Belcroftians were so self-absorbed that they could project their arrogance and ignorance on
the moon and still feel it wasn’t their fault that the moon does not shine upon their greatness.
The town was picturesque in the sense everything was too clean and too meticulously
organized “Not bad for a bunch of clean freaks” Rigel stated “Seems odd” Darius noted “Aye,
they are the only town where clean freak is a compliment but lo and behold if you get dirt on
their clean pavement of their pretty white houses” Rigel scoffed “Is it really like that here?”
Darius thought he was joking until someone came up to Darius and started to panic “You
look unclean, get get get get get get” to try and shoo him away “Hey buzz off you little
annoyance” there was a blade present as Rigel stepped in between with a threatening glare,
the cleanly dressed and pressed citizen scurried off “You have to be semi aggressive when it
comes to dealing with strange folk like that but you must feel rather dirty in those, if we go to
the nearby inn they will clean our equipment rather easily and extremely well” Rigel said
quite in need of a bath and a stiff drink, Darius agreed and followed Rigel into the most clean
inn he had ever been in.
The rooms of the Golden Cloth were spotless not a speck of dust even rested on the bed or
the floor, the bath tub was so shiny it was almost blinding and the water was so hot it was
scalding but Darius outwardly moaned in comfort as he slipped into the tub and let the water
fill around him as he closed his eyes there were flashes to some distant memory he had
forgotten:
“Darius! How have you been my old friend?” a man wearing a crown with dark hair and a
smiling face of someone who had seen bad days and more good days but in tremendously
good spirits “My emperor” he felt himself bow “I’ve spoken with Lord Haldrith, he agrees
with your sentiments my lord but he will refrain from taking hostile actions against the
Magisters as they are currently not hostile towards his kingdom” the smile went from happy
to disappointment “Ah, I can see where he is coming from, I could use his High Templars
they are highly effective against Manifesters but I think we may get by though” the man he
called emperor stroked his clean shaven chin “Give me a year Darius and I’ll see if the
information I had my Royal Spies dig up is accurate and on the level then you can make the
decision to fight this war at my side as Rigel has made up his mind” Rigel stepped out from
the shadows looking younger than he is now but was still seasoned in battle “Rigel, you
cannot be serious in joining this ill-advised war?” there was a palpable tension in this room
regarding the war with the Magisters, Darius never wanted to fight soldiers doing what they
were commanded to by their psychotic leader “It’s in my best interest to fight them I cannot
understand why you of all people one of the most outwardly violent Manifesters this empire
has ever seen will not partake in this war” Rigel used to have lofty aspirations for some form
of office but war was a theater production that can be manipulated with a quick pull of a few
strings “This war has nothing to do with me, as a former court mage of this empire I have
smiling face of someone who had seen bad days and more good days but in tremendously
good spirits “My emperor” he felt himself bow “I’ve spoken with Lord Haldrith, he agrees
with your sentiments my lord but he will refrain from taking hostile actions against the
Magisters as they are currently not hostile towards his kingdom” the smile went from happy
to disappointment “Ah, I can see where he is coming from, I could use his High Templars
they are highly effective against Manifesters but I think we may get by though” the man he
called emperor stroked his clean shaven chin “Give me a year Darius and I’ll see if the
information I had my Royal Spies dig up is accurate and on the level then you can make the
decision to fight this war at my side as Rigel has made up his mind” Rigel stepped out from
the shadows looking younger than he is now but was still seasoned in battle “Rigel, you
cannot be serious in joining this ill-advised war?” there was a palpable tension in this room
regarding the war with the Magisters, Darius never wanted to fight soldiers doing what they
were commanded to by their psychotic leader “It’s in my best interest to fight them I cannot
understand why you of all people one of the most outwardly violent Manifesters this empire
has ever seen will not partake in this war” Rigel used to have lofty aspirations for some form
of office but war was a theater production that can be manipulated with a quick pull of a few
strings “This war has nothing to do with me, as a former court mage of this empire I have
already voiced my reasons and will not repeat them as they are now irrelevant to whatever
plans our emperor has and that is the end of this discussion” Darius replied with a dose of
venomous anger in his voice “Gents please, this squabbling will not bring conclusion to this
war, Darius your points are valid and as my court mage you reserve the right to refrain from
partaking in a battle that has no bearing on you but as for you Rigel as my personal guard this
war requires you to be by my side and berating Darius for his choice does you no service” the
emperor said standing up, he normally wore an overflowing robe that covered his armor but
as anyone who saw the armor was usually dead within mere seconds “Darius, if the
information is correct can you find the Dragon Stones?” the emperor asked “If the temple is
where the information says it is but we need some raiders to blow open the doors as these
existed before the Manifestations occurred” Darius was a scholar about ancient lore before
the weave existed but there was always an issue when certain knowledge is protected by
zealots who claim bad things would always happen if the knowledge was read by an outsider
but in his way Darius was more violent than a person with barbaric tendencies as he also
resorted to using the Manifestations for torture and he would always become a bad bastard
when he was consumed with anger as the raw nature of the weave always had been strong
with him but being labeled the World’s Worst Sorcerer was a title he held for years, it wasn’t
that he was generally bad at using the power to its advantage but the opposite he knew too
much but worked too hard to prove himself but always fell short but ever since he joined the
empire his power began to climb and he never understood why so he ignored it.
Darius awoke some time later as if it was all a dream, he stood now cold putting his clothes
on after drying off and going to bed but sleep refused to take him. The next morning Darius
slumped out of bed rubbing his eyes wondering why sleep never came but there was a knock
at the door, it was Rigel saying “C’mon sleepy head we are leaving with the first wave of
people going into the fields” Darius opened the door now in cleaner clothing, they for the
first time felt soft and comforting and he felt at least for now at ease.
The road to Demelden was rough and as if the ground was torn up from a battle long past and
nobody bothered to repair it. There was a rank and pungent smell mixed with a tinge of
sickening sweetness in the air which caused Rigel to stop “Why are you stopping?” Darius
asked “I smell death in the air, we are two leagues from Demelden but the smell on the air is
definitely death” Rigel gripped his blades tight but Darius for whatever reason was feeling a
sense of excitement but laced with a sense of utter dread. They entered the town and there
was a murder of crows swarming over head, the constant cawing combined with the desertion
of the town made for a scene. They went from house to house and they were abandoned and
left in such disarray that it seemed like a battle had taken place.
plans our emperor has and that is the end of this discussion” Darius replied with a dose of
venomous anger in his voice “Gents please, this squabbling will not bring conclusion to this
war, Darius your points are valid and as my court mage you reserve the right to refrain from
partaking in a battle that has no bearing on you but as for you Rigel as my personal guard this
war requires you to be by my side and berating Darius for his choice does you no service” the
emperor said standing up, he normally wore an overflowing robe that covered his armor but
as anyone who saw the armor was usually dead within mere seconds “Darius, if the
information is correct can you find the Dragon Stones?” the emperor asked “If the temple is
where the information says it is but we need some raiders to blow open the doors as these
existed before the Manifestations occurred” Darius was a scholar about ancient lore before
the weave existed but there was always an issue when certain knowledge is protected by
zealots who claim bad things would always happen if the knowledge was read by an outsider
but in his way Darius was more violent than a person with barbaric tendencies as he also
resorted to using the Manifestations for torture and he would always become a bad bastard
when he was consumed with anger as the raw nature of the weave always had been strong
with him but being labeled the World’s Worst Sorcerer was a title he held for years, it wasn’t
that he was generally bad at using the power to its advantage but the opposite he knew too
much but worked too hard to prove himself but always fell short but ever since he joined the
empire his power began to climb and he never understood why so he ignored it.
Darius awoke some time later as if it was all a dream, he stood now cold putting his clothes
on after drying off and going to bed but sleep refused to take him. The next morning Darius
slumped out of bed rubbing his eyes wondering why sleep never came but there was a knock
at the door, it was Rigel saying “C’mon sleepy head we are leaving with the first wave of
people going into the fields” Darius opened the door now in cleaner clothing, they for the
first time felt soft and comforting and he felt at least for now at ease.
The road to Demelden was rough and as if the ground was torn up from a battle long past and
nobody bothered to repair it. There was a rank and pungent smell mixed with a tinge of
sickening sweetness in the air which caused Rigel to stop “Why are you stopping?” Darius
asked “I smell death in the air, we are two leagues from Demelden but the smell on the air is
definitely death” Rigel gripped his blades tight but Darius for whatever reason was feeling a
sense of excitement but laced with a sense of utter dread. They entered the town and there
was a murder of crows swarming over head, the constant cawing combined with the desertion
of the town made for a scene. They went from house to house and they were abandoned and
left in such disarray that it seemed like a battle had taken place.
The source of the smell was the nearby chapel, they gingerly approached hesitant at first to
what they may find but Darius’ curiousness was intoxicating. The chapel door was soaked in
blood and otherworldly runic writings were on the door indicating that ‘Blood is the Key to
Greater Salvation’ Rigel went white “Oh no” was all he could utter as a piercing howl chilled
them to the core of their very being, it was guttural and high like a combination of voices
“The hell is it?” Darius whispered hesitating to place his hand on the door “A Kurda Demon,
they normally do not manifest here and its next to impossible to control them using standard
manifestations, we need to destroy it” Rigel said gripping his estoc and slowly drawing it “I
doubt we can sneak in, the runes here are quite nasty if we try to force the doors open” Rigel
said rummaging through his pack when Darius gripped the Dragon Stone and felt a surge of
power as the weave around him and he rammed his palm into the door in that split second a
surge of dark blue lightning turned the door into a shower of wooden shards that scattered
into the chapel, then the smell hit them proper turning their guts into a projectile vomit as
they saw the strewn body parts hanging from the rafters with several yards of intestine
wrapping around the central pillars of the chapel while a large pool of blood was centered in
the place where the altar would normally be, brains from the people were placed in a half
circle triangle shape around the blood pool then they heard the scream again coming from
which it seemed to be coming from the crypt but it was coming from the pool of blood. The
shambling grotesquery started to emerge from the pool of blood, first it was a hand made
from several hands with protruding fingers with gnarled claws dripping with acid as hand
clawed the gore soaked ground as the rest of the monster began to emerge, it had no head
except the torso was full of horrified faces with their mouths stretched in utter horror as the
creature roared again this time fully emerging with a large mouth in the center of its mangled
body “More… Food... Hungry” Rigel began to question if it truly was a Kurda Demon “That
is not a Kurda Demon” Rigel said gripping his estoc “Then what is it?” Darius asked “It’s a
Sin Gorger, they devour the darkness of people but instead of cleansing them they eat them
and display their remains to claim certain areas as their domain, WATCH OUT!” as Rigel
spoke the creature lashed out with its hand swiping the air where Rigel and Darius stood, this
was a fast beast Darius thought to himself, slow to move but quick to strike. It’s movement
was very deceptive as two large and powerful legs emerged from behind it much like a frog
then it leaped into the air over the space the two were now occupying and it began to full
when Darius pushed his will out and a dense dark red flame erupted from his hand engulfing
the monster in a hellish flame with the beast dropping to the ground writhing and screaming
before it shook off the fire. They stood in terror with their legs refusing to budge as the Sin
Gorger began to move but before it reached them there was a bright light from behind them
“Savis’Tah!” holy words from a divine origin slammed into the Sin Gorger and ripped
through it as a knight clad in golden armor stepped in brandishing his holy symbol and a
claymore wreathed in a golden holy flame “Return to the ether you foul beast and trouble this
world no more with your horrid manifestation!” the knight said stepping in further the light
smashing into the Sin Gorger as it began to fade and even the bodies and began to go with it.
The light vanished from the knight as he sheathed his blade “Lord Rigel, former Court
Assassin to Emperor Virtus, odd to see you here old chap” the knight said bowing “Lord
Haldrith?” Rigel asked in amazement “I am, tell me what brought you here to this abysmal
place?” Haldrith removed his helmet revealing a face that was weathered but his face was
serious but welcoming “We heard you were here but maybe we should have not let out
curiosity get the better of us” Rigel said slightly embarrassed “Nay, I could not have entered
this place with my full might and I have been trying to decipher those runes to break the curse
but you beat me to the punch, you there take off your hood and let me see your face, the
weave Is oddly familiar around you sir” Haldrith said, Darius removed his hood “By the
Emissary of Light! Darius old boy how are you my friend?” Haldrith greeted Darius with a
forearm clasp, Darius returned the gesture “Without memory so I do not remember you Sir
Knight” replied Darius, he noticed how gentle Haldrith was gripping his forearm but the
power he displayed was someone who had built themselves up from rock bottom “Did you
bring any men with you Haldrith? Any Chalice Knights?” Rigel asked but Haldrith shook his
head “They passed with the dawn here before the Sin Gorger inscribed those runes upon the
door, which brings me to my next question, why are you two here? Sightseeing is not really a
thing in Demelden” he asked placing the helm under his arm “Looking for you actually”
Rigel said spreading his hand “Oh? And in what manner may I be of service?” Haldrith
bowed “We need to restore his memories and bring him to where the Catalyst may be set”
Rigel said “Virtus is dead and any notion of that weapon being used is utter lunacy, the
amount of magical energies needed would kill this world of all its Manifestations” Haldrith
said now in a more serious tone “That may be but from what I’ve gathered these past years is
that it won’t kill anyone it would simply remove all traces of the weave from people” Rigel
replied, he was one who never had the gift to touch the weave instead he trained his physical
prowess and skills as an assassin to the nth degree he was a Shadow for Emperor Virtus “And
what about the Magical Beasts who are formed from the weave? The Zurkaratan will not
stand for such a weapon to be deployed in the center of the world just so Virtus can have his
selfish dream” Haldrith still stood firm “But we would have a peace that could not be
surpassed” Rigel said weakly his position on the matter slightly faltering “Peace does not last,
there are six countries at the moment in the far east that are fighting over racial and
technological stances, new ways to find on how to kill a person without the power of the
weave and the Manifestations” Haldrith said now like iron in his beliefs “Those countries
have always been in constant flux of war, we have the chance now that Darius has the Dragon
Stone we can fulfill Emperor Virtus’ dream of a united world without the weave” Rigel said
mostly excited but Darius was in another frame of mind “I refuse to use this as a weapon” he
said flatly “Darius?” Rigel said confused “If this was the reason I lost my memories why
would I want to be that person again, I was given a chance to redeem my less than
redeemable qualities and start fresh, war is something I will not participate in such things, I
wish you luck Rigel as our paths do not align here” Darius turned around to walk out but
Rigel refused to let him leave “You can leave Darius but leave the stone” it wasn’t a request,
Haldrith narrowed his eyes and was about to say something but there was a flash from Darius
as Rigel was gripped in a powerful magical grip “Betrayal is not something I will tolerate
from anyone old friend, if you refuse to let me leave peacefully I will leave you here…
Broken” the voice was not from Darius as the energies around him began to swiftly shift
around him, Haldrith was gripped in a fear that had not caught him in years, the voice was
low and almost coming from an external source but the stone itself was glowing in Darius’
hand. Then it stopped and Darius turned around and left.
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