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The Tired One
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Most Recent Posts
I have decided! Playing as a Lizardfolk warlock would be the most ridiculous thing to chose, but Hexblade will keep it within a believable realm for a big scary lizard on the front line!
I am going to be a Lizardfolk, probably a warlock or ranger (Party Composition permitting). I have yet to decide on which one is more ridiculous.
Eurysthenes
Eurysthenes pondered. With one so hateful and hated trapped within, would it become more so? Or would the opposite happen? There was a hesitancy within This One to whether a being of such atrocity could change from any attempts to sway it over. That was the reason they had ended the likes of Vakk, unredeemable and unwilling of compromise. However, Vakk was now in a powerless situation, Eurysthenes knew this much and it was with this that it might be able to demand That One to some form of change. Eurysthenes’ mind went over the dissonant thought of a reformed Vakk before the idea was quickly cast aside at the memories of past pain Vakk had committed.
Yet, the simple of idea of reforming and reforming such a loathsome being continued to persist, and Eurysthenes knew that Vakk would seemingly do whatever it needed in order to survive. It knew that Vakk had not come to This One out of choice, but rather a despair of survival and sheer unwillingness to accept defeat. That much was clear, and it was with such desperation that made Eurysthenes believe that there could be some hope for Vakk. Though, the doubt still plagued its mind, unknowing if Vakk would trick This One or use the same magic to control its mind like it had before.
As thoughts began to formulate once more, the chiming voices of That One came back, ”You have been silent for some time, Eurysthenes.”
This One would have glared at Vakk if one could cast such a thing to something which occupied the same eye space. ”To you, yes. Why do you speak?”
”I am trapped in your body for the time being. I’d rather not allow myself to go mad through silence,” Vakk chimed, selfishly wanting Eurysthenes’ attention just so it did not suffer. The soul was right next to Eurysthenes own, pushing for the further scrutiny that the other had just given in to giving Vakk.
There was only a moment of silence before the voices spoke once more, ”Do you really think that you can ignore me and expect me to go away?”
Eurysthenes denied the observance of Vakk with a thought. [color=8ao886]”Longing and expecting are two different things, Vakk. Which raises the subject of when you get a new form and leave.”[/color]
”I will leave when I please,” Vakk said simply.
”No you won't,” This One said, forcing Vakk to feel the very real boundaries that kept it strapped into the form it hated so. The suffocating bonds of a foolishly heavy will to live.
”One doesn't abandon their problems so easily.”
There was a stubborn silence for a few brief moments before That One let out what sounded like many sighs at once. ”You may be right, but we both do not desire to be bound together. We both have plans that need to be tended to. You have.... Whatever it is you do in this maze, and I have a thief to give punishment to.”
As Vakk mentioned punishment, Eurysthenes caught sight of what That One really intended.
”Alas, Vakk, the terms I propose run parallel to your… punishment. Would one who witnessed it call it that.” it said. The words “terms I propose” hung between them, coaxing Vakk to acknowledge them.
”Terms? What terms?” Vakk questioned, many voices giving various levels of displeasure to the word. Its soul moved needlessly closer to inquire about what Eurysthenes may have meant with those ‘terms’.
Holding Vakk at arm's length, This One said, ”You will change your ways. I'm not asking for a new Vakk entirely, rather than one lacking spite and hatred. You will treat others as you would like to be treated, and show restraint when appropriate.”
There was a scoff followed by an insidious laughter that showed no end to whatever hysterical joke That One found. ”I did not take you for a jester, Eurysthenes,” Vakk said, some voices still laughing in the background. For a few moments, Vakk was calming itself, chuckling a light bit more before finally speaking with a many winded asserting, ”I did not change for K’nell when he offered me death. What makes you think that I will submit to you, jester?”
It seemed that ‘Jester’ was going to be a new nickname for Eurysthenes, giving Vakk much apparent satisfaction as the voices continued to giggle and laugh in their deceptive ways. This One frowned, not a thing of sadness, but one of disappointment.
”This,” it said, gesturing to the two souls in the one body, ”Would death not be better?”
The laughter of the voices suddenly came to halt, a moment of contemplation fell up them with the silence Vakk brought. ”I suppose not…” That One took a few moments of sickening thought, the soul feeling around the form of Eurysthenes for a bit, clearly looking for a nonexistent exit. When it was done, the soul meandered back to its spot next to Eurysthenes, who smiled smugly at it. Small victories.
”And how do you suppose I mend my ways?” Vakk asked.
This One sighed and took a step back. ”Oh Vakk, where would one start when correcting something so thoroughly wrong?” it asked, defeatedly. ”Your problems are… greater than the Architect. Tell me. What's something you think would be reprehensible?”
There was a long pause of silence, Vakk thinking for a good bit. It let out a long drawn out sigh before it admitted one of the many faults That One, ”I suppose my anger could be improved upon.” There was a light touch of Vakk’s soul against Eurysthenes own, pushing closer and closer as it seemingly bore into the very puzzling nature of the god, and felt nothing but tension.
”Perhaps if I could control my impulses, I would become one who is not tormented by ‘spite and hatred’ as you put it.”
”This is indeed a place to begin, though you must see more clearly, go with decisiveness,” it said. To Vakk, it would be clear that it was talking of trying and doing, advising the path of action rather than ifs and buts.
”But I am already decisive in nature, or so I thought,” That One contemplated, taking a moment to think of its past deeds and actions that were made out of blinded anger. Vakk let out a huff, the soul slowly moving away from Eurysthenes before settling down with a clear hit of impatience and annoyance.
This One significantly relaxed as Vakk moved away. The distance, while small, was welcome right now. ”Not so in the decisions to change,” it said.
”That is because I am being forced,” Vakk said in a simple manner, before sighing at the situation that it was in. If That One could shake its head it would, impatience growing as time seemed to drag on for the two.
”Now, how do we begin?”
”Practice,” it said, scooping some material out of the wall as if it were sand and silt.
With the wall material was combined the idea of something where there is nothing, claws, feathers, and finally, the subtle inclusion of anger where emotion had not yet existed. It was the combination of these things that made the Aroiox. Great colourful wings unfurling from a feathery torso, scaly appendages with angry claws. From the face, a proboscis-esque beak, filled with rows of quill teeth.
”And patience and fairness must be shown to these beings,” Eurysthenes said.
”And so I shall, because I no longer will have to worry about my anger,” That One commented, its voices far more relaxed and neutral as it observed the creatures that the two had made. They were not large beings, but Vakk’s anger made them stronger than one may perceive above the colorful plumage of the people. Even now, it could see see some of them fighting amongst each other like savages to display their dominance over the other.
Vakk could not help but feel a twinge of regret for pawning off its aggression into beings so new to this world, forcing a saddened sigh to emanate from Vakk. ”Without the anger, I can feel my own sadness and regret. I do not like the things I have done, Eurysthenes, the things anger has caused.” That One said, its words far more nuanced as the voices spoke in harmony.
A subtle shift in This One could be perceived. An uncertainty, perhaps of Vakk’s intentions, perhaps of its previous judgement against it. ”And so you must. This is the key to forgiveness and reformation. A sighting of the slight, even when it is ever so slight.”
That One could not help but watch them, the Aroiox flashed their teeth to one another and fought one another. However, through the brute strength and anger, there could be a sly cunning as the eyes focused on potential advantages. They were children of two cunning gods, capable of great anger yet also tempered by what seemed to be an endlessly tactical mind. Vakk felt a great pride towards their creation.
”I will speak to them. And we shall guide them.”
”And when you are new, they shall be let into Galbar in order to remind you why a change was made.”
Sprite & Atmav
It was quiet. Very quiet. In the distance, a single cicada sang its song, another responding with some delay.
Sprite was laying face down on Atmav’s toned belly, her face in between two of the abs. She mumbled and blew onto Atmav’s skin, then giggled quietly when Atmav moved her hand and put it on top of her, pressing her tightly against the warmth of her belly.
Atmav groaned lightly in her sleep and mumbled something, but quickly she went back to normal. Her hand remained heavily on top of Sprite, though. The body of the large woman shifted a bit, the hand moving away from Sprite’s small body before stretching into the air. Her body lurched upwards only a small bit as Atmav yawned, groggily rubbing her hand over the front of her face. The toned arms held her up, not enough to disturb Sprite’s little spot, but enough.
She gazed down upon Sprite before cocking her head to the side, inspecting what Sprite was doing in her stomach. “Sprite, what are you doing?”
Sprite looked up for a split moment before pressing her face back against Atmav’s skin, this time playfully biting into it. However, there was no immediate reaction from Atmav this time.
“Why are you biting me?” Atmav asked with a light laugh.
Sprite chuckled and looked up again, then crawled all the way up to Atmav’s chin and rested her own tiny chin on top of it. “I have successfully tamed youu! I bit you suuper violently and you did nothing but laugh, Attie! Now, heed my order my pet! Pet me!”
“You didn’t even break my skin, Sprite,”Atmav chuckled before scooping the small one up in her hand, sitting up in the process. She gazed upon the little one with a smile before crossing her legs, shaking her head with a laugh. “You continue to make me laugh, Sprite,” the warrior said lightly as her gaze eventually shifted to outside the cave.
Sprite merely gave Atmav a coy smile as she hugged the woman’s thumb and pressed her tiny body against it. “Boo, getting distracted by looking outside the window when you have a pretty girl wrapped around your thumb!”
“A pretty girl cannot do much with other than talk to,” Atmav observes before her stomach let out a light growl of attention. The winged one could not help but let out a sigh before looking back at Sprite with a more neutral face. She shook her head once more, this time not in a playful manner but in a way to focus herself on an important task. “I will need to go get food,” she said, her voice losing the playful hint that Sprite had heard.
Sprite pursed her lips and frowned, before nodding. “Okay, where are we going?”
“You are not going anywhere, Sprite. You are too small and I don’t want to risk you getting lost. I will hunt alone,” Atmav said sternly. Slowly, lowering the hand to the ground, Atmav gestured for Sprite to move off.
Sprite looked at Atmav, mortified. She went pale and stammered, “B-But-!”
“I won’t be gone for long. I just don’t want that risk to be present and I would take you with me, but if something were to happen to you, I think I might slip back to a dark place that I do not want to go back to,” Atmav said before looking around the ground. She picked up several stones and moved them about, stacking them on one another before holding Sprite to it. A small hut made of rock against the wall of the cave. “When I get back, I will do whatever you say. Okay?”
Sprite pouted, but nodded and stepped off of Atmav’s hand, “Okay, but don’t take too long!”
“I promise,” Atmav said lightly before standing, tuning and walking to the entrance of the cave before looking back at Sprite one last time. Her hand brought the orvium blade out of the ground, dragging it across the dirt as she walked. “I promise,” she repeated before her starlight wings spread to launch Atmav into the air. She soared above the trees and out of sight in a matter of moments, leaving Sprite by her lonesome.
It had been a really long while. So long, in fact, that the shadows cast by the pretty light of day had shifted position!
She couldn’t stand it any longer. She had to do something, anything. And so Sprite paced in front of the rock hut made for her by Atmav. After some seconds, she froze and nodded to herself. She looked into her own translucent body and saw in the center of it all, her core. A solid fragment of a soul.
“Good! I’m so smart, very smart! I bet the others never thought of carrying their cores inside of their own projections. That’s ‘cause I’m reaaally smart, aren’t I?” She asked no one in particular, expecting an answer. After a few moments, she giggled and turned and walked toward the exit of the cave.
She walked and walked, passing by huge. normal-sized rocks, and then bathing in the warm light, and the delving into the waist-high maze of grass leaves.
Eventually, she reached the foot of a tree and looked up. Her eyes lit up and she stretched her arms upward. Of course, that made no difference.
“Ooh, that apple looks good! Maybe I could get it for Atmav!” She muttered to herself, chuckling.
Of course, reaching for it made no difference, as one would have to stack dozens of Sprites to even graze the skin of the red, juicy fruit. She realized this soon and drooped sadly.
“Wait-”
She perked back up, eyes sparkling with an intense silver glow and mouth contorted into a proud smirk, “My core is floating inside me, so… Maybe…” She closed her eyes and focused, and indeed! After a moment, Sprite began floating too. “Yay!”
From then on it was smooth sailing. Sprite flew up to the apple and dislodged it, making it fall to the ground far below. It might get a little bruised, but it didn’t matter to her. Food was food, and her best friend was hungry!
When she flew back down to the apple and stood on it, she noticed something… Odd.
The skin seemed to be bubbling, and something was pushing at it from inside the apple.
“Something inside… Apple… Squirming…” Sprite hummed and pressed a finger against her lips in thought. “Oh no… A wor-”
At that instant, a huge worm burst forth, bits of juicy apple flying everywhere! Sprite gasped and fell backwards, off the apple and onto the grassy ground. “Ahh!” She yelped before landing in a thick patch of grass.
She could barely see the apple, but she knew. She caught snippets of it.The green, absurdly long insect wiggled and shook and squirmed out of its hole. Sprite caught glimpses of it sneaking about on the surface of the apple.
It was terrifying, and Sprite knew.
She had to tame it.
She crouched behind a wide blade of grass and waited for the worm to slither near her, and when it did… She jumped onto it!
“Aagh, take this you big juicy bug!” She screamed and growled, wrapping her arms and legs around the insect as hard as her projected body could.
The worm froze and then immediately started wriggling and jerking around. At one point, it started rolling, crushing tiny silver under its weight numerous times, until she let go, panting.
“H-Hey, you beat me you fat sorry excuse of flesh… I give up…” She said breathlessly as the worm recovered its composure.
In this moment of calm, Sprite saw its true size. It was easily over a foot long. “... How did you even fit inside that apple, you freakdo? Wa-Wait! Don’t come any closer…!” She gasped and sat up as the worm slowly made its way toward her.
“C-Come on now, we can negotiate! I don’t have a reaaal body, so I’m not tasty!”
It rudely ignored her, and Sprite huffed and crossed her arms, “Figures, take a girl for the ride of her life and then ignore her. Boo!”
The worm started struggling. It tried to get closer to Sprite, but it only managed to do jerky motions. That’s how Sprite noticed… it was getting pulled back!
“What! No way!” She gasped, jumping up to her feet and running around the worm. She saw it, a long tongue wrapped around the worm’s midsection.
“Oh boyy! You’re about to get eaten, wormie! How do you feel about thaat? Scared? Excited? Scared and excited, perhaps? That’s the best combination I assure you!” She giggled and slapped her hand on the huge worm’s back. It shuddered and redoubled its efforts at resisting the pull of the tongue, which disappeared well above the ceiling of thick grass leaves.
“Oh, you don’t wanna be eaten? Ugh, fiiine, I’ll help you out, but ooonly if you let me ride you.” The worm didn’t respond. “Oh goooooods, you’re a such a lobcock. Fiiine.” She groaned and rolled her eyes.
Near them, there was a mature rose. So Sprite walked over to the flower and broke off the longest thorn she saw, then calmly walked back to the scene of the epic struggle between the worm and the tongue. In a lame, lazy movement, she pierced the tongue with the thorn.
Blood gushed out, a high-pitched cry came from nearby, and the tongue retreated.
The worm calmed down and, after a long moment, turned to Sprite. It slithered its large head towards her, but in a different manner this time. More docile than before. Sprite smirked and, once the worm’s head bumped into her, she pet it.
“Hah, recognizing your master now! You’re mine, Wormie! And I will call you… Worm… ox. Wormox shall be your mighty name! My steed! Hah hah hah!” She laughed proudly, hands on her hips as she struck a power pose. an intense ray of light seemed to shine upon her in that beautiful, intense moment…
Until Wormox bumped into her again and she tripped and fell on her bum.
“Ouchie.”
She stood up, patted at her clothes even though that was not necessary given she was merely a projection, and mounted her new steed. Wormox the Worm.
“To the Atmavian Cave, Wormox!”
It immediately set off for the apple it had burst forth from. Sprite groaned.
By the time Atmav had arrived, carrying her sword and carrying the corpse of a buck which had a blood running down its neck. What she saw confused her, random objects littered the cave and she cocked her head before looking around for Sprite, not initially seeing her among the clutter. She saw flower petals, twigs, a ruined apple, leaves, and somehow a mud pile. Despite the confusion, Atmav stabbed her blade into the ground before hoisting the deer up.
Cautiously, Atmav stepped over the clutter, before depositing the corpse at the back of the cave. Her head swiveled around to inspect the clover, walking over it slowly as she scanned for her small friend, growing worried when she could not see her. Atmav began to show signs of panic, not wanting to be left alone to her own mind once more.
“S-Sprite?” Atmav called with a slightly worried voice.
The silence grew thick. It could almost be touched, and its walls encroached into Atmav’s territory, little by little, until…
“PWAHH!” Atmav jumped at the noise.
Sprite burst forth from under the mud pile, with her a rather large worm. She was sporting a huge grin on her face as she turned to look at Atmav. The worm retreated back into the mud pile.
“Oh hey, Attie! I brought all these things for you! I give them to you, a symbol of my undying loove.” She drew out the last word, forming a heart with her fingers and placing it against her own chest. She and her clothes were spotless in spite of being in a mud pile.
Atmav let out a sigh of relief before kneeling down Sprite, a soft smile present on her face. “You are cute, I will give you that,” Atmav said with a light laugh before she moved back to the buck, beginning to rip fur off of the corpse to expose the bloody insides of the creature. The winged one took a sizable piece of meat out of the body, turning to Sprite and taking a large bite of it. Her lips smacked as she chewed on the raw piece of meat.
“You didn’t have to get me anything, Sprite,” Atmav said, speaking with a full mouth though still clearly happy.
Sprite watched Atmav eat, her mouth open in a little ‘o’. After a while, closed her mouth and tilted her head, “You like raw meat? People cook their food generally, probably.”
Atmav stopped eating for a moment, swallowing what she had in her mouth before looking away in an embarrassed manner. “I- I don’t know how to start a fire,” she admitted before she took another bite out of the lump of meat.
“Oh,” Sprite chuckled and shrugged, “I don’t know either! Let’s call one of your servants to have them start it for us! SERVANT!”
“I don’t have any servants,” Atmav commented with a light laugh as she ripped another lump of meat out of the buck. She shrugged before continuing, “Not like I need one or anything, I know how to take care of myself,” she said through another bite.
“But you don’t know how to make a fire, silly! Besides, you end up covered in blood and yucky stuff. I think you like feeling dirty.” Sprite smirked and floated over to Atmav, the worm suddenly popping out of the mud pile and following her on land.
“I wouldn’t say that,” Atmav said, her head looking up at the roof of the cave in thought before continuing, “I guess I am just used to being covered in blood.” She took another bite, blood from the meat, dripping onto her chest. She did nothing to clean it off, allowing it to sink into her skin as she ate. “Besides, if I feel as if it’s too much I can just go wash myself.”
“Or, I could wash you.” Sprite said with a grin, pressing herself against the posterior of Atmav’s right shoulder, peeking out of the top to watch her eat.
“I suppose you could. Though, I do not see why I would need another to wash me,” Atmav said, looking at the body of the buck before letting out a huff. “Shame I cannot eat all of that. It’s a lot of meat that’s going to spoil,” she complained, as she finished stuffing herself. Atmav licked the blood off of her hands, the crimson being taken away to reveal her sturdy white hands.
“You can’t reach you back, can you? I can make that suuper clean for you.” She said, her tiny, bright eyes looking up at Atmav’s face.
Atmav seemed to think for a moment, nodding head, “You have a point… Maybe I can stop by the ocean when I get rid of the body.” She finished lapping the blood off her hands before holding up a hand for Sprite to step on to, which Sprite happily did, sitting down cross legged in the center of Atmav’s palm.
“What do you do with bodies? Do you have a private ditch to throw them in? Maybe an entire graveyard? That’d be kinda creepy, but interesting, and…” Sprite didn’t stop speaking, droning on and on for ages.
Atmav merely listened on to the droning words of Sprite, finding mild entertainment from her friend’s little rant. Eventually, she set Sprite back upon her shoulder, silencing her for a mere moment as Atmav got to her feet in silence. “I will show you,” Atmav stated before picking up the buck by its throat and dragging it to the cave entrance.
“Hold on tight,” Atmav advised.
Both hands gripped the skin of the beast tightly as Atmav began to spin, the speed slowly increasing until the corpse took little effort to keep lifted. Then, Atmav released the body and sent it soaring into the treeline, the sound of crashing branches and surprised birds came shortly after. The larger woman gave a small laugh before turning her gaze to Sprite’s position on her shoulder, “Do you think that was a good throw?”
Sprite had the widest, biggest, shiniest grin ever plastered on her face. Her hair was disheveled, her eyes wide and shaky with excitement, and she was breathing heavily, “W-Wow, Attie, you really are strong!”
Atmav has an equally large smile on her face at the compliment, letting out a light laugh as she went over to her normal sitting spot. “I don’t want to gloat, but I did lift a giant beast much heavier than that,” she stated proudly before sitting down, having to push some rubbish out of the way. She looked at Sprite before continuing, “The sword is also pretty heavy. So there’s that.”
Sprite’s eyes went over to the sword, but quickly turned back to Atmav, where she let her jaw hang open slightly, “Oooah… So that explains why you can carry me so easily! Aw, my big strong owner! Is calling you ‘owner’ weird? I think that’s a bit weird, but I like it. Owner, bestie... Same thing, really!” Sprite chuckled and cuddled up against Atmav’s neck.
“You can call me whatever you want, Sprite,” Atmav said softly, leaning her head over the soul fragment and putting a hand around her. It was a simple gesture that amounted to a hug, but it was a sign of Atmav’s favor nonetheless.
Sprite smiled and closed her eyes, “I’m having fun, are you?” She asked softly.
“Much,” Atmav answered, continuing her previous tone before letting out a sigh of satisfaction. “I would be happy to stay like this until Vakk destroys me,” she continued, a light hint of sadness coming to her voice as she knew that her joy would end once Vakk came for her. It was almost too good to last, in her mind.
“Ah, you dummy,” Sprite sighed and shook her head, “Vakk will never destroy you! I’m here to protect you, so is Wormox! And we can get many more loyal servants to protect you! All hail Queen Atmav, or something.”
Atmav gave out a chuckle before looking at the ceiling of the cave, a simple thought formulating in her head and burrowing deep into her core. She gave a wide smile before she spoke with a certain joyful lust clouding her tone.
“Queen Atmav… I rather like the sound of that.”
You can have my interest!
&
Atmav
There had been a long silence as Atmav set in for a lonely night under the stars, nestled in a small hole in the side of a hill. She could not sleep, however, the battle between Yimbo and herself were as fresh on her mind as it had been when she was with the Selka. The images of the Selka crushed under the weight of the great beast lingered, bringing a great sadness with them. Atmav had not meant to cause such death, she had merely been defending herself and those Selka were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.
At least, that was what she told herself as the sadness of her deeds washed over her. She curled in a ball, still clutching the wing she had ripped out of her back, and began to sob. Her feelings and anger had blinded her rational thought at the time and it had caught up with her. After all, Atmav was new to these strange lands, scared and alone as the unknown of Galbar bore down into her very being.
She could not think. She could not see what was right nor wrong. Most importantly, she had been abandoned by perhaps the only being she was familiar with. Her enemy seemed to have known that she would suffer being away from all that she knew, and she knew that he would relish in that fact. It was this hopelessness and paranoia that had driven her thoughts, scared that Vakk would come for her and a fear that he was still around her, merely toying with her.
A foreign presence could be felt in her mind, with a ‘pop’. It was neither strong nor pervasive- but simply there, lurking. Then a layered voice spoke, smokey and baritone came honeyed words, ’What troubles your mind?’
Atmav’s head instantly snapped up, her hand moving to use the wing as a weapon against whoever was there. Yet, she saw no one. No living soul was around her, as far as she could tell and the fact disturbed her more than anything else. After a few moments of observing her surroundings, she let out a sigh before shrinking back down into her ball.
“I truly am going mad, aren’t I?” she asked herself, leaning against the wall of her natural shelter.
’I wouldn’t say so, Atmav.’ The voice came again, lingering on her own name before silence returned.
Her head moved up to observe her surroundings once more to find nothing directly speaking to her, resigning herself to her paranoia and fear. “You are a voice in my head, nothing more. That is the true definition of someone starting to become mad,” Atmav spoke, focusing her gaze upon the dirt in front of her. At least the voice she had come up with was something mildly comforting, if not the comfort mainly came from finally being able to speak again.
’Madness? Was it madness that compelled you to pray? To plunge yourself into the unknown asking for help with but a whimper? Mortal, this is not a figment of your imagination, but an answer to your cry. So tell me, how do you answer?’ came the voice’s honeyed words in but a whisper.
Atmav’s gaze shifted towards the night sky, looking for someone watching her and not seeing one but knowing that she was. She swallowed a dried mouth, as the mixed feeling of relief and shock flowing over her as she slowly got to her feet, sliding against the wall. “An answer to my cry...,” she repeated as she continued to scan the stars. “I thought the other gods had left me to my fate.” she admitted.
’Now we come to the question.’ the voice said, ’What is it that you desire? Tell me, so that I might know.’
“I want to be rid of the debt that I owe to Vakk,” Atmav answered, her words flowing out more quickly and desperately than she might have wanted. Her heartbeat was quickened, her breathe picking up as some semblance of hope filled her now.
’A debt to Vakk? The Kinslayer?’ the voice said, intrigued. ’What do you owe the God of Speech?’
“I owe him any task he may ask of me in exchange for my freedom from the prison he calls a home,” she said before her head cocked to the side. “The Kinslayer?” Atmav asked, confused of the title that Orvus had used while referencing her enemy.
’Vakk has murdered the Goddess Li’Kalla. Though she persists now in different forms, the crime has still been committed. I do not know the answer as to why, however.’ the voice said pausing for a moment before continuing, ’A task in exchange for freedom? A difficult choice to make, but you made the one you thought wisest. An admirable quality. Still, your heart is weighed down by what that task might be, is it not?’
“Yes, I am,” she started, her gaze moving back to the dirt as she crossed her arms over her chest. “I have already done so much wrong that I am afraid Vakk will make me do something else,” she began to let out a sobbing sound once more, “I already cannot forgive myself for what I have done.”
There was a long silence, the small presence in her mind abruptly vanishing as if it never was. This caused a light panic within Atmav. Then, from up above, there came a voice in the night. ”Look at me.” it said softly.
Her head snapped up to see the form of Orvus and for a moment she merely stood in awe at the figure, her sadness was still ever growing in her heart but the sight of a deity caused her to have a moment of reflection. She was silent before she slid back down the wall, the grip of her severed wing loosening before it dropped to the ground.
”You carry in your heart much remorse, for what has happened, and what will happen. Your rage and paranoia have blinded you from seeking the truth. I know this, for I have seen it. It was me. It is me. And it shall be me until this world fades to dust.” Orvus said, floating closer to Atmav with unwavering eyes. He spoke again, his tone kinder, ”Your freedom, has become your prison, and you don’t even know it. To forgive oneself of guilt, can be achieved by those willing to sacrifice. Yet even I can tell you it won’t be easy. To remove your debt, is to remove your choice. Vakk will come for you, either way. What would you do, knowing what you know, if you refuse?” the God asked, now but a few feet away from her face.
Atmav looked at the ground, thinking of the words that the god had said and in what she would do if she would encounter Vakk again. Vakk had become a being far more powerful than she could possibly fathom and to defy him alone seemed like a call of the embrace of death itself. She began to doubt herself as she shook her head away from any feeling of triumph that she may get out of this encounter. “You ask that I defy someone who has become a god. I-,” her voice began to waver before she covered her mouth with a hand caked in blood, “I don’t think I would have the strength to resist him alone.”
”To defy a god is to court death most certainly. Yet, we defy death anyways. It is in your nature to survive and to live, this I have seen. Whether death claims you now, or later, it will claim you. Perhaps it will even claim me and the others.” Orvus said, floating back but still gazing upon Atmav with glowing orbs. ”You have strength, Atmav, more than you think. It comes in many forms. From the mind to the body, even to those we might call friends. You must learn to shed your paranoia and fear, lest it consume you entirely and you become the very thing Vakk wants you to be- a weak toy. I cannot take your debt from you, but I can help you face it.” Orvus said.
“I don’t know if I want to face it… I don’t know if I can admit to myself that Vakk will win no matter what I try… I wish he had never brought me back from the dead,” Atmav said, her sobs growing louder as she leaned forwards, holding herself up with her hands. “I can’t bare to think of facing him,” she continued.
Two feet landed before the figure of Atmav, hardly making a noise as the God spoke, ”Perhaps we were all better dead, but we are here aren’t we? You might not have a choice to face Vakk, whether you want to or not. You simply need to be ready for it when he comes, and he will come.” Orvus said emotionlessly, as he paced back and forth infront of Atmav’s body. After a moment of disapproving silence, Orvus spoke again, ”It is not your place to cower or to hide Atmav. You are a warrior are you not? Why don’t you fight? Will you really let that worm dictate your future? Will you really let him control you like this? Crippled and broken and afraid? Powerless…” he whispered.
His words rang true within Atmav’s mind and slowly did her gaze turn back to Orvus, the sniffling and sobbing coming to a light halt. “You are right. My old master would have flayed me for thinking this way. I am a warrior,” she said, forcing herself to her feet before she stared back at the blackened being in front of her, “My future is my own and Vakk, nor anybody else will dictate it.” Her voice was still shaky and her emotions were still out of her control, but her statement had made it clear that she knew what would need to happen when Vakk came for her.
“I will try and fight my mortal enemy as much as possible. Vakk will have no sway over my actions.”
Orvus slapped his hands together in one quick motion, then as he pulled them apart, something formed within his hands, long edged weapon, crackling with red energy. In the blink of an eye, he slammed it into the ground before her. In the starlight before Atmav, there stood a greatsword almost as tall as Orvus. The handle and hilt were dotted with starlight, reminiscent of the night sky up above. While the blade was crude, and cracked with several lines of scarlet energy emanating from a central line running vertically along the length. The sharpness of the orvium glinted off the light of the Lustrous garden, revealing its sinister nature. Orvus moved to the side, and beckoned to the blade, saying, ”Then claim it.”
Atmav looked at the blade, merely marveling in what had just been created in front her very being. She gave Orvus one last look before her hands grasped the great hilt of the blade. With a heave, she pulled the Greatsword from the ground and held it above her for a few moments as she continued to gaze upon its glory. A great feeling of power washed over her as she looked at the god, a light smile coming across her face.
She leaned the ballads again her shoulder, allowing it touch the top of her upper wing before she bowed to Orvus. A genuflection to someone she thought to be truly worthy of her respect and admiration.
“I will prove myself worthy of being the wielder of such a blade,” she said, not looking up from her bow.
”I would expect nothing less from one so talented as yourself.” the god said eyeing Atmav. His gaze fell upon her back, to where a wing should have been. He moved closer, inspecting the wound with a god’s eye. After a moment, there came an icy touch upon her back, then a tingling sensation. ”Your wings are easily broken. No more.” and with his words, Atmav’s wings shrivelled and fell off, only to be replaced by an explosion of ethereal starlight as new wings sprouted from her back. Long, and elegant as they were powerful, the wings shimmered with pale, translucent light, twinkling with a million tiny dots of silver.
”Rise Atmav. Rise to claim your own future.” Orvus finally said.
Atmav looked up at Orvus before she got to her feet, moving the new wings with delight as she looked upon the wings with pure joy. “You are too kind,” she finally said, looking at the god with what had turned into a very wide smile. There was very little sadness left in her, having been replaced by the mixed feelings of pride and happiness, now knowing that she would not allow any other to own her.
”Kind? Perhaps or perhaps I simply saw a soul that reminded me of myself. You are not the only one with struggles, Atmav. Even Gods have their own challenges they must face and overcome. Remember this, maybe it will prove useful. Now, I must leave. Your path is your own, pray to me if you like but do not expect me to always answer.” the god said, beginning to float up into the air.
“Before you leave, what is your name?”
”Orvus, the God of Desolation.” he uttered, before vanishing in the night sky.
“Orvus…” she repeated as the smile slowly faded from her face, though the happiness very well persisted. Atmav sat back down, looking into the night sky, now content with her situation and no longer worrying about Vakk’s tyrannical hold over her. For once, she settled in for a sound sleep, the first good sleep she would have since arriving on Galbar.
Eurysthenes
There was something strange, a drifting consciousness floating through the air where time seemed to slow to an immense crawl. The consciousness, looked around, seeing three being standing over a body, one marred in the blood of a gruesome murder that could have been avoided. It stared for a few timeless moments, wondering what to do before it decided that it did not want to visit the Sky of Pyres quite yet. Such was not the fate of a god, at least, not a true god.
When it anchored with the bloodied one, it’s memories came back in a sudden flow of before it realized what had truly happened. Vakk had been murdered, perhaps a fate it may have deserved for charging in with no plan and no contingency. However, it refused to die in such a way not without fighting for longer than any would properly realize as even in death, Vakk lived. It hid within Eurysthenes’ presence, knowing that it would likely be none the lesser until it was alone.
By the time, Eurysthenes had made it back to the Infinite Maze, Vakk has made itself comfortable within the form and had begun to speak whispers into the back of Eurysthenes’ mind. The Lord of Speech allowed time to pass, knowing that it could do what it wanted with what the puzzling gods mind.
”We exist together now… two corpses, in one grave.”
Vakk’s words cast a long silence as the its presence was announced within Eurysthenes, but its words were far different than what Eurysthenes had known. These words were spoken by a cacophony of voices, no booming voice that Eurysthenes would find familiar but the weight of those words were all the same.
It seemed there was no getting rid of him. Eurysthenes wondered how it didn't see this before, back when they were celebrating victory. There was a space in the spirit where another lurked and festered, like a disease waiting for the time to spring. This would take some getting used to.
”Vakk… to be like, which is to be done. Who are you to decide that you are not?”
”I am a god immortal, dying would not be befitting in my nature nor would it be yours,” That One stated, giving an evil chuckle as it moved around Eurysthenes’ form. Vakk was clearly not used to such a small space as the body of Eurysthenes, finding it most uncomfortable to be in. However, it eventually settled in with another laugh next the other godly soul.
”Your body is my own now,” the voices chimed with a sadistic pleasure.
This One pushed against Vakk, smearing it into an uncomfortable position again. ”One which inhabits something does not own it. What lies maliciously in a body, bringing grief and pain to that which it inhabits?”
That One shifted once more, pushing back the oppressive soul of the other before speaking, ”There is no need for insults, Eurysthenes. I am no less a parasite than you are, gaining pleasure at the expense of myself.” Vakk’s voices did not give Eurysthenes the pleasure of being dissatisfied, instead continuing to speak with the sadism that only Vakk could carry.
”It is not parasitic to seek to right wrongs, Vakk,” it said, ”Were I you, I wouldn't be speaking with such cockiness.”
It said simply. Riddles weren't as entertaining if the other could see the answer in the riddler’s mind.
This One raised an arm, and touched the wall. ”Tell me, Vakk. Can you feel this? Can you see as I see?”
Vakk took a moment before the many voices spoke once more, ”Yes. However, it is strange. I am still not used to inhabiting your form.” The soul of That One began to stir once more finding refuge away from Eurysthenes’ soul in order to find some figment of comfort.
”Now, you tell me. Were my crimes truly worth death?”
This One considered the question for a second, which was more than it thought Vakk deserved. ”Yes.” it said. There was a certain sternness to its voice which said more than the word alone could.
”That means you would be deserving of death as well. Breaking me in this maze, just as I had broken Li’Kalla,” Vakk said, its voices chiming with a chilling tone as the words flowed with the same power of Eurysthenes own words. That One finally settled into a spot on the opposite end of the form, briefly thinking to itself in a light silence between the two. It had brought back up the time of the Maze, the time when Eurysthenes tortured Vakk as it had attempted to reach the Sky of Pyres.
As Vakk shrank back, Eurysthenes advanced, pushing That One even further into the recesses. If the soul within a body could smile spitefully, this is what This One’s soul was doing.
”Yes,”, This One admitted, ”but you were the one that died. Why is that? Because there were more of us who were in agreement with me. And what does that tell you of deserving? What does it say about how others perceive right and wrong, Vakk?”
The tone in its voice was what you could call petty and smug. It had won, it was in the superior position, and it knew it.
”It tells me that you are no better than I. But you have committed the far more heinous act of murder,” Vakk retorted, not allowing itself to be fully pushed without resistance to the words of its host. The soul pushed back, asking, ”What gives you the right to live more than I?”
”You only condemn it because you were the one affected by it. Nothing gives me the right to live more than you,” Eurysthenes says simply. ”however, the will of others gives me the means to.” it concludes.
”If that is your prerogative, murderer,” That One responded before the soul stopped pushing against Eurysthenes’. There was a long silence between them as the two figured out what to do next, neither coming across a suitable topic to insult each other on. Many long drawn out sighes happened at once before Vakk chose to speak again, this time commanding, ”Build me a new body so that this may not plague either any longer.”
Eurysthenes shrugged. ”I won't do that. You're too cruel, and you will hurt innocent people. No,” it said
”Innocent? So you defend thieves now, hm? How odd that you and the other gods would defend so heinous crimes,” Vakk commented, its many voices filling with a disdain for Eurysthenes denial of his request.
This One hid a snort with the back of its hand. ”Woe betide you, Vakk. Truly you are the epitome of suffering.”
”Well… I did get killed. I suppose it is justified.”
This One didn't deign to reply.
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