Why Did the Sky Stop Crying // Private // Decayuss and Elizabeth

AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

It's still so early...

A petite, slim red-haired girl shifted in her king-sized bed, satin, light sheets covering her body. Taking her small, pale hands to her face, rubbing her eyes, still closed, a soft yawn escaping her lips. Refusing to open her eyes, Elizabeth attempted to push whatever was poking her off and away from her, in order to go back to sleep, yet the small creature that had invaded her, a feline-like beast with a yellowish body and fur, was too agile and persistant. Poking her cheek with its paw or nose, Zero desperately tried to awake his owner, knowing that if she didn't get up at the instant, she would probably be late. And he didn't want her to suffer the embarrasment from being late, even if the event to which she had to arrive on time wasn't a date; thankfully. It was a simple meeting with a friend of Elizabeth's, so that the two could go on a job together.

Rolling away from Zero, Elizabeth didn't realize that her bed, like any normal bed, had an end, and, before she could even realize the situation at hand, she fell off of the bed, taking the sheets with her, causing her to open her eyes immediately in surprise and look around. The curtains were drawn over the window, making it so that almost no light entered the dark room, except a bright ray that had made its way through a small creak between the two curtains, illuminating the room slightly. Scratching the back of her head absentmindedly, Elizabeth looked at the clock on her bed, her eyes widening as she saw what time it was. She was going to be late. She was going to be very late if she didn't get dressed and left her home soon. Jumping up, back on her feet, the Shadow Assasin threw the sheets back on her bed, running towards the bathroom next to her room, taking off the oversized T-shirt she slept with and entering the shower quickly, sighing slightly as the hot water hit her face, waking her up entirely. Why did it always happen to her? She seriously had to set up an alarm, and actually get up when it sounded. Without wasting even a second of the valuable time she had left, Elizabeth quickly got out of the shower, running through the house in a towel until she got to her wardrobe, from which she took out one of her trademark sleeveless shirts and daisy dukes, quickly putting them on before going towards her dark armor, placed in the corner of the room, an eerie aura surrounding it, like it did with any of the pertinences of the Shadow Assasin that were combat oriented. Everything she had was coated in a creepy, malevolent aura, making people consider her an evil being. Without hesitation, she put on her fauld, followed by the breastplate and gauntlets, and at last, the boots, the helmet in her hand, her eyes focused on the clock in front of her her scarlet hair falling on her shoulders, still wet from the shower. Zero watched as his master got ready with curiosity, glancing at the clock every once in a while so he could make sure that she still had time to reach the location she was going to meet said friend; the Rose Garden train station. A piece of paper attached to his leg, Zero flew over to his master's shadow, landing on it gracefully and cushioning his head on his own paws as he layed down on her shoulder, a sigh escaping his lips at the same time as one escaped his master's.

You're a lost case, do you realize that? The lightning beast said calmly, watching his master rush out of the house, almost forgetting to lock behind her, a few curses escaping her mouth as she did so, causing the mothers nearby that heard her to put their hands on their children's ears, atonished expressions on their faces as they watched how such a graceful girl, like Elizabeth, walked around cursing and dressed in an armor. It was obvious that they shouldn't judge a book by its cover. Rushing down the crowded streets, people letting her through due to her appearance, Elizabeth practically ran towards the train station, excitement in her eyes. Not long ago, barely a week ago, she had met once again with a rather good friend of hers; Deniel Decayuss Thornman. The two had spent a day or so together, not long after their last adventure together, which had ended in a bloodbath in an underground base of a dark guild, and, after spending some time together; acting like normal people, rather than troubled mages, the two had agreed to go on yet another request together; seeing as the two made a perfect team and worked together pretty well. Before separating once more, they had agreed to meet up on the Rose Garden train station, where the two would travel to the location of the request they had chosen, perfectly indicated on the small paper attached to Zero's leg, and get into action in order to complete yet another request together and prove further that they worked well together. Brushing the people that didn't let her through out of her way, Elizabeth practically sprinted the last few seconds, arriving exactly on time, mere seconds before the clock indicated the hour they were supposed to meet at. Was he there already? Getting on her tip toes, Elizabeth looked around the crowd for the familiar, tall figure of Deniel she knew so well at this point, and which she couldn't mistake even if she tried. Did I actually arrive first, for the first time in my life?

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AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

Wha?

Elizabeth let her heels hit the ground once again, electric eyes looking around in curiosity. Had she really arrived first, for the very first time in her life? She thought she would arrive late; and yet it was the exact opposite thing, for she had ended up arriving first... Right? She needed a medic. This was something incredibly rare, for her to arrive on time or the first on a meeting. Was she alright? Probably. It was a shame that she was didn't know that, the person she was supposed to meet, had arrived first, and had been waiting for her for quite some time. It was a shame too, that she thought he hadn't arrived, while a familiar figure sneaked up behind her, with the intentions to surprise her.

A shiver running down her spine as she heard a whisper, the source of it recognised pretty much at the instant. The voice of the person, of the male who had whispered in her ear, Elizabeth couldn't mistake. Turning on her heels quickly in order to face the black haired man behind her, Elizabeth smiled brightly, his presence causing a happy shine to appear in her blue eyes. Deniel Decayuss Thornman. The only person in the world she really trusted. He was the first person to know about her dark past, he was the only one that had offered her help when she really needed it, that had taken her out of the abyss of sadness and self pity into which she had fallen, attempting to isolate herself from the world in order to prevent those around her to get hurt... because of her. He had saved her in many ocassions, gaining Elizabeth's trust almost instantly. Ha! You didn't scare me, if that was your objective. Elizabeth laughed, running a hand through her scarlet locks, which, due to the heat outside, was already dry, pretty much. There was little distance between them, but Elizabeth didn't really mind. She was used to it at this point, in a way.

Hands behind her back, a bright smile still on her lips, Elizabeth looked around, a habit she had picked up since the time she, and Deniel, infiltrated the base of the Masked Guild, and pretty much looked around every second in order to make sure nobody was listening to them while they planned their next moves. The memory of the event with the masked guild brought up alongside itself the scenery Elizabeth and Deniel had left after they had dealt with the Masked Guild. An absolute massacre, corpses all around, blood spilled all around the place. It had been, in a few words, a bloodbath. Quite literally, too. She also remembered of the immense display of power she had withnessed, a power so grand it had made her shiver and fear it for a few, her mind incapable to comprehend how such a powerful being existed. Shaking her head slightly in order to push away the horrible scene from her head, Elizabeth focused on Deniel once more, taking the piece of paper attached to Zero's foot.

Right, so I asked you to be here today because I have an idea that you'd probably like. Her voice calm, soft, Elizabeth handed the paper to Deniel, it turning out to be the information sheet for a job request. Seeing what a good team we were the last time we worked together, I thought it'd be fun for us to work again once more, this time on the request explained in the paper I gave you. Elizabeth explained, pointing at the job sheet, her voice keeping its calm, soft tone, not changing even in the slightest while she spoke, not becoming more formal, serious, although in other situations it would have. Basically, whoever takes this job has to guard the researchers while they fix a lacrima up, in the sky, or help them out, or both. It's not that complicated... I think.

After a moment of silence, Elizabeth's eyes lit up, happiness and excitement visible in them. And we get to fly~. On an airship, but we'll fly~ She said, the excitement obvious in both her eyes and voice. She looked like a kid in a candy shop. There was a reason behind her excitement when it came to flying, though. As a kid, Elizabeth's greatest dream had always been to fly. For no obvious reason, actually; she just wanted to fly. She wanted to see what it felt to soar through the skies, free as a bird, to see the towns and people from above, lost under the clouds. And when she had finally made her dream come true; thanks to Deniel, too, it kind of had became an addiction to her. She wanted to try it out again. She, more than anything, wanted to fly again, which was the reason as to why she had chosen to go on this job, really. Just because she got to fly.

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AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

The fact that Deniel had accepted to go on the job with her caused the smile on Elizabeth's face to widen. The change in her was atonishing, truly. From someone that rejected people, and often threathened them with death if what she wanted wasn't done, she had passed on to be a cheerful, fun-loving woman once more, who didn't fear approaching other humans as much now, although the fear of hurting people was still present, deep within her. It would possibly never go away; seeing as she was destined to suffer the same fate as her great-great-grandfather, and she could not escape from it. She would not forget her fear of what she could do to others, while the same dream haunted her every single night, causing her to wake up trembling, terrified. Always the same scenario, always the same situation. The words of Zed were engraved into her mind at this point, so well that she could tell them with the exact same tone that Zed has when saying them. She was destined to destroy. It was no lie what the Book of Shadows said about those who had inherited the power of Zed. The Masters of Shadows are Death's Messangers. The Masters of Shadows, the strongest of the dead Shadow Clan brought Dead wherever they went, destruction and decease following them wherever they went.

Snapping out of her thoughts as Deniel passed by her, heading towards the train that would lead to their destination, Elizabeth turned on her feet, following him quickly, her pace fast, breaking her way through the crowd. Thankfully, not many people got on the train that would lead basically to the Forgotten Desert. Not a lot of people would visit that place, with its scorching sun and burning sands, without a legit reason. Even Elizabeth herself and Deniel only went there, because they had a mission there. If not, Elizabeth wouldn't have set foot on it, for sure. Getting in the train, always following Deniel, she looked around, curiosity on her eyes as she analyzed the other passangers in the train, who were heading towards the Forgotten Desert. Why were they heading over to that place? Was there any reason in particular as to why they were visiting that forsaken place? She was really curious about it; Elizabeth was a naturally curious person, but she wouldn't go around asking people what were they doing here. That was rude; and definetly not the type of thing she'd do. So, simply limiting herself to walking in silence alongside Deniel, Elizabeth quickly sat next to him, leaving the helmet she had carried in her hand in her lap.

It was rather annoying to wear a helmet in her hand the entire time. In normal circumstances, she would have carried it on her head; where it was supposed to be. But when she was around Deniel, considering how much they talked and how uncomfortable it was for him not to see her facial expressions, Elizabeth would rather go around without it, than bother herself with it on. Crossing her legs and leaning against the back of her seat, Elizabeth glanced out of the window, contemplating the scenery that the train passed by as it began moving, heading towards the indicated destination; the forgotten desert. Deniel too seemed to be captivated by the scenery outside, which allowed Elizabeth to succumb into thought for a little while, staring at her feet.

Death and Destruction. That was her future. Endless suffering and attempts to keep her sanity awaited her, alongside a battle, the final clash between the two descendant of the two mortal enemies. Zed and Rei, two brothers who became mortal enemies. Why? Because Zed had stepped over the limits, he had learend the forbidden art of the shadows, something of which Rei did not approve. It had became a curse, one that would never go away and would follow all masters of Shadows and their respective counterparts. Every master of shadow was fated to fight the descendant of Rei. And the final clash between the two, would determine who is victorious, and who is dead.  She didn't want to think of that, not now. Elizabeth didn't want to think of how she was fated to remain as a spirit after her death, guarding the temple of the shadow clan until the arrival of the new Master of Shadows. Which, honestly, could be eons after her death. It was a horrible fate to meet.  Shaking her head slightly, she glanced back at her partner, biting her lip slightly. I'm glad you accepted to come on this with me, Deniel. It would have been really boring for me if I went alone. After a short pause, in which the redhaired girl glanced outside the window, her eyes focused on the sights that the train passed by while it moved towards its direction, Elizabeth then returned her eyes on Deniel, her voice calm and soft as per usual, contrasting with the cold and hostile tone she had before, before she realized that her attitude was wrong. What have you been up to, before we met today, by the way? It's been one week since the last time we were together, so I was wondering...

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AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

The scenery that the train passed by progressively began changing, the fresh grass and majestic trees dissapearing, the green being replaced with the burning sands of the desert, the scorching sun high above, in the sky, causing Elizabeth to look out of the window, curiosity in her eyes. She had never really been in a desert, in her life, thus really wanted to see how it was in such place. She had read about deserts, obviously; Elizabeth was, although it seemed otherwise, the type of person that was more than willing to spend an entire day stuck in a library, analyzing texts, and reading about faraway locations, majestic adventures and brave heroes. Shamefully, the temptation of having fun was always much, much bigger. Yet she did read, and she had read about the deserts. She knew the basics, that not much water could be found in the deserts, and the only water sources were the rare oasis, how the heat in the deserts was rather great, how it didn't rain much, etc.

Elizabeth was really curious about this project Oasis that she and Deniel were going to help out with repairing the water lacrimas they had installed in order to cause rain in the desert, all while protecting them. Why did they want to introduce rain in the desert? Why did they want to change it's climate? Did the dryness in the desert bother them in any way? It was ridiculous. People in Desierto practically lived on deserts, and yet they never tried to artificially make it rain in their deserts, and their homeland was pretty much ninety percent deserts, while the Fiorean were bothered by a simple, small, harmless desert? It was obvious that people in Fiore were used to the comfortable life, where water didn't lack, where everything was green and perfect, easy to live in, and thus got easily bothered by the smallest locations that were different, or at least that was the explanation to the experiment Elizabeth got. She couldn't find any other logical explanation to this experiment, but it's not like it mattered.

He had been wandering around Fiore. Wasn't he always doing that? Did he never stop at a place to explore, rest a bit? She didn't really know. Probably he did, because, if he did not, why was he wandering around Fiore? Or was he looking for a purpose, for something to do, something to fight for? Oh? It took you a week to come to Rose Garden? It must have been very exhausting. Elizabeth said calmly, swinging the leg that was crossed over the other one slightly, absentmindedly. Once he had answered her question regarding what he had been doing the week the two were searated, Deniel proceeded to ask Elizabeth what she had been doing. Silent for a few moments, looking at the ceiling above, Elizabeth thought of the things she had been doing the last seven days, which, honestly, had been rather exhausting, having in mind all the business she had to deal with. Me? Well... I had a rather busy week. After the episode with Clover, the high positions at the Rune Knights were satisfied with how I had managed to deal with the disturbances in Clover town with minimal help, coming from you, when entire armies of Rune Knights and, or, legal mages failed, so they decided to upgrade me from a simple Rune Knight recruit, to a Corporal. She smiled slightly, obviously proud of her new title. It was still nothing serious, but it was better than being a simple, lousy recruit. She had joined the Rune Knights long ago, so finally rising through the ranks was pleasing for her, at least. This, naturally, meant that I had to deal with a few small conflicts all across the country, which was honestly the easy and fun part. You don't even imagine how many wannabe criminals there are, that fail in the simplest things. Beating them up, and leading them to face justice was fun; very fun. But after every crime, I had to deal with tons of paperwork. And that was rather annoying. I've barely slept this week, so that I could finish all this on time. She chuckled, leaning against the back of her seat, hands behind her neck. If one looked at her face, he'd never manage to notice that she had lacked sleep the last few days, no. She appeared to be perfectly fine, as if she had slept perfectly always, when it obviously wasn't that the case, for aside from the lack of sleep, her nightmares had been back this week. As always.

Anyways, we should possibly make a strategy for this request, it'd be much better than going there without a strategy, right? She pointed out, blue eyes focused on Deniel, as per usual, awaiting his reaction. To begin with, what are we going to do? Are we going to help the researchers with repairing the lacrima, or are we going to protect them? Or what if one of us protects them, and the other helps them out?

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AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

Elizabeth's eyes illuminated at the mention of flight and battle. If she had to choose the three things she loved most on this world, then that'd be fighting, risking her life on her battlefield; simply having fun, perhaps not as pure and innocent fun as most would expect from a girl like her, and flying. If two of those likes, two of those things she adored, got combined into one, then oh, what better than that existed? Once again, the look of a twelve years old in a candy store returned to her shining eyes, excitement obvious in them, the redhead not even putting an effort to hide the fact that she wanted to do that more than anything in the world and looked forward to it. Oh yes, please. I really want to fly around on your back again. Elizabeth exclaimed, excitement perfectly audible in her soft, usually calm voice, which now seemed almost impatient, the redhead secretly willing for the battle to begin, so that she could try out a few tricks while flying. Her battle style was, without doubt, an agressive, yet elegant one, with lots of fancy tricks, which her light armor permitted her to perform, as it had been thought exactly to satisfy that need of its owner. The armor, aside from being eons old, had been crafted specifically by the best craftsmen in order to permit the caster absolute freedom when it came to mobility, and defense, so that the future Master of Shadows would have the freedom in the future to perform the fancy tricks associated to the dynamic battle style of the descendants of Zed, all while offering protection.

Elizabeth considered that she and Deniel had some type of synergy, which would permit them, or Elizabeth, to the very least, to perform some rather... dangerous tricks and count on Deniel to prevent her from plummeting down to the ground, to assured death. No, I want to fight! I have no idea how to fix Lacrimas too. My intelligence may reach rather far; but it most certainly doesn't reach that far, sadly. Shrugging, Elizabeth looked around in surprise as she noticed that the train had stopped, and the duo had arrived at their destination, in less than an hour. It was surprising how the train had traveled so quickly, when in reality it looked like it was going rather slowly. Oh well. Elizabeth was the curious type of person, but she wouldn't go and beat her head in a rock, trying to figure out how fast the train had covered the distance between Rose Garden and the fabled Forgotten Desert. It was not her problem, after all. She, and Deniel, had reached their destination successfully. Stepping outside the train, the immense heat hitting her up immediately, Elizabeth proceeded to huff, putting on her helmet, noticing a whine coming from the petite figure on her shoulder, which like her despised the extreme heat. Zed simply had to make the craftsmen make the armor for the Master of Shadows black, didn't he? I bet he didn't anticipate that I'd be facing such temperatures. Moron. Sighing, Elizabeth would turn towards Deniel, her jaw falling behind her mask. Oh snap. The airship. The job didn't specify the exact location of it. Oh snap.

Well, wasn't this unfortunate. Apparently, Zero had thought of the same thing that just passed by Elizabeth's head, for his "Kill me now or throw me in Iceberg" face had been replaced with a grimmace of absolute annoyance and irritation. Uh.... Nobody specified that. I have the feeling we'll have to search for it, although the most logical location for it to be at would be near a village... Although we don't know the location of any villages here either.

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AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

A pout escaped Elizabeth's mouth, coming out muffled and eerie through the mask, Elizabeth crossing her arms over her chest. It wasn't her fault that the location of the airship, pertaining to her client, wasn't specified on the job sheet... Was it? It was. She could have called the client somehow, or went to analyze the location days before she had actually met up with Deniel, in order to find and memorize the exact locations of such important things, as the airship that would take the duo up in the sky and to their objectives; the sky lacrima and researchers, whom they had to protect from any incoming threat that could possibly destroy the lacrima completely or put the lives of the researchers in danger.

Feeling the hand on her shoulder, Elizabeth bit her lip at the "I am going to kill you for this" smile that drew on Deniel's lips as he spoke to her about what they could do in order to escape this mess, and try to get to their objective, safely and in time, hopefully before any attack that could put in danger lives of innocent people and the entire project in danger. Trying to run her hand through her scarlet hair, obviously forgetting that she was wearing a helmet, a grimmace of annoyance and worry appearing on her face as she inspected the scenery around her. The scorching sun illuminated every single corner of the place, not a single shadow seen. If Elizabeth and Deniel had to fight during daytime, she'd be rendered useless. The lack of shadows meant that she also could not use her magic properly, mainly because all her spells were generated with the shadows from the environment, and if those were missing she could not do anything with her magic, at least. Thankfully, her weapons could still be used; which was nice and helpful, yet Elizabeth did use her magic to increase their enormous damage output, which made fighting enemies a much easier job. If she couldn't just double or triple her damage output, then she would have a hard time.

A poke caught her attention, causing the redhead to swiftly turn her head to the left, electric blue eyes focusing on Zero, the lightning beast looking from her to Deniel, the mask of irritation replaced with a simple, blank expression. I don't think you'll need to wase any magic, Deniel. You two keep forgetting a crucial detail; I can fly. Without wasting any magic power. Why do you keep arguing on what to, do, when you can just throw me at the sky and let me go look for the airship? I sometimes have the feeling you people are stupid. Zero sighed, shaking his head, annoyed by the fact how even his master forgot that he too could be useful. Her eyes widening behind the mask, Elizabeth reached up with her right hand, taking Zero softly by the neck, much like a mother would do with her club, a smile on her lips behind her mask as she let him on her hand, petting him. It was rare for Elizabeth to treat Zero like an actual pet, doing things like petting him or such. She always saw him as an equal, and avoided to do such things for some reason, yet when she was incredibly satisfied with him, his ideas or what he had done, he did get petted, which often caused the feline-like beast to purr much like a cat would. And even now, a soft purr escapied from his mouth, the beast pushing his head against his owner's hand softly. Good idea, Zero. I really wonder why someone smart like you is still around me, I must annoy you a lot. The master of shadows chuckled softly, throwing Zero up in the air, watching as the pet began hovering in the air calmly, no wings, no nothing sprouting from it. It simply flew. It had been one of the gifts granted by Zeus to the Lightning beasts, so they could roam freely and follow their masters, take them to places which before would have been impossible to reach. Alright. I'll be back in... I don't know in how long. Find a shadowy place, you two, I don't want you to get something from the sun. With those last words, the pet turned its back on its master and Deniel, flying high above, in the sky, dissapearing from view quickly.

Sadly, the duo would have to walk to the airship once Zero found it, not because he couldn't carry people; Zero could carry even fat people at perfect ease, so Deniel and Elizabeth, mostly Elizabeth, would present no isse for him. However, while carrying people, Zero would possibly electrocute them. More than once. And that was an issue. A rather serious one. Stepping from one foot to the other one, impatiently awaiting the return of her beloved, trusted companion, Elizabeth glanced at Deniel, worry in her eyes. I hope we get to participate in a combat during nightime, as, well... I can't seem to find much shadows here, in the desert. And you know I basically fight manipulating the shadows from the surroundings...

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AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

As Zero flew away, and left the two mages, and possibly Nidhogg, whom Elizabeth couldn't spot anywhere for the timebeing, the duo would silently move towards a shadowy spot in the village, Elizabeth's face accquiring a blissful expression as the two hid from the scorching sun under the shadows, in her territory. It was good to be once more there, where she belonged, surrounded by darkness. However; she could not simply give up to the blissful feeling of being surrounded by shadows and stop thinking, for Deniel was speaking to her, and it would be incredibly rude of her to ignore the young man as he spoke to her. And she, most certainly, did not desire Deniel to see her as a rude person, mainly because she was not... To him, at least.

One day, when I find the temple of the Shadow Clan and spot my dearest Grand-Grand-Grandfather, I'll make sure to give him a nice kick in the nuts for making the craftsmen make this armor black. And let's ignore the fact that it's metallic for not, and pretty much all metal doesn't isolate the heat. Why did it have to be black? Like, I get that you have to be related with the shadow theme somehow, but why? Said Elizabeth, pouting slightly, hands crossed over her chest. She despies heat more than anything else. She got sweaty, it was hideous and it made one's life a living hell. None of this happened in winter. In winter she was safe. Oh, how much she wanted it to be winter at this very moment. She wished the scorching sun could be replaced with chilling wind, snow and ice to cover the streets of Fiore. Oh, how she loved winter and missed it. Then, stopping for a second, shoving away the thoughts about the heat from her head, Elizabeth focused her attention on what she had said in the beginning, how she had mentioned the temple of the Shadow Clan. Had she told Deniel about that? No, she had not. She had not mentioned to him any of her curses, had she? She couldn't quite remember, exactly. She knew for sure that she had told him about her past, or certain episodes of which she wasn't that ashamed, but had she told him about the fate she would face, or any of the curses that she bared with? I haven't told you about the Shadow Clan nor the curses of the Master of Shadows, have I?

Then, Deniel mentioned Zero. Her smile fading, a cold stare passedsing through her elecric blue eyes for a second, as she looked at Deniel, before it dissapeared, her eyes acquiring a blank, emotionless expression, similar to that, which she had way before, before he had arrived. Zero is a bit... difficult, to put it in a way. Don't listen to him, Deniel. He calls me an idiot or moron at least a hundred times per day, so I've learned not to give credit to his words, unless he said something useful. And besides, whenever he calls me, usually, a moron or idiot, I've deserved it in one way or another, by doing something ridiculous. Elizabeth explained, her calm, yet slightly cold tone coming out muffled and eerie through the mask, which she did not even bother to take off, using it to hide her facial expression now. And, honestly, Zero is possibly one of the most intelligent here, unless Nidhogg surpasses him. He's as old as the world, Deniel. Zero is that old. He has seen stuff nobody else has seen, he has learned everything and posesses knowledge, even if it is little, about everything in the world. Have you ever wondered why I keep a lightning beast, despite the fact that I could easily take one of the shadow hounds from the Shadow Clan temple, or anything else? I keep him because of his intelligence, that's why. He is a master strategist, and although he can pull nasty tricks on you, like he did with the spiders, he is insanely intelligent; and loyal.

Her mouth closing shut, lips pursued, Elizabeth looked to the front, watching as people passed by and ignored the duo of mages, her eyes following each step they made, words refusing to leave her mouth. She was not pissed; if she had been pissed, Deniel would probably have had a blade at his neck, despite how much Elizabeth appreciated his company, and how powerful he was. No; she was simply bothered. People were often confused by Zero's appearance, thinking of him as a harmless cute feline, instead of the mastermind he was, and, although often useful, it bothered Elizabeth how people tended to underrate him. A lot.

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AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

  Listening closely to what Deniel said, Elizabeth simply pulled her hands up, taking off the helmet, revealing her calm, focused face, which though, to differ from the happy or just goofy expression that had been on her face the last weeks, now had absolutely no expression on it, a blank look on her face, emotionless, chilling stare focused on the passangers before her, the tension between the two mages rising slightly, something unexpected and terrifying happening inside the female's head. The shadows, the voices inside her head returning once more to ruin her day, like they always did. Yet this time was different. It was much more terrifying than any other, it was the worst ocurrance Elizabeth had had by far. And, without doubt, the most suspicious one.

Although in the past, the only time in which she actually heard the voices in her head, the shadows whispering to her bad things she should do, crimes she should commit, was when she made use of her magic. Or whenever she attacked. It had never happened to her randomly, while she was speaking with someone, regardless how pissed she was. Because there had been ocassions when Elizabeth had been insanely pissed; to the point in which she herself wanted to cut someone else's head, without getting influenced by the shadow voices in her head, but never had the voices came to her if she wasn't in combat or using her magic. Was she losing control already? Deniel had told her it could be controlled. He had said everything could be controlled. But she was starting to doubt his words. He controlled that insane beasts, the malevolent creature he had turned into the first time they met, but, were her demons controllable? It was mentioned more than once in the Book of Shadows that the true Masters of Shadows, or, in other words, those who were the descendants of Zed himself, had to deal with the curse of the Masters of Shadows, which, apparently, included hearing the voices of the shadows in their heads, which would never dissapear, or at least until they drained the last drop of insanity that hid within the Masters of Shadows. She was fated to go insane. To turn into a ruthless killing machine, although she was one anyways now. But, could her condition be, at the very least, slightly controlled, in order to make the insanity come on later on? Was she losing her sanity already? The redhead was terrified. More than terrified. The usually perfect vision of the redhead blurred for a second, before becoming perfect once more, even better than before, for she could now see in shadows even better than before, causing her to realize what had happened, lips pursued, the redhead turned away from Deniel, looking around, only to happen to find a piece of a broken mirror nearby her. Taking it in her soft hands, at the moment covered by her black gauntlets with the sharper, claw-like tips gripping the mirror piece slightly as she drew it to her face, looking at her own reflection in it.

Scarlet hair fell on her face, covering her scalp and eyebrows, yet that was not what caught her attention and only terrified her further, no. Her electric blue eyes were gone. The calm, yet cold stare was gone, the blue irises had faded into oblivion. Instead, they were replaced by a pair of calm, yet sadistic, cruel blood red eyes, the pupils elongated and thin, an eerie glow coming from her eyes as she stared at her own reflection. Uncapable to figure out what was going on. Her eyes only turned blood red in battle. And her pupils were never, ever this thin. Something weird was happening to her, and she had to figure it out. For a little while, though, she'd keep it a secret; from both Zero and Deniel. None of them needed to know, at least not now. She could deal with it all by herself.

Glancing at Deniel, the redhead shrugged, trying to act like the change of eye color was the most natural thing to happen, hoping that he wouldn't ask her if something was up. He didn't need to know, mainly because she herself didn't know. And they were on a job. Her problems would be a subject she would treat once the job was done. Not before. After. I guess you're right. Me and Zero are used to this life style, though. He calls me a moron, I call him many other things, so it's kind of even. And although we act like we'd want to see the other one dead, it's quite the opposite. And you shouldn't apologize. There's no reason for you to do that. Even her voice had changed. From her calm, soft tone, it had passed on to a rather cold, emotionless one, the voice she had used previously, when she isolated herself. This was weird. Really weird. Just then, before she could say anything else, the Lightning beast flew straight into her face, surprising Elizabeth and causing her to squeal slightly, not giving her time to react to the sudden attack. Shoving the beast out of her face, the redhead looked at her loyal companion, suspicion in her eyes as she stared at her pet. That was very fast. Did you find anything?

After a few seconds of silence, which Zero dedicated to staring at Elizabeth's new pair of orbs entirely, the female flicked the lightning beast on the head, causing him to remember that he had to inform the duo on the location of the airship. Shaking his head slightly, Zero jumped on his master's shoulder, yellow eyes looking around the citizens, in curiosity. I did find the airship. It's not too far away; apparently, the researchers did not want to locate it too far away from the nearest village and the main way to the other cities of Fiore, so they could easily acquire resources as food, water, etc, or any material needed for the research. The lightning beast explained, pointing to the north. Let's get going and not waste time, the researchers are waiting for you guys.

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AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

Elizabeth was behind Deniel, following silently and staring at the sandy ground beneath her feet, scarlet eyes focused on what was beneath her, the Rune Knight too fearful to look up, terrified of the option of Deniel seeing her and questioning what was up with her eyes. Why was she so scared of him asking her? She didn't know how she would answer, that's why. She had no idea what was up with her; this was an entirely new experience, which she could not control, and did not understand the cause of. Was the curse evolving, somehow? The book of shadow had not mentioned anything similar, no. And, mind you, the book of shadows has described in depth every effect of the curse, and every part of it, so it not mentioning the random switch of eye color was... odd. Shaking her head slightly, Elizabeth glanced at Zero, who was looking at her carefully, possibly wondering if he should ask her if she was alright; and what the hell was up with her eyes now. What? The redhead whispered, only so that Zero could hear her. She didn't want Deniel to know about the conversation that would possibly follow under no circumstances. Some things she wanted to keep a secret from him, mainly because she herself didn't understand them.

What the hell happened? His tone, similar to Elizabeth's, was not louder than a simple whisper, serious and calm, although a small note of panic could be heard in it. Panic, fear from the unknown, from whatever was happening to his beloved owner. "Nothing", would have been the answer that Elizabeth would say, but she herself knew that it was the most obvious lie ever, and the biggest one. But... as mentioned, she herself did not know how to describe the events ocurred seconds before the arrival of the lightning beast, much less the causes of it. She was simply clueless; something weird, considering how smart Elizabeth was, and how she rarely was either speechless or clueless; and now she was both. Shrugging slightly, something which almost shoved Zero off of her shoulder, the redhead looked at the sky above her, only a few clouds hovering high, up in the air above them. Eyes focused on the magnificent sight above her, Elizabeth avoided Zero's determined stare, trying to avoid his gaze at any cost. Nothing. She mumbled, her gaze still on the sky above her, making her trip and almost fall as she walked.

Yet, the weird, unexplaineable occurances did not stop there; no. To make it short; Elizabeth always heard the same voice, or few voices over and over again, telling her the exact same malevolent plans over and over again, their sweet, yet malicious and eerie voices sounding in her head like it was a stereo on replay. But this time, to differ from any other time, an entirely new, peculiar voice Elizabeth heard in her head, its words surprising her beyond antything else. As she walked, calmly, trying to ignore the voices in her head, whispering to her to tear apart her enemies, to kill, to destroy, a feminine, sweet, yet arrogant laughter sounded in her head. That was a pretty obvious lie. Stopping in her tracks, a grimmace of terror and confusion occupying her pretty face, thankfully hidden behind the mask, Elizabeth froze, not comprehending where this new voice had came from, and how, and more than anything, why it responded, or at least, reacted to her words and actions. The other voices never did so. Why was this different? Besides; it didn't sound too creepy; it was soft and arrogant, the voice Elizabeth could easily associate with any of the Pergrandean nobles she knew; because pretty much all of the aristocratic women that spent time with her mother sounded like that. Oh, someone's surprised to hear me? Are you scared, pretty? How cute. The voice kept speaking, causing Elizabeth to grit her teeth. What the hell was going on with her?

Before she could figure it out, the duo arrived at a majestic, enormous black airship, with tons of people leaving it and entering, carrying materials, books, or nothing really, speaking to the others in hushed, quick whispers, or screaming directions and orders to their inferiors. The sudden chaos and life brought Elizabeth back to the actual world, causing her to forget about the new resident voice inside her head and focus on the task at hand. Was this it? It appeared so. Deniel and Elizabeth had followed Zero's instructions closely, carefully, and had arrived to an airship, which made Elizabeth think that this was, indeed, the correct location. Hands crossed over her chest, the redhead quickly walked past Deniel, recognizing the woman that was supposed to be her client, judging by the photo of the client that came alongside the job, her scarlet eyes having an absolutely blank expression in them, a careless, blank expression. Good day. Are you Miss Knalla?

The tall, brown-haired woman to which Elizabeth had spoken stopped talking to a person, who was apparently her underling, only to turn around and face the redhead, curiosity in her eyes as she wanted to know who had spoken to her. Atonished by the appearance of the person that had spoken to her, Knalla needed a second to recover from the initial shock, after which, though, she straightened a bit and smiled, a soft, warm smile spreading on her lips. Yes, I am Knalla. And who might you be? How can I help you?

Without hesitating, Elizabeth bowed slightly, a show of respect that had always been used in the Shadow Clan among the members before battle and at the appearance of the leader, the expression in her eyes not softening for a moment, her voice serious, formal, perhaps even a bit cold. I am Elizabeth Silvershield, a Rune Knight Corporal. Alongside my partner right there, behind me, we have came here to accept your request.

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AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

He was being ridiculous. And it was annoying. Noticing instantly the cold glare she had been given, Elizabeth returned Deniel the stare, the coldness rivalling his own, her scarlet eyes showing absolutely nothing, but sparks of silent anger. Shaking her head, the redhead returned her eyes on Knalla, trying to soften the look in her eyes a bit... Yet failing. Her eyes on her client, Elizabeth observed with curiosity the momentary fear in the woman's brown eyes, before it dissapeared, hidden behind a well-elaborated mask of bravery and confidence. The woman knew how to hide her emotions. Elizabeth had to admit, it was interesting. Most turned away from Elizabeth when they were given the stare. Yet, Knalla stood her position, and didn't even flinch. Elizabeth had to admit, that such bravery from a researcher was admirable. Very, at that. Hands on her waist, the Shadow Assassin glanced at the place where Deniel had headed to, noticing he had already gotten on the airship. A silent sigh escaping her lips, the Master of Shadows tried to concentrate on the task at hand, and forget the little argument, for a little. Once this was done, she'd make sure to deal with solving the argument she and Deniel had had; or, if they did not manage to arrive to a agreement, she'd simply diss him. It was not like she needed him, right? She didn't love him, for sure; not because of anything else, but because of the beloved curse that she had received, ever since her very birth, which didn't allow her to love, to feel the fabled romantic emotions, affection, towards nobody.

So, Miss Knalla, let me see if I got the request right. Me and... Deniel, my partner, are supposed to guard you and the other researchers, while you repair those lacrimas up in the sky, from any peril that may present. Am I correct? Elizabeth's voice vas calm, yet chilling cold, expressing no emotion, simply... empty and cold. Nothing like her happy voice. She herself was amazed by how fast she could change, her attitude could change, her everything. From a goofy, cheerful girl this morning, she had once again adapted the personality of the Shadow Assassin; cold, denying, emotionless, only willing to complete the task at hand, not caring if she killed or scared everyone in her path, be it friend or foe. With those attitude changes, she was most certainly insane. Nodding, Knalla pointed at the airship, explaining that the duo was indeed supposed to guard the researchers while they worked from any peril that comes into sight, until the lacrimas were completely repaired and secured. At first sight, it looked like a pretty easy job. But was it, really?

I think you scared the hell out of the poor woman, cutie. I could sense her fear from a mile away. The arrogant voice resonated through the red-haired assassin's head, causing her to stop in her tracks, while she walked around the airship, hands crossed over her chest. She couldn't deny it; she had scared the hell out of poor Knalla. Even Elizabeth had sensed it, and her senses had yet to evolve completely and reach those, which the Masters of Shadows posessed. She couldn't deny either, that she was incredibly curious about the new voice in her head. She had stopped freaking out about it, quite a few ago, and now she simply wanted to know who it was. Why it was there. Perhaps that voice, which seemed to have a mind of its own, and could think, reason, elaborate complex responses which didn't include the words "kill"; "tear apart" or "demolish". So... Who exactly are you? Or; what are you? I am not sure which would be the correct question.

A loud, arrogant laughter echoed through the head of the redhead as she sat down, her back against the wall of a cabin of the airship, away from Deniel. Red eyes looking around curiously. As the laughter began fading, slowly, yet progressively, Elizabeth wondered if her question would be answered ever, until the voice spoke once more. I, darling, am the monster parents scare naughty children with. I am the nightmare that haunts everyone, and makes them go through sleepless nights. I am, my dearest Master of Shadows, the Shadow Sovereign, and your body belongs to me.

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AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

Elizabeth was shocked. Atonished. Put it like you want, she couldn't believe what she heard. Had the newfound voice in her head just shamelessly state that her body, the body she had lived in all life, didn't belong to her, but to this bodyless entity that apparently resided inside of her? Things just took an entirely new twist. And a rather perilous one, too, as judging by the words of this unknown entity, which called itself the Shadow Sovereign, it was not entirely a peaceful, good being, no. Evil, malice reigned its heart, and Elizabeth honestly did not know what limits it had, if it could take over her body, or if it could hurt her. She could not fight that thing; how could she fight something that was inside her, something she could not see, or she could not harm without harming herself in the process. The entire situation at hand was complicated. Perhaps too complicated for the redhead. If Zero could hear the small conversation that took place in Elizabeth's head at the moment, he would probably be able to formulate some sort of a theory, or something, but he couldn't. And she didn't want to bother him with it. He had enough with trying to deschipher the Book of Shadows already, and definetly did not need extra work to occupy his little, yet genius mind.

This, naturally, meant that Elizabeth would have to deal with the issue at hand all by herself, which would definetly be everything, absolutely everything, but easy. She had so many problems, so many issues, to solve all by herself, that another one would just put more weight on her shoulders. How had she not been crushed under the weight of all her issues, how was she still alive, how was she still fighting? Was her will that strong? Was she willing to overcome the obstacles so much? Even Elizabeth herself was amazed by her abilities at times. And by her will. Cushioning her head on her legs, the Shadow Assassin closed her eyes, which, stubbornly, remained scarlet red, with thin pupils, refusing to change. She didn't want those eerie eyes. She wanted her normal, electric blue eyes. Why had it changed? Why so out of the blue? Had the appearance of the new spirit in her head cause the sudden change? The sudden change and the sudden appearance of the newcomer had to be connected. It was logical. An evil entity that resided in her head seemed like a legit cause for the sudden change of attitude, eyes, so forth. It had to be connected; there was no other explanation. Say... Miss... Evil Spirit? Is your presence causing me to become more irritable and my eyes to suddenly undergo drastic changes, albeit they usually only switch to blood red when I'm using my abilities? Her head still cushioned on her knees, Elizabeth did not notice the sudden dissapearance of her pet, who had went out to scout, and would probably give her the news that would further screw up the redhead's mood that day. Boy, you turned out to be smart. I've never really been with a smart master of shadows, if you want me to be honest. But yes; I cause all of those disturbances you mentioned. It's my... Evil presence. And my name is Blair. Not Evil presence, you dumbass. Blair. Even her name sounded creepy. How old was the spirit? Elizabeth did not quite know wether Blair was a modern or a more antique name. For how long had she been in her head? Had she occupied it since her very birth?

Blair, huh? Nice name. How... How old are you? Albeit it is unapropiate to ask a woman such a thing, I would like to know your age. If you are known so well for your evil deeds among humans, you must not be young. Elizabeth kept "talking" with her new "friend", Blair, her curiosity growing with each second. She could not hear the approaching monsters outside, too succumbed in her own world. Blair took a few minutes to answer, for her sweet, yet arrogant, cold voice didn't resonate instantly through the redhead's head; it took it a few minutes to appear once more in her head. Well, lovely, I'm going to make it easy for you; I am older, much, much older than your beloved Grand-grand-grandfather, Zed. He was my first human vessel, too. Shame that he gave into the shadows too soon, he was no fun. But, I am too much older than the very Book of Shadows. Remember my title? I'm the Shadow Sovereign. I am the creator of the Book of Shadows, lovely.

The information shocked her. The owner of the book of Shadows, its creator, in Elizabeth's head? And not only that; but that spirit had already used Zed as its first human vessel? What exactly were the other side effects of Elizabeth's heritage, that were not stated in the book? Although Zero had not translated even half of it, in no moment was the Shadow Sovereign mentioned, except in the introduction, when it said who was the author of the book. How... How had the spirit survived so long? Elizabeth sat, frozen, thinking through everything that had happened and she knew now, her mind about to expload from the information overload. Too many things for her to think through. Too many things she had to consider. However; she was knocked out of her trance as suddenly the door was opened, and Knalla came in, terrified. Silvershield! The Monsters have been outside for a good ten minutes! Please deal with them already, the researches' lives are in great danger!

That sentence, the mention of her task made Elizabeth jump on her feet, and rush outside, all instinctively, without even realizing what the situation was. It took her a good minute or two to analyze the words she had heard and process the information. Monsters... Outside... Danger? WAIT. SAY WHAT NOW? Her reaction, aside from being absolutely hilarious, was out of place, for she never freaked out like that. Nor was she as pissed as she was now. At the moment, her blood was boiling, her eyes were shining in anger. Ten minutes had passed and nobody had told her about the assault. Nobody. She was going to scratch someone in a bit, for sure. DENIEL DECAYUSS THORNMAN. She yelled, her voice chillingly cold, anger in her eyes. He was supposed to tell her. They were supposed to fight together. Was a simple fight going to tear them apart? How pathetic.

Running around the airship, until she finally spotted the tall, athletic figure, too familiar to her, the redhead ran towards him, taking off her mask, her red eyes shining eerily, her pupils nothing, but a thin line. Like a cat's eye. Or a dragon's. She was pissed. Very pissed. Why the hell didn't you tell me the monsters were here? I was out for a good ten minutes! Do you know how much is that? You were supposed to tell me so we can fight together!

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AND IT'S DARK ON A COLD DECEMBER,

The Black Devil. Elizabeth felt fear pulse through her body for a second, and be visible in her eyes for no longer than a second, before once more it dissapeared, the anger returning. How dare he speak to her in such way? Her blood was boiling, anger was visible in her scarlet, dragon-like eyes, thin pupils focused on Deniel, her small body not moving an inch. Next to Deniel, mostly now that he was in his Black Devil form, Elizabeth looked like a gnome next to a giant, and, logically, she was supposed to fear the latter, due to the immense height difference, which, sadly, was in Deniel's favor, and his appearance. But Elizabeth was nowhere near fearing him. At all. Instead; she felt the insane desire to kick him and show him that she was the one who dictated the rules here. Although in reality, she was nowhere near dictating the rules. You've got an interesting... friend? That's a very peculiar appearance, I must say. I like it. The sweetish, yet eerie voice of Blair resonated through the redhead's head once more, causing a shiver to go down her spine in surprise. Albeit, Elizabeth ignored the Shadow Sovereign, committing the first error that day, and continued to stare at Deniel, chosing her words. Yet, the time she was taking in order to figure out a correct comeback at Deniel, which wouldn't ultimately destroy their friendship, Blair was getting progressively more bored and bored, until the point, in which she simply could not stand it. She was an impatient spirit; one that, despite loving adventures, dramas, and causing problems, had not seen any in eons, and now that she finally participated in a dramatic encounter of her host with a... friend of hers, the action, the drama was pretty much nonextistant.

And that was the reason she used when she took over the redhead's body. Small, yet easily noticeable physical changes took place as Elizabeth's spirit, her soul, was pushed back, almost kicked out of her body forcefully, letting Blair to take control of the hollow body, the second that the transfer took causing Elizabeth to nearly fall, and grip the railing of the airship to avoid falling. Moving her fingers slightly, now purple eyes staring at them, Blair looked around, with curiosity, the spark of anger and emotion present in Elizabeth's scarlet eyes dissapearing, in order to let emotionless, cold purple eyes through, her strawberry hair changing into a snow white tone. It's been so long since I last took over a body.... Interesting. Blair muttered to herself, trying to get a grip on the new body she had, trying to control it, while ignoring the pleas of the real Elizabeth to let her have her body back, to not cause any unnecessary damage. Or at least more than she had already caused. But Blair, sadly, had no plans to return the body anytime soon. She wanted to have some fun, to make up for all the years she spent sadly trapped in the book she herself created.

Remembering her objective, Blair looked up at Deniel once more, ignoring the fact that the change of appearance and the weird attitude. An arrogant smile appearing on her lips, eyes focused on the Black Devil, Elizabeth, or rather, Blair, placed her hand on the chest of the beast before her, preparing her small monologue, the answer to the Devil's question. I don't need your assistance either. I can easily slaughter those beasts without your help. Let's just say that I want a helper from time to time to make the battle more dynamic, you know what I mean? Fighting alone the entire time is boring. Blair said, her voice cold, arrogant, mocking, nowhere near the voice Elizabeth had. It sounded eerie, dark, evil. Unlike Elizabeth's soft, sweet girly voice. And don't forget, Devil, that I invited you on this job. I am the leader; I make the rules, and you are supposed to follow them. Got it? Now; off to business.

Cracking her knuckles, the Shadow Sovereign slipped on the helmet back on her head to keep up with the tradition of the Masters of Shadows figting with a helmet, and looked to the left, her eyes immediately noticing the monsters flying around the airship. A dark grin on her lips, she waved her hands slightly, Illusion and Dellusion appearing immediately, ready to serve their master. Or, in this case, Blair. Isn't this fun, darling?

You just screwed up the only friendship I had, you psycho.