A Meeting of Light and Dark

Disclaimer: City of Heroes is owned by Cryptic and NCSoft. Brahela and Derunichin owned by yours truly, and most of the NPCs as well.

Brahela had hated Kings Row when she had first come here.

The Circle Mages she had hunted made their sacrifices on the rooftops, and it was hard enough for young heroes to fight, much less have them worry about falling from the high buildings and hurting themselves.

Now, of course, she had an advantage.

Walking a few steps away from the tunnel to Independence Port, she sighted a point high in the sky. With a deft flex of her magic, she disappeared from existence for a moment. Materializing in mid-air, she quickly sighted and teleported again.

After several more 'ports, she sighted and ported to the roof of a building. Taking a moment to obliterate the clockwork nesting there, she sighed and stretched.

She wandered over to the edge of the roof, and looked out over the city. The War Walls were dimming, the sun setting, and it was time for her to turn in for the night. Glancing down, she spotted a trio of gangsters: two Skulls and a Troll from Skyway. She snorted softly, and began gathering a fireball in her hand.

Before she could release it, a great shadow sprung out of the alleyway, and tackled the Troll. She barely heard the whispered, "Your life is mine!", but she could see the Troll's life-force being drained.

The lamplight revealed to shadow to be a woman, but Brahela could not make out any details as the woman's dark fists decimated the three gangsters.

Less than a minute later, the woman stood her felled foes. She quietly took out three of the transmitters all licensed vigilantes carried, and placed them on the unconscious criminals. After a few moments, MedCom's subsystem, CrimCom, teleported them to the Zig's infirmary.

Brahela shook her head, amused. "Wow…."

Instantly, the woman stilled. Then, in a burst of motion, she almost ran up the wall, using powerful leaps to clear each ledge. Brahela staggered back, a sword of ice forming in her hand as the woman landed in front of her.

Seeing her now, Brahela steeled herself. The woman was a giantess. While she knew that she was short, not even reaching five feet, Brahela estimated the height of the woman at over seven feet. Brahela traced up the woman's high boots, the skintight suit, to the spiked collar and softly glowing eyes. Like her own clothes, the woman's suit was but a shade lighter than her skin, showing dark gray.

Brahela tightened her grip on her sword, and asked softly, "Vig or Vil?"

The giantess smirked. "Truthfully? Neither. I merely abide here for a short while." Her eyes narrowed and her smirk grew. "But since you insist…." She made a slashing motion with her hand, and Brahela saw the I.D. card that appeared in it.

Brahela relaxed slightly, letting the sword melt away. "You have amazing power. What's your name?"

The dark woman's smirk grew. "Why not a name for a name, Little One?"

She frowned. "Fine. I'm Brahela. Brah for short."

"And I," said the woman, "am Xyn, or rather, Xyn'el, now." She leaned a bit, looming over Brah. "A sorceress, yes, no? I've met a few like you in my Time." Her eyes fastened to the embroidery on Brah's chest. "Why the Infinite?"

Brah's frown deepened. How could she tell this stranger when she did not know herself? She turned away from Xyn. "It just… felt right." Turning back, she saw that the giantess had a strange look on her face. "What do you care, anyway?" she demanded angrily.

Xyn'el held up a hand placating. "I merely needed to know if you were one of the Order."

Brahela blinked in confusion. "Order? What Order?"

The dark woman smiled softly. "We are the Eternal Order, We keep the flow of Time as it should be: Untampered, Unfettered, free to flow as it wilt, free to give everyone, Good, Evil, or Neutral, the same free will, and freedom of Choice." She kneeled, and looked Brahela in the eye. "Are you one of us? Or do you merely struggle for your own choice, uncaring of that of others?"

Brahela stepped back, away from the suddenly intensely glowing eyes of the dark woman. Trying to look anywhere but those eyes, she saw that on the woman's chest, in the same place her own symbol rested, there now glowed the never ending loop of Infinity.

Slowly she met Xyn's eyes again. "You say that you fight for free will? Then where were you when fate took me and made me into this?"

Xyn'el sighed, and lowered her head. "I do not know. I know not even by what circumstances what you speak of happened, or in fact, its nature. You say you did not choose this, but you must remember, it could have chosen you." She looked at the smaller woman carefully. "Tell me this: would you have chosen differently, knowing what you know now? And if so, what would you have chosen?"

Brah remained silent for a time. "I don't know. I know only a little more now, almost a decade later, than I did then. The only reason I even know the name of that place is because of my father's leftover notes."

"And the name?"

Brahela frowned. "Innocence."

Xyn'el bowed her head again. "I do not know of such, but it is certain that another of my order does. Perhaps even the one I search for."

Brah looked at her oddly. "The one you search for?"

The dark woman smiled. "I am but an Initiate, for all my years to the contrary. I am seeking my Master, but I may be a Time searching. I know she resides on this world, and this universe, but other than that I know not. I told you my name is Xyn, and I have taken a bit of her name as mine, and thus I am Xyn'el. That is all of her name I was told, and I can guess that her powers are somewhat similar to mine. Other than that, I must search for."

Brahela gave a weak smile. "So it’s not just join up and protect Time, right?"

Xyn shook her head, "No, there is much, much more." She stood, and looked to the sky. "Night has fallen, and my Time to be going. But for you, I think, your watch is over."

Brahela suddenly realized how tired she was, and nodded. "Yah, you're right. Daylight is my time, and perhaps my Time as well. Good night, Xyn'el, and good hunting."

Xyn nodded. "Goodnight, Brahela, and good rest."

Brahela once again sighted and teleported, and Xyn'el jumped down from the building and went about again.

Webmaster: Larry F
Last revision: May 21, 2007