06-09-2017, 02:30 PM
This had gotten out of hand.
As the world collapsed around him, Zedd had struggled to keep up with the rest of the group. Then, one of his overly noble companions had actually carried him a ways before throwing him even further. Zedd’s fury was so absolute that he was finally without words. He wasn’t sure whether he would go on an unrelenting killing spree in the wake of this madness, or if he would simply pledge to never speak of this whole experience ever again.
He hit the ground and slowly rolled to a kneel. Somehow, the light warrior was before him, already, offering a helping hand up. Zedd grasped it and allowed Jak to pull him to his feet.
“I would have left you to die,” Zedd matter of factly said in the brief pause in the chaos.
“I know,” Jak acknowledged. “But that’s not my way.”
It was difficult to read Zedd’s reaction through his emotionless face mask, but Jak detected a shift in the body language. Perhaps they had gotten through to Zedd, at last. Teamwork was the only way to survive this encounter, and strong alliances could be built on trust. This might be the first step. Perhaps they could even begin-
“Do not this of this as a teaching moment,” Zedd harshly derailed the Eco Warrior’s train of thought. “I would have done so then, and I will still do so now. I am not having any sort of epiphany about my ways.”
Morene looked over her shoulder to see the two of them loitering around, and heaved a sigh in frustration. “What are you two doing!? Come on!”
Zedd shoved Jak onwards, and the two of them bolted for the exit. The ground trembled beneath them, threatening to give way and plunge them into the depths of oblivion. A bolt of dark energy spontaneously burst between them. It shoved Jak forward, but Zedd was launched backwards. This time he was much quicker to get to his feet, unfortunately he noted that three decaying darklings had surrounded him in the chaos. In the face of impending doom, he laughed yet again.
“If only I could find such determined help,” Zedd bemoaned aloud. “Perhaps I wouldn’t be in this predicament.”
He waited no more, violently jabbing the Z in his staff into the throat of one of the darklings, which sent it reeling backwards. He spun and impaled the second on through the abdomen, but the third managed to tackle him. The two of them stumbled to the side, with Zedd using all of his willpower to stay standing. He crouched low and flipped the attacker over his shoulder, slamming it onto the ground.
A section of the ground ripped from beneath them, falling away and taking the mortally wounded darkling with it. Zedd grabbed the first attacker and hurled it into the depths after its comrade, but did not mind the final attacker. It was stunned enough. Instead he ran back the way he came, only to see that the ground between him and the exit was falling away too.
He had no choice. He jumped. Another unpredictable burst of dark energy ignited behind him and propelled him across the gap. The dark lord didn’t quite make it, but caught the edge in his hands. Zedd pulled himself up as quickly as he could, and wobbled in place for just a second, still stunned from the blast.
But the temporary safety of his current footing began to give way, and he ran forwards once more. Just a little bit more until he reached the exit.
As the world collapsed around him, Zedd had struggled to keep up with the rest of the group. Then, one of his overly noble companions had actually carried him a ways before throwing him even further. Zedd’s fury was so absolute that he was finally without words. He wasn’t sure whether he would go on an unrelenting killing spree in the wake of this madness, or if he would simply pledge to never speak of this whole experience ever again.
He hit the ground and slowly rolled to a kneel. Somehow, the light warrior was before him, already, offering a helping hand up. Zedd grasped it and allowed Jak to pull him to his feet.
“I would have left you to die,” Zedd matter of factly said in the brief pause in the chaos.
“I know,” Jak acknowledged. “But that’s not my way.”
It was difficult to read Zedd’s reaction through his emotionless face mask, but Jak detected a shift in the body language. Perhaps they had gotten through to Zedd, at last. Teamwork was the only way to survive this encounter, and strong alliances could be built on trust. This might be the first step. Perhaps they could even begin-
“Do not this of this as a teaching moment,” Zedd harshly derailed the Eco Warrior’s train of thought. “I would have done so then, and I will still do so now. I am not having any sort of epiphany about my ways.”
Morene looked over her shoulder to see the two of them loitering around, and heaved a sigh in frustration. “What are you two doing!? Come on!”
Zedd shoved Jak onwards, and the two of them bolted for the exit. The ground trembled beneath them, threatening to give way and plunge them into the depths of oblivion. A bolt of dark energy spontaneously burst between them. It shoved Jak forward, but Zedd was launched backwards. This time he was much quicker to get to his feet, unfortunately he noted that three decaying darklings had surrounded him in the chaos. In the face of impending doom, he laughed yet again.
“If only I could find such determined help,” Zedd bemoaned aloud. “Perhaps I wouldn’t be in this predicament.”
He waited no more, violently jabbing the Z in his staff into the throat of one of the darklings, which sent it reeling backwards. He spun and impaled the second on through the abdomen, but the third managed to tackle him. The two of them stumbled to the side, with Zedd using all of his willpower to stay standing. He crouched low and flipped the attacker over his shoulder, slamming it onto the ground.
A section of the ground ripped from beneath them, falling away and taking the mortally wounded darkling with it. Zedd grabbed the first attacker and hurled it into the depths after its comrade, but did not mind the final attacker. It was stunned enough. Instead he ran back the way he came, only to see that the ground between him and the exit was falling away too.
He had no choice. He jumped. Another unpredictable burst of dark energy ignited behind him and propelled him across the gap. The dark lord didn’t quite make it, but caught the edge in his hands. Zedd pulled himself up as quickly as he could, and wobbled in place for just a second, still stunned from the blast.
But the temporary safety of his current footing began to give way, and he ran forwards once more. Just a little bit more until he reached the exit.
Quote:610 words
![[Image: zedd2018.png]](http://epiqz.com/mysigs/zedd2018.png)