Interaction with: Darius, Skar
@FunnyGuy, Myra
@13org, and Aklenroth
Aklenroth guided the group up the long stairs and into one of the large corridors. The blue flames on the torches lining the corridors illuminated the path until they reached a large metal door which was made completely of mithril. He then placed his hand onto the door, which caused a reaction to it, unlocking thousands of small and large locks on the door before it opened. Aklenroth turned to the group.
"I will deal with this." He told them.
Upon looking into the room they could see it was filled with piles of treasures of all types and sitting in the middle of the room was a large Sphinx. "Do you have the mind to solve my riddle?" It said in a loud rough voice standing and taking a few steps towards the group. "Two bodies have I, though both joined in one. The more still I stand, the quicker I run. What am I?" The sphinx looked down at them, waiting for someone to reply.
"An hourglass" Aklenroth abruptly said, stepping forward. "Mhmm... Very good my lord, you never cease to fail my riddles." The Sphinx replied with an amused tone.
"I need to get ten thousand Amas from my treasury." Aklenroth told the sphinx, stepping into the room completely.
"You are welcome to enter." He said, turning to the three standing outside the doorway.
Myra followed Skar closely, carefully watching every movement Aklenroth gave and her surroundings. She still didn't trust him, despite him not showing any hostility.
As they entered the castle, Myra used her camouflage again, walking close to Skar as they continued. The room they arrived was filled with shiny things of all types and in the very middle, a huge, strange creature stood still, asking something to Aklenroth the second they got close to it.
After replying to whatever the creature had asked, Aklenroth turned to the group, saying that they were welcome to enter too. Hesitating, Myra looked to Darius and Skar, waiting for their decision before doing anything else.
“Whoa…” Darius found himself in awe at the treasure trove that filled the opened vault of Aklenroth. Though Darius found the trinkets, artifacts, and chests to be impressive to the eye, he couldn’t bring himself to take his attention off of the large creature in front of the group. It held a pale feminine face but had the body of a lion with large wings. Its extremely weathered appearance seemed off as if it was like one of the undead guards that stood at the bridge from before, except she seemed to be more held together. Her riddle had not been a challenge for the king of Avalia. Aklenroth answered before Darius could even think about the answer for himself.
I guess we can enter? He took a hesitant step forward, entering the vault behind Aklenroth and moving passed the sphynx that stared with almost lifeless eyes. Skar, however, remained at the entrance staring intensely at the sphynx with her weapon held tightly. To orcs, sphynx’s meant certain death, mostly due to the fact that most if not all orcs lacked the intellect to solve a sphynx’s riddle. This inability for ambitious orcs to solve the riddles given by sphynxes eventually gave rise to the fear of even approaching the intellectual creatures.
“Darius!” Skar called from the entrance of the vault. Darius turned to her before raising an eyebrow at where she now stood.
“You’re not coming?” Darius questioned. She shook her head while keeping her eyes on the large guardian creature.
“Sphynx is death to orc! Bring my amas. I wait here.” Skar took a step back to add action to her words. She was not going to enter the vault while the sphynx stood guard, even if it had been pacified by Aklenroth himself. Darius looked to the sphynx who held the same neutral expression before looking to Skar and nodding.
“Simple enough… Wait, Myra disappeared? Again?” Darius's face filled with a bit of concern.
I guess this is all me huh? The man turned around to face the rest of the vault’s contents. His eyes looked upon the treasures and a few things particularly caught his eye. There was a large golden egg sitting on a white stone pedestal that reminded Darius of the story of Jack and the Beanstalk. Then there was an impressive set of armor adorned on a stone mannequin.
“Nice armor you got there.” Darius commented as he continued through the vault and past several shiny treasure chests decorated with too many gems to count.
And to think that Skar and I planned on robbing this place… would have definitely failed that riddle though.When the two reached a specific chest within the vault, Darius wondered what he could accomplish with the 5,000 amas he would soon receive. He had not had time to give his brand new goal of getting humans back to Earth much thought, but it was simple to imagine that doing so would be a complicated feat. It could take months, maybe a few years if these light elves were serious about keeping the other humans in Avalia. And then there was the issue with the DROMs, which had to be destroyed but were hidden even from Aklenroth. Darius audibly cleared his throat to get Aklenroth’s attention. He couldn’t solve this on his own. He had to use all the resources he could with the greatest one right in front of him.
“So, I’m planning on splitting my 10,000 with Skar… the orc. I owe her my life, so it’s the least I can do for her. And since I’ll be keeping the rest for myself, what do you think I’ll need going forward. It’s not like I’m some legendary hero… I’m just Darius Barnes, a guy trapped in a world I know almost nothing about.” "That armor is old; it is my old armor I used to wear before I was king here." Aklenroth said, heading over to it, placing his hand on the chest plating.
"That was a very long time ago." He added his face showing a hint of sadness, his late wife had picked it out and memories danced in his head like a distant echo.
"But that is enough of that." Aklenroth said, straightening his face.
"Well I understand, but I am willing to make some changes in payment in that case. I need you to be ready." He replied to Darius's last statement, walking over towards one of the chests opening it and pulling out two pouches containing five thousand Amas. Aklenroth then closed the chest and walked over to Darius, handing him the pouches.
"They are split into five thousand each do as you please." He told the young human.
"The rest of your payment Darius will be given after you have done a bit of training here."Myra could understand Darius’s reaction to the room they had just entered, but she was still incredibly on edge, both regarding Aklenroth and the huge creature in the middle of the room. Myra still didn't know what Aklenroth made to change Darius’s mind and make him trust him so fast, but Myra didn't like it.
Skar's reaction though, was more in line with what Myra was feeling, as she refused to enter the room after looking at the gigantic creature who had just spoken with Aklenroth. Every step Darius gave further inside the castle made it harder for Myra to keep going. Even though Aklenroth wasn't being hostile towards Darius and Skar, she wasn't in a place she knew. Walking further inside his castle, she was on
his domain. If he wanted, he could just tell the giant creature to kill them all. And Myra hated to feel helpless and cornered like that. Still, she didn't want just to leave Darius and Skar behind like that. Fighting against her instincts she gave a step forward, going inside the room with Darius and Aklenroth.
Watching both of them from a good distance, she was incredibly alert, looking and reacting to every small movement and sound she didn't know. As she kept following them though, she caught a bit of the conversation between Darius and Aklenroth. The bit she understood about it though, wasn't something she liked to hear. Apparently, Darius had decided to stay with Aklenroth...
“Here? You mean I’m going to… live in this place?” Darius questioned with concern while trying to hold back what he really wanted to say. Darius knew he was in the midst of the one known as both the Dark Lord and the Lich King, so for once in his life, he figured he could watch some of what came out of his mouth. His thoughts… Now those ran freely.
Hell to the no! Some of this shit is cool and all, but has this dude ever heard of ambiance? This vault is the best-looking thing here and it’s meant to be locked up! While still holding a look of concern, he took the two pouches of amas, 5,000 in each one. He figured he would have to say something. Now would be a better time than any after the king had just displayed a hint of sadness followed by generosity. On their way back towards the entrance of the vault, he spoke up.
“Lord Aklenroth… I first want to thank you for everything and all that you’ve done so far, but... I don’t know how you expect me to live here. Like the… The sun is… It’s not out and it’s morning!” Darius paused for a second as he tried to catch himself.
“Listen, I can train here if there’s no other place, but this area can’t stay like this. Humans need sun and fresh air. And I doubt that blue shit in the air is okay to breathe in.” Plus, Myra hates being here. As the two were a few feet from the vault entrance Darius underhand tossed Skar one of the pouches of amas. It landed at her feet with a heavy thud. Skar’s eyes remained on the sphinx as she sheathed her weapon in order to grab the pouch.
Once in her hands, Skar immediately loosened the pouch to take a peek inside. She needed to confirm that she was truly getting her payment. Her eyebrows not only rose, but a grin etched onto her face as she stared at her reward for getting Darius to Aklenroth. It hadn’t been too much trouble as Darius proved to be an interesting creature. He had befriended a demon that loyally stood by his side. Even though Myra was camouflaged, Skar was sure the demon had left her side and entered the vault with the human.
He is strong… not like orc, but strong in own way. As much as she found Darius amusing and interesting, she could not remain with him. Her purpose was not to serve but to be free from it. Unless Aklenroth planned to pay Skar a hefty salary, she would surely leave and bid Darius farewell. His awe from seeing the vault was now replaced with uneasiness, and maybe even a hint of sadness.
Aklenroth looked at Darius as he talked to him.
"Well, Yes you are going to stay here but not in this section of Morteum there is a housing area on the other side. I cannot trust you yet to go off on your own. I can take you out to places where there is sunshine, but for now, I need you to live in the room I have for you, There is heating, and whatever else you need or want, I can give you. I also want you to know that the stuff in the air is mana residue, it will not harm you and will only provide you with more strength with magic." He said answering his questions and providing information on the fog.
"I would like to know what your friends are going to do? Are they leaving or staying here too?" He asked Darius.
Even though Myra followed Darius inside the temple, she still gave a few looks back to Skar after every minute or so. Truth be told, she didn't want to stay in this place. She felt very cornered and threatened not only by Aklenroth's presence, but all the other undead too.
When she heard Darius saying something about living here though, she almost immediately undid her camouflage. It didn't take much to realize that she was shocked with what she heard. Looking to Darius and then to Aklenroth, Myra slowly gave a few steps back towards Skar, still looking at both of them.
She really liked Darius, he was the first person she had ever communicated with, but still, Aklenroth, the undead and the place they were... They were just too different, too against Myra's nature for her to be comfortable there. Stopping right in the middle between Skar, Darius and Aklenroth, she looked at Darius once more, almost as if asking if that was what he really wanted. If he chose to stay, she would respect his choice, but she simply would be going too much against her own nature if she stayed as well...
Darius and Skar's eyes were on Myra when Aklenroth asked about the trio and what demon and orc intended on doing. Though Darius had listened to Aklenroth's words, Myra's posture worried him. He looked to Skar for some kind of answer as he had done before entering the Morteum. This time she was able to answer.
"Skar is leaving." The orc answered directly and without hesitation. She then fearlessly pointed at Aklenroth.
"Lord Aklenroth rules Avalia! Does not rule Skar. No one rules Skar." Skar dropped her hand, her gaze never leaving Darius' now softened and uncertain face.
"Do not die Darius. Skar must meet you again. Maybe in passing. Maybe in trade. Maybe in battle…" Her words grew softer.
"Deal?" She used his phrase and smirked in order for him to get the weak look off of his face.
"Deal…" Darius said with a soft chuckle. Skar's way of saying goodbye was as harsh as her personality, but still fairly sentimental. He didn't know Skar long, but he would never forget her.
"We'll meet. And I'll be strong… 'Not as strong as orc', but strong." He replied with her words and returned the smirk.
"Myra…" Skar stared intensely at the demon, usure of how she would act next.
"I think you stay. Do not die. You are odd demon that understands less than Skar, but you are... deadly and learning is fast... If stay, help Darius. If not stay… I move to south. Use amas to conquer the land." Skar's vocalized goal caused Darius to raise an eyebrow. He didn't think Skar had much ambition. He had figured she wanted the rewarded amas to simply buy new weapons or another boar to use to carry it.
"Do not die. Not until meet again" Skar repeated to the two. There would be no hugs or handshakes from her. She simply said what she needed to before turning from the vault and making her leave. She hoped to see the two again. The thought of it actually made her smile. A smile that would not be known to anyone but herself as she made her way out of the necropolis alone.
"Myra…" Darius could see the discomfort on her face and in her movements. As much as he didn't want to think about it, this all felt like a decision based roleplaying game and he was at the part where he had two paths to take. One was Myra, who was more than just a companion. She was his only true friend in Avalia. Then there was the all powerful king who he needed to cooperate with in order to get all of the humans out of Avalia. Darius gulped. He had to do this.
"You said you can give me things I want? And that you don't trust me?" He faced Myra as he addressed Aklenroth before taking a few steps towards his friend only to turn around to face the lich king.
"Well, I don't really trust you either. At first, Myra didn't really like the orcs at Orc Landing, BUT she warmed up to them… to orcs!" Darius crossed his arms at his chest.
"Your generous king act isn't working. You look like an elf sure, but it's fake." Darius shook his head towards the floor and peered back up at Aklenroth with a displeased look on his face.
I saw what you really look like in the sky. The guards are undead! Your sphinx? That's what it is right? It's undead! And YOU'RE undead… You need me, right? Well, I need Myra. And what we both don't need, are undead. So this space you have for us… No undead! We can use a living proxy instead. You get to have me, but I deal with…""Me." An unexpected voice spoke from behind Darius and Myra. When turning to face the owner of the voice, Darius saw what appeared to be an elf, but with ashen hue to his skin. The black-armored man held an aged and hardened look. He was a dark elf that lived through several centuries and it visibly showed. His cold eyes looked at Darius with disdain as he passed. How could this human address Aklenroth in such a way? If Darius hadn't been needed by Aklenroth, he would have slain him on the spot. Kol Varanasi was a servant to Aklenroth tasked to be one of a handful of military advisors and strategists. He performed the customary dark elf salute and held it, his fist hard against his chest
"My king, I would be honored to act as your representative! Even to this lowly creature and his pet, carrying your will is a duty I would commit to. In life… and in death. Allow me to hold this privilege, this responsibility! I can have the appropriate guards posted and ready to monitor this human." Kol's words boomed through the vault.
Darius just scowled, but remained silent.
Has to be a dark elf… And I guess they're assholes too. Despite Darius' opinion of Kol, the elf appeared to be living. He wasn't sure if it was enough for Myra, but he had to do something. Anything.
"All or nothing huh?" Darius whispered to Myra and possibly to himself.
"Ah, Welcome Kol. I would like you to take Darius and Myra to their room. I have some things to tend to, I am sure you are capable of dealing with them." Aklenroth told his dark elf advisor smirking at Darius ignoring his ill-spoken words.
‘Oh, you are lucky I like you Darius but if you truly think I am not generous I can play that way…’ He then moved to the outside of the door.
"Come, Kol will take you to the living quarters." He told the two still inside the vault.
Myra turned towards Skar as she spoke with strong conviction. The message she delivered was incredibly clear, even for Myra. She would leave and there was nothing anyone could say to convince her otherwise. Truth be told, it was sad to see Skar go. She was loud and sometimes not as delicate as Darius, but she was a good friend and cared about both Myra and Darius in her own way, as it became evident by her tone of voice as she talked to them.
Her words, despite her strong voice, were gentler than usual, which was something rather unusual for Skar. To Darius, she told him to not die and as she turned to Myra, she told her to stay with Darius, or go south. Skar had also said something about using amas, which Myra assumed that were the shiny circles that were all around the room and inside the bag she had received, to do something with the land.
As Skar walked away, Myra discreetly raised her hand, sticking her little finger in the gesture Darius had taught her, when making a promise, but she was already going, without looking back. Myra knew that it was unlikely that they would meet each other again. Even though that made her sad, she knew that everyone had their own paths to follow, even Myra and Darius himself. Farewells were sad, but even in friendship, those were things one should be prepared to face, just as Darius had taught her.
Skar's words echoed on Myra's head though... Should she stay with Darius or just follow her own path? She didn't like Aklenroth nor the other undead. Being near them made her feel bad and strange... Uncomfortable... As Darius called her name, looking at her, she knew he could tell what she was thinking, by the way he looked at her and her movements. When Darius suddenly turned to Aklenroth and started talking in a rather angry tone though, Myra became visibly distressed. She knew that he was dangerous...
Amongst all the things Darius said, a few key words caught Myra's attention. No undead was something she could understand and agree, the part when Darius said he needed Myra too and the part about living. Darius said he needed her and wanted her to stay with him. Such things weighted on Myra's mind. She had her own instincts that said for her to get away from there and Aklenroth, but could she really leave Darius, who said he
needed her alone?
When a strange voice echoed behind her and Darius though, Myra immediately jumped back, assuming an aggressive posture once more. She had forgotten for a moment she was still where Aklenroth lived. No one but Darius was her 'friend' there. As both the strange new person, who looked just like one of the slender forest people, but with different skin and Aklenroth told them to follow them, Myra looked at Darius, with a quick glance, without taking her eyes off of Aklenroth or the strange new person. Was it really safe to follow this new person? Amongst all the things that were said by Darius and the other two, Myra was still confused. There were many things happening at the same time and she was already very uncomfortable being where she was.
Aklenroth had said something about taking Myra and Darius to the place they would stay, but Myra was still uncertain. Looking at Darius and then to the other two, she waited for his reaction. She didn't know if she was going to stay yet, but she didn't want to leave Darius behind as well... At least not until she was certain he was safe and would be ok.
"I will tend to them, my king. I shall teach him about his… role in all of this. As well as prepare him to be a worthy subject amongst your ranks." Kol answered while following Aklenroth out of the vault.
Darius started to followed but stopped to look at Myra.
"Things should get better. Let's follow." Darius nodded towards Kol and Aklenroth and exited the vault with Myra. Darius' first impression of Kol wasn't positive and was sure they'd butt heads.
"Thanks for staying Myra… I don't know what I would have done without you, you know?…" Darius put on a smile for her and for himself too.
"And plus, I need to show you some more stuff. I can't leave Avalia until I get a word out of you." Darius said, attempting to shift the mood to a much more positive one. It was his way of coping and helping others do so as well.
Kol and Aklenroth parted ways when the corridor the four were travelling opened up to a hallway on the right. Kol and Aklenroth had murmured about a few things before Kol went to the right. Kol silently escorted the two out of the Necropolis from an entrance that appeared to be on the backside of the structure and Castle Morteum itself. The sun breaking through the clearer sky would be enough to make anyone wince away from it. Kol stopped and faced the two. Before them was another structure that seemed to bathe in the sunlight and surrounded by a lush garden that could put the Flower Kingdom to shame in terms of beauty.
"Welcome to Edena… Home to the garden oasis that never withers. " 
