Catharsis Vs Vernos: Mount Gyaru's Base

Vernos stood tall and proud. The dueling station was something people from all over partook in to help boost their skills and also accel past all others. He wanted to have a closer connection with Bonju and felt that battling will help their spirits intertwine in a way. He began stretching taking deep breathes as he awaited his opponent at the base of mount gyaru. Well aware it was all just a simulation its affects and scenery could fool anyone. 

"Here we are. Wonder who I will be going up against today," Vernos looked around as he adjusted his eyes to the summit of the mountain and saw the thundering clouds circle it, "Wow some sight," He said. Vernos didn't really like battling but with the way the world is today he understood why it was good to battle sometimes. Mainly for defense, however, dueling someone will help him explore his fighting style more. Help him search for an outfit that fits him perfectly. Not to small, not to big, not to tight, not too loose. Something just right.

ARE YOU PLANNING ON USING OUR NEW ARSENAL TODAY? Bonju would say awaking from his eternal nap.
"Of course I am. What better way train them than going up against someone and seeing how affective they actually are?"
YOU HAVE A POINT MY BOY. VERY WELL THEN. TELL ME WHEN THE BATTLE HAS BEGUN. Bonju would then eternally snore as Vernos' anxiousness almost got the best of him.

Simulation.. It's a simulation.. Remember it's a simulation. Catharsis repeated to himself; he wasn't much a man of violence, and certainly did not describe himself as a fighter in any respect. In truth, he sought to hone his skills merely due to the nature that things were becoming dangerous and conflict broke out around him at an unusual pace these days. So he entered the simulation, the 'duel station' as it was called.

He phased into being, at the base of a mountain he'd often read about in tomes both new and old-- only to find himself face-to-face with a familiar, leafy visage. Arnos?... Varnos?... No, Vernos.. There we go. He had seen this Vanutei's core form before, in a lovely little town. This was going about as well as Cath expected already....

"Ah. A pleasure to see you again, Vernos. Have you thought on my prior words to you? Oh.. Pardon me," he gave a courteous bow. "I tend to prefer talking to... This." A chuckle, but then gripping Ven do Volum -a book with covers so black it was like it ate the light that touched it- his voice echoed softly with the ancient words. "Vokun Miin."

The words clouded his eyes from a pallid white to a dark as black as pitch. With the storm dulling the environment's light, the hidden sun did not bother his new eyes and he waited for Vernos to begin, switching to another old tome diametric to the midnight book he held before; it was a pure and untainted white that almost radiated its own aura.

"When you are ready, friend," he kept his cool, calculating with his colorless, black eyes examining every detail.

Unfortunate that I'm about to be virtually torn apart... A cruel truth, but he was no fighter, just a thinker... That only got you so far.

Vernos awaited for his challenger to come and within minutes after he had gotten himself settled in the duel station a familiar voice with a familiar face called out to Vernos's attention. "Oh you're uhm...Catharsis!" Vernos had said shocked yet pleased to see him in the duel station. "Such a small world," Vernos chuckled for a brief moment when Catharsis had asked him i he had thought about their previous conversation. Certain memories of that day flashed in and out of Vernos's head as he remembered a few moves Catharsis had used against the Corleik by the name of Akane. What a strange day.

Vernos had bowed slightly after Catharsis had, "May we have a good fight. Kilal watch over us," Vernos smiled as he noticed Catharsis using the first move. The once sunny terrain was now dark and clouded. "Altamones handy work in the making,"
BE CAREFUL VERNOS. WE DON'T WANT THIS TO TURN OUT LIKE THE LAST ALTAMONE YOU FOUGHT.
I-I know

Vernos stuck his fingers out in Catharsis' direction and a frenzy of poison needles fired out in hopes to aim at him. Vernos wasn't battle savvy but if there was one thing he did know it was attacking your opponent right of the bat and seeing how they react will teach you more about them and how the course of the battle might be. Vernos slightly ran back to create some slight distance between him and Catharsis his he was being hesitant with this match.

Needles? It wasn't too surprising for an opponent to begin combat with aggression, but the choice of assault was interesting. Catharsis wore a fairly thick robe, but it wasn't meant to truly protect him from assault so much as hide his form, and this it did very well as his mind reacted quickly to the needles, and his body had a bit of speed to follow. He danced to the side of the needles, many of them catching against his cloak as it trailed behind him, making it unclear that he'd navigated away from them all, and hid the exact motions of his body. It was still a bare miss, however.

With the bright tome still in hand, he uttered more old notes, "Kun Rith," they syllables seemed to jump straight from the Altimone's lips to the space in front of Vernos, exploding into a bright flash of light. Often until an opponent got used to the words, the attack would catch them by surprise, leaving them blinded and maybe slightly disoriented much like a flash-bang.

Catharsis immediately would drop the white tome, letting it fall to his belt on the unusually quiet chain attached to the binding. He held the dark spell book once more, attempting to quietly rush around to Vernos' left flank. Subterfuge and agility were strong suits of Cath's, as such his steps, even rushed, were fairly difficult for average hearing to pick up after the near flash-bang effect.

Abilities in use:

Vernos readied his next move should Catharsis dodge his attack. Vernos wasn't the most lucky person when it came to sparring but over time he has been training himself to at least hold his own in a fight without the assistance of Bonju. He himself knew that he couldn't always rely on Bonju in a fight because even he gets tired. Vernos had to play this all carefully which is why he trained himself more with defense yet steadily teaching himself about the ways of offense. When Catharsis dodged his move Vernos wasn't entirely surprised however he wasn't expecting to be blinded by light in return, it startled him.

"Agh!" He said shielding his eyes. Vernos clenched his fist still blinded by the light as he summoned leafs to shield his physical body from any blow he should receive from Catharsis. Leaves scattered around vernos before quickly attaching to him covering his body in a rather thick/dense coat.
WELL THAT WAS UNEXPECTED, Bonju had said slightly amused with the way the battle was turning out, IF YOU NEED ME VERNOS, YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO.
"No not yet Bonju. Have faith in me," vernos struggled with the words as the light that had blinded him put pain in his eyes.

Abilities Used:

His ruse had worked, it seemed, but his opponent formed a protective barrier. Leaves? Typical of a Vanutei, but still formidable. Curious, though; where is his core form? He would have to consider this later, as he had to take advantage of his opponent's very temporary blindness.

The dark tome in hand, Cath began to chant ancient lines-- a poem perhaps? With his voice resonating, a blade formed from the shadow that trailed behind him, slashing thrice at Vernos from the side. The shield of flora would help defend Vernos from the edge, but despite being formed of darkness the weapon was solid as any steel sword.

After the strikes, Cath shifted close to his opponent's back, staying, watching, not attacking. He simply observed, chanting under his breath and preparing himself to dodge the next assault.

Abilities in use:

Vernos felt slightly more safe with the shield around him but he knew an attack was coming. Due to the blindness of the move Catharsis had used; his paranoia was rising. He felt the force of a blade against his being hit him once. twice. and once more. Thankfully the leaves from from his armor protected him from the majority of the blows force. Thankfully the blindness had subsided and vernos could properly see again. Still covered in his earthy outfit he quickly took one of the leaves and performed a tune that was music to a Vanutei's ears but would put anyone else in a deep sleep should it work. Padilla's Lullaby was the name of this move and would render a flow tired or at least drowsy for a certain amount of time.

I SEE WHAT YOU ARE ABOUT TO DO HERE MY BOY. INTERESTING TECHNIQUE.

Abilities Used:

His blade did not bite deep, and Vernos' armor held firm. I'll have to focus on condensing the blade more to cut cleanly, he pondered for later, keeping note. But now it seemed the man he now stood behind had taken up one of the leaves and began... Playing a tune? Sound magics? Perhaps, but Cath reacted quick, ordering the blade to slash deeply once at the Vanutei's back-- as Catharsis had been standing almost directly behind him.

The slash, whether it would sink in or not, would interrupt the melody too late as the shadow caster felt a heaviness in his eyelids. "Damn..." He muttered as he stumbled back, his shadow dissipating from its blade form. He had to act quickly to keep his opponent from knowing that their enchantment had worked.

Still holding the shadowy volume, Cath whispered out, "Gevul." The single word spilled out as darkness from his mouth, quickly filling the area between the two fighters and around them, making everything so dark it was black. No light entered or left the haze of darkness. While Vernos would be unable to see, Cath still had the spell upon his eyes to pierce darkness with his sight; yet he wouldn't be attacking.

Though unknown to Vernos, the shroud was about 24-meters across and a distraction so Cath could deal with the drowsiness. He stumbled quietly away from the Vanutei and lowered himself to the ground and... Dozed off in the shroud of darkness... It would only be for a moment or so, just enough to fend off more debilitating tiredness. So there the two were, both now stuck in a large cloud of darkness, Cath in a nearly meditative state. Your move... I shall rest.

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As everything around Vernos grew dark and black he knew that it wasn't him that was blind he half thought this was another diversion just like the flash of light. Another slash would hit his back but luckily the shields defense helped cushion most of the blow, still though the sword itself left a sticking sensation on his back side.. Vernos stumbled forward not fully aware if the lullaby had worked but not wanting to miss a bit he conjured a large amount of aura into his core while clenching his hands together. A large mossy blob formed and Vernos set it on the ground while stepping back several feet. This was a move that would create a large poison gas cloud. Vanutei's are immune to their own poison but vernos stepped back because he didn't want the force of the explosion to knock him down. After waiting several seconds the aura in the moss blob would disperse creating a large poisonous gas cloud covering everything in the surrounding area.

"Going up against an Altamone again...brings back memories,"

Abilities Used:

Just as the meditation cleared Catharsis' mind of fatigue, he felt the spread of poison in his deeply breathing lungs. Great... One vice for another.. The toxin grasped his lungs, making his muscles sluggish and stunting his energy. He could deal with this, but speed was his greatest defense aside from deception. Summation: bad. He'd have to compensate for this, but in the mean time he'd need to conserve his already thin stamina. He stood to his feet with the grace of a normal person-- which was clumsy for the usually agile Altimone.

His dark shroud remained, fortunately, but it would dissipate fairly soon. He'd have to take advantage of the moment while he could. His footwork was sloppy, and left soft claps against the ground as he dashed towards his foe, eyes guiding him through the dark and mouth uttering the old poems that would solidify his shadow into a dense edge. Once upon Vernos, Cath would slash twice with said blade in a crossed 'X' at his center mass, trying to keep close as the Vanutei seemed to favor ranged combat... And Cath's speed was still considerable at a sluggish pace to the normal man.

For now, though close to Vernos, Cath quickly switched to the brighter tome, preparing himself for the defensive.

Abilities in use:

As the mountain began to rumble vernos began to stagger, "That felt real for a moment. Hard to keep my footing under this conditions, gotta play it all safe in this moment," Vernos took note of the situation knowing that Catharsis would be awake soon. He hoped the poison had gotten to him. FISHING IN THE DARK HMMMM, It was clear to Vernos that Bonju was slightly worried about Vernos not being able to see. I might need your assistance here Bonju, Vernos quietly listened to his surroundings unsure which direction Cath might attack him in. Vernos was keeping his distance at first but but now he knew he might need Bonju's help.

Vernos heard Catharsis' footsteps. He knew he was coming for him by the sound of the steps, he just didn't know where is was coming from. Cath managed to hit Vernos once before vernos just barely dodged the second slash; barely as in it was a full hit but did manage to strike his arm. Now wounded vernos knew he would need Bonju's assistance with the rest of the match.

Alright...you're up. Vernos clutched his body as dust swirled around him creating a purple eerie light. Erupting from the light Bonju would awaken.
AHAHAHA NOW ITS MY TURN! cupping his hands together Bonju looked at those he was holding a large vase. his body radiated a golden light as it coated every ounce of his skin.
LET US SEE HOW GOOD YOU REALLY ARE MY FRIEND CATHARSIS. THE BATTLE HAS JUST BEGUN!

Abilities Used:

The darkness was clearing, and Cath had hit well on his strikes, but could only stand and watch as Vernos took on the form of Bonju, his core spirit. Cath quickly calculated in his mind, but the ground began jarring, taking his already weakened limbs and shaking them of any strength remaining...

"Hmm... How unfortunate..." The results of this battle were already crystal clear to Cath, at least from a survivor's standpoint. All that really remained was the choice: does he treat this as a true battle and cut his loss, or accept that it's a simulation and see how far he can go? Something inside Cath stirred... A spirit for battle? Strange.... You've never felt a desire to fight before. What about this is different? He was going to try for it, stumbling and weak he'd try for it.

The only advantage was that however slow he was now, his opponent would be the same. Plus the shaking hid most noises. He had a plan, all he had to do was buy enough time until he could get close to the unguarded Vernos again... But how?

Cath switched to the tome of light just as the dark shroud was fading away. This time the ancient word came as a whisper in the dark, "Kun Mutahl."

The Altimone's outline disappeared, colors faded and blended with the light around them as the rays were bent ever so slightly to distort Cath's outline and shape. A similar but far more effective idea as camouflage. He kept his footing -barely- as he slipped out from the corner of his dispersing veil of darkness, creeping to a soft nook in the ground nearby, keeping low then laying down, perfectly still aside from the tremors coming through the ground. The storm above and the shaking environment would make Cath difficult to find. Waiting out the core form was a bit underhanded, but it was the smart thing to do: despite the Altimone's power, he'd never mastered a spell that'd do enough damage to pierce the rocky armor of a Core Spirit. He'd be damn sure to change that at his earliest opportunity.

[Sorry for Cath trying to wait out the core form, normally he'd just surrender at this point, but I figured he'd try and take the fight to its end. We could call it a draw/my loss if you don't want to deal with Catharsis being all stealthy and boring...]

Abilities in use:

Now we are really in a predicament here aren't we Bonju, Vernos said as the Mountain's rumbling subsided. It appeared as though Catharsis was playing the out-of-sight card which was a smart move on his part. Bonju would have to play his next few moves very carefully because core form didn't last all to long. However on his part the move Gaia's refuge had subsided as well giving him its final ounce of healing. Not fully knowing what to do when you can't see your enemy was slightly bad but Bonju tried his hardest to make due with the situation he was in.

LET US SEE HERE, Bonju picked up one foot and slammed it on the ground. The force from the move caused the field to shake and rumble creating large cracks in the ground as well as shifting all movement for a brief moment in time. This move would allow Bonju to move during it freely but stagger the foe's movement as well as lowering their stamina. It was known as Terra's madness a moved not favorably used by Bonju. However if things go how he expects them to then he knew what move had to be used next.

Abilities Used:

The ground shook yet again, this time crags split the ground and while Cath was fairly well braced -laying on the ground and such- a crag split open beneath him, his arm slipping in. He let it, keeping it in the crack and continuing to lay still, his form still blurred into the terrain. He watched his opposition with curiosity, wondering how he would approach an unseen opponent next. So far he's used wide areas, but not as assault. To try and move me, perhaps? Curious

Catharsis waited patiently, watching. Breath low and even, body still as a blades edge-- minus the shakes and tremors of the ground that rattled everything. Covert tactics was his strong suit, waiving his silver tongue and charming personality. The wait had begun.

Abilities in use:

I WAS HOPING I WOULDN'T HAVE TO USE THIS BUT I GUESS NOW IS A BETTER TIME THAN EVER. Bonju placed his hands on the ground in front of him and transferred his energy into the surrounding earth beneath him. Once that happened Bonju himself turned into a starry purple aura that would then vanish instantly. Seconds later rocks erupted from the surrounding area turning into five, six foot tall rock beings with patches of moss and flowers scattered throughout their body. When the beings were completed their body would radiate a purple aura and they would line up as if preparing to fight on the front lines.

Well this is new, vernos would say as the beings awaited for Bonju's mental orders.
I AM GOING TO BE A LITTLE RECKLESS HERE FOR A MOMENT VERNOS SO FORGIVE ME, the beings began to thrash about the surrounding area in which Terra's madness could stretch. Bonju half way knew what the Altamone was doing, but wasn't entirely so certain. Hopefully this move would prove his hypothesis.

abilities used:

The core spirit dispersed, making golems to search in his stead. Smart... One of the constructs was even moving directly towards Catharsis, wildly thrashing about wildly. This isn't good. Or was it? An opportunity, perhaps? If the construct could not find him, then Bonju would be less wise as to Cath's tactics.

Perhaps... It was a bold move, but perhaps his best. Just as the rock creature was almost upon Cath, he took advantage of the wild thrashing's tossing of dirt and dust, using it as cover he slipped into the crag that opened beneath his arm for safety. It was a tight fit, too tight even but it was better than being trampled and Cath could squeeze his lithe frame in well enough.

The rock creature stepped almost directly on the crag, condensing the ground and causing the walls to crush in on the already squeezed Altimone in the crag. He barely kept himself quiet as he felt his rib-cage collapse and all the air leave his lungs, but he managed; he was more worried about the crushed ribs he could feel in his chest-- at least the effects of the poison was wearing off; he could breath now.

Hopefully his ruse had worked; the dust would have aided his camouflage well, and once it settled it'd cover the crag, likely further hiding his form. He just had to bear through the pain and hold off the instinct to heal until it was safer. What's next, Bonju?

Abilities in use:

The golems scanned the surveying are as the dust cleared. The all were looking in a direction opposite each other, quietly waiting for Catharsis to show himself.

What is it that you might be doing Bonju?
JUST WAIT MY BOY. IT APPEARS OUR FRIEND HERE IS RATHER SMART. LYING IN WAIT AS A STRATEGY NOT JUST FOR HIDING...

It was clear Bonju was on to something, but still leaving Vernos out of the loop as to what it was he had in mind. The golems still remained motionless, staring, lying in wait something...anything to happen. Sounds could be heard as Terra's madness was ending. The cracks in the ground began to slowly close themselves up one by one 'healing' the battle field in a way. Nonetheless this was truly an interesting fight. Seeing how far both races can go before one gives out.

If I need you again..I might have to use a Maku nut.
DON'T BE FOOLISH. YOU WILL BE EXTREMELY FATIGUED AT IF YOU REVERT BACK TO YOUR NORMAL FORM
I just don't want to feel weak anymore Bonju...I want to be a leader...but how can I if I don't fight till the very end?
EVEN LEADERS KNOW WHEN THEY HAVE MET THEIR MATCH. DON'T BE FOOLISH. BUT IF YOU DO USE THE NUT, I WON'T HOLD ANYTHING AGAINST YOU.

abilities used:

The rock creations were still searching: it seemed the Altimone's stealth had evened the playing field just a little. The ground had stopped shaking and he was feeling well aside from a few cracked ribs. But there was an issue; the ground was beginning to stitch itself up. He had trouble seeing it, but he could hear the odd sound of the crags closing-- he had to get out.

He was stuck in quite tightly, but he managed to get a hand to his belt, grabbing the blurred outline that was his tome of darkness. He whispered the poetry of ancient shadows as quietly as he could, unaware of how attentive these rock beings were. The blade formed beneath him in the crag, and twisted to help him gently lever himself out as the small ravine began to close. He almost lost his composure as he felt his hand lag just a second behind him, getting caught in the earth-- crushed with certainty.

He gritted his teeth, holding back the yell of pain, even biting down hard on the old tome of shadow to the point his teeth almost shattered on the leather binding. He was from the Badlands, so he was no stranger to pain. He'd played dead once as a predator chewed away at his leg, losing interest in the assumed corpse; surely he could grit through this pain. He focused his energy on pulling his crushed hand from the ground, working it out after a moment and a grunt of pain...

He grunted, it wasn't very loud, but he'd let pain slip. He only hoped the lumbering behemoths wouldn't hear it past their own massive, stone footsteps, but he quickly worked up a plan to get himself out of another tight spot, gripping tightly to the dark tome with his good hand.

Abilities in use:

As the stone creatures stayed motionless they lay in wait for any sign of Catharsis. That was when a faint grunt could be heard but its location was slightly unclear. One golem thrashed about in the area it claimed to have heard the noise in. The others stayed in their 'dead' like state and kept on their toes waiting for something, anything to happen.

HE IS INVISIBLE OR AT LEAST CAMOUFLAGED AS I HAD THOUGHT. IT'S GOING TO BE DIFFICULT FINDING HIM BUT IT LOOKS LIKE ONE OF MY CREATURES IS ON TO SOMETHING.

The rock golem proceeded closer to Catharsis location as it abruptly stopped its thrashing per Bonju's mental request. The silence that blanketed the battle field was tense, harsh, and thick. If a pin dropped it would sound like a gunshot.

I don't know where he has gone Bonju
NEITHER DO I. THIS MAN...WE MUST HAVE HIM ON OUR TEAM. ALSO SIDE NOTE HERE. ONCE THIS MOVE IS OVER BE WARNED THAT CORE FORM IS ALSO OVER. IM SURE YOU ARE ABLE TO USE ALL YOUR ORIGINAL MOVES AGAIN.

Abilities used:

The battlefield fell silent, the only movement now was the rock creature closest to Catharsis, searching for him with intent; it seemed to have heard his pained grunt, and was now searching through Cath's general location. The Altimone would have to act quickly, and mostly he'd have to think. What am I missing here?.. He looked back over the creations. They seemed to move in unison or not at all, with focus now being on only the one near him... And Bonju himself was nowhere to be seen...

It suddenly clicked in his observant mind; it seemed these constructs were controlled by a single will: Bonju himself. Perhaps he had split into five parts, or more likely the core spirit sacrificed it's physical form to temporarily control some lesser bodies... So they're controlled by one will, and Bonju is focusing his senses on this one. The rock creation was close now, slowly feeling and looking about to find the hidden mage.

It nearly would, but Cath had a gambit, a bet based on his observations. He spoke softly, voice wrought with power as he already held the tome of light in hand. "Kun Rith." The words threw themselves in the nearest construct's face, where the words stopped and became light flashing brightly as the sun. He hoped the creatures all merely channeled Bonju's senses, lest Cath only blind the one golem rather than all.

Either way, he stood up with his blurry form, dashing to behind where he'd believed Bonju had initially dispersed. With his dexterity back -poison long since wearing thin- his bounds were once again graceful, nigh catlike. He made the footsteps loud at first, going at an odd angle away from his intended destination in attempt to throw off the hopefully blind pursuers before quieting his pace and steps. Once behind where Bonju had disappeared from, he laid in wait, crouched close to the ground, light tome still in hand. I'm running out of time, how long does this Core Spirit remain out, anyways?

Abilities in use:

As everything seemed to string out as long as it possibly could Bonju began to grow slightly restless, however as flash bang could be seen penetrating the vision of the golem near catharsis. That golem was out for the count but the other were unaffected by the Flash Bang.

AAAGGGHHH, THAT WAS BRIGHT Bonju would say as the other golems caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a faded version of Catharsis. Although he could barely be seen the slight distortion in the air could have possibly been him. All the not petrified golems ran in the direction in hopes of pursuing Catharsis with little time left on their clocks. They all thrashed about to wear the foot steps could be heard and proceeded in that direction all in sync with one another but it seemed as if hey were playing a game of who could get to him first. The thrashing continued as Bonju prepared vernos to revert back to Plant form.

Abilities Used:

This ruse had failed, and Cath finally calculated wrong; and the golems now thrashed about with fair awareness of his location. They were a bit thrown off by his re herring, but he'd been running near full pace-- albeit quietly.

Out of cards -or perhaps simply satisfied with how far he'd already come- and knowing his spell that hid him was near it's end, he raised his hands. His outline faded back into normality, body taking from from the blur that he was. He gave his hands a good shake in the air to make the motion clear. He had no idea how much longer these forms and abilities would go on, and thus it was time to move on. Plus something itched about the whole situation, like if he continued a bad omen would come to fruition.

"My apologies, but I fear it's come time for me to acknowledge defeat, my friend. A fight is not my usual setting, and I'm already surprised at the lengths I have already gone." He hadn't used every trick he had, but his intuitive mind knew all he really had available to him was more delaying, buying more time for what? He didn't have a haymaker or a coup de gras, just a half-dozen tricks and a sword-- which while Vernos had been cut by such, Cath was unusually proud of the fact that he never actually revealed his primary weapon to his opponent.

"To clarify, I'm forfeiting the match to you, sir. I fear I haven't much fight left in me."

The battle had gone on as long as it possibly could. Once the golems saw catharsis they charged at him full throttle. Just a foot away from crashing into Catharsis he had said he was forfeiting and the golems immediately crumbled down to basic rocks. A large dust cloud swirled around the golem remains and emitted a starry purple light before quickly dispersing revealing a panting Vernos. Vernos took a deep breath while walking to Catharsis, hand held out yet again to give him a warm handshake.
 

“That was so amazing!” Vernos would say excitement feeling his words, “You have to join my journey! You would be such a great asset to the team. Bonju would agree with you but he is sleeping for the moment. Your moves are flawless, never felt backed in a corner like that before,” Vernos bowed to Catharsis, “Thank you so much for the battle friend.”

With his forfeit, the rushing onslaught of golems crumbled to mere rocks and pebbles tumbling to Cath's feet. Soon after, Vernos appeared from the iconic dust cloud of his with hand extended. The Altimone took it with a firm shake.

The offer took him off guard, so he approached the statements in reverse, "No, thank you; that was my first duel, and I've learned a great deal about how to improve myself as a fighter."

He returned the bow quickly, pondering the offer he was given. Having heard a little from this Vanutei, and some snooping around revealed little information to Catharsis about the man's mission. Perhaps it was best to ask the Vanutei himself.

"You've mentioned this journey, may I ask what exactly it entails?" Even if Catharsis were actually the benevolent, saintlike healer he pretended to be, one of any intelligence would investigate such a cause before joining it blindly.

Vernos trusted his confidence and wouldn't leave until Catharsis joined him on the journey. A huge smile grew across Vernos's face when Catharsis asked just the right question he wanted to here, "I know where David Padilla is...!" Vernos said feeling proud of his words, "I have done my fair share of studying and have figured out that the large Laikaido ocean waterfall is not the end of the earth, because there is life beneath it! and where there is life I am sure padilla is there. He didn't vanish during the burst of light, he just left us to defend ourselves because of how badly he was treated," Vernos took a deep breath trying to spew out all information he could so that Catharsis would see that he meant business. Vernos always made sure to back up his evidence with facts both bold and dull. 

"David Padilla is a man who I believe has all of our powers but the pure form of them all. Which explains why he must be alive today after all these years. He has to be immortal, and given how this world is today immortality should not be hard to believe, I mean look at Exatiaz or even the secretive race of Czigus." Vernos steadied his words waiting for Catharsis's response, but before he could vernos added, "Think about it a man with the pure form of all our abilities who left us to kill ourselves out of rage. If we encounter him a fight will be following immediately after and I will be honest whether you decline my off or choose to go with me I am going to find him either way," Vernos was very passionate about his mission.