Saber Knight Saga

[Saber Knight]

((Hey guys, so I'm really sorry I'm not making like any posts here... I'm just really stressed out about life (like, more so than my usual stressed out) and I've kind of been waiting for that stress to relax and I kept saying I'd post when things calmed down a bit... but they really haven't.

It IS vacation this week, though, even if it doesn't feel like it 'cos I've got so much studying to do. So, I'll probably get some posts up this week... and I'm feeling kind of Eskay-ish right now. Though, I've got a lot of jolly good backstory to write up... whee))

Epifanio turned to Vergier, an apologetic look on his face. "That... is also quite a bit of a story," he said after a puse. "It--" He was cut off as Marina began to shriek loudly. He watched, shocked, as the scene played out, and then looked back over to the group with a tired smile on his face.

"It's just one thing after another today, isn't it?" he said with a small, humourless chuckle. "Look, we're all shaken after today, let's go back and relax and I'll start to explain." He turned to Taygete, who still loooked like she needed an explanation. "You too, I could use your help for part of it."

*Time skip for sake of convenience, party time back at the house*

"Alright," began Epifanio. "I'll start with Seraphina first." He gave a quick apologetic glance toward Eskay. She didn't altogether mind--he had promised he would explain the matters that had to do with her, and she trusted that he would keep his word.

"As you all know, the enemies of the Saber Knights are the Corrupted Ones... Saber Knights that are 'evil,' if you will. However... it is more than just loyalty that keeps the Corrupted Ones on the Council of the Corrupted. There's no way their leader would risk betrayal occuring so easily. No. He created... well, I'm still fuzzy on the details myself, but he crafted some sort of... creature? Spell? Liquid? Something that... infiltrates the mind. Doesn't take it over. He still wants the Corrupted to be able to think for themselves... brainwashing would take away a lot of the skill and power many of the Corrupted posess. However, with this, he can keep tabs on them. Again, we're fuzzy on the details, but we believe with this he can tell if any of them are having any thoughts that aren't to his liking... and then easily do something about it. It's possible also that through this... thing... that he can actually do things like make them experience pain or be quiet, or something. Maybe even prevent them from speaking about certain things. It's more to just instill fear, however, and though it doesn't brainwash you, it certainly twists your thoughts. Makes you more... suitable to be Corrupted.

"Point is... not all of the Corrupted Ones are necessarliy 'the bad guys.' I mean, sure, they're trying to kill us... but not all of them are doing so willingly. Their leader simply noticed a strong Saber Knight, and took them for his use. And they weren't given a choice in the matter because of the Taint. That's what we've come to call the thing. The thing that give him complete control.

"And now we get to Seraphina... As I'm sure you've surmised, Seraphina is infected with the Taint. Er, was, I should say. For some reason, she seemed as if she had started to... wrestle it from her body. It was still messing with her thoughts... twisting them, making them darker... but it seemed that the 'control from the leader of the Council' part had kind of shut down. Well, mostly, at least. As I've mentioned, these things are still all kind of fuzzy for us, but we're doing the best we can.

"Anyway... Apollo, the god I serve, is also the god of healing. We've been coming up with a plan for a long time, and with a Corrupted One pretty much defenseles... it was too good an opportunity to pass up. Plus, if we were right... well, we could save her. So, me and a few other Corrupted Ones--Taygete over there was one of them--managed to clense her mind of the Taint. It wasn't easy... not for us, not for her. I'm sure it was quite painful... but she'll thank us when she comes to, I'm sure.

"Right after we finished, I realized you guys were in a spot of trouble, so I quickly left... so I'm afraid my information ends there as well." He sighed and leaned back, tired. Taygete quickly stepped in.

"Well, after Epifanio's departure," she added, "We still had the Taint. It couldn't be destroyed. The power that created it was too powerful. So... without any other course of action, we sealed it away the best we could. It can't do any harm, the way it is right now, anyway." She gave a small shrug. "That's really it."

Eskay didn't speak. She was too busy trying to process all the information that had been thrown at her. It explained a lot of things, yet at the same time complicated so many more. Finally, she found her voice, but all she managed to say was

"Wow."

[Blue Fire Cyndaquil]

"Ah, corruption.... I've seen it once or twice, but it wasn't quite like this...." Said Haddix, as he stared into space, deep in thought. "The corrupted ones MUST havve larger numbers than us, and we just lost a member.... We need to find and destroy whatever causes the taint, but how.... Well, whatever. Until then, We need to do two things. Survive, and find more saber knights.... Increase our power.... Travelling to other worlds may help, but we can't do so voluntarily.... At least not yet.... What to do, what to do...." Haddix suddenly started acting all cheery again. "How about I make some snacks? I'm sure we're all hungry."

[BionicleMandi121]

Perched quite literally on the back of a sofa, Azriel listened intently to Epifanio. He cleared his throat after Haddix spoke. "About the numbers of the Corrupted Ones that we're up against, I believe you're somewhat mistaken," he informed him. "Our current group consists mainly of...fledgling Saber Knights. I have only been one for slightly over a month. The rest of you have been for possibly up to a week. I must say I can't recall exactly how long we've been traveling; the days and worlds blur together." The Grim Angel nodded toward Epifanio and Taygete. "As we have seen, there are senior Saber Knights who have been at their job for far longer than we have. We simply have not met them yet. Of course, it would also be wrong to assume we vastly outnumber the Corrupted Ones. We're just not the only ones out there fighting against them, as you somewhat made us sound." He twitched one wing, then turned toward Apollo's Knight.
"You've done very well on explaining what happened to Serafina, but who was that Adolfus you mentioned, and why was Taygete so intent on killing her?" He paused. "I assume Adolfus is female." An apologetic smile flashed guiltily across his features. "Excuse me if I'm probing into personal matters, but we're all in this together. Frankly if this Adolfus poses enough of a threat as to be attacked on sight, I think we should know about it."

[Siranae]

Sira silently listened to Epifanio's explanation. She had become quite quiet since his sudden reappearance, and the attack on Eskay. So many thing had happened so fast. She couldn't think of anything to say, so she refrained from saying anything at all and instead let the others talk.

[PoikSpirit]

Nyandimar had been following with less intent to interfere with things going on around him, enjoying the chaos.

Seeing Azriel perched on the back of the sofa, Nyandimar fell onto it with most of his weight to see if he could shake him. He then stretched out and pretended as if nothing happened. As he listened to the speeches, Nyandimar silently took note of what this band of Saber Knights knew, and made a mental note to avoid getting near the big bads physically for a long period of time.

"Well that was certainly exciting," Nyandimar chimed in, with the all the tact of a gnat, "Do you do this everyday? Well, aside from the losing teammates." He frowned. "No, it would be rather hard to keep that up and still have any teammates left. I'm sorry for your loss." He twirl a bit of hair around his finger. "Happened a bit too suddenly, I'm possibly still in shock so I'm sorry if I seem a bit loopy." He stretched again and said, "Cynfran seemed a bit happy to see you Eskay. Any idea why?"

[Saber Knight]

"Actually, Adolfus is a man," Taygete corrected.

"W-what!? Then how did you... how could you possibly have... I'M NOT A MAN!" Eskay protested fervently.

"Yes, with my eyes I can tell that you're most certainly female, rest assured," said Taygete, a slight tone of apology in her voice, "But, when you've been a Knight long enoguh, eyes start to become secondary to your... well, it's kind of a sixth sense. After being a Knight for a while, you learn to sense the auras of others. At first, you can only sense other Knights, then just about everyone. Knights have a significantly stronger aura than other mortals, due to them weilding godly might. Your aura is..." Here she glanced at Epifanio for a moment, "...remarkably similar to that of a man I knew before. I was in such a haste, I neglected to look with my eyes." Taygete then looked back over at Epifanio again, this time for a longer duration of time, and it seemed almost as if unspoken words were passing between them.

"Cynfran seemed a bit happy to see you Eskay. Any idea why?"

Having calmed down during Taygete's explanation, Eskay turned over to Nyandimar. "No... I've got absolutely no clue. None at all." She then glanced over to Epifanio, who still seemed to be in a staring contest with Taygete. He then sighed.

"Right, looks like I've got even more explaining to do. It's hard to know where to start..."

"Start with Aldolfus, so that the girl might better understand my reasons for mistakingly attacking her."

"Seems as good a place as any." Epifanio sighed. "So, about a thousand years ago, everything was splendid. Saber Knights were able to keep the peace, and the idea of a Saber Knight going bad didn't even BEGIN to cross people's minds. Good things can't last forever, though...

"There came to be an angel who believed he deserved to become a Knight. After all, he was brilliant and a talented fighter, why not? He prayed to the gods, asking that one of them bestow upon him the sacred honour, but the gods refused. He questioned why. Having met several other knights, he knew himself to be more cunning and stronger than many. The gods acknowledged this, but they told the angel that they sensed a darkness in his heart that was unbefitting of a Saber Knight. The angel was furious. His anger grew and grew until one day he decided if the gods would not give him a Saber, then he would take one by force.

"Sword in hand, he attacked a Saber Knight. After a long battle, the Saber Knight lay dead and it seemed as if he would finally have his wish granted if it were not for the ever-watching Heimdall. Heimdall had sensed that something dire was amiss and sent his Knight to investigate. Sadly, he arrived too late to save the dead Knight, but he arrived in time to stop the angel from taking his Saber. In battle, he defeated the angel, and he was brought before a group of Saber Knights to receive judgement. They took away his angellic magic and cast him into the lowest pits of hell.

"If only it ended there. Not all of the gods were noble. Until then, Set had not chosen a knight, for he had yet to find anyone powerful enough. A man who had slayed a Knight, however--now that was a powerful man! He appeared before the fallen angel and offered him a Sacred Saber. The fallen angel accepted the offer immediatly. And so the first Corrupted One was born.

"Unseen by the Saber Knights up high, he began to amass a following. Then, he started to strike, picking off Saber Knights one by one, taking their Sabers and giving them to his followers. Eventually, the Saber Knights knew he had to be stopped, so they all joined together to face the Corrupted Ones. A gruesome battle occured in which many perished, but the Corrupted Ones were eventually defeated. Yet... we never managed to kill Set's Knight. He escaped. And he began amassing his Corrupted Ones once again, this time more carefully. And then we get to where we are now."

Epifanio sighed and leaned back in his chair once again. This really was quite a lot of talking. Confused, Eskay asked, "Wait, but where did Aldolfus tie into that? Was he the angel?"

"Oh no, the original Corrupted One..." Taygete paused for a moment, "...his name was--is--Lucifer." At the mention of this name, suddenly the silence that followed seemed deafening, and, despite the heat, it seemed as if a cold wind traveled through the room, causing Eskay to shiver.

"Then how..."

Taygete quickly interrupted with an explanation. "Well, it's impossible to talk about Aldolfus without first talking about his older brother, certainly."

((GAH I told myself I would just write a small post but I have so much exposition to do and then this happened and GAH!))

[Siranae]

Sira began to feel a little overwhelmed by this information. Apparently, being a Saber Knight was a greater responsibility than she had thought.

She looked down at her spear as she fell into contemplation. She couldn't help but feel confused about her situation. Then why did Ankhet choose me? Out of all the fighters and warriors in Kaimana...why me?

[PoikSpirit]

At the name, Nyandimar had to stifle a chuckle as to not concern the others. Th'Guy had mentioned Lucifer before, and he usually only talks about Gods and Saber Knights that still owe him something. Don't remember what he had said though... Whatever that Sutekh did to Th'Guy, it was certainly enough to get him to rant about it. Then again, with gods of chaos, it could be anything, really. While everyone was silent for a moment, Nyandimar thought about the last time he had actually heard from his god, and wondered what he has been busy with for so long.

((I hope it's not too much of an assumption to think that gods get around this multiverse.))

[BionicleMandi121]

Azriel was almost thrown off balance when Nyandimar slammed into the sofa he rested on. Almost. Instead, he maintained his position with a flick of one wing, then raised his eyebrows at his fellow Saber Knight. He chose not to comment, however, focusing on the extended explanation about Lucifer. He frowned a little upon hearing the first Corrupted One's story. "Angels," he muttered under his breath, sounding somewhat disgusted. "I see they're no better outside of Asgard." Returning to his usual, lighter tone, he commented, "Well, if this Adolfus is Lucifer's little brother, I can see why he'd be a problem." He then waited to hear the rest of the conversation.

(It's okay SK! We like your expositions! :D At least I do~ Backstories are always good~ In my opinion anyway. ._. )

[Faustgy]

((Nah, don't feel bad about it, Saber. It's nice that you're still keeping this RP going.))

Vegier sighed, massage his temples as if to relieve himself of a growing migraine. So many things were happening so quickly, it was extremely difficult for the weary Arc to keep up. Then again, it was his fault for asking a question in the first place. After the party returned to Sira's house, he had opted to stand in the corner of the room closest to the others. If he took a seat, he would most likely fall asleep right on the spot, thanks to the exhaustion from both the previous fight and the lack of sleep.

This all sounds...messy, the adolescent commented mentally. Biggest understatement of his life, perhaps. Complicated and twisted. He allowed himself a small, barely audible sigh, feeling utterly lost and unsure of how to react properly to the new information. Involuntarily, he scanned the room for the other occupants' expressions. Nyandimar and Azriel, at least, seemed to be taking everything in stride, but a few of the others didn't seem to be any more confident that he was. The knowledge comforted him a bit.
"You alright there?" he whispered to Sira, noticing how the mermaid was oddly quiet. After a brief moment of hesitation, he quickly added, "If it's any consolation to you, I'm new to this Saber Knight situation myself."

[Saber Knight]

((Guys I promise this is the last wall of text for a while! Probably!))

Epifanio looked regretfully over at Eskay. The determined expression she attempted to force on her face scarecly masked the confusion that clouded her eyes. "You're not going to want to hear this," he said plainly, looking directly at her.

Eskay paused for a moment, then responded, "I don't care."

A pause. "Very well then."

Epifanio readied himself, and then spoke. "Now, Adolfus was almost always at his brother's side. He did whatever his brother told him to do. Fiercely loyal. So, when Lucifer" (again, the name caused Eskay to shudder slightly) "was cast down, Adolfus willingly followed. As such, his magic was not stripped away. He was an incredibly talented shapeshifter, that Adolfus. Master of deceit. One would think someone like Loki would have taken an interest in him. However, that's not how things played out.

"In the realm of the gods, not everyone has been around forever. There are more senior gods, and there are younger ones--granted, our perception of 'younger' varies greatly from theirs. It so happened that there was a young, lesser ice god by the name of Kutolh." Epifanio glanced over at Eskay to judge her reaction. The young elf's eyes flashed in surprise, but she said nothing. "Now, Kutolh was young and eager and he wanted to become a more-well-known god. He wanted to exert his powers in the mortal plane. He wanted a Saber Knight.

"Young and naive (for gods are not perfect beings), Kutolh sought someone strong. Someone deadly. Someone who would make a name for themselves. The man he found was Adolfus. He bestowed upon him the Ice Katana, not possibly imagining what would follow as a result. Only searching for strength, Kutolh failed to take into account the character of Adolfus, as well as his relationship to Lucifer. In the years that followed, Adolfus served as Lucifer's right-hand-man, using his divine strength to slaughter thousands." Instinctively, his eyes flicked over to Taygete, whose face was as impassive as ever. "But he wasn't nearly as cunning as his brother. Oh, sure, he could execute orders fine, but he never came up with any of the ideas. Wasn't much of a thinker. Just did what he was told.

"One day, not too long before the Saber Knights began amassing their army to take on the Corrupted Ones, Adolfus was off doing some scouting, as his brother ordered. Disguised as a wolf, Adolfus traveled through the forest until he came across a woman, picking berries all alone. She was a radiant beauty, and Adolfus fell for her immediately. He decided--and he so rarely decided things--to not tell his brother about this, and, more importantly, he decided he was going to find her again. A few days later, disguised as a bird, he found her again. And then again. And, one day, she told the wolf-Adolfus, 'O shapeshifter, I know it's you. I know it's always been you.' Surprised, Adolfus reverted to his true form. He asked the woman how she knew, and, with a smile, she told him, 'Most animals do not so blatantly stare at me as you do.'

"He confessed to her that she was the most beautiful creature he'd ever seen. She responded with a kiss. It's said that Adolfus' ice-coated heart began to warm at that. He returned to her several more times--against his brother's knowledge--and eventually it was learned that she was with child. However, Lucifer called his brother to action, for the Saber Knights had finally mounted an offence, and the ever-obedient Adolfus followed. In the many battles that followed, Adolfus was killed. Or so it was believed. They say that he went soft, and no longer had the same ferocious edge to him that had led him to countless victories. Yet, his corpse was never found, and the Ice Katana had vanished as well, leading some to say that he escaped. Others protested, saying that they had seen him fall. We can now be certain of his death, as the only way for a Saber to pass on is by the death of its previous bearer." He nodded at Eskay, who was still attempting to mask her emotions. Unfortunately for her, she wasn't nearly as skilled at it as Taygete, who had had years of practice. He sighed again, and then continued.

"Back in the village, the woman gave birth to the now-fatherless child. She was filled with grief, however, and neglected to properly attend to the child. It appeared the baby was going to die, until one day the child simply vanished. There wasn't a trace of it anywhere. Kutolh, realizing his mistakes, attempted to set something right by taking the child. He placed it in the land in-between worlds, where it would not age, nor need food nor drink. The baby simply slept. For a very, very long time. Until Kutolh decided he couldn't keep the baby here forever, and returned it to the mortal plane..." Epifanio's voice trailed off as he looked back over at Eskay, a pained expression on his face.

"That baby, young Eskay... was you."

((Derp. I hope that reveal went well. Ugh. I don't like giving my characters special significance, or something... but durrr I've had that planned for SO FREAKING LONG, feels good to finally get that out there. And I hope it's not too cheap, because I struggled with it for a while and I decided to go with it so ROAR I hope it was at least a little dramatic... I feel like I write too much.))

[Siranae]

((Yeah, we don't mind at all Saber. Plot development often requires a lot of exposition. :D)

"You alright there?" Vegier whispered to Sira. Sira snapped out of thought and turned her head slightly to face Vegier.
After a brief moment of hesitation, he quickly added, "If it's any consolation to you, I'm new to this Saber Knight situation myself."
She gave a slight smile. I'm fine. She said quietly. It's just that...this is a lot to take in. She looked up at Epifanio, then back to Vegier. Trying to sound much lighter, she continued. An odd time for us to become Saber Knights, huh?
But behind that attempt at humor was the question that had haunted Sira since they had returned. So many new Saber Knights, in such a short time...is something happening?

Sira resumed her silence as Epifanio resumed.

"...That baby, young Eskay... was you."

Sira turned to Eskay, her eyes wide with shock. Oh...Eskay. She felt pity for her friend, and considered hugging her, but refrained from doing so.

[Saber Knight]

Eskay could practically feel the colour drain from her face. She had been surprised by many of the things that had been said so far, but this revelation made everything else seem irrelevant and miniscule. Her mouth struggled to form words, but nothing came out. At the same time, her mind was racing, though the words were tumbling around in her head, making no coherent sense. No... it can't... but he... that's... it... no.... NO! The final word she had actually screamed as she jumped to her feet.

"No, no, NO!" It was the only word she could bring herself to say. She felt tears pressing at the back of her eyes, and turned away. With another shout of "NO!" she burst outside and ran, ignoring the heat that pounded on her mercilessly.

Finally, her mind slowed down for just a moment, allowing her to remember another word. Tear filled eyes turned skyward, she shouted, "KUTOLH!" And again: "KUTOLH!" The fact that there was no response didn't stop her from furiously screaming his name over and over. Finally, a wave of sobs overtook her, and she was no longer able to shout. She collapsed to her knees and let her tears fall freely.

(("No" no longer looks like a word to me... just FYI

Edit: OMG short post lolwut.))

[Siranae]

Sira felt a pang of sadness as she watched Eskay react to the chilling news. The young Saber Knight fell to her knees, tears welling up in her eyes. Sira slowly and quietly walked over to where Eskay had collapsed, knelt down beside her, and put an arm around her. Her eyes were focused on Eskay, but she remained silent.

[Saber Knight]

((Derp. Trying to get at least SOMETHING moving again. RP section has been waaaaaaaaay too dead.))

During all of the commotion, emotions, and plot exposition, no one had noticed Seraphina come to. Though she was indeed surprised by her surroundings, she had decided to remain on the floor, feigning sleep. Her head was filled with questions, many of which she was sure no one else could give her the answer to, so she would simply attempt to find them herself.

The first and most important question: What happened? Everything was fuzzy. Well, not everything. While memories of her childhood stood out in perfect clarity, everything from a year or so til the present time seemed obscured. She could only remember vauge details. A battle. A man with cruel, dark eyes. A table filled with figures in dark cloaks. A blinding golden light. A scepter. Firey pain. Pleas for mercy (hers, or other's?). A driving compulsion to do what the man with dark eyes said. Indistinguishable screams. A burning desire to fight. A voice in her head, penetrating her thoughts. And then the pain again. A deep pain that had traveled through her entire body until she had ceased to exist as a human being and had just become living, breathing pain...

She gasped and flinched, but no one seemed to notice. Okay, maybe I'll save that for later, she thought to herself, teeth clenched. Question two: Where am I now? Seraphina figured this one could be answered by the other people (did she know them?) present in the room. Why she was here was also an important question, as was what they planned to do with her.

Absentmindedly, she began listening in on the conversation that was occuring. From her position, she wasn't able to hear everything perfectly (or was it just the ringing in her ears?), but one word cut through the rest.

"...Lucifer."

Recognition flared up in her mind at this name, but she wasn't sure why. Was he someone she had killed? Her own thought surprised her. Why would she have need to kill anyone? She puzzled over this for quite sometime, once again slipping into her own mind and ignoring the conversation in the room. She vaguely heard shouts of "No... NO!", but by then she was so deep in her own thoughts that it could have been occuring from miles away.

Was she some sort of murderer? Is that what happened in this past year? Why did that seem like the most plausable answer? It all terrified Seraphina, but she had to know, all the same.

((I feel like I don't have a main character anymore, I keep switching perspectives... but I really couldn't think of anything to do with Eskay right now since she's kind of all upset, and stuff.[/understatement] Just wanted to see if I could get anything moving :/ ))