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Tournament of Champions 3 (The game has begun!)
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And here is a larger recap of the tournament results over 3 months of fun!
what I believe in. Is that not the truest honor?"
— Fumeiyona Akuma
Akuma...she...believed in me...
*SPLASH*
Brynn and Nilani splashed into shallow abyssal waters. Nilani coughed and sputtered as she accidentally breathed in the water.
"Are you okay?" Brynn asked gently.
"Yeah," Nilani managed to say, "How did you find me? Why did you enter the abyss? Aren't you supposed to be with Aeryn?"
"Well..." Brynn trailed off.
"What?"
"Aeryn got into a fight with Niran, and the little girl summoned a large abyssal monster. Aeryn was able to defeat it, but she suffered great injuries. I saw her disappear in a bright flash of light."
"Oh...but that still doesn't explain why you're here! Why did you come to me?" Nilani asked.
Brynn pulled out a folded piece of paper. She unfolded it and revealed its contents to Nilani. It was her letter. Nilani snatched it from Brynn's had, looking back at her scrawly handwriting on the paper.
Nilani paused. She didn't move for a few seconds. Then, she dropped the paper, watching it drop into the abyssal liquid and float away.
"What have I become?"
"Nilani?" Brynn asked, "Is something wrong?"
"Y̵͕̅ơ̷͇ŭ̸͇ ̷̖̂ő̸̤ñ̴̻l̵͍͘y̵̧͝ ̷̟̀ḙ̴̐ṡ̶̟c̴̭͂ḁ̷͂p̵̝̀e̶͒ͅd̶̺̄ ̶̭̄b̷̠̊ȩ̸̋c̸͑ͅa̷̞͐u̵̬͋s̷̰̅e̷̥̎ ̷͔̂y̷̹̋o̶̲͘u̵̱͝'̸͛fo.̷̪̋und ̸̠͐a p̶̞̓u̸̘͘ṟ̴͊p̷̡̓o̸͙̚s̵̝͂ȅ̴̟. Y̸͙͗o̶̻̊u̵̪̇ ̷̯͊c̸̛̰ạ̵͘m̷̞͑e̸̲̒ ̵̩̅w̶̅͜i̶͖̚ẗ̵̹h̵͚̄o̴͎͌ṵ̵͠t̷̪̓ ̶̩̏a̶̛̝ ̷̜̔p̶̮͌u̷̥̓ṛ̸́p̴̝̕ò̸̢s̵̯͋e̶͕͘,̵̺͂ ̶̼̈́b̷̼͝ű̷͍t̴̟̒ ̴̻̆y̵͎̓o̶̗̕u̶̳̓ ̶̮̕f̸̭́o̶̧̒u̵͇͆n̵̨̏ḑ̵̽ ̶̞̚o̷̜͂n̴͇̕e̸̺͗.̶̹̚" Arden spoke behind Nilani.
What have I done? Who have I become? I wanted answers, and I got them. I have not given hope to these people...still I finally mastered my Hope Twin spell. I finally mastered what caused me so much trouble. I'm finally powerful! Didn't I want to be powerful at the start of the tournament? Haven't I proved that? Why do I feel like I want more? Why did I kill so many people? Why is one answer creating so many questions? Why did Akuma have to die? I need to do something. I need to change something.
"Nilani?" Brynn said, "I came to help you. To free-"
"Go away!" Nilani roared, surprising even herself, "I don't need your help! I don't need your sympathy!"
The little girl tugged on Nilani's robes frantically.
All the months of stress seemed to be let out now. The war. Fate. The abyss. Her spiraling friendship.
"I've struggled for years to become better. I've struggled for so long. The tensions of the war have destroyed me. I lost my friendships. I lost my loves. I lost my purpose. Finally, here, I can regain everything. I've found answers. I've escaped the war. I've gained powers I could have never dreamed of."
"P̸̻̈́ḻ̵̌e̷̠͐a̶͎͗s̷͈̊e̴̬̊,̸͔͘ ̶̲̍N̷̿ͅi̶̻͌l̷̡̕å̸̢n̶̡͝ï̷͖!̶̠͗ ̸̧̕S̸̪̔t̶͙͝ȍ̷̜p̶̟̽!̵̮̋ ̵̨̕T̵̥͑h̸͙͂ì̴̖š̵̳ ̷̼͑ĩ̵̡s̴̗̓ ̵̱̓t̴̞́ḫ̶͝ë̷̝ ̶̰͌ȩ̷̎x̷͓́ā̷͕c̴͈͘t̷̝͋ ̶͓̚s̷̻̀a̷̯͋m̸͖̎e̶͎͌ ̵̦̈́p̴̣͂ã̸͈t̸̗̊h̷͍̾ ̵̰̈I̷̮̔ ̴̲̀t̸͕͑o̷̢̓o̴͎͝ḳ̵̿!̷̼͋ ̷͓̄Y̶̱͂o̸̖̽ủ̸̬ ̵̗̕d̴͉̐ŏ̸̬ǹ̶̙'̷͔͑t̴̤͗ ̶̲̇w̴̞͝à̵̱ń̶͓ť̴ͅ ̸̣̈t̵͎̅o̴̗̿ ̴͕͑b̴͖̄ê̵͍c̸̩͂o̴͐ͅm̵̯͆e̸̥̕ ̶̻̾l̷̤̀i̵̛͜k̷͓̐e̴̲̐ ̵̣̔ḿ̴̺ẽ̷̘!̶̹̔ ̶̗̚L̴̨̍ḙ̸͊a̴̮͊r̵̖̎ǹ̷͓ ̸̭͋f̴̢̏r̶̖̾o̸͙̐m̶̹͝ ̶̣̄m̸̤̀y̷̙̎ ̵͍̔m̶̮̓i̴̻͝š̵̩t̸̺̾a̵̻̅k̶̛͍é̷̳ş̴̆,̶̱͑ ̴̼̑p̵͈͛ḷ̴̂ë̸̹́a̷̻̔s̷̞͗e̵̫̓!̴̗̃"
"Isn't this everything you strived not to be?" Brynn asked, "Nilani! Please, see reason! We just saved you from the monster! Now it seems like you've fallen under the abyss's spell anyways."
A golden flame appeared in Nilani's hand. "My whole life I've tried to give hope to others. For years I've strived to become the best person I can be. I've failed over and over again, but now, I can remember my purpose."
A black flame appeared in the other. "Why did I want balance? To give hope? Why did I free that family in the forest? To give them hope from their painful life."
"You!?" Brynn asked surprised, "You killed them?"
Nilani nodded. "The abyss has given me insight. A new perspective. New powers. None of you can help me. None of you can stop me."
"D̵͗ͅȯ̴̬n̷̻͂'̶̬̓t̴͓͠ ̶̘̓d̶̘͝ô̴̰ ̴̫̀t̶̬͊h̴̹͊i̴̥̽s̶̝͒.̸̡͊ ̶̘̒Y̴̢͘o̵̼̓u̵̢͊ ̷̖̒c̵̞͑a̷̬͛ň̶͖'̸̙͠t̸̩͗!̴̳̈"
Nilani let both flames loose from her hands. They expanded into a protective circle around Nilani.
"Go away, Arden," Nilani commanded, "I don't need you to worry for me anymore."
Arden turned around sadly and left into the darkness. Brynn was shocked. She had seen Nilani so many times.
"How could you become this way?"
Brynn ascended into the air.
"You need help, Nilani. And believe me, I know the perfect way."
With that, Brynn also left Nilani. She was now alone with the girl.
If hope comes from friendship. I need to help Akuma, and if it means killing the violin girl. I will. Who knows, maybe she needs to be freed from her pain too. I could do both of them a favor.
The little girl grabbed Nilani's hand and led her deeper into the abyss. To another part. A familiar feeling of peace washed over her as she walked farther and farther, following the girl into a dark oblivion.
__________________
(Okay, I'm actually writing one last story segment before the fight, then I'll be done!)
Nilani could tell she was quite deep within the abyss now.
"Where are you taking me?" Nilani asked.
The girl looked up to Nilani and smiled.
A voice rang in Nilani's mind.
"When you find me...I'll be with Niran. You know that, right?"
"Akuma?" Nilani asked surprised, "Yes, of course! And, I'll make sure that I-"
Wait! That's not what I meant! Don't you think Niran might be misunderstood? She's struggling. She's in pain. Niran lost part of herself. Maybe, you could find room to-
"Forgive her!? No! I could feel the malice in her actions through the abyss far away! Don't be silly Akuma."
"Please, just listen!"
"I need to help you. Niran has eternally stained the name of the abyss anyways! Wouldn't it be better if she was gone?"
"Nilani!"
"I saw her summon the monster that killed Irene and Belisjian!"
"Didn't you see her regret at the very same time. She's young. She's impulsive. She's like me. Like you. You're seventeen Nilani. All of us make decisions we regret. Can't you understand Niran?"
"Niran? She- she's a slave to the abyss. She's a slave to her instrument. She's a monster to the people. She defies everything I stand for! How can you say she's like me?"
"Both of-"
Nilani shut the voice of Akuma out of her mind forcefully. She didn't want to be like Niran. She didn't want to hear that's she's like Niran.
I'm doing the right thing. I can't let anyone tell me otherwise.
The little girl paused before a small passageway. Nilani could see down the long, dark hall to a dark light. There was something down the passageway. It looked sad, like it was dying. Like it needed help. It was hunched over with its legs and hands bound in the abyssal water.
Septhis is an avatar of the abyss...you already saw the power of his monster. Now maybe you can see the pain of his slave.
Nilani's eyes widened. The little girl next to her smiled and pulled her along.
I've got to come back here. I need to see this...slave.
The girl finally pulled Nilani into a large room. There was dim purple light that light up the place. An eerie feeling washed over Nilani.
"I don't like this." Nilani whispered to herself, "Not at all."
Nilani quickly summoned an invocation. This one was different, however. There was no light within it. It seemed to have been made purely from the energy of the abyss. Yet somehow, it gave her a feeling of protection. It held a sword in front of it, ready to strike down anything that threatened her.
Just like a friend. Someone who believes in me.
(Nilani's new signature card!!!)
Even amidst the darkness that continued to claw at Nilani, she felt a protection from her invocation. It was like it had an invisible light that warded everything else away. It felt...peaceful.
A girl tumbled into the room through some odd sort of portal.
"Help!" she screamed, "Someone!" The girl fumbled for her violin as she stood up. Nilani could tell she was weak. The girl had just lost someone important. Nilani was about to approach her when a familiar magical feeling set in the area. Nilani knew who it was: Niran.
Nilani has now learned to use her Hope Twin spell and be able to fully control it. Her guardians of hope is similar to her abyssal hope. One of them gives hope through light and the other through the abyss. Nilani has finally realized that she has drifted away from her original goal during her journey in the abyss- to help give hope to others. Still, she has gained some interesting views on how to achieve that and is definitely very annoyed at Niran for what she has done to Akuma. Still, deep down, the Nilani that cared for others like before is there. That "Nilani" knows and empathizes with Niran's situation. Remember, Nilani did see Niran after Efilia's fight and recognized that she was sad about killing Irene and Belisjian and offered a smile to Niran before the her shadows separated them again. She just can't help Niran because she doesn't let herself. Who knows? Maybe this fight will help give her perspective
Strengths:
Nilani has begun to master her most powerful spells. Her hope twin spell, something that demands lots of power finally worked for her. Nilani has regained her control over her golden, light magic but it isn't completely as powerful as before, but it is still there. Nilani is quick and can handle making larger spells at a moderate speed.
Weaknesses:
Nilani is still emotionally weak and is very curious of the "slave" of Septhis, a place she might want to visit, even during the fight! She is still conflicted, although she's trying to hide it like she did with Brynn, Arden (The Red Queen), and Akuma. If any of her emotional weaknesses are targeted, she has a chance of breaking down completely and failing to fight at her fullest. Her encounter with Septhis made her a little weaker due to the amount of power she experienced with it.
---
"I've not known my purpose for years now. Finally, I know who I am. Finally, I know what powers I can wield. Finally, I've found my purpose, right?"
@Jonteman93 Will the first person writing just go ahead and write the introduction (or part 1)?
I have nothing in particular that I want to include in the introduction though I will write the presentation tomorrow. I'll reserve a comment so you may begin writing the match without interfering with the order.
So you can begin writing part 1 or even the introduction if you want something included there.
If you want me to write the first part I will do so as well.
[Reserved]
What do you think @shadow123 ?
Nilani is right now very angry at Niran for what she had done to Akuma. I could see her trying to attack Niran out of her anger. I have some things planned for Nilani that takes place somewhere in the middle of the fight as well. If it takes too much time, I will be happy to write the first part as well.
Basically, whatever works best for you will work for me. If you want me to write part one, I think I have a small idea of how I could go about it.
My last part before the fight left off where Niran just got pulled into the abyss and landed in front of Nilani.
@shadow123MonkeyPirate2002
"How many innocent will you kill in your pursue of revenge!?"
"Out of my way, you have not seen what he have done!, what he will do!"
Nilani - A trail of revenge
She stepped out of the portal into a dark world of a ruined city. A black sun was spreading its black light in the dark sky. Ashes fell from the sky like snow in the winter. She turned around but the portal disappeared before she could step back inside. "Why am I here? Without any other way to go, she stepped out into the ruined streets. Shadows of people lied dead all around beneath the ashes, but something was wrong about them. At first she wanted to help them but then she came to her senses that it was just an image, like she had before in Ovan Nova. She walked past them as she tried to understand what was wrong. They were dead but their souls were not just bound in their bodies, but they were suffering as well. Tortured by the very air, the very essence they were stuck in.
Further ahead she saw a huge shadow surrounded by many normal ones and even small ones. As she came closer she realized that the shadow was from a dragon, also dead and its soul suffering within. She continued. She realized more and more what was wrong with the essence in the air, it was filled with wrath, hatred and desperation. Someone with a strong cause and great powers had done this. A dragon's shadow fell and crashed into the building not far from Nilani. The air inside her ears vibrated, then it stopped a second later. Nilani turned towards the town square and hurried there.
Her ears vibrated again and her feet felt short vibrations in the ground. Nilani stopped. Before her stood two very different figures, one a shadow but not dying. The other was no shadow at all. Nilani quickly summoned the Abyssal hope. The shadow turned around and stared right at Nilani. It made a hand gesture and the beast turned towards her as well, an Arkanai. Nilani was just about to summon another invocation when she felt something along her right arm. She looked down right but did not see what had touched her, instead she saw another portal. She fled the fight before it had begun and ran through the portal.
Nilani once again found herself among ruins. This time in a fortress in the mountains. The fortifications around the keep were littered with the shadows of the dead, also these souls were suffering. She saw more large shadows of horses in the stables and dragons that had crashed into the stone walls. Nilani looked up and further up along the keep's walls. At the top she saw the shadow of the person from earlier. She knew now that it was Niran. She was looking at something in the sky. Nilani scouted the heavens and saw three flying figures in the sky. Two of them were clearly dragons, the last one was a dread Arkanai, a flying monster. The dragons were slowly losing and one fell to the ground. The other would not last long. Nilani had seen enough. She stepped back into the portal.
Nilani would find herself once again i a settlement, ruined by Niran. Once again she witnessed the suffering souls and the beast fighting any survivor. Nilani stepped back into the portal just to come to another ruined place. Five, seven, ten, thirteen. How many cities, towns and castles would Niran destroy in her pursue of revenge? How many would have to die. Nilani continued but regardless how many images she saw, Niran never found the one she was looking for, Pontiff Cralmarov. Niran never seemed to give up her blood-lust. She had become a relentless monster. No human would continue to kill the innocent forever in their pursue of selfish revenge. Would they? Nilani sat down. She had begun to lose her understanding of humans. Their most basic feelings. No, she had to protect those people from Niran. Nilani walked back to the portal and held up her hand. "Take me to Niran." she said. The portal changed color and the image mixed together and was replaced with a field with tall grey grass. She stepped inside.
Niran - A chase of revenge
After some time in the abyss, Niran stepped through the portal which a strange shadow had seemingly walked through. She appeared in a small room with wooden walls. Niran recognized the room almost immediately as one of the rooms in the mansion in which she had been imprisoned in Kiserova. The shadow figure was walking down the hallway into a room further down. Niran followed. The other room had nothing but a large portal in the middle. She walked through and appeared in an almost black and circular room.
In the middle of the room stood a pillar with an urn and along the walls stood benches and lockers with many different objects and items. Among them, abyssal seeds. The door stood open so she walked out of the room and up the stairs. It did not take long before she met another portal. Once again she walked through.
She would appear in some places which she did not recognize at all and some that she thought she had seen before. The next time she walked out of the portal she found herself inside the temple of Ovan Nova. A group of shadows were seemingly discussing something as they looked at a statue depicting a horse rider. Niran waited a long time as the shadows continued to examine the statue. Then later, one shadow stepped forward and did something to the statue. Then it fell to the side, revealing a hidden passage behind. The shadow which Niran had followed left the group and walked out of the temple and into another portal. Niran followed. She found herself in multiple what appeared to be meetings and other discussions where the particular shadow after some time would leave the others and walked through another portal.
Niran stepped out of yet another portal but this time, something felt different. She stood beside some old road close to a forest and a tall mountain. It did not even look like Vosanova anymore. She looked around but she seemed to have lost the shadowy figure, or he never appeared her at all. She did notice something further up the road though and began walking closer. As she walked the thought of the feeling as less solid, more fluid, as if the world had not taken perfect form yet. Niran came closer and could now specify what it was, a shadow of a dragon on the cliff side. It did not move, it was dead. Niran continued along the road. Later she saw an abandoned carriage, though she realized soon that it was not abandoned. Around the road before and beyond the carriage lied shadows of men and horses, like killed by an ambush.
She approached the carriage where she saw the most particular shadow yet. Just before the door lied a shadow that had been broken in two. His body lied headless beside the wheel and his head had been put on a standing spear. A warning or a threat? Niran stepped inside the carriage. It was empty, no shadow, no items or objects, nothing. But just as she was about to step outside, she saw something lying just beneath the door. She took it up. It was a mini dragon made of iron that had been painted black with red eyes. The paint-job was terribly done, not like that of an untrained painter but like that of a young child. A child's toy. Niran put the dragon in her pocket and walked out of the carriage. A portal had appeared a short distance from her. Niran walked through the portal.
She felt it even before she had stepped out of the portal. The air was tense of emotions, one in particular, and her ears was dimly ringing. She had appeared in what looked like a castle or palace of some sort. To her right was a long and very tall stair that led to some stone made mansion that was built into the side of a mountain's side. The stairs was crawling with shadows that spread out quite evenly. On top of the stairs she saw the one shadow she had followed. Behind him stood six other shadows, and before him stood a very short shadow. Niran put her hand in her pocked, feeling the iron dragon towards her fingers. The air was vibrating inside her ears that it almost hurt. The feelings and the emotion of fear almost overwhelmed her. Fear, a fear she had never felt before, because it was no her.
She turned around and saw what must have been at least ten thousand shadows all lined up in a formation facing those on the stairs. She looked beyond the army towards the mountains and the sky above. What should have been white snow covered mountains and a blue sky were painted grey by hundreds upon hundreds of large shadows. Hundred upon hundreds of dragons. The feeling of fear dug deeper into Niran, still not her own fear. She looked towards a platform where a large, strong and vigilant shadow of a man stood. Yet, even though he commanded ten of thousands of soldiers and five hundred dragons, he felt as powerless as a newborn baby and held so much fear. The air in her ears vibrated even more so she began to feel pain. The air was moving as spike covered strings of steel across her body. Her head was being crushed.
Niran fell to her knees with her hands on her head. The air was ripping and breaking her skin open. Her head was breaking. Her eyes and ears were bleeding. Her lungs were freezing and shattering. "Please make it stop, please!" The fear caused Niran to cry uncontrollably. The world was collapsing over her. "Stop! Please stop!" She cried out.
All bones in her body was breaking or being shattered into thousand pieces. "STOOOOP!" Then everything stopped. Her bones became whole again. Her ears, eyes and lungs turned to normal. Almost everything turned to normal but the air had become completely empty. Thud! Something hit the stairs above. Niran starred into nothing. Thud! It hit the stair again as it bounced it way down. Niran kept looking straight forward. Thud!
The air began to boil, it began to vibrate and press against Niran again. Her eyes began to burn and bleed so all she could see became red. Her ears were ringing so much that she became deaf to everything else. A fury, a wrath so intense was gnawing into her bones, boiling her blood, burning her lungs. She looked up and saw how the sky exploded with hundreds of shadows. The grounds began to vibrate and turn to an earthquake to stones and structures broke. A shadow of pure anger and fury ran past her towards the stairs. Niran fell a tear as she thought about opening the entire gates to the abyss just to silence the wrath that was burning her up. She wanted to see the stairs drenched in blood so that her fire could be extinguished. She turned towards the mansion and saw how the very mountain was being torn apart by the hundred of dragon shadows. She looked down onto her arms and legs. She wanted them to break open to reveal a beast, a monster that could destroy anything that came in her way, anything that made her feel such feelings.
Her arms and feet did not break open but black liquid began to sip out from them down onto the ground. Soon a large puddle had formed beneath her and she would slowly fall down into it. Into the blackness again.
When she opened her eyes, she stood at a large oak tree in a field of grey grass. Further away came Nilani walking towards her.
I leave this to you now. I'll be back for the concluding part(s) when you are finished.
Good luck!
Nilani walked towards Niran- the horrible little girl. She had done nothing but destroy. She hurt Akuma. She had done so much wrong.
Who cares if she's hurting? Who cares if she wants revenge? Niran is becoming a liability. So I will free her from her misery. I can free her from the abyssal monster that lies within her violin.
"Niran needs to die," Nilani said to herself, "It's for the good of everyone..."
Niran stood up, leaning on the tree. She was weak.
This should be quick.
Nilani smiled sadly at Niran. The violinist looked up pleadingly into Nilani's eyes. She was hurting. Niran was losing her hope, something that Nilani had sought to protect.
It doesn't matter now. I've come this far.
Nilani snapped her fingers and two streams of dark energy burst from the ground. Niran tried to reach for her violin, but the dark energy blasted it away from her. The other barreled towards her.
The energy exploded violently, obliterating the tree behind Niran. Nilani turned to walk away.
Leaves crunched behind her as if someone was getting up. Nilani spun around. She saw it. The abomination that was once Akuma with Niran standing at her side. Akuma gave Niran's violin to her.
Niran said nothing to Nilani. She would have, probably, but she was too tired to do anything. Nilani was too. Her encounter with the mosnter of Septhis had drained lots of energy from her. The simple spell left Nilani tired too. Still, Nilani knew that Niran had to be stopped. For Akuma. For everyone she had hurt.
Niran turned to run away with Akuma. Right has Nilani was about to cast a spell, a portal opened up in front of Niran. Both she and Akuma disappeared inside. Frustrated, Nilani hurried to follow.
The process repeated again and again, each time in a different setting. Finally, both of them stopped on a large island. Nilani had fought there before. It looked the same, except it seemed like it had been ravaged by the war. There were dark pools of mana on the surface of the island. Everything beyond the ground of the island was just the familiar abyssal oblivion both Niran and Nilani knew all too well.
"Why are you trying to kill me?" Niran yelled, "I've done nothing to you!"
"I'm here on behalf of everyone else you've hurt. Innocent people. Graagdord. Beilsjian. Irene. Aeryn. Akuma too," Nilani responded, "You've ruined the name of the abyss. You're destroying hope."
"I thought...you understood..." Niran sighed, "That day when I saw you during my fight with Irene. You understood me. You..."
Niran trailed off.
"You don't get it. No one does. Not even me."
"Then maybe, it would be better to die," Nilani suggested, "Death would be a grace, wouldn't it?"
"No, no, no! There's still so much I need to do! Could you just listen-"
"I don't care," Nilani sighed, "You hurt so many people. I don't care why. I care that you pay for your crimes."
Niran sighed, feeling defeated. Her violin, still hanging at her side, suddenly lit up. Niran tried to stop it.
"I...don't...want...to...fight!"
The girl's efforts were in vain, though. A blast of dark magic flew towards Nilani, who deflected it with a golden shield.
"Don't you see how Niran is suffering, Nilani? You were the most caring, empathetic person I ever knew! Please! I know the real Nilani is there somewhere beyond the darkness."
"I am the real Nilani. I-"
Nilani suddenly cut herself off. She instead transformed her shield into an invocation and launched it towards Niran. It swung a large fist in the girl's direction. Akuma quickly blocked it. On Akuma's touch, the invocation vanished into thin air.
"Just go away!" Niran said.
She created a few small spirits that pushed Nilani away from her. Nilani slashed her hand through the air, and the spirits disappeared. Niran's violin lit up of its own accord again, causing a dark beam of light to collide with Nilani in the chest. It threw the enchantress backwards.
Nilani waved her hand angrily. Shadows lined up behind her and flew towards Niran. The violinist played her own tune on the violin reluctantly. Hundreds of apparitions rose up to meet the shadows. Nilani's shadows collided with the spirits, creating a dark mist that covered the whole island, blocking out both Nilani and Niran's vision.
Nilani ran blindly through the fog, trying to find Niran and Akuma.
"Where are you..." Nilani whispered to herself.
Niran saw Voidstring light up. Then, there were two loud screams.
I would want to finish this tournament by this Saturday.
It would thus be great if both of you had written your parts by this Friday.
It is still up to you when the tournament actually ends but I would want to move on to do other projects which I can't really do as long as this is still running.
In about 20 hours, I would like to know if you are going to write your sections or not.
So I know if I can begin writing the conclusion of the match or if I should wait further.
If I haven't gotten any answers by then i will assume that neither of you have the time to write any further and so I will conclude the fight.
there's some pretty good writing, if I do say so myself
Final Match, Part 2 - Niran
The feeling of pain washed over Niran as she opened her eyes to the sight of gray. The sky was bleak with a silver hue; the grass dingy and dying, flowing ever so softly in the stale breeze. Ashen branches twisted and turned where Niran looked, a smoky canopy of leaves shrouding the area underneath in shade. Akuma stood beside her in vigilant idleness, her skeletal frame reminiscent of the pale trunk. A brief surge of wind caused an acorn, dark as ink, to fall on the construct’s head, shifting her crown ever so slightly. Akuma did not seem to notice, nor did Niran. No, her mind and body still ached from their torment, having burned itself inside out instilling a rage that existed no more. All that was left was a feeling of longing, a desire for a second chance. Niran yearned for the times when she could simply rest. She missed the chaotic fun in helping Graagdord and Gorchi sell their cheese. She wished for the quiet, thoughtful nights reading with Relvas. She pined for the relief that came from her tearful slumber with Bernadette, their sobbing filled with both joy and sorrow, knowing that hell was finally over. If only that was the truth.
But there was no more Graagdord to have fun with. There was no more Relvas to enlighten her. And there never was a Bernadette to begin with. Niran felt a tear run down her cheek. Everyone who had shown her more than a modicum of warmth was gone, all by her own hands, and now only the dissonant chord of despair was left to greet her.
H̷̨̠͉̱̳̲̰̟̣̙̼̦͖̽͊́͐̌͆̕ͅȃ̴̡̠̳̼͉̗̦̎͒̓̈́ͅv̴̥̙̰͖͍͕͎̗̼̹͔͚͍̈́̐̀͊̅̎ͅe̴͕͚͖̩̍̓̈̃̾̆̕͝ͅ ̷̫̭̩͍̰̱̊͛̽́̐̋̈́͆̿y̴̨̛̺̠̟̖͈̟̭͕̍̈́̂̍͊̽̊̔͝͝ͅõ̵̱̝̖͑ư̵̞̬̈͊̓̒̔͆̿͛͌̅̕͘͘͠ ̷͎̮̝͎̩̇͆͑͌͋͊̔͂̀͑̈́͝͠͝f̶̢̛̜̯̂̊͌̀̈́̓̂̿͐̏o̸̼͓̽r̸̨̦͈̱̳̙͇͇͐̃̈́g̶̨͕̩̘̥̜̘̝̿̑͂̅̂̉̀ͅȍ̵̻̂̉͗̆͂͗̾̒̚͠ť̷̥͈͉̊̈́̂́̋̓͠t̶̢̛̝̝̗̦̗͓̦̝̃͐e̷̱͍͔̗̘͎͚̪̯̯̱̮͑̐͊́̀ņ̸̧̪̼͍̤͍̦̣̻̝̭̖̓̉̉̓͂̈́̐͒̕ͅ ̷̥̥͚̟̤̩͎͖̤̓͋͋̈͆̒̒̑́͝ą̷̳̀̈̅b̸̺̤̺̣͇̯̖͚̣̼̟̏́̀̏̌̑̄̓̃̔̂̍̌́͝ͅo̷̧͖̩̬̝̮͖̱̜͆̌́̏̎̿̔̎̒̚̕̚͝ų̷̧̛̳̗̰̫̟̺͋t̴̡̺͇̯̦̺͉͙͑̓́͐̅̓̈͆̿̈̇̋̉̕ ̸̡̧̛̜͍̯͓̯̥̳̔́̀̾͘̕ứ̷̡̢̧͖̫̖̦̫̞̪͕̲̌͛̌̋̌̅̈́̈͐͠ͅş̷̗̜̺̠̘̹̤̈́͌̌̃͐͊̀̽̎̿̈́̂̇̽ͅͅ?̴̱͓̗̥̅͋̀̑̅͂̈́̒̎̉̂̃̕͠
̵̟͉̟͉͇̤̩̐́̄̀͒̓̊̿͋͘͝Ỹ̷̲͔͍͚̤͓̝̮̯͘͝e̸̢̻͈̣͈̪̞͇͙̝͉̓͐̌̆͆̉̔̀a̶̦̲̤̦͇̙̔̓̈́ͅḧ̵̛͕̽͂͊̈́̄́͝!̴̨̨̛̼̣̭̤͉̦̙̻̟͂̎̑̓̇́̀̀̂̉̃̈́͝ ̷̧̡̨̨̖̥̬̠̳̣͔͚̞͍̽̈́̔̈́̄͆̂̍̈̆͘̕̚͠ͅW̷̜̗̘̙̟͉͉̩̠̤̐̽̅́̃͜͠ẻ̶̢̨̛͎͇̻̰̻̯̺̱̥̂̑͌̅͛͆’̵̡͉̘̜̖͈̜̻̔̏͂r̵̡̤̭̬̲̝̬̦̽̆ȩ̷̡͚̹͔͈̖̪̣̥͍͔̩̝̌̐̌͊̐̀̂̃ ̵͇̼̞̪͙͔͍͚̼̼̠͕̭̦̈́͛̏͝ͅș̷̠̤͕͙̹̀̔͒́͂t̶̼̬̥̣̮̥͗͒̀̔̿̎̽͑̓͝͠i̴̛̅̇̆̈́͒̐̈̇̉̄͂̕͜l̷̜̥̬͛̆̕͝l̴̫̯̻̘̾͒̈́̽́̕͜͠ ̵̰̫̔̈̋̍͌̽͝h̶̪̔͛̀͆͐͆̉́́̈́́́e̴̛̳̦̯̖̣͚̿̔̏̂̓̒̊̈́̋͒̀̈́̀͒r̸͈̱͔̠̗̥̝̩͔̀͌̈͜ȩ̵͓̣̳̥̕͘͠!̸̩͙̜̟͇͙̑̄̉̄̅̾̉͆͛̄̚͜͠
“Leave me… alone…” Niran muttered weakly. Her violin only pulsated in bemusement.
W̶̡̧͎̩̦͖͈̭̟͕̰͎͙̠͓̐̆̂͒̊͗̈́̀̄̈̕h̵̜͕͚͎͔̮̑̿͑͆̏̀̐͐̚͝e̷̖͔̭̝̱̜̖͓̘̪̜̯̣̤͆̉̋͑̑ȑ̶͎̞̠̠̥͋̒̍̌̓̽̋͌̀͝e̷̼͈̼̩̫͎͂̌̀̅͆͠’̷̛̰̫̀͛̑́̿̆̈́̿̀́̒ș̴̛̗͚̻̀́̑̄̂̏̚ ̸̢̨̨͈̖͎͇̩̝̥̻̖͆̔̎̏̍̾͜t̵̡̨̧̰̪͓͚͖͈̝͎͙̫͙̋̂͋͌̏̂̆̇͝h̵̛̩̺̮̤̤̔͋̅̋̉́̀ͅe̴̛̦̯̥̠̖͚̐́̎̀̓̇̄̈́͝ ̸͍̤̀̎̅͑̈́̎̆̎r̸̡̩̣̬͔̤͍̳͋͋̅̓̏͐̒͜͜ā̸̧̡͎̩̹̬̦̠͇̖̪̀͐ͅg̸̢̢̭͚͍͎̪̩̺͈̀̇̚̚ë̷̡̧̨̗̟̬͖͔̦̳̩͙̳́͠ ̵̡̛̝̳̃̈͗͑͌͂̕i̷̛̳͕̯̼̦͙̼͎̒͠͠n̶̢̨̩͍̝̼̞̖͉͙̞̱͖̝̑͋̑̄ ̶͙̻͍̮̯̻̪͖̬̔̇̅̾̐̈́͒͌͘͝͝ỹ̵̨̟̮̲̝̦̲̱̫̭̮̤͗͑̾̉̕͝ͅŏ̵̙͉͈͚̫̯̘̺̬̞̮͖͖̿͘̕̕͜u̷̟̦̳͖͈̲̝̫̬̔̅͛͑͂̊̓̀̃r̸̛͖̖̮̼̟͉̍͌͆̅̈́̓́̈̚̚ͅ ̸̞̲͓̝̆̌̊̏̀̔̄̎͝v̴̰͕̞̲͌́͐̈ö̷̡̡̰͉̻̟̤͖͎̔̂̏̇̂̓̉̚͜i̶̼̳͎̞͈̺͉̺͆̀͑͗͌̀̑̆́͗̆͝͠ç̸̡͇͔͇̱͔̬̼͔̻͕̔̉̉̇̀͑͊͊̏̒̒͜͝è̸͍̞͚͈̟̪̺̠̦̼̥̼̇̎̈́̆̾͂͒͆̓͆̕̕͜ͅͅ?̸͔͎͇̼̐̍͒̈̊́̋̊̈̃͘̕͘ ̴͈̥̤̺̙̲̗̺͈̜̦̜̀̊̇͋̊̄͛̽̅͝Ţ̸̨̱͇̰̺̹͔̞͓̐͂͒̽̽̈́̑͊͗͋̅̚̕̚͜ͅḥ̸͓̃́̀̍̄̉̈͒͒̀̿̚͠e̶̩̝͕̗̲͇͎̣̟̘̖̯͒͜ ̴̨̝͉̓̒͒̋̍͐̂͑͑̚ṧ̸̗̟͙̝̦̥͇̯͔̆̆̂̀̿̌̔̕̕̚e̷̖̼̪͊̓͋́̍̿̒̀̎͐̔́̔͝ę̶͙̺͔̖̯̻͂͝ẗ̴͖͇̘̭̥̲͇͔́̒̈͗̓͗͛̈́͛̉͐̍͝͝h̷̡̺̩͕̠̬̐̇̉̓̈́̌̐͝į̶̢̡̗̥̩̱͇̻͇̅͛̔̈́̓̐̅̂̑̕n̵̜̦͓̓̏̈́̓̒̾͛͊͘g̵̟̙̜̭̣͎͑̉ ̸̨̧̖͓͎̦͔̗͉̫̣͓̿͒͛̑͆h̷̖͂̾̅͂͝ͅͅa̶̯͈̼̠͉̺͎͎̩̼̟̥͖̤͙͋̾t̴̗͚͆̿̀͝r̷̦͒̽̀̑̆͒̿̄͊̍̇͝͝ề̵̢̜̙̈́̿̏̋͂͑́́͘d̵͙̟̫̯̥͇̗̍͊̆̏͂̂̚͝?̷̧̳͇̖̻̌̀͘
“Go… away…” Niran moaned painfully. The violin started to shake in her hand, before flying free from her grasp. It floated midair out of its own accord, a bubble of gloom emanating around it.
N̵̡̨̙̳͍̰̣͕̫̜̭͆̃͜ͅǫ̸̨̳͇̺̥̯̰̪̯̫͋̈́̏̏͛̋͑̀̈́͒̾̔.̴̡͎͎̙̱̤̟͈̦̗̊̽͐̓͒̀̿̑͘ͅ ̷̧̡̨̛̛̮͈̩͖̪̼͌́̅̾̌͊̎̐͋͊͑͝ͅW̸̨̩͓̠̘͍͕̗̦͂͊̅e̵̥̰͈͓̠͈̹̼̘̘͙̓͊̀͘͜ ̶̡̯̪̯̬͇̯͉̜̬͗̌ẅ̷̢̧̻̖̹̦͈͉̩̘͖̼̦ò̶̧̢̡͈̪͚̤̞͈͙͕͙̽͒̿̂͗̈̄̊̍̚n̶͓͎̘̼̖̉͂͌̋ͅ’̶̨̬̜̠͚̥̥̹̫̜̟̫͈̤͔̓͛̆̀͂̇̓̈́̀̍̈̚̕͝͝ţ̵̢̹͇͍̥̝͖̘́̔͒̓͆̐̀̈̃̃͛̅̑̒̕ ̴̛̰̣̬̭̤̰̮̪̖̩͖͎͇̓̏͌̆̌̀̄̕͘ͅg̴̗̫͗̒̋̑̌̚ǫ̴̛̩͈͖͖̖̓̎̊͗̆͊̀̽̀̑̀̈́͜͝͝ͅ ̴̜̼̬͓̟̠̩̘͓̭͎̫̬̗̤̿̂̄̍̽̂̓̕a̴̯̒̊̒̾̆̏̏̀́͝w̸̬̤̙͔͉̭̏̀̇̿͐̏̏̀̅̕͘̕ͅa̴̩͔̲̙̍́̓͗̽y̵̜͎̩̪͓̫̣̲͇͗̌̑̈́ͅ.̸̨̫̳̌́̆̉̆
̷̧͍̥͍̩̮̀̀͒̔͌̌̉̈́́̈̌͘͜͠͝W̶͙̬͎͔̄̉̇̈͑̕e̶͎̺̞͎̰̝̳̻̘̹̗̣̺̓͆̃͋̕’̴̡̢̖̦̘̪͇͓̦̯̠̥͓͋̃̉͜l̵̛̲̣̹̰̻͓̥͇̮̂̌̈̏l̸̼̞̹͔̳̙̤͖̐̎͛͛́͌͊͒̈́͒̋̇ ̵̯̤̪̟͉͕̳͕̹̿̐͛n̵̛͎̹̬͋͒̃͑͋̊͛̌͘e̷̞̐̽́͋̈́̈̉̀͋͌̊͠͠v̶̡̨̡̯̻͔̘̠͕̻̦̳̓͂̑̒͛̽͌͆ͅę̷̰̪̗̗̹̼̤͖̦̙̓͒͆̐̽͐͑͒͒r̸̳̝̭͙͔̯̖̭̼̗͍͇̰̎ ̸̦̮̥͕̦̞͎̞̻͇͓͓͐̅͐̂̍̂̎͆̑̔g̵̳͐̅͗̊̎̄̽͂̆̚̕ö̸̡̨̨̢̡̰̠̪͖̞̬͚͕́̽̀̆̊̇̓͗̌͌͜͠͠ ̸̜̫͎̜̞͚͓͚̻͉̑͘͝͝͠a̸̡͖̩̤̟̩̲̗̞̮̋̀̋ͅͅẘ̵̢̗̫̙͇̮͚̜̖̖͎̦̏̇͒̀a̷̱̳͖̫̬̫̝͆y̷̛̮͔̩̩͓͗̀̉̓̏̆͛̈́͐̓͑̃͠͝!̵̡̪͍͎͉̙̗̩́̏̈́
̶̛̝̠͗̉̓͒̐̉̊̊͜͠͝B̶̫̺͇̤̳̪̘̺͇̽̋̆̈͒́̽̆͒̆̉̌̏͗͝ę̶̢̟͔̭͈̦̍̏͒͑̏͝c̷̨̢͈̮̳̪͎̼͔̪̱̖̘͉̄͐ă̶̧̙̻̞͎̘̟̣͈̼̘̼̒͌̾̑̋͗̄̿͒͌̂̈̕͝u̷̧̨͔̮̭̙͚͂s̴̡̹͔̫̱͈̱̖̰͔̓̂̏̋́͐͜͝ȩ̴̨͙̱͇̰̩͈͇͉̗͋̋̈́̄͂͑́̎̅̚͜ ̸̡̢̛͙̳͎̪̟̩̦̼̗͕͍̀̂͋̒̽͂͂̀̐̕͝w̸̡͚̣̪̖̺̞̖͚̦͎̫̾̆́̈́̒̄̑̾̆̊͝ͅe̸̯̜̗̐̄́̍̈́ ̴͖͖̝̺͉̦̞̖͕̤̺̜̥̲̬͂͂͋̅̊́̊̔̾̉̄̇͘͝h̷̛̛̟̯͍͍̪̭͓̟̻͖̮̭̉̂̆͋͊̊͝͠ͅa̶̖̯͙̝̫̯͌͆̀̿́̈̏͘͝v̵̲̩̻̬̰̰̤̺̎̈͋͜͜ę̷̡̤̦͚̪̪̮̰̞̺̝̉́̄̊̄̑̑̿͜͠ ̷̗̐͜b̶͚͇͕̱̮͂ę̴͈̣̖͓͈̜̺̑̈̋͐̄̑͝c̴̡̢̛̱̥̰̜̖̝̻̆̉͛̃̇͌̚o̵̭̞̯̼̝̝͐m̴̧̨̫̳͙͔̝͇͖̯̮̳̥̰̭̎͐̾͐ę̷̤̳͙͎̮̟̪́͗͋̇̉̂́̉͒̾͑͋͊́͐ͅ ̷̧̰̱̜͓̮͚̟̫̺̗͔͇͓̈͑͆̅͝͝ȁ̸͍̭͒͑̓̀̃͑̒͌͒͂̏̕̕ ̴̡̤͖̆͌͐̋̿̎̋̂̾͂͒̽̆̔́p̶̢͈̬̲͕͚̱͈̃a̸̪͇͉͙͙̤̜̙̖̞̲̥̎̆̽͆͊̿̇͋͗̾͝͝ȓ̴͖̺̟͍̊̉͐͠t̶͓̼̥̙̹̦̮͙̩̦́̏̃͐͛ ̷̫͎̟̱̞̹̣̮̙͉̹̫͉̥́̽͂́́̔̈͂̑̂͑̈̈́̕͝ȯ̴̡̹̙̪̇̊̓́̌̍̚͜͝f̵͔͓̌͐́̒́̇̕̚ ̶̘̑̈́̔́̽̓̿y̴̨̰̥̣̟̿̍̌̄̌̃̄͐̾̿̈́͒̚͝ờ̶͉͕͚͔̣̼̫̊͌̄͜͜ͅṷ̴̧̘̭̙̥̻̣͖͔̲͂̆̌̆̄͂̈́.̸͎͔͐̈́͑͂͌̀̉͆̆̅̔͘͝
̸͔̫̲͓̪̬̳̫̖̱̥̰̥̫̀̍Á̵̢̛̻̠͕͓̝̆̉̋̅͛͒̒͌̔́̿̚n̶͇̏͆̿͛d̴̢̨̡̢̡͍̰̝̫̠͋̔͒͋̈́̏̐̀ ̷̛̣͇̱̗̪͉̥̬̦̺̼̬̠̭̈́͐̅̈́w̷̡̢̲͉̹̩̫̳̫̜̭̹̹̻͇̆̈́̐͂̾̿̇̈́̊̓ē̶̛̟̻̅̿̎̀̎͐͛̃͝͠͝ͅ ̴̢̢̪̖̗̞͔̬̹̞̹̾̐̒̏̏͐̆̎́̍̓͒̾w̷̡̛̮͖̙̫̥͓̟̆́́̓͛̇̌̈̆̌͆̅͜i̸̥͎̻͎̽̓͑̾͑̃̑̇̕͝l̷͉͖͛̃͛̔͐l̷̨̲̯̦̝̯̪̗̝͓͈͌͌̀̈̂̄̾͆̋͛̂͑́̕ͅ ̸̧̠̫̰̗̟̺͕̱̞͇̼͈̼̓͂̾͆͗͝ä̸͕͚l̸̡̫̳̫̱͉̟͈̣͙͒́͒͆́̇̉͗̂̚͜w̵̪̖̼̬̒͐̀̋̿̌̾͋̒̚̕͝ä̴̛̩̮̖́̂̔̄̆̍͠ỵ̶͉͒̄͊͑͋͐̓̎͌́̋̔͛͘͝ş̷͕͗͆̈́͐̅̇͗́͐̓͛͘͝͝ ̸͕̻͉̐̋̒̾̊̈́̔̕b̵̡̼̥̗̱͗̍̅͊͝͠ę̶̭̟͔̪͎͕͈̳͇̟̀͒̍͌̀̇̓̐̚͝ ̶̨̞͕͙̭͚͓͈̲͖̻̬̆̾̚͜t̸̠̘͈͈̝͕̘̜̣͍͈͎̮̙̙͑̇̀͒̏̀͊̆̚h̶͍̥́̂̾̆̄̌̎͂̀a̶̖͇͍̠̤̼̘̞̅̕͜ţ̶̮͑̽́̈́̐̈̀̐͗̆̾̕̚͘ ̴̲̥̳̈̿͘ṗ̸̥̩̙̩̯͕͍͎̲̭̼͖͎̝̚͜a̵̢̝͙̟̰̔̄͑͂̃͐̽̾̊͒̎̇̃͝͝r̸̞̤͉̪̲̙̠͉̮̱̥͖͈͈͐̌̓̓͗͐͝ͅţ̶̛͔̯͉͙̼̓̈́͆́̃̾͛̑͝ ̸̨̢̧̩͔̤̲͓͚̻͍̞́͆́͗͜o̷̡̖̰̥̘̘̤̘̩͎̘͊̾̋f̷̡͉͔̫͇̹̬̯̾͠ ̷̛̙͈̲̙̹̓̉̊͆͂͋̈̊͜ͅy̸̨̖̫̗̪̘̺̤̲̪͚̟͓̿̇̾͛͛̌͛̾̌̿̕͠ō̸̡̓u̵̧̲̅͐͛̃̀͜!̵̗̏̇͑̀̀́̈̓͌̃̚̕͝
̴̡̨̨̛̩̩̯̣͔̱̯̻̳̣̎̇͋̀̒T̶̢̤̋̀̀̒̔̈́h̸̡̛̦̟͚͕̟̦̹̥͑͐̈́̽̓̔͋̈́̊̓̕͝͠͠e̴͕̓͋͑̒̈̂̆́̊͗̽̽̕͠ ̵̥͓̱̹̻͚̫̜̱̥̝̉͑͋͋̃̍̋̌̏̚͠ͅͅm̶̢̪͈͓͒̇́̂̅̅̐͘͝a̴̢̨̭͇̪̹̙̥͔͓̘̩̞͐́̍͛͑͊̚̕̚͝͝ͅs̵̛̛͕̩̼̳̲̖͍͍̦̉͋̿̍̀̂̌̒͝͠ţ̵̲̗̲̜̤̪̜̈́͛̆̕͜͝ę̴̭͎̜̗̪̝̆͆̑̿ŕ̸͕̗̹…̶̛̗͎̲̹̽̎́̈́͂͆͆̀
̴̢̘̘̣͙̯̤͑̑̅́͌̂͜B̵̠͍̘̺̯̪̪͙̞̳͙̹͌̿̉̚̕ḛ̸̼̠̰̭̒̓̋͐͛̅̂̏̑̽̚͜͝͠ẖ̷̛̙̪̫̖̮̓̀̈́͒̔̇̂̊̂́̈̑̈́͘ȉ̴̛͙̼̙̀̆̌͋͒̏̀̏̎̆͝ņ̷͍͖̰̟̘͎̖͕͕̺͔̈̅̓́̃̊̿̋̎͝͠͝d̴̨͉̠̘͖͔͖͇̜͕͍̋̈́̕͘͜͝ ̷̻͔̪̹̼͚̹̤͓̱͛t̶̙͎̻̘̱͓͔̤̦͖̱̘͙̃̀͜ͅḧ̴͚̩͔̺̞͖͖̰̦͓̍͋̿̇̑̑ȩ̶̞̜͕̳̹̳͎̌͑͐̈́̂̑̉͆͝ ̶̳̤̤̹̱̤͛́͑̎́̈́̆͐́̽̾͜ŝ̸̨̼̗̱̱̙͇̄̂̊̌́͊̑̇͋̂l̶̖͔͚͚̣̳͍̿̔̉͗̈́̿̆́̂̅̃̂̚͝ą̷̛̛̭͚̣̗͓̂̀̇̽́̀̈͒̚͝v̶̧̛̙̩̙̝̲̤̱̭͑̏͆̑͋̄̿̃͜͜e̶̛̪̬̦͈̠̬̞̾̎̔̍̋͐͗̾̋͌̈͊̇̚!̸͉̼͎͖͖̣̪̮͚͇̗̓̈̀̆͘
The violin began to play itself, cobbling together an out of tune melody that pierced Niran’s ears. Yet the notes still held power as they carried through the wind, manifesting dark shadows that began to form a humanoid shape. Slowly, the features of the figure became more refined, with the folds of exotic clothing forming around its gracefully malevolent silhouette. All the while, small blue-white beads for eyes appeared out of its head, filled with nothing but sheer contempt. It was Cirrina’s eyes.
“We only played along with your fantasies of control because you were already accomplishing so much for the both of us,” The shadow spoke, its voice unnaturally filled with clarity. “All you needed was a push in the right direction, a nudge to guide your rage. But here you stand, longing for the ones who showed you the most warmth in this dreary world instead of burning with a fiery anger of your own! How romantic… and oh so bothersome,” The shadow exhaled, chiling Niran to the bone. With a confident step, it moved towards Niran, hands outstretched to reach for her. “Which now means the instrument must be reminded of its place. Not as the one to play, but to be played.”
Niran backed away from the shadow, the visage of her cruelest mentor causing great distress. Yet a sudden feeling of emptiness pushed aside the dread and pain Niran felt, a sense that she was missing a part of her. She needed to find them, and she needed to at the very least make amends for what she did. Perhaps it was diligence. Perhaps it was desperation. But it could not be denied that Niran was filled with a rush of determination. Enough to stand up and stand tall against her master.
“No! I will not be the pawn of your machinations any longer! I may not be able to fix most of the damage I have done, but I can still find her! I can still atone to her! I will end this now!” Niran yelled with all her heart. The shadow stopped dead in its tracks and began to chuckle. Slowly, the chuckle grew more intense, until it finally devolved into pure maniacal laughter. Niran’s will was sapped away, causing her to slump away from the shadow. Seizing the opportunity, it stopped laughing and shoved Niran into the ground. Before she could react, the shadow planted its foot onto Niran’s belly, keeping her in place. Niran tried to claw at the shadow’s feet, but no matter how hard she swiped, she could not touch its ephemeral shape.
“Look at you, all talk and no show,” The shadow sneered. “You think that this one little act of defiance will break you from these chains, but that is simply not true! Your actions have brought this far, what makes you think you can just back away? No, you are finishing this, whether you like it or not! And besides,” The shadow began to shrink, taking the form of a small girl around the same height as Niran in ragged clothing. Niran gasped in despair at the sight that beheld her eyes. “She is not going to listen to your pleas, no matter what you say. After all, she left you to rot. They all left you to rot.” Its voice was much more high-pitched, yet it was still laced with venom. Niran looked away from the shadow, trying her hardest to stay strong. The shadow prepared to go in for another verbal assault, but stopped as it noticed a nearby portal tear open, revealing the intruder from its murky depths—The Hopebringer herself.
The shadow dispersed, leaving the violin to fall to the ground with a notable thud. No longer did it speak to Niran, now it resided once more in her mind as an atrocious parasite.
W̶̠͕̪̣͉̓̀͗̓̈́̿̾̇̈͛̆͝é̶̦͚̻̦̯͚̳̝̖̪̩̮͕͉͂͋͊͌̾̂͠ ̴̛̠̠͚̟̭͎͚̄̑͗͗̄̓̄̆̒̚͝͝ͅw̵͖̤̩͉̭̣̙̹̖̪̭͇͆̓̍̄͗́̊̉̈̑̚̚ȉ̷̧̨̧͙͎̻̜̩͈͖͍̳̅̓̓ḷ̷̢̧͙̞̅̌͝l̷̹̜̭͓̹͕͎̪͖̰̜̞͚̜͗͊̊͋͊́͝ ̷̝̇̿͒c̵̘̥̫̠̍̍̒̒́̿͋̃̌̐͝͝ȯ̵̞̝̗̠̖̻͖̰͚̱̃̆͒̊̍̾͌͒̈́̏͠n̷̖͈̺̍͊t̶̗͓͎̗̼͐̂̑̅̀̃͑̆̏̾͝͝í̶̪͎̮̳̜̳͇̺̓̽̆͆͂̍̕ͅṇ̴͍̜̱̣̘͕̒̀ü̸̢͈̲̦̿̈́̽̽̂̊̀̈́̑̕̕͝͝͠ȅ̵̡̨̱̘̪̫̹̳̣͎̩̭̺̒̀͋̏̎͋̅̂͒̚ ̸̝̗̪̳̖̑͒̃͐̅̽̕ț̶̼̯̰̙̰̇̅͊͘͝h̴͕̳̆̋̂̈́͛̈́̋i̵̧̤͈͍͚̤̺̤̺̪͇̔̆́̀̀ͅs̸̢̡̪̙̭̟͔̳̗̅͒͊̐̆̈́̅͗͑̈́̑̓͝͝ͅ ̸̨̧̠̺̗̣͍̤͕̪̭̖̟̾̊̆̓̈́l̶̢̲̣̱̤̞̳̃̇̀̊͂͆̌̂̇̓͗͆͝ą̷̖̹̯̞̬͓̐̌̚t̵͎̰̙̘̮͔͙̻̺͙̼̠̪̼͗̎͊͋̇̿̎̕͝͠͠͝ę̴̨̱͓̦͖͍́̎͗r̸̢̙̠̤̱̤͍̭͍̯̱̯̺̰͖̔̌̊̾̇́͛̿̈́̃̒̎̕͠.̶͈̹͚̽̈̏̑̉́͘
̷͎͓̪̩͉͛̚F̷͙̰̰̲̘́͛̋̂͒̓ͅó̴̙̤̟̭̰̗͔̤͉͇̹̽͌̇̓͒̾̔̂̌̓̃̄̕̕r̸͇̩͖͍̦͎̝̗̿̎̐̈͆͠͠ ̷̢͈̺̞̜͙̠͖̂̈́͛̕n̴̨̫̺̣̗͖̫̪̟̈͜ǫ̴̧͙͖̰̩̝͓̲̼̥͔́͗̈́̄́̄̓͌̚͠w̷̤͖͉̳̾̈,̷̮̹́͘ ̷̢̯̣̖̹̼͍̘̦̙̬̲̯̭̦̈́͛͋́̂͌̎̓͐́̈͋͐͝d̷̗̘͙͊͊̊͒̔è̸̜̜̱̦á̵̯̜̳̤̼̟̳̼́͗͌͝l̴̲͒ ̶͍̝̾̈͐̆̏̚͝w̸̲̻̞̺͍̣̎͂̂̒͊̏̎̆́̉͠͝͝i̷̛͇͚͕̻̹͎̭̖̝̟̫̓̑͑̉̐̐͛̀̏͝ẗ̶͍̪̯͔́̆̈́̚ͅh̸̺͓̺͎̗̟̜̫̥̻̜̆̾̈́̉͝ ̷̪͖̺̠̞̟͚̰̼̣̲̘̭͊̏̉͋̓̑͊ĥ̵̢̧̭͕͙̥̜͓̬̘͓͔̯̳̎̃̚͝e̶̢̨̛͎̹͕͔̜̜̥͊͐̒́̾́͐͛̿̄̋̆̀̕ŗ̶̹̭̬͈̰̣͎̫̩̪̜̠̐ͅ.̷̬̳̦̙̭͕̱̙͕̟͉̪̺̃͛̾̄̇͊̒͘͜ͅ
Reluctantly, Niran picked up the violin and faced Nilani, readying for the fight that would ultimately seal her unwanted fate.
(I'm sorry I'm late. This takes place before Shadow's piece.)
The sky was violently twisting and rotating over Ovan Nova. Impulses of quakes shook the ground that even caused some burning buildings in the city to collapse. King Zallados turned towards a dwarf that stood not far behind him. "Send word to the titan rider. I need him here immediately." The dwarf gave a quick salute and then ran off towards his small dragon. He mounted it and flew north.
The mountain beneath Ovan Nova trembled. North of the city, the trees of the forest fell as the ground rose a few up a meters and then fell down again. The many dragons above Ovan Nova had seized their assault upon the city, while they watched and waited. Then silence. The ground rested still and the sounds of breaking bedrock disappeared in the flames of the burning city. A flash of light spread through the dark sky. Then during a fragment of a second, the world became blinded by light as the sky erupted.
Zallados, blinded by the light, heard a dragon's dying screech before it fell silent and moments later crashed into a building. The ground continued to tremble and crack once again. Zallados could finally see again. He watched the ground beside the temple of Ovan Nova rose up once again and fall down. A spire of silver broke up through the ground. Then followed the head of a giant horse statue of silver. The horse dug its wait up from the ground and got up on its legs. The silver steed stood taller than the temple of Ovan Nova. Zallados fell numb as he watched the silver war beast. "Destroy it!" he shouted.
The dragons descended towards the silver steed with flames escaping their mouths. As the first flames touched the silver steed it swung its horn, piercing one dragon and striking down another. The dragons swarmed around the living silver statue, covering it in flames. The silver steed screeched. It struck down another dragon. The horn began to glow of white silver light. The dragon stuck in the horn burned up in intense flame, and turned to white ash. Sparks flew around the surface of the horn and light mist was formed around it. Zallados covered his eyes as another flash of light came from the sky.
The sky exploded with light and a building was annihilated by the thunderstruck. The remains of a three dragons fell to the ground.
Many of the dragons surrounding the silver steed flew further from the steed as to not get hit. Only a few brave ones remained around it, bathing it in their flames. The silver steed swung its horn but missed. As it regained its balance, it noticed Zallados in the Medirnian camp. It stopped fighting the dragons and moved straight towards Zallados through the city. The building collapsed beneath its feet. Civilians and soldiers, both Medirnian and Ovan, fled through the streets to get away from the rampaging silver beast.
"If only we had ballistae." said a nervous general beside Zallados.
"The king is in targeted! Protect the king!" a man shouted. Upon the command, soon another ten dragons flew up from the camp heading towards the silver steed. The silver steed made it through the city and broke through the southern walls while being bombarded in flames, arrows and javelins. The Medirnian cavalry fled the field.
Fear began to grow inside Zallados and the men around him as the silver steed approached them. Much of the detailes carved into the steed, its mane, its hair and nose, had melted away but the surface was still hard. "Burn it down!" Zallados shouted. By command from their king, the ten dragons attacked the steed head on with flames and claws. The other dragons soon joined the fight again. But the steed was unhindered. It slammed forward, knocking another dragon to the ground, which it then stepped upon.
Zallados and his bodyguard now moved towards the stable where their horses were.
A soldier came running with the king's horse, trying to keep it calm. The ground shook even more, and then suddenly it stopped. Zallados looked back towards the steed and saw its horn glow white. He looked up and saw the sky turn and twirl with its center straight above him. He gnawed his teeth as he looked back the steed. The outer layer of silver on its head had started to grow soft or even melt by the flames Zallados stared straight into its glowing eyes, for he would not die as a coward.
A soft shadow fell upon Zallados. He looked up and saw a dragon straight above him, a Dormanian royal.
"Cassandra!?" He shouted.
As the sky twirled and twisted faster, the body hair on his arms began to stand straight up.
"Cassanda!!" He shouted louder.
Bolt of lighting struck inside the clouds in the black sky.
"CASSANDRA!!!"
The world turned white of intense light once more. Zallados was thrown away by the force of a rampaging horse. He rolled further away as he landed before he stopped. He groaned as he tried to support his weight on his arms. His left arm was broken and the skin black and burnt. His head was screaming of pain and his left ear was burnt. He disregarded the screams of his body. He forced himself up with his right arm. He tried to look around but his vision was so blurred that he could barely see. He saw a fire further away and something large and black.
He ran as fast as he could towards the fire. As his vision slowly came back to normal he saw Artowik's body, ripped open and burning. He ran around the dragon and found Cassandra. Her red hair was burning and her body, what was left of it, was black and broken. Zallados fell down beside Cassandra's body. "No, no. Not you, not you." he moaned, comforting her.
The wind blew his hair. He looked up. From the north a titan approached.
Vallerielle stepped out onto the balcony of the manor. She revealed a smile as she saw the devastation that the silver steed left upon the Medirnian army and their dragons. Thirty or so dragons swarmed around the steed, attacking it with flame and claw casing little to no damage at all. Another bolt of lightning struck down from the skies, killing yet another dragon. The burning corpse of the dragon and its rider fell to the ground.
Vallerielle was filled with emotions and feelings that she had not had in a long time. Belief that they could finally break free. Whispers in her head from her mentor, her parents and all those she had looked up to. She could finally fulfill their dreams.
Then from the north approached a shadow, the shadow of a titan.
Zallados looked at the approaching titan. He did raise his mouth to form a smile for as he saw it, the titan was an necessary abomination. Ornauck, the Titan, had finally arrived. The silver steed struck down two more dragons before it turned towards the titan. The ground was trembling beneath the hoofs of the silver steed, and the air and trees were trembling beneath the titan.
Ornauck, as he descended towards the silver steed, had its mouth fill up with flames. The dragons flew away from the steed. The titan spewed flames over the titan so that the ground within fifty meters set ablaze. The steed raise itself on its hind legs but failed to struck the titan. As its front legs landed onto the ground with slivers of silver falling off its surface, its horn began to glow once more.
The titan slowly turned around to attack once more. The swarm of dragons flew in to attack the steed meanwhile. The steed did not move. Its horn was glowing brighter. As the titan descended once again with flames escaping its mouth, the sky exploded once again of white light. The ground shook as another bolt of lightning struck down at the titan. It roared of pain as it crashed before the steed. Filled with rage, the titan stood up, growling as it faced the silver steed that was only a little more than half of its own size.
The rider of the titan was lying down, still alive but almost knocked out, he was holding onto the saddle. The titans left wing had been struck by the lightning and blood was flooding out of the many open wounds that had been caused to it. The titan prepared another breath attack, but the steed saw it and dashed forward with its horn first. The titan tried to avoid the attack but was hit at its neck. The titan struck with its left claw at the steed, ripping into the surface of its face. The steed did not move.
The horn within the titan's neck began to glow and fire spread from the flesh. The titan roared. Fearing that the titan could die, all the dragons attacked the steed with flames more intensively than earlier. No moment the steed could be allowed to breath. The silver on the surface grew soft in the flames that it began to slowly flow downwards. A dragon landed on the titans back and retrieved its rider before it flew away. Another bolt of lightning struck down at the titan. The titan roared and blood flew out of its mouth. The back was burning from an open wound in the middle.
The dragons continued to bombard the steed with all they had. The titan almost fell but kept its balance with its front legs. It opened its mouth and bit into the silver steed's neck. molten silver was flowing between its teeth. The titan pushed forward forcing the steed to stand only on its hind legs. The titan raised its left claw and pierced into the soft silver surface of the steed's back. The titan pushed forward with its entire body weight as it forced the steed down with its claw. The steed pushed to the side but the titan was too big.
crack!
A sound echoed through the neck of the steed.
crack!
The titan let go for a short moment and then it pushed with all strenght it had.
Craaagh!
What was left of the silver steed's hard neck broke beneath the soft surface. The titan pushed again and the head of the silver steed came off. The silver steed's body fell beneath the titan. The titan, still holding the steed's head in its mouth, fell forward over the body. It had won and had to rest.
"NOOOOOOO!!!!" Vallerielle yelled from where she stood on the balcony.
"NOOO! NOOO! NOOOOOO!" she fell down on her knees.
"NO NO NO NO!" she tried to keep herself from crying, but it was so difficult. She had failed, she had failed her king, her kingdom, her people, her culture, her home. She had failed everything and everyone. "No, it's Pontiff's fault. It was he who had fooled her and the other lords. He was the one responsible for all who had died, but she had trusted him. She did not deserve forgiveness." She thought. She sat down with her back towards the fence, waiting, for that was all that she could do now.
The sun was rising beyond the horizon when the doors to her room´were pushed open. Into the room walked the Medirnan bodyguard and behind them came Zallados. Vallerielle was just about to stand up when a guardsman told her not to. The guardsman and another walk towards her and stopped behind her her. Zallados walked up to her and looked into her eyes. "I will only ask this once so think well about your answer before you lend it to me. Where is Pontiff Cralmarov?"
Vallerielle met Zallado's eyes. They were not lying, but neither was she.
"I don't know where he is."
Zallados drew a heavy sigh. He drew his sword and swung a swift but determined strike.
Vallerielle's head fell off her neck and a later,her body fell as well. Her blood was spreading all over the floor that had been hers for so long. Now it would be her grave.
Zallados wiped his sword in a piece of cloth as he turned towards one of his general. "Find Pontiff. Find him at any cost and if anyone gives any resemblance of keeping him hidden, Kill them. Burn the very land if you have to but find Pontiff Cralmarov. I must return home to Beldon.
The general bowed before he left the room as the man that would put an end to Vosanova, General Zabic.
Nilani saw a bright purple light in front of her, even through the dark mist. It glowed brighter and brighter.
"That's it! I found Niran!"
Nilani hurried over in Niran's direction through the fog. Nilani was about to cast a spell, when the violin suddenly let loose a blast of magical energy towards Nilani.
Niran and Nilani's eyes widened. Everything erupted into chaos. Niran dove in front of the light while Akuma moved to push Niran away. Nilani frantically tried to craft a shield quickly.
Moments later, Nilani heard a scream from Niran, then felt the dark beam contact with her chest. She screamed too. The pain was difficult to withstand. Nilani sunk onto her knees, then collapsed onto the floor. Through her hazy vision, Nilani could see a pool of blood around her body.
The dark mist slowly cleared. A tender hand pushed Nilani onto her back, giving her a view of the abyssal sky she was trapped under.
"I'm sorry Nilani," Niran spoke weakly as she stood above Nilani, "I didn't want it to end this way. You didn't have to do this."
Niran walked away with Akuma, completely sure Nilani would die there. Niran tended to her hand, which was bleeding profusely as well.
Nilani coughed. She saw blood come out of mouth too. She was dying.
I̸̘͛s̵̹̊ ̷̤̓ẗ̷̠́h̵͚̑i̷̻̕s̵̘͆ ̴̻̃t̵̰͝ḧ̵̹e̵̱̚ ̸̢̉e̷̛̱n̴̨̈d̶͠ͅ?̸̡̛
"No...no! I- I can't die! I can't..."
Nilani stretched her hands out with difficulty, then managed to cast a spell. A shadowed invocation formed in front of Nilani. It picked her weak body off the ground and out of the pool of blood.
"I have not given up yet..."
The invocation started to walk into the depths of the abyss.
I̷̤͗s̶̗̈n̵̮̓'̴̞̍t̴͙̄ ̵͓̀ṱ̸̂h̵̗͛e̷̬̓r̷̞͆e̴̱̾ ̶̧̋s̸͎̈́ọ̵̈́m̵͎͠ḙ̴͑t̶̳̀h̴͖͘i̶̟̔n̶̘̑g̵̯̑ ̵͓͆y̷̖͆o̵͍͊û̸̩ ̸̫́w̴͎͒ả̶͇n̸͔͝ṫ̶͚ ̵̮̐t̶̺̉ò̶̥ ̷̳̿š̸̘e̴̥̒e̷̗̽?̴̱̂
"What?"
Wait...that thing. Septhis. Wasn't another form of it there somewhere? Something that was not a monster? The slave?
"Take me to Septhis," Nilani whispered weakly to her invocation, "Then, I can deal with Niran."
The invocation carried Nilani from place to place. Through the dark maze of images throughout the abyss. Finally, Nilani found herself outside a familiar, narrow corridor. It was to small for the invocation to fit in.
"I'll take it from here," Nilani smiled weakly. She dismissed her invocation and limped through the corridor. Every step she took, the familiar sense of power seemed to try to overwhelm her thoughts. Her mind. Her body.
She arrived in a large, silent chamber. In the center was something that looked like a person. There were chains attached to its arms and legs that seemed to be coming from the abyssal pool of water below it. It was hopeless. It was bound and couldn't be released. Nilani could feel its pain. The power it held that was all locked up. The freedom it seemed to yearn.
The enchantress reached out her hand to touch Septhis despite all her efforts to resist it. Just as she was about to touch its cracked skin that glowed with purple light, something stopped her.
"This thing...Septhis...I can't release it. If I touch it I know I could go mad with the power of the abyss. Is this something I want to do? Maybe if I could help it for just a second?"
Then, everything suddenly made sense.
"Moktaractus! That's it! That's what will free the slave..."
Ḯ̶̻f̸̡̓ ̷̛̝t̵̙͋h̷̲̎e̶̢̊ ̵̞̔m̷̲̓o̶̘͘ṋ̴̈s̵̱͝t̸̙̃e̵͕͆r̷̲̀ ̶͚͌c̷̟̔a̶̝̿n̴̳̚ ̷̖̔b̸̯̓e̷͎͐ ̶̗̀h̵̼͘u̸͚̎m̷̗̉b̷͓̿l̴̼̊e̵̟͂d̷͚͒,̶̰̎ ̵̎͜i̶̯̔š̶͓ ̶͚͠ḯ̷͙ṫ̷͈ ̴̫̆p̷̜̑o̸̞͠s̷̲̈́s̴̺̕i̸̩͋b̶̗͌l̸̝̽e̵̪͘ ̶̦̂f̴͉͑ò̶̙r̵̃͜ ̷͚̋t̶͉̽h̷̩́e̸̱̾ ̷̰̽s̵̟̏l̸̨̅ă̸̞v̶͇̂e̷͎͒ ̸̱̿t̵̮̀o̷͚͆ ̶͖̽b̸̺̎ȅ̴̠ ̷͉̅f̸̐͜r̷̗̆e̴͈̾ę̷̏d̵̗͝?̵̘̄