Finally, someone has recognized the mercenary for what she was; a capable fighter. Either that, or they were sending her on what could only be accounted as a suicide run. It had landed in her lap as a summons letter. There was a lord of some land who has had some problems with one of their villages. Apparently, a group of mages has been preying on the village, stealing and pillaging what they could. Seems that now that they’re moving farther inward, striking at even more villages, the Lord could not ignore the matter any longer. Which completely makes sense to send Mirannda. Why send your own troops who may not be magically resilient, possibly to their deaths?

The lord would have to spend a lot more money for the hiring of more troops, training, and gear. Plus, the problem would not have been successfully dealt with. No, it was far easier to pay a mercenary of some renown, albeit small yet growing. Fortunately, the word of her revival ability still seemed to be hidden, but her magical prowess was getting some notice. Why not fight fire with fire? ”I don’t want you coming, Elata.” ”Too bad, Jaliza. You’re stuck with me. And… Calcifer” The mental voice of Elata groaned the name. Mirannda could only imagine the eye roll that would have accompanied the disgust. At the mention of his name, Calcifer zipped around her, coming to a rest on the mercenary’s flaming red and blonde ombre hair.

The flame sprite quivered with excitement, to which the sell-sword sighed. ”Remember, Calcifer. We talked about this. Don’t set me on fire.” Not that it would hurt her, but it was a pain to deal with constantly. With her companions in tow, the mercenary made her way into the Virens Forest. Beautiful, dense, and spooky, what better place to hide when it was hard to find your way around. It was far too easy to get lost in these woods. Calcifer was leaving deliberate scorch marks as they went in inconspicuous places, places that only Mirannda, Elata, or Calcifer would think to look. He was marking the path for their way back.

Night had fallen, and Mirannda continued venturing deeper, always at the ready, always trying to keep her arrival unnoticed, there was a flame dancing in the distance. Melding into the shadows, the phoenix crept closer without a sound. One, two… No, eight targets. What the hell were they doing? At the center of the clearing was a large ring of stones. Circling on the inside of this ring was a red circle, and a star touching at five points. Each point reached out toward a blazing torch.

Seven men chanted something, low and deep, repetitive as they rested on their knees, bowing so low their noses touched the ground. One stood tall, arms splayed wide, chin lifted to the night sky. The words she spoke were loud, and clear, strong over the men’s voices. Yet, the phoenix could not identify what was being said. With a smirk, the mercenary wondered how they would react to something out of the ordinary. In the shadows, she waved her hand, and the flames of the torches grew large and unruly. Her voice wavered only slightly, obviously startled.

Calcifer took this as his sign to play. His giggle sounded the crackles of a flame. Darting forward, the flame sprite landed on one of the mage’s robes, setting him aflame. He danced through the air to another. However, even as the flames were beginning to have fun, the damage was done. Whatever they were trying to do was working, as there was a figure beginning to appear into existence, slowly from a corporeal state. Something was summoned, and Mirannda began to mentally prepare herself for a fight she was not expecting.

   Ramiel was lost. Silently she cursed herself for allowing such a thing to happen. She had traveled all over the land of Revaliir, and the number of places which she had not been was very little. Virens Forest happened to be one of those very places, and unfortunately for her, she had made a fools mistake by entering without heeding warnings she had received from others, and took along with her no map. Many had said that people had entered and never returned, whilst others barely made it out alive only by pure luck. But despite these warnings she passed the edge of the forest and walked amongst the trees with confidence, confidence which had quickly dissolved. She feared not what creatures lied within, unless the night came and otherworldly creatures welcomed themselves there. No, it was the ever growing fear that she may never find her way out, constantly going around in circles, an endless loop. If she had not damaged her wings, she would have been able to fly up and out, but alas, her wings had been damaged beyond fixing, unless by some miracle or some sort of spell.

Stopping for what had to be the twentieth time to look around, she placed a fist upon her hip and her other palm upon her forehead. She was growing impatient, weary, and rather anxious. Ramiel heaved a sigh of frustration, shaking her head lightly whilst scolding herself for her stupidity. “I should have listened,” she groaned, “How could I have been so foolish.” She looked left, right, straight, behind her, and all over again. It mattered not. Everything looked the same amongst the ocean of endless trees. Many times she could have sworn she heard voices, or even saw something else off in the distance. She felt she was on the verge of going mad, entirely bonkers. Perhaps the forest contained some sort of magic which caused such delusions. Then, there was a flicker of light off in the distance. For a moment she fancied it as yet another illusion created by her mind, a mental act of desperation to find something new. It wasn’t until she saw it again that she realized something was off, for she had not seen the same illusion twice.

Curiosity struck her, and she quietly made her way towards the flickering light. As she neared, those voices she had been hearing grew in volume, and in numbers. Soon enough there was a scene of lit torches and chanting mages, and that’s when realization set in. She hadn’t been imagining it at all! Ramiel quickly hid behind the nearest tree as not to be seen, and inched her way closer for a better look, all the while keeping hidden. Her brow furrowed and eyes narrowed from a mixture of curiosity and confusion as she watched. What were they doing?

The moment her eyes landed on the stones and circle with a star, her heart dropped and eyes widened. It was a summoning circle. The mages were summoning something! This was something she could not allow, of course, for fear it may be a demon or some evil creature that comes from this ritual. Without hesitation, she drew her sword and made her presence clear with a war cry, stepping out of her hiding place. Her sword met the chest of one of the mages, drenching the blade with his burgundy blood. But once she had seen one of the mages set aflame, she realized that she wasn’t the only one whom had caused them fright and attacked them. There seemed to be someone else nearby. But she couldn’t worry about that now, she needed to stop the mages.

The moment she attacked and killed the next mage, there was something new that had caught her eyes. Despair then gripped at her heart like tendrils. She was too late.

Kranös, a supermassive planet that is nearing its final centuries. Due to the planet's orbit nearing the system's sun, temperatures of the planet have become hellish. The kingdoms of the world are at a constant state of war, wielding weapons of mass destruction capable of wiping out titanic cities with one strike. The weapons cause a type of radiation that nullifies magic resulting in large areas that will not be able to sustain magic energy for roughly 4,000 years.

Pandora is an empire that resides in an area that was struck by the largest anti magic weapon that was ever launched. The combatants of Pandora have utilized the radioactive soaked materials of the area as weapons and heavy plate armor that nullify magic spells and magic weapons. The residents of Pandora consist of Angels, Demons and Humans that have been altered to withstand the radiation.

In the world of Kranös, demons are very powerful mages that are also skilled at hand -to-hand combat. The demons are normally temperamental, quick to anger and are very competitive. Angels on the other hand are typically fun, easygoing and spontaneous. The angels are excellent healers, they are not very reliable at close combat, however the angels excel at ranged combat with accuracy that is unparalleled using any rifle or crossbow. Humans are sturdy and adaptable, while their strength and speed is inferior to other races, their ability to learn is second to none.

Seriram is the child of a demon and an angel. Born to be sent off as a hybrid soldier, her parents where dissatisfied at her being female due to males being superior to most females on the battlefield. Unable to use magic and her small size Seriram was deemed a failure in the eyes of her parents and was thrown out on the streets at 5 years of age. She was found by a free-lance fighter and was taken in as his pupil, she began her training at the age of 10 and continued for 40 years. She was eventually separated from her mentor in a large town and was challenged to a duel for getting into someone's way. Seriram reluctantly fought and the outcome was embarrassing for the man that challenged her. One of the onlookers happened to be the high executioner, he noticed that Seriram was a skilled fighter and asked her to follow him to the Palace training grounds. There Seriram was asked to complete several trials to become a soldier. She spent 2 years as a rookie. She continued her training to compete in an event that would determine stature among fighters worldwide, she placed in the top 20. Her king noticed Seriram on the leaderboard and decided that she would be his Throne's guard. 10 years later after a new king was crowned she competed in the "Strongest fighters" event again. She placed in the top 10 the second time around. She would later go on to fight in 20 world wars as the Throne's Guard over the course of 150 years. In recent months a new war has begun, the war front has drawn close to Pandora.

Seriram prepares her armor for battle. After she puts on her protective underclothes and mail armor she sits down on a bench to put on her boots. After fastening her boots she stands up and begins to feel dizzy; "I must have stood up too quickly" she thinks to herself. She closes her eyes for a moment but she still feels like the room is spinning, she kneels to the ground so as not to loose her balance. With her head facing the ground she begins to hear a ringing in her ears along with a seemingly distant (slightly muffled) set of voices. Seriram opens her eyes to see that she is not in the room that she was before, as the ringing in her ears dissipates she can hear screams and cries of plea. She looks out to her right and sweeps across to her left to find where the screams are coming from and finds herself surrounded by people in robes. "Are they the ones who summoned me?" She thinks to herself. Seriram looks at her hand and makes a fist "I feel a bit different, like I have new skin. I need to avoid any unnecessary conflict… at least until I figure out what just happened and why I feel like I'm in someone else's skin. I wonder if they are willing to talk?" Seriram speaks in an undertone as she begins to stand up "Oh well, I guess there's only one way to find out". She widens her stance and pulls her shoulders back, and exclaims "I am Seriram, Throne's guard of the Pandora empire. Who are you, and why you have summoned me from my position?"

The phoenix drew a dagger as she caught a mage who was too chicken to assist his friends. With a decisive and precise movement, the blade slashed across the man’s neck. This time, she did not watch the blood flow from the wound, or the soul leaves the body as it died. Too many people needed to pay for the darkest act of summoning that which did not belong here.

Calcifer engulfed his second mage when some winged woman joined the fight. It was not long after that it was realized her position was the same as Mirannda’s own. There were four mages down, with four more to go. Two ectoplasm stars were sent spinning through the air, embedding themselves into the foreheads of two more mages. The angel took care of the last two, which left the summoned creature.

Mirannda stood straight, eyes looking over the woman who appeared dressed for war. Seriram widened her stance as she addressed her audience of dead bodies, two of which were still aflame, and two people too late to prevent the ritual. ’Throne guard, huh? My, were they ambitious.’ As a drop of blood dripped from her blade, Mirannda shook her head solemnly.

”My apologies, Seriram, for our tardiness of action. If we had been quicker, your summoning may have been prevented. I am Mirannda Sinopa, the hired mercenary to deal with these foolish mages. Go back from whence you came, and go in peace.” Mirannda did not bow, yet her tone was that of deep respect. Eloquently stated, Jaliza.” Elata said telepathically. The phoenix barely managed to suppress a moan and roll of the eyes. Another talk with that bird was inevitable.

With help from the stranger the mages were all taken care of. However, this did not mean the threat had passed. Ramiel did not know who the stranger was, nor her intentions of being there. And then there was the summoned. The angel gazed upon the foreign woman with her brow knitted together. Long, dark hair shone with a blueish hue as it cascaded down her shoulders and upper back. Her face was beautiful, yet it wore a serious and strong expression, purple eyes intense as she took up a firm and proud stance. That, along with her armor, gave Ramiel the impression that this woman has experience in the high ranks of war. A commander perhaps?

This curiosity was quickly answered when the summoned spoke. Seriram, Throne’s Guard of the Pandora Empire? Ramiel raised her brow, silently wondering what that meant. It certainly sounded important, or powerful…somehow. The stranger did not hesitate to introduce herself to Seriram. Mirannda Sinopa, hired mercenary. Well, that explains why she is there. But Ramiel still did not know if Seriram was a friend, or a foe. She would need to treat this situation with care. If she is not foe, then Ramiel did not wish to make her one. The angel sheathed her sword to make herself seem less threatening.

“And I am Ramiel,” she said firmly, yet with respect. Though she agreed with Mirannda that Seriram should go back from where she came, Ramiel said nothing on the matter. The mercenary has already said what needed to be said.

  Seriram pealed her eyes towards Mirannda when she spoke up. Hired mercenary, really? She thought as her brows raised slightly. “Return from where I came? I’m certain that I couldn’t do that on my own.” She then panned her eyes towards Ramiel as she stated her name. Seriram’s eyes followed Ramiel’s blade as she sheathed it, shortly after that she assumed Ramiel hadn’t said anything else because she was the silent type or more likely she was in agreement with the mercenary. Seriram then looked back at Mirannda to get more information.  “Unfortunately I am not well versed in the art of summoning magic,” Seriram said in a slightly aggravated tone as she gestured at the summoning circle. “So I am afraid that I will not be returning any time soon. Unless of course one of you would be willing to send me back, I would be very pleased to return to my king and country.” Unsure of how the two women would react if she took a step forward Seriram decided to stay where she had been summoned. I’m fairly certain that the winged woman is an angel of some type but the other woman doesn’t resemble any race that I have seen on Kranös. I really don’t need to be making enemies of these women, especially without my weapons or the rest of my armor. She thought for a moment. Hopefully they will have a way of sending me back to Pandora. I’m not entirely sure what I will do if I’m stuck here, and what of my king? What will he think of my disappearance? Will I be branded as a traitor? Surely I have proven my loyalty to the empire to ward off any thoughts of that. I need more information. Where am I, and what planet is this?

'Can't return on her own? Great…' The phoenix thought to herself as she glanced at Calcifer. He was playing with the flames he had caused one of the mages. On the other side of the summoning circle was the angel now introduced as Ramiel. It was a race she had very few dealings with, causing a healthy amount of weariness until she can learn more. However, Seriram sounded irritated, pulling her attention back. There was a major problem, probably the only problem, with sending the woman back.

"Sadly, I'm just proficient in the basics of summoning so I can choose my arsenal at any given moment. I've only dealt with inanimate objects. Not only do I lack the expertise to attempt sending you back, I doubt you would want to be my guinea pig." Mirannda pondered on the remaining solutions. "Isn't there a place of magical study? Perhaps someone there can help!" Calcifer's giggle caused Mirannda's head to whip around. The little sprite had turned the mage's body into a raging bonfire and was bouncing between body to body, setting more aflame. "Calcifer Novis, you stop that right now!"

She held out a hand and slowly drew her fingers into a fist. As she did, the flames caused by the familiar began to die down. "We do not cause fires in the forest." As a chastised child, Calcifer drifted to float sadly at her head, the most pathetic pouty eyes she had ever seen. Mirannda rolled her eyes. "I swear, you're such a child." "But Mirannda! I love playing with fire." She shook her head as she returned back to the two strangers.