"OOOHHFFF!!!" the force from Gor's other fist sent the Tempest flying right into the path of Burlo's magical spikes. With deadly accuracy, they sank into Sovelis' flesh and boared deeply into him. With a loud crash, he hit the ground and skidded across the stone-slabbed floor for a few yards.

"D-didn't think that the drunk could do s-something like that..." With blood dripping from the several holes in his chest and back, Sovelis stood up and looked at Kasei. "Why do you allways seem to apear wherever I go?" he said, spitting a glob of blood on the white stone. "I should have killed you when I had the chance, it seems."

Another sword formed from his inner darkness was in Sovelis' right hand, inky blackness dripping from it like blood. "But first I will have to cut through the Stars. I will have the knowledge of Nayru one way or another!!!" Feet a blackened blur, the Tempest attacked his goron advisary with blade and magic. With a slash of the sword from a few yards away, he sent a wave of shadow at Gor. As that attack rushed at its intended target, Sovelis moved to attack from the rear.

This was one of the moments when Seth was especially glad he was psychic. He had already grabbed Arrika and dragged them a few steps back, and as they leaned behind one of the great white pillars of the temple Sovelis unnecessarily put himself in the way of the attack.

"No. Just kill them and be done with it. We'll be fine," Seth called back, and they both cringed as Sovelis was hurt by Burlo. Arrika made a move as if to run towards him, but Seth held her arm in an iron grip.

"Gah, useless, useless, useless..." Seth mumbled under his breath, drawing four throwing knives with rings on the handles so they hooked through his fingers. Arrika didn't know whether he was calling her useless or himself, or just contemplating the whole situation. "We'll take Burlo," he hissed to her. "Just duck when I tell you and you'll be fine."

A second later his daggers went flying out towards Burlo, aiming straight for his heart. Arrika focused her energy into the shadows of the room. The small amounts of darkness in the temple collected together into a pitch-black pool that wrapped itself around Burlo's legs, attempting to pin him in place so Seth would have a better chance.

Gor Gigan smiled slightly as his fist sent Sovelis into Burlo's attack. The rock behemoth stood tall, and stared at Sovelis, who was getting up. The very next moment, however, the Tempest tossed a beam of darkness at Gor Gigan, who would not fare well against such an attack. The Goron flung up his arms in defence.

Not that it was needed. A barrier made up of light energy appeared in front of Gor Gigan, and dissapitated the darkness. The seven star goron looked confused for a second, then seemed to remember that his allies were here. Xanatos was the one who set up the shield. The rock beast looked reasurred, and lowered it's guard, lifting it's metal arm, and smashing it into the ground.

A severe earthquake followed, one that didn't seem to bother Kasei, Burlo or Xanatos, but would most certainly unbalance the others, primarily Sovelis.

At the same time, Kasei waited, and watched...

Arrika lost her focus for a second, the shadows around Burlo quivering, and she hoped Seth's attack had made its mark anyway. Now she remembered why she detested Gorons- to a skinny thief as weak as she, they were practically invincible, walking mountains that could run through brick walls with a smile. Seth had already cringed, expecting the earthquake, and on a whim grabbed the person closest to him for dear life, which happened to be Arrika. Their teeth chattered in their skulls, and a large crack spread across the cold floors of the temple. A length of the shadows Arrika was controlling latched on to Sovelis for a moment to steady him, as he wasn't as nimble as his two young students.

Xanatos-he'd set up the shield, Seth deduced, and calling up a simple fire ball sent it flying towards him. Like Rhyss's spell it split into three separate orbs that whizzed through the air and illuminated the room briefly before making acute turns and heading straight for him.

Burlo didn't see the knives as the hurtled towards him. However, he did catch a lucky break--The fact that Arrika had attempted to improve Seth's chances of hitting only made the drunk aware that he was under attack. He saw the shadows gathering around him and out of instinct a blue crystal formed around him for a brief second, whirling as it deflected the blades headed towards him, knocking them this way and that. As the weapons clattered to the floor, he pinpointed the location of his attackers--Behind a pillar. The earthquake that arrived soon afterward didn't shake him in the slightest, another unintended benefit of Arrika's 'attack'. Eyeing the two younger fighters, he felt a twinge of regret. He knew the girl. She was a friend of Saber's. There was no way she could actually mean for this to happen--she must just be confused, that was all. Still, they had attacked him with the intention of murder...He couldn't have that. The drunk made up his mind again, and lifted his staff, pointing it straight towards the two. The blue aura once again gathered at the tip of his staff, and he muttered another phrase behind his hair, this spell taking much less time than the last. The blue mass rocketed off his weapon, spreading out wide, into a net-like shape--a wall. It halted before Arrika and Seth, circling around them and enclosing the pair in a small space. He had just cast a protective spell on his enemies, effectively closing them off from the battle at hand.

Now he turned back to his main enemy, Sovelis. He had hit--He knew that much. He had intended to cause injury, and he had. His attack was precise, not one bit of it wasted. Burlo didn't know why, but he felt...Sober. His mind had been unclouded since the battle began, and remained that way now. He wasn't sure what had caused this bizarre change in cognition, but he would milk it for all it was worth. He decided to reply to the Tempest, however late he may have been. He still remembered his foe's every word after being injured. "Yer right, heathen. I cud'n't do summat like dat. However, Nayru could. She lent me dat strength, and I's sure as 'ell usin' it to stop you from gettin' it fer yer evil self!"

Sovelis smiled as he felt something stop him from toppling over. Thanks Arrika... I'll have to use my new technique though if I want to get out of here. I cannot let any of them know about the Limit Seals on me right now... His thoughts where jumbled slightly as he prepeared to launch one last assault before chosing to retreat. I might get one or two of them with this... but I'll need a sword with a physical presence, not this shadow blade. As he told himself that, the sword in his hand disolved back into nothingness. "Impressive. I did not think that you all would have so much power. But never the less, I must try to win. Even if it means letting you all see my secret technique..."

A bright flash of light shone in front of the Tempest, just far enough for him to reach out and grab it. "I can command any of the six elements, not just Shadow. But to end this, I must draw my blade instead and wield it with the skills that I have mastered." he reached into the light, and pulled out his most potent weapon- The Tempest Blade. "This sword is the most coveted weapon that was forged by the swordsmiths of days long ago. It is a blade crafted with the essence of the Tempest in its steel, making it a deadly tool in my hands. And I have finally mastered one of the ancient techniques that had been developed for this sword."

Sovelis held his sword in his right hand, his feet spread apart in a stance that spoke of the skill that he indeed has mastered. "First act; Dance of Thirteen Blades, OPEN!!!" Suddenly, twelve similar blades formed in the air, all of them swirling around Sovelis. He stepped forward, and was already next to Gor. "I am sorry that I have to do this... BUT YOU MUST DIE!!!" he roaed as he spun, weaving around the Goron with all thirteen of his swords attacking in unison.

Seth's spell was well thought-out. Any normal shield would fall for it. Of course, Xanatos was nowhere near normal. No sooner had the fireballs dispatched than they were stopped by what appeared to be a stronger shield. The fire attack did not simply dispers on contact, but instead seemed to grow slower, spreading across the shield like water. The flames turned aqua blue, and became nothing more than a puddle at the former location of Xanatos' feet, as he was gone.

It had already been assesed, of course, that Gor Gigan was no defender. As Sovelis danced around the immortal steel, every blade pierced the Goron, who became as dust, and became a flow of sand on the wind, being whisked away.

At the same time, Seth, Arrika and Sovelis all noticed at once. The scenery seemed to be changing, the temple walls becomeing contorted and stretching. As Sovelis looked down on his own arms, both metal and real, they began growing longer and heavier, soon becoming piles of string rope at his sides.

Seth's body seemed to be contorting, his middle was becoming increasingly smaller while the rest of him expanded. Arrika suffered the same effect in reverse.

The world itself was twisting, and was becoming an incomprehensible nightmare.

They were now in the strange, contorted landscape that was Sovelis' home city. It was being destroyed by none other than Sovelis himself, as was the whole world, and the Tempest order. Sovelis' family, freinds, all he knew were dying all over again.

"Welcome," A voice said, " . . . to the world of Xanatos, the eye of deiciet."

With his twelve blades still dancing around him, his feet a few inches from the ruined soil, and his thirteenth sword gripped tightly in his hand, Sovelis chuckled loudly at the scene around him. Death. Carnage. Chaos. Destruction. All of this had been plucked from the depths of his memories. "Very impressive. Such accuracy and detail. No wonder your one of the Seven Stars, Xanatos." he yelled, looking around for anything that didn't belong here. "But this isn't real. This is my memory. I don't hold an regret in what happened those thirty-odd years ago. If you are going to do something, then do it now and get it over with!!!"

The knives may have been useless, but Seth had already known that would happen. He jerked on Arrika's vest, hissing, "Now!"

The shadows that had saved Burlo from the earthquake elongated and wrapped around the man's throat, attempting to strangle him to death.

"What are you doing?!" Seth demanded.

"Trying to kill him-" Arrika responded, but the boy cut her off.

"-No, you're not. You're trying to save him by making him just pass out." Seth hissed, his grip on her tightening as if he were trying to choke her to death himself. They both knew the psychic spoke the truth. "What's wrong? Just kill him!"

At that moment the temple began to invert, and the green-haired thief lost his bravado. He was in one of the places he dreaded most- Sovelis's mind. He sank to the ground and shut his eyes tightly, mumbling under his breath wildly. Arrika inhaled sharply, the stench of death filling her senses. She looked down at Seth, not sure whether to comfort him or just leave him be.

As Sovelis watched, and showed off his signs of courage, the white-clad figure of Xanatos appeared in front of him. The man held a large, white sword, one seen in ceremonies in the temple. "Oh, you do not seem to understand." Xanatos said, as Sovelis' twelve blades turned to point at him. "This is all quite real, and am already doing something." He said, as the swords pushed forward, and pierced Sovelis' continually contorting body.

"You may not know it, but this is your real body I am contorting. What I am doing right now, actually, is simple; I am altering your bodies. You probably see a distorted world around you. This is simply your minds playing tricks. It happens often to those who suffer this torture. Do you know what is happening, Sovelis? You are, right now," He says, as the blades go deeper, "In so much pain that it doesn't even register in your subconcious. Your bodies," He says again, looking at Arrika and Seth, "Are really being disfigured. These images you might be seeing is your own mind releasing memories brought on by this unknowable pain. Once I finish this spell, it will be as if every single molecule in your body was ripped apart, and then placed back in the wrong way, Tempest."

OOC: Now, of course, he's lying to you. Or, at least, is partially lying to you. Just do what you think is the way out.

OoC:Isn't this god-modding?!If it isn't,then I shall challenge Seth to a duel.I want to kill someone.

Sovelis spat more blood from his mouth. "Hehehe... I've had worse done to me before... I've died countless times and come back from each of those stronger than ever..." he coughed and more blood began to pour from between his lips. "If you...*gasp* think that I will stop here Holy Man, then you are sadly mistaken."

The twelve swords slowly began to pull themselves back out of Sovelis' body, blood on the steel blades dripping on the ruined soil and the black robes of their master. "Even here, my power is still flowing from me... like blood from an open wound. That move was one of three sword techniques that I have developed. Now, even with all of this damage that has been inflicted on me, I can still fight... And you will see the second part of my swordstyle.

Sovelis pointed the sword in his hand at Xanatos, and smiled wickedly. "Second Act: Dance of Thirty-Nine Blades, OPEN!" The number of swords in the air trippled in an instant. The only way to tell these new blades apart from the first thirteen was that the new ones didn't have blood on them. "This is the second dance...do try to keep up..." He said, rushing at his Hylian foe with all thirty-nine swords ready to kill.

OoC: Do I even bother..? Go ahead... don't get mad if Seth is his usual rude self... He was lying. Kasei said so.

IC: Arrika went a shade paler than she already was, if that was even possible. Now she recalled why she detested magic sometimes- hand-to-hand combat was a lot more straightforward, there weren't any mind tricks or illusions... "I don't even remember why we're here anymore..." she whispered to Seth, wishing she were more than just a common thief who knew a few magic tricks so she could help Sovelis. All she could do was stand and watch, maybe strangle a fat cleric or two, but compared to the abilities of Xanatos and Sovelis Burlo was an ant.

"I already know how I'm going to die," Seth hissed. "And this isn't it. He's lying," he said, more to assure Arrika than himself, as his future might as well be set in stone by then.

"Seth-" Arrika said, gripping his arm, "Tell me- what's going to happen?"

"Now, where's the fun in that...? Life should be full of surprises. Keeps it interesting."

Deku Scrub 12 wrote:OoC:Isn't this god-modding?!If it isn't,then I shall challenge Seth to a duel.I want to kill someone.

OOC: It's not god-moding because he didn't make their characters do anything. He simply described what his character's action did to them. Now if he said how they reacted to it, that would have been god-moding.

IC: "Wha...What're ye doin', mate?" the cleric muttered stupidly, his expression one of awe. He didn't see anything, but it appeared the others were...hallucinating. He didn't want any mercy for the heathenous Sovelis, but the others...He didn't want them dead. There were other punishments for those who opposed Nayru to a lesser extent than the Tempest had done. The drunk turned to Kasei and Gor, looking to them for answers. "Wha's he doin'? He ain't gonna kill 'em, izzy?" He felt the fervor of battle leaving him, replaced with something like anticipation and fear.

Kasei turned to face Burlo. "No, my freind, Xokorn will not permit such. You see, just like you, he is a direct servant of Nayru, and follows her will. Nayru is not the merciless one, I can assure you. Xanatose himself is not coldblooded. He will only resort to murder if their is no other way." Kasei reasured the cleric, while Gor Gigan simply tended the few wounds he had.

Xanatos faced Sovelis, his own shining sword in his hands. "I have he ability to warp your mind and creat unbreakable barriers around myself. It does not matter how strong you think you are, Tempest, your abilities do not match up to me, who has had two thousand years of experience" The eye of desciet said, standing still.

OOC: Now, you get pissed and kill things, am I right?