupy himself with the slow whittling of a piece of wood. Scraping away at the thick branch he had taken from one of the trees with a pocketknife, Ryker paused to inspect the progress of his crude carving. Looking upon it critically, he observed that Its outline, whilst suggesting something of a bird, bore no resemblance to the bl
The swirling mass of a dark cloud arising from one of the arched doorways in the underground catacombs, a bottle of partially consumed liquor was thrown towards it in frustration. Its glass, shattering on the coarse stones behind Chiri, after having narrowly missed her head. The Guardian pressed her lips together gravely as she materialized to perceive this unfriendly reception from the leader of the Moon Gate faction. Glaring at him from the large frame of the dreary opening, Chiri could guess at the reason behind Ryker’s hostility towards her and maybe even his drinking as she viewed him for the first time since her mission. The destructiveness of her powers, whilst sizable, was now known to be inconclusive. Although accomplished in the act of reducing her childhood home to a pile of dust. Chiri had failed in the ultimate goal of her deployment, which was to bring about an end to the shrewd and formidable Xavier Crouse. The feat attempted and nearly achieved, Chiri had found hersel
The office filled with the serenity of the subtle white noise of each person’s solitary or otherwise mundane activities. It was the frustrated sigh which stood out amongst them as Chiri stared at the black and white squares of the board in front of her. The mild amusement that her opponent as he derived some enjoyment at her expense, evident by the sly smirk on his face. Chiri finally plucked her bishop from the board, her brow furrowing as she placed the piece in the last movement available to her, she slouched back onto the soft leather couch in resignation.Aware of her defeat without him having to state it, Cazer still smiled as he declared smugly, “Check mate.” Sulking as she sustained another loss, Chiri crossed her arms in front of her chest as she muttered back at him sourly, “I hate this game.” The smirk of confidence he possessed from beating her repeatedly at chess that morning, unrelenting as he continued to stare back at her. The expression would have irked her more had s
The smell, like death and decay condensed. It seemed to cling to the walls of the tunnels and hang in the air as repugnant as one might find a corpse which still swayed in its noose. The heinousness of the scent, only becoming more egregious as they continued further into the catacombs beneath the bustling streets of Ineset, Allen found that each breath he drew provoked a repulsed churning in his stomach.A rat, made fat by feasting on the bones of the deceased and the other hapless creatures that might live within them, brushing past his foot. Allen released a mild gasp, before recoiling back against the wall of the tunnel in disgust. Already traversing the morbid labyrinth for at least an hour now, he began to hope for any sign of the rogue mages’ hideout to be uncovered soon. Whilst acknowledging that their unlit corridors and seclusion were perfect for those who did not want to be found, Allen could not fathom how it was inhabited by any member of the living for long.Their route,
The small wooden frame of the bed moaning as someone shifted on its lumpy twin mattress, the noise prompted Chiri’s eyelids to flutter open slowly. Awoken from her deep sleep, she rolled onto her back to observe the person who sat on the edge of the bed they had shared. Her long hair tangled beneath her, she watched his broad back silently as he pulled on the few articles of the uniform that had been scattered about the floor during the night. Her gaze, apparently felt by him after a while, Allen Pierce turned. Greeting Chiri with an affectionate smile as she blinked the sleep away from her eyes, the skin around his blue gray irises crinkled from the extent of the contentment within this moment. The springs of the mattress displaced again as he leaned towards Chiri, Allen cupped her cheek tenderly in his hand to say gently, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.” His thumb caressing her cheekbone lightly as he spoke, Chiri smiled back at him tiredly from the pillow. Her hand, rising
Amidst the forgotten streets and the forlorn inhabited who were relegated to their drenched cobblestones, was a place that remained far removed from the eyes of the public. The location of the business, only known to the few who required specialized or otherwise illicit magic items, Allen was perplexed to once again discover himself at the threshold of Ekral Manstein’s shop. The dismal weather, causing the gray steps that led down off of the street to become slick beneath his feet. Allen descended them cautiously, before finally arriving at the door. Issuing a knock, he passed a long minute or two out in the persistent drizzle, before the little compartment on the door slid open. A pair of dark and tired eyes revealing themselves to him, they scrutinized Allen, whose hair and clothes had come to cling damply to him as they grumbled, “What brings you here?” A few drops of rain from the mantle of the door, falling to slide down the back of his neck, Allen shivered as he replied, “I need
The final weeks of summer saturated by a persistent drizzle, it left gray pools on the footpath. Branching out into different avenues between the headstones, Cazer did not pause to consider the names etched on each nor did he become weighed down by solemn reflection as he progressed past them determinedly. The patent leather of his shoes, marred by the dirt of the cemetery as he entered into the more ancient part of the Alliance burial grounds that was shaded by the gnarled branches of a few mature trees. Cazer proceeded past the mossy and worn graves until he came to the one he sought.A sandstone mausoleum to one of the Alliance’s founders, Regus Sieg. The foreboding bars, clamped shut over the structure’s hollow opening, were only made more grim by the effects that time had over its once pristine stones and columns. Weathered and darkened by centuries of dreary days, such as this, Cazer mounted the few steps that led up to its gates. Placing a hand onto its cold metal, there was a
The room, silent, aside from someone tapping out an odd stunted interpretation of time with their fingers. Allen discovered himself in the company of an unusual assortment of friends and acquaintances he had never once expected to encounter. All there under the reasonable assumption of what joined them together, Tristan Hurst, Morose Akena, Horus Crouse, and Lance Armistice eyed each other awkwardly from their varying positions amidst the office. Unsure of whether to broach their purpose for being there or to feign normalcy by engaging in small talk as they awaited the final members of their group, Allen found that his foot too now drummed along to the peculiar rhythm set within the room. The anxious wiggling not ceasing, he contemplated the wisdom of joining these diverse characters together in their mission. Although operating seemingly well in their exasperating partnership, Cazer and Allen acknowledged that their plans to launch an more offensive strike on the Moon Gate mages wou
The rank smell of decay and mildew immediately enveloping her, Chiri knew that she had rejoined the dark catacombs where the cohorts of the Moon Gate’s malicious hoard gathered. Hissing as her form solidified again in the tunnel, Chiri again grasped at her side. Unsteady, the weight of her body found some stability as her back slumped onto the damp wall beside her. Expecting to be met with some snide remark in regard to her injury instantly upon her arrival, Chiri was to discover instead that her entrance had hardly been noticed amidst the affairs that had preceded her. Voices heard in the large junction between the tunnels, Chiri turned her head lazily in their direction. Leaning wearily against the dark tunnel, her eyes pinched together mildly as she squinted at the figures in the opening. Most of them the usual suspects that collected around Ryker Crouse, there was one amongst them that was only vaguely familiar to her. The woman’s hair matted and clothes dirty and torn from the t
Hurried steps and panicked voices arising from outside the Dawn Gate, the source of their alarm was indeterminate from what corner of the empty ward Chiri occupied. Disinterested by the distant sounds of their mingled unease faded into a buzz of unrest as she closed her eyes against the persistent pain which plagued her. Clutching the saturated fabric more closely to the gouge at her side, Chiri grimaced as blood oozed out from between her fingers and onto the pestine floor beneath her. The wound, not having cut deep enough to touch any vital arteries or organs. It only posed the immediate threat of blood loss as she remained a solitary entity amongst the empty cots of the infirmary. The injury’s presence, no less vexing in the least, this was to be the reward Chiri enjoyed from another one of Ryker’s misguided assignments. Reclining against the wall slowly, she hissed an embittered curse through gritted teeth, “Sodded slug suckers!” Fortunate enough to find that no one else should b
“Those damn toothy bastards can burn in Hell for all of eternity!” Cazer roared, the doors slamming shut behind him in order to punctuate the vehemence of this outburst. They were then battered again as he landed a ferocious kick onto the barrier of the office. The eruption of his fury causing the solid doors to shake, Cazer barely regarded the man who sat observing the dramatic display from his position on the couch.Allen’s eyes following him warily as he stormed into the room, Cazer found the silent pressure of his judgemental stare of little consequence as he marched over to his desk. Breathing agitated and his hair disorderly, he jerked open a drawer on the bureau. Withdrawing a half-full decanter and wiping the rim of a glass on the desk that had previously been used for water, Cazer poured himself a sizable portion of the spirit. Not offering any to the Hunter, he waited for Cazer to down the drink before asking, “No luck, I take it?” In too foul a temper to accept the smugness