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Post by DinoHunter2 on Mar 9, 2010 1:08:05 GMT -5
Valcanus approached the throne, his fiery aura somewhat subdued. Stopping a short distance from the stairway, he turned and looked over his shoulder to Shaarlunas, who was following close behind.
"Well." He grunted, nodding his head to the empty throne. "This is it. I've been given orders not to go any further, so you'll be speaking with the Death God alone. I cannot guarantee that he will bestow his gifts on you. For both our sakes, though... I wish you luck."
(This is between Azure and I, no interference please!)
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Post by Azure_Ghidorah on Mar 9, 2010 2:16:10 GMT -5
"Very well..." Shaarlunas replied, glancing up at the throne. Confusion was apparent on his features, but he decided not to ask. Even his god-sized ego was smacked down a few notches from being here, the area held a certain "vibe" to it that shook his bones. This, however, he was strong enough to keep hidden.
"I somewhat expected that would be the case." He added to himself in a lower voice, taking a glance back at Valcanus for a few seconds, remembering his hated light enforcing counterpart, before looking at the stairs again and scaling them. He had no idea what to expect from the Death God. Questions? Tests? Some other means of evaluating if he was worth the deity's time?
The only way to find out was to meet the Death God and request humbly for him to grant some of his power to the hell dragon. Mentally, he winced. Something seemed to nag at him like it would hurt his possibilities at getting the power he seeked.
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Post by DinoHunter2 on Mar 9, 2010 20:46:01 GMT -5
"Shaarlunas." Said a great, echoing voice, coming from all directions. "I was wondering when I might see you here."
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Post by Azure_Ghidorah on Mar 10, 2010 0:06:10 GMT -5
The hell dragon glanced about slowly, trying to pinpoint the voice's origin. Failing that, he merely closed his eyes for a few seconds.
"I presume you are the Death God Valcanus mentioned to me. I am... honored that you have apparently been watching me." Shaarlunas replied, hiding the fact that a nervous feeling surged down his spine. Much like the throne area, the voice held a vibe that shook his ego to the core.
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Post by DinoHunter2 on Mar 10, 2010 15:56:42 GMT -5
"I watch all who have the makings of greatness." Said the Death God coolly. "But potential is a common thing, Shaarlunas. Millions of the souls under my gaze could be great warriors. What makes you so different?"
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Post by Azure_Ghidorah on Mar 11, 2010 15:03:14 GMT -5
The hell dragon dipped his head, "Because I have more potential then most other beings, and have proven it before. Many powerful enemies have fallen under my full power, each one of them could reshape the very landscape of the planet on a massive scale, in the dimension where I hail from."
Shaarlunas decided not to mention Solranous, and how the guardian dragon was capable of matching him, nor that his size and the size of his enemies were no where near Kaiju status back home. It didn't seem relevant to him at the moment.
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Post by DinoHunter2 on Mar 11, 2010 17:26:08 GMT -5
"You are right." Said the Death God. "It's not relevant."
Shaarlunas' eyes widened, an icy chill running down his spine. "What?"
"Solranous and his power, of course." Whispered the voice, creeping through Shaar's mind. "You didn't think I was unaware, did you?"
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Post by Azure_Ghidorah on Mar 13, 2010 4:41:45 GMT -5
Shaarlunas was silent for a few seconds, before chuckling. "Ah, in hindsight, I shouldn't have made such an assumption. For a literal God such as yourself, plucking such information from a mind, even if it is shielded, should be no more trouble then flicking an insignificant speck of dust away."
The hell dragon shook his head. Still he had to wonder if this talk was hiding the test, or if the Death God was getting to that. Regardless, it didn't take the common sense of a lowly human to understand that trying to rush a god would almost certainly end in a painful death. They'd get to the Death God's test when the Death God so desired, and no sooner.
((OOC: Everybody seems to be missing the second 'o' in Solranous... *shrugs*))
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Post by DinoHunter2 on Mar 13, 2010 20:24:04 GMT -5
"Indeed..." The god mused. "You suspected that there would be a test and you are correct. There is a trial that all in my service must undergo before being accepted into the shadows. It is a simple task, and asks little of you. Conquer it and you will receive my blessings."
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Post by Azure_Ghidorah on Mar 13, 2010 21:14:09 GMT -5
Shaarlunas dipped his head in respect
"What must I do, then?"
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Post by DinoHunter2 on Mar 13, 2010 21:27:29 GMT -5
"Kneel, and place your hand on the throne." Said the deity. Shaarlunas paused, uncertain, but the Death God went on before he could ask anything. "That is all you must do. The rest will happen on its own."
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Post by Azure_Ghidorah on Mar 13, 2010 23:02:21 GMT -5
'Seems too... easy...' Shaarlunas thought to himself. Still, he inhaled, kneeled down, and did as he was told, resting his hand on the throne, waiting for what was supposed to happen. If it was going to be this easy, he would be grateful, but if there was something else, he wouldn't be surprised.
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Post by DinoHunter2 on Mar 15, 2010 22:22:12 GMT -5
After a moment of nothing happening, Shaarlunas began to feel a strange sort of tingle in his hand. Not sure if he was imagining it or not, he kept his hand on the throne and waited for word from the Death God.
The voice did not speak up- but the weird sensation was progressing, and rapidly. A barely noticeable tickle at first, it was now an obvious current of energy, freezing cold, running through his skin. It grew colder and colder, chilling him to the bone and filling him with a deep, sinking feeling of dread. If only for an instant, he closed his eyes.
When they opened again he was surrounded by darkness. The throne, the room, and the world itself, was completely and utterly gone. Sheer black for as far as the eye could see; an impenetrable, endless abyss. Shaarlunas inhaled deeply, trying to calm down and center himself, but realized that nothing was entering his lungs. With a shiver, he began to panic.
The void reacted instantly. Something solid struck his front side and a flurry of images rushed into his brain: screaming faces, breaking bones, explosions of blood. He jerked back, shaking his head, but nothing could clear the vivid images. He winced, gasping for air, as the pictures became more and more vivid, leaving his mind and merging with reality. Faster and faster the images came; a giant spike impaled a ribcage, a body burst into flames, vultures tore at the guts of a rotting corpse. Soon it was nothing but a shrieking, bleeding blur, madness spinning in his head.
Fighting for his sanity, Shaar closed his eyes and tried to endure, tried in vain to pull air into his lungs. A terrific pain suddenly flooded his shoulder; with a shriek he reached up but felt nothing, no blade, no blood. Chest heaving wildly, he began to cough and gasp, choking in the vacuum of darkness. Another pang struck his leg, and then his stomach. He doubled over, writhing in agony, and looked up at the swirling images of death and destruction that now surrounded him.
Something warm filled his throat. With a loud gag he opened his mouth and vomited, a fountain of blood spraying from his jaws. Dripping with red and clutching his chest, he felt an indescribable horror seize his brain. With a primal scream his chest caved in, ribs crunching like toothpicks, and he felt his heart shudder and stop. Shivering and convulsing, his limbs began to move on their own, grasping angrily at nothing and twisting in unnatural ways. Blood flowed freely from his maw as writhing tendrils of interwoven ligaments and veins burst from his back, wriggling like hungry worms. His wing membranes crumbled to dust and clumps of scales dropped from him like twisted flower pedals. Feeling the last bit of his mind slip away into pain, he opened his watering eyes- and felt them tear themselves apart, sets of gnashing, blood-drenched teeth emerging from their sockets and screaming hellishly.
Shaarlunas opened his eyes- his distinctly fangless eyes. Breathing heavily, he cautiously got up and looked around. Though he could not believe it, he was okay: normal and intact, lying on the ground a short distance from where he'd been before. The world around him was just as it had been, and seemed completely unchanged save for a dark, burn-like mark on the throne. Examining it more closely, he realized it was an imprint of his hand. Slowly, more of them appeared; the marks left behind by other Shadow members. They lingered long enough for him to see, then all disappeared, including his own.
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Post by Azure_Ghidorah on Apr 2, 2010 7:45:44 GMT -5
The hell dragon blinked thrice, shaking his head.
"Ow..." was, surprisingly, all he had to say in response to his experience. Such a series of events, real or not, would've likely scarred a lesser being's mind and heart for life.
To Shaarlunas, it was just another bump in the road. Still, if what he presumed the meaning of the hand prints was what he thought it was, it means he has been accepted into the Shadows. He could've sworn he saw Valcanus' there, and said volcanic Kaiju was the one who lead him here...
He wanted to say something else, but his mind blanked on any further response, so he held his peace.
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Post by DinoHunter2 on Apr 2, 2010 11:26:49 GMT -5
"Well done." Boomed the death god. "You are as strong as you claim. Few handle that so well."
Shaar gave no response, still somewhat at a loss for words.
"The visions you experienced were brief. A fraction of what could have been." Continued the deity. "Weaker minds have spent hours in that realm. Days. Years, even. It takes great willpower to end them, and even greater to do so without going insane. The weak of body do not survive it at all."
"By passing the trial you have dispelled all doubt. Your worth is proven and obvious, and you are now a member of the Shadows."
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