Present Time
Nocturne frowned, the events that led up to the duel leaving a more bitter taste in his mouth than the fact that it transpired. Ophelia had been a friend, an ally in times where Bravia most needed help. Obviously something had spurred her into the current actions, but it didn't seem that they were purely chaotic, more like a quixotic quest for her own purposes, for she fully understood the consequences of her actions, even as she took them. Perhaps the most striking thing was when they agreed to the duel, she had asked for something if she lost. Not uncommon amongst dueling factions, but the request was something that Nocturne took as odd, because he knew the person that Ophelia asked to be found. Knew her quite well, in fact - Dahlia, though he hadn't known her by the name the woman mentioned in many moonruns.But the duel had already been pledged before the mages, and once engaged, there wasn't a turning back. So the death would hopefully be a mercifully swift one to whichever party might emerge the victor. He had made a trip to Fenia that night and sought out Dahlia, letting her know the course that was plotted, and that death of one or the other would be the likely result. And only once that death occurred would he be able to determine the truth of the woman's words. Once the event was done, it was hollow - exasperatingly hollow - as the honorable duel had been soiled in the process. He wandered back down the path to his caverns, staring at the shadowed stone walls blankly as if letting everything process.