Mirskyn and Rhynx hadn't known each other for long, but they already recognized that they formed quite a remarkable team. Who could have guessed that on that one fateful night when they met, such a strong bond got shaped? After that, Mirskyn and Rhynx had accomplished many missions together, since even some authority figures had noticed their excellence on the battlefield. General Summer, one of the leaders behind Allied Forces, had personally given them some top-secret assignments as he trusted that these two men were well capable of achieving those tasks. And they had never betrayed his trust. Mirskyn and Rhynx had earned a great reputation in Archosaur, the grandest and largest city in Perfect World. While Mirskyn was proud and enjoyed the attention he had gained through his heroic deeds, Rhynx was a bit more indifferent about such fame. Nonetheless, they had become valuable warriors in the fight against Wraiths and many recruits of Allied Forced looked up to them.

Few months had passed since the night when the two men met each other. While they had worked a lot together, they also were doing their duties as solo or with some other warriors. Almost two weeks ago their ways had still been separated, until they found each other from Archosaur once again. And, being the well-informed man that he is, general Summer had heard that they were back in the city and summoned them both for an urgent mission. It appeared that there had been a traitor or Wraith with shapeshifting ability that had stolen some strange artifact, which had been found from the nearby Mines. Although general Summer didn't know what kind of powers this artifact possessed – no one hadn't had enough time to study it – he suspected that there would still be catastrophic consequences if it fell into wrong hands. According to some guards, a suspicious person had been spotted fleeing through the south gate. With this information, it was clear that the culprit was heading south, but to where exactly, they didn't know. However, general Summer trusted in Rhynx's tracking skills and having Mirskyn as his aid, they would surely catch the culprit. The duo left Archosaur immediately and began their chase.

Rhynx had taken the leading role since he was able to distinguish even the smallest marks left by their target, he was able to spot things that many others would surely miss. It was like he was following a trail only he could see. Together with Mirskyn he tracked the target through Valley of the Hidden Orchid. They made their way all the way to the south, until the tracks diverged to the west, towards Arrowhead Peak. It was a common route to take if you wanted to go further south, since the southernmost part of Valley of the Hidden Orchid only led to inaccessible mountains. The two men didn't know where their target was exactly going, but they had a hunch that it was heading to the lands of Winged Elves, at least for now. What the target's ultimate destination was, they couldn't tell, they just had to find it and be as quick as possible.

Even though Mirskyn and Rhynx had been as swift as they could, their mission was taking them days, and still, they hadn't yet managed to hunt down their target. Just like they had suspected, the tracks took them to the luxuriant and magical land of Winged Elves. They traveled through Forest of the Plume, still heading to the south, and at this point the men were pondering if their target's ultimate goal was to get to Black Mountain, an area where Wraith activity was high. It would make sense to go there. However, when Mirskyn and Rhynx had been walking along the road to Bamboo Forest of the Shining Moon, they were surprised as the tracks suddenly started to go west, towards The White Ridge. Now they didn't know at all what their target was planning, but continued to follow the little marks it had left behind anyway.

That was when their journey took them to the southernmost part of the continent, to the Earthguard lands.

The chase had been going on for too long already, many days and nights had passed at this point. But the two men persisted on their mission as they traveled deeper and deeper into Earthguard lands. And they could sense it, their target was getting desperate and exhausted. Soon this all would end. Mirskyn and Rhynx had noticed bits of dark matter, like wisps of shadows, scattered on the ground at regular intervals, so now even the Nightshade was able to see tracks left by their target. It seemed like its disguise was shattering. However, the target did have enough energy and managed to wander through the open Restless Outlands and peaceful Decaying Woods, then heading to the beautiful Starry Wilds. And ultimately, in this vast area, the chase was finally over.

Their target had been able to follow the road that circulated the lake, which was the center of Starry Wilds, and almost made it to Shrine of the Ancestors. The being had dropped more and more bits of darkness, which indicated that it was weakening more and more as it was trying its best to get away. Encouraged by this, Mirskyn and Rhynx had swiftened their pace until they finally caught a glimpse of the critter they had been so determinedly followed across Perfect World. It was a sort of humanoid creature, having the height of an average man. It had this odd phantasmal light armor on, and the parts that weren't covered by it, there was nothing, nothing but blackness. It looked like a being from void and its darkness was leaking to the ground. In its hands it was holding a strange blueish orb with mysterious runes engraved onto it – the artifact that the two men had so tirelessly sought after.

Although the armored creature looked treacherous, it wasn't a strong foe to take down. Daggers had gleamed with murderous intent, powers of a storm had been summoned as Mirskyn and Rhynx combined their powers once more. The being fell with a hollow screech that echoed through Starry Wilds ominously. The dark matter that had formed most of the critter faded away first, snatched by the wind that blew across the area. The armor pieces fell to the ground with a clank until they vanished as well. Only the precious orb was left behind. Mirskyn picked it up, curiously inspecting it. He could feel some kind of mystical energy radiating from it, but he wasn't sure if it was good or evil – although things usually weren't so blatantly black and white.

Another day was coming to an end. The sun had begun to set and was already disappearing behind the nearby hills when the two men completed their mission. They decided to head to Shrine of the Ancestors since it was close by and rest there for the night. Now that they had the hold of the artifact, they could sleep well since there was no need to be in a hurry anymore. They followed the road that split the hills and they reached the shrine in no time. The few Earthguards stationed there welcomed them with open arms and gladly offered them a place to stay. It was the most serene night Mirskyn and Rhynx had had in about a week and they slept well.

Until at dawn when they heard some commotion which forcefully woke them up. Quickly they were awake and ready to offer their helping hand. There was trouble beyond the small patch of Land of Eternal Sleep; apparently a squad of Earthguards got ambushed by a herd of monsters and needed urgent help, as one of them had run to the shrine and informed others that the situation was bad. Since the Nightshade and the Tideborn happened to be there conveniently, they rushed to the scene to aid in battle along with some Earthguards from the shrine.

Clashing of steel, commands and grunts and voices of something horrid – these sounds of combat traveled into their ears as they hurried to aid the Earthguards. The noises got gradually louder and louder and finally, Mirskyn and Rhynx spotted figures in the distance; a heated battle was going on. The squad of Earthguards was visibly in trouble since they were heavily outnumbered. Their opponents were strange dark creatures, sort of like a disgusting mix of wolves and insects – and there were a lot of them. Were they sent here by Wraiths? All the same, Mirskyn and Rhynx immediately joined in battle to ward off the critters.

Their arrival was a turning point. Just the two of them balanced the numbers significantly and their presence boosted the morale of the Earthguards. Rhynx was like a violent flurry of blades, managing to mow down enemies simply by following behind Earthguard soldiers, letting them attack first and then he would strike from their shadows. Mirskyn harnessed the power of the icy storm and casted his frigid spells and immobilized the monsters, making them easier targets for the rest of the squad. It didn't take long when every last one of those creatures was laying on the ground, the light of life distinguished from their red eyes. The Earthguards were grateful and thanked the men profusely and invited them to join a little celebration in Shrine of the Immortals. The two men weren't sure about it at first and told about the whole ordeal regarding the artifact, and expressed their desire to get it in safety as soon as possible. That was when a group of Earthguards suggested that they would take it to Tellus City and give it to Elder Star. This was actually a good plan and so Mirskyn and Rhynx handed over the artifact to the Earthguards – they trusted them enough with this task – and then they headed to Shrine of the Immortals with the rest of the warriors.

The landscape around these corners was very magnificent. They passed the beautiful waters of the Sealed Basin and walked through the lush forest until they reached a bridge, which looked like it was partly created by nature and partly by manpower. It was very wide and wooden, looking like it was shaped by people, but then nature had taken hold of it. It was used to cross The Fissure. It was also an excellent example of how earth's spirit was strong in these parts of Perfect World and the Earthguards surely tried their best to keep it that way.

It was the time of twilight when the group had managed to get to Shrine of the Immortals. It was a small patch of haven around the upper part of The Fissure and it used to be a secret training ground, however nowadays it was open for everybody. And it appeared to be that tonight the Earthguards weren't celebrating just the recent victory, no, tonight they would also honor the goddess of moon. Mirskyn and Rhynx were curious about it and eagerly waited for the nighttime when the celebrations would start.

The moon was full that night. It was shedding its wonderful silvery light right at the Shrine of the Immortals. In its honor, the Earthguards sacrificed a white rabbit and then they celebrated by playing various musical instruments and drinking wine. Mirskyn and Rhynx were more bystanders than participants, but they did drink a little bit of the wine that was offered to them. Even though they were just standing and observing from aside, their souls rejoiced together with the Earthguards. The joyful spirit did make its way into their hearts as well and they chattered cheerfully with each other and with some of the Earthguards. It seemed like it was going to be a sleepless night in the shrine, but at the same time, it was a moment of relaxation for the Nightshade and Tideborn. Their exhausting chase throughout Perfect World had just ended and then they had got into a battle. This was a perfect chance for them to just have a break and enjoy some festivities. And that was exactly what they did.

No one could tell how much time had passed as a lot of the folks in Shrine of the Immortals had become more or less intoxicated. But Mirskyn and Rhynx hadn't drank that much and at some point, they decided to take a little break from the celebration. They began to walk away from the shrine, back to the grand bridge, and slowly the loud sounds of the festivities faded away. They crossed the bridge and came to Sealed Basin again. The moon's light was dancing beautifully in the calm waters of the lake. The two men walked slowly to the shore and that was when Mirskyn informed he would take a bath, to wash away the filth of Wraiths and to clear his head a little bit. He took all of his clothes off, dropping them into a pile on the ground and stepped into the refreshing water.

For a while Rhynx remained stationary while the Nightshade was in the water. As a Tideborn, the world under the water was another home to him and he did feel tempted to go into the water as well. But something was keeping him on the shore, standing, watching the other man who had experienced with him this recent journey, as well as some previous ones. Mirskyn was swimming around, occasionally diving and disappearing from the sight, only to soon return back to the surface. And whenever he was visible, combing his hair with his hands, Rhynx couldn't look away. Maybe it was the wine he had been drinking a little while ago, but in his eyes, the Nightshade looked absolutely gorgeous and the moon's silvery light on his skin and hair only increased how stunning he looked. Rhynx felt a bit mesmerized, a sudden desire now burning in his heart. He started to undress as well and went into the water to accompany the Nightshade.

Mirskyn was standing and squeezing water off of his long hair, the water reaching to his waist. The Tideborn came close to him and the Nightshade gave him a puzzled look. Rhynx caressed his wet hair a little, staring right at his golden eyes. And just like that, he pressed his lips against Mirskyn's. The Nightshade allowed this, kissing him back. They would probably blame this on drinking too much wine, but on the other hand, perhaps they had truly formed a bond between each other. And the moon in the sky was witnessing all this and blessing them.

The men ended up spending the rest of the night on the shore of the lake, just enjoying the company of each other. Their naked bodies entangled; they slept without letting the other one go. Little did they know, this was the start of a relationship that would change their lives, even if they didn't want to admit that.