Nepheli Loux

A/N: Here we are with the first appearance of Nepheli Loux, Warrior!

-x-X-x-

"Be proud. You were a fine warrior. Your only mistake was your choice of master. Let the winds lift you, to a higher place."

When she finishes her words to the fallen soldier at her feet and looks up, he is there, watching her. Nepheli Loux did not miss his approach, but at the same time, she sensed no aggression from him, and so believed that she was fine remaining relaxed. Rightfully so, it would seem, though Nepheli's brow raises at what she sees before her.

Bare-chested, but clothed in heavy leather armor from the waist down, the warrior who's come across her wields two large great axes, one in each hand, even bigger than her own Stormhawk Axes. Tch, in general, he is bigger than her. Much bigger. His muscles seem to have muscles, and she finds herself beginning to trace them with her eyes, before remembering herself and clearing her throat.

To cover up her momentary lapse, Nepheli crosses her arms over her chest, taking a somewhat caustic tone.

"Well, who do we have here?"

When he doesn't immediately answer, merely smiling at her instead, Nepheli sniffs slightly.

"Tarnished, are you? Clearly not one of Godrick's lot, in that sort of attire. Hmph. I am Nepheli Loux, Tarnished and warrior just like you."

He inclines his head in acknowledgment and respect, and Nepheli finds herself instinctively doing the same. Hm, is he mute? He hasn't said a word, and yet… he seems quite comfortable with her all the same. Her eyes narrow slightly, in suspicion.

"I am here by decree of my father. He… didn't send you as well, did he?"

The Tarnished shakes his head in silence, and Nepheli… Nepheli believes him. For a second, the dark-skinned warrior woman had feared this to be a set up of some sort. It was a bit of a coincidence, for her to run across another Tarnished in Stormveil Castle, especially another Tarnished who it would seem had the same fighting style as she did. It would be just like her father to send someone to check on her.

Still, with her suspicion put to rest, Nepheli looks down at the soldier she's slain, sighing as she shakes her head in disgust.

"How utterly repellant all of this is. This… 'grafting' of Godrick's ill befits a Lord. He's tainted the very winds with his actions."

Indeed, the smell is quite strong. She's pleased with the Tarnished nods in solemn agreement, his own arms crossing over his bared, rippling chest as he offers a serious frown. In that moment, Nepheli can tell… this is no ordinary Tarnished. His entire being emphasizes his purpose. He is not here just to challenge Stormveil Castle… he is here to challenge its Lord.

Licking her lips, Nepheli leans forward.

"If you intend to challenge Godrick… I ask that you call upon me to fight by your side. The winds run cold with his deeds. I'm certain father would permit me to aid in the coming fight."

She waits for his refusal, whatever form that might take if he truly is mute as she assumes. She waits for him to look down on her, perhaps because of her gender, or her stature. She is of a warrior's form, but not quite as tall or as broad as him, not quite as well-built.

But no, he does not look down on her, not figuratively at least. Instead, even as he's literally gazing down at her, he's smiling a warm, friendly smile and nodding, offering her hand. Nepheli blinks, a little unused to actually being taken seriously. Back in Roundtable Hold… it's not too bad, but she is her adoptive father's daughter. Being the daughter of Sir Gideon Ofnir the All-Knowing comes with its own challenges and she won't lie, she sometimes feels like the others are looking down on her, as if she's still a kid when she's a woman grown.

Reaching out, Nepheli takes her fellow Tarnished's hand and gives it a good solid shake. As he turns and beckons for her to follow… she does. It's not long before they're reaching the Castle's innermost sanctum. The Tarnished has already cleared the path, taking down every enemy between them and their goal. And so, he steps out into the courtyard and Nepheli finds herself stepping out with him, laying eyes on Godrick the Grafted for the first time.

"Mighty Dragon, thou'rt a trueborn heir. Lend me thy strength, o kindred. Deliver me unto greater heights."

He is… a monster, plain and simple. The Demigod might still have the face of a man, but his grafting has deformed his body into something truly horrific. The sheer amount of Tarnished who have lost their lives to his greed, who's body parts now adorn him… it turns Nepheli's stomach, even as the Lord of Limgrave turns to face them, his eyes narrowing.

"... Well now. A pair of lowly Tarnished, playing as lords. I command thee, kneel! I am the Lord of all that is Golden!"

Far from willing to kneel, the Tarnished she's followed into this battle strides forward, spreading his arms wide, holding his great axes aloft, and looking like… well, quite the arrogant warrior, is Nepheli's first thought. As she clutches at the hafts of her own axes, moving forward more cautiously and trying to flank the Grafted Lord to give them a better chance, she can't help but be a little worried. The Tarnished… IS a skilled and accomplished warrior, right? He was not… her instincts weren't WRONG, were they?

And then Godrick flies through the air at the Tarnished, swinging with his own axe as he howls in rage, and the Tarnished… the Tarnished MOVES. Nepheli's eyes widen, as he easily dodges Godrick's blow and slams those massive great axes straight into the Grafted Lord's side. The scream that erupts from Godrick's lips tells her that her fellow Tarnished has done him great injury right then and there.

Not one to be outdone, her blood already up from just that small exchange, Nepheli leaps in and finds herself doing battle against a Demigod alongside one of the strongest axe-wielding warriors she's ever known. His skill is evident, his strength apparent. The Tarnished cuts through Godrick readily, while easily dodging out of the way of his every blow. Nepheli can barely keep track of the movement, especially when she's so focused on doing her own part.

And then things change. Godrick slams the ground with his foot, making it erupt beneath them and forcing her and her fellow Tarnished back. While he leaps out of the way, she's caught off guard and blasted off of her feet. In an instant, the unnamed Tarnished is at her side, checking on her. It's in that moment of distraction that Godrick makes his move… and cuts off his own hand.

Already grasping her weapons and scrambling back to her feet, Nepheli is dumbstruck for a moment at the sight of a Demigod mutilating himself so blatantly. But before she or the other Tarnished can see the battle rejoined, the Lord of all that is Golden slams his stump into the maw of the dragon he was crooning at upon their arrival. The smaller hands littering his arm reach forward and… what follows is sickening, in the extreme.

"Ahh, truest of dragons. Lend me thy strength. Nnngh! Forefathers, one and all… BEAR WITNESS!"

If Nepheli had felt ill at ease before, she feels like she's going to be sick now. Now and only now, does she fully understand the power behind the Demigod's sick and twisted grafting. As the dragon head grafted onto Godrick's hand comes back to life and roars out a belch of dragonfire, Nepheli freezes up for a moment, unsure what to do.

But then the Tarnished, with his two great axes, leaps right into the air, easily clearing the wave of dragonfire heading their way and gets right back to it. As if this is nothing. As if this changes nothing. As if the sight of Godrick the Grafted utilizing his grafting right in front of them was… little more than a stroll through the grass for him.

In the face of such bravery and courage, how can Nepheli do any less? Taking a page out of the other Tarnished's book, she leaps the flames threatening to reach her and wash over her. Jumping them truly does appear to be the best tactic, even if it puts her back in range of Godrick's dangerous axe. Not that she truly has to worry about that. His attention is wholly on the strange man she'd run into on her way here.

And she really can't blame him. The Tarnished is relentless with those great axes, and the fight… it feels like it's already won, even as Nepheli does everything she can to contribute, slamming her own axes into Godrick's disgusting grafted body again and again. She cuts off more limbs than she can truly keep track of, dodging the flames from the dragon's head on Godrick's arm, and the upheaval of the ground as he stomps again and again… like a child having a tantrum.

She doesn't fall for that again, doesn't let him knock her off balance even once more. And eventually.

"NO! I am Lord of all that is Golden! This cannot… be!"

The Tarnished's great axes slam into Godrick's chest one final time, and the Lord of Limgrave's axe falls from nerveless fingers, as he drops to his knees on the ground there, collapsing. As the Tarnished pulls his massive weapons free, Godrick doesn't have eyes for either of them, instead reaching out with his empty hand to something only he can see.

"One day… we'll return together… to our home, bathed in rays of gold…"

And then he's gone, slumping forward, face down in the mud. He's dead, and Nepheli can hardly believe it. A Demigod… a Shardbearer, defeated. Not by her, not truly… but by this Tarnished. Her father will be astonished and likely quite pleased. When was the last time a Great Rune was held by a Tarnished? When was the last time a Shardbearer fell?

Gazing upon the Tarnished warrior, Nepheli feels a certain heat inside of her. Her blood was already up, pumping through her veins. She wanted… she wanted to keep fighting. But the battle was done. And the only other opponent was the man she'd just fought alongside. She would not raise her axes to him, of course not… but that didn't mean he couldn't take responsibility!

Throwing her weapons aside, the dark-skinned warrior woman jumps the Tarnished right then and there. Catching him by surprise, she takes him to the ground and slams her lips into his, kissing him deeply and passionately, even as she slams her crotch into his as well, grinding their groins together. Fuck, she needed him inside of her! She needed this so fucking bad!

As soon as they come apart for air, though not before Nepheli notes her fellow Tarnished kissing her right back, not at all upset by her forceful proposition, Nepheli growls lustfully down at him.

"Take me! Your victory is complete! Now claim your reward, O' Nameless Tarnished!"

Suddenly, she's up off the ground, as he abruptly stands up with her in his arms. Nepheli yelps, a little surprised by his strength. She really shouldn't be though she supposes, all things considered. Still, she wraps her arms and legs around his neck and waist, as he stomps forward, carrying her away from Godrick's body and out of the courtyard on the double.

They go back to kissing as they move, though it's less kissing and more very aggressive biting and licking at one another's faces, admittedly. She bites at the Tarnished's lip, and he bites her back just as hard, possibly hard enough to draw blood. Their tongues duel, wrestling for domination, and as she'd expected and hoped, it's his tongue that forces hers into submission.

And then they're in the throne room of Stormveil Castle, and Nepheli yelps as he suddenly yanks her away from his body, spins her around, and bends her over the throne right then and there. Heh, so her fellow Tarnished has something of a kinky side to him, does he? Well, she's sopping wet at this point, and frankly can't be bothered to care HOW she's going to get fucked, so long as she does get fucked.

Kneeling on the throne, Nepheli presses herself against its back and spreads her legs as wide as she can, while thrusting her ass out in his direction. Looking back over her shoulder at him, she snarls.

"Do it. Fucking take me, you magnificent bastard!"

Her father would be disappointed, if he heard her talking like this. Sir Gideon had done his best to instill manners and a half-decent vocabulary into his adoptive daughter. But Nepheli didn't care about any of that right now. Her rougher side was coming out, and it was greeted in turn by the warrior blood of this Tarnished. He tears her bottoms away, exposing her ass and cunt to him immediately. In turn, his own cock comes out, drawing Nepheli's eyes and making her breath hitch at the sight of it.

Heh, magnificent indeed… oh fuck yes. He's inside of her a moment later, grabbing her by the hips and slamming home into her cunt with great force and reckless abandon. The throne beneath them quakes with his thrusting, and Nepheli HOWLS as she throws her head back, arching her spine.

"YES! HARDER!"

Harder he does, pounding into her with what she thinks might just be all his might. Her cunt walls clench down hard around his pistoning prick, and Nepheli's eyes roll around in her head as she shudders, her body shaking and jiggling. She has a warrior's body… but also a woman's body. For all that she's toned and fit, she also has soft parts to her.

Soft parts that the other Tarnished takes advantage of now, pulverizing her cunt with his cock, and reaching around to grab and grope her tits at the same time. Nepheli's breath hitches, and then she squeals as he proves to be quite the rough sort, mauling her breasts, pinching and tugging on her nipples. But then… rough, hard, and fast is JUST the way Nepheli likes it, so she can't really bring herself to mind all that much.

Toes curling in pleasure, hands clawing at the back of the throne that, quite frankly, was too small for Godrick to have sat his fat ass in for likely decades anyways, Nepheli lets her voice go. It's just her and her fellow Tarnished after all. No one else is around. No one would have wanted to be close to the Grafted Lord, lest he decide to graft them onto him as well.

With a dead Demigod out in the courtyard, Nepheli exults in being taken from behind by the Tarnished who killed him, crying out in an ugly manner as she climaxes upon his pistoning cock. A moment later, and his seed flows into her, a sticky and warm sensation that leaves the warrior woman shuddering in orgasmic bliss.

As he pulls out of her, Nepheli wastes no time in spinning around and pulling her fellow Tarnished down into another searing, tongue-filled kiss. This time when they pull apart, she's panting heavily, her chest moving up and down with each breath as she looks the silent man in the eye.

"… I hope you'll make your way to Roundtable Hold sooner, rather than later. My father will want to know that a shardbearer has been defeated, if nothing else. And… I'd like to see you again as well."

Smiling softly, almost tenderly in stark contrast with the way he'd just fucked her, the other Tarnished merely nods his agreement. Nepheli isn't sure what it is that she's feeling, as she finally comes down from the post-battle, post-coitus haze that had fallen over her vision. But she has to admit… she kind of likes it.

-x-X-x-

Out of sight, currently in her disembodied state, one would think Melina wouldn't be able to have any sort of bodily function. Given that bodily functions required… well, a body. And yet… the burned and bodyless kindling maiden could swear she feels her eye twitching, her teeth gritting, and her hands clenched into fists all the same.

Nepheli Loux overstepped her bounds! After all Melina had just done to tie her Tarnished to her all the more closely, the warrior had just… had just gone and one-upped her like that! How was Melina supposed to keep HER Tarnished on task with not just damsels to draw his eye, but hussies like Loux to lead him by the member?!

This would not stand. No, this would not stand at all. Melina refused to be outdone, even unknowingly, by someone like Nepheli Loux. Hopefully, this would prove to be a one-time occurrence. Certainly, her Tarnished had not… done anything like this before. Wait, was this her fault? Had she… prompted a certain lust in the Tarnished, in her chosen champion, that had answered Nepheli Loux's own post-battle arousal?

… She would need to keep a closer eye on her Tarnished, going forward.

-x-X-x-

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