Advent of Chaos

12

Mora slumped down next to Uriel on the dark red sofa, her fingers wrapping around a small glass cup, and lips pursed at the edge of the glass as she listened to Toryn ramble on about how Dorn must've been late or something. "I wouldn't want to be here on time either." He claimed, nudging an already bored Ankou at his side-- who was staring angrily in Mora's direction for an extensively long period of time.

Uriel, on the other hand, was facing a different direction- the ceiling. Boredom coated his features so thickly, Mora was sure he would've fallen asleep if she didn't wave her hand over his face. He snapped at it playfully, sitting up after so to gather his own drink and sip periodically.

"Been a while since we've all gathered like this, hasn't it?" Mora smiled at Toryn, who returned the smile-- albeit a bit more lazily. She took note of his tired eyes and pale face. How had it lost that much colour?

Mora didn't let herself think any further.
"Last time, it was for something a little less serious." Toryn sat back in his seat, and Ankou finally tore his eyes away from Mora-- turning his attention to a golden-robed warlock with deep black hair and chocolate brown eyes. Mora stared anxiously, instantly catching that his armor was twin to hers. Right away, Toryn was on his feet, heading to greet his old friend with a warm hug and gentle pat on the back.

"Come take a seat, my friend. It's been a while." He led Dorn to the vacant single-person armchair, and sat himself next to Ankou once more.
"This one.." He gestured to Ankou with his head. "...is one of my closest friends, Ankou. I believe you two have met once."
"The two across from us are Mora and Uriel. Guys, this is Dorn. He studies lore, and will be assisting us with our current issue." Toryn picked up his glass, drinking deeply as he noticed Ankou's attention drift back to Mora and Uriel.

Mora had been paying more attention to Dorn as he entered, and was awaiting his response. "Toryn COMMed me just as I was finishing a few of my bounties. I apologize for being late." Toryn's eyes widened at this-- Dorn never apologized for small things. Mora instantly clung to his accent, finding his pronunciation of the word 'apologize' especially amusing. 

"No need to apologize." Mora spoke for Toryn, hiding a small smirk with a drink from her glass before she continued.
"But let's discuss the matter at hand. You're a Loremaster, correct?"
Dorn smiled faintly. "I suppose you could call me that. I know more about our world's lore than the average guardian should know."
"Loremaster is a such a generous title, isn't it?" Mora's eyes brightened to a fiery gold.

She could have sworn she'd seen Dorn's reaction before it became reality. Mora watched him lean back slowly, his fingers running through his slick black hair as if he were fixing it-- or making it messier. But her eyes dimmed once more, and she watched him seemingly glitch back, sitting upright. He repeated the same action once more-- but as if it were only just now happening.

"Rather." Dorn said plainly, and his voice pulled her back into reality like chains. Rusted, barbed chains that dug into her throat and weakened her. "Now then.." She said as she regained her control. Something seemed to be tugging at her-- that fluctuating Chaos.

Mora leaned in slowly, and Uriel sat up beside her. Even Ankou drew his energy away from looking livid in the face to sit up straight. Toryn waiting for her to speak, forearms braced on his knees.
"Have you heard of the Relkan?" She spoke so quietly, she almost didn't hear herself. The only other sounds audible were the gentle music playing from the stereo and a mechanic working on a robot worker between the stairs at his own separate stand.

Dorn pursed his lips, resting his chin on his fist as if he were deep in thought. As if he were searching through an ancient library full of decaying books and worn down oak shelves in his mind. Perhaps that was his mind-- a library. To Mora, it might've been a labyrinth. "Describe the Relkan to the best of your ability."

Mora blinked, instantly recalling the imagine of Cassain, and feeling a dark thrum of power rush through her.
"They've got large leathery wings, human-like bodies. Pure ink black skin, which appears to be decaying and.. It seems argali horns are very common, but I've seen a few other shapes."
Suddenly, Mora recalled something from her very first encounter with the Relkan. She remembered being unable to move-- remembered watching Cassain grasp Lotus with ease. More importantly, she remembered watching Lotus stare into Cassain's face.

She summoned her ghost, watching Lotus hover over her hand with a small smile on her face.
"Hey, Lotus."
"Did you need something , Mora?"
"Actually, yes." She gazed around, making sure Dorn was watching. His eyes locked with hers instantly, but she continued speaking to Lotus.

"Did you capture any photos of Cas- er.. the largest Relkan?"
"I did, would you like me to project them?"
Mora nodded, still delving into those dark oak eyes of Dorn's. It were almost as if she could feel the knowledge within him.

Lotus' shell fluttered with blue particles, and a glorious array of light manifested above the cluttered table. It created a type of hologram that displayed colour, the very centre lighting up as Lotus enhanced the capture with a built in lens.

The glory of Cassain's handsome, abyssal black face appeared, and Mora clenched her fist tightly at her lap. That terrifying smile, the bastard had made sure Lotus got a picture of him. She knew instantly, from the look on Dorn's smooth face, that he knew precisely what the Relkan were.

"Ah, these things.. They're classified as Ignotis Monstra in the archives. Which means "Monsters of the Unknown." Dorn scratched the back of his head--silky black hair falling over his forehead as he did so-- before looking back up at Mora. His eyes were deeper than she first noticed.

Mora felt Uriel shift at her side, and his arm soon accompanied hers at her side. Perhaps it was comfort-- because she instantly felt pressure in her chest. "Do you know anything about them?" She asked a bit quieter, tapping on Lotus' shell to indicate that she didn't need to see any more of Cassain. He instantly vanished.

Dorn sat up straight again, and crossed his hands at his lap. "From what I've read, they're tied with the powers of another universe-- somewhere completely inaccessible to humans or, well, anyone of our universe. There are only males, it seems-- but they've got no reproductive organs. Some scholars think that they are the product of experiments, due to the fact that their 'flesh' is rotting away on their own bodies."

"Do you think there are any females out there?" Mora pressed, her chest growing heavier, it seemed.

"It's extremely unlikely, but I'm thinking there may be one queen, in a sense. One extremely powerful woman to rule the entire race, just as ants and bees."

"So, pests." Mora joked, but was being quite honest as well.
"I suppose you could say that. But moving on, there are records describing the types of 'power' they've been seen using." He held his tongue for a moment, and Toryn reached for his drink. There was silence, and the soft tapping of footsteps above and around them.

"Please tell me all you know about this power." Mora begged, breaking the silence with a heavy breath.

"I'm afraid that's all I know for certain." Dorn warned, lifting a glass to his lips. Mora stood from her seat, Uriel's hand slipping from her arm as she stepped away from the table.

"I'm getting another drink." She mumbled as she brushed past Toryn. She could've sworn she'd heard Ankou grumble something, but didn't turn back as she walked to the back of the room where the drinks were. The lights were dimmed here, and she thanked whoever dimmed them silently as she rummaged through crates for whiskey. Footsteps around her filled her head like music. With her glass in hand, she lifted a white bottle of liquid, but stopped, slowly releasing it before--

The shimmering blue aura of a knife became visible in her peripheral vision, and she grabbed the arm of her invisible opponent. It wriggled ferociously, but Mora was even more ferocious, twisting with her hips to grasp an armored throat with her other hand, and throw the attacker on their back. Quickly she forced her weight on what felt like a chest, and held down the outline of a body until the invisibility wore off.

Mora came face to face with a Hunter, and a robotic grunt came from the voice box as she forced a knee down into their stomach.

"And just who the hell are you?"