Story Summary: Difference between revisions

[[Denif]] informs them that the Dark El that [[Hennon]] had used was no longer a viable means to getting to the Demon Realm. Seeking another means, they brainstorm several ideas, namely the use of the Henir Portal in [[Debrian Laboratory]], but ran into dead ends without the Demon Realm's exact coordinates. They realized that the El was the key for interdimensional travel, or specifically disrupting said travel. [[Ara]] remembers seeing something below the Large El when she had fallen down one time. Looking below, they find an ancient seal, so ancient it may have been placed by the goddess herself. [[Denif]] refuses to break the seal, but decides they could pry it open temporarily just long enough to let the El Search Party through.

Inside the seal, they find themselves in a subspace of Henir between the material and Demon Realm. Trying to go through the labyrinth, [[Elsword]] begins to have visions, visions that his friends would be wiped out by a large school of Chaos Leviathans. However, the group manage to get through without considerable issue. Making it out other side, they emerge from a place known as the Cave of Death by the local Dark Elves. Wandering through the forest, [[Rena]] spots a Dark Elf, she tries to talk with her in an Ancient Elven tongue, however the Dark Elf immediately becomes suspicious of the group and call for reinforcements for their capture. In their escape, they run into the Red Guardian, Forginay and defeat the guardian. In that moment, [[Chloe]] appears struck by what they had just done. [[Elesis]] suspects something is off when she notices that Chloe is without any troops, Chloe admits that she has long since left the demon ranks but refuses to elaborate any further. She says she had business with the Dark Elf Village and was on her way there when she saw that the group attacking the Red Guardian. Explaining that it was a guardian that lived in a symbiotic relationship with the other creatures of the forest. Elsword tries to ask Chloe for aid, but she shuts him down before he could even get a word out, Elesis then tries to strike a deal, telling her that they both need each other to get through to the Dark Elf Village, Chloe reluctantly agrees to working with them.

Making their way through the forest, Chloe notices an abnormally high number of guards, likely due to the El Search Party attacking the Red Guardian. They are spotted, and the Dark Elves begin to fire at them. Chloe reveals that the Dark Elves see her as a traitor, but she still believes in one person who she can reason with. Making their way deep into the [[Dark Elves' Outpost|Dark Elf Outpost]], they face off against [[Sentinel Commander]] and prove victorious, when [[Rena]] was about to make the final shot, her arrow vanished into thin air. The Dark Elf Elder, [[Edith]], appeared before them and told Sentinel Commander to stand down and remain at a distance. She, [[Rena]], and [[Chloe]] begin to have a discussion. Edith asks and answers Rena's questions about how the Dark Elves came to be, as well as their quest in the Demon Realm. Chloe interjects Edith and brings to her pressing news that the Demon Army is likely planning to launch an attack on the Dark Elf Village since she had abandoned their ranks. Edith tells the El Search Party about the news Chloe had brought to them and suggests they meet up with their patron god, [[Nephilim Lord]], who had gone silent over the past month, both for their sake and as their best lead to learn of the Dark El. Edith prepares an envoys capable of speaking the Elrios dialect to go with the El Search Party and meet with the spirits.

When they all arrive to the [[Forsaken Spirit Asylum]], they find that the spirits had turned hostile. They manage to save a [[Tiny Spirit]] who tells them that out of nowhere his friends just begun to attack him. They all couldn't believe what they saw, as the Asylum which would normally be vibrant and full of life, was a barren burnt wasteland. The Tiny Spirit guides the group all the way to Nephilim Lord where the beast goes berserk. After defeating the berserk lord, he regains consciousness and the Dark Elves pleas him to help them. Nephilim Lord recalls the tower in the distance appearing in Varnimyr around 500 years ago, which only a few months ago started to emit an aura that burned the land and turned spirits berserk. With all the spirits' aura running through Nephilim Lord, he was the first to be corrupted. [[Elsword]] asks if he knew anything about the Dark El or [[Henir's Order]]. The lord does not recall seeing anybody like Henir's Order but speaks of many that had come seeking the Dark El. He doesn't yet trust the group to divulge any information. He instructs them to deal with the tower plaguing the sanctum first. The Dark Elves choose to stay behind and tend to the spirits while the Tiny Spirit chooses to guide the El Search Party to the tower.

Arriving at the Crimson Edge, the group make their trek towards the tower. The sky turns from blue to a foggy red and [[Elsword]] describes the aura as almost indistinguishable from that of [[Lanox]] and the Fire El. Out of the tower, a large meteor hurls down and crashes near them, they are alright but a four headed dragon golem spawns from the meteor. [[Aisha]] was shocked to see such a powerful beast, one which she described as only being able to be summoned by the combined efforts of a hundred magician. [[Eve]] told the group she did not sense any demonic energy coming from the creature, but suddenly the ground below them collapses. They find a lone scythe, the weapon suddenly begins moving on its own. After a battle where the scythe nearly sets the entire cavern ablaze, it zooms past the group. As it flew past Elsword, he heard [[Rosso]]'s voice, saying he doesn't need the strength to protect others, just to fulfill his purpose. They chase after the Scythe and wind up just beneath the tower. The stone golem appears once more and the group fight it on the exterior of the tower. In the battle, the beast damages the tower and once it was defeated, the group managed to break a hole and enter its depths.

Inside the tower, they are attacked by thorns, Elsword begins to hear the voice again, this time screaming in agony. He tells his friends about these voices, and they were wondering if somebody was trying to call out to him. Elsword however disagreed comparing these voices to someone's memories. [[Ain]] tells Elsword to listen to the voice carefully, since according to Nephilim, the tower didn't appear till 500 years ago and only begun acting up almost exactly when Elsword reunited the El, something he believed makes a convincing case that the tower is somehow connected to the El. They encounter the core, a Crimson Eye, they fight it off but it escapes through the cracks. The group follow it up to the cradle of the tower.

There, they find [[Rosso]] trapped at the center, they were unsure if he was a demon or not but Elsword felt confident he was the one who called out. A massive surge of demonic energy bursts through the room and a massive demonic form created from the volcanic rubble stood before them. Elsword begins to hear Rosso's voice one more, this time directly communicating with him. Elsword assures that he would save him and called out for who he was. Taking out the giant, the tower begins to collapse and the person trapped inside was freed from their prison. The Crimson Eye which had escaped the tower's depth inserts itself into Rosso and he gains an immense amount of power. His scythe flew into the collapsing chamber and into his hands. He continues to battle, as it goes on Elsword continues to plea and call out to the person. They all come crashing down on the shattered remnants of the tower. Rosso bursts from the rubble and absorbs all the demonic stones to create a dark armor shell as he continues to fight.

The El Search Party manage to defeat Rosso and the demonic stones fade away. Elsword tried to grab hold of him but his body is burning hot. [[Ventus]] arrives out of the blue, having just witness their battle and apologizes for arriving late. Elsword asks if he knew the person, Ventus confirming they were long time friends. Rosso barely able to speaks tells Ventus to shut up and help him. Elsword surprised to see him already awake asks if he is okay. Rosso briefly introduces himself. Beyond that, Rosso remained rather dismissive toward any questions he received. Ventus interjects, saying that he should take Rosso back to [[Elrianode]] where they can tend to his injuries. Before he left he gave Rena a Wind Stone to help them get back. Ventus jokes with Rosso to his dismay and then asks the El Search Party if they should return to Elrianode together. [[Ara]] however mentions that they've found a lead about the Dark El and they need to head somewhere else. The two begin to leave, but Rosso warns Elsword that the Master of Crimson Eyes is near. They group go back and meet up with the [[Tiny Spirit]] before immediately collapsing of exhaustion. After they rested, the Tiny Spirit tells them he got word from Nephilim Lord of a location nearby they may want to check.

The Tiny Spirit lead them to a large deposit of Mystic Stones. [[Eve]], [[Lu/Ciel|Lu, and Ciel]] all confirm that the stones gave off a similar aura to the Dark El Hennon had used, though faint. [[Ara]] reflects that she remembers seeing similar stones when she was a child visiting the capital city. Further down, they spot Shadow Demons with mining equipment, they try to sneak past them but are spotted. The group notice the soldiers didn't seem properly trained, likely just miners, but they are then greeted by [[Nero]] who introduces himself as [[Ran]]'s right-hand man. The group managed to corner Nero, in a last ditch effort, Nero exclaims that he sees a giant bat. The El Search Party still a bit out of it since their last battle all fall for his trick and Nero manages to strike and shatter the ground beneath them. They land and awaken the master of the vein, Dark Agate. After they defeat the gem monster, the [[Tiny Spirit]] thanks them, but a lone demon soldier tries to land a sneak attack. Caught off guard, the Tiny Spirit uses his powers and swiftly takes out the demon. He then reveals himself to be [[Stirbargen]], one of the four Demon Lords. He goes on to explain he too had his powers stripped away, before Eun, taking over [[Ara]]'s body, interjects. Eun lashes out in rage, planning to kill the demon, Stirbargen only laughs at their reactions. He offers to strike a deal with the group. [[Elsword]] asks what information he has, and if it was worth his life. Stirbargen says he knew the Demon Realm's exact coordinates, he then goes on to tell them that the Dark El has been an object of myth for a long time, with [[Barkat]] as the current leader of the Demon Army seeking it out. He reveals to them that the spirits in the Demon Realm are only able to vaguely sense the location of the Dark El, that even if they did ask Nephilim Lord, he'd still point them towards the mines due to it being the closest large scale deposit of them. He tells them that the Red Eye previously in Rosso's possession was his, though has since been drained of its power. The Demon Lord then strikes another bet with the group. He mentions to them that the Dealm Realm has been in political disarray for quite some time.

The group return to Nephilim Lord to see if he had any knowledge of the Dark El's location, the lord tells them exactly what Stirbargen had predicated. They group was left with no real lead, however decided to procure a Mystic Stone. They choose to return back to [[Elrianode]]. [[Elsword]] takes the time to confess to his friends about the visions he had when they first passed through the [[Labyrinth of Ruin]]. The group take caution to Elsword's vision. They decide they need to report to [[Denif]] about their findings.