The Ancient's Song (Eleda & Lydyn - IC)

[Lydyn]

Kahla wanders the halls, all to familiar with the otherwise complex layout of the college. A passing female in a robe gives her a polite smile and a girlish giggle. Another admirer, no doubt. Shaking her head, she walked into the room that was now her study. In the center, a large fireplace with depressing memories lay dormant. Kahla leaned forward and lay her hand on top of the brittle wood as it ignited beneath her touch. She stalked over to the single chair a front of it and slumped into it. Sighing loudly, she allowed her muscles to relax, her subconscious making her dream of the day that changed her life. The day she had slain Eruix. Suddenly the flicking lights at the hearth are covered in shadow, giving away to the fact that the fireplace no longer has a flame to keep it warmth, a strange and sudden occurrence to be sure. The room was now coated in the twilight darkness of sunset and a breeze blew in from a open window that was not open moments ago - someone was here. Even as Kahla's eyes would scan the room, she saw no one and yet a chilling echo of a voice rippled through the air. "So this is where you were hiding ..."

As if appearing from the shadows themselves, a man comes into view, though it's immediately obvious that he was different. He was especially petite as for as men go, though displaying lean muscle that one might mistake as a buffed up twig. In fact, he could've been mistaken for a woman if he hadn't the deep tone of a man. Adorned in red and gold armored plates that slid over black cloth, a deep red cloak on his back and a strange ornate blade at his side as he smirked at Kahla. The most striking features were his soft, pale skin and pointed ears that marked him as something else than human. As a magi, a legend flashed through the woman's mind - of creatures of beauty and grace, fair hair and skin that seemed to cascade as if water and pointed ears. This man was an elf, a creature of myth.

"Mmmm..." Despite his apparent beauty, there was a undertone of poison in his tone as he regarded the slayer of Eruix. "Doesn't appear you've awakened just yet. Good - this should make it easier and then I can leave this filthy place. To think I'm walking amongst humans ... disgusting." He scowled softly and pulled his blade from it's resting place, the strange metal shining like a distant star in the light of the setting sun. He pulled it back and shifted the weight on his feet into an obvious fighting stance - one that Kahla only partially recognized as a martial arts longsword style, but there were many difference in the way he stood that would throw her a bit off. He seemed intent on striking a blow in only a couple moments.

[Eleda]

Kahla twisted in her chair, an eery breeze unsettling her as the room became significantly colder. She had not been sleeping for very long and it was relatively easy for her to will herself to consciousness. Mentally, she was aware, but she kept her body limp and relaxed and her breathing even. She had taught herself this technique when she was younger, having had used it against Eli multiple times.

Straining her ears, she only faintly heard a footstep. Perhaps a change in weight. Very minimal. No one in the college had reason to be stealthy around her. Focusing her senses, she could feel the heat of another body in the room with her, just one.

Swiftly, she tossed the chair in the direction of the heat signature, her hands igniting immediately into bold, bright red and orange flames. Her silver lined robe fanning out as she spun before lying dormant at her sides. "Who are you?" she hissed through clenched teeth. Her eyes had already assessed him, and he had harmful intention. Blade drawn and blood thirsty gaze locked on her. She silently noted the point to his ear but dismissed it temporarily, more pressing matters at hand.

[Lydyn]

"Your death ... this is all you need to know, Kahla," he said calmly, having barely flitched as the chair was thrown his direction, just barely missing him as it tumbled across the room. He lunged forward quickly, apparently not keen on speaking with her and more intent of her demise. He was so obvious though and an opening was easy to see for Kahla, making it seem like this battle would be quick to end. Though before she realized, the man's image shifted oddly as if covered in darkness and as his body threatened to slam into her body, it melted into shadows as if he were never there. Be it luck or fate, she felt something tunge at her right, a strange feeling of danger and caught the man in the corner of her eye still lunging at her from a different direction. In all her years, she had never seen such powers or magic.

[Eleda]

Her death... How did he know her name..? Kahla lacked the time to muse herself with these questions as he had decided to charge at her in one direction and a split second later, he was assaulting from the opposite side. Turning as quickly as she possibly could, she dodged his blade by a hair. Taking the opportunity that he would he thrown off by her ability to have outmaneuvered him, even if only temporary, she held her palm out to him, focusing her energies, sucking the heat from his body. It was a deadly tactic but, one that was proving itself necessary. "What makes you think you can kill me, the Dragon slayer?" she said loudly, feigning cockiness. In honesty, she had never thought that she was of higher importance than anyone else but, apparently, the world thought differently. Including this elf. At the very least, she was most certainly not easy prey.

[Lydyn]

The elf stumbled a little as he missed her, having obviously expected otherwise and perhaps even hinted at arrogance as his eyes widen to the feeling of heat being sucked from his very core. Stepping back, he frowned and lifted a hand as if to cast magic himself. It was brutal and sudden as the room seemed to whip and moan to the sight of dozens of shadow images of the elf fading from sight as soon as they appeared and within a few moments, the elf could be seen on the balcony of Kahla's room. He let out a frustrated huff and put his blade where it belonged and stared right at the redhead. "And we thought it was just a fluke ... luck of the draw that you caught Eruix on a bad day. How wrong, it seemed we were. Still, he was not so great as he proclaimed, but certainly more powerful than some human. I know not how you got so powerful, but you cannot beat us all - just know that." With that, his form seemed to shift in a blur and he was gone, leaving no evidence of his arrival. The wind blew inside the room gently as the sun finally set, leaving Kahla alone in the dark with a tipped over chair.

[Eleda]

Kahla stood her ground as the room warped around her and the elf cast an illusionary spell it seemed, finally appearing on the balcony, a safe distance from her. He spoke to her in a low tone, words of surprise. He had apparently indeed thought she'd be easy prey. How wrong he had been. Once he had said his piece he was gone, an ominous wind confirming the closure of his presence.

The room was dark, the only light emanating from her fists and the soft glow of the sunset. Kahla exhaled slowly, the cackle of fire dissipating from her fingers. Gingerly, she approached the over turned chair and picked it up, setting it back up in its spot in front of the fireplace. After a brief moment of repositioning it to the correct angle, Kahla lit the fire once more. Untying her robe, she laid it across the back of the chair and stared to the balcony, where the elf man had just been. Who was he? Who sent him to kill her? He said "we" when he spoke on the either side of the door.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she shut the terrace door and wiggled her fingers through her curls, releasing them from their constraints, letting her ginger waves cascade down her back. It had been a long day. And a very difficult one also, not including the unbearable behaviors of her students. Today was the anniversary of a death. Eli's death. Striding to the chair once more, no longer tired, Kahla slumped into it and leaned forward, burying her head into her hands. Her long hair provided a soft curtain around her face, shielding her tears as they fell from her eyes.

[Lydyn]

The rest of the night goes uneventful, leaving Kahla in peace. However when she chooses to go to bed, she becomes vividly aware that she's asleep, dreaming of a pure blackness everywhere around her - nothing greets her but silence. If she called out her voice would only echo as if she were in a cave and no matter how much she ran she could go nowhere. After a worrisome few moments, a voice seems to penetrate the darkness. It's a heavenly voice that seems to echo like a sweet sounding harp and fills your heart with hope and meaning.

"Your souls ..."

"... souls ..."

"... souls ..."

"They are intertwined."

"... intertwined ..."

"... intertwined ..."

"In Eruix's arrogance ..."

"... arrogance ..."

"... arrogance ..."

"He has given the world it's only hope."

"... hope ..."

"... hope ..."

Kahla would then be assaulted with an image of a woman - much like the elf that had attacked her - standing behind a mirage of fog and other images. Her beauty is obvious as her blackened hair falls below her shoulders and she stands in the darkness with only a symbol you don't recognize, to light her visage. She stands petite and slender and just a bit shorter than Kahla did, pointed ears poking out from the folds of her mane. She wears strange armor that swirls in designs that haven't even been made in Alteria, with a thoughtful expression on her face.



"Seek her - to the east in Val'undir, the elven capital."

"... capital ..."

"... capital ..."

"You two are the only ones able to endure the coming tide."

"... tide ..."

"... tide ..."

"Do so - together."

"... together ..."

"... together ..."

The morning sun shined through the window, the blinds having been opened apparently - or Kahla forgot to close them - but it seemed perfect timing as it's rays stir the redhead from sleep. The dream was still eerily vivid in the magi's mind as a couple of songbirds perched outside on the balcony and sung a sweet cheery song. The college was almost silent excluding the birds, as classes were still an hour away, and many students enjoyed the fact of sleeping in when classrooms were only a ten minute walk at most.

[Eleda]

Kahla awoke with a start, her hair damp and clinging to her bare flesh. She could feel her heart pounding in her ears and her breathing was erratic. Sitting up, the thin blanket she had over her fell to the floor and she stood, an ache in her lower back yelling at her to stretch.

Kahla obeyed the command from her muscles but, her mind was otherwise occupied. Another elf had come to her, this time in the form of a dream.. A hauntingly beautiful elf... The words still echoed in her mind, playing them over and over. Kahla reached over and grabbed a plush towel from a table by the adjacent door and entered it to shower.

Stepping into the ivory basin that was now filled with water, it steamed up into her face, reacting to the higher than normal temperature of her body. She slid into the small pool willingly, inhaling deeply before submerging herself completely. This was a welcome distraction to both her mind and body. Mindlessly, Kahla cleansed her body and drained the basin, stepping out carefully with her long lean legs.

Grabbing the soft towel, she ran it across her body, her thoughts drifting to the female from her dream, the male from the day before, then back to the female from her dream. She needed to meet this alluring woman. Perhaps she could make some sense of the dream.

Running her fingers through her damp hair, it instantly dried behind her strokes. Kahla idly dressed in a revealing dress , pulling her robe over her exposed flesh and pulling the hood over her head. She needed to go to Val'undir. Urgently. Rummaging through her things, Kahla grabbed a satchel with a few items and headed to the college stables.

[Lydyn]

She was unhindered until she randomly ran into the Archmagi of the College. He was a humble looking old man that still had a spark of youth in his eyes and a beard on his chin. He wore flowing robes that were rather impractical in a sword fight, but being a master of lightning elemental magic did not require him to often engage in melee battle - if he engaged at all. He smiled as Kahla appraoched him and held out a hand in motion for her to pause her stride, folding his hands in front of him. "Kahla ... why such the rush? Class is about to begin ..." he said softly. He had always been an observant magi and today was no exception, obviously knowing that something was amiss with the young redhead.

[Eleda]

Kahla apologized, her eyes widening as she realized that she had bumped into the Archmagi himself. "Apologies Archmagi.." she muttered, bowing slightly. "Yesterday evening, an assassin came for in the study. And after resting, I had a vision, if you will, instructing me to go to Val'undir. Please forgive me. I feel as if destiny is requiring me be elsewhere at this moment in time." She blushed brightly, the hue on her face matching the locks of her hair. Kahla had a bad habit of babbling, but babbling to the Archmagi? She could not adequately describe the level of embarrassment she felt under his steely, yet pleasant gaze.