They said that deep in the woods of the Prontera region stood a temple. The tales told that inside, the very essence of time and space was different than what it was outside. The stories warned that it also held within a great evil that tore anything that crossed its path limb from limb. The legends promised of treasure beyond compare to the one who could vanquish this evil, but despite this, all knowledge of the temple has disappeared like dust on the winds of time. Eventually, though, the dust will have to settle down...
Thwack! The oversized grasshoppers head fell to the ground, the body following shortly after. An elven knight leaned on her two-handed sword, brushing her cobalt bangs away from her face. "How'd you like that, Yrael? One shot!" the woman laughed, pointing to another human-sized insect in the distance.
An armoured individual sprang forward, long knife out and ready. His short white locks were tossed to the side violently as his blade flashed and struck once-twice! The thing called a Rocker fell to the ground in the same manner as the last. Prying a valuable leg off the body, the jack-of-all-trades named Yrael looked to his elven companion and stuck out his tongue.
The warrior known as Meytiuy picked up a small pebble and flung it at the approaching Yrael playfully, frowning slightly as it fell well off course.
"And that's why you never took up the bow, eh Mey?" shouted Yrael, grinning. He stopped in front of the elf, who gave him a soft punch in the shoulder. Yrael was a pain, Mey thought, but man, was he a great friend.
The day passed, and darkness fell upon the kingdom of Rune-Midgard. Far away, the fiddles of the Rockers could be heard, joyfully playing something that, to some, might be considered a melody. Raccoon-like Smokies and chipmunk-esque Cocos squabbled loudly over who would get the choice burrows for the night, and two tired traveling companions tried to settle down for the night. They collected small twigs and sticks and crafted a tiny fire, which cast only enough light to see the tree trunks and bushes around them.
"You know," Yrael mused as he slid into his bedroll, "I remember when you first became a swordsman. I've got to say, you trying to heft up a claymore on your first day on the job's the funniest thing I've ever seen, even to this day."
"Oh hush," Meytiuy hissed as she shuffled her own bed a little closer to her friend. She squeaked loudly as, when she sat down for a moment, something on the ground pricked her rather hard on the rear. Mey got up quickly and inspected where she had sat, and found a long knife. She picked it up and waved it in front of Yrael's face angrily. "Yrael! I just sat on one of your damned stilettos! If you have twenty of those things make sure you can keep them all in check! Jeeze, how unorganized can you-"
"Shh," Yrael whispered, putting one finger to his lips.
The elf missed the signal. "What? You know it's-"
"I said be quiet! There's something hiding right… over… THERE!" As he spoke this last word, Yrael lunged forwards and took the stiletto from Mey's fingers and, without a second thought, let it fly into a bush behind them. They heard a demented yelp and witnessed as a large Rocker sprang out from the foliage, its violin soaring over its head as the creature itself landed face first into the dirt. As it collected itself, it found two steel blade points right in front of it's large, multi-faceted red eyes.
"Puhleeese! Don't kill meee!" it begged, it's mandibles scarcely moving.
"Ah, a Vocal, eh? Is that why you were spying on us- to take revenge over your little friends?" Yrael questioned, the knifepoint sliding ever closer to the Rocker boss's head.
"Yeees! Yes! That's it! I'm sorry! Please, let me gooo!" the creature pleaded, holding it's claws up in the air in a sign of surrender. It yelped and began to shake as Meytiuy took a stab at the Vocal with her sword, pulling the point back just before it grazed it's shell.
"And why should we do that?" Mey sneered, "I bet you were going to jump out and try to kill us any moment. If we kill you now, we won't have to worry about you later."
"Nooo! There's a temple!" it screeched, obviously at the end of its rope. "Hidden away not too far from here! Treasures and lots of monsters inside! In the morning, I'll take you there! Just don't kill me pleeease!" Yrael frowned and dropped his knife hand, slipping his blade into an open sheath on his belt.
"If you run off during the night, the two of us will track you down, and we will kill you. If you try to attack us during the night, we will wake up, and we will kill you then. Is this completely understood?" He spoke slowly, and in a way that sent a shiver down Mey's spine. She could hear the Vocal gulp, and its head moved in what she assumed to be a nod.
The Vocal settled beneath a tree not too far from the fire and its captors. The two took shifts watching over the grasshopper throughout the night, making sure it stayed where it was and didn't attempt anything. Whether it was the constant surveillance or the convincing threats made by the young man earlier, the Vocal just sat calmly. Whenever Mey was up with it, the fact that she didn't know if it was awake or asleep bothered her and she tried to stay as far away from it as possible within viewing range.
By the time the sun rose in the morning, Meytiuy and Yrael were exhausted from the few hours of lost sleep. Mey, who was sleeping on the last shift, was happy to see that the Vocal and, most importantly, Yrael were both in one piece. Collecting some of their things and breaking camp, they were led off into the heart of the forest by the strangest of guides.
After not too long, the Vocal stopped and pointed to an ancient looking doorway at the base of a large cliff. The warriors approached it, and as Mey placed a hand on a pillar covered in inscriptions in a different language, the Vocal bounded off, leaving the two with a long and ear splitting screech from its violin.
Mey stuck a finger in her ear, twisting it back and forth. "We going to go after him?" she asked absently, more interested in the entranceway than chasing a lowly Vocal.
"Nah," Yrael replied in the same kind of tone, "I'd prefer going in and exploring this temple. Common, let's see what this baby's got for us."
As they entered through the stone entrance, Mey and Yrael found themselves in a patch of field. A few saplings stood in the centre and trees lined the premises, rendering anything past them unviewable. Round, pink, jelly-like monsters called Porings, bounced around happily, completely ignoring the human and elf that walked amongst them. The two ignored the Porings likewise, and stepped through a passage through the trees to a new area.
Here, the green, caterpillar-like Fabres squished along, sliding past each other with little care for anything else. Although the worms were threat-less, Mey felt something strange; that there was something not quite right.
"Yrael," she asked cautiously, "Do you feel that something's… wrong here?" Yrael stood still for a moment, and nodded.
"Yeah, I do. It's not the Fabres, though. Maybe if we-" Yrael's words were interrupted as the ground they stood on shook violently. "What the…?"
The trees that formed the barrier to this area were ripped apart, and a giant creature stepped through the gap with a loud roar. It was a tawny coloured goat on two legs, it's horns twisted and curved like a black hole, and the colour wasn't much different. It towered over them and over the trees almost impossibly. In its hands it held a large violet scythe, its curved blade glittering with deadly sharpness. Behind the demon, black swirled on even darker black, as if nothing existed beyond the wooden boundaries of each forest-like room.
"Baphomet!" screamed Meytiuy, drawing her sword as quickly as possible. From her pack she drew out a red potion bottle and downed its contents, her own body turning a crimson red before fading away as quickly as it came. She muttered words like a spell, and a veil of yellow energy covered her, leaving an after image whenever she moved. Yrael did nothing but draw a knife and drink down a yellow potion, a light simply flashing above his head
The creature known as Baphomet lunged, sending his giant scythe crashing into the ground with frightening speed. Mey and Yrael jumped away, both landing on their feet before springing back, blades poised to strike. Both found demon flesh and blood, and this hit sent Baphomet into a rage. He swatted the warriors away like one might swat a biting fly, rounding down on them with fury.
They were only still getting up from the previous attack, when they found the orchid blade bearing down on them once again. Meytiuy cried out as she felt the giant scythe's point bury itself in her arm. Baphomet lifted his weapon for another attack, and Meytiuy followed for only a few moments until her body tore the blade from her skin. She gasped as her body hit the ground, clasping madly at her blood-covered arm. She tried to scramble away with only her legs to push her as the demon pulled back to finish her off. She closed her eyes, sure that these were her last few breaths.
She heard the creature scream, and as she opened her eyes she saw him eyeing Yrael, three stilettos embedded into its caramel fur. The idiot was screaming and making faces at it, and then resorting to petty insults like, "Wow, your mother must have been really ugly, 'cause you're just appalling!" Baphomet snorted and swung his weapon, but Yrael saw it coming and dashed aside.
Meytiuy was trying to get up onto her feet and watch out for Yrael, but a sudden bout of dizziness sent her attention elsewhere. She noticed the leaves of the trees that were closest to the gap the demon had made were rustling as if a strong wind was blowing, yet not a leaf elsewhere budged.
"YRAEL," she screamed, "THE HOLE!" Yrael's gaze shot over to the black expanse, and nodded to himself. He dashed over to the hole, and with a look of surprise, yelled and disappeared into the black. "No!" Mey cried out, "Yrael!" She watched as Baphomet snarled and made his way towards the hole where his quarry had disappeared. His fur began to rustle, and he crept closer. The demon made a demonic noise- there was no other way of describing it- as his hooves began to slide on the ground. He dropped his scythe in his confusion, and when he looked down to it, Baphomet was sucked into the dark swirl of nothing.
Mey crept forwards, and saw that the trees that made the wall had already begun to grow back. She gripped her wounded arm, aware that blood still flowed unhampered down across her fingers. Her shoulders quivered. I have just lost an old friend, she thought to herself; I've known him forever, and now what am I going to do? She was brought to her senses as the branches before her rustled. She reached for her sword, but found it was out of her reach. Oh god, she thought, I'm done for.
A human hand reached out from the leaves, and a white-headed face popped out.
"Hey there, Mey. Hope I didn't worry you!"
Mey learned later that Yrael had used his knives (and lost them, to his dismay) to latch onto the trees, while the demon was blown away into darkness. They eventually made their way back to the city of Prontera, where Meytiuy was treated for her wound and Yrael re-stocked on weapons. They never were given treasure, nor did anyone ever know of their accomplishment, for not a word was ever spoken by either party. To this day, the temple has never been found again, but maybe, just maybe, it may one day be explored again, and its true secrets revealed.
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