It seemed like every bad seed in Le'raana was being drawn to Reichsgard, all with very bad intentions in regards to the book located the the bowels of the large bookshop resting in the emptier part of the city. Sure, things were already bad enough with such a loathsome, bitter creature as Emilia lurking about, but there was other, more disturbing things on the horizon for this place.
Although it was blisteringly cold out today, that didn't stop the ice from melting away in a neat circle in the middle of the street, just a few blocks down from the shop in question. As the ice melted to reveal the cobblestone just beneath it, a circle of fire spread outwards from the center, bright embers flying up into the cold air, drifting with the breeze.
Suddenly, as the circle of fire reached its max, another appeared just next to it. Then, to its opposite side, another. Before these strange anomalies, one could only see the white of the snow, and the grey of the frozen, stone buildings. However, these three fiery holes in the ground stuck out like a sore thumb, and one look gave away the impression that bad things were to come. Those assumptions were correct.
From the two circles resting at the sides of the first, a pair of hulking, demonic entities in charred armor with orange embers burning between the plates of each piece rose, each wielding large halberds, with long, curved horns jutting up from their skulls, curling back behind them. They stood at at least 7'4 each, and both were looking around slowly, growling towards each other as if making conversation. Then, from the first circle of flames to appear, another figure rose. Much less grotesque than the two previous entities, but anyone that knew what it was would think otherwise.
He had a full head of white hair, cut rather short and messily slicked back on his head. His skin was pale, with an appearance that was hard to gauge how old he was, exactly. A long, brown coat with a fur trim rested on his shoulders, the front opened to reveal a grey and brown tunic, multiple cryptic designs stitched into the fabric. He looked like your average man, all things considered. His gaze betrayed this notion, however. Two, bloodshot orbs rested in his sockets, irises milk white and lacking a pupil of any kind. He looked sick. He looked depraved.
Hands behind his back, he also looked around, face stoic as he took note of how quiet this side of town was. Peculiar... Sure, there were the few passer-by's that saw and immediately turned tail and ran, terrified, but other than that, this place was... Dead. Raising a hand, he looked over his shoulder at the accompanying monstrosities. "Find the book." Snapping his fingers, they both nodded, bodies blowing away in two separate streams of ash, behind a tall building, and both to separate sides of town as well. Now, perhaps that bookstore could point him in the right direction? Before he could move, however...
"Hey!"
He looked over at that moment, letting out an inaudible huff. City guard... He looked as if he had seen that little light show of his, too. "Alright, hands where I can see them! Care to explain yourself? What were those things? And who are you?" The man held a spear, teeth bared and eyes narrowed. He tried to come off as tough. The white-haired creature saw right through that, though. Stepping towards him, the guard stepped back, hands shaking. "Don't you move! I'm warning you!"
"Warning me? I assure you, threats are not your best choice of action here, worm." The creature said, eyes burning into his own. The guard gulped, quickly regaining his composure before charging forward with a battle cry of sorts, preparing to jab whatever this thing was right in his gut. That plan didn't work out so well... The creature unsheathed a rapier from his hip, parrying the lunge of the guard's spear before grabbing the weapon and pulling the guard close.
His cry for help was cut short as the creature took him by his throat, choking him slowly, and painfully. "As for my name, you may know me as Saevic. Though, I'm afraid you will not be alive long enough to speak it." With that, the being known as Saevic suddenly sent a wave of heat from his palm, watching as the guard's body ignited suddenly, turning his flesh and bone to burning ash and charcoal in an instant. Letting go of what used to be his throat, the disigured body fell in a black pile in front of him, Saevic wiping off his hand on his tunic.
Looking back towards the bookstore, a figure seemed to be exiting. One that caught his eye. She had something with her... A book. Not just any book. From what he could gather at this distance, with its cover matching the description it had been given, this was the one he had been looking for. "Splendid..." He took slow, sinister steps towards the woman, who had an aura about her that struck the being as... Ambitious. Too much so. The negative energy radiating from her was almost unbearable. Two with the same goal... Things could never be easy, could they?
He didn't let a word leave his lips as of yet. He was simply sizing the woman before him up, wondering just how much of a hassle it would be to remove the book from her possession. In a way, he was excited to see what this encounter held. He would've hated for her to fall like most mortal men. If he was to battle for his ultimate goal in this dump of a city, he at least wanted a challenge.
