There was fear here. Droves of it.

Most of the villagers feared Aubus. He clearly didn't belong among them. After all he was an odd stranger adorned in weird robes, unlike the modest style of the surrounding area. Aubus could practically smell their fear, see and hear them whispering as he walked through their quaint village.

Odd one... strange... evil magic... witch... Nevermore.

It was but a routine check-in, traversing some of the border villages and towns away from the bustle of the city. Aubus wanted to be a divine presence for these mortals, and to grant them the assurance that the Gods had not abandoned them. From the looks of it, however, most of them were unaware that he was, in fact, a Kai. Most treated him with cold apprehension.

Finally, Aubus questioned one of the villagers about this Nevermore witch. The squat man pointed a shaky finger in the direction of the woods before waddling away as fast as his short legs could carry him. Ultimately, it was the odd power that the Kai could feel emanating from the woods that caused him to follow the lead and investigate its source. After all, if something malevolent was harassing these beings, it was his duty to put an end to it.

After following the trail and coming upon the cottage, the sensation of malevolence grew. It was a familiar energy, not quite the energy of demons, but close to it. Nothing good could come of that.

Without a second thought, Aubus floated up into the air until he could get a full view of the mushroom structure. Charging a ball of purple ki in his hand, he fired upon the dwelling without a second thought, a large blast that would envelop and hopefully destroy whatever presence dwelled within it in one decisive action.

It was better to deal with it now before it became an even bigger threat in the future.

post count: 1 | Lilith Nevermore

Aubus had hoped this would not become an all out battle. The purpose of his attack was to keep the threat contained, deal with it in a manner that would not put the townspeople in harm's way. Not only had the being survived the blast that decimated the hut and portions of the surrounding forest, but it appeared to have come away from the blast completely unscathed.

Not it, but she.

She was pale and gaunt in appearance, dressed in robes that exuded tendrils of dark energy, curling protectively around her frame.

Magic.

The thought came to him the moment she lifted her wand and aimed, firing off a hex in his direction. Aubus sidestepped the attack, though it came close to hitting him—so close he could feel the frigid temperature of the attack as it exploded in the air behind him, dispersing in a shock wave of terribly cold wind. Even his right cheek, which the attack had still mildly grazed despite his dodging it, had formed a thin layer of frost from the proximity of her attack. Aubus casually wiped it away, hands held behind his back as he observed her.

"So the rumors of a witch are true. And a rather powerful one at that." Aubus frowned, pushing out with his senses to gauge her ominous ki. At his current level, they would be evenly matched. This would not be a simple task, but he was determined to be rid of her for the sake of the townsfolk.

"You will terrorize these people no longer, witch. I am a Kai, and it is my duty to protect all life."

His aura flared to life, bright purple ki dancing around his small stature. There was no point in hiding his power level.

"I cannot abide your presence here any longer."

Raising a hand, Aubus fired off two consecutive blasts of energy at her. More or less, he wanted to gauge how capable a combatant she was before he truly unleashed his power. There was no need to go overboard, after all.

post count: 2 | Lilith Nevermore

Despite the obvious pain she was in, the witch seemed far from willing to admit defeat. The banshee she summoned was a hideous creature, a vile construct of evil magics. Its scream ripped through the air, washing over him in cold waves of nauseating sound. He quickly covered his ears, yet the sound rang through his mind, bringing about a slight disorientation.

"Y-You foul abomination! Begone!"

He wasn't sure if it had served the witch's purpose, or the force of his authoritative tone willed it away, but the disgusting creature soon vanished afterwards. Sighing with relief, Aubus lowered his hands... only to be met with a spell from the witch that was much, much worse. The smell of rot and decay pervaded him as the dark cloud of energy surrounded it. Aubus' eyes went wide, breaking from his indifference, hands clawing at his throat as it began to suffocate him. If he didn't do something soon, he would find himself incapacitated.

With a snap of his fingers, a glass vial of clear liquid appeared. Struggling to fight the encroaching illness, his movements sluggish, Aubus uncorked the vial and quickly took a long sip of the elixir. He immediately felt better as its healing properties went into effect, counteracting whatever vile sorcery had begun to take hold. Not all of the effects, but enough for him to regain a measure of his composure. Though he felt weaker now, as if his life energy had been sapped away.

"That is the foulest magic I've ever encountered," he said, tucking the small vial into his waistband. Something told him he would need it again. "You truly are a despicable creature, witch. And I'll end you here."

His hands began to glow with purple ki. Four energy constructs appeared, forming and taking shape until they resembled large hands, each the size of Aubus himself.

"Xeno's Will: God's Judgement!"

Aubus waved a hand as if conducting an orchestra, thrusting it at the witch. One of the four hands formed a large fist, plummeting toward the ground with the aim to crush her!


post count: 3 | Lilith Nevermore

The darkness that enveloped him was sudden.

One moment he was watching the witch prepare her next assault after effortlessly shattering one of his constructs. And the next, the world around him was replaced with swirling, dripping shadows the color of ink. It was an unnatural darkness—thick, pliant and heavy. It clung to his hair, his eyes, his robes as panic surged inside of him, finally breaking his cool facade of indifference. It threatened to swallow him whole, cast him headlong into utter despair and darkness.

He would not allow it!

Aubus pushed out with his godly ki, dispelling and nearly disintegrating the gooey substance with his aura. Though it was mostly gone, it still clung to his clothes and hair, and his vision was compromised. He could see only shapes and blurs, and though the healing elixir in his bloodstream struggled to fight the toxic substance, it would be a while before he could properly see again.

Something else was happening. Similar to before yet far more potent, he felt his life force being drained from his body yet again. Aubus grasped at the air feebly, as if trying to keep his soul from leaking out, but to no avail. Try as he might to resist, he felt weaker, less than—as if a portion of his very life essence had been sapped away. Still, he struggled against it, another shock wave of his godly aura emanating from his body to guard against the unseen assault as best he could. When that failed, he flickered out of strange energy, appearing a good twenty or so feet away. Instantly, he felt better.

Sensing her ki, Aubus scowled in her direction. "Again and again, you thwart me with such disgusting sorcery! There is no hope for the likes of you!"

Hands glowing once more, he thrust his arms forward, sending two of the large hands surging forward toward her, one on either side of where she stood. Aubus slapped his palms together, and the massive constructs followed mimicked his movements, looking to crush her between their palms!

post count: 4 | Lilith Nevermore

He did not need to see the witch to sense her malevolent presence. His vision was slowly beginning to clear, the elixir fulfilling the purpose for which it had been summoned, yet it was not working well enough. His vision was partially restored, yet not enough that Aubus could yet fully trust his eyes again.

Hearing her voice behind him, he felt more than saw her next attack coming. Spiking his ki to enhance his speed, Aubus flickered out of the path of the first attack. Though, the second set of thorny vines managed to hone in on him. It grasped at his leg, winding itself up his limb as if it possessed a mind of its own. Much like all the other techniques the witch used, it seemed to possess some detrimental effect. The natural energies that flowed through Aubus' body felt stunted, the regenerative properties slowed to a crawl.

Directing his hand, Aubus swept his final construct down in a chopping motion. It served to severe the vines and shield him briefly from the witch's view. Unwinding the vines, Aubus gasped at the pain lancing through his leg. He was beginning to feel the wear of this battle weighing on him.

The time for holding back was over.

Sensing her ki, Aubus raised his hands and thrust them in her direction. He would offer no more words. If she would not respect his divinity and repent of her crimes willingly, she would be forced into repentance.

"Absence of God."

Colorless ki shot forth from the Kai's hands. It swirled and rippled through the air, surrounding the witch in a massive cloud. Aubus gripped his hands in a crushing manner, as if snuffing out the life of the decadent mortal before him.

"Begone."

An explosion would rock the area, by far the largest and most powerful as the ki ignited in a brilliant flash of light and heat, the resulting energy rocketing skyward. He could only hope the witch would perish in the blast!

post count: 5 | Lilith Nevermore