Dothaven is an oubliette, a place where things are placed to be forgotten. It is not a dedicated death trap. Deep in the center of the fortress is an area the size of a village, where clean water and a strangely replenishing suplly of food can be found in abundance. Some people stay here, seeing it as a great escape from society... but the fact that the dwellers cannot leave the sizable village area is enough to make it a bad place. In addition to the village, there is a large artificial 'country side' area with lakes full of fish and forests full of game. As nice as it is, it remains a prison; as leaving the boundaries of this area will get the Malufel's attention.

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Dothaven
Dothaven Living Quarters
Dothaven Past*
The Seven Suns Inn
Four Temples
Water Temple*
Earth Fire Air*
Ence*

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*Archive pages

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There is that spark of confusion again. "But I respect you, too, Mi." He grins. "Don't you like having respect from people?"

"Oh, do not get me wrong, I do." Her eyes soften a little bit. "But I prefer being loved."

"Then..." the next comes rather quietly, hesitantly, "Let me love you, Mi'ehna."

"Nothing is stopping you, Skye." She leans down again, closes her eyes.

The sound of voices ouside gets her attention, though. "Skye, do you hear shouting?"

He inwardly groans, nods, and stands, taking up Fairfight. "We should go see what it is," he says reluctantly.

"Yeah..." Mi'ehna lets her hands linger on his chest for a moment, nods. "Okay. Let us go outside."

She moves to the entrance of the hut, peeking outside.

A very familiar sorcerer stands outside, his pale hand wrapped around Misao's throat. "This one?" he demands of her, looking to the house. Misao nods, her entire face beginning to turn blue.

"Lord of Light..." Skye breathes, "It's that sorcerer that trapped me here." He isn't at all happy to see him, in fact, his fist is closing around Fairfight's hilt already. "We need to help Misao, Mi'ehna."

Mi'ehna doesn't answer. She just... shivers. And mumbles. 

"Mi?" he forgets all else for a moment and strokes her cheek. "What's wrong?" he asks, not liking this at all.

She snaps out of it, and looks at Skye. "I cannot face him. Not again."

The sorcerer outside flings Misao to the ground, leaving her to gasp and sputter for breath. 

"Mi'ehna! Come out, and bring your new toy with you!" Moorn glares at the hut, eyes on fire. "Or this one dies. Quickly, now."

"Why does everyone insist that I am a toy?" Skye wonders, taking up Silence in his free hand and stepping out. "Let Misao go," he says, trying not to sound frightened.

"I will. If you give back what is rightfully mine," the sorcerer answers, shrugging his shoulders at Skye. "Mi'ehna is my property, boy. Bring her to me, and I will give you this one."

Skye's grip on his blades increases and unknowingly, the wings that showed themselves in the hearth room are beginning to sprout again, breathing, skeletal things.
"Mi'ehna... is no one's - " he spits the next word out like a curse " - property." The rage is getting to him, but inside, he's trying to think of how he can get Moorn to spare Misao.

Radivishe Moorn's black eyes narrow just a touch. His right hand moves in tiny, delicate movements, until a soft rose glow surrounds it. "You have five seconds. And then I detonate this healer and you get to clean up chunks. Bring Mi'ehna to me, light-freak."

Light. Skye drops Silence and takes his hand off of Fairfight's hilt. "My light," he says firmly. "Will you take it? In exchange for Misao and Mi'ehna?" In his mind, he shouting for Mi'ehna to run away.

"Two seconds." A flash of the sorcerer's hand, and Misao's entire body begins to glow red. She whimpers, but doesn't really move to get away.

A vivid image of torn flesh and blood flashes through Skye's mind. Not again... not because of me.
"Mi'ehna..."
He falls to the ground, disgusted with himself.

"Stop, wait, stop!" Mi comes out of the house, eyes wide in something that cannot be labelled as simple fear. "Gabriel, stop it. Please."

Moorn smirks, but Misao's body loses its fiery color. "What did you think, that I would not see you in the arms of this..." he chuckles, "... this Trigon?"

Skye doesn't look up, his head spinning. Trigon... that's all I am. But she said she could love me anyway. He lifts his eyes enough to see that Misao is safe for now, then closes a hand around Silence. Trigon... worthless... nothing. He struggles to his feet, his wings faltering for a moment.

"I knew you would see. But I do not care, Gabriel." Mi'ehna reaches down, lays her hand upon Skye's head. "He is mine. And I am his. You will not deprive me of having someone in my life who will love me!"

Moorn blinks. Lifts his hand. A black light flashes with a sharp crack, and Mi'ehna's entire body stiffens, her eyes frozen in a wide-open stare as blood begins to well up and run from her nose and ears. She crumples, just like that, and falls to the ground next to Skye.

"I will do," the sorcerer whispers, "whatever I want to you. You cost me everything. So. Payback."

Fairfight is drawn within an instant, crossing with Silence. Skye knows it's a stupid thing to do, but he doesn't care.

Moorn tilts his head. "You really are a moron, aren't you?"

Skye. Please, no. He will kill you. Mi'ehna's voice just barely sounds within Skye's mind, weak, and trembling with pain. He will not kill me. He... is insane. He is obsessed with me. Run.

At this point, Skye doesn't care if he's killed. And for once, he's not thinking about the mark that stains his soul. But he told her he'd do whatever she said... with a great effort, he slides Fairfight away and lowers Silence, taking a knee beside Mi'ehna. Run? But where? He'll only find me again.

Run. He will not... fight the Malufel.

The sorcerer strides forward, intent on finishing what Skye had started to start. 

Hesitating only a moment, as though he's leaving behind part of himself, Skye tears off toward the invisible boarder, a frantic prayer escaping him.

Moorn follows him with his eyes, smirks, then looks down to Mi'ehna. "You chose a coward, Mi'ehna? How like you. Now. I think a day burning in the nexus will remind you who owns you." He reaches down, lifts her up by her shirt. In a microsecond she vanishes, and a moment later a blue light envelopes the sorcerer. He disappears as well.

Don't think I'm done with you, Skye Gabriel Sands. The Malufel can't protect you from me.

Skye reaches the barrier, breathing hard and fighting back tears and random explosions of light. Idiot! Why did you run? he scolds himself.

"Skye!" Eleris's voice sounds from not too far away, shaking a little, and definitely not his normal timbre. "Did he get her... did that freak get to Mi'ehna?" His voice is coming from behind a bush, where the big man is sitting up against a rock. His face is covered in blood, and one leg is twisted the wrong way.

Skye goes to him immediately, not noticing the lone tear that manages to escape.
"He... took her." The rage is boiling up in him again. "She told me to run and I did... idiot that I was." He knows he should be concerned for Eleris, but he can't fight the surge of light building up in him. "I should have stayed to protect her."

Eleris laughs, despite his painful-looking injuries. "And end up like... I did. Yes. What about Misao?" 

"He nearly..." It's hard to keep his voice from shaking. "...nearly killed her. But she is safe." The image of torn bodies flashes through his mind again, and he supresses it. "You need her help, Eleris. I'll go find her."

The big warrior nods. "Please, do."

By this time, Misao is back on her feet, hands pressed to her eyes to catch the blood that flows from behind them. It always happens when she heals a grievous wound, as she has just done to herself.

It pains him to see that Mi'ehna has disappeared, but he's glad to see Misao alive. "Misao?" He wonders if she's in the condition to heal anyone. "Eleris is wounded."

"Is he...?" She lowers her bloody hands, holding one out. "Take me to him, then. I don't have my cane."

He lifts her into his arms almost without effort, concern etched on his face. "Are you strong enough for it?" he asks as he starts to carry her toward the wounded man.

"Eep! Wow... a gentleman." Misao chuckles softly. "Some girls would hit you for this. I can heal him. Just... take me to him."

Skye smiles a bit at that, but focuses harder on quickening his pace. As he told Vos, he has no medical training to speak of, and he doesn't know how serious Eleris's wounds are.
"I think his leg is broken," he says, setting her down. "Are you in great pain, Eleris?"

"Immense. But... not so bad as it might be," the warrior answers, looking at Misao who begins to run her hands along Eleris's leg.

"Broken... no. Shattered, yes." She closes her eyes and begins to hum, as her healing spell surrounds Eleris's entire body. She doesn't even blink when her eyes again begin to bleed.

Skye does his best not to flinch at the sight, but the blood... "Forgive me, Misao. My selfishness almost cost you your life."

She smiles some. "Don't worry about it. I'm alive right now, that's what's important. Oh... and... my eyes always bleed if I use my spell too much. That's kind of why I'm blind now. But thank you." There's a loud snap as Eleris's bones and ligaments crunch back into place, eliciting a growl from the man himself. "Sorry, Eleris... your leg is fixed. Let me see to your head."

Skye's light surges again. "He said that Mi'ehna was his property." He didn't want to think about what it meant, just now. "But I'm going to get her back."

"Mi'ehna has a very sad history with that man, Skye. He sent her here, god knows why. To torture her, maybe. Some of the others think that he is still in love with her, though..." Misao nods. "This would explain why he came after you two."

"Love?" he scoffs. "I don't think he knows the word..." But it gives him something to think about. He is silent for a long moment.
"Is there anyone in Dothaven who knows where he might have taken her?"

"Did he say anything about it?" Misao asks, as she wipes Eleris's face clean.

"Not before I fled, no," he replies, shaking his head. Again, he scolds himself for running. Coward.

"Mm... let's see... you could ask Vanity. I'll bet she knows."

Eleris guffaws at that. "She's a loon, Misao."

"Yes, but she's smart. Skye... just inside the water temple, there's a trick bridge. At the first gazebo, take some sand and fling it out over the water. It'll show you where the invisible bride is. Walk the bridge to the little island. Vanity's house is there, but... I warn you, she is sort of odd."

He can't hold back a grin at that. "My surrogate mother is an ancient genie who behaves like a babe with a cache of dangerous explosives," he says. "I think I can handle it." Glad to know that Eleris and Misao are safe, he heads toward the water temple.

There's nothing to stop him. The Malufel doesn't even make its presence known... although a certain mermaid certainly does.

"Hiya handsome!" she chimes when Skye enters. "Whatcha doin back here?"

He groans inwardly and chooses to ignore her, throwing the sand out over the water as Misao instructed.

The mermaid pouts a little bit. "Ass hole. See if I help you again." And with a flip of her tail, she dives back below the water.

The sands catch and reveal a very level, not-too-wide bridge that leads all the way out to a peculiar, techy-looking house on an island about a thousand feet out.

Skye thinks it looks a little out of place in the temple, but he walks toward it nonetheless.

About the time Skye's feet touch the island, an air raid siren goes off. Lights flash, horns blow, and nearby fish scatter. A huge 'welcome' sign lights up on the wall.

After the initial shock, which isn't much, he merely lifts an eyebrow at the sight. He hopes that this Vanity is in the mood to give useful information as he knocks on the door of the strange house.

The door opens to reveal a very bouncy cat-girl, blonde, with no eyebrows and a pair of twinkling blue eyes. She has the horizontal ears going, and her black top hat is the most substantial piece of clothing on her body. 

"Hello. You're awfully scruffy for a gigolo," she observes, looking at him. "Hey... you're not a gigolo at all. You're a... Trigon? Oh! Come come come in!"

This, to her credit, surprises him the slightest bit. He isn't sure how she would know what he is, especially since he's sure that he's the only living trigon. He follows her in, at any rate, wondering vaguely what a gigolo is.

Vanity swishes her way across her very cluttered den, and flops down on a black leather couch, crossing her legs and yawning. "So. Whatcha want, mister Innocent?"

"Do you know where I could find Radivishie Moorn?" he asks, pronouncign the name with utmost care and loathing. He's in no position to waste time, and he hopes Vanity will understand that.

"Sure. If you want his attention, go the village leader's hut and have..." she looks around, then whispers, "...coffee with her!"

She and Etinifni would get along... Skye thinks, fighting impatience.
"I've had more than that with her, I assure you," he says. "And I got his attention. He took her away from me and I want her back." A breif surge of light nearly explodes off his fingertips at this.

"Oh, I getcha. You'd better take it easy though, hero. You won't get favors from cute girls like me by being impatient. What's in it for me, I have to ask?" Vanity adjusts her top hat. "He wouldn't have killed her. He likes her. He's just a psycho. She's prolly in the nexus."

The nexus? He summons every ounce of patience he has and reaches into his pocket, pulling out the blue stone he'd been examining earlier. "A gift," he says, holding it out to her.

"Le gasp! Hee hee. A shiny!" Vanity takes it, and curls up, catlike, to paw at it. "Pretty pretty pretty. You can't get to the nexus from this temple. The path is in the air temple, at the very tippity tip top. Pretty!" Her tail swishes happily at this new gift.

He cocks an eyebrow, watching her play with the stone for a moment, fully convinced that she and Etinifni would be good friends. "Thank you, Vanity." Sure, she was a bit off... but she was useful. With that, he leaves her and crosses the bridge, absently scanning the water for the mermaid.

That particular mermaid is nowhere to be found. A few nymphs are swimming about beneath the bridges, and some birds fly above, but that's about it.

Slience doesn't speak to him - not like Fairfight does - but as it seems the moment he decides to make his way to the Air Temple, Skye feels a distinct vibration from it, and he knows why. If memory serves, Silence had been found there.