Soul Reaver steps from the portal.  He inclines his head and gives a thin smile to acknowledge Jharm's welcome, then listens carefully as Jharm outlines the situation and introduces Veldanya.

Responding to her curtsy, he gives a half-bow, keeping his eyes on her as he does so, his expression unreadable.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance, my lady."

He then continues to listen in attentive silence as Jharm covers the rest of the situation.  When Jharm is finished, he crosses his arms and chews his lower lip thoughtfully for a moment before asking some questions.

"Forgive me, but I feel there is much as-yet unexplained.

Firstly, what of the enemies we face?  Who is Darkness and why does he seek to conquer your people?  And what manner of armies does he command?
And this Lady of Light... is there no clue that could help us locate her?  You sounded pretty certain that she was due to return - why?

Lastly, assuming we must defeat this Darkness to end the war... perhaps a stealthy assassination would work better than a frontal assault and would remove the head from the snake without the damage and loss of life that a frontal assault would cause.

Maybe your people have already considered or attempted this, but then again..."

He hesitates for a moment before giving a slight sigh and continuing, "...there are times where your people have shown a lack of flexibility in their choice of means."

He glances over at Gulgrim, then finishes speaking with Jharm.

"I suspect that you at least are currently ready to consider all options."

The Seraphim stands firm in the large circular room, a handful of Seraphs positioned around the area in a circular pattern.  One after the other he received the responses from the Companions, each indicating that they would honor his call for assistance.  Extending his arms to the side his voice rings out loudly

"You each know your focus.  Let us bring them forth at once!"

The seraphs around the room nod and begin to channel spells.  A few moments later portals manifest in front of each of them.

-------------------------Elsewhere----------------------------------------
Each Companion finds a portal manifest in front of them moments after expressing confirmation to the Seraphims request.  Upon entering the portal they would find themselves in a large circular room, occupied by a handful of angelic beings as well as Jharm.  He extends his arms out in a welcoming gesture briefly.

"Greetings my good friends.  I thank each of you for accepting my request for assistance.  That said, there is little time to waste."

That fast his demeanor changes from a jovial welcoming one to almost dour and concerned.  He gestures with his hands and from the center of the room the floor seems to separate and a rectangular pedestal rises up to about waist height.  Approaching the pedestal he beckons for his friends to approach.

"Greetings aside, there is little time to waste.  I have called for your aid to help and save not only my people but the entirety of this plane and perhaps universes beyond.  Should we fail here, I fear that the forces of Darkness will succeed in all of that."

He waves a gauntleted hand over the simple looking pedestal and suddenly a glowing image manifests.  It seems to show a large area of rolling hills, mountains and valleys in shimmering light.  Dotted amongst the terrain are large squares with two even larger squares located at either end of the display.

"Before you lays the general layout of the battlefield.  On one side the forces of Darkness reign supreme, and on the other we, the Seraphs, reside."

His hand shifts between pointing to the one side of the display and then over to the far end.

"To try and put everything very simply, the Darkness himself, the one responsible for creating the armies my people are right now fighting against, is returning.  A long time ago he was defeated by our Lady of Light but it cost her greatly and she vanished at the same time, seeming to escape from this plane with the intentino to return rejuvenated and ready.  That...has still not occured.  I had hoped while traveling with you all that I might happen upon where she had fled to but with no success.  As I mentioned before though, Darkness himself has managed to return.  This is a dangerous and concerning event.  Without the Lady of Light to strengthen and protect us, we alone would struggle to try and hold back Darkness and his armies.  Should he reach the Lightwell and corrupt it, we believe this entire plane would be lost and then nothing would be stopping Him from expanding beyond to other planes and universes, destroying all in His path.  Thus, I have called upon all of you to help us.  I believe with your might we can stand against Him and push him back for the time being."

As Jharm nears the end of his speech, from an area of shadow at the edge of the room, a tall slender woman seems to almost appear out of the darkness.  Her heels click softly over the stone flooring as she walks, her long dark coat rustling around her.  Her skin is almost a pure white color, at first glance one could almost think she was a Seraph if not for the fact that her eyes were normal looking, a deep blue color compared ot the glowing orbs of light that the Seraphs posses.  Her hair is pitch black and cut short and swept backwards.  Over her chest seems to be a metallic chestplate of sorts, much of it concealed by her long black leather coat.  Her legs clad in a simple pair of leather pants while a pair of thigh-high metallic boots cover her feet.  On her hips rest a pair of holsters, the butts of two guns visible within them though the coat hides much else beyond that.  Drawing closer to the table she smirks slightly, her gaze drifting over each of the Companions in turn.  Her lips, painted a dark shiny black color part after a moment.

"Well, so these are the Companions you spoke of then eh?"

She crosses her arms over her chest.

"Certainly an eccentric sort for sure, that greenskin one especially."

Jharm looks over his shoulder at the woman and gives a slight nod.

"Yes, these are them."

He turns his attention back to the others

"My friends, this is Veldanya Venalla.  I encountered her during our time apart and, like the rest of you, have found her abilities to be quite formidable and have thus called upon her assistance."

The woman smiles and gives a small curtsy.

"I suppose that is certainly one way to put it.

The Seraphim looks at the woman and seems to scowl slightly before turning his attention back to the glowing display on the pedestal.

"Anyways, back to the matter at hand.  What we are needing to do, and what I am needing all of your assistance with, is that we get from where we are now, to the, for lack of any other real designation, the Citadel of Darkness."

As he speaks he gestures at the one large square at the one end of the map and then at the second large square at the other end.

"This almost certainly sounds incredibly easy at first but trust me when I say it is far from it.  The entire area in between is a series of forts and defenses almost constantly fought over between the forces of Light and Darkness.  Then to actually gain access into th Citadel will almost certainly require the full force of Light to be present.  That means all of these forts in between must be claimed."

He gestures at 3 slightly smaller squares positioned throughout the middle of the shining landscape.

"While any sort of recon has been almost impossible for any beyond the first fort, we can almost certainly anticipate one of the leaders of Darkness' forces to be present either in or near it." 

He stands up, his expression dour.

"Basically we will be looking at a veritable slog as we must fight through enemy forces to each battlement, take them in turn before reaching the Citadel and then finally defeating Darkness itself.   This will give my people renewed time to either find our Lady of Light or for her to return on her own."

His gaze shifts between each of the companions as he speaks.

"I know this isnt quite the same as many of the situations we have involved ourselves in previously.  Trying to help save an oppressed people or defeat a clearly evil, malevolent force that we all know.  Darkness though IS such a force I promise you.  For ages now we have fought against it, and for the first time now I truly am unsure if we can succeed against it without your assistance.   I know I already basically asked it before, but now that you are more aware of what is at stake and is required, I ask again.  Will you stand with us?"

He then turns his gaze to Gulgrim before speaking further.

"Can I expect your...."boyz" to reliably fight alongside my people without gunning them down in the process?  Your peoples penchant for bloodshed can certainly be useful against the Darkness but I need your assurance it wont lead to slaughter of my own people when your troops get out of control.  If you can truly offer such guarantees then I ask that you call them in at once and...."

He hesitates for a moment as if he ponders about his following words.

"I give you full authorization to unleash your "Waagh", as you call it, upon our enemies."

The above edit has been APPROVED.  With my approval, it has been folded into a completely rewritten character bio, which can be seen in the first post of this thread.
For archival purposes, Kitharsis' 'pre-separation' character bio is posted below:

----

Kitharsis


Where are you from?

Legund, a distant, primitive planet split between desert and swampland. 

Legund is populated by a race of humanoid reptilian beings.  They stand as tall as a normal human and they are covered in scales.  Jataka is the name of their people.  Their communities are small and spread out through the swamps.  Very few tribes live in or near the deserts.  Each village has a Shaman that leads and cares for the people.

They have not a care for technological matters yet they are quite advanced in affairs of spirituality and magic.  The young are shape shifters that live in the villages located in the swamps.  They are like any culture.  There are times of war and times of peace; times of plenty and times of hardship.  Most disputes are put to rest by the village Shamans before bloodshed occurs.  There are few traces of war between the Jataka.  In fact, the most damaging times to their people are when outsiders stumble upon their world.  It is because of these intrusions that there is little in-fighting among the Jataka. 


What are you? 

A Tirthandara.

Upon coming of age, the Jataka meet with one of their peoples Shaman.  He leads them on a ritual to find their true selves.  This is a ritual of transformation.  For most it is the last time their bodies will change shape, the process stripping away the magic of their youth and replacing it with something... else.  Many stay in their reptilian form without their shape shifting abilities.  Yet through the ritual they gain great magical prowess.  Those who go through this type of transformation return to the swamps to care for their colonies.  Some eventually become Shaman themselves.  On the day of his ritual Kitharsis changed into something altogether different.

The Tirthandara are an ancient subculture of the Jataka.  The few who would know of them would regale you with tales of terror and torment.  They would curse the ground that they once walked and spit on their graves.  The Tirthandara were not a peaceful people.  They are fueled by a dark and sinister energy that resides deep within their being.  Through using this energy their souls are corrupted.  With each use it erodes their sanity and washes away any goodness within them.  The horrors that the Tirthandara had inflicted upon the surrounding planets were grotesque and unforgiveable.  Quite a legacy to inherit for a champion of peace...

So why isn't Kitharsis marauding about the countryside - slaying innocents and laying ruin to great civilizations?  He possesses a unique talent allowing him to purify the dark, seething energy flowing inside of him.  At his core Kitharsis is just and good.  This spark of goodness is surrounded by the putrid energy of the Tirthandara.  Through meditation he can cleanse the Tirthandaran energy of its taint.  This pure energy is stored in his body apart from the darkness.  Having to cleanse the energy that he uses cuts short the amount that he can use.  While this is very limiting, it saves his soul from damnation.  His sanity remains intact and whatever company he keeps stays safe.  Safe from Kitharsis, at least. 

Curtailing the limitless energy inside of him is a fair trade off for sanity and goodness.  Should Kitharsis ever have to dip into the vile, unpure energy irreparable damage would be done.  Doing so too many times could spell disaster.  The need has to be very, very great for him ever to do so.


So great, you're full of evil.  What do you look like?

Large.

Kitharsis is 8 feet (2.44 Meters) tall and almost half as wide at the shoulders.  His skin is smooth, like an ancient marble statue and is colored a light shade of grey.  Muscles pop out of every inch of his body.  He rarely wears clothes or armor on his torso.  The only real protection he wairs are a pair of thick knee-high armored boots.  The metal on the boots was once shiny and polished, but through years of use it has been dulled.  They boots are quite resilient, having very few scratches or dents on the metal and no tares in the leather underneath.  Loose light brown pants made out of a burlap-like material are tucked into the tops of his boots.  A thick leather belt hangs from his waist, strapped with leather pouches.  Some pouches contain various trinkets he's picked up over the years.  While some are full of sand from various deserts he's come across.  He is nearly hairless, save a shaggy blond Mohawk sprouting from the top of his head.  No matter what he does to it, it always springs back straight to full attention.

The most defining trait that Kitharsis possesses, though, are his tattoos.  Black tattoos that start at his wrist snake down his right arm, stopping halfway up his bicep.  A black diamond sits on the back of his right palm.

On his left arm, there are also spiraling tattoos from his wrist up to his bicep.  They are more sparse than on his right.  Taking up the space where the spirals aren't is a wickedly grinning skull.  The eye sockets seem like dark holes into the abyss and the bone almost seems real, as if you could reach out and touch it.  In the center of his left palm is a tattoo of a circle.

On his right shoulder rests an ancient rune symbolizing speed.  And on his left is a rune for strength.

The spiraling tattoos on his arms and the skull appeared on his body during his transformation into a Tirthandara.  The runes, the circles and the diamonds were added later by someone Kitharsis trusts.  Having means to create more tattoos, he is always considering new things to modify his body with.  But the permanence and significance of such decisions makes him consider the changes for great lengths of time.  (Any new tattoos will of course mean some new ability.  These will be replies to this thread and will have to go through approval.)


That’s great, some big punk with a Mohawk, can you fight?

Yes, very well.

Melee Combat.

Kitharsis was trained to be very aware of his surroundings.  Individual movements can be broken down into small bursts of kinetic energy.  He is able to focus and anticipate people's movements by the changes in their energy.  This works very well on lesser foes.  For exceedingly fast or extremely subtle movements it is much more difficult to manage.  And of course, there are always those enemies who are so strong it doesn't matter if you know what they are doing or not, it will still hurt...

As a Tirthandara, he initially did not carry any physical weapons, relying on his body to deal damage.  As such he is an expert at hand to hand combat.  The strength behind his blows is enough to overwhelm foolhardy challengers very quickly.  The boots given to him by the Shaman amplify the power of his kicks through some minor enchantment.

Through his travels Kitharsis discovered an ancient war hammer used by Tirthandara in the past.  The ruins that he found it in were very well preserved.  He spent days there recording any findings he came across.  One day he stumbled upon what was once an armory.  There were many weapons similar to the war hammer.  All were meant to be wielded by Tirthandara.  He chose the war hammer, having wielded one quite proficiently while battling in the arena for the OGHRUN before his transformation.  The war hammer is more like a Horseman's Pick with a head the size of a fist and a large curved spike on the opposite side.  The head is capped with runes that whisper of ancient power.  The metal handle is wrapped in a pattern of twisting spirals much like his tattoos.  The handle is long enough to be held with two hands but still short enough to be perfectly wieldable with one.  He typically grasps it with only his left hand while fighting.  Two handed blows are saved for incidents where extreme strength is necessary.  When not in battle, Kitharsis keeps the war hammer in a harness on his belt with a sheath around the sharp spike.

For defense, Kitharsis's rock hard skin is for more than show.  He has been known to withstand direct hits from bullets.  This of course incapacitated him for a time, but no permanent serious damage was done.  His skin is so hard for a reason.  It needs to keep his energy in...  If his body is scratched or cracked open the unrelenting energy inside his body makes a bee-line for the opening.  This causes Kitharsis to have to concentrate on sealing the energy in.  This extra concentration can be very costly.  For whenever Kitharsis is this injured, it is very unlikely that whatever did it to him is going to stop any time soon...

Tattoos.

The more desirable way to release Tirthandaran energy is by the tattoos they have on their bodies.  When Kitharsis has enough purified energy available (and even if he doesn't, although it’s not advised...) he is able to use his tattoos as weapons.  The purified energy glows red and is very powerful. 

The tattoos snaking around his arms are able to burst into life as tendrils of energy.  They can act as whips to slash, ropes to bind, and any combination in between.  These tendrils are most effective in an open area where they can stretch out and effect as many foes as possible.  Maneuvering then in tight spaces or a crowd is more difficult and Kitharsis typically prefers melee combat in these situations.

The new diamond on the back of his right hand can extend into a blade, long or short, to aid in melee combat.  It can also expand and solidify to act as a shield while he is wielding his war hammer.  Sustaining the shield takes no extra energy once it has solidified.  After deflecting a great amount of damage it will need to be recharged or it will shatter.  Recharging the shield takes considerable less energy than erecting a new one.

The circle on his left palm can be used to shoot blasts of energy.  If Kitharsis ever waves to you with his left hand, be wary, as he might be aiming a red blast of death at you.  These energy blasts are a handy side effect of the real reason the circle was added. When he discovered the ancient war hammer he found that the weapon is able to absorb Tirthandaran energy and use it to empower its blows.  Once charged it must be used quickly otherwise the energy will dissipate and be wasted.  Timing is a virtue when using this technique and a failed blow can be quite costly.  The circle is always in direct contact with the weapon as he wields it with his left hand, so there is no delay when he wants to charge it. 

The runes for speed and strength can be activated by pumping energy into them.  They require a constant supply and as such are rarely used.  The drain of energy is often not worth more meager foes.  And if a battle is misjudged there is often not enough energy left to sustain the runes for long enough to make a difference.  Regardless, the mere presence of them on his body gives a weaker version of their effect.  Once they were tattooed onto his skin they immediately amplified his strength and speed.  Fueling them with energy exponentially increases their effect.

The desert.

Kitharsis's element is the desert.  During a rather dramatic confrontation with his Shaman in the desert of Legund, Kitharsis became attuned with the sand around him.  It heeds his call and follows his commands.  As such he can summon great sandstorms if left alone in a desert.  Or he can call upon it to guard him, deflecting blows as he retreats - or charges.  He always carries a few bags of sand with him on his belt for this reason.  If he tosses a full bag at you, it is probably going to explode.  The grains of sand grinding away your skin and bones before returning to its master.  Kitharsis, always being the compassionate heart to his friends, considers the desert more like a friend than something he controls.  Being away from it for too long makes him restless.

Being attuned to the warm desert, Kitharsis very much dislikes the cold.  Being in the cold for too long makes him sluggish and vulnerable.  And recovering from such takes quite a while.

Pets.

Like his other tattoos, Kitharsis can channel energy through the skull tattoo on his left forearm.  In doing so, he is able to summon skeletons to aid him in battle.  They can come in all different sizes and their abilities can vary depending on Kitharsis's need.  He has been known to summon tiny mages that have useful simple spells, and warriors with crude bone weapons and shields.  They are skilled fighters, and can follow orders.  Kitharsis seems to have a soft spot for them. Even so, does not think twice about using them to save himself or his companions if necessary, as painful to do so as it is.  Upon destruction, the skeletons crumble into fine sand.  Ready to be taken away by the wind to a desert of their own.

Trinkets

The pouches on his belt that are not filled to the brim with sand hold various trinkets and devices that Kitharsis has picked up over the years. 

The most important device he carries is a ceramic relic that his Shaman gave him during one of his many visits home.  This relic is capable of tearing open warp gates.  It is limited in the fact that Kitharsis has to either have been to the plane and place that he wishes to travel to, or he must be focusing on one of his companions' energy signatures to be transported close to them.  If he does not take these precautions, the warp will take him on a random jump through the multiverse.  While this can be an interesting experiment, the outcome can be deadly.

The other devices and relics he carries are much more mundane.  Some are merely good luck charms; others are objects of interest he found during his search for answers.


Transportation?  You can't always jump around in the warp with that little toy...

Kitharsis built himself a ship.

Well, he and a couple teams of skeletons built a spaceship back on Jataka.  It has no moving parts.  Runes are carved over every inch of the hull except for a few of the view ports.  A team of skeletons man the ship at all times.  They were created specifically for the purpose of maintaining and operating Kitharsis's vessel.  It is a small craft that can hold about 10 people comfortably.  It is usually over run by skeletons, so there's barely room from 2 or 3 others most of the time.  It has a few defenses, with one of the mages always sitting in the gunner position at the top, ready to fling magic missiles and meteors at any would be attackers.  It is an ugly ship, winning no awards for aesthetics, but it gets the job done.


So, you must have had an interesting life... eh?

Oh yes...

The word Catharsis's origins are:

Kátharsis - a cleansing.  Which is Equivalent to kathar - (variation of kathaírein: to cleanse. Derived of katharós: pure) + -sis (Greek suffice for a process, state, or condition)

The word's definition and uses deal with purification and purging.  It has been used to describe processes used to be rid of evil spirits, souls, and emotions like hate, pain and fear.

Kitharsis seeks the goodness in the universe.  Evil and darkness that wish to harm others and oppress should be stamped out.  Kitharsis acts as the catalyst that purges the evil in the world from existence.  He also purifies the dark energy in his body, performing personal catharsis frequently. 


Backstory

Growing up in the swamp, Kitharsis loved to trounce around in the mud and cause trouble.  On many occasions he could be seen doing menial tasks as punishment for his most recent adventure.  The elders would joke that, while he was doing these tasks he would be calm and collected, and remain so for a few days until some new adventure caught his fancy.  Soon they began calling his punishments his Catharsis, as they would calm him and purge his mischievous thoughts.  If only for a short while...  Being young he couldn't quite pronounce the word Catharsis correctly. It came out Kee-thar-sees when his friends asked him what he was doing.  It stuck and his name became Kitharsis (pronounced without the ees) ever since.

As he grew older he became a very talented shape shifter and was relied upon in his village.  His troublesome ways were in the past.  Kitharsis was part of a group of Jataka that was in charge of hunting for food for the village.  This group was also the first line of defense to ward off dangers to the village.  It was during the defense of the village that Kitharsis developed a sense of duty to a greater good.  Seeing the children and elderly that depended on him and his team for their very lives was daunting.  Even at this stage of his life he was a fighter for peace.  He never participated in tirades against other villages over petty arguments, making sure to be out hunting when the war band would leave.  When visitors to their planet landed they were always given a chance to prove their intentions.  This would sometimes end badly, but he could not give up his faith in goodness in the universe. 

When the invaders first appeared Kitharsis's village was the first to make contact with them.  He and his team met them far away from the village as a buffer for any violence that may break out.  During introductions one of Kitharsis's team shifted their form.  The invaders were acting skittish before this, and they took the shift as a threat.  They burst out in violence, their superior technology being quick and efficient.  The majority of Kitharsis's team was killed, unable to hold off the attack.  Kitharsis and a few others fought bitterly until they were neutralized and captured, presumably to be used for experiments or other twisted means.

The surrounding villages were warned of the invaders, but the losses were great.  Eventually they were driven off of Legund, but Kitharsis and a handful of the Jataka were taken into the invader's ships.  Most of them never to return.  In one last frantic push, the Jataka attacked the ships.  Hoping to free their countrymen, they inflicted irrepairable damage to the craft.  It was of no use, as the invader's were eventually able to take off into space.

The damage to the ships was great.  The invaders were forced to crash land on the closest planet in the galaxy.  Unfortunately, the OGHRUN inhabited this planet.  This time the invaders were not given a chance to strike first.  The considerable strength and skill of the OGHRUN quickly overpowered the weakened invaders.  The survivors were tossed into the arena, along with the Jataka prisoners found in the ship.  Kitharsis relished the chance to enact his revenge on the invaders, but the gravity of his situation quickly settled in shortly thereafter.

Having lost his shape shifting abilities due to the vortex gem, Kitharsis had to learn to fight without magic.  Failure to do so meant death in the arena.  He favored a war hammer when weapons were given to make things more interesting.  Many people, just like him, were taken from their homes and forced to fight.  At first Kitharsis mourned each and every person and creature that he was forced to kill in the arena.  But then self preservation began to take over.  The greater good would have to wait while he kept his head on his shoulders.  In his cell, contempt and hate were threatening to overwhelm his soul, but a small part of him continued to believe in righteousness.

When the companions appeared everything happened in a blur.  Before he knew it he was free and following them on a quest to aid a demon hunter.  Once this was over Kitharsis knew he must go back to Legund.  He was past due for his ritual with the Shaman.

Upon arriving home he could not associate with the small villages and the Jataka that lived there.  He quickly found a Shaman who lived in the desert and performed the ritual.  His change into a Tirthandara was shocking to both himself and the Shaman.  Warily, the Shaman instructed him on how to fight in his new form.  When not assisting the companions in their quests Kitharsis was training in the desert with the Shaman.

Thirsty for answers, Kitharsis built his space ship and began searching for traces of Tirthandara throughout the nearby universe.  On a remote planet apparently no longer inhabited by humanoid beings he found an ancient Tirthandaran compound.  It was called Trathid.  It had a wealth of knowledge and tools once used by the Tirthandara.  Kitharsis wished to stay here and restore the compound, but an ominous presence was lurking in the shadows and he thought it best not to tarry any longer than needed.  Whatever was hanging around the old ruins did not want company, and far be it from him to disturb something so ancient.

He plans to return to Trathid once he finishes with the bounty he has in his ship.  But until then he is travelling from planet to planet, restocking his supplies and assisting the locals.  Planets with deserts, of course, are given a more lengthy visit...

They are wonderful, thank you!

I will add them into my drafted up post and get something up soon.

As Soul Reaver battled amid the front lines, a sphere of plasma arced overhead, landing amidst the next wave who were hoping to flank him. The projectile burst on impact and showered those unfortunate enough to be nearby. The luminant, superheated substance clung to its victims like tar as it melted flesh and steel alike.

Their incessant attempts to cross this bridge had left Phaerys somewhat bemused at this point. Thanks in part to the fortifications he had constructed, the oncoming hordes found little hope of breaching the defensive line, further compounded by how many had already died trying. Those who weren't hacked apart by Soul Reaver and Kitharsis were disintegrated from afar with the power of a blazing sun. Phaerys idly pondered who or what was directing these creatures' efforts, for them to willingly charge into certain doom. Even as he continued to eradicate them with silent, unnatural efficiency.

It had been a curious time indeed these past few years...

Soul Reaver had been quick to make good on his promise when he, Kitharsis and Phaerys departed through the portal together. Indeed, Dinlete turned out to be something of a godsend. So much to see, discover, understand. While Soul Reaver and Kitharsis rested from the ordeal they had endured, the tireless Ataran busied himself with furthering his research. Not a day went by without Phaerys leaving their accommodation in search for a new contact, anything that might turn up a new lead on his old compatriots.

He even proved to be a surprisingly adept haggler when bartering off unwanted fragments of exotic matter in exchange for arcane devices and lore on the metaphysical. In that time, Phaerys had greatly improved his understanding of Warp navigation, and through information gleaned from a number of other plane travellers, he finally had an idea of where to search for one of his fellow coven members. It was by no means an exact location – more like a sizeable list of probable dimensions – but it was a start.

The duo Phaerys had been travelling with were most intriguing specimens in and of themselves. Occasionally he probed them with questions but for the most part he was content to observe, as he did with many things. He had his suspicions of them at first. A fateful alliance of convenience in mid-battle was what saw their paths meet, after all. But as time passed, and their behavioural patterns had proven consistent enough to be trustworthy, Phaerys reconsidered the emergency escape protocol he had on standby and began to accept his position as the newest of the Companions.

Soul Reaver was something of an imposing presence in person, at first - the man wielded weapons and powers commonly found in the hands of far more inimical entities. But what caught the Ataran's attention was how he was so duty-bound to helping the helpless. In its importance, it was not unlike Phaerys' service to Xel-Atar. In the end, Phaerys concluded that the two of them were in some way not so different than appearances might indicate.

Kitharsis seemed to have been the more approachable of the two by comparison. His current condition had been yet another phenomenon Phaerys expressed interest in studying, even volunteering to run tests as he got used to his new state of being. And that was not all...

During their time in Dinlete, Kitharsis also took Phaerys up on that offer of personally fashioning some new equipment. Kitharsis' request was a modest one. A sword, and a set of armour that allowed for freedom of movement. Simple armaments for a humble warrior. Phaerys readily took to the task, and what he produced would have been considered quite remarkable even on the streets of Dinlete.

The armour appeared to be a fine mesh of carbon-black scales, over which larger metal plates of bronze-coloured alloy had been fitted to cover the vital areas. This alloy seemed to be the same material Phaerys' own armour was composed of, for the whole thing was lightweight, durable... and capable of surviving extreme heat that would see its wearer turned to ash. Fairly typical materials by Ataran standards, so it seemed.

As for the sword, this too was made of that same alloy. It was proportioned so that Kitharsis could comfortably wield it with one hand or two, and finely balanced with a degree of precision that only molecular manipulation might muster. For the most part, it was a fairly normal sword, but Phaerys had integrated a mechanism into the blade's edge so that it would flare up with molten heat... but only during the moment it was actually swung. The Ataran artificer neglected to say whether this was a safety feature or an issue with whatever power supply was contained within, but the end result was remarkable nonetheless – a reliable weapon that could cauterise flesh as easily as it sliced through armour. All in all, Phaerys had been quite satisfied with his work. Moreover, it enkindled a sense of pride within him to see Kitharsis treasure both armour and blade so.

Alas, the trio could not stay in Dinlete for too long. They each had their duties elsewhere to fulfill. Beyond the Spans Between, as Phaerys kept referring to it. And so his adventures with the Companions truly began. Just as his studies continued, in a sense. Sorcerous artefacts were obtained for later analysis. Techniques and manoeuvres were devised for combat conditions. A rare few enemies had the dubious honour of being dissected at the molecular level for rare compounds, all while still in the midst of battle.

Such was Phaerys' devotion to the purpose he was given by Xel-Atar.

As their current battle drew to a close, Phaerys felt a faint buzzing of psychic interference that resolved itself into a signal. A message. More specifically a call for aid from another companion. Looking to the others, Phaerys surmised from their reactions that both Soul Reaver and Kitharsis had also received this transmission. There was no questioning how they would answer it. Phaerys sent his own reply in short order:

Open the way.