<i>The sword of light?</i>Kalustrata wondered as she stepped forward closer into the group. Humans couldn’t pronounce an ancient word from the way it sounded. Well, everyone in the group minus one. Standing at the front of the milling group was a short, pink-haired girl. Pink hair didn’t seem common for humans, but then again, she was standing in a group full of humans that had a range of hair colors. She was sure she even saw some green in a young woman’s hair.<i>Oh well, time to go to work, I guess.</i>The Archdemons would surely hear of it if she slacked on destroying the<i>Loh’skaran</i>, though she wasn’t sure how. She wasn’t the only demon to have slipped through the cracks in the barrier, but she seemed to be the only one who had come close to the<i>Loh’skaran</i>. She hadn’t sensed any of her fellow demons, but if they were disguised as humans, she wouldn’t be able to tell them apart from another ordinary human. That was the drawback to having their powers contained, but Kalustrata didn’t care all that much. Other demons were boring, only ever wanting to escape the barrier and kill humans for their energy. Kalustrata found them deliciously entertaining, even if some humans had pissed her off.<br/><br/>She pointedly ignored most of the rules, considering anything inside the temple was liable to burn her if she touched it. As the door opened, Kalustrata resisted the urge to look disgusted. The magical sensation in the air was light and airy, not at all like her own power, even if it was locked away. The humans didn’t notice, as they were too busy staring at the inside of the temple. Kalustrata dipped her head, choosing to inspect the humans around her instead. They were all so amazed, and yet, they couldn't feel the waning power of the artifacts just waiting inside. The one speaking over the crowd, Estelle Ando, seemed to know more, but the demon didn't peg her as anything more than a front. She was wearing priestess garb, but anyone could do that and recite a few lines.<br/><br/>Kalustrata passed through the doors, glancing all around the ceiling and walls. The temple wasn't fortified by anything other than ancient magic (and some flimsy paintings), but even that would fade as time passed. For the first time, she was grateful that her own power wasn't clashing with the power inside the temple, or this might have been a more jarring trip for her. With a sigh, she flipped her platinum blonde hair over her shoulder and trailed behind the group, doing the exact opposite of what she wanted to do. Trying<i>not </i>to draw attention to herself was rare, and being quiet rather than loud was simply downright against everything a tempest demon was. They<i>did </i>have the most booming power after all, something she couldn't really show off in the middle of the temple.<br/><br/>Estelle showed the group to a moderately sized shield that looked more like a fancy piece of glass rather than a protective artifact. It wasn't one of the main artifacts, and it certainly wasn't the<i>Loh'skaran. </i>However, Kalustrata did know it to be a<i>rakaz'talor, </i>though it was not the only one to exist. While the<i>Loh'skaran </i>was unique in its power, multiple shields had been created to assist the barrier in holding against the demons. Why this temple only had one was beyond Kalustrata, but it would make life a little harder for her. This one was more decorated, with copper and bronze flowers pressing from the sides and curling out.<br/><br/>Estelle was right about all of the information on the<i>rakaz'talor, </i>and the demon chose not to stand too close to the reflective side of the shield, letting other humans crowd around it instead. If she looked too closely, her cover would be blown, and she'd be in a world of trouble. Instead of glaring into the magical mirror shield, Kalustrata broke away from the group, wandering to one of the paintings on the wall. It was a stunning depiction of two priestesses holding a shining artifact together, holding it high above their heads. The light was made up of white and orange paints, casting a brilliant shine over the cowering demons in the scene. The demons were ugly with broken horns and dark green skin, though the artist had done a remarkable job of shading. The picture felt alive, and it almost made her skin crawl. Still, she found herself inspecting it rather than moving on, like she was searching for a weakness in the static image. This painting, too, was imbued with power on a lesser scale, as was every single other<i>thing </i>inside the temple.<br/><br/><i>Well, this is gonna be harder than I thought.</i>