As dragon and demon fought their epic battle, Arae's eyes were drawn from the spectacular fight in the sky to the streets below. Crusader's running, some in panic, some with purpose, demons slaughtering soldiers and civillians alike, levelling entire buildings in their rampage. She had, for months, been vaguely contemplating what goal she would seek, what change she would attempt to wreak upon the world. It came to her then, that this war might be worth it. The first wardstone was broken, and if the attack on Kenabres was any indication, the rest of the world was in for a rude awakening.
Yes. She'd do whatever she had to, to bring and end to this conflict. What it might entail was beyond her in this moment, whether it meant killing the stormlord, closing the worldwound, or bring the fifth crusade deep into the bowels of the abyss itself, but she knew that she'd do it, whatever the cost, or at the very least die trying. Not that she planned on dying, of course.
And then, the ground dissappeared beneath her. There was no room for thought, only reflex. She flung her blades away from her, that she would not impale herself on them in her fall, and tensed up, the balls of her feet curving as her body instinctively prepared to tuck and roll on impact. Her first, adrenaline fueled thought came when Terendelev slowed their fall.
That was close. Damn it, I threw my weapons awa- She fell again, and the world retreated from her senses.
Cold, unyielding stone is what you feel as you awaken from the darkness. You open your eyes and try to strain to clear the blur from your vision, but all you see is endless gleaming white. The smell of roses wafts through the air and you can begin to perceive a faint sound, like a faraway chorus. Your vision focuses as you stare at the ground, a white marble floor, trying to get your bearings.
Looking around, the entire place appears to be a temple carved from shining white stone, able to dwarf even the now-ruined temple in Kenabres several times over. The entire cathedral is filled with a faint white mist, obscuring some of the intricate details of the structure, but still allowing you to catch a glimpse of it's grandeur. The architecture is otherworldly and unlike anything that you have ever seen before: delicate twisting columns that scarcely seem able to hold up anything, much less the massive vaulted ceiling, seem to emerge from the floor itself as if grown from it. Giant windows made of some crystalline material filter in brilliant light into the already bright room.
Suddenly you hear footsteps, which echo seemingly into eternity. Turning your head to the right, you see a man dressed in flowing white and golden robes walking calmly towards you, holding a massive tome bound in some otherworldly metal in his left hand by his side. As he steps closer, you see that he is no man as his massive, owl-like grey wings come into view. His silvery hair blows in an unseen wind and his all-black eyes, which seem to twinkle as if filled with stars, are focused solely on you. Suddenly a voice, calm and serene, but teeming with some hidden power, echoes throughout the cathedral in some unknown language that you can somehow understand , "So it has occurred as was foreseen... Welcome, child of Golarion."
As he awakens, and his eyes adjust to the sights and sounds around him, Shinari is surprised at where he is. This is definitely not where he expected to be. Then, some sort of winged being appears before him, and speaks in a sort of High Celesital tongue. He had heard rumors of such, apparently spoken by the most ancient and powerful beings of the Upper Realms.
He bows respectfully "Uh, Hi there. Where exactly am I?" He asks, figuring it best to just get to the point.
"Realm of Dreams, eh? I have heard stories of this place. Tis one of wonder, and also danger, if you are not careful. So, Winged One, what must you tell me?"
She could just ask, of course. But then, if he is something I dreamt up, he might as well say "heaven" as "your dream".
Well. Some fact a celestial would know, that she didn't, but could easily check later.
She stood, and bowed before the celestial. "This will sound strange, but please bear with me; Where does the ascended Korada, the Open Hand of Harmony reside?"
"It's an honor, speaking to you. Why have you come? Have I died?"
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Upon the arrival of the strange celestial being, Tryggve's mind drew a very cynical conclusion to his current predicament. As the owl-winged man addressed him, Tryggve cast his eyes upon the large cathedral once again, his mind slowly turning in thought in the situation he was in. As the cynical thoughts took hold, his lips slowly forming a dark grin.
"As forseen, huh?" He let out a small chuckle as his gaze drifted down from the cathedral, settling at the mist pooling around his him. "So, I was never able to reach the stone, was I? This is how I die, at the end of it all?"
It wasn't that big of a stretch for Tryggve. He had survived a lot, but even as tough as he was, he had come close to death at many points in his life. Many of those times he survived through sheer pursistance, while sometimes he lived through dumb luck alone. Without the pain of the fall, and with the imagery surrounding him after the maelstrom of events that led up to this moment, he was pretty sure it all meant he finally ran out of survivability. With a chuckle, his gaze lifted back to the celestial newcomer.
"Well, either way, who are you?"