[center][color=Gold][h3]Ialu[/h3][/color] Level 4 Demigod, 5.5 Might [h3]Vestec, God of Chaos[/h3] [i]Invidia, the Liaison, level 25 Hero[/i] [/center] [hider=Summary] [list] [*] Vestec mocks Ialu and attempts to pit him against Invidia in a mutually spiteful telepathic conversation. He does warn Ialu that Invidia doesn't want to simply heal him, though. [*] Ialu demands to hear Invidia's thoughts on Vestec as well as what his intentions are regarding the healing. [*] After some dialogue Ialu eventually decided to allow Invidia to heal him and remove some of the chaos in him from the Blade of Chaos, Vestec's blood, etc. [*] Vestec finally admits to not being the Mighty One [*] Invidia is relieved and gives Ialu the Fulcrum, that old cane he had after the Anju attack. [*] Vestec offers his help if Invidia and Ialu pray to him. [*] A procedure is performed at the convoy that mostly purifies Ialu of Vestec's taint. [/list] [/hider] [i]Ialu...[/i] Vestec's croon echoed in the demigod's mind. [i]Ialu...are we awake now? My, my. It seems like Thulemiz did quite the damage to you while winning that battle. Tell, me you do realize you're being manipulated, correct? You are aware of what you're being used for, right?[/i] As Ialu was weakly being dragged away by the monks of the Sanguine Communion, he was only too lucid to brood about his near victory and feel the crippling pain. His outer body was certainly not pretty yet it had been mostly repaired, yet his more delicate innards were damaged. Had he been a mortal that still relied upon such organs, he would surely be dead by now. When the voices began echoing in his mind he had to question himself whether he was merely hallucinating, but soon enough he responded. What better things did he have to do while he was in such a pitiful state? Regardless, he wasn't about to plead, grovel, whine, or otherwise give the tormenting voice any satisfaction. [i]"Thulemiz did nothing. It was your Blade of Chaos that failed me and did this."[/i] [i]"Failed? The blade, scepter I should say, did exactly what you wanted it to do. You used it as a weapon to destroy an enemy, and it could only do one thing with Ferghus' curse. Explode. If it makes you feel any better that warlord, Kanros I think his name was, is in just a terrible state as you are. Regardless, that's not why I started talking to you. Manipulation. You recognize it when it's happening to you, correct?"[/i] [i]"The Life God's minions will help me kill the ones that I hate and that you allow, probably even order, to challenge me. I will play their game, they will aid me in forcing the rest of the world unto their knees, and then it will be only them and I that remain standing. What do you think I will do when that happens?"[/i] Ialu weakly laughed to himself at the thought, though it came out as more of a hoarse cough. A bit of blood dribbled down his face. Vestec laughed. Not his usual giggle, an actual laugh. Malicious and mocking. [i]I don't have favorites, Ialu. Aztoc leapt at an opportunity without my orders or nudging. Even I was surprised. Speaking of him, we both know what would have happened had you simply flown back to Garakai and confronted him. He would have either knelt and begged for forgiveness, upon which you would have killed him, or desperately tried to fight you, upon which you would have killed him.[/i] [i]"But now, now you've backed him into a corner. You've given him time, Ialu. He has prayed to all the Gods, offering whatever we desire in return for our aid. Most of us have answered his prayers. He is no longer a cornered rat. He is a lion, with claws and teeth and a willingness to fight. And who convinced you to merely march to Garakai rather than dealing with Aztoc yourself? Invidia. The monk. The outsider. What's more, you're letting him heal you. He is going to do more than heal you, I'm afraid.[/i] [i]Break down what you are, turn you into something more...obedient. How to put this in terms that won't enrage you as badly...you're going to become his little dog. 'Go Ialu, kill my enemies for me!' 'Heel Ialu, Aztoc can wait we need an army!' 'Remember Ialu, even though Vestec gave you his blood to give you your powers, he is your enemy!' Aztoc wasn't your enemy. He wasn't even a threat. It would have taken you a couple days to fly to him, and a few seconds to kill him. Perhaps you can resist what is coming, but I doubt it. Oh! Don't let yourself be inducted into the ranks of the Sanguine Communion. It would be...painful."[/i] Vestec giggled in sadistic anticipation. Ialu looked over to the figure of Invidia, mere feet away. He briefly contemplated taking the monk by surprise right then and there and killing him. His body was in a horrific state yet his Wi was strong...given the element of surprise, he could do it. But he wouldn't; Vestec had spoken of manipulation in the very same breath that he attempted to manipulate. [i]"The scared little mice cower in the darkness of my deepest cellars and survive; the lions with claws and teeth have their pelts on my wall. If Aztoc truly is a lion now, then I will merely make his death all the more horrific for his defiance. Then all will see that pleading with the gods will spare them none of my wrath. The world and my reputation shall be better for it!"[/i] Notably Ialu did not so much as address the talk of Invidia. The monk sang one song and Vestec sang another, while Ialu was quickly losing his trust in both. Was it not odd that the one claiming to be the Mighty One was worshiped by others as 'Vestec', and that he called Ialu by name rather than as 'son'? Bah, the warlord was in no mood for thinking, so he simply stared. He stared at Invidia with a piercing, unfaltering, perhaps even eery or threatening gaze. He was not so sure that Vestec's concerns about him being changed were true, yet he would be wary nonetheless. As the Sanguine Communion hauled Ialu along, its leader was lost in thought. Invidia had thought that he and his soldiers were the deciding factor in the war. He had thought that whomever the chosen of Escre sided with would tip the scales in their favor. Looking at the situation now, it seemed that he couldn't have thought more wrongly. Just as with most wars, as Invidia was beginning to realize, this one had no winner. He had known from the start that the entire conflict had been orchestrated by Vestec, a puppet show to entertain him with vainglorious mortals who each imagined themselves the masters of their fates. Now, with Thulemiz forever tainted, his blight strong enough to make even outsiders the most infallible of servants, and Ialu nearly obliterated, Invidia knew that his assumptions had been wrong. Even if his monks had made a difference, what then? Vestec would arrive and defile them as well. Maybe they already had. There was no destiny where opposing the devil would ever pay off. Wryly, Invidia marveled at the hidden wisdom of Escre: there was no winning, and the only way to avoid losing was to not take a side. The outsider glanced at Ialu and found the wounded warlord staring at him with a surprising and ominous intensity. Invidia almost flinched; he knew that gods could read minds, but could demigods share the same trait? Could he know what Invidia was reluctantly planning? It made the outsider worry. In older times, there had been heroes, but now...from what Invidia's crimson eye had beheld in the last battle, Ialu, Thulemiz, and even Kanros and Mirtagn no longer stood at his level. Though he had been among the first, Invidia was now the weakest. Bitterly, Invidia applauded the fact that he hadn't fully developed a sense of pride. It would have been injured indeed to realize that despite his best efforts, he was most likely powerless to affect much of anything. Even his trump card, calling upon Escre, would not avail him with the Great Spirit otherwise engaged. What if his planned treatment failed? If Ialu didn't kill him immediately, which was certainly possible now that he himself had lifeblood, Invidia would become merely an accessory to the insatiable thirst for conquest within the warlord. The brute would never understand that Invidia's actions would be a service for him. Ignorance, Invidia supposed for Ialu, was bliss. "Halt." The procession stopped. Invidia met Ialu's gaze. If the outsider had a face, it would have been mournful. Ialu suddenly used his telepathy to communicate with the hero and make a strange and perhaps alarming inquiry, [i]"Invidia, tell me more of Vestec. What game does he play?"[/i] For a moment the outsider was startled, but he was willing to oblige. [i]"Vestec has chosen the role of the devil. If something exists, he is compelled to exert his influence on it. Think of a child with a paintbrush, and a neverending supply of rancid, black paint. Now give that child the power to do anything, and the overwhelming urge to paint everything. Other High Ones create. He only contorts and destroys, and not in a petty manner. A bad god would kill a hero that opposes him. An evil god would egg that hero on, filling him with corruption and violence and hatred and desire, until he was everything that he originally opposed. And then he would giggle, like a pack of mad hyenas swilled with venom, and move on to the next victim. There are no friends, no sanctuaries, no orders, no countries, no planets, no gods, and no men for the Execrable One. There are only toys. The game he plays is the universe."[/i] Vestec chuckled. [i]How flattering. He's wrong though. Not everything in this universe is a mere toy to me. And I do create. He just wasn't alive for the Dyun. Nor has he met the Vork or the Bodi.[/i] Ialu retorted mentally to Vestec, [i]"Yes, your Dyun were truly a gift to the world. The only fond memories of them that I possess are of smashing their skulls in."[/i] His stare towards Invidia at last relented, only to drift towards the Blade of Chaos. Or at least what remained of it, the handle of the broken scepter that remained in his hand. Violently and without warning, Ialu stabbed it into the ground. He then used it as a lever to rise to his feet unaided by the monks nearby. He looked towards Invidia with the same gaze as before, even more imposing when he stood taller than all around. [i]"And what game do you play, Invidia? I know that you seek to do more than merely heal me.[/i] Ialu conveyed only certainty in his telepathy, though inside he knew not whether Vestec had lied to him or not. He would act sure of his accusation though. If Invidia was innocent he would deny it vehemently, and if he were guilty, he would surely perceive some sort of stammering excuse as futile and admit only truth. It seemed that Invidia's fears hadn't been speculation, but reality. Invidia resigned himself to coming clean with his plan. [i]"You are correct. I had thought, if such a thing were possible, to try and bring you back better than before. There are some tasks that take a little more than rage and muscle, and I had hoped to share with you some of my insight and intelligence. I had also hoped to cull your undying thirst for conquest, or if I could not, make sure that when your conquest is complete that your rule would be a benevolent one. But I am observant, and I've seen that I am the least of the players in this game. I'm not even sure my plan would have worked."[/i] No doubt Ialu's rage was mounting. Invidia did not care so much if Ialu killed him; his was an immortal soul, and the Astral Home would ensure his incarnation as per Escre's decree. The Liaison of the god of Life, after all, would not be tainted with the second-rate undeath haphazardly strewn together by Thulemiz. So Invidia continued. [i]"I was created for the purpose of informing Escre of the goings-on in the world, but the world is more complicated than I imagined. And Escre has gone to find a solution to the problem of rampant gods, so I am alone. In my solitude I have labored for the only purpose I know: to make sure life goes on. I do not know yet if you are the man who will enslave the world, warlord Ialu, or the man who will unite the world. I wanted to try and push you toward the latter."[/i] The monks around the two were silent, but clearly distressed. They knew that their leader had a bond with the god of Life, but this? They had not dreamed of it. And yet, they knew that they shared in Invidia's purpose. They too were guardians of life. But would Ialu see the same way? Most times Ialu's eyes glowered with a fire that betrayed his intentions all too easily, but now they were the blue that he had once had before his ascension. They were like dirty slates of ice, concealing more than they showed. Perhaps a great rage was indeed creeping up and he was about to obliterate everyone within his sight, but at the same tme, he had a deathly calm about him. As he continued to stare in silence, his men began to file in. They outnumbered and surrounded the monks, unsure of what to make of their leader's silent stare. For now they remained unthreatening in posture and such. After a long time seemingly deep in thought, Ialu replied at last, [i]"Your deceit incenses me and harms your cause more than it helps. Yet Vestec is also deceitful in his dealing with me and I have begun to question whatever loyalty to him that I once held. He does not sound much like my Father, the Mighty One. No doubt you will have heard of how I spat in the face of Ferghus himself. So why not Vestec as well? Invidia, know that I wield more than strength and hatred, yet know also the truth in your words. Such traits drown out my intelligence and cunning, debilitating me and ruining my potential. The chaos in my blood is what makes me wroth and instinctive. It is a strength but also a weakness. I will permit you to attempt to remove the chaos and turmoil within me and heal my wounds, but no more than that!"[/i] Vestec giggled for a long time in Ialu's mind, absurdly amused by the turn of events. [i]I suppose I couldn't keep the charade up much longer. No, I'm not your Mighty One. I am merely the God of Chaos, and what a fine chaos you have created my friend. The Chaos in your blood is your godly blood, I'm afraid. I will help Invidia though. When he removes the Chaos, it will willingly separate from my blood inside of you, leaving you a Demi-God...and perhaps more. I need someone to oppose this chaos now that you and Thulemiz are heading towards not fighting anymore, and Invidia simply isn't the leader of men I thought he'd be.[/i] There was once a time when Ialu would have seethed with rage or even went into denial upon hearing Vestec admit his lies, but it was nothing that he hadn't expected. In any case, the demigod fellt only exhaustion and a grim determinatino to see Aztoc dead. He could only fantasize about taking his revenge one day, but that day would be many years to come. Following his giving of what was surely a surprsing answer to Invidia, Ialu limped closer to Invidia and then struggled to sit back down upon the ground. From below he could look up to Invidia and perhaps begrudge the Liaison some respect. He was more powerful and more important than he gave himself credit for, but Ialu would voice no such thing. It was humiliating enough to require healing from the monk; he would not give the appearance of any further submission or groveling on his part. For the first time in a while, the Liaison felt alright. Perhaps there was the ghost of a chance of things turning out alright after all. If Ialu was willing to be expunged of Vestec, then there was finally a side in this conflict that was 'good'. As the warlord seated himself, Invidia bowed. [i]"That is more than enough. I will remove Vestec's touch from you, but I will not attempt to put Escre's in its place. You will be free to stand on your own. Until then, take this."[/i] Escre removed the handle of his axe from its place on his belt, and placed it before Ialu. [i]"It is not befitting of a warrior to be dragged along the ground or leaning on another's shoulder. This is the Fulcrum. It is part of my war-axe, but before that, it was an item that I used to move when my body was wounded and ill thanks to one of Vestec's assassins. It represents the determination to keep moving when the body would rather be still."[/i] With the offering, the tension of the surroundings lessened somewhat. Invidia began to turn away, for the convoy that contained much of the group's supplies and equipment was hidden nearby, but thinking of something else, he had one more thing to say. "In a short time, you will have the means, the mind -one free of chaotic influence- and the mission to potentially unite the world. If anything permits the ascension of a demigod to godhood, it would be such a thing. I wonder over what would you preside, Ialu...?" Ialu responded to Invidia, [i]"Does your eye not tell you all that you need to know, Outsider?"[/i] After that cryptic comment, the warlord couldn't help but laugh a bit. The agonizing chortle made him cough up blood, which soon fell to the ground and began to sizzle and writhe as if boiling. A foul black vapor wafted up from the stuff, a reminder that there was still all too much chaos within the demigod. This proceeding was all very strange to the freshly arriving hunters. They could not hear their master's telepathy, but the one called Invidia had a voice that resonated clearly enough. He spoke of removing the touch of Vestec? This very confusing indeed to many of the hunters who revered the Mighty One and thought Vestec to be merely another name for that exalted being, but then again, in times more recent the tribe had noticeably shifted towards worship of Ialu as much if not moreso than the demigod's father. In the end, some were still uneasy, though they dared not speak out or challenge their leader. His policy of terror might not have held Invidia's deceit in check, but it seemed effective enough on most humans. Aztoc being the exception, of course, though he was more worm than human in the eyes of the warlord... Ialu wordlessly released his hold on the broken scepter and accepted the Fulcrum. Using his Wi, he wreathed the broken Blade of Chaos in a great deal of magic. The air around the thing shimmered and then it was gone, teleported somewhere safe and far away from the warlord. In its current state it would do him no good and only debilitate his purging of the chaos within. Perhaps in time he would return for the artifact and reforge it into something that obeyed his will without attempting to poison his own mind, but until that time, it would remain far from the hands of him or any other. Many times the warlord had struggled to cease his usage of the Blade of Chaos albeit without ever succeeding for long. This time would be different, though. Vestec spoke in both the hero's minds this time, amusement and anticipation practically radiating off of the mental voice. [i]Do your work quickly, Invidia. Aztoc awaits. Also, if either of you can swallow your pride long enough, a prayer for my aid would be answered. I wouldn't just give you victory, of course. But perhaps I would bring Aztoc to the earth, or lessen the horde that stands between you and him, or maybe even give you an army of your own...Remember, I don't have favorites.[/i] With another giggle, the God of Chaos fell silent. Soon after, the envoy arrived at the convoy, and the procedure began.