[center][h2]Yesaris Week[/h2][/center]

[hr]

It was a silent night.

Not even the wind yet stirred amongst the Eidolon Plains, not even the great saltlands to the south of a lonely tribe, which consisted of not even fifty souls, stirred in that silent night. It was still dark as well, the great and indomidatable clouds over them had yet to disappear and it had not for untold suns; suns, which not even they could not track. They had been surviving but just barely - herds feeding on what long grasses could be found along the plains’ southern border, not that there was much to begin with. Despite the situation, the people of the tribe slept soundly enough knowing that they would just need to continue their trek to the east.

Yet, it was that dead of night where an Eidolon stumbled out of the salt-filled deserts, on the verge of starvation and dehydration with the prospect of death quickly following behind him. This did not go unnoticed by a sentry, a scrawny man by the name of Asur, who roused the sleeping people before running to the aid of the man from the desert. Once the sentry reached the man, the stranger collapsed and fell into the arms of Asur who looked back and with a worried voice, “Water! Grab water!”

As someone ran to fetch the life-giving substance, Asur was able to look upon the man and notice how beautiful that he truly was, even in this state of near death. He was transfixed on the man for a moment until another had come barring a small bowl of water of which the stranger eagerly drank and in its entirety before two others came to take the stranger away for some much needed rest. Yet, Asur’s eyes could not stop looking upon the beautiful man, staring upon the man until he was out of sight and then roused from a hand shaking his shoulder. 

“Asur, are you okay?” asked a familiar voice. 

He turned his head to meet the view of his woman, Styx, who had given him a worried look due to his blatant dissociation. His response required no words as he took her bronze-skinned hand before bringing it to his cheek and giving it a singular kiss. Asur gave her a warm smile that was all the answer that she needed, allowing a moment to pass before she would take back her hand and begin walking back to the tribe. His mind began to travel back to the aesthetic man getting lost in trance once more; ponderance had begun to take his mind as the strange person consumed his thoughts. 

[i]’How could a being be so beautiful?’[/i]

That was the question to which Asur pondered as his mind tried to wrap around the man as it was less so that the man in question was extremely attractive. Rather, the man was simply unnaturally beautiful, so much so that he did not even look to be a true Eidolon but a replication of one of his own kind. Perhaps he was being too harsh in his line of thinking, but one could never be too sure during these dark times where the unnatural loomed around every petal of grass. It just seemed so strange that an Eidolon would come from the salt desert, to which no life could go into without dying; where only the dead of his tribe would venture out to. Asur had his suspicions, but he was taken away from his thoughts when the clouds began to give way to a full moon, bathing the plains in its beautiful light. 

Asur could almost smile, though a shrill scream cut through his relief before further screaming and yelling came from his people. He stood frozen as he saw dozens of abominations lung from the tall grasses, chasing down any and all in their path. The creatures had fangs longer than any creature he had seen and their visages were more terrifying than any darkness that he could have lived through. For that reason, Asur remained glued to his place, unable to move as he witnessed the creatures pounce upon person after person and drain them of their life force by piercing their fangs into their bodies like savage beasts. The worst part was that Asur knew that there was little that he could have done to save any of his kinsmen, unable to even think of what could be done in the situation.

Then he saw him. That so elegant man, stepping away from the slaughter and approaching the stunned Asur with malice and evil deep within his smile, within his eyes. No, this man did not look as if he were upon death's feet; he [b]was[/b] death incarnate, come to kill him for his cowardice of leaving his people to their fates. Yet, the man’s visage began to shift with bones snapping out of place as he walked, gait becoming predatory and eyes becoming nothing more than blackened beads, fangs growing and maw opening, back elongating in an unsightly arch. His finger grew into claws and his skin became taught and skeletal. Truly, this was the silhouette of death itself so terrifying and evil that Asur could do nothing but stare and make noises that only came from a cowards lips.

He knew that he must fight for his survival! He knew that he must fight just as his ancestors and his kinsman would have!

Yet, Asur was not his ancestors nor was he his brave kinsman whom he could hear fighting to drive away these monsters. All he could do was swallow his own spit whilst taking a step back, only to lose his balance and fall backwards. It was then that the terrible man lunger upon the form of Asur, sinking his fangs deep within him to draw out the life force of the Eidolon. Asur let out a scream as he thrashed, kicking and punching with all the might that he could muster, trying to survive. However, each passing second brought with it further strain, yet further bleariness as he felt his life ebbing away. There was nothing that he could do to save himself. 

So, he gave in. His arms fell to his sides and his legs collapsed as his breathing began to slow. Asur looked upon the beast that drank from his heart and all he could see was beauty. Beauty was terrible, it was naught but death and hunger that stalked in the night.

The man, his murderer; he was beautiful.

And so the night was silent.

[hider=Summary]
Set at the tail end of the last cycle after the pariah is killed, a small tribe of Eidolon travels along the border of the Salt Desert and Asur sees a man come from it! He rushed to help him and noticed that the man was unnaturally beautiful.

When the man is taken from Asur, he is comforted by the sight of his woman, Styx, before pondering the unnatural nature of the man, and realizes that nothing has survived going into the Salt Desert. Then, the tribe is attacked by a swarm of beasts. They are vampires!

Asur is terrified and the beautiful man comes back, transforming into his true vampiric form and becoming horrifying.Asur is killed, but as he is dying, seeing beauty in the vampire’s terrible nature.

Yesaris be praised!
[/hider]