(I think we had set the time of day at mid-afternoon but I'm going to roll with it being closer to night time)
Vius had drawn first blood. That was usually a good sign. As the man spun to face him, Vius noticed the waning light of dusk. Had he dozed off before? What was happening to him...he was missing important visual cues, as if he was too distracted to notice certain things happening. Perhaps it was his elven nature affecting his perceptions. He had so many things to think about, so many other things he should be doing, but he was here, now, testing his skills against a stranger. Even as he thought these things, the man was chiding him about his non-existent soul again. A change began in the man, who had seemed so frail and weak before. Now, that strange mark was glowing with eldritch energy Vius had never experienced and the man's eyes took on an inhuman expression. This was no ordinary man, this was a monster. Or...was it?
"Do you know of indwelling?" Vacuus asked. He continued before Vius had a chance to answer, his voice always that same, monotonous tone. "Often, a person in search of power or afraid of their own mortality will offer themselves to a stronger entity. A demon, a deity, even the ghosts of the fallen, whoever hears their plea offers a pact that allows those creatures who were never meant to walk this land into the world, using the person's body as a gateway, a host. The person's soul remains intact, though it shifts and warps to allow that otherwordly patron room to move. There are some, though, that give up their soul completely. Those are the most dangerous, for they allow deadly, chaotic beings to enter our world at almost full power. The capacity for destruction is frightening. That's why you were so valuable; a soulless child, the perfect vessel for the dark creature your father found..."
Could it be? Was that what Vius was facing now? The man kept mentioning "Zu", could that be his patron? Whatever was happening, Vius needed to focus on the fight at hand. Summoning power, he cast another spell; silvery, feathered wings sprouted from his back and the soft glow from Vius' aura was increased. The additional speed and reaction time this spell gave him would come in handy. He was becoming more and more interested in this strange person. Maybe, if he could just incapacitate the man somehow, they could speak about these strange qualities the man possessed. Vius stepped inside the range of the scythe's wicked blade and raised his blade in two hands to meet the oncoming scythe, noting that the weapon was moving faster, as if the man was regaining lost strength. Even as the two weapons collided, Vius knew the attack was going to hurt. The force of the blow picked Vius up off his feet and sent him flying a short distance. He slammed against a tree and slid to the ground. He knew full well that if it wasn't for the holy aura, broken bones would have been where he could feel bruises forming. Even augmented as such by his warlock spells, Vius could hardly match this man's unholy strength. Once again, keeping his distance seemed like a good idea.
"Not bad," Vius yelled. As he spoke, he could feel the heavy impact from both the man's attack and the crash into the tree. His jaw felt as if it were buzzing, he hurt down to his bones. As he continued, Vius reached into his robe with his right hand, feeling for one of his iron knives. "You're strong. This Zu must be something special, if he's what's letting you do this. No human hits that hard on their strength alone!" As a punctuation to that sentiment, Vius let loose with a throwing knife aimed towards the man's left shoulder. It was a long shot and he wasn't exactly a master of thrown weapons but if the elf could disable one of the man's arms, that scythe might not be so deadly...
---------------------------------------------- Wings of Light used, 1x left Holy Aura effect, 3/4 posts left Wings of Light effect, 3/3 posts left
Edit: battle over due to timeout.
_________________ "What torment, to have your thinking and your fantasy tied down by another person!" - Alexander Alekhine Vius Ottum
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