Requiem for Themelio: A Dirge for Tartarus (Still Accepting!)

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"So either we stand around and chat, or we start moving before whatever foul beasts that lurk in this place find the courage to traverse my light. I vote for latter option."

Catherine was becoming impatient. They needed to get moving and soon. She looked around at the rest of the group. A man from the far east, a blind heretic, a man of the Inquisition, a dragon tamer, and herself. This was an odd group, and why were they here instead of deep in Tartarus or in the Heavens above? They had been brought here for a reason, and that unsettled Catherine.

She turned to the eastern man, "As I have said before, I am Catherine Clearwater. A cleric of the church."
 
Darius let out an annoyed sigh at the blind woman's suggestion. "If there are others, They will most likely be alone. A predator will go after the easiest prey first, and a single prey is far easier than a group. Additionally, the slower we move, the faster the predator will find it's prey. To gain any others when the predator now knows we're here will only serve to hinder us. My clan has a saying for recruits before they go into a dragon's lair, 'The survival of those present takes precedence'. This means we cannot risk our survival for the survival of the ones not with us". Now Darius listened to the man from the east's request for everyone's names and the cleric's reply. "We may as well, It would at least help in directing the rest of you if I know what you will respond to. I am Darius DragonBane a Dragon Cavalier of my clan".
 
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Welda rose her head and turned to the man who had much earlier introduced himself as Jarick. She nodded her head in agreement to his every word. Her hands' grip around the handle of her longsword became more relaxed as she was sure that she was safe in the company of those around her. Not afraid of the threat of a second death, her only worry was that her blindness would make her a burden to her new friends.

"We might as well introduce ourselves as we face our possible second death, I would like to know who I fight alongside with."

"How true, I am Welda Ebonheart,"
she said quietly, with a friendly smile. "I am a cousin of King Harold of Oblivion and I hail from the city of Albion." Upon realising that those around her were most likely citizens of a more distant part of Themulio, she then continued. "I was a warlord before my death but I fell to a plot masterminded by the corrupt officials in the capital, and I perished during a duel with another local warlord. At least I think that is how I died." Welda then scoffed, the feeling of realisation flooding her body again as she pointed to her eyes. "He must have done this after my death, the bastard." She looked back at the man and smiled. "What about you? What is your name and how did you meet your first fate?"
 
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As the group conversed, they were either blissfully unaware or unconcerned with the creatures circling outside of the clerics light. Most watched and waited, the ones with higher intelligence debating on weather these well armed trespassers were worth the effort. Most, decided it would be better to watch their prey for now and wait to see what would happen. Those with lesser intelligence that operated more on instinct than reason, were less inclined to leave them alone. Namely a pack of hellhounds that had been trapped in the Stygian caves for a while and were quite eager for a fresh meal whether it was well armed or not.

A loud, otherworldly howl made its way to the ears of the group, echoing off the cave walls making nearly impossible to determine the location and where it came from and interrupting any conversation they may have been having. The hounds began to track this new scent locating the source with an almost impossible swiftness. Within minutes, they had grouped together just outside of the cave chamber the group had gathered in, just far enough to stay out of the Cleric's harsh lighting.

The hounds growled at their prey. They wouldn't wait much longer to get their fresh meal.
 
"Do you hear that?" she said in a quiet voice, as she lifted her longsword in her own defense. "I think that sounds like a hound. We're going to have to kill them before they can kill us. Then, as Miss Clearwater just said, we should make a move - if anyone else comes, we'll have to come back for them later."
 
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Catherine looked about for a source of the howl, but could not see it. It seemed whatever it was stayed right outside her vision. Without word she pulled the shield from her back and held it in her left hand. She drew her blade with the other hand. The well polished blade reflected the light and seemed to glow. Her eyes bounced around the cave, looking at all the various openings. She was alert now, and on guard.

"Prepare yourselves," She warned in a hushed tone. "I feel that something is getting tired of waiting for us. I will draw it out. when you are all ready."
 
"Indeed, I guess our introductions must wait, unfortunately.." He said, really sounding regretful that the had not been able to introduce himself, a civilized introduction for a more civilized time it would seem. He unsheathed his second sword, holding both swords backhanded while straining his eyes to see in the darkness. He gave up on sight for a moment before bowing deeply, muttering in a low voice.
"Lest I die in battle today, I fight for glory and strength while honoring those who have died before me, with my swords still shining and my honor a rally for those after me, I partake in battle for my brethren." He relieved himself from his bow and nodded to each of his fellow members before facing the darkness again.
'Were they even permitted to hear me recite my warriors rites before battle?' He thought before pushing everything deep into the back of his mind. His first battle on non-island grounds, he would need all of the mental clarity before the skirmish ahead. and he did not plan on dying again.
 
Darius Became alert when he hard the howl. It sounded very similar to a wolf, so he figured that the howl came from some kind of wolf in the afterlife. With his adept eyes, he was able to find and see the pack gathering outside of the chamber. After Catherine's desire to bring the creatures into view, Darius let out a slight chuckle. "There is no need, I can see those mutts very clearly outside the chamber. I suppose those are what you would call hellhounds right inquisitor?". Darius walked slowly towards the waiting pack. He formed his left hand into a fist and slammed it into the palm of his right hand. "This is the perfect opportunity to work off this aggravation about being dead". Then Darius began to taunt the hounds into attacking him where he stood, which had a geologic column to his left. "Come on your mangy mongrels! I'll be more than happy to have you participate in my stress relieving!" Darius had not drawn his sword during this, he knew using his fists would work off the aggravation more.
 
Ijani woke slowly on the cold, hard ground of the cavern floor. As he rose groggily from the rock, his perception gradually returned to him. "Agh, my head hurts" he thought to himself as he looked around. It was very dark, but his demonically-enhanced vision gave him an easier time seeing than most mortals would be capable of. He appeared to be in a large cavern. A rushing river weaved its way through the rock and dirt that made up the floor. "Some kind of cave? Where... am I? Did I dream that last conflict?" He put a hand to his heart, tracing a large, deep scar through his shirt. It answered his question. "Did I survive, somehow?" He was interrupted in his thoughts by the sound of fighting in the distance. It was difficult to make out, but he was sure he had heard the distinctive sound of a hellhound amongst it. Intrigued but wary, he picked up his staff and began to make his way over to the source of the commotion.

Making his way further through the cave he soon came across footprints in the dust and began to follow them, spotting a decapitated hellhound head alongside a gouge in the wall. Picking it up, he examined it briefly.
"What a fine specimen," he noted to himself. "There are definitely hellhounds here."

Continuing to follow the footsteps, he eventually found the source of the noises. Around a corner pierced a bright light which hurt his dark-adjusted eyes. The light was coming from a human woman clad in plate armor. In the light, he could also make out four others - three men and one woman, all human. Although the woman was staring right at the source of the light, she appeared to be utterly unfazed by it. Perhaps she could not see?
He could make out several hellhounds in the shadows, attempting to hide themselves from the blinding light as they prepared to attack.
The group of humans had readied themselves to battle the pack of hellhounds. From his vantage point he heard one of them yell out
"Come on your mangy mongrels! I'll be more than happy to have you participate in my stress relieving!"
Despite the imminent danger they were in, Ijani began to contemplate on whether to reveal himself and help the outsiders or to simply watch, for he did not trust them.
 
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"Come on your mangy mongrels! I'll be more than happy to have you participate in my stress relieving!"

That was all the invitation the hounds needed. The Alpha howled, the others bared their fangs, and the next part happened faster than the mortals could have been prepared for. The pack moved in unison, their movements like clockwork as they targeted their prey. Even if they were little more than feral beasts at this point, they still had some spark of higher intelligence. Two went for the boastful one that didn't draw his weapon. One leaped at him, an attempt to go straight for his jugular.

Five went after Welda and Iwao, The wolves sensing the weakness in Welda's blindness - it would make her an easy target.

The rest of the pack, went after Cathriene and Jarick. They attempted circle around the others, trying to not draw attention to themselves as they targeted the source of the holy light, if they could get rid of her then all of them would effectively be blinded and be easy prey for the hungry beasts.

By now, any other demon, imp, or creature that had been watching had fled the scene whether in fear, or deciding that the travelers weren't worth it, content with returning later and picking up the scraps if there were even any left.


~~~~~~~
Iris watched as a few small imps ran past her, completely ignoring the demons presence. A bit odd, but she first passed it off as the Styx spooking them. The corrupted spirit did that a lot, just for fun if it was bored. Since it was probably agitated from whatever had disturbed the caves, it probably was going on a small rampage trying to find whatever had disturbed its slumber. Then, came the howls. She had seen a pack of hellhounds herself, though they had kept their distance from her for whatever reason. That, was odd - they were hungry and they had found some fairly decent prey. It must be whatever had entered the caves.

The demon stood, and stretched her arms and followed the sound of the dogs. It didn't take her long to find the source of the disturbances - and a cute little mortal to boot. What was a mortal doing here? More importantly how had he gotten here? Mortals hadn't been able to enter the Styx for centuries. Even demons couldn't get in without some special permission. Lesser ones found their way through the cracks, but give something enough time and something always will. Sensing no danger from Ijani, The tall demoness quietly walked up to the mortal, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"Well, Isn't this an odd sight." Iris commented, looking down at the mortal she was addressing. She was a bit surprised at their height difference. She stood at 6"2', this mortal barely came up to her chest. "Mortals in the caves of the Styx. That's not something you see every day." She continued, noticing the other mortals, her keen eyes easily seeing the pack of hellhounds surrounding them. "And you are a cute little one, aren't you?" She chuckled with a friendly smile, though she seemed utterly unconcerned with the other mortals and the hellhounds. She could deal with them easily should they turn on her.
 
Instinctively, Iwao stood protectively by Lady Weldas side in hopes to fend off the hound pack. He grit his teeth and prepared for the downpour of fangs, claws and blood. His muscles were relaxed, ready to spring at any moment, anywhere.
"They seem to thirst for your blood, Blind Lady Ebonheart.." He half warned and half chuckled nervously, the during-battle nervousness that he suffered always made him crack a smile at the worst of times. He would need to calm down and focus if he was to protect his first mutual acquaintance of the afterlife.
 
Darius was surprised at how fast these hounds moved, but it only served to make him more thrilled. The speed of the movements didn't matter to him if he knew what they were going to do. Darius often encountered mountain wolves during his hunting trips and training and these hellhounds were different only in appearance. He noticed two coming for him. He figured the first one would attack to try and distract him or get a lucky hit while the other one would try and hit him while he was occupied. A sound strategy in his mind, but pointless. The first hound leapt at him, jaw opened wide to rip into his throat. Darius balled his left hand into a fist and readied it on his right side, his left elbow was now facing the hound. Then, just before the hound's jaws touched his elbow, Darius swung his fist to the left side with a fair portion of his strength. It was fast enough to make contact with the hound before it could bite. The fist dragged the hound's body to the left side of him, smashing it's skull in as well as the geologic column it hit as a result. The hounds body plopped to the ground, still twitching.

Darius looked out of the corner of his eye to see some large humanoid looking being observing. "That creature the one controlling them perhaps?", he thought to himself. He decided to test it by kicking the hound corpse strait at it. The other hound seemed very hesitant to attack Darius on its own after seeing what happened to its companion. Darius slid the hound's corpse to an angle where he could kick it to the side without it looking like he was aiming there. With that done he kicked the corpse hard enough to hear bones splinter and send it rocketing across the chamber towards the being. If that thing was controlling the hounds, something would change in their behavior. The corpse wasn't meant to injure the being particularly, just to get it to move and lose its concentration if it was manipulating the hounds.
 
Ijani, transfixed on the fight unraveling before him, did not notice the tall female demon approaching him from behind. By the time he sensed her, she was only a few feet from him. Instinctively, he spun around to face her, clutching his staff defensively.

"Well, Isn't this an odd sight." she said. She was much taller than him, and he found himself having to look up to face her. Though she had the appearance of a lust demon, towering at over 6 feet tall the demon was much larger than any of the demons of lust he had encountered on the mortal plane. The familiarity of her form gave him some degree of comfort however, and he lowered his guard. Lust demons did not usually act aggressively towards mortals unless provoked, and this one he could sense had considerable magical prowess. If he could avoid a fight, he would. "Mortals in the caves of the Styx. That's not something you see every day." Her voice was friendly, oddly so. "And you are a cute little one, aren't you?"

Considering the comment a compliment, he began to smile but quickly dropped it. Even if this demon seemed nonhostile, she was still a demon and thus inherently untrustworthy.

"The Styx? So, then... I didn't survive..." he mutters to himself, looking dejected at the realization of his own demise. Despite this, he tried to push it out of his mind to deal with the pressing concern of the demon standing before him.

"Who are you?" he questioned. "What are you doing here?"
 
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"The Styx? So, then... I didn't survive..."

"Hmm~ So this little mortal has met his demise then. So why did he get sent here?" She thought to herself. It would be a safe assumption to assume the others had met similar fates. That still left the question of how they got here. Mortal souls were to be sent to the well until the demons wanted to play with them or until they were sent to either of the Sins for punishment. The Styx, as far as she knew shouldn't have mortals here. Perhaps Death had let a few slip through the system? Unlikely, unless....perhaps he was a traitor? Again, unlikely. Death had always been a loyal one, but a screw up like this he would not likely be let off with just a small punishment. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"
The question snapped her out of her thoughts and brought her attention back to the mortal in front of her.

"I could ask the same of you and your friends." She replied, motioning towards the mortals who had the misfortune of attracting the attention of the large pack of Hellhounds. "But, since you have yet to run in fear of me, I think you deserve a name. I am Amentiris. However, you may simply call me Iris, mortal." She replied, giving him her name, in an oddly regal sounding manner. She was quite surprised that he didn't try to attack her or run. Perhaps he was a more civil sort and not someone who condemned all demons simply for what they were. "And I...am ashamed to admit it," She sighed. "But I seem to be lost in these blasted caves." Her ears visibly drooped at admitting this, along with her shoulder slumping considerably. She didn't get long to put on the whole 'damsel in distress act' for long, however.

A body of one of the hellhounds was sent flying towards them, or more precisely her. No doubt about it, that had been meant for her. A small motion of her left hand, and the body was immediately caught, stopping in its path without even so much as using any magic from her staff.
"Oh dear. Seems I've been noticed." Though she sounded happy, as if she was amused by the event. "Now should I help them, or stand by and watch? What do you think, Mortal?" She posed the question to Ijani, and waited for a reply before doing anything with the dogs corpse.
 
"Friends? This is the first I've seen of them, too." he said, in response to her remark. "All I remember is that I died, I woke up here, and judging by your reaction this isn't where I was supposed to end up. I don't trust you, and I doubt you trust me either. Regardless, I think it's safe to say that we both want answers, and I doubt either of us will find out any useful information if those five humans over there end up dead." He thought about what he had just said. Was it even possible for someone who was already dead to die?

Perhaps this wasn't the best time to find out.

Stepping out from the shadows and towards the group, he spotted a hellhound approaching the unaware Welda from behind. The element of surprise on his side, he quickly conjured a mixture of ice and blood magic, channeling it through his staff to fling it with high velocity at the unaware beast. Although it felt the impact, the beast was at first unaffected by the spell. Moments later, however, it began to feel the effects. The dog ceased its attempts to attack and began to yelp loudly in pain, attracting the attention of both the humans and its surviving pack-mates around it. At first, it was unclear what the source of its agony could be, until frozen red icicles began to punch through its thick hide, perforating its entire body. The hound continued to writhe around helplessly on the ground for several seconds until it finally succumbed to its injuries and fell silent.

Seeing that his target had been dealt with, Ijani turned to face the group.
 
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Welda could hear the sound of the man's footsteps hurrying in front of her, as if to protect her from the beasts. The man cracked a joke about the hounds thirsting for her blood, but she was less than amused by his referal to her as 'Blind Lady Ebonheart'. At least he had said it with no malicious intent. Raising both of her arms in the air, she waited for the hounds to approach, listening intently for the threatening snarls of the beasts. Then, she hurried forwards as one of them came closer, and she swung forwards blindly. Panic overcame her when she felt the longsword's swipe clutching at air, and as her arms were thrust to her left side by the momentum of the blow, she almost tripped. The tip of her blade snatched at something and the high-pitched howl of the hellhound could be heard. However, the pained howling didn't stop, and this alerted her to the hound's survival from the attack. She quickly pivoted on the spot and followed the relentless howling until she was sure she was behind the beast, and lifting herself to her full height, she brought her arms down as swiftly as the wind. This was an effective move as the sword sliced straight through the hound and ended its pitiful life.

"Not bad for a blind lady, huh?"
Welda stated with a smirk, as she caught her breath, raising her longsword above her body in wait for another hound.
 
Jarick waited for the others to introduce themselves before giving his own name. "As before, I am Jarick Nalathen, and I -" before he could elaborate on his cause of death, a sickening howl sounded out through the caves. Jarick's grip on Basilikos slackened slightly, allowing the axe to fall, then tightened around the handle of the axe. His gaze darted around warily, picking out the hellhounds by the light faintly reflecting off their eyes. He heard the foreign one mumbling under his breath, and Jarick decided that invoking Illya's power would be a good idea as well. "I consecrate this ground in the name of Illya; may her fury burn our foes!" He shouted, bringing the handle of Basilikos down onto the stone floor and kneeling. As the axe slammed into the ground, light radiated outward in a wide circle, with Jarick as the centerpoint. The light appeared like cracks in the ground, though there were none, and pulsed with holy energy. Anything that wasn't Jarick or his new allies would be burned by the holy light for as long as they stood on the consecrated ground. He was just in time, too, as the hounds had begun their attack in earnest. Rising from his kneeling pose, he brought Basilikos slicing across the underbelly of the hellhound that had leapt at him while he was in a vulnerable position. "These are no mere beasts, watch yourselves." He called out to the others who had already locked in battle. Taking up his axe in both hands, he glanced over at Catherine and then back at the hellhound he had wounded. It was gearing up to attack him again, and snarled at the pair with fangs bared. "Come on, then! Are you going to attack or shall I finish you off?" Jarick shouted at the hound, but not giving it a choice as he rushed forward, bringing Basilikos down onto the beast. It still had some vigor, however, as it was able to dodge the strike. The sound of metal clashing with stone resounded through the cave once more, and an irritated growl escaped Jarick's throat as he pulled his axe from the floor.
 
"I have never seen a woman strike true with a blade before.." Iwao managed to compliment Welda as he tangled with two other hounds. Painful yelping erupted, louder above everything else, but the man could not lose focus as he spun and swirled. He created a blade dance like no other, blood rose and fell in droplets like a crimson typhoon while the hounds snarled and retaliated with gaping maws and claws like daggers, he felt the pressure of paws against his chest and one hound almost closed its mouth around his head, but he quickly pushed it back with a slice across its throat. When he finished, the two hounds were no more, but he himself was not spared of injury as he noticed claw scrapes along his armored torso and a single cut from a fang that ran across his cheek.
Now he noticed a pause in the uproar as he looked to see a newcomer, yellow eyed and gaunt the figure he saw stood over a dead hound with odd protrusions coming from its body. Odd magic like this would fit nicely into such an odd place, and Iwao himself looked at the outsider with both a smidgin of intrigue and weariness. He could see this, humanoid, was an adept spell caster and would treat him as a threat until proved otherwise.

'Let us hope the hounds are our only problem..' He wished in his mind.
 
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"Friends? This is the first I've seen of them, too. All I remember is that I died, I woke up here, and judging by your reaction this isn't where I was supposed to end up." He seemed just as confused as she was lost in these caves. That was well and good she supposed, they had a common goal then. Finding a way out of here. That would at least let them see her as a potential ally for now. Still, she was quiet as she thought about what his statement could possibly mean. So, they weren't a group of adventurers that died in battle together, rather a group of souls pulled seemingly at random into the Caves? Or were they each called here for a specific reason. She couldn't fathom a reason that they would be, but she couldn't rule anything out.

"I don't trust you, and I doubt you trust me either. Regardless, I think it's safe to say that we both want answers, and I doubt either of us will find out any useful information if those five humans over there end up dead." She playfully frowned at the mortal, amused by his statement.

"Aww, and here I thought we were going to be best friends forever." She chuckled, deciding it best not to get involved for now. She would simply observe, and if the mortals managed to defeat the hounds then they were of some considerable skill. Judging form the ones they had already killed in the time from they started their attack, to now each of them were quite skilled in their crafts. The tall Demoness took a seat on a nearby rock, taking the dead floating hellhound with her. She crossed her right leg over her left as she sat and began to work.

Dark tendrils of magic flowed from her hand to the hound that had so conveniently been given to her. They engulfed the dead dog as she released it from her magical grasp, letting it fall to the floor. At first, it seemed as though nothing had happened after the magic seeped into the dead creature until the body of the beast began to convulse. Its muscles began to twitch rapidly as sharp, bony protrusions began jutting from the creatures back. The creature should have well been dead, its injuries were to severe for it to be alive. Yet, magic was capable of great things should one know how to use it. The hound panted and wheezed as the necromatic energies bought it back. For a moment, it seemed to want to go join the fray again, however, a simple hand motion from its new master destroyed any such thoughts. Instead, it laid next to the rock Iris propped herself on.

"Now, lets see how this show turns out." She said to herself as she rubbed the ears of her new pet.
 
Ijani turned to look back in the direction of the demon he had met earlier. Although he had expected her to follow him, she had made no attempt to move other than to prop herself up on a rock. From where he was standing, he was only able to see her, and not her new necromantic pet. "How rude" he thought to himself, muttering "Whatever, demon..." under his breath.

Despite his irritation, he figured it made sense for her to stay back. Most mortals would attack a demon on sight, especially in the heat of battle. Things would be... messy.

He had noticed that the human with the white hair was looking at him, but was unable to muster an introduction before another hellhound attempted to pounce on him. Saved by his sharp reflexes, he positioned his staff in front of the incoming enemy, impaling it mid-leap with the spearhead. As he saw a second one approaching from the shadows just behind it, he got creative. Freezing the still-impaled corpse on the end of his staff, he brought it crashing down on the approaching enemy like a warhammer, shattering the frozen body against its skull.
 
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