Desperation in Exile

[Winter]

Deception sat cross-legged in the midst of the small alcove on the edge of the mountain, the edge of Oru'Zehn. He might well have been poised at the edge of the world, gazing over the final precipice into the dark of the void. It was cold this high up, and he sat not within the mountain's confines, but on an outcropping, exposed to the elements, to the wind and ice, the snow and the cold. That, however, was of little consequence, he would not fall victim to the elements. Even here, the breeze felt more of a neutral temperature to him, and the link he was establishing with this land was undeniable. He had learned much from his time in the Timestill Corridor, back in Desarith, back in the old days. He had spent much time in and around Timestill. It was a place of all-encompassing tranquility, where snowflakes may drift with the seconds or with the years, and it would make so little difference to anyone. At least, that was as they saw it. Deception felt a special bond to the north-lands that his branch of the Sins now called a homeland, in the wake of the careless shattering of their true land, their bastion of power, The Empire. It would not be a wise decision to dwell overmuch on the Empire however, what was lost had been lost, and now Vengeance and Deception were required to keep everyone, or at least as many as possible, alive until Taint's return. There it was, the name....Taint....Empress, the true Empress. Deception still felt neither accustomed to nor deserving of the powers instilled in him by Taint. This title, these powers, these duties, they were not truly his, and although it may be centuries before Taint would truly return to them, Deception found himself constantly prepared for her triumphant return.

She would come back, and he hoped very much that it would be soon. Establishing too much of a connection here would make the Empire feel strange, and indeed the Empire probably would feel strange when they finally did return. After all, the combination of the humans and Virtues would surely, by now, have left very little of the castle standing. There would have to be a new one when they returned, or at least massive repairs conducted on the old castle. But that was all within Taint's grasp surely, once her powers were again complete. The only problem was, there was no telling how far off that would be, and there would be problems. The only major ones so far were in the construction of the shelter here in Lehaita, but Deception could tell that the future was hard at work ensuring that no end of difficulties would come to pass. Deception sighed as he thought to himself...yes, untold dangers would come, unknown in number, inconceivable in form, and yet, what other outcome could there be? They would either find a way to return Taint to the world, to clamber back to the Empire from every corner where they were now begrudgingly forced to lie in wait...or they would fail. They all knew failure was not an option, and they all knew that it would be better for every last one of them to die trying to get their world back than to settle for anything less. Without the Empress, what could they really be?

There was no real answer to that question and they all knew it. It wasn't that there home had been destroyed, that their greatest enemies were now holding dominion over their lands, that their leader was, in essence, dead for the time being....those things were not the true problem. It was the fact that they could not even attempt to remedy those things. All of this was happening, all the horror, the pain, the sorrow, and in reality, the only course of action they could really take? Sit here. Bide our time. Wait for the Empress. And it was the most infuriating feeling many of them had ever encountered. Even Deception was feeling restless at the exile of the Sins, surely Vengeance might be too. This was to say nothing of the younger ones, the new blood, still hot of purpose, and ready to strike. It must seem an eternity of torment on them. Deception, after all this time, had begun to view the words "Sin" and "Virtue" not as what they embodied, nor what they truly were, but what happened to them. The Virtues, for whatever evil may have befallen them, were still far better off, and could probably never understand the hardships the Sins had faced in the same way that the Sins saw them. It was inconceivable...not without experiencing it for themselves would they ever truly understand. But maybe they were beginning to understand. The last few bands of travelers that had made their way into Lehaita peaks had brought strange news, though none had come for many months now. They told of some woman, near to Purity's description, certainly, but with some key differences that were evident. After much thought, Deception realized that likely, this meant a new Purity. What had happened to the old one, how the new one had come to be, what effect this had on the Virtues, Deception did not know. All he knew was that perhaps, they were starting to know the feeling of seeing a leader who was endlessly in pain, struggling with inner turmoil, and perhaps they would be a bit less blinded upon the Sins' return to Desarith.

Deception turned back from his thoughts, allowed his mind to venture outwards rather than in, feeling the biting air, the subtle flow of the mountain, the flood of energy moving in great rushing waves towards the windswept peaks of the mountain he sat upon, to the Sins sheltered far below him, near the base, in the valley formed at the low points of several surrounding mountains. In an instant all that was, all that could be was encompassed into his reality of sitting still on the mountain's ledge, displaying himself to the world, and in turn, seeing the whole world laid out majestically before him. He saw the many miles they had journeyed to find this place of respite all in a glimpse, saw their homeland, as it had been, thrown in perpetual shade, and yet always waiting patiently for their return. He even glimpsed scenes of the Islands in his troubled nightmares, the place where his fellow Sins were now residing. Kham'hur, or so the map had read. And in the same instant that the whole of the world had unfolded before him it collapsed again into the tiniest distance, a snowflake, that drifted by, and was lost on the breeze before he could bring another glance to it. And yet he would always remember the design of that specific snowflake, from the fraction-of-a-second glimpse. It was remarkable. The elements showed their power to the heavens this day. The far off sound of water crashing on glaciers could just barely be heard sometimes over the wind, when the swell grew large enough. The wind was all around, whipping and scorning the mortal realms, scouring, searching for something, as its former mistress also surely was. The earth heaved a low sigh as the mountain brought forth some deep memory from beneath the earth's surface. Completing this meeting of the mighty powers, Deception held a flame, cupped in hands, offering it to the ever-watching sky, and to the one he knew stood somewhere within it, watching them all. Somehow, in that instant, he knew that she was looking specifically to him.

Turning back to the real world, to where he sat, he looked upon a large, misshapen block of ice. Pulling the thin fibres of metal from his gloves, he began to slice at it delicately, the wires, despite the strong winds, managing to do exactly as they were instructed, sometimes separating a large chunk, other times lightly dancing over the ice, and barely licking the surface. By the time he had finished a perfect likeness of the former Empress stood where the block had been, not more than a minute after he had begun. Deception was still incredibly proficient with his staff, but had found that it was somewhat unsafe to spar using his wires in high wind conditions after the first few attempts. Carving ice had proved a reliable method to gain greater control over the movements of his wires and so he had taken to it. By this time, he felt that he had gained enough power over the wires to be able to spar safely again with them, and admitted that he had missed their role in his combat. Gazing into the eyes of the icy Taint that stood before him, he laid a hand on her shoulder. "We'll find a way," he said aloud, feeling that her gaze, from wherever she was, was still directed at him. "We'll get you back, we'll go back, someday. It may not be the same, but I don't think we could stand it if it was. And it'll be home again. That's the important thing. We will succeed." The last words were a whisper, torn away from him by the shreds of the violent wind, they never reached his ears. But that was unimportant. All things considered, it was not his ears they were meant for. He gazed back into the cold eyes of the statue, and managed the most reassuring smile he could, before quickly crossing his arms and letting his metal strands obliterate the sculpture to dust. The dust, in vanishing, was carried on the wind, up to the peak of the mountain, and Deception knew that his words had reached the one they were intended for. Perhaps Larketh was somewhere too, after all, Pride had come to the north and he was the only remaining connection to the Empress, though Larketh's appearances were growing haphazard and infrequent.

Gazing back through the streams of reality, Deception brought his eyes closed and viewed all that had happened, seeing so much occur, more than they had ever anticipated back then...back in the old times. Feeling through the deep consciousness of reality, he saw his friends, his Sins who had chosen, despite the additional adversity to accompany him. He felt thankful that they had. Another gust of wind served as a return of his message to Taint, with several shards of ice dropping back upon him. What she said, he could not really know, but the idea was nonetheless conveyed, and effectively too. He rocked himself steadily onto his feet and began to survey the surroundings, the majesty of the soaring peaks leaving him in awe, and making the mountain range seem, for just a moment, less like a prison than it had for the years of their exile. Removing his robe, and slinging it over his back, clad only in his dark tunic and pants, he began to stroll slowly down the side of the mountain. As he did so, he began to feel the immense gravity of their situation pressing down, weighing on him once more. He wondered if this was how the Empress felt in all the times of turmoil they had previously faced, if she had borne these ills for all of them, without them ever knowing. Yes. Of course she had, and she was all the stronger because of it. What did she do, when she was feeling overwhelmed? She had discussed it, with him, with Vengeance, with all of them. But he was himself...and Vengeance was gone...and all of them were divided. He called out to the other one in whom she had placed her faith.

Pride

It was more a desperate call than a command at first, and for a moment he was surprised how much the soft voice of his mind had sounded like Taint's. He called Pride to his side, if he could spare the time, to talk, to discuss the past, the future, what may be, what would be, what had to be. But it was not just Pride. He sent out a call to any who would answer. He hoped that they would manage to answer it soon. Their situation, though slow to worsen made rapid demands that they adapt to prevent those long term detriments. And they had to adapt quickly, or bad things would happen in the future. It was more than a speculation. There was vision behind it, undoubtedly. And that made all the difference. For in the end who were all these people really? The Sins, the Virtues, the Drifters...they were all humans, or had been. And perhaps therein was the entire difference, that everyone had, to a point, failed to realize. The differences were truly a minimal matter. But in the same instant, Deception knew that they could never have everyone realize, there were hot-blooded war mongers on all sides, and the battle would invariably continue. Even Taint had begun to grow short tempered in her later days with them. So for now, Deception would have to hold on to the people around him, and feel the presence of those who weren't: Taint, Vengeance, the others who had followed Vengeance. For in the end, what did any of them have...to make this life, or afterlife, reasonable and worthwhile. Except one another.



ooc: Pride responding first if we can manage it, but other people can join later.

[Dreaming Ashes]

Pride

Pride, startled, awoke with a heavy breath. The voice was faint, whispering - yet in his dreams it was as if a knife had pierced his mind. The blond-haired man shook his head, feeling dizzy and almost sick. It wasn't because of the frigid weather, no he had adapted to that. It was the dream he had had only moments ago for it had seemed so real, so inviting to just let go and drift away forever.

Pride was enveloped in darkness, although not like the icy touch of death, a hand placed upon his shoulders and they were warm, comforting. No words were spoken to him from the invisible body of the unseen hands, but Pride knew just being in her presence. Abandoning all reasoning that he had dealt within the past days in exile - even though he knew in his mind she was gone - within the dream realm, his heart overtook him, and he embraced the being there that was all in his head. As he closed his arms towards him, he felt nothing and so he then panicked. In his panic, the dream of peace turned into the nightmare that had so long plagued his mind since the events of the past loss.

The darkness was lit, not by a bright, shining light, but by a dim, dark red glow. Memories pulsed around him, dark thoughts and deeds that he had known and done...things that he had locked deep inside, surfaced and overcame him. Pride, a man of strength and control, was weakened and led astray in mere moments. Falling to his knees he felt the darkness embodied and coming towards him. Looking up, he saw himself, only though it was not really him. It was a twisted shell of the man he was, a dark side of him that he thought had been destroyed long ago. The being before him spoke, but not through tongues, but through their mind.

You think you can run, Pride? Allow the pain to just...slip away? You may have been rid of me, but I assure you a part of me will forever dwell inside of you. I'm the one who lives inside your head, taking your self-control, and ripping it apart. Where do you think the Sin of you comes from? All of the Sins have one thing in common: They are born of Sin - of the evil that lives inside all men. Do you think you are so different to deny this?

Pride gasped, as if unable to breath, his body shook, and sweat formed on his forehead. Even so, he managed to shake his head.

"I'm not like you. Not anymore!" he managed to say through his clenched jaw.


Hahahah! You think lying to me will work? Lying to yourself? You know as well as I do that things can never stay at rest. Soon enough, you know that you will no longer be able to run and hide. Then what, Pride? Will you fight? Will you die? All in the name of your pretty Empress?

The being shifted, it's body changed to that of a woman. Her hair was silvery white, and her eyes gazed into Pride's.

"Pride, why have you failed me?" The voice was that of Taint's, although the demonic voice of the darkness could be heard merging within. "Why...did you let me die?"

"Enough of this!" Pride growled, clenching his fists, and attempted to rip away his invisible chains. He felt their grip loosen, and he stood. The tainted figure of his Empress stood as well, slowly walking towards him.

"Come to me, my love. Let us leave this world and it's troubles. Sleep, my love, forever sleep."

Pride walked forward, his face hidden in his hair, and went to embrace her. As she touched him, she gasped, blood coming from her mouth. Pride had ripped his right hand through her heart.

"I will NOT be made a fool of, demon. Leave me be, and return to your prison!" Pride ripped his hand out, and the twisted being formed back into his own, then turned to ash.

Pride

The man stood. Shaking his head, the dream...the nightmare soon passed. Pride had first thought the voice to be that of Taint, and his heart skipped, afraid that his mind was playing tricks on him again, but then his reasoning came to him again and he realized Deception was calling for him. Sighing, Pride started to run, ready to leave this place of dread.

It didn't take long, for Pride had quickly scouted most of these parts and knew where he was going. Soon enough, he had made it to Deception, and bowing his head slightly, he spoke, "What do you need, my Emporer...sorry, my friend." Pride still was awkward in how he should address his old friends, and he knew they felt just as uncomfortable. Pride sat down on a large boulder, awaiting his response.


I had more to post, but my internet and computer failed on me as I was about to post it. Anyways, sorry for the late response. Let's get this show on the road! =D (Oh and don't take the whole demon-dream as a way of the side of Pride returning. It's just a nightmare for him...)

[Winter]

Deception looked at Pride a moment, smiling slightly at his friend's uneasiness. He laid a hand on Pride's shoulder, "Still friend, or Deception, to you. Emperor is hardly a title that fits me comfortably...Vengeance perhaps could be suited to a life such as this, I think Taint chose well in that respect...but I?" He swept his bared arm out, through the flakes of falling ice that encircled them as they fell. "This is not truly who I am. I wonder still why I was the one to inherit these duties. Surely you yourself would have been a more obvious choice...if not that someone else might have inherited it." He sighed deeply, concern written more into his features now than it had been in the past.

"And there is nothing I truly need I fear, save company and respite from this waiting. I had simply been thinking to myself, about how things are now....how they were before. Reflecting, more or less." He began walking down the steep pathway in the side of Oru'Zehn. "I suppose I ought to discuss it with everyone soon. But you were the most immediate one who came to mind. I think of you as an advisor, as Taint did once, but we've known each other longer than that. If I were to pick one person, of everyone here that I could confide in, it would be you old friend."

Deception cut away loose parts of the path with his staff as they went, so that anyone else who journeyed here would not be in danger of falling. Gazing out over the edge, the drop was sharp, and very little disturbed, except for where the path wound back across the face of the mountain. But very few knew where that was, as the path was by no means linear, nor easy to follow, even for those who had experience within the peaks. Deception had managed to get a few scars from learning the hard way which portions were safe. For some it may not seem like a huge payoff. All the danger and meandering just to find a small little alcove, likely only big enough to allow four or five people inside? But for Deception, it was a place of respite. Somewhere to do things, somewhere to go, anything to distract from the sense of waiting.

Their lives were becoming monotonous here, that much was obvious. The only breaks in their regular routines was generally the arrival of the merchant caravan, which was generally looked forward to. Aside from that? Each of them had their own methods of passing the time he supposed. But there was regularly very little going on, aside from completing the fortress, and surviving.

Then there was the shard, embedded in Capitol....Deception didn't like the look of it. Some essence of Taint within his mind maintained that the Shard was....well, it was significant certainly. It had a purpose, whatever that was. But it was also most certainly malevolent. Some feeling within him would suffice to convince him of that...

He turned back to Pride, "What are your opinions Pride? What do you think of Taint's departure....when might she return, and what role might we play in that? When shall we go back to Desarith...if ever? What of the rumours of a new Purity there? Of the place where Vengeance and the others now reside? What do you think about the things that happened back then...that are happening now?" He paused... "What do you think of the roots of all this....the deepest mysteries, between Virtues, Sins, Drifters, humans. Our true nature? Most of all..." he turned away, hiding a tear rolling down his cheek, not from cold, but from worry, "Do you think they're alright? Vengeance's group? And the Empress?"

He stopped trudging for a few seconds, and then asked another question of immense weight that had been sitting on him for the past week or so: "Word from Larketh?" He spoke the words with the dreary hope of one who already knew the answer, and disliked it with every part of his being. But what else could they do? He waited eagerly for Pride's answers, beginning to walk again, albeit slightly slower, and his eyes seemed focused on another world entirely.



ooc: Again, sorry for keeping you waiting.

[Dreaming Ashes]

The blond-haired sin followed Deception in silence, merely nodding and smiled slightly at his friend's comment towards him. It was gladdening that even after everything they had all gone through, even from Pride's own mistakes and betrayal, that they had still remained friends. They still trusted each other. In the past, Pride would have found it dangerous to trust so easily. But with growth and knowledge that only came with time, he understood his friendships. It was something he could never had truly understood in the past.

After some time, Pride's friend turned back to him, asking him what he thought of the troubles in his head, in both of theirs. Pride listened to Deception's thoughts, spoken aloud. Pride looked away, out in the distance of the winter landscape, deep in thought. After a few moments, he looked back to his friend, his emperor, and finally answered.

"The world is a double-edged sword, Deception. It can be cruel, unforgiving, and punishing. However, it can also be generous, loving, and full of rewards, both physically and spiritually. We, us Immortals, as some Humans may claim, whether we be of the Sins or the Virtues, have all made mistakes. Our titles - the concept of Good and Evil, is meaningless. I've learned from my life as a Sin, that this title given to me means little then what we are to be judged. We lost our home and friends because of a war. In this war, I'm not even sure which side is the right one. I believe we fight for everyone we care for and everything we care about. No matter what I would be called, I believe in that."

Pride smiled. His eyes no longer looked to Deception, but through him, trapped in another time, a different place.

"Taint was my Empress. We all loved her. But, I...I loved her in a way I think no one else could understand. I don't know when she will return, if ever. I don't know if we shall ever return to the place we used to call home. But I do know that we are still alive. I really hope Vengeance and the others are surviving..." His voice drifted, and he focused back to Deception, his face now dark, and serious. "I don't know what to think of this new Purity, or what may be happening there now. All I can say, is that we must keep on living and surviving now, then we can focus on that when the time comes for it."

Pride walked away for a moment, facing away from Deception and lowering his head, closing his eyes. It seemed like forever, but only a second or two later, he turned back to face his Emperor.

"I will be here for you, Deception. Else I would not have come. But I can only do so much. I cannot say if you or Vengeance are prepared for the trials that ahead, but I have faith that you will do your best. And you have my trust and my support. You will always have that."

Pride's face lightened, and he smiled. "We should get back to the others soon though, don't you think? Unless you're not done with your little stroll up here?"

[Seya.]

As Pride spoke, a high-pitched squeaking could be heard from a ways down the path, where a dark-and-red clad shape could just barely be seen curled up in the snow, clearly not fitting in with the rest of the mountain. When the two men came into view, a small, raccoon-like head popped up from the shape, and slacked its jaws to release another high whine.

He insisted on following you, Berjanji chirred, distressed and distracted by the cold stillness of his young master, Deviance. The faithful red panda clawed itself half-onto the red plaid of the boy's scarf, acting as a temporary heater. Beady black eyes gave Deception a haughty glare that clearly suggested he should hurry up and do something about this little problem. You know how little immunity he's been having lately. You shouldn't be running off to look at mountains!

Curled in the snow, Deviance shifted a bit, his golden-and-brown hair brushed by frigid winds. Berjanji squeaked nervously as the youngster shivered beneath him. Hurry up now! the small creature whined.

[Winter]

Deception was already alert as his young charge ran up to them, already appearing affected by the bitter cold. "Damn it," he whispered beneath his breath.

"A moment, Pride...I need to see to this."

He bent down and picked up the small boy, wrapping his cloak around Deviance and cursing the boy's curiosity. He made sure the boy was still awake, and whispered harshly to him, "Deviance please....just because I can be out here like this doesn't mean you can, do you understand? You know that you get sick easily, and even the others who don't usually get sick are because of this weather. Look at Mischief, he's been in bed more than out of it since we got here. So have several of the others. Promise me you'll stay indoors unless you have someone else's permission and some warmer clothes to be outside in!"

He sighed, holding the boy near to him, having forgotten entirely his other new duty, nothing short of being a foster father to the sickly boy. As he strode a bit further down the path, they neared the bottom. He spotted in the distance, a pale, short girl with long silver hair. She appeared to be cooking something and playing in the snow with....a snow leopard? A summon.

Turning back to his companion, a little farther up the slope, he said "Newcomer, Pride. Off that way," he pointed. "I'll put Deviance inside, after that I'd best go collect her. You can feel free to join me in welcoming her if you like....or you can go inside with the others. If you choose the latter, might I ask that you keep an eye on him, just make sure he doesn't get out again?" he motioned to Deviance.

Striding over to the shelter, he ensured that the boy made it to his room, leaving his cloak there as well, with a quick request to the others to keep him indoors if they could manage it, then he set off to see the new Sin, not entirely sure if Pride was following him. He decided to remain invisible until he was closer up, becoming visible as he stepped on a twig and blew his cover, inwardly cursing himself for his lack of attention. He strode forward a bit further, his weapon deactivated, smiling, and attempting to show that he meant no harm, as the crack had apparently frightened the girl.

[~Pain And Panic~]

OOC. Brutality welcome here?

[Seya.]

ooc: Winter says this thread is closing when Matt decides where he's going.... as currently he's the only one left here. Deception will be joining Distance's thread soon. You're free to join there if you'd like? Otherwise, I suppose you COULD continue with Pride. Up to you~

[Dreaming Ashes]

Pride nodded, attempting to hide his grin as he thought of how much Deception was still the same man he was before. Even though Pride's friend was responsible for so much more now, some things just never changed. The sin felt this was probably the case for most of them too. He certainly felt so.

"...If you choose the latter, might I ask that you keep an eye on him, just make sure he doesn't get out again?" Deception motioned to Deviance.

"I don't think he's going anywhere for awhile." Pride stated as they reached the shelter and the boy was finally starting to warm his body. Pride walked over to him, checked his forehead, "The weather is not kind, young one. It will not be nice to you...even if you have the sense to brave it head on." Pride smiled, "I do admire your curiosity. Maybe one day I will allow you to come with me on a hunt. At least then, someone could watch you."

The blond-haired sin rose, and left the room, curious himself as to what luck Deception had with the other girl outside. Soon he had left the shelter, and continued to walk to the direction he last remembered seeing the other adventurous type to play in such weather.

OOC: Once again sorry for the delayed response. If Brutality would like to RP with me, I would enjoy that whether it means here or elsewhere. Depends on what happens next.