Chaosbound: Elarith Chronicles

The Royal Vanguard

The Royal Vanguard base felt less like a stronghold and more like a frantic ant hill. Messengers collided in the crowded halls, their reports tumbling to the floor alongside their frantic apologies. The very air vibrated with a low, anxious hum, punctuated by hushed whispers of panic. Reports flew from left and right, detailing the sudden, disturbing emergence of chaos beings. Even creatures once familiar now writhed, corrupted by the encroaching chaos energy. "Why this sudden influx of chaos powers? Does Aurel have something to do with this? Even the Shadowblades are no longer with us…"

Amidst the frantic activity, a man sat casually, a fig stick chewed thoughtfully between his lips, his gaze fixed on Clyde, who seemed on the verge of unraveling. "Sit down, Clyde," the man drawled, his voice surprisingly calm amidst the storm. "You know the Shadowblades didn't part from the Vanguard because they needed to; they left to seek aid, to gather strength for the battle against the chaos itself."

Clyde, rubbing his temples, glared. "How do you know what I'm thinking again, Arkan?"

Arkan merely offered a lazy smirk. "Oh please, it's screaming from your perpetually furrowed brow, loud enough to wake the dead." Clyde paused, frustration etched on his face, then asked, "Speaking of which, why are you still here? And Aqua, aren't you supposed to be with Phantomblade and the others?"

Aqua, a woman of quiet composure, merely sipped her tea, her gaze flickering briefly to a crumpled report someone had dropped on the floor, before returning to her cup. Arkan chuckled. "Relax, I asked her to stay. We're not leaving you and the Vanguard alone in this battle. Although our main fighters are no longer with us, you still have me and Aqua. Right, Aqua?" Aqua offered a small, almost imperceptible nod.

Clyde, struggling to rein in his mounting panic amidst the ceaseless reports and the sheer, overwhelming volume of the crisis, knew the Vanguard lacked the dedicated combatants for such threats—no Aurel, and no Shadowblades beyond the non-combatant members, Arkan and Aqua. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Yep, you still got us, Clyde," Arkan chirped, as if reading his mind.

Clyde exhaled slowly. "Look, Arkan, no disrespect. But what can you guys actually do against the looming threat of these corrupted beings? We need warriors. We're getting reports of Corrupted Harpies descending from the north, disrupting our supply lines and causing mass evacuations, and whispers of Flesh Golems rising from the Southern Bogs, laying waste to entire villages. We're not equipped for this, not without—"

"Yeah, yeah, we know," Arkan interrupted with a dismissive wave. "If we can't fight with brute force, we still have the tech and the brains. We fight with R&D, don't we? You guys are developing tech to fight these chaos entities, aren't you? Let's focus on that for now. Meanwhile, we need more information. Something is off. My network is telling me the entire continent is in disarray. Your friend may, or may not, have something to do with it."

Clyde's shoulders slumped. "My friend… you mean Kirin, or Aurel? Kirin was barely a combatant before, and now he's gone. What about him? Is he even safe? And Aurel… he's the one who vanished right when all this started, bringing chaos with him. Are you saying this is all his fault?"

"How are you getting all this information, Arkan?" Clyde asked, genuinely baffled. "I only see you sitting there, doing nothing, yet you have all these reports. It's unsettling how much you know, how quickly."

Arkan leaned back, a knowing smile playing on his lips. "Tools of the trade, Clyde. I've got my methods. I'm an Eclipseborne too, in case you've forgotten." He then turned his attention to Aqua. "Aqua, do you have the documents I asked you to retrieve?"

"Yes, I do," Aqua replied, her voice soft but clear. "And I have news about Kirin. He went somewhere out of our radar. He was last seen in the aftermath of a skirmish between bandits, helping the healers. And somehow, he was seen traveling with a Luminary girl and a man."

Arkan nodded slowly. "I'm well aware. And they are on their way here. Aqua, please escort them."

"Who?" Clyde asked, startled.

"Relax," Arkan said with a light shrug. "The Luminaries are on our side, but it seems this one is rogue."

Arrival at Vanguard

Luci and Hans were making good progress when they were met by Aqua. She appeared not from the ground itself, but as a turbulent, inky mass erupted from a seething mudpool that suddenly formed on the earth. From its bubbling depths, a sphere of pure shadow magic rose, shimmering ominously before it burst with a silent pop, and Aqua's form slowly coalesced from the dissipating darkness. "Eclipseborne?" Hans instinctively muttered, his hand dropping to the axe at his side, readying to guard Luci. But Luci, observant as ever, signaled him to hold. This one seemed non-hostile.

"Right, pardon my introduction," Aqua said, her voice smooth. "I am Aqua, one of the Shadowblades. I've come to escort you. You've come to visit the Royal Vanguard?"

"It is as you said," Luci replied, her gaze steady, "but I do not represent the Luminaries, even though we may appear as such."

"Aren't you Luminaries?" Aqua asked, a hint of genuine curiosity in her voice. "We don't have any info about you, but he was expecting your arrival."

"Wait," Luci interrupted, a slight frown creasing her brow. "I do not wish to talk to the head of the Vanguard. I just need to relay some information. The one you said was expecting me… is that Phantomblade?"

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"Unfortunately, no," Aqua responded. "But if you have information, the man I shall let you meet can make use of it. More than you can fathom, perhaps. He is... a weird one. But he is one with us, Shadowblades."

Luci considered this for a moment. "Hmm, but I came for the Vanguard, not the Shadowblades. Still, let's go."

The Unveiling

Arkan sat as if he were the head of the Vanguard (which he was not, Clyde sat beside him, looking increasingly flustered). He extended a languid hand in welcome. "Welcome to the Royal Vanguard. I am Arkan, one of the Shadowblades. Beside me is Clyde, who will be representing the Vanguard, and you've met Aqua." He gestured vaguely. "I understand you have information. And I understand that the info you have is something that can greatly aid the Vanguard, yes?"

"My name is Luci," she stated, her posture regal despite the simple introduction. "And this is my friend, Hans." Hans gave a respectful nod.

Arkan steepled his fingers, his gaze sharpening. "Luci. Let me be blunt. Let's end the charade. You come here after you're done with Kirin. Is he safe? And why should we trust a rogue one such as you? You know we have a good relationship with the Luminaries."

"So the Shades belong to you?" Luci countered, ignoring his questions for a moment. Clyde, beside Arkan, blinked in confusion. Shade? What are those? he thought.

Arkan's smirk returned, wider now. "So you noticed. Ahh, you must be some kind of unique Luminary." He paused, taking a slow breath, his eyes seeming to scan every inch of Luci, as if peeling back layers of an illusion.

"Let's see," Arkan began, his voice a low, almost purring hum, each word a deliberate stroke of deduction. "Your height, a precise 5 feet, 5 inches, yet your bearing makes you seem taller, an illusion born of innate grace. Nineteen years you've walked these lands, yet your eyes hold the weariness of centuries, a wisdom unearned by mere youth. Your beauty, indeed, a sharp blade in the light, too profound, too perfect to be a mere Luminary's bloom. You carry yourself with the poise of royalty, a queen in plainspun cloth, yet your muscles coil with the subtle tension of a predator, ready to strike. Your temperament? Observant, yes, exquisitely so. But beneath that elegant calm is a restless spirit, an intellect constantly seeking patterns, connections, dangers. And your weapons," he gestured subtly towards the faint glow that sometimes emanated from her hands, "they are not merely blessed with divinity, no. They are imbued by a singular divine essence, a connection far deeper, far more ancient than any general blessing granted to a Luminary initiate."

Hans, bristling, tightened his grip on his axe, ready to confront Arkan, but Luci, with a calm, almost imperceptible hand gesture, signaled him to halt. Her expression remained impassive, though a faint, almost imperceptible curve touched her lips at his description of her beauty. A flicker of amusement, quickly masked, crossed her features. He's good. Too good.

Arkan continued, his voice dropping to a near whisper, yet each word landed with the weight of revelation. "You are no Luminary. That truth shines clearer than any false light you cast. You seek the Umbrafang, do you not? You seek Aurel. And though you wore the guise of aiding Kirin, your true motive was always deeper, tethered to the shadow of the Thyranthe himself."

The Exchange and Departure

Luci's lips curved into a slow, knowing smirk, a subtle defiance. "Impressive. How can I gainsay what you've said, when your deduction is too sharp to be countered?" She stepped forward, laying a stack of ancient-looking books and several rolled documents onto the polished table. "I come here for this, and nothing more." She gestured to the pile. "These are research materials I gathered about the Abyssals and other corrupted chaos beings. Don't bother asking for sources. Some documents were destroyed by the Athenari and Luminaries, but these ones are authentic."

Clyde snatched one of the books, flipping it open with trembling hands. His eyes widened, fixing on a diagram. "By the Light… these are the very theories we've only just begun to conceive about chaos beings and their evolution! And these... these are some of the artifacts listed here are the same artifacts we have in our base! Magic theories? History of Elarith? And more..." He looked up, utterly awestruck.

Arkan, however, remained silent, his gaze fixed on Luci, still measuring every fiber of her being.

"The man you call Aurel, yes, I seek him," Luci affirmed, her tone shifting, becoming more personal. "But that is something personal. Consider those things as my contributions. You won't find those anywhere else. I believe it will greatly aid you in your research and tech developments."

Arkan's casual demeanor hardened, a sharp edge entering his voice. "So, which side are you truly aligned with?"

Luci stood to her full height, her earlier hint of a smile vanished. "I am done here. There is no need to escort us out."

The room was left with only Arkan and Clyde. Clyde, now buzzing with frantic excitement, practically lunged for the documents. "Arkan, this information can greatly help us! I must get to Silas and the others immediately!"

Arkan watched Luci's retreating form, a deep, contemplative frown on his face. "Something big is happening, Clyde. I can feel it. She is someone with high authority, even for the rank of the Luminaries. If someone like her came here to grace us with these, then I can't sit still." He turned to Clyde, his expression serious. "Clyde, I'm afraid I have to leave you guys for a while. I advise that you work on those files and see what the Vanguard can come up with this. Leave the fighting to the fighters. Let the Vanguard shy away from that."

Aftermath

Meanwhile, Luci and Hans strode through the Vanguard's bustling corridors. "My Lady," Hans began, his voice low with concern, "do you think those information is safe in their hands? That Shadowblade is sharp. He has access to different parts of the continent through his shadow magic, so those shades that appeared randomly anywhere... that's his information source, huh? So it was him who was checking on Kirin's travel."

"Don't worry, Hans," Luci said, her gaze distant. "Right now, the Vanguard, which are backed by Shadowblades, has been focusing on research and development. And they are in good terms with the Luminaries, so I know they won't be touched."

"Okay, my Lady," Hans conceded, though a thread of doubt remained in his voice, "but what if they use it for their own greed?"

"Well," Luci replied, a faint, almost weary sigh escaping her lips, "I just needed to dispose of those information and dump it somewhere, or to someone who can make it to good use. No one else seemed to have any interest for it that looked trustworthy, except for them. If they use it for evil, then that's on them. Now, I can focus on finding Aurel."

As she spoke, Luci's eyes suddenly narrowed. A dark figure, like a shadow man, appeared momentarily in the periphery of her vision, a spectral observer only she could see. "Ah, so you're listening again…" she murmured, almost to herself. With a swift, almost imperceptible flick of her wrist, a burst of pure light magic erupted from her hand, banishing the shade with a silent ripple. For a fleeting moment, her eyes glowed with an intense light, revealing her intrinsic light divinity.

Back in the Vanguard base, Arkan, his head snapping up, his casual facade momentarily shattered as a faint ripple of distortion vibrated through his shadowy senses, frowned. He then murmured, "An Athenari."