Glimpse and Act Part Two

You crouch and sneak toward the source of the voices. The trail abruptly ends and there is a presence next to you. You don't need to look to know who it is.

Peering down, you see two figures in blue overalls gathered around a waist-high crate. On the crate is a map with symbols you rather try to not figure out.

" How do you plan to go about this? " Draalsar asks.

You look around the chamber. There is a single point of entry and they are both facing it. You and Draalsar loom over them from above, shrouded in the shadows, taking them out should not be a problem. Signaling to your companion you drop onto your selected target.

You strike your target's skull with constrained force. They crumple underneath you with a grunt yet they are not fully unconscious. Their companion is subdued quite easily by Draalsar who uses a paw coated in light to deliver a blow to the back of the head.

Reacting quickly you grab the individual underneath you and put them in a chokehold. They groan and try to pry your hands off them but you simply apply more pressure, forcing them to cease their fight.

Their companion has been rendered unconscious and lies slumped over on the crate, their face plate cracked.

" Well, you move quickly, "an all too familiar voice comments. The hair on your back stands erect. The pressure released by this thing is unbelievable.

You look up to see the golden eldritch creature from when you first awoke. The eyes on its torso are on you. They disappear in a cloud of dust and reappear directly in front of you.

The atmosphere has transformed into something else. A haze descends upon the room, a testament to this thing's power.

" I see you are regaining your memories," it says. " You even gave Draalsar an identity of sorts."

The figures immediately become full of life. They thrash around with newfound strength, spewing words that made no sense and gain enough to hurl both of you off them.

Cackling like deranged souls they charge at the eldritch entity. They throw any caution to the wind as they are only focused on the figure in front of them.

A cacophony erupts from the figure sending a tremendous eruption of energy in all directions. The two poor souls are instantly reduced to dust as soon as the wave hits them. Luckily for you, the wave does not seem to affect you.

Screams erupt from somewhere else within the aerokeel. The wave must have affected the entire aerokeel. Gravity suddenly ceases to exist as various objects begin to move around erratically.

" You have failed me," the figure says as Draalsar is flung towards it, letting out a yelp in the process.

" You knew your purpose and yet you failed, willingly, " the eyes take on a crimson hue. " Begone. "

Draalsar is reduced to a cloud of golden dust. Before he is completely reduced however he sends a final message; " Goodbye."

Something within you snaps. You barely knew him and yet you felt connected to him. You tell but not even a squeak comes out. Unsheathing the great sword, you aim and hurl it at the entity.

The sword easily destroys any debris that is unfortunate enough to be in its path as it makes its way toward its intended target.

" Such futile effort," it comments as it easily deflects the blade. " Save your strength child, you will need it."

It fades from existence as you struggle to avoid incoming objects. Propping yourself against a wall, you launch toward the map which fails erratically.

You reach out, fingers clawing at the tip as you struggle to avoid being sent flying away. As your fingers barely graze the edges of the paper, a crate crashes into you, knocking the wind out of you.

With one surprising last burst of energy, you grab the map and pull it towards you. You enter a fetal position as you are flung across the room like a ragdoll. Darkness is quick to consume you. Before it does, you burn the image of the creature into the depths of your mind.

You gain consciousness but for some reason cannot fully wake from the impromptu slumber, nor do you know how much time has gone by. But in that time you replay recent events over and over again in. That thing, erased Draalsar like he was nothing but trash to it. Granted it created Draalsar but to treat him as though he was nothing more than a tool.

Memories from a long-gone epoch flood your mind. Memories of a past life. You remember having a family, having a home, having some sort of importance. But all that was snatched away.

You remember the anguish that came from being made to watch as everything you held dear was forcibly taken away from you. You remember going through hell just to exact vengeance upon all those who made you suffer.

And you did, but that brought no peace to your heart. But then it came along, it had no name nor did it care for one. That gold bastard was responsible for everything. You remember what it told you. You remember everything. And you know what must be done.

Was all this intended by fate? Were those you cared about mere pawns to some apathetic entity because it chose to?

" Fate be damned! " A voice roars from within your subconscious.

You pry off the hands of the abyss and return to the world of the conscious. You find yourself in the middle of a meadow. A small, quaint blanket separates you from the ground. Your weapons are nowhere to be found. That is of little concern to you. You remember many things, one being able to recall any weapon in your arsenal.

You look behind to see the smoking wreckage of the Thunderstrike. You survived, but was it by luck or because IT was deemed for you too? Parts of the former magnificent structure lay scattered around the field. With a flick of an arm, you call back your blades. Three distinct sounds are heard and they reveal themselves. The runes on each glowed with a menacing light.

They barrel towards you, cutting through any piece of scrap that stands in their way, like a hot knife through butter. You let them fly past before grabbing the hilt of the sword, a shockwave indicates your grip is firm. The remaining two shot up high into the sky before allowing gravity to take hold. They descend with the ire of the old gods, igniting into two respective trails of conflagration.

You can't help but chuckle. The memory of when this first manifested. You were but a young knight, surrounded by abominations of the deep and in desperate attention created this particular skill, only it was much weaker and less coordinated than the current one.

The ground is bathed in the mixture of the two different flames as they race toward you. The smile grows sinister as the duo gets closer. With a flick, the flames disperse and the blades sheath themselves onto you.

The wreckage burns, leaving a fiery red glare upon the earth. You scavenge for supplies and find a handful but no bodies. Not even a trace of blood. The region you are in is quite different from what you remember but there are a few resilient landmarks that make things easier.

Let's see what has changed in the last few years.