The sun was slowly starting to rise in the east, with its ascension the shadows of the world were slowly beginning to be chased back into the realm of darkness from whence they came. With the beginning of the new day also came the start of the lives of the creatures down below, the humanoid races who gathered and congregated within the cities began to rise for the day and go about their daily rituals. Some opened their shops while others prepared themselves for a days worth of physically demanding manual labor but the rise of the sun didn't just signal the beginning of the day for the intelligent humanoid races of the virtual world of Terrasphere. The beast of the land also began to rise from their slumber, the many species of birds took to the air each one competing with the next to find that fattest juiciest worm upon the damp dew covered ground. The deer rose up and began their search for the greenest most delicious look blades of grass while the predators of the lands began their hunt for their morning prey. Galadion was one of those men who was roused from his slumber with the rising of the sun and the beginning of the day, it was another day in his search for someone to undo a massive and powerful curse that had been placed upon the lands that he planned on building his grounds upon. While it was true that the curse itself was very powerful, the effect that it had was completely stupid and was one that could only have been dream up by the raving thoughts of a mad person. At least that was the impression that Galadion had gotten from the one who had cast the curse, someone who had called herself the Grand Witch Majolica, that there had not been a single sane thought inside her cat-haired brain but then again that was just his opinion not fact. He had spent many days roaming from town to town searching for anyone who had the power to undo this curse and day after day his search had ended in failure. His search had brought him all the way from the lands of Yladia all the way to grassy fields of the Falderan region of Pormont and yet still he had not found anyway, although along his travels he had heard tales of one of the most powerful users of Black Magic in the entire world of Terrasphere and it just so happened that she had been a Player which meant that Galadion would be able to send her a message. Galadion Hello @Lucia Mierz, you do not know me but my name is Galadion and I am the new King of Yladia. However I have recently had the misfortune to have been visited by the Grand Witch Majolica who decided to place a curse upon my growing kingdom. I have heard tales of your power and was wandering if it would be within your power to undo the curse that she has placed and if it is then what would it cost me for you to do so? Now that his message had been sent Galadion turned his head and allowed his silver eyes to take in the rolling grassy hills that made up this part of the region. It had been a rather long time since he had been in this part of the world and decided that it wouldn't be a very bad place to stay while he awaited to hear back about the message the had just sent.
Lucia had been up for a long while, for her who found reality to be painful, she would much rather spend every possible minute within the virtual game where she was happy. Waking up was natural for her, it took a great deal of time and power to repress that self-loathing and hate inside of herself. The game penalized her for just flippantly stepping out of character, instead she was forced to undergo lengthy rituals to restrain her Slothful and the roiling Envy that made up the bulk of her dark magic's foundation. It was only once that was out of the way, when the game would let her act freely that she'd finally set about her daily activities. Her morning involved sparring, ensuring her body was in good shape, she stretched all eight of her limbs in a practice match against Sylvanas, her Wight Knight. The Undead Elf was the product of Lucia's necromancy and summoning skill, risen from among one of the many elves killed in the first attack by Falderan all of that time ago. Back after the first game's world boss during the first World Quest, Sylvanas had been a simple guard, a Lieutenant in their military but since being raised from the dead had become 'more' had become 'unique'. The elven wight, with spear in hand jabbed and swung towards Lucia to test her reaction time, each time a palm tried to redirect the spear, a leg at times, others, the sickle like blade of her four spider limbs swung out to meet the spear instead. "Your actions are still stiff and unpracticed-- The muscle movement is still awkward." The Wight woman coached, ash gray skin exposed in some places after a few exchanges, cotton white hair whipping around wildly in the chaos. "It's new musculature, we have our whole lives learning to use our hands properly, coming this far deserves recognition I think." Lucia couldn't help retorting bitterly against her subordinate's harsh judgement. The frosty ice cold expression of her knight was as it normally was, flashes of warmth here or there when looking upon Lucia, but there was no mercy in her training style. For Lucia who was still adjusting to having extra limbs it was burdensome. She continued the match in vain up until she got the message, the content made her frown though. Halting her subordinate with a waving gesture, the elven woman pulled her spear back and relaxed while Lucia read the message from Galadon with a perked brow. "It's a message from another player... He claims to be the 'king of Ylandia'. He wants me to get rid of a curse on his kingdom? It looks like it has to do with Majolica though." Lucia explained for Sylvanas who was an NPC, separated from the system, the elven woman couldn't follow some of the gamer jargon but after spending so much time by Lucia's side, the Elven woman picked up pieces. "Where would one even place a curse? After my 'transition' the others had spread to the corners of the world." Sylvanas questioned with a cold tone, there was no warmth in her voice for this kind of idea, as far as the Elven woman was concerned, the living were all the same. Lucia That's a lot to take in all at once. I don't really mind helping you out here, but... how to say, there's a lot you should know before you get too into this idea. Just stay where you are-- And don't tell anyone else you're a king, I'll come as soon as I can. She couldn't help a fatigued sigh, the message was rushed, there wasn't much time she could waste. This was something that wouldn't end well if she didn't talk to this guy soon something bad might happen. "Sylvanas, we're going. Have the Tal'darim pack up the tent, we're taking Alice to get there quicker-- hurry." She ordered with a sweep of her hand trying to prepare to cross the distance to find this person Galadion
The mornings warm air washed over his face as Galadion stood there looking out over the rolling grassy hills, he hadn't really gone anywhere since he had sent his message to the mysterious woman that he had never met. He really hoped that it wouldn't be taken as rude of him to just send her a message like that but he was really out of options, he had to do something about this curse before he could really begin building his new kingdom. The entire inconvenience about this situation really irritated him it wasn't as if he had enough on his plate already with trying to figure out a way that he was going to not only drive of the demonic forces that had decided to make Yladia their home but also figure out a way to prevent the neighboring countries from attacking him and invading the second that they were gone. No that wasn't enough, now he had to contend with this extremely childish version of a curse. It wasn't even a scary one or dangerous but there was no way in hell that he was going to rule a kingdom that was full of purple buildings that possessed a witches hat sigil upon them. There would no way to get the neighboring countries to take him seriously with as a kingdom like that, and so here he found himself sending a complete stranger a message out of the thin air. He hadn't been waiting an overly long time when suddenly he got a display that he had received a message, pulling it open he was surprised to see that it was from Lucia. He honestly hadn't expected her to get back to him so quickly or even at all, it wasn't as if the two players knew each-other infact they had never even met however from her message it seemed as if something was off. What did she mean that there was something that he should know, if she was referring to the demonic forces that roamed the land he already know about them. Well he had heard the stories about the demons anyway, he had yet to actually come face to face with a real demon as of yet. She had also told him not to tell anyone else that he was a King which caused him to narrow his eyes ever so slightly, what was going on, had he done something wrong by attempting to restore Yladia? Her message had seemed like she sent it rather quickly and lacked any sort of detail pertaining towards what she had meant by her words which was slightly annoying, he hated surprises after all. Although he supposed that he wouldn't receive any answers to these questions until the woman herself arrived and gave them to him so he was left with but one option and that was to wait for her. With a small sigh he closed the message window and looked out over the grassy plains before him, the slight breeze caused his long silver hair to dance with it gently. It was peaceful out here right now, his last visit to this region hadn't been like this however he had arrived just in time to witness two grass knolls kidnap a young female and had chased after them. An action he still wasn't entire sure why he had done in the first place, it wasn't as if he had known to woman or had any sense of obligation towards her in any way his body just seemed to react before he really had any time to think about it. This time was different though with no grass knolls in sight he could sit back and relax while taking in the sights and enjoying the scenery around him, that was when something came to his mind "Oh crap, I didn't even tell her where I am at". With a wave of his hand he quickly reopened his message menu and flicked it over so that he could send her another reply Galadion I am currently camped in the Pormont region and will be awaiting your arrival, these are my coordinates XXX-XXX-XXX-XXX Now that he had sent the mysterious female the coordinates to his location he lowered himself and sat upon the grass and waited for her arrival hoping against a hope that he had done the right thing and she wouldn't turn out to be an enemy. If the stories that he had heard about her were even halfway true then he couldn't afford an enemy with her power.
Lucia sighed, feeling the task to be burdensome. Passing bad news to someone was never a good thing, particularly when they were new to the game. Sweeping a hand through her hair, she waited until her tent was packed up, undead knights taking her furniture, tools and items from it one by one before tying them down to the back of large undead ants they used as mounts. Once everything was settled, Lucia sat herself on the largest one, much like Sylvanas, the largest ant appeared thanks to Alice, one of her named subordinates, the abomination's figure contorted and twisted until it took the proper shape of a large creature to serve as a vehicle. The destination had arrived a little before the final mounting process had finished, with Sylvanas standing beside her on the larger flesh covered ant, the group proceeded forward. The larger monster carrying her being escorted by the cavalry from all sides as a large procession. As someone who summoned undead, staying in one place was not safe for her, for that reason she kept herself secluded, made her home easy to pack up and move with the help of her magic and skills. It did well to ensure there were no problems caused by her for her choice in masteries. The group moved quickly scurrying through the woods on the back of ants, bulldozing through brush and rounding trees that were too thick to push over with a charge. The larger creature though happened to force through any obstacles without much effort though as it proceeded forcefully. Breaking out into the wide open meadows of Portmont, the small battalion advanced shaking the ground as they moved in a cohesive and coordinated unit. Finding Galadion wasn't particularly difficult, most things stuck out in the empty plains rather easily, likewise she didn't doubt that her little army wouldn't be hard to make out either as they advanced. Any Knolls unfortunate to cross their path were quickly swarmed and dragged along by the ant mounts since the dead were always valuable to Lucia's cause, but the Priestess turned her gaze on the man himself with a vague and dry smile. As they got closer, Alice began to let out shrill cries, alien-like shrieks and squeals to announce them. All the while, Lucia clearly struggled, exactly what should she say? What would be the best way to make him understand? Grand Ambitions took a long time to formulate, a long time to polish and develop. She'd been struggling to make a kingdom for the undead since she first joined the game, and he was already calling himself a king? She was appalled, but more then feeling offended, she felt pity and sympathy-- from her perspective the poor man had no idea what he was doing, she'd hoped to set him straight. The Cavalry stopped first, remaining behind as Alice advanced, carrying Lucia and the Elven Wight with her, by the time they were within ear shot of Galadion, Lucia was relieved the man was alone. It would be less embaressing if there was no one else around. "Ah-- I tried to get here as fast as I could before anything went wrong." She spoke with a relieved sigh, her smile warming with a bit of hope. She had an enchanting figure, a curvaceous and feminine appeal to her. More then that however, the atmosphere about her was very warm and inviting, she seemed very delicate and harmless, had it not been for the monstrous mutated amalgamation she'd rode in on, the army of skeletal cavalry farther behind or the elven knight who slipped off to join her at her back like a loyal attendant. "Lets see... Where to even begin... I'm Lucia Mierz, a Priestess, A part of the Church of Synra the Goddess of Death... For credentials; I was a duchess once before the noble titles were withdrawn and I've managed to summon a Goddess twice now, so you should at least be able to understand I'm a little experienced." She introduced herself with a modest bow despite the madness in her introduction. Forgetting the fact she called herself a priestess, she'd also been a duchess once, and in times of crisis the game's deities had stepped in to help her on more then one occasion. They were all badges she felt honored to wear to some extent. "It's nice to meet you." She tried to proceed with the introduction naturally offering a delicate hand to shake.
A few hours had passed while Galadion continued to sit there upon the grassy field of Pormont, it was beginning to become a little dangerous for him to continue to wait in this spot the grass knolls were surely going to begin to notice that he was there any moment. One or two of the creatures wouldn't be much of a threat to him however what if their fighting drew more and more of them towards him until they simply overwhelmed him with pure force of numbers? While it was unlikely to happen it was still a possibility, one that he wasn't willing to entirely toss off to the side so easily. He had made that mistake once already when Majolica had appeared over his camp site, he had dismissed her as nothing more than an insane child and now look where he was at. The entire predicament that he was in now was because he failed to see her for the threat that she could truly pose to him, a mistake the he didn't intend to repeat more than once in his lifetime, never again would he underestimate someone simply because of how they looked or acted. While she may have been nothing more than a raving lunatic the strength of her magic was truly the real deal. It was because he failed to take his opponent seriously that he was out here in the first place and because of that he would just have to wait here for her no matter how long it took, that would be his way of atoning for the misfortune that he brought on the kingdom that he was trying to build. And so he sat there his silvery eyes looking out over the rolling grass fields that danced with the gentle wind to a tune that only they could hear despite the danger that it posed to him. It was then that he felt it, a slight rumbling in the ground under his feet which caused him to narrow his eyes ever so slightly, were there giants in the world of Terrasphere if there were he had ever seen one, but what else could cause such an impact tremor that he could feel it all the way over here. Turning his head ever so slightly his silver optics picked it up, a large cloud of dust that was being kicked up into the air as if it was made from the impact of thousands of feet all falling in perfect rhythm with one another. His eyes widened slightly as he quickly rose to his feet staring in the direction of the approaching army, there was absolutely nothing that he could do against a force that size, not alone anyway. Taking a couple of step backward he thought about running away but that wouldn't do him any good, it would only delay the inevitable as a force that size would eventually find him no matter where he tried to hide in this open area. A foul stench filled the air, the smell of death and rotting flesh assaulted his nose causing him to turn away from the approaching army and look around for what was causing the smell. Unable to see anything even remotely close to him that would be emitting such a repugnant smell Galadion froze in place and slowly turned his head back in the direction of the approaching army, his eyes wide open with fear as the realization dawned upon him. That wasn't just an army that was marching towards him oh no it was something much much worse than that, it was an army of the dead the smelling giving them away long before they even came into view. His fear had been confirmed when the army was close enough for his eyes to finally pick them up, the twisted for of the undead creatures that were being used as mounts caused his skin to crawl and a shudder to climb up his back slightly. A loud gulp could be heard coming from his throat as one of the undead ant like creatures made its way towards him and the woman who took possession of the identity of Lucia addressed him. Nodding his head ever so slightly he forced his attention away from the force that was behind her and made it linger upon her face "I am Galadion" that was truly all that he could muster up to say at the moment until the initial shock of seeing such a sight died away.
Lucia nodded in answer to the greeting, but as she started to continue, it was clear the man was distracted. Following his line of sight to the undead behind her, she couldn't help a faintly bitter smile. Most higher level persons would recognize the Tal'darim from the crests at their capes and pauldrons. It was the crest of her duchy at one point-- Ideally it would remain as the symbol for the knight order when the undead kingdom establishes itself. A large portion of them were zombies and skeletons properly equipped with blazing purple flames in their eye sockets acting as eyes. The fact that he was so stunned only served to compound her concerns as she turned her eyes on those undead gesturing with a hand. "Fan out and form a defensive line-- I'd like to not be disturbed." She spoke causing each of the undead to suddenly snap up right in reaction. Slowly the group began to fracture, teams and groups of three and four splitting off from the pack and spurring their zombie ants forward as they set off to secure the area. Though the large mutated fleshy monster of an Ant Lucia rode in on had remained behind it's form slowly quivered and changed. The flesh contorted as if serpents or snakes were wiggling beneath the surface and it's insect parts began to recede as if being swallowed by the flesh. There was the sounds of bones being repurposed and flesh moving until it began taking more of a human shape. After a time, it would shrink, compressing down to the size of a small child, the skin drooping, sagging until it hung around it's waist and slowly the texture of the skin began to change as it wove itself together to resemble fabric. The appearance soon shifting as the flesh colored itself and thinned until it appeared to be a normal summer's dress worn by a small blonde girl. Though the girl seemed delicate and simple, she had no face, and anyone who had seen what she once was would certainly not underestimate her. With those two changes, the dispersing knight order and Alice's transformation back into her standard human-like state, she hoped that Galadion would be able to calm down a little. "Well, I suppose it's good to meet you, but we should talk about the issues maybe? If it's a curse, it's not as if it would be hard to break with time but, there are other more important issues we should probably address first. I know this is all probably very overwhelming, particularly if you're new to this game, but do try to stay with me for a bit." She spoke, as if the game itself were overwhelming as opposed to the harrowing sights she'd just allowed him to see. She maintained a very friendly and approachable outlook, making an effort to be very patient and understanding as she started with making sure Galadion was in a state where he could properly discuss things.
Galadion closed his eyes for a second and forced himself to inhale deeply before forcing a long exhale attempting to calm himself slightly, the fright from seeing such a force come riding up on anyone would be enough to give them a heart-attack. How did one player even command such a large force of the undead, no the better question was was it her magic that was keeping them animated or had she discovered some other peoples of powering their dead bodies? No matter what the answer to the question might be one thing remained the same, it was a truly terrifying display of her dark powers and this was someone that he would definitely not want to make mad if he wanted to survive the encounter. He became rooted in place as he watched the horrifying and rather disgusting display of the creature changing its form, a scene that had almost caused him to let up his lunch merely watching it. It had been one of the most disgusting things that he had ever seen in his entire like in this virtual world or out in the real world, it truly had been a most revolting sight for sure. And now the creature stood there in the form of a little girl that had no face, this creature truly was a thing of nightmares that would haunt his dreams for many nights to come. Shaking his head Galadion tried to force the revolting sight that he had just seen from his mind and turned his attention to the female before him. She was rather pleasing to the eye in all honesty except that beauty clearly held a rather terrifying power behind it as the army of the undead that had accompanied her had proven. However in the short time that he had been speaking with her she had given him every pleasantry that one possibly could, she had even taken some time it would seem to let him get acquainted with the thought and sight of the undead army that she had brought with her. Galadion brought his silvery optics and met her gaze for a slight moment before he nodded his head "Indeed, the Grand Witch Majolica placed upon me a curse that she called the Questing Curse. You see I am currently in to process of finding the allies and resources that I would need to rebuild the ancient Yladian kingdom, she appeared at my camp and declared the area her territory and wanted me to pledge myself into her service. I refused and she cursed me, while the curse itself doesn't harm anyone I can't go around building up buildings that are purple and covered in witch hat sigils". It was a rather embarrassing thing to admit if he was being honest with himself but honesty was the only thing that was going to resolve his problem. A soft sigh escaped his lips ever so slightly as he looked at her, she assumed that he was just some brand new player in this beautiful virtual world and she would be somewhat correct. He had clearly not spent as much time in the confines of this world as she had but he wasn't completely new to it either, he had spent long enough here to master his Illusion Magic mastery which had taken some time but he was sure that she would have plenty of knowledge that she could share with him. He nodded his head "Well I am clearly newer to this world than you are, that's for sure. So what is it that we need to talk about before we discuss the curse?"
As if feeling his gaze, Alice reacted by turning her head up, the small faceless girl didn't turn towards him, as if the action would be too tiresome, an eye opened up at the base of her neck instead. Blinking as it gazed at him, the eye was the size of a billiard ball darting around erratically as if trying to take stock of every bit of body language or change in his posture. As if being held under a microscope like a specimen to be poked and prodded the little girl observed from that mutant bloodshot eye. Lucia didn't spare much thought to her subordinate's response though, Alice's purpose was to evolve and grow the undead as a people, studying others was something she was made for. Instead she kept her focus on Galadion. Hearing about 'Grand Witch Majolica' it was another name she hadn't heard of. Though she'd met Majolica before in passing, the woman wasn't one worth a thorough glance over in Lucia's eyes. Those who hadn't undergone an awakening in a mastery were still fresh and green in her eye; still learning about the world, still finding their place in things. As far as 'dark magic' users went, Lucia couldn't recall anyone who really came up on her radar as someone who could compete with her. "Hehe, you've certainly got your priorities in the wrong place if that's the case, though I can't say I don't understand." Lucia commented, though her words criticized a little her tone was a bit soothing, she sympathized with the desire to maintain aesthetics, and appearances, but at the same time shouldn't the priority be on the people themselves? Thinking about where to begin when asked though, Lucia couldn't help a weighty sigh, as if she still didn't quite know how to break the news to the upstart. "To put it mildly... you really aren't ready-- or qualified either. I can see the appeal, coming into a game and seeing another player as a king, you might think 'why not me then'? or you might just think being a king and doing whatever you want would be fun too. I can't really judge your reasons for doing this, but I will have to ask you to put a bit more consideration in." She asserted with a bitter smile. It was clear that this wasn't something she wanted to do, Lucia wasn't the type to deny others their fun or stop them from doing what made them happy. She was someone who had invested a lot into the game though, someone who's own happiness was at stake here. Worried that the sudden ripple might stir something up she could only voice her concerns openly and honestly though. As if expecting the man to try and protest, Lucia pressed onward trying to air her thoughts all at once with a gentle reassuring gesture. The reassurance purely for the sake of making sure he didn't think she was just putting him down needlessly. "Who are you trying to make the kingdom for? Players? Ylandians? How much do you know about their culture? About their preferred architecture? Preferred food groups and daily necessities? How much of their history do you know? How about they governed their people or the laws they lived by?" Lucia asked, a mellow smile on her face as she probed, her expression fully displaying her thoughts that the man would have few if any answers to these questions that were firm and confident. As if finding that brief probing though to be insufficient to properly make him aware of the difficulties he faced, she turned her gaze towards Sylvanas beside her. The Wight Knight was an elf herself after all, one who had lived as a part of Ylandia before Falderan had shattered their last bastion in the previous attack turning them into nomads and wanderers without a home. While she was more loyal to the undead cause, her knowledge was preserved, she remembered her life, her struggles, pains and the things she'd experienced before her transition into being an undead. As her first undead ever, Sylvanas had a special place in Lucia's heart, which was why she turned to her. Unlike Lucia's gentle and welcoming atmosphere, the NPC knight had a frosty gaze, full of harshness and frigidity. The sharpness of even her casual glances was akin to a volatile and murderous glare. Sylvanas had been a woman who was a Lieutenant on the front lines in life after all, every day, bleeding and sweating for the greater good. Though her skin had been healed of scarring, the damage done had been covered up with new undead flesh, those memories and that experience hadn't softened or faded. Feeling Lucia's gaze on her though, she opened her mouth, her tone stoic and uncaring as she expressed her thoughts on the subject. "As a people we were no different from me as I am. We were the shambling remains of a people-- The scattered remnants of a culture that was sacrificed for the sake of survival. The Moon elves, forced to take the hands of the Elves of the Sun, becoming one people to stave off a common enemy." Her words were firm and clad in iron and thorns. That sharp frosty gaze fell on Galadion for a moment, as if measuring the man before she continued. "That place was a hell hole, we were refugees, even when we had a home it was only ever battlements and high walls. And you would pack us back into those places and force us to fight those monsters again?" She asked as if the answer were rhetorical While it wasn't the input Lucia had hoped for, with a bitter chuckle she could only shake her head. She'd hoped for something a bit more tactful but she'd had too much faith in her subordinate who had never quite been the understanding type. "Sylvanas doesn't have a lot of fond memories, during her life she'd been confined to the last Elven fortress..." Lucia confessed causing the Wight to huff in answer. With a curt sneer the elven woman curled a lip and spoke with a harsher tone. "I had to die to finally be free, to live and be happy even if it is as a monster. I can't fathom what kind of 'kingdom' you think you would build but i'm certain that had I lived, it would not be 'ours', it would be 'yours'." She asserted before turning her head away, as if trying to wash her hands of the issue. It left Lucia in an awkward position though, she'd been trying to think of a way to dissuade him gently. Some people were particularly frail or hateful of criticisms, particularly those as cutting and fierce as Sylvanas's, but she had a hard time finding the proper words to sum up the concerns she had. After all, her greatest fear was that the man didn't think much beyond wanting to be king.
Galadion stood there staring at the strange creature that had just mere moments ago been a disgusting looking undead ant, now it seemed to have taken the form of a young girl who didn't have of a face which was rather disturbing however when it suddenly seemed to just manifest an eye at the base of its throat he had to physically hold back the impulse to gag. Whatever this creature was it was easily one of the most disgusting and abnormal creatures that he had ever seen in his entire life, he would have loved nothing more than to just turn around and put as much distance between himself and that abomination but he had a goal and purpose for being here, one that only the master of that thing could help him in accomplishing. With a small amount of effort he tore his gaze away from the creature again and back to the necromancer who commanded it, the thing may have been disgusting and horrifying but it was so strange that it was hard to not look at it. He had his priorities wrong, he didn't think he did really I mean who is going to want to lend their financial or physical support in helping rebuild a kingdom that would end up looking as utterly ridiculous as his would if the curse was not broken in some manner. So he didn't think that his priorities were in the wrong order in the slightest really. However everyone was allowed to their own opinions he supposed, she seemed to think it shouldn't matter what it would like at first but that he should worry about finding the support and his opinion was that he wouldn't get any support if the kingdom itself looking like a joke. Her next comment however had caused his to narrow his eyes slightly as he looked at her with annoyance. Ever since he had decided to undertake this quest of his own making he had been met with absolutely nothing but criticism some going so far as to even think he was out right mad or just plain stupid. Even though he had gotten used to this kind of reaction that didn't make it any less irritating when he heard it yet once again but now it wasn't just that, she was implying that he hadn't thought about the reason why he wanted to be king and had just one it purely one a whim or because he had heard about the player king who ran the player kingdom Astorea. Who was she to say that he wasn't qualified to be a king, was she the one who was putting in the effort to drive out the demonic horde that had taken up residence in the Yladian homeland? No, at the current time as far as he could tell he was the only one doing anything about a problem that would one day because everyone's problem if they continued to just bury their heads in the sand and act like it didn't exist. What did they think would happen, that the demons would just be content to stay in Yladia, did they think that they wouldn't eventually push out further and try to conquer other lands just like they had with that one? Pure foolishness and naivete. Maybe he didn't know that much about the Yladian kingdom that had been there before, maybe he did have a lot to learn about it but there was plenty of time for that, plenty of time to learn what he needed to know while he was facing the demon horde. He listened to the undead elven creatures words that had he not had such a thick skin would probably have cut down to the bone however he had made up his mind, he was going to do this with or without her help and it was purely that simple even if it meant that she cut him down here and now nothing that she or the elven abomination next to her could say to him would change that. With a soft sigh he shook his head before looking the controller of the undead in her eyes "No offense ma'am but I have been listening to everyone that has heard I am doing this say roughly same the same thing and it hasn't changed anything. Maybe I don't know that much about the Yladian culture that was here before I was, maybe I don't know what they liked to eat or how they built their houses but I do know this, I will accomplish this goal and I will do it alone if I have to. If I fall then so be it but just know that I will rise and rise again until lambs become lions. Nothing you or anyone else can say to me will change my mind, I reached out to you to discuss the issue of the curse that was placed upon me, not the fact of what I am tying to accomplish, that is my business. So if you don't wish to break the curse upon me I will wish you a good day and continue on my travels until I find someone who will". He hadn't intended to sound so harsh or disrespectful as he probably did, especially to a woman who with a single word could sick an entire army of the undead upon him but he had to get his point across that he was determined to do this one way or another.
At the man's words and the harshness in his gaze as she tried to illuminate the problematic points of his ambitions, the one to react wasn't Lucia, but the knight behind. That icy gaze grew more hostile, there was murderous intent leaking out from that frosty gaze, but there was never any action as she stood rigid. Those years of military discipline and codes of conduct allowed her the ability to restrain her frustration well. On the contrary, Lucia didn't seem upset at all, as if Galadion had been talking about someone else entirely. Instead her gaze contained pity and sympathy, for the Ylandians, for Galadion, for those who would follow him and those who would watch him from afar. There was a touch of sadness but understanding. In her eyes it was a rushed and emotional response rather then one that had been thought through thoroughly. "You keep saying 'I' and 'my', but this is a part of the issue I really want to bring to your attention... Sylvanas I think was perhaps a bit too harsh but I hope you can understand. You're putting the cart before the horse, the caboose before the engine-- There are more analogies, but I'll spare you that silliness." She spoke, a meek chuckle coming from her as she tried to lighten things up. "If you are building a home for Ylandians why wouldn't you put your thoughts to them? So many are alone in this world, wandering, struggling to find their way; they just want a place they can call their own, one that is safe from the outside world. Is it so hard to understand the desires of a broken people? Of a distraught and desperate group? What would it matter to them what their home looks like as long as they have their families and their countrymen, a place to call their's why would it bother them? They deserve better then being thrust into another war, better then fancy dinner parties and guilded halls. Why can't warm homes just be enough to get them back on their feet? Why aren't they your priority?" She explained with a gentle hand gesture and a sigh. She didn't think she'd get through to the man though, she didn't want to call it selfish, but he didn't put much thought to his people it seemed. In Lucia's eyes the man only cared about how others saw his kingdom, his rule, respect; perhaps not adoration, vain glory or fame and praise, but it wouldn't be hard to assume such a thing either. Too eager to be a king, but not enough to help his 'people' if it didn't also help his rule. It was unfortunate, she'd expected something different, to meet someone like-minded who was perhaps dealing with a curse that made his people ill or perhaps a curse that made food inedible or water undrinkable. She'd thought this would be something that would prevent people from settling in, from living out their lives happily and freely to rebuild and grow on their own two feet. It would have been nice to have someone who was trying to uplift a people as she was, to give hope and futures to the NPCs or monsters of the world... it didn't seem like Galadion was that type of person though. "You reached out to me wanting to lift a curse-- but I'd had hoped that your intention was to help Ylandians. I'd hoped asking the right questions, and hearing some of Sylvanas' thoughts might help you understand the path you were on a little better, but perhaps that was nose-y of me" She asked with a bitter smile. "I am a saintess representing the Undead. As their spiritual guide, I won't turn away anyone who wouldn't seek to do them harm. I'd wanted to help the Ylandians after all it was thanks to them and the efforts they put into Adecus Forest that my Duchy could become an oasis for my people... but if what you want is just this-- Well, I'd been expecting something... different? If you really want, I wouldn't mind, I just thought you might be happier knowing that there was a better way to go about this." She couldn't help a dry chuckle.
Galadions eyes switched from the female necromancer before him to the undead elven knight behind her when as he was easily able to sense the murderous intent and bloodlust pouring out from the creature. His eyes narrowed as his foot shifted back and he took a defensive posture, he had no doubt that the undead knight would be able to easily overpower him at his current level of strength but that didn't mean that he had any intentions of dying without at least putting up a fight. However the creature never even took a step towards him it seemed that while it may have wanted to tear him limb from limb for the way that he had spoken to its master, unless it was given the order it wouldn't make a move against him. With that in mind he allowed his body to relax and returned to his previous stance as he returned his gaze back to the necromancer that he had sought out, well when he had sent her the message he had heard stories that she was a necromancer but none of the stories even did it the slightest justice. She was more of a Queen of the Undead than just a mere necromancer in his eyes, the amount of power she had to possess to keep such a large army reanimated continuously, not to mention that obviously higher tier undead creatures that had accompanied her to come and speak with him. He listened to all of the analogies that she had given him which caused a slight sigh to escape his lips as he looked at her, was it really so hard for her to understand that he didn't want to walk around with a curse even on as stupid as this one hanging over his shoulders? Her next words to him however had struck a cord with him, all this time he had been saying that he wanted to build this kingdom for the Yladian but had that really be true? Had he really only wanted to rule over others and had just used the Yladian people as an excuse to justify his actions? Maybe he had been trying to fool himself this entire time with why he wanted to accomplish this goal, I mean even if he had wanted nothing but the power that came with being a King, in a world such as this then it should be perfectly fine but he could at least be honest with himself about it at the very least. It would do him absolutely no good to go through all the effort to accomplish his goal, to find the allies and the funding and everything that he would need and then to engage in battle with the demonic hordes if he wasn't even truly sure about why he was doing it in the first place. Perhaps she had been right about him all along which was something that he found extremely annoying, this woman who played with unnatural forces and brought the dead back to life to act as her thralls. If he had truly been doing this for the Yladian people then he would have learned more about them before hand, he would have learned more about their culture, the way that they lived their lives. He would have learned the way they designed their architecture and even how they wrote their songs and the way that they had played music, what holidays were important to them and how they respected their attunement to the nature around them. But no he had not done any of this, he had just ran around proclaiming often and loudly that he was trying to rebuild the Yladian kingdom and that he was its new King without thinking about the consequences of his actions. Right now he had only been consumed with the thought of how his kingdom would be perceived by others, while it may have seemed like a small and trivial matter it was actually one of great importance. If he built his kingdom up and it looked that way it would under the thralls of this ridiculous curse then what was there to keep the neighboring kingdoms from invading the second the demons were gone, how would he get them to take his kingdom seriously if every single building was purple and covered in witch hat sigils? Then the Yladian people would be no better off than they were now, they may be back in their ancestral home but they would be under foreign rule and potentially forced to abandon their ancient customs and way of life forced to adopt those of whatever kingdom or force that had conquerored them. This could be a fate just as bad as having been sent into exile in the first place, he could only imagine what that would do to their mental state, to finally be able to return home to the lands that their ancestors had lived and died on only to be forced to abandon their very way of life, it would truly be a terrible thing indeed. A small sigh escaped his lips as he looked at the necromancer woman before him "Perhaps you are right, maybe I do need to spend more time thinking about what is motivating me towards this goal if it is truly for the Yladian people or something that I simply wish to do for myself. However one thing has been made clear to me and that is that I wish to be freed from the grip of this curse, once that has been accomplished then I will reevaluate just what it is that I wish to get out of this" turning his head he looked around at the undead around then had by now surely spread out so that they had a patrol pattern over the entire grasslands around them for a few seconds before returning his gaze back to the female necromancer "So will you break this curse for me?"
That kind of change was enough for Lucia. The woman had only wanted the man, or any future successor of the races at least to think that same way. To think deeply, to immerse themselves properly in their role and consider every one of their actions as a representation of their belief systems and ideals. Even if it was a game, the NPCs in it were intelligent enough to understand people's efforts, smart enough to discern one's commitment to a cause. The harm such an adventure would bring, to those who were smart enough to see through a potential deception, and to those who weren't was equally harrowing. With great power, came equally great responsibility to wield it appropriately. Noblesse oblige was a belief she took to heart and acted on. "If what you'd like to do is play at being a man in power, I would recommend becoming a Bandit and preying on foreign powers-- perhaps a Diplomat if combat is not your thing-- perhaps even a merchant and build a business. If it is your hope to genuinely rule the people, to lift them up and be their strength, that's okay too." She admitted, as if she'd have no problems with the man trying to be a king if he genuinely wanted to do so. Instead she simply felt his priorities were wrong as she'd stated, the man wasn't experienced enough to know which steps to take on this adventure. "It's best if you start small however. Find one follower who can support you from the locals, an NPC someone who can teach you and keep you informed. Gather resources and build slowly, start as a merchant, start as a bandit-- but know that building a kingdom and an empire takes time." She'd lecture with a gentle smile. After all, Lucia had been much the same, just rather then starting with a simple NPC, Lucia's first supporter had been Synra the Goddess of Death. From there she developed herself as a Priestess, with Sylvanas, with a knight order, with Mortimer and a group of assassins. She built up her power base little by little one event at a time choosing those skilled from the myriad of corpses left behind. "If you want to build a kingdom, I don't mind helping. I can't claim to be an expert but I've been struggling to build one for the undead. The Elves though already have customs and laws which is half of the battle for me. I have faith you'll be able to do it if you truly wish them the best." She spoke confidently. Despite her earlier admonishments, the change in attitude and the doubt gave her more confidence in him. After all if a leader couldn't be honest and genuine with himself, how could he be with his actions? Though if she'd known he was beginning to think of her as a queen, her response would be very amusing. Lucia wouldn't dare call herself a queen, she lacked the qualifications, the power and charisma to do so. She instead would try to correct him and assert that she was a Saint or Priestess with as much humility as possible. She was content with being their spiritual leader, with being their religious icon and progenitor; Kingship, or rather, whatever type of 'Leader' the undead might have one day would instead belong to another. Should she find an undead capable of rallying her people, she would happily hand the reigns over and watch them develop like a proud mother. "As for the curse. Yes, I don't mind. As I said, I speak for the Undead, as allies of the players, I will naturally step forward." She spoke with a kind nod. "Alice-- Sylvanas-- Lend me a hand?" She asked, her expression still gentle, but that pair of high tier undead both moved at the same time. Alice stoically approaching the man as a little girl lacking a face trying to latch onto his left arm, though she was small like a child, if Galadion tried to push or struggle, he'd find her small arms were intensely heavy and hard like concretes or metals. Her little body had an incredible weight to it as if that large ant abomination had been compressed down into the size of a small child without shedding any of it's weight. Sylvanas on the other hand would flash a hostile and pleased grin, cracking her knuckles with enough strength to make the plate of her armor groan from the force. Though not as much as Alice, her grip was still strong as she took him from the other arm to hold him still. "Try not to panic or struggle-- in truth coming to me was perhaps not the greatest of ideas. A healer would have been more appropriate as they have the skills to lift these types of curses and ailments. Other dark mages instead have different techniques-- Countering poisons with poisons, curses with curses. This may feel very unpleasant but do try to bare with it alright?" She asked with a faint smile, hoping her words were calming enough to keep him from trying to fight them off.
Galadion stood there and listened to the words that the woman had spoken to him, he mulled them over in his head for a few moments before a soft sigh escaped his lips and he closed his eyes, perhaps she had been right, he hadn't cared about the Yladian people no really he had only been fooling everyone around him but not just them, he had been fooling himself as well. What better way to quickly earn the love and admiration of a broken people that the claim to be coming to save them, to tell them that he would restore their homeland for them out of the goodness of his heart? It had all been nothing more than a manipulation tactic but he had just been refusing to admit to even to himself but Lucia had forced him to look deep into himself and confront the truth of his action. However this self realization left a hole deep inside of him, before he had had a goal even if the reasons behind that goal were nothing but a lie, now he had nothing no driving force behind him anymore. The light that had been shimmering in his eyes slowly died out as his eyes dimmed, with the dissolution of his goal and the driving force behind it, it was almost as if he had been broken. Lucia wasn't the first player that he had come across to tell them that he wasn't qualified to be the King of the Yladians, that he should just give up on his quest to restore the country to its former glory, to return the Yladian elves to their ancestral homeland but she had been the first person who had gotten him to question his devotion to that quest. Not even the player he had met who had gone by the name of Kaede who had threatened to kill him had she not liked the way he answered her questions had been able to achieve this, but now he was nothing more than a shell of his former self. More than once she had suggested that he become a bandit or a merchant or something along those line but he had to admit that neither of those options interested him even in the slightest. He lifted his head ever so slightly and watched as the two undead creatures made their way towards him, each one taking him by one of his hands, this time he hadn't made any move in any way, this time he hadn't even recoiled when the creature that had formerly been in the form of a giant ant neared him something that he had done no matter what action that the creature had taken. So from what she said it wasn't so much that she was going to break the curse that the witch had placed upon him, it was more along the lines that she was going to place another curse upon him that would cancel out the actions of the first one. This course of action made sense to him, fighting fire with fire and that sort of thing. Tilting his head back he looked up at the sky and closed his eyes as he nodded his head to show her that he was ready for whatever it was that she was going to do to him, it didn't really matter anymore as he no longer wished to restore Yladia in the manner that he formerly did but he still didn't want to go through life under the grip of this stupid curse. However if he was not going to restore the region and rule it at the King of the Yladians then what was he going to do with his time in this world, what was his goal going to be that kept him coming back to this virtual world? His eyes darkened slightly as he stared up at the sky, he had wanted to restore the region and try his hand at being a benevolent King that was loved by the Yladian people, but if that was something that he couldn't be then he would focus on his magic. He would continue to get stronger and stronger until the Idna, the Goddess of Magic herself bowed herself before his awesome power and hail him as the God of Magic, nothing less than this would satisfy him. First he would conquer the Yladian region and subjugate it to his will, he would force it to become his bidding and instead of a Yladian Kingdom ruled by the King of Yladia now he would transform it into a Sorcerer Kingdom ruled by the most powerful sorcerer in all of the wold of Terrasphere, the Sorcerer King. He had tried to play the hero but had been thwarted so now he would walk the darker path, as the saying went you either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain. A slightly wicked smile spread across his face, his eyes lighting back up once again refueled by the dark desire that now fueled his heart, he had a purpose once again, but first he would let this necromancer break this stupid curse before he did anything else.
Lucia chuckled rubbing her hands together with a soft clap. It wasn't as if she didn't see that smile, rather, to Lucia it didn't matter too much. Whether the man stayed the course, or tried different methods, she felt it would go just as well. It was silly for any player to think they could rise above the NPCs, silly and an impossibility. Had she known his thoughts about the Goddess, she would be laughing and clutching her belly unable to contain her giggles. Even Zeus, the man capable of killing every player in their kingdom in a battle royale couldn't kill the Crystal Ant Queen. And that Crystal Ant Queen was annihilated with the tiniest blessing from the Goddess of Death as if it were a speck of dust to be blown off a shoulder. It was an amusing prospect, one Lucia also endeavored to tangle in one day, but competing and beating a Goddess was practically madness, instead her goal was merely to try and close the gap as much as she could. "It will be a little unpleasant." She reminded after rubbing her hands together briefly. With a few subtle gestures of the hand, she clenched her fists a few times until she rolled her shoulders forward. Naturally, Lucia wasn't particularly skilled with Illusion magic, she knew just enough to conceal her real appearance from people, but when she needed to use her undead parts for spells, the rift began to appear. Flickering into view, as if mist or fog were clearing behind her and dispersing four shimmering red limbs appeared, each one monsterous in appearance, with sharpened sickle or scythe like pointed ends bent around from her back. The point where they reached her back was still blurred, the boarder of the illusion made it clear it was still working well. Those four limbs though clearly belonged to a spider. Without hesitation, those limbs snapped forward like extra arms, as Lucia's eyes closed to a half lid. Snapping forward those limbs were thrust into Galadion's body. At first one might expect pain from being stabbed, but there was no blood, no pain, instead there was only intense discomfort, as the limbs moved around as if searching for something. Those spider limbs worked like surgical tools working around as if trying to find the location of the curse. All the while she spoke with a warm smile. "Well, I suppose that whatever you decide to do, it won't be so bad. Just try your best to keep Karma on your side." She spoke with a simple nod as she seemed to find the proper place. With a knit brow, she gestured with her delicate hands a few more times before finally snapping her fingers. The sound echoed and the vibration seemed to travel. Those spider limbs tugged fiercely as if ripping something before finally sliding back. "These simple curses are easy enough-- little tricks will always make the line snap somewhere. Truly I was expecting something more. As it is though, don't worry too much, the curses will clash with each other until they die out." Lucia explained the process with a small smile. Like poisons wiping each other out it was very similar. She wasn't too worried about the curses, she hadn't been from the start. Instead, she was far too confident in her dark magic, there would be none who could compete with her in this lifetime she was certain.
As he stood there his brain was already running different scenarios through his head, he had wanted to gain power that he could have used for the people but it seemed like no one wanted to see that happen and if that was the case then he would just amass power simply for the sake of having power. He would do as he pleased and no one would tell him otherwise and that was simply the way it was going to be, using his magic he would bend the minds of the NPCs to his will and use them as if they were simply toys to be played with. Instead of a King, benevolent and kind the Yladians would have a Dark Lord, powerful and terrible as the void. Lowering his head down he locked eyes with the necromancer before him and smiled slightly as he nodded his head when she told him yet once again that it was going to be unpleasant. As the woman neared him her visage changed and he could see that she had several extra limbs that looked as if they belonged on a spider which caused his eyes to widen slightly before he composed himself once again. So she had been using an illusion to hide her true form which made sense, if she had been walking around looking like that many people would mistake her for a monster and attack, not that they would get very far with that army of the undead that was following her everywhere she seemed to go. Her true form made more sense to him than if she had looked like a normal human female, what kind of necromancer didn't try and enhance themselves in some way or form I mean in every since fantasy book or comic or hell even game that he had ever read of played in his life the end goal for all of them was to become an Elder Lich, maybe that was what she was going for here? A slightly wicked grin spread across his face as he looked at her form, if things like this were possible in the game then just what could he gain for himself, what sort of unknown and never before seen power could he acquire for himself? Shaking his heads he watched as she got ready, now was not the time for such thoughts no right now the only thing that he cared about was ridding himself of this stupid curse and then seeking his revenge against the witch who had placed it upon him. Nothing would please him more than seeing the look on her face when the last thing that she seen before she died was his face smiling down at her. He watched as the woman thrust the extra limbs that she possessed deep into his chest which caused his eyes to open wide thinking that she had just killed him. However that wasn't what had happened, he looked down and could see the limb clearly inside of his body but he didn't die, not only had he not died but there was no pain at all, only an overwhelming feeling of discomfort. What in the hell was going on, was this some sort of spell or skill that she had used and he hadn't noticed? No this had to be something else entirely, he stood there watching as the limbs preformed whatever it was that they were doing inside of his body, not like he really had much of a choice in the matter at this point until they were finally retrieved from within him as he stood there and listened to her speak. He nodded his head ever so slightly "I thank you for the service, do I owe you anything?"
