Warrior King [https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/ADCreHd_ZRwVL1UsXplMGsnXrkCRz7Uzafi7f8zGmYn4VEwW2LFReX-BPzvQLbtdzTtGXlets-T5X2yt9XmVgUzfXEQAQq5DiCRH0hxlj0xjphzcxooJ5ku8U4rYySjgbjmJTF7xEriD_kk73NkIss6k56Bj=w621-h931-s-no?authuser=0]
Dazien rolled his amethyst eyes at his reflection in the mirror as his partner voiced concerns about their timeline and he tried to reassure the man again, “I’ve told you already, Uriel. I won’t be late to meet you at the AOA cause I’m going to nail this exam and be in and out with the next tome in hand and plenty of time to get there.”
“It’s across town, Daze,” the taller cinderen said, unconvinced, while Dazien continued to eye the man through the mirror he was still using to adjust his clothing, “You have to go through at least two gates and you know how crowded it’s become with the blood moon refugees.”
He waved a dismissive hand at the pacing man, “Yes, yes, and again, I’ll have plenty of time to get through those ridiculous traffic jams,” Dazien reassured as he ran a hand through the dark purple hair that matched his eyes and nails before giving in and using the brush on the locks that fell to his shoulders.
“Besides, if it’s really backed up I’ll just hop on the Silverline,” he added as an afterthought, tucking his hair behind tapped ears that were about half the length of his partner's.
“That’s even more money out of our pockets,” the cinderen said flatly.
“I’ll only do it as a last resort,” the young warrior promised, “I still have a few rides on my pass in case of emergencies. Which this would count as, right?”
“It’s the last day to register for the final trials,” his friend stressed.
Dazien turned and walked the few steps to intercept Uriel’s path, grabbing the man’s shoulders, and used the pet name he spoke with fondness, “Senesh, have I ever failed to get paperwork done before?”
Uriel blushed slightly and lowered his gaze in acquiescence, “No…”
“Then trust that I will be there,” he said with a grin, “You will get there earlier, while I meet with Warrior, then I will be there in time to finish signing the forms in person with you. So stop worrying and trust me.”
The cinderen simply nodded and whispered, “Yes, King.”
“Good. Now, are we going to Belladonna's tonight to celebrate?”
Uriel gave him a slight smirk, “Isn’t it a bit early to plan the celebration when we haven’t accomplished it yet?”
Dazien tisked at him, shaking his head in feigned disappointment, “There you go with that pessimism again. You just promised to trust me, remember?”
The darker man gave a slight huff that he interpreted as a chuckle and he smiled and continued, “Belladonna’s and I’m splurging on a bottle of manarin wine for us.”
“That’s a bit much isn’t it?” Uriel protested weakly, “We still need to finish buying a few things for the trials.”
“One glass for tonight and the rest for when we pass the trials and become Adventurers,” he clarified, flashing his most charming smile, which seemed to be enough to elicit a small smile from his friend in return.
“Wonderful,” Dazien stated, signaling an end to the brief dispute and hugged his partner tightly, “I’ll see you at the AOA building later then,” he added before releasing the cinderen and making his way from their small apartment in the International District of Tulimeir and close to his destination of the Temple District to the east.
Despite his words to Uriel, the young Caster also shared his companion’s worries about being able to finish buying all their gear, be able to pay the rent, and still be able to celebrate with a nice meal. His hopes rested with their own skills.
They had both been training hard for years to join the AOA and they had finally managed to scrape up the funds to adequately gear up for the trials, along with the necessary permission forms. Once they joined up and could more regularly accept missions, their money problems would be solved and he would be one step closer to his goals.
He arrived quickly at the familiar temple that was almost a third home to him and made his way up to the inner cloister where he would be meeting the deity of combat. He still wasn’t entirely sure what the god saw in him that would cause the divine being to personally oversee his training but could only assume that the deity believed in his goals as well.
Dazien moved swiftly and smoothly through the forms of his combat techniques for the Stance of the Sword Sovereign with his conjured sword acting as his partner during the demonstration. He had been training with the god, Warrior, for almost five years now and was ready for the next volume of his techniques. It was easy to maintain his focus in the familiar space, the soft canvas flooring a reassuring presence to his careful steps and deliberate movements as he almost soared across the training mats.
Warrior’s eyes never left his body as he twisted, lunged, and pivoted through the various techniques and he knew the god was analyzing every flaw to determine his mastery over it. He was flawless though and he knew it. The hours spent perfecting the maneuvers made it second nature and as easy as breathing to him.
Even the sound of the door opening unexpectedly wasn’t enough to break him out of the flow of his movements as he performed the deadly dance. Then he ended it with a complex flourish, his breathing only slightly heavy, and brimming with the feeling of triumph.
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Phoenix was led next to another pagoda-like tower but this one had sounds of combat coming from the lower floors. As she entered closely behind her guide, she saw the largest variety and amount of weaponry she had ever seen lining the walls and being wielded by the disciples. She wondered if she was about to meet the God of War himself and suddenly felt very nervous.
Again, she was led to the uppermost floor and taken to an inner room and like before the deity was already there. He seemed to be one of the cinderen, with an ashy complexion and irises glowing like warm embers. The god was dressed in simple leather armor but his immense aura flooded the room despite being restrained. This divine being wasn't alone, however, as the god was watching another person.
A young man with warm tan skin slightly darker than Paul's and longer hair the color of dark sparkling amethysts was performing what Phoenix thought was some sort of kata while wielding a beautifully embellished sword with a golden hilt and blade seemingly carved from diamond.
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She stayed back by the door that had closed behind her, not wanting to interrupt the pair. The young man’s graceful movements were a wonder to behold. He seemed to flow like water and his lithe muscles could easily be made out under the form fitting silver clothing that clung to his body like shimmery spandex. Phoenix felt entranced by the beautiful yet deadly display as the sword flashed through the air.
When the movement halted after a particularly impressive flourish, the deity spoke, “Good. You should be ready for the next tome now. Nemor will have it ready for you downstairs.”
The disciple unconjured his weapon and bowed slightly to the god, saying respectfully, “Thank you, my Lord. Your guidance has been of the highest honor,” then he turned to the door and began to leave.
As she watched him, he met her gaze and she was startled to see that his eyes matched the amethyst of his hair. He was dashingly handsome and his movement spoke of assured confidence.
When he got closer, he gave her a charming smile and winked, causing her face to flush in embarrassment. He said playfully, “Your turn,” as he walked past her and out of the room, leaving her alone with the god that she wasn’t even sure how to address.
“Come, child,” the god commanded as he gestured to the center of the room that reminded Phoenix of a martial arts dojo. She took hesitant steps forward until she was just a couple of meters away.
He looked her up and down slowly, giving her that same assessing gaze that Paul often gave her. The kind of gaze that looked for her strengths, weaknesses, and secrets. She had no doubt that this deity saw much more than Paul did, and she thought Paul saw a lot. “I am Warrior,” the god said, “Do you know why you are here?”
Phoenix gave a half shrug, “Scholar said that her siblings wanted to give me stuff as well,” then a stray thought crossed her mind and she asked with a bit of confusion, “You’re a god, though. Didn’t you see her tell me that?”
The deity looked a bit annoyed as he explained, “I could not see you in her sanctuary no more than she can see you here in mine. Unlike me, though, she will know what will occur here as soon as you leave this place and your mind goes over the event. Such is the goddess of learning.”
He walked a bit closer to her then, his aura becoming stifling, “We’re not here to discuss my sister, however. We’re here to talk about you. Paul Wayland has been training you in combat to help prepare you for your quest.”
The Astromancer nodded, “Yes, he’s taught me a lot already. I didn’t arrive in this world with any practical experience in anything really.”
Warrior nodded knowingly, “While I might not have access to your thoughts like Scholar does, I can observe public spaces at my leisure and I have heard much of your previous conversations,” then he gestured to the side of the room where a small table sat next to racks of various weapons. On top of the table was another stack of books, only it was taller than the stack Scholar had given her.
She cautiously walked over to the pile as Warrior said, “I want you to take them. Use them. Practice them. My temple’s doors will always be open for you to seek any assistance or challenge but Paul Wayland should be a suitable enough trainer.”
Before she took the books, she paused and asked, “Scholar didn’t really answer before, but why are you giving these to me? I know that Hero and Rebel, for reasons I cannot fathom, chose me to save a nation, one that I don’t even know the location of, but why are you and her getting involved?”
The deity stared at her for a moment, reminding her once more of the way Paul behaved, and she briefly wondered if it was just a ‘stoic warrior’ thing.
“Things have become unbalanced,” the god answered slowly, “We are not only about to be besieged by the worst blood moon this world has ever witnessed but we are at war. At war with an entire civilization from beyond this reality.
“Even if we triumph in this war, the balance of powers will still be skewed. We may need to be focused on our current problems but we must also be prepared for the events to come after it. This is merely another small part of an attempt to regain balance.”
It was the most information she had managed to get out of a deity so far but it didn’t seem to answer much. She realized however that this wasn’t just some random charity, each of these divine beings had agendas of their own and apparently decided that she would be a part of them.
She simply nodded as though she understood but, before she could add the stack of books to her collection, the god surprised her with a question, “Why do you fight, child?”
The Wayfarer blinked, not certain what he intended by the question. Why did she fight for her life? Why did she fight monsters? So she asked, “What do you mean?”
He gestured to the array of weapons surrounding the room, “Why do you pick up a weapon and fight? There are others who might fight for you. Other paths you could walk to find purpose. Farmers provide food, scholars provide knowledge and insight, architects provide shelter and defenses. Warriors, though, are the ones that fight. Why do you choose to fight?”
She thought about his words for a long while, trying her best to explain her thoughts for the god standing before her, “I grew up as a burden to everyone around me. I was sick for most of my life and therefore I was sheltered and tended to by others. My mother died in an accident a few months before I arrived here. Before that, many of my friends in the hospital died of their sickness. And I was helpless to do anything about it.
“Here though, monsters roam. Even if I heal or feed people, the monsters will still attack and devour them. If you've been watching me long enough, you'll have seen them come after me. They've bruised and broken me. They even killed me.”
“So you seek revenge?”
She shook her head, “I just don’t want to be that helpless child anymore. I don’t want more people to die around me because there wasn’t anyone strong enough to save them nearby.”
“So you seek control? Sovereignty over your fate?”
She paused, contemplating what she thought was odd wording. Slowly, she shook her head, “No… I don’t wish to control anything or anyone, except maybe myself. I don’t seek to be a queen of fate like you make it sound.
“I just… I don’t want to be chained down by my weaknesses. I don’t want to be weighed by the guilt of failure when I could have been stronger, when I could have saved others. I don't just want power for power’s sake but to be strong enough that I won't be a victim and can save those I need to, just like Rebel said I could choose.”
Phoenix stared at Warrior and stated with finality, “I choose to fight for myself and to help the people around me from any danger that may threaten our lives.”
New Quest: Ways of the Warrior
The deity Warrior has offered you a set of martial knowledge tomes that make up the series: [Weapon Wielding Warrior, the Six Sacred Stances I] along with their divine favor.
Objective: Gain Warrior's favor.
Objective: Use the six martial knowledge tomes.
Reward: Rare Crystal Caste gloves.
The Astromancer read the quest her book offered then bowed respectfully to the god in the same manner that she had seen the young disciple do earlier, “Thank you, Warrior.”
She picked up the books to claim them and, as they vanished into her collection, she blinked and the god was standing only an arm’s length away. Before she could even react to his close proximity, his hand performed the same action Scholar’s had and touched through her clothing onto the still aching mark on her chest.
The Wayfarer fell to her knees this time as the moment passed and a breath later the god was back in his original position across the room from her. She was gasping for air again and her body was trembling from the surge of pain and power that had swept through her, despite having lasted less than a second.
As she glanced up at the god, he simply smiled, nodded, then vanished. She was grateful for the aura that went with him. Though the room was still suffused with it, the aura wasn’t nearly as overwhelming without the deity’s presence.