dreamingflowers

As Darkness Fell - A dark fantasy story

@Nariata
Could you put up a link for the discord chat in the opening post somewhere?
That would be really helpful ^.^

@Voodoo
I'm available for a collab in about an hour if you like :)

As Darkness Fell - A dark fantasy story

Nimue listened patiently to the words of the wizard Mulad. She was late, a golden knight had shown the way to the ruined tavern, where the ill fated party of heroes were gathered. Their world was in grave danger, the dark forces of the Mad King grew stronger every day. This quest to find a mystical rod in the canyon of the Gods was their only hope, a flickering light to banish the shadows. The odds seemed impossible, but Nimue believed the world could still be saved. The young woman kept her eyes glued to the visage of the wizard, as everywhere else she looked bodies lay strewn about or were pinned to the walls, pierced by spears and other weapons. It was a gruesome sight, especially for one used to solitude and the peaceful tranquility of stone temples. Nimue had seen her fair share of wounds, severed limbs and oddly placed joints. She wasn't a stranger to gore, sometimes even death when someone was beyond healing. Yet in all her time at the Sisterhood she had never experienced death and destruction on this scale.

The wizard Mulad believed each of them had a part to play. Nimue let her gaze wander past each face, some made her raise her eyebrows in surprise, others awakened her curiosity. There were two elves, one much harder to distinguish than the other, who was decisively more elven looking. She briefly wondered about that difference before she moved on to perhaps the most frightening member of the party. He was easily twice her size, looking more beast than man. Nimue was grateful he was on their side. There was a woman of shorter statue, at first Nimue thought her to be of dwarven descent, but the features didn't quite match. A tall and aged knight who inspired her sense of wonder, he was different to any other knights she'd seen, but she couldn't tell why exactly. There was something about his grey untamed hair and hawk like gaze that spoke of a life before the armor.

Standing a little farther away were a young man and woman who both looked closer in age to her. Before she had time to study the remainder of the party and wonder about their origins she felt the air grow heavy. It took her a moment to recognize what was happening, the pressing force of dark magic weighing down on her. The corpses around them began to twist and turn, groaning painfully. They were being pulled back to the land of the living in a cruel and unforgiving way. The wizard instructed the party how to defend themselves. One of the risen wasted no time to usher in their destruction, coming towards her, grasping at the air. Nimue struggled to remain focused, still overwhelmed by the sensation of the magic that caused this mass resurrection. The stone inside her circlet began to glow faintly, but she couldn't manage a spell fast enough. She stepped back out of the way when a sudden blast of light obliterated the head of the undead, Nimue nodded gratefully to the wizard Mulad.

"Thank you.."

The party scattered, some followed the knight outside, others took up a vantage point for long distance attacks. The inn was still crawling with the undead, but if every corpse had truly been reawakened then it would be no better outside. The lack of space was working against the ones who remained inside. Nimue evaded a couple of aimless swings by stepping out of the way, letting the undead be defeated by their own clumsiness. That tactic however did not last for long. They were getting smarter, grabbing the legs of broken chairs, the remains of a glass bottle, just about anything they could find to bolster their attacks.

Nimue felt trapped. The inn was chaotic and there was little room to move without being faced with the undead, whom by now had all managed to stand up and walk around with purpose. This was not looking good. They had to fight back somehow. Her mind was racing and her heart was beating fast, she struggled to remain calm. She lowered her hood and quickly looked at her surroundings. There were no doors she could slam shut to keep them out, most of the undead just rose up from the floor. The bar area was relatively clear, something the halfling man was making good use of.

She allowed a quick glance in his direction, spotting the potions he was preparing. He was probably some kind of alchemist, Nimue didn't recognize most of the ingredients he used, but then again she wasn't paying close attention. The undead were getting closer when she heard him ask for the Angel's feather herb. She had some in her bag, but there was no time to search and take it out. Nimue slung the bag over her head and tossed it at the potion maker.

"There is some in there!" She called out to him.

Nimue focused her attention on the undead who was closest to the bar and stretched out her arm towards it holding her right hand up like a claw. The stone in her circlet started to glow brightly and the undead began to convulse as strands of a white shimmering fog started to seep out of its body. The life energy she was absorbing was gathering in her other hand, palm outstretched. A sphere of energy was quickly taking shape. She breathed in and out slowly, feeling she was going beyond the limits of the spell, but right now she needed as much energy as she could. When the undead fell the the floor, it barely managed to crawl under a table, as opposed to the others who were swinging wildly at the remainder of the group.

Nimue let the sphere float in front of her, spreading out her arms which caused it to split into multiple small spheres. They floated in the air like fairy lights, before launching themselves at the undead with a blinding speed. Whenever they made contact with the head of the undead, they simply turned into dust. The spell had managed to take out the closest ones, taking care of any immediate threat her and the potion maker. Soon however they would be replaced.

As Darkness Fell - A dark fantasy story

Starting on my post right now, might take a few hours though XD

@Voodoo
Would you like to work together on a follow up for your post?
Nimue most likely has a bit of Angel's Feather stashed away somewhere in her supplies.

As Darkness Fell - A dark fantasy story

@Life in Stasis
Maybe it's not that good of an idea to collaborate on a post just yet, seeing as I won't have time to post until sunday evening.
I wouldn't want to keep you waiting, also not sure where to position Nimue in the battle yet either.

As Darkness Fell - A dark fantasy story

I won't be able to post until sunday evening. I will wait and see what awesome writing you guys come up with in the meantime.

End + Sleep

Heyo, just updated. That only took about a thousand years, but at least I'm back in the saddle. @Dreamingflowers if you want something specific to happen to Fluore, I can write something up if you let me know where she went off to, but I'll probably go and move the plot ahead in a week, maybe less, so if you'd rather just wait for the real action to start that's fine too.

@Oddsbod

Thank you Odds ^.^
I think I''ll just stay where I am right now and see what happens next.

As Darkness Fell - A dark fantasy story

@Nariata
You could just respond to the ones who are in Mulad´s immediate vicinity, then meet the remainder of the group as you make your way out of the Six Corners. We are spread about everywhere with no clear indication of a specific location. I imagine the trading post to be quite large, despite the destruction.

As Darkness Fell - A dark fantasy story

I believe you could always meet up with Kestrel, seeings as she's still about the bazaar, instead of adding even more greetings and timeline screwery to Mulad's table, haha.

@Unraveller

Or I will stay right where I am hahaha XD

As Darkness Fell - A dark fantasy story

I posted my first post, but I will add to it later tonight and have Nimue enter the Six Corners.

As Darkness Fell - A dark fantasy story

"I don't mean to pry Sister, but have you always lived at the temple?" A young Firen soldier riding next to her asked, his tone was hesitant. He wanted to make conversation but at the same time not be a bother.

It had been the second week since Nimue had left the temple she grew up in. The journey to the trading post called the Six Corners was soon coming to an end. She met the company of soldiers while traveling through a small village. They were recovering from a brutal battle with the dark forces. Nimue healed the wounded until she collapsed with exhaustion. The next day the villagers and soldiers who owed her their lives refused to let her travel alone. Half of the company of soldiers were to escort her to the Six Corners, to which she agreed.

Nimue lowered her hood and glanced to her side, a gentle smile on her face.

"I was seven when the sisterhood came to my house"

The soldier nodded in understanding. The sisterhood was well known throughout the lands as a sacred order of women, tasked with the preservation of life in all its forms. They took in young girls who were pure, kind, with the spark of magic in their souls. Their temples were often build close to the sea, the sustainer of all life. They lived secluded and secret lives. Their reputation as healers was well established, but little else was known about them.

"I...well I just wanted to let you know that.."

"SOLDIERS!, up ahead!" The captain called out, pointing in the distance, at the borders of the Six Corners. With an apologetic look in his eyes the young Firen soldier urged on his horse speeding up the front, coming to a halt beside his captain. Nimue kept up an even pace, her white mare didn't have much opportunity to rest the day before, she didn't want to push the animal past its limits if there was no need.

The famed trading post was utterly destroyed, a look of shock spread across the faces of the company of soldiers, luckily largely hidden by their helmets. Gasps of horror interrupted the silence death had left behind in its wake. Nimue also reached the front of the line, fearing what she would find down below.

"Gods..." She covered her mouth, feeling a chill running down her spine. Nimue didn't understand this senseless destruction, what was the purpose of it all?

The smell of death and decay was overwhelming the closer they came to the entrance of the Six Corners. Nimue covered her nose and mouth with her cloak in a effort to block out the sickening smell. Everywhere she looked bodies lay strewn about, men, women and children. It pained her to see their lifeless bodies. When the company arrived at the entrance Nimue descended her white mare. The bodies made it near impossible to ride through the trade post without her horse crushing them. She tied the mare to the wooden remains of a marketstand near the entrance. The captain got of his horse and made his way over to Nimue, his plate armor clinking together as he walked. The middle aged man towered over the small statured Sister. He cleared his throat. The captain had a hard time leaving this young woman, she had after all saved many of his men, including himself. They were all reluctant to leave her behind.

"This is where our ways must part Sister, may the Gods watch over you, as you have watched over us"

Nimue bowed, her left hand holding her cloak, the other crossed over her heart. Overwhelmed by the goodness of these soldiers she was left speechless. A small smile graced her lips, her eyes wandering past each face of the company standing close behind their captain. The man was about to turn his back on her and return to his recruits when one of them spoke up.

"But Sir...we can't just leave her here! It's not right...it's not.." It was the same young soldier who had tried to make conversation with her earlier when they were riding towards the Six Corners. He stopped his protests when the other soldiers were turning around to face him. They all knew it was dangerous, but the Sister had chosen her path as did they. The young soldier pushed his way past his comrades ignoring the looks he received from both his fellow soldiers and his captain. He got on his knees in front of the young woman, bowing deeply.

"Thank you Sister, for all you have done. You are a shining beacon of hope..and..y-y..you" His voice cracked with emotion. Nimue was touched by his words and seeing him struggle for words tugged at her heart strings. She placed her hand on the cool metal of his shoulder pads. Her words were practiced, but her tone warm and kind.

"Where there is darkness there must always be light."

The soldier rose to his feet and adjusted the visor of his helmet He struggled to do the right thing and ignore his feelings. Despite his better judgment he stepped forward and enveloped the young woman in a quick and wordless hug. He turned away from her and made his way back to the company. The rest of the soldiers saluted the Sister, but he kept his back toward the Six Corners, looking down at the ground.