Somewhere very near the Wishtechian tower appeared a portal. A portal that led to a place no Earthlander would ever dream of going. Its existence was limited to half a second, but its legacy would far exceed its lifespan; it had transported a man and a fly to a place which they both dearly missed.

Zane breathed in and out, his nose immediately noticing the difference in air quality. "Oh my god." Zane took another deep breath just for good measure, his lungs practically stemming tears of pure happiness. "You really take normal air for granted after being in hell for 18 months." Zane arose from his meditative position, the clean Earthland wind causing his hair to flow in the wind it had missed so dearly. "As I've said a thousand times, it's The Abyss, not hell..." Beelzebub begrudgingly commented knowing full well that his friend would not take any more note of the fact than he did the last 40 times it was brought up.

Zane walked a short distance before his eyes set themselves on the guild hall, a huge smile coming across his face. "There it is!" He beamed, increasing his pace. He had missed the tower. While Beelzebub's castle was no doubt impressive, the technology at the tower was much more interesting. Not to mention the company. Most demons weren't nearly as Beelzebub. "I wouldn't get your hopes up. Your little guild only lasted as long as it did thanks to the sponsorship of that Zagan fellow and plain luck; I highly doubt it still stands a year and a half later." Zane rolled his eyes, firmly placing his hand on the doorhandle. He'd switch to talking to Beelzebub in his mind from this point onwards, not liking the idea of others hearing him speak out loud to himself. "Says the guy who had an empty castle not too long ago..." Zane's pushed open the grand door to the tower, his heart beating with anticipation the moment his eyes laid on all the new....

Nothing. New nothing. The ground floor was exactly the same as the first time he got here. "Really? Not a single thing?" Zane felt so disappointed. Was it really so much to ask that everyone set up some new painting or something? "Look!" Zane pointed towards the fountain in the middle of the room. It wasn't even operating. "Erebus still hasn't fixed it. I can't believe that guy..." He sighed, walking towards the elevators on the right. Beelzebub couldn't for the life of him remember Erebus ever being asked to be fix the fountain.

"Y'know Beelzebub, I've been thinking about our time in The Abyss a lot." Zane hovered his fingers over the elevator buttons, pressing one after a moment of deliberation. "I'm gonna start taking what I want now. Be a bit more assertive. More greedy, you could say." He confidently nodded to himself, Beelzebub raising his nonexistent fly eyebrow. "I know that already. I've seen it in action these past 18 months. What I really want to hear is what floor you've brought us to. Isn't that number Venus'? Zane placed his hands in his pockets as the elevator made a quick ding sound. "Yes. Yes it is."

A minute or two later Zane quickly sneaked back into the elevator, trying to stay as light on his feet as possible. He quickly pressed the button that led to the roof, the elevator speeding up there already. "I hope to god she'll never notice that..." He thought, shoving the item he took slightly deeper into his pocket while he tried to relax. "It's as though me being proud of you is simply a prelude to an intense disappointment."

The elevator made yet another satisfying ding as it arrived at the top of the tower, the breeze hitting Zane through the cage door. Stepping out of the elevator he'd approach the nearby communication device: these were little pieces of Wishtechian technology that allowed one's voice to be sent to every floor of the tower that had such a device. "I'm back, if anyone's around c'mon and meet me on the roof." He stated, backing away from the device soon after. He wondered if anyone was even around. The tower was so big that it was usually hard to tell.

Zane approached the edge of the tower's roof, sitting on its side and letting his feet dangle off the edge. He overlooked the town of Era and the landscape around it, the view from this position being utterly incredible. A smile appeared on his face. "That'll all be ours someday.

"Yeah."

If there was anything that could completely interrupt Odin's train of thought, especially when he was praying to his Goddess at a shrine dedicated to her in a room created for the sole purpose of honouring her, it was Zane's voice. Partially because he hadn't heard the man's voice for some time: he hadn't heard many of his guild members for almost two years now. After the events of Bosco, when Hildegard had been placed on the throne due in large part to Eternal Nightmare's intervention, and the surge of members the guild had received -both old and new alike- Odin had decided to put a lot of his members to use. He had worked with Khalfani, his adopted child and the only other person to bear the Morningstar name, to find out more information on the more elusive Bishops remaining: Wrath and Greed. While a good deal of information could be found on Wrath: he was a young Boscosi Prince, too far removed from succession to have moved on the throne, but a fearsome warrior in his own right; much less was available on Greed. He was in Caelum, that was all they could uncover. But it gave a natural progression to Odin's goal. He could defeat Gluttony in Fiore, then move on Wrath in Bosco, before making the journey across the sea to Caelum. Things were moving on good pace for the Lich, allowing him to focus on the guild's goal a lot more, and his own strength.

The rest of the guild had scattered, even Khal for some time had travelled to Desertio. Some travelled to find meaning themselves, while others moved at Odin's behest, allowing him to gain insight on the other countries, and how their nations were ruled. It aided him a great deal in deciding the future of Fiore, and the next steps afterwards. But Zane was not any of them. He had not watched Zane leave Fiore, nor had he asked him to complete a mission elsewhere. Out of all the members in Eternal Nightmare, Zane had been the most enigmatic the past few years.

On top of that, Odin never needed an excuse to visit the rooftop of the Spire, and gaze across all of Fiore. On a clear day, one could see as far as the flaming peaks of Fieros Girdle, and all the cities in between. All the cities that Eternal Nightmare aimed to one day hold dominion over, as long as they stayed the strongest. That was the beauty of their goal, there was no guarantee that they would always hold the power. The authority to rule would go to the one who could prove they would fulfil the role well, and had the power to hold it. The first person to hold that title would be Khalfani, Odin had made that decision, and was ready to fight for it. But today wasn't a day for fighting, it was a day for celebration. A day for returns, as he saw both his child and one of his founders atop the roof, Zane sitting with his legs hanging over. The summit of the spire was large enough for meetings, parties, virtually anything they desired, and today it would be put to good use.

"I hope more people heed your call, it has been too long."

[quote="Venus Rosé"]

Venus Rosé The Burning Rose The ground beneath her was no less dusty and worn, but it was extravagantly familiar as the woman stood, glancing up at the towering building that exuded ominous aura just from the sheer design of the structure. ”I’m finally home.” A sigh escaped her lips; out of relief, while she harbored a smile as she dug into the memory, recalling the day when she’d looked back at this building at the same spot she was standing when she departed the country for a mission she was assigned for. The vampire looked as if she went through hell and back, looking more frail compared to the last time her guild members would’ve seen her after all the grunt work she did during her stay in Iceberg. She’d truly missed the days where she would lounge on her bed with a robe in her leisure time, performing her daily routine of taking care of her skin with a wet face mask, basking under the scent of her lighted candle with her spoiled cat. Now, she appeared as though she’d just dug herself out of a grave, sunken cheekbones from the weight she’d lost and peeled, dry skin from the number of days she’d missed her skincare routine. Oh, how she had missed home. But, here she was. New year, new Venus. The large oaken doors of the guild creaked open, letting rays of sunlight across the marbled floor. Silence reigned supreme and she almost assumed that no one was home until a familiar, booming voice roared over the speakers. An eyebrow rose out of surprise as she threw her bag to the nearest guild’s personnel, demanding him to take it over to her room, and lunged over the stairs, taking two if not four at a time. Waiting for the lift would require too much time and she knew her legs would carry her way faster than anyone or anything ever could. The redhead swung the door opens, so wide that she thought it would come off its hinges. Her eyes lit up upon seeing friendly faces; faces that she’d missed for so long. ”I’ve returned from my journey, my lord.” The rogue dramatically flourished a hand in front of Odin, chuckling to herself playfully. Despite being a skeleton, he still looked as vile and dashing as ever—perfect just as she'd always viewed him. Ruby red eyes shifted over to another familiar face that looked…strangely different. Zane. She almost broke into half a run when she brought her arms around his figure and embraced him so tight she silently wished she didn’t break his bones. The blonde had always been the closest guildmate she’d ever had and they hadn’t really spoken or seen each other for far too long that she’d hoped he was safe and sound wherever he travelled. The reunion brought her joy but most importantly, to see him alive made her more relieved than happy. She reluctantly peeled herself away from him and studied him properly. ”You’ve got elf ears now,” she’d say as she brushed her fingers against his ears. ”What even happened while I was gone?” Alas, her attention didn’t stay fixated too long before a young man caught her gaze. A new guildmate, so it seems, but there was something that was oddly recognizable about him, something that she couldn’t quite put a finger on. ”Venus.” The vampire eventually broke the silence, taking the first step to introduce herself.

It has been two years since the last time Achlys visited the Eternal Nightmare guild hall. For the last two years, she has been staying in Joya with the Kyoyama family, her family from her mom's side. But now that all her training is done, she decided to go back to the guild hall as her first destination showing how she really misses her home. The situation during her stay in Joya was practically hell for her, with a soft touch of family reunion with the family that she never really met, most part of that journey are some training to gain power and she can’t be more grateful to be back at her home. The grand tower can be seen from afar and as she gets closer, she starts to see the grand door of the building. It's been two years and this place doesn’t seem to change even for a bit, the same vibes she felt when she saw the building for the first time and that’s what she loves about this place.

She walks closer to the building as the grand door looks bigger and bigger. She opens that grand door only to find out that no one is there, “Not a single person to see here even after these two years, what a habit.” But as she walked past the disfungsional fountain approaching the elevator, she heard someone talking through the communication device. "I'm back, if anyone's around c'mon and meet me on the roof." That voice was like the sound of an angel in her ear and triggered a little smile on her face because that’s exactly what she’s hoping for, to meet the people of her guild.With some excitement, she walked faster to the elevator and got in there to quickly press the roof button and head there. But half way to the roof, she changes the direction of the elevator to her room, she starts worrying about something. She is scared that her expectation will hurt her and when she arrives on the roof, she’s scared to see the disappointment on the face of anyone that up there calling for the other member because Achlys might not be someone that guy’s wanting to see.

That scary thought of her keeps her from going to the roof, and as the elevator door is open, she takes her step out of it. But only one step before she suddenly gets a scarier thought in her head. “WHAT IF I NEVER BE ABLE TO MEET SOMEONE FROM THE GUILD?” “WHAT IF I NEVER BE ABLE TO MEET ODIN?!” And as that thought starts to mess with her head, she takes her step back into the elevator and heads to the roof. “One member is enough, at least I can meet someone from this guild.” But that is not the case, as the elevator reached the roof and the door opened up, she was surprised to see more people were already there. She was so shocked that she couldn't even say a word and only walked out from the elevator.

Given that he had been gone for roughly two years and he had avoided actually setting foot in the guildhall as he wasn't really ready to deal with any of the members given that he was with his family for a good chunk of time. As he made his way back to the guild on Extorions back he couldn't help but feel as though he had changed for the better of the guild but this was just something the informant had been going back and forth with for some time now.

The guild had now started to come into view his mount had started to become rather anise given that this was their actual home. She started to fly higher as they reached the base of the building

Azure wasn't expecting to see anyone on the roof but it seemed like a good number of members had gathered up there for some reason, a number of reasons had started to flood his brain as to why they had all gathered but the most reasonable one was that they wanted to have a meeting of sorts to plan their actions moving forwards. The informant circled around the roof twice trying to make out everyone that was present Odin, Khal, two founders, and that one chick he thought to himself as Extortion had started to make their slow descent to the rooftop. "Thanks for getting me her girl go rest up." For the most part, nearly everyone looked the same with some little changes here and there "It's nice to you guys aren't dead!" he said joking as he thought most of the original members had died off.

Erebus was welding in the basement of the tower, working there with him were three mechanics, and a few scientists. What they were doing torching metal plates, and designing large weapons was left up to the imagination. The sound of a buzzer alerted the Outlaw from his eyes on a computer screen to up at the ceiling from a loud speaker, and hearing Zane’s voice was something of a refresher. Rubbing grease from his hands to his bare chest, Erebus grabbed a coat and threw it over his body— clearly looking professional was of little mind to Erebus. He had a short scraggly beard growing about him, and he was certainly aging at a level pace. His chest more bulky, but his body still relatively lean for the mid-twenties. His hair had been cut to give eyebrow length bangs while a party of long sharp locks danced around his shoulders in the back.

He walked silently down darkened corridors, inhaling fumes of smoke from a blunt clip in his fingertips. As Erebus walked he was joined by two men dressed down to the toes in black, they seemed to walk with unison behind his person. These were merely bodies, they held no threat, simply lackeys who weren’t allowed to show their face, with a strict all black suit and black skin tight mask that gave them a fitting; creepy, nightmarish vibe. But they were still just men, disposable labor and service. So Erebus kept gangs of guys like this around him nowadays to get the ball of action rolling. Whether it be building fortes of operation or raiding cities.

When he got to the lift at the end of the hallway, he stepped inside with Achlys following soon after— who seemed to be pretty deep in thought and hadn’t noticed him or the two men standing against the wall. “Roof please.” — Erebus voiced with authority, though upon seeing the button already selected by Achlys, no action was needed and he just remained silent, waited.

Though Erebus hadn’t met her, Achlys seemed liked she was in the right place. Something about her just wasn’t right and that was pretty relatable in all The Nightmares. He didn’t pay it much mind. Erebus shrugged such thoughts off, the other two gentlemen had been inside to stand on either side of the Dark Mage. Erebus immediate notes Odin, Venus and Zane right away when the Lift’s doors open. He hadn’t seen Odin’s son in a bit so the adult version standing over there hadn’t been placed quite yet, but would upon getting closer. (Erebus had only returned to the guildhall two weeks ago, and yet hadn’t encountered many others since his taking dwelling in the basement levels.)

The Mage motioned his goons to go make back downstairs, as official guild business was not for them to worry about. So the lift closed behind Erebus after he followed Achlys onto the roof.

Seeing is how he came here to respond to a long absence of a friend. One of the founders, ‘Zane’. He figured he’d catch up in a bit— briefly speaking, after others were finished talking. Little to his advantage it seemed the cast was still arriving and Erebus wanted to be comfortable, so when Azure arrived Erebus just waved.

The Water Mage felt content minding his own business, he’d talk if spoken too. If he wasn’t? Then that kind of worked out and he could get back to his own errands.

“What’s up? Something big going on or are we all just coincidently in the same place today?” Erebus would remark with a tinge of fun sarcasm to the first person who came up to him.

Her return to Eternal Nightmare didn't feel nostalgic to Hitomi, in fact, she didn't feel anything for the guild or its guildhall. Her time spent within the guild before she went over with the Rune Knights was spent mostly with Odin with the only other exception being Zane who left a weird impression in her mind. Hitomi might as well had been a fresh member of the guild and she would only be returning to the guildhall in order to set up a room for herself before departing again at the end of the day. Flying towards the structural wonder on her Gryphon she wondered what new faces she would meet and what new hurdles she would face upon her return to the " dark side ".

Feeling as small as a mouse once she hit the ground near the front of the spire's door, Hitomi collected her things from her Gryphon and headed inside the building. It didn't take long for the Spellsinger to relocate to her room. In truth, she didn't think she still had the same room that she left behind, but here it was, everything was the same which was a problem she would fix soon enough. Dropping her things before heading up the roof for some air Hitomi could really only think about Seika. Going up to the roof was just so she could clear her mind but the closer she got to its surface the more sounds and voices she heard.

Upon reaching the top she was met with quite a group of different people and she really was only sure about two in the whole lot. Directing her attention to Odin, Hitomi would give a small bow in acknowledgment before making her way off to the side to admire the view away from the crowd. Though she was interested in meeting everyone she wasn't very comfortable doing so in such a large group setting.

"I get what you're trying to argue here, but the second one not only has overall better comedy but also one of the best climaxes i-" Zane and Beelzebub's intense inner argument was interrupted by a rather casual yo. Zane recognized the voice: it was Khalfani, a member of Eternal Nightmare with whom he had become acquainted with during his time spent studying ways into The Abyss. "Yo!" Zane called back, tilting his head back towards Khalfani, his feet still dangling off the ledge as they had been. "Good to see there's at least somebody in the tower. This place really feels empty sometimes." It was rather depressing having a guild hall with hundreds of floors yet only having around a dozen guild members inhabiting it.

Soon after came Odin, whom Beelzebub almost immediately brought to note. "Do you plan to tell him of our grand ambition to own everything? I think you should tr-" Beelzebub's train of thought had its brakes quickly pulled by Zane. "He probably already knows and doesn't care." He casually theorized, viewing Odin as intelligent enough to put that kind of stuff together and far too fond of Zane to really do anything about it. Beelzebub highly doubted this reasoning, especially the latter half. "It has, hasn't it? Good to see you, bone man. You're looking pretty healthy - you been sneaking in some extra calcium over the last couple years?"

The third to arrive was Venus, whom Zane shared an especially good bond with. It was safe to say that she was by far and away his best friend in the guil-, oh shit! Zane's hand almost immediately went to his pocket, quickly stuffing the item that was already really deep in his pocket even DEEPER into his pocket, should such a thing be physically possible. "I'd rather your second deed after returning from the Abyss not be tearing a hole in our pocket." Beelzebub remarked with annoyance.

Just as Zane was about to turn around to greet Venus again he'd find himself embraced in a huge from behind, the woman squeezing him so hard that he felt as though he was breathing in demon air again. "Venus! Hi!" Zane's legs squirmed a bit on the edge, clearly not the most relaxed with having someone so tightly embrace him while he stood near such a giant drop. "You picked a really bad location for this! I promise I'll give you a giant hug later!" His quick attempt at negotiation seemed to have worked given that she moved away, though the timing of which made it unclear as to if that was even what did it.  She also commented on his elf ears, to which he shrugged. "Ah, yeah. I kinda forgot about that..."

Two new members came up next, both catching his intrigue on some level. One definitely caught his intrigue significantly more though. "Let me guess. The pretty girl? Very subtle, Zane. Very original. Very unpredictable of you." Zane desperately attempted to think of some sort of defense or comeback. He failed.

Erebus, the super cool dude whom Zane had recommended to the guild all those years ago, showed up last... alongside a question that acted as a perfect segway into his grandiose speech about The Abyss. Zane got up from his spot, turning to face the members on the roof. It seemed as though an incredibly attractive woman had also made her way up to the roof now. He hoped that didn't distract him during his speech... "Excellent question, Erebus." Zane spoke with slightly less exaggerated confidence and slightly more pure confidence than he did when he met many of the older members of the guild. "I'm back. Back from where, you ask? The Abyss. The place where demons reside. Beelzebub and I managed to find a way there. The place was grueling. Beelzebub's Castle was alright and all, but the rest of it was a living nightmare. I had to battle demons both physically and mentally on a weekly basis. But it made me stronger. It changed me in some ways. I may look like an elf, but from now on I'm a Demon Lord. Remember that fact, everyone."

Zane took a HUGE breath after that speech. "How in the world did you manage to say all that without stopping and breathing midway?!" Beelzebub asked in amazement. "Do you think that's a record?" Zane took another deep breath, this time much more subtle. "You know what? I think it is! We have reliable witnesses for it too! Beelzebub! We could totally submit this!"

"Do you really think that members of an evil organization would pass as 'reliable witnesses'?" And thus that dream was forever thrown out the window.

"Anyways," Zane spoke to everyone once again, this time stepping towards the center of the roof a little more. "since we're all up here, let's talk! Catch up with each other!"



From this point onwards the meeting on the roof split into multiple sub-scenes, all of which were incredibly interesting and fulfilling in their own right.

It was about that time of the year for Caius to make his trip back to the Eternal Nightmare guild hall. While he mostly was busy in Central Fiore working on his business ventures, he still made some time to do some odd jobs for Odin. That's why around his shoulders he carried two satchels filled with items to pay tribute to the guild. It was good to keep up favor with his fellow guildmates. After all they were still useful to him. As he drew nearer to his destination, the portal opened up to the guild. The world around him started to shimmer like a droplet hitting water. After a step forward, he was transported to to the ancient tower. He adjusted his tie and headed inside.

"Daddy's home!" Caius shouted as he walked through the front door. To his dismay however, the main hall was completely empty. Caius pulled up a seat at one of the main dining tables and kicked his feet. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a cigar but before he could light it a message rang out through the tower. "I'm back, if anyone's around c'mon and meet me on the roof." The voice was one he knew. It was the elf boy Zane he met back a few years ago when they went on a job together with Odin. Standing up, he went to the elevator and took it to the top floor. Hopefully the rest of the squad would be there as well.

The doors of the elevator swung open to reveal eight people already there. Some of them he recognized and others were new faces. Zane was finishing up a speech about the abyss which Caius chimed in at the end.  "Speaking of demons. I'm back! What's up you crazy son of bitches! I come bearing gifts" Caius reached over his left shoulder and pulled off the satchel. He threw it it on the ground in the middle of everyone with enough force that the container burst open. Judging by the smell, Caius knew he fucked up. The bag spilled out human organs such as kidneys, hearts, and bones. There was also chunks of ice scattered that was keeping it all cool. The bones were for Odin's collection while the body parts would be stored for guildmates to eat, sell, or whatever they wanted to do with it. He didn't judge.   "Aw shit that's the wrong bag. Any frost mages in here? We got to keep these things cold." Frantically, he went to the floor and started to scoop the body parts back in the bag to preserve them. "Sorry my bad. I meant to throw this one." Caius removed the 2nd bag and undid the zip on it. He tossed it on the ground as well and a hefty amount of jewels popped out. "Did I do good or what? So what's on the agenda today? Not often I see all your colorful faces. " It wasn't often they had a meeting like this so it had to be something big.

Vex decided she should come to visit the guildhall once more as she has never seen anyone from the guild besides a very brief meeting with a weird fellow in baska while she was scouting for some new faces and hands to help the word of Tutrix spread further into the country, but her visits to the guildhall have been very lack luster and more talking to the ghosts that still stalk the halls than seeing actual living breathing members of the guild.

She has no idea what she should expect from coming here but she doubted she would be leaving with out a headache and at least an issue with one of the people she will probably come across today because she’d felt a different aura about the place today like More magic power had been gathered her rather she shared their mindset or not she was gonna have to get to know them cause she plans to be around for a very long time in his guild unless she decided to depart from it some day but that didn’t look like today, she walks out and gazes upon the people but she has no idea what or how to speak to them but she guesses she will have to lean back on her own social graces if all else fails to fill and impress.

“Luci, stop drinking all of my alc–”

When Zane’s announcement echoed through the guild halls the woman became silent, cringing inadvertently at the shiver that ran down her spine. Luci the demon, a tiny shadow that had been attached to Nuala’s hip for the greater part of the past two years, gave her a knowing smirk and chugged down another glass of her expensive whiskey. “Coward,” he called her and Nuala’s brows furrowed in anger. “I’m not a coward! I’m just–,” she paused and looked into the mirror of her vanity. A stranger’s face was staring back. “I’m just nervous, that’s all.” Nuala admitted meekly. Two weeks since the thief’s return from her journey through Savannah and she hadn’t spoken to anyone yet.

Not that there were many people to talk to.

Nuala took in her new reflection one more time, contemplating on her changed appearance. Her purple hair had turned almost white, occasionally giving a faint blue shimmer that matched her now light, but no longer pale skin. Nuala’s mismatched eyes complimented her fair features and even the scars across her face, neck – her entire body, really – did. No longer pretty in the eyes of any mortal, but at least she hadn’t lost her unique touch. The daggers strapped to her waist remained the same.

“You’re pathetic,” Luci spat, his unkind words dragging her out of her headspace. “A daemon with social anxiety, isn’t that just grand. If I hadn’t been there myself, I would never believe that someone like you has made it out of the abyss alive,” he continued his vicious ramble, taking sip after sip of the old whiskey without any regard for himself or her – but that wasn’t news either. Unlike Nuala, Luci was a real demon. Tiny, yes, but evil and spiteful through and through. He wasn’t defective. He wasn’t like her.

It’s not my fault that I’m fucking shy, okay?!

“Fine, I’ll go.” She knew that she couldn’t avoid her guild mates forever. Knowing as much, Nuala locked the alcohol cabinet and made sure to keep the key with her. Luci disapproved strongly, cussing her out until she left her room and headed upstairs, where Zane and perhaps some others would be. In spite of her rank and growing reputation, Nuala continued to cling to the shadows almost by instinct, always moving quietly and carefully – years of practice allowed her to blend in with her surroundings well.

She had lost her touch a little when it came to being sneaky, which was one of the reasons for her to seek out a face sculptor and change her appearance entirely – but that was a different story for another time. Today, Nuala wore a simple black top; leather pants and a pair of combat boots hugged her figure and her hair was tied up in a high ponytail.

The daemon entered the top of the tower without much fuss and didn’t greet anyone. Instead, she remained in the back and carefully scanned her surroundings. A few familiar faces, but more unfamiliar ones. Nuala saw Zane, the bane of her existence, chatting with Venus, the object of all of her sexual frustrations and Master Odin floating somewhere in between the two of them. If the latter cared to look her way, she would give him a little wave and a simple nod, before continuing to stand around and look lost – but not out of place.

Everyone had enjoyed their revelry and conversations, getting to interact with allies old and new and discuss what the future would hold for them. It had been a productive few hours for all, even some of the newest members of the guild had appeared to meet and interact with the bigger names among those in the guild. It made Odin proud. Proud that the group of misfits he had created had truly grown into something spectacular. They weren't a guild tied to a demon and following his bidding. They were a group of independent, powerful people. And now it was time to prove it to the rest of the world.

Odin would approach the centre of the group and begin speaking, his hollow skeleton allowing his voice to carry an unearthly echo. He didn't do it often, but it always had the right effect. "Friends, may I have a moment of your time?" Odin never presumed anything with his guildmates. He was their leader, but he didn't control them. Trying to be a dictator would be a failure of everything Eternal Nightmare stood for, and he had always made clear that he only wished for their respect provided he had earned it. It was just fortunate that, in many cases with his guild mates, he had.

"I wish to thank Zane for bringing us all together once more. Welcome back to Earthland my friend, and welcome back to Fiore all those who ventured elsewhere during our time apart. I hope all of your journeys were fortuitous." Speeches weren't Odin's strong suit, but he had been practising. After all, he was a leader. A leader of a powerful group of individuals. How else was he to rally them if not with his words and his actions.

"We had made a great deal of progress towards our goal these past few years. Many dismissed our claims of changing the monarchy as hearsay, nonsense that could never truly work. Our efforts in Bosco: aiding Jagarl Hildegard install a new form of governing has proved them all wrong." As he spoke, Odin's voice began to grow in volume, rising towards the crescendo.  "We are now a threat to the King, one he can't simply ignore as a group of dark mages. We are one guild, like-minded people with the power the enact real change. It is that change I wish to announce to you all now."

"Our aim is to remove the King from power and break the monarchical cycle that has plagued Fiore. For that, we have all grown stronger. But, I ask you, what comes next? We defeat the King, we break his rule, but then what?"

"We want Fiore to be ruled by whoever is best suited to the role. For someone to gain the position regardless of the circumstances of their birth. But that first person, the one who can bring peace to the country while Fiore stabilises. Someone who has seen both sides, the light and the dark. That can't be me, the people would never accept me as King, nor am I the right person for it."

Odin would take a breath, and gesture for his son to come forward and stand by his side. "Some of you may already know Khalfani Morningstar, some of you will not. They are who I have chosen to rule Fiore. Khal has worked closely with both the Rune Knights are Eternal Nightmare, and understands this world in a way that I could never. I hope you all agree with my decision, not because I am asking but because you feel it is right for you. I will never make you blindly follow me."

What would likely follow would be some questions from the members. Or perhaps not, there was no way to know. But Odin had really done it now. Everything was out in the open, and now the guild could progress with their goal. But not just the guild's, and not just Odin's. Everyone had their own ambitions, and the Wizard Lord would make it his mission to see everyone achieve what they desired. That was his goal with Eternal Nightmare, and he would see it through.

-Exit-