[Chasing Daybreak]

Humans. You take your eye off of them for a century or so, and they're full of tricks once again. For all of their weakness, for their short lives and foolish fixations, they can never be underestimated. Like unpredictable fireworks, always a new pattern to witness.


Oh how I wish death upon every last one of them.

'The mages of this era are truly something', Ilysander remarks. A lone starlit mage bearing the cloak of Prospera wounds the Demon Sage after confronting him, carving past his rib cage, invoking his true form in blind fury; body and pride scarred alike.

An unnatural disaster threatens to destroy the farming town of Arcadia. Peasants flee en masse as the mages rally to confine and defeat the threat; in the aftermath of it all several are horribly wounded, and the blood of Ilysander stained the land as he took flight in preservation of his life.

It has been fifty-eight years since I was last forced into a retreat. Do not think I will forget your name. Even now my life ichor unmakes you.   It will not be long, and I am ever patient.

[Chasing Daybreak]

Another unfamiliar Kingdom of Meranthe, the City of Londo. Its bronze walls call for the interests of the Demon Sage and he made his visit; at that time it seemed several members of his clan had a similar idea, and he arrived late to their assault. And so he took to a spectator at the tail ends of the conflict, almost impressed by the defenses of the humans and how they prevented a swift siege from incurring in this sudden raid for treasure.  

But there were more surprises yet to come.

The Demon Wolf Barbatos falls, left to the whims of a naïve girl aptly named Fantasy. Instead of taking the wolf's life, she tosses him at the feet of the Sage,

"I remember seeing you in Arcadia! You made a lot of people sad. I don't think you would like people doing that to your Wolves. Though it's nice to meet you, and I hope you can understand how we feel about our families and friends here! : )"

Mercy?

Why?

Ilysander's hand twitched, his index tapping to the scabbard at the side of his sash. The once stony, distant expression finds upmost focus as scarlet floods his golden irises, the whites turning black with a flash of demonic power. 

"Then you are wrong. If every demon died here today, it would not hurt me. Sadness is distinctly a human emotion," the Sage claimed.

A flick of his wrist followed in an unseen motion, and the narrow silver katana flows with the striking shift, a slicing motion directly in front of himself; across the ground and the helpless demon, leaving whether he lives or dies up to fate. The blade carved through black fur, bone and flesh, and the onyx-blood of Ilysander's kin sprays across the land, as his body is near severed in two, several drops of the life ichor even reaching the enthusiastic squire's face in a sudden splatter.

"See?" he called out, with the conclusion of the demonstration, the fallen wolf now mangled flesh beneath him. As if it were educational.

The reaction of the humans was mixed. Disgust, fear, and hatred. Outrage. The girl's tears. Violence.

Always violence. We share this in common, if little else.

...I'll never understand your kind.

[Chasing Daybreak]

Beneath the long shadow of the Tower of Aetius,  as the last wisps of daylight fade, there is an arrangement. The life of the holy-knight Sanfey in exchange for Devourer. Ilysander, Sahlizra, Sanfey and Arlyss meet.   The Demon Sage and Arlyss begin negotiations. 

"The blade, is it all you're after? Who are you? Why did you come to Meranthe? Dominion, perhaps? To find a worthy challenge? Or is there something more?"

"There is one among my kind who has witnessed every possible future, and that is why we're here. Your artefacts- older than your people- might glean some insight into this. And what of you, Arlyss. Who are you? Or are you just another lost soul among the living? Your apprentice claims you are the strongest human."

"I am a swordswoman." she speaks. "A woman who has sworn her blade to many in her life. But now, a woman that simply lives day to day in the comfort of her deserted home. Away from all the madness."

"Then you are someone who's given up and chosen seclusion. How short-lived the flame of a humanity can be." he judges, dryly, "Do you yearn to witness the world once more, in full splendour and color, or are you content to wait out the remainder of your life until death comes for you?"

"I live alone, not out of desire, but because sometimes I question if the world is better without...
What is there to yearn for, for me?"

"Knowledge. Power. Belonging. Mystery. Satisfaction," Ilysander lists off in quick succession, "What is it that appeals to your human heart? Why do you fear for others when they're in the way of what you want, what you need?"

"What good are all those things if it brings harm to others?" she interjects, "We all aspire for excellency. We all strive for greatness. But.. not at the expense of others." she murmurs. "...I couldn't."

"Why. This world is built on exchanges. For one to eat another starves. For one to gain knowledge another lives in ignorance. All actions are bound by this fundamental law of fate.

Worth is meaningless without it; Strength means nothing without weakness. To deny your right to do harm is to not exist. What you truly desire, Arlyss, is to be set free of your heart's shackles. This prison of hesitation and consideration. How much better you would be without it.

Don't you want to live? You don't have to say it, if it shames you. Just feel it. The truth."

"...We all want to live." she admits, confesses. "It is not a shackle, a prison. This is what has driven me forward, in the past. To reach insurmountable heights, and see the smiles of all those I care about curve across their face.

And I would never let any bit of yearning get in the way of what truly matters to me."

"There are no smiles left for you. You've said it yourself; you live alone in self-exile. Then perhaps it is time to rid yourself of that unnecessary burden and become more than what you are."

His hand moves to take Devourer, slowly.

"I can't let you have this. Not after all that you've said." she proclaims, swivelling across her feet, and slides back to create some distance. Both hands glued onto Devourer's handle, lifting the blade high in defense.

"You will relinquish the artefact, as the terms of the deal. Then you will watch as I kill your apprentice with it." 

A duel sounds out from Aetius and beyond. The strongest blade of humanity faces off against the Demon Sage.     Thunder roars from beyond the mountain as they clash.

...And amid it, Arlyss eventually makes an escape, taking to rescue her apprentice with Devourer in hand rather than prolonging the battle, but not before landing a stunning blow-

Sanfey has been rescued by the Hero Arlyss single-handedly.