Flying was never something Arthur expected himself to be able to do. From his childhood on a small farm, this was never the outcome he could have foreseen. Tens of meters in the air, above the canopy of tropical trees, Arthur could feel closer to his god and his brilliant light. Birds soared next to him, and the brush of wind against his cold skin was comforting in a way. His body had adjusted to its flight capabilities rather quickly, from how his stomach used to get very queasy and nauseous the first time in the air, from how now he didn't even think about it. It was as natural to Arthur as was walking or breathing. While he knew that his wings were granted by his divine blessing. Being up in the sky, above everything he had once known, it felt as if he was some type of mythical creature. He knew that it sounded somewhat silly, but flying filled him with an unparalleled confidence that bestowed upon him the most valiant of graces. His alacrity was unparalleled with his aerial presence, although he had really yet to master the art of aerial sorcery. It was something for his to-do list, aiming his spells while in the air that is. It was a lot more difficult than he first thought, having to calculate his own movement and verticality into his aim that was naturally adjusted to a fixed angle- firing from the ground. Flapping his wings, Arthur did a roll in the sky, swooping up higher and letting his legs hang loose as his spread out his arms. He had to laugh at himself, he was like a child who had just learned how to ride a bike. Still somewhat of an aerial novice, he wasn't yet confident enough to do anything more advanced than a simple barrel roll. Arthur wouldn't yet dare attempt something such as a flip or anything of the sort. He had to admit though, that flying felt a lot better than walking after extended periods of times. What he normally did on an extended adventure was swap to aerial transport when his legs became too tired or feet aching too much for him to comfortably handle. Swooping down beneath the cloud layer, Arthur spotted the outcropping of rock signifying the location in which he needed to land.
Angling his body to land, Arthur ran his hand through his wind-blown hair. Flying made his hair an absolute mess, but it's not something that he was particularly mindful of. He was about to enter a cave in search of treasure, it's not like he was trying to look good for anybody in particular. Landing with a thump in the sand, Arthur's boots rattled upon impact. Landing was always something interesting. After extended periods in the sky, it always felt a little weird to land, not unlike sea legs after extended periods of sailing. Grounding himself, he took a deep breathe and blinked the wind out of his eyes. That was another thing, the constant jet of moving air against his eyes was very dehydrating in practice, irritating almost in a way. What he didn't understand, though, was how animals like birds could fly for so long without going blind. Arthur usually found himself blinking rapidly while in the sky, or using his healing magic to replenish the hydration of his eyes every now and again. Running his fingers through the blades of grass edging the dunes of sand, he approached the outcropping of rock. Arthur knew there was something magical inside, he could feel the signatures of undead magic and creatures from this distance. He could feel their putrefying auras even from outside the cave entirely. What he couldn't feel, though, was anything of a greater threat than lesser undead. No black mages nor necromancers for that matters. That was probably a good thing, all things considered. There was nothing to cause him too much harm and so there was no reason for him to be feeling as nervous as he did. It was a sudden feeling that came over him upon nearing the cavern's mouth. It was as if the fortune teller's magic was swirling around him as he gathered a ball of light above his head and passively lit the darkened area around him. Arthur's breathing echoed throughout the narrow cavern opening alongside his heavy clanking footsteps. He wouldn't have the element of surprise, that's for damn sure. His suit of armor wasn't exactly known for being silent, but he didn't need the element of surprise to win most battles, he had everything in his own physical and magical strength. Sneak attacks weren't particularly honorful either, but he was dealing with undead so it wasn't a huge concern.
Sounds of trickling water rang out as he delved deeper into the rocky tomb. With the light shining above his head, Arthur could see roughly five meters in a spherical radius around him. Everything outside of this was completely pitch black now that he was far enough from the cave's bright entrance. Glancing at the floor beneath him, the paladin was just focused on not tripping over anything as the stone floor seemed particularly hard today. Not finding the current lighting comfortable for his navigation, Arthur snapped his fingers and the illuminated radius nearly doubled in a burst of light. As he did so, the various coffins and skeletons lining the now-illuminated walls trembled. He could feel their once-dormant magical signatures flaring to life as he somehow triggered them to come back to life. Swallowing all of the hesitation that had gathered in his mouth, Arthur glanced around him to see that there were nearly a dozen of the now-active signatures readying themselves for combat or beginning to approach him. Sighing as he gathered holy magic in his hand, he let out a luminous reflection that sent a beam of golden-white light bouncing between the various undead. Clearing all of them in his area of effect, they crumbled to dust as the potently purifying light washed over them. He rather liked that spell, as the bouncing beams of light were perfect for taking out waves of enemies or undead with a single cast. Arthur knew though, that it had little use against enemies stronger than the average undead or zombie. It barely ticked anybody at his level, but that was not its utility. As the beam continued to bounce around and smite the foul undead, each bounce cast the cave in immense amounts of light and white sparkles. Arthur ran a finger through the ashes left behind by their corpses. He pinched it between his two gloves fingers and rolled it. The magical signature held by their remains was troubling, meaning that they had not been summoned or cast and forgotten by any mage. If that had been the case, every trace of magic in their remains would have quickly dissipated in seconds after their slaying and purification. Troubling indeed, as it meant that all of the undead within this cave was naturally occurring. Thinking back to his teachings, such a thing only occurred in the most vengeful of spirits that had been left to fester in the position they died without so much as an acknowledgment or burial. Naturally occurring undead were rare enough, let alone a cave full and plenty with them. Even after clearing out this first wave, he still felt scores of them polluting the magical miasma around him. Arthur shuddered at the thought of what could have caused such an amount to be present in one place. How long ago had all of these people died and their bodies gone ignored? Did the magician woman have something to do with it? Each were troubling thoughts, but that was something for another time, not when he was still actively surrounding by them.
The hand on his shoulder was enough to make Arthur scream out in absolute terror. Quickly turning around with his sword drawn, Arthur came to point his sword at the skeleton who was.... holding his hands above his head in a position of surrender? Arthur blanked for a moment while he considered the significance of this action. This was... very weird, as even if the skeleton had self-preservation instinct, none of the lesser undead he had studied were capable of even expressing anything more than their desire for a living host or an anchor that would keep them in the world of the living, away from wherever it was they had been summoned from. Still, Arthur did not lower his weapon. Instead, he pushed it further towards the skeleton's trembling jaw. He could hear the undeath's bones rattling in absolute fear of the paladin before him. If not for the absolute mystery it posed, Arthur would have been quaking in laughter. Adrenaline from the scare parting his system, Arthur wiped a bead of sweat from his unruly brow. The skeleton opened his jaw before somehow speaking out into the open air. "Don't kill me! Friendly, I promise ya matey. Ya makes me bones rattle just lookin at ya, don't like us do ya? Though, 'don't suppose I blames ya. We are the undead and all." The skeleton lowered his arms and ran over to a pile of bones. Sadly, it traced its bony finger through the dust remains. "Poor timmy, not his fault what happen-" Arthur had to interrupted the man, suddenly coming to his senses that he should probably not be listening to a skeleton give a monologue. "Silence, wretch. Explain yourself, how are you able to speak with me, and why aren't you just mindlessly attacking me?" Hearing this, somehow, the skeleton got back to his feet and stretched out with his arms on his hips. The creature seemed rather pleased with itself, and Arthur swore he could feel the thing smiling right at him. Definitely a first for him, a skeleton smiling while having a conversation with him. This day just kept getting weirder and weirder as it progressed, and Arthur had absolutely no clue what could be coming next. The skeleton's jaw was animated as it responded. "You see, that is something I do not know myself, but I'm definitely grateful for it. I've been stuck in this godforsaken place for so long that ya're the first person that has spoken to me in ages now. How long has it been, is me memory really that bad? Damnit, well, anyways, back to the matter at hand. Now, I don't know why me allies are walking again amongst the living since I'm sure I remembering watching them die, aside from the fact that you woke them up, but neither do I know why I have not joined them. Are you understandin me situation dere now amigo?" The way the skeleton positioned his posture was both inviting and somewhat persuasive, moving his houlders and arms in a way not-unlike a shady salesman. The thought was absolutely ridiculous, of a skeleton tending the counter of a greasy pawn shop. Definitely not the kind of place that he'd ever want to visit, let alone spend his money in.
Arthur tapped his boot against the cavern's rocky floor. The damp air around him swirled with something he didn't want to really think about too hard. Knowing that the man probably wasn't that much of a threat, he wasn't going to attack some sorry defenseless sop like the sore sight standing before him. It would leave him feeling off- guilty even with his attack on someone who couldn't really fight back. The only reason he hesitated his pacifism in this situation was due to the fact that it was, well, a skeleton. Undeath were not something he was used to sparing, never, not once in his life had he done something like this. The thought was troubling, was this why he was sent here, as a test from the old woman to see if he was truly as empathetic as he once thought himself to be? Whatever test it was, was working, because Arthur felt truly conflicted on the fate of the skeleton, who was now speaking to him with a nervous tone. "You seem to be sizing me up dere fella, don't suppose ya plan on offerin me a bone? Eh, not that kind, you know what I meant. If you're plannin on whether or not ya should cleanse or smite me or whatever it is exactly ya does, you should probably know that I also know the location of the treasure you seek. See, I was part of the pirate crew that originally landed here to plant the treasure chest where it stands today. And if that doesn't influence ya, you could also think about the fact that I haven't touched a soul since being risen. I can't leave the cave cuz of the sunlight, however I also haven't killed anyone that has wondered in. Nobody has even entered this cave since we're all after diein, none of 'em would still be asleep if even one miserable fool had managed to find his way into our resting place. Am I sounding good, or what? Cuz you're not really givin me much ta work wit here, and I'd radder not die a second time now if I could prevent it in any capacity." Goddamn the skeleton was annoying, but Arthur was doing his best to push his annoyance to the side. The damned undead figure couldn't stop talking if his life depended on it. He was talking about honor this, honor that, hasn't killed anybody. Not with his hands at least, with pure annoyance? That was another possibility entirety, but Arthur believed the man. If this had been a week prior to him joining the guild, Arthur would have slashed at the things ribcage before it even began speaking. With his new membership of the guild, though, he has grown a lot more understanding of the fact that not ever member of an enemy-type should be considered evil. Many of his guildmates- his brothers and sisters in arms even, used magic and had identities conflicting to his once absolute state of moral code and justice. "Fine, I won't kill you. Don't make me regret my decision." Arthur's deep voice echoed huskily throughout the cavern, causing the skeleton to mimic the act of shivering with goosebumps. "Oi, lighten up a bit would ya?" Arthur could only glare at the undead creature, it was already testing his nerves after he had explicitly told it not to. Mentally, this adventure would not be as easy as he once thought.
Arthur couldn't help his unease as the creature strode alongside him deeper into the cavern. It was unsettling to see a human skeleton just walking around fully animated with as much body language and personality as someone on the living side of the spectrum. "So, ya wanted to hear about some of me treasure, did ya?" Arthur sighed at the skeleton's words, he didn't particularly ask about the treasure but it was the reason he was here in the first place so it would be a good idea to let the guy speak. Begrudgingly, Arthur responded to the skeleton and agreed to let him speak back. "Go ahead, tell me what you know. Don't beat around the bush, I was warned to get back before nightfall."
WC: 2561 TWC: 2561
Angling his body to land, Arthur ran his hand through his wind-blown hair. Flying made his hair an absolute mess, but it's not something that he was particularly mindful of. He was about to enter a cave in search of treasure, it's not like he was trying to look good for anybody in particular. Landing with a thump in the sand, Arthur's boots rattled upon impact. Landing was always something interesting. After extended periods in the sky, it always felt a little weird to land, not unlike sea legs after extended periods of sailing. Grounding himself, he took a deep breathe and blinked the wind out of his eyes. That was another thing, the constant jet of moving air against his eyes was very dehydrating in practice, irritating almost in a way. What he didn't understand, though, was how animals like birds could fly for so long without going blind. Arthur usually found himself blinking rapidly while in the sky, or using his healing magic to replenish the hydration of his eyes every now and again. Running his fingers through the blades of grass edging the dunes of sand, he approached the outcropping of rock. Arthur knew there was something magical inside, he could feel the signatures of undead magic and creatures from this distance. He could feel their putrefying auras even from outside the cave entirely. What he couldn't feel, though, was anything of a greater threat than lesser undead. No black mages nor necromancers for that matters. That was probably a good thing, all things considered. There was nothing to cause him too much harm and so there was no reason for him to be feeling as nervous as he did. It was a sudden feeling that came over him upon nearing the cavern's mouth. It was as if the fortune teller's magic was swirling around him as he gathered a ball of light above his head and passively lit the darkened area around him. Arthur's breathing echoed throughout the narrow cavern opening alongside his heavy clanking footsteps. He wouldn't have the element of surprise, that's for damn sure. His suit of armor wasn't exactly known for being silent, but he didn't need the element of surprise to win most battles, he had everything in his own physical and magical strength. Sneak attacks weren't particularly honorful either, but he was dealing with undead so it wasn't a huge concern.
Sounds of trickling water rang out as he delved deeper into the rocky tomb. With the light shining above his head, Arthur could see roughly five meters in a spherical radius around him. Everything outside of this was completely pitch black now that he was far enough from the cave's bright entrance. Glancing at the floor beneath him, the paladin was just focused on not tripping over anything as the stone floor seemed particularly hard today. Not finding the current lighting comfortable for his navigation, Arthur snapped his fingers and the illuminated radius nearly doubled in a burst of light. As he did so, the various coffins and skeletons lining the now-illuminated walls trembled. He could feel their once-dormant magical signatures flaring to life as he somehow triggered them to come back to life. Swallowing all of the hesitation that had gathered in his mouth, Arthur glanced around him to see that there were nearly a dozen of the now-active signatures readying themselves for combat or beginning to approach him. Sighing as he gathered holy magic in his hand, he let out a luminous reflection that sent a beam of golden-white light bouncing between the various undead. Clearing all of them in his area of effect, they crumbled to dust as the potently purifying light washed over them. He rather liked that spell, as the bouncing beams of light were perfect for taking out waves of enemies or undead with a single cast. Arthur knew though, that it had little use against enemies stronger than the average undead or zombie. It barely ticked anybody at his level, but that was not its utility. As the beam continued to bounce around and smite the foul undead, each bounce cast the cave in immense amounts of light and white sparkles. Arthur ran a finger through the ashes left behind by their corpses. He pinched it between his two gloves fingers and rolled it. The magical signature held by their remains was troubling, meaning that they had not been summoned or cast and forgotten by any mage. If that had been the case, every trace of magic in their remains would have quickly dissipated in seconds after their slaying and purification. Troubling indeed, as it meant that all of the undead within this cave was naturally occurring. Thinking back to his teachings, such a thing only occurred in the most vengeful of spirits that had been left to fester in the position they died without so much as an acknowledgment or burial. Naturally occurring undead were rare enough, let alone a cave full and plenty with them. Even after clearing out this first wave, he still felt scores of them polluting the magical miasma around him. Arthur shuddered at the thought of what could have caused such an amount to be present in one place. How long ago had all of these people died and their bodies gone ignored? Did the magician woman have something to do with it? Each were troubling thoughts, but that was something for another time, not when he was still actively surrounding by them.
The hand on his shoulder was enough to make Arthur scream out in absolute terror. Quickly turning around with his sword drawn, Arthur came to point his sword at the skeleton who was.... holding his hands above his head in a position of surrender? Arthur blanked for a moment while he considered the significance of this action. This was... very weird, as even if the skeleton had self-preservation instinct, none of the lesser undead he had studied were capable of even expressing anything more than their desire for a living host or an anchor that would keep them in the world of the living, away from wherever it was they had been summoned from. Still, Arthur did not lower his weapon. Instead, he pushed it further towards the skeleton's trembling jaw. He could hear the undeath's bones rattling in absolute fear of the paladin before him. If not for the absolute mystery it posed, Arthur would have been quaking in laughter. Adrenaline from the scare parting his system, Arthur wiped a bead of sweat from his unruly brow. The skeleton opened his jaw before somehow speaking out into the open air. "Don't kill me! Friendly, I promise ya matey. Ya makes me bones rattle just lookin at ya, don't like us do ya? Though, 'don't suppose I blames ya. We are the undead and all." The skeleton lowered his arms and ran over to a pile of bones. Sadly, it traced its bony finger through the dust remains. "Poor timmy, not his fault what happen-" Arthur had to interrupted the man, suddenly coming to his senses that he should probably not be listening to a skeleton give a monologue. "Silence, wretch. Explain yourself, how are you able to speak with me, and why aren't you just mindlessly attacking me?" Hearing this, somehow, the skeleton got back to his feet and stretched out with his arms on his hips. The creature seemed rather pleased with itself, and Arthur swore he could feel the thing smiling right at him. Definitely a first for him, a skeleton smiling while having a conversation with him. This day just kept getting weirder and weirder as it progressed, and Arthur had absolutely no clue what could be coming next. The skeleton's jaw was animated as it responded. "You see, that is something I do not know myself, but I'm definitely grateful for it. I've been stuck in this godforsaken place for so long that ya're the first person that has spoken to me in ages now. How long has it been, is me memory really that bad? Damnit, well, anyways, back to the matter at hand. Now, I don't know why me allies are walking again amongst the living since I'm sure I remembering watching them die, aside from the fact that you woke them up, but neither do I know why I have not joined them. Are you understandin me situation dere now amigo?" The way the skeleton positioned his posture was both inviting and somewhat persuasive, moving his houlders and arms in a way not-unlike a shady salesman. The thought was absolutely ridiculous, of a skeleton tending the counter of a greasy pawn shop. Definitely not the kind of place that he'd ever want to visit, let alone spend his money in.
Arthur tapped his boot against the cavern's rocky floor. The damp air around him swirled with something he didn't want to really think about too hard. Knowing that the man probably wasn't that much of a threat, he wasn't going to attack some sorry defenseless sop like the sore sight standing before him. It would leave him feeling off- guilty even with his attack on someone who couldn't really fight back. The only reason he hesitated his pacifism in this situation was due to the fact that it was, well, a skeleton. Undeath were not something he was used to sparing, never, not once in his life had he done something like this. The thought was troubling, was this why he was sent here, as a test from the old woman to see if he was truly as empathetic as he once thought himself to be? Whatever test it was, was working, because Arthur felt truly conflicted on the fate of the skeleton, who was now speaking to him with a nervous tone. "You seem to be sizing me up dere fella, don't suppose ya plan on offerin me a bone? Eh, not that kind, you know what I meant. If you're plannin on whether or not ya should cleanse or smite me or whatever it is exactly ya does, you should probably know that I also know the location of the treasure you seek. See, I was part of the pirate crew that originally landed here to plant the treasure chest where it stands today. And if that doesn't influence ya, you could also think about the fact that I haven't touched a soul since being risen. I can't leave the cave cuz of the sunlight, however I also haven't killed anyone that has wondered in. Nobody has even entered this cave since we're all after diein, none of 'em would still be asleep if even one miserable fool had managed to find his way into our resting place. Am I sounding good, or what? Cuz you're not really givin me much ta work wit here, and I'd radder not die a second time now if I could prevent it in any capacity." Goddamn the skeleton was annoying, but Arthur was doing his best to push his annoyance to the side. The damned undead figure couldn't stop talking if his life depended on it. He was talking about honor this, honor that, hasn't killed anybody. Not with his hands at least, with pure annoyance? That was another possibility entirety, but Arthur believed the man. If this had been a week prior to him joining the guild, Arthur would have slashed at the things ribcage before it even began speaking. With his new membership of the guild, though, he has grown a lot more understanding of the fact that not ever member of an enemy-type should be considered evil. Many of his guildmates- his brothers and sisters in arms even, used magic and had identities conflicting to his once absolute state of moral code and justice. "Fine, I won't kill you. Don't make me regret my decision." Arthur's deep voice echoed huskily throughout the cavern, causing the skeleton to mimic the act of shivering with goosebumps. "Oi, lighten up a bit would ya?" Arthur could only glare at the undead creature, it was already testing his nerves after he had explicitly told it not to. Mentally, this adventure would not be as easy as he once thought.
Arthur couldn't help his unease as the creature strode alongside him deeper into the cavern. It was unsettling to see a human skeleton just walking around fully animated with as much body language and personality as someone on the living side of the spectrum. "So, ya wanted to hear about some of me treasure, did ya?" Arthur sighed at the skeleton's words, he didn't particularly ask about the treasure but it was the reason he was here in the first place so it would be a good idea to let the guy speak. Begrudgingly, Arthur responded to the skeleton and agreed to let him speak back. "Go ahead, tell me what you know. Don't beat around the bush, I was warned to get back before nightfall."
WC: 2561 TWC: 2561
