14th of Glade, 4623
“The hours weep as the Glory fell;
The tension and anguish would swell;
The wounds run deep;
As the corruption reaps;
For light within begins to dispel;.”
The tension and anguish would swell;
The wounds run deep;
As the corruption reaps;
For light within begins to dispel;.”
The amber-eyed light-touched magus couldn’t help but start into the distance, sitting on a stone fence made of loose chunks of stone that were placed together by the hands of mortals. The situation thrust upon the demigod of Saren still bothered him to no end, and what he needed to do. There was no clear goal or end that he could see, and it didn’t help that the vision of the world was blurred in a crimson red as the Mark of Lucence was flaring up, burning his insides in a radiance that was becoming harder to control without the sheer force of will and discipline.
The thief rises to his feet, his body balancing precariously on the fence. He spins and twirls, his emotions driving him forward as he began to dance, his divinity flowing out of his hand as spheres of buttermilk candlelight hovered in the air, bobbing and following its master as the young Alistian Draedan moved slowly along the fence. This moment fascinates him as he struggles to contain his seething anger. With no distractions to occupy his mind, he knows he could easily succumb to the dangerous effects of indulging his Mark.
As a child of Venadak, Taelian is bound to follow the deity's rules to a certain extent. This thought fills the thief with fear, as Venadak's domains are Light, Order, and Creation, and his edicts are absolute. However, as a child of Saren, Jared’s father/mother was more mysterious. At the same time, his presence was near and far, and his influence was as significant as Venadak himself to some certain degree.
It didn’t help that his divinity was corrupting him from within; at first, the thief didn’t think of it as much, but as more time passed. Then, the abnormalities started to present themselves; at first, nearby objects that he would touch would crack as if the object was subjected to the passage of time at an accelerated rate, causing things to chip, become damaged, and eventually break. Even the tools he used and favour were not spared by his corruption, but one thing that scared the thief most was if his corruption spread to those around him, aging them in some way that even he couldn’t understand himself.
These thoughts were enough to keep Jared to himself as best he could until he could figure out how to prevent his corrupted divinity from revealing himself and possibly taking lives that were not his to reap. But having such a thought, the thief didn’t even think about the possibility of gaining followers, which sounds quite enticing. Still, he was in no position to do so without raising awareness or leaving damning evidence to himself. After all, it was advised to lay low until he was capable of defending himself, which he could to a certain degree but not without sufficient effort on his end, and from his previous encounter with a life-threatening event; Jared did not have the bloodlust needed to go for the kill, not yet at least and hopefully never.
In any case, the orbs of light that were merely following the thief around would soon coalesce into a single sphere that irradiated a semi-harsh alabaster light which would quickly be pulled by Jared’s will to form Bulwark around his body and clothing. The light coating his body was, in some shape and form, helped combat his influence upon his surroundings since the encapsulation of light was essentially preventing his defiled divinity from affecting the world itself. While sad, it was a fate that was dealt Jared his hand, and how he would utilise it was up to him, for better or worse.
Yet, despite working so hard to reach a point where he could stand on his own two feet was challenging enough; There would come a time when his name would be ushered into a new dawn, and it would seem that calling was coming soon. An act or a play was about to begin, and all the Draedan could do was prepare for it and serve his role as best he could; whether he would remain the same or change into some more is yet to be determined.
The brief twirls before softly planting his feet on the uneven surface of the stone fence; the novice dancer had much to practice on, despite his proficient nature in terms of acrobatic movements; this brief moment of respite was enough to quell the crimson red hue into something softer for the time being. Needing to stop and rest for a moment, the thief would quickly settle himself down, lazily sitting on the cobblestone fence once more, with the moon’s light and a few wisps of clouds drifting overhead.
For a moment, the stars were aligned, in his opinion; the need to become mysterious was something that called to Jared and possibly a reason why he started to develop a habit of speaking in rhymes and limericks. But, within this short period of respite, the amber-eyed thief couldn’t help but ponder further what he should be doing.
“I should probably seek allies… There is only so much one person can do; it will complicate things, but it is a necessary evil but… Who can I trust…. What do I even want… There are so many questions to ask, leading to more questions…. I should confide with someone when I can, but I need to get back to training and work…. A busy mind has always been a good distraction for a while at least.”
While it had only been a couple of minutes of sitting down and contemplating his next course of actions, the Draedan was still actively maintaining his Bulwark, feeding his magic with his divinity which started to dim slightly as the prolonged usage took a significant toll, which caused the thief to start sweating, while not much; trickling beads of sweat would be noted as if someone was exercising their physical body to the degree that was slightly beyond their comfortable range.
His breathing was becoming ragged by the minute as Jared attempted to push himself further as best he could without draining his reserves of his divinity. His visions were also a form of training in the form of clarity and restraint, knowing what is true justice, and not allowing one’s desires and anger to influence their decision. Faltering every step of the way was dangerous, but by doing so, the thief could understand what Venadak wanted from Lucence and his followers. Feeling that his stamina was reaching its limit, the amber-eyed thief would stop his connection with his Bulwark. He needed to preserve his divinity for potential scuffles during his rest period.
The straining sensation that was coursing through his body would soon subside once the Light-touched magus decided that enough was enough for today; the mixture of visions, conjuring various spheres of light and a protective ward against corruption does take a lot of divinity which would need at least a day at minimal and three days at most. In his case, it would be about two days' worth of rest since the petty thief tends to use a decent chunk of his energy in training, and it is on a routine, the habit of refining skills as best as possible.
Despite all of the work done, the thief needed more time to adjust; building from nothing and creating something from what tools he had on hand was one thing. Utilising them to their full capabilities is what is needed for any thief, after all…. Many would fall when you aren’t willing to adapt methods to the present circumstances, and the remainder lives to see another day.
From that moment, Jared took a moment to rummage through his pockets, briefly feeling a linen cloth wrapped around a semi-solid object. For a moment, the thief couldn’t help but smile as he pulled the item out and began to unveil the thing. It was a simple meal the thief had prepared before leaving his home; cooking has always been a way the thief could express himself, and to that extent, it was a welcoming sight. Simply enjoy a vital meal and forget about the woes of today and tomorrow.
While the night itself was quiet and the moonlight that bathed Genteven was as soft as silk, the amber-eyed Draedan couldn’t help but slowly take his time, nibbling on his snacks for a moment. It was nice to be sort of mortal once again; the possible change in Jared’s history was ever-expanding, and possibilities were endless. For this reason alone, the thief is trying to strive harder and grow into something better, for a motion of change only needs a single spark from the sun in rags.
