"When Everything's Made To Be Broken..."

[Talon]

Atop the sunset-lit cliffs stood a massive, two-part circle at least 400 feet in diameter. The entire thing was of a shifting, prismatic light composed of two thin lines, between them a row of strange sigils of the same composition. The air above it shimmered in a strange, insubstantial fashion, and if one looked closely enough, the shimmer seemed to form a dome...

In a location closer than expected, two lone entities stood in a completely gray-white, limitless space with an apparent solid floor. The former figure was leaning against a massive sword, about as tall as itself, extremely haggard and bloodied in appearance.

"T-they'll come... I know they will..." The entity choked.

The latter, a 20-foot figure of impressive form with its hands placed on the hilt of a massive greatsword, merely replied,

[glow=gray,2,300]"For your sake... and theirs, let us hope you are correct..."[/glow]

[Azure_Ghidorah]

Seconds later, the two in question descended from the sky, fully armored, save for their helmets, which they held in their hands. They landed outside the 'dome' of light, unsure if it was safe to pass through.

"Where do you think Shive is?" Xeno asked her light half.

"If I was a bettin' woman, I'd say he's inside that dome..." Myrr replied.

"Sounds reasonable..." Xeno finished, wondering what they would need to do.

[Talon]

A booming voice abruptly spoke forth from the 'dome', ordering,

[glow=gray,2,300]"ENTER."[/glow]

The two were abruptly jerked into the dome by an unseen force, and the moment they touched the shimmer, it felt as it they'd just been thrown through warm gelatin, and eventually came to, only to discover they were no longer at the cliffs... they were now in the massive gray-white space. The 20-foot entity then whirled towards them, appearing to be a knight-looking entity composed completely of shimmering gray energy, over which a sort of chrome half-plate was worn, and a billowing cloak of the same color as the entity's composition was draped across the massive humanoid's back. Its narrowed a pair of white eyes at them, then rumbled,

[glow=gray,2,300]"These are the two...?"[/glow]

The smaller entity took a staggering step forward, the blood dripping down from his face dissapearing as soon as it touched the floor. Shive rasped,

"Y-yes... that's... that's them..."

The horrendously battered dragonkin shot the two a tired smile, then looked back at the shimmering entity. The knight-like figure simply stared down at them with its featureless white optics, and abruptly rumbled,

[glow=gray,2,300]"I see... your reason to live, hmm...? Very well."[/glow]

It pointed its massive sword at the two, then rumbled,

[glow=gray,2,300]"Then, in order for the last test to be accomplished... you are to slay them. This is to prove you have severed yourself from the mortal realm completely, and have the will to use your strength to aid us in governing fairly."[/glow]

Shive visibly balked, staggering a step backwards, jaw hanging open in numb disbelief. He gave a hacking cough, spattering more blood through the air as he roared,

"S-SLAY THEM?! But... I agreed to the Tests because of them...! I'm here because I want to protect them! I can't.... there's no POSSIBLE WAY I COULD AGREE TO SUCH A THING!!"

He wrung his hands as Ragnarok clattered to the ground, followed by the dragonkin as he sank to his knees. Panting, he growled,

"I... I can't... I came all this way for... for this?! There's no point...! Not if it means getting rid of them...! I.... I refuse...!"

The gray entity's eyes closed, then issued a small sigh.

[glow=gray,2,300]"Then, there is no other way... we require you, for you are the only one in this plane able to accept our power... yet you refuse to finish the test..."[/glow]

It raised its sword, then stabbed it into the ground, then bellowed,

[glow=gray,2,300]"WE CANNOT AFFORD TO LOSE OUR ONLY AVATAR! Therefore...! I shall complete the test for you... without your reason to live, you will have no choice... but to join us..."[/glow]

With a horrified Shive struggling to his feet, the figure then slashed its arm upwards, causing several humanoids of a similar appearance (minus the cloak and wide, armored shoulders) to arise from the environment, the four taking up a perimeter around the Myrr's. Their armor gleamed meancingly as weapons composed of some steely gray crystal appeared in their three-fingered hands- a sword, an axe, a spear, and a mace- then the four made their way towards the two half-dragons, violent intentions obvious...

"NO!!! GET AWAY FROM THEM!!!" Shive roared, struggling forward.

[Azure_Ghidorah]

"Oh hell no, I do not plan on dying today!" Myrr roared as she took flight, placing the helmet on and training her weapons on the nearest enemy when she got above their heads at a safe distance and unloading her arsenal upon the being.

Xeno also strapped on the helmet quickly, activating her Hyper mode and surging u with Myrr, unleashing several blasts from her cannon at the being Myrr targetted, managing to compensate for the recoil in mid air.

"Any ideas how much punishment these guys can take?" Xeno asked after another blast.

"No, but I'm assuming it'll take more then just this openning retaliation to bring one down..." Myrr replied, flipping visor types so that she could see the beings through the smoke their attacks created, Xeno following suit.

[Talon]

It was then that the three other enemies were acknowledged to be in the air with them, two of them taking advantage of the opening and delivering a powerful blow to each half-dragon, sending them hurtling into the 'ground' below. The one they'd just attacked, along with the airborne opponent that hadn't attacked them, abruptly threw theirs free hands forward, sending torrents of silvery-gray energy slamming into the armored femme's and quickly cracking their shells. Shive growled weakly, but was forced back to the ground by the test-giver's clawed hand.

[glow=gray,2,300]"No... you cannot interfere. Not now."[/glow]

The four then all landed, the one they'd assaulted earlier seeming unharmed at all as the group split up into pairs, forcing the two Myrr's away from eachother before they lunged once more, ready to attack again.

They... they can't stop that level of Ether elementals on their own... but... ... they have to... otherwise... Shive thought, eyes going hazy.

[Azure_Ghidorah]

Myrr rolled away from the lunging pair, as Xeno dispersed into shadows before the second pair struck her, reforming at Myrr's side as the half-dragon pulled what seemed to be a sword handle with a sphere of liquid like silver where the blade would be.

'You finished it?' Xeno inquired as Myrr placed it in the hybrid's hands.

'Yeah, you know what to do...' Myrr replied, and both dodged to one side to avoid another attack.

'Whoo!' Xeno mentally cheered as she swund the handle, the sphere morphing into a proper weapon quickly. It appeared to be an extremely thin scythe at first glance, but a closer inspection revealed that the scythe blade was actually 'grafted' to a sword about five feet long, the scythe itself extending forward another four feet. Had it been made conventionally, Xeno doubted she'd be able to lift the thing with both hands, let alone swing it. With the weapon made mostly from nano technology, not only was it extremely thin, it was also deceptively light.

It no longer appeared to be liquid, but it's edges seem to 'glow' with a slight hum, much like a vibrating object would.

Xeno swung the blade-scythe to parry an elemental's weapon, surprisingly failing to cleave it in two. Ignoring this, Xeno raised the weapon high and brought it down on the elemental, cutting into the elemental with the scythe pointing away, and kicking it back a few steps, finally swinging the blade-scythe again without reversing anything, cutting into the elemental again from a different angle, before aiming her cannon under her left arm at the 'wound' and firing a blast at it.

Myrr, meanwhile, had withdrawn her wrist weapons on the armor and redirected another elemental's weapon and striking quickly at its body, before firing a couple shots from her shoulder weaponry and ducking away from the elemental before it could trap her, this 'cat and mouse' strategy being mostly her way if trying to weaken the elemental before their two allies rejoined the fray, which would be happening very soon.

[Talon]

((Elementals will now go by code-names))

The elementals seemed staggered by the two Myrr's attacks, but quickly renewed their own assault (despite two of them bearing notable wounds, white tears in their otherwise featureless forms), angrily swiping away at the two with mechanical efficiency and precision, slowly chipping away at their defenses. Sword, despite its gaping stomach wound caused by Xeno's new weapon and Phazon Cannon, managed to shoulder her onto the ground before pinning her through the stomach with a well-placed stab with its sword, then fired off another shimmering-gray blast at point blank at the Xenomorphic Myrr. Axe then descended from the sky above her, weapon poised for a dive attack.

Meanwhile, Spear had staggered back from Myrr's abrupt assault, then attempted to run her through with its weapon, only to miss. Said miss, however, forced Myrr into Mace's attack range, whereupon she was struck in the ribs by the elemental's blunt weapon, and rather hard at that. As the half-dragon went sprawling, Shive cried out as if feeling the strike himself.

The dragonkin looked up at the knight-entity and pleaded,

"goddamnit, there must be another way! Why this?!"

The entity sighed, shaking its head.

[glow=gray,2,300]"It is as I told you before..."[/glow]

[Azure_Ghidorah]

(OOC: I am assuming decapitation does not kill elementals, but I will edit if necessary)

Xeno hissed in anger and pain, bringing her legs up and catching Sword's torso, pulling the elemental up and over her, so that instead of attacking her, Axe's weapon impacted on Sword's back. Using the momentum from her manuver, she hurled the elementals away with her legs while disengaging the cannon from the rest of her armor, so that her hand was free to pull Sword's weapon out. The hybrid got back up, re-equipped her cannon and charged at the recovering elementals, jumping on Axe's back and swinging the blade-scythe, decapitating both Sword and Axe before either could recover sufficiently.

'That should keep them down at least a short while...' Xeno thought with a grimace, before charging at the two elementals Myrr was trying to fight, ignoring the fact that she was bleeding pretty badly. The hybrid roared with fury as she approached Mace, the latter turning at the sound, just in time for Xeno to bring her blade-scythe down on the elementals right shoulder and dragging it down through its body until the entire arm and a small part of the torso feel away, severed from the body. Xeno repeated what she did against sword, aiming at the 'wound' and pumping a shot of her Phazon Cannon into it. She then turned to Spear and fired another shot at the elemental's head, disrupting it momentarily. That moment was all she needed to cleave off both the elemental's arms at the elbows, and kick the element away.

"You ok Myrr?" Xeno asked worriedly after she knelt down next to her light half.

"I've been better..." Myrr grimaced, getting back up with Xeno, still tensed. The half dragon drew her sword from her second nano skin through a larger crack in the armor, tensed because she was certain none of the elementals were down next.

"We can't keep this going forever... if those things start regenerating, we're fucked..." Myrr hissed, Xeno's only response was to nod grimly.

[Talon]

All four elementals staggered back, Sword and Axe in visible pain as they writhed about, headless. Spear and Mace grimaced down at their dismembered arms, but simply crouched down as said limbs propped themselves up on their own, strands of the gray matter flying out from the shoulder-stumps and reattaching to the limbs, pulling them back together seamlessly, though there were now white rings around either's arms to prove they were wounded. Axe and Sword groaned as they stumbled upon their heads, then promptly replaced them as their teammates had with their own arms. Mace seemed to 'cough' out several spats of blue mist, most likely the leftover Phazon from Xeno's energized onslaught.

The four then turned back to the Myrr's, the wounds gained from the first assault now slowly diminishing as they started forward in a march-like fashion. They abruptly stopped about 10 feet from them, however, and threw their free hands up, aiming at the two. There was a visible distortion in the air around the Myrr's...

"Sh*t...! GET OUT OF THERE!!" Shive roared, pushing himself forward.

The air around them then exploded in a nova of silver-gray energy, ravaging their armored frames and scattering them carelessly onto the floor. The energy didn't seem to have a temperature at all, nor could one tell how the energy had been so destructive, but it'd done a good job of it, despite the lack of visible damage to the environment. Shive's jaw was hanging open, and using what strength he had left, urged himself toward them, growling,

"No... no... please be okay...! damnIT body, MOVE!"

The taller elemental seemed give a subtle nod at Myrr and Xeno, thinking,

[glow=gray,2,300]They fight surprisingly well... hmm... let us hope they can hold up for a bit longer...[/glow]

It then noted Shive staggering as fast as he could toward them, then hefted its weapon without a sound. In a flash, the sword was above Shive's previous location, and the dragonkin had been hurled at least several dozen feet, left arm a bloody stump and a massive gash leading down from the shoulder to the opposite hip.

[glow=gray,2,300]"You shall not interfere... you will watch... and you will accept your fate when they fade away..."[/glow] It rumbled, stabbing the sword's tip back into the ground.

Ribs had been exposed from the attack, and Shive rasped in pain as he lay on his back, blood flowing freely from his nostrils and maw. Choking, Shive showed his significant tolerance for pain as he swayed slowly to his feet, picking up Ragnarok with himself. His eyes burned with rage and determination as he stumbled forward, hefting the sword onto his shoulder as he took a sprint back towards the only people he considered to need him.

Now was no exception.

Has the sword I wield... ever been so heavy...? I... I can't die... not now... He thought.

Sword, Axe, Mace, and Spear were now practically atop the two Myrr's, weapons already in mid-swing...

[Azure_Ghidorah]

And yet, both Myrr and Xeno found the strength to lift their weapons in defiance, Myrr's sword clashing with Mace and Spear's weapons, and Xeno's blade-scythe meeting Sword and Axe's weapons. They stubbornly resisted the force the elementals were bringing down upon them, and even managed to push themselves back to their feet under the strain.

"By the blood of our father Solranous..." the Myrrs started hissing in sync, "which flows through us freely... We shall not fall to the likes of you."

Then, as if their strength was restored by that claim, both Myrrs began shoving their respective enemies back on their own. Xeno ditched her cannon to storage so that she could have both arms free to grip her weapon, maximizing her power.

With a roar of fury, the hybrid gave one more shove and forced Sword and Axe back a few feet. The hybrid leapt, striking Sword in the face full force with her knee and throwing the off-balance elemental away even further, before twisting in mid air and 'relieving' Axe of its weapon by cutting away its hands, and then cutting off the fingers so that the weapon fell free from the grip.

Now weaponless, Axe was rendered vulnerable to the full fury of Xeno's renewed assault as the hybrid carved it, quite literally, to pieces, first cutting from the left shoulder to the right hip, then repeating for the reverse, then cleaving both legs into, then finally cutting the head off again, all before Xeno landed, keeping herself aloft for the time needed with her wings.

The hybrid glanced over her shoulder, seeing Sword approaching rapidly. Her right hand gripped the axe that she had landed nearby to, and lifted the weapon up, twisting into a swing that smashed Sword's weapon away, leaving it open for a large gash in the chest from Xeno's blade-scythe. The scythe came by again, worsening the gash from the first path while Xeno brought the axe around by the momentum of the swing of the scythe, cleaving Sword's arms off like she did to Axe. She swung one more time, cutting Sword's leg with the axe, before cleaving it in half with the blade-scythe.

Content with how she mutilated the elementals, she turned to Myrr, who was weaving in and out from Mace and Spear's attacks, trying to keep one of them between her and the other so she only had to deal with one at a time. Xeno charged forward, drops of acid blood falling from her form with every move.

Myrr parried away Mace's weapon with her hand, hissing as she stabbed its shoulder, before dragging her blade down and out of the elemental's body, adding to the numerous light hits to the elemental's body, before she finally beheaded it and oushed it down to the side.

'DUCK!' the mental cry came. Knowing only one person who would be so urgent that could reach her so easily, Myrr dropped down to her knees, just in time for the axe to go flying over her head and impacting on Spear's blade first. Xeno then jumped on Myrr's shoulder and sliced Spear's hands off. She pulled the axe out of its head, and carrved half of it off with her blade-scythe, along with what was left of the elemental's left arm. The Myrrs roared as they brought their weapons to bear on Spear simultaneously, swiftly cutting down the elemental to shreds. The two flew away a short distance from both pairs, their panting only detectable by the sound.

[Talon]

Shive gave a sigh of relief as each of the four defeated elementals collapsed (those who were standing, anyway) and issued dying echoes. They then did what all elementals do upon death: They reverted back into their natural element. Their bodies rapidly disintegrated into motes of silver-gray light, and swiftly ascended into the air upon doing so. However, something wasn’t right… whereas those motes of light should’ve disappeared, they-

“NO…!!” Shive gasped.

- spiraled around the large elemental still standing there, great sword held off to its side. It slowly aimed a gauntlet-like hand at the two Myrr’s, the remains of the dead elementals whirling around to form a large sphere of churning energy in the elementals open palm.

[glow=gray,2,300]“I must say, you two fought exceedingly well for your level. Most mortals from this plane could not survive that long against four Daron Elementals, especially those of my element. However… you two are but hindrances to the Urathear’s plans of continuing to govern over the cosmos… and those both, I shall eradicate you… myself…!”[/glow]

As the sphere grew ever-larger, thoughts were racing through Shive’s mind at rates surpassing those of a bullet train.

That level of attack would easily destroy those two even if they weren’t already terribly wounded…! They’ve got no chance…

Breathing heavily, the dragonkin’s eyes slowly narrowed, his raw, bloodied hands tightening on Ragnarok’s stained handle. The sword began to shimmer in a strange way as Shive added,

No… if those two mean ANYTHING to me… then…!

The sphere then abruptly launched forth, its sheer force leaving a visible distortion in the air behind it as it streaked toward the haggard Myrr and Xeno. The elemental caster’s eyes slowly closed as the attack seemed about to hit…

[glow=gray,2,300]“I… had expected such an action…”[/glow] It rumbled.

His torso blown clear open, even after the brunt of the attack had been taken by a now badly-scarred and smoldering Ragnarok, (as well as the once-durable Incarnum armor) the Atonus-form Shive collapsed onto a knee, blood and other fluids draining from the sides of his hanging, panting maw. Said pants took place in intervals between terrible fits of choking and vomiting up dried blood. He slowly looked over his shoulder, of which was missing its arm, at the two Myrr’s who’d simply been blown backwards by the force of the impact with a little scuffing and a few dents.

“Are... you two…okay…?” He asked, forcing a pained smile before collapsing onto the ‘ground’, face-first.

His slow, ragged breaths died away quickly while the Urathear before him slowly opened its eyes, staring down with those emotionless white orbs. It then uttered in an inaudible tone,

[glow=gray,2,300]“You have passed the Seventh Trial, the Test of Will… you have been found with the emotional strength to aid us in our duty…”[/glow]

With that, the elemental took a step backwards, seeming to melt into an invisible wall, and thusly disappearing. That action left the two battle-worn Myrr’s, and a very still Shive, to themselves. Another, almost unnoticeable, shudder issued from the still form, and an extremely quiet voice rasped,

"You... didn't... answer... m-my question..."

The multicolored 'flames' issuing from various areas on the Incarnum armor, physical representations of Shive's life-force, were nothing but tiny, sputtering lights at the moment.

[Azure_Ghidorah]

"Shive..." Myrr whispered weakly, panic flowing at the thought that the dragonkin may have killed himself to save them. The half dragon tried desprately to bring herself to her feet, but her wounds caught up with her, and her strength left now that there was nothing trying to kill them directly.

The fact was, though, that she knew Shive was in danger of dying. Xeno, however, seemed to have plenty of strength left, even after her Hyper mode disengaged. The hybrid hauled herself to her feet painfully, and pulled Myrr up with her, and the two limped over to Shive's form.

"Shive... please... don't die on us now... not after we fought tooth and nail to stay alive for you..." Myrr spoke, not knowing if Shive could hear her or not.

[Talon]

Still facedown in the floor, the body gave no response at first. Then, slowly, it stirred, giving almost unnoticeable shudders as Shive whispered hoarsely,

"I... don't intend to... but my... body might... have other... plans..."

A shuddering, rattling breath entered what was left of Shive's only lung, and the exhalation bore with it more bodily fluids in a hacking cough.

"I'm sorry... I... didn't... want you two... involved... in this... seeing me... this way and... all... augh..."

He slowly looked up, eyes glazed over to the point where they were almost white, their spark almost gone.

"Listen... I-I don't have... much longer... a-and I'm n-not sure... if I'm c-coming... back this... time... th-thanks, you two... for everything... I-I just wish I... could've done... more for... you..."

He forced a weak grin, his only hand sliding forward along the ground as it shook, then he laid it at the base of Myrr's armored foot, looking up at her through those glazed-over eyes.

"I-I've said something... like this before... but... I've s-seen actual angels... and... they just d-don't compare... to you two... I-I love you... both, dearly... and... I-I'd like to think... that I showed you... j-just now... how much... you do... matter... to... me..."

His hand slowly relaxed, and his breathing stopped as his head slowly slumped back onto the floor, eyes sliding half-shut as they lost the last of their luster... two beads of salty moisture sliding down from his eyes as he did so. The shimmering-gray environment melted away around them, revealing their previous location on the cliffs as the circle of glyphs around them faded away as well. The sun was almost set on the downcast scene, casting an orange-gold sheen over the cliffs and those present.

Seven figures shimmered into existance about 40 feet away from them, all bearing the same 'armor' as the elemental who'd slain Shive... in fact, said elemental was there as well, standing in the middle of the line. The other six looked almost exactly the same, other than the fact they were composed of fire, water, whirling air, rock, pure light, and 'solid' darkness, their 'armor' varying in color with their according element. They all looked down upon the scene, but said nothing.

[Azure_Ghidorah]

The next thing that everyone in hearing range noticed was a loud, sorrowful roar that permeated for what felt like miles from one light half of the duo. Xeno's shoulders shuddered as Myrr roared out that sorrow, not from said roar, but from her own sadness as tears trickled dowwn her cheeks, even as her acid blood dripped from her frame and ate tiny holes into the cliff.

The hybrid then turned, a feeling of being watched tipping her off as to the elementals' presence. She scowled hatefully at the one who had killed Shive, even if it was just him jumping in the way of an attack meant for them. Thankfully, it went unnoticed due to her helmets visor.

'Of all he people... he was the one who least deserved to die...' Xeno thought, still scowling. Myrr had now collasped to her hands and knees next to Shive, her lungs emptied of breath to sustain the roar from earlier, as she now just sobbed irregularly near Shive's corpse.

[Talon]

The elementals had all made their way over to both Myrr's, oblivious to the glare Xeno was giving the shimmering gray member. Standing directly before Xeno, they stared down at Shive's corpse for a moment before the one composed of water gave a small sigh. The others split apart and formed a circle around the corpse and mourning half-dragons, the water elemental kneeling down before Xeno.

[glow=teal,2,300]"Please... do not mourn for him... this death is but the step to a higher state for your loved one..."[/glow]

Each elemental now stood in a full circle around them as the water elemental rose to its feet. They all stretched their gauntleted hands out toward the corpse of the Warmage, each pulsating with their according element.

[glow=limegreen,2,300]"Do not mourn, for he shall return to you... that, we may guarantee."[/glow] The air elemental echoed.

[glow=red,2,300]"His heart burns greatly with the fires of passion... such an event would not stop one as determined as this."[/glow] The elemental of fire crackled.

[glow=brown,2,300]"He is much too stubborn to let go of his earthly ties... but, if it must be done... then here he shall stay."[/glow] The earth elemental rumbled.

With that, each gauntleted hand churned and distorted with technicolor energy, and they all then aimed them at Shive, chiming in turn,

[glow=brown,2,300]"The material form..."[/glow]

A spherical brown bolt of energy shot forth from the earth elemental's hand and disappeared into Shive, regenerating the dragonkin's massive amounts of damage.

[glow=red,2,300]"The warmth of the heart..."[/glow]

A similar bolt, red in color, peeled forth and dissipated into Shive, heat slowly returning to his body.

[glow=teal,2,300]"The flow of blood..."[/glow]

Another bolt shot off from the water elemental's hand, and color slowly returned to Shive's form.

[glow=limegreen,2,300]"The breath of life..."[/glow]

A fourth bolt, issuing from the air elemental's hand, slammed into Shive, and his chest suddenly started to rise and fall in small, haggard breaths.

[glow=white,2,300]"The light of consciousness..."[/glow]

A white bolt streaked out into Shive's form from the light entity's hand, and Shive issued a small groan.

[glow=purple,2,300]"The shadow of doubt..."[/glow]

A black streak flitted into Shive's chest, and his eyebrows furrowed.

[glow=gray,2,300]"And... the will that binds it all..."[/glow]

With that, the knight-like entities all took a step back and boomed,

"A new avatar hath been chosen. Bound to the Material Plane he hath chosen, and bound he shall be."

Then, each of the seven dissipated in bursts of their individual elements, leaving no trace behind. It was then that the once-corpse shot up and stated,

"And another thing! Don't miss.... me?"

He blinked confusedly, then held up his hand and inspected it. He felt a distinct tingling sensation that quickly died away.

"Huh... thought I was gone for sure that time..." He muttered.

He then noticed the two half-dragons nearby, and his eyes abruptly shot open. His hands shook slightly, and he abruptly wrapped an arm around each of them, pulling them in as close as he could, whispering,

"Bah, who cares! I'm still here... with you two...!"

He gave a slight sob, smiling through watery eyes as he added in a choke,

"Thats all that matters to me right now...!"

((*starts playing Count On Me*))