Argh, dammit, Gl1tch, why did you take my weapon away?!
No matter, I will retrieve it. The Excalibur is forged from the very soul of Sol Invictus, so it's impossible to hide the weapon from him. Jonathan will know where his weapon is hidden, but he has to get there first, and I imagine it's not going to be easy. Nevertheless, Jonathan can fight well enough with his bare hands, and he can conjure up light-swords without the Excalibur.
Also, that interdimensional prison thing isn't going to stop Jonathan from contacting Luna. The Sun and Moon had been with each other literally since the beginning of Time, and their connection with each other transcends time and space. This isn't exactly godmodding, is it? It doesn't even affect other players. I just need a way to get Luna into the story.
Editing.
The moment the Sphinx's body was crushed under Jonathan's attack, many things happened at once. Nanuuk, taking advantage of the beast's injuries, ensured its demise by casting an ice spell so that the wounds would not heal. Then, empowered by Elbereth, Arcterael proceeded to finish off the Sphinx with a comet of blinding white light. At the same time, the man in the labcoat frantically shouted something; the answer to the Sphinx's puzzle, perhaps? Then, at the moment of its demise, the Sphinx imploded, as if a black hole had been formed in its center; the room started to collapse in on itself, being sucked into the singularity. The dying Sphinx spoke something, and...
Blank.
It was just like before, when Jonathan was initially summoned to this dark, twisted place. For a moment he was levitating in mid-air, and the next moment all of his senses had gone blank. Sight, sound, taste... All gone. But strangely, Jonathan felt another kind of emptiness within himself; it was as though a part of his soul had been taken away.
No... Jonathan thought, horror filling his mind.
My Excalibur is gone!A split second later, the blankness receded, and Jonathan could feel again. He was standing on sand. All around him, Jonathan could see sand. Was he transported to a desert? But he could not feel the scorching heat of the desert sun. In fact, he could not feel the Sun at all. Which was strange, considering that Jonathan himself was once the Sun God. Looking at his hand, Jonathan confirmed his earlier feeling of dread. He was no longer holding the Excalibur. And he also reverted to his human form, his white wings gone.
Looking around him, Jonathan could see his companions, Arcterael and Nanuuk, looking about as confused as he was. But there were also other people, including the orange-skinned troll and the large bald man in a labcoat. The troll was talking to a strange, red creature made of fire and lava. There was also a young girl, around sixteen years old, with long blond hair in a ponytail and lime-green, strangely liquid-looking eyes.
And then, there was this tall and slender young man, with a calm and collected demeanor. Something about him told Jonathan that he, unlike the others, was not a victim of this strange and devious plot. "You dealt with our monsters well," the man said. "In fact, that pretty little sword of yours was quite impressive." Normally, Jonathan would have thanked him for this compliment, but now he wasn't sure if he should be blasting this stranger to pieces when he said "our monsters".
That man's next sentence made Jonathan grind his teeth in anger. "So you've all been disarmed. In your case, Mr. Bob, that means your hound isn't with you."
How dare he! Jonathan seethed mentally.
The Excalibur is a part of my soul! How dare he take it away! Jonathan silently prepared a spell that would send the man into oblivion, but stopped when he heard his next sentence. "In fact, all of your weapons are hidden somewhere in here," the man gestured to what resembled a large pyramid behind him. The structure was massive, made of macabre black granite.
Again, Jonathan almost laughed.
As if they can hide a part of my soul from me, he thought. Clearly, he could feel the presence of the Excalibur, calling him from somewhere inside the obsidian pyramid. He had felt this call ever since he was born, up until that fateful day in the Temple of Solaris when his blade was reclaimed by its rightful owner. He knew where his weapon was hidden, and all he needed to do was to find it. But the lack of weaponry was not going to hinder Jonathan even slightly, because he was a man who could conjure swords made of pure Light with his very thoughts.
"Also, there's a bomb in here, going to detonate soon," the strange man continued. "I suppose you could avoid exploding by killing each other, but that would mean you wouldn't get your collateral. And then there's the ever looming question of how quickly you can find what we've taken."
A bomb, Jonathan thought.
Great. He knew perfectly well where his weapon was, but he was not so sure about the bomb. And considering what their enemies had already thrown at them, Jonathan had a feeling that this bomb would be a whole lot less pleasant that the ones he dealt with before.
"Anyway, to make things fair, we've moved this round to somewhere entertaining," the man said; Jonathan was already getting tired of hearing his voice. "This parallel universe is more like an inter-spatial museum. There is no life here. No heaven. And no spirits."
They want to stop Arcterael from contacting Heaven, Jonathan mused. But no dimensional prison could stop Jonathan from contacting his lover, Luna. Since the beginning of Time itself, the Sun and the Moon had always had an innate, primordial connection that transcended space and time; the only way to sever that connection was to destroy the Sun or the Moon, which was all but impossible.
I really need to talk to Luna, Jonathan thought.
From the outside, she might have a chance of figuring out where I am right now."As per usual, kill one of your comrades to continue," the man droned on. "And
please, don't try sneaking up behind me and strangling me." Jonathan had a strong urge to slam a ball of solid light into that man's face, just to wipe off that annoying smug look; but before he could do it, the man vanished into thin air.
Nanuuk, who was silent the entire time, suddenly exploded into icy-hot fury. "Come back here so I eviscerate you and then strangle you with your viscera!" He screeched. Then he looked around at the four strangers. "Who are you guys?"
After a brief introduction, Jonathan now knew the names of the four strangers. The orange-skinned troll was called Angus Thermopyle, and the bald man in a labcoat was nicknamed Big Bob; the green-eyed girl was named Abigail Fintz but preferred to be called Abe, and the fiery creature was called Grydit. It seemed that they had all been mysteriously abducted, just like Jonathan himself, and thrown into some sort of supernatural gladiator ring. Big Bob seemed trustworthy enough, and Angus did not seem like the sort of coward who would kill someone just to get out of this; however, Jonathan was not quite sure if he could trust Abigail and Grydit.
Nonetheless, they needed to work together if they wanted to find their weapons, and the bomb, in time. "I know where our weapons are," Jonathan said, pointing to the colossal obsidian pyramid. "They're somewhere in there."
"Well, ain't that a surprise," grumbled Angus. "Wasn't that what the guy said before he left, that our weapons are in there?"
Jonathan
tsked mentally; that troll sure wasn't the politest being in the world. "I mean, I know
exactly where our weapons are," he said. "I can lead you guys to them if you wish."
"Well then, my friend," said Big Bob, "lead the way."
"I will," Jonathan replied, "but you'll need to wait for a few moments. I know someone that might be able to help us, and I want to try to contact her right now."
"Dude, there is a freakin' bomb inside the pyramid that's gonna blow if we don't do somethin' about it!" Angus shouted. "We ain't got all the time in the world!"
"I would have to agree," said Arcterael. "Our abductor had stated that this dimension is sealed off from the rest of the universe, and unfortunately I'm afraid that he is right. I have attempted to contact the Council again while he was speaking, and suffice to say that my attempt was not successful."
"I will try nonetheless," Jonathan said. "I have been trapped in interdimensional prisons like this one before, and I have never even once failed to contact this person."
"Well, if you're stayin' here trying to find your girlfriend, I'm goin'," mumbled Angus. "I'm gonna find that bomb before it blows." He then left, and Big Bob, Abigail and Grydit followed him. Only Nanuuk and Arcterael stayed behind.
"Who is this person you are trying to contact?" Arcterael asked.
"Luna, the Moon Goddess," Jonathan smiled.
* * *
The princess sat in her chair, her slender fingers idly strumming the strings of her harp. A hint of unease was in Jennifer Lunaria's blue eyes, and she was feeling unnaturally tense. She was having a bad feeling, that something might have happened to Jonathan; if she could trust her past experiences, this sort of feminine instinct was usually right. Jennifer wanted to reach out with her mind, to see if the man she loved was safe and sound; but she was afraid that Jonathan might be in some sort of battle right now, and her contacting him would only distract him from his enemies.
Suddenly, she felt a familiar touch on her mind. Warm and bright, like the light of the Sun. She sat up abruptly, almost squealing in delight and relief; it seemed that Jonathan was safe after all, at least for the moment. She smiled as the royal bedchamber around her dissolved, as her consciousness was transported to a plane of existence that transcended even the Astral Plane. "
Hey there," Jennifer smiled brightly.
"
Luna," Jonathan also smiled. In this plane of existence that transcended physicality, they could take the form of whatever they wanted themselves to be. It was only in this plane that Jonathan was able to regain his original Godly form: a young man, dressed in a golden robe that seemed to be melting into light, with shining golden wings of pure energy, and a golden sun-like halo behind him. His hair and eyes were also glowing, emanating light like the Sun. The Excalibur, in its true form, Solstice, was buckled to his waist.
"
You've got to stop calling me that, John," Jennifer laughed, a soft, musical sound that resembled silver bells. "
My name is Jennifer Lunaria now. Her Majesty will think poorly of you when you call me by a name that she doesn't recognize." She was clad in a resplendent blue dress, seemingly melting into soft moonlight just like Jonathan's robe; three pairs of faerie-like wings, made of a shimmering, ethereal blue light, flapped gently behind her back. Her hair was like a liquid black waterfall, and her blue eyes shone with the soft luminance and purity of the Moon itself; an elegant, crescent-shaped bow, crafted from a mysterious blue crystalline material, hung from her back. Twining her arms around his neck gently, Jennifer pressed her lips against Jonathan's in a deep kiss. "
Where are you right now?" She asked after releasing him.
"
That's what I'm trying to find out," Jonathan laughed. "
I'm inside some sort of dimensional prison, I think. Good thing I can still talk to you."
"
Dimensional prison?" Jennifer gasped. "
What happened?!" She hugged him close, not wanting him to be hurt.
"
Don't worry, Jenny," Jonathan put his arms around his lover, and whispered. "
I'm quite safe. Right now, I have a Greater Archangel and a Marid in my company, and both of them are perfectly capable of defending themselves."
"
A Greater Archangel? And a Marid?" Jennifer's eyes widened. "
Really, what happened since the last time I saw you?"
"
It's quite... complicated," Jonathan said. And he proceeded to tell Jennifer all that happened since he was mysteriously abducted and transported to that unknown dimension.
