There was much that needed to be done, now that the battle between Grot and the Angels was over. The Angels would need some well-deserved rest, as well as time to grieve over the many losses the battle incurred.
Niciel wanted to help her children gain some comfort and rest, but she wasn't entirely sure how to do so. Furthermore, it seemed like help wasn't even required. The Angels were already coming up with ways to do so, the most prevalent one simply kneeling down, closing their eyes, and putting their hands together. Niciel could only assume that they were praying for their loved ones to be at peace in death. Now that Niciel thought about it, there was a God in charge of death, but she failed to remember his name. She had only noticed him during the day the Gods were born, and it had been so long since that day. The thought then passed as quickly as it came as Niciel returned to attention to the real world.
Niciel decided to leave the Angels to their own devices, satisfied that they could take care of themselves. In the meantime, Niciel wondered what she should do. Now that she thought about it, Niciel realized that she had not really done much in Galbar. Most of her work had been focused mainly on or within the Valley of Peace. It finally occurred to Niciel that she had a power of incredible potential. There was so much she could create, not to mention so much she could do. Looking at her Orbs of Escry and Holy, and letting her eyes scan the Nice Mountains, Niciel smiled. She wanted to do something, not just for herself, but for Galbar itself.
It had been a while since she had time to herself, and she was going to make the most of that time. For now, she would experiment with her power, see what she could create.
Niciel got to work creating a group of bushes. Short height, regular green leaves, round shape, there was nothing out of the ordinary for any of them. With a bit of energy, though, that wouldn't last. All of them began to bear fruit, berries with white skin and flesh. A name for these berries soon popped up: Whiteberry. While it wasn't the most imaginative name, it certainly served its purpose in identifying the fruit, and Niciel could see no harm it naming it so.
Once that was complete, Niciel moved to another part at the edge of the Valley of Peace, making sure that no one would be disturbed by her next creation. There, Niciel got to work creating a large hole, letting her instincts add the necessary components, and then filling it with water, creating a small, sustainable lake. Niciel then drew a small portion of mist from the nearby Nice Mountains and infused it into the lake along with more energy, turning the water pink and translucent. The water also became moderately warm, at a conveniently comfortable temperature for Angels, as well as certain other life forms on Galbar, to enjoy. The lake created, a name appeared in Niciel's mind for this creation as well: Spring of Health.
Finally, Niciel decided to try something a bit different. A ball of energy formed with a single thought, and Niciel gently molded the ball into shape. Thin strips stretched out, and were given shape into wings not unlike an Angel's. A lump formed at the top, and was bent into shape to form a head. Then came tiny extensions at the bottom, as well as a fan of large feathers at the back. Finally, the formation of the body itself that defined and brought beauty to the creature Niciel had created. The energy of life was breathed into it, and there was a tiny white bird. With the design complete, it didn't take long for Niciel to create more of them until there was a whole flock. Niciel let them fly free then, except for the very first she had created. Niciel liked it. Naturally, a name sprang to mind for this creation as well: Spirit Dove. Niciel didn't know why, but she thought that the name felt just right, and so the species of bird was named thus: Spirit Doves.
Niciel had taken care of the minuscule creations, and now she felt that it was time for something larger. Niciel began to channel energy, intending to create something significant and grand, but when she was about to begin, Niciel's mind went blank. The energy dissipating, Niciel became confused. She didn't know what had just happened. One moment she had been full of enthusiasm, the next, it had just vanished. Niciel began to think, and realized that that was not quite right. Her enthusiasm was still there, but it was... blocked. Try as she might, nothing could seem to get past the block in her mind, only feeling blankness in her mind. Troubled, Niciel wondered what could be causing this. Niciel thought back, trying to list things she wished to create. Most of the ideas she came up with were things she had already created or were just not really what she had in mind. To make matters worse, her list of ideas was painfully short. She wanted something better. Something....
Niciel then realized what the problem was. The block in her mind was caused by herself. Specifically, her lack of inspiration. Niciel was out of ideas on what to actually create. The thought of it was... troubling, to say the least. Her power to create, limited by her own imagination. Now that the problem was revealed, though, she could begin figuring out how to solve it. An idea quickly came to mind, and Niciel brought out her Orb of Escry, using it to call Life Wisps to her. A group of Wisps came to her, and Niciel ordered all of them to bring something of value to her. The Wisps scattered, leaving Niciel in her own thoughts. It would take some time, though, for all the Wisps to come back, which meant that Niciel would need something to do. Niciel used this time to think about what to do next. Fortunately, an idea quickly came to mind: she could talk to Loth for some additional inspiration. Niciel had already felt his presence in the Valley of Peace, so it wouldn't be an issue to find him, especially with the use of her Orb of Escry.
As she began to peer into her Orb, however, there came a broadcast. Niciel stopped in surprise. By the time she recovered from it, it was quickly replaced with shock as the news was delivered. Vulamera was dead, slain by Vowzra. Vowzra himself was gone as well, Jvan having done the deed. Niciel hardly knew Vowzra, so it was difficult for her to feel sad for him. He was still a brother born during the time of the Void, though, so she could still feel something for him. Vulamera, however, was a different story. Niciel rather liked her. Niciel also wanted to speak to her about Vestec. Right now, though, Vestec was the least of her worries.
A flash of light, and Niciel disappeared from the Valley of Peace, reappearing at the location of the pillar in which was inscribed the Oath of Stilldeath. Niciel could tell that she was not the first to arrive. Teknall was still around examining the pillar, while Astarte and Vestec had made their appearance. Toun was also nearby, and Niciel could sense that there was an argument of sorts in progress between him and Vestec. Going over to the Gods, Niciel spoke to them, "I do hope everyone is playing nice. We certainly need it right now. No more fighting. Please."
While waiting for their reply, however, there was a wave of power that did not escape Niciel's senses. This power... Niciel had not felt it for a long time, and it has apparently grown stronger ever since. Niciel held up her Orb of Escry and peered into it, intent on discovering the cause and effect of this power. What she found was... disturbing, to say the least. There was a destroyed city. Within that, there were.... trees made of crystal. They continued to grow and spread, with no end in sight. Niciel could not tell exactly what their purpose was, but Niciel suspected it wasn't exactly good. In the midst of it all.... was Logos. A God Niciel hadn't seen for the longest time. As nearby Wisps moved closer for better inspection, Niciel divided her attention and watched other Wisps around the world. Everywhere, the same phenomenon was being replicated. Niciel muttered to herself, "Oh no. This isn't good. This isn't good at all."
-Niciel wonders how to help the Angels now that the battle of Grot was over, but sees that the Angels are already taking care of that issue themselves. With that in mind, Niciel leaves them alone.
-Niciel wonders now what to do, and realizes that there is so much she could do. Niciel gets to work coming up with ways to use her power and creates three things: a type of berry bush that makes Whiteberries, a pool of water called the Spring of Health, and a species of bird called Spirit Doves. (2 Free Points for Whiteberries, 2 Free Points for the Spring of Health, and 1 Might for Spirit Doves)
-Niciel now wishes to create something bigger, but is unable to. Niciel wonders why, and realizes that she has no inspiration. She attempts to fix this by having Life Wisps find something to inspire her with.
-Niciel also began to locate Loth and ask for his opinions, but was interrupted by Toun's broadcast. Shocked by the news, Niciel thinks about the two Gods for a moment before teleporting over to the pillar of the Oath of Stilldeath. There she finds other Gods already there, and sees that Toun and Vestec are not exactly getting along. There, she politely urges them not to fight.
-Then, disaster strikes as Logos invades Galbar. Niciel uses her Orb of Escry to inspect the cause with her Wisps and realizes that dark times are here.
Total of 2 Might used in creating Whiteberries, the Spring of Health, and Spirit Doves.
In the end, Joshua won the Acrobatics contest. Normally, even losing didn't bother him very much. However, it was one thing to lose in a fair match, but it was another thing to lose because someone cheated. As a result, Leander had gotten a bit salty after it had ended. The judges did not deem it to be illegal, though, so there wasn't really much Leander could do against it. Leander sulked for much of the day afterwards, but at the end of the day, Leander had completely gotten over it. It wasn't like it was something of vital importance, so there was no need to agonize about it for very long.
Now, Leander was currently in the cafeteria, listening to Haas talk about the unfortunate events that had occurred recently. The mood dampened slightly when Joshua began speaking ill of Andre, though it wasn't unwarranted, but almost everyone agreed about forming groups. Nathaniel seemed to disagree, however, which made Leander frown in confusion.
Michelle had found herself in the pool area, and spent her time watching the swimming contest. Michelle couldn't see the appeal of it and was tuning much of it out, but Haas' sudden interruption brought her attention back. To top it off, Haas made an incredible comeback, which left Michelle speechless. It seemed next to impossible that such an event could have occurred, yet it did.
The next day, though, with yesterday's excitement already dissipated, there were now troubling rumors about the unfortunate events that caused a badly wounded girl to end up in the infirmary. Michelle was at the cafeteria now with the others, feeling concerned not just about Ethel, but also about what Haas was saying about the Dark Dorm. If it was true, that the recent events were not merely coincidence, then things could be much worse than initially suspected.
"Well, w-we can still do something, can't we?" Michelle asked in response to Nathaniel. "I don't think we should be, you know, irresponsible about it, but we can still learn something and use it to our advantage... right?"
As Hellflame began to feel like he was about to doze off from boredom, the world began to reform before his eyes. Hellflame blinked in surprise, then quickly realized that he had been revived. Hellflame could see that they were no longer in the spacey cosmos they had been fighting in and instead back in the normal world of Deep Ground. Hellflame remained lying on the ground, content in the effort he put in to destroy that Warlock. Now that he thought about the Warlock, though, he realized that he should have gotten some exp for that, and quickly sat up, eyes darting left and right to search for his reward. It didn't take very long before he spotted the exp crystals, and Hellflame forced himself up to his feet to go over to them.
Once they were in hand, Hellflame started chuckling to himself. The chuckles gradually grew into laughter, and Hellflame laughed in triumph as he flopped back down onto the ground, arms outstretched in victory. The laughter eventually died down, and Hellflame sighed in contentment. It was a good day so far. Things didn't go all according to plan, but everything turned out alright for him, and that was what mattered. Flipping over on his stomach, Hellflame looked to see the rogue nearby being questioned by another person. Resting his head on his propped up hand, Hellflame watched the event begin to unfold with interest, mainly because there wasn't much else to do at the moment.
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