Given the description of the places and the domains, it seems like Umbradon has the most strained relations.
Can I get a “ i told you… to… stay… quiet! ” perhaps from the purple bastard man himself, perhaps directed at a certain angel?
I like to think that Vernias would try to befriend Sophist. He would've tried. - 🧠🔪
he only wanted to help out! no one else would want to give him a chance or they would immediately go straight to antagonizing him for whatever reason
what was vernias doing wrong?
No matter where he walked, the whispers continued to echo. Down the canals, traveling along the alleyways, the hush carried in the wind and brushed against the angel's ears. It unnerved him, how far and quick gossip will spread the minute something new arrived in the city. It didn't take long for Vernias to find his way towards the path that would take him straight to the ornate mansion set upon a great hill -- he wondered if the sorcerer could see him from the many windows, even as a single pink speck.
Reaching the gates, Vernias bristled his wings when the guards snickered among themselves. "Returning back so soon?" one sneered. His lips twisted into a frown, clearly not amused by the snide tone -- here, he found himself wishing he truly was of royalty, if only to spare him of the needless disrespect -- , but that was bound to happen when word had gotten out that Vernias had not only visited Sophist, but let spill something that should have remained behind closed doors. It hadn't been the angel's intention to cause such a ruckus ( why, he could hardly believe that it'd be this that the citizens of the darkened city would latch onto! ), and Vernias couldn't bring it in him to return within the moment to apologize.
Oh, how the guilt festered deeply within him until he couldn't bear it any longer. He had to come back! And perhaps, with the lingering hope in his heart, that Sophist would come to realize Vernias's efforts to befriend him -- to invite him to several events and gatherings that he'd routinely hold with the king and prince of the other domains.
The gates creaked open, jolting Vernias out of his thoughts and prompting him to continue on, if not to spare himself of any more jeering and subtle insults hurled his way. Both pairs of his wings folded behind, showing the angel's own uncertainty as he reached up to open the doors. He could not rid himself of this simmering dread that made his blood run cold. Vernias wouldn't be surprised if someone, somehow, utilized an ice spell to freeze his nerves, to make him feel as though he's walking on a thin sheet of ice.
He can already envision the yawning abyss awaiting from below, eager to claim the angel as its next feast to devour-
"Your Grace?"
Vernias stopped dead in his tracks. He had been so involved within his thoughts that he hadn't noticed that he was walking into the mansion's interior. Pink eyes shifted to see a robed figure -- a man in his seniority with thinning hair and deep wrinkles that showed his age, though Vernias acknowledged the power that emanated from the minister's presence. A power that would have come from the darkness itself, which never failed to impress the angel.
How could anyone harness such dark magic...
Immediately did the angel bowed his head, missing the amused quirk of the man's lips. "Sir..! I humbly request an audience with the regent," Vernias declared, straightening with his eyes illuminating brightly in the artificial light. "I am aware that I have arrived on such short notice, but...it's urgent that I see him right away."
The minister did not answer.
His dark eyes remained transfixed on the angel, his gaze quite intense that Vernias nearly averted his gaze. Sweat threatened to bead at his forehead, and that icy, foreboding feeling remained.
He wondered...did Sophist instructed him specifically about this? If Vernias were to ever return...?
No, no, he wouldn't. No matter what anyone says, he's not that type of person!
Finally, the man blinked and straightened his figure to a staggering height that the angel hadn't been aware of. "Wait here," he instructed, the smooth timbre of his voice never giving the warmth or comfort that one would expect. His robe fluttered behind his figure as he ascended the grand stairs, leaving Vernias's line of sight once he entered the east wing of the mansion. The angel released a heavy breath that he wasn't aware he was holding. It had to be due to the perpetual night of this kingdom -- that much, Vernias is certain of it!
Many outside of Umbradon claimed that Sophist is the very reason why the night never ends. Why the economic class is vastly one side and another with no middle ground to settle in. Why thievery, debauchery, and corruption ran rampant even in the throes of the wealthiest parties. It couldn't be! Vernias could never imagine that the regent would allow for this. Would even turn this kingdom into sordid grounds for misdeeds and crime.
If only-
"Your Grace," the man reappeared from the top of the stairway, shimmering gaze settled upon on him once more. "He accepts. He is waiting for you in his studies." Even though Vernias knew where to go, he still bowed his head in thanks and ascended the stairs, forgoing the need to fly since he deemed it rude to do it within someone's home. He attempted to ignore those shadowy eyes,observing him still as though the angel is an interesting specimen to behold. Vernias slowed his pace once he reached where the study is. He can hear his heartbeat drumming in his ears, that sweat now making its way unto his skin as a very thin sheen. He failed to think on what was need to be said; whatever words he had prepared for this very moment died before they reached the tip of his tongue.
He brought a hand up, knuckles poised to knock on the wooden door-
"Come in."
Vernias blinked. He hadn't reached the door yet! Could Sophist sense him somehow?
His hand reached down for the golden knob, turning it and making his way in. "Sophist..?" came the angel's meek greeting. Unlike the foyer, the room is dimly lit with several candles being the main source of light, the dual moons of Gaia -- Sirena and Xelos -- filling the view of the wide window before him. Vernias could make out the man's form as he sat at his desk, tinkering with some sort of gadget that must have came from the workshop downstairs. Hat and cape discarded elsewhere, only the jeweled mask is left and that sense of familiarity encouraged Vernias to step in, closing the door behind him.
Sophist hadn't acknowledged him. Not yet. It wasn't until Vernias took a few steps forward did magenta eyes rose up. Other than the admittedly mesmerizing glow, nothing betrayed whatever emotions is going through the man. He merely stared, neither delighted nor annoyed that the audience that wished to seek him had to be the angel. Vernias nibbled at his lower lip, shuffling in place. "Sophist. Hi..." he again greeted, emphasizing with a weak wave.
It wasn't returned.
"...Listen, I..." Vernias lowered his hand, now hovering at his midsection with his other hand fiddling with nervous fingers. A way to ground himself to the difficult conversation at hand, no doubt. "I know our last meeting ended up...bad. Like, really bad. But I can assure you, though, that I hadn't meant for it to cause you stress!" Boldly, Vernias advanced with his determined gaze locking with an impassive one.
"Things haven't been...the best lately. I didn't know what was I thinking -- I.... I just thought that hanging out with you, and getting away from all of that, would help! Or no, not like I used you for any gain or anything-" In that moment, Vernias noted that Sophist's grip on the gadget tightened. .The way his gloves made a noise when fingers curled. "Again, n-not like that!" he stammered out with his hands flying up in a pacifying manner. "I just... Oh gosh, I'm not used to explaining. See, I wanted to get to know you. That's all! I know how Brent and Nick are-"
"Vernias."
"-with how stubborn they are! I kept telling them that you're not so bad, and if they just gave you a chance-"
"Vernias."
"-maybe things wouldn't turn out like this. Like everything's about to fall about-"
Suddenly, the air became tense. Or rather, it's like every particle of it is vacuumed into the void, Vernias realizing that his lungs slightly strained to take in that precious air. Before he could react, his arms and the wings at his back is held back. He cried out in surprise, attempting to pull his arms out from behind where they are poised tightly over each other like someone bound him with rope. Only there wasn't any sight of rope. There wasn't anything corporeal that he could see or feel. Feathers fell to the floor due to Vernias's attempts to struggle.
"Wh-What's going on?!" When he turned back to Sophist, he saw that the man had also stood up from his seat. A disturbingly casual smile settled at his lips, when his features had been blank not just a few minutes ago. "Verny, Verny, Verny," he started in a sweet cadence, something that made Vernias shudder unpleasantly, as he slowly rounded the desk. "As much as you put your sweet, little heart into these things, I don't think you realize that you got a problem. A simple problem that has the very unlucky ability to become such a fucking inconvenience to everyone else."
His smile then turned into a sneer, remembering the looks on everyone's faces when they heard Vernias's cry from above when he had fled his home. The onslaught of questions that came soon after that barraged into Sophist's head like a violent migraine.
"It's because I care about you, Sophist! We're friends!"
Friends. In what fucking world is this bastard living in?
Sophist's eyes, along with the gem at his forehead, began to glow, becoming a deep purple that swirled with unthinkable magic that the angel has only read in tomes. He could feel his own retaliating ( no! please don't make it worse! ), its holy nature struggling to break free of these binds. "I kept telling you to keep your mouth shut," he hissed out in contempt, turning those hateful eyes that could have send shivers down the toughest spine. Vernias took a few steps back, pink eyes widening in trepidation when the sorcerer's lips twisted into a delirious smile. "And what did you do? You tried to act like a fucking hero!"
That's when sharp pain ran through the angel's body. "Augh!" Something popped in his ears. A shift in his position made him realize that his arms are suddenly forced back in a painful way. His joints and muscles began to ache so deeply that tears formed in Vernias's eyes. "Stop! Sophist, please stop!" he cried out, not caring to debate on whether to beg or not.
"Stop!"
That's when that tension snapped.
That glow from the jeweled brightened so that the whole room is filled with its marvelous light, nearly blinding the angel just as he heard a haughty laugh, though it sounded breathless. Almost out of air itself. "Stop?! Why would I when you haven't yourself? I told you...to...stay...quiet!"
Vernias soon found himself hanging in the air, hung from his hands behind his back so all the weight is painfully on his shoulders then he's tossed around the room like a doll. What felt like hands took hold of his wings, pulling at them until it felt as though they were going to be ripped from his back. Anguished screams erupted from the angel, his cries shrill and somewhat inhuman from not only the weight, but that icy feeling returning to become like frigid ice injecting straight into his veins.
Everything burned.
It all overwhelmed him to a certain degree that he's not even sure if he's still in the mortal realm.
"AAAAAHHHH!"
His body continued to hang then thrashed around, tears falling from his eyes and his features contorted into one of terror from the devastating pain. What felt like hours passed before Sophist decided to drop him from the air. The angel crumpled to the floor, his arms splayed at his sides like a puppet with its strings cut. His wings twitched from the wrathful force, laying limp along the angel's back like they were depleted of their strength. Soft pink eyes are hidden by closed, fluttering lids -- the rush of relief and sudden absence of the agony had thrown him into unconsciousness.
Sophist panted from the amount of magic he had to use, a hand reaching up to cover at the jewel still pulsating as a sharp ache. Footsteps rushed towards the room and the doors slammed open. "Sire?! What is-" Sophist glanced up to see the guards beholding the scene before them. Upon meeting their astonished features, he simply waved a hand. "Just get him out of here. Throw him out of the city gates however you can without alerting people. Make sure he doesn't try to get in if he wakes up."
"Yes, sire."
He grinned, though it's regarded in a shadow that none of the guards are keen in erasing nor encouraging. "And stay quiet about this. A single word gets out, and we're going to have a nice, long chat~. Understood?"
The resounding "Yes, sire!" finally quelled the regent's frayed nerves, his shoulders slumping as they worked on taking Vernias away. He glanced down at the feathers littering the ground, so dull in color and appearance with no cosmic presence to behold. With a scoff, Sophist waved a hand where the feathers, one by one, disappeared in wisps of smoke and embers.
"Useless... What is he even good for, anyway..." he mutters, returning to the gadget that laid neglected upon his desk.
