Layien's Story

The flute on her lips pulled away, the beautiful music ceasing to exist. Opening her red gaze, she witnessed a most pleasing and gorgeous sight before her. The small town was burning. Every building was up in flames, nothing was spared. Her lips turned into a very small smile of happiness. Mireene stood and waited for her brother to return. She wanted to know if she'd been of any help to him at all.

"Brother," she called as she spotted the tall man with flowing red hair. His attire was that of deep crimson as were his twin swords that were held in each hand. He looked up, a wicked smile on his lips as he approached her.

"Mireene," he said with a light tone. Shra moved to stand next to his youngest sister and sheathed his swords. Reaching out he patted her head gently.

"Did I help you?"

"What do you think? Look at it. It's burning beautifully. You're the most helpful out of everyone," he told her with a laugh.

"Oh please, I'm helpful to."

Looking behind her, Mireene spotted her other sister, Dimee. The older girl smiled brightly at them as she approached. Shra tilted his head to look at her from over his shoulder.

"Sometimes," he commented in return. Dimee only laughed at the small jest. Mireene smiled shyly between them both. She loved being around her brothers. Especially Shra. There was just something about him that made her feel a little less shy. A rush of air passed between them all and a second later a dark mist formed in one area very quickly. It lasted mere seconds and from it Kharun stepped towards them. His covered eyes betrayed his ability to see everything.

"Kharun," Dimee beamed. Between them all, she favored him the most. Mireene smiled, but didn't say anything. Kharun walked passed all three of them, going a few feet away from them to stand and watch the flames flickering. He was silent the entire time. His black cloak whipped backwards from the super heated wind that blew the inferno all across the town.

"Where's Layien?" Shra asked.

"Almost finished," Kharun answered shortly. Though it wasn't much, all three knew that they were to wait for Layien to join them before doing anything else. Drevair would bring him to them, it was how it worked. Their mother always brought them together, Kharun need only ask of it and she provided.

It wasn't much longer before Layien joined them. He brushed himself off, dirt and grass falling from his shoulders as he'd traveled via Drevair's touch. Kharun turned then to face the four Gods.

"It begins with these. The city that Layien wreaked chaos in. This town that Shra and Mireene have burned and the village that Dimee razed to the ground. You've done well, my brothers and sisters. Our mother is very pleased with the start of things. We need only finish our work," his head tilted to look down towards Mireene. She watched him in silence, a bit of awe in her eyes as she waited for him to speak, "Stay with Shra. Do not leave him."

"Yes," she answered softly.

"You know what to do next," Kharun disappeared into thick black smoke that slowly dispersed into the air. Mireene looked up to Shra who grinned almost crazily.

"Come on little sister. Let's go pay the human's a visit shall we?"

"See you later," Dimee said as she too disappeared via Drevair's power. Layien gave a short bow to them, a bit of a smile and was gone in the next instant too. Mireene watched them go, her eyes sparkling.

"Alright," she answered and took hold of her brothers hand as they were swept away with Drevair.

Layien set crimson eyes upon the single structure before him. It was a large building, a castle from the looks. The only difference was that there were no other homes or towns near it. A curious thing, as Layien had seen a few castles that were surrounded by towns people. This one was far different. Even the feel of it, was different. He unsheathed his sword and slowly walked up to the double doors of the golden building.

It was easy getting in, a slash of his blade cut through the door and it fell inwards. Once inside what he saw was a strange sight indeed. Women, they were all women there. He arched an eyebrow as he set eyes upon them. A frown slowly pulled his lips down and he waved his sword in a slow, small circle before him, the tip curving through the air. As it went, it looked like a ripple started to expand from the tip of the blade. The women, startled by his sudden appearance looked to be unsure of what to do at first.

It took them a moment to gather their wits about them. He could feel the energy flowing between them as some started to weave magic. Layien tilted his head to the side, did they think that they were going to hurt him? Foolish. The air rippled one last time from the tip of his weapon and with a loud sound like the rushing of air, every last drop of oxygen left the room. Suddenly unable to breathe, the woman began to drop to their knees, clutching their throats and clawing at the air in front of them.

Layien watched for a moment before he moved. He was quick, using the wind to help amplify his movements just a bit. Soon, his sword was dripping in their blood as he cut through one after another. It would only take him a short while to get through the entire castle. As he started to rise up the stairs, going to the next level, a rush of hot air filled the entrance way where he had been. Layien didn't need to look to know that Shra had just ignited everything at the bottom of the staircase.

"I don't need your help, brother."

"Oh, I know that, but why let you have all the fun here," Shra commented lightly as he stepped into the room. His blades flipped in his hands as he ran his tongue across his lips, "I find that women like to run, and I do so like a chase."

Layien huffed lightly and continued upwards. As he went, he heard screams from another part of the castle. Shra had started his slaughter. Almost immediately after though, he heard music. The sound was Mireene's flute, her powerful spell came from her beautiful music. The rising notes gave him strength, more strength than usual. Switching tactics, Layien sent the air pulsing down the hall of the second floor of the castle. The women who had come to stop him were thrown backwards. It seemed the closer that he got to the far end of the hall, the more the women tried to stop him.

There was obviously someone, or something there that they didn't want him to get to. He moved through them easily enough though. His blade cut through each of them. He shifted between sending blasts of air to crush each against the wall or using his sword to run them through. By the time he'd made it to the far room, the hall behind him was nothing but a crimson mess with things broken or turned over from the fight.

The door exploded inwards as he pressed his hand against it. The wood shattered under his power and he stepped inside to see a single woman in the center of the room.

"Can I kill her?" Shra asked, suddenly at his side. The man's weapons were flaming and his frame was covered head to toe in splatters of blood. Mireene's music still came to them from her position right outside the double doors of the castle. She was safe, with no one threatening her there, Shra and Layien had nothing to worry about.

Layien sent his brother a lazy stare before he slowly stepped aside and sheathed his sword. Shra grinned broadly. He stalked into the room, the fires from his sword blazing outwards. Layien, with a wave of his hand, further fueled the weapons, making the fire grow even hotter and leap off the blade to catch random pieces of furniture on fire. Shra lifted the blades and in a single motion ran them both through the elder woman who had stood defiantly, glaring at both of them.

Together the brothers left the castle, having destroyed and killed everyone there. As they left the burning building to meet with Mireene outside, a dark shadow began to materialize near their younger sister. Mireene turned, her rustic gaze sparkling as she knew who it was that had come to see them. Kharun's body took solid shape as his magic faded away and he looked between the three of them.

"Seems we have some... heroes intent on finding us. Why don't you make it easier for them."

"With pleasure," Shra answered, sheathing his swords and putting their fire out at the same time. Mireene reached up and took his hand as she too smiled at her eldest brother.

"Shall I go with them?" Layien asked softly, the hood of his clothes tilting forward with his head as he bowed forward just slightly.

"It isn't necessary. It's only a greeting," Kharun's lips smirked ever so slightly before he disappeared once more into darkness. Shra grinned at his brother before Drevair took him into her body. Layien turned to look at the burning castle one last time before he too allowed his mother to take him to the next location.

The flames around her protected her from just about anything, hot enough to turn a human to ash if they so much as touched it. Powerful enough to stop anything else that came at her. She was at ease in her silent sanctuary. All thanks to Shra. She could hear his rage just beyond her barrier of fire, could hear the blades slamming into one another as he fought furiously and her magic fueled him to be far more powerful than he was moments before. He was faster, his fire stronger and he own physical stamina much more than any persons.

She never would have noticed the rock that had been hurled at her, not if Layien hadn't suddenly popped up right in front of her from Drevair's body. His blade unsheathed and in a single flash of silver steel, he sliced the rock in two, the pieces falling away from them. She was slightly startled with his appearance, but she didn't stop playing her flute. At least not until her brother raised his hand and looked at her.

"Kharun calls for us," he ordered, then he looked to Shra, "Cease."

Shra turned a quick glare at him and disregarded his words completely. Layien sighed as he stood in front of Mireene, protecting her from anything else that wished to interfere.

"He's not going to be happy if he has to come get you," Layien muttered with a frown.



That bloody human was really starting to piss him off. Bouncing around as he was, it was making Shra crazy. His blades connected with the others several times, knocking the sword and dagger away from him as the man attempted to cut him. It reminded him so much of how Kharun fought. Pathetic, cowardly. Face him properly! A slash got past his whirling blades, just barely nicking his arm. He ground his teeth as his weapons whirled, seemingly nonstop in movement as he lit the very ground on fire. With a broad grin that steadily took over his angry features, Shra finally decided a different tactic was in need.

The fires from his swords licked up towards his arms and he soon was wreathed in the red hot flames. He moved then, shifting his body from one side to the other, never standing still. The blades slashed outwards in all directions as he twisted them around and around, the fire growing hotter as he went. He was intent on killing that damned human who kept disappearing on him, and he would have blood spill on the ground if it was the last thing he ever did.

"Come here, little human," he growled with pleasure as he whirled around, lighting the ground on fire with each step he took, "Lets see you fight me now."

Rage was a funny thing. Anyone who fancied themselves a skilled warrior found it easy to belittle it, to damn it as the actions of the foolish or careless. To see it as only a savage, wild, haze that blinded the warrior in combat yet this was only to see its faults. Rage, as all things, had its strengths. Rage made you fearless, it made you strong and unflinching. Rage turned a ordinary man into a beast that consumed all in its path. To stand before rage was terrifying and chaotic, fear crept into the hearts of those standing against rage.

Such strength rage provided that as his fiery transformation took hold the swirling blades of hell fire, slashing wildly in all directions ended Athos' lightning fast attacks. In the brief moment when he appeared beside the fire bearer one of the blades struck the assassin. The fire seemed to erupt on impact sending Athos flying backwards, to tumble through the ash of Bergstadt, his armor hissing from the heat. Fortunately for the assassin while the blow was savage it did not strike anything vital. The red hot blade of the Crimson Man, wreathed in flame, sliced cleanly through the assassin's black armor leaving a nasty gash along his chest. While a shallow wound the skin and flesh sizzled with heat. Athos gritted his teeth in pain as his body exploded with the pain that accompanied the wound.

That strength born of rage, while powerful, did blind one. It blinded the Crimson Man to two things. It blinded him to the separation he was putting between himself and his kin. Even as a third "god" appeared calling for an end to the duel the rage in the Crimson Man's heart muted the words and they went unheeded. The second thing it blinded him to was something much more subtle. It blinded him to the body language of the assassin as he rose from the dirt where he fell.

The Crimson Man coated his body in flame, like armor born of fire it covered his body from head to toe. The man on fire stepped forward, igniting the very earth with each step. Wicked glee poured fourth from the maw of the fire deity.

"Come here, little human, lets see you fight me now."

The words were dripping with malicious intent, as if some great predator was speaking to its wounded prey. Yet the predator seemed to not notice that the prey was not running any longer. His evasion had ceased, his erratic blinking had come to an end after the viscous blow. He stood staring down the fire god with eerie calm as his own blood dripped down his dark visage. Beneath that black mask of his Athos Lorio smiled. The grin rivaled the fire gods malice in full.

"As you wish."

Was all he said before he too coated his body in a protective aura of his own. Where the Crimson Man allowed his body to be consumed by flame the assassin's body was consumed by nothingness. His body vanished from the world of the visible and walked now among the unseen. Unlike before he did not reappear elsewhere but remained hidden. The Crimson Man for all his power and rage could burn cities to the ground, scorch the earth with a touch, hack young women in two but could not fight what he could not see.

The blade cut through the air, tip aimed for the base of the fire gods spine. The volcanic heat would no doubt melt the blade once it hits its mark but it mattered not. Once lodge firmly in the back of the Crimson Man's neck it would have served its purpose. Athos put all his strength and silent speed into the unseen thrust as he stood behind the man on fire, ready to kill a god.

Karvilus looked in bafflement as Mireene managed to dodge every single arrow he fired at her, and in greater befuddlement as he saw that not only the assassin, but also a grey skinned woman attacked the flute playing goddess, to which this all caused the elf to simply cry out; "What the flying f**k?", though his expression softened when Mireene gave him a compliment, though admittedly a rather confusing one.

Karv buckled back at the sudden increase of heat and flame, finding the rubble he stood upon had set alight once more due to stray fire. He dived off his vantage point landing on his feet with a thud and forcing himself into a forward role minimize impact, cursing as his arrows fell from his quiver, to which he clambered to reclaim. Once his arrows returned to his quiver, he watched then ongoing battle between his 'companions' and the gods, mesmerized at their staggering skill and ability in battle and quietly whispering to himself; "Looks like this job is going to be the death of me."
He pried his bow for another shot, aiming at Shra, but cursed under his breath when the monstrous swordsman was barely visible blur on the battlefield, and turned his attention at Mireene again firing an arrow only for it to be knocked asunder by a tossed boulder, which Karv reacted with a quick; "Now that is just bulls**t!"
His anger was quickly replaced yet again with surprise as a newcomer casually sliced the boulder in half with his sword! The elf stood stunned for a few moments before speaking out-loud, more to himself than anyone; "Ahhhh what the hell, let's see if the worlds best archer can kill a man with a over-sized butter knife.", and began rapidly firing arrow after arrow towards Layien's direction, applying his abnormal speed into practice has his hands became a flurry. "That stroppy red git of a swordsman and the enticingly beautiful musician there aren't the only one with speed better than the average warrior!" Karv called out with a mischievous grin, giving a wink towards Valeria and Annikar.

He shifted slightly, catching sight of the oncoming projectiles that were aimed at him. He waited for the arrows to get just close enough and then moved his weapon. The blade lifted, fell and moved from side to side. Only the flat of the weapon was used, redirecting the arrows as they came at him in a rush. Layien had to give the one who shot at him some respect. There were very few who were gifted with such speed.

The sound of steel arrow heads hitting his blade was almost a constant as he stood there, protecting Mireene who had raised her flute once more to fuel both men then.

"That stroppy red git of a swordsman and the enticingly beautiful musician there aren't the only one with speed better than the average warrior!"

To this, Layien raised an eyebrow as he continued to defend, never moving far and only moving his sword to deflect the attack, "Seems he likes you, Mireene. Pity we have to kill them."

"I don't like him," she responded shortly, taking the flute from her lips for that mere moment and then playing on again. Layien's lips pulled into a smirk at her response. His magic swirled around him, growing tired of the constant barrage of arrows. The air shifted and he flicked the fingers of his free hand opened over the edge of his blade. A burst of wind expelled from him, going through the arrows and straight for the archer who was attacking him.



He'd lost track of the man, a most annoying thing. However, he didn't really care because no matter what, his body was a burning inferno and the fool would be stupid to think of getting close to him without getting burned. As he stood there, the shadows from the fires all around began to grow quickly and in a near instant everything around Shra was pitch black. He felt rather than saw Kharun right behind him. The man's back just barely brushed his own. Right after Kharun appeared, cold steel cut along the back of his neck.

Startled, Shra shifted, moving off to the side even as the blade was moved. The wound was deep, but not life threatening. Even so, just the thought that the man had nearly killed him was enough to enrage him.

Kharun squeezed tightly around the wrist of the assassin who'd almost made his mark. His lips were pulled into a smile as he gripped the other tightly, having shifted the direction of the attack just in time. His darkness lingered there around them for a long while.

"Cannot attack what you cannot see," Kharun said slowly, "Seems you and I share the same thoughts."

Kharun pulled the assassin closer, just long enough to ask him, "But do your abilities rival mine? We shall see, Athos."

Releasing him, Kharun stepped back and the darkness disappeared along with him and the other three Gods. Once again it was like they'd never been there.

Bergstadt, Hours earlier

Karvilus, cocky grin diminished with each arrow that was deflected by Layien, a sight which dumbstruck the elf, never having seen such skill of the sword before, which admittedly gave him unease. As he continued his barrage of arrows at the 'god' his unease feeling was suddenly replaced with a a sudden strike of being insulted as Mireene casually knocked aside his sweet nothings about her to which he replied mockingly; "Alas, it was not to be nonetheless, fair maiden of musical prowess! For in case you hadn't realised, you and your friends are deeply in the s**t for the massacre of these villages!", but his grin disappeared altogether as saw the very arrows flying true towards Laiyen being sliced in thin air while the sword had not even glanced them. This made Karv pause for a few moments, lowering his bow as he squinted at Laiyen in confusion, before his eyes widened, his mouth forming into an 'O' as he was struck off his feet from the sudden attack of a scything wind, cutting his leather armour as if it was merely parchment, caught off-guard at the air based attack.

"I hate bloody wind magic.", the elf grumbled as he hastily clambered back upon his feet, before immediately sprinting for a better vantage point, atop yet another smouldering pile of rubble. He took the moment to peer round the current ensuing battle, deciding promptly that things weren't exactly favourable to him or the fellow combatants against the gods, but he'd be damned before he let a pair of scantily clad woman met her fate with death and not in his own arms gushing words of affection at him. Besides, i'd seem a bit of heartless move to abandon the decent seeming dwarf he met earlier, though the rest he admittedly had little qualms over their death. He planned on firing arrows in Valeria's defence before he saw that the 'gods' had vanished from sight, causing the mercenary to scratch his scalp in greater befuddlement. He had been through a rather puzzling day. He then noticed out of the corner of his eye there was someone gravely injured, to which he diverted his attention. It was Athos collapsed on the floor with severe wounds. Karv grinned to himself at the sight, chuckling out loud; "Ha, serves the sneaky son of a whore right! Save me the trouble of dealing with the poor wretch myself after this whole gods business!"
His smirk weakened as he kept staring, remembering that the assassin was actually pretty effective when he was combating Shra, to which he sighed to himself in frustration before complaining under his breath; "Why the f**k am I the only healer here?", as he leapt from his vantage point and sprinted towards Athos.

The Present
Now inside the inn along with the others that combated against the powerful beings behind the attack on Bergstadt, Karvilus Leafgrinder, downed his ale as he leaned back in his chair, his expression weary from the recent events, and listened to Kain's Introduction. Oddly, the name seemed familiar to Karv, perhaps he heard of an elven nobleman of the name before? The mercenary shrugged it off as mere case of deja vu, and placed his mug ungracefully atop the table.
"Though I doubt a marksman of my outstanding talent needs an introduction, I will humour our overly dressed friend here. I am Karvilus Leafgrinder, archer for hire who's aim has never faltered, and arrows have always struck true. Well until the run in with those monsters calling themselves gods that is.", the elf introduced himself, his eyes glowering for a few moments as he remembered the 'gods' before continuing.
"I am also a gift to women everywhere, though only awarded to the rare and beautiful few, hopefully with present company included.", to which as he directed his gaze to Valeria with a confident wink, adding a smile before turning his attention to Athos.
"Oh, and I also am able to use healing magic and herbology. Old profession of mine that I found rather dreary and dull. Though you, assassin, definitely owe your life to my emergency treatment. Despite my medical wonders, you will need proper treatment later, emergency treatment isn't exactly proper treatment to wounds after all. You're welcome, you little grim turd."

Karvilus then pestered the innkeeper for more ale, and wondered over to where Valeria was as he obtained it, listening to what Kain had to say about the gods. His interest was obviously lacking however, as he pondered on how to start at gaining the priestess' affection.