A Sign in the Stone (A.S, OPEN)

[ParamountKeymaster]

"Well, now..." The dragon leaned in slightly to study Ranuen. "I was wondering about that insect on your shoulder... but his stench was so similar to yours, I simply didn't bother bringing it up."

He flicked a finger against Swift's back, knocking her into Ranuen and sending both of them tumbling to the floor. "Please, stay. I must admit, you two are an interesting lot. More than I can say for the peasants I've grown so accustomed to. I do have a fascination for those who try to grasp magic to the best of their measly ability, but you..."

A massive claw started to stroke Swift's back, tenderly yet still sharply. "An unholy union between human and demon. I feel as though I should be disgusted, but the chaos in your blood... I can feel it... and it's so... enticing."

A dangerous smile crept across the dragon's skull-like face, his tongue dancing along his fangs. "And seeing as how you've so effectively caught my fancy... it would be a shame if your journey to my humble abode amounted to nothing."

[ColArana]

"Insect"?

Twitch twitch. Now it was Ranuen's turn to be a little bit triggered. "I am not an ins--" Shove!. Ranuen felt Swift crash into his back and went down to the marshy, watery ground underneath her. The massive beast continued to muse at the two of them. While Ranuen was still fuming at the insult, there was a part of him that wondered who the peasants this beast referred to were. And what had happened to them? Ranuen had a brief mental image of a classical beast's lair, with stink and bones strewn about.

The dragon continued, but the way it spoke.... What should have been a welcoming phrase, sounded just plain ominous the way it was spoken. Swift had just urged him to let it drop, but it did not seem like the two were getting out so easily. "That's.... great and all, but what exactly did you have in mind?"

[Pink Moon Wolf]

Upon smacking into Ranuen and tackling him to the waterlogged floor, Swift shot the swordsman a quick, apologetic look, scrambled off of him, then scowled up at the dragon. The infernal creature was still monologuing, fawning over them in that unmistakably taunting voice. The situation was clearly agitating Swift by that point, her expression shifting from annoyed to irritated to outright angry. Then the dragon started trailing a claw along her back, not enough to scratch but just enough to sting, eliciting a very audible snarl out of her.

When the dragon seemed to offer to make their journey through the temple worthwhile, Swift instantly got an idea of what he was insinuating.

"Yeah, no." No longer bothering to maintain a polite facade, Swift stood up, shook some of the water and algae off, then sharply glared up at the dragon. "I've had enough monsters trying to chow down on me today. I'd appreciate it if you would be so kind as to not make my night more difficult and just let us pass."

[ParamountKeymaster]

"Well, aren't you the assertive one?" the dragon chuckled at Swift's order. "I admire that sort of fighting spirit. Especially from a creature who has such little reason to exist. It makes these little encounters much more interesting."

He leaned his great head closer to Swift until he was certain that his sharp, leering grin and intense yellow eyes were all that she could see. "But you must understand that I can't simply let you go. You see... I have been lying here in this temple for a great long while, awaiting a prime opportunity to make my mark in this new realm. Sure, I could let you run free to tell the world of the terrible beast hiding underground... but what fun would a dramatic entrance be if the peasants are aware it's coming?"

A deep, rumbling breath, accompanied by a noticeable increase in the toxic fumes pouring from his mouth, then he concluded, "And besides... I have not feasted in far too long, and when desperate times call for desperate measures, I'll gladly take filth over an empty belly. So take comfort, half breed... that the great Vutezoth will see to it... that your measly life will serve a worthy cause."

The dragon reeled back, taking in a deep breath, then lunged forward and exhaled a forceful, powerful burst of noxious, blinding, acidic fumes.

[ColArana]

Ranuen had no issues with Swift crashing into him-- he knew full well that she wasn't to blame for it, so her apology was accepted. It seemed that her limits had been reached, judging by her snappish tone to the great beast. He gave a somewhat nervous, somewhat anticipatory grin. He got an idea of what was about to come, and his grip tightened on his sword hilt as he stood up. This feeling in my bones. The thrill of fighting a strong enemy.... This is what I've been missing! He thought to himself silently, as Swift ordered the dragon to get out of their way.

For Swift's sake, Ranuen had been willing to look for an alternative option to pissing the dragon off. But if she was at her limit...

And it seemed the dragon, though amused by Swift's ire wasn't going to let them slide. "Well, now you're speaking my language~" He quipped, mentally already in his fight mode. "But be careful you don't get heartburn, Vutranork!" He exclaimed, deliberately mistaking the dragon's name, in an attempt to irritate and anger the beast further. An angry opponent was off-balance. An angry opponent got single minded. Predictable. Even if he came at them more ferociously, he would be more predictable if Ranuen's taunt worked.

The dragon opened with a breath attack. Magic flowed through Ranuen's body, enhancing his speed and durability. The swordsman cut back, into the breath attack, and unleashed a blast of fire from his sword blade in an attempt to intercept and stave off the dragon's breath. Even if this was too powerful, he hoped he could slow it enough for Swift to dodge aside. Ranuen had confidence in his own toughness, but Swift was a complete mystery. He certainly could guess she was much tougher and stronger than a normal person, but he had no way of gauging or knowing how much so.

[Pink Moon Wolf]

Already on edge, Swift was pushed way past that edge as the dragon continued to insult her. Filth... Half breed... Words she had heard before. Words she had believed she had gotten over. But truth be told, Swift could never tolerate such disdain for her hanyo nature, especially from such a vile, disgusting creature so callous to believe that he was any better than her. She wasn't even bothered by the dragon's threats to eat her. All of a sudden, all she cared about was taking his belief in her worthlessness and shove them right in his stupid, smug, gaunt face.

When Vutezoth unleashed a potent line of acid breath, Swift was quick to leap aside and out of its path. She rolled along the floor, then sprang to her feet and lunged high into the air, swinging her arm and unleashing a barrage of yellow, energized yoki blades from her claw tips, striking the dragon in the flank.

Upon touching back down, Swift sprinted through the murky, flooded room and charged at the dragon's backside, hoping that it would confused him if she and Ranuen attacked him from two different angles. "We don't have to do this, ya know! We coulda just left you alone if you'd have shut your trap and let us go!" She hurdled over the dragon, raking her claws along his back in her flight, then gracefully touching down on his other side.

[ParamountKeymaster]

When Vutezoth's line of acid breath met Ranuen's stream of fire, the potent combination produced an explosive cone of white hot flames that created a wall of smoke between the dragon and the swordsman. The smoke quickly cleared when a massive, clawed hand reached through it, slashing at Ranuen.

He let out only a measly grunt when Swift's yoki blades struck him in the side, looking otherwise amused by the pitiful attack and attempted wit. "Well, what fun would that be?!"

His attention quickly snapped back to Ranuen as he dodged several flame attacks from the swordsman. An easy maneuver, but one that left him unprepared for when Swift raked her claws horizontally along his back, eliciting an agitated snarl from the dragon. Where the scales had split and the skin had torn, bright scarlet blood began to flow, emitting the same acidic stink as the dragon's breath.

The moment Swift touched down, she was knocked across the room with a flick of Vutezoth's tail. He sneered maliciously at the fallen hanyo, then he turned his grin on Ranuen. "This is fun, isn't it? I'm certainly enjoying this!"

[ColArana]

Hah... Success.... Barely. Ranuen's flame attack and Vutezoth's breath had cancelled each other out, but the enemy had wasted little time in following up with a claw strike. Ranuen's blade flashed up, catching the talons and stopping them. Well. Stalling them more like. Despite his attempts to hold his footing, Vutezoth's slash drove Ranuen back, the wet flagstones offering little purchase for the swordsman as he slid backwards under the force of the dragon's strike. But he wasn't hurt at least, even if he'd lost some ground. "That all you got!?" He challenged, unleashing a counter-attack of multiple fireballs.

Unfortunately the dragon was surprisingly agile. No way.... I could buy quick reflexes, but how can he move that massive bulk around so quickly in a confined space like this!? He thought to himself. Thankfully the darkness was not as much of a problem as it could have been. The fire Ranuen was flinging about was doing a good job of illuminating the room now. Enough that Ranuen saw Swift land a savage cut, only to be struck at by the beast's tail.

"Swift!" The swordsman exclaimed in concern, but bore in against the beast again. He'd chosen to dodge Ranuen's flame strikes. So perhaps it wasn't so invulnerable to fire afterall? "Blazing Sword: Fire Serpent!" Ranuen cut at the air, sending a horizontal column of flames at Vutezoth. What made this attack different from previous flame attacks was that Ranuen could cause this fire column to swerve to hit his target if the dragon tried dodging. "Then... Storm!" Whether his fire serpent attack was countered or not, Ranuen set his sword ablaze and attempted to drive in against the colossal dragon with a flurry of slashes right at its face! He had to buy time for Swift to recover, and that meant trying to take on the lion's share of Vutezoth's attention.

[Pink Moon Wolf]

"YIPE-!!!" Swift had no time to react to the tail suddenly swinging her way and soon found herself airborne and moderately sore. Then she smacked face-down in a shallow end of the pool, quickly lifting her head up and spitting out the tainted water. Briefly, she lamented the fact that the abysmal stench was likely going to linger in her nose and mouth for a long while now, then she craned her neck to return her focus to the battle.

Fortunately, Ranuen seemed to be holding up, so Swift took this opportunity to think. In the grand scheme of things, this fight was utterly pointless. As much as she genuinely wanted to lay waste to this repugnant creature, she knew that there were more important things at stake than her own validation, and that she wasn't at the top of her game after spending the entire day running around and killing hordes of smaller monsters. This wasn't a battle that could be easily won. Right now, the only viable option was to sidestep Vutezoth long enough to escape the temple.

But... she couldn't leave now. She still had no idea what she was sent down here for.

And then it hit her...

It was a gentle push. A still, small warmth inside not unlike the one she felt when the spirit appeared to her. For a few brief seconds, the world slowed down, and all Swift was aware of was a feeling of contentment. A silent assurance that this was where she needed to be. This was what she was here for.

A flash of light in her peripheral drew Swift's attention away from the fight. That familiar silver glow was shining through the runes and carvings etched into the wall, surrounding her, traveling through the cracks and valleys, guiding her eyes towards a single point. Then it stopped, now illuminating a single image near the floor of the lowest part of the room, its light dimmed by the murky water it was fully submersed in.

Seeing this, Swift knew what she had to do. It felt so right... and yet, considering the circumstances surrounding it, so wrong.

"Gomen nasai, Ranuen..."

She had to get down there, but she couldn't just leave her new partner at the mercy of this dragon. As such, Swift sprung to her feet and started running in the opposite direction of the light, charging headlong back into the fray. While Vutezoth was distracted by Ranuen's pillars of fire, Swift leaped into the air and bounded off a wall, propelling herself high above the dragon. With a well-aimed swipe of her claws, another wave of yoki blades rained down on Vutezoth, striking the cut on his back she had carved and slicing it open further.

"KEEP HIM DISTRACTED!!!"

Hoping Ranuen had the strength to do so and the willingness to comply, Swift sucked in a massive breath and dove semi-gracefully into the deep end of the pool. Time to see what was really going on here.

[ParamountKeymaster]

With a deep huff, Vutezoth quickly countered the column of flames by spinning around and sweeping his tail through the water, stirring up a sizable wave to drench it. Though effective, a good number of fiery tongues soared above the upsurge, those that he was unable to dodge very lightly singeing his damp black scales. When he looked back at Ranuen, the swordsman was flinging flames from his blade directly at Vutezoth's face. The first few swipes grazed his cheeks, eliciting an irritated snarl out of him as he frantically shook his head in an effort to evade the rest. Then, with a mighty roar, he exhaled another high-pressure line of acid at Ranuen.

Though the swordsman managed to mostly evade the stream with only the mildest of burns, the force of the dragon's breath and the hasty dodge sent him tumbling. All too soon, he found himself pinned beneath Vutezoth's hand, staring up at the dragon's amused, sadistic sneer. "Oh, you'll find that I have so much more to offer, little one."

Before he could rear up for another breath, Vutezoth was struck by yoki blades in the sore spot on his back, causing him to stumble away from Ranuen with a pained shriek. He whipped around in time to watch Swift dive into the sullied waters, already submerged before he could even attempt to snatch her out of the air. He had, however, heard her order Ranuen to keep him occupied, so clearly she was up to something.

"Hmm..." Vutezoth grinned in vile curiosity. Was she looking to steal one of his treasures, or was there something more in line with the temple's magic at play here? Whatever the case was, the dragon had instantly made catching the hanyo his top priority.

[ColArana]

Oh, good. Swift was alright. Relatively speaking anyways. Ranuen's weapon flashed and burned, and it seemed it at least had an effect on Vutezoth. If nothing else the dragon was damaged by the mage's sword. But that was all. Damage. He was hurt, but thus far the injuries appeared moderate at best. Nothing that couldn't be fought through. Ranuen would need a better opening if he wanted to inflict a critical wound on the mighty beast. And he had to find that opening while avoiding the monster's own deadly attacks. Thus far he'd warded off the creature's talons and breath but the law of averages dictated that eventually his guard would slip.

And that was precisely what happened, Ranuen being grazed by the dragon's breath, causing him to misstep in the marshy ground, slip and fall. The great dirty lizard pinned him down. "Oh come on, I'm my normal height this time!" Ranuen protested in annoyance. It was one thing to be stepped on like this when shrunken (albeit still extremely annoying). It was a very different matter at normal height. Like the universe was mocking him somehow. Ranuen hated being mocked, and he glared daggers at the beast. Fortunately, this also meant that despite the beast's great power and weight, Ranuen was not as fazed as he should have been. He was able to stay focused, and so he did not miss the opening Swift gave him, as she wounded Vutezoth before diving into the water.

Keep him busy huh? Ranuen thought, as he made his move, taking advantage of his enemy's momentary distraction, and springing to his feet. No better time than now then! He thought, lunging at Vutezoth's face, blade first. He ignited the tip of his sword and drove it at Vutezoth's eye like the burning spear of Ulysses himself. Hooo boy. One on one, he'd have his hands full, but he'd do his part. He'd told Swift he'd fight for her, and damned if Ranuen didn't keep his word. If nothing else the man was honest and stubborn and had some scrap of honor. If he said he would do something, he'd do it. Even if it boded ill for him. "Well it seems we have this whole playpen to ourselves then!" Ranuen chimed, as he struck.

[Pink Moon Wolf]

After swiping her discarded hat from the surface, Swift quickly dove deeper into the water, squinting her eyes against the dark filth and stinging toxins, swimming in powerful strokes towards the silver glow near the floor. She dreaded the idea of surfacing too soon, having no doubt piqued Vutezoth's curiosity in her pursuit of this apparition, but despite her experience and her natural fortitude, she still only had a limited supply of air in her lungs. As such, she waited as long as she could to start exhaling it in small, intermittent bursts of tiny bubbles, ensuring that she still had a sufficient amount when she finally reached her target.

As she swam to a halt in front of the wall, Swift found that the waters were significantly clearer and cleaner in this little corner, allowing her to fully and painlessly open her eyes to study what she found...

Like before, the silver light was shining through the carvings on the wall. It took her a while to make out any sort of recognizable features, not that she had much time to spare down there. But after staring at it for a moment, she did start to pick out some distinct shapes. What was most obvious was that the outermost part of the carving was a circle, inside which was a triangle pointing down towards a vaguely S-shaped squiggle, almost like a compass. Another, larger triangle the size of the outer circle surrounded the smaller one, turned in the opposite direction, its points tipped with three unique symbols: a sort of rounded trapezoid with several odd spikes sticking out of it, a jagged, gear-like circle, and a leaf attached to a vine.

Still conscious of her bated breath, Swift stared at the glowing symbols and pondered to herself what she was supposed to do here. She had no idea what any of this meant, so logically, she had no idea how to interact with it or what it could be used for.

All she knew was that she really... really wanted to touch it. She could feel the light drawing her in, and the longer she waited, the stronger this desire to immerse herself in that twilight glow became.

She... probably shouldn't...

Her hand unconsciously lifted itself.

No... There was no telling what it might do.

Her arm stretched forward.

She wouldn't dare...

Her fingers twitched as the warm glow covered them.

Don't do it.

DO IT.

NO. STOP.

TOUCH IT ALREADY!!!

Her hand slammed against the carving.

Immediately, Swift felt her palm be forcefully pressed against the wall, the skin tightly affixed to the stone surface like metal to a magnet. With her hand stuck there, the light rapidly drained from the carving and flowed into her arm. A sharp, intense, THROBBING, AGONIZING BURN COURSED THROUGH HER BODY, surging through her arm, down her chest, and finally gathering in her stomach, the fiery sensation so powerful that the silvery glow was shining through her skin as it ignited her veins. The excruciating pain forced the air out of Swift's lungs, released in a gush of bubbles and a muted, gargled, bloodcurdling scream of torture, soon followed by her pressing the soles of her feet against the wall in a desperate attempt to pry her hand free.

[ParamountKeymaster]

Vutezoth's chance to pursue Swift into the water was cut off when Ranuen charged at him, making a big enough leap to reach his face and aim his fiery sword at his eye. He just barely reacted in time to avoid being stabbed in the socket, reeling back, twisting around and quickly lunging forward again. In one fluid motion, he grabbed the burning blade with his teeth, swung it and its wielder in a wide arc, then threw them against a wall, the dragon himself receiving minimal damage in the process.

"Insolent human..." Vutezoth snarled through a fanged smirk. "An acid potent enough to melt the flesh off your bones flows through my veins. Do you honestly believe a little fire is going to destroy me?"

He swiped his claws, aiming to slice the swordsman open, only for Ranuen to roll out of the way and make a run for it. As Vutezoth pursued him, a noxious, acidic fog billowed from the dragon's mouth, quickly filling the room with its potent stench. "I smell the magic coursing through you, little one. It must be such a pain to have to constantly, consciously channel that much power. Will be a pity when it runs out. You'll have so much less nutritional value then, won't you?"

His attention briefly flicked towards the water, where bubbles were erupting in sync with a barely audible yet bone-chilling scream deep below. The half breed seemed to have gotten herself in a rather unpleasant position, and Vutezoth was actually quite giddy to find out what it was. If only this pest would relent long enough for him to take a look...

[ColArana]

Well.... That plan had bombed. His thrust had ALMOST made it, but the next moment, Ranuen found the blade seized between Vutezoth's fangs. The swordsman hung onto his blade for dear life; Literally, as it so happened, as while Ranuen could still fight without his blade, he was a swordsman first. Even with his blade, Vutezoth was a formidable opponent. Without it, he knew he'd stand no chance. Fortunately, Ranuen was also as tough as nails, and while he was bodily slammed into a wall at high velocity, he didn't seem all that bad off for it either. But that was small comfort, as Vutezoth was clearly not particularly hurt by his own attacks.

"Well, kinda, yeah, that was the hope." Ranuen responded, half snark, half in a tone that suggested the next few minutes were going to suck for him.

The dragon attacked, Ranuen barely avoiding its claw swipes. He tried to gain some distance, to regain his composure and come up with a new plan, but it looked like he wasn't getting that luxury. As Vutezoth attempted to start filling the room with the fog, Ranuen leaped upwards-- a surprisingly good leap for a human, powered, no doubt by the magic enhancing his physical abilities. He sprang up to a wall, and with a loud battlecry, slammed his fist against the stones. The impact split the skin of his hand, and caused some minor bleeding, but it also shattered the flagstone he had struck, allowing Ranuen to create a handhold in the wall. There he hung, like some awkward ornament on the wall, blade ready in his free hand, trying to stay above Vutezoth's fog. The dragon continued to taunt Ranuen and the swordsman gave a half-hearted grin.

"You have no idea how right you are about that...." He answered, bringing his blade up. Even if fire wasn't working well, it could at least do a little bit, and keep Vutezoth distracted. Hurry up Swift.... Ranuen thought as he performed several cuts, and threw a scattershot of fireballs Vutezoth's way. Vutezoth may have wanted to look in on what Swift was up to, but regardless, Ranuen wasn't going to give him time. Even while on the back foot, the swordsman was alert-- looking for any opening he could use to turn the tide of the battle.

[Pink Moon Wolf]

Thrashing, yanking, mouth open in a silent cry of agony despite having no air left with which to scream, Swift could do nothing except try again and again to remove her hand from the wall. Her strength alone wasn't doing it, as her palm was still tightly plastered to the stone surface, still absorbing the silver light from the carving, and no amount of effort on her part could separate them. On top of that, the burning sensation and the lack of oxygen were starting to take their toll on her, with each pull and every stroke steadily growing weaker and weaker.

All too soon, Swift grew still, too exhausted to yank anymore. Her body limply drifted there in the water, hand still firmly attached to the wall while the rest of her ebbed and flowed with the gentle current. With her eyes barely open, all she could see was the silver glow as it faded from the carvings and illuminated her arm. While the pain hadn't vanished, she had finally succumbed to it, mentally growing numb to the fire in her stomach and the void in her lungs.

Then the light vanished entirely, turning the waters dark again. At that moment, Swift's hand gently slid off the wall and drifted away.

...........................

......................................................

.................................................................................

Her liberation occurred to Swift very slowly. Still clinging desperately to consciousness, she stared at her hand, finally realizing it was no longer clinging to the stone, then lifted her head and gazed into the dim light shining above the waters. She couldn't stay there. She could move again. She had to... get... to the... surface...

With one measly stroke after the other, Swift began a slow, weary climb towards the top of the pool. Towards sweet freedom. It felt so close... yet the outside world only seemed to grow blurrier in her eyes...

Almost there, Swift...

Almost there...

Keep... going...

Gotta get...

...out...

...of...