Lore of Leyuna RPG (FRPG)

[C S]

A short while later, there was a rattling of hinges as the door on the other side of the bridge was opened by the armored being. Desrium eyed the door and then moved to shut it behind him. Another one of those things that he could not help.

"I hope I have not kept you waiting," Desrium said as he walked over to the knight and Stormweaver.

[Hopeflower]

"Indeed," Viho agreed. He shifted his weight and glanced outside, making a mental note of the slightest shift in the way the shadows fell outside. It would be time for his students to return soon. He doubted Andruil would return for a while yet, and with that in mind, Viho adjusted his plans for the rest of the day.

[C S]

"Maybe by then the wall will be complete. Here's hoping." Evisa laced her fingers together and proceeded to crack her knuckles, the sounds muted by her gloves. They did not seem so thick, but for what they were, they seemed padded. It was a strange impression, this armor of hide and scales. And she'd said she used them against Desrium, to boot.


"Say, how's the cat-headed one doing? I tried getting her a new coat a little while ago but... I don't know how that ended up working."

[Hopeflower]

Viho arched an eyebrow, but didn't comment on the fact that it was Evisa who had given the shapeshifter that coat. He'd been under the impression that she and Dahnae hadn't been on good terms - or at least that Evisa was wholly unimpressed with his student's general behavior.

"She's doing a lot better than I would have expected, with the condition she was in when she arrived at the hospital," he answered. "Certainly feeling well enough to take exception to the idea that a stabbing victim should be taking it easy."

[The Kingpin]

Arashi glanced towards the Stalwart, a pulse of energy spilling outwards until a bubble of warbling light had formed around the bridge. "Not at all, Desrium. Andruil and I were simply...catching up."

Turning around to give his back towards the street below, he leaned on the banister. "Now, for the reason I am here. I have encountered Morrelie. Septimus and I managed to come up with a plan to bring her to an abandoned village, so that I could speak to her myself, and learn of her intentions, her motives, her ends...and if she left me with no other choice, kill her."

[C S]

"I think I know why, from my last talk with her. She's either too bored or too lonely when she's unable to come to class." At least she was actually in class and hadn't disappeared off the streets, as a small part of Evisa suspected.


Desrium took in this information silently, eyes turning to the floor. "I suppose the question there is, did she leave you no other choice?"

[Hopeflower]

Viho hummed, turning that over in his mind. "Makes sense," he said. "She's alone in the city." Might even have been alone among her peers, from the few things she'd mentioned or Viho had otherwise caught about where she came from. "I think she'll be alright, so long as she doesn't attempt any more solo heroics."

[The Kingpin]

"I managed to redirect her attention elsewhere, to a demonic cult by the name of the Brotherhood of Necros. But she has made her intentions clear. One day, most likely very soon, she will try to kill you. Her convictions are unwavering in that regard." Before the two in his company, a small orb materialised, a localised glimpse into her performance at Amplefield.

"She seems like a...spirited individual," commented Andruil as he saw her destroy the Revenant, a chill running down his spine even as he tried to make light of what he saw.

[C S]

"Yeah. Leave that to the watchers. Or me." Just as she finished saying that, there was a scampering by the panes of windows on the other side of the room. Dahnae skidded along the mortar past the glass in a way that wasn't entirely out of control. Apparently she had learned from last time and came upon the not-quite-a-perch from an angle, as opposed to head on. She grabbed onto the edges of the windowsill and knocked with a mittened hand.

"Lemme in."



Like Arashi, Desrium was not surprised in the slightest. "Her mission has run long, and she has grown powerful through it. She will not cease for that same reason. Each faulty step towards ending me is another period of growth, and every obstacle such as these demons is a test to measure her ability."

With this said, Desrium looked up to Arashi. "It is my goal to give her something else to live for, but I am well aware that may be past the realm of possibility. I must still try. Otherwise her mission will be her undoing, whether she succeeds in it or not."

[Hopeflower]

Speak of the devil. Viho straightened and moved to open the window. "Welcome back," he offered as he stepped back to give Dahnae room.

[C S]

Dahnae slid through her improvised entrance and took off her mittens. Invariably, she put them in Viho's hand and then walked over to the desk. She leaned towards Evisa, getting very close without actually touching her. Evisa stared back at her, not moving an inch all the while. "Nice coat."

"Nice face."

[The Kingpin]

"You can't seriously be considering meeting her in battle?" asked Andruil, looking towards Desrium with some measure of concern.

"Such is the way of the Justicar. But one must take into account the consequences of such actions," responded the Stormweaver as his gaze shifted to the Stalwart. "We tread a fine line, a balancing act of duty. The very nature of this world is one in which there are no absolutes. No decision is objectively better in the path of a Justicar. In accepting her challenge and seeking to change her, you may be following the policy of peace and diplomacy, of good before the evil of war. But in your failure, millennia of potential good deeds will be lost on those who may need it far more than she who does not appreciate nor care. Generations upon generations upon generations of people who face hardships that may cost them their lives will not have you to be there in their hour of need. In killing you her harm on this world will be twofold. Not only will she have ended you and robbed us of a powerful ally and a potential guide for the less experienced, but she will also have hurt everyone that may benefit from your guidance, your decisions, your attempts to bring order to this world, across the ages."

His gaze settled on the Paladin at the conclusion of his statement. "I have seen her soul, Desrium. She will not waver. She outright dismissed every example, every proof that I gave of your deeds in favour of this world's people. She does not listen because she does not wish to listen. She does not want to understand, only to destroy. When the hour of your meeting arises, either she will destroy you and everything you love or value in this world, or you will destroy her. Unless something is done to end her before she can see her schemes to their foul end."

[Hopeflower]

The exchange pulled another quiet chuckle from Viho. He slid the window shut again with a faint shiver and strode toward the desk Dahnae usually claimed to set her mittens down. Whatever their interactions, this was at least better than potentially having to try to pull the two women apart.

He wasn't entirely sure all of him would have survived intact had it ever come to that.

[C S]

"Up until the last moment, I will give her every chance to change her ways. Her heart is dark as a demon's, but she is human still. As a human, she has the capacity to change. I am willing to risk death if it means turning her back onto the path of righteousness that she claims to walk already. She would be a powerful ally, and her deeds towards redemption may be greater than any of mine," Desrium explained to Arashi.

This was his line to draw, and he would not be swayed from it. However, he was not deaf or blind to the Stormweaver's logic.

"By my own power, I will not be able to do this. You have given me the resource of time, and for that I am grateful. While Morrelie pursues this Brotherhood, I shall formulate my strategy. Aster only stands to benefit should it prove true. If she is to fall before any such meeting, though... fate has a way of maintaining balance in all things."



"Are you here to talk about Viho's new arm?"

Evisa slowly inclined her helm to one side. "You're getting a new arm?" she asked the redhead. Slowly, Dahnae moved herself in front of the viking's gaze.

[Hopeflower]

Viho gave Dahnae a sharp look, then found himself sighing, already resigned to the fact that these things were going to start getting around. He needed to start keeping her sharp hearing in mind when discussing such matters.

"Not quite," he corrected. "Desrium has offered to help me get around the fact that my arm is crippled." And then, with a hint of wryness, "It seems I'm called upon for some heroics of my own."

[The Kingpin]

Arashi eyed Desrium, simultaneously impressed by his resolve and unconvinced of his argument. "For one who sees herself as an equal to the Dawnmother, I do not believe there can be any change. Wilful ignorance and the absolute belief that she is already on the path of the righteous make for a dangerous combination. Do as you will, Desrium. But I will not sit idly by while she decides the fates of thousands through her wish to kill what should be preserved."

One particular detail stood out to Andruil in that statement. Holding up a hand as if requesting a pause in the conversation, he interjected, "Wait...So she believes herself to be a god?"

The Stormweaver nodded. "Indeed. Why, exactly, I cannot say. I did not delve too deep into her mind. Dark things lay there that even one such as I must be wary of. I dare not think what terrors I would inflict upon the world were her poisonous convictions to infect my own thoughts."

[C S]

"I will find a way," Desrium insisted, as was his way. His mind was set, and Arashi would grow to learn what Septimus already knew when the Stalwart's mind was set.


Evisa, having taken things a tad too literally, replied with a flat "Oh". So you're not getting a whole new arm stuck to you somewhere. It was a lot less cool than she envisioned it to be just now. "Maybe I can help out. I don't know much about how he does it, but the smithy back in Vanguard could replace missing hands and feet with little metal-bobbles and junk. Not really junk. Not sure how he'd fix a whole arm, but I get the feeling that rope would be involved. Little arm-puppet thing."

She placed the back of her hand between herself and Dahnae and gently began pushing the jungle girl away.

[Hopeflower]

"There's a team of researchers in the school's basement," Viho said, tilting his head and trying not to think too hard about resorting to using rope to control his dominant hand. "I'm sure you're welcome to talk to them."

He needed to pay them a visit himself and see how things were going later, now that he'd thought of it.

[C S]

"This place has a basement, now?"

The momentary surprise was replaced by mild confusion when Evisa glanced over to Dahnae and saw her nibbling on her fingers.

[Hopeflower]

"Dahnae," Viho scolded mildly, cutting his student a stern look and reaching out to tug her away by the back of her coat. "It was as much a surprise to me," he continued as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened. "Someone had considerable foresight when the place was built."