@fists-of-havoc
No sooner than the Ghost had started to move toward him, had Nik already reached out to cradle him close in his hand, before he dematted out of sight under his hood, but it was too late. The consumed appeared all around them in a flash of blight and Nik felt his void shiver violently at the way it attempted to corrupt him.
But he was prepared. “Follow me, and stay close,” he commanded of her, as he followed J.P.’s direction as fast as he could. More and more Taken appeared as they sprinted, Thrall arms reaching out and tearing at their shields as they passed, but as long as Seht was right behind him, he stopped for nothing. A minute passed, a minute and a half… they were so close to escaping, almost home free, when the familiar dread knocked him out cold mid-step as it pulsed through the atmosphere. An Echo of Oryx was near, preying again on his susceptible Void, straining to corrupt… Nik awoke in the Astral plane with a rude jolt and a sharp breath in. His physical form flickered in and out, tangible and intangible, as he struggled to fight off the whispers, the claws on the back of his neck. You are afraid… give your will to me and I shall set you free.
---
@fireteam-daybreak-rp
"Oh no..." the voice of the little Ghost seemed so far. A distant cry to the Hunter as he lost connection with him, the pull of the Darkness stronger than he had anticipated.
"Stay with me Nik..."
The Huntress nearly doubled over as Nik seemed to slow his pace, her fear becoming more and more a reality when she realized he was nearly unresponsive.
"Nik! " Gingerly, she brought him up on her shoulder as Ghost reappeared, the darkness nearly filling the area around them.
"He can't have you, Nik, please..." Her heart sank as she could hear the Taken around her, almost laughing at her, teasing her.
"Seht, we have to move!" J.P. kept trying to reestablish his connection to Nik as more and more readings began to overflow on his radar.
She lowered Nik, but kept him close, hand twitching back to her side as she formed her Arc Blade to ready herself against any onslaught.
They would not have him, not as long as she still drew breath.
---
@fists-of-havoc
He could hear their voices in the distance… echoing faint cries of terror as they attempted to lure him back to the light, while Oryx’s whispers cut into his fears with cold, cruel precision that would have turned a lesser man dark. But this wasn’t the first time this had happened, and he’d escaped it once before on his own; if anything, Seht and JP’s presence served to ground him in his resolve, and that was all he needed.
He let the fog settle around him, chasing his Void in circles, as the Echo appeared before him. Nik stood his ground, waiting for the prodding, the questions, the attempted manipulation… his answer would be no, every time, just like the last time. He only hoped it wouldn’t be as long a process.
Time in the Astral plane passed much slower than in the real world- what was a minute for his companions felt like hours for Nik, but he remained calm and collected, ignored the questions and bit his tongue, pushed back the anxiety. Nik focused on the sounds of their voices, on the future with Seht that he’d fought for so ferociously. There was absolutely no way in hell he’d allow Oryx to take that from him, not even from beyond the grave.
But amidst the nightmare, a bright light shone through- JP’s artificial voice penetrated the blight clearer than before. Nik please, you have to come back.
Curiously, Nik reached out a hand to touch the light and felt it surge through him, shocking and purifying. His eyes grew wide as he realized what this could mean. “JP, can you hear me?”
“Nik! Thank the Traveler… we have to get you out of there, let me just-“
“JP listen to me, I know how to escape but I need your help,” he started, waiting for him to acknowledge.
“… Anything.”
“I need light… lots of it. The blight has corrupted my Void and it needs to be purified.”
The ghost paused in hesitation, knowing that he himself could not channel light into him. “… Nik you know I can’t-”
“Tell Seht to Bladedance- my light will absorb hers as she exhausts it. It should give me the edge I need to get out of here.”
JP anxiously chirped in confirmation as he relayed the information, and Nik smiled softly to himself. He’d be free of this soon.
---
@fireteam-daybreak-rp
The grip on her Arc Blade tightened as electricity to flow through her with extreme ease. Something she carried close to heart was the memory of how Allanon had helped her tap such an energy, and teach her how to make it last and draw out every kill she potentially could make from it.
'Do you remember the Ocean? The salty air and swift tide, breaking so effortlessly and carefree at your feet? You are that tide. You are that effortless motion; a continuation of yourself upon yourself. Let go. Breathe. Flow.' The Warlock's word reverberated in her ears just as the sound of the tide, and in an instant she was in the air, flying through the Taken as if they were made of paper.
A simple tear and she was into the next one, Taken through Taken, her Arc pulsated around them, consuming the Darkness that had so easily tried to threaten them. Light cascaded like a fresh lit beacon, it's Holy luminance filtering on the two she held the closest to her heart.
'For Nik,' her heart told her. She would do anything for him, even at the expense of herself, the thought of being with out him drove her further to prevent such a disaster, the sound of her blade and it's serration almost casting an in time song with her every twirl and step.
'Push through. For HIM.'