A Roamer

Exploration

Azalo-G summons the Sanguine Odachi, beginning to roam across the earthly fields from Ring 7. Azalo-G noticed the strange energy in the air, attempting to remember everything Etho told him about Spiculum Terra. He suddenly remembered one specific thing: Ring 7 and above were incredibly unpredictable. He heard a soft rustle, turning to face the direction of its source. Nothing came out; it was all eerily silent. He knew something, or someone, was watching him, but he just couldn't exactly place his attention on it. With the whirl of the wind, Azalo-G slashes the air around him, tearing through the darkness and attempting to reveal the thing stalking him. A Silence suddenly lunges at Azalo-G, slamming him into a nearby pillar of rock. Azalo-G kicks the Silence off, grabbing its distorted face and slamming it into the floor. With one swing of his Odachi, the Silence was dead. Azalo-G quickly moved to leave Ring 7, deciding to travel towards the Singularity in search of food.
As Azalo-G travels, many small mites start following him, though they’re still the size of large house cats. He attempts to pick one of them up, and it suddenly shoots a strange crystal spine from its back. Azalo-G dodges just in time, conjuring the Shield of Mass to protect himself from these strange creatures. He continues to travel, constantly fending off the small mites, which become more of a slight pest than an actual threat. Azalo-G soon kills one of the mites, noticing that its back is covered with a strange crystal structure. He attempts to chip a crystal off, but the durability is far beyond what he can shatter. Azalo-G identifies this strange material as Terra Crystal, a key ingredient in Etho’s Terra metal technology. He pockets the crystals from the dead mites, knowing they might come in handy in the future.
Eventually, Azalo-G lands in Ring 6, deciding to head further towards the Singularity in search of food. After only a minute of searching, he finds this quite large and heavily armored thing. He has absolutely zero clue what this thing is, only assuming it's edible. Azalo-G rushes behind the creature, stabbing at it once with the Sanguine Odachi, the blade bouncing off its armor as the creature begins to run. He rushes behind, looking for weak points the creature may have. After little evaluation, Azalo-G stabs right at its soft, vital area, killing the creature instantly. He drags the body into a small cave, laying there and using the Inferno dagger to cook it. After a few short minutes, Azalo-G takes a bite, noting it low-key tastes like shit. He didn't mind at this point, though, and later left the cave to continue his travel.
Months begin to pass, Azalo-G building a schedule in Spiculum Terra. Though he understood that he was probably not going to leave. During his time, Azalo-G had made slight armored garments from the Crystal mites' skin, the Terra crystals protecting him from usually lethal sneak attacks. One day, while skinning a Scaper for food, Azalo-F teleports behind him, snatching the Sanguine Odachi from his hands and kicking him back. “Are you serious? This is a sacred weapon forged from the most pristine of magic, and you treat it like a common tool.” Azalo-F scolds. “It's a sword; I can use it how I'd like,” Azalo-G responds, rising to his feet and approaching Azalo-F.
“A sword capable of choosing its wielder. This sword holds far more intelligence than you think. And honestly, I assume you're unworthy.” Azalo-F announces. Azalo-G conjures the sword in his hand; it feels heavier than before but still wieldable. “If you really assume you’re worthy of my blade, then demonstrate.” Azalo-F commands. Azalo-G rushes, slashing twice; Azalo-F easily weaves both attempts. “You swing with little regard for your openings; as the strongest samurai in the universe, I'm disgusted.” Azalo-F comments while dodging, shoulder-bashing Azalo-G to push him back just a moment later. Azalo-F conjures his own Odachi, similar to the Sanguine Odachi itself, but not the original. “Now, again.” Azalo-F commands. Azalo-G rushes forth to thrust once, Azalo-F redirecting the blade and shoving Azalo-G back. “It's an Odachi, not a spear. Again.” Azalo-F scolds. Azalo-G charges towards Azalo-F’s side, feinting a right swing for a heavy left. Azalo-F blocks broadly with his Odachi, redirecting the slash. Azalo-F kicks Azalo-G back again. “Feints only work after a few non-feinted moves. If you wish to confuse your opponent, you have to get them into a rhythm first.” Azalo-F comments. Azalo-G continues, throwing two swift slashes. Azalo-F blocks the first, having to jump over the second. Azalo-G plants his Odachi into the ground, using it for leverage as he attempts to dropkick Azalo-F. -F fires a sonic blast at Azalo-G, pushing him away. “Seriously? It's an Odachi, not a pole. Again.” Azalo-F scolds yet again.
Hours pass, and Azalo-F refuses to give Azalo-G necessities until he lands a single slash with the Sanguine Odachi. The training slowly becomes grueling, forcing Azalo-G to pull moves he never thought possible. After finally slashing Azalo-F once, Azalo-F tells him that he’ll return every day hes stuck here to continue training him till he learns how to properly fight. Azalo-G takes a mental note, soon searching for food he badly needed. After only an hour of scavenging, Azalo-G decides to enhance his prosthetic arm with Terra crystal, even attaching an arm blade made from Terra crystal. He headed back to his small home, storing away leftover food and supplies for the next day.
Time began to pass faster, Azalo-G following a pattern while spending just enough time to figure out how to leave this place. With Azalo-F’s training constantly draining him, and the lack of sufficient food, he couldn't just conjure a weapon strong enough to free him. Azalo-F continued to train Azalo-G in proper combat. Every day revealed a new level he needed to learn, understand, and replicate. It was all exhausting, till the day it wasn't.

An affair to honor

Azalo-G packs extra supplies, prepared to explore more of Spiculum Terra in hopes of some sort of clues or tools to help escape. Though just as he attempts to leave, Azalo-F stops him right where he stands. Azalo-F unsheaths his Odachi, Azalo-G noticing the Sanguine Odachi missing from his back. “While you can demonstrate, let's see if you can retain. But this time, you’ll pay with your life otherwise.” Azalo-F demands, Azalo-G dropping the bag of supplies and conjuring his Stellar Edge. Azalo-F strikes first, a swift slash to the knees. Azalo-G blocks, recalling Azalo-F teaching him that low strikes leave the opponent vulnerable.

Azalo-G swings once, taking Azalo-F’s arm off as he briefly retreats. Azalo-F regrows his entire arm, nodding slightly at Azalo-G. “Now that I know you're not stupid, let's get partially serious.” Azalo-F remarks, charging straight at Azalo-G. Azalo-G parries the first swing, noting the second part of any Odachi combo conducted by a samurai of this level. Azalo-F watches in surprise as Azalo-G blocks the next two slashes, him not directly teaching the juggernaut that. Azalo-F jumps over Azalo-G’s swing, not accounting for Azalo-G’s empty left arm. Azalo-F attempts to block the heavy jab, his defense completely shattering under the strength of the juggernaut. Azalo-F regains his footing, lunging at Azalo-G with a strong downward swing. Azalo-G backsteps for distance, planting his foot over the Odachi as it hits the ground to disarm Azalo-F. The Samurai takes advantage of Azalo-G’s misdirection, disarming the juggernaut of his weapon as well. Both enter hand-to-hand combat, Azalo-F attempting to outperform with raw agility and flashy style. Azalo-G stuck with the heavy, adaptive fighting style adopted from Werner. As Azalo-F goes for a strong kick to the head, Azalo-G extends his Terra crystal arm blade, slashing Azalo-F’s arm and shoving him back. Azalo-F notes the cheeky use of tools, summoning his Odachi back to his hand. Azalo-G doesn't conjure any weapons, deciding to take a different approach than he usually does. Azalo-F dashes behind Azalo-G, aiming for one well-placed thrust. Azalo-G weaves the thrust, grabbing the blade and disarming Azalo-F. Azalo-G winds his arm back, throwing the Odachi far off into unknown territory. “It's an Odachi, not a spear,” Azalo-G says before blitzing behind Azalo-F, hitting with one powerful haymaker. Azalo-F defends just in time, noting Azalo-G’s sudden outburst of ragged energy. Azalo-G jumps up, conjuring the Pike of Velocity to launch himself at Azalo-F. Though he didn't attack with the pike, he only drop-kicked Azalo-F into a nearby mountain face. Azalo-G understood at that moment that he wasn't made for just 2-4 weapons. He was meant for them all. Azalo-G conjured the Sickle of Space, pulling Azalo-F directly in front of him. Azalo-G dispersed the sickle, conjuring the Shield of Mass for a defense-breaking backhand. Azalo-F slammed into the ground with a heavy thud, watching as Azalo-G conjured the Mace of Impact and swung it directly at his head. Azalo-F dispersed himself, reforming atop a nearby hill.
“Yeah, I'd rather not get my entire form atomized; you win. I thought I knew what you needed, but I can't amount to you.” Azalo-F says while tossing Azalo-G the Sanguine Odachi. “Hmph, Pussy.” Azalo-G scoffs, picking up the Odachi and his supplies to continue his journey.

Year 10

Azalo-G walks out of his home on the 10th year of being stuck, letting the singularity's light bounce off his skin. At this point, he’s mainly accepted being stuck here and has decided to just settle down for the time he has left.
Though during his exploration, something felt off. Like something was watching him. And not the usual sense of a Silence or some other animal; it was something large.
Azalo-G sensed something move, quickly conjuring the Shield of Mass and turning to find a giant arm flying straight at him. Azalo-G blocked the punch with his shield, a secondary impact sending Azalo-G crashing into a Terra crystal spike.
As Azalo-G finally got to look up to see the entity attacking him, his eyes suddenly went wide. It was the Elder Fallic itself, a powerful being only comparable to base Werner in strength. Azalo-G unsheaths the Sanguine Odachi, slicing off a large chunk of a Terra crystal structure to throw directly at the charging Fallic. The apex predator tears through the Terra crystal easily, the spike shattering under its force. Azalo-G blocks yet another punch with the Shield of Mass, a plan of attack forming in his head. The Fallic grabs Azalo-G’s shield, pinning him to the ground for a powerful stomp. Azalo-G activates his artificial Dustwalker, appearing behind the Fallic, only to be hit by a strong left hook. Azalo-G conjures the Mace of Impact, slamming it into a Terra crystal spike to break his momentum safely. The Fallic rushes again, Azalo-G charging up his muscles while conjuring the Lance of Momentum. The Fallic pulls up its defense at the sight of the weapon, Azalo-G’s throw shattering Mach 5. Fallic's defense is pierced instantly, a hole in its chest being a prominent injury.
Azalo-G watches the Fallic perfectly regenerate the large opening in its chest. Azalo-G knew he needed to kill this thing in one hit, or halt its regeneration. Without it, he would for sure lose. Azalo-G conjured the weapon of the 4th holy knight: the Gavel of Justice, capable of bypassing all defenses due to the opponent's sins. The Fallic shows no fear, splitting a large amount of rock from the ground to throw directly at Azalo-G. Azalo-F offhands the Sanguine Odachi, slicing the boulder in half as he rushes the Fallic down. The Fallic does the same, meeting a powerful force of its own. Azalo-G slashes Fallic's arm off, preventing the use of defense from that side. He then follows up with a heavy swing with the Gavel of Justice, landing a clean blow and sending the Fallic crashing into a Terra crystal structure.
Azalo-G watches as the Fallic not only brushes off the Gavel's hit, but completely regenerates its arm from the Sanguine Odachi’s blade. Azalo-G disperses the Gavel, reconjuring the Shield of Mass to block the incoming strike. Azalo-G conjures the Pike of Velocity, launching himself straight up to dodge the secondary impact of the Fallics' strikes. The Fallic attempts to grab Azalo-G out of the air, its arm being severed clean off before it can move. Azalo-G wastes no time, conjuring the Hammer of Might and reinforcing it with the Mace of Impact. The Fallic attempts to defend with its intact arm, the two weapons tearing right through its defense. Azalo-G rises to his feet, seeing the Fallic fall to its knees. He begins to walk away, thinking it's dead. But this creature wasn't so simple.
The Fallic grabs Azalo-G by the legs, whipping him into a Terra crystal spike. Azalo-G conjures the Shield of Mass as he's thrown, protecting himself from the impact. The Fallic roars, the sound it makes giving a cautious tone instead of anger. Azalo-G quickly understood that this creature wasn't trying to kill him out of instinct or anger; it was afraid. Azalo-G dispelled all his weapons, holding his hands out in an attempt to reason with the giant. The Fallic noticed his sudden calm nature, wondering if the human before it was stupid or broken. The Fallic slowly approached, sniffing the air between it and the human before picking him up.  Azalo-G kept up a calm, mannered pose. Not wanting to startle the volatile creature in front of him.
“DOMENCIRA!” The Fallic practically yelled out, poking Azalo-G and letting out what seemed like a laugh. ‘The fuck did he say?’ Azalo-G thought to himself, soon attempting to communicate. “Can you understand me? Like at all?” Azalo-G asked with little hope. The Fallic tilted its head briefly, looking partly confused. “Stupid.” The Fallic said in half-assed English, poking Azalo-G in the side again. “Stop that, dammit!” Azalo-G exclaimed, prying himself out of Fallic's grip. The Fallic chuckles again. “Weak.” The Fallic spoke again, still in a childish version of English. “The fuck is this? I feel like I'm talking to the Hulk." Azalo-G states, shaking his head and wondering how this thing even understood English.
Azalo-G brushed the dust off himself before looking back up at the Fallic. “So that's it, you’re done trying to kill me?” Azalo-G questions, still barely understanding the mental capacity of this thing. “Maybe. Why human?” The Fallic asks for some fuckass reason. “Dude, what?” Azalo-G wonders, barely understanding what this thing was talking about. “You are human. Human ass.” The Fallic clarifies, giving a soft chuckle. “Okay… thanks, I guess, fuck you too,” Azalo-G replies, whispering the last part while still clueless about what this creature was talking about. “We friends now, ok?” The Fallic demands, Azalo-G shaking his head in disappointment. “Fine, just don't break any of my shit.” Azalo-G agrees reluctantly and starts walking back to his home.
“Okay, we need one thing straight. What the hell are you, and why are you following me?” Azalo-G stops suddenly, turning to face Fallic as he asks. “We are friends now.” Fallic repeats in more coherent English. Azalo-G mouths the word ‘what’, wondering how this thing went from speaking like a toddler to proper English. “I never agreed to that-.” Azalo-G attempts to protest only to be cut off by Fallic. “You did,” Fallic interjects, chuckling afterward before continuing to walk. Azalo-G shakes his head, deciding to deal with it rather than arguing.

An escape plan

Azalo-G gathers his supplies, a plan to escape Spiculum Terra finally crossing his mind. Fallic notices -G packing basically everything, wondering what hes doing. “Why do you pack so much?” The Fallic lazily asks. “I have a plan to leave. If we get to ring 666, it could automatically transport us to limbo, which I know how to escape as well.” Azalo-G enthusiastically answers, conjuring the Pike of Velocity and Mace of Impact. “Shitty plan. Ring 666 is light-years away. Literally.” Fallic points out. “Thats why we’re not walking,” Azalo-G states in a quite cocky tone. Fallic shrugs, following behind as Azalo-G straps the Mace of Impact to the front of the Pike of Velocity. The Fallic holds onto the Pike as instructed. Azalo-G activates the Pike to send them off.
After a few minutes of shredding through various landscapes and creatures, both Azalo-G and Fallic find themself in the dark oak forests of Limbo. “Zero clue how you did that, but impressed.” Fallic praises despite being confused. “Now how would we leave?” Fallic asks further. “I got just one thing I want to do before we leave,” Azalo-G says, dispelling both weapons to find a wisp.

After only an hour of traveling, Azalo-G finds one, the glowing flesh of a wisp's light. He smirks, changes attire, and approaches the Wisp. “Sir? You look like one of knowledge. Would you happen to know where I could leave this place?” Azalo-G says in a shitty, artificially scared tone, though it passes well enough. The Wisp smirks, assuming hes getting the better end of the Odachi. “I can help you; I can give you far more than freedom from this place.” The Wisp brags while pulling out a glowing scroll in fancy cursive font. “What’d ya say? Want reward beyond that human mind?” The Wisp continues, urging Azalo-G to sign it like he was some clueless traveler. Azalo-G signs the contract, then rips his fake garments to grab the Wisp by the throat. With a swift swing, the Wisp was dead. Azalo-G had gained another demon pact. “Alright, let's leave.” Azalo-G waved over to Fallic, conjuring the Sabre of the Soul to tear a hole into the space in front of him, walking into the real world for the first time in 15 years.