A Simple Test Most Complex...[Closed]

[Shinsou Vaan Osiris]

Radasanth.

It was good to see it again. The familiar outline of blocky buildings against muddy farmland. The cobblestone streets, the docks and ghettos all a part of the sprawling urban labyrinth.

There had been too much running in Salvar, too much of being hunted by Telgradia's death squads and far too much of Telos Soltair, his father. There had been too many false accolades, thanks to Joshua Cronen, and amid those too many sneers from those who knew better. Now officially titled as a Thayneslayer, Shinsou Vaan Osiris was technically a hero. But that would never change the fact that he wasn't.

Not really.

When given the chance to change that, to become the pure hearted kind of adventurer whose life would be much better for it, the Telgradian ultimately decided that if he wasn't good enough for the world as he was, the world wasn't worth changing for. But the "honour" of having been the one to "strike the final blow" to Draconus had taken its toll. Shinsou, and the Brotherhood, were recognizable, for one thing.

Reality; the Telgradian helped kill Draconus, the almighty Thayne dragon, which had set in motion a stupendous chain of events. Part of him at that time thought he was invincible. The other part, probably his dad's side, thought that was a dangerous attitude to have. It would serve him well to remember that Joshua Cronen was the hero here and Shinsou merely the accomplice.

But then his mind wandered. What if he could reach the heights of power that Cronen wielded?

Naturally, when a letter of challenge arrived from Lorenor, a man Shinsou had never heard of, his curiousity was stoked. There weren't too many people on the island of note that he didn't already have at least a heads up on, thanks to his Immortals. There also weren't a great number of people who hadn't heard of him, the Thayneslayer, either.

Perhaps a battle with an unknown quantity would make a refreshing change.

The safest place to do that was the Citadel, where the mighty went to test their strength. Shinsou could have someone do him the favour of kicking his head in until he either remembered that in a world of the powerful, he was still on training wheels, or until he finally found the motivation to ascend beyond all of this.

The Telgradian removed a pair of spectacles before motioning to the monk that he wanted to know which room he was due in. No matter how well he'd be revived, Shinsou did not want shards of glass embedded in his eyeballs.

He looked the sturdy Brotherhood leader up and down. "You're fighting Lorenor? Your weapons will be useless."

This elicited a frown; Shinsou's weapons were more than just swords, and even then they were even beyond the physical blades he carried. But, better forewarned, he nodded, and the monk ushered the white coated man into an arena.

The place seemed a lot like Concordia, except much denser. Even the moonlight penetrating the upper canopies of the forest seemed strange. So were the plants. Rows of random foilage and aisles of trees lined up neatly about a smooth dirt area. But, even with all this life, there was an atmosphere of death. The air felt cold on Shinsou's alabaster skin. The forest seemed devoid of life other than he.

The Telgradian breathed, braced, and paced. All his senses were cut out, except for those that came naturally to any human, before a shrill ringing exploded through his stomach.

Something is here. But I can't pinpoint what, or where...