Seel frowned at the edge of the lake; he knew theere were caves underneath Richmon Lake, but couldn't reach them. Breathe underwater wasn't one of his available spells, so he was stuck up here. He put a hand in the water and splashed, thinking about how he could get underneath.

Dei swam as fast as she could, her fins flashing in the blue-green light, building up speed, faster, faster, until she broke the surface. She flew through the air and gracefully flipped into the waterfall, seeing a man in black robes sitting by the waters edge from the corner of her eye. she slipped from beneath the pounding water of the falls and darted to the side of the lake, rising slowly so as not to startle him. She was slightly put-off to see the disgruntled expression etched on his face. "Why the long face,sir?" Dei said as she stretched luxoriously, her fins catching the rich evening light and distorting it into a rainbow of colors, and the tails of her dress gently slipping up her hips.

Seele eyes her over and smiled. A water nmyph; the first he'd met.

All the more reason to kill her...
Damn it, go away!
If you had stayed away from that temple I never would of been set free
Go to hell
I already am.
That's enough.

Seele blocked his shadow demon from his mind. "Oh, I was just wondering how I could get top the caves at the bottom. Would be interesting, but as I can't breath underwater..." He sighed again.

" I'll take you, then." Dei looked him over, noticing the long, heavy black robes and wincing at how heavy they'd be. "But take off your clothes first." She giggled at the slightly shocked look that passed over his face "Not all of them, silly, but I can't pull all those robes through the lake!" Dei clenched her teeth and balled up her fist, squinting with the effort of changing her fins. When the were finally seperated into slick, pinkish-purple legs, she slipped out of the water and onto the rocky bank. "Here, I'll help you if you can't undress yourself." She said half-jokingly, then pulled her thin, now slightly clingy green dress up to cover a little more.

Seele smiled and pulled off his cloak. "I think I can manage." he set down the cloaked and put his hat on top of it, the pulled off his shirt. His back and part of his chest were marked with a large, plae scar in an intricate symbol. He looked at his scythe and shrugged, then laid it down by his shirt and cloak. He then pulled off his boots, leavind his sash and daggers on. "Well, I'm ready. But how exactly... do you carry me down there?"

Dei just laughed and grabbed his hand, pulling him into the water. "Take a big breath, the caves are really deep." With that she pulled him under, spread her fins and kicked hard. The light quickly faded, a sign of just how quickly they were going. Just when the light had nearly run out, A dark, gaping hole loomed in a craggy wall ahead of them. Dei pulled Seele into it quickly, straining against the weight. They broke the surface with a splash, the water sloshing against the sides of the small, rocky entrance. Dei glanced at Seeles' slightly blue face and burst out laughing, the sound echoing around the empty cave and causing a downpour of icy cold raindrops. "Well, come on, then, you said you wanted to see the caves..." Dei called back as she lifted herself out of the water and started walking down a slick, mica-linede path.

Seele took a couple deep breaths of air before replying. "yeah, that was just a bit... sudden..." He coughed and pulled himself out of the water, feeling the weight of his wet pants. he sighed and ran to catch up eith the water nymph. "Thanks a lot. The name's Seele." he held out a hand for her to shake in case she turned around.

Dei grabbed the hand and gave it a quick shake, then leapt up into another passage, maybe eight feet off the ground of the first. "Come on, you're a guy, this should be easy!" She called down, then skipped down the passage a little ways.

Seele grinned and lepy up, landing in a crouch on the upper passage. "That was easy, you're rgiht..." He grinned and straightened, looking around at the caverns. "Pretty place down here." He walked up to stand next to Dei, squezzing water out of his pants.

Okay, then, this'll be no problem. It's a little cold, but..." And with that she jumped into a small stream running through the path ahead of her. She ducked under the water and into a small opening barely concealed by the rushing stream and dissapeared. Inside was an underwater river, with a few inches of stale, icy air above it. "Don't worry, you can still breath!!" She yelled as loud as she could, the soound carrying through the thin stone walls. Then Dei began to paddle a little downstream, where she could make sure Seele got through the icy outer stream's current.

Seele shrugged and jumped in the water. The icy chill immediately took his breath away as the current rushed him off. He curled into a ball, making it through the small hole into the underwater river. "That was... interesting..." He swam over to where Dei was and smiled at her. "Where to next Miss Tour Guide?"

"We swim!" Dei said happily, then added as an after thought, "but don't let the undercurrent pull your knives away. Or your pants!" and giggled. She then grabbed his hand and started kicking again, adding to the speed of the waters and figuring Seele could get his face up easily enough to breathe...and if not, oh well, just another wuss who didn't deserve to see it. They rushed on through the black waters and through the pitch-black tunnel.

Seele raised an eyebrow at her last remark and muttered to himself. "You're more likely to lose your dress than me lose my pants..." He grinned. Every now and then he would surface for a quick breath; luckily he could hold ghis breath for a long time. He sped through the water after her, wondering where they were going.

They had swum for so long that even Dei was starting to feel the cold, when they finally saw a small light coming through an opening ahead. Dei lifted her head above the water and waited for Seele to surface also. "You have to be quiet up ahead, or the roofs will cave in." Then she turned and streamlined her body, letting the water pull her through the gaping hole. She tumbled off a short cliff into a shallow pool of water, quickly followed by Seele. Dei looked around, glad to finally be able to show someone the work she and her lake had done. She waited for Seele to clear the water out of his eyes, then turned him to face the marvel.
The two of them had fallen into a gigantic cavern, miles around and hundreds of yards across.Light danced along the walls, radiating from the far wall of the cavern.The only sound was a quiet trickling of water from the passage they had just exited. Most of the space was filled with a shallow pool of glittering water, with small pieces of ice floating along the surface and glittering silver sand underneath. But before you could take this in, your eyes were drawn to the crystal at the far side of the lake. The glimmering tower rose high above the lake, drawing your eyes into darkness and then out along the spiderweb of crystallyne threads theat lined the black abyss hanging over them. Upon closer inspection, you could see that the sand was actually crystal ground fine by the swirling waters near the banks. Dei turned and smiled at Seele.

Seele looked around in amazement. "This cave..." He whispered softly, eyes takingin the beauty. "It's... amazing..." His golden eyes looked all around, seeming to take in everythng at once. Due to his curse, real beauty was something almost impossible for him to find. He bent down and ran a finger through the water, scooping up a small handful of bright crystals. He smiled and dropped them again. "Dei.. this is... just beautuful..." He turned to look at her, but suddenly stood still.

This disgusts me...
You! You stay away!
Such beauty... must not survive!
I won't let you out this time demon!

Seele fell down backwards, making a small splash in the shallow water. The small crystals dug into hsi bare skin as he clutched his head, eyes riveted on the ceiling. He gasped for air, fighting for control of his own body.

"Seele? Seele, what's wrong?! what're you doing? Seele!" Dei grabbed his shoulders and held him up, staring hard into his eyes.

Let me free Seele!
No!

Seele's eyes grew dark, the gold seeming to shrink. He hissed wuietly and clutched Dei's shoulders, lookign into her eyes. "Beware little nymph. He holds me back for now, but not forever. And when I'm free again, I will find you... His eyes cleared again and he slumped against Dei's shoulder, blue hair hanging down her back.

"I stopped him... for now..." He closed his eyes, trying to regather his strength. "Sorry for that Dei..." A tiny bit of blood ddripped from his back where it had been cut by the small crystals.

Dei looked at him worriedly then slipped an arm under his shoulder, in case it happened again. She felt the warm, sticky blood on his back and trickled warm water from her fingertips to wash it off. When the reddened stream hit the lake, a slight reddish tinge appeared on Dei's left cheek. "Well, we can still go in the tower if you like... As long as you're sure that spirit will stay silent.."

"Oh, he will..." Seele stood up shakily, wiping sweat off of his face.

No I won't

Seele sent a strong blast of shadow energy at the demon's mind; it groaned and fell back, quickly encased in mental barriers Seele had prefected since the demon had reappeared. He grinned as the voice was shut out. "He'll leave me alone for a while... I would be glad to see your tower." He looked at her and frowned slightly. "Your face..." He reached out and touched her cheek. "What happened? Did you get hurt?"

Dei smiled slightly. "No, you are..." They slowly started to walk through the shallow water towards the clear, light-giving tower. The silver sand swirled around their feet, and the clear water rippled out, slowly dispelling the blood-tinged water.

Seele walked up to the crystal and put a hand on it. It was amazingly smooth and felt cool to the touch. He traced down it with a finger. He looked over his shoulder at Dei, noticing the blood had faded away mostl, except for a dot or two on her cheek. He smiled at her. "Dei... you made all this by yourself? It's one of the most amazing things I've ever seen..." He walked all the way around the tower, tracing a wet line in the smooth crystal before coming to a halt beside Dei. "You're pretty skilled... I wish I could create somthing like this..."

"It's mostly ice.. That's why the waters so cold down here. The peak is crystal, though, and thats what everyone searches for in the crystal Caverns. That's why no one ever found it before." She looked sideways at Seele. "Would you like to go in? It's pretty slick, but if you can make it this far..."

Seele smiled. "I would love to go in." He followed Dei inside the tower, and looked around. He was surprised he could see out through the clear ice and crystal; he hadn;t been able to see in. Kind of like a watchtower... you can see out, but not in... Seele felt lost in this beauty, remembering one other place he had been like this. there it had been trees shaped to their master's wishes, an entire forest shaped to be a perfect art that stretched fropm horizon to horizon...

A forest that now laid dead, plants struggling to grow in pools of acid and poision mist, strange animals crawling throughout.

He shuddered, then smiled at Dei. I will make sure no tragedy happens liek that one again... by no one's hand... no one... He walked over to Dei, standing next to her but saying nothing.

Dei started to climb the spiralling steps, the slushy-water hardening around her feet then melting and continuing down the stairs. "I haven't been here for a long time... My first spring ran through an elven forest, and some young fool cast a spell on my waters that they may never be visited alone.One day, though, the entire forest was destroyed, and my stream cut off, leaving me in this small underground pool, too weak to leave. The falls have replced my lost waters, but this tower is made from the last of that clear spring water." With this, she unconsiously rubbed a small, clear spot of skin on her left hip. Around it was a swirling ring of dark blues and reds. "Those elves..." She murmured to herself, slowly wandering up the tightly winding steps. Suddeenly a small tinkling rang in their ears, and she looked underfoot to see a small pile of srystal pull itself back together in the shape of a mouse. "Watch out for the pets, they break easily."

Seele smiled and bent down, examining the mouse. it looked up at him and chittered, then scampered down the stairs. He stood up, watching his footing on the slick steps. "What happened? The forest..." He looked at her will guilty eyes. She couldn;t of meant that forest... she can;t be from my world as well... she can;t be...

"Someone destroyed it. The forest, the animals, the elves...my elf..." Tiny crystals of ice fluttered from her eyes, landing on the stairs and rushingnaway with the icy water. She turned and hurried up the stairs, hiding the snowy tears from Seele. Higher up the tower, a huge, glassy eagle landed on Dei's shoulder. "Hello, Ausskas. Are you looking for more food, or just a friend. She laughed as he nudged her shoulder, the forest forgotten. "Alright then, hang on." She grabbed one of the tiny mice off the ground and handed it to him. "He's as close to a familiar as a Nymph can have." She turned and directed the ice-eagle onto Seele's shoulder.

Seele smiled and lightly touched the living ice, slightly surprised at this ability. "You have your own little world down here Dei... I'm envious..." He smiled sadly. "What little palce I had in the world is gone..." By my hand... He didn't voice this thought, instead stroked the eagle's cool back. He thought of a world from long ago, eyes sad. "Are you from this world Dei? Or, liek me, a traveller on Imythess?"

Somewhere else. Imythess doesn't have native nymphs. We all came in with the waters when Imythess was created." She looked him over and said, " You, you have hair different from everyone else here, and your eyes... you were from my world, I think... Funny that I don't remember meeting you, I was part of a great ocean there, before isolating myself in the spring." She giggled, then said, "But you wouldn't have noticed me anyway, I pretended to be an elf most of the time."
They were almost to the top of the tower, and the light was getting stronger, while the lake could barely be seen out of the tiny arched windows.

Seele frowned. "I think it more unlikely that you hadn't heard of ME." He stood up, the eagle flapping back over to Dei silently. He stopped and looked out over the lake, hand tracing a line down the smooth wall. "Everyone there heard of me, at one point or another..." He turned towards Dei, eyes sad. "Although few knew me by my true name, I will always be remembered there..." He walked past Dei silently, up the stairs towards the top of the tower. they knew me as the Blighter...

I was young then I didn't notice anything or anyone but my elf... that stupid boy, he put a spell on me that I couldn't be alone in my own waters. Forced to live in strange places, other nymph's lakes, and no one has yet to break the spell of a fifteen-year-old boy..." She snorted, then stepped up onto the landing of the final room of the tower. The room was really just a floor of ice, with carved crystal pillars holding up the ceiling. You could see down passages into the crystal caves, and down to the distant lake. Above them the clear roof allowed clear vision of the river which led to the Memphian falls, with tiny fish swimming hard against the current. In the center of the floor was a waist-height pedestal, completely unadorned but for the glimmering orb slowly spinning a few inches above the crystal stand. water trickled out of an unknown source and ran off the sphere and onto the glassy surface beneath it. Dei released her will and allowed herself to fall into a puddle of water, then laced herself around the pillars and up onto a ledge by the ceiling, hidden from view just before Seele arrived.

Seele came into the room, thinking about the spell. One where she can never be alone in her own waters... a binding spell, perhaps... He looked around the room, not seeing Dei. He shrugged and went over to a pillar, sliding down it to sit on the floor. H elooked up, through the ceiling at the river bottom, eyes nmot really seeing it. Instead, he was lost in a different world... one he had helped bring ruin to. She seemes so sad... must my guilt continue, even here?He closed his eyes, letting the coolness from the pillar seep into his bare back.

*Dei accidentally drips a little of herself on Seele, then jumps back into a humanoid form when she realizes what's happening. The icy platform she was on shattered with a series of quick, loud cracks and she fell onto the orb with a scream, her lost bits shooting towards her to complete the change. She had never fallen on the water source before, what was essentially her heart, and feared it might break. She gasped when she hit hard ground, the wind knocked out of her. Dei lay there for a long time, wondering where she was. She finally got up and looked around, choking on fear when she saw she wasn't in the tower, but in a strange, unknown world. The sky was covered with swirling purple clouds that seemed to rip each other apart, threatening her with faraway growls of thunder. The grass was a dark greenish-blue, and had a slight spring to it when you walked. Tiny purple and blue flowers dotted the grass in small clusters, and there were patches of deep purple heather, wich gave offa rich aroma when the leaves were crushed, as where she had landed.She couldn't see any trees, not even a short bush. A wide lake of nearly black water rippled in the rising wind on the horizon. She went near, hoping to find someone to ask for help, but the lake was dead, without any spring or river to feed it, and she sat on its banks, curled up and crying, as the storm drew nearer.

Seele's eyes shot open when he heard the ice cracking; he saw her fall into the orb. As soon as she hit it, she seemed to shrink, disappearing instantly. He got up quickly and walked over to the orb, looking inside it. He saw a small image of Dei, curled up and crying next to a lake. He felt great power in this orb. It feels almost liek it's a... portal... He reached out a hand and touched it softly.

He felt himself being pulled in by his hand, watching the room grow bigger before he disappeared. He landed hard behind Dei on the soft grass. he sat up, breathign heavily. No doubt about it; that HAD been a portal. And somehow this place felt familiar...

He walked over to Dei, who hadn't noticed him yet, then sat down and put an arm around her shoulders, looking at her worriedly. "Dei? Are you alright?" Above them thunder rumbled, lightning crackling through the clouds.

Dei jumped when she felt the arm, then relaxed, realzing it was Seele. She turned to look at him, wondering wether he'd understand. She finally decided there was nothing for it, and gestured to the lake. "It's dead. This world, it's all supposed to be my heart, created by my love and hatred... It's where my water comes from, but all of this water is dead... I don't want my heart to look like this, it's not what it should be..." She traces a finger through the shallow water by her feet, and a dark purple tinge raced up her arm. She fell back with a cry and collapsed next to Seele, breathing hard as she tried to force the deadly water to seep out, but coudn't . "This...this can't be me... I'd be dead, just a shadow on the surface..." She pulled hard on her hair, crying with frustration. " I have to find my water, Or I can't get back, we'll be stuck here forever." She struggled to get up, but fell back down from her lost strength, the dark veins of the blackened water tracing their way slowly around her arm and back to her hand, dripping back onto the grass and sliding back into the lake, seeming to laugh at them.

Seele frowned. "A reflection of our heart...?" He helped her up, letting her lean on him for support. she still looked weak after touching that black water. He smiled at her. "Well, as I'm stuck here I guess I'll have to help you out." He looked at the sky worriedly, and then at Dei. "um... just wondering, but as a body of water, do you attract lightning?"

"Not that I know of..." She pointed in a random direction, hoping to find shelter somewhere. "Do you think there're trees somewhere?" She began wandering in the direction opposite from where she had pointed, figuring her luck was so off that where she pointed would be wrong. The storm worried her, because truthfully she had never been outside in a storm.

Seele and Dei walked that ways, the storm steadily getting closer. They found a thick grove of trees right as a loud peal of thunder sounded out. Seele grinned and pushed Dei into the tree's shadow,s then turned and walked out onto to grass. Rain poured down, making his hair stick to his bare skin. "I always liked the rain..." He put his face up, completely wet by now. "It always made me feel better..." He closed his eyes, lightning and thunder playing out in the sky.

Dei came out from under the trees a little ways and laid on her stomach, the cool rain welcome after the burning black lake. She began to feel clean and strong. "I'm glad you like it so much. This heart's at least good for you." She shot a spear of ice at the clouds and it rained harder. then snowed, melting when the flakes hit the ground.

Seele smiled at the sky. "Snow..."

Her heart, eh? What would my chaos do here?

Seele's body went rigid. He grabbed his head, coughing as blood came out of his mouth. "No! Not here, demon!" He fell to the ground, motionless, eyes open in shock.

Dei jumped up in alarm, grabbing his shoulders to steady him, fraid he would fall like before. She watched his pupils twist shapes and wondered why this kept happening to him. "You, You thing! leave him alone!" She shook his shoulders a little and hoping he would be okay, whatever was wrong.