There is a realm that exists beyond human comprehension. A realm exists under the dirt and rocks of the surface world. A realm dark and hot, dotted with pools of magma, stalagmites that stretch for miles, and seemingly endless fields of ash. A realm that inspires the earthquakes that tears the ground apart beneath ones feet and volcanoes that rain hellfire down from their skies.

At the center of this realm was a fortress, a massive castle of writhing, twisted iron and blackened stone. The building was a behemoth, with metal-clad guards at every arched entryway and high walls and vaulted ceilings inlaid with red glass. At the center of this castle was a creature, reminiscent of a human female, starkly white against the dark stone and metal. She was reclined on a chaise of red satin, watching out from a balcony over the smoky, dimly red landscape.

Steps of a single being echoed on the stones behind her. Not until they approached her did she sit up for her visitor. A short, male-esque figure bowed to her, speaking from a dark, cracked face.

"My empress."

"Do you have something to tell me?"

The visitor looked out the same balcony his mistress was looking. "My empress, we are nearing the end of our calendar's cycle."

"Oh, is it that time of the millennia already?"

"You remember what that means."

"Of course I remember what that means." She stood from her chaise, strutting towards the balcony. "Some creature from the surface will soon discover the true extent of some pure light crap that resides in them."

He nodded. "So you have been thinking about it."

She glared around the landscape before her, frowning intently. "Subjects have been caught digging at the walls, trying to escape. That's unacceptable. But that surface creature's power might get rid of all that. Perhaps that power could fortify my walls. No one leaves my realm without my permission. I'd hate to think that I'm getting lazy with that message." She turned towards her henchman. "I'll have to begin hunting this creature down, very soon."

In a place, high in the mountains. A knight was cleaning his blade - having been sent by the royalty of this land to go and kill the wyvern that had terrorizing the countryside.

His armor was a lighter shade of grey, with the motif of a double-headed eagle, inscribed in blue. He was rather, to be honest. Ever since he had discovered, that he possessed 'holy' powers - he had been trained like no other.

Raised as a knight, he soon was bestowed the title of Paladin. A title of ages past, about legendary warriors of great virtue and might. And it was true, no monster could withstand the runes on his blade.

With that notion, Arakon finished cleaning his blade and started his treck down the mountain to collect his reward.

@mamagermany

(You got?)

Her period of rest was over. "Summon the sorcerer," she ordered her henchman. As he strode off towards the exit, she headed deeper into the recesses of the room. She pulled a dark, feathered cloak off a peg in the wall and clasping it around her shoulders. She began to follow where her servant had one before, waking down the cavernous halls, past bowing guards, until she entered the great hall, supported with obsidian pillars and dangling red glass chandeliers looming over her head.

Two figures approached her from the shadows - her servant, carrying a chest, and a figure bent over, shrouded in a robe.

"My empress," he rasped.

"Gamigin. The end of one thousand years approaches. A being hosting a power of pure light will soon appear on the surface." Her servant laid the chest on the ground before her as she spoke, opening it to uncover a scratched, misshapen crystal orb. "You are going to locate it, as you have so many times before."

"It would be my honor, my liege," the sorcerer croaked, drawing his hood back and kneeling at the chest.

She watched hungrily as he dragged his old, decrepit hands over the crystal, summoning a glow from deep within it. The sorcerer grunted and groaned, prying at the crystal, and it began to glow fiercer and twist around in its setting. It spun faster and faster. It began to spark. Sparks fell to the floor, but they didn't singe.

He halted the orb in its stead and gazed into it. "I feel the light... coming strong here, stronger than anywhere else on the surface. I see... someplace cold... someplace grey.... where mountains climb towards the sky... covered in snow... a lone creature... I see the light within this creature."

Her light was alone on the mountains? This would be as easy as ever. Cold and grey wasn't her forte, but that was of no matter. She snapped to command her servant's attention. "Ronove. Fetch my wings. I'm going to break the surface apart."

Minutes later, the first tremor hit.

( @NecroKnight )

@mamagermany

The ground shook slightly, as he was walking - knowing, that first had there was some earthquake inbound. And in the mind of any sentient being - earthquake and mountains didn't quite mix well together.

At that point, he was stuck with the option of either - heading down post haste or staying on the mountain. Neither choice was a good one, seeing as either option could end up with rocks coming down onto his head.

He thought about his options, before deciding and heading with a long sprint down the mountain. It wasn't as high as some of them, but it was a better idea to head to more stable grounds - then be ontop of one. Despite wearing heavy armor, he could run pretty fast for one - some of his holy abilities, helping to reduce to pain on his muscles, of running with several pounds of armor strapped to his body.

The terrain began to break apart from beneath him as he ran down the mountain. Rock split above his head and shards began to fall down the hillsides and into dark caverns. On the other side of the mountain, a pit had been forced open from the rock, descending down so deep and dark that no bottom could be seen. Slowly ascending from this pit was a woman-like creature, pale as the snow-capped peaks around her, sharp black streaks crossing her face and lips, eyes an alien shade of blue, white hair to her waist, and barely clad in white leather. Compressed bundles of wrought iron crossed her shoulders and hung from her hips. Snow lightly falling from the sky melted several feet above her bare skin and the droplets evaporated away as soon as they made contact.

She looked slowly about her, over the mountain and towards the distant horizon. The grey clouds billowing around the mountain blocked the lands below from her view. Everything she could see was grey, cold, rocky, and, she noticed very quickly, devoid of any creatures that might hold her precious light. To her knowledge, the light had never been bestowed to a rock.

But all she had to do was follow the scent of it. When she took a breath of this earthly air, at first there was no trace of it. The wind could have blown the scent this way and that. But, taking another breath, it was definitely there. The scent of the light lingered on the tongue, sweet and clear. She was in the right place, certainly. She took a few steps to the west - every step she took melted the ice in the ground, scorched the dirt, and left singed footprints - and it became stronger, just by a whisper. That was all she needed. She began to walk west, looking closely and carefully everywhere in her sight for any movement. She was in the right place after all.

( @NecroKnight )

@mamagermany

Her quarry in question had stopped for the moment. Having taken shelter in a cave - before emerging and staring at the chaos caused.

Instead of retreating down, like any sane person - he went by his heroic morals and decided to check out this caused abyss.

And started to walk up and unknowingly towards her - likely not knowing the Mistress of the Underworld was here. All he cared about was protecting the weak and innocent - as he marched up again.

How interesting. The scent was growing stronger, quicker than it should have been growing. It wasn't proportional to how fast she was moving. Was the creature with the light really coming towards her? Was she so lucky? The possibility that she was truly that lucky delighted her.

She jumped down an outcropping of fresh-broken rocks, and the scent seemed to buffet her across the face. It had to be close by. She began looking around wildly for any sort of movement. The earthquake she had caused hadn't crushed and killed the creature she was looking for, had it? She would have been infuriated. Before she could entertain that dreadful thought, she noticed something. There was some odd, metallic sound coming from down the mountain. And where that sound was, she smelled the light, the strongest yet. It was there, somewhere before her, among the falling snow.

( @NecroKnight )

@mamagermany

He continued walking up and forward. Feeling something nearby as well - something that could be considered unwelcoming or distributing.

Nevertheless, he drew his blade and activated the holy runes on his armor. Prepared for any kind of combat. As he soon stepped from behind the last rock.

Them coming face to face, with the Mistress of the Underworld. She looked both female and an alien figure. His own face and body was luckily protected with blessed steel.

"Halt! Whoever goes there? Speak your name, or face the Light of the Paladin!" he called to her.

@mamagermany

bump

@mamagermany

Hello! Is this dead?