[center][sup][ [b]OOC: [/b]Switching to third person because it feels like the right time to do so! ][/sup][/center]

Fear did not come from skeletal shapes or strange gardens of the dead. Fear, for the Shield, was rooted in the unknown. The Shield did not want to be forgotten any more than they wanted to forget themselves. It was one thing to be unknown by everyone else - but to lack even their own name had shaken them to the core.

The Shield was not fazed, then, by the sudden change in scenery or the unreal appearance of the two foxes. They stepped forwards when beckoned, because at least this was something, at least this was a purpose, even if only for now...

When the Shield's name came back, it came with a bang.

[i]Akshay Daŭra.[/i]

The haze of uncertainty lifted. So, too, did the wreath of shadows that had been roiling around Akshay's body and mind like an unwanted cloak. His stance instantly shifted from closed-in and uneasy to a steadfast, relaxed warrior's position. He knew enough now to know that was his default, and it fit him like a glove.

So too did the material of his artfully-stitched trousers, and the soft leather comfort wrap he wore on his shield arm. He had a shirt, too, but at some point he'd foregone wearing it and had instead tied it around his waist, wrinkling the sleeves irreparably - not that he minded. He was also barefoot, which was... interesting, and he made a note to remedy this later.

[color=fdc68a]"Why am I here?"[/color] He spared a glance to the other strange wanderer that - he now understood - had been trying to save him from this strange skeletal being. [color=fdc68a]"Why are they here? Did we not fight true enough?"[/color]