Utterly Mad

Timeline: 9 years before the cataclysm.

Characters Involved: Sofia McKinnon.

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A woman, appearing to be in her mid-forties with long, slightly-faded blond hair, gave a wary glance at the cavern entrance looming before her. The simple navy blue dress was uncharacteristic of the gear her brethren made infamous. But the holy symbol around her neck made her allegiance clear. A cross, its lower half transitioning into the hammer Mjölnir.

She approached the entrance, regarding the darkness warily as she reached into a simple messenger bag, retrieving a mask she donned to perceive her path. The metal mask depicted a feminine divine figure, steel decorated with bright, polished brass to represent the hair framing its impassive expression. She came here alone and unarmed, bearing none of the weaponry that The Cleansing Flame favored. But she had a mask of insight, the one constant among every member of her order.

The path through the cave tunnels took her through what would've appeared to be a dead-end hidden in the shadows, but through the vision of her mask it radiated with faint hints of energy, a barely-perceptible ring marking a doorway obscured by an illusion.

She raised a hand, as her first step into the true depths of this place was met by a bolt of lightning that arced through the air, flowing around her harmlessly as a strange aura surrounded her. Well, now they'll know I'm here. she thought. She remained there, calmly sidestepping another almost-undetectable rune bound to the floor, avoiding another trap. There she waited, deactivating and removing her mask as a strange light filled the tunnel.

"You intrude upon this place, hunter." a voice called out, as the light revealed a trio of robed figures. The speaker was the one in the middle, holding a strange sword. Even without her mask on, by appearance and instinct alone she knew what it was. A sword of the void, an old one in fact. Converted from what was once a rather mundane arming sword, and making its wielder's origins clear. Once, a member of The Knights-Errant of Christ. One of the founding members of The Cleansing Flame.

"You will find I am no hunter. I am not here to reopen old wounds, but to mend them...Grandmaster." she said calmly, and the man visibly tensed up. "Do not dare throw that old title at me. Sofia, isn't it? Still calling yourself Thane, I bet?" he practically spat out.

"It's not like the Jarl will deny us this, when you slew him with that terrible thing during your quarrels." Sofia remarked. "Johnathan...brother. I am here for a reason." she continued, and he shook his head. "You want us to turn our backs on all the progress we've made, and return to blindly lashing out at what you don't understand?"

"No. I know that our paths have separated, such that any hope of reunion is a distant one. I have seen it in my visions though. It does not need to end in more bloodshed. We have both strayed from the vows we swore. But our order has grown. Studied the practices of rogue arcanists, puzzled out by our own means, seen that other ways can be valuable to humanity. It is only a matter of caution."

"And they'd go right back to nitpicking every discovery we make, questioning and denying us the only reliable, sustainable source of essence we've been able to find! The only one that doesn't require scavenging on the scraps of monsters or weakening The Veil further. We're close to a breakthrough that will make our use of blood magic obsolete, but if you meddle with our research it'll take a generation to see through!" Johnathan shouted, raising his sword. A malevolent purple aura engulfed it, sending an unnerving chill through the air as the other two deployed bionic blades.

Sofia simply shook her head at that. Even with the overt threat displayed before her, she remained calm and unyielding. "That is not the reason we draw upon this power. Look at me. We have found our own ways, and no doubt you have too. How much risk, how much does the soul falter as your spells take their toll? What we've learned could do so much for your methods. We could be allies again." she offered, and the man just glowered at her. "I've no need for your parlor tricks, neither pity nor mercy, not anything you believe you can offer us. You are among the impure, Thane. Your presence here defiles this place and endangers everything we've worked towards." he said, motioning for the other two to stand aside as he advanced.

Sofia simply watched as though she was looking right through him, icy blue gaze meeting his own brown eyes. "They will come. To offer peace and restore what our strife has destroyed, or they will return your hatred in kind and exterminate you. Please, Johnathan..." she moved to catch the blade that swung in a wide arc at her, a powerful glow intensifying as it met the aura of harvest. Even then she could feel its intensity, a sting in her hand right through the warding spell. She moved with a calm, reserved grace to turn the blade aside and pull away.

In the instant the robed man recovered to lunge at her, she'd backpedaled through the illusory wall. A moment's effort and a strange power filled the projection, turning the illusion solid. Sofia had cast one of her protective spells to subvert it and turn the doorway into a barrier. Knowing they'd take it apart in short order, she turned to run. She wasn't here to fight them. As far as she was concerned, her mission was a failure.

She retraced her steps in seconds, bolting for the light of the cavern entrance, when she froze in shock. Johnathan was already there, between her and the cavern entrance. "Your parlor tricks won't help you elude me, hunter." he said coldly, advancing towards her. "Now stand and fight!"

Sofia looked the robed figure over, before glancing at her hand. There was a deep gash all across the palm where the sword had marked her, even through the spells that protected her. She looked back to him before standing firm, the odd glow she gave off vanishing. "No. You are my brethren, though you deny it." she said, Johnathan glaring at her as he approached. Getting past him and trying to elude him would be futile, and she had no intention of going back on what she said. She wanted to make a point of not harming him. "I am no longer your brethren. You are impure, as is the rest of your order." he said. In an instant, the sword wreathed in purple flames ran her through.

She gave a sharp gasp as the aura of harvest burned into her chest, strange wisps of blue flame on her breath as she struggled to speak. "It d-didn't...need to end like this..." she choked out. The sword of the void drank greedily of her fading life and very soul, draining everything it could until nothing was left but a lifeless body. Johnathan didn't give the act a moment's thought, letting it consume and destroy every mote of energy in an instant.

As he walked back into the darkness of the cave, flames snuffed out as he let the blade rest once more, the other two robed figures approached. The trick used to convert an illusion into a barrier was simple enough to break through, as it was only intended to delay them. "Make preparations for our departure. They'll be on this place like wolves on a wounded deer, once they realize she hasn't returned as planned."

"And the body?" one of the others asked. "...leave her where she fell. Let it serve as a warning to them, that Shadows of Arcana will not tolerate their meddling."