The sky was cloudy on the streets of oak, a parlor of shops lined the streets with men sharing items they hoped to pass over, but the fear of a storm kept many civilians off the roads. Within the little shops around the block; lights inside could be seen, even if dim in the whispy fog laden afternoon.

A pub, once owned by the Lich of the Nightmares, was currently inhabited by Erebus. The pub itself was not empty, it never was. The many folks in the room throwing down money and the women carrying drinks to all tables. Erebus was amongst a very active room, the scene was something like that of a Saloon. You could say so if you had ever been to Oak... It was a cesspool for scoundrels, admittedly. But long into the three years Eternal Nightmare has come to power, the bandits have either joined in building the city or leaving for greener pastures.

Making Oak the Kingdom of Thieves, almost all but considering itself ready to break away from Fiore — for Eternal Nightmare’s decree. None would know that Eternal Nightmare had amassed Such extremely connected sources that it was almost an entity bigger than the sheer scope of a guild now. It was an empire, and it’s leading body president was standing, dropping a bag of rubies against the table for the finest black liquor he could get his hands on.

His hair was pink, shaved around his ears but now quite long on the top, it fell over him in a uniquely punk way. His cloak and hood, cover his neck, whereas he wore black and navy armor under it. Four arms hung out lazily, almost making him look a demon there amongst the crowd. If one inspected his face they would see black laces of lines decorating him in the language of the Gods.

Erebus was a special human. He was not a Demi-God, he was not a Demon. He was simply in between, and neither alive nor dead because of his cape (which allowed him a special connection to the dead realm). You see Erebus was something like a progenitor for war. One might even say a biblical symbol in the form of a destruction-laden horseman. In truth, he was just a man out for freedom by any means necessary. Erebus was at one point just a rogue, on the run. Then everything changed when he was hunted... He became geared for fight instead of flight, and with Odin’s passing. Was voted the new Guild Master by its current party of warriors and sorcerers alike.

To see him outside of that setting where he was those things, one would truly see the shitbag person Erebus could be. A drunk... he couldn’t lie, he carried a flask everywhere. He was arrogant, a bit domineering. Kind of standoffish and a dick, but impenetrably loyal to a fault. Erebus was the diamond trait ally so long as one didn’t stand in his way— that is. For everyone minus Odin’s killer. That person, Erebus considered his life’s new rival. The power that was gained from her side of the alignment pool, versus his, a desperate streak to the top that sacrificed his mental and his close friends on the way.

Who had Alisa lost, Erebus wondered. Sitting at the bar. “I’ll have another please,” the phantom pushed his empty glass away, turning to look towards the door as he waited on his next drink. “... Something new, for the next I think.” he added as he busted out his smokes and lit one in the room, unapologetically to any near. Not that anyone ever stood anywhere near Erebus, nor said anything.

Erebus watch the femme fatale boisterously crash into the room. He silently sipped his drink, narrowing his eyes at her while the bartender tossed her a rag and poured the poisonous syrup into a small glass for him. “Who is that?” He said with a intrigued tilt of the head. He instantly took one super long drag of the cigarette and flicked it at the guy a few seats away. The warlocke grabbed his drink and the bottle itself from the side of him, not losing any direct attention from the vampire as it got comfortable.

“Actually— you haven’t even met the worst one.” Erebus spoke, breaking the silence as he came within a few feet of the girl, he placed the glass up in cheers of her recent kill, and downed the hatch on the glass. Pouring another, he then slid the glass across the table to her reach as he straightened. “Lucretia. A werewolf and Rune Knight in one person, can’t imagine all the fur in the office.” He jested— seeing that his identity was perhaps just as unknown as her’s was to him so far. “You may wanna wrap up those holes, the boys around here get pretty rowdy after hours.” Erebus mentioned as he took a long swig from the bottle still in his hand.

He was sure the house didn’t care. Erebus was always around here, wasting what time he wasn’t privatizing. He always paid, it was a manner of respect to Odin’s Estate.

“What’s your story? Werewolves kill your grandma?” He said, willingly pitching more conversation forward so that the hunter might enjoy her evening in the bar. After all, travelers didn’t get much social setting on the road. He knew this to be true for himself. It was just courtesy to greet newcomers... The interest came from her healing factor which Erebus had noticed. She would make a fantastic specimen of Warcraft. Erebus wanted her— and so he would have her. Such was the nature of hunting weapons for a treasure collector such as himself.

Nikki was definitely the type who thought with her fists, There was no short of transparency to bet intelligence with the witty humor either. “I guess she does fit the definition, doesn’t she?” He took another drink pulling the bottle to his lips, “Oh— you’re one of those types.” Erebus nodded. “You remind me of another Vampire I knew.” Erebus pressed. “She had a similar response about her past.” The raven-haired huntress described to him how she didn’t really know the difference anymore between her life and her undeath— a crippling weakness of Vampires. They usually do tend to lose themselves to things like their temptation, addiction to the euphoric blood that they ingest, or time itself, being practical immortal.

Nonchalantly and without much context for what he was about to do, Erebus walks to the door Nikki had entered from. He turned to the room and clapped his hands once. Drawing forth all the attention he needed to shift the entire tone of the room.

Everyone in that room at the time, stopped moving and the music cut. They stopped playing dart and pool— everything came to a commanded standstill... Erebus gave them one expression, one that Oak knew. It masked behind his sustained silence and trained eye on the crowd. It was enough to cause everyone to begin vacating the room. If Nikki tried to leave with she would be stopped by the bartender who went out last, he closed the door gently behind his self. “I’ve figured out as much. You’re a Vampire, which explains your talent for combat. But I need to know, are you apart of any guilds? I’m something of a recruiter, to show up here you must have heard about the region’s Eternal Nightmare.” he paused. Where he assumed she’d speak.

Erebus listened, occasionally nodding at her humor— even for a woman Nikki was a level of barbaric that was new to him, but she was simply herself— and that was her nature. No one could expect her to be any different, even if Erebus had only just found this creature he could deduce as much. Of course he didn’t let her sly comments get to him, he had been around these types and situations before. He simply pretended not to hear about the ‘ex’ comment. The truth was, Erebus simply couldn’t do relationships in general. He found himself safest alone, independent and without having to think about another.

When the Hunter went about showing him her skin— and how it would heal back without removing the tattoo, he quietly observed the process and watched it’s rapid reconstruction as it occurred over the Fairy emblem. Tricky. Humans didn’t do that, but Erebus knew the ritual procedure for her race, and all the races. That kind of information became known after one reached the status of Guild Master.

Fairy tail... That was the last place he could have expected someone like Nikki to come from. However, they were once known to be the rowdier lot if memory served correctly. “The only way to get that off is to cover it.” Erebus suggested. “It just requires that we cover the old one up. I could freshen the ink— Interested?” Erebus then paced the room as he spoke some more. “I do have a forewarning though, joining us in Eternal Nightmare is freedom, you’ll find the reality of life to be different on grander scale. Firstly, we don’t care who you kill, drink, where you go, who you bring to your quarters. We don’t care about anything besides your willingness to act and protect your guildmates. As far as who or what we are. That is not of anyone but your own concern. That said, the King is always concerned with us. He will begin placing bounties on your name. He will likely stand against you not because you are a criminal in this guild, but because you are a vampire and should be eliminated.” Erebus was being honest, but he was also spreading Reign’s truth. Only recently in the last decade of fighting were pardons mentioned for Eternal Nightmare. They didn’t even offer those during the demon incursions, but now suddenly.. the fighting force of Fiore is split.. The entire debacle was a fault of none other than the crown itself. “I like you vampires personally. Some of the only creatures that can really party— certainly you can throw down.” He mentioned that last part, more to hype the offer up, rather than simply compliment her. He assumed she may say no, but flattery was the fastest route to getting anything... and Erebus knew this.

Erebus could tell with almost unreasonable doubt... . Perhaps it was the expressions she wore, or the glass she busted. It seemed she was in. “Excellent.” He said— following her loud exclamation to throw her life away for adventure into dangerous territory involving demons, conquering, terrorism and the world there after. “Indeed— fuck it.” He nodded. “Best decision of your life. You bet.” He said— taking his hand outward, one of the four. Erebus approached the woman who’s voice was hooting and hollering and in the room, the lights dimmed as Erebus muttered the incantation that was left to him for this exact purpose, as a guild master it was unique in that it was wischtecian and didn’t operate like normal magic it came from the spiral itself. He brought his index and his middle finger forward. They seemed to ignite with a purple light, instantly the air would charge up with a special purple energy.

Assuming Nikki was willing to let Erebus touch the tattoo— he would start the process and burn the skin to stir the ink particles in a swirling mass. The shift was of a magical metamorphosis, causing the ink to glow and pulse going through the color palette at accelerating speeds before ultimately appearing in the shade/color Nikki’s would be. The process was short. But the pressure around was intensified. As if one had walked into a different reality, the reality where everything was not as it seemed.

In a world where the villains were their heroes, and the wicked were the rightful fighters for freedom. It was about more than simply being a rebel and living a certain way. It was about making your mark, and fighting the system. That is why Eternal Nightmare had plans to conquer. Meeting the guild members and seeing the Spiral were all she needed now.

For now there was the current state of the affairs that came with the life she had just signed up for. “Now the fun part. Aye? You could stay here at the bar; or you could see the Spiral now— it’s what we call our guild house, but it’s... Much bigger than one might imagine.”