Quest For Atonement (Closed For BlondeAmbition4RP)

[LucianDevine]

"Surprisingly well considering our surroundings." Lucian said with a small smile. His blue eyes followed Myrina's movements as she sat up and reached for her pack to pull out their breakfast. He waited until she had pulled out everything and set the pack aside before sitting up himself.

"I'm happy to hear it..." Lucian started in response to Myrina's words about them not dawdling. "I'm eager for this part of my journey to be over. No matter what we find there it will just feel good to know the truth once and for all."

As Lucian spoke he reached out to accept the light breakfast that Myrina offered him. With his food in his hands, he let his gaze wander around the clearing, taking in the vibrant colors, the sounds of the wildlife around then just out of sight, and almost didn't notice at first that his shoulder had moved to rest lightly against hers. He didn't feel the tingling effect of last night, and briefly wondered why, but still found a small sense of comfort in that small and innocent contact.

The meal the two shared was a short one, and Lucian was content to spend the duration of it in a companionable silence, just continuing to admire his surroundings and thinking of what his immediate future held for him.

When the two of them were done with their light breakfast, Lucian rose slowly to his feet. He reached his arms above his head, letting out a soft groan as he stretched his arms and his back, even rising up onto his toes to stretch his legs as well. When he lowered his heels back to the ground he rolled his shoulders back, incidentally pushing out his firm chest as he stretched his shoulders as well.

When he was done stretching, he turned back towards Myrina and offered his hand to stand up if she wanted it. He was going to need to wait for her to take his shirt off before he could properly get dressed and ready in his armor. So though they were in a bit of a hurry, he wasn't.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

Myrina was grateful for the time of peaceful silence as she and Lucian ate their breakfast, and used the time to try and clear her head and steady her nerves in preparation for the task ahead. There was no way of knowing what exactly they might find once they entered the temple, but whatever might be or not be in there she wanted to be ready.

As Lucian rose and stretched she accidentally found her eyes wandering over his form, watching with fascination the way his muscles moved and flexed as he did so and forgetting herself for a moment until he turned back towards her and offered his hand to help her up. Hoping that he had not noticed her watching him, she took his hand and stood.

"I guess it's time for me to give you this back," she commented, reaching down for the hem of his tunic and beginning to pull it up, "Thank you for letting me borrow it."

In a hurry to get moving to the temple, she didn't waste any time, quickly pulling it up and over her head and handing it to him before moving over to her own clothing and weapons and beginning to dress.

 

[LucianDevine]

Even knowing it was coming didn't prevent Lucian from getting a little anxious about Myrina removing his tunic. His body ached to watch the full but brief show that would be her pulling it over his head, and he permitted his eyes to see only enough of her own toned abs before politely turning his head. His mind once again filled with the brief image he'd gotten of her the night before, but he pushed it away. There were more important things at hand, and there was no telling how much focus they would require.

Lucian's determination to stay on task was tested once more as he moved to pull the tunic over his own head. His nostrils were flooded with Myrina's unique feminine scent. Suddenly being surrounded by it made his body quiver for just a moment before he pulled the tunic the rest of the way down. He took a long and slow breath to steady himself before turning to his armor. He so rarely took it off, and couldn't help but let his fingers trace over the blue scales and watch as the sunlight danced over them.

The bottom half of the armor was easy enough, but it was impossible to deny the correlations as he pulled the top part on and felt it's weight settle on his shoulder. It literally felt like the weight of the world had settled there, even though the scales were no heavier than normal scale mail. So much rested on what was inside the temple at the top of the cliff, and all of that also depended on his instincts being right and that he was in the right place. If he guessed wrong...

Lucian shook his head to try and clear his thoughts. He took another long and slow breath before sitting down to put on his boots. Next came his weapon, and only after it was neatly in place at his side did he pull his cloak around him and clasp it once more. He pushed it back and out of his way before turning to Myrina to see if she was ready for their climb up the cliff.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

Her clothes having had plenty of time to dry out over the course of the night, Myrina quickly put them back on before sitting down to put on her boots, and then rising again to slip on the harnesses for her swords and daggers. She had just finished fastening the straps for the harness for her daggers around her waist and thighs and was giving it a final tug to make sure it was good and secure for the climb when Lucian turned towards her, his cloak pushed back and his armor on full display.

Once more she found herself taken aback by the look of it, especially now as it glistened in the light of the open meadow as the early morning rays shone down on it. Not only was it the armor itself though, she realized, but the man who wore it as well. He certainly cut an impressive figure as he stood before her now, looking very much like the nobility he was with his cloak and armor, and sword by his side despite his current exile.

Breaking herself from her thoughts, she gave him a nod to signal she was ready.

"Alright, let's go."

And with that she headed off in the direction of the cliff, expecting that he would follow. Once at the base she stopped again, turning and making sure he was close enough to hear her before speaking up again as she looked up.

"It's straight up, but not very far and not a very hard climb. Lots of good foot holds and ledges along the way that we can use. Looks like there were even stairs all the way down at some point, but they got worn away with time," she announced, "I don't know how experienced you are with climbing, but if you're unsure about it you can just follow me and put your hands and feet where you see me put mine."

Finding her first foot and hand holds, she hoisted herself up and began to scale the rock.

 

[LucianDevine]

The two of them seemed to finish getting ready at about the same time, and when Myrina nodded at him, Lucian nodded back.

"After you."

Lucian said simply in response to Myrina's prompt for them to head out, and after she turned and headed towards the cliff he promptly fell into step behind her.

When Lucian and Myrina reached the base of the cliff, he listened intently to Myrina's instructions. He and his brother had snuck out of the castle several times, having to climb out their window to avoid detection. Circumstances were going to be quite different now, though.

Lucian watched Myrina as she started her way up the cliff, and he couldn't help but admire her form and technique as she seemingly effortlessly scaled the wall. He waited for her to get a little ways up the relatively short cliff before he stepped forward. He reached up for a handhold, planted his foot in another and started his ascend.

It didn't take long for Lucian to figure out just how different this cliff was compared to the climbing he and his brother had done when they were younger. Of all the differences though, his armor was the most noticeable. While it offered excellent protection, it was impossible to deny that it hampered the movement of his arms, especially when he was reached for handholds.

Despite the difficulties his armor caused, Lucian scaled the cliff at a slow but steady pace. He was doing fine until he took his eyes off of the spot he intended to put his hand. He misjudged the distance and grabbed a loose rock, which gave way beneath his weight. He cussed loudly as his other hand clutched at it's handhold so tightly that he wouldn't be surprised if he broke a finger.

As quickly as the misstep happened though, Lucian did recover, finding a new handhold quickly enough. He shook his head briefly to clear away the thoughts before he continued on once more. He let out an audible sigh of relief when he reached the top, and was breathing a bit heavily from the short but intense effort.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

Having started climbing before Lucian, and also not having the burden of being weighed down and her movements limited by armor, Myrina had just finished pulling herself up over the top edge when she'd heard a rock give way below her followed by Lucian swearing loudly. Fearing the worst, she quickly scrambled on her hands and knees and peered over the edge, her blood running cold when she saw him hanging on by one hand.

She wanted to call out to him but feared it might distract him and make the situation worse, and so she watched on with bated breath as he recovered his hold and continued the climb. Thankfully the rest of his climb was without incident and he soon joined her at the top, causing her to release a breath of relief along with him.

"Do you need a moment, or are you ready to keep going?" she asked him, nodding her head in the direction of a large staircase that they were currently at the base of.

Past the stairs the entrance to the temple could be seen. It was a grand and impressive structure, cut right into the rock of the cliff side, with a large stone columns and carvings of different deities covering its walls.

 

[LucianDevine]

Lucian heard both Myrina's words and the genuine concern in her voice, and appreciated both of them. Despite that appreciation though, he rose to his feet and gave her a small smile. "No dawdling, remember?" He asked in a coy tone before turning towards the temple entrance. The sight of such a grand thing carved into the base of the mountain drew a whistle of appreciation from him.

"Who could possibly create something like this?" Lucian asked semi-rhetorically as he took the lead in walking up the steps towards the large and arched entrance of the temple and the large hallway that lay beyond it.

The size of the temple made the fact that it was carved into the mountain all the more impressive. Their footsteps echoed through the halls, bouncing off the stone until fading into nothingness. There were no branches off of this hallway, making it easy to know in which direction to go until it finally gave way to an even more grand chamber. The walls spread out around them in a giant circle with two offshoots on the far wall, one on the right and one on the left. Between them was a colossal statue of Tera, the earth goddess. At the feet of the statue was an altar, and surrounding it in a semi-circle was a slightly raised stone semi-circle to kneel upon as you prayed to her. It was impossible to know who had created this place, but it was clear that this was a place of worship.

Lucian took everything in stride as he walked slowly forward before turning towards one of the offshoots. There was a similar archway between this large room and the next, but there was nothing of interest in the smaller room except two more exits to even smaller rooms. He gave each of the spaces a once over, but whatever had been in them had long since been removed, leaving nothing but emptiness in their wake.

It was now that Lucian swallowed hard. Seeing such emptiness did little to boost his confidence. He exited the first offshoot and crossed in front of the altar towards the other one. While he wasn't surprised to find that it was identical to the first one, he was naturally disappointed. His head lowered as he saw it, and he started to accept what he was seeing. There had been no other paths leading off of the giant hallway, and these were the only exits out of the grand central chamber. There was nothing here...nothing.

As Lucian exited the second offshoot, his head was lowered once more. His eyes closed briefly as he shook his head. He'd bet everything when he came here, hoping that his instincts were right, and finding nothing but emptiness made his heart sink.

Despite the sinking feeling enveloping him, Lucian was not one to beg for his life. He hadn't done it when there had been a blade to his throat, and he was not about to now. He was not above doing one final thing though. He moved to the altar and lowered himself to his knees so that he could pray for the people of this world. Just as he opened his mouth to voice his prayers though, he felt a surge of electricity shoot through him. Behind his closed eyes he saw a bird's eye view of his families castle. The view then dropped down into the castle itself before darting forward. The vision surged forward towards what looked like a wall of trees. He tried to lift his hands to brace for what he feared would be an impact against it, but the wall gave way before him. Next came a wall of sand, then water, then ice, and finally stone. The vision kept going, moving faster and faster until it finally settled on a pair of figures fighting. It them zoomed in closer and closer until he could see the faces of the two combatants.

The vision ended as abruptly as it had started, and Lucian staggered to his feet before falling backwards as though he'd been struck. There were no words to describe what he'd just seen, not that he'd have had time to react anyway as he felt himself falling as though the floor had given way beneath him.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

Just like Lucian, Myrina could not help but be impressed by the temple's grandeur and wonder who in the world could have managed to carve such an enormous and intricate building right out of the mountain rock. It must have taken the followers of the goddess decades to complete it.

Whoever they were, they were obviously long gone, the main hall seemly completely empty as they entered. Not certain what they may find though, and not certain if any traps may have been laid to prevent temple robbers, she remained alter, waiting in the main room in front of the statue of Tera and keeping guard as Lucian when and explored the first offshoot.

When he returned empty handed from the first offshoot she wasn't terribly worried and continued to look about the room standing guard. When she saw him head off into the second only to return empty headed again however, his head lowered and his eyes closed as he shoot his head with a look of defeat, she froze as she felt her own heart sank, the implications of the moment sinking in.

He hadn't found anything. It was now her duty to bring him back to her tribe's camp and to the chief... to be executed.

She thought perhaps he might try to plead with her to let him go, or maybe try to run from her and made an escape, her body tensing in preparation as much as the idea of having to stop him pained her. Instead however she watched as he simply walked over the altar, knelt...and prayed.

Her heart clenched tight in her chest at the sight, and though she was not one to normally do so, her eyes went to the altar and she silently began to send up a prayer as well for the man kneeling before her.

After a moment he stood, concern filling her when she noted the way in which he struggled to rise. When he suddenly fell backwards as if struck she rushed forward in shock to try and catch him.

"Lucian!" she called out, her arms reaching towards him.

She did not have time to reach him however, for at that same moment the stone floor gave way, parting right beneath their feet and sending them plummeting down into the dark void below.

 

[LucianDevine]

Even as he fell Lucian didn't realize what exactly was happening. It wasn't until he saw the floor pass by on both sides of him that it really had given way beneath him. There wasn't time to think about it or even scream, because moments later he felt his back hit something hard. His feet hit next, but just as he realized he was on an incline he was already sliding. His arms flailed out to both sides, trying to reach the walls that he hoped were there. He couldn't see them through the impossibly perfect darkness that surrounded him.

The darkness that surrounded Lucian made it impossible for him to know how far he fell or what was waiting for him at the bottom of this slide. He was so disoriented that he didn't even realize that the incline was becoming less steep until he felt empty space beneath him once more. His fall was shorter this time, and he landed with a heavy thud on his back that took the air from him. He gasped for breath before several moments before his ears caught the sound of something coming closer. It took him a second to think of what it was, and just as he rolled to the side, he felt and heard something hit the ground where he had been.

Lucian struggled to his feet, breathless and anxious as adrenaline flooded his system.

"Myrina? Is that you?" Lucian asked into the oppressive darkness that surrounded him as he leaned his left shoulder against the wall and his right hand gripped the hilt of his katana.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

The floor disappeared beneath Myrina so quickly and caught her so off guard that she didn't have time to respond at first, but as soon as her back hit the incline and she felt herself begin to rapidly slide downwards her instincts kicked in. Instead of reaching for walls that she could not see her hands went for two of her throwing knives, drawing them from their halter at her hips and thrusting them back into the slope behind her to try and catch a hold as her legs went wide and bent to try and brace her feet against the rock and slow her fall. There was a loud grating sound as the metal of her daggers scrapped the rock, and she did slow some, but the surface was too hard for the blades to pierce through. Fearing the blades might break she abandoned her efforts and gave into the fall.

She landed with a hard thud on her back, the impact first knocking the air from her lungs and then giving a sputtering cough as they filled and began to breath again.

"Myrina? Is that you?"

"It's me," she managed to call back at the sound of Lucian's voice.

Her eyes searched for him, but wherever they had fallen to it was pitch back and she couldn't see a thing.

"Where are you? Are you alright?" she called out again as she stumbled to her feet in the dark, not knowing if he had been injured in the fall or not, "Keep talking so I can find you."

There was no time for him to reply however, for no sooner had she taken a couple of steps forward when she felt one of the stones shift and press down beneath her feet.

"Shit! Don't move!" she warned, fearing she'd triggered a trap.

As she shouted the words torches all around them suddenly sprung to life, illuminating a large underground chamber. At the same time a swirling green mist began to form before them, it ebbed and flowed, moving and growing into a huge cloud. Myrina quickly moved to where she could now see Lucian standing nearby, her hands thrusting her daggers back into their holster and reaching for the swords strapped to her back instead as her eyes fixed on the cloud and widened with astonishment as she saw something taking form inside the mist, a large snarling Minotaur stepping forth from the green cloud and into their view.

 

[LucianDevine]

Myrina's voice made Lucian sigh with relief. He didn't know where the two of them had fallen, but it was good to know that he wasn't alone. He heard her words and was about to speak up to help her find him when he heard heard her warning.

Torches lit up all around Lucian then, and though the light was fairly dim, it was enough to momentarily stun him because of it's suddenness. He lifted his left arm to shield his eyes briefly as he pressed his back against the wall and his right hand on the hilt of his weapon.

Lucian heard movement beside him, and turned his head, a small smile of relief coming to his lips when he saw that it was Myrina. He saw her gaze facing the center of the room though, and turned to see the green mist swirling up from the ground. He pressed himself firmly against the wall, trying to stay as far from it as he could, in case it was toxic or corrosive.

The way the mist swirled was unusual to say the least, and Lucian could swear that he saw something taking shape inside it. Such a thing was impossible though, right? Lucian pondered inwardly. His question was answered soon enough when the creature stepped out of the mist.

The creature was a good bit taller than Lucian or Myrina, with muscles to match. It was the head of the creature that drew his attention though. It had the head of a bull. "A...minotaur?" Lucian questioned aloud. There wasn't much time to think about it, though, because the second he spoke, the creature stopped snarling, let out a roar, and charged.

While his mind was still stunned by what was in front of him, Lucian's body knew what to do. He drew his blade as he stepped to the side, seeing Myrina do something similar as she dodged the other way. As the minotaur's momentum brought it between the two of them, Lucian struck, his blade thrusting between the creatures ribs and penetrating its heart. Myrina's blade struck similarly, and the creature let out a strange cry of surprise and pain before collapsing to it's knees and finally falling flat on the ground.

"What the hell is this place?" Lucian cried out as he watched the creature dissolve into the same green mist that it had somehow materialized from. The mist didn't fade way though, but billowed outwards and upwards once more, forcing Lucian to back away. Lucian watched the mist intently, and his eyes widened with surprised when he saw it split in two before rising up once more. Lucian expected that another minotaur would appear from the mist this time, but he didn't expect it to be taller, more muscular, and holding a giant axe. He could barely make out a similar creature behind his own, this one facing Myrina. The creatures roared once more, but didn't charge. They stalked forward towards their respective prey, clearly not about to fall for the same trick once more.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

"What the hell is this place?"

Myrina also wondered this as she watched with wide eyed disbelief as the creature dissolved back into green mist only to have it swirl and billow and split before them.

"I don't know," she replied as the mist began to rise up again.

She withdrew both of her swords this time, noticing that the mist was rising up higher than before. She did not have time to think and wonder about where they were though, or what exactly this creature was before her. Her mind had already gone into battle and survival mode, her only thoughts consisting of how to kill whatever this thing was and protect herself and Lucian.

This time two beasts appeared from the mist, the one closer to her moving forward and stalking her while the other went towards Lucian. She backed away from it, but didn't want to get backed up against the wall either and have her movements limited. She made a quick glance over her shoulder to see how much space she still had and as soon as her gaze moved a way from it the beast swung its giant ax towards her. Unfortunately for the monster its great size and bulk also make it slower.

She ducked as the ax swung over her head, missing her. Not wasting the opportunity, she charged forward while the weapon was still swung up in the air away from her and sliced her swords across the back of its heels, cutting through its tendons and making it fall forward to the ground, then quickly stabbing the pointed end from one of her swords through its neck from behind.

 

[LucianDevine]

Lucian stood his ground before the large minotaur before him. His blue eyes burned with intensity and concentration as he positioned one foot in front of the other with his weapon held at the ready before him.

The minotaur strode forward, clearly confident as it lifted it's giant axe in it's two hands and brought it down in a lethal arc. Lucian knew that trying to block such a blow without a shield was pointless, but thankfully that wasn't his intent. In a single swift and fluid motion he stepped to the side, dodging the blow as he also used his own weapon to help parry the much large weapon away from his own body. The steel of the weapon hit the stone ground with a deafening sound. Lucian was not to be distracted though, and even as the sound was ringing out, he turned his blade around, stepped forward, and struck with a horizontal slash that cut deep into the creatures belly. He didn't expect the single strike to fell the creature, and when the creature roared in pain and slumped forward, he reversed his blade once more, this time with a rising diagonal slash that cut the creature's throat so deep that it would have severed the head of a smaller or thinner creature.

The creature's weapon fell from it's hand as the creature slumped to the ground. Only when Lucian saw the creature and it's weapon start to turn to mist once more did Lucian lift his head in time to see Myrina finish off the minotaur she'd been faced with. He took a chance and ran through the mist towards Myrina, and was thankful to find that it wasn't in fact corrosive. He was thankful because he knew now that there wasn't a moment to lose.

"Myrina!" Lucian called out as he approached her and reached with his left hand to grab her arm. "We have to go now!" He then started to pull her along by her arm, wishing that she didn't have a sword in both hands then. It would be easier to pull her along and keep her with him if he'd been able to hold her hand.

Lucian jogged out of the room as fast as he could with Myrina's arm in one hand. There was only one way to go after exiting the room, and that way was left. He turned that way and groaned when he saw that the hallway led to a fork in the path.

"Shit..." He cursed aloud, knowing that this was likely one of many such things in what was likely a huge maze. He pulled her to the left and cursed again when he saw it let to another intersection. He took a right this time, which led to a forced left turn and a dead end.

"Dammit! Lucian cursed aloud. Already he could hear the pounding steps of the minotaurs behind them. "We're going to have to fight our way out." Lucian said as he led Myrina a little ways down the hallway towards the dead end before letting go of her arm and turning around to face the direction the minotaurs would be coming from. He turned his head briefly to meet Myrina's gaze before stepping forward a little ways ahead of her. He expected the creatures would charge straight at them, and while there was room enough for them to stand side-by-side, he wanted to give her room to maneuver.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

As Lucian had made the final turn Myrina had somehow known that they were heading in the wrong direction even before they had spotted the dead end. She wasn't sure how to explain it. It had just been a strange feeling in her gut, something telling her that they should have made a left instead of a right turn, but she had felt it so strongly that she'd almost told him to turn around, but then it had been too late.

"We're going to have to fight our way out."

There was no time to dwell on it now.

She turned with Lucian and gave him a small nod of understanding as his eyes met hers before he stepped a bit ahead to give her room. As the thundering of the hooves grew louder she crouched down a little lower and gripped her swords tightly. Her knees slightly bent and her legs wide with her right foot a little more in front of the other, she was ready to fight or flee, whatever might be needed.

"They'll likely be even bigger now," she told Lucian quickly, "If we need to flee again, head back to the last turn we made and go the opposite direction."

 

[LucianDevine]

Lucian heard Myrina's words but actually tried to push them out of his head in this moment. He raised his sword up before him and actually sheathed it. He moved his right foot in front of his left, turning it sideways as he bent his knees and gripped the hilt with his right hand.

Two minotaurs came barreling around the corner, but were not actually bigger as Myrina had suspected. Lucian spotted the difference instantly though. They were the same height, but their muscles were less bulky and more wiry. There wasn't time to vocalize the difference to Myrina. So he had to just hope that she too would notice this and understand that these ones were more nimble than the previous pair.

Every muscle in Lucian's body screamed for him to move as the creatures charged down the hallway, but Lucian knew better. With every muscle tensed he studied the foe bearing down on him. "Axe or horns? Axe or horns?" He chanted in his own head, visualizing his response to each of them. Those moments seemed to take forever, but the moment the creature lowered it's head, signifying in it's own way that it was going to try to just gore him to death, Lucian reacted.

There was one obvious downside to the creature's plan, and that was simply that in lowering it's head, it gave up the ability to see Lucian. It was clearly confident in it's strength and momentum in the small corridor.

Lucian's blade almost sang as he pulled it free of it's sheathe, stepping forward as he did so. The unsheathing strike actually faster than a normal strike and cut deep into the large thigh, making it stumble. He then dipped to the right as best he could, flattening himself against the wall as the creature stumbled forward and fell to it's knees. It was then that Lucian saw another creature coming down the hallway. He pushed himself off of the wall and brought his weapon back around to behead the fallen creature with a single stroke. He used the motion of his strike to spin in a quick circle and lift his blade to parry the giant axe that the next creature swung so lethally at him. He knocked it to the side just like he'd done with the second minotaur in the previous room. Before Lucian could turn his blade around and finish this one off like he'd done the previous one though, the creature released it's weapon with it's left hand and brought backhanded Lucian's face.

Stars appeared before Lucian's eyes as his the left side of his face exploded in pain. The force of the strike turned him around and actually helped him in what he'd been about to do. His blade turned around as his body did the same, lifting up in a rising strike that was strengthened by the creature's own move and cut it's throat. Lucian was still reeling from the blow, even as his own strike landed clean. He staggered to a knee but forced himself to his feet and looked towards Myrina, ready to help her if she needed it.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

Like the Minotaur that charged at Lucian, Myrina's attacker also decided to try and use its horns to ram her into the wall. However, instead of patiently standing in wait as Lucian had to make his move, as soon as she saw the beast begin to lower its horns Myrina charged straight at it in return, only dropping down at the very last moment and sliding feet first on her back between the creature's legs as it charged her. With so much momentum built up from its charge, the minotaur was unable to stop itself in time and ended up charging into the wall that had been behind her instead, the stone shaking and a few pieces crumbling loose at the force of the impact.

Myrina had caught on by now that it did not seem possible to kill the creatures, and in fact they only seemed to increase in number and ability each time that they were, so now would have ideally been the time for her to try and make an escape while the beast was stunned, but she knew she could not leave Lucian as he fought the second third minotaur that had appeared. So she stayed, rising and charging the beast as quickly as she was able.

Unfortunately the beast was quick as well. She stabbed at the beast's side but was not able to make the wound deep enough before the monster began to rise again and she had to dodge away.

 

[LucianDevine]

Lucian had naturally both heard and felt the crash of the minotaur against the wall while he'd been dealing with his own pair of minotaurs. He had no way of knowing whether or not Myrina was okay until he'd finally turned around. He'd felt in his gut that she'd been fine, but to see it with his own eyes filled him with a sense of relief. He saw the brief moment of hesitation before she advanced on the stunned creature and knew what had gone through her head.

Lucian flicked his blade to the side, cleaning it of blood before darting towards her and the imposing creature. He saw the stab she'd made, quick and efficient, even if not quite enough given the size and power of her foe. He saw her dodge away as the creature swung around and tried to backhand her. The strike missed, leaving the creature fully vulnerable, and with Myrina off to one side around the slight corner leading to the deadend, his path was clear. He roared as his blade swung upwards with enough force to actually sever the creatures leg almost at the hip. The creatuyre stumbled and started to fall from it's own weight, but Lucian was there once more. He brought his weapon around for another rising slash, this one from the left to cut the falling creatures throat.

There was no precious little time left, and Lucian knew it. He rushed to Myrina and met her gaze with his own burning hot blue one. We've not much time. If you think you know the way, take the lead, and I'll cover you. Keep running, no matter what. We can take those that come from the sides, but if we hit another dead end, there will be too many of them to defend against."

Lucian wanted to give Myrina time to respond, but again, they hadn't the time for it, he ushered her around the corner and nudged her into motion, flicking the blood free of his blade as the two ran.

It wasn't until the two of them were in motion that Lucian thought of something. They'd killed one, and it had become two, they'd killed the two, but only encountered three. He saw Myrina nearing the point where he'd taken the wrong turn, the correct path, according to her, being forward, with the pathway to the right being back the way they'd came...where the minotaurs had come from.

"MYRINA! DUCK!" Lucian roared, almost feeling that there was a minotaur hiding just out of sight on the right path, waiting to ambush them if they survived the three that had charged after them.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

"We've not much time. If you think you know the way, take the lead, and I'll cover you. Keep running, no matter what. We can take those that come from the sides, but if we hit another dead end, there will be too many of them to defend against."

Lucian's eyes burned into Myrina's as he spoke. She gave a quick nod of reply as they moved and began to run together back the way that they had come, her hand reaching back and grabbing his wrist as he had done her's before.

She could not explain how she had known which way they should have gone before, but once more she could feel it within her, like a string tethered within her core and pulling her one direction instead of the other. As they neared the correct path she felt the tug of it and ran faster, but then...

"MYRINA! DUCK!"

Immediately, even without looking for the cause of his shout, she released his hand and swooped low as she kept moving like he had told her before. As she did she felt a swift rush of air just over her head, the axe of the fourth minotaur that had been laying in wait to ambush them just barely missing her head as she ran.

 

[LucianDevine]

Lucian was glad to see Myrina's nod of approval of his plan. They had to literally think on their feet right now, and the slightest hesitation could lead to them dying. He was similarly glad to see that she didn't hesitate to follow his command as he yelled for her to get down. The axe passed harmlessly over her head.

With just a few moments to consider his options, Lucian quickly darted to the left, moving around the axe and the briefly off-balance minotaur. He brought his blade around and in front of him at the same time. In the exact moment that he passed the minotaur, his blade flicked out and down, causing a deep gash in the thigh of the creature. He heard the creature roar in pain, but paid it no more notice in that moment. He brought his blade back around, flicked the blade clean, and shifted to a back-handed grip with his blade along the outside of his forearm. It hindered his reach, but gave him a faster reaction time if anything else surprised them from that side.

With everything else out of his control at that moment, Lucian ran after Myrina as fast as he could, silently praying that she could lead them through this place where he had failed. Even now he could tell that she was faster than he was. His armor offered him terrific protection, but hindered his ability to run and maneuver, especially at full speed. He had no intention of telling her to slow down though. In this moment, nothing was more important than speed, and he hoped that she understood that at well.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

Myrina understood how important speed was for them in that moment very well indeed. As she'd ran she'd glanced back over her shoulder as she'd heard the cry of the creature behind her, checking to make sure Lucian was alright. She was grateful to see him make the attack and continue to run with her away from the Minotaur. The cut was hopefully stop the beast from running after them, or at least slow it considerably, but there was no guarantee that it would not dissolve into mist and become something even worse again. The quicker they escaped the better.

"This way!" she called back to him as she rounded a corner.

She kept her swords in both of her hands now as she ran, ready should something else try to spring out and attack. Her strong legs moved swift and sure, her long red locks trailing out behind her like a crimson banner as she ran.

She made another quick glance back at him to make sure he was still following her. He was falling a little behind but not overly so. She continued to call back to him, letting him know which way to turn with a quick "Left!" or "Right!" so that he would not lose her. She still could not explain how exactly it was that she knew which way to go within the maze, but with each turn she grew more and more certain that the feeling within her and guiding her direction was correct.

Finally up ahead of them her eyes spotted a large, arched stone passageway.

"There! Up ahead is our way out!!" she called back to him, pressing forward as fast as she was able.

No sooner had she spoken however when she felt one of the stones give beneath her foot as she ran, lowering down and making her lose her balance and begin to fall while in the same moment she heard an audible 'click' and saw a large stone slab begin to slide downward to seal off the doorway up ahead.

 

[LucianDevine]

To say that he was utterly lost in this maze was an understatement for Lucian. His booted feet pounded against the ground as he ran as fast as he could. He lost sight of Myrina more than once, only knowing which way she was going by the words that he heard her yell. It was hard to make out, and he almost made a couple of wrong turns despite them when it was multiple turns in quick succession. He had no idea if she truly knew the way or was just getting lucky, but she was doing better than he had, and that's all that mattered to him in that moment.

Lucian's legs ached as he ran, and his lungs burned. Hearing Myrina calling out that they were close to the way out gave him the inspiration he needed to push forward. So much had happened in the past couple days, and despite the sleep he'd gotten, his body was far from one-hundred percent. He had just rounded the last corner and saw Myrina in front of him. He could see the archway over her shoulder, and pushed for it.

Lucian felt Myrina stumble even before he saw it, his own body feeling somehow strangely connected to her or this place. It felt weird and he tried to push it out of his mind but then he saw it happen. Her movements were fluid and perfect until that very moment, and in that moment there was no time to think.

"Quicksilver Motion..." The words came to Lucian's lips almost before he thought them up. He reversed his hold on his blade as he closed the distance between him and Myrina in the blink of an eye. The blade was resting against his sword arm as his other arm found it's way around Myrina. In that same moment he saw the stone slab slowly lowering to block the archway before them.

"Run Myrina!" Lucian screamed, even as his arm around her helped stabilize her and prevent the fall that had been coming. He then used the last bit of his momentum from the maneuver to push her forward. It was going to be close, and Lucian knew it, but he hadn't given up on anything before, and he wasn't starting now. With every ounce of energy he had, Lucian forced his exhausted body to keep running towards that slowly disappearing archway, praying to the gods that they'd make it.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

Just as she'd felt herself begin to lose balance and fall Myrina had suddenly felt Lucian's arm around her as well, lifting her and righting her again as he helped propel her onward with his own momentum.

Her head whipped towards him to stare at him in amazement. How had he gotten to her so quickly when he had fallen behind before? His abilities truly were astounding but she had no time to comment on them in that moment, as his scream and the scraping sound of the stone slab slowing lowering down to block the archway of their exit filled her ears.

Pushing herself onward as fast as she was able, she ran full speed towards the archway. More and more of the opening was disappearing before her very eyes.

"We can make it!" she insisted with a shout.

She wasn't sure if she was speaking the encouragement to him or to herself. She knew it was going to be a close call.

Her speed and fluidity of motion causing her to take the lead again, she knew she was going to have to slide through the archway, both due to the lack of height in the opening now and also to make it quicker so he would have time to follow. If not, there was no way they would both make it through in time.

"Follow me!" she yelled back at him as they approached the archway, dropping down into a slide and gliding feet first under the closing door.

 

[LucianDevine]

Lucian couldn't have felt happier as he saw Myrina take the lead once more If she stumbled again he wasn't sure he'd be able to both help her once more and make it to through the rapidly disappearing exit of the maze.

Though Lucian heard Myrina's insistent shout of encouragement, he didn't have time to focus on it just then. Every fiber of his being was focused on keeping his body upright and moving forward. He didn't even have time to think about what might be on the other side of that archway if they made it, because if they didn't make it there was nothing but death on this side.

The closer the pair got to the exit, the more hope started to slip from Lucian. It even got to a point where he knew that if Myrina stopped to crawl under it he would likely be crushed by it. His heart leaped when he her drop into a slide ahead of him, knowing in that moment that it was the only chance he'd had. Once she was through he finally had a chance to think about what he would have to do, and he was not looking forward to what might happen if he was a fraction of a second too late.

With no time for Lucian to sheathe his sword, he had no choice but to drop his arm to his side and hold the blade up parallel with his body. He got as close to the closing archway as he could before he finally leaped forward and down. He turned his body sideways as he did, and gave a soft grunt when he landed hard on the ground. His momentum propelled him into a roll. His first rotation had him staring directly up at the collapsing stone slab for but a moment, and left him just enough time to worry that he might be too late and his shoulders would get caught between the stone slab and the floor. The very next moment found him rolling out the other side, and barely a few moments later he heard the loud thud of the stone tablet hitting the floor.

Out of the corner, of his eye, Lucian could see Myrina a few feet from him. The look on her face spoke more than words ever could. Just the relief on her face and in her eyes made him smile nervously, as only somebody who had just narrowly escaped death could. Even still, he didn't dare try to move just yet. His frantically beating heart would scarcely allow him to turn, let alone try to rise.

After a few long, and welcome minutes, Lucian let go of his sword for a minute and rolled himself to his stomach and pushed his arms beneath him. His elbows shook with the effort, reflecting the strain that the flight had put on his body, but soon enough he was on his knees facing Myrina and the room around him. There wasn't much to the room itself. It was simply a circular room with the door behind them, and a similar closed door on the opposite side of the room from them. What drew the gaze however, was a pillar located in the direct center of the room bathed in a green glow that seemed to come from the pillar itself somehow. The thought that they might be one step closer to their overall goal meant more to Lucian than he could express, and it gave him a brief bit of strength, with which he pushed himself to his feet and gestured towards the pillar.

"I don't think whatever is on that pillar is meant for me, Myrina." Lucian started softly. "You were able to get us through that maze. Whether it was your intuition or a higher power that got us here, I think that whatever is on that pillar is meant for you."

Lucian didn't know if his words made any sense to Myrina at all, but in his own mind it made sense. He had no idea what was in the temples that the demons feared so much, but such things likely needed champions to use them. The fact that they were even in this room was because of Myrina, and Lucian wouldn't hesitate to admit it. All that remained, was to find out what had been so important as to be guarded in such a way.

 

[BlondeAmbition4RP]

Myrina had watched, as if in slow motion, as Lucian had rolled to her side of the quickly closing stone door, relief flooding her as he just barely made it through to the other side in time before it dropped shut. The heavy sound that the stone made as it shut left no doubt to her mind what his fate would have been should he have tarried even a second too long.

At the sight of his nervous smile she released a breath that she had not even been aware that she had been keeping in, the two of them laying in silence for a moment as they both regained their breath, then as he pushed himself upwards she did likewise and took in the room. Immediately her eyes were drawn to the pillar and it's strange, green glow.

"I don't think whatever is on that pillar is meant for me, Myrina." Lucian started softly. "You were able to get us through that maze. Whether it was your intuition or a higher power that got us here, I think that whatever is on that pillar is meant for you."

Her gaze shot back to Lucian's in surprise. For her?! But hadn't this been his quest? Shouldn't he be the one meant to retrieve whatever was up there? She had simply come along as his guide through the forest, and his guard should he have tried to flee. The door down here had opened due to his prayer to the goddess. This had nothing to do with her...right?

Even as her mind argued against him however she sensed that he was right, could feel the same mysterious pull that had guided her through the maze pulling at her now to climb to the top of the pillar. Rising to her feet she gazed back towards the great stone pole rising before her, taking it in more carefully now. Now that she looked closely she could see grooves within the strange markings on the rock, hand and foot holds to get to the top.

"Okay," she told Lucian with a nod, "Wait here."

Swords sheathed so her hands would be free, she made her way over to the pillar and began her climb. She'd half expected for some other catastrophe to be unleashed as soon as she touched it, but to her surprise she made her way to the top without incident. Pulling herself up upon its flat circular stone surface she was surprised to find nothing but a few rocks scattered atop it. She was just about to shout down to Lucian that there was nothing there, when suddenly she noted something...the rocks had runes engraved upon them. Squatting down she gathered them before her, noting the different markings but not recognizing any of them, but then suddenly she noticed that the lines of one of the runes looked kind of like...

"Trees?" she thought aloud to herself, and those wavy lines on another, "Water.."

As she began to decipher the meaning of the runes suddenly the inner pull returned again, directing her hands and letting her know which order they should go in. She looked down at the stones, now rearranged in a row.

"Trees, sand, water, ice, and stone."

Suddenly she felt a pulse vibrate through the pillar, the green light growing and swirling like a mist before her.

 

[LucianDevine]

As Myrina moved towards the pillar, Lucian bent down to grab his sword from the ground and slide it back into his sheath. There wasn't much for him to do but walk around the perfectly circular room. He did so, and while he couldn't see anything that could be causing it, he couldn't help but feel on edge.

Lucian moved with slow but purposeful strides around the room, his blue gaze studying both the wall and the side of the pillar as he went, trying to see if any part of them stood out as different except for the foot and hand holds that Myrina had used to climb up the pillar.

When he was almost completely done with his circle of the room, Lucian heard and felt the rumbling that shook the entire room. A slow grinding sound followed it, and it took only a moment for him to realize that the pillar that Myrina was standing on was slowly sinking into the ground. As it sank a green mist started to rise from the pillar, swirling around it until it was so thick that he couldn't see through it.

Lucian was just about to call out to Myrina when he heard a loud thud. The grinding sound stopped, which led him to assume that the pillar had sunk as far as it was going to. The mist kept rising, but stopped coming from wherever it was coming from. He saw Myrina's form slowly appear from the mist as it rose above her and finally started to swirl around. It got darker and greener as it swirled and slowly dropped to the ground in front of Myrina. Lucian's muscles twitched when he saw that. It was the same thing that had happened when the minotaurs had appeared earlier. Judging from the amount of mist though, this was either going to be a lot of minotaurs or one giant one. The mist began to slowly close in around itself as it spun faster. Soon it was like a hurricane that he had to raise a hand to shield his eyes from the power.

The wind died down suddenly, and when Lucian lowered his hand, his jaw dropped at the sight of what was before him. The creature standing before Myrina was taller than a house. It had the body of a dragon with four legs, a long body, and a long sweeping tail. What made his jaw drop though, was the sight of the creature's multiple heads. There were five in total, each looking like a snake whose body was connected to the body of the hydra itself. It was an imposing sight standing still, but when all ten eyes opened up a wave of fear swept out from it.

"Moment of Perfect Mind" Lucian whispered to himself almost before he'd though of the words. The maneuver was a simple one, but powerful all the same. He was able to resist the powerful aura of the creature by steeling his mind against the mental assault just in time.

The second the creature's eyes opened, the heads started to twist, turn, and bob around each other. Their movements were random at first, but then all of it's eyes dropped to Myrina, who was still standing before it. They then rose high into the air, almost like they were taking a deep breath. Lucian's mind flashed back to when he'd seen such a thing before. The dragon he and his men had fought had done this just before...

Lucian's body surged into a sprint. He ran towards Myrina while still keeping an eye on the five heads. With their intake complete, they started to lower, taking aim. The world seemed to move in slow motion for him then as every fiber of his being was focused on Myrina. He wanted to shout out to her to warn her what was coming, but there wasn't time. If he shouted and she hesitated for even a moment it might be too late. A light appeared in the gaping mouths of the five heads as Lucian got closer. He could almost see the fire that was working it's way up the creature's throats.

With every bit of momentum he was able to muster, Lucian crashed into Myrina, wrapping his arms around her as he tackled her to the ground. He felt the searing heat of the flames but had no time to focus on it just then. While the two were tumbling he managed to roll himself to the bottom just before they hit the ground, letting him take the brunt of it before the two started to roll forward. They rolled to a stop with him on top of her, but there still wasn't time for words. His back felt like it was on fire, and he knew why. "Shit shit shit!" He shouted as he lunged to his feet, his hands fumbling for the clasp of his cloak. He'd gotten their bodies out of the line of fire just in time, but his cloak wasn't so lucky. An intense heat was surrounding him, threatening to cook him alive. Even the clasp almost scalded his fingers before he could get it undone and drop his burning cloak to the ground.

Lucian didn't know if Myrina was effected by the creatures aura of fear or not, but he didn't have time to check on her. With his burning cloak dropped to the ground he turned towards the beast and drew his sword. He charged towards it. "Pearl of Black Doubt." The words helped him focus on a stance for defense alone, making him harder to hit for every attack that missed.

"Myrina!" Lucian called out as his blade darted to and fro in front of him trying to parry the many bite attempts that came his way. Each attack he dodged or blocked made the next one easier to do the same, but defense alone wouldn't do anything.

"Get up Myrina!" Lucian called once more, looking back over his shoulder at her. "Gaaaah!" In his moment of distraction one of the creatures heads had slipped past his guard and the fangs clamped down on his left shoulder. His armor protected him from the sharpness of the teeth, but not the pressure of the bite nor the power it exerted as it tried to bore him to the ground. His blade lashed out futilely, glancing off of the large scales of the creatures neck. With one head holding him almost immobile it wouldn't take long for the other heads to finish him off...unless.

"Manticore Parry!" Lucian shouted the words, putting every bit of strength he could into the maneuver. His blade came around as one of the heads tried to bite him. The force of his swing was just enough to push the creature's head to the side, towards the neck of the head that held him so. The creature's fangs struck true against itself, and it roared in pain. As the offending head pulled back, Lucian struck once more, this time at the weakened neck of the creature. "Emerald Razor!" His blade struck true this time, hitting the spot where the fangs had sunk in. He struck with enough force to sever the creatures head. The four remaining heads lifted up as it roared in pain once more, and Lucian took the opportunity to dart back towards Myrina.

"I can't do this alone Myrina! I need your help!"