The Hateful Meteor

[[God] - Nocturne]

Nocturne's sure she said her suggestion several times by now.[smear:#ac75ff] "It was only by chance I saw your..."[/smear:#423159:1] She made a gesture while trying to figure out a word suitable for this mess Araphi made. [smear:#ac75ff]"...Entry."[/smear:#423159:1] She stared back down at Araphi.[smear:#ac75ff] "I suggest you actually stop and plan your actions to attain whatever goals you wish to achieve."[/smear:#423159:1] Nocturne didn't have to stop and see what this was about, she could have left Araphi to her own devices, but she felt like doing something because why not? She'd have to report this to Fire Lord Pyrion anyways, his domain seemingly leaking hellspawn in forests. Willow was without a doubt upset with a sudden forest fire, her deep rooted network with these trees probably tipped her off within minutes. It's actually kind of surprising Willow didn't show up. But Nocturne was pretty sure Willow'd have tried to kill Araphi for this sudden attack while still upset.

"[smear:#ac75ff]I don't really want to hear anything specific. But it seems like you're finally acknowledging your bullheadedness isn't going to help you right now."[/smear:#423159:1] Now let's see.... Should Nocturne take her somewhere or.... leave this fire beast to rot in her hole. Well, she's socialised this much, and this only made the report simpler for her. Nocturne straightened up into a standing position, sheathing her weapons and seemingly grasping something in the air. Shadows enveloped Araphi, a strange silky smooth feeling from them. Her vision would black out, either from her passing out or the shadows themselves wrapping around and obscuring her vision.

It felt fast for Araphi. Seconds, maybe minutes? Actually it took maybe a few hours, but when you're out cold, time doesn't really work with your brain. She'd fine herself in an infirmary bed, flames lighting the room and the light bouncing off gold leaf walls. The floors were a black marble, reflecting the golden walls and pillars accented with red silk tapestries. It's clear this wasn't the burning forest she landed in.

[Tyrian]

Did Nocturne not understand she was tortured for most of her life? It was starting to irritate Araphi- she kept mentioning the idea that Araphi should plan, and to her knowledge, she had done all the planning she needed to! Of course, Araphi was entirely unaware about... everything related to the fire realm. She honestly thought she could just pickup a sword and waltz in through a door, unaware of the whole "banishing" or how the realms actually worked. "I have done my planning. At least, what I could do. Did I not tell you it numerous times?" Araphi asked, unsure if Nocturne was listening to her, "However, in this condition, I won't be able to do anything. Is there something I'm missing to my plan? can I not just enter the Fire Ream?" She asked. What Araphi needed was to get out of here. Maybe then she could gain more knowledge to make an appropriate plan... and to get a better weapon! Definitely a better weapon. Maybe an upgrade to that chain whip of hers?

"When I'm laying here in the middle of the scorched world, feeling my body burn and grow cold at the same time, there's not much I can do except pay attention to everything in hopes it'll get me out of here." Araphi muttered as a response, at least glad she was able to figure out that her plan wouldn't work. Whatever her new plan is would have to be figured out later. The demoness lay there, drowsily staring up at Nocturne from the loss of consciousness beginning to slowly take over. All around her she saw shadows, growing towards her and beginning to envelop her very being. The smooth feeling of the shadows were welcomed as the burns and wounds covering her body became soothed, being taken away from the rough, coarse ground tainted in her blood.

Her awakening was much more confusing. No longer did she lay in a crater, stuck surrounded by smoke and flames that ate away at the trees around her. Now she lay in a soft bed, her body not used to this sensation of such gentle materials. The red silk tapestries caught her eye among the golden walls and black marble floor, the revenge seeker taking in her surroundings. Where was she? What was this place? More importantly... what happened in the time she was out?

[[Champion] - Ember]

There was a soft murmur outside of the doorways, a few voices chatting over something really hard to read. Araphi herself was covered in bandages, ointment that felt cold when moving over her burns. The chattering grew slightly louder as the doorway opened, people dressed in reds and golds, akin to the building's aesthetics. One pushing in a cart with what looked like medicines and another decorated with golden bands on her arms and ankles, bright red hair tied back in a ponytail that faded off to yellow. [smear:#F70021]"It's not every day we see a fire demon on the brink of death outside of the fire realms."[/smear:#FFD500:1], she said, seeming rather amused about it. This mage's eyes were scarlet with gold highlights and staring right at Araphi. [smear:#F70021]"Lady Nocturne filled us in, but she's still chatting with Lord Pyrion. Your name's Araphi, right? Name's Ember."[/smear:#FFD500:1] The other person would settle next to Araphi, carefully lifting an arm to unwrap the bandages and work on the wounds.

[Tyrian]

The pain her body was feeling was... unlike anything she had really felt before. Even with the bandages and the ointments covering her wounds and cooling her burns, the wounds pulsed with pain. Her body didn't even feel like her own anymore, it just felt awful. Araphi was terrified at the possibility of whatever lay underneath her bandages. How severe were the burns and wounds? Would her wings ever recover? Would she ever recover? Araphi turned her head, not daring to move her body too much. The idea of sitting up was horrid, and she felt actually trying would be even worse. "I was cast out of the fire realms long ago. By my mother. I'm not welcome there." Araphi responded, her voice pained yet trying to maintain a sense of calm. "Yes. I'm Araphi, daughter of Velvine... Where am I?" Araphi asked, her eyes looking around the room. They quickly snapped shut as her arm was lifted and the bandages unwrapped, a highly unwelcome feeling surging through her arm and body as it was lifted. She grit her teeth as the other person began to work on her arm, trying rather hard to not cry out in pain.

[[Champion] - Ember]

[smear:#F70021]"You're at Ignis Reach, the temple of the God that actually rules the Realm of Fire."[/smear:#FFD500:1], Ember said. She couldn't help but put a note of pride in that, Lord Pyrion was absolutely perfect for this role and she was more than happy to serve that god. The mage crossed her arms and leaned in. [smear:#F70021]"So you got cast out the rough way. What happened to make them do that to you? You were practically out for good by the time you got here."[/smear:#FFD500:1] This mage seemed to know an awful lot about banishment and the fire realms.

The other person, seemingly a nurse or aide of some sort, kept working quietly on Araphi's wounds. Her attention wasn't on the conversation, it was on making sure Araphi was healing as best that she could.

[Tyrian]

"...Eugh." Araphi mumbled at the mention of the fire realm. She did not have the best opinion on the fire realm, but that was more due to her own experiences with the place. "I wish I knew. The only story I know is that my... mother..." Araphi started, saying the word 'mother' with an aggravated tone, "Decided that she did not want me and thus got rid of me. Then she realized since I'm hers, I'll have power like her, and now she wants to kill me." She explained. She had no idea why her mother had to take the whole kill-her route, but if that's the way her mother wanted it, Araphi could play that game.

"Since I'm here, how do I get into the fire realm? I have a demoness to kill in there." She asked, slowly lifting up one arm. All she saw was bandages. No sign of her red flesh. Just red bandages. She remembered in the forest, looking at the same arm, covered in charred flesh and molten blood. Was it still like that underneath? Was there even recovering from such injuries that covered her body? She had no idea.

[[Champion] - Ember]

[smear:#F70021]"Ah... Power struggles..."[/smear:#FFD500:1] Ember said, nodding sagely. That of all issues was common everywhere. From the surface, it sounded like Araphi's mother wanted to maintain her position, whatever it was in the Fire Realms. [smear:#F70021]"Entering the realms hmm... There's a few ways to do it. Never gone myself. But I hear all the methods to get in are not... well.. Safe."[/smear:#FFD500:1] Ember tried to think, the common route involved the element itself, but there was not much information on it and any that did exist was closely guarded to the point even the Champions weren't allowed access. She leaned back into her seat and sighed. [smear:#F70021]"I could try to ask Lord Pyrion but I doubt he'd really give an answer."[/smear:#FFD500:1] Not like getting the answer right now would help. Araphi would die in the state she was in with whatever hellbent revenge she had planned up.

[Tyrian]

"It's not like I asked for the power. Even if I do have her power, I can't even use it." Araphi said in a more defeated tone of voice. She hated that just because there was a chance she could end up with such power it meant she had to die. It just made her already boiled blood boil further that her whole life had been ruined up until this point over greed and power. "I don't care if the method is safe. It's either she eventually kills me or I might end up getting killed going in. One guarantees my death, the other doesn't." Araphi responded, looking away from her bandaged arm and to Ember. She wanted to know more about her current state, mostly to see if she would even be able to pursue her mother's demise soon. "These injuries... how bad are they, exactly? All I remember is seeing barely any flesh, so much dirt, the feeling of hot blood and the sensation of my wings falling apart." She asked, lifting up her other arm to reexamine the bandages. She wanted to take them off but she wasn't sure if she wanted to see how bad it was. Araphi had sustained bad injuries from the attempts on her life, surely, but she had never seen or endured anything like this. She had no idea if there was even any skin under the bandages, or if she even had wings anymore.

[[Champion] - Ember]

[smear:#F70021]"Well... Safe to say your wings are mostly in tact. Can't say much about your ability to fly or glide, but when they've healed up, we can probably get a better look at them... As for everything else..."[/smear:#FFD500:1] Ember trailed off to give the nurse a chance to explain everything. 

"Miraculously, the worst you've got on you are burns and a few broken bones. There are hairline fractures that run across your arms. There's deep tissue damage around your wings that need time to heal. Most of the impact was taken with your spine, it's amazing that you're able to move much if at all. Most suffering a fall this harsh would be paralysed at least halfway down their body if not from the neck down." The nurse said, flipping through some notes and then staring at Araphi with some astonishment.

[Tyrian]

Araphi was... baffled, to say the least. That was the extent of her injuries? That was all? She remembered seeing and feeling so much worse, but with what the nurse and Ember said, it sounded more like she got in a bad fight than crashed into a forest covered in fire. The look she gave the two was complete, utter confusion. "Is... is that it?" Araphi asked in an uncertain tone, "I remember it all being worse. So much worse. It felt like my wings were melting, just completely falling apart. I remember looking at my arms and not even seeing flesh, just blood and charred tissue. How can my injuries only be as bad as you say?" She asked, her other hand slowly moving towards the bandages. Now the want to see what lay underneath the bandages was stronger than before, her hand gently gripping the bandages and beginning to tug them off.

[[Champion] - Ember]

[smear:#F70021]"In all fairness, we have some of the best medics on hand and they've done loads to heal you to where you're at now with medicine and magic. It's not to say we can make you perfectly healthy, but you lucked out hard."[/smear:#FFD500:0], Ember said. [smear:#F70021]"If Lady Nocturne were any later or left you there, I think you'd be a corpse that's half charred and half molten."[/smear:#FFD500:0]

"Ah, I understand you're curious to see your wounds, but I'd ask you refrain and simply rest. You are in no condition to move at all even with where you are now!", the nurse said, hovering her hands over Araphi's arms. "Healing takes time. These wounds are still quite severe, so you may be bedridden for a while."

[smear:#F70021]"Hey, but you know if you wanna like talk about the weather or something, I'll drop by a visit at least like once a day or something!"[/smear:#FFD500:0], Ember said, just so being bedridden for who knows how long wasn't a prison experience.

[Tyrian]

"...They must be some powerful magic users to heal what I saw." Araphi mumbled, turning to look at Ember, "I lucked out? Me?" She asked, an expression of distress washing over her face. Her mind flashed through everything that she had endured up until the point she was at right now. Being tossed out of the realm, the attempts on her life, the capture and torture... It took her a moment to snap out of the memories, the wild look leaving her eyes with a shiver.

"Wait, bedridden for how long?" Araphi asked, looking at the nurse, "I can't stay here too long. Velvine must die. If I do not destroy her, she'll keep trying to destroy me. If I'm bedridden, not only can I not kill her, but I'm a stationary target." She warned, slowly moving her arms away from the nurse. "I will have to leave eventually. I have to figure out a way back into that realm, I have to train, to gather companions..." Araphi started rambling, going on about what she needed to do as preparations to kill Velvine.

[[Champion] - Ember]

The nurse seemed to review some notes regarding Araphi's wounds. "Depending on how well you heal, I'd give two months minimum. But we will need to check on your health and recovery during then to determine if you need more or less time."

Ember stared at Araphi. [smear:#F70021]"It's not easy to enter and leave the realms. If she's sending units out, they're sacrificial at best and won't be able to return. That being said, you should be safe here for the time being. It's not like they can track you in another plane."[/smear:#FFD500:0] Actually, there were no known cases of multi-planar communication outside of primals and gods, but even then they're not in on personal affairs. [smear:#F70021]"If anything though, I'd love to have a training partner. When you're well enough, of course. Don't want to give you more injuries to permanently disable you and all."[/smear:#FFD500:0]

[Tyrian]

"Two months?" Araphi asked. That was a very long time she would have to wait to recover from her injuries. "What am I meant to do until then? Wait while my mother figures out where I am and grows stronger while I do nothing?" She added, trying to sit up, immediately regretting that decision and returning to her laying position.

She barely turned her head towards Ember, asking, "If it's not easy to enter or leave planes, how did I get here? Maybe I can repeat the method done to enter the fire plane." It was sort of a dumb idea, but Araphi's mind was always focused on revenge, even if it would get her more injured. It's all she could think about. "I don't care if you do more harm to me. If I cannot fight when extremely injured, then I have little hope of winning against Velvine. She will guaranteed harm me severely, I need to be able to fight through it and carry forward." Araphi added. Every may hurt beyond words but in her eyes, that was just a sigh of weakness she had to crush.

[[Champion] - Ember]

[smear:#F70021]"Two months isn't that bad."[/smear:#FFD500:0] Ember said with a grin. [smear:#F70021]"There was one time they kept me holed up for like four because of an injury and then physical therapy to regain my flexibility. It's... A good idea to listen to their recommendation."[/smear:#FFD500:0] The fire mage's grin turned sheepish. Because she's tried sneaking out before and got caught. Nurses are scary, man.

At Araphi's question, Ember put a hand to her chin. [smear:#F70021]"How many others were around when they decided to kick you out? The best idea I can think of is several fire demons going out there and chaining spells to make one bigger spell just to move you out of the realm entirely."[/smear:#FFD500:0], she said with a slight nod. [smear:#F70021]"That alone takes a lot of magic out. Probably can't be done again with the same group any time soon either."[/smear:#FFD500:0]

Ember looked back at Araphi. [smear:#F70021]"I was kinda like you when I first started to take all the duties of a Champion properly. I'd keep trying to fight even though my body wouldn't move or I was injured beyond belief. Perseverance is one thing, but knowing when to stop to recover and strengthen yourself is another."[/smear:#FFD500:0] She folded her arms over each other. [smear:#F70021]"If some people didn't tell me to stop when I needed to, I'd be much weaker instead of stronger now."[/smear:#FFD500:0]