Things So Far.

I figured I would go through and write out what I've got as far as Rhia's kids go. It's been a long three or four days working it out, and I've still got a little ways to go before I'm ready to move on past them. As you can imagine, the choice to change how many kids she had caused a bit of frustration, but after a day or two, I realized it really freed a lot up for me. You'd be surprised how quickly ten thousand years can go by, and how difficult it is to pack everything in. There are a lot of events that go on in the world simultaneously, all of which I'd like to cover in the books. It means, of course, that Rhia can't be everywhere for everything. This gives me purpose with the books not focused on Rhia, but on the other characters. If I have a character that's not with Rhia at the time of another event, I can cover it in one of his/her books. It's also difficult packing together certain events, when there's only maybe fifty years between something in Rome and something in Kyoto, then something else seventy-five years later in Turkey or Constantinople.
There's going to be some pulling-out of my hair I am guessing when it comes to combining the lure of the Kolareny world and the history and critique of our own. So many fantasy series' are set in fantastical worlds, and that's just not the case here. This series ties in the fantastic with the realistic, and it's not an easy thing to pull off. As far as most of us can tell, magick does not physically exist in this world, and the creatures of fantasy - elves, dragons, gryphons, and everything else - never roamed our planet, let alone partook in a much more advanced society before humans even started to become civil. But, that's part of the challenge; part of the fun. I have to make people - a whole world - believe, if only for the time they're reading it, that these events really could have happened alongside history. The only time I break away from that is with the end. It's true, the end will probably not be published before the fated 2033, and if it is, that date will not be far off. So it is then I have to portray the end not only as realistically as possible, but give the sense that this is theoretical, and perhaps, not literal. I'll probably leave it up to the critics and english students of the future to decipher just what I'm talking about, because frankly, I haven't the slightest most of the time. It usually isn't until days, weeks, months, or even years later that I realize symbolism my subconscious threw in. Even choosing the names for my characters. Take a few minutes and look up the meanings of Rhiannon and Seth, even Zelda and Mara. Cecelia's name's meaning threw me for a loop at first, but then it suddenly took perfectly in my mind. But I'll go over the meanings of their names later. Oh, and don't bother with Kolareny. That's purely made up on my part.
As I was saying I'd do before, here are the names of the kids I've got so far, the year they're born, and a little bit about them.
1. Mirian 4512bc Daughter of Toryk. Born in China.
2. Aubrey 4302bc Born in China.
3. Antranig 3194bc Born in Sumer.
4. Taban 1612bc Son of Mursilis I. Born in Hatti (Turkey).
5. Marcus 1304bc Born in Babylon.
6. Medwin 1296bc Born in Babylon.
7. Xenon 1294bc Born in Babylon.
8. Demeter 1289bc Born in Babylon.
9. Draco 659bc Born in Athens.
10. Adelle 603bc Born in Babylon.
11. Leila 545bc Born in Babylon.
12. Kadin 541bc Born in Babylon.
13. Sully 49ad Born in Rome.
14. Larael 311ad Son of Constantine. Born in Rome.
15. Seth 323ad Son of Gabriel. Born in Spain.
16. Paytah 714ad Born in America.
17. Nituna 715ad Born in America.
18. Maro 801ad Born in Kyoto.
19. Amaya 842ad Born in Japan.
20. Seiko 852ad Born in Japan.
21. Valin 1004ad Son of Leif Ericson. Born in America.
22. Kione 1081ad Daughter of Lucifer.
23. Yukio 1164ad Born in Kyoto.
24. Kimi 1177ad Born in Japan.
25. Tristan 1491ad Son of Diego de Arana. Born on Atlantic Ocean.
26. Parkin 1609ad Born in London.
27. Wong Kiyoshi 1892ad Son of Wong IV. Born in Tokyo.
28. Zelda 2010ad Daughter of Rafael. Born in Beijing.
29. Haru 2012ad Son of Rhayvin. Born in Kyoto.

Laying these dates against the ones on the previous post might give you an idea of what I have in store for a few of the stories. It should definitely be entertaining. Enjoy pondering over it ^^

Kids

Alright, so I've been fiddling around with Rhia's kids' names, trying to put them in order, what year they were born, who their father was, etc. It's going rather well, though it's made me realize that while a hundred and fourty-eight doesn't seem like all that many compared to ten-thousand years of life, it's just not going to work. So, I've decided that I'll keep that number, but will incorporate the kids Rhia adopted. Now, while that number then seems small, if Rhia only had approx. fourty of her own kids, and when she was 'adopting', it was only one or two at a time, it allows for a rather large number for when she occassionally takes on large groups of them, which only happens two or three times. The first time I really played it out was with Rhayvin just before the end of the world, and there were thirty kids. This option will allow me to pick and choose where I want Rhia to have her kids, even if it does mix up the numbers I had already laid down. After all, this site wasn't supposed to be stone; this is where I hammer out the problems before they get set in stone in the published books.
I've got lots of great ideas working for me now, and the bc era, which was literally a blank slate only yesterday is now very much filled in, for the most part at least. Using major world history, I'm getting story ideas, and following my thought that these books would be a critique of all of human kind.
Well, I've decided to go ahead and post the important dates I've picked out. You can ponder for yourself how they'll be used. And, some of them might not be used, depending on how I start working things out.

3200bc: Sumerian city-states along the Tigirs and Euphrates develop.
3000bc: Menes founds first Dynasty of Egypt.
2900bc: Indian civilization begins in the Indus Valley with the city Harappo, or Mohenjo-Daro.
2700bc: Minoan civilization and government arise on the island of Crete.
2205-1767bc: Hsia Dynasty founds the country of China.
2000bc: Babylonians develop a mathematical system using 60 units, as well as devide the circle into 360 degrees. The stone palaces of Knossos are built on Crete.
1595bc: Hittites, led by Mursilis, lay waste to Babylonia.
1288bc: Ramses II fights the Hittites.
1240bc: Israelites established in Canaan.
1010bc: King Saul killed by Phillistines at Gilboa. Saul succeeded by David.
840bc: Vannic kingdom developes under the shadow of the Assyrian empire in present day Russia, Turkey, and Iran.
660bc: Japan established as a country.
621bc: Draco creates a code of laws in Athens.
559bc: Cyrus the Great becomes king of both Persia and Medea.
521bc: Darius succeeds Cyrus.
64ad: Nero burns Rome.
79ad: Mt. Vesuvius erupts and lays waste to Pompeii.
96-180ad: The 5 'good' emperors of Rome.
96-98: Marcus Nerva
98-117: Marcus Trianus
117-138: Publiius Hadrianus
161-180: marcus Aurelius
324ad: Constantine becomes Emperor of Rome.
400ad: Windmills first used in Persia.
537ad: Hagia Sophia Cathedral constructed in Constantinople.
c590ad: Pope Gregory is the first monk to become pope.
604ad: Prince Shotoko rules behind Empress Suiko. Creates a seventeen-article "Constitution" for a central government based on China's.
673-678ad: Arabs beseige Constantinople. Invention of Greek Fire helps bring to ruin the seige. In 678, a 30 year peace treaty is signed.
700ad: Chinese invent gunpowder.
705ad: Wu Hou becomes the first Empress of China.
794ad: Kyoto founded. Remains the capital until 1185 when it's moved to Edo, or Tokyo.
1000ad: Leif Ericson, a viking seaman, establishes a short-lived colony in Newfoundland in America.
1492ad: Columbus lands in the Carribean.
1621ad: In London, The Anatomy of Melancholy is published.
1868ad: Meiji restoration.
1872ad: First railway line between Tokyo and Yokohama.
1889ad: The Meiji Constitution is promulgated.
1894-95ad: Sino-Japanese War.
1904-05ad: Russo-Japanese War.
1912ad: Death of emperor Meiji.

That's about it. As you can see, I've quite a lot to work out. My brain can only take so much, you know? @-@ Oh, once I do start hammering out the details, I will start making posts for the individual characters, to go over them in detail, at least for myself. But, it will paint a picture on their attitude, how they usually dress, what they would do in various situations, where they came from, when they died, etc.

Curses..

Damnit all. I start doing research and realize a few names need to be changed around. Granted, I am getting a lot of progress now. I've started to dive not only into history, but into the lore of all sorts of cultures, past and present. While I may not follow the idealistic folklore of angels, I have come across a few reknown angels that I may very well have to use. And, as it usually goes, I've uncovered a few other things that I'll be putting into account for the stories.
Just a few things, so I have them to remember:
First, Romeo's true name has for a while been Jeremiah or Jeremy. But I've found something from Israli folk lore. The name Azrael is for "the Angel of Death who writes on his large book the birth and death of men." He is also known as Samael. Here's an excerpt from the site I found this on, to be listed at the bottom of the post:

"Also called The Peacock Angel and The Angel of Death. Samael is the Angel of Death sent by God to separate the soul of Moses from his body at his death. Longfellow mentions Samael in his poem The Golden Legend when he writes "In Rabbinical book it sayeth/The dogs howl when, with icy breath,/Great Sammael, the Angel of Death/Takes through the town his flight." There is a wealth of misinterpretations and misconceptions on his name and his role. Truthful descriptions are that he is The Angel of Death (Malakh ha-Mavet) as known in Jewish lore, and The Peacock Angel (Tavas Malakh). He is member of the Council of the Seraphim and he is the Seraphim of Purity. He is the sovereign of the 6th Heaven and the Underworld. Samael seems to have a very ambiguous role, where on one side he is known to be the brightest light of all heavens, and on other side he is responsible to oversee the punishment of the iniquitous and the Underworld. He is the one who inspire and empowers the secret societies, especially Illuminati."

I'm also starting to think that since Arcane and White's true identities are supposed to be famous among all in Heaven, and also on Earth, that I just might have the true identity for Arcane. I won't put any of the reasons, since I'll know them myself, but it holds the key as to how Rhia came to interact with the Holy Family on Earth. His true identity is Gabriel.

I've also found a description of another famous angel, Raphael, that I just couldn't help but think made a perfect match for White. This description also comes from the same page as the others.

"Heaven's top Healing Angel. Enoch I mentions him as "one of the 4 presences, set over all the diseases and all the wounds of the children of men." Rabbi Abba credits him in The Zohar as the greatest heavenly healer, of Raphael he says "Raphael is charged to heal the earth, and through him…the earth furnishes an abode for man, whom also he heals of his maladies." ...An eternal pacifist he is beloved by all hosts from all Heavens."

I've also begun to ponder the possibility that Fatima was born of Raphael and Elbereth, and it is because Rhia was a chosen Daughter (that is, servant) of Elbereth, and was born into a circumstance that doomed her to a life of exile, that she was picked out to carry the burden of Fatima.

Speaking of Elbereth, I've recently developed the idea that Elbereth is one of the seraphim who stands beside God, having been viewed by the Wood Elves on Earth as a goddess. Those "chosen" are ones bestowed with her blessing, usually passed down through generations among the women. Uh-oh. I just took a couple of minutes to look up the lore of Elbereth and came to the horrifying realization that it's a name made up by JRTolkien. Well, unless I can get the rights to use a name so many people know and would recognize and relate with, it looks like this is another name that will be changing..

I'll post more later.

http://www.cosmicblessings.com/host.shtml

Thoughts

So, I spent yesterday looking back over all of my old posts. It made me realize that, while this is far more organized than my written records of what I write, this is still not as organized as I'd like it to be. I'm really considering getting my own website to do with this stuff as I please.
It was a lot of fun going back and reading through it all. The incredible difference between that little blurb I posted of my failure to begin my book and where the beginning is actually at now was really mind-boggling to me. It made me really want to dive into it again, but, I am holding back.
There is a lot to wade through with the particular points of the storyline that are crucial to have figured out. If I finish this book, and then three books down the road suddenly realize something else or want to change something, I'm going to be in a lot of trouble. Once I figure out every detail about Rhia's husbands, lovers, children, and friends - that is, who they were, their names, their races, where they came from, and what happened specifically between them and Rhia - I'll be able to lay out a bulletted timeline for myself to reference while writing. Sure, I know there will still be surprises in store for me even down to my last book. That's what writing is. The characters are not my own, but their own persons, with lives all their own, that I've just got the priveledge to observe and record on paper for the rest of the world to witness.
How grande writing can be, ne? I am definitely beginning to think it is one of the most rewarding jobs I could have taken.

Forbidden

Romeo slipped through the shadows, everyone still too hung-over the news Julian had just brought to pay him any mind. However, while getting through the streets of the Square was little trouble, making it through the Gates would be a bit more of a challenge. There was one moment; a brief few seconds when the sentries keeping watch over the seams of the four worlds were changed. Sure, it was a bit cliche, but considering there was little hope of anyone getting up to Heaven, and it was unthinkable of someone wanting to escape Heaven, they didn't exactly take care in the process.
He slunk closer to the Gates, hunkering down among the shadows a few yards from them. He only had to stay there for a few minutes, when two arch angels came and opened the Gates, distracted for approximately thirty seconds while the old sentries gave their report. He at once took action, making sure the coast was clear before leaving the shadows by air, at once taking cover in the shadows lingering at the top of the wall. Some smooth gliding maneuvers, and he slid through the Gates. He cut it sharp so he could come tight around to the other side of the wall, gaining a bit of distance between himself and the Gates before breaking away and heading for the edge of the clouds.
It was when he reached the end that he knew his time would begin ticking down. The second he opened the portal, God and everyone else with a sensitive enough composition would know someone had left Heaven. Then it would only be a matter of time before God knew who and would send someone after him. So, he wasted no time. As soon as he passed through that portal, he'd pull in his wings and fall like a lead weight towards the endless sea. A few seconds, and he located where Rhia was, knowing her aura like it was his own. He opened his wings and began to glide towards the island.
Night was almost upon that side of the Earth, and Romeo was glad for the rather abrupt darkness that swallowed him up. The new moon must have only been days before, as there was little moonlight on the water.
His breath caught in his throat when he finally saw her, sitting beside a fire on the beach. And she was alone; he couldn't have asked for better conditions. If he wasn't locked up for his disobedience, he would have to remember to thank God. He pulled up just as he reached the sand, landing delicately on his feet. He was an angel, after all. Slowly, he approached the fire, where he could now see Rhia was asleep, curled up on a blanket. He knelt down beside her, hand rested on her shoulder as he said in a whisper, "Rhia.. Rhia, wake up."
Her eyes would flutter and she slowly looked up at him. She pulled in a gasp as her eyes grew wide, scrambling to get to her hands and knees. "Romeo??"
He lifted a hand, finger pressing against her lips. "Hush! Yes, it's me." He felt as though he could cry, actually delighted to see that Rhia was already doing so. She had missed him; he had almost thought she hadn't. What a fool he was. "Oh, Rhia..." His arms went around her and he pulled her close.
Rhia would only hesitate for a moment as she hugged him back. "What are you doing here? You shouldn't be here...you're going to get in a lot of trouble."
"An awful lot, I'm afraid. But I don't care. I...I needed to see you, Rhia." He pulled back, holding her out at arm's length. "It was bad enough when I could hardly get a glimpse of you before; I just couldn't take it anymore. I've missed you, terribly." His hand shifted to her face, brushing away some of her tears.
She bit her lip as she looked at him, her hands clenched and held to her chest. "What about Ivory? Romeo...you love her; why are you here? You -shouldn't- be here."
He knew she wasn't angry, only worried, but still those words stung. He looked away, letting his hands fall away from her.
"Yes, Romeo. What about me?"
Romeo's eyes grew wide and he quickly turned around. "Ivory..."

More names.

Okay, I've decided that one day of recovery is enough. Time to throw myself back into looking for names. Only need 63. Let's hope I can decide which ones to use and which to can...

Oh, here are the four that were listed as boy's names but I'll use as girl's names instead:
Echo
Ember
Maro
Seiko

Adelle
Adriel
Aiko
Albina - Italian for White-skinned
Amaya - japanese for Night Rain
Anastasia
Aria
Blaine
Bronwen - Welsh for Dark, Pure
Candice - Greek for Fire White
Carissa
Celeste
Darian
Demeter - Greek for Lover of the Earth
Dorian
Ellette - English for Little Elf
Elysia
Fallon
Felice
Gryphon
Hayden
Inara
Isabelle
Isis
Julia
Kaida - Japanese for Little Dragon
Kalli - Hindi for Black Goddess
Kassidy
Keeran - Gaelic for Little Dark One
Keir
Kimi - Japanese for She Who is Without Equal
Kione - African for Someone Who Comes from Nowhere
Leila - Arabic for Dark Beauty
Luna
Monet
Naeva
Nariko
Nituna - Native American for My Daughter
Nox
Parvani
Prudence
Pyralis
Raine
Reia
Risa
Saxen
Suki
Sully - Gaelic for Dark Eyed
Taryn
Toki
Tyme
Vega
Yatima
Yori
Yue
Zara
Zora

There. I've done it. Now the easy part's over, and I can start turning these names into characters. ::heavy sigh::

Names

I realized again recently that I should really start picking out the names for all of Rhia's kids. Basically, I'm just going to list them here, and include any special meaning that might go along with it. Boys first.

Aaron
Aden
Adonai
Adrian
Antranig - Armenian for First Son. Considering it for the first son Rhia has with a human.
Arnaud
Atalo
Barak
Basil
Braeden - "From the Dark Valley" Oh, the possibilities.
Calix
Caspar
Cathal
Cedric
Cheng - Chinese for To Become. Possibly for Wong's kid.
Ciaran - Gaelic for Black and Mysterious.
Corbin - Raven or Corby - Dark as a Raven and there's Corbett - Black Raven
Damian
Dante
Dmitri
Dorjan - Hungarian for Dark Man
Dougal - Gaelic for Dark Stranger
Douglas - I might not use it, but hey, it means Flowing from the Dark River in Gaelic.
Draco or Drago - Dragon in Italian, plus there's Drake - English for Dragon
Dugan - Dark-coloured in Gaelic
Echo - More likely use this for a girl's name, but I'll put it here for now.
Edric
Ember - Another more likely to be used for a girl, but like before, I'll put it here.
Errol
Fairfax
Faolan
Felix
Gene
Ghazi - Arabic for Invader
Hagen
Havyn
Idris - Hindi for Fiery
Jirair
Kadin - Arabic for Companion
Kamil - Arabic for Perfect
Kiyoshi - Japanese for Quiet Child
Kurt
Logan
Loki
Lucas
Marcus - Latin for Warlike
Maro - Japanese for Myself. Probably use as a girl's name
Matthias
Medwin - German for Powerful Friend
Merlin
Mortimer
Nirav - Hindi for Quiet
Nova
Parkin - means Young Peter. Going to use it for the child I model after Peter Pan.
Paytah - Native American for fire. Obviously for a child she has in America.
Peregrine
Perrin
Phyre
Pirro
Plato
Pravat
Rafiki
Raffaello
Robin
Rohan
Seiko - Japanese for Truth. Probably use for a girl instead.
Sirius
Skye
Taban - Celtic for Genius
Thorne
Tristan
Ulric
Valin
Vinay - Hindu for Modesty
Whistler
Wolfgang
Xenon - Greek for Stranger
Yoshi
Yukio - Japanese for Gets What he Wants
Yuri
Zero

So, there are eighty-one names here, not all of them to be used for boys. Rhia had eighty-five boys, four of which have already been named, so I might have to find a few more, unless I use the multiple variations of Dragon and Raven. I'll deal with the girls names later. Yes, believe it or not, I will be putting each of these names on index cards, then creating each of the kids' unique character, including sketches, a writing sample or two to develop their personality, etc. Should be fun... I'll get back to everyone later about which boy was born when, and where in the order, etc.
As you can see, Rhia's (I've) got a thing for odd names, once you don't hear every day, or just less-common spellings of certain names. I will try to match the meaning of the name with the character's personality, to possibly inspire plot lines for another book that features them and what not. If you've got a name you like that isn't ordinary and sounds catchy, post it, let me know, and I may just use it.

Frustration

I didn't get to play this out since someone was a little slow on the uptake... So I'll try my best to release the bit of creativity here.

Seth lit another cigarette, blowing the smoke from his mouth before saying, "It's a good thing Mara never had kids. I'm terrible at picking out names." It was said so casually that it took Rhayvin by surprise. He had never heard the name before, from Seth or otherwise, and for Seth to disclose that sort of information, something so private; well, he was starting to feel like the kids dad even more, despite Seth's rude insistance that Rhayvin was nothing of the sort and never would be.
But Rhayvin couldn't help be curious, and since Seth seemed willing to share her name, perhaps he'd share more. "Who's Mara?"
Those two simple words would freeze Seth, fingers stalled over the strings of the guitar, mouthful of smoke caught in his throat. After a few seconds, he'd exhale and lower his gaze to the guitar, not saying a word.
Rhayvin frowned when he saw that. Perhaps it had been an accident, his mentioning Mara.
"I haven't thought about her in a long time," Seth finally whispered. A few seconds more and he took the half-smoked cigarette from his lips and crumpled it in the ashtray beside him.
Feeling that Seth would need to be pushed to disclose more, Rhayvin gently repeated his question. "Who is she?"
Seth looked away, visible pain wrenching his face, biting hard on his lip to keep back the tears. Sure, he acted tough, and may have lived a long time, but he was still a kid. "She was..." he managed, before his throat tightened and choked off his words. His hand lifted to pinch the bridge of his nose, in attempt to calm himself.
Rhayvin sat quietly, letting the boy work it out. And it payed off.
"She was my wife."

Progress

Not that any of you who read this don't already know, but I'm finally making some progress with the first book. I've taken a small break from the actual writing so I can clarify how the story is going to progress throughout the book, since as it's going now, it would only be about fifty pages before I zoom through everything I had planned. It's very difficult to drag things out.. You novel authors - my hat's off to you.
I'm still debating whether or not I want to post what I've got written as a link up here, since there are only two people that actually comment and would give me any feedback at all... And one of those people has already read it, and the other will quite soon.. ::sighs lightly::
I've also got another idea, and that's to gather up all of the rp logues I have relevant to the storyline and make them into a book. Of course, they won't be released any time soon; the series will have to be established and well on its way. Plus, the only logues I actually have, other than the ones I did for the post-apocolyptic portion of the story, are the ones with Rhayvin's mun, Lamar. That means I'd either have to wait until that book is published - which is a loooong way away, I'm afraid - or I'd have to pick a moment before that to publish them, and then show them how the logues are transformed and what's different, etc. I'm definitely leaning towards the former, since it seems like one of those books that's released last in a series.
Another bit of news. I might be going to college after all. I'm not entirely sure yet, since my family is having a bit of a financial crisis with the move, but I've got an interview this afternoon with the local branch. Basically, I'll pretty much have to get financial and federal aid, and muscle my way into a scholarship or two to make it. But, the college said that eighty percent of the students are there on financial aid, so that shouldn't be a problem.
And if you're wondering, the college is offering courses on game design and programming, plus animation, and that's why I'm doing this. I've had an idea for a video game brewing in my head for the past three or four years, and when the oppotunity to possibly be able to create it rises, well, I can't just pass it up. I'm also interested in the pure animation side of it because I'd love to do animated shorts with the Kolareny Chronicles group, maybe even generate an animated series. We'll just have to see, ne?
What else... I don't think there is much else, really. The book's on its way, rping continues to barrel forward, college is a possibility around the corner (or across the river in this case), and I'm as mellow, sometimes depressed, usually cheerful as always.

Continued Amusement

Rhia sat for a moment outside the doors, wondering what to do. Already she could feel her lungs having to work to expand, and her heart ached from the pressure all around it. But she couldn't just let the creep get away with it, right? Gritting her teeth, she got to her feet and backed up enough to get a good look at the front of the castle. She flexed her hands, trying to decide the best way to attack this obstacle. There were countless windows, open, even incapable of being closed, but they were all seemingly miles off the ground. No, she wasn't going to sneak in. He'd probably be expecting that anyway. Would love to see her squirm and crawl about. She snarled at the doors. No way was she going to give him that satisfaction.
She cracked her knuckles, backed up two more steps and dug her toe into the ground. "Here goes nothing," she muttered, then charged the door. Rather than destroy her already battered shoulder, she'd push off the ground and throw her feet out in front of her. It would only result in her knees hating her even more than her shoulder. She fell onto her back with a groan, pulling her legs up to hold her knees.
Meanwhile, Lucifer would be up a few storeys, on the other side of the castle. He'd be standing beside one of those open windows, devious looking demon hovering on the other side. "Is she still out there?" Lucifer would ask, not able to hide the fact that he was sweating.
"Yeah, boss. Want me to take care of her? 'Escort' her out of here?" The demon would grin, licking his lips.
"No, no that's alright. I'd rather she left on her own. She might not come back that way. And if all goes well, she'll be stubborn enough to stay too long and end up dust to be sweeped off the porch."
"Right, boss."
"Go keep an eye on her. I want to know the moment anything strange happens."
"Sure thing, boss."

(Eh..need to take a break from this. Going for a walk, maybe draw some stuff. Will be back to continue this if I feel like it.)

Amusing Thoughts

"You won't get away with this!" Rhia snarled at the retreating back of her opponent. How the air stung her skin and burned her lungs, but she couldn't give up and turn back now. Not even the brimstone of Hell would turn her off her prey, and she was proving it now, much to Lucifer's disdain.
"What is with this woman??" He dove through another barrier between levels, slowing and looking over his shoulder to see if she'd surpass that one as well. It was he fifth level, and few slightly tainted souls ever survived there. Of course, Rhia was a little more than slightly tainted. She drew back her sword and raised it over her head, and with a powerful slash into the barrier, she created a door for herself to pass through.
Lucifer's eyes widened and he quickly picked up the pace again. "You've got to be kidding me," he muttered under his breath. How'd it ever even come to this? Lord of Darkness running from an elf. It was disasterous for his reputation and everyone in Hell had front-row tickets.
She easily passed through the barriers to the sixth, seventh, all the way through to the eleventh. There were just two more, the last of which only Lucifer had ever been known to survive in. Lucifer dove through the barrier into the twelfth, one of the most barren of all the levels. He'd slow and look back once more, head pounding from the effort of running all this way. Rhia once again pulled the sword up over her head and slashed down, but this time the sword did not so easily cut through the barrier. In fact, it hardly made a dent before it ricocheted back, clear out of her hands. She gasped and turned to watch it be flung back two or three levels.
"Ah-ha!" Lucifer rejoiced, coming to a stop and turning to face Rhia. "Even that awful sword of yours can't penetrate the twelfth level of hell!"
She turned back around, glint in those red eyes as she glared at him.
"What're you going to do, glare a hole into the barrier?" He laughed, quite enjoying himself now that he was out of harm's way. The demons and other little hell-creatures that dwelled in the eleventh and twelfth levels had gathered around the two, snickering as their master laughed triumphantly.
That, of course, didn't make Rhia happy. She'd stay calm, however, and take a step back.
"Leaving so soon?" He grinned, arms folding over his chest now that he'd caught his breath.
She wouldn't leave. She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a pair of leather gloves, pulling them onto her hands. A few of the demons closest to her would jump back with a chorus of hisses and screeches.
Lucifer's brow furrowed, gaze turned to those gloves. "What is that..Is that.. Is that holy water?!"
A grin would come over Rhia's face as she pulled on the second glove. She curled the hand into a fist, the leather creaking menacingly. Pulling back her fist, everyone around her quickly vanished, not wanting to get hit with their demise, which the holy water would surely bring. Even Lucifer began to back up, all hints of rejoicing disappeared from his face. She released quite a punch at the barrier, a flash of sparks showering her side. When they cleared, it didn't seem as though the punch had done anything, but that wouldn't stop Rhia, only rearing back with her other fist and letting go at the barrier again.
After a few hits, Lucifer relaxed, smile returning to his face. "You're cute, you know that? Real cute. But you'll never get through. You're too kind. I'm amazed you had enough hatred in your heart to make it this far, but you'll never get any further. Just give up."
All along, she would be pounding away at the barrier. What Lucifer couldn't see from his side was the splinters she was creating. Three more blows, and the section of the barrier she was hitting would crumble.
Lucifer's eyes widened, mouth dropping open. "Impossible. This can't be!" He backed up a few more steps, watching in awe as this woman kicked a hole in the barrier and passed through.
She'd straighten up once she was through, brushing herself off and calmly pulling the gloves off. "What was that about never getting any further?" She sneered, then leapt at him.
He wasn't as out of it as she'd hoped, however, as he turned tail and started racing towards the Castle that rose up from the center of the twelfth level. It was the thirteenth, his home. He knew he'd be safe there. He was the only one in creation ever to have stepped foot inside of it. Plenty of demons had perished trying to breech the walls, unable to withstand the torment of the level. All he had to do was get inside, then wait for this woman to be beaten down by the weight of the twelfth level. A few more steps... With a diving leap, he made it inside the castle, doors promptly shut behind him.
Rhia's brow furrowed as she slid to a stop, lightly knocking into the doors, hands catching her so she didn't hit too hard. She growled. "Coward! There's no where you'll go that I won't follow!" She tugged at the handles of the doors, snarling and growling all the while. She had to get inside. She just had to. She couldn't let all of this go to waste, she wouldn't. The doors wouldn't budge, not even creaking. She stepped back, then rammed into the doors, but only accomplished bruising her shoulder. She grit her teeth and walked back a little further, about ten paces, then sprinted at the doors again, pushing off and slamming her whole weight and momentum into them. And the next moment, she was sprawled on the ground, gripping her shoulder.

((Will continue later..))