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Post by yooom on Sept 11, 2019 8:05:12 GMT -6
Asha held back a sad sigh as Soraya flinched, seemingly ready for Asha’s touch to burn her body away or something. She seemed genuinely surprised that she wasn’t incinerated, that Asha was only touching her, and, for a moment, the two gazed into each other eyes. Asha could feel the torment, the sorrow, welling up inside of her. Druj had really done something terrible to her, and Asha doubted he even understood it. Asha couldn’t tell exactly how long she’d been in his clutches, but it seemed as if Soraya had latched on to him astoundingly quick. She wondered why, whether it was simply the power of the snake’s hypnosis, or whether there was something more at work here. After all, what would possess a lone young woman to wander the streets of the city in the dead of night, all by herself? Perhaps there was simply no one else for Soraya to be with, and perhaps that was why Druj’s words had sunk so deeply into her being, because she had desperately wanted some connection, any connection, with another creature.
The thought made Asha feel quite sorry for her, though what Soraya did next made her feel even worse. Her eyes locked onto a spot behind Asha, and Asha turned, momentarily worried that Druj had in fact returned, after stowing his Maiden of Darkness out of harm’s way, to try and finish his work with Soraya. But there was no one there, not the vast serpent, not his injured Maiden, not even some random passerby. And yet Soraya focused on that spot, concentrating with a painful level of devotion, before she attempted to pull herself up onto her feet. She barely made it up past a sitting position before she slumped back onto the floor with a yelp.
“Take it easy, Soraya, you’re not-” she said, quietly, but Soraya was already trying to pull herself up. Asha flinched at the girl’s desperate, agonized scream, gazing into the shadows, waiting for her Master to return for her. With all her rapidly dwindling strength, she pulled herself up onto one leg, and then the other. Asha was surprised that she could even do that much, but Soraya was only able to do it for a few short seconds, before her legs gave out again, and she went crashing back to the floor.
The second fall seemed to break Soraya’s spirit. She let out a frustrated yell into the night, pounding a fist against the pavement. Asha flinched again at the yell, but let out a little gasp of surprise as, as Soraya’s skin broke, and the girl’s hand started to bleed, dark energy flushed out of her. The girl seemed quite literally fit to burst with dark magic. And yet, the release of it seemed to relax her in some way, for she stopped fighting to stand. Asha could sense the battle raging under Soraya’s skin, inside her very soul; the darkness, unable to be brought to that point of completion, was eating away at her. The pain seemed to finally catch up to her, as she curled up into a whimpering ball.
Asha sat quietly beside Soraya, watching her, watching the fight unfold within her. Her body was imbalanced, the darkness far outweighing the light, and, without Druj’s finishing touches, the magic would surely kill her. It was something of a miracle that she hadn’t died the moment the connection had been broken. That she had had the energy to stand, even for a second, should have been impossible. The light, that small, small piece of it was left in her soul, shone to the surface. Soraya looked up at Asha, her blue eyes (Asha was relieved to see that the violet had died down) full of tears. She reached out a hand towards Asha, her palms bloody, her eyes begging for help before her lips ever did.
Asha rose, taking a step towards where Soraya lay, before sinking down onto her knees. Her hand took Soraya’s, their fingers interlocking, as Asha smiled down at Soraya warmly, reassuringly.
“Oh, Soraya, of course I’ll help you.” The glow to Asha’s hand intensified, as light magic gently eased itself against Soraya’s scarred skin, beginning to gently pour into the girl’s body, into her very being. It wasn’t enough to save her just yet, but it would be enough to make some of the pain stop, to keep her off of death’s door for a little bit longer. “It’s going to be okay,” she said, encouragingly, leaning a little closer to Soraya, her hand squeezing Soraya’s. “I will help you, I promise. I am here for you.”
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Post by Emiko on Sept 11, 2019 14:20:01 GMT -6
Soraya honestly didn't know what to expect from Asha after everything she had done... She had pretty much taken Asha's words and ignored them while practically killing herself to get to something heinous and evil. As far as Soraya was concerned, she was nothing more than a hopeless stranger to the divine being who didn't deserve any sort of grace or mercy... And yet, Asha turned around and provided the very thing Soraya needed most...
Unlike before when she was touched, when Asha gently took Soraya's bloody hand into her own, Soraya was filled with emotions of happiness... She didn't deserve the kindness this stranger was providing to her and the tears that had previously been falling in despair began to fall from joy. The warmth of Asha's hands was nothing compared to her kindness and mercy. It was so intense that Soraya barely even notice the golden being pouring her light magic into her body. Though she didn't feel it entering into her, she COULD feel the effects of it.
Like medicine to her aching soul, Soraya could feel the heaviness and fragile state of her body beginning to lift. It didn't take the pain she felt from the cuts and bruises of falling on the pavement, but it reduced the recoil damage she had experienced using her magic improperly. As well, it provided a balance within her body allowing herself to have a reprieve from the incessant need to find and submit to Druj. It wouldn't solve all her problems, but for now...it would keep her alive and stable enough make it a while longer. Or...as long as she could last before the darkness overtook her body again and the magic filling her being ultimately ended her...
As the process came to a close, Soraya was able to finally sit up to her knees at least under her own power and strength. She still felt the need in her heart to submit to the darkness, but it was a whisper at this point compared to the screaming need of an addict earlier...something she could tolerate. She glanced to her bloody hand while using the other to gently feel the bruises and cuts on her face taking in everything that had happened in her moment of clarity. Then, she returned her attention to Asha where she smiled at her doing her best to hold back the tears that had finally stopped...
Soraya...had so seldomly known kindness of this level. Sure, she had experienced kindness before, but on a very basic level akin to having something she dropped picked up for her or having a door held open for her. Kindness of this level was something so rare that Soraya had only seen it once before...when her aunt took her in after her parents death. She was so grateful for what Asha had done that despite being a little weak, she threw her arms around the golden being and held her as tight as a child would their mother after the two had been reunited from a long separation... And her words...so simple she hoped would convey her gratitude properly...
"...T-thank you...so much...Thank you..."
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Post by yooom on Sept 11, 2019 18:44:53 GMT -6
The process had worked. Asha could feel her magic flowing into Soraya, and could feel some part of the darkness Druj had filled her with fade, shadows banished by the light. Soraya wasn’t fixed completely just yet, but she was stable, stable enough to sit up, it seemed. Asha could still feel the darkness stirring inside of her, that little bit of Druj inside of her that was doing everything it could to claim her, but its strength lessened and, as long as Asha kept her close, she would not succumb to it. Asha would make very sure of that much.
Her soul no longer screaming for its own destruction, Soraya seemed to recalibrate, recentering herself, looking down at her wounded hand as if she had only just noticed it was scuffed. Asha had not been quite capable of healing that through this skin contact, though the bruises had been far from the biggest threat to the girl’s life. Soraya’s gaze shifted back up to Asha, and Asha gave her a little smile. There was that desperation again, in that wide, watery-eyed smile.
Asha let out a little yelp as Soraya pounced on her, flinching as she pressed her body against hers. She felt a little guilty at her slight recoil when she realized that Soraya was only hugging her, if a little too tightly. Asha let out an awkward laugh, wrapping her own arms sheepishly around Soraya. She held her, somewhat carefully. She could feel Soraya’s body shaking, evidently still quite weakened from her encounter with Druj. More than that, she could still feel her soul churning, light and dark, now a little closer to balanced, battling in her soul though the dark still far outweighed the light. It would be only a matter of time until she did succumb to it, unless…
Asha’s hug grew a little tighter around Soraya, her wings gently moving, extending from her back to extend, like another pair of arms, to gently press against Soraya’s shoulder, like another hug. She seemed so, well, the only word that came to her was desperate, so desperate to show how much she appreciated that Asha had saved her. It made Asha a little embarrassed, after all, she wasn’t exactly going to just leave the girl to die on some street corner, succumbing to the darkness that surrounded her. Gently, she pulled away from the hug, holding Soraya by the shoulders, looking squarely in her face.
“You’re welcome,” she said, politely, her voice trailing off slightly. Asha was silent for a moment, calculating. She could save Soraya right now, could banish every bit of darkness inside her, cleanse her heart in as little time as it had taken Druj to corrupt her so, but it didn’t feel right, especially for the cost Soraya would have to pay. She gave Soraya a little smile, one hand reaching up to gently clear a bit of dirt off her cheek. She could feel the cuts, the jagged imprint of the pavement, and her other hand squeezed Soraya’s shoulder comfortingly.
“Tell me, can you stand? We need to get you somewhere safe, get you cleaned up.” Asha gazed up, into the night. It was still late, perhaps an hour to midnight, maybe less. Morning was still a very long way away. All the same, it would be best to get inside, somewhere prying eyes and passersby wouldn’t notice the glowing woman and her feeble companion.
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Post by Emiko on Sept 12, 2019 1:20:07 GMT -6
Soraya was so grateful for what Asha had done that she didn't even notice Asha's initial flinch at her own actions. She was so caught up in showing her gratitude that she didn't hardly register a second hug coming around her in the form of Asha's wings wrapping around her body. What she did notice though was how warm and comforting it was inside of Asha's soft embrace. And funny to say...while she certainly didn't mean to, little by little poor Soraya started to drift from using the embrace as a form of appreciation to one of using it more for the comfort it had helped to give. After everything she had been through though, could anyone blame her for seeking a little comfort however possible?
The hug eventually came to an end when Asha gently broke the embrace and looked at the young girl straight in the face. Initially Soraya rested on her knees quietly with a warm and peaceful smile on her lips before suddenly realizing for the first time that the person before her was not exactly human... As funny as it was to say...everything had happened to her so fast that she didn't register how unreal everything seemed to be until now... It was almost as if she had encountered the strangest creatures out of a fairy tale, or some bad dream and she was just now starting to realize it. Honestly, if it hadn't been for the fact that she had just been through hell and that the angelic person before her was a real person, she would have thought herself insane...
Soraya had so many questions in that moment that she wanted to ask Asha. Before she even got the chance to however, she felt the angelic being's hand gently rub some dirt off of her cheek which brought a tiny blush to Soraya's face. She did have so much she wanted to know...about Asha and Druj, about what had just happened to her, about why she was feeling the way she was among many other things. As much as she wanted to know though, Soraya didn't feel this was necessarily the time and the place to be asking these things. Her...heroine didn't deserve to be bombarded by all these things and as a sign of respect, Soraya held everything in she wanted to ask for now.
When Asha inquired whether or not Soraya could stand, the young girl carefully looked down to her legs unsure if she could or not. She gently patted her legs with her hand a few times to assess whether they were still fragile or not, but found no pain to the touch anymore. "...I...I think so..." Was all Soraya offered Asha before attempting to stand on her own again. Thankfully unlike when it nearly killed her just to get to her feet she was able to stand up without much of a problem at all. She was still quite wobbly on her feet, but at least had the strength to stand and even walk a little. However...she could tell that her body was still weak and would most likely need support to walk somewhere far off.
Soraya listened as Asha insisted that they get somewhere safe where they could get the injured girl cleaned up. She wanted to ask why it was so important that they go somewhere safe aside from the obvious threat of something dark showing up. Soraya remembered though that she wasn't going to ask any questions right now and decided instead to offer a her home as an option of refuge. Thankfully, it wasn't too far away and they could make it there easily if...that was what Asha deemed the proper place to go...
"...I...don't know of many places here that are open or safe, but...my apartment is about a quarter of a mile away from here... I live alone...and...it's quiet all the time... If you...think it would be safe there, I could...take us there... But I'm...not sure I can get there alone on my weak legs..."
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Post by yooom on Sept 12, 2019 19:03:01 GMT -6
As Asha examined Soraya, staring into the swirling darkness that bubbled under the surface, she noticed that the girl was staring at her with some surprise. She supposed the adrenaline of Soraya’s near-death experience was starting to wear off, and she had started to remember that women normally did not glow, or have big feathery wings. She could see the questions forming in Soraya’s face, but, as her face started to blush at Asha’s slight preening, she seemed to rethink asking them. Asha drew back a little, feeling a little awkward again. Humans were something of a tricky business, so finicky. Though, to be fair to Soraya, many would have gone mad from the past ten or so minutes. Asha and Druj’s very existences were nothing short of shocking but, even as Soraya began to settle down from the shock of the fight, she did not break down. Best to act like this was perfectly normal. Much better than dealing with Soraya while she was freaking out.
Soraya, her body no longer in complete agony, attempted to figure out if she was going to be able to make the journey to her home. Asha gave her a reassuring smile as she rose to her feet, though it faltered slightly as she started to wobble. Asha quickly shot up to her own feet, her wings flaring out with a *whoosh* as she reached an arm out, holding one of Soraya’s shoulders again, and giving her another kind smile, listening as she rambled about her home. It did make sense, she did seem like the kind of person to live quietly by themselves. Obviously, she wouldn’t be living with family.
“It will have to do,” Asha said, and she stepped beside Soraya. Despite being a little shorter than Soraya, she was surprisingly strong, and she let Soraya lean against her, as she hesitantly took a step forward, feeling Soraya follow. “I think we should be able to get you home, if you’ll show me the way.”
As the two made their way forward, Asha reflect on how Soraya lingered in the hug, losing herself in it. It was a little surprising, Asha thought, how tender Soraya was with someone who she had just met. As they moved together, Asha squeezed her a little tighter, feeling a little more guilt. Whatever this girl’s life had been, and from the way Soraya acted with her, it could not have been all that nice, it was about to change, wholly and completely.
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Post by Emiko on Sept 13, 2019 3:28:18 GMT -6
When Asha stood to her feet with a whoosh of her wings, Soraya did have to take a step back slightly startled by the sudden action. As Asha reached an arm out to hold Soraya's shoulders though in order to help her maintain her balance, the young girl couldn't help but blush shyly. Asha was continually going out of her way to look after Soraya's well being and...she didn't exactly know why... Soraya was honestly a nobody... There was nothing about her that was special or out of the ordinary and yet...she was on the receiving end of a great deal of Asha's help. Soraya wanted to ask why this was the case, but...there was that whole 'not the time and place' thing running through her mind. She would ask the questions soon, but only once she was safely away from the dangers lurking in the shadows.
As Soraya made her way towards home with Asha's help, she hardly said anything at all other than providing the simplest of directions forward. A part of her wasn't exactly sure what to say to this...being she had just met. The main reason she wasn't able to speak however was because her mind was quite filled trying to process everything that had happened...
She just couldn't get over it... Her mind replayed that encounter she had with Druj over and over and each time it made her cringe thinking about what he may have been up to along with how it pushed her to such extremes to literally hurt herself... Soraya just...didn't understand what was going on inside of her, or...outside of her as well at this point and was trying to find answers only Asha could provide. That didn't stop her though from at least trying to piece the puzzle together herself before she started asking things.
It was a good ten minutes or so of their slow pace before Soraya and Asha arrived at the place Soraya called home. And...it was hardly a sight to behold... Before the pair was a run down three story building complex that housed rather small apartment-rooms inside. Soraya's apartment, on the first floor happened to be just a small three room flat with an open area acting as a living space, kitchen and dining room all in one. A small bathroom near a decent sized bedroom were the only other rooms that made up the place where she lived. It...wasn't exactly the most glamorous sight in the world, but...it was all she could afford with tuition and living expenses.
Thankfully, Soraya and Asha were able to get into the building and even inside of Soraya's apartment without much notice at all. The owners of the building lived on the third floor and most of the other occupants were either out partying, or asleep at this hour. They managed to get inside without drawing any sort of attention, and once Soraya flipped on the lights to her home she made sure to make her guest feel as welcome as she possibly could under the circumstances.
"...I know it isn't much, but...this is where I live..." Soraya commented as she slipped her sneakers off at the front door and proceeded into the building on her own strength. "...It's...not perfect, but...it has lighting, climate control settings, and comfortable furniture and...it's home for now. It's really quiet here at night, so no one should disturb us. What's mine is yours so...feel free to make yourself at home..."
With these words escaping her lips, Soraya offered Asha a pleasant smile hoping that offering the angelic being residence in her apartment might in some way make up for all that she had done. She was actually just about to head into the kitchen area to see what she had in the way of drinks or refreshments when she suddenly caught sight of herself in a hallway mirror. When Soraya saw what had happened to her, she freaked out... She had been able to take talking snake demons, teleporting shadow women, and angelic beings popping out of nowhere considerably well. However, seeing her hair changed into a different color was...quite humorously the thing that threw her over the edge...
"Oh my gosh! What happened to my hair!? It...It's BLACK!" Soraya cried out as she drew closer to the mirror in disbelief, only now noticing this change for the first time. And then...that was when she saw her eyes with a mixture of blue and violet colors present in them... "...What is this!? My eyes, too!? What the heck happened to me!? How did...why did my eyes and hair change!?"
Soraya swiftly turned her attention towards Asha as if to receive some sort of explanation. Her look was one of great concern and disbelief at what she had just seen in the mirror. Even before Asha had a chance to offer the explanation she was seeking, Soraya was quick to look back into the mirror and examine herself more thoroughly trying to take this all in. And...of course, she was freaking out the entire time she did so...
"Oh no... I hate the color black, it looks horrible and doesn't match anything I like to wear..." Soraya whimpered as she tried to come to terms with what had happened. "...What if I can't dye it back and this is permanent...? And...what am I going to do about my eyes? They are...they are...so...so...pretty..."
It was in that moment that something seemed to go wrong... Soraya's eyes, once a mixture of blue and violet slowly began to shift back to a more violet color like before. The saying that the eyes were the windows to the soul proved to be quite literal at this point. For when Soraya looked into the mirror and saw her violet irises, she was seeing something that was a byproduct of the dark, hypnotic magic Druj had poured into her being earlier. While she wasn't looking at Druj's eyes, Soraya was looking into the eyes of darkness and...in her fragile, imbalanced state she was quite mesmerized by the sight falling into the dark bliss once again. In other words, Soraya was once again being infected by the darkness, though ironically with her own eyes this time...
Soraya stared deep into her own eyes within the mirror and could feel the darkness within her beginning to once more overpower the light. Her irises turned darker and darker into the corrupted violet color as she fell into her own reflection. As her being started to fill more with darkness again, her words began to echo what was happening in her soul. They proved to be the most damaging evidence that she needed pulled away from the mirror immediately and revitalized in the light before it was too late...
"...I...I'm here...Master... I'm...waiting...for you..."
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Post by yooom on Sept 13, 2019 10:17:20 GMT -6
They made their way through the night, slowly, but steadily. Asha listened to Soraya’s instructions, but most of her attention went to constantly looking over her shoulder, squinting down every alley, at every closed doorway and damp garden, trying to sense any of Druj’s minions, or, worse yet, Druj himself. Hiding in the shadows, they were at times difficult for even Asha to detect before they had struck, and with Soraya in as fragile a state as she was, it was more important than ever to make sure that didn’t happen.
But they were lucky, the two of them made their way up the last stretch to Soraya’s home without the slightest incident. Asha helped Soraya through the doorway, before giving one last cautious look to the empty street they had just passed through. Confident that their journey had gone unnoticed by darkness or the unpowered intruders, she slid the door shut, and let out a small sigh. There was so much danger in the outside world, Druj and his servants, to be sure, but even more than that, all of humanity, almost all of them blissfully unaware of the battle that raged for the continued existence of their very reality. Long, long, long ago Druj and Asha had agreed that, though they may enlist certain individuals to join them, something Asha did not like to admit Druj was better at than her, neither would reveal their presence to the world as a whole. It was simply too dangerous, not only to them and their fight, but to the humans themselves, to know that their world was in such a constant state of flux, and the pandemonium that would doubtlessly ensue suited neither Asha nor Druj. Better this endless battle in shadow, than to draw the whole world into chaos.
Feeling more or less safe, Asha turned, and entered Soraya’s house. She was immediately surprised at how small it was, a single open area cluttered with various cooking and living items. Two doors on the opposite side of the room were slightly ajar, and, as Soraya made her way over towards where the “kitchen” was located, Asha gently strode past her, curiosity getting to her. She peaked for a second through each of the respective doors. There was her own reflection behind one, above a small sink, a rather cramped bathroom. As she made her way from one door to the other, she heard a startled cry from Soraya. Asha turned swiftly, her wings extending out, and there was a loud *thump* as one wing collided with one of the walls. She grit her teeth, though the impact had only stung her pride.
“What is it?” she asked sharply, wondering for a moment if she had missed someone tailing them, whether Nur had finally made her appearance, and sighed in relief when she realized that Soraya was freaking out only at her newly darkened appearance. She let out a relieved laugh, turning in place, a hand gently massaging where her wing had hit the wall, listening to Soraya complain about it. She chuckled, stepping a few feet over, towards the middle of the room, her wings slowly extending out. The feathers at the very tips of each wing brushed, just slightly, against each of the opposite walls. Such cramped quarters, how could Soraya live like this? She listened only slightly as Soraya spoke, her voice uncertain.
“Pretty? Yes, I suppose there’s a kind of dark beauty to them, maybe. Druj always seemed to think so, but I…” Asha’s voice trailed off, as Soraya murmured the next words. Master...that could only mean-
Asha bounded over to where Soraya was staring into the mirror. It was her own reflection, there was nothing but a dazed Soraya staring back into herself, so...how was this even possible? She could feel the darkness Druj has poured into her rushing up to the surface. Surely it had something to do with Soraya’s own image. This was the first time she’d noticed that her appearance even had changed. In those investigations, in the way she had looked into the mirror...had that somehow brought Druj’s hypnotic trance back? Asha did not linger to try to understand it. Wrapping a powerful arm around Soraya, she dragged the girl away from the mirror, settling her into a nearby chair, setting her body between her and the mirror, so that her glowing form was all that Soraya could see.
“Soraya? Soraya! Snap out of it, Soraya!” Asha gazed past Soraya’s skin, into her very soul, yet again. The Darkness, somehow, had come bubbling up to the surface again, pushing the little bit of light Asha had given her back yet again. Asha let out a frustrated snarl, before pressing her golden, shining palms against Soraya’s face, her thumbs barely an inch below each of her eyes. Concentrating, she let loose more of her magic, light flooding through into Soraya’s being. Asha’s eyes shifted, for the first time, to a white-hot silver, as she gazed into Soraya’s rapidly darkening pupils, attempting once again to balance her out, feeding her just enough magic to keep Soraya alive, and not under Druj’s power yet again. It was fruitless, Asha knew, to keep doing this, to keep Soraya on this agonizing edge, just shy of submission to him, but she did not want to give her anything more, not just yet, anyhow. She needed to know, it needed to be her decision. “He’s not your Master, Soraya,” Asha said, her voice much quieter now, her shining eyes only a few inches away from Soraya’s. “He’s not your Master.”
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Post by Emiko on Sept 13, 2019 12:17:22 GMT -6
Soraya was so captivated by her own reflection that she didn't even hear Asha comment about her eyes. In fact...it was almost like the entire world around her just...faded away. It was only Soraya and her reflection, her own eyes showing her the darkness within her being and mesmerizing her with it... Honestly if nothing had been done about it, Soraya would have kept staring into that mirror until her body gave out as she were unable to break away on her own. That however...was not to be if Asha had anything to say about it...
Without warning, Soraya felt a powerful arm wrap itself around her body and pulled away from the mesmerizing sight of her own eyes. While Asha was greeted with an initial yelp of shock, there was hardly much else Soraya was able to show in terms of emotion. In fact, even as she was placed onto a chair and had the glowing being stood between her and the mirror, all poor Soraya could do was stare out into space mindlessly. It was proving just how powerful the darkness within Soraya's body was... All she could do was sit quietly and submissively and stare out into space as if nothing else in this world existed...
When Asha attempted to wake Soraya out of her daze by shouting out to the youth to snap out of it, Soraya could...barely hear her. Asha's voice echoed as if it were miles away rather than as close as she truly was. Instead, all Soraya could hear was the faint sounds of darkness in her soul... That voice, too was a whisper, but a much more seductive one her ears were attuned to. She could hear it tempting her to give in...to surrender and fall over the cliff into the blissful abyss... It was all Soraya wanted to do. However, she wouldn't get a chance to let the darkness take her any further when her face was somewhat forcefully grabbed by Asha and forced to look into her eyes.
As Asha's eyes suddenly changed from their normal color to a glowing hot silver, Soraya felt instantly captivated. Being already in a light state of trance, it didn't take much to get her attention and take advantage of it. Asha's eyes though proved to be just as powerful as Druj's if not more so... Their hypnotic glow was warm and inviting in a way that Druj's was not. Soraya only had to stare into Asha's eyes for a short time before the divine light she poured into her being silenced the rising darkness inside of her along with its call for her to fall over the edge...
Soraya was dumbfounded by the powerful gaze before her and could honestly only stare back with her mouth agape. She fell hard and fast to Asha's gaze and gradually began to turn her submissive heart from Druj onto Asha. As the mesmerizing woman softly moved in closer and let the suggestion sink in that Druj was not her Master, Soraya silently took it without hesitation. She offered Asha a submissive nod that she understood the truth and that the being she had seen was indeed not her Master as she seemed to think...
"...He's...He's not...my Master... He's...not...my Master..." Soraya softly chanted back like a mantra letting the truth sink in and become apart of her once again.
In that moment, it might have became apparent to Asha what the problem had been... Soraya's heart, while corrupted by darkness was naturally soft, and very submissive... All of her life, Soraya had been a people-pleaser which meant being submissive to their whims and desires to make sure everyone was happy. This was no doubt a result of her low confidence in herself, but how it got there was besides the point. This submissiveness or need to be submissive to something was a deeply ingrained part of Soraya's being. When her eyes saw the darkness in her own pupils, it didn't take anything for that force to corrupt her and satisfy the submissive needs she had in her heart...
Little by little, Soraya began to step back from the metaphorical cliff she was constantly attempting to jump off of and back to the reality of balance. Her violet eyes gradually began to fade once again until the faint glimmer of blue light returned to her. She wasn't able to get her eyes back to normal entirely, but her eyes did resonate with her naturally blue color again signalling that she had came back from the edge. Soraya though would still stare into Asha's hypnotic gaze as long as she could or...as long as Asha felt the need for it to continue without deviating from it.
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Post by yooom on Sept 14, 2019 9:52:50 GMT -6
Asha gazed into Soraya’s eyes, as her own continuing to shine, white magic spilling into Soraya’s being, smothering over the dark magic that had resurfaced. Asha was, after all, Druj’s counterpart in every aspect, and her hypnosis was just as dominating, just as overpowering, as the great serpent’s. She allowed herself a slight smile as Soraya, who had barely seemed to notice her words before, immediately focused in on her hypnotic gaze, her jaw gently flopping open. It would have been a rather adorable image, if Asha wasn’t so urgently working to push Soraya out of Druj’s hold. Her worries seemed somewhat unwarranted, however, as Soraya gently nodded along to Asha’s slightly panicked words. Only a few seconds later she was obediently mumbling Asha’s own words, repeating in a gentle chant. As her mind shifted, from submission to Druj and her own reflection to submission to Asha, her body seemed to shift too. The violet eyes she had called pretty slowly lightened, getting closer to what Asha hoped was their natural blue.
Letting out a relieved sigh, Asha leaning away from Soraya, and blinked away the silver in her eyes, taking her hands off of the girl’s face. With Soraya resting in the seat of a chair, Asha swung her legs over one of it’s armrests, perching beside Soraya, careful to keep her glowing body between Soraya and the mirror. Asha cast a nervous glance around the room, keeping an eye out for more mirrors, but they seemed safe.
Asha gazed down at Soraya, who, without the maintained eye contact, ought to start to come back up from the brief trance that Asha had put her under. Though, now that Asha thought about it, she had barely exerted the slightest bit of magical pressure to get Soraya to worshipfully repeat her every word. Perhaps part of it had something to do with the potential that Druj had seen in her, and, without a completed transformation she simply gravitated to whatever magical presence attracted her attention. But Asha thought there might have been more to it than that. This small, lonely flat, the way she had begged for Druj to come back for her. Soraya craved contact and affection, that much had become very clear to Asha. Worse, it didn’t seem to matter whether it was darkness or light, she would bow to whatever magical pressure she felt. Soraya was, Asha thought, feeling a little guilty as she did, the perfect Maiden. Taking magic this easily meant that she would be able to expend it in similarly potent doses, Asha thought. Whatever Asha did, she could not allow Soraya to fall to Druj. But then, surely that meant…
Asha noticed that Soraya had more or less come up from her trance, and reached down, giving her a pat on the shoulder. “You gave me quite the shock there,” she said, turning to glower at the mirror. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard of someone being tranced out by their own reflection.” She turned back to Soraya, a reassuring smile on her lips, though her dark eyes still seemed nervous. She leaned back, keeping the mirror out of Soraya’s sight, stretching her legs. “You have questions, I’m sure.” she said, her eyes fixed on Soraya’s keeping careful track of the color. “And I thank you for holding back while we were outside. That being said, you have a right to know everything.” She paused, looking a little curious. “Tell me, what did Druj tell you? Did he explain anything at all about his magic? What he was trying to accomplish?”
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Post by Emiko on Sept 14, 2019 14:10:55 GMT -6
Soraya fell so hard into Asha's eyes that it almost seemed like a dream... Her silver iris were so warm and inviting that she could stare into them forever... She wanted to...more than anything with that desire in her growing little by little with each passing second. Naturally as Soraya stared, she would absorb more and more light magic into her being until the darkness within her was properly relegated to the corners of her soul and heart where it was once more locked in a temporary state of balance. Things could have proceeded further than that however to the entire purification of her soul. However...it seemed as if Asha knew there was something more to this than just that... While it may have been obvious Asha knew something more than she was letting on, Soraya was oblivious to anything other than Asha's beautiful, silver eyes for the time being...
She would submissively stare into them for a while longer before Asha finally removed herself from Soraya's line of sight. As Soraya gently started to come back to reality without the hypnotic gaze before her, Asha cleverly placed her legs on the chair making sure Soraya was unable to see mirror and fall into her own reflection again. With that mirror being the only one in the room otherwise, Soraya was safe from falling into the darkness through seeing her own reflection. However, Soraya coming back to her senses along with restoring her consciousness was about to bring a new slew of problems she needed addressed... Every one of those problems had to do with the fact that she was in the dark...about everything...
It took Soraya a minute or two to really come back to her own consciousness, but when she finally had her mental clarity again, she realized something was wrong with her... She didn't know what it was, but she just knew in her heart that something was seriously wrong and that Asha had to again save her from...whatever it was... A small frown crept over her lips as she thought about it and she began to sink within herself in silence at the realization...
Soraya showed little to no emotion when Asha spoke to her once more offering nothing other than solemn silence to her questions and words initially... In that moment, she didn't seem to care about the fact she had nearly mesmerized herself with her own reflection or that Asha appreciated Soraya holding back her questions for the proper time and places... To her questions about Druj and if he had revealed anything, that too was far from Soraya's concern. Instead, she sat quietly without saying a word to address anything Asha had asked her showing how upset she was at the situation...
She remained rather silent for several long minutes before the young girl finally turned back to Asha with the most distraught, but serious look imaginable on her face. It was clear that she couldn't take being in the dark and dealing with whatever she was going through any longer. And so...she finally let her questions out. Though...contrary to the serious, and stern look she had, her voice quivered as she nervously asked about the most important things she cared about in that moment in time...
"...Just...who are you? Who was that...thing that attacked me, and...how is it you know my name...? What did that...thing do to me and...what's happening to me right now? I know something is wrong inside of me...Something serious... I've never felt, or experienced anything like this before... What's going on...?"
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Post by yooom on Sept 14, 2019 16:11:08 GMT -6
Soraya was very quiet, as she slowly came up from the trance, the silver reflected in her eyes slowly starting to fade. As Asha spoke, Soraya almost seemed to not pay attention. Her eyes were on Asha, but they seemed unfocused, not as if she was still entranced, but as if she was distracted. Asha didn’t mind, the girl had been subjected to more hypnosis tonight than even Maidens received in weeks, maybe months. It was understandable that she might space out a little. And yet, her expression seemed more bothered than simply passive, and Asha realized that Soraya’s silence was simply due to the impact of her words. Soraya looked up to her, and Asha saw complete panic in her face. She immediately felt a swell of pity for her, and some guilt. She had waited much, much too long before explaining anything. Soraya had come face to face with two deities, a Maiden of Darkness, and had survived all that. Her voice quaked, trembling, a little high pitched, almost as if she was afraid of the answers, as questions began to flood out of her, one after the other. Asha closed her eyes for a long second.
“Who am I...” It always felt strange, explaining it all. It must have come from keeping so much so secret for so long, but some part of Asha’s instincts always screamed out whenever she started talking about herself. But Soraya more than deserved to know about this world, the world that had lurked just out of sight this entire time, the world that had come for her. Asha sighed, and, eyes slowly sliding past Soraya to gaze at the floor, began to speak.
“I am Asha. Druj, the snake you, um...encountered a little bit ago, he and I are...I suppose a word would be spirits. As I’m sure you noticed, we both have certain magical abilities. We have been around for thousands of years, endlessly balancing each other out. My powers are,” she smiled slightly, before raising a glowing hand. “My powers are light, and Druj, Druj’s powers are darkness. We fight.” She paused, her eyes going out of focus, remembering those millenia of battle, raging across the cosmos. “We have fought for as long as I can remember. Longer than you can remember, Soraya. Longer than your kind is capable of remembering.”
She paused, her expression turning to a nostalgic smile. “I still remember the first Maiden of Light. Dozens of generations ago, hundreds, perhaps, but...I remember her perfectly. I remember each one of them, Soraya. My Maidens. My...My Warriors.” She blinked, tears starting to form in her eyes, before focusing back on Soraya before her. “They joined in that fight, that endless, eternal battle. All humans have a certain amount of potential magic inside them. They are born with it, and most never notice it their whole lives. But, with those with special potential, I was able to enhance their magic with my own.” Asha sighed, silent for another meditative moment, gazing straight through Soraya, remembering those ancient faces, girls with the same potential that she could feel within this girl. She could feel them in Soraya, in her curious expression, in her voice.
“But I was not the only to learn of the potential of humans, and Druj did something similar. He created Maidens of his own, the Maidens of Darkness. The girl you met tonight...she was one of them. The two groups fought. For...for years. Generation after generation of them.” Asha leaned against the back of the seat, a cold, sad look in her eyes. “As time passed, Druj and I, and all our Maidens, we decided it would be best, for this world, if we took our war underground, because...because it had gotten so terrible. If it continued like that, nothing would last. Not light, or darkness. We both...We both keep empowering Maidens, to this day. We keep the fight going, the battle between light and darkness, but we do it in secret, in the dead of the night, or where no one else will see.” Asha swallowed, and gave Soraya a mournful smile, and was quiet for a moment. One question answered and that one was by far the easiest.
“As...as for what’s happening to you right now.” Asha was quiet for another moment, one of her hands going to Soraya’s shoulder, squeezing it affectionately, as she continued to speak, her eyes once again not quite meeting Soraya’s. “Druj...well, both of us, I suppose...when we empower a girl, that process begins with us giving a part of our own magic and…” She raised her free hand, gesturing by way of explanation. “imprinting it, I suppose...into the girl. When he looked into your eyes, you felt it, didn’t you? Felt his power, sweeping through you. You can feel it still inside of you, I think.” She gazed into Soraya again, gazed at the swirling darkness within, so unlike the wide-eyed innocent girl she was chatting with. “I can feel it, inside of you. When you looked into the mirror, it started to come back, the darkness. You...you can’t stop it now, the magic went too far.” Asha let out another sigh, and paused.
“But not...not quite far enough, Soraya. There’s...there’s too much good in you,” she gave Soraya a sad smile. “I stopped him from turning you into a Maiden of Darkness, but...I can’t stop what it’s doing to you. The darkness inside you is…” she paused again, it was hard to say it, excruciating, but she needed to know. “The darkness will kill you. There’s not enough to turn you into a Maiden of Darkness, so it will eat away at your soul until...until there’s nothing left.” Asha paused again, somehow, it seemed that there was something even worse that she needed to say, something that she wanted to say even less.
“I...I can stop it, but...I can do a couple of things to prevent that.” She looked at her, her expression no longer a masking smile, but truly mournful. “I won’t let you die like that, I promise, Soraya. But one way to stop it...would be if I made you a Maiden of Light. You...you would have to fight the darkness. It wouldn’t be a choice, they would sense you, they would hunt you...you would have to fight, just to survive. Forever. Every night, for as long as you live. Join that long lineage of women who have fought for me, who have fought by my side. Few would want that Soraya. Trust me...very few.” Asha’s hand moved, very, very slowly, raising her palm up to face Soraya. It grew whiter and whiter, brighter and brighter, crackling with energy the way her whole body had when she’d faced Druj.
“Or, if you’d prefer, I could end it…right now. It would be quick, painless, I promise.” Asha let out a little sniffle, but her expression remained stoically firm. “Many would prefer death, to the war but it’s...it is up to you."
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Post by Emiko on Sept 14, 2019 18:36:02 GMT -6
As Asha explained her story...the origins of her and Druj's being along with everything else, Soraya almost couldn't believe it... Asha was, along with Druj beings of unfathomable power who conscripted people with magical abilities to fight on their side... It wasn't something easily believed, even for Soraya who had seen it all first hand and had the evidence staring at her right in the face... While this information was proving to be a hard pill to swallow, it was nothing compared to when Soraya got the news of what was happening to her body...
When Asha went on to tell Soraya that darkness was filling up her being and would eventually kill her, her expression of concern turned to one of shock. She softly turned her attention away from Asha to look down at her feet in disbelief. That look of disbelief only grew as the angelic being explained how the only way she could be saved was to be turned into a Maiden of Light. After hearing what that entailed, it hit poor Soraya like a ton of rocks... The only way for her to live now...was to risk her life in something she didn't understand, nor could comprehend... How on earth was she suppose to do that...?
Soraya continued to look down at the floor in shock, not even showing any sort of emotion or concern when Asha slowly raised a palm to her face and causes it to grow with intense energy similar to how she had displayed against Druj. Her emotions remain unchanged even as Asha offered to end her pain and suffering almost like Soraya didn't notice the being was even their. For the longest time, she just sat there looking past Asha's hand processing everything she had just heard until her silence was broken in the strangest way...
With a smile spreading over her face, Soraya began to giggle for no good reason. As well, a steady stream of tears began to slide down her face showing she was feeling an intense mix of emotions... She gradually allowed herself to face Asha once more where the angelic being could see the smile of joy along with the tears of sadness both present on her face showing that...she wasn't taking any of this well... With the double mix of reactions, it almost seemed like Soraya was descending into a state of pure delirium. The words that escaped her mouth...didn't exactly do anything to change that perception that she had snapped...
"...So...It wasn't enough for that...thing...Druj, you called it? It wasn't enough for him to take my family away from me and destroy my world. Now that I actually managed to recover, he had to come back and because of him...I'm dying... And you are telling me the only way for me to stop it is to become a...Maiden? A warrior of...light under you where I have to fight him just to survive? This...this is a joke, isn't it? A...cruel cosmic joke for others to entertainment at my own expense, isn't it?"
Soraya's small state of delirium would only last a short time before she slid past the stage of denial and slid entirely into depression. She buried her face deep into her hands and began to sob uncontrollably with tears running again as hard as they had when she thought Druj abandoned her... She sobbed silently for several long moments before she could finally speak again through her muffled hand. Her words...showed just how broken she truly was...
"...I...I can't do this... Even if I wanted to...Fighting other people? I can't do it... It doesn't matter if you could save me, I'm not a warrior and...I'll die on the battle field... I'm not strong enough to handle this... I...I don't want to...I can't do it alone..."
With yet another tear-stained face, Soraya looked back up to Asha having the most heart-breaking, sad look on her face that she had displayed up to this point... Asha honestly may have not ever seen so much pain in someone in her entire existence as what Soraya was showing right now. And...she did nothing to keep the pain of everything she had felt within the last five years from going on display for the whole world to see... It...didn't matter anymore how strong she tried to be...
"...W-why is this happening to me...? Why me? What did I do to deserve this? If I was just going to die anyway, why couldn't it have been that night when my family died? I could have died in that fire and been with my parents and sister rather than alone just trying to survive. I tried...so hard to keep moving for them... I never gave up and lived for them! But...it's like the world wants me to die... I...I can't live like this... I don't have anyone or anything to live for... I...I don't care...what happens to me anymore..."
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Post by yooom on Sept 14, 2019 21:48:59 GMT -6
Soraya’s reaction unnerved Asha. As she was telling her that she was dying, the last thing the Light expected was for Soraya to start laughing, albeit in a manic, mad sort of way. She watched as Soraya crumbled before her, tears rolling down her pale cheeks. The revelation had shaken her to her core, and Asha listened as she began to speak, her words staggered, choking on her own building hysteria.
Asha let out a little gasp at the mention of Druj taking away Soraya’s family, for she had forgotten to mention perhaps the most crucial detail of this entire night, swept up by the admittedly important fact that Soraya’s life was in jeopardy. That needed to be said, too. And yet, Asha paused, unable to say it, watching as Soraya curled up in her seat, crying into her hands. She had already ruined this girl’s life, it wasn’t fair to keep doing this to her. And yet, what other option did she have, snuff her life out without even telling her. No, she had a right to know. She needed to know.
Asha felt another stab of sorrow as Soraya raised her face up from her hands, seeing the girl’s face covered with tears. She closed her hand, almost instinctively, and felt the brightness there dim. How could she bring herself to hurt this poor, miserable girl. She leaned down, wrapping her arms around Soraya, holding her tight in another embrace. She could feel the girl’s body shivering, quaking with each sob. She was so desperate, had been so desperate to be a part of something greater, but, the idea of living a life of eternal conflict...she could tell that Soraya wasn’t exactly made for that. Of course, Asha did have something of a preference when it came between having Soraya join her or die, but if she really didn’t want to join her, she would oblige her.
Holding Soraya’s face to her body, Asha made a soothing, shushing sound. She felt so alone, but it felt almost crueler to tell her the truth. One arm starting to squeeze around Soraya’s head, the other hand stroking through her hair, as Asha took a deep breath.
“I know that Druj visited your home, long ago...the night your family...the night your parents died.” Asha bit her lips, but she had already started to tell Soraya the truth, there was no point stopping now. “But your sister...she wasn’t killed in the fire. Druj took her, made her one of his Maidens. You...you met her tonight. She...she was that Maiden of Darkness.” She gently released Soraya’s head, gazing into her eyes, wondering what emotion she would see there. Joy, that her sister was alive? Sadness, that Nur had become a servant of evil? Asha’s own eyes teared up slightly. To think that they had come so close to each other. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.
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Post by Emiko on Sept 14, 2019 22:33:01 GMT -6
Soraya was at a point where she seemed broken beyond repair and there didn't seem to be anything Asha could say or do would change it... She had literally lost everything she loved and was in the process of losing her very life... Her life may have been short, but it was one filled with misery and pain that she had been trying so hard to change with moving to a new city, studying hard in college, and so many other things... Her future at one point actually started to seem bright only to be snuffed out in an instant with the events of this one night... It was no wonder that, when Asha moved in to hug Soraaya, it did very little to calm her or silence her tears...
No matter what Asha tried to do to get Soraya to calm down, she just couldn't... The tears never stopped flowing and her sobs were as violent as ever. Soraya was at a point where she just...couldn't hold it in any longer and wasn't shy about letting all the pain she felt show. She honestly didn't have a reason in her life not to let this all go since...it was about to end anyway. Poor Soraya just felt like she had to get all of this out before the hour was upon her for when death would come... Things however would take an unusual twist when Asha finally revealed the truth to her...
Upon hearing Asha bring up the night Soraya's life was destroyed, Soraya was suddenly stunned when she heard that her sister was in fact alive... A shocked gasp escaped her lips as the tears, her fears, and everything else froze in time... She gently pulled herself out of the embrace Asha had her in to look at Asha square in the eye hoping she was telling the truth. Upon seeing the seriousness in her face, Soraya felt a glimmer of hope shining in her heart...
The news though wasn't all good... As Asha went on, she explained how Druj had gotten to Nur and turned her into a Maiden of Darkness. Not only that...Soraya found out she had actually seen her sister this very night as she was the strange girl that was trying to teleport her away... At first common sense made Soraya skeptical, but...when she thought back to that night she witnessed Druj in her sister's room, a nervous gasp escaped her lips. Her memories were foggy at this point due to the head trauma she experienced that gave her a small bout of amnesia along with the passage of time. However...she would never forget the sight of that creature, or...what her sister had became. When she thought back to what her sister looked like in her newly transformed state and compared that to the girl she met tonight, she was shocked at the striking resemblance between the two girls... It could very well have just been a trick of her mind, or a false hope generated by wishful thinking to confirm what Asha was saying, but...it was enough for Soraya to believe in it totally...
All of a sudden, Soraya's demeanor completely changed. She was no longer the sobbing, weak girl Asha had held just moments ago. Instead, she let her expression change into one that was more focused and determined... It was that same look Soraya had shown Asha earlier when she forced herself through unimaginable pain to try and get to Druj... She softly wiped away the tears from her eyes and off of her face before looking firmly into Asha's eyes with only two questions in her mind... The answer to those questions would, without a doubt change everything in her life...
"...My sister...You said she's alive and...she's that girl I met tonight... A-are you...telling me the truth? I-is...it possible to save her from...from that demon...? Please...tell me the truth... I must know..."
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Post by yooom on Sept 15, 2019 9:31:32 GMT -6
Asha felt Soraya gasp, pulling out of the hug to look into her eyes, trying to tell if the spirit was lying, or if Asha was merely trying to make her feel better. Tears continued to roll down her cheeks, her body still shivered, and yet, there was a glimmer of something in her eyes, the slightest spark of hope, a light for Soraya to latch on to, something to live for. Soraya’s eyes went unfocused, looking past Asha, as she recollected that fateful day, the day that she saw Druj for the first time, the day Nur became a Maiden of Darkness. Trauma, both physical and psychological, no doubt, had veiled those particular memories all this time, but now, now they came rushing back to Soraya. Asha watched as recognition dawned on the girl’s face, watched as the realization set in that she had, only about an hour ago, been face to face with her sister.
Asha stared at Soraya, and pondered how similar the two sisters really did look. With her hair and eyes still slightly darkened from Druj’s hypnosis, the resemblance was even more uncanny. And, as Soraya steeled herself, sitting up in her seat, her expression bold, determined, Asha could see Nur in Soraya’s resolute eyes. She smiled, for a moment not even focused on Soraya’s face, before nodding, encouragingly.
At Soraya’s question, Asha paused. She supposed it was a natural impulse, upon learning that one’s sister served Darkness, to want to save her, but Asha was uncertain whether such a thing was even possible. She thought for a moment. In all her time, in all these years of war, had anyone tried to save a Maiden of Darkness? It took her a meditative moment, but her eyes sparked, and she nodded. “Yes, there is a way.” She paused, gazing back down at Soraya. “It...it will not be easy. But there is a way.”
A moment ago, when she’d been sobbing, drowning in sorrow, Asha would have said that Soraya would not have been able to do it. It was a difficult process, one that required a Maiden to be incredibly gifted, and incredibly careful. But seeing the determination in Soraya’s eyes, the fire that burned in her heart, Asha felt that she had the spark in her to, with enough training, stand a chance. The very idea excited Asha. The Maidens of Darkness were, technically, her enemies. They had, over the years, slain many of her own Maidens, women that she had loved, but, above all, they were humans, and she would much rather turn one of them to her own cause than kill any of them.
Asha reached forward, and took one of Soraya’s hands into her own. She could still feel the scars from where she’d fallen, but she could feel Soraya’s lightness within her, burning, even as she was saturated by Druj’s magic. It was hope, and love, for her no longer lost sister, and passion. Asha’s hand glowed faintly, as she smiled down at Soraya. “Your spirit is pure, Soraya. You wish to save your sister from Druj. I can help you. You can save Nur with my power. You can become a Maiden of Light.” Asha’s hand squeezed Soraya’s. “Become the light that purifies the darkness, Soraya. Let me make you my Maiden.”
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