Spirits of the Earth

The forests were the darkest here, misty...foggy and grey.  The land was bland in color, even the greens of the trees seemed muted, their trunks, rotting and the dirt seemed pale.  Some places, it was difficult to tell where the marshes turned to bogs, and where the thick, sticky muds turned into grey cut paths into the deep and never ending mourning woods.  The thin streaks of eternal fogs helped to distill the shadows during the day, even muting the sun to keep the world in a perpetual grey haze.  At night, the tall, skeletal like trees stretched up wickedly towards the sky, where the pale moon cast the world beneath it into a ghostly hue.

It was here Rizhra made her home, a single, simply built cabin of wood.  Never a living breathing creature, be it man or beast had found such a home, lest either the witch that lived there, or the foul beasts of prey find your body and slit your throat, tearing your flesh off your skin and licking it to the bone.  Yes, many wicked creatures lurked about, and Sah-lora was well aware of the dangers. Thankfully, most of the creatures moved at night.

Staring up towards the fog-hidden sun, she moved her hood's cloak over her head and pressed onward.  She had a good portion of the day to perform her ritual.  It was time she tried again.


To make an attempt to call the God's.


Last night, against the wicked flames of a brewing fire, her mother brewed an elixir for her child and pressed her on the issue of their freedom.  Since childhood, the seed had been set; that hte God's were their enemy, and if they wanted to be rid of the swamp they were chained to, they had to draw the Gods to them..
and to make them pay.

THe ritual had only been performed one time before, and a seemingly lesser God had arrived. Pressed by her mother's will, the God's life had ended and Sah-lora felt herself appalled to watch the creature burn away as it wretched and fluttered off into crumbles of ash.  She tried not to shiver as she recalled the feeling of death.  She had never killed somethign like a human before, but she trusted her mother and knew she'd have to kill again.

This time, her mother sent her alone.
Though unbeknowest to her, Rizhra was ever watching- having an eye on all things within her domain as she conjured her watching spell within her brewing pot.
They would eat like God's tonight! Rizhra grew excited and tossed a frog into the strew, and the pot frothed as the creature dissolved and fizzled into nothing more.  Stirring, the witch kept her eye on her daughter as Sah-lora pressed onward.


She never liked going this far, to the outskirts of their imprisonment, but the ground was more solid here and she paused to clean off some of the muck from her boots.  It was then she heard a noise. Turning around, blade drawn, she watched as a hawk screeched and took off into the sky.  Sighing, she frowned and slid the blade back into it's scabbard and shook her head.  She was all nerves. But shouldn't she be? After all, it wasn't like every day she was sent to kill a God.

Yes, she had trained for some time for this occasion, and had procured an oppurtunity once. But her nerves kept her fingers sweaty as she itched at her forehead and moved towards the spot.


There was a clearing, a wide mouth of bog that was set amongst jagged cliffs.  Here, she was near the boarder, and as her mother had told her, lest she try to cross to the other side, she'd burn away-.. it was would be certain death. Swallowing hard, she made her way towards the swampy lands, and internally cringed as she had to make her way over towards the rock that lay in it's center.  The bog ran deep, and she found herself swimming int he sticky muck, but soon she arrived at the center stone and threw herself upon it and climbed ontop, leaving a trail of mud in her wake.


Her cloak barely saved her body from the mud that now slicked her flesh, but she ignored it's cold presence as it began to cake to her flesh and proceeded to untie her satchel and went to work.

7 small, white wax candles were set upon simple, ceramic cups. Then a wild newt, produced from her pocket, wriggled and tickled between her fingers as she held it out, cringing before stuffing the thing into her mouth, crunching it hole as the wriggling creature turned into mush and then, swallowed it down her throat. She nearly wretched, and paused, her forearm pressed against her lips as she remained bow.  Waiting for her stomach to settle, she wiped her lips then released a breath.  THe lizard would stay in her stomach for now.
Brushing her gold hair aside, that had fallen out from behind her ear, she moved to unscrew the jar of spiders and began to sprinkle them over the open flames of her candles.
The soft, dieing shrieks of the baby spiders sent chills up her back. But the ritual preparation was hardly over.

She drew out the dagger, the God killer, so it was claimed, and stared at it for a time before moving forward, gently hoovering it over each flame to the count of thirty, then moving onward six more times.
It was then the flames on the candles turned black.


Lora held her breath, and noted the woods grew more quiet.  It was always quiet in the cursed swamps, but somehow, when the candles's flamed turned dark, the silence was even more deafening.
SHe felt her breathing quicken as she moved, throwing back the hood of her cloak as she stared up at the cloudy sky, still hazed over by the natural fog.  STill plenty of daylight. She could get back hom ebefore the monsters were to come..
and hopefully hve this god killed before supper. She'd hate to go to bed with just a squirming newt in her gut.

Another jar came outm this time she placed it in the center, leaving it aside for now as she moved into her bag and drew out a blood soaked clothe. Her fingers, nervous, fought the bindings before the knot came undone and she tossed the bindings aside. then unfolded the clothe to reveal a heart inside.
The heart of a cat.
She swallowed hard and placed the cold, wet organ before her and between the candles, then bowed her head, closed her eyes and began to pray.


The words were barely whispered out of her lips when a wind carried through, lifting through her golden red hair and carrying one of her charms with it.  The feather of a hawk- she needed to wear it, but it had come loose and was catching up and into the air.
Instincts had her grabbing for it, but she missed and tripped over the jar before her, kicking it over and nearly dousing out her flames as she fell over the side and into the bog, only moments before her fist clamped down successfully around her feather....



Then all was cold and dark.




A moment later, she submerged, gasping for breath as she had fought her way through the depths of the swamp. For a moment there, fear had seized her and she thought for sure the swamp would have gobbled her up.  She was catching her breath as seh moved desperately back to the center rock and caught upon the edge of it when she thought hse heard something, saw a shadow move and paused.
Her head darted, looking out into the open fog.
Her body tensed, her lips set...



"Who's there?" she called, her voice echoing into the heavy fog.

The Sanctuary, is just that a sanctuary. One of the few safe places left in all the realities of the vast universe. Anywhere at all is a dangerous place when all of Asgard is your enemy, so how did Raiden become so fortunate? He stole Asgard's most prized possession, The Asgardian Hilt, it was little more then a cylindrical length of metal about five inches long and a three-forth an inch in diameter, but at the command of it's wielder, it could become any weapon at all. Riaden kept it one a pedestal in the main room of the Sanctuary, the only way into the sanctuary was by Raiden, it was one of those places that existed somewhere between the realities. The only time that the blade was not on it's pedestal was whenever a god came to earth, hunting the Hunted.

It used to happen quite often, after all the GrandSouls had placed a price on his head, but as god after god was slain, they realized it was foolhardy, there would be no killing the god of rouges, less of course a GrandSoul came after him, but that would never happen, the clash of power would destroy the entire reality.

Presently, Raiden found himself in the Sanctuary's combat room, training his body. "Reset. Visage Remnant, Krieg god of war." Before too long, he found himself facing a version of the god, it had all of the god's powers, but it couldn't kill him. It was the optimal way to train, he often fought a visage of the higher ranking gods, as they were the more powerful. He had even fought against a visage of himself, that fight went on for what felt like days with no clear victor. He pulled the knifes from his holster, when he felt something from the reality of earth, a power of Asgard, a god had come to earth.

"Nix!" He shouted to the visage and it faded. So he was being hunted again, holstering his knives he walked into the Main room of the Sanctuary and grabbed the Hilt. "Take me to the source of that power." his surroundings began to shift, constantly changing then at one point being surrounded by darkness, eventually he found himself standing in the middle of... Something.

A quick glance around told him that there was no one in the surrounding area, he quickly shifted forms, becoming surrounded by the heavy black cloak, black boots, black gloves, another look around told him that he had picked right, this place was a bog ridden with shadows, if there was indeed a god about stealth would be favorable in this environment. now to investigate what he was standing in.

It was an old Asgardian summoning circle, a botched one, not to mention that there was little power flowing in it. At the best, it could summon a petty god, if there were any left on earth. After another moment's investigation he heard some splashing in the surrounding bog, becoming one with the shadows, he went to investigate, a woman had surfaced in the bog gasping for air, apparently the had fallen in. The good new was that she was not a god, well not entirely, but she definitely felt as if she had the blood of an Asgardian. She could feel his presence, that much he knew as she shouted out into the bog. He soundlessly came out of the shadows opposite of where she was looking, standing at the edge of the bog right above her and removed his hood. "Who's asking"

Braced against the rock, she tensed the moment she saw someone step out from the fog. She didn't know how to explain it, but the noiseless foot steps were not the only things informing her this man was anything but. 

He was a god.

Had the summon worked? Sah-lora hid any confusion on her features with bitterness and frustration.

"A question to answer a question will get you no answers," she retorted, keeping her eyes warily upon him and not daring to move out from the muddy swamp. She wasn't sure of his intentions, or what she felt was real, for his presence felt magnificent, if not a little over whelming for her and made her heart beat fast within her chest.  If he was here as she had summoned, it meant there was only option for them... to fight. Her hands tensed at the blade against her side, now slicked and hidden beneath the mud. She lifted her chin, studying the figure.

"Were you summoned here?" a silly question to ask, but really, what creature would come to such a wretched place, lest a God to sneer at the lowly mortals he had cursed?  The idea made her blood burn, but she held her tongue and kept herself in check while slowly, ever so slowly climbing up on top of the rock, ignoring the candles that became knocked over or snuffed out by the dripping mud.  Lora's eyes were only focused on his.

"Perhaps I was summoned, or perhaps I came willingly. Though given the location I doubt you will believe the latter." Raiden looked around again, something about this place felt familiar. A sinister evil lurked in this forest. Something that wanted him dead ever since he appeared in the bog. The power was everywhere but it was not the woman here with him. He was in danger here he was sure of it. "I felt the power of Asgard and came here. Hoping to kill whatever god had come to earth. Though you are not of Asgard so I ask you this. Why are you trying to summon gods? Though you should know that your summoning circle has grown weak. At best it would only be able to summon a petty god and only if they were here on earth."

He looked over the circle once again. He realized that not all of the circle was Asgardian in design, the was black magicks in it as well. He began to rack his brain. Who would know both Asgard's magic and black magick without being a god. Then it all fell into place, the sinister power, the Asgardian and black magick mix. This was the cursed woods, home, or perhaps prison was more accurate, to Rizhra. Raiden tightned his grip on the hilt. This woman was not Rizhra, but it did not make him feel any safer.

Sah-lora listened to his claims, even his criticism as he bit into her tongue, her body growing tenser and tenser beneath his gaze.  He didn't have to admit he was a god- his ambiguity and arrogance shined like that of the sun.

However, it was not his words she cared for now as she saw his hands move to the hilt of his blade, and in a flash,s he had her own drawn, pointed in his direction as she eyed him up.

"My reasons should be obvious." She shuffled uneasily over her feet, fingers gripping the hilt of her blade. "State your name, being. What godship title do you think you hold?"

And for that matter, what sort of creature was she dealing with? SHe only had so much time, and the camp... her home..

It was so far away..
She had to do the deed quickly, if at all, before the night creatures stirred...

"So you want to kill me. My name is Raiden, I'm the god of rouges." He looked at her weapon, it smelled of rohorka. Rohorka is the ash which is left when a god is forced to die. It is very different than when a god is killed. Becoming rohorka is the same as ceasing to exist. the mind, body and spirit destroyed, even memories and teaching of the god would not be spared. To die like that is simply to leave the reality like you never came in the first place.

He knew, without a doubt, that she could not hit him with that dagger. If she got to close he would simply teleport away. He put the Asgardian hilt in his pocket. Then with finger he drew an "X" over his heart. "Who says that I am not ready to die. This is your mark, all you must do is hit it" though of course when she got close he would grab her wrist and attempt to disarm her.

Sah-lora narrowed her eyes at him.  What was his game, goading her on like this?  Her hands tensed upon he blade. That cocky bastard was going to make her think twice about it, well.. she would not let him have the time.

"I am no fool.  Even God's fear death," she sneered, her boots hesitating across the rock, though she was uncertain how to proceed-
Slice at his face to blind him- or just go in for the kill? The blade wasn't even prepared properly, her blood would still need to be spilled.. as would he..
and the union of blood..
She felt her blood chill, recalling the witnessed account of the lesser god she had stabbed.
Though their fight had been brief... his memory smearing away into charred dust had been burned into her memory ever since.. and haunted her every night.

No, she had to focus..

THis god was going down.
And without hesitation, she rushed across the rock- aiming squarely for the target across his chest when, at the last second, she side stepped and thrust her knife sharply, like a serpent's bite- aiming to strike at his hand.

"If you lived my life, you would understand my reasons." That was when she lunged, aiming for his hand and not his chest. That was her first error. Raiden brought his hand up then down as he clamped on her wrist. He then brought his other hand across and backhanded her, he didn't use an unreasonable amount of force but he was still sure it stung. He then back away. "I said all you had to do was hit the mark, I didn't say it would be easy. Try holding the blade reversed as so it is coming down from your hand. That stance is better for dueling."

Sah-lora's balance was upset, so was her pride, when he back handed her as she slipped across the rock and gripped her blade more fiercely.  Baring her teeth, she eyed up her prey with narrowed eyes as her boots stepped cautiously before him.  And the way he talked!  Her blood boiled beneath her skin as she lunged for him again, the blade striking across the air, aiming to cut across his face, shoulder than chest in great furious of fast and spinning cuts.

God be damned! She'd hit her mark! She'd kill this pathetic excuse for a God and find her revenge!

Raiden expertly dodged out of the way of her blade, backing up and circling around. He was letting her exhaust her energy. "You need to calm down. If you attack in a rage then you use up your energy and become fatigued."  He really didn't understand why he was giving her combat advise, perhaps it was because he wanted to toy with her, or maybe it had something to do with her goal. It was hard to kill gods, and he spoke from experience. Maybe it was something else, something he couldn't foresee. His brother once told him that the god of fate works is the most mysterious of ways. He moved that last thought from his mind, the god of fate is believed to have faded.

His advice only made her all the more agitated as she clenched her dagger tighter and swung a few times, quick motions towards his face. Why wasn't he fighting back? He was merely dodging her attacks and it was infuriating. Was he just toying with her!?


OOC: Sorry the post is short but.. well, not much to write for a reply in combat except the quick motions she's trying to force on him XD~

OOC: it's fine. My posts will be short at times too.

Raiden moved his head back, out of the reach if the first few swipes. She got close a few times, but not close enough to hit him. Finally he grabbed her wrist once again and held it in place. Looking her in the eyes he spoke softly, "what sin was cast against you to make you hunt gods?"

She was caught off guard the moment he caught his arm, mouth falling open.
Then she bared her teeth and fought against his hold. Her sneer grew. He was strong.
"What sins haven't they committed?" she replied, kicking herself loose as she nearly fell away, but soon settled herself and as it was before, she tried cutting at him again.
"Ignorance will only bring you demise!"  and little did Sah-lora know how true her words could be... towards herself!


OOC: XD yeah...
short posts happen! X3

Raiden sighed as he dodged out of the way again. The fight gone on near long enough. Pulling the Asgardian hilt from his pocket he muttered one word. "Claymore" the hilt responded to his command, forming the thick four foot blade. It was lightweight and Raiden could wield it with one hand without his arm quivering. "Yes, ignorance brings death. What gods have you killed in the past?

Sah-lora found herself stumbling the more he dodged, only making her frustrations grow, and at his question, almost offended- for she had, truly only ever killed a single God and even then...
She continued to move against him.
"Stop toying with me!" she finally paused in her assault and reached for her sword, the noise of of the blade cutting through the air as she now wielded both dagger and sword. She twirled her sword and waited, bracing herself if he were to actually attack..
but as she danced in front of him, she was beginning to wonder if he wasn't just the God of Annoyance!

Then, finally she asked,
"You obviously came here with purpose, state your game!" she shouted, but not giving him time to truly reply as she thrust her sword towards his heart.

Raiden intercepted the blades with the claymore then pressed the flat against her shoulder, shepherding  her to the far edge of their little arena in the bog. He then waved his off hand at her. Holding her in place telekineticly. Unforming the claymore, he put the hilt back in his pocket. "I told you my original purpose. I felt the power of Asgard and I came to kill whichever god had come to earth. I've been cast out of Asgard. I am an enemy to the Asgardians. Earth is my home and I fight for my right to stay here. Now I have been in this reality for seven hundred years. In that time I have fought endlessly and killed hundreds of gods. Asgard has named earth a dangerous reality. I'm the only god here."

Sah-lora growled frustratedly, trying to fight her bonds, but she was pressed by his powers and couldn't move.  Then finally, she let out a growl.
"Then perhaps you were simply sent here to die!" she spat, glaring at him as she was completely and utterly at his mercy. Her chest heaved as he breathed and she kept her head held high, but her body, still strained against the powers that bound her.
"If only you'd make it more easier for me to just cut you with my dagger.."s he played, almost a joke, but also a spar-

She would not become a fool by this God. She could now see why her mother hated them so!

Raiden sighed, he didn't expect that she would understand. So he sat down on the rock knowing that she couldn't get free unless he let her free. "I'm going to let you go in a second. I want you to tell me why you are here, in the prison of the witch. And then I don't know. Perhaps you can kill me. To die would be to rest eternally. But I won't die to someone I don't know the name of. I have graced you with my name, perhaps you should do the same." He looked around. If he was resigning his life, he would not die in the gloom. He looked up at the sun then to the surrounding fog. It began to lift and soon it was gone, the sun was not far from the horizon but it would not set for a few hours. He then looked back to the woman, releasing her bonds.

Lora stayed at him with hatefilled eyes, not speaking a single word until she was released, which she was unprepared for as she toppled to the ground, barely catching herself with her hands.  Pushing herself back to her feet, she glared at him and raised her chin up high and informed towards him defiantly, "I am hardly a prisoner of the witch, but her daughter, Sah-lora."  Her eyes appeared as wildly beautiful as her name as she looked at him, the hate inside remaining a distinct smolder as she remained braced, as if at any moment she'd have to defend herself from this man.  But for once, she didn't blindly lash out towards him, only stared at him, wary.

"Sah-lora. Did you know in Asgardian that means god's bane? That's one of the meanings anyway, there are five total depending on how it's used. Tell me, have you ever left this forest? The curse here does not chain you." He drew a small summoning circle on the rock then pushed power into it. Withing seconds an two apples formed at its center, he took one and bit into it then tossed the other to Sah-lora. "Apples from the garden of the Serendipity royal family, sweetest I've ever had." He took another bite from his able.

Sah-lora jumped away as the apple was tossed at her, then glared over towards Raiden.
What was he talking about? Was he trying to trick her? She glared and steadied her sword, which, she still had not put away, only relaxed.  "What are you implying? My mother and I have been imprisoned here by you foolish Gods. And if you think my name means what you say it does, shouldn't you be more wary of where you stand?" She studied him as he ate his apple, but merely adjusted her grip upon her sword.

"Tell me what you care about these woods anyways. You say a god drew you here, there are no Gods that stand before you."

Unless..
hairs stood up at the back of her neck as her eyes swept into the forest.
Was there another god here that she could not sense?
But then again.. her eyes returned to him.

He had mentioned he was a more powerful God, perhaps his presence was so overwhelming he was plannign to trick her while another God stabbed her in the back!
Suddenly paranoid, she glanced over her shoulder, but the only sight that greeted her was the greyness of the decaying woods.


She turned her head back to Raiden and stared at him, still eating his damn apple, hers.. well, it remained in  little recess int he rock.

"Peaga the Genesis of GrandSoul is the one who placed the curse on your mother trapping her here. But that tends to happen when you have sex with one mated to a god, especially Peaga's mate, that Asgardian is psycho. And your name has five meanings, so that would maker you one-fifth god's bane wouldn't it? And finally I said I felt the power of Asgard but it was yor summoning circle, it's Asgardian by nature and design but its been changed with black magicks. Probably the work of your mother." He finished the apple and rolled the core in his palm before it ignited it white fire, one of his divinities, soon not even ash remained and it left a sweet scent in the air.

Lora remained steady with her sword, shifting uneasily on the balls of her feet.
"Why are you telling me this?" she asked, her voice nearly a hiss as she continued to glare at him, if for nothing more than for being confused. "And yes.." she narrowed her eyes. "My mother has taught me everything."  What was this man's real game anyway? Did he just want to talk? How annoying!

"I'm telling you this because everyone deserves freedom until they do something to lose that right. You are not cursed, this wood is not your prison. Have you never tried to leave? Or have you been to something horrid would happen if you did?" Raiden pulled the apple to him then cleaned it off with his cloak before levitating it in front of her, "at least try it."

Her eyes narrowed. Was this man mad? What was he getting at, trying to tell her that her mother had lied? As if she'd believe him! ANd then when the apple was presented, she took her sword and cut it clean through.

"No more talking!" she barked. "You try to deceive me, feed me your poisons than cruelly imply the rights of freedom which you and your kind have kindly spared us from! I will hear it no more!"  And she moved to lung at him again, more viciously with the sword. "I will cut off your tongue, God of trickery!" she mocked and continued her assault while drawing out a black stone- one that, if things got worse, could take her back to Rizhra...
She knew she was out matched here, but the least she could do was try.
ANd what was his game anyways- trying to tell her she was free so he could watch her commit suicide?

Raiden rolled from where he was sitting and swiped Sah-lora feet from under her, grabbing her telekineticly before she could hit the ground. "Now another meaning of your name is brilliantly fooled, you may hate me for it. But I'm going to correct that." With that he took the sword and the stange black stone from her hands, setting them aside before lifting her to the air bringing her along as he walked over the top of the bog and towards the edge of the forest.

OOC: She's totally going to freak out XD
Just saying! <3

IC:
Sah-lora gasped, her body in a freefall and poised in mid motion as she was forced to look at the skyline and the jagged tops of trees. It was then she felt her weapons slip away, and her insides turned cold with fear as a chill and thrill raced up her spine. Her eyes were wide and wild, fearful of what was to come and what he meant by his words when suddenly he was dragging her towards the outter edge of the curse...

Her eyes widened as the familiar black rock and hedges came into view, and fear gripped her heart. She struggled, tried to fight against the force of his powers but was powerless to do anything.
"NO!" She screamed suddenly, becoming frantic as she tried to buck against her invisible bindings, but it was to no avail. She gritted her teeth, fighting and wriggling but still-s he was dragged in mid air behind him.
"LET ME GO! DO NOT TAKE ME TO THE CORNER OF THE SWAMP!" she wailed, her voice echoing wildly across the bog as her eyes became as wide as saucers the closer they became to the edge.


This was it, she thought. I'm going to die...

Raiden stepped out of the cursed grounds, the air felt lighter, not as oppressive. He had yet to bring Sah-lora through so he turned to her and her wailing, speaking through the denzien ability as to speak above her. "You chose to fight gods all of whom with immense power! You should have guessed that one of them would have a power similar to mine. You should have known that this would happen! Telekinesis is not uncommon among gods!" He stepped back another five feet, pulling he over the edge of the curse all the while nothing physical would happen to her. Though it didn't rule out any hysterics on her part.

"You are, always have been, and always will be, free." with that he lightly sat her on the ground, releasing her bonds.

Sah-lora let out a maddening scream the moment he dragged her body over, and it echoed her terror into the air, scaring crows into flight.


......



.............


A moment later she opened her eyes, heart beating near out of her chest before she looked at Raiden, panic and confusion and some relief welling in her eyes.
Then she was dropped to the ground, and there she sat for a good long moment, before madness took over and she lept to her feet.
"YOU, GOD OF TRICKS!" She cried, slipping out a dagger from her sleeve. It was small, and nearly invisible as she slashed at him.  "YOU TRIED TO HAVE ME KILLED! NOW YOU PLAY GAMES IWTH ME!"

It was too hard to accept what was going on, but her legs, feeling weak, still pressed her forward with ferocity as she remained- bent on cutting him to shreds. but the idea.. where she was...
It was madness and too hard to comprehend!

Raiden saw a quick glint of metal, though it wouldn't mean much with what he was about to do. He grabbed he assaulting hand and turned so his back was facing her while her arm was over his shoulder, he then proceeded to throw her over his shoulder slamming her back against the ground. In halves of seconds he was upon her, his hand pinning her arm, one knee pressed into her belly and the other precariously over her throat. "Now you listen to me and you listen well. The only person casting trickery and deceit is the woman whom you claimed as mother. You were not nor were you ever cursed by Peaga's wrath. If you can't accept that then by all means returned to that damned forest and spend the rest of for life there, praying for and preying on any god you can find, but I can guarantee that there will be no gods as long as I am breathing. Or you can accept that fact and try to live a life that was stolen from you. About two-hundred and fifty paces in the direction I brought you is a path through this forest, if you follow the path that leads downhill for ten minutes at a brisk pace, you will come to a tavern. If you decide on the latter, I will be there for three days. You have till then to decide. I can show you freedom, freedom that has not been allowed to you till now, but the choice is yours." With that his surrounding began to shift until he was outside the tavern he mentioned. He could have brought her along but it wouldn't have made the same point.

Once inside he sat at the bar. "I need a stiff drink and a room, perhaps two of each but I will let you know later." The tavern keeper nodded to him, she hadn't expected to see anyone today, her tavern was on a road less traveled, and that's how she liked it.

Sah-lora collapsed onto the ground after he left, uncertain what it all meant and feeling very violated as if she was used. Her heart was also nearly in her throat as she turned onto her side, staring at the black rocks she had once feared her whole life and slowly hot tears came to her eyes.


Damn that God!
Damn him and his bag of tricks!
He probably only lifted her curse enough to toy with her so when she was far enough away, he'd return it and watch her flare up into dust.

However... if this God wanted to play...


Upset and Angry, Sah-lora dragged herself off of the floor and began to gather up her things, finding the remnant of hte sliced apple on the ground. She picked it up curiously, smelling it...
It smelled divine and tickled her senses and found herself almost sinking her teeth into it..
Before pulling it away as her lips snarled.
She was about to chuck the thing back into the swamp, only to find herself pausing and staring at it with a hand extended.


Perhaps...
what if.. by chance...

He was right?
She stared at the apple for a very long time.
But even if he was not..
why did the God even care to toy with her?
And if Gods were evidently as powerful as he..
Why was she born and raised to kill them?
She pocketed the apple, feeling like a fool before recalling the man's direction and making hot pursuit.


She had thought she had become lost when she found the inn, pausing several yards away to study it as she set her jaw, feeling her pride swell within her chest before she pushed the doors open and stepped inside, only to find the damn God sitting in  lonely room by himself.

SHe approached, boots heavy on the wooden floors.

"If this is some sort of cruel spell,"s he began, pointing an angry finger at him when she smelled something- the stench of real food as her hand went to her gut, the stench so overwhelming. "Gods.." She pressed a hand, supporting herself on the back of nearby chair. "What is that God-awful stench?"

she had never tasted beef stew before.. nor could fathom the smells of beef...
Even as her mouth salivated, her nose knew not what to make of this as she turned her attention from the massive kettle cooking the stew towards Raiden as she bared her teeth at him.
Was he out to deliver her a new curse or something!?

"You will *not* deceive me!" the woman screamed, turning towards the kitchen and kicking the bubbling stew over...

Beef and remnants of onions, carrots, potatoes and the like spilled onto the floor as a hot mess as Sah-lora stood there, nose to the air as she defiantly approached the god, slamming her blade into the table.

"You're not a God! But some petty witch!" she spat, thinking she had him pinned for something more powerful, but clearly he was just some deceitful old warlock, wasn't he!?

Raiden stood, ignoring Sah-lora fore the moment, and went up to the inn keeper. "I apologize for her outburst and the loss of your stew. If there is anything that can be done to make up for it then by all means let me know," the woman just shrugged and went into the back room, apparently it was not worth making a fus over. He then walked back over to his table and sat down.

"You need to understand that you are in a world of humans not gods. And while most gods care only for themselves, humans do not. Mankind in general is capable of great good if you let them. But if you curse them for their kindness then they will curse you." He took a sip of his ale, holding it in his mouth before swallowing. "That which you kicked over was a gift from the inn keeper, I mentioned that someone might be coming and she started to make it. It was a beef stew, beef is a very expensive meat that is very hard to come by. That" he motioned to the stew strewn all over the floor, "was her kindness. And you cursed her for it. Perhaps you aren't so different from the gods you want to slay?"

Yanking her blade from the wooden table, she pointed it towards his throat.
"What are you talking about!?" she growled. She knew not of any social etiquette and there fore, appeared unimpressed by his explanation. "Why would anyone do that?" she hissed. She was growing impatient and held her breath where it was, but did not strike.

OOC: Sorry it's short D:

Raiden took another drink. "To understand why that woman would make a stew from expensive foods for people she doesn't even know would be to define her upbringing, her beliefs, her feelings and so many other little things. But most importantly it would be to understand her. Humans are vastly different from gods. Most of them are motivated by kindness and wanting to please others. They are known to fight and die to defend the rights of others. They believe in the good of others. That kindness which the woman displays is quite normal."

Raiden stood and pulled the chair out for her. "Do tell me. Why did you come here? If it was to hunt me then go ahead and say it. But I feel you have another reason. Do you mind telling me that reason? Also are you perchance hungry?

Lora glared at him, keeping the damned knife pointed towards his throat, but the God hardly seemed phase! And again, his words, they confused her before her hand, shaking with rage, was suddenly dropped.
"I came here to ask you to remove whatever spell you've placed on me that can allow me to walk within this mortal realm." She looked around as if disgusted, but also, rather curious of the small but humble in, a few things were draped about that she hardly knew what they were and the fact there were so many tables in one room was disturbing..
Did that mean a lot of people gathered here? And, by the smell of it, to gather here and eat!?
And what did he mean by kindness? It made no sense to her the way he presented it as she snarled at him.
"Get to your point on all of this. If you're here to simply toy with me, get it over with. I took your bait. Now set me free of your curse." She growled.

Really, she couldn't understand a thing! None of what he was telling her made any sense, for she knew only the life professed to her, tuaght to her by her mother..
and by a world revolved around fear and the swamp..

Raiden sighed, she had missed the point, but now he had an idea. "The spell which I have cast on you can only be broken by you and the ways to break it are tied to you name." he stood from his seat and picked up the remnants of the stew telekinetically, moving it back to the pot, and onto the counter. In all it took all of twenty seconds to get the mess cleaned up. "As I have told you, your name have five meanings. Well there are three ways to break the spell. Continue being Sah-lora, brilliantly fooled, return to your woods and forget everything that has happened today, life will soon be back to normal and I will never bother you again. Or you can be the third meaning of your name, resounding freedom, leave your past behind and make a new life, a new start, a new beginning, I will guide you in this world until you feel you can fend for yourself, after which gods will not play much of a role in your life. Or, "he walked over and stood in front of her, slowly reaching for her hand holding the knife before bringing it to his throat and holding it steady there. "You can become God's Bane, and kill me. It will be the single hardest thing you will have ever done and you may die in the attempt. Not long after I have fallen, other gods fill return to earth, and you can slay them too." he let go of her hand and walked away, to the small fire.

"Ultimately, the choice is yours, but know that night has fallen and I doubt those woods are safe at night. So for tonight I invite you to stay in your own warm bed in a room with a door that locks from the inside and a breakfast waiting for you in the morning as long as you don't kick it away." With that he went and sat down. taking another sip of ale.

OOC: He should not have given her a choice <3
but it's more FUN this way X3
Sadly, it's going to take some time to trust lol

IC:

THis man was making no sense, and now he mocked her by admitting he was toying with her. This, unfortunately, only made her more confused as she scowled at him, but watched, with some interest, as he cleaned up the stew.
She couldn't admit his powers were.. intriguing, but he was trying to force her to turn against her mother, her mother, the only thing hs ehad in her life all of this time and here...
here she was being dragged away, kicking and screaming- or rather, following with some interest, as a man tried to bait her with his game.

"And why, if your words are true," she began cautiously, not lowering her weapon. "Why Would you even care of my fate to begin with? if not to toy with me? Why come now..." SHe narrowed her eyes, but there was the hint of doubt wavering within.

Though, perhaps her question was already answered behind the meaning of her name..
It meant God's Bne and...
resounding freedom?
It made little sense to her! Seriously!? WHat was his game! He was going to drive her into madness!

"I was raised not to trust Gods." she told him. "That they are the bane's of our existence."  She cringed, but kept her eyes upon him.  "I'm not going to just start trusting you now."

But again..
the doubt was far too clear....


ANd a part of her had to wonder...
even if this was a cruel trick... what would it feel like to be... free?

Raiden looked up at her from where he sat, "I am not gifted with omnipresence or omniscience, So until I felt the presence of your spell today, I had not known of your existence. But I knew Roaka the Usurper and his mate Rizhra, only because Roaka was originally with Peaga of GrandSoul. When Peaga found out of his treachery she thrust him at me and I killed him, he wasn't the first god I had killed, while she cursed Rizhra. Peaga is the Genesis, goddess of creation and beginnings, she wouldn't have curse you, a baby, because you were something she represented. I don't know what happened after that, I don't know your reason for hatred of gods though I don't blame you. But the fact of the matter is that you were never cursed, fate is what crossed our paths.

"As I said before I believe that all deserve the right of freedom until they do something to lose it, but it seemed to me that your freedom had been denied of you. Call it atonement for the sins of my past or call it me being a meddlesome god that wants things his way, I really couldn't care which, but I wanted you to at least have the choice as to your future. So you have three options before you which was the best I could do. Go back to your old life, start a new, free life, or become what it seems you were raised to be. A god hunter.

"Whatever you choose, I will abide by, if you choose to return to the old, I will never bother you again. If you want to start new, I will guide till you feel you don't need it. Or if wish to kill me, I will fight with you till one of us lay slain. The 'spell' that I have cast is called freedom of choice, and only you can break it because no one can decide for you. This has been my game, what I have been playing at. I had this spell on me a long time ago, my choice cast me from Asgard. But my choice was my own and I would not change it if I could."

Sah-lora only stared at him, not certain how to respond. His words were long winded, and again, due to the trying length of it, she felt as though he were still toying with her, but would not deny the intrigue.

Lowering her weapon with a grunt, she started, "And suppose I play your game. What fool would I be when the spell is done? You speak of blasphemy on both sides. If I was an ignorant force towards the Gods, why would any God care about it now?"

Raiden looked at her plainly. "I am cast out of Asgard, home of the gods, Their will in not mine, and my will is my own. In short, I am literally my godhood. I am Raiden, the God of Rouges." His golden eyes were calm and unwavering.

Sah-lora's face fell, almost as if she had accepted her defeat.  Was he truly just some outcast? She could see why, and kept a stern gaze upon him.
"Suppose I humor you.."s he began, though didn't want to say much more, setting her jaw sternly at him.  "I know nothing about this world you want to so eagerly thrust me into."

The poor stew could attest to that!

"All I ask, is that you make a choice that you can life with, that is my game and if you play for yourself, as yourself, it's impossible to lose. You should take the night to think and give your answer in the morning. That is when the game will be over. But for now, you have another choice to make. Are. You. Hungry?" A smile spread across his lips. He was happy that she decided to choose her own destiny. Though he had more or less forced her hand, but sometimes people needed a little push. He half pondered if what he had done could be defined as little.

Sah-lora narrowed her gaze before angrily taking a seat opposing him as her pale eyes pierced through the space between them.
Now being sat, she threw off the hood of her cloak, exposing her muddied face and hair, hair that had become wild and untamed from the winds and rain and the adverse affects of travel.

"I had a newt in the swamp," she said curtly, as if that would answer his question, though in truth, she was curious of this thing called... beef.  It smelled good and bad all at once, but she couldn't deny she was famished, after all, she had gone through a lot in the small time she had met this man.

"Hmm. Give me a moment." He traced a summoning circle on the table and used the Asgardian hilt to form a wide basin pan. Having placed the cast iron pan over the circle, he pushed power though it. As with everything, it took a moment, but soon a large cut of beef formed in the pan, it came from some nobleman's kitchen, Raiden doubted the nobleman would miss it. Then using the divinity of fire in one hand and the pan over the other, he began to cook the meat right in front of her.

By the time it was finished, even his stomach was growling. While gods technically didn't need to eat, he had developed the habit since coming to earth. He got a plate from the bar and moved the mass of meat to it, turning the pan to a carving knife. Soon the beef was cut into this slices and, through the use of several more summoning circles, there was bread and fruits and even cheese.

"Try the food with an open mind, I guarantee it will taste better that way."

Sah-lora watched with interest, and an almost innocent expression worn on her face, like that of a child. Though there was evidence of her interest, there was also still the uncertainty brewing there- but still, she fell to the graces of the smell and admired the heavenly food before her.

"And if it were poisoned.." she hesitated, though her fingers and tongue itched to try the food. It smelled divine, but she stared at him, still wary.

OOC: So untrusting XD

Raiden raised his eyebrows, looked down at the food then back up at her. "If it were poisoned, then we will die peacefully." He started with some meat and cutting two thin slices of bread, putting the meat in the bread then cutting a few pieces of cheese to top it off. Biting into the savory, juicy meat, a smile spread across his face. He purposely said "We" but he wasn't sure if she would catch that.

Sah-lora still remained wary, but her face slowly softened as she watched him eat and her stomach twisted with a greedy hunger.  Finally looking down at the food, she grabbed for some bread, tasted it, sampling and and swallowing it careful and slow-
It tasted alright but...
When she got to the meat..
If it weren't entirely against her character, should have moaned out loud at the sensation filling her mouth.
At first she felt repulsed by the texture, but then quickly and eagerily was gobbling it up, sucking the juices from her fingers as she helped herself to some more..
ignorant of her companion as she hungrily feasted on the food.

Raiden's smile widens as Sah-lora begins to eat, "eat slow and chew thoughtfully, you will enjoy the food more and get to eat more." He took another bite from the sandwich he made for himself, it was really good, better then food had been in the past. A lone thought crossed his mind, the food is better because you are sharing it with someone. He shook his head, still smiling. If he hadn't killed the god of attraction many years prior, he would have felt they were being watched.

"Try the bread, meat and cheese together."

In her brief moment of bliss, she had forgotten the God was there.
but then he spoke,a nd her eyes pierced angrily over towards him as she finished licking at her fingers but hesitantly..
She seemed to obey, picking up some bread, then cheese, then beef.. pressing them together before putting them into her mouth..

Well the God's be damned...
If this was a bought of trickery, at least she was enjoying it.
Begrudgingly, she devoured the food and went for her cup- only to realize she wasn't sure what strange liquid filled it as she eyed it skeptically, then looked over towards him.
"And I suppose this strange smelling water has a name, too?" she asked dryly.

Raiden shrugged taking a sip of his own, "It's called many things, Ale, Brew, Drought, Beer, though since it's your first time drinking it I would be careful, too much of it has some side effects. If you want I can purify it to springwater but you should try it first." He left out the fact that it is an acquired taste, who knows, her father is a god, perhaps she has already acquired it.

Sah-lora eyed him warily, as she was getting well known for, and slowly lifted the drink to her lips. Downing it, she wrinkled her nose, nearly choking about it as she looked down at it- a soft buzz already going to her head. She had drugs that stung like this drink before, and turned to him, throwing the beer at his face.
"It's poison!" she shouted, not realizing how ridiculous she sounded before she slammed the cup down and made her way hastily towards the door.
She knew he was up to no good!

OOC: XD I couldn't resist...

OOC: Why?! Why?! WHY DAMNIT!! DX They were finally getting along somewhat!!

IC:

"Now just hold on just one damned minute. I warned you about the drink and even offered to purify it for you. If you come back over here you will see that I am drinking some ale myself. In cities and large townships, ale is a very common drink because drinking water is hard to come by is such places, I suggest trying to get used to it." And if she didn't stop, oh well, it was her choice to make. Nothing really he could do to change that.

OOC: <3 he probably should have chose to let her kill him! *giggles* After all, her naivety and trust issues might kill them both XD

Also this amuses me terribly! YOU HAVE NO IDEA LOL! X3

IC:
She paused with her hand upon the door handle, and glared at the god haughtily over her shoulder and gave him a pretty scowl.
"Warned me or not! I'm not trusting a God!" she cried, then walked out the door, slamming as she stepped out into the streets as a massive gust of wind unsettled her hair. She shielded her face nd stared down the long road ans the darkening skies.

A storm was brewing, it's presence, ominous. She swore beneath her breath and moved hastily away from the Inn, lest that man inside drive her crazy!
God or not, she was reeling from all that was taken in and she barely made it a few blocks away before slumping against the trees as the first burst of lighting drew in the first buckets of rain.


After a while, when her tears were cooled off thoroughly from the rain, she wiped at her face and moved to press onward, fully seeking to hide back into the confines of the swamp with her mother- despite all of the confusing freedoms around her.

Damn that God! Damn him to Hell for confusing her!
but then she paused on her way, only beginning to realize what this all meant as she shivered, rain soaked and still crying.

Raiden slumped in his chair, she made her choice. she left, to return to her old life. He leaned his head back on the chair, "Well Raiden," he said to himself, "You try to do right for once in your life and it turns against you. Why didn't I just kill her when she attacked me."

"Yes. Why didn't you?" Raiden was fast on his feet, blades drawn. There was someone here with him, was it an Asgardian? He hadn't felt the power of Asgard, but that didn't rule out one god. Gaiden the StormWeaver of GrandSoul. "It just would have been another life, another bit of Asgardian blood spilt, it's not like you hadn't killed hundreds of gods." the disembodied voice continued.

"Show yourself Asgardian." Raiden replied to the room.

"As if! Though you should know that this storm is not natural. It will get worse and worse and anything not prepared for it will probably die, most unfortunate for that poor demigod, if only she trusted you."

There was no doubt about it, it was Gaiden. "Pray we don't meet ever again you fucking waste of oxygen for I will kill you." And he was out the door after her.

"I doubt you will outcast, you wouldn't do it the first time."

OOC: PLOT TWIST!!! MWAHAHAHAHAHA

OOC: Please excuse me for LOVING bickering relationships XD~

IC:
The winds were unrelenting, growing stronger by the minute as she pressed onward, hoping to forget about everything she had seen and done.  THe food, she still bet, was poisoned, or drugged at best, and her demeanor, shattering with each hopeless step.
The roar of thunder and lighting startled her with it's ferocity as she tried to take cover in the local woods, only for the tree behind her to become cracked by a stray bolt of powerful lighting..
Whirling around, she could only stare in dismay as the massive tree was heading straight for her, illuminated by the second break of lighting that hissed over head...

Damn that Bastard. Damn the StormWeaver. Damn the GrandSouls. Damn himself for not making her stay. Raiden ran as fast and as hard as he could, fearing that he could already be too late. Lightning struck hard and fierce all around him, pressing him forward. As lightning stuck a tree ahead of him and began to fall, he caught a glimpse of her before the blinding darkness swallow the light. He was next to her when the second bolt lit the sky. He pciked her up and looped her arms around his neck and holding her up by her legs. "For the love of all things good! DON'T LET GO!" He screamed over the roar of the rain, sprinting away as the tree crashed down behind him.

It wasn't a hard request to follow, as she was scooped up and away, heart nearly fluttering and pounding outside of her chest as she clung to him, eyes wide as a cats.  The tree then struck the ground with such a force she cringed, clinging to the God more desperately as the world spun around her.

Then, after a moment, she realized what was going on and gave a start.
"You just.." was all she began to say, when a mean strike of lighting cracked over head and a terrible howl was heard.
Turning her head, she saw, there, off in the not too distant horizon against a flickering of more bright yellow lighting light, was a terrible cyclone tearing across the earth...
And heading right their way!

And it was a terrible force- one that..
yes, it seemed to-...
it was roaring towards them, the winds almost carrying a face as the beastly tornado roared..

"BRING BACK MY DAUGHTER!!" the cyclone roared. "OR FACE MY WRATH, WRETCHED FALLEN GOD!"
And the tornado lurched towards them, with a power of a thousand horses thundering it across the world as winds ripped apart the trees, devouring up the earth...

and Raiden and Sah-lora were next!

There is a reason earth is listed as a dangerous reality, a reason which is not entire the fault of a fallen god, a majority rest with him, but the rest belongs to the Witch Rizhra, she can't be killed by gods so she was cursed to the woods when she crossed a line. Those chains seem to be wearing down.

Raiden continued to run, but he brought the back of his hand to face the cyclone, a clenched fist save for a lone extended middle finger. "To Sanctuary." he breathed. It all of a sudden was quiet and dark. The weight on his back told him the Sah-lora was still with him. Soon light flooded in and they were in the main room of the sanctuary. He collapsed to the floor, panting heavily. "Welcome... to the.... Sanctuary... one of the few.... safe places." he just laid there, content that he was alive.

OOC: last post for the night

When her world melted away, she found herself staring in awe at the beautiful world around them. Everything seemed bright and perfect, save for the panting breaths and bodies of the two beings lying on the floor within.  Slowly, she pressed herself onto her hands and stared around, crouching at Raiden's side as she stared in owe.

So many feelings over whelmed her from this place and all she could ask was..
"What is this place?"
It was almost too perfect, too surreal to bare.

Raiden rolled onto his back and soon he was breathing normally. Looking around, it seemed they were in the garden. "We are in the the Sanctuary, the Sanctuary garden to be exact. The Sanctary is a place that only I can get to, you are here because I brought you with me. It exists outside of time and space, years could pass here and only seconds pass on earth. It is what I want it to be because it is attached to my soul. I don't expect you to understand all of that, it took me a while to understand it, but you asked so there is the answer." He sat up and looked to the sky. It went on forever then ended in overcast skies.

Sah-lora couldn't help but be enthralled. This place was ethereal, and a sense of peace overwhelemd her as she drew a hand to her breast and slowly raised herself off of the ground.

"So.. this is where God's go when they're hiding away.."
the idea was spoken listlessly, even a bit uncharmed as she frowned at it. She was so completely confused by all of this, she knew not what else to say..

Especially when it was only now she was beginning to wonder...
if not part of her world, as it be..
were conducted over lies...
Though no..
that could not be it.

Her mother would not lie to her for her entire life, could she?
Her mother must not have realized not all Gods were bad and that... well, perhaps the curse did not extend to her child...

But the ferocity of the winds..
Rizhra..
that was her mother coming for them.
She bit into her lower lip, but could not suppress her frown.

"It still makes no sense why you'd care what becomes of me."s he said, turning around to him. "Have you something against my mother?"

"I suppose you could say that. Though not all gods have a sanctuary. I'm one of five actually. Myself, the three GrandSouls, then the god of fate. Though most say he faded." He started to doubt that. Most things that happened today were not merely chance. He slowly picked himself off the ground. He looked over to her and smiled.

"I'm a god. It's my nature to meddle. But to be honest, freedom of choice affects us all. Today when I met you, I had a choice. My choice was to make it so you can choose. When you left that inn, I was going to let you go. But that storm was not natural, we were being watched by a GrandSoul, a GrandSoul that I could have killed a long time ago." He crossed his arms over his chest, it wasn't a defiant guesture, he just didn't like to talk about his past. It was a part of him, but it was not something he was particularly happy about, his brother betrayed his trust. And now it seemed that he had returned to torment him for it.

He looked over at Sah-lora. "If you still want to go back. I will take you."

Sah-lora only stared at him, politics of Gods so complex only served to confuse her. She still didn't understand his game. Then, at his suggestions he merely shrugged.

"I am not sure what I want. Your goal, so it seems, is to destroy any sense of knowing about this world I have." Though she hesitated, then nodded. "Perhaps it is wise to just return me to the woods.." she finally said, sighing as if defeated.
She did, after all, know no other life.

Raiden nodded solemnly, he would not try to alter her decision. Reaching out a hand to her. "You can't leave the sanctuary without my help. So take my hand and I will take you home." Back though time and space they found themselves outside the black stones. It was still raining but it was a natural rain

"Some decisions can be altered, if you decide that you want to know what's out there, I said I would be at the inn for three days. Beyond that, try the circle again, I'll know if you do." Was he starting to care about her? Since the tournament, he hadn't really care for anyone but himself. He had gone on a war path against gods then all that was left were the painfully mortal humans. But she was part Asgardian, and she was different from them. The sound of boots on dirt distracted his thoughts.

"That's sweet Raiden, it really is. It's almost like you care for her." Sure enough. There was Gaiden in his war form. Gold plate armor and short swords, his gold eyes glinting from the darkness. "We have a score to settle litte brother. The final round of the tournament was inconclusive. One of us has to die." Raiden pulled knives from his sleeves.

"Sah-lora, run. RUN!"

Sah-lora felt numb as they melted back to earth- the world, much colder and greyer here. And then there was the rain, as solemn as the face she now wore as she frowned and looked at him.

"I do not know what will become of me.I told you, this is the only life i know. I have no reason to question it." even though, as she said it, she had much to doubt for it.
Turning away, she was shocked to find another man, and sensing his presence, knew, for one, he was a God.  Sah-lora only hesitated, remaining behind Raiden as her eyes narrowed and she stated, in almost a hiss, "Another God..." and one of her hands went to her weapon, drawing her sword.

Raiden shifted his head to look at Sah-lora fear in his eyes, fear for her. "At worst." He whispered, "he is as strong as I am. He is ruthless. He will kill you. Please, don't get near him." With that he turned back to his brother. The god's eyes were wild. It was about to begin. But now they were sizing one another up.

Raiden made the first move, teleporting behind the GrandSoul and leaving two knives in his back, then to his side leaving knives in his kidney and liver, doing the same for his other side. Then to his front leaving a knife in the chest cavity. The first attack took three seconds though it wouldn't kill him unless he removed one of the knives without a proper healer nearby.

Gaiden was quick to act, using his swords to pop the hilt of each knife before coming after Raiden. But it was a feint. Hu lunged for Lora weaving the sword under her guard. "NOO!!" Raised teleported in front of the blade and Gaiden ran him though.

"Your so predictable brother." A vicious smile spreading across his lips.

"So are you" Raiden muttered, reaching forward and grabbing his shoulder, stabbing him in the throat once, twice, thrice. Over and over until the god fell dead. The entire fight was less then a fourth of a minute. The sword still run through his body, Raiden turned to Sah-lora "do you perchance know healing magic?" A grimace spreading across his face.

Sah-lora watched in horror as the fight unfolded, too quick to count and merciless none the less- though when Gaiden suddenly turned towards her, movement quicker than light- she hadn't expected to find herself simply standing there, staring at the God with a blade through him.
Stumbling back, she stared at him in dismay.
"You idiot! What did you think you were doing!?" she shouted, though wouldn't deny she was thankful to be alive. "You just.." her voice cracked, tears breaking in her eyes as she shook her head.
Then she blinked, looking down at the other God, then to him.
"Is he dead?" she asked in a whisper, lips trembling then at his comment about healing abilities she simply shook her head, her damn lips unable to stop.
"I.. I was never taught. I don't know." she said, staring at him hesitantly, and his blood.
"I never knew god's could bleed,"s he stated, before raising her eyes to his.
"How do your kind heal?" she found herself both mesmerized and concerned. But still, she was afraid to touch him-

This was all too very surreal as she clutched a hadn to her chest, dropping her sword in shock.

OOC: I Hope this post makes sense XD posting while watching a movie can be hard XD

Raiden looked down at the wound, he was indeed bleeding a slow trickle of Ichor, golden blood. "Yes, he is dead. Soon his body will fade away. Gods just call the act fading. And normally I would pull it out and that would be the end of it. But he hit a vital point and I can't heal that myself. As long as I don't pull the sword out I will live. If you don't know healing magic then I need fresh water. Is there a spring nearby." The pain was disorienting, he shook his head to clear it.

The sign of his blood type made her lips curl back, her stomach twisted as she looked up to him.
"Water?" she looked confused, then looked around them.
"There,"s he pointed back wihtin the cursed swamps. "There's a small stream over there." Frowning, she looked back towards him and realized..
she hastily put her sword away, offering a shoulder.
"Here, let me help you." It was the least she could do, as she began to long walk across. He was heavy, and never did she expect to find herself paired off with a God, of all things and well..
trying to save his life.

Then again, he had just saved hers...

"Thank you" was all he could manage now, the pain growing more severe with each step. When the arrived at the small stream, it was just that, small. He picked up some water telekineticly, even using power hurt, then quickly pulled out the sword and filling the wound with water. "In Asgard. Our most common liquid is called nectur. To us it's like water. But to humans and demigods, it's a drink that can heal wounds. Well earth's water is our nectur, it heals us. As soon as the wound closes, I should be fine." The healing was going slow, but the wound was a grave one.

As they settled beside the stream, Sah-lora found herself staring after him at worry.
"So mere water from earth is that powerful to Gods?" she couldn't help but breath a laugh through her nose.  "It's hard to believe some man who can puppeteer a simple mortal can be cured, ever so slowly by the trickling of our streams." She couldn't help but be smug over it-
It was the first time she seemed to be understanding something- but what? Even she couldn't say.

Staring at his wound, she frowned.
"I bet that hurts like hell."S he rubbed at the back of her neck and sighed,a nd it was then, she paused, feeling something dark grip inside her belly and causing a chill to ripple up her skin.

Sah-loooooooraaaaaaaaaa... the voice breathed.
She shivered, staring over her shoulder and felt the entire cursed forest pulsate with a dark aura.
Sah-loooooooraaaaaaaaaaa.. it came again.

Rizhra was awake..
and she was more than angry.

"We need to go.."S he said, lifting herself up off of the ground. "My mother..." her eyes turned towards Raiden, but it was already too late..
For there was Rizhra was already there, appearing in a whisp of black snakes of smoke. Stepping out from the mirage, she appeared, tossing back her dark robes as she stared done at the god with menacing hate.

"You dare step onto my turf, foolish God," the witch spoke, slowly approaching.
Unbeknowest to her, Sah-lora found herself stepping between them- a notion that did not go unnoticed by her mother.
"Ah, Sah-lora.. how.. interesting of you to return." She smiled darkly at her daughter, the smile sending a chill to Lora's bones.  The woman stood her ground.

"What do you want, Rizhra?" Sah-lora asked.
"I came here to see..." she said simply.
"To see what?" her daughter asked, shifting her weight.
"To see you kill a God."

Raiden looked at the witch without fear even though he was quite likely to die right now. He wouldn't be able to use his power well until the wound healed. He placed his hand on Lora's shoulder. "All life, is a choice. Do what you must." He gave her a reassuring squeeze. His life was in her hand. Looking back to Rizhra, he got on his knees, resigning himself to his fate.

At her mother's request, her eyes narrowed, raising her arm to place between.
"Then you came here to see nothing."Sah-lora told her defiantly.

Rizhra raised a brow, then stared darkly over towards the God, black lightning flickering off her form.

"You.." she growled, but Lora stepped between again.
"This isn't bout him." She growled.
Rizhra stood back, raising her head as she stared at her child.
"Then what is it about?" she asked.
Sah-lora wavered a moment, before taking another step forward.
"It's about stepping outside of those rocks."
Rizhra glanced over towards them, glaring at them narrowly before hissing towrds her daughter, then towards the blasted God.
"YOU! YOU TOOK HER OUTSIDE THE CURSE!?" Rizhr roared, lunging towrds him when her daughter caught her by the arms.
"No, he took me outside your curse." Lora growled, pushing her mother back.
Surprised, her mother drew back.
"What do you mean?"
Lora's eyes narrowed.
"Tell me the truth about the curse.." Sah-lora pressed.
Her mother simply hissed, and vanished against a breath of black wisps.
Sah-lora's face fell, then wrinkled into anger as she stared out into the grey area she had, for the longest time called her home.
ANd it was her mother's simple actions that finally made her realize...


Her whole life had been full of lies.

"We need to get out of here,"S he said quietly. "Before she comes back for you."

Raiden nodded, his wound had yet to finish healing but he would be able to move more freely then before. "To answer you question from before, yes it hurts, quite a bit. But it's not the first time I've been hurt like this. That's basically how I know how to heal it." He began to walk slowly towards the black rocks. Today had a lot of interesting twists. "That was very brave of you. There are gods which would shy away from the witch. It makes sense that the fourth meaning of your name is Without Fear." His back began to straighten until he was walking tall. Once across the rocks he turned back to Lora.

"Thank you."

Sah-lora glared at him, feeling her blood growing hot.

"I don't need your thank yous, nor your lectures." she stated simply, ignoring his gaze as she looked forward at the world beyond the swamp and sighed.
"But this is where we should probably part ways,"s he informed him. "After I find you another, more safer stream." Another frown.  "After all, I have a lot of explaining to do to my mother. ANd a lot of questions I need to ask."

"You need not worry about me." He pulled open the cut in the fabric oh his coat to reveal a well defined scar, "I can make it on my own from here." There was something on his mind, something that he felt he should say. For some reason, unbeknownst to him, he cared for her, her safety, her well being. He wasn't entirely aware of that himself. But he did know that he had thrown himself in front of Gaiden and his blade. "I will probably go to an inn not too far from here. I made a promise to someone that I would wait there for them for three days. I hope she shows up. But the choice is hers." He smiled at Lora, eyes soft but not weak.

She couldn't help but smirk at him.
"She's made her choice," she informed him, though her tone sounded playful, which was most unusual for her. "And this god hunter wants answers from her mother.  If I've been lied to all of my life, or played a fool... I deserve to at least know why."  Sah-lora nodded her head towards him.
"I suspect this might be good bye. I can't say if I'll ever leave the swamp or my mother."s he studied him a moment. "Though I also suspect, if, given the choice, I might someday want some of the beef stew."
Smiling then, she bowed her head.
"Thank you." she afforded the words to him, though plain as it were, they were warm all the same.
"I suppose you should return to the Inn for some rest."

Raiden's smile widened. "I don't much believe in goodbye, I've lived long enough to know that there is no such thing. So until we meet again, may your endeavors be fruitful." With that he bowed deeply then turned and began making his way to the inn. But not without looking back.

She didn't know why she felt empty, cold as he left, but she supposed it had to do something in regards to the peculiar feelings she had been acquiring throughout the day. She, after all, had never experienced really being rescued from an outsider before- her mother, being the only one to ever care for her. She frowned.
Her mother would be furious. But she would explain, and so, she hoped, would her mother.  Rizhra  was a force to be reckoned with, and despite the little knowledge she had to compare it, her reasonings were only amplified on the events throughout the day.

Stepping into the swamp, she kept her shoulders squared and her eyes ever wary. She still had plenty of daylight for travel, but one could never be too cautious. SHe had heard the dispicable cries of the mourning beasts of prey.  She knew, far too well, how terribly vicious they become when they awaken at night. With long fingers of clawed bones and hollowed features...

Thinking about them made her quicken her pace... but a chill came settling into her bones.


Saaaaaah-loooooooraaaaaaaaaa...
the voice came as a breath.
It was her mother.


SHe flattened her lips, hesitated in her stride, but merely pressed onward.
"Yes mother.." she chewed. "I'm coming."



Another hours walk through the howling woods and the glowing light inside the cabin was a welcome sight.  But still, she hesitated before it before heading within.....



Her mother was there, as expected, and she appeared to be brewing just as much as the green muk she was cooking. Sah-lora tooka step inside, closing the door behind her before frowning at her mother.

There was silence, the ticking of a rhythmic time keeper, then her mother spoke.

"You let the God live..." her mother growled in a low, steady voice.
Sah-lora felt herself tense.  Her eyes narrowed.
"Yes, I did it out of choice."
A dark eye shot towards her as Rizhra hoovered over her stew.
"Choice?" the woman hissed.
Lora frowned.
"Yes," she took a step forward and folded her arms across her chest. "A choice."
"Do you not know they, he, all of them are our mortal enemies?" she informed.
Sah-lora only stared.
"Perhaps some might be," Lora replied flatly. "But this one showed me a few things about myself." She approached again, her mother eyeing her cautiously, but she knew what her child meant.
"The curse.." Rizhra hissed.
"Yes, the curse, mother." Sah-lora replied. The two women studied each other. "Did you know it did not effect me?"
Rizhra's eyes sharped as she looked back at her stew.
"There was always a hunch.."s he growled.
Lora kept her lips pressed flat.
"And so you thought-"
"And so I thought to protect you!" the old woman howled angrily, tossing an arm outwards towards her as she caught Sah-lora by the wrist.  "Do you not understand how dangerous they are!? To us!?"
Sah-lora's eyes widened as her mother held her fierce.
"But if you thought-"
"If I was right, then you'd hve turned to ash!" she cried. "How was I to know!" the woman bellowed.
Sah-lora dropped her gaze, feeling the tight knot of guilt pierce inside her belly.
"But that God... whihc was he?" she inquired, dropping Sah-lora's hand.

Lora raised her gaze, staring at her mother curiously.
"Raiden.." then she smirked. "Though I think he goes by another title, I call him the God of Trickery."

Raien took his sweet time getting to the inn, using one of his divinities to mend his coat on the way. When he arrived the was another man sitting at the bar, though he did not look old, he had a full greying beard. The man nodded to Raiden, "Quite the storm we had here a little while ago, seems like even gods would fear to tread in it."
Raiden looked at the man for a moment, "If you only knew." he chuckled out before sitting beside the man.

Before long the two of them had drinks and were talking, neither of them really minding the company. It was nice to just talk with a stranger over drinks, it was oddly calming. Raiden figured that he would have to do this more often, he became such a loner in the last few thousand year. But then the horrors of the tournament didn't help that.

"And then I tell him" the man stated, about to give the punchline, "'You Sir, Have a GrandSoul'" and the two of them start laughing, it was a good joke, one that Raiden hadn't heard in a long time, since before he left Asgard...
That fact registers with the Rouge God, the man just told an Asgardian joke, his smile fades and he sighs, "how long have you been on earth Asgardian?"
The man too sighed, "Since before you were born, Raiden the Hunted, God of Rouges and Thieves."

The two sat in silence, Raiden was thinking and the man went back to drinking. The man was obviously omniscient, that much was apparent when he used his full title when he had supposedly been on earth since before Raiden came into existence. Omniscience meant GrandSoul, but he was not Ajurh the Euif of GrandSoul, Gaiden was dead and Peaga was female.

"Who are you?"
"I am Kima the Sors of GrandSoul, God of Fate." he spoke with such conviction, he was either god of insanity, or speaking the truth.

"The God of Rogues?" her mother seemed appalled.
Sah-lora raised her brows.
Though, Rizhra knew her daughter could hardly have done anything silly like fallen in love, or anything foolish like that in her short escapades, but the thought there was fondness in her tone made the witch's skin crawl.

"Yes, you were a fool to have followed a God like that. Perhaps he was the one who broke your barrier?" her mother scowled.

Sah-lora remained silent.

"No, matter, child," her mother said with a wide, red-lipsticked grin as she wrapped her arms around her. "You are home, and you are safe, and everythign will be better now."

"Better now?" Lora questioned down at her mother.
"Yes, child,"s he held her daughter more fiercely within her embrace. "If you can leave these swamps, that means there is hope for my escape.."

Sah-lora studied her mother questionably.

"How do you mean?"

"It's not that difficult, Sah-lora, my child," her mother spoke, pressing a finger to her lips as she backed away and took her daughte'rs hands into her own. "You see,t he Godw hom follows you must have been enchanted, as your father had been enchanted with me."

Sah-lora stared at her mother's face, now fluttering with the colors from the orange flames beneath the cooking brew and also flickering in the hearth.

"You see, there was a time I would have never dreamed to damn a God,"s he told her, tucking Sah-lora's hair away from her face."And you child, I just hope you never succumb to that fate."

And jealousy twisted in the pit of her belly.
That God would not take her daughter away, to use and abuse her and make a mockery of the great Rizhra....

"Find out what you can from him about the Gods. Perhaps he can lead you to the ones we need to kill in order to make us free of what has fallen upon us and this wretched swamp."

Sah-lora felt numb, not certain what to make of it.

"You're asking me to befriend him?" she blinked.

Her mother nodded, pattting her hands beneath her palm.
"Yes, dear child, what better way to kill them than to make a friend?"

Sah-lora wans't sure how she felt about this, but then her mother added, "But it seems you've already got him under your charms..."

Sah-lora's face burned fiercely at the claim.

"I would not so much as seduce a man-"

"Ah, I never said seduce, my child," her mother said coyly, drawing a hand delicately up her daughters stomach. Ten she looked towards her face, cupping it beneath her cold hands.

"Such youth and beauty," Rizhra purred, and before Sah-lora knew what was going on, her mother kissed her full on the lips, and her world faded away into a misty steam........


OOC: I"ll continue this thought and plot in the next post... DUN DUN DUN <3

"Kima? Kima faded long be-"
"Before you were born" the Man finished for him. Raiden just shook his head.
"Oh wow, you finished my sentence, you must be so powerful." Mockery and sarcasm dripped from his voice like venom. The man just shrugged.
"I didn't expect you to believe me right off the bat." He said into his drink. Raiden decided not to reply.

It was curious though, the man did not feel like an Asgardian, but he knew of Asgard, the gods, displayed omniscience, and was non-aggressive. Like the gods of old. It was, Oddly convenient.

"If you are indeed Kima, held high as God of the gods, then tell me. Why did you leave?"It was a reasonable question.
"I despised being worshiped. When a Name is said so many times over, held at such high esteem, it ceases to be a name. It becomes a symbol. I was tired of being a symbol." Raiden was stunned, that was why he decidedly put a stop to his worship, tore down his temples.
"Things changed once you disappeared, you realize that right?"
"Of course they changed! Peaga became scared, it never occurred to her that a god could fade. She made her lifelong friend the next GrandSoul and new gods personalities are a reflection of the state of Asgard. Everyone was scared and striving for power, leaving things like mercy and compassion behind because to some it meant weakness. As such the new gods were more powerful, they were ruthless and cruel, knowing not loyalty and compassion or honor and mercy." It made sense, except for one thing.
"Why am I different then?"

The man, apparently the god Kima, looked at him and smiled, "Because I made you."

OOC: Mature, icky, gory content a foot! This is the trigger warning! XD you have been waaaaarned *wriggles fingers*

IC:
It was dark when she awoke, an owl hooting towards the dim glow of the moon.
It was only then she realized where she was and Sah-lora sat up with a start.


It was night.
And she..
she was in the devil's swamp.


Fear gripped her heart as her eyes darted all around.
How could her mother do this!? How could she!?

Suddenly, an immense amount of pain stabbed her in the gut, and whens he looked down, she was surprised to see blood..
a trail of blood...

Her hand trembling, clutching over the wound as she raised herself off the ground and heard a hiss..
Turning around, startled, she saw nothing but the fog.
Turning around again, she only saw shadows looming around her with their wicked presence.
Her heart was beating rapidly, and when she went to look-
she realized not only had she been injured, stabbed well through the gut, but her weapons had been taken from her!

Cursing beneath her breath, Sah-lora moved cautiously, her boots squishing in the muck.  Wild animal cries mourned the night air, and hideous noises chilled her skin through.  She held her breath when she thought she hear the scraping of claws around her and slowly, ever so slowly she turned around..
only to find herself paralyzed in shock.


She had never seen one in person.
The monsters, these beasts, were but of legend to her- and part of her wondered, earlier that day, if it was another one of Rizhra's lies. But there it was, standing tall and omnious, it's body shrouded in a clock with wicked long fingers protruding from the sleeves like long, boned claws...

It was terrifying, it's shape, not quite appearing human as it stared at her....

and then a noise whispered from it and she froze stalk still...
and realized why she was bleeding..
for it's fingers dripped with red, red blood.

Gasping, she began to back away, and the creature did not pursue...
only stared at her through it's cloaked hood..

Then she heard another scratch..
and froze- turning around just in time to see the terrifying menace of the beast's face looming right behind her.




She hadnt' the time to scream as it was upon her, slashing across her face with raw strength.
She fell to her knees, her face burning from the scrape as the being was upon her, clawing at her face again as she fell limply onto her back, arms wide open as the being hoovered over head- her vision dizzy from the strike.

And before she knew it, it was upon her, fingers feasting over her flesh before it's dirty maw, short and appearing like the mouth of a man, though one that had been rotting with decay, as it lapped it's wicked, pointed black tongue across her flesh and began to gobble up her blood seeping from her wound before it took another bite, tipped it's head back and howled towards the moon.


"A half daughter of Godsssssssssssss......" an eerie voice hissed- then his boney claws perched over her face..


Then darkness again.





It wasn't until later she awakened, body aching in pain...
but when she tried to move, she realized, as she struggled, her limbs were bond- and there she was, tied down to a stony bed.

With wide, wild eyes she began to struggle... not knowing where she was, and smelling the terrible fires of death about her, and brew...


Then the wicked noises came, more claws to scratch and when she jerked her head, she found, against the fog, the beast loomed.
Her heart was beating heavily within her chest, and she knew not what to expect, but the beast soon approached, moving across the ground with ease before it hoovered atop of her.. shaking a wicked stick of fresh bone and bleeding fingers.
Gasping, she looked to her own, relieved, only momentarily that hse still held them fast, but then the creature moved a hand forward and pinched her lips open and apart, and began pressing spiders and man's blood inside her throat...

forcing her to gag, forcing her to swallow as her skin crawled in detest.
She could have wretched, but then the creature pressed it's wicked claws against her open wound and suddenly, Sah-lora let out a scream.

Digging it in deeper,a nd deeper still, it retracted it's claw only to have it hoover over her face, her warm blood splattering her cheek before he curled the bloodied claw into her hair and cut off a strand... a piece...

"Daughter of a goddddddd......" the beast hisssed again, and the being lowered itself upon her, and it's wretched open mouth pressed to her lips in a wicked kiss, as open teeth met to her lips, the open cavity, where the beast  lips ought to have been, melting against the skin around her own as she held her breath at his ghastly smell.

And soon felt him drawn away as his pointed teeth began to feast at her neck, biting and tearing and then sucking at her tender flesh and  blood. Then down, and down, biting across her chest and pressing his claws into her first wound, the one on her gut, inserting  the claw deep inside her body as he drank and lapped at her blood like a wild animal as it spilled freshly from her breast. Then the beast tore at her clothing and skin, and sought more, seekign to drain her whole as he ate and ate and ate of the precious life force from the beautiful, bleeding demi-god.


All Sah-lora could think was she was going to die here, being ravaged and eaten by one of the wicked beasts of hte swamp...



OOC: I hope this makes sense XD I at least attempted to editted it somewhat since hte last part had sooo many typos XD~

OM NOM NOM

Apparently Sah-lora is tasty XD

"You What?"
"I wish I could explain Raiden, I really do. But our time to talk has been cut short. You're going to need this." He pulled from his sleeve a rather sizable vial of liquid that looked rather like honey but acted like water.
"Nectur? Why would I ne- Sah-lora!" He snagged the vial and shoved it in his pocket.
"Eighteen. Twenty-four. Thirty-six. Ten. Eighty-seven." Kima listed off reality coordinates. "God Speed."

There are times in which mercy and compassion is best left suppressed. When Raiden's surroundings solidified, he realized it was one of those times. There was blood everywhere. Raiden grabbed the beast, whatever it was, and threw it off of her. Pressing the vial into her palm. "Drink this, it's Nectur." The beast was fast approaching, he quickly drew one of his knives and laid it next to her before turning and delivering a right-cross to it's head, causing it to stagger. "BURN IN HELL!!" White-hot flames formed at the creatures feet before blasting upward.

It huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurts! the creature screamed. When the holy fire died out the creature was still very much alive though its cloak was turned to ash and most of it's body was covered in blisters. God hassss cooooooooooome. It didn't appear to be in pain anymore, if anything, it looked hungry.

"Sah-lora, if and when you can move, tell me so I can get us out of here." He knew better than to move someone who was gravely injured, it could kill them.

OOC: I had a thought that these things were more or less god-eaters and since it's now connected to Sah-lora, they cna't die unless she dies so...
COMPLICATED MONSTERS ARE COMPLICATED XD~

but they can only move within the cursed forests at night..
well, until/if/when the curse is lifted X3

IC:
Sah-lora felt numbeda nd dizzy, not realizing the ropes binding her had been burned away.  It wasn't until she heard his voice that she jerked with a start.
"R-raiden!?" despite herself, she smiled, but gasped to see the creature lunged towards the God.
"Assssssssgardian blooooooood," it roared, teeth seeking to sink into the man's flesh.
Sah-lora, feeling helpless, pushed herself up with a grunt, her body trembling from all of the pain..
her blood everywhere.
"Raiden be careful!" she shouted, the monster's claws seeking to rip at the god's flesh-
and what terrified her the most was..
for alls he knew, the blood on the beast might be able to kill Raiden.
"Don't let him touch you with my fresh blood!" she tried to move but fell forward, clutching at the open wound on her stomach and let out a cry-

Just as her mother appeared in a dark puff of smoke.
"Well, well, well," her voice echoed around them as the beast continued to roar and claw. "It seems we've got a god in our cursed territory." Rizhra stated, folding her arms across her chest.

Raiden ducked underneath the beast's swiping claw, snagged it's wrist and turned it around then sunk the dagger into it's back three times before kicking it to the opposing wall. He then pulled another dagger from his sleeve and threw it at the witch, it sunk deeply into the wall left of her eye. "Next one goes in you eye! Unless you wanna know just how good me aim is. LEAVE!" The Beast was once again approaching quickly. This time he swiped it's feet out from under it before bringing his heel down on it temple. That would buy them some time.

He then rushed back to her side and brought the vial back to her attention, "Don't worry about me just please drink the nectur, I won't let you die on me!" later, he would come to ponder what had possessed him to use the word 'won't' but now was no the time.

Gasping that Raiden drew so close, she reared away.
"Don't touch me!" she cried, nearly knocking the vial from his fingers.
"I'm bleeding- Raiden, my blood.."S he winced. "It's the reason I'm a -"
And Rizhra was upon him, wrapping her arms around him and feeling a hand over his wound.
"Ahh.. yes.. his god blood.." She purred into his ear, draping a hand across him and whispering her breath coolly into his ear.
"Just a little sample of Sah-lora's into your own and.."
Sah-lora reacted, tearing off the stone bed and lept at her mother, tearing her from Raiden's back and in that moment, her mother disappeared into a black puff of smoke, leaving Sah-lora to fall onto the ground just as the monster from before snatched onto her leg.
Gasping, she tried kicking him away, but he sunk his teeth into her ankle as she cried out in pain.

Raiden was fast after the beast as it clamped down on Lora's leg, Stabbing it in the neck before striking out for it head again. but this time the creature was expecting it, it reared back and clamped down on his arm, drawing blood. Then everything slowed down and his head bobbed. When his gaze came back to the monster, everything was blurry, like he was looking through a puddle of mudd. His body reacted on it's own.

Grabbing the beast telekinetically, the broke it's jaw, it's arms, it's neck, then he threw it against the wall, hard. Unbeknownst to him he left a sizable impression in the rock wall. Scooping up Sah-lora he muttered, "to..." He staggered, "Sanctuary." the surroundings began to melt as his legs caved from under him.

When the surroundings stopped shifting, he was laying on his back in the sanctuary garden. A weight across his stomach told him that there was someone atop him, but it barely registered in his mind, he was beginning to chole on bile that was filling his mouth.

"Raiden!" she cried, realizing the monster had a hold on him. SHe tried to move, but it all happened so fast and then-

A whirl.
The world shifted..
pulled away into fragments and...


In peace they lay.
Breathing heavy, she lay there a moment, stunned. Then suddenly gasped, realizing she was atop of him, her blood smothered across his form, and him..
with a gaping wound.

"N-no!" her eyes widened in fear as she wanted to draw near him, watching his mouth froth and his eyes roll.
"R-raiden, no.."s he bared her teeth, gritting them as she backed away, looking around, desperate for something.. anything!
Falling to her knees she crawled over to him in a panic.
"No, Raiden, please.. you can't be.." and she moved, arms shaking, blood pumping as she reached forward, fingers hoovering over his form as hot tears began to spill down her face as she  began to sob.

By a miracle, Raiden's head tossed to the side and the bile spilled from his mouth. He made quick shallow breathes, then as his body realized it could breathe again, took deeper breathes and slowed down. Soon he was breathing normally, occasionally his breathing would speed up as his body fought the curse.

Kima walked in from one of the doors to the garden. "He is going to live, that much I can assure you." He went and sat on Raiden's other side. "Hullo" he said with a smile, "I'm Kima, and I'm more or less his father."

OOC: needed someone to play while Raiden is incapacitated. Enter Kima

Sah-lora panicked, and when someone entered, she gasped and grew defensive, moving as near as she dared towards Raiden's fallen form.
At the mention of who he was, her lips fell open. Then, she glanced back down to Raiden, hands shaking as she struggled to keep them away. Then she looked back to him again and licking her lips she asked, "Can you help him? He.."s he trembled. "My blood it..." She looked at Raiden again, her mind reeling. "Why did he have to be so stupid! I tried to warn him I.." she grabbed onto her hair and pulled it, frustrated as she let out a scream.
"And here I can't even touch him or do anything about it. My blood is poison to him and I.." she paused in midbreath, then looked towards him.
"Nectar."s he said suddenly.
"Can't he just drink nectar to heal? Like he tried to offer to me?" Her eyes were wide and desperate as she stared at Kima, imploring him.

"I'm Afraid not. Nectar doesn't affect gods like it does demigods and humans, though if your blood is indeed poison to him then I suggest you drink some so you will stop bleeding, do you still have the vial he gave you?" Kima reached over and wiped the sweat from Raiden's brow, the fact that he cared showed on his face. "I can heal him instantly, he would wake up in about five minutes time, but if you blood ever mixed again it would be all the worse to him. Or we can let him fight and overcome it, which he will, and he will awake all the more resistant to the curse, perhaps even immune. I think perhaps, he would want you to choose."

OOC: Ugh, I almost typed this post calling Sah-lora.. Su-lahna XD

WAY TO GO ME MAKING UP THOSE NAMES DX

IC:

Sah-lora stared at him.
"The vial, well it.."s he frowned, lowering her head. THe recalled..
"Raiden..." She glanced over at him, not able to help but smile as she noticed he still clutched the thing in his hands.
Approached, she delicately peeled his hands open, feeling the soft warmth of his strong hands before taking the vial.  Tracing her fingers across his hand, she pressed her palm to his and gently entwined their fingers together.
"I'm sorry.. " she whispered, then drew away, and tossed back her head, downing the vial.

In an instant, she felt a surge threw her body, as she gasped, choking as she threw her hands to her throat and collapsed to the ground...
and in a swell of breath, she arched her back and let out a crying breath, and suddenly..
her body healed.


Staring down at the vial in her hand, she looked from it,  then down to her body.
The wounds had healed, but the blood remained.
She smiled a little, then turned towards Kima as she picked herself up off the ground.


"So what is this choice I have to make?" she frowned, looking over at him, her frown deepening as she watched him suffer.
"YOu want me to choose to let him suffer, that, if by chance, this were to happen again he might be immune? Or.. just let him be well?" She looked at him, shaking her head. "What a choice you ask me to make!" She shook her head again.
"No.. no he should not suffer for me. Not on my account."S he turned back to Kima. "What if he never sees me again? He should, I think not. After all, my mother now wants his blood."

Raiden seemed to be at ease while their hands were intertwined, Kima took notice of it. "You care for him. Why do you deny yourself? Is it to keep him safe? Or is it a reason more selfish? He Obviously cares for you. What was it he last said to you? That he wouldn't let you die, right? even just now, he calmed down when you were close by. Or perhaps you are scare, scared that you will love him then by misfortune you kill him?" Raiden's breath evened out again, he was close to overcoming the toxin, if only Kima could stall for more time.

Her eyes narrowed at the man.
"You speak of madness. What am I to him? Just another pawn, as all mortals are to Gods."
Though after she spoke it, she felt the pang of guilt and turned away.
"No, it's better to just heal him. Let him suffer no more."
Sah-lora approached the man with her head held high.
"Heal him. Is it not your duty, if you are his father? Not to have him suffer so?" she pointed to his suffering body. "And if you cared for him, would you not wnat to see that vanquished? No one deserves to suffer as that." She shook her head. "Not on my account and not on yours. Why do you toy me with a solution and ask me to make a choice? The choice is simple! I want him to suffer no more! To be healed!"

Though part of her was curious about what he said of the latter, about.. becoming immune but...
really..
what if he did not survive? She grew fearful as she looked at him, wringing her hands hten turned back to Kima.
"Please, do it quick."

"Fear not, For Raiden has overcome the poison, though I will make sure he knows what you choice was. You see, you mentioned duty as a father a moment ago, My duty to him is to make sure he grows up strong, healthy, and happy, I knew that a small bit of your blood would not kill him, but would serve to make him stronger, he is now immune to the toxic curse in your blood. But the fact that you chose to end his suffering immediately only shows that you do care about him, perhaps you should consider that until he wakes." and with that, Kima vanishes.

OOC Raiden will wake up in the next post

"What?" her voice echoed sharply, but the man was gone.
Blinking, she turned back to Raiden, feeling numb, but after a moment, she slowly approached and watched him, folding her arms carefully across her chest.

Sighin, Sah-lora took a seat beside him and simply watched him, too many thoughts whirling inside her head. The first one being of Rizhra..
the second..
of the man before her, wondering when he might awake.

Before his eyes even open, Raiden reached out and lays his hand on her knee. He opens his eyes as he turns his head to face her, his eyes wander over her body, looking for any wounds that needed to be healed. Finally his eyes drifted back to her and stay there, then a soft smile touches his lips, the kind which causes the face to pick up just a little bit, "I'm glad you're alright."

He then sits up and looks over the garden, he is glad to not be and the cave with that damned beast, he doesn't remember much after he was bitten, save for the desperation to get out Sah-lora out of there.

Sah-lora had nearly found herself drifting off to sleep. The day had been exhausting..
but then he stirred.
Turning toward shim, she felt his skin against her and she moved, leaning forward.
"Raiden?" SHe couldn't help but smile a little, but frowned as he tired to sit up.
"You should take it easy."
Err.. if Gods needed to take it easy.
"You had taken in some of my blood.." she frowned. "And some man named Kima was here." She studied him. "He was looking after you."

"I know he was here, I was more or less conscious while fighting that curse." he looked away, something was bothering him, that much was evident. When he looked back, his brows were scrunched up, his face seemed almost offended. "Was that how you really feel? Like you're just a Pawn to me." He chook his head, he didn't want to believe it.

Sah-lora watched him, furrowing her brows as he spoke, then turned her face away, then lowered it as her cheeks burned with guilt.
"Well, it's hard not to say things when you were raised that way."s he tried to force a smile towards him, but had to look away again.
"I.. don't know how I feel. I.. this seems so surreal. Like a dream.."s he raised herself and turned away a moment, folding her arms across her chest.
"For all I know I could wake up tomorrow and none of this is real..."
she frowned.
It seemed more likely that sort of situation..
After all...
what was she to know? To see?
Her entire life revolved around a cursed swamp.

But something inside her made her realize..
that she ought to know better, and she hung her head in shame.

Perhaps it was best to just let him think that. Rizhra... well, she would no doubt want her hands all over the God and well...

What of herself? Sah-lora knew not what to make of her own future.

Raiden stood then placed a hand on her shoulder. "Let's find out if this is just a dream. Who knows? I too could be dreaming, after all two very improbable things happened today, a GrandSoul came to earth and I met Kima, a God that is supposed to have faded before I came into existence." The thought of sleep made him yawn, "I don't know about you but I'm exhusted."

Sah-lora breathed a sigh through her nose.
"And all of those seem insignificant if you consider you just informed me I could live outside of the cursed swamps." she poked him playfully, then moved out into the gardens, admiring the Sanctuary with idle interest.

"Yes.." she stared at the world. "A dream.."

Raiden walks up behind her and takes her hand, "To me, this place is a gilded cage. Sure, it's the safest place in the realities for me, but what if safety compared to freedom? Having known both, I choose freedom." With that, he led her out of the gardens and into the Manor of the Sanctuary, after walking around the halls for a good five minutes, he found the room in which he was looking for, one that he had yet to make use of. The Sanctuary bedroom. "If you wake up here then you know you are not dreaming, and if I wake up and you're still here then I know that I am not dreaming."

OOC: Did he just invite her to his bed room? *Snickers*
*peeks*
HE *did*
XD~
Too bad any jokes would be lost on Lora!

IC:

Sah-lora followed him and blinked when they entered a room, white drapes surrounding a bed within a massive, beautiful white gazebo. The air was fresh and sweet as it swept through the long white drapes that scraped softly agaisnt the floor as they moved and while it remained in beautiful contrast as rich ivy curled up agaisnt the supports.

In the center lay a bed, of white and gold markings, large and seemingly undisturbed.
SH ehad never seen such a thing in her life, having been used to sleeping in rough wool blankets and hay.  SHe wasn't quite sure what to do with it, but when he suggested sleep... she only looked at him.

"Do Gods sleep on such things?" she inquired with an innocent blink.
"And how will sleeping together in this world you create find the answers?" She was curious of this indeed, but also exhausted as she looked around- appearing out of place here: So messy nad dirty, with her clothes nearly falling off from being torn from her body.
She could only stare at him with such an uncertain expression as she touched the softness of the bed.
"It's like a cloud.."s he said softly, staring at the white sheets, then to the drapes all around them.

OOC: The bed is apparently not a bed, it's a sleeping throne XD

IC:

Raiden hadn't expected the room to be so, extravagant. "Well I suppose gods sleep on it, it would make more sense then jumping on it." he joked, though it seemed funnier in his head. "You remarked earlier that you feel like you would wake up tomorrow and this would have all been a dream, so let's test that. The only logical thing to do to test it would be to go to sleep, we could both use the rest." With that he yawned again before pulling off his coat then he shirt and sitting on the bed. Though he is in a relaxing position, the muscles in his chest and abdomen are still very well defined. He has a new scar to his collection, just below his heart. It was number twenty-three. 

Sah-lora sighed before finally speaking.
"I think you misunderstand me,"s he glanced over at Raiden. "Even to fall asleep here and wake up.." She frowned, again, staring at this place.  "You have to realize that barely a few days ago my life was very different, and what I believed, very different, and it was because of you..." her gaze went steady, studying him before she added. "It's just all very hard to sink in right now."S he said, dropping to a seat at the edge of the bed with another sigh.

"And my mother... I still know not what to make of her. She seemed... well," her face went hollow. "It's hard to swallow it, but from the looks of it.." She closed her eyes. "It seemed she wanted me dead." then she opened them to realize, glancing over at him. "But only to try to kill.. you.." she said cautiously and for a moment, she studied him without his cloak.

Raiden looked down at the floor. "Rizhra has committed a large portion of her life, and all of your life, to hating gods. I can not claim to know what goes on in her mind, not in the slightest bit or under any circumstance. But when you have built up an enemy for so long, and someone close to you defends that enemy, the mind goes to dark places."

He took her hand in his own, rubbing the back of her hand with his calloused thumb. "I'm not forcing you to act before you are ready, take all the time you need. We have the blood of Asgard in us, we have such luxuries as being able to take our time. But a hasty decision can be a costly one, make sure that whatever you decide makes you happy."

OOC: I can't help but snicker and think 'Geeze, o' petes, he's awfully pushy to get her in bed! lol

IC:

She frowned and afte ra moment, threw herself onto the bed, laying on her side, as her wild, dirty red and blonde hair fell into a snake of her braid across the wake of the bed.
"There is just too much to think of on this matter,"s he sighed, finding herself not to reluctant to close her eyes as she lay there, not even properly on the bed, mostly curling up at the edge as she tested the feel of it.  She prodded her fingers into it, smiling a little and still hadn't opened her eyes.
"Ah, what an interesting feeling," she exclaimed, still prodding the bed before she rolled onto her back. "It does feel like a cloud."S he smiled softly, staring up at the ceiling of the gazebo and the intricate woven designs of the vines.
She placed a hand to her heart and sighed, as if contented and closed her eyes, but of course, she did not fall asleep, only sighed again and turned to him.

"I suppose this is another way to toy with me?"s he quipped, giving him a smirk before smoothing her hands across the bed. "I will never understand this luxury."s he lamented. "Though appreciate it all the same." Sighing, she closed her eyes again and frowned. "Though, a comfortable bed does not fix the confusion."

OOC: That's not his intention at all actually, which is why it's interesting, I don't quite think he has figured out his feelings for her

IC:

Raiden situated himself on one half of the bed. "No I suppose you are right, it won't fix the cunfusion. But what a comfy bed does is allow you to relax, and when your body relaxes you are able to divert more brain power to the matters on your mind, which can help you to sort through the confusion." His own mind began to go through the day, something was very clear to him, he had saved her life three times today and risked his own for her twice. There was something, alluring, about her, something that made him appropriate her presence. But he could not place it.

Sighing, she enjoyed a long, comfortable stretch across the bed.
"I suppose, a nice distraction," she replied, breathing an easy sigh as she nestled into the plush, white sheets. "Though it does beg the question.." She began after a time.  "Even when we wake.." she shook her head slowly. "It only means if I come to accept whatever has passed... I still have no where to go. If I return home, it'll be at Rizhra's will, not my own. But if I go on the road, I have no clear path." Frowning, she turned over, facing away from him as she stared at the Sanctuary around them.

"Yes... I suppose that is the side affect of freedom," though it was odd, her voice carried a sense of melancholy.

Raiden stared up at the roof of the gazebo surrounding the bed. He spoke without realizing what all he was saying, "you could always stay and travel with me. While the path wouldn't always be clear, you would always have food and a warm place to sleep..." His voice trailed off as he realized what he came to conscious of what was said. He felt his cheeks grow hot. He was sure that he was blushing. He moved his hand and rubbed his face in an attempt to hide it, with limited success.

At his words, she could not help but turn to him.
"Follow you?" Sah-lora couldn't help but smile, even give way to a gentle laugh. "You expect me to follow around a fallen God?" Although, the idea was intriguing. She stared up at the roof of the gazebo, contemplative and silent. Sighing, the melancholy returned as she kept her eyes skyward.
"My mother must be so angry with me..." shaking her head. "I.. still do not understand her intent. She had never tried to harm me before... it's like she turned into some wild animal, forgetting herself in the presence of a God."
Turning to Raiden curiously, she studied him.
"What do the god's say of my mother?"

Raiden felt a bit relieved that the rejected the idea, but he felt more dejected. He had spoken without his mind acknowledging it, which usually meant that it was what he really wanted. Is that what he wanted? he wasn't sure. He had met Sah-lora today and she tried to kill him almost immediately, what happened since then that made him so drawn to her? Then he realized she had asked a question.

"Well it really depends on who it is and who is asking, most gods say that she was just unfortunate enough to attract the attention of Peaga's husband, any other god and everything would have been fine, but Peaga is vengeful and quick to strike. Hell even Ajurh, the other GrandSoul, considers Rizhra unfortunate, though he doesn't pity her, he says to to pity someone is like cursing them."

Sah-lora frowned.
"Is she then?" she asked, hesitating.
"Cursed I mean." she lowered her gaze. "I can't be sure these days what sh ehas told me is true and what was a lie."
She looked towards Raiden again, studying him and thinking back to his question, and thinking more towards the meaning of it and her rejection of it and frowned a little.  The idea was intriguing at best.. but...
Who was she to interfere with the lives of Gods?
Nor did she truly want to... for that matter. Though the thoughts were compelling, and confusing at best.

"Yes, she is cursed Peaga made sure of it, the closer she gets to the border of the curse, the more sick she will get, standing over it, she would bleed from fer pours, the most painful of deaths a god can deliver via curse, and only Peaga can break it. Perhaps Kima could, but I wouldn't know." Raiden took in a deep breath, letting it rest in his lungs for a moment then exhaled.

"Kima?" she said the name, frowning in thought. "That gentleman,- your father?" She turned to him, then looked away.  "It would be rude to ask him such a request, wouldn't it?" She smiled pathetically at the idea. "But I think it might be in vein." she sighed. "You have no idea how it is to live with such hate all my life, even now.. "s he winced a little, staring over at Raiden. "I still feel uncomfortable in your presence." She bit her lip. "Though I don't mean to.. you've... shown me so many things I.." she let her voice drift away, shaking her head.

"I suppose that's why you want me to follow you?" she raised a brow at him. "Do you see me as some sort of pupil?" The idea was intriguing, and made somewhat sense as to their sudden closeness. Perhaps that was a duty of a God? THough..she, only half breed, was there some sense of that duty towards her because of their shared blood?

Raiden looked over to Lora, "I do not see you as a pupil, I see you more as a friend, or an ally. At least, someone I can trust." And he did feel that he could trust her, she had saved his life too by standing up to her mother. He had known her less then a day and already he had grow to trust her, maybe he needed to be less of a loner, open up to people more often.

At his words, Sah-lora frowned.

"Do you not find it odd to hear yourself say that?" she looked down at her body, still dirty in blood.  "After all, the blood that runs through my veins... it... "she frowned again. "Well, I was designed and raised by my mother to kill you. But, perhaps not you, directly, though most certainly I would have tried had the occasion gone any other way."

She tilted her head.

"But it still begs the question, why you'd care to release me from whatever chained me to those grounds. Even if I don't end up harming you, surely you must fear for your own brethren. And if not from my abilities, from my mother's. Clearly, they were not pleased with her and felt her a threat, however it might be. "

Sighing, she cast her eyes off in thought.

"Though it must be a curious thing.."S he said, idly. "To be a god.. with all of that power to command the very stars themselves." She sighed, finding herself beside herself with thought.

Raiden's eyes drifted back up to the sky, "There is a reason I care not for gods, for being a god. There is a reason I don't fear death, a reason I welcome it. It is not one that I care to talk about, truthfully I would really rather not talk about it. But I can show you it. If you will let me." He was of course referencing the tournament which ended with him being exiled, after nearly one thousand gods had uselessly ended their lives in the battles.

Sah-lora looked at him questionably.
"What do you mean?"
It was peculiar that he mentioned he loathed Gods.  If that was the case, perhaps he were to make himself out to be the wielder of her tool, her gift to destroy, to kill but..
Perhaps she was just jumping to miserable conclusions. After all, none of this still made much sense to the poor girl.

"What is your aim in showing me? And how?"

Perhaps... through whatever it was he wanted to share, she might understand a little more of his and her predicament.

"I have no aim, except to let you perhaps come to understand me more. As for you, it is an ability all gods have basically it allows me to share my memories with you, unfiltered. You will see what I saw, feel what I felt. ALl you have to do is relax and let your mind go blank, no harm will come to you, that much I can assure you." He watched the skies as he spoke, the cloud covered grey sky.

The idea of sharing memories sent her cheeks to a small blush. She didn't know why she figured the expression to be used elsewhere.
But Gods were strange.
And so was she.

"And are you assuming I'd like to understand you?" she questioned, allowing for a subtle smugness  to grace her lips.  "Are you sure your memories won't serve to confuse me even further? You god's seem to have an awful lot different about you than one might expect."

"Assuming? Yes, probably more then I have in the past, but something tells me that you would like to know more. And yes, it will probably confuse you at first, but it could end up that you have more insight into gods, myself included, then anyone on this world." Raiden looked over to Sah-lora, reaching over and lightly pressing his thumb to her temple, "Remember, these are my memories, you will feel what I felt and at the extremity that I felt it. Just relax and when you are ready you will begin to experience my past."

He began with the announcement of the Tournament of Gods, it was a happier time for him, he and his brother were practically inseparable. When the two signed up, they were still as happy as they could be, then the final announcement came, that the tournament was fights to the death, how his brother became sullen and drawn back, how he wouldn't have anything to do with anyone in the tournament, that included Raiden.

The next memory was the first battle, his first battle. It was bloody, violent and over quickly. How Raiden watched as the light faded from his opponent's eyes, how it horrified him. Then showing what happened whenever someone dropped out of the tournament, they were executed. In all, he showed her four executions, all of the league fights he was in, and half of the ones he watched, all of which were bloody, and without reason, as he had come to understand at the time.

Next he showed the celebration when he was named the winner of his league, he shared his contempt for all those celebrating, and the guilt for those who had died. He showed that none of the league winners would look at each other, how they only saw each other as an enemy, how his brother denounced him.

Finally he showed the last of the fights, between himself and his brother, shared his resolve to not kill his brother, something he was willing to die for. The fight dragged on, until Raiden disarmed his brother then threw the blade in his hand away. He showed Peaga, Wrathful that he had come all this way to not finish the fight, banished him from Asgard, right then and there.

He pulled Sah-lora out of his memories and looked at her, night had fallen in the Sanctuary. "This is why I despise being a god, there is no honor or loyalty, only the strong survive and the weak are left to die."

The images felt so real. The memories, burning against her flesh as she felt Raiden's torn feelings, and was then forced to witness the wretchedness in the end.  When Raiden pulled away, she swayed a little, finding herself needing to catch him by the shoulder lest she crumple away to the sudden weakness that had over come her body.

It took her a moment, eyes drifting back to the fading memories he had lent to her before she slowly raised her gaze, pale green eyes looking into his.
"Those memories.."s he said, voice wavering. She blinked, then her lips gave way to a frown.  "Gods can be as cruel as the men they've created." She studied his eyes.  "So this tournament, this thing.." She lowered her gaze, looking down his Raiden's lap as her brow furrowed in quesitoning. "A silly thing as that, they forced you to simply kill?"
She did not realized at the time how similar her own story might be to his-
after all, did she really wish to kill? Her mother had taught her nothing but...
and it was only then she began to wonder what did she want? Sah-lora hardly had the time to form a will of her own and her heart was reeling for it.

"You were given no choice. Had I been in your shoes, I might have tried to cut that woman up, and anyone else who told me what I had to do." She raised her eyes to Raiden, noticing  troubled look upon his facea nd frowned.

"That man in the vision... that was the same man you killed earlier?" She tilted her head curiously. "The same man you had refused to extinguish in the dream?"  SHe tried to recall the images, but the faces all seemed to blur.

"The winner of the tournament was to be named the next GrandSoul, so naturally several hundred Asgardians signed up, then it was released that the tournament was based on fights to the death and that those who chose to decided to drop out were executed, so it was fight with the chance of becoming great, a one in a thousand chance, or die without reason, without a cause. And yes, the Man I killed today was the same man I refused to kill in the memory, but that man is not my brother anymore, he wasn't even sane anymore." His heart did ache that he had to kill a man he once called brother, but at the same time if he didn't Sah-lora would have been killed, and it seemed natural to protect her from one that had lost their mind.

Sah-lora gently touched his hand. She had felt all of the emotions, the confusion and the pain towards Gaiden and slowly shook her head.
"But Raiden, I had sense you did not wish to kill him. I felt that twisting sensation inside your soul.." she looked desperately into his eyes, as if to seek the answers. She shook her head, gripping his hand a bit tighter.
"You killed him.."S he blinked. "You killed him for me..."S he paused, lips trembling, still utterly confused by it. "Why? You had loved him, he was your brother..."

Insane or not, she too, would feel as torn about her mother, and well, evidently is still stumbling down that path..
but the fact he gave it all up not to kill him, to become exiled- then to merely kill him before her....

Why? That was a question that had been lingering in his mind all day, one he had yet to answer, one that he didn't know how to answer. When it happened, he saw the blade change direction, saw it headed for Sah-lora, and he just jumped, he couldn't let him kill her. He wouldn't let him kill her. "I.... I saw his intention, and I couldn't let him kill you. I... I Wouldn't let him. For the same reason I wouldn't let you die when that creature attacked."

But what was that reason? Why should he care for someone that he barely even knows when he has fought hard against those he does? "When I look at you, I see myself. I see someone who has cause to hate and has been raised to kill, but doesn't want to, not by choice."

Sah-lora stared at him. So he found himself in her? She felt herself heat over the expression.
"That's an odd assessment. "she mused.  "To think of yourself like me, a woman who was believed to be cursed to a wretched swamp, ever plotting the demise of others."S he studied his face, and only afforded him a small smile.
"Do you think I don't want to kill?" she asked, a bit more playful. It was strange for him to come to such conclusions, and it amused her to hear it. "What else do you think you know about me?" She was curious, after all as she leaned towards him, wearing just the slightest bit of a smug grin.

Raiden smiled coyly, so she wanted to play. "I know that today you had a chance to kill me, but instead you defended me, I know that you leaped over me to protect me from your mother while you were bleeding heavily. And I know," He leaned in closer so that their faces were ever so close, "that despite yourself and your upbringing. You care, just like I do."

Sah-lora blushed. Well, now, she wasn't expecting all of that.
She turned her nose away from him.
"You still presume much. Perhaps I just like being a reckless fool," she replied, smoothing back some of her wild, red-gold hair.  "Or, perhaps I like making stupid mistakes." she added, eyes hitching to his.

He smiled at her, "Stupid mistakes I can't vouch for, you are after all laying in a bed with a powerful god. But you are no reckless fool, you are calculating and smart, you know when you are outmatched, you know when the time to fight is and when the time for words is. You are by no means a reckless fool."

OOC: TOo bad the 'laying in bed' reference is lost on her XD

BUT I CAN STILL SNICKER
*snickers*

IC:

"A powerful god, eh?" she raised a brow at him playfully, but once reminded about the bed she stretched across it, moving to lay upon her belly, then turned to him, cheek to the soft fabrics and eyes staring through a veil of her frayed, wild and beautiful golden-red hair.

"Perhaps I only hear a foolish god," she said, after listening to all of his statements and praises about her.  "Maybe you were just bored and wanted to play with a girl who has never been outside of her swamp." she smirked a little, then closed her eyes.
"I don't think I've ever felt somethign so soft.."S he commented, stroking her hands across the bed's, sweet silk sheets as she sighed, almost melting into them- and not realizing they're actually meant to be laid under, rather than on top.

"Yes it is rather soft isn't it?" Raiden ran his hand across the sheets, fingertips grazing Sah-lora's side, "it would be even better if you pulled back what you were laying on then pulled it over you, it will also keep you warm, it gets cold here as night falls."

OOC: Sorry for the short post

OOC: S'all good XD
Not all posts can be epic and long!

IC:

Sah-lora looked at him, confused.
"What do you mean?" she looked down at the bedding, scratching her fingers at it when she realized it began to move, nd slowly, ever so slowly, she made her way to the edge of the bed and peeled the blanket over, staring at the soft, warmth it presented under neath.
"How interesting," she said, lifting her head beneath the blanket and stared beneath it. "It's like a large blanket."s he quipped, removing her head out from underneath with a small grin, hair a static mess about her head.

Raiden started chuckling but it quickly grew into a rumbling laugh. "That's because it is a large blanket." He pulled the sheet out from under him and crawled under it, leaving it to rest and the base of his exposed abdomen before bringing his hands to rest behind his head.

Sah-lora shot him a look.
"You would mock a girl who is simply out of her element?" though the tone she had revealed no truths behind her admonishments, and a slow grin graced her lips.
She looked towards the blankets again, the lifted them up and over, carefully across her form before stealing a look towards Raiden, eyes going towards his bare chest.
"Do Gods not wear clothing to be?" though curious, she took a peek, beneath the blankets just to make sure. "Oh, I see, just pants?" she inquired, playfully. However, this wasn't just her first time around a God before, but really, her first time, in any intimate situations with a man.

Raiden's smile grew larger. "What? Should I not be allowed to be shirtless in my own home?" He was surprised now that she would poke at his lack of a shirt, he had his shirt off before even laying on the bed. He stretched his hands high above his head then brought them to his sides, letting his hands rest on his stomach with fingers intertwined.

"I suppose it doesn't matter,"s he said, giving a shrug. "You'll have to forgive me. For most of my life, it's just been my mother and I and well.." she blushed a little before admitting, "I can't claim there have been many men in our lives. And when your breed and sex are mentioned, it's never in a good tone of light."s he studied him for a moment, still cautiously keeping herself on the other side of the bed as she shifted beneath the covers, fingers idly tracing over the soft fabric.

"So do you really think you can sleep after all has been said and done?" she inquired, finding herself  too restless to sleep as she continued talking.  "I'm not sure I could just let myself drift off to sleep just yet."s he sighed, finally dropping her head into the pillow, mind racing as she stared upwards, lost in thought.

"I do feel guilty,"she said after a time, sighing as she looked at her soiled body, a stark contrast tot he pristine, pure white of the bed.  "My mother has been my whole life... but now what is to become of her? TO become of me?"

"I've lived too many days like this, well not namely like this but days when you feel so drastically changed. At first you will feel restless, too restless to sleep, you should do something to occupy yourself, I normally think about random things, then you will feel exhausted, as the troubles of the day begin to set in. That is when it will be hardest to sleep because everything is on your mind. Then you should distract yourself, that is when you will fall asleep, most likely when you least expect it." He looked up at the sky, it was dark, very dark. No stars, no moon. It was what he hated about the Sanctuary.

"Distract myself?" she blinked, staring at him as she threw off the blankets from her form with a sigh. "But I have hardly anything here to do! There is much to see, but I find myself itching for something else." She sighed again, her form wilting as she sat at the edge of the bed, only to turn around, noticing a pillow beside her which she grabs onto, hugging onto it before suddenly turning around and hitting him over the head-

the effect, she found, almost exhilarating as she gave way to a laugh, laughing even louder than before as she tossed her head back.
"Perhaps one can find amusements in the perks of the world around her?" she said, standing now as she stepped away from the bed, dropping the pillow carelessly aside.

"Perhaps I should go for a stroll in this little Sanctuary,"s he mused.

Raiden chuckled as the pillow hit him in the face. Sliding out of the bed and over to his discarded shirt, he pulled it on. A shirt though it was it was stronger then steel, being it was made from carbon fibers weaved over each other, it was near impossible to cut, not all that good against stabbing though. He made it himself and was working on perfecting it, so now he had an Idea. "If you intend on strolling through the sanctuary then I might suggest some new clothing."

He walked over to Sah-lora, noting the fact that she was standing up straight, he brought his two index and using his divinity of matter he created a small thread and pulled it taunt, measuring the distance from her neck to her waist. Then, using the same method, he measured the width of her shoulders and the length of her arms. Now came the fun part. Making the shirt.

He began to see the shirt in his mind, it had to be form-fitting for his intention, three layers of cross stitching that are also woven together to form something that you could not get a point through. All made from carbon fiber and some wool thread. As it became visible in his head, the dark grey, almost blach, shirt materialized in his hand with him holding it by the collar. When it was finally done, he materialized a dagger and tried to force the point through it, unsuccessfully. He tossed it to Sah-lora.

"Congratulations, you now have a shirt that cannot be cut, stabbed, burned, frozen, or ripped. It is extremely tolerant to temperature so it will stay warm from your body heat and in turn it will keep you warm. I would suggest wearing it under something. It is basically and Armor that you wear under your clothes, But you here, that is fine to wear."

Sah-lora found a thrill chill across her skin, racing up her spine and tickling delicately across her flesh as the god went about gathering her measurements.
"Raiden- what are you..." but she found herself merely blinking, watching him in silent curiosity as he began to seemingly weave a shirt from thin air. Once it was offered to her, she stared at the limp fabric and hand and looked at him, then down at the shirt.

Then down at her own clothes, and down at her dirty skin. She was used to being dirty before, and she held the thing out and turned away, merely slipping off her clothing as if it were nothing, giving Raiden a bit of a show as leather armor fell and skirt to the ground and over top she slipped the fine garment, so it appeared all she was wearing was the shirt, boots...
and lucky for him, she hadn't stripped off the thick, leather bottoms she wore that cradled over the wool under garments beneath.

She stared down at the clothing, back still to him as she gently moved a hand down the fabric, uncertain what to make of it.

"So I just put my armor ontop of this thing?" she asked, turning around, dangling her leather breast plate to one side in nonchalance, one hand to her hip.

"Yes, you could wear armor over it, or just regular clothes over it. The shirt will protect you from most blade attacks as well as temperate magic, though armor would be helpful against impact weapons such as a maul or a mace." He realized the need for a bottom half to the outfit and materialized one using the same method, tossing the pants to her before turning around as to not face her so she can have privacy. "You should know that those shirt and pants are similar to a god power called iron skin, in which the users skin becomes as hard as iron."

Sah-lora stared at the pants for a moment, blinking.
"Am I to wear pants to bed?" she inquired, quizzically, but then realized. "Oh, that is right, I nearly forgot I was to walk around here."S he smirked, slipping on the pants before looking around the place in wonder.
"It seems large.. never ending, but also cozy,"s he commented, finding herself wondering over towards a small garden of wild flowers, far beautiful than anything she had ever seen- not that many flowers grew in the swamps. She crouched down, examining them with wonder.
"The colors here.. well, there's just so many colors here,"s he replied, quite astonished by it. Perhaps that's why this plcae seemed so odd to her, and she shivered over it. SHe was used to grey.

"Yes, it does seem large, but compared to earth, it is very, very small. It takes five hours to walk all the way around the Sanctuary. On earth it takes five hours to get from one city to the next in some cases. But every inch of the Sanctuary is just as extravagant as the ones next to it save for one area." He walked around her as he spoke. every so often he reached out to stroke one of the surrounding bushes or pick a flower.

"Are there any places like this on earth?" she asked curiously, looking over at him from where she was still crouched upon the ground.
"I can't say I know much outside of the dreariness of the swamp." she frowned, sighing, thinking back to her mother she had just left behind..
a mother who tried to kill her..
and that foul best...
she turned away, finding herself becoming emotional over it, and she'd rather.. not.
She took a moment to compose herself, eyes drifting back down towards the flowers.

She should have stayed home...
this sort of place was not meant for a girl like her.

"There is all sorts of beauty on earth, in Serendipity there are vast fields of nothing but wildflowers. In Hyoite there are Hot springs in the center of a frozen tundra, its almost like The gods said that there will be no heat there and the world just laughed and said 'watch this'. In Adela's Thunderbacks, there is a very peculiar area that has natural crystals growing everywhere, whenever the sun is up, colors dance across the ground. And that is just a few examples, earth has many natural beauties, ones that occurred outside the control of Asgardians, and that makes them all the more beautiful." He spoke with such conviction, he loved earth, he loved its beauty and its inhabitants, he felt he had done right by making earth his home. And it showed in his voice.

Sah-lora could not help herself but to stare at Raiden in wonder.
"You make the earth sound like some magical dream," she commented softly, sighing as if she had been contented by seeing it herself, though the expression was one of longing.
"Perhaps someday I'll get to see it.  It's hard to think such things exist when you've lived in such a dreary place as the swamp."

"I hadn't ever been to earth until I was banished from Asgard, and I knew not of this beauty until I found it, I'm sure there are more places I don't know of." Raiden crouched next to Sah-lora and plucked a flower off it's stem, and placed it in her hair, the deep purple of the flower a good contrast to her fiery red hair. "That looks nice, I can put a charm on the flower so it won't wilt that way you can keep it."

Sah-lora watched as Raiden plucked the flower, wondering why he would kill such a thing- and when he placed it into her hair, she attempted to look at it, but found it was impossible.
"Is this a custom of gods to pluck flowers and wear them in their hair?" the woman inquired.  "I'm afraid the effect is lost on me."S he gave a shrug, reaching up to touch the flower's silky petal while her calloused fingers felt the itchiness of her frizzy, wild red-blonde hair. She lowered her hand away to look at Raiden.

Raiden Chuckled softly, "It is Of Gods and Women to wear flowers in their hair as an accent to their beauty," He used some of his telekinetic ability to straighten out Sah-lora hair, reducing the frizzyness and untangle knots all without any pulling or tugging, next he formed a small looking glass in his hand. "Take a look."

Sah-lora tensed at the sensation of some force fussing over her hair- it felt... relaxing, but was too jarring for her to enjoy.
"What do you mean?" she inquired at his statement, though blinked quizzically when a mirrored surface was placed before her. She almost did not recognized her own face.
"OH!" she pushed it away. "How dreadful I look!" She touched the flower slight,y hands almost seeming to tremble uneasily.
"It does not seem to suit me at all!" she claimed, after all, she was used to wearing much more unrefined attire-a nd here she was, in simply clothing made by a god, wearing a flower picked by a god, with hair tamed by a god, only making her appeal all the more enticing to a God...

She shook her head and looked away, removing the flower.
"What a strange concept." she said, now twirling the flower idly between two fingers as she stared down at it from where she stood.  "Gods have peculiar tastes."

Raiden was a bit disheartened at Sah-lora's reaction to the way she looked, but not all that surprised. "It's not just gods that find that particular way to dress in good taste, many people on earth like it too. Though I guess you wouldn't know that having lived in the swamp, would you?" Raiden touched the head of the stem from the flower he picked, a new flower growing in it's place.

Sah-lora continued to stare at her reflection for a time, and frowned when she said, "I suppose it has it's own charm." She looked at her hair, glancing and turning her head to one side, then the other. "Though I can't say I've ever seen my hair so tamed." She laughed softly even at it.
"What do you think? Do I look strange to you?" she inquired, green eyes peering at him curiously from behind the watch glass as she tucked back her lips- still uncertain of how she looked like this.

Raiden bobbed his head a little bit, trying to find the right words. "I think it makes you looks more refined," he placed one hand on his chest and extended the other one off to the side, he was about to say something very dramatic. "Rather much like like a Noble woman getting ready for a grand ball with the monarch."

Sah-lora lifted her head at his comment.

"You mean like those princesses from story books?" She blinked, thinking back to the few books her mother had on her shelves. Ironically, one was a book of fairy tales; and a few others had collective histories of man. The rest were all books of spells. Witch craft was prided and focused above all else. They even had demon scribe, and the list could go on. But she did remember being fascinated over the stories of princes saving princesses, and felt herself blushing at the idea she could be compared to a noblewoman.

Shaking her head.  "But they only exist in stories." she tried to tell him. Really, to her? They did!  She had no idea the extent about them, or what powers they had when ruling a country with an iron fist, or how gallant ballroom dancing actually happened-

her dancing was more.. exotic.. wild.. natural.
After all, she danced to the moon, sometimes not wearing a thing at all but the mud while she ate spiders and called and beckoned to the lord of darkness who promised them freedom....


The lord of darkness that she had no idea was meant to be her chains..
for if Rizhra were to have her way, and Rizhra had intended to, indeed! Then before the month was through, her child would have been wed to the very Lord of Darkness they prayed to.

Sah-lora only knew part of this story, but was too naive to totally understand the idea of marriage, or the concept it would make her his eternal slave. And baring demon children was no easy task, and this demon hungered to try it..
after all, it wasn't everyday he was promised, by blood pact, to take a half-god as his bride...


Sah-lora plucked the flower from her hair and moved forward and planted it into his, tucking it into the golden blonde hair that she now swept behind his ears.
She smirked.

"There. Now you can look like the noble's you admire." After all, he seemed to be admiring her, though she felt awkward for it. Though, now as she looked at it, he looked awkward with the flower as well as she smiled.

"Well.." she plucked it away. "Perhaps it is too effeminate for a male god.." she went on, smiling at him a bit bashfully as she twirled the flower between two fingers against her other palm.  "But do, tell me.."s he went on, tapping his chest lightly with the flower before meeting her eyes to him.  "What do Gods do for fun? Clearly you can't just camp around here all day." She made a face, wrinkling her nose. "Do you go dancing? Like those stories with the balls?" Really, she had never been, and was finding herself somewhat fascinated by all of it!

Raiden knew not of Rizhra's plot involving dark lord, nor did he know the role that he would play in it. But what he did know, is that he was about to dance with Sah-lora. "Sometimes, stories are based on facts."

With that he stood from his kneeling position and walked behind a tall hedge, where he shifted his form, a regal suit of black velvet and silk. Walking out from behind the hedge, the surroundings started to change, becoming a ballroom with brilliant architecture. Music started playing from somewhere, but from the way it sounded it was coming from Raiden. He walked up to Sah-lora and bowed deeply, extending his hand to her. "Might I have the honor of this dance?"

As the world melted away, forming into something she had only ever seen in books, she felt her cheeks heat as she stared in awe.  The floor seemed to shimmer, almost like glass- and lights glowed all around them like gold stars.  The music hummed, and she could feel it in her belly, pulling at her hips as if to sway-
and it was then she turned to face Raiden, her cheeks already pink from the very vision before staring at his hand.

"Dance?" was all she could say- having absolutely no idea what sort of dance he had meant!

"Yes, dance" Raiden mused, a soft smile at his lips. He knew the effect the music would have, it was the effect the music always had, even on him. He rocked back and forth slightly, inviting Sah-lora to do the same. "Just react to the music, and perhaps, enjoy yourself."

He stepped into Sah-lora as the music shifted to a three count waltz. He placed his right arm just above her hip and the the left grabbed the underside of her forearm lightly. "Place your left hand on my shoulder and with your right hold onto my forearm. Then just follow me lead."

((Sorry for the inexcusably long delay spicey. It shouldn't happen again))

(S'all good! It happens sometimes~)
--------------

Sah-lora was uncertain at first, but upon observing Raiden she began to understand, though still lacked the confidence as he continued to sway, feet barely moving before he stepped closer to her. She flinched back somewhat, but found herself within his arms, a hand to her hip and the other holding her arm. Blinking, she clumsily was moving with him, not certain she understood at first, but as the beat changed, the music, seeming to grow around them in a warm breath of sound, she found herself laughing somewhat as she began to understand, feet moving, hand to his shoulder, other to his forearm as they moved briskly.

"I suppose I'm doing this right?" she asked, raising her brows at him skeptically, but smiling all the same. It was then she stepped on his foot, but instead of apologizing, she couldn't help but laugh. She stumbled back into the tune, but continued to laugh, a laughter which floated enchantingly around them within the room.  "Though I suppose stepping on your foot doesn't seem to be how this dance works. I'll try to be more careful next time."S he said, grinning at him with her teeth, her eyes sparkling as she stared at his handsome face.

Raiden chuckled softly as Sah-lora tread on his foot, he kept the dance going though. "You are doing rather well actually. No one, man or god, can waltz perfectly on their first attempt, save for one. That one would be your father actually. he was the God of Grace, Fortune, Attraction and Chance. Leeto, your father, was also an Elder God, meaning he existed during the reign of Kima." The dance was brought to a close and Raiden stepped away and bowed.

"Would you like to meet your father? It's possible here in the Sanctuary."

(I'm loling. You'll see why!)

---------------

Sah-lora had been enjoying the dance. It was.. different to say the least. The way she was used to dancing was much less rigid and more free form on the body. But then again, everything outside of the swamp was... well, different. As he bowed away, she nodded her head to him, but at the mention of her father, she blinked.

"I don't understand. Why would I want to meet my father?" she felt a souredness in the pit of her stomach and made a face. "I can't say there would be a reason for me wanting to meet him. I've lived most of my life without him already, why would I care to see him now?"
Truthfully, she'd rather not. Her mother had trained her well to hate the man, and even if she was mildly curious, she could not erase entirely the foundations her mother had set. It might have been irrational, but it's all she ever knew. SHe also wasn't sure what she'd do when she'd meet the man who gave birth to her. The idea of meeting him just... didn't feel right and she moved uneasily, backing away from Raiden and wondering what his aim was here.

Gods always had an ulterior motive. Had Raiden really just met her so her father could take her from her mother? She still felt a fierce loyalty towards her, even when it seemed her mother had tried to kill her. It was just the way of witches. And she had been born a witch.  Even seeing a new path to a different life left her... curious, b ut not quite ready to step outside of her comfort zone to embrace a new life just yet...

Perhaps later but now...
She felt if she saw her father, or one too many gods, her natural instincts to try to kill them might spring forth, so she took another step back from Raiden, eyeing him cautiously.
"I'm sure my father has many children. Why would he even care to see me anyway?"

Raiden took a slow, deep breath. "There is something you must understand about you father. There is a reason you have never met the man. You're father had two children. You being one of them. And he cared about both of them until the day he died. Which was about twenty five years ago. The only reason I can introduce you to him is because the sanctuary transcends time. I can pull anyone from any time to here and now. I don't know what Rizha has told you about him but he was a great being. I had the honor of meeting him once and it is a day I won't soon forget."

That was his last day in Asgard. Leeto came to him after his banishment had been issued. At that time Raiden was at a loss. He had just been betrayed and he was losing faith in who he was. Which is one way for a god to fade. Leeto told him, 'life isn't always there to comfort you, many times it will only serve to kick you when you are down. But get back up. Let your choices and your actions define you. Be unstoppable.' Having said what that god wanted, he handed Raiden something that was wrapped in cloth. It was the Asguardian hilt. The single most powerful weapon ever made. Back in the present. Raiden stood in front of the child of a man that gave him the means to live. The hilt heavy in his pocket.

Gods always have ulterior motives. Even the remarkably good ones like Leeto. Raiden half pondered if Leeto had planned for something like this to happen. His daughter, hated by the GrandSoul. A rouge outcast of Asgard. It seemed a bit far fetched. Realizing that he had gone off on a tangent, he brought his gaze back to Sah-lora. "It's getting late. We should get some sleep."

Sah-lora tilted her head curiously. "So my father is dead?" It seemed odd to say, considering she had never once been truly interested in her father, but now Raiden had her intrigued. These powers of the Gods... were definitely something different. It made her shiver. No wonder her mother told her to be wary....
They could play all sorts of tricks. All sorts of devilry.

She would have asked more, but the man grew silent, so she found herself studying him as his gaze grew distant. But then he didn't press the issue, only suggested the pair get to bed. Blinking, she realized she was, indeed, tired, but had been ignoring that feeling because how anxious she was, how out of place she felt. To sleep on a bed so soft and in a world so 'perfect'...
She was used to sleeping on the floor or in the dirt or mud....
She was totally out of her element here. But she did not protest, simply nodded.
"I suppose you are right,"s he answered with some reluctance, her gaze going about to the world around them- a world encased in raw power and magic.

THe realm of the Gods..
she never could have dreamed.
But then again, perhaps this was nothing but a dream.

Raiden led Sah-lora out of the ballroom, which became a forest as they left. After a short way of walking they came to a hammock in a holt of oak trees. Raiden walked between two of the tree and started stringing the them together, creating another hammock. When he was done he turned to Sah-lora. "I figured you would be more used to this then the bed, go ahead and take your pick." With that he stretched his arms over his head and sighed a small yawn.

Sah-lora turned around, green eyes taking in the world around her as it bled into forest. Blinking, she observed Raiden in silence as she tilted her head. THough at his comment, she folded her arms over her chest and smirked.
"It's a pity. That white-soft bed of yours seemed comfortable. It would be fun to give it a try.."s he turned to a hammock, fingers plucking at the string before glancing over her shoulder at the God. "Though I am more used to this sort of thing. Though even more used to sleeping on a straw bed or the floor." She chose one of the hammocks at random and give it a test pull before slipping into it, her body rocking as she settled into it. Blinking, she stared down at the under armor she was wearing, the one Raiden had made especially for her, then up at her hair before smiling and leaning her head back, closing her eyes.

"Mmmm, there is one thing to be said about the way I look," she began, idly kicking her bare feet about, curling her toes since she had already discarded her shoes to the grass. "It's that I look and feel clean." Her toes curled even more before she turned her head to glance over at Raiden, eyeing the second hammock before she sat up, resting her weight on one arm. "Are you intending to sleep with me in the hammocks?" She grinned, most amused, her expression fox like. "Although I thought it was more cordial of men and women to share a bed after spending the day together? It's why you helped me, after all wasn't it? To breed? So isn't the second hammock unnecessary?"

"Perhaps another time then" he stated to her comment about it being a pity that they were not going to the bed. He went to the other hammock and removed his shirt, setting it aside before climbing into the hammock. He was a bit puzzled at her statement about his intentions, but then again he wasn't looking at her he was looking at the backs of his eyelids.

"If my intention was to mate with you I would have just done it, you already know that I can render you incapable of moving. Sex is something beautiful and should only be shared by those who love one another." Raiden slung one of his legs down and rocked it back and forth, thus rocking himself.

Sah-lora thought over what he said. Though most of the words didn't register with her for she didn't fully understand such logics.
"But we had a lovely time and you were showing me many intimate details about Gods. Perhaps God's foreplay is much different than man's?" she thought about this out loud, and also mulled over the idea he mentioned love. "And what do you mean, love? Men are nothing but animals. When a dog wants a mate, he simply sniffs her and mounts her when she's ready to oblige. Women are not very different. Am I not pretty enough? I suppose the laws of attraction applies to all manner of creatures." She could not blame him for that, after all.

"Love. The easiest way to define it would be the emotional inability to be without someone. The very thought of their absence causing an emotional manifestation of sadness.  It is an ultimate feeling of high and low. Many wars have been fought over love. Think of it this way, if you loved someone, you would never want to be apart from them. You should save yourself for the one that makes feel that way, for what greater a gift can you give then yourself?" It was not often that Raiden got philosophical. But why not?

Sah-lora tilted her head curiously to one side.
"Love? But we were talking about breeding." She blinked, not fulling understanding the concept, but she let her eyes drift away towards the tree tops and mulled it over. Love.. to think about one so much that it hurt you? Or, at least that's how it seemed. It was an interesting concept, but seemed more of a hindrance on one's life than something practical. Though, she supposed she felt something of the sort for her mother. It was the only reason she still contemplated going back.
But then she thought back to what he said some more. Love..
It was a concept god's were obviously familiar with. And he seemed to make it sound powerful, or even magical. She tilted her head the other way.
Love...
Yes. She wasn't sure she entirely understood. The only thing she realized was that she felt odd that the two weren't going to mate and frowned a little. Yes, God's must think must differently than man and animal, that was for sure. And she could see her mother know, laughing at the idea.
"I suppose you're familiar with those types of customs?" she asked, leaning up a bit curiously.  "Were you in love before, Raiden?" She could not say the same for herself.  The idea was still too foreign.

Raiden thought over his words carefully. "Many people will claim to love you if they know you have power. At times like those, love is just a four letter word, one that has no meaning behind it. True love is something felt with your entirety. When I was young, I had a very good friend, her name was Shibalba, and she was the goddess of desire. To put it simply, any time that I was not training with Gaiden, I was with her. If there was anyone that I came close to loving, it was her."

Raiden spent a moment in silence, thinking about her. Her amber skin and chestnut hair, the way she walked could only be described as serene. Her soft dark eyes that Raiden often found himself getting lost in during those many nights he spent with her. A smile shined forth on his face, it soon faded as he could not recall the sound of her voice.

"When the tournament was announced, she like myself and many others signed up. She was in the last league. She died in the first round. Her last words to me I'll never forget." It almost seemed like he would say what those words were, but a moment passed and he did not. "The hardest part about love is knowing when someone truly loves you, often times you don't know it until they are gone."

Raiden turned his head away for a moment, blinking away the sting of foreboding tears. It would do him no good to cry. Emotional turmoil in general is bad for gods. It causes self doubt. And a god that had no faith in himself, fades from existence. It would explain why the gods of today are shallow and heartless. Raiden turned his head back to face Sah-lore. "What was life like? Just you and your mother in the swamp?"

Sah-lora took in his story in silence, saying nothing but nodding from time to time. But when he turned the question back on her, she simply blinked and stared at him at first.
"Well, it's just how things were for me. Though, I suppose you could say it was a bit lonely. It was only her and I for most of my life, and when few strangers came into our parts we'd find ways to hunt, kill or toy with them. After all, fresh human bones were so rare for us and hard to come by, my mother pressed how important it was to obtain them. Then there were the animals, and strange creatures that lurked. You do recall those strange things that came after me? the ones that tried to eat me?" she shivered at the thought.

"My mother had warned me about them as she had warned me about your kind.." she eyed him warily. Her mother had not been wrong about how vicious those swamp creatures had been, as she lightly touched over the flesh where she had been injured, moving fingers across it as if the wounds were still there and fresh. Then she frowned and stared back to Raiden again.

"Despite all that you've done for me, I can't help but feel apprehensive around you. But, in the same breath, I still am uncertain how I feel about my mother. She had raised me. Perhaps trying to kill me was her only way to show her affections. After all, we follow with craft and such magics and a way of life are far different than how gods live. Though I am not sure what else to compare it to I.. Worshiping the dark one and all he entails, we are expected to give up all of ourselves unto him in prayer and recreation," she paused, frowning again. "And I suppose in love as well. After all, my mother had informed me at such an early age I was promised to him for some time. So it is just acceptance that I am one with the dark to whom I pray for blessing on my withcraft.  I know not much beyond the swamps. It's just how it was. It was home. You spent the day gathering, learning new spells and praying to the darkness; and at night, I'd pray some more, hoping the winds would not tear down our home or the beasts would eat us in the night. And I'd pray for my mother, for her protection as well. And for vengeance." Her eyes went down to her hands which were sittng in her lap. "Yes.. it was all I ever knew."

Frowning, she thought back to love.
"I guess you could say I love my mother and the dark one. I am fully devoted to both, though it's strange, Only now I feel to question it, and the very idea makes me feel ill. " she shook her head. "It's as if what you are telling me is poisoning my belly, my heart." she sat up in her hammock, cautious and careful at first, her eyes still on the God like a hawk. "But at the same time, I've learned so much not to trust you."
Though something inside her gut twisted-
was taht part of the plan? Was that how Gods acted before they would strike?

She felt hot and suddenly stepped out from the hammock, pacing beside before looking over at Raiden.
"Are you familiar with the dark one?" though he should be- her mother claimed all Gods hated them- as demons were their enemies.

Raiden took her story in the same solace silence that she took his, nodding where it was needed, but thinking about it all the same. She was promised to the 'Dark One'? That narrowed it down to about four entities, each of whom would have a different reaction to Sah-lore's and his young relationship. When she asked about his knowledge of the of her and her mother's apparent deity, he turned to her.

"It really depends on which 'Dark One' you are referring to. By my knowledge there are four that are referred to by that title. Hadron; The scurge of morality, Bane of humanity. He is a real ass hole, even other demons distrust him and he would double cross his own mother. Semper; The Warbane, he lives for one purpose, to shed blood on the field of battle. Vive, she actually has no title from the gods, she lives to pleasure herself, which as a sadist and a narcissist, her pleasures are inspirations for most tortures today. Then finally there is Noct Nirvana, the gods call him the GrandSoul of the Damned. It's rather ironic that someone that holds so much power it mostly not aggressive, especially one with as much cause to hate as he. I've met him a few times, he knows my story and I know his, we more or less come from the same walk of life. Both he and I were cast out of Asgard, he for his pride, I for my rebellion. So, any of those names familiar to you?"

"Noct Nirvana.." she blinked. She had heard of those names, though really his title, to her, for all of these years, had been simply the Dark one, a Dark prince, or King- their all being, their master. Tilting her head, she frowned.
"I am.. not sure. It could be either, though I have heard my mother utter a phrase, a word, a name, that might have been his."
She realized, with a sigh, she might not be much of any help as she turned away from him and fidgeted from where she stood.  This was getting her no where, and here, again, she found ways to thwart any means for either to relax- be in on that massive comfy bed, or here, on these hammocks.
But she just couldn't rest. She squirmed inside this realm, her own body itching around her.
The god realm was just strange, even if part of her blood called out to it- it was just all new and strange.

Raiden paused as Sah-lore started to seem agitated and fidgety, like she couldn't relax. He stood from the hammock and walk over to her, not any closer then arm's length, one should never invade the space of another that is on edge. "Are you alright Sah-lore?" His voice was layered with concern, her mood seemed to have changed quickly within the last few moments, it was some cause of concern.

She sighed frustratedly before turning around.
"You should take me back to the swamp." and her eyes implored him. She wasn't joking. She had about as much of these god tricks as she could take, and she was itching for real familiarity.
That, and she wasn't sure she liked the idea Raiden knew so much. SHe was curious, yes, but part of the charm to her faith was not knowing...
"I don't think I'd be able to sleep well unless I was home." even as silly as it seemed, and as dangerous.. after all, it was night time and those creatures would be prowling, certainly more hungry for her blood.

Raiden internally sighed, he was tiring of this, one minute she wanted to know more and the next she would prefer knowing nothing, one minute she wanted him dead and the next she was saving him, an attempt that could have nearly damned him. Raiden just lightly took her wrist, "and home you shall be." he muttered as the world melted around them, the immense pushing and pulling from all directions followed as they sped through the fabric of space, arriving just outside the black rock.

"Would you like me to accompany you to where you will sleep for the night? I'm sure those creatures are still out and well, I have no cause to fear Rizhra any longer." During that comatose state during which he was fighting off the intoxication of Sah-lore's blood, he came to a realization, an ace in the hole against the witch, but it wasn't like he would ever utilize it.

Raiden's powers startled her, and she as surprised to find herself back at the cold entrance to the swamp. Turning around, she stared back at the swamp- dead, spindly trees reaching up towards the skies, dead and rotting and grey. The grounds, loose and swelling with ripe waters, leant a familiar and unkind odor to the air.
As much as she had wanted to be here, to be here again made her feel like she had received a heavy punch to the face. She wasn't sure why, or why her body tensed in reluctance-
which made her worry.
If she didn't want to be int he realm with Gods, or in the swamp with her mother- where did she belong?
But at his statement, Sah-lora simply shook her head and stared out at the vastness of the swamp and sighed.
"No, you've already done far too much for me." Though when she turned to him, there was a sadness about her, even when she tried to smile. Then she leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "Goodbye, Raiden."
If anything, it was like kissing a dream goodbye, and the uneasy feeling she could not shake, which is why she only took a few steps before pausing, when suddenly something shot up from the swampy ground and grabbed her by her legs- causing her to scream before she was dragged down beneath the muck and mud, swallowed into an unseen world below.

Raiden reacted without thinking, diving into the small and closing tunnel left when Sah-lore was drug into the earth, then propelled himself alone it using telekinetic abilities, several seconds went by into the darkness, finally he met up with her, wrapping his arms around her and again moving them through space, back outside the rocks. But something else came with them. One of the creatures that had tried to eat Sah-lore.

"GOD!!!!!" it screamed, apparently Raiden was also on the menu.

"I don't have time for you." Raiden waved his hand at the creature and it soon found itself floating high above the earth, and the consuming cold and dark. Raiden then knelt next to Sah-lore. "Is it a normal occurrence for something to try to kill you?"

Sah-lora stood there, clinging to Raiden's side with her hair a disheveled mess, plastered with muck and mud, her whole body coated the same, and her heart trying to thump clean out of her chest. She trembled, tears filling her eyes as she suddenly sobbed, "N-no!" but then nodded "Well, yes.. my.. my mother had warned me about traveling int he swamp at night, I-" she felt herself shaking, the attack having surprised her and forced her to cling tightly onto Raiden, though she did not know it.
Then, after a moment, she found her wits again and loosened her grip upon him and stared back at him.
"I'm sorry."s he said after a moment, then frowned. "I.. I should have known this would happen. I was a fool to request we come here at such an hour."

Raiden was just relieved that she was alright, but perhaps a bit shaken up. A surprise attack like that can be most devastating. In the time it takes you to realize you're being attacked, a panic has set in. A level head is more valuable in a fight. Raiden was just glad he were alright.

"Hey, it's fine, we can just go to the inn from earlier today, or perhaps later yesterday? But we need to get you cleaned up first." He extended his hand to her and stretched it. The muck and grim all around her body was lifted off and away before it fell. Raiden's eyebrows raised. Followed by stammering.

"I.. Uh.. I think you..." Raiden was never caught off guard, nothing surprised him, he was a wordsmith, but all of a sudden he could barely form a sentence. "I think you lost your shirt in the bog."

Sah-lora blinked, staring back at Raiden before she looked down. "Oh, so I believe it has." Then she raised her head to look at him, tilting her head curiously to one side and not completely understanding his blush. "I don't suppose you can use your powers to find it? Or are you too ill? You seem flush. Are Gods able to catch a fever?"

Raiden shook his head a bit, forming a new shirt in his hand and passing it to her. "I'm fine, I don't know what came over me." It was odd, extremely odd. The sight of her breasts shouldn't have fazed him like it did, it wasn't like he hadn't seen the beauty of a bare woman before. He wasn't a prude. The sight of her for some reason just really threw him off. He again found himself with a feeling he couldn't place.

"Let's, um, let's go back to the inn."

OOC: LOL. Let's go back to the inn.. CLEARLY A GOOD IDEA
jk XD

-------------------


Sah-lora kept her head tilted, but gladly accepted the shirt, slipping it on.
"Yes, I should be ready now,"s he said, flipping her hair out from underneath it. "You know, some mortals can be quite prude. Why I, on the other hand, see now shame in nudity, it would be unwise for us to have traveled there had I only half my clothes." She stepped near to him and smirked. "So are you just going to simply whisk us away there?" Gods had quick an interesting and quick way for travel, after all. And it was a bit of a thrill to travel through it and experience it, even if it were brief.

OOC: And Good old Sah-lora, such words of wisdom she doth speak XD

Raiden looked over to her and smirked, seeming to have recovered himself. "There is no shame in nudity. The body is a beautiful thing, mortal and god alike. I think it would be safe to assume that there is no one thing more then the sight of the one you love. Maybe I will be able to see such a sight one day." He made eye contact with Sah-Lora, "maybe I already have."

He took her hand and the world peeled away. Pushed and pulled from everywhere at once and a brief moment of feeling nothing but Lora's hand in his. Then the world came back into view with a change of scenery, they were atop mountains overlooking the horizon. The east was bathed in timeless hues of dark purple as the sun neared the horizon from afar. From here, you could see the cursed swamp, as well as several of the neighboring villages and even a small city in the distance. streetlamps ablaze.

"Well damn, seems I overshot." He said in a totally unconvincing way.

The way Raiden looked at her made her cheeks burn. She blinked, not fully understanding why. And when he took her hand, a thrill rushed through her, even before they vanished. ANd the feeling of his hand was all that remained as she was cast into darkness, pulled along in an unseen and unfelt world. And her next breath later, she was staring out over the mountain side.

"Oh.." she took a step forward, mesmerized by what she saw as she touched one hand to her chest. "Oh wow." Her green eyes lit up. "You can see the whole area from here. There's the swamp..a nd the inn..." it was then that she blinked. "The inn.." she furrowed her brows and turned to him, a quizzical expression upon her face. "Were we not to go to the Inn?" She raised her brows at him but smirked. "Or is this some sort of trickery of the Gods?"

"Well we were headed to the inn." He walked around to stand next to her, facing the sunset. "But then I realized what time it was and the view of the sunrise here is breathtaking, so I figured I would share it with you. Just a few moments now till sunrise, then afterwards we can go back to the inn and get some much needed rest."

Sah-lora tilted her head.
"Surely, as a God, could you not make it sunset at whatever time you choose?" But she smirked and shrugged, noting a flowering bush nearby that she allowed her finger's to tip toe across as she recalled when Raiden placed a flower into her hair. She lifted a hand up as if to see if it were still there.
"Is there anything a God can not do?" she pondered, eyes still tracing over the white flowers of the bush.

Raiden went to stand at the edge of the the apex of the mountain, Taking note of the lightening hues of horizen, going from a deep royal purple to a deep blood red. There was all sorts of mythlore about the red dawn, but it most common was that blood was spilled during the night. Oh how true it turned out to be this day.

"There is plenty a god cannot do. Such as creating a mountain so huge that it could not be lifted. Limitless power paradox aside, we can't bend all of nature to our will. Only the Titans had that power. We also cannot suede the hearts and minds of mortals to our will, everyone has a free choice. Now we can manipulate that choice however we want, but at the end of the day, a person still has a choice of weather or not they do something."

Sah-lora thought over his words carefully as she continued to stare at the flowering bush.
"So it seems even Gods are powerless against the wills of men." She turned around, glancing at him with a smirk. "And even the minds of women." She then turned to move past him, standing at the edge of the mountain as she looked out over the world cast in a red light, her eyes going distant as her mind traveled far and away, deeply immersed in thought.

"Even if such a being had infinite power, what would the point be? IF you could just bend life to your will, it surely seems there would be no reason for silly creatures such as animals, or even humans. One could conduct the affairs of life all by themselves." Then she frowned, thinking back to her mother. "My mother used to think Gods were so all powerful," she turned and ran her eyes over Raiden. "I'd have to tell her different." She smirked. "Even you seem too human to be up on that God pedestal my mother was always fuming about." She turned around now, plucking a flower from the bush and twirled it between her fingers. "And to think, my relationship with my mother is crumbling because of my relationship to a God." Her smile grew. "Who would have ever thought that?"

Raiden Smiled, the first rays of the sun peeking over the horizon. "If one could conduct all the affairs of life by themselves, then what would be the point of living? Life is only beautiful if you have someone to share it with." And Loneliness is not someone that life should be shared with. He watched as more and more of the sun became visible, unaware that he was now holding Sah-lora's hand. "Just look at the beauty. it could not be an accident, that..." he motioned to the sunrise, "...was done by the hands of an artist. Go back far enough, and you will find that the current occupants of Asgard used to live on earth. They worshiped their deities, The Titans, and the Titans were very benevolent. Two in particular often showering those they favored in gifts, such as the use of magic. But they became greedy, always wanting more the greedy bastards. eventually they marched on Asgard and claimed it for their own. And the lands of Asgard made them powerful.

"And so my kind came to be, but rumor has it that another being came before the Titans, It makes me wonder, who was the original, the creator? Who crafted this reality and those that surround it? No one knows." The sun was now a ways above the horizon. Looking over at Sah-lora, "if you are to inform others about something, it's best you know all the information you can. That is the gist of the history of gods." It was then that he saw her hand in his.  He half Smiled at her and turned to face the horizon again.

"It's odd that I enjoy the company of one that tried to kill me less than twenty-four hours ago."

Sah-lora said nothing when she noticed Raiden's hand holding her own. She just smirked, assumed it was something God's just did, while ignoring the little bubbles of emotion tickling inside her belly and heart. His story was quite interesting, as she too, pondered the beginning of life.

"It was taught to me we all came from chaos," she began, taking a single step forward as she lifted up her chin while her green eyes roamed over the world now cast in the wide morning rays of light. "That all life came from darkness, and light escaping from that and casting it away. In the midst of it, turmoil, chaos.. life.. good and evil, all of those things came into fruition." She smirked over the thought, her eyes going down to the way their hands were held as she turned his hand over, observing the way their fingers clasped together.

"I guess it's kind of like that,"s he stated, taking her eyes from their hands and looking up at him. "Where as one moment a woman wants to kill a man..." and her eyes searched his. "And another moment she is at peace with him. Like the tides," she turned away, stepping forward, albeit , closer to him this time as he glanced back out to the world. "The tides come in roaring waves, then fade away to subtle foam and wet sand upon the beach." She closed her eyes. "Though I have never seen the ocean, I have had visions of it through my mother's ceremonies. She tells me I'll conceive life on a beach someday, when the prince of darkness comes for me and swallows me up into the ocean."

The theory which Sah-lora presented was interesting, light coming from darkness. But in a way it made sense, without one there could not be the other, for if one did not know what light was, how could they say it were dark? Yet again she reverenced herself fated to be with one of the Dark Lords. He looked to her, searching her eyes. "Do you honestly believe that you are predestined to be with a Dark Lord? You do realize you have a choice right? Unless you made a blood oath to him yourself, you owe him nothing. Just because someone tells you your whole life what your destiny is doesn't mean you have to follow it. If that were the case, I would either be a GrandSoul or dead. You control your own destiny, the future is not yet written, it can be however you want it to be. If you want to be the wife of a greater demon the by all means tell me and I will drop it, but from what you have told me, you have had no choice in the matter."

Raiden didn't really know where that came from, maybe some repressed outrage at people that cram their preordained bullshit down everyone's throats. Or perhaps he cared about her more than he cared to let on.

Sah-lora gave a curious tilt of her head.

"But I have given myself away. It was determined in my blood before I was even born."s he explained, searching his eyes for the meaning in which he meant. "I suppose the choice was my mother's." She admitted, still feeling aggravated by his logic as she looked away. She felt uneasy, bothered as she gave a shrug of her shoulders in hopes to loosen her tense muscles there.
"And when I was old enough to, during my first blood at the coming of age, I gave more blood in honor to him. ANd every month since we held a ceremony with smokes and magics, and prayed towards him for the salvation of the witches, for the salvation of me.... and for Rizhra."

She gave her answer, but why did it not satify him? That was what he wanted right? For her to choose? Then why was he not happy with her words? Raiden dropped his hand from hers, "I will be back momentarily." he muttered before vanishing. Back to the Sanctuary, alone.

He didn't understand, why was he so taken with her. Why had he needlessly risked his life so many times for her? Why hadn't he killed her when she attacked him like he had done every time before her? What made her different? Then there was other things to be explained. Why had the sight of her breasts tripped him up so? It wasn't the first time he'd seen that particular part of the female body, not by a long shot. So why? Trying to understand all of this was just so infuriating!

"You don't understand do you?" came a voice from behind him. Turning, Raiden's eyes fell on Kima.

"Well hello there, how nice of you to drop into my Sanctuary unannounced." Came Raiden's quick and venomous retort.

"I'm here to help you sort out your feelings, I would hate for you to fade. Think back Raiden, when was the last time you felt this way? The unwavering desire to protect someone. The looks of Blithe and mirth that would often make you lose yourself. When was the last time you unknowingly touched someone, just for the reassurance that they were really there?"

"What the hell are you talking about?! I've never felt like that before!"

"Oh I'm not so sure about that, I'm fairly certain that you've had the desire before today." Kima's word play was just pissing him off. But he got his point across, He was talking about Shebalba.

"My time with Shebalba was nothing like this."

Kima chortled, "It isn't? Raiden, you spent every waking moment with her. You would strike out at someone for looking at her the wrong way. They two of you spent many a night doing little more then staring at one another. You view your time Asgard with such lost love now that you fail to realize that, once upon a time, you were in love. But greed got the better of you and her with that forsaken tournament. Now, Shebalba is dead and you punish yourself by remaining alone. Wandering aimlessly. Completely failing to realize that the universe is giving you a second chance. Do you not recognize the feelings from your past? Last time, love was handed to you. This time, you will have to fight for it, by tooth and nail through blood, sweat, and tears."

Raiden was shocked, "How can you say I love Sah-lora!? I've only just met her!"

Kima spoke calmly, "Four times today, Sha-lora could have died, and four times today, either you didn't kill her or you saved her. Now call me crazy, but that seems a bit like love to me."

The realization hit him like a warhammer to the chest. Kima was right of course. Next thing he knew, Raiden was sailing through space, back to the mountain top, only a few minutes had passed. He went to stand in front of Sah-lora. "We all have choices to make. Well I've just made one." He leaned in slowly, tilting his head slightly, before planting his lips on hers.

Raiden was only gone momentarily, leaving Sah-lora to remain, emotions twisting inside her she never had to fight with before. She hadn't even the time to really sort through them when Raiden reappeared. She gasped, startled by his sudden reappearance (though one might think she would have been use to Gods and their antics), but what surprised her the most was the kiss.
Whatever he said, whatever words had come from his lips, had long been lost to the heat now thriving in her body, roaring within her mind and drawing her closer to him as they kissed. It was like a spark of lightning, a thrill that rushed through her, one that she had never experienced before. She leaned into the kiss, into his body and found herself doing the only thing she could do.
She was kissing back.

Her lips were soft an palpable, pressing, kissing, tasting of his like she'd never known. Sure, she had received cold kisses from her mother before, but nothing ever like this. So she had no idea how to react to the heat, to the sensations, to the intensity, only able to connect that kissing and a feeling like this was a gateway to breed, and as quickly as she found herself enjoying just the subtle kiss from the Gods, she found her mind in a frenzy, wishing to enjoy... just about everything else.

"Gods, my heart is beating so fast!" she exclaimed, gasping as she tore her lips away, placing a hand to her chest and surprised by how fast it was beating. It was as if she had just ran a marathon.

"What.. what sort of choice was this that you made?" she asked, her mind in a fog, her eyes half lidded when she finally pulled away from him. Her mind was in a whirl. So many questions rushing through her head, so many thoughts heating her body that it put her in a lull. She felt as if she were in some sort of dream, and part of her had to wonder what this really was.. for it was warm and soft and exciting, and she had no idea how to really describe what she was feeling for him.

Love had always been cold. Love had always been forced.
But this? This was an intense as a storm, something just as powerful of rage, yet the heat here was different, and it made her feel a little drunk.

Raiden found that it was true, in a moment most crucial, time seems to slow down. He kept expecting that at any moment she would turn away, rebuke him, or who knows what else, but instead something very important happened. She kissed him back. It that instant, warmth spread across him like wildfire, it was a warmth that he vaguely remembered. As she pulled away he barely kept himself from stepping up to meet her. But he figured with her lack of experience with men, god or otherwise. It were best to take things slow.

He didn't need to feel his chest to know his heart was racing, his blood spiked with adrenalin and endorphins. "Yeah, my heart is really going as well. As for my choice, I choose to decipher my feeling. You mean alot to me, despite the fact you tried to kill me. Perhaps we are, like you said, like the tides, crashing against one another at first then later at peace with each other." He stepped Closer to her, mere inches separated them, "All the world means nothing least you have someone to share it with."

Sah-lora's face went long at his meaning. It was hard for her to figure him out, figure out what he meant, and what this moment meant for them.
"But I had someone to share it with,"s he told him simply. Then looked away, a sadness reaching her eyes. "Though now I realize I'm going to have to make a choice." She drew in a careful breath. "And that choice will not be so easy."

Did she really have to choose? Between her mother, the damned, and that of a chance on a God? She was still fraught with worry, but her heart was still beating heavily within her chest, her cheeks still heated from the kiss. She lifted a hand, gently touching her lips as she recalled that moment.
then she turned to him, thinking the question but not asking..
Did he really want to share this world with her?

Raiden reached out and took her hands in his, giving them a reassuring squeeze. "Important decisions are never easy, and rarely is the right choice clears. Go with your heart." He brought their hands up and pointed at her heart with one of his index fingers.

Sah-lora looked into his eyes at the mention of following her heart. She felt as if she could cry, but knew not why the tears burned behind her eyes.

"Follow my heart," she repeated, the words coming out soft. She drew in a breath and turned back towards the valley below them. "That will be... something new." she said, and then turning her eyes back, she stared down at their hands as he held her's, observing it with curiosity, and still not finding the strength to look at him just yet.

It was Raiden's turn to cast his eyes out to the valley. "Beautiful, isn't it? The was the sun make the entire valley glow with a soft permanence, how you can see everything for miles from atop this mountain. I've found that there is really no other place quite like earth. Asgard is just one giant city, always lit up to the point that the stars are not visible at night. Whereas in Zeroth, the demon realm, the only mountains are the Monts, giant castles of demon lords, and the only light source is the moon, which they call Noctis in reference to their leader, Noct Nirvana." He looked back over to her, "You don't have to choose right now, tough choices should be given plenty of though."

An idea came to mind after another moment. "Sah-lora, would you like to go to the beach?" It seemed all plans of sleep had left his mind, he was very awake now. Seems today god would laugh at his own plans.

Sah-lora listened to him, then tilted her head curiously at the mention of the beach. She found herself smirking quite coyly at the idea.
"You mention the beach, but I must warn you, Raiden, I have... never been. But then again, there is much in the world I have not seen, have not experienced." SHe moved her eyes in attempts to search his. "Kissing a man would definitely fall under something I have not done before." ANd keeping her smirk, she turned from him and walked against the narrow edge between the great fall off the mountain side, and the flattened ledge they stood. "As well as.. many other things with a man." She thought about their hands and turned to him suddenly. "Why is it that you hold my hand?" she asked, not quite understanding the symbolizing behind it. "It feels.. strange. Though not horrible, like.. as if we're connecting in a way." She didn't know how to describe it as her face scrunched at the thought, then she looked away, and kept on walking along the ledge. She knew she had nothign to fear. There was a God with her, after all. She even lent a little speed to her step as she continued to walk along, one boot in front of the other.

Raiden chuckled, "Well that is exactly what holding hands is, an attempt an a connection. A symbol of unity or equality, but more often a subtle sign of affection. Religious groups will often join hands when praying as an act of unity before their choice god. But more often the act of holding hands is seen as a connection between two people that care for one another, based deeply in the mind. But when I hold your hand, it's to see if you are really there." He didn't offer any explanation for what he meant by that last sentence. He merely tightened his grasp on her hand for a moment before letting his hand relax whilst walking along side the top of the mountain with Sah-lora.

"To see if I'm really there?" Sah-lora paused in mid stride to peer back at him as she blinked.
Turning around, she continued walking, albeit backwards as she grinned. "Do you see me as some sort of ghost, Raiden? That may be here or not?" Then she turned back around so she was facing forwards again, smirking at him over her shoulder as she walked onward. "Must I remind you I'm a witch, not a ghost. And one would think a God might understand what is real and what is not." But she didn't press the issue, but continued walking, still holding his hand as she thought over his statement. But then something struck her that made her finally stop walking as she turned back around to him.
"Why wouldn't you believe I was here?" And her pale green eyes searched his for answers.

Raiden rolled his eyes a bit, a smile on his lips. "I am well aware that you are a witch, albeit not a very good one after all you could only summon some outcast god. But you have to understand, that for gods, things tend to be there one moment and gone the next, often with little or no warning whatsoever." As if to affirm what he said, there was a loud pop and that air became thick with an ambient yet unseen power. In a quick blur, something tackled Raiden and both him and his attacker tumbled off the edge of the mountain, a sheer drop several hundred feet.

Raiden knew by the attack style of the attacker, who the attacker was. Ajurh the Eweff of Grandsoul. Eweff being a phonic acronym for UF, the unstoppable force. But that would not stop Raiden from trying to act as the immovable object. His legs quickly wrapped around The Grandsoul's waist and slammed fist after alternate fist into Ajurh's face. The Eweff wouldn't take that falling down though, he thrust his legs forward and wrapped them around Raiden's neck and and pulled him back around till his head were angled towards the fast approaching ground. lifting one hand towards the air like here where riding some bucking broncho. The two hit the ground with quite the impact, throwing up dust and dirt and causing quite the cloud cover.

"Good Morning Raiden!" The Grandsoul said with cheerful glee as he stepped out of the deep inpact in the ground that was Raiden.
"God Damn it Ajurh, can't you think of a more, I don't know, subtle way of saying hello?"
"God... Damn it? were you trying to be funny?" the god asked, completely ignoring the question. "Well, anyway, I came here to tell you that the Noctekiin are on the move. The Fourth, Eighteenth and Twenty-third Nights are all on the move, as well as the creation of a Twenty-Fifth Night."
"A Twenty-Fifth?! Wait, why should I care? The Noctekiin serve Noct Nirvana, he and I are on good terms."
The Grandsoul merely smiled, "Are you certain of this?" He looked of towards the peak of the mountain. "You know how Noct is about his women, The Fourth Night is coming for her, coming through the would gate in the The Guildfist territory as we speak, he could be here in as little as a few hours."
"What would Noct want with Sah-Lore?"

THe Grandsoul leaned in close, so he could talk quietly, barely above a whisper, "Much to peaga's displeasure, Sah-lore is the deity of light. Unyielding, Unwavering light." That is when it all dawned on Raiden, he absolutely could not let Sah-lore be taking by Noct, he would kill her.
"Ajurh, are you certain of this?"
"We are being's based on faith my Dear Raiden, Try having some."

Raiden reappeared an top of the mountain. "Gods need a new way to say hello." Was all he said, trying not to alert Sah-lore to the danger she were in.

Sah-lora had been smirking at Raiden, only to find herself staring at... what appeared to now be a vacant spot beside her as she flinched at the sudden burst of power that now seemed to ring inside her ear. And it wasn't until she realized what had gone on did she gasp and rush to the mountain's edge, peering over the side and watching in disbelief as Raiden slammed into the ground so many feet below.

She was about to foolishly jump over the edge herself (or more realistically, find  some means to get down there to see if he was ok) when he appeared again at her side and nearly gave her a heart attack. She visibly frowned when she noticed his body covered in the dust and debris from the fall as she released a disgruntled breath.

"I should say so. You call that a form of hello?" she asked, but tried to play it off she wasn't as riled up over it as she seemed, though she wasn't very good at masking her emotions as she nervously shifted her weight from one boot to the other and sighed again.
"More trouble?" For she assumed, one being attacked as such, could not bring such good news. Then she moved forward, brushing away a large crumbling of rock in his hair. "You look awful. Did not that hurt?" Or perhaps Gods just simply did not feel pain?

Raiden began dusting himself off. He was mostly intact, though he would be sore for a few days. "It hurt quite a bit. And yes. Gods do feel pain, but I have been exposed to pain for so long that my pain threshold is extremely high. And as for trouble, there currently is none. Just a powerful god bored with his immortality that likes to keep the adrenaline flowing. So about that trip to the beach?"

He did nothing to alert her of the impending danger. If worse came to worse he could engage the approaching Noctekiin in endless combat. The only problem was that he himself could not kill it. He wasn't a being of light. He was a shadow, something that slipped by only noticed by those aware enough to understand that they are never alone when they walk with light. However, Sah-lora could kill the night. But that would be near impossible with he lack of combat training. They had to keep moving or stay in the sanctuary for now.

Sah-lora, puzzled he could dust himself off and just wish to continue, found herself frowning over his nonchalance.
"Do you think there will be any more instances like this at the beach?" she inquired, finding herself dragging her feet at the question.

"I surely hope not" Raiden's gaze briefly glanced the Mountion where the Guildfist found their home, and below that mountain was the World Gate, the only of such things in the reality, and the only way for something that is not an asgardian to travel between realities. You could see th  peak of the mountain if you knew where to look. It was still night over there. And if what Ajurh had said was true, day would not come there on this morning. He turned back to Lora and half smiled. Holding out his hand, he asked, "Shall we be off?"

In truth, the reason Sah-lora inquired about the beach was she was a bit apprehensive of the visit. Sure, it was exciting to think she'd get to see the ocean for the first time, but in reality- she knew what the beach entailed. And if she were to go to the beach, it had been prophesized that is where she would meet her intended, and the more time she spent with Raiden, the more she realized she was not sure she wanted to even meet this 'Dark Prince' who would take her away.

So when his hand was offered out, she stared at it a moment before slipping her own hand into his hesitantly with a brief nod.
"Yes."
And inwardly, she found herself praying this would not be the time the Dark Lord would come for her.

The world soon peaked away with that all to familiar push and pull that only is experienced during long range teleportation. In the width of a second, they were over a thousand miles away on the soft sand of a beach in Whitesands Serendipity. It was nearly three times the from Mount Guildfist, which the Noctekiin was coming from. The sun was already well above the horizon and its heat was just beginning to warm the morning air. Which was good. The Noctekiin could not stand the light. It was their natural habit to overcast the sky in dark clouds. Unless it were night. They love to see the moon. Raiden turned to Sah-Lora and smiled, "Welcome to the beach."

The warm, morning breeze and the soft sounds of the rush of winds and waves had Sah-lora's eyes widening. Surprise was evident, shock was there as her hand slipped away from his fingers as she took a few cautious steps forward to observe the wonder of water before her. Never in all of her days had she seen something so grand, so powerful feeling that it made her feel so powerless nad small in comparison.

"All the power in the world must be in that water," she murmured, blinking though her eyes remained large. She took a few more steps forward and gasped when sea foam lapped at her feet. Blinking, she looked down, admiring the beauty of the silken, slick sands and how the rising sun sparkled in a brilliant array of colors across it's glossy surface.

"So this is the ocean."

Raiden leaned against an outcropping of rock that jut up and out of the beach while he let Sah-Lora explore the wonders of this feast for the senses. Yet in all the surrounding beauty, he was completely focused on the demigod that tried to kill him the day prior. And what a long day that had been. He had killed his brother, who was a Grand Soul, that would more than likely invoke the rather spontaneous wrath of Peaga the Genesis. That is if they were able to survive a completely troubling individual named Noct Nirvana, fallen god of tranquility and peace.

While these thoughts played at the back of his mind his gaze remained fixed on Lora. Her posture was relaxed and inquisitive, yet somewhat overwhelmed, like she were seeing the bigger picture before taking time to appreciate or even take real notice of the small things. Raiden popped himself off the rock and walked forward, his clothes fading off him like smoke. He was not an overly muscular man, and while his muscles were present and apparent, it was not so extremely toned as to suggest unhealthy and extended fasting and exercise. His skin was nearly devoid of the scars of battles long past. Nearly. If one were to look close enough, they would still see the faint white lines of scars long healed. Although one painfully fresh scar in the centre of his lower abdomen; a lovely little parting gift from his brother that was still red at the seem.

"Close your eyes Sah-Lora, take slow deep breaths. Do you taste the potent salt from the water? How about the smell. Can you smell the essence of life and power?" He came to walk around in front of her, putting himself between the sun and her, "what do you hear? Do you hear the roll of soft thunder as the sound of a wave crashes into itself being reflect one hundred fold because there is naught a single thing to block the sound? Now open your eyes."

Raiden was cloaked in shadow and silhouette. His soft gold eyes were visible and his face was obviously contorted into a smile. His relaxed yet powerful posture demanded respect but preached compassion. Like some grand dark Prince, he seemed most at home in shadows. He truly seemed to be a king of the shadows.

OOC: Could the great prophecy have meant another?! :O

OOC: dun dun dun...
I dunno 8D
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The feeling was incredible, the power in sight and sound, even taste was immeasurable. She couldn't think of words to describe it, but at Raiden's command, she closed her eyes, her smile broadening as she took in this new sensation using other ways to see. But when she opened them, if there was any connection between him and the prophecy from Rizhra, she thought nothing of it, for she only had one thing in mind- and that focus was on the man in front of her.

"If you keep standing in front of me," she told him, playfully as she took a step towards him, their bodies but inches away as she cupped a cheek to his face. Her green eyes were dancing as she admired his golden ones as she gave a tilt of her head. "Then how can I see the ocean?"

And she leaned in towards him, her eye lids hanging low- but as it seemed as though she might have kissed him, she twirled away, leaving him with the soft breeze herbody created in her absence as she stepped out into the water. Though she still wore her clothes, they began to soak int he waters, skirts sticking to her legs as she laughed and stomped through the waters, frothy sea foam splashing up at her, nearly soaking her clothing all the way through in just a few playful steps.

And as a wave came at her, crashing and threatening to knock her over- she found herself stumbling beneath it's weight, and then soon laughing as her body splashed out of the waters.
She shook her head, her red hair scattering droplets of sea water in every direction- and by now, her entire dress was slicked to her body, as if she was wearing nothing but a translucent second skin that rippled and hugged at all of her curves. And she was laughing, throwing her arms into the waves and trying to grab them-a nd reveling int eh feeling of the rushing water between her fingers and how it pushed mightily against her body.

Now bent over int he waters, she grinned back towards Raiden.
"I think I like the ocean!" she called over towards him, above the roar of the wind and waves.

Raiden watch Lora dance and play, it were quite the enchanting display of fluid movement. Raiden thought back to another person from his life who had loved to dance. Shibalba would have loved Sah-Lora. Probably. They were both head strong and liked to be independent, they also loved to dance. Raiden walked through the water, the wave was not even enough to stagger him, "I'm glad! I love coming here at sunrise and just watching the contrast of water and sky. Need help up?" He asked, extending his hand to her.

At the offer of his hand, Sah-lora gave a wicked grin and snatched onto it- just at the same moment a large wave crashed onto her and through a barked laugh, she yanked Raiden down clean into it as both woman and god were gobbled up by the frothy wave.

Water torture truly is a most heinous thing.

Many, many centuries in the history of a fallen god, just after having stolen an asgardian artifact most sacred to a particular GrandSoul goddess. Raiden spent nine years incarcerated while the relentlessly tortured him for information on the whereabouts of the Asgardian Hilt. He never said a thing. The tortures got progressively worse, water torture was a particular favorite of the God of Pain. All these memories had been suppressed behind a mental wall. However, being thrust into the water with very little warning caused all of these dark memories to come rushing back. With the quickness of a riptide, Raiden rose from the water with two swords drawn pointed in the direction her faced. How these swords came into existence could only be attributed to his powers as a god, the were long vicious looking blades without crossguards with a dark blackness seemed to draw the light to it.

For the moment, seemed unaware of Sah-Lora's presence. His mind was lost in memories long since past. His face was cast in an emotion that had not been seen on his face in eons. Fear. His breath was a quaking and shuttering gasp while his eyes stared ahead into the past. Sah-Lora, of course, would never know this as he stood over her, seemingly protecting her from a foe she could not see.

------------

OOC: Can you say, PTSD?

When Sah-lora resurfaced, her red hair was slicked against her body and her outfit left nothing to the imagination, but even as her eyes dazzled in their playfullness, his sudden dual-wielding stance with his blades was not lost on her as she frowned.

"Did I miss something? When have we gone off to war?" And as she peered around, there was nothing she could see. Did the God sense something she could not? Such a peculiar breed.

At the sound of her voice, his memory of the events was shattered. The blades were dispelled and Raiden pulled Sah-Lora to her feet. "Sorry about that, old demons from the past suddenly decided to resurface. And by demons" he added, not sure if she would understand the phrase, "I mean memories best left in the past."

He cracked his neck before finishing the statement, "Sorry about that."

Sah-lora blinked and wiped at the cool waters dribbling down her face.
"Do you always act this way?" she inquired, giving him a wry smile. "When memories you do not like return?"

Raiden popped his neck with a quick flex of muscles, his smile was gone and he was giving off an thousand yard stare. "Well now that I remember those memories in particular, I doubt it shall happen again." He stretched his arms, trying to relieve some of the tension that was suddenly gripping everywhere around his body. "Any other things from these stories you have read that you would like to see? Perhaps a thriving and blessed forest as opposed to the dying and cursed one you grew up in?"

Sah-lora still peered at him curiously, her head partially tilted before she was asked the last question. Then she straightened her neck and became thoughtful and pursed her lips.
"I don't know. I never truly imagined life outside the swamps. I suppose after I had my revenge, there would be a whole world to explore...." But she hadn't a clue where to begin!

Raiden cast his eyes skyward, considering his response, or perhaps recalling memories. "And why not before? Forgo your vendetta and widen your life experience." he paused, trying to find the right words. "I can understand your mother's reason for wanting revenge, but why do you?" The god tilted his head, staring her in the eyes. While is face was devoid of expression, his eyes searched hers with intensity. Searching for uncertainty in her answer.

Sah-lora blinked, she too was curious as to why he'd ask such a question, but as she thought it over, her response came out naturally.

"Because of the Gods, I was cursed. And even if not all things my mother said were true... the curse most definitely has affected her, and as my mother, it too, affects me."

She tilted her head.

"Do you not have notions like that among the Gods? To protect those you care of, even if the fight is not yours? I have come to realize perhaps such a battle might be futile, having been chained to those swamps for so long... but my mother's passion kept me strong, and through it, I wish to remain in that strength, at least for her, if not for myself. But revenge....? I suppose it's all I know. I know no other reason to be against those who have wronged my blood line."