RPG Heretic (PG-VL)

[SilverCyclone]

Angels and demons have always fought over man's soul. The war was waged in secret. Man was unaware of it for centuries. However, the demons eventually poured forth into the mortal realm. To save themselves, the humans made a pact with the angels. They forged a great gate, placing it over the entrance to Hell. The key was broken in half by Zauriel, lord of the angels. The halves were given to a priestess and an Archangel. For centuries, the priestess's family has protected the half, as did the Archangel. But, a powerful demon lord named Baelnaga has passed the gates, and risen an army of damned. The Archangel and his brethren have fallen from heaven to protect the priestess and the key. But, Baelnaga and his demons are more determined then ever to kill the guardians, and free their brothers from Hell.
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Ark stared at the sun. He was sitting in a window of the temple. His wings drifted lazily behind him, as if blown by an unseen wind. He just sat there, as if in a dream. A footstep woke him. He turned to see Aura standing there. He smiled, hopping down from the window.
"Good morning. Are the others awake?"
"Yeah. Did you keep watch all night?"
"No. Traded with Lucifer at midnight."
"Oh. Well, breakfast is ready."
Both walked down. The others were at the table, already gorging on the food. Ark leaned his spear against the wall, within easy reach. He watched the TV. A way too preppy news anchor was cheerily smiling as she talked.
"...In other news, there has been a break out of forest fires in Lea'dor Mountain. Authorities believe that arsonists are to blame, but the large craters that have been appearing are still unexplained..."
Ark sighed. He didnt care that the humans had finally noticed the landing spots of him and the others. He flapped his wings lazily and began eating.
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((Right. Your first post should dive a bit into your character's personality. Go to it.))

[bovine_man3]

Baelnaga sat on his throne and thought to himself "Hell was much more boring than here, here we torture humans and seek the archangels and priestess." The task was simple but would take time and well thought out plans to make the archangels come out of hiding. He called for his right hand demon Dim Hope. "Dim I need you to find the place where the archangels landed and leave something letting them know we know they are here and we are searching for them." Dim left the chamber of the hidden dongeon and started his search. Baelnaga winced in pain and gripped his left arm and thought "I will find you Ark and you will be killed by me and last so you will see your friends die at my hand". Baelnaga chuckled at the thought.

[Redemption]

Athene sighed. Boy, she was bored. She dangled her feet in the stream outside the temple. The birds churped happily in the trees around her. Small forest animals ran past her, taking no notice of her whatsoever. They were too used to her. She sighed again.
" Ah...why does this have to be so boring!!!"

Athene stood up, her wings stretched out behing her. She yawned.
" Well well well, what are you doing here?" a voice came from behidn her. Athene whirled around, and punched whoever it was in the face. The figure of Ryojin fell to the ground. Athene's eyes lit up with horror.
" Oh Ryojin I'm so sorry!!!" she said, helping him up.
" Boy you've got a mean punch on you!" he exclaimed, rubbing the red mark on his face.
" Sorry!!"
Both of them looked at each other and laughed. Aura came to the temple's edge and called out.
" Breakfast is ready!"
" Mmmm. FOOD!" Athene said.
" And its all mine!" Ryojin said, pushing Athene backwards.
" Oh no you don't!"
The two wrestled all the way up to the temple and to the dining room. Ark stood at the door, waiting for them. He gave them a disapproving scowl.
" Children!" he huffed.
" Hey I take offense to that! I'm at least three thousand years old thank you!" Athene replied before getting clobbered by Ryojin. Ark shook his head.
" I maintain my opinion!"

[Anne]

Aura suppresed a giggles and bit her lower lips to keep a smile off her face. "Come now stop before something gets broken." She smiled. "Besides the food is getting cold."

The two looked at each other and made a break for the table. They sat down and started to gulp down there food. Ark shook his head.

Aura laughed. "Don't eat so fast you will choke. There is plenty for all." She turned and watched the news for the daily weather report.

"Today mid eighties and a high humidity. We don't expect rain for the rest of this week. This will not help the forest fires that have broken out--" Aura gpt up and clicked the television set off. She sat back down and watched the other eat.

[SilverCyclone]

Ark finished before the others. He waited a little while before standing up.
"Alright...Ryojin, swallow before you open your mouth...we've been hiding for too long. Baelnaga is making his move, though we still dont know what it is. We'll investigate the forest fires first. If they spread to rapidly, they could do some serious damage."
He picked up his spear. It glowed a faint blue as he turned to the others. He spread his wings.
"Aura, travel with Athene...Ryokin, damnit, swallow your food...Dont engage any demons unless you have to. Wait till I signal you. We may be able to do this without confrontation."
The archangels took off, careful not to be seen. They winged upwards, breaking the clouds and quickly made their way to the fires.
"Split up. Dont go too far though."
Ark spiraled down towards a fresh spire of smoke. The other's broke off to land in various areas. Only a blind man could miss the demons dodging around the trees. Ark set down behind a fallen tree. He scanned the forest, marking down each demon guard. His eyes fell on one in particular.
[I]Damnit...what's Dim Hope doing here? What are you up to Baelnaga?[/I]

[Bullet Theory]

[B]OOC: Sorry about the absence. Been Busy.[/B]

Jac sped off down the road on his motorcycle when he saw a small flash of light in the clear sky. He glanced up and noticed it was the other Arch Angels. He stoped his motorcycle in a near-by resturant and ran to the back alley. He threw off his jacket and spread his wings. Jac flew into the air and caught up with Ark.

"What's going on?" Jac asked.

"There's Dim Hope. Baelnaga is behind all of these fires." Ark replied.

"Then they must be stopped. I'll take care of Dim Hope and the demons. Can you and the others get the fires extinguished?" Jac asked.

"You don't have to take on all of the demons by yourself, you know?" Ark said.

"We need everyone to get these fires put out. I'll handle it."

With that, Jac soared down to the forest and searched for Dim Hope.

[B]OOC2: Hope this was ok.[/B]

[Redemption]

[COLOR=DarkSlateBlue]Athene followed Ark with Aura in her arms. Aura smiled up at Athene warmly, who smiled back. When Ark told them to split up, Athene swerved to the right of Ark and scanned the forest fires below them.
" Do you think these fires where started by demons?" Aura asked, a slight worried tone to her voice. Athene smiled.
" Don't worry Aura. I'll protect you."
Aura smiled.

As Athene scanned the forest a second time, a large gust of hot wind rushed up and seared Athene's left wing. It sent them spiralling towards the earth. They crashed through many trees and finally came to rest at the foot of a huge fir tree. Aura stood up, dusting herself off. She looked around for Athene who she found sprawled across the ground with her eyes closed. Aura panicked.
" Athene! Athene! Wake up!"
Athene didn't wake.
A sneer caught Aura's attention behind her. A small group of demons surrounded Aura.
" Oh no.....Athene!"
[/COLOR]

[Kayin Cloud]

Ryojin had been following Ark as told. He wasn't one to disobey orders. He carried a large sword on his back which seemingly had no effect on his flying. He was almost always smiling unless in the heat of battle. "Hey Ark..." Ryojin started.

"What is it Ryojin?" Ark looked back and so did Jac. "And it better be serious..."

"It is serious....I'm going after Athene...I feel as though something's wrong." Ryojin said starting to look serious.

"Okay Ryojin...see if they're okay and then come back." Ark answered.

"Right." In an instant Ryojin changed direction and headed to and intercept point of Athene's route. He didn't see her anywhere nearby so he looked from that point around him. He looked down below him to see Aura and Athene. But something was wrong, Athene was out cold. "Oh no Athene, Aura! I'm coming Aura!" Ryojin dove down and drew his Dragon Slayer before reaching the ground. He landed standing in front of Aura in a ready stance to fight the oncoming attack. "Aura try to wake Athene...I'll take care of them..."

[Darkmark]

[COLOR=Navy][SIZE=2][FONT=System]OOC:Sorry for the short post but I have homework and can't be on the computer, tom. I can though.


"Fools!" said Dim "Everybody get ready to fight, The Dark orb of Light will be set for ten min., that's when we're leaving!"

Ark was up above when he sees darkeness overflowing the forest. [/FONT] [/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Imp]

OOC: I'll delete this post if my character's not approved, but until then...
IC:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[color=darkred][i]Peace? Love? Respect? Friendship?[/i] Tara thought. [i]Weakness. Total weakness--and greed. True happiness is for the strong, the ruthless, the brave, the independent! Fools who believe that love is the way to true happiness, that peace will solve anything... They are just that--complete idiots. Friendship is relying on someone so that together, you may be protected from harm. But it makes people weak, pitifully weak. People who possess power can tear apart the weaklings and grow stronger by themselves. The human nature of being social is just a weakness that must be overcome. Destruction comes before there can be rebirth. Pain comes before there is healing. Darkness comes before light. Suffering comes before happiness. If people really want to be happy, they can be happy in their graves. Happy people only make this world boring. Happy people become teachers, so the students they teach are spoonfed with information about life. Poisoned! They then have no ability to find things out on their own, so those who do figure it out themselves are pure, holy! The angels don't seem to understand that. Perhaps I shall make them happy by killing them. Afterlife is a place where happiness thrives, and the real world has an overwhelmingly high human population. To the what I guess I should call saving of them, a war shall be waged, thousands shall end their lives, be tortured until they learn all there is to learn about pain, that is, if they want to. Simple-minded humans! Yes! And stupid angels that protect those pitiful creatures! In order to achieve true happiness, I must give them my tough love, emphasis on the tough. The war rages on, and I must take my place.[/i]

As Tara thought this, she sat in a circular chamber in a dark cave, with a pool of lava in the middle, on a giant black rock. Tara then closed her eyes for about five seconds to clear her mind, then got up and started walking out the cavern. She saw a tunnel on the right that led to a fairly lit chamber, so she went there. A faint purple light illuminated the new path before her, and itgot slightly brighter as she got closer. When she got there, though, the light wasn't that bright. The cavern was covered in some sort of violet gemstone, and a fairly chubby man stood at the far end, collecting pieces of the gem walls. Tara smirked--a lone person who was probably weakened by sticking with friends.
[i]Those who are used to being with friends are weak when they're alone, and there are many times when someone has to be alone. That is when the darkness can feed on those individuals' souls and haunt them forever,[/i] Tara thought as she slowly and quietly walked toward the man.
[i]The master of the demons told me only to destroy the strong, but the strong are usually acquainted with the weak, and those who know this man will be truly depressed when they hear about his departure from the living world.[/i]
Tara stopped when she was about two feet away from the man, who still didn't notice her, as if Tara was a ghost. Tara reached out her hand until it hovered a few inches above the man's right shoulder, and then there was a pause.

To the man's horrific surprise, Tara suddenly grasped the man's shoulder tightly, digging her sharp, clawlike nails through his skin. The man gave a cry of pain, panic quickly welling up inside of him. He turned around, freeing himself from Tara's grip, only to meet the gaze of her fiery red eyes.
"Holy hell!" the man stammered. Tara laughed in her head, but she actually remained still, not even smiling.
[i]Truly,[/i] she thought, [i]this man knows a little about the wonders of hell. Holy hell, what an expression of such sinister wisdom.[/i]
Tara looked down,her lips finally moving. The man heard something like "Sure, sure, kori, kiara--diri, telvi..." but it meant absolutely nothing to him. Tara, still looking down, took out her mirror and held it up so that it covered her face. The mirror began to take on a strange black glow. The man looked at it and at forst saw his reflection, but the image warped slowly into the face of a wraith, then a full skeleton. The skeleton image's eye holes filled with a green light, which appeared to suck the man into them like a black hole. Outside the image, the man remained there, seeming paralyzed and spaced out. Tara slowly put the mirror away--the mirror lost its glow then. Tara's calm yet relentless mood and the man's fear and social preference yielded a viruslike quirk in the man's mind, making him temporarily obedient until death, like a battery-operated remote control. With a snap of Tara's fingers and a mental command, the man sprinted out the cavern and towards the exit of the cave.
[i]Exercise, you fool,[/i] Tara thought. [i]You just might lose some of that body fat of yours, another result of greediness.[/i]

After waiting a few moments, Tara followed the man's path out of the cave; she was relieved to discover that the sky was dark and cloudy due to her hatred of sunlight. She shrugged and walked around across the plains surrounding a city, pretending to look happy and innocent. In fact, she nearly skipped in place of walking.[/color]

OOC: Heh, this is my new typical first post--fun and character-defining, biding my time, usually very long, not much dialogue, usually a fight with a minor character, doesn't include any of the other main characters...

[Anne]

Aura ran over to Athene and kneeled down on the ground. Reaching down she shock Athene. "Athene, please wake up we need you now." Aura looked back to see Ryojin was being attacked by the demons. He was fairing very well on his own, but he was out number. She turned back to Athene and tried to awaken her.

A rusle from the tree ahead braught her face up. A demon came towards Aura as she gasped. Quickly she grabbed a charm out of her sleeve and held it out towards the demon. It winced it pain and vanished. Aura sighed a breath of relief that it was a weak demon that was effect by her charm.

Turning her head back to Ryojin she seen that he was cut on his arm but he was still going strong. "Come on Athene now would be a great time for you to wake up for me." Panic was ringing in Aura voice. Just like magic Athene eyes flicked open. Aura smiled at her. "I am glad you are awake now. Are you okay?" Aura held consernce in her voice.

"Yes I think I am. My wings a bit singed and bruises. Are you okay?" Athene looked into Aura eyes.

"Yes I am. You took all the damage when we fell. I think Ryojin needs some help though." Aura held concern in her eyes.

Athene got up and was a bit wobbly. Aura jumped up to help her. "No I am okay. Stay here and I will help Ryojin."

[Redemption]

Athene started walking over to Ryojin. Before she got to him, she was jumped by a few demons. With her katana, she sliced them in half easily. When her strength returned, Athene ran over to Ryojin and helped him clear out the demons in the area. Aura stood and watched the massacre, feeling a little sick as demon?s blood splattered over the tree Aura was standing behind.

Ryojin puffed in exhaustion, as did Athene. None of the other Archangels can to help Ryojin and Athene. She sighed in relief.
? Lucky there?s no more left here.?
? Yeah I agree. That was just too much,? Ryojin said as he slumped against a tree. Athene sat on the ground, her wings drooping. Aura came out from behind the tree.
? Are you two alright?? she asked timidly. Athene put her katana away and nodded.
? I think so. But my wings are so sore. They got singed by a hot air burst,? Athene explained to Ryojin. He looked at her wings. Some of the feathers were black from being burnt.
? Oooo, they?re sore!!? Athene whined.
? Shall we wait for Ark to come back?? Aura asked.
? No. He?ll be after Dim Hope again. What does he have against that guy? I know he?s bad and everything but somehow, I think its personal,? Athene replied.
Ryojin turned to Athene. ? Are you able to fly by yourself??
? I think so,? Athene replied uncertainly. Ryojin gave her a concerned look.
? Don?t worry I?ll be fine.?
Ryojin nodded and took Aura in his arms and took off, heading back to the temple. Athene stood up and took off, wincing slightly in pain.

When they got to the temple, Athene crumpled to the floor.
? I hate burns!?
Ryojin just laughed. ? You hate anything that?s painful.?
? So? That?s not a bad thing.?
Ryojin sighed. ? Oh Athene, what am I going to do with you?? Aura giggled.

[Darkmark]

[COLOR=Navy][SIZE=2][FONT=System]"I'm not done with you yet" said Dim

He took out his sword and set part of the forest on fire.

"Baelnaga, I'm following the archangels, keep a look out for my sign." said Dim

He turn himself in to a kitten and ran off in to the forest that was burning.

*The things I do...sigh.* thought Dim.

Dim started to meow. * This better work! *[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[SilverCyclone]

((Sorry I havent posted for so long, Ive been having Internet troubles))

Ark threw the demon off of his back. [I]How the hell did they know I was here?[/I] He impaled another on his spear, shielding himself from the claws with his wings, he kicked another's face in. He whirled, the flames getting closer. He held the spear ready, waiting for any more swarms.
"Meow..."
"What the...?"
Ark turned towards the flames. His eyes widened and he nearly dropped the spear.
"What the hell is a cat doing here?!"
He flapped towards the cat. A demon leapt downward from a burning tree. Ark didnt even look as he speared it through the chest. He bent down and grabbed the cat by its scruff. He stared at it carefully, the took off as the flames got closer. He stopped over the forest. Glaring down at it, he pointed his spear at the flames.
"I really hope your still down there Dim...I really hope this hurts!"
A blast of ice shot out of his spear. It covered the forest, extinguishing the flames. Demons caught in the blast knew a few moments of extreme pain before shattering. Ark stared down, his eyes devoid of pity. He glanced back at the cat.
"Well...I guess I should give you to Athene and Aura..."
He flapped a few times before pausing. He turned back to the forest. A pillar of flame ripped towards the sky. Out of the fire, a halberd appeared.
"Hehehe...Ark..."
Ark clenched his fist. He almost threw the cat away. He stopped. He plucked a feather from his wings. A rather large feather. He placed the cat on it. He whispered into the feather.
"Athene..."
The feather took off with the kitten gripping it tightly. Ark hefted the spear. He glared at Baelnaga, lord of demons.
"Bastard!"

[bovine_man3]

OOC: sorry ive been grounded since monday so i have been busy.

IC:Baelnaga grew impatiant for the return of Dim Hope and his other minions to return. It had been over ten hours. Bealnaga prepared to make a trip to the crash site for a look-see and to try to see the problem gone. He stopped at the sight of a soldier who didnt have any particular reason to be standing around so he told him to go rally the fifty best troops availible emediatly and told him that the were going to see Dim Hope. he then awaited the minions and when they arived he told them where to go and that he would se them through the battle. He then dissapeared into a huge pillar of fire with his halberd in hand. He next saw the shocked face of the archangel Ark. "So Ark we meet again, this time I dont intend to lose to you or anyone else." Then the true battle began as demons poured out of a cave led by Tara and there was Dim Hope leading his dying forces.

[Imp]

[color=darkred]Two lines of demons headed for the forest. The leaders of both spoke to each other and gave each other signals. The two lines of demons headed for the forest to assist Baelnaga, but Tara stayed behind, standing some hundred feet away from the forest, facing it. With a snap of her fingers and a subtle point towards the forest, a black glow briefly appeared above the forest. Soon after, the sound of snapping branches was heard in the forest. Some of the trees caught on fire, the flames spreading quicklly throughout the forest.

"Dammit!" Ark cursed under his breath. "I thought I just put out that fire!" Baelnaga stood opposite him, appearing to glow in front of the forest fire, looking at him with a sinister smile before striking.

Meanwhile, Tara started to walk into the forest, trying to locate the battlesite. She watched the newly started battle from inside a tree, where she could be kept hidden by Ark.
[i]I don't need those demon slaves to do my bidding,[/i] she thought. [i]After all, help just makes one weak, and I'm not going to go there. I'll let those demons battle their hearts out while I come up with a plan.[/i] And with that, she leapt out of the tree, sneaking behind the trees surrounding the small clearing where the battle took place. Groups of demons rushed into the battlesite while Ark fended them off.
[i]Ark's alone,[/i] Tara thought. [i]A perfect opportunity.[/i] She then reached for the little rod she had and held it out, shaking it until it grew longer, giving itself a stafflike appearance. She then looked to her right and saw that one of the demons wielded a sword. This she fired a hex blast at, which sent the sword flying towards her. When Tara caught the sword, she hurled it into a large tree on the far side of the battlefield. Using her now fiery staff, she threw a bolt of fire at the sword, which started to melt. With the help of a carefully prepared hex blast, the melted metal pressed against the tree and started to harden, transforming into a perfectly flat and smooth sheet of metal that covered most of one side of the tree trunk. Tara snuck over to tree with the metal on it and crept to the front of it, carefully checking to see that Ark was surrounded by so many demons that he could not see her. She stood in front of the metal panel on the tree and looked at it--she saw her reflection. At this, she smiled and headed back over to the other side of the battlefield, climbed back into the same tree she was in before, and morphing her staff back into a six-inch rod. Then she waited for the right moment to strike.

In the clearing, demons fell by Ark's side. Baelnaga was hidden amongst the remaining demons, making his way over to Ark, halberd extended.[/color]

OOC: Yeah, still a self-centered post...

[Redemption]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]Athene was about to walk inside the temple when one of Ark's feathers with a kitten on it whooshed in front of her.
" Oh look! Ark has sent us a kitten! Its soooo cute!" she squealed in delight. She plucked it from the feather, which returned to its master, and hugged it tight. Ryojin rolled his eyes. Aura ran to Athene who cuddled the kitten.
" It smells like smoke. It was in those fires, poor thing," Aura said, feeling pity for the small creature. The two girls took it into the temple while Ryojin stayed outside.
" Girls, can't live with them, can't live without them..." he sighed before going into the temple to witness the kitten getting washed in a tub of warm water. Athene was the main culprit but every now and then Aura pitched in. Ark knew that Athene had a weakness for cats of any kind.

With the kitten washed and smelling good, Athene handed it to Aura who played with it for a while. Athene checked up on Ryojin who was sitting outside with his wings all stretched out. She crept up behind him and was about to pounce on him when his voice came to her.
" I know you're there Athene."
" Aww...you're no fun Ryojin." She sat down beside him, looking up in the sky.[/COLOR]

[SilverCyclone]

((bovine_man3, you may want to edit your post. Read back a little ways and you'll know why. ;) ))
Ark was beginning to tire out. His spear was soaked in demon blood and their corpses were piled around him. His black wings were sheened red, and he had lost sight of Baelnaga, but was more focused on the horde of demons coming at him. He couldnt call for help and endanger Aura. He hurled a Light Javelin at a large crowd. It pierced several demons before shattering a tree. He backed up, slowly losing against the overwhelming numbers. Baelnaga urged them on.
"Dont let him call for help! Keep fighting!"
He slammed his spear into the ground, causing a rather large blue explosion. He had cleared away several demons and finally had a clear view of Baelnaga. They clashed, spear and halberd making sparks fly. Baelnaga had the advantage of size, but Ark was much faster. He took off into the air. Another jet of ice took out a group of demons.
"Damnit! Where is he now? ARGH!"
A spear pierced his leg. He was brought down by the demons, still fighting. They swarmed over him until he couldnt be seen. Another explosion freed him. He was covered in burns and slashes, and was beginning to stagger. He leaned against a tree as another wave came at him, Baelnaga at the head.
"Do they ever end...?"
Before he could call out, a vollet of arrows hit him. His voice came out as a ragged whisper as one went through his throat. He raised the spear, going into a battle stance. He heard Baelnaga's laughter as they swarmed over him.
[I]To think...I thought we could get through this without incident...[/I]

[Anne]

Aura had gotten a ball of yarn and let the little kitten play with it. She giggled as it swung its paws to play with it. Taking up the ball of yarn she also grabbed the kitten.

"Meow."

"You are so cute, but you need a name. I will have Athene help chose a name for you later, but first I need to straighten up around here." She set the kitten down and went and got her broom. Aura began to sweep around the temple. A sudden feeling made her head whip her head up. She scanned her eyes around the surrounding area. She didn't see anything, but still had that feeling. She went back to her sweaping but Aura keeped looking around every once in a while. The kitten followed behind as she swept the dust into a pile. Aura could hear Athene and Ryojin talking but could understand what they were saying.

Aura moved to her kitchen next. Taking out a small saucer and some milk she placed it down for the Kitten. "Here you go. I bet you are hungry." She scratched behind his ears and stood up. She looked out the small window on the door. "Wonder when ArK is going to be back." Aura began to prepare tonights dinner.

[Redemption]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]" Ah Ryojin, when's Ark coming back?" Athene asked her fellow ArchAngel, leaning her head on his shoulder.
" I dunno. Starting to worry?" Ryojin replied.
" Yeah. I'm going to look for him...if I can fly," Athene replied, standing up and looking at her blackened wings.
" I'll stay here and look after Aura."
" Ok." With that, Athene took off towards the diminishing plume of smoke.

Few minutes later, Athene arrived at the aftermath of the fire. She scanned the sky while hovering in one spot. Squinting, she saw two figures fighting one another in the distance. Suddenly her stomach dropped.
" Ark..." Unsheathing her sword, Athene rushed at the two figures. She could see Ark and the demon lord himself fighting each other. Ark was tiring. Athene's eyes lit up with fire as she charged at the demon lord. Slashing her sword at him caught him off-guard.
" Damn you Ark..." he hissed before disappearing in a haze. Athene fluttered over to Ark.
" Are you ok?"
[/COLOR]

[Imp]

[color=darkred]Inside the tree, Tara was taken by surprise when Athene came out of nowhere and saved Ark, defeating the demon at the same time.
[i]That wasn't part of my plan!![/i] she thought, getting a look of fury on her face. [i]I need to separate those two somehow...[/i]
Careful to not be seen by Athene and Ark, Tara leapt out of the tree to the side, then ran behind the trees until she reached a narrow path, extending her compact javelin as she went. With a combination of the javelin's fire spear and a hex blast, a black fire erupted in a ring around Ark and Athene, enclosing them within the clearing. The fire steadily grew until it was about twenty feet tall. Tara stood outside the ring, facing the two inside. She put away her javelin and held out her mirror, just in case the two escaped.[/color]

OOC: Wish I had time to post more...

[SilverCyclone]

No one was more surprised at Athenes rescue then Ark. He leaned heavily on his spear. His feathers were torn and bloody. He kneeled, breathing heavily.
"How did..."
"Dont talk. Youve still got an arrow through your throat."
He felt the end of the shaft feebly. He took a step when flames erupted around them. He fell backwards with a sharp cry. Athene spread her wings to fly outward but Ark caught her arm. He pointed towards a figure outside the wall of fire. More fire split the ring in half, separating the archangels. Ark backstepped as the fires separated, forcing them away.
"Ark!"
Ripping the arrow out of his throat, he healed it quickly.
"Try to escape! Warn the others!"
He had no more time to speak as the fire forced him closer to the demoness. Ark glared up at her through the fire.
"Another of Baelnaga's minions...Athene! Take this chance!"
He leapt through the fire, gripping the demoness's throat tightly. He didnt have enough room to wield his spear, so he grappled with her. The flames scorched him badly. He threw the demoness away. Kneeling, he inhaled deeply.
"Im getting too old for this...Whats your name demoness? I would like to know who it is I will fight!"
[I]Athene...please warn the others! In my present state...Im not match for her![/I]

[Redemption]

[COLOR=RoyalBlue]Athene didn't want to leave Ark alone to fight bbut she knew she must get help.
" Oh...oh..." she said to herself, looking around at the wall of flames.
When she heard Ark yell at her to take the chance, Athene bolted through the flames and flew as fast as her singed wings could take her.

Once she got to the temple, she called out to Aura and Ryojin.
" RYOJIN! AURA! ARK IS IN TROUBLE! WE HAVE TO GO!" she yelled, collapsing onto one knee as she landed. She puffed in exhaustion. Ryojin and Aura rushed out to her.
" Demon...attacked...Ark...have..to...go...now!"
With that, Ryojin grabbed Aura around the middle and grasped Athene's arm and took off towards the warzone.

Soon after, Ryojin stopped. Athene stopped beside him, puffing with exhaustion.
" Oh boy..." Athene huffed. Ryojin scanned the sky.
" Where's Ark?" Aura asked, saying what was on Ryojin's mind.
" Huh?" Athene looked up. Ark wasn't where she had left him. There was no sign of him, the demoness or the wall of flames.
" ARK!!! WHERE ARE YOU!!!" Athene yelled, her voice echoing through the burnt forest.
[/COLOR]

[Kayin Cloud]

Ryojin scanned the ground hoping to see Ark somewhere nearby. "Where is he? We have to find him...now!" Ryojin descended to the ground with Aura and Athene followed him down. "If we can't find ark in the sky...then we have to search the ground." He set Aura down on her feet. "Athene stay right beside Aura and both of you stay right behind me." Ryojin drew his sword, the Dragon Slayer, and began a slow advancement through the forest with Athene and Aura right behind him.

"Where could he be? He was just in the sky, fighting the enemy...but he was surrounded by flames. I hope he's okay..." Athene said.

Aura smiled at Athene, "Stop worrying. Ark is very strong...he's fine."

Athene smiled back, "You're probably right...thanks Aura."

Ryojin glanced back at the two and smiled slightly. "Heh...c'mon we'll find him...just gotta have fai..." He started when he was cut off by a demon attacking him. He barely countered the demon but he impaled it and flung it off of his sword into a tree. "Looks like we're on the right track...." Ryojin said getting in his fighting stance. Athene also stood with her sword ready. "Aura, you stay back...I promise we'll keep you safe. Let's go Athene!" Ryojin yelled as he began a charge into the group of demons.

"Right behind ya Ryo!" Athene ran right beside him and the struck down two of the demons in one strike each.

Several more demons charged at them from their left and right sides. "I'll take the right Athene! You take the left!" Ryojin punched the ground and broke the guard of the demons. Fire rose from the ground in the shape of a dragon and incinerated three of the demons on the right.

[SilverCyclone]

Though he was greatly fatigued, Ark was still putting up a valiant fight. Several hex blasts had crippled his wings, and his left leg was horribly wounded. He jabbed with the spear at his opponent, but she was far too fast to hit. She toyed with him, thoroughly enjoying watching his feeble attempts to manuever through the piles of ash. He stumbled and took a swipe to the face from her claws. Supporting himself with his spear, he glared around. She had dissapeared into the flames. He clenched his fist, a light javelin forming in it. He hurled it at the nearest tree, dodging away as it exploded in a cloud of soot and smoke. He thought he heard his name being called, but he became focused on the hex blast that was tearing its way towards him. Executing a rather painful somersault, he managed to slip by. The demoness's voice echoed around him.
"I am surprised and a little impressed that youve managed to live this long angel."
Gripping his spear, Ark staggered backwards, leaning against a tree. He struggled to stay awake, but he was drowsy from loss of blood. Sliding down, he was still gripping his spear as he blacked out.