"The answer to the riddle, the one that tempts men into the darkness, is the fallen!" I shouted pointing at the girl. "Now take this! Black and Shadow tie together into darkness, make one's life into nothingness!" I shouted, the pages of my grimoire began flipping rapidly, dark energy pulsing around me and the book. "DIE SERVANT OF ZAFARA!" I shouted, a dark energy flowed through the ground and large, sharp, black tendrils that appeared to have thorns shot up from the ground below the girl, trying to pierce through her, or at the very least cut her.
Tsubael looked down at the hole in her arm, where the girl's pike had neatly punctured her metal skin and glanced off her reinforced inner skeleton. She flexed her fingers, testing that the wires and internal mechanisms were still intact, then glared at the Oracle. It seemed a little extreme, attacking someone who hadn't actually done anything. It also seemed rather foolish to attack a scholarly automaton in a room full of warriors and mages. But now was hardly the time to question the Oracle's tactics. There were riddles to be answered. Others began to shout answers to the riddles, weakening the Oracle. Hessa answered one, before her injuries got the better of her. The thin human mage answered another, just before casting a spell. "The answer to the riddle, the one that tempts men into the darkness, is the fallen!" He shouted, pointing at the girl. "Now take this! Black and Shadow tie together into darkness, make one's life into nothingness! DIE SERVANT OF ZAFARA!" A spell. He was using a spell. Tsubael studied his movements closely. His stance. The way he held his grimoire. She mirrored it perfectly, holding her own large black tome in her hands. The riddles were being answered in reverse order; only one remained and she was quite sure she had this one. “Query: I am the king of water, I rule it from my lofty perch, sending it where I please to the lands of VenShara; what am I?” she said. "Response: you are Bahamut." She stretched forth her hand. "'Black and Shadow tie together into darkness, make one's life into nothingness,'" Tsubael declared. The spell sounded a lot less impressive when recited in a robotic monotone voice, but it did the trick. Dark eather began to swirl around her fingertips. The pages of her book flapped as if under the power of a mighty wind. A half second later, dark tendrils exploded from the ground at the oracle's feet, joining the ones conjured by the human mage.
Ketka’s gangling legs tangled in her effort to move out of the way. The cowled one threw himself at the girl fangs flashing. The thin man and the robot began to cast spells. Ketka raised her monkey like hands. She muttered her own spell under her breath calling hundreds of small insects the crawled from the earth disappearing into the darkness of the other spells to find supple pieces of flesh to bite.
Ishmael slammed into the wall. Pain shooting up his back the effect didn't where off but the pain had slowly starting to fade faster then it normally would. Thanks to Samael's body maintenance. Ishmael staggered to his feet pushing himself his feet with his spear. "Fallen?" He coughed out surprised at who ever had gotten right. "Hurts to miss that one. Doesn't it?" "Shouldn't you have known?" "I did know the answer." "Why didn't you tell me!" "You didn't ask and besides you had your own plans." Samael was completely serious and Ishmael knew it. It had trouble comprehending human ways at times. Despite how easily it could take advantage of them at times. Ishmael pulled forth the black lance. An ugly looking thing with points on each end and barbs on each side. As he held both long weapons in his hand a devilish smile spread across his face. Ishmael aimed the tip of his white lance at the Oracle. BOOM! The golden tip shot from the rest of the lance like a harpoon gun but a chain was attached to the end. He was hoping that this would catch the Oracle off guard.
"O Holy Bahumut, Protect Thy servant who is enduring these trials, For I know joy comes in the morning, troubles they don't last always..." Sylvia prayed in her mind as the events happened so quickly. By the grace of Bahamut she'd gotten out of the previous fight alive, but shaken. Even now, her eyes widened at the violence in the room; the bickering, the shouting, and riddles. There was only one way to stop this. To use the magic forbidden by the elders. Sylvia smiled at the thought, she hadn't the opportunity for ages! At least it would be for a good cause. Taking a deep breath, she raised her hand and shut her eyes, clearing her mind. Soon enough her hand began to glow with pure Althea; her light. "Let us see how she fares when thy sins are brought to light," Sylvia muttered as she pointed at the Oracle. A beam of Althea shot out from her fingertip, aiming with the rest.
Altair Dashing forward, Altair freed his sword from it's scabbard, then swung at the Oracles neck, sword in one hand, halberd in the other. This creature, whatever it was, was powerful, more-so than anything that Altair had ever faced before. He needed to stay on his toes and be ready for anything. As he swung, he heard the sound of chain uncoiling from behind... Something was coming, and he didn't want to be hit by it instead of the Oracle. His weapon's suddenly started to glow blue, and he shot forward with a renewed speed, just ahead of the metallic sound, whatever it was from behind him. He was prepared to finish his strike, and then quickly roll out of the way. And hopefully whatever was behind him would succeed in completing a double tap.
"What the hell are you doing!"Hessa yelled, the oracle, moved out of the flying humans path. Szmierc lunged at him biteing down with his massive jaws. she shielded her throat with her hand which he crunched into, and with a surge of power sent waves of energy through his body zapping him like a moth struck by lightning. The answer to the riddle, the one that tempts men into the darkness, is the fallen!" He shouted, pointing at the girl. "Now take this! Black and Shadow tie together into darkness, make one's life into nothingness! DIE SERVANT OF ZAFARA!" She weakened again and suddenly a powerful ailment befell her, blindness! "Errrrrahhhhhh!" She yelled loosing another blast of eather it rolled across the battle field striking everyone! "Response: you are Bahamut." She stretched forth her hand. "'Black and Shadow tie together into darkness, make one's life into nothingness,'" Tsubael declared. The pulse wave she sent forth weekend suddenly they were winning! And another crippling ailment gripped her The tip of a lance bit into her side, sending her across the stone floor blood flowed freely, next incests, biting and stinging. She stood up and fired huge blasts of power before being knocked down by a bright ray of light! Altiar came in for the finishing blow, his sword swung in, at the last moment she side stepped, the blade nicking her flesh drawing more blood. She lashed back with a violent burst of eather, but the sword man evaded just barely. The oracle dropped to her knee's, bloodies and frail. "We win." Jakem said calmly. "There is no more need for battle." "I...will...not fail...my master." On the verge of death she got to her feet.
"Stop playing with us... damn I'm really angry and I don't even know what's going on!!!" Screamed Kyra launching itself against the wounded being. Its fists were characted with Althea, Kyra raised them in front of the enemy yet there was no punch, it was a trick as in real it raised its legs charged with Althea while weakening its own hands. All its eather was flowing into one single leg that propelled a fierce quick toward the ghost being, so strong and uncontrolable that Kyra itself felt how the bones inside its legs were breaking and its muscles tearing apart. Yet it didn't worry, if that body coul heal itself then using excesive strenght was of no importance. "I told you to drop dead you f*****!!!"
"Stop!" Aly screamed at the Oracle. She was on the verge of tears seeing a girl her own age, bloodied and weak and still trying to fight. "Just stop! There is no need to keep fighting. What master would ask you to die for him? Huh? He should be the one here...fighting for you. You don't...you don't have to die. You have so many years of life left to live." Alavina's wings fluttered anxiously. "So, please just stop. You lost, we won. Just move aside so we can pass."
"There is no more need for combat, if you continue on your course of actions, your death is inevitable, you can retreat now and live to fight another day." I said, I knew that due to the two possible ailments that me and the robot had given her, she was at a much higher disadvantage, she could have anything right now, and since she's near death her possibility for surviving against us for another attack were around 0.1% it would take a miracle for her to manage to take us all down and survive.
Ishmael lowered his weapon and stalked towards Zafara. His intense face had calmed into a sympathetic one once the Oracles had gotten slightly less violent for the moment. He sighed and the golden tip of his lance retracting and clicking back on to the rest of it. The suffering on her face made a small lump for him in his throat. Brought back hard memories. "Samael you know what to do." "Of course." Ishmael suddenly felt very cold to the girl's situation. As if he couldn't care less whether he had to kill her or if she got out of the way. Like his heart had been iced over. "Yield or die. But at least tell us your real name if isn't Oracle if you don't yield. I prefer to know the names of people whom I must take the life of." He was straightforward with her. "Still though it would be a waste if we had to kill you but I don't mind doing it if it comes down to it." He was lying in a way but not even he could tell. His emotions were be blocked by Samael's interference. It was a method he'd come up with to be more sufficient in dealing with enemies.
The Oracle looked up, she gazed upon them, these warriors, the first to defeat her the first to show her mercy, kindness. “I...surrender.” She said, sadly. “But…in Vain.” Jakem moved to her, “what do you mean?” suddenly Kyra lunged forward a vicious kick made ready, as she closed in on the Orcale, a gruesome thing happened. First a roar ripped through the temple! Horrendous and impossibly loud, the force of the roar alone sent Kyra flying back. Then a A bright light shone within the Oracles chest, she clenched it, suddenly in pain. “M..master master Zafara, forgive me.” She pleaded then let out a scream, a blood curling, a violent scream, in human un earthly, shattering. Eather burst from her chest sending blood in a grotesque spray. Hessa looked away in revolution. The oracle fell backward, cold, and lifeless. For a moment silenced followed, then a voice, terrible and strong broke through. “Useless MORTAL! Now I have to find another virgin human to do my will! Do you know how hard it is to do so!” “Zafara!, is that you?!” Jakem shouted. He looked at the oracle but for a moment, too much blood, too much gore, He averted his eye’s from her eviscerated corpse. “Show yourself coward! How long will you hide behind your minions!” “Oh? And who are you to speak to a GOD! That way? Do not fear mortals, you will meet me soon enough.” Behind the Oracle, another door opened. “Enter! Your last trail, awaits. One that will be more challenging then that foolish girl.”
"...God I hope she can't smell virgins." I thought, looking at the fate that befell the girl, I wouldn't want to end up like that. "...Do not speak ill of the recently departed, she was loyal to the very last minute to you, she does not deserve to have her final moments be mocked by someone like you." I said with a cold tone of voice, I then looked around. "Does anyone need any healing before we move on?" I asked.
Tsubael blacked out for a moment after using boy's spell. She estimated that only a few seconds passed. When she came to, she was still standing in the same spot, unmoved, but could tell she'd missed a small span of time. Everyone was acting strangely. They'd beaten the girl to within an inch of her life, but were now trying to be 'friendly' to her. Tsubael understood the sentiments of protecting the young and innocent. These were inari teachings and seemed to be shared by most civilized nations. However, the Oracle was neither young nor innocent. She might have the appearance of a child, but she had the skill of a killer, the bloodlust of a wild animal, and the intellect of a cruel sphinx. This one is not fooled by aesthetics, the automaton thought as she coldly observed the situation. This one is ruled by logic and logic dictates this being is neither young nor innocent nor worthy of mercy. But, if that was the case, why was she unable to move? This one is just as foolish as the rest, Tsubael concluded. She opened her book and began to write. Tsubael recorded every word, even the child's death screams and Zafara's arrogant decrees. Then she shut her book, stepped over the corpse and toward the open door. "Does anyone need any healing before we move on?" the human mage asked. "This one has all she needs," Tsubael said, without even glancing in his direction. She pulled her hood over her head as she stepped into the open door.
"Huh I guess she yieled and died." Ishmael said with a shrug. "Damn Zafara." He muttered stoically. No emotion clear in his voice. "Samael do me a favor." "Of course." "Don't stop numbing them.. " Ishmael had no desire to feel sympathy for the girl at the moment. It would be a sign of weakness in front of that monster Zafara and that was something he couldn't afford. As the old biddy was both him and Samael's ticket to the God speaker. He couldn't get stuck with chicken legs. "Understood." Ishmael started towards the door. "Come on then." He said nodding his head to his shocked comrades as he simply stepped over the girl's body.
The inky feline form of ketka’s body seemed to slip within one hand revealing her human form. She stared at the spectacle in front of her tears spilling from her eyes with the familiarity of the screaming. She turned her head not willing to be seen weak by those with her. Undoubtedly in the midst of chaos none would see anyway. This was the way of things, and what unfolded now had not unfolded eight years prior. Ketka rolled her shoulders and let the burning pain in her ribcage remind her that she lived to kill Bradnt, if she dared face him once more. Ketka sheathed her blades and trudged toward the door that had appeared. "Does anyone need any healing before we move on?" I asked. Ketka paused and turned back to the one who had asked. “Here,” she said waving a hand at him.
“Useless MORTAL! Now I have to find another virgin human to do my will! Do you know how hard it is to do so!” "Take Priest-girl. I'm sure she's willing." “Enter! Your last trail, awaits. One that will be more challenging then that foolish girl.” "Well that was anticlimactic," Szmierc sighed. "Orca girl explodes, you rage, and then open another road? Jeez, talk about laaaaaaaaaaaaaame. Welp, here goes! Step we gaily, on we go, heel for heel and toe for toe, arm in arm and row on row, all for Priest-girl's wedding!" With a song and a skip, Szmierc began treading down the newly opened path.
"I need healing!" Hiddan said jumping to his feet. "You seem awfully jumpy for someone who needs healing, I also find it funny how you recovered right after the battle." "You know how it is sugar tit's." Hidan replied, "now let's see this God." Down a dark hallway they traveled, more riddles lighted the walls showing the way, silence. No one said a word. After a while Hessa walked up to Joe. "Hey, thanks for helping me back there." It was all she could manage to say, for before them a large room became visible. The room was dark lighted by a few torches, two more oracles stood inside each one on either side of a massive door. "All hail Zafara, god of all she see's!" they yelled. Then bowing deeply, they waited, the door rumbled and then creaked open. Before them a massive room appeared, larger than a castle courtyard, it housed thousands, upon thousands of Oracles, all of them chanted. "All hail Zafara, the new God of all she see's, all hail Zafara, the new god of VenShara!" in unison they chanted like robot's programmed to the same tune. Their ethereal glow lighted the room, making it glow, radiating with power. Their chant grew louder and louder, more feverish, as if they were summoning a grand creature, all of them young all of them human. Suddenly a blast of wind rushed through silencing them. From high above a large graceful creature descended. 50ft tall, 60 ft long with massive wings. Her hair was black, her eye's sharp and cunning, her fur a brilliant blue. She alighted before them, and grinned viciously. "I am Zafara! Grand sphinx of all you see, you will do well to garner my favor, you can start, by bowing." she growled.
Szmierc's eyes widened at the splendor of Zafara's throne room. "There's so much..." "...FOOD! I KNEW THERE WOULD BE FOOD! O great Gata Gorda," Szmierc knelt before the sphinx, "I request that you grant me a meal from your grand banquet. T'voy kalext'vo es jzretchevishtye vielki!"
"Interesting. You are just as violent as I had a predicted you to be. Killing that girl. You wasted her." Samael's voice said. Not to Ishmael nor to Sylvia but this time to Zafara. He'd projected an image of himself in the mind of the old Sphinx. He was humanoid....well as humanoid as being whom seemed to blend with darkness can be. His entire body looked like one long shadow of Nox. It seeped on the floors and was constantly shifting, shaping and changing. An overwhelming sense of death and grief that came with him would terrify most humans. But in this case he was speaking to no human. But another ancient being of tremendous power. "I came to speak with thee." "I know, fallen creature. why else would you come?" she said to him calmly, and with pride. "I do hope my intrusion in your mind and conscious is not one that inconveniences you. Your conversation with the others." He said and it looked as if the shadow did a bow. "I've come to see you'd like to hear out my proposal. I believe it will be one of interest to a so called God such as yourself." "There is little that interests one of my intellect, but so be it, what is it you want?" "Little interest? Perhaps in certain ways but in others your interests can range from many things. For example you clearly enjoy chaos to degree and also games. So my proposal is simple. I'm sure you can tell which one is mine." Samael said speaking of the group but more specifically Ishmael. "He is my host, my emmisary and my partner. We are on a very important mission. Each of us seeking to pass judgement. But we suffer from an issue. He cannot fully sustain my power and my own true power is lost to me at the moment." "Shame, it is very inconvenient to be weak, but what does that have to do with me?" she hissed. "You can grant him.....us! A portion of your power until our goals are complete. Of course he must agree to it at first as well. But that won't be much of a problem. Grant us this and we will be in your debt." Samael replied in a confident matter. "Aha...AHahahahah! Surely you jest, why should I give you even a fraction of my power? You are not in any position to barter fallen, you have nothing a god like me would want." "A fraction would be more then enough. The powers and being we seek to judge are dangerously immense. So every little bit helps." He replied unmoved by her laughter. "As for your statement. You know of my kind. We are always in a position to deal. As for why? Its very simple we can offer you something more then your sheep can." Samael looked for a moment as if he was smiling. "They will obey you to the fullest. We will not. Which is what make us something you need and it will also offer entertainment on your part. We are a weapon. We can send your enemies down in misery and make the praises of you grow as other fallen have done for kings and queens through the ages. All I ask is for your support of us as our agendas are met. The shadows began to encompass the rest of the room. "Besides you know that you cannot trust me as I am a fallen and I myself hardly see you as a partner I'm happy to have. In fact you disgust me. But that's what makes what I present quite the game. We can can help one another while also being constantly aware that one of us will turn on the other eventually. So will you play?" Oh...I get it, it's a challenge. Vary well I accept fallen, do not bore me." with that a small amount of power rushed into him, well small to her anyway. "Music to me." Samael said as her eather flowed into him his shadow growing slightly bigger and small darkened wings forming. "Let us see to it that what we all seek is is attained and once I'm done using, I will kill you." With that Samael faded from her mind with new toys at his command.
Shae awoke with a start. The air broke with a red mist as the Oracle burst in pieces, a flawless vase smashed into thousands. Death smiles at us all. Shae's wound was tender, but closed. Necro spares me for another fight. Praise be to whoever saved me. Slowly, Shae propped herself with her swords and limped over to the remains of the virgin girl. The rest of the group had continued on, but she just waited a while. She knelt in the pools of crimson, the blood soaking into her leather trousers and she began to pray. “Your hunt is over, Your time is done, Caught by the immortal predator, But be not afraid, Death now comes, Your final rest is laid, Together as one, You stand in the darkness, Necro guiding you forever.” With that she limped on, joining the others in the final test. Zafara’s magnificent form stood proudly on her pedestal, towering over all. Thousands of worshippers surrounded her in their linens, throwing their hands up to the mighty Zafara, and they glistened with the glow of the riddles that came before, filling the room like a blue moon. Shae’s skin had turned a pale sapphire and the bloody stains on her armour looked like harmless water, while the rest of the group were just as ethereal. “I am Zafara! Grand sphinx of all you see, you will do well to garner my favour, you can start, by bowing.” She growled. More deities. The amount of fake idols were starting to stack up and Shae’s mood had worsened – being almost dead and all. “Another false god… that’s all you are.” She huffed, still weak from her wound. “There is only one true god. And it’s not you.” Shae spat blood at the floor.
Illudes crouched behind the others, dark eyes wide, but slightly glazed over. His wounds had been many, and despite his uncanny ability to bounce back from many things exhaustion had him flagging behind. Finally, he just dropped to the floor, too tired to think, or to be scared of the thousands surrounding him. Illusions, he told himself. Everything was just an illusion, just like himself... they would all fade in time... Come on Ewoo you can do better than that! The boy's head snapped up in confusion as an oddly familiar voice resonated in his mind. Had someone just spoken to him or was he turning delusional? Blinking, he listened for more but nothing came, and so he forced himself up onto all fours, swaying from exertion. Then eh dared to make himself looked like the sphinx and stuck his tongue out at her.
“Here,” Ketka said waving a hand at him. "I need healing!" Hiddan said jumping to his feet. I looked at the two and nodded, I chanted the spell twice, the beams of light went into Hiddan and Ketka, healing their wounds and revitalizing them. "Be careful everyone, this trial will probably be the hardest that we've faced, everyone keep an eye out for a mirror, if those two weren't lying and this is the last trial, then it should be in the room up ahead." I said, I looked at the room up ahead and took a deep breath. "Time to end this little game of hers." I thought. "Hey, thanks for helping me back there." Hessa said, before arriving to the room. I nodded and smiled at her. "...Maybe I'm not so useless, I managed to solve one of the riddles back there, and I've helped most of my allies." I thought, I then heard the chanting, for a second I thought it was from the people around me, but then I realized that it was coming from behind the door, I walked inside and looked at all of the oracles chanting. "...All this devotion and she merely sees you all as toys." I thought, pitying them, I watched as the great Sphinx descended to the ground. "I am Zafara! Grand sphinx of all you see, you will do well to garner my favor, you can start, by bowing." She growled. I smiled and bowed politely, but it wasn't because of what she ordered. This was merely a common courtesy that I tend to give everyone when I meet them. "Ah, so we meet at last Zafara, probably don't need to tell you this, but I feel it would be rude to not make an introduction, my name is Joe." I said in a polite tone of voice.
“Another false god… that’s all you are.” She huffed, still weak from her wound. “There is only one true god. And it’s not you.” Shae spat blood at the floor. "Who? you mean that fool Bahamut? Ha if he were really a god he would have never allowed mortals like you selves to run wild," She grinned, her fangs glistened in the ethereal light. "You mortals are made to be ruled by higher beings, with out a proper god, what are you? nothing but murderous apes. I will be that proper god, and I advice you to watch that tongue." She hissed. She glared at Illudes, "I know your tricks creature, do not test me." She sat on her haunches and glared at them. "Now, waste no more of my time, what do you want from the great Zafara?"
Illudes immediately flicked back and scampered away before hiding behind Ishmael. Yeah, bad idea. Why did he ever get involved in this!? Oh wait, he was Ishmael's prisoner, that's why.
