<span class="bbc_u"><strong>Location:  Shadow Temple of Thanatos, Western Sahara</strong></span><br/><br/>Three days.  Three days of near darkness.  The only source of light coming from the small pyreflies that floated around Anthimus as he sat before an Altar of Thanatos.  For three days, he sat before the figure of his god meditating as part of his training under the Disciples of Thanatos.  Locked inside an enchanted room until he achieved enlightenment or died of starvation.<br/><br/>Slowly, he opened his eyes from his deep meditation and recollected on what he had just experienced.  He could still remember the dream as clear as glass.  Thanatos standing before him and instructing him to go to a land that was unknown to him, and yet had a clear vision on how to get there.  As he slowly rose back up to his feet, the Pyreflies moved over to where the door was located and disenchanted it, causing the door to open on it's own.  Once the door was open, Anthimus turned and proceeded out of the room.As he walked down the halls of the temple, Anthimus could hear the voices of the other Acolytes he walked past, some were surprised that Anthimus managed to exit the chambers in only three days, due to it usually taking a week for an acolyte to achieve enlightenment.  Ignoring the whispers, he continued on till he arrived at the door to the Matriarch's Chambers.<br/><br/>"Enter my child."  A voice was heard from the otherside of the door before Anthimus could even knock.  Entering the chambers, he quietly approached and knelt before the Martriarch.  A beautiful Elvan woman with raven hair and eyes as white as the moon itself.  She sat poised on her throne as Anthimus knelt down in front of her.  As she looked down at him, her eyes suddenly widened in shock.  "Anthimus.....you have been touched by Death himself."<br/><br/>"My lady,"  Anthimus spoke, never raising his head up, "while meditating, I saw our Lord Thanatos.  I mean, I saw him as clear as I can see you.  He even spoke to me."<br/><br/>"Oh?  Do you remember his words?"  She asked.<br/><br/>"He said that I must go to the outside world to a clearing that I have never been to or seen.  Despite that, the map he showed me somehow gave me the knowledge on how to get there."  Anthimus replied.<br/><br/>The Matriarch then rose to her feet and walked up closer to Anthimus, kneeling down in front of him and raising his head to look into his eyes.  "He's done more than spoke to you, didn't he.  I can sense the very essence of the gods surging through you right now.  Though, this vision of yours has helped me confirm something that has been concerning me for sometime."<br/><br/>"What do you mean my Lady?"  Anthimus asked.<br/><br/>"For the past few days, myself and the other elders have been  sensing a fluctuation in the flow of souls."  Almost as if on cue, several pyreflies entered and hovered over the two.  The Matriarch then stretched out her hand and let a pyrefly rest on her hand.  "They been growing, uneasy over the past few days.  And though it's faint right now, I can sense fear coming from them.  This has been weaved out by the fates themselves."  She then rose back to her feet and turned her back towards Anthimus in deep thought.  "Anthimus, you must do what our Lord has commanded.  Though I am not fully aware of the situation, one thing I believe is that you must play a role in what's to unfold in time.  The balance between life and death must not break.  While there are those that preserve life, we are the ones that preserve death."<br/><br/>Turning again, the Matriarch moved over to her desk and opened a drawer.  She reached in and pulled out two items, a medallion bearing the insignia of Thanatos and a small bag filled with what sounded like coins.  Closing the drawer, she walked back up to Anthimus and placed the items in his hands.  "It is not much but it will be of use to you once you start to interact with the outside world.  And should you ever be in need of guidance or sanctum, this medallion will guide you to the nearest Shadow Temple and grant you access under my protection."<br/><br/>"I understand, my lady."  Anthimus replied as he rose to his feet.  Once he stood up, the Matriarch pulled down his hood, revealing his painted face before her.<br/><br/>"Remember your training my child.  Darkness and Death are not evil. Only those who wield them can make it so.  Just as there are warriors who preserve life, you are the warrior that must preserve death."  She gave her final words of guidance.  With that, she gave her blessing to Anthimus to venture out of the temple to do the task that has been placed on him by Death itself.<br/><br/>With a final bow, Anthimus exited the Matriarch's chambers and without hesitation, proceeded his way to the nearest exit.  After trailing down the halls of the dark temple, Anthimus found himself out in a cave opening embedded in a cliff right on the shores of the atlantic ocean.  He looked on towards the vast waters before him.  After almost 10 years of living beneath the world with the Death Acolytes, he wasn't sure what to expect beyond the shores.  Though confused on what he must do, Anthimus calmly walked right over the edge and into a free fall down towards the crashing waves against the cliff.  Just a mere moment before hitting the water, Anthimus sprout out his wings and took flight right into the air.  He quickly took up altitude till he was as high as the clouds and proceeded west, towards the American Continents.