Initiating combat music...

First combat image of Onyx's Heavy Armor and giant sword! He is exploring an old cathedral that has been dubbed the "Cathedral of Madness" due to the absolutely terrifying rituals and brutal nature of the monsters that inhabit there.

Prior to its corrupted form today, it was a cathedral that specialized in caring for people who were afflicted with madness. One day, a certain individual who, unbeknownst to the caretakers, was a powerful sorceror and was admitted to the ground by feigning an invalid state. Once he was in, he began performing horrifying experiments on the other patients and caretakers, either killing them or transforming them into horrible monsters, all of his own amusement.

The mage in question has been dead for many years due to an experiment that backfired, but the monsters still roam the halls and every so often, another twisted magic user attempts to perform unholy rituals to make and control monsters of their own.

Onyx brings himself here in search of a particular artifact that has been in place at the cathedral long before it became what it is now. The artifact in question is said to have been blessed directly by the Gods and is rumored to be the only holy piece left that has not been corrupted.

Knowing full well that danger comes in many forms, he takes no chances and equips himself for a long and testing task. However, fear takes hold of Onyx. It isn't the monsters or bizarre rituals that frighten him for he has seen many such things.

What scares Onyx more than anything at the moment is succumbing to a violent temptation to doing anything even remotely similar to the magic user who was responsible for this mess in the first place. Mages, like himself, are often tempted with great power, but these usually come at a terrible cost and Onyx is no stranger to temptation. The writings of the dead sorceror no doubt contain many paths to great power, and are greatly valued by morally-challenged individuals.

Onyx hopes that he is strong enough to resist the pull towards darkness as he sets about exploring the ruin. It isn't long before one of the many inhabitants decides to make his acquaintance and with a fierce hunger in its eyes, the tone for this encounter is already set.

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Such a great image by  Gallivant_Crow and it's a first! I hope many more to come in the future as she does amazing work! Watch now if you are not watching already!