A Hollow Darkness

[Faeryl Tsarran]

Despite the drow's distaste for magic she had felt drawn to Twilight Isle since arriving in RhyDin. The pull of it's magic teasing at her own innate talents that she was almost always reluctant to use, they were as ever present as the itch for violence her rage always toyed with but, it was simply a side of her she preferred to ignore. She was well aware of the power she could have harnessed if she let herself sink into that untapped source of energy and once upon a time it had been a tempting idea, she toyed with the thought that she could have bent so many knees to her will if only her will had been her own back then. It was still debatable that her will was her own right now, given the way she was wandering through the portal to Isle without so much as a second thought, drawn in by her own curiosity and the pull of darkness that had only deepened since the arrival of The Dark Hunter. There was no harm in looking, even less harm in perhaps helping the druids in whatever way she could. Truth be told, she wasn't entirely sure she cared about helping so much as she cared about trying to figure out why in the hell her magic had gone so shadowy in nature. Faeryl didn't hate it, she liked the way it felt in her hands but, she wasn't a fan of being influenced. A hundred years of a goddess whispering lies to her was more than enough for her to know that anyone else who tried would meet a slow and incredibly painful end, her mind and her body were her own now and some monster on horseback wasn't going to try and change that.

Her steps were slow and cautious as she moved for the tree line, the shadows there already growing thicker the closer she got. They undulated in unnatural ways, reaching out towards her as if they were beckoning her to step through them. Fae slowed, hushing her breath so she could simply stand there and listen to the quiet around her, unnerving and still as it was. Shadows spoke if you listened close enough and these whispered of the end, nothing but glee in their haunting cacophony of voices. The smallest of smiles touched at her lips as she finally stepped into the thick blackness waiting for her. Even with a set of eyes like hers, perfected to see through the darkest dark, she struggled with the way the shadows swayed and blended together as she trekked deeper into the woods. They meant to play tricks on her, disorienting her from the only exit she knew of and she let them, what other choice did she have? There was weight so heavy it was palpable in the air around her, settling uncomfortably on her shoulders the deeper she went and the further from the portal she found herself, it curled itself around her and guided her where it wanted the dark elf to go. She felt strange, oddly empty as the shadows pulled at her clothing and her hair, eager to get their tendrils on her. It was the first time in her entire life that the self loathing and fury were so quickly taken down to a dull roar in a way no bottle of liquor could achieve. Even in the calm that Jake offered her, the rage was always there and always tempting her, a dark passenger she knew she would have been lost without despite how much she hated it.

There wasn't a sound before the massive steed broke through the foliage in front of her, not a warning until the cracking of twigs and branches pulled her from the stupor she had suddenly found herself in. At first she it barely even registered that something had filled the space ahead of her, the size so massive and the darkness so jet black and thick that she thought perhaps she'd simply wandered a bit too far into the dark for her own good. That part remained true as the creature reared back onto it's hind legs and roared into the silence around them. The sound was nothing like she had ever heard horse make before, chilling her to the bone and freezing her where she stood, even as she tired to urge her legs to move. Run, you idiot! But, run she could not. Fear was not familiar for Fae, far too stubborn and hotheaded to let something as silly as fear get in the way, but right now she could feel it take a hold in her chest, a knot that twisted so tight it nearly hurt. She could hear her pulse quicken as more of the Dark Hunter came into view, unsure of what terrified her more. The horned helm or the way light seemed to simply die around her, the absence of anything but churning darkness had Faeryl unable to do anything but stare while her heart tried desperately to escape from her chest. Back to all fours, the Hunter's steed snorted and started to move closer, sniffing the air in her direction. She knew the slow pace wasn't apprehension, it certainly wasn't terror, it might have been a game to see if the drow would finally smarten up and move.

Turning around would have been certain death, her small legs could never truly outrun the beast in front of her, no matter how fast she was. Instead, as the ice in her legs melted, Faeryl sprinted towards The Dark Hunter, nearly through the legs of the horse as she closed in and continued past them into the brush they had barreled through. When you're small you use size against your advisories, it was half the reason she was even still alive today, her small stature both and annoyance and blessing, with proof of it now as The Dark Hunter struggled to turn that mighty beast around with the same speed at which Faeryl had darted by. That bit of luck would only get her so far as she ran, jumping easily over rock and fallen branches in some attempt to put as much space as she could between herself and the nightmare she knew was following. The hooves beating on the ground were warning enough that they were in pursuit now, probably far closer than she would have liked but, Faeryl wasn't about to risk a glance over her shoulder. At least no one was around to see her running for her life, something she never fancied herself doing again however, there was someone worth staying alive for now and she was't about to let her over abundance of stupidity take her away from him.

The first arrow narrowly missed her head, it's sharpened point nicking her left ear as it whizzed by. Panic outweighed the sting of pain, her feet not daring to falter in the mad dash for safety or...something, she had no idea where she was or where she was headed. The second arrow found it's mark far more easily, tearing clean through her right side, searing pain enough to knock her off kilter until she was falling face first to the forest floor. Her lungs burned with each frantic gasp of air she took, trying to calm herself while she hurried to her knees and glanced back towards the approaching beast. The bow was aimed again and poised to strike true, of that much Faeryl was certain. She tried to misty step herself from where she knelt, not all that surprised when nothing happened, just a brief plume of black mist and nothing more. The drow tried to call forth her favorite weapon, intent to at least go out fighting, but her palm remained empty with another flicker of shadow in it's place that only fed the frustration and the fear swirling inside her. This was it then, the end and she found herself not caring anymore. Something new twisted itself up inside her, starting where the arrow had broken through and blooming outwards through every inch of her. A sudden lack of everything,hope and happiness seemed to fade to nothing in that moment, her drive to get back up and continue was simply gone and gods, why was she so exhausted all of a sudden? Her body felt as thought weighed a ton, urging her to lay back down and just accept what was about to happen. The hollowness felt good, even her dark passenger was quiet now, snuffed out by the arrow, no voices and no panic inducing memories flooded her mind. That's is, just lay back down. Let the shadows take you..

It wasn't her voice whispering in her head, but she wanted to listen so badly. Perhaps she really would have if her pirate's voice didn't manage to survive whatever the hell that arrow was trying to do to her."Ain't nothin' more real for me than you, Fae. Don't think there ever will be." She couldn't just lay down and die, not when she finally found her happiness. "Myrvorn.." It felt like marbles in her mouth when she tried to speak, nearly choking on the world. Drowic was easier when it was mumbled, barely above a whisper as it seeped past her lips. "Myrvorn, Elgg.." Another arrow left the bow but, the sudden rumble of earth sent it rocketing just shy of her shoulder, grazing the leather covered flesh there instead of sinking deep. From the shadows something else stirred, lumbering through the dense brush with an otherworldly speed that only eight very long legs could achieve. The massive black spider lunged from dark, razor sharp legs eager to tear through whatever parts of the The Dark Hunter and her steed that they could. Myrvorn wasn't quite as large of that horse, but she held her own as she threw her body into it and knocked it nearly off it's feet. The Dark Hunter clung to the reigns, almost tumbling right from her saddle as the spider reared upwards and once again clashed into them angry shrieks. It was a battle of darkness, a flash of spider legs here or perhaps a blade or a hopelessly fired arrow that didn't catch it's mark. Horse and spider filled the quiet of the woods with their angry grunts and roars, pained hisses and shrieks of agony were all she heard as she settled into the soft grass beneath her. Fae could barely follow what was happening, the shadows far too thick and her eyes far too heavy but, she tried her best to stay awake and hold onto that voice inside her.

Falling asleep would have been stupid and yet staying awake had been impossible. She might have been out for minutes or hours, there was no real way of telling but, as she came to the The Dark Hunter was gone and Myrvorn was laying beside her just barely breathing. Her thick, green hued blood nearly glowed in the dark, mixed with something that looked more like oil than any kind of blood she'd ever. Black, thick and kissed with shadows that wafted from it like smoke. Slowly she pushed herself to her knees, the pain and the emptiness still lingered just not with as much force as before. She could feel things again, fear quick to take the lead as she crawled herself closer to the slowly dying spider. "You made her bleed.." Those words were strained, nearly catching in her throat. "I'm sorry, Myrvorn.." The spider bristled in response, a soft hiss no one but Fae would ever understand. This wouldn't be the spider's final end but, she assumed dying probably never felt very good. "Thank you.." Carefully she pulled a small glass vile from the pocket of her leather jacket, an obvious sign that she did actually have a plan in her head when she wandered into the woods. Either blood from the shadows or The Dark Hunter herself, it didn't matter much to Fae, so long as she got what she came for. With a delicate touch she collected as much untainted Hunter blood that she could into the vile before capping it and tucking it safely back into her pocket. There was a slow look around once she was back to her feet, everything a bit hazy and strange, her legs like jelly. There was no sign of Hunter or steed, and she was certain even the shadows had lessened for now. That was all the sign she needed to get the hell out of there and hand off the vile ichor to whatever druid she found first.

By the time she found a druid and enthusiastically recounted her battle, the void inside her was already starting to wane. Emotions were clawing their way back into her head and heart right where they were meant to be. A hollowed out drow would not be the one leaving the Isle, even in the brief peace had been almost enjoyable. The walk to the portal felt impossibly long, well aware that the world around her was still askew, every step a risk of dropping right to the sand if she wasn't careful. The wounds burned and she knew there was no way to lie herself out of what happened once the Cajun saw the state of her, she could try but there wasn't much of a point. Through the portal she went, solid ground a blessing beneath her feet as she came out the other end and started the walk back to the Inn where she hoped he was still asleep.