It is at this time that we find Shilien in her audience chamber somewhere in the demon world where she had been banished, behind the Forbidden Gate. Shilien has waited here for centuries, contemplating and gathering strength for the day when the Seven Seals would finally be broken and her power released. For now she had found amusement in toying with the lives of the people on the other side of the Gate, be it through her own demonic children that she would send through the growing cracks in the Gate itself, or through influencing lives and watching the outcome. She mostly toyed with the Elves and Orcs, as her sister, their mother-goddess, Maphr, fondly looked after the Dwarves. Humans proved to be too stupid and dull since the Elmoreden Empire, and sect that chose to revere her as their goddess fell, to be worth her time…. until now.
She pursed her lips, her expression sour, as she gazed into the dark pool at the base of her dais, watching the images displayed there. This was her Camera Obscura, her only portal into the outside world. Occasionally she would send an astral projection of herself into the mortal world, but it was no more physical than a mirrored image, and she could only sustain it for so long. Dreams were also where she could creep about, unchained, especially the dreams of her creation-children or the dreams of the truly dastardly. But it had been eons since the last time she found humans worth any more attention than that of a passing fling in the dreams of a warrior now and then. The situation, now, had changed, and she didn't like it.
"You look unhappy, sister." Sayha, her younger brother said in his deep voice as he appeared in a gust of wind. Sayha was flighty, and chained himself to no one, not even his or her mother, Einhasad. Sayha was the only of her siblings that would frequent her prison with friendly visits, the others only checking in when they had something to say. His nature was prevalent in his creation-children, who had locked themselves up on an island, refusing to bother themselves with the state of the world, refusing to take sides with anyone, be it mortal or immortal.
"Sayha, would it be giving our disgusting father too much attention if I began the game with his abomination-children?" Shilien asked, leaning her cheek on her fist in thought. She stared hard at the Camera Obscura, her brow furrowed.
"He has long since abandoned those fools. He instead laughs at their idiocy at worshipping Mother, with their claming it was she who created them, putting them in the same league as the Angels. Nobody even misses them when they join your realm; instead there is rejoicing every time one of the fools perishes. Mother often plays her own games with them, you know." Sayha stated dramatically, sitting at the foot of her dais. He could not see the images that she could in the water, and could only imagine what it was she was gazing upon. When she was quiet for a stretch of time, he asked, "What has intrigued you so to ask such a question?"
"Humans." She answered shortly. She stared at the Obscura for a moment longer before sighing and reclining back on her dais. "They have always been stupid little insects with illusions of grandeur, but never any that could cause us distress. "She paused again, frowning in thought, bitterly remembering the Emperor Shunaiman, the one who cast the seals years ago.
"Are you saying one has been born that actually can be of some trouble?" Sayha asked. Shilien extended a hand out to him, and he knelt beside her dais, removed his helmet, and kissed it. Shilien purred and pet her brothers' hair gently in appreciation. Sayha was a beautiful creature, the most beautiful creature that could ever come from her cursed mother and disgusting father. He was frightening, in his beauty, and even the immortal gods could not gaze at him for long without feeling the awe of fear. Einhasad created the Angels in the image of her son, but not even she could match the utterly perfect beauty that he was. Shilien was the only one who did not fear him, and thus he was closer to her, albeit secretly, than any of the others.
"No… not one. Several. It was not expected, and it discomforts me. It would not matter so much if they weren't connected to one another already." She sighed and twirled a lock of his silvery white hair around a finger.
"Call one to your embrace and then their numbers will dwindle." Sayha suggested, gazing into her eyes. "Humans are fragile, and rely heavily on the bonds they make with one another. If you destroy one, it will discourage and destroy the rest in time. Then we have nothing more to worry about."
"Your daughter is one of their bonds, shall I start with her?" Shilien sneered. She took pleasure in the uncomfortable look that graced Sayha's pretty face. He looked away from her, shifting in discomfort. She chuckled and took her hand from his head to place it under his chin and raise his head slowly to look at her again. "Do not worry my brother, your daughter is both my niece and creation-daughter, no harm shall befall her at this time." She released his chin gently, turning the motion into a caress. "No… it is best to start with the weakest, as humans tend to grow fonder of those who are helpless." A dark grin touched her lips and she sat back again on her dais. "I've already begun to remove them."
Un-noticed in the shadows, Shilien's elder brother Paagrio listened and watched with a scornful expression. He believed in honor, and the games his siblings; even his mother played with their creations angered him. The fires of the afterlife had consumed many of his own creation-children before their time due to these games, and he could take no more. His creation-children were barbaric, and violent, but they were straightforward, and did not play games. He would put and end to them, those games, even if it meant the destruction of the Great Flame from which his creation-children drew their strength. A roaring ball of flame consumed him as he disappeared from the chamber, his decision made.
Nearly half a year passed before Sharmin, Komugi and Vuylay left the safe confines of Gludin. Sharmin, now a Knight, was quite content living in the city for the rest of her life, the long time on the Island leaving her somewhat introverted. Through insistent (and sometimes quite violent) urging from Komugi, she and Vuylay finally convinced Sharmin to start a long journey to the Dark Elven Village. Vuylay had received a note saying her surrogate mother had fallen ill, and wanted to visit her to make sure it was not life threatening. They had all just purchased stronger armor and robes (Sharmin's armor had to be, of course, Brigandine, like Leon's.) and were left with no money for a Gatekeeper spell. It would be nearly three months before they would reach the Village, and Sharmin was not looking forward to the long journey.
"Are we there yet?" Komugi asked, her staff resting across her shoulders with her arms over it. In front of her, both Sharmin and Vuylay visibly tensed. Sharmin instantly squinted her eyes shut, trying to ignore her. Every day, since they had left Gludin nearly three weeks prior, Komugi had made sure to ask the same question at exactly noontime. Neither Sharmin nor Vuylay could understand why she'd picked up this pattern, but both were at their wits end. "I'm bored, let's go kill something." Komugi said a little while later, breaking the silence. Sharmin heard a popping noise come from Vuylay, and she looked at her as she swung around and raised a finger to Komugi's face.
"Listen you little pink-haired pest, I'm going to warn you this one time, and ONLY this one time. Either stop with the idiotic questions, or I rip those little lips off of your face and place them someplace inappropriate!" Vuylay seethed. Komugi glared at her in annoyance, unaffected by her anger.
"Yeah right, and just where could that be?" Komugi challenged. Vuylay's grin turned the most evil it had ever been, and Komugi's eyes slowly widened.
"Do you really want to know?" Vuylay asked wickedly.
"No, I'm good." Komugi answered quickly.
By the time evening arrived that day, they had made it to the crossroads of the Orc Barracks and the Fellmere Harvest Grounds, their journey only a quarter of the way through. They made their camp that night inside an abandoned house near the road. The shack creaked and leaned in the wind, threatening to topple over but never really doing it. The upper floor had nearly rotted away, leaving a large gaping hole above them. Sharmin built a fire in the crumbling fireplace, and the girls sat, chatting peacefully about the journey to come.
"What is that?" Komugi suddenly asked, sitting a little straighter. Sharmin's heart skipped a beat for a moment, remembering the voice that no one else seemed to have heard on the island. "Do you hear that?" Komugi asked in a hushed voice, "It sounds like sobbing."
"Ah, that." Vuylay said, pulling a blanket from her pack and laying on a broken down bed in the corner of the room. "We're near the Ruins of Agony, you know. Spirits from there sometimes wander over here seeking solace from the torment and anguish they must relive every day in the Ruins." She settled down comfortably, oblivious to the large-eyed stares she was receiving from the sisters behind her. Komugi closed the space between her and Sharmin, and latched herself onto Sharmin's arm in fear.
"Min, are we going to be safe here?" Komugi asked in a tiny voice.
"In all honesty, we'd probably be safer camping outside of the Orc Barracks in the open rather than an abandoned house like this." Vuylay answered. With that she shut her eyes and left the two sisters to stare at her once again in fear. Taking a breath, Sharmin looked down at her sister and gave her a brave smile.
"We'll be ok. Vuylay's just was teasing us." She said, making sure she sounded certain. "Try and get some sleep." Relaxing a bit, Komugi nodded and curled under her own blanket, cuddling close. Sharmin stared into the fire for some time after the two healers fell asleep, lost in thought. The past often came up to replay itself in her mind at night, and she lost herself in the images that she remembered. Her vision began to blur as she watched the flames, and a face seemed to appear in the fire. She jumped, rubbing her eyes hard. When she looked back into the fire, there was nothing there but burning wood and ashes. Sighing, and deciding she was more tired than she had thought, Sharmin removed her chest armor and lay down next to her sister.
Later that night, when the fire had died down to popping, smoldering ashes, Sharmin woke with a start. Her sister sat in the corner, in a broken chair, whispering to the shadows. Alarmed, Sharmin pushed herself to her knees and knuckled sleep from her eyes, trying to see clearer.
"Komugi, who are you talking to?" Sharmin asked, her voice raspy with sleep.
"Ah! Wait!" Komugi suddenly cried. The door to the shack suddenly opened and slammed shut, and Sharmin jumped to her feet.
"What was that?" Sharmin asked, her heart thudding in her chest. "Komugi, who were you talking to?"
"Sharmin, how could you? Why did you have to scare mother away like that?" Komugi asked, her voice choking up with tears. Sharmin felt as if ice were forming in her body at Komugi's words. "Now I'll have to go and get her to come back, and she traveled such a long way to see us too!"
"Komugi, wait!" Sharmin cried as her sister flung the door open and ran out into the night. Without thinking to grab her sword, shield or armor, Sharmin ran out after Komugi wearing nothing but a short bodice and heavy blue shorts. She raced after Komugi, who was running east, waving and calling at something Sharmin couldn't see. Fog began to descend around them, and Sharmin grew fearfully aware at how close they were getting to the Ruins of Agony. The abandoned city had become home to various sorts of undead and imps as well as the restless spirits of the former residents that could not find peace.
Sharmin heard a familiar scuffling noise, but before she could turn, two giant mandibles had wrapped themselves around her waist, and she was lifted into the air. Sharmin looked over her shoulder to see the biggest green spider she'd ever seen in her entire life, and it was holding her in a strange sort of bear hug. She kicked her legs uselessly in the air and pushed against the mandibles, but it wouldn't budge. Sharmin took her elbow and drove it as hard as she could into the arachnid's eye. It exploded at the force, sticky goo covering her arm. The monster screeched loudly and drove two venomous fangs into the naked skin of her back, right below her bodice. Sharmin screamed loudly as the spider lifted her over its head, the fangs driving deeper for a moment before throwing Sharmin forward, releasing her from its mandibles. She tumbled weakly to the dry grass, already feeling the effects of the spiders poison.
"Mother, wait!" she heard Komugi shout in the distance. Sharmin looked up with blurring vision to see Komugi's figure disappearing into the fog ahead of her.
"Komugi..." Sharmin said in a choked voice, weakly reaching a hand towards where she had disappeared. The spider stabbed down with its two front legs, catching her in the shoulders, tearing through her bodice and stabbing her deep in her muscles. Sharmin screamed again, and crumpled weakly into the grass. She heard a voice chanting in Elven then, and a felt a sudden gust of wind as it hit the spider. It moved from Sharmin and began making a fast trek towards its offender. There was another chant, and the spider squealed as it was hit with a killing blow. Sharmin weakly looked up as an Elf paused to look down at her. Her vision was too blurred, she could not make out the face of the Elf, but she could tell the Elf had long, pale, moon-colored hair. She tried to ask the Elf to help her, but she could no longer form words and her voice came out as a choked noise. The Elf tilted their head at her for a moment before turning away and retreating into the fog.
Sharmin passed out and regained consciousness several times before finally struggling to her feet. She knew Vuylay could heal her like before; she just had to get back to the abandoned house. Everything would be better if she could reach the house.
She walked for what felt like hours, when she finally emerged from the fog and into a grassy field. Her vision still blurred, she scanned the area around her for the house, but could not see anything that remotely resembled it. She sobbed once and stumbled to her knees as she realized that she couldn't remember the way back. This was not where she had started from; she did not recognize this field. She attempted to stand again, but her legs had gone numb from the poison, and she fell to her side. Her breathing shallow and mind clear, Sharmin let her eyes slowly drift shut, feeling nothing but cold peace.