The breath was knocked from Brent’s lungs as the appendage of darkness slammed him across his chest. He was flung roughly fifty yards back, before a crumbling stalagmite caught him. It was hard to say which hurt worse. Quickly as he could, he scrambled to his feet, one dagger drawn. The weapons had begun to feel heavy in his hands now. No longer did they feel like extensions of his body, but rather as cumbersome weights he’d attempt to heft to and fro. But they were all he had to defend himself with now. The Void monstrosity was unrelenting, chasing him through the Rift without mercy. With his free hand, flicked his wrist as if to hurl one of his shadow-born shuriken-- only to huff in frustration as nothing came forth. A whiff, the hand motion feeling limp and impotent now. He grunted a curse, before turning to run. His only real option, at this point.
Coming here was a bad idea. Brent had hoped returning to the Void would help him find his path again, but it only illustrated just how far he’d fallen. His mind couldn’t focus - not with so many voices ringing through his head. So many terrible images all rushing through his mind’s eye. It was crippling, in every sense of the word. Cripping, and disorienting. His only sense of direction was away from the behemoth that hunted him through the Rift, a coalescence of power he’d once wielded with such ease.
Then, he tripped; once so nimble and silent-but-surefooted, now he stumbled about and fell over like a drunkard. One hand caught him, the other failed. He rolled, face scraping against the nondescript dust of whatever chunk of Telogrus rock he’d been dropped onto. Grunting in both frustration and pain, he pushed himself up and kicked against the ground to start running again. The precious lead he’d had before was lost now. He could feel the very shadows of the monstrosity itself nipping at his heels.
What had happened? He’d never struggled so much with the Void before. He took to it well, as a matter of fact! The transition felt more empowering than confusing. Yet now, with the Old God’s demise, the Void was so unbridled. It felt very much the opposite of when the Sunwell was destroyed - yet every bit as terrible. Instead of a lack of energy emanating through him, it all felt like too much! He’d lost control-- and the Void sought to consume him for it!
Eventually gaining enough of a lead again, he dove behind a ledge and pressed his back up against it. He focused on the only thing he could control anymore - his breathing, labored and erratic, but still his own. His eyes darted about warily, watching for any movement in the darkness that surrounded him. The distant twilit starts in the Rift provided only so much backlighting. But enough to tell the ground from the sky… and bring attention to any movement ahead of him. The tense and harrowing aura of the monster that pursued him was dim now, at least. But present, as the void-born beast continued to search for the wayward rogue.
He fought to control his breathing, or at the very least silence it as not to betray his hiding place. Beads of cold sweat dripped down from his forehead. His heart raced, beating so hard he swore it would pound its way out of his chest. He swallowed back the bile that fought its way up his throat. He wanted to puke. He wanted to die. For a moment, he contemplated hurling himself off the side of the floating platform. But he knew well that wouldn’t be the end of this torment. Rather… the beginning.
He closed his eyes, and cleared his mind. Emotions were a beacon in this place, radiating out like a siren’s call. Thankfully, he had the presence of mind to recognize it, and the training to bridle those emotions. He calmed quickly, his heart rate dropping and his worries dissipating enough to hide from the Void monster in yet another way. He could feel it's sickening aura departing, and waited until it left him fully before moving again. He exhaled a sigh, as he peeked over the edge.
“I can’t defeat this thing…” he thought to himself.
“Is that your goal, then? To defeat it?”
Brent spun around quickly, dagger’s edge faced out before him as he assumed a defensive stance. A voice? Who could sneak up on him? His eyes settled on the source of the interjection; another ren’dorei. A young woman. He kept his blade up, and narrowed his gaze.
“Who are you?” he demanded. “How did you--”
“--Read your thoughts?”
The woman’s lips curled to a smile as she snickered lightly. She wore an elegant, decorated dress. Violets and golds intertwined in a pattern reminiscent of a formal ball gown. Frilly lace decorated the cuffs at the ends of her long sleeves, as well as the hem of the dress itself. A light fur coat draped over her shoulders, with a simple golden chain loosely latching both sides before her. A pendant hung from the chain; ivory, if Brent had to guess, carved into a diamond shape. The bulk of her dark hair was tied back into a ponytail, yet curled locks of it were left unbound to frame her unmarred face. Her eyes were wide and bright, even amidst the dim and dismal backdrop of Telogrus. They spoke to her youthfulness, complimenting her melodic and cheerful voice. She was easily half a meter shorter than he was… but her presence commanded such attention as if she were two stories tall.
“Call me Vyllith. You’re Brentius Lor’aran, yes?” she asked… though clearly already knew.
“H-How did--” Brent nearly repeated himself, before grunting.
He lowered his blade, though kept it ready. It was proof enough she was telling the truth. At least… about her reading his thoughts; no one called him by his real name anymore. It was a show of force, so to speak - what could he hope to hide from her? Still alarmed… still on edge. He looked around, before glancing to Vyllith again.
“... What do you want?” he asked, tersely. “If you didn’t notice, I’m a little busy here.”
“Running from your power. Yes, I saw.” she snickered once more. “It seems you’ve taken on more than you could handle, hm?”
“I didn’t take this on intentionally. The thing just… attacked me, as soon as I got here.” Brent huffed.
Vyllith laughed her melodic laugh again as she began to pace around the rogue - indifferent to the apparent danger of the situation. She didn’t so much as ‘walk’, as much as her legs went through the motions. Her body seemed to simply float her intended direction. She left no footprints in the dirt… her steps made no sound. Brent’s hand tensed around the hilt of his dagger, eyes never leaving the woman. And in that moment, he started to fear her more than the beast that had pursued him.
“I don’t mean that creature, silly.” she brought the back of her gloved hand up to cover her mouth as she continued to snicker. “I mean all of this! The Void is potent! Chaotic! Dangerous. You’re out of your depth, Brentius.”
“Hmph! Stop calling me that!” Brent snapped. “What are you even saying? I’m the last of the Blackened Blades! I’ve wielded the Void for years before now!”
“Not by yourself.”
Vyllith snickered again, continuing to slowly saunter about in a nigh-taunting manner. Brent scoffed. He nearly opened his mouth to dispute it, but… honestly couldn’t. Perhaps that was it? His ties with the Old Gods had made his experience with the Void easier. Not so chaotic and overwhelming like it felt, now. But in their absence, without N’Zoth to filter and focus his power, it seemed like he could barely keep up with it!
“... Hmph.” Brent could only grunt in frustration, as he shook his head.
“Awww, don’t be upset!” Vyllith tilted her head to the side. “That’s why I’m here! I want to help you, Brentius.”
“Help me what?”
“Help you be what you were meant to be.”
Understandably, he was skeptical. Here more than most places, no one showed up offering to help without some ulterior motive. He had no idea who this foreign elf-- or entity, more like-- even was! Yet she materialized before him now, at his lowest and most vulnerable point… offering aid? No, this was very obviously a trick.
“Mm… and what’s the price of your help, Vyllith?” he asked, making no effort to conceal his skepticism. “You’ll want something in return, I expect?”
“Hee hee… Well…” she snickered, eerie laughter seeming to echo through the endless void. “Not right away.”
Confirming the suspicion didn’t help him as much as he thought it would. He’d just spent nearly a decade in the service of ominous entities, and he was in no hurry to get involved with another.
“--Calm your thoughts, I’m not like them.” Vyllith added, proving once more to have found purchase in his mind. “My wish is to see all ren’dorei reach their potential. To sift through the Void’s whispers and embrace the gift they’ve sought out for themselves. I want you to be free.”
“Until you--”
“--Please don’t interrupt, Brentius. I won’t be calling in any favors anytime soon. And even when I do… they’ll be to both our benefits.” she flared, the thrums of power emanating from her growing more and more apparent. “All things considered, I think the offer’s fair. Minimal intrusion for getting your life back on track? There are worse ways to go about it.”
She turned, looking out past Brent-- the Void Beast had returned, looming closer and closer to Brent’s little hiding place. She smirked, eyes settling on Brent again. Another playful chuckle escaped her. A warning and a taunt all in one.
“It’s up to you.”
Brent scoffed. His hands tensed around his daggers as he felt the chaotic aura of the beast grow stronger… closer… he narrowed his eyes, taking a defensive footing-- for all the good it would do. Sidling up against the outcropping, he readied himself for another fight. He hoped for an opening, something to give him a good strike before he set off running again. Would it even do anything, though? He wasn’t sure. He glanced to Vyllith again, who simply floated nearby as if to watch it all unfold.
His wind-up dwindled quickly after, as the futility of it set in. What choice did he have? She was right, he was way out of his depth, here. The ship that helped him cross through the Void had sunk, leaving him to either learn to drown…or learn to swim. He nodded to Vyllith, accepting her offer of aid. He left it non-verbal, seeing as it didn’t matter if he spoke it aloud or not. She’d know. It wasn’t much of a choice, but at least it was an easy one.
Just as he nodded, the Void Monstrosity whipped around the outcropping, roaring an ethereal roar as its nondescript eyes settled on Brent. But before it could reach out and strike at the rogue, Vyllith floated in between them. Without so much as a somatic expression, the beast simply - and literally - dispersed. It was silenced, then broke apart into millions upon millions of flakes and fragments, each sailing out into the darkness before being consumed by it. Brent found himself in awe, dumbfounded by how easy she had made it look to undo the fearsome beast! Her giggle resounded throughout the area once more as she turned to Brent, smiling.
“Don’t worry. That’s one of the things I’ll show you how to do.”
She floated in closer, extending her hand to Brent. Exhaling slowly, Brent sheathed his blades, and reached out to take the offered hand. He pushed the uncertainty from his mind, for the moment. It was a way out-- no, more than that, a way to gain that self-reliance he’d wanted since before N’Zoth’s demise. Brent was a survivor. An opportunist. Whatever cost came down the line, he’d find a way to either pay it or get out of it.
