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Halloween Town
Overview:
Supernaturals, monsters, gods: all of these words are analogies for different. For some, the gift of difference grants freedom and power, the ability to achieve their goals. For others it is a burden, something that makes them abnormal, different, lonely. No matter the perspective, nor goal, everyone needs some form of solidarity. To those who identify with “monster,” Halloween Town is a place they can call home.
Culture:
Halloween is a holiday born from the concept of Hallows eve, a day where the world of the living and dead grow close enough that spirits can attack normal people. By wearing the masks of monsters, humans are able to stay safe on this dangerous day by fooling the spirits into thinking they are one of them. In Halloween Town, people wear the masks of humans, typically in formal events or social outings. This irony of wearing the mask of normal humans is sown deeply into the culture of the district, as it acts as a metaphor for many who have been marginalized by the normalcy of the city, or even those who come from another world with a culture completely different from the one in the Nexus.
This district has a sort of Mayor or Governor, the hollow queen. She is a well known celebrity in this town as the living founder of this district. Using her magic, she creates the infrastructure, sees to the concerns of the city and even helps the police defend this part of the city in dire situations. She is well known as benevolent and kind, treating all the citizens as family, provided you are a supernatural, from another world or a monster.
Behind the scenes, the pumpkin queen seeks an opportunity to expand her power into the other districts. Currently, she is devising a plot to grow her own abilities, expanding the limits of her magic so that she can outstrip the stronger residents of the nexus. Moreover, she seeks to use the plight of supernaturals to raise her own political power, perhaps even take over the role of ruler of the police. After all, who is more suited to managing the needs of those who migrate to the Nexus? The cops or her?
Aesthetic: Imagine a typical densely populated city, except all the homes are either orange, brown or green. The windows of each building are shaped like sharp pumpkin eyes, the ones meant to evoke menace. The streetlights have orange and yellow christmas lights wrapped around the poles and citizens are often seen walking around with human masks. It is just as common to see a grotesque beast walking the streets as a normal human. There are often loud explosive parties, with no concern for damage, as it is expected that the hallowqueen will happily repair any damages.
Defenses: The defenses of this district are composed almost entirely of Harley’s magic. Harley’s familiars wander the streets, keeping the peace and extending the hallow queen’s watchful eye across the city. In times of crisis, Harley may ask the citizens or outside connections to fight for the sake of the city, which can include other district forces or bounty hunters. The average citizen is actually pretty stong, with many having one or two stats in the incredible range, or highly varied powers. The reason this district is considered a powerhouse is not Harely herself, but the idea of a fully functional militarized district.
Name: Hollow Queen Harley
Race: Unknown
Age: No one knows
Height: 5 feet
Weight: 200Ibs
Appearance: (https://i.imgur.com/wD5plZ1.png)
Physical Attributes
Strength: Fantastic (Heroic after consumption)
Agility: Fantastic (Heroic after consumption)
Durability: Fantastic (Heroic after consumption)
Magic: Very High
Complete consumption: Much like a snake, Harely is capable of swallowing people whole, using their bodies energy to empower her own body. The strength of the subject does not matter, nor their abilities. By consuming a non human or monster is capable of strengthening her body one rank higher. Unfortunately, her belly can only digest one body at a time.
Magic Resistance: Medium- For a guardian, Harely’s magical resistance is not particularly strong, but she is still a guardian nonetheless. As such, she can resist the potency of magic to the extent that damage done to her through magic is reduced by one rank.
Pumpkin magic: Attribute wise, this type of magic is essentially fire magic. It allows her to conjure explosive pumpkins to be used as explosive weapons. The larger the pumpkin, the greater the explosion. She can also conjure non explosive pumpkins to be used defensively. The pumpkins are comparable in density to a brick wall. With this ability, she has created the houses in halloween town for the people to live in, saving countless dollars in repair.
Teleportation: A slow acting spell, Harley can teleport to any of her pumpkins. This effectively means that she can teleport anywhere in the city, as the infrastructure was created by her. However, the spell requires slow, deliberate hand movements, so it is not optimal for battle. It is essentially just a fast travel spell.
Summons: Harley is capable of summoning very weak familiars to seek out and repair damages to the city. Outside of police presence in the district, these are the main sources of authority, even if they function more as construction workers than officers. If destroyed, Harley will know intuitively.
Other Abilities:
Decent fighter: The Harley can fight in hand to hand combat but she is no master. Moreover, she cannot use weapons very well if at all. If you get her in hand to hand combat with similar stats, you can beat her.
Equipment: None
Weakness:
Summons: The fact of the matter is that the summons are more of a reliability than a help to the hollow queen personally. Creating more cost mana, so if you destroy enough she will tire. Moreover, because she is alerted when they are destroyed, they can be used to set a trap for her. Moreover, if you do not want to be discovered, it is a simple matter of immobilizing them rather than destroying them.
Close range combat: As mentioned in her fighting skill entry, she's not great as a close combat fighter and relies mostly on support in battle. If you take out the person helping her, or manage to close the distance, it is a simple matter to take her out, provided the character has master level skill.
Possible quests: Taking power away from Harley through opposition groups, Assassination missions, Helping with citizen problems, defending against discrimination organizations,
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Zeke
3:00 PM
Well, it was a real nice flight. The wind was chilly, the sun was bright, and the view was even better than usual, courtesy of his queen. It was such a nice flight, that he took very good care to make sure he didn't go for the less populated routes, just so she'd get a niiice good view from above. And the others too. Well, he did have to show her around, no?
"Enjoying the flight?" It was hard to tell if he was making fun of her or not here, but he was definetely absolutely not enjoying himself in a sick way. Nope.
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Serana
She was going to kill it someday. Its insolence was absolutely astonishing, and certainly appalling, when considered with the coldly rational mind of the undead. Benefits to the mind such as these were but one reason why Serana only felt comfortable allowing non-elves to serve her after she had reanimated them properly - death covered for the deficiencies of their origins, somewhat.
You was different in that regard.
"If you continue to make a spectacle of this, I am going to find a new way to punish you."
You was infuriating even when dead, with its inconstant behaviors and its sick sense of humor.
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Zeke
"And turn me into another of your stuffy rot for brains? Puhlease, you'd miss me." He answered to the threat smugly like it was nothing at all. "I mean, it's cute and all, being a skeleton... but I find bones pretty rough in the conversation department. How do they go? Yes master, no master and uhhh.... bone voyage?"
Before she could even reply to that, he tossed her in the air. It was landing time after all.
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Crowds
Even from the sky, the gothic aesthetic was obvious. Each building was decorated with a pumpkin face somewhere on the design. Some had it on the roof, others on their doors. Either way, the message was clear, Halloween was inserted into every aspect of this town's culture. Citzens roamed the street, wearing masks of humans. Some were towering monsters, others were little mini humans and some were just humans. However, every single one of them wore the mask of a human being, a literal peice of plastic in front of their face designed to look like a human.
A few of them looked up at the two descending from the sky, but returned to their daily activities. The sight was rather typical in their district, so the citizens were simply provided with a little bit of extra stimulus before returning to whatever they were doing. It was just another boring day for them.
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Serana
A thousand human souls would be sacrificed to avenge Serana's sensibilities for that sinister pun her servant saw fit to serve her. At least the drop was nothing ungraceful for one such as her - as an elf she more than possessed the necessary grace to land on her feet atop one of the many decorated buildings in this strange district. The masks... they actually drew a chuckle of amusement from her.
"How quaint. A place where humans are objects of fantasy and mockery. And yet the decoration is fit to a theme. I wonder...?"
She flipped some of her misplaced hair back over her shoulder, and took a closer look around.
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Zeke
His dark wings flapped until he landed down to her side, watching down from the rooftop like a wild bird, his expression beastly and fierce...
"I dunno. It kind of gives me the creeps." He grimaced, and scratched the back of his ear lightly while pondering.What was up with these grotesque disguises? He wasn't one to talk, but this was too uncanny even for him. He looked around sheepishly for a bit, confused or stressed out. It almost looked like the sight was making him nervous. Or... scared? How ridiculous!
A bead of sweat ran down his temple, but he did his best to smile cockily.
"Well, if there's anything worth mocking, it'd be humans. I guess we're not dealing with idiots at least. Question is, think they'd be useful?"
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Serana
"... do you remember where we dwell, You?" The elven lich lifted an elegant eyebrow in bemusement. And yet, she took a moment to expend a minuscule portion of her mana to call forth one of the many lost souls bound to her will, and set it to wander through the crooked streets and alleys. "I wish to see more of this place. If nothing else it has a certain ambiance I might enjoy."
So then she leaped down to the ground, and began to saunter her way to the main thoroughfares.
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Zeke
"H-hey! Wait for me!" He blinked sheepishly and jumped off, and followed behind her swift form like her shadow. Or well, tried to anyways. It was like she was a fox, dammit!
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Candleman
A man walked up to the pair, clutching a spirit within his hands. Unlike the many beasts and monsters wandering through the streets, he seemed normal, as well as one of the few sentient beings not wearing a mask. He had sharp brown eyes, unkempt hair and a bored frown. Really, he just sort of looked like a tired body guard with resting bitch face. However, as he got closer, it looked as if his face was melting.
"You two must be new," he said, flinging the soul back at the elven woman. "Welcome to Halloween Town, the district that provides a safe haven for all monsters. Using captured souls or other such forms of human trafficking are strictly forbidden. The hallow queen will not judge you for whatever circumstances lead to to obtaining these souls, but we ask that you not use them so openly. Do you understand?"
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Serana
To be approached by what at first seemed an unsightly presence left Serana irritated, but when it proceeded to throw her own lost soul back at her? That drew her interest to the almost-human creature before them. "A safe haven, was it? I suppose it must be if you can keep those... things, out of your streets."
She placed the soul back in its place, out of sight, with a flick of her wrist, and smiled politely.
"Tell us more of this Hollow Queen and her people, then. I have no interest in commerce with humans, so I may find this place worthy of my gold if I like what I hear."
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Zeke
So much for being subtle. Made a cutting sign to his neck and shook it, as if to tell her to cut it out. I mean, its not like they knew if the guy they were talking to hated humans, and this was a trickly subject. Yeah, they suck, but its not like everyone is going to think your way even when you're right. So it'd be real nice if she could keep the hostility to a minimum.
Really he just didn't want to get blasted out of a district again. "I'm sure you will boss. I mean, this place has it all. Cute girls, pumpkins, good shade. What more can you ask for?"
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Candleman
A bit of his cheek seemed to drip down his face, falling to the cold hard concrete at their feet. Strangely enough, the cheek maintained its shape, even if it looked a little mushy. "The Hollow Queen is my master and mother, as well as the ruler of this district. I am one of many candles roaming the district keeping the peace. The people of this district are those exiled from other districts, either by choice or by the community. As a candleman, I do not care about your views, just that you make my job easier by following this district's rules. If you wish to learn more about this place, I am not one to ask, for my feelings are limited to my sense of duty and my love for my queen."
A short voluptuous woman with large hips, fox ears and a long snake tail winked at Zeke before walking into a nearby store. Unfortunately, her tail got caught in between the sliding doors.
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Serana
Serana let out a hum of amusement at the response she received. "Such an efficient creature you are, then. I commend your queen for your design - if it is indeed her who is responsible." At that, she laughed and quietly ignored You's attempts at enforcing unnecessary tact. "Worry not - I have no plans at this time to cause trouble."
She looked around to the other inhabitants on the streets, and their establishments. Anywhere interesting to go to...?
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Zeke
Something suddenly caught his attention, and his eyes literally glowed red as if they were laser beams. He smiled from ear to ear before dashing to the left, and in a heartbeat he hurried by the shop's door and opened it like a prince charming. He bowed respectfully like a knight.
"You should be careful. It'd be no good if something so cute would get damaged."
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Serana
She had scarcely taken note of the other woman getting caught in that manner. When her servant proceeded to go out of his way to rescue said woman from that fate? Serana just... watched. Her features were emotionless, neither judging nor condoning. It was as if she just didn't care.
But appearances could be deceiving.
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Fox girl
The girl's face turned bright red as she scrambled to grab her tail. She was so smooth for like five seconds! How could she mess all of that up in even less time!? Well, she managed to grab her tail. Maybe he didn't see that.
"Raaaaa!" she roared, holding up her hands as if she were ready to pounce. Well roar wasn't the right word to describe what came out of her mouth. It was more of a gasp that sounded like a lion cub trying to sound scary to a predator. "See that! Thats what happens when....."
Oh forget it...
"I'm sorry..." she said, looking down at the ground.
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Zeke
"Relax, no harm no foul!" He grinned and laid back, flapping his hand over to ease the tension. "Well, I am new here. If you could show me around a bit, it'd be great!" He grinned from ear to ear, for a moment he looked as cute as a sunshine.
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Serana
Silent and graceful, Serana practically glided her way across the ground to appear from out behind her servant's back. Her cold eyes and smile were directed right at the vulpine vixen who had drawn the chivalrous attention of You. "Yes, I do believe we would quite appreciate something of a tour. From a local."
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Zeke
"E-eh?" He blinked innocently before he felt a sudden cold chill. Something was staring down his back, like a dozen cold needles running through his bones. It was the cruel chill of death, and a smile he'd probably have nightmares sleeping over.
His lady was wonderful like that. He very discreetly moved to hush something in her ear, which hopefully would be big enough to get the memo. She was bound to scare the cute lady!
"Boss, with all due respect, don't you think we'd cover more ground if we split?"
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Fox girl
The girl stared up at the two. They were both taller than her and oddly confident for somone wandering into this part of the city. Even fellow monsters tended to at least feel shy, or some false sense of bravado when arriving here. Although, the girl certainly seemed to have that. Even so, there was only one thing that bothered her.
Crap, he is taken!
The sliding door opened and shut, the air blasting them before going away. It was getting annoying. "Alright. I suppose I have a little bit of time."
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Serana
She gave her servant a Look. As if she needed to say anything to convey how obvious his intentions were. Without looking at the vulpine woman again Serana stated, "We appreciate the time you are taking out of your day for this, miss."
Her smile returned, and grew.
... that door was rather irritating. It was only elven dignity that prevented Serana from showing how annoying it was.
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Zeke
"This door is such a pain..." He sighed. Why couldn't she just listen to reason? His point was perfectly sound. "Fine, fine. et's just get this over with." He grumbled and pouted.
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Fox
As the door opened once more, the fox girl slipped through, accidentally bumping into a stranger with her hips. She looked back and smiled as she realized her tail did not get caught this time. Feeling high off her brief moment of success, she twirled around before giving a little bow.
"This is a shopping center, one of many spread throughout the district! I am sure you don't need my help to realize this is a mall."
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Serana
"A Mall? An interesting term... explain." Serana mused, and commanded, aloud, shameless in her curiosity and disregard for the opinions and views of others. They could not influence her self-image, and so admitting ignorance meant nothing.
Her servant's obvious philandering intentions were of course disregarded.
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Zeke
"Huh? It's like a market where goods and services are exchanged for money. There's even entertainment and all kinds of stores. You've never heard of it?" He looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
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Fox Girl
Oh lord, we are going to be here all day.
"The mall is... umm... Its a building that has many stores in it and the purpose is to ummm..... allow people to visit one place for all of their needs and expose them to new products they wouldn't otherwise buy? Most people just use it to hang out. I have gotten hit on a few times here. It is sort of a place for teenagers to hang out in."
Weird. The woman spoke with authority and confidence, yet didn't know what a mall was. She turned to the man that rushed to her aid and thought to herself, I wonder if he is into the domineering type....
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Serana
"I see. It seems quite convenient in that respect." She held her chin in her hand and frowned in consideration, before nodding. "I approve of this innovation."
In fact, she was pleased enough by it to turn her attention to the vulpine girl more. "I would have you continue this tour."
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Fox Girl
The fox girl turned away from the two, starting at the mall. Her hips wiggled a little bit as her tail swished back and forth. She was a little nervous.
"The mall isn't the important part, its the people," she said, walking away from the mall. It was one of the first times since she arrived that she really considered the impact of the culture of the district itself. For a while now, she had taken it all for granted.
"The fact of the matter is that we are all monsters. All of us were rejected from our respective districts for one reason or another. Some of us chose to leave, others left for fear of their lives. That label of otherworldly creature..... In the right enviroment, it has the power to crush anyone, an oppressive force on the minds of us monsters. But here, it is a source of strength. We are the monsters of the world and the hallow queen is our beloved leader!"
As she spoke, a bus passed by. On top of the bus, a candleman sat perched on the roof, its butt melted and hardened, allowing it to stick to the top. It eyed the two for a moment before casting its eyes elsewhere. "Our public transportation used to be run entirely by the queen's servants, but now that the district is a sprawling metropolis, they are used mostly for security. They are pretty strong, even by monsters standards, but occasionally they get overpowered by our stronger citizens and criminals but its a sight to see when a whole group of them has to put someone down. Its best to leave the area when that happens."
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Zeke
He just followed along, watching silently for a moment, It was when she spoke that he closed his eyes, thought a moment. Then he answered, with a surprisingly warm voice.
"Even a monster can wish for a place to call home, a brotherhood to belong to. I understand." He smiled. "No one wants to die alone, eh?"
He couldn't say he didn't understand the sentiment. Better than anyone. After all, he too was a monster that had been cast away. He didn't think anyone would understand that.
His eye turned to his lady. But you understand, right?
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Serana
"Hmm. An interesting premise to build a kingdom upon." Serana's voice gave away nothing of her feelings on the matter, but she was indeed taking in every sight with a keen eye. "How are criminals dealt with in this place? And what of humans who find their way in?"
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Fox girl
She gave him the cold shoulder.... guess they were fighting?
"Even if humans aren't welcome, they are allowed to be here," she answered, turning around and walking backwards, her tail swishing with a bit less enthusiasm. Her whiskers twiched as she spoke. "Although, their crimes are treated with much more weight. While murder results in jail time for us monsters, it often means death for humans. Sometimes, overzealous people get to the humans first, torturing them before handing them anonymously over to the authorities. It is a practice we are trying to get rid of. It makes our district look bad."
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Zeke
Pffft. Classic, boss. If her ignoring him bothered him, he either was really good at hiding it.... or just didn't care. Either way, he laughed it off and grinned all the same, and stretched his arms behind his back. "How droll. Death is so final and grim, while life is full of possibilities. Even if you do end up getting rid of the practice, you're still clearly discriminating against humans. That's just going to point their daggers and fingers against your lot even further."
Well, it wasn't like he could blame them. They were victims of discrimination all the same, its that sad circle of hate and vengeance that caused them to lash out in the first place. BUt then why bother acting civilized about it? It just didn't make much sense to him. Go ham or go home.
"What do you think though?" He raised an eyebrow to the fox girl.
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Serana
Serana waited, and listened, and took in what they were both saying even if she decided to keep teasing torturing her servant for a while longer. Its opinion on death was so strange for something that reveled in it as much. "And why not simply forbid the humans from entering?"
But then, the elf tilted her head and looked. Were there any in this shopping district?
"Or, are you dependent on them... economically?"
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Fox girl
Placing a finger on her bottom lip. "Me? I hate humans, but I don't care so long as they don't get involved in my personal life. We aren't reliant on them economically, but we want them to see that we don't need them. We monsters are more than enough to thrive without their help. The inclusion of humans in our district is to avoid becoming too isolationist. Plus, some of our citizens have family in other districts. We don't want to cut them off from that."
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Zeke
"...Family, huh? Now ain't that a funny word." He grinned nonchalantly and stared off at the distance, before glancing at his hand. Such a nice word, and it rolled too easily on the tongue. No wonder humans were attached to it.
Ain't that right, old man?
"So what about that Hallow Queen?"
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Fox Girl
The fox girl cocked her head at the man, wondering what he could possibly be thinking about. It was possible that it was something traumatic, a lot of people here had such backstories. "The Hallow Queen is our benevolent overlord. She runs this place in a utopian monarchy, putting our needs above our own. Some say she has been around since the start, others say she was born a generation or two ago. One thing is certain, she is an old and powerful spirit, able to subdue even the strongest monsters in our district with her bare hands alone. Her pumpkin magic protects us and keeps humans from ruining our homes. Honestly, I can't imagine life here without her."
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Lawrence
"ARE YOU INSANE!? YOU SHOULDN'T BE HERE!!" Fiery wings flapped over the air, and a scalding beak cawked and pecked right at the side temple of a disheveled figure. The pallid man was limping, but there was a small strength left to his stride. A resolve.
The bird was mostly loud.
"Look, I know you've got this whole macho bravado thing going princess, but hellooo? Newsflash missy, maybe if you actually followed through and got the sword built, and maybe if you weren't built like a stick, you'd have a chance. But as we are right now, we'll just end up hamburger just like last time! Why did you go all that way only to call it quits? Why!?" Its voice cried to the point the man's head flinched to the side, and his hair whipped against the voice. Even so, he seemed.... distant. Nonchalant. Like he just didn't care. Or like he was missing something.
On his cane, held by that steel of old, the ashen man walked alone.
"I hesitated. I have used someone once already in the past, sought her for my own ambitions. The result.... was not kind. "No. I must go. I should be able to reach her before he does, and hopefully warn her. I... I don't want anyone else to die anymore."
But he lacked the strength. The strength to do anything.
So he sought the place where the lord of this place resided, racing against the clock.
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Serana
A smile moved across Serana's face as she considered the attitudes of this place, and seemed to listen intently to the fox girl now. The precious chilliness faded. "She sounds rather wonderful, really. I would much desire to speak with her when time permits."
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Outside the palace
Grand colums framed the door of the building connecting to the marble peristyle, the man landing on the marble floors. The front was practically decorated with candlemen, each one having an eerily identical face. Their heads turned, their torso's continuing to face foward. Well, except for the one that approached him.
"Sir. Whats wrong?" he said. It was as if he were trying his best to sound concerned, but his voice remained uncaring, almost overly polite as if something bad happened to a new acquaintance he did not care for.
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Lawrence
The bird squaked in surprise when a... thing (candle?) suddenly talked. Grr, how dare it! Some crappy furniture had no right talking like that to a gorgeous beast like him! It soared along the halls, its eyes and path bright coloured flames of orange. It was more hard to tell if that creature sounded panicked or haughty. Probably both.
"Hey hey hey! 3 to the 1 to the 2 to the 3, this ain't no way to speak to your M.V.P! Make way to the prince of fire! We've got an A case of emergency goooing through! Now if you'll excuse me-"
Until a cane hooked its throat right in, pulling him back to the earth where he belonged.
"Shaddup."
His grey eyes looked down, then up to the man who spoke to him. He tried taking a step to bow but suddenly, he tripped, and nearly fell down his knees. It was almost pitiful, the way he tried to keep himself standing. Trying so hard to stay afloat. But for a moment, it wasnt sure if he did fall or simply used it as an excuse to kneel and implore.
"There is no time to explain. Your lord is in danger."
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Candleman
The candleman did not seem to care about the squaking of the bird, although its pupil's did track its movement. However, when the man spoke of his master, his entire body started to shake. In fact, all of the candlemen watching the interaction started to shake. Their torso's matched their heads, swinging around as they all formed a circle around the two.
"What do you mean? Be warned, lying about dangers to the queen are dealt with harshly."
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Fox girl
These two seemed really interested in their queen. She wondered if they were politicians or something, someone from the outside interested in their queen. Perhaps there was a little hope they were just colleagues. She strutted along the cold sidewalk, her bare feet feeling the chill of the concrete.
"Well, the queen is very busy. As I said, her magic provides for the entire district. Getting an appointment with her is the hard part. I suppose if you want I could take you to the town hall."
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Ezekiel
The void vessel mused, but was it the boy or the draken who smiled. "Who knows? We might get to meet her today after all..." He spoke as if it was an uncertain guess, and not something that he had decided already. Just what was going in that corrupt skull of his?
He ruffled the Fox Girl's head with a friendly grin, not much differently than an older brother. It was the same kind of mannerism he'd sport with his master when he was in a good mood, and most aware of his own state. You could almost say this kind of act was usually reserved for her. At least, until now.
Among the streets, masked beast walked where their hearts led. But whether they are human or monsters, all bear a mask to begin with, don't they? Some on their faces, others in their hearts. It's not like it was unusual to see unusual people around these parts, but even so...
"Oh right, Hallow Queen. Town Hall, yes! Um, where's that?"
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Lawrence
"I fear we are already too late. I can feel him, just as he can feel me. And unlike Little Russia, he'll know better to strike this domain alone. This might be too much, even for all of us..." He closed his eyes, and struggled to raise from his feet. Meanwhile his fiery bird perched on his shoulder.
"You must evacuate the people. We cannot give them another second to strike..."
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Serana
Serana was not annoyed by the sight before her at all. Not the slightest bit. Her eyebrow was far too regal to 'twitch' or whatever such nonsensical word humans had attached to the motion. Instead she crossed her arms under her chest, and inclined her head. "Yes, it would be most helpful if you would show us to that place."
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Fox girl
3:30
The fox girl cocked her head to the side. It was an odd way to ask for that. Shrugging she simply said, "Well I said it might be hard to get a meeting, but you can see the building anytime!"
3:45 Halloween Town City Hall
The fox girl stood at the base of the stairs, one finger at the base of her chin. "Odd, it seems like the candlemen are more plentiful here today. And they are more.. active than they usually are...."
What was going on?
Meanwhile..
The candlemen had taken the man into another room, deep within the city hall. It was a windowless room with nothing but an oval table. A candleman on one end, and Lawarnce on the other. The candleman's gaze was souless, almost as if he did not care. Yet when he spoke, his words carried a strange weight of concern, both for his safety and for himself.
"We have called the Hollow Queen. She will be here shortly. Now tell me what you know and how we can fortify this district. We must take action before the hollow queen arrives."
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Zeke
"Aw. Maybe the queen's having a romantic dinner party." He grinned relaxedly, and put a hand on his hip. He looked amused, as if there was a joke going on that only he had gotten the punchline to. But the grin was short lived, his expression soon turned sour. A look of concern and worry over him. "Well, it could be a security meeting. The city is wriggling with all sorts of problems lately. Crime, violence, crazy lunatics out to conquer the world..." His eyes shifted to his lady for a moment.
"...Haven't you heard? There's this creepy cult blooming as of late. A bunch of humans worshipping some dead dragon and wanting to join it or something. Dunno, it sounded pretty dumb, but I guess that's what humans are. Greedy and foolish, even death to them looks like some kind of-"
Lawrence
"Salvation." His words were as grim as his lifeless eyes. But there was a spark of will in their shine for a moment. "That is what they call themselves. I had been investigating them a while, and found there has been a burst of activity as of late. Like I said, there is no time. You need to ensure the safety of the people, don't you? Unless... is that not the wish of your lady?"
His gaze was icy for a moment. Just what did he mean by that?
"Hey hey Lawrence! Quit antagonizing them!" The fiery bird's wings flapped, and he spun around one of the candle dudes before pecking his head, causing his head to lean to the side with a sour sheepish look. "But he's right. The weaklings should scram before things get ugly. You can do that, can't you?"
-
Serana
The lich became very still as her willful servant began to ramble on about things it knew but had not seen fit to share with her. Serana placed a cool hand upon You's shoulder and gripped it tightly, digging her nails in with a smile. "You hadn't told me about this before. Were you trying not to worry me? How sweet."
-
Fox Girl
The fox girl guided them up the stairs, giving way to a marble floor covered in candlemen. They were looking in either direction, their eyes shifting back and forth. One of them locked eyes with the trio, rushing over and firmly planting itself in front of them. "Please evacuate the premises. This facility is in a state of emergency."
Hollow Queen
An orange portal appeared in the center of the table, the hollow queen emerging covered in a twilight hue, her entire figure a silhouette. The light around her dissipated, revealing a woman who looked to be in her early 20s, late teens.
"What is the matter sweetie?" she said, standing atop the table with a playful grin. Her voice was soft, almost sensual, as if she were talking to a lover, or perhaps even a child. It was an odd combination of tones. "I heard a human came in to warn us about some terrorist group or something, but... well you look positivily flustered! Normally we only treat monsters, but we are striving to be a more equal society!"
She hopped off the table, slowly strutting towards Lawrance. "What is your woe, your fear, your plight? Tell me what you think is so scary to my people."
-
Lawrence
He managed a weak, hesitant smile before the orange glow. When the lord of the district presented herself, he could only kneel. She looked...beautiful. It was a shame that they couldn't have met in a different circumstance.
"It is an honour to meet you, o hallow queen. But alas this is no time for festivities." He lowered his head like a knight. "Madness. That which sleeps in the hearth of man."
That was the one answer he could give her. And it was all that could be said. For as long as that man lived, this city would have no hope. It would eventually surrender and change into something else. All because of what happened on that day.
"If I am correct, they will strike from the merchant's block." He seemed sad, troubled. "Please, we must mobilize quickly. Your people need-"
Zeke
"Oh, I didn't think it'd be worth spooking you. They're just weaklings, there's no way they'd be able to get anything done unless someone gave them a whoole lot of help. And who'd be crazy enough to help a bunch of suicidal cultists anyway?" He cocked his head and waved his hand, brushing hers away with an easygoing smile. It wasn't an insincere one, it was honestly kind of cute.That is, until it warped into an absolutely s m u g grin
"It did get you to stop ignoring me though. My my, I didn't think you were into schlock rumors lady! Hehehehe..." He patted her on the head, compared ot her icy grip his little lovetap was as warm as it got.
"If they dare to attack in your presence, I'll crush them to burnt atoms! Same goes for you cutie." He winked gently at the fox-girl. Then, he turned to the candle-man with a friendly offering of his hand.
"Any way we can-"
? ? ? ?
"Help!" A man screamed from the distance. The sounds of people running were as sudden as they were grim. A loud crashing sound screamed through the air, and a hiss that pierced the skies. And another, and another.
"Ahhh!"
Slithering from the sewers beneath the merchant block, viscuous scales revealed themselves from the cracked rubble of a store. The merchant luckily managed to flee. But the shadow of the scales grew larger, and larger, larger...
Until a gargantuan serpent revealed itself, sporting a jaw large enough to swallow a truck whole. And another appeared right next to it, and one more... no, wait. It couldn't be-
Lawrence
"No..." He heard the scream, and his eyes widened in horror. If his body seemed pale, by now he was truly a phantom. He rushed to see what was going on by the window. "Shit shit shit! This screams trouble!" The bird cawed, panicking all around the room. Meanwhile, Lawrence stared in disbelief. That madman, could he really have?
"It can't be..."
"It's a hydra!"
-
Serana
They had just had this conversation. They had just talked about not embarrassing her in front of other people like this. This time she did not visibly react, did not give her so-called servant the satisfaction of seeing her respond to this provocation. Instead she turned to the disturbance taking place somewhere behind them, and frowned. "Then I suppose you will wish to correct that problem."
It would not do for her future minions to be killed before she had moved the infrastructure into place to reanimate them.
-
Hallow Queen
The queen shook her head. "I suppose I need to launch a counter offensive," she said, walking to a window and staring at the candlemen scrambling about. Without moving their torso, each of their heads twisted towards the Hallow Queen, nodded then bolted towards the source of the rumbling. When it emerged, there would be a small swarm of men waiting to take it on.
"Young man. Tell me about this Hydra. What does it have to do with this organization."
Fox Girl
The fox girl hid behind Zeke's broad body. "Umm I think we should go. I think something bad is happening."
-
Zeke
He closed his eyes and pouted. "No, wow, really? You mean I'd just let that lizard run around like that? Besides, there's no way we can let the people here get in danger. Right Serana?"
His eyes gleamed when he stared at the puissant serpent, whose trashing coils began to approach their location. He cracked his knuckles and energy began to swell in his chest.
"Stand back kid, we got this. I'm still pretty roughed up, but bosslady can show you how it's done." He looked at her like it shouldn't even be a question, and grinned. "Care to take the spotlight? Every story needs a heroine. What's your plan!? We need to help the people to safety at once!
It was no order, but neither was it a request. It was the roar of something ready to be unleashed.
Lawrence
Lawrence stared down in shock, while his bird squawked something in the background akin to "We're all gonna dieeeeeeeeeee!"
It wasn't it.
"I...don't know. The information I gathered should not be mistaken, and yet..." Hisknuckle hit the bridge between his eyes and he thought with a pained expression. This wasn't what was supposed to happen. Unless...
"Are you just going to stand here while your people fight for you? We don't have time." He finally opened his eyes and looked at the queen expectantly.
-
Serana
The lich took a moment to consider this, observing the chaos from afar. Her heart was not stirred by the danger to these creatures. But her servant's words appeared to move something in her, because she began to saunter forward toward the beast. "Come forward then, creature!" Black chains seething with destructive mana wrapped themselves around Serana's arm as she pointed in the direction of the monster. "Let us see how long you may hold onto your freedom against me."
As her chains snaked out to grasp one of the beast's many heads she paused in her walk to think aloud. "I wonder how many heads a hydra needs to live in this world? It never does seem to stay consistent..."
-
Hallow Queen
The woman sighed. "I suppose you are right," she said. "Even I can become afraid. But no matter. Come. Fight along side me. If this threat is as bad as you say, we will need all the help we can get."
Doors slammed against the wall, revealing the Hallow Queen's short figure. Within her palm, a pumpkin grew from nothing into the size of your average jack o lantern. She looked down, only to see another pair of newcomers stepping up to deal with the threat. Perhaps she would not need to show all her cards at once after all. All of the candlemen gathered before the hydra, lined up in formation as though they were spartan warriors. The first row struck the Hydra's body with their fists, testing it with their strength.
-
The Hydra
The seven-headed serpent screamed from the chains, and lashed its tail left and right like a hammer. It tried firing a jet of acid, but the chains must've jerked its head, for it flew over the magician and instead landed right next to... wait, where was Zeke?
...
The fists smacked against its massive body, but the candle-men soon met a violent lash from its body and were crushed, their life snuffed out by merciless jaws like a light. It was relentlessly advancing, but the chains seemed to slow it down, enough that the terrified commoners managed to flee and take cover from its rampaging path. Heads twisted and waved about, and bit the chains in order to sever them. It would only be a few seconds before it'd break.
Meanwhile, Zeke, being a brave and supportive employee, hid behind a car and took cover with the cute girl protected in his arms. He totally wasn't sweating in fear, nope! That's just your imagination playing tricks. The trembling? Pft, it was just kinda chilly.
"Isn't my boss cool?" He grinned at the fox-girl. He looked pretty scared now, it was kind of cute.
-
Serana
If anything, the level of struggle the beast was able to provide put a smile on Serana's noble face. "My, what a lovely beast. You're so stubborn about your rampages!" A laugh escaped her as she channeled a tremendous amount of dark magic through the chains, inducing rapid cellular decay in the creature's thick multi-headed hide.
"Now heel."
More chains to channel her magic, and she tugged down hard on them to punish the beast.
-
Hallow Queen
The hallow queen stared down at the two from atop the flight of stairs, not even bothering to acknowledge the hydra, nor the small pool of bodies of her beloved candlemen scattered around the beast. With each clack of her boots against the cold marble, her jack o lantern grew larger. It went from the size of an apple to the size of a watermelon, to the size of a small car floating above her head.
"My heroes!" she said, looking upon the chains that held the beast down. "Now leave this to me. I am this districts guardian after all."
With a flick of her arm, the massive pumpkin was flung at the beast, engulfing it in flames. "You two better move before-" A massive explosion englufed the entire platform, the candlemen each exploding themselves, their wails filling the air as their bodies crackled in the flames. The fox girl huddled behind Zeke.
-
Zeke
"Wo wo wo wo woaaaaaaahh!!" His eyes were wide open when flames suddenly surrounded everything with a massive explosion. His feet were covered in fire, the ground cracked, and he tried to back away, but the blast was so strong it sent him flying away! His head and body bounced down the streets, the fox safely curled in his arms while he got rag-dolled unceremoniously where the rest of the civilians were hiding. "Ow! Ouch! Agh..!
His shut eyes flicked in pain to look at the cute fox girl's face. With that, he sighed in relief. From her expression, his body was still in one piece. He grinned at her.
"Aw. You're still adorable."
The surrounding folks would surely blush at the very obvious romanticism... if they weren't shivering in fear!
Meanwhile the beast screamed. Its heads, its wild eyes struggled against the chains. One of its heads was brought down to the floor, pinned ultimately with no chance to escape. Enraged, the beast moved with such fury it rippe done of the heads, but the flames and the explosion ultimately forced it back with gruesome wounds to show. Its eyes darted, until they found something amidst the crowd. Seeing it, it charged forward with even more reckless abandon, its eyes flashing with rage.
It was almost as if the two threats that were in its path did not matter. Or rather, something else was causing it to enrage. Only its ravenous fury as it lashed out towards the crowd, swelling in order to prepare a jet of acid directed at the intruding ladies!
"HyeeEEeeeEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKkkkkk....hrghheeeekeeeeeEEE!! Zghraaaahhh!! ZeEEE-"
-
Serana
"... stubborn beast." She let out a loud 'tsk' at its continued resistance, and then knelt down to bring her hand to the ground. "Cease your pointless prancing!"
A terrible surge of dark magic pushed forth through the ground, reaching for the creature's large limbs that allowed it to walk about at all. It seeped into them, into its veins and nerves, and began to rot those out from within as well. It would struggle to so much as crawl without, perhaps, dragging itself along with its heads.
And that would be just disgraceful.
-
Hallow Queen
The short little girl smiled as she walked closer, finally descending to the bottom of the stairs. She placed a gloved hand onto the beasts torso, rubbing it softly. "THere there, settle down. We won't hurt you anymore if you just simmer down."
Meanwhile the fox girl clung to Zeke's chest. "W-whats going on? Where did this thing even come from?!"
"That doesn't matter dear.... all that matters is that he or she is safe now."
-
Zeke
Safe? What a sick joke.
"Beats me!" Zeke shrugged. He really didn't think this would happen, he was honestly just as surprised at the rest. But he sighed in relief. His boss seemed to handle the surprise alright, this was going pretty smoothly. Even though he was sweating all over, he tried not to show concern. His boss had this!
*click*
Something cold and hard grazed his cheek,. And in that moment, there was a boom.
He barely had the time to react when he realized a gun was pointed from behind him, pointed at the fox girl no less! He turned barely in time to move her out of the way, but managed to take the bullet in his eye instead! "Argh!" He collapsed, but not before shielding the girl with his body. He was starting to grow cold...
Amidst the evacuated refugees, a handful of masked individuals held the rest at gunpoint. Wait, weren't these-
They were humans. The masks they bore were different too on closer inspection. They each bore the staff of Hermes. "Our...sal...vation...." Zeke groaned as his blood and brain matter leaked from the wound. As he thought, this attack wasn't a random monster attack, but an organized attempt.
Now they were all held hostage. One wrong move, and many innocent monsters would lose their lives that day.
The Hydra (At the same time)
The beast finally stopped, with a cry of anguish that could tear a man's heart out. Its nerves boiled and melted and like a sick beast it fell to the ground. Its eyes began to darken, the spark of life fleeing...
It stared at the two. For a moment, it seemed to be pacified...
Then there was a gunshot. And its eyes widened with a venomous flame. With a beastly cry, it began to swell and bulge, trying to crawl as it may. And its maw trembled unnaturally. Venom seeped from its mouth, which was channelling a blast of venom even greater than before! No, this beast was like a time bomb now, even with a castle's wall worth of defences, those in the immediate vicinity were in grave danger! The ground was already melting from the acid poison!
Wasn't it down just a second ago!? Where could this surge of power come from!
Before he could find the answer to that question, his head filled with static.
The Leader of the Cultists
BZZZZZ!!
"May I have a moment of your attention, o monstrous brethren?" An old man sneered with gloating contempt. The voice came not from the crowd, nor the beast...
Static filled one of the advertising televisions hanging on a building's wall. Soon, it revealed an old cloaked man, bearing the symbol of salvation on his cloth. His eyes were hidden, but one could see his gaping smile, as if it were mocking them. The hallow queen, the elven lich, and especially the monsters.
"We may be distant races, but I hope you enjoy the current event. Oh, please do carry on. The struggles of monsters are quite amusing."
-
Serana
Oh, her servant had gotten itself shot with some manner of firearm. How inconvenient. The elf motioned for the Hollow Queen to continue to hold the stage as the rampaging beast somehow got its second wind, and smiled. "By all means, continue. I'm quite certain your subjects would prefer to see you handle this from here."
But then some form of screens, which Serana's consumption of the whispers of the dying had told her days ago were 'televisions', began to show images and sounds in the semblance of a man. Her mood seemed to immediately plummet.
"On second thought, I have changed my mind." She sent another bolt of crippling force in the direction of the bloated beast attempting to bombard these buffoons with its bile, hindering further its capacity for motion. "This creature irritates me."
More chains rose up from the shadows, wrapping around its body and causing its flesh to decay where they touched.
-
Hallow Queen
"Please dear we are all monsters," she said, frowning as she sized up the beast. "Today you learn what makes me the worst of them all. I have one request and that is that you look away. As for you discusting human, you should keep your eyes on me. Today you will learn why this district is not to be trifled with."
The queen sunk her arm into the creature's belly, her arm glowing as she cooked the poison. The sounds of bones cracking echoed through the streets. With a ripping sound, the arm came out, revealing that the queen had torn out a car sized chunk of the beast. Her mouth expanded as she placed the meat in her mouth, allowing it to slide down her throat. Licking her lips, she reached for more.
A blink and everything was different. Thats what it felt like at least. One moment she was watching her beloved queen, another she was staring at the handsome man, his body shielding her. She raised her hands to the sky, hoping she would be spared.
"H-how did you get in?"
A shadow appeared behind one of the men, their disinterested gaze looming over the gunmen. A swift strike put the one furthest behind into the ground. Many more candlemen emerged from the ground, seemingly appearing from wax puddles. If one looked behind the gunmen, they would see more puddles creeping towards the scene in the distance.
"Please! Get him out of here! I don't know if he can regenerate!"
-
The Leader of the Cultists
A coarse laughter rasped through the televisions, like offal being ground out of a rusted machine. "Ufufufu... The elven queen. It is such a pleasure. But my my, you seem upset. Why the sour face? Did you not once cull our own kind the same way? Oh, but of course. It is perfectly reasonable and sane to do so when the grand future of your kin is at stake." It paused before winking at them. But static was slowly starting to overtake the channel, making it harder and harder to hear or see intelligibly.
Meanwhile, the serpent was torn to shreds. Cultists turned and fought with their guns and weapons, but were being gradually subdued by the candle men, though not as onesidedly as it should. The weirdest part was how these humans fought without the regard the living usually gave to their meagre existences. They'd rush into fatal wounds, gleefully brandishing weapons as long as they could take down the opposition. It was utter chaos.
"But you know, no matter how hard you smack that snake... it won't make them come back, will it? So why bother? Why not let *bzzzztt* wash this whole city away, just like it should have 10 000 years ago? War, violence, let us purge such *bzzt* Is there no greater salvation I ask?"
And the static stopped. The hydra fell. Now, there was but one final cry from the people.
"Save us!!"
M E A N W H I L E . . .
As her brethren and cultists fell around the fox girl, as she gripped the body of the handsome man, her vision began to grow a bit darker, hazy. The wounded body began to crack and visibly age, before slowly crumbling like empty clay between her fingers. The cold sensation would be the last reminder she'd ever have.
But something was crawling into her mind. While everyone was busy fighting, a dark smoke was seeping into her brain, like sweet honeyed words.
"They're too far. They're too late. This body will not last." Isn't it frustrating? Isn't it infuriating? Being unable to protect anything? Being a weakling tossed around.Everyone is fighting around, meanwhile all you're doing is crying. Can't you make yourself useful already?"
The void was feeding information directly into her. The one way she could save that man, whose body had just reached its limit...
-
Serana
"... ah."
She was going to have to brutalize her servant more when this farce was done and over with. Serana approached the so-called Hollow Queen as she indulged in her indecent feast of flesh. She stood next to her, examining her handiwork with a critical and unblinking eye. "You do seem rather decisive. That is a good quality for a ruler."
Then the lich turned her eyes up to one of the strange 'televisions' again. "Are you familiar with that particular example of vermin?"
-
Hallow Queen
The Hallowqueen groaned with displeasure, stuffing her expanding mouth with the corpse of the hydra. Her belly expanded, its size a mere fraction of the beast. Digestion had already begun. Hearing the girl's words, she turned towrds her, her smile fading rapidly. "Why thank you," she said, her pupils darting towards the TV. "This sort of thing is more common than you would think but less common than it feels."
She sighed. "I have never had to deal with a mess like this..." The strange thing about her speaking was she sounded more tired than alarmed, as if she didn't want to deal with any of it. Turning to the TV she shouted,
"Ironic that you call us monsters but you result to such tactics. Release them and come fight me. I will call off my men! If you kill them, I will make your last days as painful as possible."
-
Serana
The lich queen crossed her arms, her eyes moving between the so-called Hallow Queen and the television. Was she attempting to negotiate with them? What a foolish strategy - but then, Serana supposed this woman was not a necromancer. "Yes, do come forward. I wish to witness the mettle of this world's humans. Are you as wretched as the ones I'm so unfortunately acquainted with?"
What was her wayward servant up to over there, anyway? Pretending that something like this could hurt it.
-
Zeke
While the candlemen were busy finishing suppressing the assailants, he opened his eyes weakly, confused by the alien surroundings around him. It was like he was a child again, waking up from some dream.
"What is... going on...?"
But amidst the confusion and chaos, the fox girl dragged him away without mercy. She slipped along with the crumbling husk, her eyes darkened by a spell, and her form cloaked by dark illusions. She sneaked past the crowd into a manhole leading into the sewers. With no eyes turned to them, they disappeared. Something was just too uneasy, he had to take care of this body, and fast. A mere bullet should not do this much damage, unless...
BZZT
Serana. My dear Serana. My cute adorable Serana. I don't think he can hear you. It's probably a recording... A coarse, dark whisper ran through his leader's very large and cute ears, in the form of a single black moth who posed on her shoulder.
He noticed it first. The hydra, the bullet, everything was aimed to take him down. It was as if there was a mole in Salvation itself, who had managed to nearly kill him while he let his guard down. His dear master was safe, but something about this was not right. And he had too many things to take care of right now... "Help. P-please." His weak voice trembled inside the sewer gates, but it was drowned by the snapping sounds of dark, forgotten beasts working on his body against his will.
The spider whispered nonetheless. Looks like it's taken care of, for now though. I should go, it isn't safe for me here. Erm, the cultists look taken care of. Why don't you take the steering wheel now? Weave this little accident into a story, and make it a good song while you're at it. Something to get the masses to hate these humans who dared attack them, and love their heroic Savior. So many shops broken, oh how grateful would they be for a generous donor helping out a friend in need. Or don't. Urgh, my eye hurts, like, a lot.
It still didn't answer the question though. Who could have done such a thing? But the truth is, it was a question that needed no answering.
He knew who dunnit from the start.
? ? ? ? ?
"Kahahah! No dice. Looks like he escaped. No luck on the assassin either, or that lousy pet. Jeez, today's just not your day, huh Lamespeare?"
A burning bird cackled over the clouds around a transmission tower. Hanging on it, a masked, cloaked figure grabbed onto the metal structure, before removing the mask...
"I warned that woman. If she is wise, she'll do what is right. My part here is done."
With that, the ashen man smacked the cane on the structure, jumped down, and caught his companion before flying away. Much like his entrance, his exit was unremarkable.
-
Hallow Queen
The hallow queen stared at the body of the woman who escorted the two to her palace, ignoring the chaos in the background. "I think i've had enough of both of your games," she said, licking her fingers. Her massive belly began to deflate, displaying her abs once more. However, this time, they seemed just a tad more visible. A rush of power flowed through her body as it began digesting the beast. She always loved when people came in thinking they could fight monsters with monsters. She just wished the ring leader could be here to see what they had done.
"You aren't just average guests, nor are you naive heroes. How about the you two tell me what you are really here for?"
In the background the candlemen finished up the guards. They lined up, a pool of blood flooding beyond their feet, their expressions blank but focused. The two were completely surrounded by candlemen.
-
Serana
How unfortunate. But how would a pre-recorded message be aware of Serana's own presence here ahead of time? So very strange...
Don't keep me waiting for too long, You. I will find further use for you in this sooner rather than later.
The elven monarch turned her attention to the so-called Hallow Queen with a smile, and held her hand out invitingly. "I was here for no more reason than to introduce myself, and perhaps open up negotiations regarding a mutual threat. But I see now the humans have made my point rather more directly than I was expecting to."
Now that there was nothing assuming the form of a threat here Serana took the time to look her host up and down once. She nodded in approval of what she saw.
"They are such filthy creatures, are they not? Of all other races, I find myself despising them and their arrogant hypocrisy the most."
-
Hallow Queen
The Hallow queen tilted her head to the side. The candlemen encircling them followed suit, tilting their heads as well. Then, the Hallowqueen straightened it and smiled. The candlemen's heads remained tilted. "I agree with you," she said. "Its disgusting how hypocritical humans are. The funny thing is they are just as disgusted with each other as we monsters. Its just that they invent different things to be disgusted with."
The woman clenched her fist. "So what, you came to work for me? I don't mind having someone like you around to erase the foolish humans who wander into my district causing harm."
-
Serana
"I was actually hoping for more of an alliance." She motioned for the Hallow Queen to come closer, though it was entirely rhetorical. "You see, I just happened to come into a bit of land and troops myself recently. And I would rather not trade with the surrounding humans if I can help it."
The scrunched up look of distaste at the notion was entirely genuine. Serana didn't have to act at all for that part.
-
Hallow Queen
The queen shrugged and said, "And what do you have to offer hmmm? The power of someone like you is enticing, but the power of an individual is not something I really need right now, not after those fools delivered to me that treat...."
-
Serana
"I am offering economic assistance I think you may find helpful after this."
With but a wave of her hand, Serana made her point. The hydra and the chaos accompanying it had already caused an extraordinary amount of damage to the surrounding area, and to the people who lived in it. Vehicles had been crushed and knocked aside, people splashed and sick with vile fluids, bystanders trampled and wounded - one of Halloween Town's centers of commerce ruined. The sounds coming from the casualties were like sweet perfume to the lich's senses, and she soaked them up and knew the hearts of this queen's people.
They were counting on her for more than just protection right now.
"I can have your forum here fixed in a matter of days."
-
Hallow Queen
The Hallow Queen frowned. "Economic assistence is good and all but..."
She turned around, her back to the mysterous woman. Her palms began to radiate with a crimson light. Starting from her hips, she raised her hands upwards over her head in a circular arc, a trail of light following her movements. With the extra power, she had just consumed, raising new buildings was child's play. A massive dust cloud kicked up as a large buildings rose into the sky, even bigger than the last ones. The cloud engulfed the two of them, separating them from each others feild of view. When the dust cleared, the Hallow Queen was facing Serena, flashing her a proud smile.
"As you can see, we don't need such things. You see every time we have been attacked, i've made it a point to rebuild bigger and more impressive than before. It is a display of our perseverance and power against our human oppressors. Is there anything else you can offer?"
-
Serana
Oh, so this queen was competent.
Serana took the time to look it all over, obviously checking for signs of illusion but not expecting to actually find any such thing. She did not go very far in her stroll around the plaza before letting out a sigh of dejection. "I suppose all that remains is to ask you if you have anything you would like to be offered by a good neighbor."
-
Hallow Queen
The hallow queen put a finger on her blank smile. "I suppose I wouldn't mind a little military support if things get... out of hand. Although I think the most important thing to me is to grow our community."
-
Serana
Serana's own smile was equally as polite as she literally looked down to the Hallow Queen. "I would be more than willing to agree to providing military assistance against the threat of an unfettered humanity. Community may or may not follow thereafter in the wake of our cooperation."
-
Aruna
Valarie took off, left him alone. In truth, that was always a possibility. He didn't mind. It was a risk with consequences he was prepared for. Thats what it meant to gamble with high-risk situations. The strange part to him is why she didn't finish him off. As usual, the demon was just thankful to have walked away with his life. Shapeshifting allowed him to avoid a fatal blow but having someone pierce ones torso was still a painful injury. Maybe in a town like this, they would be willing to heal a demon like him.
That is how he found himself in this strange town. Everyone in the street wore masks of humans as if it were Halloween and the roles were reversed. The only time they seemed to take them off was indoors. It was almost humorous in a way,
Aruna opened the door to a place called the lazy monster. The second he entered the door, he could feel this strange weight cast onto him. Looking around, he could see people staring at this one woman. Even he himself found himself drawn to her presence, despite the overwhelming power that he felt. This was... an angel. Aruna froze in place, staring at the woman with wide eyes, ready to get out of there if the situation called for it. In fact, he was already moving his lips, chanting a spell.
-
Lulu
Afternoon
"Another one!"
The blonde Angel slammed down the empty shot glass next to the small mountain of empty glasses besides her with enough force for the glass to crack down the middle. Her cheeks were completely flushed ans she wasn't sitting straight anymore, not for the past half hour that is. Being in a room with so many egomaniacs was a complete drain so she left that palace and had come here to drown her annoyance and hopefully have something fun happen but-
"How come a drunk girl like me haven't been taken advantage off yet? ISN'T THIS A MONSTER BAR ?? WHAT! Am I not hot enough for you lot?? I thought you'd be all over defiling me!"
She shrunk down in defeat, deflated by the lackluster response she'd gotten so far.
"....Why don't anyone like me?"
-
Aruna
The demon wandered over to her, perhaps morbidly curious, perhaps something else. Either way, he had finished creating a portal he could use to escape so there was no harm right?
"I don't think asking a bunch of horny men to rape you is going to make you liked," he said, sitting down next to her. "Bar tender, the next one you give her is on me."
The man behind the counter nodded.
Fear. He wasn't afraid of the light, not like he was before. However, he was afraid of dangerous people, those like the angels who sought to destroy demons like him. The power, he could feel the power radiating from her. It was like a neon sign declaring her existence. But angels were supposed to be all-powerful, ruthless and bound to the light, yet this one was sitting here alone just hanging out, feeling down like any other human. It hadn't tried to kill him so.... maybe it was ok to be kind.
Aruna patted her on the back. "Do... do you want me to get you out of here?"
-
Lulu
"Ahh, don't just pat me down the back like that...." Lulu breathed out as fingers sat into her back right where here wings would come out. She squirmed a bit and downed the glass that he had offered to pay for her. She didn't calm down, a slight shine was the only warning as warmth flowed from her back and down his arm, giving the fallen one relief as his wounds begun closing themselves slowly.
Her eyes widened and she stared at him with sudden clarity, or so it seemed except she didn't say anything for several moments. She merely blinked as her blue eyes regarded him with a growing haziness.
"Only if you let me treat that!"
-
Aruna
The dark angel retracted his hand immediately, feeling an unfamiliar mana coursing through his body. Aruna closed his eyes, inspecting his body for some form of holy curse but... instead, he realized that the pain in his torso had faded. The internal damage began sticking itself together, the hole in his chest had closed just a tad. Now he kind of wanted to touch her again, just so the stinging would stop.
"Your drunk and already healing me...." he said, trying really hard not to sound like a smartass. He really didn't want to get into a fight with her. "Sure sure whatever you want but.. lets get out of here."
This was strange. What was even going on? Why was he helping her? Why was that his first instinct?
-
Lulu
The blonde Angle clumsily stood up in turn, not that it made much progress in altering their size difference as she was well barefoot for whatever reason and it only showed once her feet weren't hidden by the chair. Most unusually though, they looked almost pristine without a speck of dirt of them despite the fact that she was walking around like Maybe there was something about her that rejected the dirt.
"Why you so nervous? I just wanna help and stuff...." She asked as she almost fell forward but stopped herself on his arm. The moment their bodies made contact again, the warmth spread through him again and the healing resumed.
-
Aruna
Aruna felt a familiar feeling stirring in his chest. That unnaturally pristine look, the way the world itself seemed unable to taint her. It was absolutely horrifying. In a sense, it was a gun holstered at someone's waist, always a looming threat, something they could pull at any time. As she fell forward, chains emerged from his torso, wrapping around her neck, arms and legs. It was a defensive impulse.
"Do... you not know what I am?" he asked, using the other arm to scoop her by her back. "Sorry, don't mind the chains it was... an impulse. Just let me get you out of here."
It felt so nice, the healing, not only as relief from the pain but just to feel that mana. Perhaps this light is what seduced the humans into thinking it was their ultimate hope. To think he was usingg it now to heal himself. What a strange picture this was, a demon helping an angel and an angel in turn doing the same.
-
Lulu
"Sure you some sort of suuuper evil hybrid thing But that's not any of my business. You seem pretty nice though..... Healing wouldn't work if you weren't." Her full figure was just as soft in the front as in the back and he pulled her closer she practically melted into him.
She was quite put out by his suspicion, it's not like she wasn't trying to do anything but help, really! She boinked his chest playfully and looked up with up as much kindness in her gaze as she could muster. "Healing... Won't work if you so tense, relax mr. demon guy. Tie me up all you want but I don't want you collapsing halfway there, that would be so sad."
-
Aruna
What in heaven....?
The chains retracted into Aruna's body, his eyes widening at her response. It was absolutely maddening. None of her business? Most angels would kill him on the spot. Wait...
hybrid
She knows. The woman knew just from touching him? Was it the mana inside of him. Did it have some sort of sensory properties? Was she a telepath? The only thing that came out of Aruna's mouth was.
"Who are you? I want answers."
-
Lulu
She tilted her head in confusion at first and then suddenly bowed out of nowhere.
"Oh introductions now? I'm me. Name's Lulu." The blonde woman came up from the bow with the same cheerfulness, unlike her darker companion she didn't seem worried at all. "I was an angel of love once... Now I'm no one, just a dumb blonde girl stuck in a world where no one has heard of me. And I worker so hard! And now I have nothing, but that doesn't mean I can't help you!"
Her hand clenched as she made her oath.
-
Aruna
It was funny. Just a few days ago, he would have laughed at that introduction, put on that demonic face the angels loved to see so much, just to test her. However, today, it was just too much. It felt like a waste of time, to postulate like that just to prove a point. The demon was growing tired of those games, tired of all the fighting.
"I get it now, so your not associated with the other angels anymore," he said with a sigh, looking down at her with a tilt of his head. "Haven't you killed creatures like me? Even though you are kind I cannot lower my guard. I can still remember the holy light being pointed at my throat... This situation is absurd, to want to heal me."
-
Lulu
"I've killed a whole bunch of creatures, like those humans or even my own kin when they went baaaad. But I only kill the really terrible ones, your race has nothing to do with that!"
She was starting to get annoyed that. Getting accusations thrown at her like she would just flip out and kill like that. It was pretty insulting.
"Hmpf.... I don't know what kind of angels you've run into but my brethren treat everyone with kindness until they've shown they other things... I've got lots and lots friends from all over back there."
-
Aruna
Aruna stared at her again, his eyes shimmering before he was forced to stifle a laugh. "I see, so then you judge me as just? I guess I won't argue with that, especially if it comes from a place of kindness. I should just accept that kindness right?"
And so he extended his hand and laughed. A demon extending his hand to an angel in kindness. There really was nothing funnier.
-
Lulu
"Hmpfh.."
Lulu crossed her hands beneath her ample chest and looked at his hand with some annoyance. No way was she shaking hands like this. Just how lame was he? He looked like he did yet he acted like this, no wonder he got bullied, she was fighting the urge to tease him real hard now.
"Im not shaking hands you absolute dork. I'm kind because I want to be and I'm not judging you or anything. But I'm starting to think you need a good ole beating to straighten out your priorities..." She took a step forward and brushed his arm aside with her movement.
"Why do you push people away so hard?"
-
Aruna
Aruna laughed at her annoyance. "Well I don't like angels. Every single one i've interacted with harmed me at some point, most tried to kill me. I don't see anything wrong with not wanting people like that in my life."
He took a step back as his arm was knocked aside by her chest. "Why do you look so annoyed?"
Was it just him or was she less drunk too?
-
Lulu
She stopped halfway through her next pace and retreated with a further annoyed huff. "Because you're treating me like one of them. I'm not gonna kill you or hurt you or whatever arghhhh.... Besides you're stronger than me I think, based on what I feel."
Yeah she was definitely sobering up.
"Or don't take me at my word and we can fight, maybe kicking my ass will convince you I'm just trying to help. You have a lot going for you, and not just that physical trauma."
-
Aruna
Aruna scoffed. "Do you think i'm a fool? I'm a demon. I know full well how to make someone else believe me to be weak."
Still, she said she killed other angels and humans but not demons. It was odd, to think she had never killed demons. Its even stranger to think she killed humans as an angel of love of all things. Those types were supposed to be close to humans... Nothing about this woman was adding up.
"Its alright. I accept your help. I told you as much."
-
Lulu
"It's really flattering that you think I'm so strong but how about we put that to test."
Lulu spun around as a beautiful shining longsword materialized in her grasp. It was radiating the same aura as herself yet it seemed more refined here. It didn't take long for her to level the blade at him.
" Let's see if you can overcome my blade."
-
Aruna
"You.... why do you want to fight so badly?" he asked, staring at her blade. That blade... he could feel the full weight of her power on that blade. It was almost like a condensed version of what he was feeling before. "I'm not much of a fighter you know."
Aruna sighed and asked, "Does this mean you will only heal me after I fight you?"
-
Lulu
"Simple...."
She moved in, brilliant sword held out before her.
"To prove I'm not lying.... Now come at me and work out some of that aggression you're piling up."
"Or will you continue to lie toe yourself?" This time her sweet voice sounded directly in his head,
-
Aruna
The endless fire grows, consuming all.
Carved from the endless void, I yearn for power!
As my body grows stronger, I find freedom!
As I find freedom, I yearn for salvation!
Light, oh so absolute in your power,
Feel the weight of everlasting darkness!
A blade radiating with dark energy materialized in his hands. He held it in front of him, ready to engage at any moment. So thats it... you've been reading my mind. Your wrong about one thing though.
"I don't think it would be cathartic to beat on a drunk."
With that began chanting.
-
Lulu
"No I haven't, I don't even know your name!" That was the end of her mental dialogue, the link between them cut off as she retreated from his mind.
"A drunk Angel" As if to reinforce her point, two luminescent wings burst forth from her back and a shining halo appeared atop her head, although the ring of light was quite dim now. Perhaps reflecting how she lost the connection with her home.
She continued moving forwar-
And then she tripped on a lose rock and plummeted face first into the ground at his feet, and her sword disappeared into thin air the moment she struck the ground.
Despite falling like that, she remained as pure as when he first laid eyes on her.
-
Aruna
As Aruna saw the familiar radiant light, she tightened her grip on his blade. That sort of raw holy energy was something he was all too familiar with. The light blared in his face, overwhelming his figure until... she fell on the ground.
Aruna placed on knee on the ground, placed a hand on her back and said, "Aruna."
He never finished his spell.
A man approached. "There is no violence in this bar. We don't want to anger the candlemen. May you please leave?"
Aruna flashed his demonic smile. "Yeah we were on our way out."
Aruna placed Lulu down on the rooftop. He took flight after leaving, flying atop the nearest building and landing on the flat roof. "Where do you live? I can take you somewhere safer than a rooftop."
-
Lulu
It was almost sad to leave his embrace, by nature she craved attention, affection from others. And in return she brought a calm that would soothe even the weariest of hearts.
Nevertheless she left it and stood on to the rooftop floor with a bit more steadiness to her than before.
"Home huh.... I don't have one here." She looked away from him, towards something far far away, too far away to ever be seen by the naked eye.
-
Aruna
Aruna flexed his hand, his demonic biceps bulging and shrinking as he moved his arm, checking to see if it worked. Carrying that angel girl up onto the roof was so easy and she so light. She was short but...
He stared at her chest, then returned to his demonic hands.
She should be heavier. The other strange thing was he was already fully healed, so much so that he was able to return his anatomy to how it was before. His gaze followed hers, looking into the horizon far beyond.
"Yeah me neither," he said. "I just got expelled from my old place. I.... guess I have nowhere to take you."
-
Lulu
Except when he looked up the second the Angel wasn't staring at the horizon anymore, she was right in front him and those round mounds that should make her way heavier were now dangling in front of him, only held up by that flimsy black dress that didn't look like it could contain them.
"How about we kill some bad guy then and take their place?" She said it with such a casual smile it was almost chilling. Yet there was not an ounce of killing intent lacing her words, only the same calming presence washing over him as she got closer.
-
Aruna
A face full of breasts met him as he turned around. It was a while since he last saw so much boob. It wasn't unpleasant. The demon's red eyes leveled with her own as he tilted his head upwards. One would think that the calming presence would make a person feel at ease, and it did, but a voice in the back of his mind whispered.
This isn't right
But he couldn't deny it. He was curious. That thing that had always driven him forward pushed him to look her dead in the eyes and say, "I suppose I don't mind but we should do it discretely. I hate attention. Oh and one more thing, I want to be on the same page. What is a 'bad' human to you?"
-
Lulu
"Someone terrible who do terrible things. Like exploit the weak, those who get off to murder and torture, and those who strip choice away. There is no greater sin. People were born free and so they shall remain." She delivered her speech while meeting his gaze with her blue eyes that contrasted his own. Demon and Angel, red and blue.
"And don't worry about the attention. Every shadow needs a light doesn't it? You can be my shadow and I can be your light hehe... Sounds pretty silly doesn't it but I mean it. We should work together to get out of this slump."
-
Aruna
The demon laughed. This was way too rich. It felt like a dream. An angel with the same values? An angel who did not try to murder him for existing? An angel who wants to work with him? It was like a human Nazi being best friends with a holocaust survivor.
"I suppose that has a nice ring to it," he said, smiling as he lost himself in her blue eyes. "You know your the strangest creature I've ever met and I don't understand you at all but.... I like you. Its equal parts refreshing and terrifying."
-
Lulu
"Aww..."
She grabbed onto the back of his suddenly and pulled him in, right into her divinely soft hills. "Did I just make the big bad demon act all cutesy and swoon over me? That's so sweet hehe~"
Lulu didn't let him go tho instead she begun patting his head. "You'll have to do more than just sweet talk if you wanna get to know me and win my heart Aruna..."
-
Aruna
Aruna groaned as he felt a hand on his back and boobs in his face. With her breasts enveloping his head, he could confirm it for sure. These were absolutely the biggest breasts he had felt since coming to this city. He pushed and shoved, but he could not break free. Chains emerged from his back, sinking into the roof and pulling him out of her boobs. Another set of chains emerged from his chest, wrapping around her torso and squeezing. She would be able to feel the magic draining from her body and flowing into him.
LET GO, he demanded, hoping she was listening. I said let go!
Even as he said that, her magic was... delicious. Part of him did not want to let her go. The sheer rush of holy power was... exhilarating.
-
Lulu
Lulu giggled as he struggled to break out of her loving embrace. She pulled on the chain making it wrap tighter against her torso as her heavenly essence poured into it. The divine flow continued unabated yet the blonde seemed completely unfazed by it. Because it didn't bother her, she could tell he enjoyed it and therefore she let him go on.
"You might want to stop or you could grow addicted to my juices." He would get addicted. The sweet succulent taste of it would undoubtedly be irresistible to someone like him, especially when he was pulling right from its source, her. It was even more concentrated than before when she'd been merely embracing her but that came with some side effects too, like the fact that her feeling were felt much more clearly this way. Her care for him was what Aruna would feel with no deception to veil it.
"I like your chains, they make me feel all tingly."
-
Aruna
It was irresistible. It was said that if you could drain an angel of its energy, you would be granted untold power and ascend to their level. It was true that he felt an stronger healthier but it was not anymore so than a regular creature. In this moment, he realized where the legend may have started. It felt so good. That power causing through him but there was something more to it, warmth. This whole time he wondered why she would care so much about him but this warmth. It was much like the kind the gods of darkness gave off, even what humans describe the light of god feeling like, a sort of unconditional kindness.
I... don't want to stop... But... if you let me drain all of your mana I'll drink your life-force too... You have to let go before this gets worse!
Why? Why did she have these feelings for him? It didn't make any sense. After all, if she had these feelings, did all the angels feel this way, even towards demons? If thats the case, why did they kill so much? Why did they horde all that power? Why did they tell all of those lies to the humans? Why was he where they pointed their swords?
Who the hell are you?!
-
Lulu
"You're a greedy boy aren't you Aruna? But don't underestimate my love like that, I'll be here no matter how much you try and take it. And what makes you think you aren't already nomming my essence hehe..."
She begun reeling in him in by his own chain like he was the prey, of course there was nothing sinister in her movements and it was more like she was trying to playfully punish him.
"I don't know what the Angels in your world are like. But in my home, we protect and guide all those who are in need, no matter the race. I am the Archangel Lulu and my domain is love. That makes you my charge, you who have known little of it..." And the blodne Angel delivered it all withou a hint of embarrassment.
-
Aruna
Aruna buried his face further into her breast, accepting all that came with this action. This woman was a fantasy angel, a creature not of his world. He wondered what it would be like to exist in a world like that, where angels did not harm demons and extended their love to all. However, he did wonder then why she has killed humans and other angels. Maybe a world like that wasn't a utopia after all.
Aruna's body trembled in her grip, faintly glowing as he drank more and more of her mana. She was right. He wasn't just drinking her mana. The chains were converting her life-force into mana. In other words, he was already drinking that. The trembling did not stop, but for a brief moment, he opened himself up to the possibility of affection from an angel, from love.
The squirming stopped, but he began to shake.
-
Lulu
"Do you usually trust yourself upon the bosom of every girl who's kind to you?" The blonde angel's voice came out to tease him. This time it wasn't her who had forced it to happen, it was all on in the hands of the demon.
But enough of that. This poor soul has had enough hardships so she shouldn't tease him too much. Lulu gently patted down the back as she got a bit more serious.
"Aruna... Do you feel uncertainty or maybe disgust because you're attracted to me?
-
Aruna
It was a good question. Disgust or uncertainty? Uncertainty. That was a good word to describe what he was feeling, yet it wasn't strong enough to capture the sheer turbulence of this encounter. What would the people back home thing of him accepting love from an angel? Anything other than sheer physical and emotional domination would be shunned. But even that did not describe how he felt.
Annoyed, afraid of the future. By accepting you into my life it feels like I am inviting my own end.
But deep in his mind, he knew this was the right thing to do. He wasn't just a demon now. Light resided in him just as it did her. It may not be his light, but it was light all the same. Just because he accepted that part of himself didn't mean he understood it. He would need to learn what it meant to live in the light.
But I won't turn away from another strange angel reaching out to me.
The faint glow of Aruna's skin began to grow even brighter as he continued to drink Lulu's essence. It really did taste amazing. It was like an energy drink and a hearty meal, except he was never full. The chains surrounding her body tightened, enough that it could fracture bones.
Tell me then, whats your ideal home?
-
Lulu
"Any place I can make homely for you and uhm..." She blushed and looked away as her other urges begun welling up. Having a buff man squeezed up so close to her was starting to ger her going. Flashes popped up in her mind of him taking her on the couch, pinning her down and unleashing all his demonic lust on her until he finally and utterly claimed her.
In her flustered state those thoughts were transmitted right over to him.
-
Aruna
Aruna's eyes lost all vision, turning to black as he retreated into his own mind. Those red eyes of his met that face, her gaze unable to meet his own. Two arms pinned her to the couch by her wrists and he could feel himself expanding inside of her. In this moment, she was his toy, an object that loved to be used and that was strong enough to take a beating. His head still buried in her breasts, he released his hold on her arms to chain them to the couch, crucifying her on the furniture. However, as he violently pushed into her, the entire room shook. Drool coated her breasts as the demon dug into her neck.
The demon licked his lips as that thought flashed through his mind, finally pulling away from her. With his head finally free, he resolved to find a place with plenty of space and lots of comfortable furniture. The demon cycled through past places he's lived. In a lot of ways, he enjoyed lavish gothic mansions, but all those make him think of is his old conquests of humans. A small place would likely not draw attention but would be less fun to play with his new angel companion. The real question was would it accommodate his urges.
Then he noticed her expression. Vulnerable, cute, vulnerable, flustered, vulnerable. It was a face he knew they had, but not one he had seen often. Sure, she wasn't one of his angels but she was an angel all the same. To think he would ever see a creature of the light make an expression like that, let alone for him. It was nice, empowering even.
Aruna retracted his chains, frowning as he went against his base urges to suck her dry until she collapsed. It would be fun, gratifying even to kill an angel that way, but he couldn't let her die until he reached the end of this path. And so, he looked to her and said,
"Can you fly? We have humans to hunt."
-
Lulu
The tug of the chains leaving her thin waist was what finally snapped her out of fantasy. Her attention turned back onto him, both visibly in the form of her gaze as well as a pressure on her mind. The vulnerability was still present in her eyes but she was annoyed now and he was about to find out why.
"Yes I can but first please put them back on. I really like the feeling of them uhm..... burning my extra essence....I'm soo full all the time, too full and it was like you lifted a weight off my shoulders. So Please wrap me up again and never remove them, I mean it." She bowed her head as she asked him to go along with her selfish request. The blonde wasn't sure about this even now, on one one hand she was imposing herself in him a bit much, but it felt really good and she wanted more of that.
-
Along the Shore
7:30 PM
A jagged line of fresh water formed the heart of the monster sanctuary that was Halloween Town. For many monsters the water was home in its own right, a place for merfolk and serpents and sirens galore to stay wet and fine for their land bound kin. It was also the early warning system, the point of entry and alarm against incursions from the Great River by the miserable marauders of mankind. Simple bandits and criminals seeking exotic playthings would find themselves slain and swallowed before they even reached the inner shores. It would thus to the discerning mind be quite concerning that such alerting did not take place.
That as the waters broke and rose with the girth of a behemoth it was not flesh, but metal - once. Twice.
Thrice.
And when the eyes of the innocent and the inhuman turned upon them, their guns turned - and where before was but the turning and tumbling of rotors, the push of waters, now there was the thunder and the fire.
-
Candlemen
A small squadron of candlemen gathered along the other side of the river, their unblinking stares cast into the distance. In the face of the roar of the rotors and the threat of weapons, the lanky golems stood unflinching. Indeed, they did not even seem worried for their own lives. Only once the first shot was fired would they act.
-
The Invaders
Two of the behemoths, armored in gunmetal black, were compact and agile. Weapons pointed out of ports in their sides, and large turrets stood atop them aimed at the pumpkin-headed constructs who served as the district's first line of defense. They opened fire in a hail of bullets in all directions as they pulled off and away from each other, heading from the shore towards the streets. Their weight pushed them through the cement dividers like they were paper mache.
The third one, the largest, continued straight on ahead. It flattened any obstacle in its path, and it opened fire almost indiscriminately with its machine gun turrets and its forward facing main gun. An explosion struck a nearby group of Candlemen, and whatever was unfortunate enough to be near them.
And that was before the music (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKWIOmqdZP8) started.
-
Candlemen defence force
The attack was quick, powereful and effective. The hail of bullets pierced the legs and torso's of the candle-men in front, bringing them to their knees. Even then, there was no change in expression. They were mere drones in battle. The ones not in the line of fire began glowing with power. Fire collected around their eyes before being unleashed in several firey beams towards the oncoming enemies.
Harley
"Oh?"
The young looking woman jumped in her seat. Although her seat was more of a throne. She reached into her pocket and posted a message on the bounty hunter forum.
This is a call to all bounty hunters. Please help us! We are being attacked by human radicalists! The enemy has not yet been confirmed, but we suspect it is a large squadron of humans who have come to despise our fair district. If you can help us you will be handsomely rewarded based entirely on your efforts. Cash rewards are guaranteed, but other rewards can be negotiated based on accomplishments in this battle!
A similar message was sent to their close ally, Serena. Although it was a bit more direct. I think its time we test that good faith gesture. Prove your worth with your army.
-
The Invaders
The weapon ports closed before the flames were fired, and their heat struck against the thick metal plating of the armored vehicles like the tide against a cliff, only it also set everything around the base of the cliff on fire. In retaliation they picked up speed, and drove themselves with palpable hostility toward and over whichever pumpkin-headed construct stood in their path. Throughout, the hymns of freedom echoed through the streets and shores over the blast and bellow of cannon and gunfire.
More metallic monstrosities of war began to rise from the waters further afield.
The Defenders
Already? Well, I suppose I did say I would...
And then, as if to punctuate the message Harley was receiving, she began to receive reports of waterlogged bodies beginning to rise from the edges of the water, up from the silt and the soil, and shambled their way up onto the cracked and broken ground.
Serana had, evidently, left her end of the bargain somewhere convenient.
At first it appeared that the dead, rotten and wretched, were useless things. The armored vehicles of the enemy rampaged freely about, resisting the immense heat with their layers of metal and who knew what else, and there was no hope of the dead reaching them.
Then they burst out into a sprint, in perfect unison, and let out gurgling battle cries as they moved to swarm the enemy armor.
That should keep them busy while I send in something more... impressive
-
Candlemen
The pumpkin men splattered, their mushy bodies slamming into each other, gathering into goop. Remaining candlemen lit the corpses of their brotheren aflame, causing the massive piles of goop to expload, taking out whomever were recklessly barreling through them. If the blobs became big enough, they could easily incinerate even the most powerful tanks. Still, the candlemen were not intelligent.
But the line had broken.
Candlemen emerged from the streets themselves, ambushing soldiers who had broken the line and blasting them point blank with blasts of fire. Citizens huddled in their homes, the masks of human's placed on coat racks and tables, eyes focused on the streets in horror. An alarm sounded and a loud blare echoed through the town.
Harley
Harley could feel it, the candlemen would not last long without direction. They had their basic commands and could act to an extent without her will, but without her mind, it was like waging war with a simulator. It would never really compare to the real thing. Thats why she ordered them to start ambush tactics on those that broke the line, as well as use the dead bodies as bombs. They were just extensions of her magic after all, no reason to worry about the "loss of life."
"Surrender invaders! If you turn back now, there won't be any negative repercussions. We 'monsters' aren't so barbaric as you humans. We merely want a place to exist in peace. If you insist in your fight, then we will be forced to show you why we were expelled from society in the first place...."
-
The Invaders
One of the armored vehicles was caught, inevitably, between the crushing press of sodden bodies against its tracks. Given a few moments of time, it would have escaped ably and continued on its rampage. The attackers within it even opened up their gun ports momentary to shoot at the grasping limbs and torsos to speed the process along.
But they hadn't expected the Candlemen to sacrifice the remains of their own, and the vehicle was shot through with a penetrating burst of heat.
Another fell to this fate too, fresh from the water, and slid back into it. Their crew began to crawl their way out against the pressure of the water after the teeming swarm of the dead tore an entry point open, and joined them in the defense.
Soldiers all in black and red poured out of the hatches of some of the other metal monstrosities now, and began taking the fight to the candlemen on foot with automatic weapons and explosives of their own.
They did not respond, save for the sounds of encrypted communication chatter between them.
-
Valerie
"Oh my would you look at that!"
Valerie burst out in what sounded like surprise yet there was an almost forced ironic undertone to it. The Vampire king put down Sakura and observed the battle from up on a hill a few hundred meters from the conflict.
This distance was nothing before her enhanced vision and she could see every visceral detail of the clash happening, every painful exchange and every life lost, they were really going at it.
And they were so weak.
"I thought Harley was merely being dramatic, but that does look like an invasion force, does it not Sakura?"
-
Edelgard
She landed some feet behind them, some seconds after, carving a path of soil and uprooted grass under her feet. From here, Edelgard could hear the battle, could see the flashes of metal and fire like a crowd dancing with jagged lanterns. The great machines, the masses of soldiers, the tongues of flame and destruction licking about the battlefield.
Edelgard didn't grasp the finer points of this attack, but the urgency filled her with a familiar confidence.
-
Sakura Edelfeldt
Sakura hopped out of Valerie's arms before she allowed herself to be put down, landing gracefully upon her feet next to her. Edel, you lead armies into battle, right? She asked to confirm while surveying the carnage. Fanatic soldiers singing Columbia's praises fought unthinking magical golems which threw fire... What's your analysis?
"It looks a bit small to be a full throated invasion, I think. Isn't the Columbian military supposed to be massive?" She turned to look at Valerie questioningly. Mana flushed through her circuits, and her shadow began to pulsate beneath her as if it were boiling.
-
Candlemen/Harley
The men were much more effective on foot. The candlemen fell to explosives and guns, often one dying having to die before another incinerated the soldier in a revenge kill, burned to ash by the flames radiating from its eyes. The candlemen were giant towering but otherwise normal men with wax skin and giant white suits to cover their large but slender frames. All of them were bald aside from a single wax stick on the tip of its head, which sparked before it was ready to explode.
The streets were all halloween decor, giant pumpkins, jackolanterns, candy corn and other things littered the streets. In the center of the town they attacked stood an oblisk style office building, complete with a pencil like tip. Atop that tip stood the hallow queen, her gaze cast upon the invaders from above.
"Hear me foolish humans! I do not hide my prejudice behind unjustified hatred. Know that as you scream your final breathes, I am silencing your life only out of necessity. One day I pray that humans and monsters can live in peace, but today you shall burn in the fires of your own loathing for the other."
A red ball of light enveloped her dainty hands before the light itself transformed into a jack o lantern. With a light toss, the jack o lantern fell from the sky, landing behind enemy lines and detonating, blowing scores of men into body parts and blood. Over and over she repeated this process, dropping bombs behind enemy lines or soldiers she thought seemed particularly skilled. Of course, she took care to avoid her lovely candlemen, using less potent bombs near her own.
-
Valerie
Her ears twitched as she caught the message that Harley had sent out to the invaders. Her eyes sharpened and she found herself frowning at the implications here. What a fool she was, she'd never achieve what she wanted in this way.
Valerie reached out with her right hand into the depth of the eternal night to pull out the one and only tool that would judge the ones beneath them, and if they were found unworthy then it would reap their sins from this world without fail.
Valerie raised the scythe above her and got into a throwing position.
"What a fool, you can talk about your freedom all day little girl but you lack the strength and more importantly the resolve to truly achieve it. What you need is love, love and overwhelming power..."
SWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH
The scythe tore trough the space between them, faster than sound, faster than any bullet it destroyed the distance between them in the blink of an eye. It's spinning form was a maddening sight, but one too fast for the mortal eye to ever see. All they could see was the sudden line of gore stretching from one end of the engagement to the other. it's impact was so severe, so savage, that every man hit by it wasn't simply split in half. Their bodies exploded into bits and pieces of fine meat all over their comrades who had been so lucky to not be in it's path.
But were they truly lucky?
And then it returned to her hand, before the longest arm of the clock had moved one position, the scythe had already looped around the battlefield and returned to her hand.
"Would you like some?"
Valerie held out the now crimson blade of her scythe in front of her minion, the sanguine liquid covering it would look absolutely exquisite to any of her kind.
-
Edelgard
She looked to Sakura, lines around her eyes furrowed like patterns on reliable steel. They should seize the vehicles and swipe them inwards from the flanks. The three of them had the ability do that. She couldn't tell whether this was supposed to be a full force. The technology and army numbers that forces in the Nexus could field were unclear to her.
The Forsaken opened her mouth to speak, but the Vampire King's burst of action took the words away. She followed the bloody, spinning light of the weapon until it returned, then fixated the two vampires.
"Are we going? Deal with invaders?"
-
The Invaders
Despite the horrendous losses, scorched flesh shot through with shrapnel all too likely filling the senses of every soldier there, the soldiers did not falter. Over the sound of gunfire, cannon shelling, and incineration their voices joined together in vicious harmony with what few stereos blasted their goddess' anthem.
... Hail, ye heroes, heav'n-born band,
Who fought and bled in freedom's cause!
The bombs fell, and many were lost. More armored vehicles were burst apart by the wrath of the Pumpkin Queen, and the music came from one less space across the spreading battlefield.
And when the storm of war was gone!
Their shouting chorus grew louder still, the men and women in their full body armor taking cover behind the ruins of their own vehicles, behind the rubble their ravaging rampage had wrought, and tried with a frightening fervor still to kill as many as they saw.
Enjoy'd the peace your valor won!
It was the hallmark of the Columbian war machine, the way dying soldiers crawled even bereft of legs into the swarming masses of their foes and let loose with explosions of their own, spending their lives as yet one more piece of ammunition. Without hesitation, without doubt, with a faith as pure as any martyr'd soul, they laid down their lives for their goal.
LET INDEPENDENCE BE OUR-!
And then they were scythed down like chaff, and they sang and shot and 'sploded no more.
The field grew quiet, save for the distant rapport of cannon fire and tank treads tearing on asphalt as the last of the mechanized forces made a run for the residential portions of the city.
Away from that.
-
Harley
"The vampire king herself," Harley said, placing a hand on her chest. "What a wonderful honor it is to see you on the battlefield today. Perhaps by working together we can-"
???
In a park several miles from the tower, a man was looking down his scope, Harley's back in view of his shot. He was sprawled out along a blanket, lying down on his belly. A loud crack filled the sky as the shot was fired.
-
Sakura
Sakura gave a curt nod to Edelgard's assessment. It seems a bit small, doesn't it? She clicked her tongue, her fangs bared at the display of gorey violence. The scythe veritably dripped with blood, and it was admittedly enticing. However, she shook her head. "I'd rather taste more of your blood. Or hire one of those demons."
"Still, this can't be the entire force. Where do you think they're hiding their extras?"
-
Valerie
"Over there!"
Valerie suddenly threw her scythe again, this time in the direction of the Hollow Queen, nay slightly above her. It would just barely miss her and deflect the projectile just before it could hit.
"Jump Edelgard, deal with the shooter."
Valerie barked out the order to what was basically the subordinate of her subordinate. If the girl understood the chain of command in a situation like this then she should obey something like that,
Then The Vampire King begun calmly strolling down the hill and headed directly into the path of the retreating invaders.
-
Edelgard
The order became action, and experience became automatic motion. Edelgard pulled her polearm from her back, crouched low in the probable direction of the attacker over the horizon, and with a nod to Sakura, hurled. Forthright End sailed away with a sonic boom, and a second struck as the Forsaken lancer blurred onto the weapon's haft like a skiiing board.
She crossed the sky like a rocketed anchor, and a whole line of trees split and shook in her wake the instant the tip of the spear passed into the park.
-
The Intruders
Even Valerie could not catch up to all of them the way the attackers were scattering about, not unless she were to pick up her pace from a simple stroll. However, going along a simple circuit around allowed her to intercept an APC that had managed to survive the initial counterattack, and it immediately began to open fire in her direction with a barrage of bullets.
-
Harley
Cling!
Harley turned around, only to see the trees of the park splitting to make way for the warrior's path. The young woman looked around, wondering where the attack may have come from. Since it all happened before she could really process it fully, she couldn't pinpoint it.
"Yes. Flee humans. This is the power of solidarity, of unity through shared strife!" she said, finally ceasing her bombing. "Flee to your leader and let him know the true power of the monsters they so hate."
Sniper
"I don't think I can keep that promise... Code black." the man said, looking at the figure coming right towards him. Something capable of speed like that couldn't be fought in a head on battle. The man's body turned tranlucent, his form melting into the background. As trees fell and the ground unearthed by shockwaves, the sniper hoped that the chaos would allow him to slip away. He moved to the right of her arrival, concealing his movement through soft steps. After all, there was no point in running away.
-
Sakura
Pulsating, amorphous blobs of colorless absence rushed out of Sakura's shadow past Valerie. They split off from each other into four groups, each heading a different direction in order to cut off and capture as many of the attackers as they were able to.
She followed closely behind Valerie, just a step behind her, ears keenly aware of all of the tumult and chaos of the battlefield. "The woman who's fighting the invaders, she seems scarcely better than-"
As soon as the spray of bullets erupted from the APC, a dark wall formed from her sleeve, melting the incoming bullets as they entered the dense wall of concentrated mana. She pointed her free hand at the armored vehicle, and a rapid wave of curses erupted from her fingertip.
-
Valerie
"She is not however.... stop attacking them." The latter half was aimed at Sakura.
The Vampire King calmly stepped out before the dark wall and marched into the hail of bullets. They bounced of harmlessly on her skin doing naught by bruising her, and these bruises faded in the blink of an eye.
"Tell you commander to cease this foolish operation or else Valerie will go out on a walk!"
-
Edelgard
Dust fell, splinters flew, leaves rained down, and Edelgard dismounted her spear, flipping it into her grip. She gave Valerie and Sakura in the distance a half-second glance, then scanned through the fallen trees. It didn't smell like blood here yet.
Edelgard bent her knees, slid the half of the weapon down her palms to extend her reach, and then began to swing. The air and yet-standing trunks screamed as she spun around, swiping at every direction with brutal swiftness, carving a veritable clearing around her where there was no escape nor hiding place.
-
The Intruders
Slowly, the vehicle adjusted its current position until the rear of it was perfectly facing towards Valerie, towards the wall of shadows which had, it seemed from the short-lived scream of pain, injured at least one of the men who had been shooting out of the side gun port before Sakura worked her sinister sorcery. A moment after the vampire's threat resounded forth, the hatch atop the armored vehicle raised, and a figure in full body armor rose from within unarmed.
He lifted his hands up as if in surrender.
The others, farther and father away by now, continued onward.
-
Zeke
7:31
The setting sun shone a warm orange glow, with the sky's beautiful hues illuminating the war field. As the music blared to a crescendo, the waging battle took precious lives that can never be returned. Above those falling bodies, those brave soldiers, a new light shone.
"We have arrived."
A comet of death crashed in the middle of the war field, right between two enemies about to kill each other. As Candlemen and Columbians assaulted one another, a single star stood in their way, burning and crashing the ground beneath them. And as promised by the elven queen, the most troublesome man in the Nexus had kept his promise.
But the sudden comet's fire vanished, and revealed two eyes glaring at the enemies. Zeke asked them... all of them, a single question.
"Whom here seeks to spill their neighbor's blood futilely?"
Two hands blurred in a moment to grab the Columbian and the Candleman's skull, and he smacked the two together as if they were children to knock them out on the spot. A grave step marched forward. The flames threatened to burn all those around him. A deterring, uncaring, and irrational force that would tear asunder whatever was in its path was building up. The moment it released... they would all die uselessly.
"Those with families, loved ones, or the will to live... lay down your arms and fangs. Whoever desires to fire their weapon can do so while our fist flattens their hearts to dust."
His clenched fist warned of a true strike, and the next step was the last warning before destruction. Even his eyes, filled with pity, were like a corpse's. For that is what would meet a futile struggle. Death. It was this world's division that hindered true progress and prosperity. It will not stand. The monster would indiscriminately slaughter everything if they resumed their chicanery.
-
Sniper/Harley
"ACK!"
One half of a body fell to the ground, lifeless. The man's horrified eyes stared blankly at Edelgard. Strangely enough, his legs remained firmly planted on the ground, painted by the blood that splattered the ground beneath that body.
The hallowqueen emerged from a streetlight a few meters from Edelgard, a hand on her hip, her eyes lowered and a disappointed frown on her face. "Valarie.... She and her people always go so overboard. Don't you people know these types of agents are best captured? I am going to have to spend the next few weeks hiding in my home afraid of assassinations because of this."
Somewhere in the district
A young bat woman (https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/200574908995076096/759019601438310400/bat_monster_girl.jpg?width=384&height=672) sat in the corner of a dimly lit room, lazily holding the phone in her hand. The screen read dead vitals. With a frown, she turned to the men in the room, obscured by shadow.
"He's dead and Harley lives."
"The Columbians will attack again. Maybe we should try during another assult."
The bat woman sighed. "No this is more complicated than that. We can't wait for the world to change to make our move. We are moving to plan C. Move out boys. There is a lot of work that needs to be done."
-
Sakura Edelfeldt
Sakura's shield retreated back into her sleeve, and she ceased attacking at Valerie's order. Her shadows circled around the surrendering mob without approaching any closer, and she stood next to her superior, feeling pride in her ability to defend herself and her lord silently. "Shall I capture them? Or pull my shadows back?" She asked.
-
Valerie
Over the link that connected the two vampires, Sakura would feel a cautionary tell, urging her to not make any rash move.
"Good boy"
She was there.
In the blink of an eye the blonde vampire had simply appeared before the armored man. When standing so close to him, it was easy to see she was barely half his the size of bulk. Even so, her presence dwarfed that of any mortal man, this wasn't some little girl standing before, no this was something more, something ancient.
"Now hand me your radio so I can speak with you leader, we are going to have a nice long chat and then everyone will get along, or else... You do not want to know that part hehe..." The blonde giggled in a decidedly non cute way the raspy undertone and the threats made it far from cute, and to make it worse for the poor soldier her fangs were completely exposed.
You could guess how powerful a vampire was by how long their fangs was, the further removed from the king you were, the more petite they would become. As for Valerie herself it was completely impossible to hide them once she got excited.
-
Edelgard
The wind died as Edelgard halted the arc of Forthright End with both hands, and she turned to the interjector with recognition. The warrior gave the fresh body and the trail of blood left on the weapon's edge a confirming glance, then answered.
"Hostages are luxury. Target a leader's life, and they lose the right to demand theirs." She sent the woman, who'd been at the head of the defending forces, a nod that could barely pass for a greeting. Right away, her senses recalibrated towards the battlefield that now stuttered.
-
The Intruders
The man stared her down, or at least as best he could with his face concealed the way it was. She could smell the sweat coming off him, see the way his body was tense with terror, and yet... He handed Valerie the radio at his side, and the moment she pressed the button to talk through it there was a flash.
The sound of the detonation came later, accompanied by metal shrapnel caught by Sakura's wall of shadows and prevented from being able to reach or do anything to anyone whose name didn't start with a V.
-------------
The Other Intruders
Civilians, most certainly, had been caught in the crossfire. Or the literal fire spread by the Candlemen.
Or both.
So it was that, amid the carnage and the chaos and the thunder and the threats, the men there and their metal boxes with their guns and cannons push forth in their desperate struggle despite the horror set before them. What was one more monster, after all?
Of course, that wasn't accounting for the corpses of their comrades slowly rising in the path they left behind...
-
Zeke
The vessel's form swelled and compacted, begging for release. Guns blasted and fired at his hardened muscles, but bounced off his skin as if it were hardened armor. Good, this is very good.
KA-BOOM!!
His dash was too fast for the human eye to register. Why didn't the boom of his foot warn of the incoming attack? Why didn't the splitting earth warn of the soldier's doom? No, they must have foreseen this and chosen to show their fangs of rebellion. Even when all it took was ONE finger slicing through the soldiers like butter - like a ray of light suddenly burning through the Columbian squadron. And a row of explosions to crown his assault.
"War... is a terrible thing."
His index glowed, moving to slash at more. The Columbians must have known the outcome of this struggle, yet they threw their lives wholeheartedly. This meant that the point of their attack was not to claim military victory, but something else. How troublesome. To think someone else wishes to rise above the chaos. If thas is their goal... this is a shrewd strategy.
"But we have all taken away precious things. Things that can't be brought back. Broken hopes that can't be returned to how they were. We have lived the rotten life of animals. Is it fair for an animal to howl at the grip that tears its heart?"
Of course it was. To struggle and to lash even in the jaws of death was the only way he knew to live. These soldiers must be the same. Their struggles and abandon were utter madness. As a fellow madman, Zeke would honor their loyal wishes - and turn them into loyal chunks of coal.
-
Harley
Harley sighed and said, "Thats fine in straightforward battles, but in subterfuge and assasination, its best to leave assailants alive and trace them back to their leaders. Growing power in the shadows is their greatest strength."
Once again, she sighed, then smiled. "Well I am still happy you came to help young lady. When you return home, you can rest easy knowing you helped defend the monsters of this city."
Mysterous gentlemen
A tall man with a lanky build approached Harley and Edelguard. He had curly black hair, a black suit and tie with matching black slacks. Glowing emerald eyes stared at the two through a human mask while a pair of black gloves covered his hands. Indeed they were hard pressed to see any inch of skin on the man.
"Forgive me my queen. I couldn't stay inside," he said, those emerald eyes fixated on the severed remains of the body lying on the ground. Those same eyes glared at Edelgard for the briefest moments before softening. "I hear the threat is being dispatched."
-
Valerie
Click-
She sensed, the mechanical clicking of something else triggering the instant after she pushed the button and-
Fooooooooooooooooooooooom
The blast consumed the vehicle as well as the Vampire King, leaving only scraps behind of either of them, could it be that this devilish trap had actually succeeded in eliminating a high value target?
"So you've chosen death."
The Vampire King crawled out of a hole dozens of meters away from where the vehicle had been, her form was completely covered in dust yet appeared otherwise uninjured and in her hand was still the now soot covered radio.
She'd recognized mechanical sound for what it was and by sheer instinct honed through countless battles, she had kicked off from the APC before the blast could reach her. The leap had been so violent though that she had cratered the ground upon hitting and that's why she had to crawl out of a hole like a mole.
"Now lets see who shall answer." Her red eyes glared at the radio with more than the slightest bit of annoyance, for its sake she had to make a fool of herself.
-
Edelgard
She had made no mistake in judgement, but when the queen before her named that kind of threat, she couldn't help but agree with the message. Saboteurs and schemers had to be torn out at the root. It didn't need to be repeated, so she laid her eyes cautiously over the arrival.
That slipping second was when the explosion occurred, and the warrior tore her gaze towards it while her ears rang even at a distance. It was the direction Sakura and the vampire king were.
Swallowing, Edelgard broke into a run, leaping like a gazelle over the fallen vegetation in the direction of the blast.
-
The Intruders
The soldiers nearest to Zeke's malevolent charge fell first, succumbing to the terrible outcome that inevitably followed his attacks. Peaking out from a side street though, as he massacred the entire squad with their useless weaponry, a tank that had hidden itself in the tight path peeked its cannon out, engines and treads maybe being heard from the sounds of shouting, screaming, and gunfire, and opened fire at him.
That was one attack he couldn't just ignore.
-------------
The radio let out nothing but static at first, seemingly shaken by the speeds Valerie had moved at in the wake of the explosion. Or possibly just from being shaken up by the explosion, at that. The stench of burning oil and rubber and flesh wafted up, contained by Sakura's shadow wall to concentrate all around her. Soon after she could register that, it began to let out short, abortive attempts at contact.
"... thirty three- ... mark, 114-" Static, again.
-
Sakura
As soon as the car exploded, Sakura used her shadows to create a wall. Even if she couldn't stop it from hitting her mistress, she'd be able to protect any bystanders from collateral damages. She steeled her initial impulse to rush in to protect Valerie, because it would have been futile as well as against Valerie's orders. She waited for the cloud of smoke to begin clearing before she rushed in to help Valerie, surrounded by her familiars and reaching into her shadow for Sapphire.
She listened for every cracked stick, the heartbeat of any soldiers still alive. "You ok?" She asked Valerie, relieved to see her unharmed.
-
Zeke
A tank is a heavily armored and armed car. A complex piece of technology that requires an inestimable amount of work from several specialists or at least robots (intricate machinery created by experts in their craft) and you need hundreds, no, thousands of hours of practice to be not a simple driver, but a pilot dedicated to the art and discipline of manning this vehicle.
Let alone driving.
Driving, one of the most dangerous activities practiced daily by millions of people, in which a single mistake can cost your life and the life of other people around you. If using a sword, a simple 1kg piece of sharp metal, make you a martial artist, how does using a tank, a deep mix of metal, plastic, electronic, over 1 ton, not make you a martial artist?
0.01 Seconds
Zeke’s thick sculpted body was surrounded by flames and coated by shadows, with the eyes of a fighting machine glowing ominously. A threat Zeke had never faced before, an attack Zeke had never experienced! And yet, the body moved on its own as if he saw the cannon behind him in advance and avoided its aim at the last moment.
Did that weapon do that? They had heard of those things, but never actually faced one in combat.
0.07 Seconds
"ORAAAHH!!" Zeke led with an uppercut, the follow up was a flurry of strikes that tested and slammed into the tank's chassis, as his <Reaper's Eye> observed every millimeter of the machinery. You see, what was launching blow after blow was no dumb brute. While the fists struck, Zeke watched for any weak points to open this thing apart - with the sun's endless power behind every punch.
-
Harley
Harley's hair fluttered in the blast of wind created by the warrior's sudden departure. She simply watched in silent awe as she departed, walking towards the streetlight she had used to arrive at the park. Its strange, the warrior had left with a sudden urgency or perhaps concern. There was a sort of beauty to the silent, one that begged to be studied. Perhaps that is the real reason she unconsciously swung her body to observe, turning her back on the man before her.
A gasp escaped the hallow queen's lips. Blood splurted from her mouth and trickled down her exposed belly. The drops of blood blended in slightly with the orange skirt she was sporting as she looked down to see a sword driven through her chest. The last thing she heard before she blacked out was,
"Fall to the ground, forgotten amongst the bodies you have buried."
Candlemen
The candlemen, once chasing the army stopped and began moving towards Valarie, their blank eyes showing no emotion. The ones already in her vicinity formed a circle around her. The flames on their heads together coated the ground she stood on with a dim orange light, casting her shadow over part of the circle.
-
Valerie
Crunch.
The radio had been crushed into pieces with a simple squeeze of her hand. "How boring." She turned her attention to Sakura and immediately brightened up. "of course, your King cannot be touched by mongrels like this. Oh and you did good too."
Pat.
Her hand gently rubbed Sakura's head. Edelgard should be back any moment now, she could feel the girl approaching.
"But.."
Then she turned around facing away from Halloween Town. "It is time to go before that annoying queen shows her ugly face, and if we stick around for too long we will be dragged into their political drama.... But more importantly, I really need to see what he is up to, I have felt his frustration mounting higher and higher since we parted and I am starting to really worry..."
-
Edelgard
Sakura, the Forsaken warrior called, through the link of the enchanted rings, before leaping into view. Edelgard cut the rest of the way between littering shrapnel and ongoing engagements and skidded to a halt near her friend and her friend's superior.
"Assassin dealt with," she said. "The leader met me there. She was unharmed."
Halfway to taking her place at the mage's side, she stopped, squinting towards the lines of approaching pumpkin constructs.
-
Valerie
Crunch.
The radio had been crushed into pieces with a simple squeeze of her hand. "How boring." She turned her attention to Sakura and immediately brightened up. "of course, your King cannot be touched by mongrels like this. Oh and you did good too."
Pat.
Her hand gently rubbed Sakura's head. Edelgard should be back any moment now, she could feel the girl approaching.
"But.."
Then she turned around facing away from Halloween Town. "It is time to go before that annoying queen shows her ugly face, and if we stick around for too long we will be dragged into their political drama.... But more importantly, I really need to see what he is up to, I have felt his frustration mounting higher and higher since we parted and I am starting to really worry..."
Sakura Edelfeldt
Sakura's familars stood in a circle a good distance away from the candlemen, preventing them from closing in any closer. They would not be able to pass without a fight.
"Mm..." Sakura beamed as Valerie's fingers ruffled her hair. She nodded affirmatively. "Edel and I were only here to help you out. I don't have any stake in this fight, and I can't say I'm a fan of the defending side." She took a step back and turned to face Edelgard, smiling at the bronzed statuesque elf. "I don't have any interest in meeting up with that man right now, so I'm going to head out and explore the city for a while." She turned to glance at Valerie. "That fine? You don't need me there for anything, right?"
-
The Intruders, with Zeke
The tank drivers attempted to pull back, the engine roaring like a dragon while the treads tore up the blacktop of the alley in reverse to get away from the monster who avoided their shot. They got about six meters before Zeke caught up with them, and then it was just a matter of him for him to leap forward with every punch, to keep up with them in their fear and their desperation, while they ground their way past the facades of the buildings next to them hoping to get away.
But each strike damaged them - the front, the treads, the cannon that threatened to hit him in the head when he jumped, it all shattered and was rendered useless. In the end all that remained inside were men... okay, some men, because the one who'd been closest to the front of the tank had been crushed and was only just barely alive after the last strike.
Knowing they could not flee with the tank, they attempted to flee without it, charging their way up the hatch while he was so focused on breaking their glorious weapon.
Intruders, without Zeke
Without the Candlemen to stop them all that remained were corpses, and those were a touch easier since they could not lob volleys of fire. The civilians suffered for the lapse in attention, as the few remaining remnants of the original attack committed to throwing their lives away doing as much damage to civilian structures and people as possible...
-
Zeke
If that was enough to get the ants scurrying out of their hill, they should have never bit to begin with.
"So that's where you were hiding."
Zeke dashed right in front of the tank's hatch with a slasher's expression, a burning fist ready to end it all there and then. Was it joy? No, it was impossible to tell Zeke's expression at all, only the terror from the Comumbian's eyes, reflected into an empty gaze.
Half-heartedness was something so pitiful... A fist shot forth to break them. They were going to deliver these soldiers from their pain this instant.
Harley
A gasp escaped the hallow queen's lips. Blood spurted from her mouth and trickled down her exposed belly. The drops of blood blended in slightly with the orange skirt she was sporting as she looked down to see a sword driven through her chest. The last thing she heard before she blacked out was,
"Fall to the ground, forgotten amongst the bodies you have buried."
But it stopped an inch away from their faces. The vessel laid wide-eyed, and only a grin and shake of one's head to follow it up. A bitter laugh escaped their lips. The sort you'd make after realizing you've been played. They mocked themselves with no hate or spite. Yes, Zeke congratulated the enemy from the bottom of their heart.
"Hehehe... lucky devils." That was the last thing the comet told them before bursting away. To let them live... was it mercy? As the undead approached them, they'd come to realize that it was nothing of the sort. Only a dog losing interest in a toy.
He wouldn't even spare them an indifferent glance.
-
Candlemen
"Harley is dead," one of the candlemen said to Valarie.
Harley's body
Harley's body laid face down on the floor, back to the sky and belly to the ground. It was unmoving, with a pool of blood growing larger underneath the body.
-
Valerie
Sakura let the others leave after waving them off, she wasn't quite finished yet and the information she'd just heard caught her attention enough to put her current plans on hold.
She darted in front of the nearest candleman and bit it into him, the poor thing's essence flooded her, and with that came all the mories related to what was going on right now. The Vampire King wasn't picky, she'd sort through them all until she was satisfied.
-
Zeke
"Thank goodness."
The comet arrived at the park shockingly quickly. Yet what Zeke found was no assailant, but the skewered corpse of that woman left to die all alone. Stepping forward, Zeke's sad expression turned to the park's surroundings, as they gradually covered themselves in thick black mud that spewed from his shadow to form a dome around them. No signal could be read, no sight or smell survived as everything was devoured by this black coating. It was a catbox.
It looked like the void of space. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDUPz435hm4)
"This is all because of your negligence. If you truly upheld your duty, your precious people wouldn't be slaughtered like dogs." Zeke kicked her side to roll her up, then couched to inspect the wound, a bitter smile on his body's lips.
The hydra she had consumed managed to send a signal to them, even in its final moments. She was fortunate. Truly, truly fortunate.
"Man and monster, brother and sister, those are not enemies. We... have no such things." Zeke caressed the corpse and moved the bloody hair from her face. "But there are terrors lurking in the shadow, the only thing they wish is this world's demise. Your lives won't make a difference to me, but..."
The one standing over Harley's corpse was surely no hero, only a destructive self-centered force. And yet, Zeke sliced his own arm open to pour his essence into her wound. The black mud formed living beings, coalescing and digging into Harley's body... mending what was broken and replacing what was lost. As the most irredeemable of evils selflessly used his power to bring life back into the Hallow Queen, his smile took a sincere and hopeful quality. It was warmth as gentle as the sun.
"Wouldn't it be awesome if everyone toppled this despair together?"
His organisms acted as her new heart, lungs, and mended nerves, pumping blood and life into the woman until she'd wake up.
-
Harley's body
The organisms never even made it past her skin. Yes, somehow the organisms entering her body burned to a crisp. The body began to shake and twitch, fingers beginning to flex.
RIP Candlemen
The candleman fell to the ground, helplessly clawing the ground beneath her grip. Although it was dying, its face remained emotionless. Thats why when it became a corpse it didn't feel any less lifeless.
The memories of the candlemen were in fact the commands given to them by Harley. It turned out that they were ordered to defend the district and collect her body once she staged her assassination. Although the columbian invasion wasn't planned, she needed to snuff out the fools who dare oppose her. There was another command too, meet up with another group of candlemen to snuff out the assailants. Although the candlemen were aware Harley knew where the assailants were at this time, she hadn't given a command to them and therefore that information was not available to Valerie, no matter how many she drank. Although, she would now know that if she could drink someone from that squad, she would know the orders given to them as well. But one thing was clear.
Harley was alive.
Harley
"You parasite," she said, rising to her feet, her brows furrowed and her mouth twisted into a scowl. "You dare try to infest me with those familiars? I'll have you executed for this. I'll burn you so throughouly you'll beg not for death, but for your very existence to be wiped from this plane."
The young woman took a deep breath, before smiling again. "But for now I have other matters to take care of. I appreciate all that you have done for our district."
-
Valerie
The Vampire King discarded the used candleman and turned her attention towards that point. Yes.... that's where she had sent Edelgard, a mistake all around, she should have gone herself. But there was no use crying over spilled milk, those two had already left but she had things that needed to be done here, and a naughty queen to spank.
Swoooooooooosh....
She leapt through the air and within seconds came crashing down on the catbox, breaking through in a heartbeat.
"Faking your own death, how dreadfully boring Hollow Queen."
-
Zeke
"Your opinion doesn't matter, Harley."
Zeke's eyes narrowed, showing no displeasure at the burning of his children. What good is a coward who uses outsiders and burns her people's lives for their benefit? A demon lord like him had the privilege of being wasteful, but the guardians of this city had a duty.
"All's fair in love and war, but while you're faking your death like a coward, your people are being gunned down like dogs. Is that what you want to show me? A half-baked leader?"
They flicked their finger on her forehead like a bully jerk of a brother, poking her mercilessly as if she were a bratty teen. For the first time since they got here, a genuine smile showed on Zeke's face, but their eyes got even happier once his catbox got torn open. Their satisfaction was immeasurable, and their day was saved. "And I don't appreciate having my time wasted. I'm going to take what was lost because of your negligence... and rip from your flesh tenfold." Zeke said while moving to her pinchable cheeks, smushing and stretching them as if Harley was a baby with no hope to escape. The texture was so smooth and perfect there was no way he'd pass up a chance like this. It was downright addicting and therapeutic.
"It's good to see you, Val." Zeke dropped Harley's face turned to her with crossed arms, unintentionally revealing his toned body. "How should we punish this failure? String her up naked and parade her across the city?”
-
Harley
"Well you can forget about your bounty," she said, glaring back at him, taking the flick with only a slight flinch and a blink to add to Zeke's satisfaction. Her hands glowed with a feint light. "Neither does yours parasite. I called upon my allies to help my shortcomings. If you don't want to be a hero, don't shirk that unto me. Now leave before I come for you next."
-
Valerie
"Hey, you smell different huh... I think we... should take... her..."
Valerie's crimson eyes turned from the Hollow Queen over to Zeke and just like that her gaze was glued onto something, that something being Zeke. As if she was in trance, she approached him with a eager sway to her hips, she had found her new prey.
"You did not tell me.... All this happened to you..."
Her hand came to rest on his chiseled abs and the vampire's fingers traced over his muscles, not just feeling him up but almost worshiping him. "First you buy me this awesome outfit, then you come back looking like this absolute hunk... I like it, really like it."
Throb.
Her fangs extended as her excitement peaked, no soared even higher than it had in the last couple days and then she flung herself at him, pressed her face up against his chest and held onto him, but it wasn't enough, she needed more.
"Oh Zeke... Whatever shall I do with you?"
-
Zeke
Oh. She's leaving... shouldn't we stop her?
"..."
Zeke crossed the vessel's arms, thoroughly unimpressed - or maybe just sassing her. If their black eyes were a window to the soul, then surely they were the same she had met earlier today. That familiarity had to be why they could say something like that to a noble king.
"What part are you addressing when you're saying that?"
But there was some confusion in those eyes; as if it took them a bit to process the meaning behind her words, or maybe trying to recall something. Did we buy that? I remember her, but therest is like walking through a fog. More importantly, their body shivered a bit at her touch. After all, even with their powers dormant, Zeke's body was as scalding as a hot bath. To him, even a regular sunny day felt a bit frisky. But her chill fingers felt...pleasant.
"You're as adorable as ever. Right, I remember, you made me experience your body earlier. It felt good." Zeke scratched behind Val's ears playfully, totally relaxed and embracing the feeling. Until he boldly swooped her with his arm under her plump butt, lifting her to eye level. "And it made me very happy. I'm glad this makes you happy."
-
Harley
Harley raised an eyebrow, before vanishing into nothingness.
The resistance
Several miles away in an apartment complex rooftop, dozens of monsters gathered. Werewolves, vampires, mutants, even some supernaturally gifted humans were present. All of them gathered around the batgirl. "Harley has been reported stabbed," one man said. "The false queen is dead. They say that an outsider with brown skin was present. We may be able to pin the assassination's on her for now."
The batgirl paused. "I don't really feel good about that. Maybe we can leave that as a rumor, but I think our official story should be that the warrior who wasn't a part of Valarie's faction should take the brunt, since intelligence is reporting he was the first to respond to the body."
"Thats the one who fought in the tournament right? Well if it is him then thats perfectly believable."
Meanwhile....
(http://darksidemoon.net/SMF_forum/index.php/topic,761.msg66907.html#msg66907)
-
Valerie
"We know each other you silly piece of man meat. Remember the Arena, my scythe bit you so many times and you burned me over and over, we killed each other so sooo many times. And then, then you sold that dagger to buy me this outfit."
Smoooch.
She kissed him on the cheek.
"You are such a sweet boy Zeke."
-
Zeke
Sweet...?
"It was a good time." There was no doubt Zeke's flesh remembered their battle, reminiscing it was enough to make their body throb. And as she described these events, pieces and fragments started surfacing.
When two people fight, they don't just let their bodies touch. Souls, wills, the very core of your being expresses itself with every attack - taken or received. To Zeke, that intimacy ran ever deeper than seeing her naked, so it's not like a kiss on the cheek would ever fluster them. Fighting felt as good as sex. But being called sweet? Treated like some child? Zeke's eyes glanced straight at her and away from her. It looked like despite all their boisterous villainy, Zeke wasn't used at all to being sweet-talked. Hatred and curses were plentiful commodities.
This made him heat up a little. They flashed a hungry grin to hide that.
"Oi oi, don't act like a hag my friend. If you're going to kiss me and tease me, do it like you mean it." He didn't even hesitate to move in and taste her mouth, taking everythting it had to offer with purpose.
-
Resistance Safehouse
"Harley wounded in battle while valiantly attempting to save the citizens from harm," Harley said with a grin. "I think I like the sound of that headline best."
Everyone in the crowd turned, only to see Harley standing atop a building behind them. In one hand she held a flaming pumpkin. All the while the red flaming eyes of the candlemen perked up and stared at their soon to be victims on the rooftop. "You know, the nice thing about these abandoned building safehouses is that I never have to worry about any witnesses when its time for extermination. Don't worry, if you scream your wills loud enough for me to remember, i'll be sure to follow through on them."
"You've got to be kidding me!" the batgirl groaned. "EVERYONE OUT NOW! THIS isn't the end."
-
Valerie
"Hey everything has it's time and pla-hmpfff.." The rest of what she was saying got swallowed by the kiss. She met it, even indulged in it for a few seconds although she let him dictate the pace. Then she pulled away and addressed him again while still sounding hot and bothered.
"I know how to find the naughty cowards who did this. And what better way to do this seriously then continue once we've taken care of them..." She said as as her tongue came out to play, all the way from his chin to his ear she tasted him and it was oh so sweet.
"And then you take me atop a pile of their battered bodies, because the only thing better than then some good old fighting and fucking, is doing both."
-
Zeke
"Hm? The queen of this place seems to have this under her thumb. We were only ordered to lend a helping hand this time, not take lives..." Zeke's eyes and breathing didn't change when she pulled out. Haaah, they liked this. How long had it been since something made them feel this alive? But was it good enough to go against the elven queen's will?
Harley
"If you don't want to be a hero, don't shirk that unto me. Now leave before I come for you next."
Zeke's expression intensified while her tongue trailed on him. Harley was correct, they hadn't come here to be altruistic. But she wasn't quite right.
"Yes. This sounds like a good reason... to even the scope of the odds. I don't like one-sided conflicts."
A hero isn't someone who saves people. A hero simply enforces their justice. Strength, will, as long as they strive true, they change the flow of the masses. A hero of one nation may be the hated enemy of another. A demon lord might be the savior of a long-forgotten race. Zeke lacked the self-delusion to call his actions good, but they followed a creed that they defined. This was no different than heroic justice - as long as it was backed by the victor's true right.
"Let's make this place our own. No need to abuse the populace, just strip the powers above and take until we have our fill. That way, we can cuck the queen and the ones pining for this land at the same time." Zeke raised a fist to the skies. "I'll be happy to take you on her throne."
-
The Resistance Safehouse
The sounds of explosions were only barely surpassed by the screams of dying monsters. The queen couldn't help but smile as she heard this beautiful symphony. Pumpkin's rained from the sky, dotting the remains of the building with explosions. With the combined firepower of the candlemen and herself, the rooftop was obliterated in mere moments, taking a good chunk of the resistence's lives along with it. Chard bodies laid on the ground outside the building, flung from the building by the explosion.
The batgirl stood resolute, her yellow animalistic eyes glaring at the hallow queen standing above the rest of them. "Hear my words wicked dictator. I'm not stalling for time here. Today is the day that you will fall. We messed up your assassination's, but that just means we need to pick up the slack now. The resistance will win this day."
Candlemen took on the remaining resistance members, balls of energy flying in all different directions, ripping apart the building in their struggle for survival. Although even to a newcomer to the battle it was clear there was no hope for the resistance group. Their numbers were already at 25%, no 10%, a mere fraction of the entire group. The ambush was effective, wiping out more than half in mere moments. Only the strongest remained now.
-
Valerie
Blink.
Blink..
Blink...
"Did you... Was that a proposal Zeke? Taking a throne... Rule together and then take me the King on said throne. No one has ever laid claim to me in such an utterly perverse way, how exhilarating... Buuut..."
Her powerful thighs tightened their grip around him, it wasn't meant to be threatening though, quite the opposite, all forms of heat and anger she held for him had been swept away by a different emotion.
"I never said anything about killing them, it is all about the message hmm hmm..." Valerie quickly explained to him about the group of Candlemen that would have the knowledge of the rebel's hideout.
"...And for that reason, I accept. Hmm I suppose I will have to cut back on the promiscuity now, unless you want me to cuck you? Daaaarling-"
-
Zeke
"Oh no, whatever shall I do. Please, deliver me from my majesty, your misery." He feigned fear and regret as her thighs closed in like a vice, but shook his head with a calm smile. Even if he tried to bullshit her, he sucked at lying. The truth is, even something like this was pleasant.
"No. A jewel is beautiful because others can adore it. I'm not so jealous that I'd keep a bird in a cage. Ah, but I expect the same courtesy. This is my right of conquest, or as the people of this age call it - your things are my things."
Even if it was Zeke, his tone wasn't as crazed or depraved as before. He swooped the queen of the night up in his embrace and carried her away to the skies - four burning wings behind his back. Following her lead, this wouldn't take long at all.
The two great stars crashed on the hideout's roof, smashing it into bits. Zeke's uncaring eyes turned to the fight below with a tired, but amiable smile. But the delivery was totally deadpan.
"Honey I'm hoome."
Some things never change.
-
Harley
The eyes of the batgirl and Harley locked onto the approaching couple. A flaming pumpkin appeared in Harley's hands, her jovial smile creeping onto her face. She leapt from the building, landing on a shorter one adjacent to the one she had perched herself on. "How did you know about this?" she said, glancing at the batgirl then at Valarie. "Well none of this is your concern."
The bat girl bit her lip and said, "Help us please."
The battle continued. A few more fell to the candlemen. The resistance wouldn't last much longer.
-
Valerie
"There can be only one Queen of the Night." The blond vampire was still clinging to Zeke's broad form, it was even more intimate than before with her pressed tightly against and rubbing her cheeks against his chest. The heat that clung to him at all times was exotic, and it drove her mad with desire.
Throb.
Her fangs were fully extended and were pounding like mad, she really needed to sink them into something, no to sink them into him. She was absolutely drenched and her underwear would have surely been ruined if they weren't the high quality magical fabrics from Liz's tower. Even so her arousal was like a sharp edge but she wouldn't give in, not until he fulfilled his promise and claimed her upon the throne.
"All of you! Acknowledge me as your ruler and we shall save you from the tyrant Harley!"
-
Zeke
Help...?
Zeke's eyes narrowed. Salvation? What a strange thing to say to an evil that'd gladly devour everything for its own sake. But the truly strange part was the unease Zeke felt at the request. Zeke must have once asked for the same thing, for a savior to come down to drag them from the darkness.
Teeth grit against one another. What was this audacity? They were the ones who initiated this pitiful assassination, and yet they dared to complain and beg when their incompetence bore fruit!? To them... to Zeke of all people!?
Val could feel the tension in Zeke's muscles, swelling, and begging for release. Their body's form was intensifying, and the heat that stroked her took an entirely different quality. It was the kind of intensity that could only be born from madness, but it was enough to drive her mad herself. It was an unfair, absurd strength. Genuine power.
"That won't be necessary."
A power that was touching her. Heating her up. And - wait. Wait wait wait. Did he just pick up a piece of rubble?! This large piece of rock, held tight between those fingers!? His intent was clear, he was going to crush the resistance utterly with this. His rage, his outrage, all of it must be enough for him to unleash death on the impudent monsters. It must have been a relieving sight for Harley, that her work would be cut out for her.
Phew...
Wait! No! What was the meaning of this! Before protesting was even an option, Zeke cocked the rubble back, raised his leg - and yeeted the stone with that monstrous strength straight into the candlemen! The stone cracked and split into a volley of sharpnel, and it all fired down on the enemy forces. As if it was a rocket, an impact like this would truly shatter the earth and burst like lightning. Zeke's grin moved to the resistance, far more friendly than you'd expect.
"You are shameless, prideless... and worse of all, weak. Stand back. We don't want to wait another second." How could they - Zeke say all of this as if each of these things was a badge of honor. His muscled burst and launched him to the hallow queen, hungry to ravage the enemies in his way.
"I will protect you."
-
Harley
Queen of the night?
The face of the hallow queen was dimly lit by a crackling fire. Still, after the treatment he gave her, she was no fool. The Hallow Queen knew what was coming next and enlarged her pumkin. It grew to the size of a truck, held aloft over her head before falling down on Zeke like a meteor.
The batgirl looked up at her options. The vampire king who demanded loyalty or seemingly would leave them to die. This strange man who fought in the tournament but seemed to act on a whim. She thought back to all her struggles, the effort it took to build this resistance, the friends she made and lost along the way, it kept her frozen in place. It was the type of sadness that made her completely unwilling to move, to do anything but think upon her failure.
"Trade one tyrant for another?" she asked aloud, her voice drowned out by everyone elses. "I..."
Then she heard it, the voice that broke the heavens. "I will protect you?" she repeated.
The forces of the candlemen stopped attacking the rebels the second Harley observed Zeke moving his body. Many of the remaining forces dropped their weapons and stared at Valarie as if observing the sun rising for the first time. Others simply fled, monsterous bodies crashing through the ruins of the building by force and falling to the ground below. Some had wings or other methods of flight and thus flew away. Meanwhile the candlemen turned their heads to face Zeke, ready to fire.
"You can keep that title Valarie. I only desire to be queen of the monsters."
-
Valerie
"Calling yourself monsters hah, cling to that moniker and you're forever a slave of Humanity!" That was something born of Human prejudice to willingly subjugate yourself to that label was to give in to the fear and the hatred.
SWIIIIIISH-
The blonde Vampire leapt of Zeke's hulking form in order to avoid the crashing descent of the pumpkin meteor and it was in the impressive afterglow of its impact that she continued speaking. "NO! We are not monsters! We will rise above this, this silly notion the Humans impose on us. We will come together and with our strength and our wisdom, we will build a future they could only dream off!"
-
Zeke
Oh no, my vampire shield.
As he quickly waved his hand, the projectile crashed straight into Zeke, blooming like the greatest firework. The flames stretched and roared, but suddenly froze in silence - only to shrink back as if sucked by something, and revealing a man bursting out freely. "You can't change your nature, Val. Winds will always blow, leaves will always fall... monsters will always be monsters."
In that brilliant explosion, no one could have appreciated the beautiful arcs the sword had formed, but there was no mistake that the spell had vanished. Two swords were gripped hand in hand, and his clothes swooshed against the winds as he rose up and towered over the former queen.
"But with a strong heart, you can overcome nature. Surpass it even. This will help me surpass myself. Wouldn't you agree?"
He said those words at Harley with a genuinely friendly smile, like he was looking forward to seeing how she'd get out of this one. It wasn't the kind of smile you should sport while drawing two swords against an enemy. The last generation's Zeke had met her, he had a handful of these memories, and more importantly, his hydra she gobbled up lingered with just enough of its strength to let him communicate with her.
And with no delay or pause, he threw a quick succession of jabs at the Queen, using the swords to extend their reach and hook her in with a nasty combination of slashes.
Looks like you've hit a streak of bad luck, Harley. It was hard to distract her enough to spare you the rod, but I wasn't going to dissuade her, this outcome's convenient for me too. You know what that means, right?
-
Halloween Town
Harley smiled, leaping backwards as he came forward. With her palm held forward, A pumpkin formed, floating ever so slightly in front of her. With another hand held in front of her, a candle appeared before morphing into the full form of a candleman. The lightning jabs of Zeke's punches obliterated the body of the candleman and both of them were consumed with fiery explosion. The shockwave sent Harley back and the pumpkin forward.
Oh so it was yours? It was quite delicious. Don't worry I am quite aware of what this means. It is quite inconvenient that you brought the king of vampires here.
The batgirl closed her eyes and watched the fight. It was beautiful, the two creatures finally engaging the hallow queen in combat. If they killed her here then... "I'd rather be slave to humanity than a slave to you," she said, spreading her wings.
Meanwhile, the candlemen fired on the pair, engulfing whatever remained in the flaming lasters fired from their eyes.
-
Valerie
"All this talk of slavery is trite and boring, I have come to bring freedom...."
Valerie sighed and looked around her, the candlemen were attacking them now. This was all so pointless, this bloodshed really left a bad taste in her mout. some good old Yamada school of flexing was needed here.
Then the Vampire King blurred past the remaining Candlemen and destroyed them all before they could finish their attacks.
"JUST QUIT IT ALL OF YOU!" Valerie took a breathe before continuing, letting the rest of the combatants time to stop and listen to her.
"Columbia will be coming back in force and then they will burn this place to the ground. Yet here you are fighting over toys like children when your lifves, your very home is under threat of complete annihilation. Have you no shame? This is the time to set aside your differences and come together to save your home so what the hell are you doing?" Her glaring red eyes was aimed at all of them, Loyalists and Rebels alike.
"Zeke I trust you can handle things here, I have a very important matter to attend that I have been putting on hold for too long. But fear not I will be back!"
And with that, the Vampire King left with a leap.
-
Zeke
Some brat I assimilated actually managed to realize it was in a new body, it was a wonderful little accident. It truly tried to tear me apart. I was fortunate you were there to clean up my mess, but I didn't think Salvation would also try to kill me, that was fun.
The flurry of blows didn't relent, calm as space itself. They'd suck the sorcerous explosion without pity. Thus, dashing forward head-on, Zeke slashed the Pumpkin in half- and its magic. He tossed a sword in the air, twirling it playfully. "That's right. Won't you think about me a little? What am I supposed to plunder if you waste it all biting your tail?" The sword was pointed in the direction of Harley's pretty neck, ready to rush and cut her to bits.
But he stopped. Wait, what was that all about? Some kind of sick joke? "Huh? Wait, don't just dump the job on me. Do I look like I am that-"
But she was gone before he could protest, leaving him blinking sheepishly in an awkward as hell spot.
"...trustworthy?"
He looked at Harley, like he was trying to put a finger on what just happened, and sighed with a tired smile. "Haha. Serves me right for being a traitorous rascal myself. Well, since I got this far, I'll be taking over your district. I'm sure you have your objections, I'll be happy to hear them once you're on your knees. Now then, since I've got to pick up the slack myself..."
His stance became as feral as his smile, and his muscles swelled with heat and power that raged so hard they could be felt meters away. With a look more intense than ever, he brandished his sword in earnest.
"Time to surpass my limits."
-
Harley
He can cut apart magic? Harley thought as she watched him rip through the pumpkin. She shot backwards, a pumpkin gathering in her palm. No matter. I won't fall so easily...
As the light faded from the pumpkin's eyes, its upper half falling in front of Zeke, it was ripped apart by the fire enveloping its body. The pumpkin had exploaded. Its lower half exploaded right after, threatening to swallow Zeke whole.
The Hallow queen began using her hand to weave signs as she flew backwards towards off of the side of the building, falling towards the ground. Her palm was pointed towards the sky, the pumpkin growing larger in her palm. However, I do not think I am quite ready to fight you yet.
-
Zeke
Zeke's eyes snapped to the carved creature, but it was too late. Flames hurled outwards his entire vicinity, swallowing him in a hellish vortex. Was that it? Was he swallowed whole?
The holes that ripped open from the flames declared an answer, like a scream against the world. No, compared to the flames of hell, this is far too gentle! Compared to the fervor of my dream, this attack is kind as the setting sun! And the sun immediately set for her, in the form of five dark blades spinning with monstrous speed. A strong throw, an accurate throw... fired straight at her limbs to pin her like a cushion and gnaw at the magic current in her.
"Wielding created life as a shield and deadly flames as a spear, all while annoyingly buzzing about the battlefield. Curious, are these my memories as well?"
The sound barrier boomed - but it was deafened by the explosion of his feet against the melting ground. The roar of plasma carried him like a comet to victory, swirling like a ravenous meteor, and even that trembled before the force packed behind his fist, shimmering with a gorgeous blue hue. But the glowing fist hid the intent... of the unreinforced kick aimed at her plexus.
Being ready or not has no bearing. As long as you have the will, I'll always be there to dance with you - Pumpkin.
-
Harley
Ineffective, weak, not enough. But she wouldn't give up. The Hallow queen fired magic from her feet, twisting and turning in the air to dodge the blades.
Even still, the frustration of her weakness was punctuated by the fist striking her muscular abs. Her eyes widening as she heard him call her true name. The leg that followed sent her flying into the ground like a comet. Where any other person would crash into the ground with a thud, Harley instead sunk into it, her form evaporating as her back struck the concrete. The hand signs had been weaved and thus she could escape into one of her many hideouts. Nay she could have escaped the district if she so desired.
Not yet.... Not yet.... Enjoy this victory Zeke.
-
Ezekiel
"Hahahahahaha!" The feral smile widened, Zeke readied to attack, but-!
She vanished.
Zeke blinked.
"Haaa?" You know even for a role, it still feels weird to be called that by a stranger... Escape? Not a bad choice. She was a better woman with her head attached to her torso. As the burning aura slowly waned, Zeke's face relaxed, and his smile turned into their calm and content expression. Was it a mask? Was it their real face? For a liar and a scoundrel who couldn't even protect a single comrade, playing along was just fine. They had no use for the dead.
Instead, the mysterious man turned their eyes to the living. As its - their tattered cloak swayed under burning winds, you could almost notice a bar code tattooed to the new vessel. Almost like he was less of a human and more of a product. An object. A tool. Something bred to be used and thrown away.
"Now then, I thought I heard someone saying something like..." Shadows swirled around Zeke's fingertips, forming a small bat that cried out with a familiar voice.
"I'd rather be slave to humanity than a slave to you!"
A darkness creased over their face, Zeke's face... and they smiled. A dark, evil glow burned in the vessel's eyes, making the earth tremble in its malice as the sun lowered and prostrated before the evil star. "That's right... so I guess you can't complain after all... if I have my way with all of you!"
The sun had already set over Halloween Town. The destruction, the decimation...
Was being slowly repaired. Dark organisms roamed the grounds and used their combined power to repair the smashed buildings and burnt streets of their own free will. As the dead and injured were tallied and brought to safety, beasts from another world soared across the skies, keeping vigilant watch over any survivors from either side so they may be brought to safety.
But while these resources were being salvaged, an unspeakable evil brewed in the heart of the district. It bubbled, burnt with anticipation, and-
"Pwaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh! This is delicious! So good, so goooooooooooooooooooooood~!" Zeke took a big bulp of the pumpkin soul, gorging it down greedily like it was the best and only thing they had tasted in centuries. Without any regard, dignity or pride, it munched and gulped down on fermented pumkin beer, pumkin seeds, pumkin pies, roasted pumpkin, pumpkin risotto, deep fried pumkpin, pumkpin ice cream, pumpkin milkshake, pumpkin salad, pickled pumkin, barbecued pumpkin and more. And he wasn't the only one. The remaining resistance members and civilians had been summoned here to partake in this meal together, to speak and reassure one another, or just to recuperate while the wounded where tended to.
It was Zeke's idea, of course. After all, they wished to know more of this place and its cultures. Food was an important step to understanding this people. And to be honest, they were starving. But as Zeke kept munching on, the stares pointed at a single body finally registered, and a blush appeared on their... Zeke's face.
"Um, I mean, it's appetizing. Adequate. Uh, just forget what you saw, okay? And I'll have more of that pie please, it's simply scrumptious." Zeke turned to the bat girl. "Have you ever eaten something this delicious? You've gotta try it."
-
Lola
The batgirl stayed silent, as she had been the whole time. Her sharp eyes stared at Zeke's every move, yet refused to say a single word. It was clear she was upset about something, but also observing him. The real question was why she agreed to come out if this was what she was going to do the whole time.
-
Zeke
Zeke paused for a second, with a bemused eyebrow raised at the pouting... bat? General? What should he call her? Wife might not be a bad start. "Come, don't look at me like that. After something this brutal... I can't imagine morale can get much higher."
And it wasn't exactly wrong. Death, violence, all of these things were ugly truths that sounded even uglier when you saw that up close. "But I really am sorry. I had no idea things were this dire. If I knew, I'd have liberated your people sooner. These fools..." He grimaced for a moment, and yet - his smile was genuine. "I respect you. Even when this city has rejected you, you managed to make a place to call home. You have your own drives, your own histories, and your unique culture that resists assimilation to this day. I admire you people. Compared to a hungry dog like me who can only devour, you've managed to create a nice place. That takes guts, right?"
-
Lola
The batgirl's batlike eyes shifted, as if something caught her attention. Even still, she stayed silent. The ears on the back of her head twitched and now she was clearly giving him her full attention.
-
Zeke
He sighed.
"You know, if you keep giving me the silent treatment, I'll have to rub those cute ears of yours."
-
Lola
The girl covered her ears and raised her winged arms, ready to take flight. The twitching stopped. Nay, her whole body froze aside from the parts that needed to move. It was as if her body was only moving what was needed to escape if needed.
-
Zeke
"Dude, I can see you. I am literally looking right at you." He crunched on a pumpkin seed casually. "I did save your butt from getting roasted like that butternut squash, am I that detestable to you?"
-
Lola
The batgirl shook her head, keeping her hands on her ears. She returned to her attentive stare.
-
Ezekiel
Zeke sighed and shook his head. If she wasn't gonna play coy, he had no reason to. They - the collective - weren't above this kind of game. "Relax. You need food, don't you? The injured need tending, I've made sure they're getting their share as well. But I can't unmake the past. The food that's making you healthy and strong's standing on a table of bodies. Don't make it all in vain." He ate, a bit more calmly.
Comrades... this body could remember having them too. No, it was still their memory. His memory.
"Well, I'm assuming that you care. Really, we have no interest in the struggles between the old queen and you guys. But you made a foolish request, One that tugged at our heartstrings..." He smiled relaxedly, enjoying the simple taste of food, company, and being alive. Because the food that Zeke was enjoying was also resting on a pile of corpses. Friends, enemies, and even his own selves.
And there it was. The omega.
"If you're not going to talk, then listen: I want to protect your people. It's not a charity though, I'm sure you already knew that. But I want our relationship to be a fair one. I want to have this opportunity to listen to whatever concerns or feelings you might have. If you don't speak your feelings honestly, I won't be able to properly work with you all as equals. It'll be no better than tyranny. Is that your wish?"
-
Lola
"If you let someone talk for long enough, they will eventually start speaking from the heart."
The batgirl stared at him, her frowning as she squinted. The truth was she had poor eyesight, but at this moment she wished she could see him properly. "I don't think freedom is quite the right word for what we want. Recognition, status, acceptance: a place in this cruel city."
She scratched the back of her bat ears. "Just because you want to protect our people doesn't mean you don't want subjugation. You say you want a fair relationship, but you approach this like a business man. Those of us in this organization would rather die than deal with another hallow queen but even more would kill to prevent living under the hell of so called normal humans. "
-
Zeke
He blinked in surprise. So she could talk after all, huh. But her words only got a blush out of him, even as he turned away like some coy brat. Zeke's coat was removed casually, exposing his sculpted body... and the same bar-code that peeked out earlier.
"I wasn't born with a place to belong in this cruel city either. I get it, it's painful to live like a tool. I was made for some organization's crazed plans, possessed by another phantom created just to be a slave... and the moment I had found my happiness and acceptance, It was ripped from me because I lacked the strength to protect them. Here I am." That's right. History had a funny way of repeating itself. He might be playing a role, but the thought of it made Zeke frown.
"You want status? Recognition? A place in the world? Sure, sounds great. But without the power to protect it, it'll be ripped from your claws in the cruelest way imaginable. That's the simple unchanging law of this Nexus."
He took a sip of pumpkin beer, letting the taste travel down his throat.
-
Lola
Lola looked up at the sky, her ears twitching. "I don't think that power matters. You can have all the power in the world and lose everything all the same. After all, if you can obtain that power, so can someone else. I can't speak for everyone, but if I could live that life for even a year, I think I could die happy."
-
Zeke
Their eyes changed... almost melancholically for a moment.
...no. That's just half hearted. If your power was so easily attainable by others, then it means you must have stopped halfway. You need more power.
"Craven fool!" Zeke's roar was unlike before. Fangs showed from is jaw, its eyes shot a glare that could burn one whole. Without pity, he rose up and loomed over the bat girl like a shadow, threatening to swallow her whole.
"A life isn't so worthless it can be traded for a mere year. You have a beautiful dream, so uphold it with your head raised high! There is no reason to devalue or tarnish it. Everyone in this district deserves happiness, even if you're a cursed existence, it isn't wrong to desire for more!"
Our wish... my desire... if I'd simply given up for a mere year of happiness, all of the lives would be for nothing!So smile and laugh monsters and demons. Tonight forth, the prayers of the dark will be answered in kind! It was declaring this absolute will that he extended his hand at the woman. A fake who inherited a fake will, a copy of a copy of something that should never have been born.
But its shine was as brilliant as the stars. And it refused to deny these monsters the chance... to have their dreams shine on them.
"So don't you dare sell it short. We're a family from now forth, whatever worries you'll worry me, and whatever points a sword at you points it at all of us. We will reach our promised land, together, and we'll prosper until the end of times. I will show you myself... the miracle of the discarded and unloved."
-
Lola
"You are way too forward," Lola said with a grimace. "You are just as responsible for the death of my men as I am, yet you claim to have us as family? You are only acting in self interest, same as the queen."
Lola at last picked up the sandwich seasoned with a pumpkin spice mix. The taste of turmeric and cumin dominating the sandwich.
-
Ezekiel
Zeke raised an eyebrow. "Obviously. I've never heard of anyone who did anything if it didn't suit them. If you're the main character of your story, I'm the main character of mine." As he shook his head, he picked up a similar sandwich to Lola's, nibbling on it this time with a bit more reservedness.
"Now listen kid. Harley failed because she followed her ambition blindly, without bothering to inspire the hearts of those behind her. Of course she'd end up with a knife stitched on her back, you were both going in two completely opposite directions! It's not like someone who fights alongside their comrades for their own everyone's sake. But let me make one thing clear, talk's cheap. I'm going to show you that I mean everything I just said with results."
And that's when he gave her an earnest smile, filled with admiration. "Have you ever seen a real miracle?"
-
Lola
"I don't believe in miracles." The batgirl glared at him, but said only this much, waiting for him to make his next move.
-
Zeke
Zeke paused and crossed his arms at Lola, nodding at her with a placid calmness. "That was a good answer. Miracles are illusions caused by insufficient observation and understanding. They're just glorious misunderstandings."
That's why he couldn't bring himself to hate them, the gods that cursed Zeke's existence, nor the father who gave birth to it. It took them a long time to understand, but truth be told... Zeke was happy just being alive. Absorbing the <Star's Mud Draken> able to cross worlds, and finding themselves in this miraculous plane with a second life. They wouldn't have this any other way.
"But you still need to do everything in your power. For the sake of our - my wish, I'm fine with fighting to create my own illusion. My miracle." Suddenly, the dark star swiftly darted and picked up the batgirl like a bride - hoisting her up to shoulder level. "Let me show you."
And stretching four inhuman black wings, Ezekiel soared the skies, like a beautiful messenger from God.
The two loomed over a stretched out designated area, filled with some intact buildings and tents. It's where the wounded, the sickly, and the dead rounded up. Each was tallied to make sure the counts were precise so that they wouldn't be left wanting for anything. Those in need were given the utmost care and respect, with fresh food and water given by blackened creatures. These twisted, alien organisms took the guise of beautiful women with rabbit features, and nursed the wounded to keep them conscious.
"It's a pity. The pain of losing what you hold dear. The humiliation of having your dignity stripped away. I've suffered such indignities myself." He closed his eyes and pointed his palm to the area, focusing his dark sorceries. Black magics that couldn't belong to a mortal plane.
The monster. Was Zeke planning to annihilate the whole section off the map!? To cull the chaff and the weak to give room to the strong? Was he so cruel he'd make Lola watch!?
-
Lola
The batgirl suddenly found herself swept up in his embrace. Hand resting on his muscular chest, the batgirl felt the magical power building up. She stared at his wings before tightening her grip around his body as he directed her down at the vulnerable city.
A hand reached for his throat, those bat like eyes sharpening. "Weak doesn't mean passive. If you think for a second I wouldn't try to kill you here then you are sadly mistaken."
-
Zeke
The dark star paused for a second as a hand choked its throat. Such feeble fingers, lightly squeezing hardened flesh... they were a pity. A will this strong shouldn't be trapped in such a weak body. Or maybe it was because of her struggle that she could shine so brightly. So what next? Would he pulp her to bits? Incinerate her? Make her swallow the greatest despair?
No.
He grinned cheekily with the widest, toothiest smile. It'd almost be creepy if Ezekiel wasn't so giddy.
"Excellent answer."
The tension faded and turned into the same casual uncertainty as ever. It was a prank, of course. His magic faded there and then.
"Can't have that though." He snapped his fingers casually to the side. That's when the hell below turned into something else. The first step toward paradise.
The old world creatures stopped, as if their time froze. For a second, the wounded onlookers grew concerned. Were they some odd automatons? No, it was different from Harley's magic, which pumped her life into extensions of herself. These creatures were independent. So why...?
"Uooooooooooooooooooooooooohhh!"
That's when the first set of teeth sunk into one of the beasts. Soon, the guttural screams and shouts became hungry cries, as even the sickly became overturned by hunger and began to eat the old world organisms themselves. The food had slipped creatures into their bloodstream, as of now, everyone in that small area was overcome by hunger. Eating the alien nurses, being eaten, melting down into some sort of digestive goo, and reforming to eat and be eaten again.
"Crunch! Munch!"
Until the fused biomasses began to connect and mix, healing and filling in what was broken. Even as the dead joined in this hellish dance of hunger and greed, the more they ate, the more their bodies reformed and transformed. Until the dead and the wounded were no more. They began to warp and change into something else.
Other sorts of creatures, but soon with their minds and personalities regained - and no memory of that horrific scenery. Only a body that could endure the incoming trials, and new life for those who had lost it.
"..."
"This magic will heal the broken and bring back the lost. With their bodies and a corpse, I can recreate the dead from memory. It's a skill from the old world, the power to bring old shells and organisms to life. I give them a second chance as my hands and eyes, as the spear that I drive through my enemy. And the shield that mends my friends' wounds."
His expression was serene and pure, he truly didn't see the carnage below as a bad thing. They were being brought back, healed, strengthened by alien flesh and organic matter. Soon, they would become something new. Something more than a monster to be trampled. Following their desires, the willing could reclaim what was lost. But it was unsettling. Even if his actions weren't born out of malice, they were warped by something else. When you can create and fix life at will, how easy is it to forget the pain and loss of the moment? Whatever made him must have been so afraid of losing anything, he'd have rather turned into a cold unfeeling shell than overcome this trauma.
Despite Zeke's warm touch, it felt cold. Lonely.
"It's a skill I inherited from something creepy, but with this, we won't have to worry about losing things dear to us. We will witness our new dawn, together."
With this, everyone who died came back, soon smiling and hugging each other. Some returned to their families, with new shapes and monstrous forms. But at what price? "Let's reach the promised land."
-
Lola
Thanks to the intelligence they gathered on Harley, as well as what she had seen with her own two eyes, this magical effect was not lost on her, nor the nuances between the two separate arts. STill there was only one word to describe what she was witnessing.
"This is unnatrual..."
Lola lowered her legs to the ground, flapping her wing like arms. ".... and a bad joke. What are you really?"
-
Zeke
He looked up at her for a second, as she took flight. But for a second, the question twisted his face in perplexion. That is, until Zeke smiled and nodded, his eyes closed in acceptance.
"I don't know."
It was a question he often asked himself. Even when that darkness consumed him earlier today, until his ego melted in the cesspool that was Zeke, he wasn't quite sure. In fact, none of the individualities melted in this one consciousness were sure. But the darkness that pulled them together was inescapable, and there were bits that could never be lost. No matter how many times the dark elemental hopped, its dream would never change. Even if its existence and mind melted into nothing.
Even if it was devoured by a _____, that was fine. So long as the journey could continue.
"What do you want me to be?" Zeke asked her innocently.
-
Some time ago
The sky was tinted with orange, that cursed color that infected every corner of her life. Back then, Lola considered it the most beautiful. Below the setting sun was a green Toyota gliding along the city streets.
"Lola...? Can you get off of your phone for two minutes? Its your birthday...."
A batlike man sat in the front seat, his fangs out. It was a sign of aggression in their family and discussions that followed usually had harsh discipline follow. Even so, the girl ignored him. "Hold on, i'm almost done."
"Lola I am working long hours that are only going to get worse soon. Don't you care at all? I just want to spend time with you before then.."
Lola frowned. "You never wanted to before now. Why does today make a difference?"
"C'mon Lola," her father said. "I went to a few of your high school events.... like your uhh sparing thing or whatever?"
Lola shook her head and turned to the window. That was the last thing she remembered seeing before everything went black. There was a whistling sound and a bang.
Lola awoke to the sight of a flaming corpse of a vehicle. The ground beneath her was soft, grassy. For some reason, the feeling of that grass stayed in her head, even as she watched her father get beaten. Yes, her father was stripped naked and was being kicked and spit on by a crowd of humans. Yet for some reason they left a hole for her specifically to watch. As she came to, she realized she had been laid perfectly against the bark of the tree. The noises he made were hard to describe, soft groans, hacking, the occasional coughing up of blood.
She had heard of anti monster sentiment all her life, but this was the first time she had seen it. The smiles on their faces, like they were watching a monster die in a video game, it was discusting. She and her father never had a great relationship, but he was still her father. She tried to stand up, only to realize that she couldn't move for some reason. Tears welled up in her eyes, falling from her cheeks and onto the ground. Lola sniffled and let out a soft moan not unlike one someone would make when crying themselves to sleep.
Lola's lips parted and she said something, a fervent wish to no one.
Another explosion occured, obliterating the bodies of the humans, yet somehow leaving her father unharmed. In the center stood a single woman the one later known as the Hallow Queen. Back then she was just known as Harley.
Lola
Lola blinked, staring at the man calling himself Ezekial, the one who casually defied the laws of life and death before her. She lowered her eyes and took a few steps back. It was an honest answer. No he had been nothing but honest to her so far, that was truly the scariest thing. Her face darkened as she recalled that memory from long ago. She stared at the ground, refusing to let him see her expression. Blood dripped onto the ground. The batgirl tilted upwards to show her fangs extended to the absolute limit, ripping into her lower lips. Every muscle on her body tensed as she said,
"I want a hero."
-
Zeke
For a moment, Zeke looked shocked. Surprised. He just looked away in embarrassment and rubbed the back of his head with a pained sigh. "Man, you just had to make an embarrassing request like that."
Zeke could easily weasel his way into this. Pry his way through a wounded heart, say the right things, put a mask on, and pretend like he was some sort of well-intentioned savior. It's not that he thought he was totally bad, though he knew his actions were probably on the wrong side of history. He just didn't have that sort of human spark that limits your morality like that. After all, he wasn't born one. Even if it benefited him, would he be able to lie to a woman's exposed heart like that?
They... he shook his head.
"Can't do. I'm going to have to be frank with you, even if it ends up biting me. It's because I value this kind of honesty between partners, I'm not very good at lying to the people I like."
Playing the heroic good guy was one thing, but if that was the reason she'd follow him, he couldn't really approve. Because a bond based on a lie is as flimsy as it gets, you know? So he floated up to Lola, gave her a gentle pat, and wiped the blood off her face.
"I'm not the good guy in this story, and my intentions aren't selfless or pure. Don't get me wrong, I'll protect you and listen to whatever you have to say, and I'll do my best if it means we can work together without worries. Sure, I might be stupid and stubborn, but I'm not always stupidly stubborn."
Nah. This is just something that's never been asked of me. I don't really know how I'd pull that off, it sounds too complicated to try. I'd probably regret it.
"But I did make a stupid promise, didn't I? I guess it can't be helped. I need you guys and the resources here, and you'll listen if you're happy. So I guess that makes me a hero, huh..."
It felt weird to say it to someone who was less fucked in the head than him. Oh, technically he never said that though, just the last Zeke. Man, mind transfers really get weird when botched. But that honesty of his, was it a fake emotion transferred over too? Or did it come from his heart? Either way, origins don't matter. It's whether your feelings are true or not.
And Zeke's were. Weirdly enough, even through all his battle-hungry sadism.
-
Lola
Lola frowned. Although for a brief moment, she smiled. Of course, right after she realized what she was doing she settled on something more neutral. "No it makes you an opportunistic hustler. Its alright. You were right about one thing. We the citizens of this district, the rebel forces, the resistence... we are weak. If we want to get rid of that woman, we will have to grow stronger."
Lola looked at what could only be called zombies. "Can you start by ceasing with that? What we need to empower is the dead, not the corpses of the fallen. We are going to rebuild our way."
-
Zeke
"Yeah, that does sound like me." Zeke smiled and nodded, but for a second... paused.
And booped the bat girl right on the forehead. Again.
"Weren't you paying attention? These aren't walking corpses, they're living things like you and me. Just because they look different doesn't mean they stop being themselves, their memories and everything that makes them unique is intact. I'm just making the bodies, and making sure they fit the container nicely."
Seriously, didn't that confusion happen on the prior world that thing hopped into? By that thing, he meant the thing he ate up earlier, the one whose memories he was swimming into. It got a bunch of them killed uselessly too, even when they weren't aggressive at all. What a waste of life and resources. A pity.
That's when he raised an eyebrow at her, in a genuinely puzzled fashion. "Why wouldn't I bring them back to life if I had the power? It's not like they're any different than before, other than a cuter appearance. Not doing it makes it feel like I'm responsible for them dying for good, you know? Like I'm some killer. It feels... wasteful." He cocked his head. "Or are you saying... I should kill them again?"
Wow. He thought he was a sick bastard.
-
Lola
The bat girl's sharp eyes closed. "....No just, don't make any more.... please."
The truth was, she knew he couldn't be a hero for him. No hero existed for the monsters, the outcasts. There was no one that would save them from their endless oppression, not without a price. Everything came with a price.
What... did I do to get him?!
Lola squinted her eyes as she recalled her plan to frame him for the assassination. Does karma work that quickly?
The batgirl returned her gaze to the abominations. No I had to have done something worse.
"People... death and life shouldn't be messed with. Its complicated. Its... not normal, a defiance of what someone stands for. Besides, what if they don't want to come back to life?"
-
Zeke
The dark star raised a genuine eyebrow in confusion.
"Why would anyone want to die?"
They... Zeke stared at her, utterly dumbfounded. An awkward cough later, they shook their head. "Regardless, it's not important. But I think I get it. You're scared of this power because it's foreign to you, so you see it as something wrong or evil. But so what?"
And for a moment, even that calm smile faded... and crumbled before a stern expression. One that stared at Lola with a deep focus, like a glowing ember about to smolder everything.
"Your kind isn't viewed as normal, monsters defy the convention of regular people. Should you just stop existing then? No, I think that if you have something worth fighting for, you should use everything at your disposal. Even if it means going against convention." He finally grinned wolfishly, but with some genuine good-heartedness here and there.
"And besides, my power doesn't force the soul back into the body. That's why something like this won't work if the corpse is too old, or if the body parts aren't sufficient. I don't condone suicide, but I'm not the kind of guy who'll force an unwilling recruit into the vanguard." Zeke pointed at the beasts below.
"The fact they actually did make it back means that they had some fight left in them. Otherwise, they'd just be empty shells. But even then, they'll fight on for their comrades and carry the hopes they stood for to the next generation. Isn't that... a good thing?"
-
Lola
Lola sighed before squinting at the creature before her. It was hard to describe the strange combination of discust, bewilderment and sadness she felt. The body this man had.... it was like a young man's, yet he did not even seem to understand this basic principle. To say even a child would understand this concept was an understatement, a toddler could. Thats why in this moment, she realized the true depths of how messed up this man was.
"I... No one wants to die. But life and death have to be respected equally. You can't just manipulate someone's soul as you see fit. Its a violation of every basic human dignity. Taking a life in turn is a traumatic experience that creates waves of suffering to even those slightly connected to that person."
Lola sighed again. "But I guess... we monsters are often the products of these kinds of decisions...."
No. Zeke was far from their savior. Harley, Zeke; would they ever be free from those who want to use them to fulfil their own ambition? What is a just ruler?
-
Zeke
But that's when his gaze turned harsh, serious, and for a second it burned with black shadows. A darkness that refused to falter before something like that. "That's quitter talk. You're not products of anyone's decisions. The lives you lead and the choices you make are your own." He slammed his fist on his chest, causing a booming shockwave to erupt. FIght on, struggle, but don't look down. Never look down. That's why...
"Your crown's falling. Look up" His smile was warm. No, even the darkness turned warm. It was as gentle as the sun. And that's when he approached her and patted her on the shoulder.
"Look, I'm sorry if I was being pushy about it. But I think this is important too. Those stuck on the same boat need to be comfortable speaking to one another, you know?" He smiled and crossed his arms at her.
"And with the life I've led, I think my way is the correct one. But you've got your own thoughts and feelings, all drawn from your knowledge and experience. Even if I don't agree or understand them doesn't mean I can't try to. Besides, my feelings don't mean I should ignore yours and charge blindly. That's what I think it means to be a captain."
That's when he opened the palm of his hand, creating a cute darkness bunny from the void. "I'll comply. I don't need to agree with your wishes to accept them, you're a comrade. But if you're willing to hear me out, there is a compromise I can suggest." Despite the dejected words, his grin was as toothy and wide as it could get.
"A choice. An informed choice without any lies or falsehoods, so that those who truly wish to fight on can do so under my wings. Don't feel pressured to accept. If you say no, that'll be the end of it."
-
Lola
The devil isn't just one person, but many people with many personalities. That is what she would say if she believed in a god. It was hard to buy into such nonsense. At the very least, such a being had long been thwarted by creatures such as him. A choice? Laughable. If a person gets a gun put to their head and is told they can either die or serve their assailant, is that choice? Is anything after that truly a choice?
"A choice," she said, taking the bunny. "Even if the world gives us bad circumstances, we can make them better if we don't give in. I truly think that. You have a lot to learn before you can be a captain, but its worth hearing you out."
Lola's ears twitched, her nose crinkled and she frowned, closing her eyes for a moment in contemplation. "Thats my choice."
-
Zeke
"Oh shaddup, now I'm the one blushing." He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly and looked away. Now that he actually had living flesh, he couldn't even hide the blushing. Oh, right, technically he always had it. Man, this was a real headache.
But he managed to smile. Maybe this was more comfortable to him than he'd admit.
"I can't promise what I can't give, but I'll promise this much. Together, we will not know defeat. Not now, not ever."
It was... an oddly optimistic take. One that many would call insane, idealistic to a fault. But even she could tell, he was as serious as he could get. And when it came to this, he'd do everything to make his words true.
This was their dream.
-
Zeke (much later)
"I see, someone's already making a move on that district. That's kind of rad." A murder of ravens flew over a rooftop, where Zeke stood with a hungry smile. The dark star stood over the district's tallest tower - or rather, sat. He had a full picnic table set up, with scrumptious sandwiches and a cheese board spread out to enjoy.
"Hmm..." He put a thoughtful thumb on his chin. "I guess it's fine to give them first dibs. I'll have more plates to sweep as I pull the table. But this is strange. An attack on Salvation? Why didn't I hear any of this..."
The ravens spoke to him, dark shadows lurking at every corner and peering down from the skies. He should be able to perceive what went down a territory this close to him, but he had no idea what just transpired in Naboundd until far later. And now, he had no idea what happened to the poor children of his that soared over Albion.
Zeke sighed, finally dropping flat on the ceiling, with his back sprawled tiredly. But his smile was as gleeful as a kid's. One who was having way too much time, even with all the setbacks.
"What a headache. There's no way I'll just accept being a pawn of someone's game, even if that was our role. Not that man's, nor anyone else's."
If only he looked the other way in that point at time. But it's difficult, more than you can imagine. For a man fixated in the horizon, staring back at one's own shadow is unthinkable.
"Hmm, wonder what Aruna's up to."
-
Nanako
Heading away from the Dojo with great leaps, Nanako wandered aimlessly for a while, stopping by Pine Garden for a snack and taking a ferry across the Divide, trying to cool off with the wind and the waves. Even thinking about Vega felt like fire in her veins as she tried to figure out how the same man could show mercy in one moment and seeming disregard for life in another. Eventually, the thought passed from her mind, carried away by the cool breeze washing over the prow and the bag of trail mix she'd been tearing into.
After some more wandering and a burger from Columbia, however, the squirrel girl found something unexpected. Insectoid creatures scurrying about near what she was sure was Halloween town, from the map on her phone, but something about these creatures was fundamentally off. Something about them simply struck her irrevocably unnatural. They were just really...weird.
Nanako took all of half a second to process this, then leaped down near one of them. It stopped cold and turned to face her. She leaned in with a questioning 'Hm?', her tail swishing behind her. It growled loudly, chitinous legs tensing and arms raising. Her ears perked up as she canted her head to the side. Finally, it charged at her with a piercing shriek.
Riding atop the beast's head, Nanako found that the creatures she'd met the periphery weren't just strange exceptions. Everywhere it took here, there were all manner of creatures, not all of them chitinous monstrosities like the one carrying her through the streets, but all of them oddly offputting. Even the land itself seemed to be more alien here, strange growths permeating through buildings and over roads. By comparison, the smoking craters and ruined husks of tanks seemed almost ordinary.
Every second that passed left Nanako more and more curious, the squirrel girl lounging atop the creatures large, chitinous head as she took in her surroundings.
-
Zeke (even more later)
Yawn
There was nothing more boring than stagnation, peace really was an insidious little thing. It was beautiful and desirable, right until the moment you've got it in your hands. No... that wasn't quite right. He really did want to fight the hallow queen with everything he had back then, and some. Her fleeing so soon just left him blue balled, and now he was trying to laze around to avoid going in a rut. But more importantly, this meditation was important to sort out the memories that did survive the transfer. So let's see...
Serana was busy with god knew what.
Joseph was probably hitting the books.
Aruna... well, he didn't feel like getting shish kebab'd by her girlfriend just yet.
Valerie was probably playing with one of her fledglings.
"Man, I'm bored." It was shocking, but taking responsibility for this sad little district almost made him feel caring. Sure, he was working deceptively hard, getting all his boys to fix up the place, but in a way he almost felt like a dad watching over hid kids. That's fine and good, but no one really wants to be a parent forever. Sometimes, you need some spice... something! He couldn't just jump to the next phase just yet, so he was forced to kill time.
And killing time on your own is its own special kind of hell.
But that's when something showedup. A sound made his ears twitch and tingle. The sound of the plans he never quite planned falling apart and the gears of improvisation spinning madly again. Or more accurately, it was the sound of one of his children, crying and screaming for help.
"Hm? What's with the ruckus..." He connected with its senses quickly. and-
Eeee- eek! What's going on! What's going on!?
A chitinous beast of carapace and mud zipped past buildings and wrecked rubble, hopping and galopping to try and shake off something. He just came up to that girl to tell her that area was off limits and under construction! Why? Whyyyy!? Why did she just hop on him and straddle him like he was some kind of monster! This wasn't funny! It seriously smelled and it was way too heavy!
"Graahhh! Just leave me alone woman! I'm not your damn taxi!" Is what it said, but as it was a relatively early transformation, the words came out as guttural shrieks and alien screams.
Hmmmm. It'd probably take an hour or two for all of the old world organisms to get their vocal cords back to understandable frequencies. Maybe he should have tried a bit harder.
He looked down at the bumbling rodeo going on miles away, all with a lazy grin and his legs crossed. It's as if he were watching a comedy special on tv.
"Hah! Wait, I know her! What was her name again? Na...Na... Nanaya?"
A lot of the stuff that used to be Zeke's memories was wrecked trying to incorporate a human host and a grace at the same time, but memories are a curious thing. Like a fractal, you can make out the overall shape from just a speck of data. It might take him longer to remember everything, compared to his kids who were relearning communication - but this would be an educational experience nonetheless.
And there was something he did remember. The important memories, the ones considered essential, were vivid as day. So he didn't even need to try and remember to know... that beast woman had a grace too.
"Nice. Looks like I've still got something to do." His grin spread from ear to ear, and he jumped off the building like an excited kid. Without delay, he burst into searing plasma and soared into the skies like a comet. Zipping into the skies, he swirled - and finally approached the landing point. Right in front of the woman's path.
"Hey hey! It's been a while, hasn't it! Aren't I a lucky guy!" He descended like a burning star, ready to smash Nanako like a pancake.
But instead, he missed the landing and slammed face-first on the asphalt, right in front of Nanako and her steed.
-
Nanako
If Nanako didn't know better, she would've sworn her steed was trying to say something, but the squirrel girl couldn't decipher any meaning from the guttural shrieking and screaming. She looked down thoughtfully at the creature carrying her, patting it reassuringly as they carried on, but didn't get to do much more before something else caught her attention. Her ears perked up and swiveled towards the new sound, Nanako turning to look up just after to see a searing comet rocketing down towards her.
The squirrel girl's eyes widened as she quickly pushed off her steed, pushing it out of the way, only for the comet to crash down in front of her and reveal a beast of a man. Tall, well-built, and oddly familiar.
"Huh, have we met before?" Nanako asked, canting her head to the side as her tail swished lazily behind her, "It'd be hard to forget someone like you, but I don't think we've met."
-
Zeke
"Mhphfhh hmfhhh...!"
As it turns out, it was hard to use human language with your head stuck underground. Yet with a single jerk, he suddenly ripped himself off the concrete. Stretching, he whipped the sky with his silver locks and revealing more of his powerful body. "Pwaaah! Hahahaha, this is great!" He was jovial as ever, but his eyes were a lot calmer and focused than before. He wiped the soot off his chin with a well-mannered grin.
I thought I was heading the right way. Did I... miss? No, that can't be right.
"What, is our new body that shocking? I'd figure a bombastic babe like you would be used to seeing things like this. I'm pretty sure we met, didn't we? Back when I fought that demon... Aruna I think?" He poked the black insect-like beast playfully and melted it back into his shadow in a heartbeat. He looked straight into the squirrel girl, this time a lot more calmly, but with that same placid playful smile.
"It doesn't matter. I'll ask that you don't do things like that to my crewmates though. If you made a mess, it'd make reconstruction more difficult for all of us."
-
Nanako
Nanako watched as the creature melted into the man's shadow, the squirrel girl striding closer and bending over to poke the shadow curiously, but to no avail. Shrugging, she popped back up, bouncing slightly with the suddenness of the motion, and listened to his explanation, frowning slightly for a moment before realization hit.
"Zeke?" She crossed her arms under her chest and leaned back, "How often do you go through bodies, anyway?"
"Wait, comrade? Wasn't very talkative, what are they?" she canted her head to the side, ears flopping over.
-
Zeke
Well, she said it, not him. Good thing he was riding on the right memory stream. It'd be bad if his acting was that obvious.
"What can I say? How often do I get killed?" He shrugged and took her hand, spinning her back to his shoulder. "As for my precious jewels? They're human! Like you and me."
Staring into her eyes, you'd think that he was hitting on her. But maybe that was also a hint. She could see that void, that emptiness...
It was different.
It wasn't the same darkness as back then at all.
"What brings you here anyway? Sorry if I didn't stick around longer, I'd have cheered on your match if I wasn't held up."
-
Nika
Sightseeing for familiar sights and landscapes, the bloodsucker with a terminal case of wanderlust continued her trek through Nexus, partly to pass time before the promised duel with the powerful rookie. She'd roam around anyway, not intent on idling through her first day since well... she's been losing track a bit. What exact year, day? No matter, present and future mattered as much as the past, even if she looked for something that looked nostalgic enough.
The ashen skinned woman seemed a bit absent minded, staring into her smartphone and browsing through an app with a map in search for interesting directions. The manner in which she just casually avoided bumping into people without seemingly paying attention was strangely graceful, as if crowds were no obstacle to her no matter what she did. One nearby location caught her attention finally. Halloween Town? If they went with that theme all year round, they must have had a dedication bordering with obsession. Those guys might be crazy enough to be entertaining in their own fashion. Besides, that festival was becoming as American as apple pie back in her previous nights. Worth a shot.
She dropped the pretenses about following any kind of gun laws and since visiting that Columbia placed she just open carried her Colt M1911, the holster firmly attached to her clothes. Wearing casual sportswear probably would stand out anyway against the whole theme of the place. Not much of a costume.
As she was sure she was on the right track, she started paying more outward attention to her surroundings. She could spot the orange, brown and green palette of the buildings from afar, the pedestrians wearing human masks (how eccentric), and hear the lively sounds of people having parties as early as this time of day. And smell vague danger in the air. Surely other monsters must have mingled in the midst of this carnival.
"Heh, maybe I'm standing out the most of all of them." The blonde vampire grinned with amusement. No costume, no pretense, she was probably too honest to mix with society like that, an oil poured into the Halloween sea. Were there any fellow creatures of the night in this town of eternal fall?
-
Nanako
"Hm. It only happens when you get killed? That's, ah, worrying," Nanako noted, frowning for a moment before stopping short at what he said next, "Wait, they're human?"
Before Nanako could inquire further, however, he grabbed hold of her and spun her around, pulling her back against him with a surprised gasp from the squirrel girl. Nanako looked up at Zeke, finally realizing something else was off. His eyes were different, not the same as what she'd seen in his last two bodies.
"Well, your friend brought me here," the squirrel girl noted, "But...you're different. The last two, their eyes were the same, but yours...who are you?"
-
Zeke
...that was scary. Heh, guess an animal does have sharper senses, or maybe intuition was a better word.
But it just wasn't that simple.
"Who knows? I don't remember ever being anyone but myself." He rubbed his chin pensively and looked away, but gave Nanako a cheeky grin. He did find something strange though... why did she get worried? It's not like he was dead now or anything.
"You're a good person." He gave her a healthy pat on the head. "I guess we couldn't be any more different. I'm a pretty bad guy, you know?"
His smile was as gentle as they come. "That thing on your back though, that one's pretty interesting. How did you get it anyway?"
Oh Zeke knew, he just wanted to hear her side. Might help refresh some of the fractal memory.
-
Nanako
The squirrel girl frowned at what he said, her concern growing for a moment before both were wiped away by the headpatting. Her ears perked up as warmth spread through her from his hand, the squirrel girl leaning into his touch despite herself. In the end, he was right, he really was a bad guy for taking advantage of one of her weaknesses like this.
Nanako pouted at him slightly, though the force of her pout wavered under the mighty power of his head-patting. Then his next question came, and the squirrel girl shuddered, feeling a sudden chill bloom in her chest like daisies from a grave.
"Mm, you know how, I told you," Nanako said, "Got them fighting this big angel thing, some of its feathers went into me. Looks like the stuff from the last few didn't stick around this time."
-
Forest
Something had come up for Taro at the office, but he gave Forest leave to go ahead to Halloween Town. She parked her car at the appointed hotel and decided to walk around until Taro arrived. Ugg, I can't believe I said that last night, she thought as she adjusted her duster.
She was wearing her steel toed boots, but decided on clothing that would catch attention. There was a black, pleated skirt that ended right at her fingertips if she had her hands down to her sides, a violet corset top that showed off her arms, and had even styled her hair using bits of temporary violet hair chalk to recreate a look she was fond of during the 80's.
However, this place was fantastic. She almost expected Marylin Manson to be piped through the town, and was a little sad that it wasn't. However, she was fascinated and slightly taken aback by the variety of beings wearing "human" masks.
-
Nika
Huh, another stranger in this strangeland in this place? At least that's what she deduced immediately from the lack of one of those masks. And immediately picked up on that gal's vibe. She didn't mean the 1980s look, but she could readily feel there was another vampire in the midst. She wasn't one to beat around the bush, especially given the city's downright jadeness about the weird shit compared to her previous country, so she just approached the woman without much hesitation.
"Eh, took a nap and woke up in the future too? Or that's your style?" The pale woman in a hoodie commented about the other vampire's sense of fashion with a wide grin. "Heh, you probably fit here more than I. Unless there's a gym around."
-
Zeke
"Strange."
Zeke had rarely been this calmly surprised in his life, and the man in front of Nanako even less so. But the expression came so naturally, there was no doubt there was legitimate shock in his words.
"...Nanako? That was your name, right?" He scratched his back as if he wasn't sure what to say. No, that too was genuine. "I don't know how to tell you this, but that shouldn't be the case. Those things latch on to divine constructs to take shape or turn inanimate objects into relics. You're none of those things, so why would it have chosen you?"
His... their eyes narrowed.
"Well, I guess that's a mystery for another time. Isn't that right, seraph?" He didn't even turn around when he said those words, but his draconic smile betrayed him - and the sharp glance that trailed back.
A bead of sweat dripped down his temple. He had a familiar sensation chill his body, but he wasn't able to pinpoint it exactly. They were only certain of one thing.
The ache in his body, the throbbing in their heart... that winged marvel was the source of it.
-
Nanako
The squirrel girl frowned at what he said, her concern growing for a moment before both were wiped away by the headpatting. Her ears perked up as warmth spread through her from his hand, the squirrel girl leaning into his touch despite herself. In the end, he was right, he really was a bad guy for taking advantage of one of her weaknesses like this.
Nanako pouted at him slightly, though the force of her pout wavered under the mighty power of his head-patting. Then his next question came, and the squirrel girl shuddered, feeling a sudden chill bloom in her chest like daisies from a grave.
"Mm, you know how, I told you," Nanako said, "Got them fighting this big angel thing, some of its feathers went into me. Looks like the stuff from the last few didn't stick around this time."
Zeke
"Strange."
Zeke had rarely been this calmly surprised in his life, and the man in front of Nanako even less so. But the expression came so naturally, there was no doubt there was legitimate shock in his words.
"...Nanako? That was your name, right?" He scratched his back as if he wasn't sure what to say. No, that too was genuine. "I don't know how to tell you this, but that shouldn't be the case. Those things latch on to divine constructs to take shape or turn inanimate objects into relics. You're none of those things, so why would it have chosen you?"
His... their eyes narrowed.
"Well, I guess that's a mystery for another time. Isn't that right, seraph?" He didn't even turn around when he said those words, but his draconic smile betrayed him - and the sharp glance that trailed back.
A bead of sweat dripped down his temple. He had a familiar sensation chill his body, but he wasn't able to pinpoint it exactly. They were only certain of one thing.
The ache in his body, the throbbing in their heart... that winged marvel was the source of it.
Ivanna
The petit blond angel stepped forwards relentlessly into the large empty lot. Her head was entirely covered by two of her immense white wings, draped around her shoulders and blocking the view of her face and protecting her torso. The remaining four splayed out in all of their divine glory, two meters each in length with a golden sheen surrounding her entire form. Still, she didn't seem hampered by the current arrangement, stepping forwards with confidence and poise.
This place brought sadness to her. There was such unnesseccary death and destruction that had been brought upon its people, people whom were already suffering under the weight of discrimination, whom were simply searching for a place in the world. Perhaps if she'd engaged in finer diplomacy she'd have been able to help them. Under a more competent leader, perhaps it'd have been possible.
"Perhaps not, Abomination." Ivanna replied to him with a cold, deadened tone to her voice—yes—this was far closer to her comfort zone. As ironic as it was, even Ivanna had to admit that their being here had relaxed her somewhat. She could allow herself to fall into old, nearly forgotten patterns and focus solely upon this most familiar of tasks-purification and culling. "The very topic you two are discussing is the reason for my excursion."
The angel reached out into the air towards Nanako, displaying her palms facing upwards in a show of good will. "You, child—Nanako. You have been thrust headfirst into something you know little to nothing about. You seek answers. I offer what little I know."
-
Nanako
"Yeah, of course it is," the squirrel girl said with an indignant pout, her tail wiggling between them, "How much did you lose this time?"
Instead of answering, however, Zeke seemed to freeze up, the squirrel girl cocking an eyebrow as she looked up at him before he finally spoke, not to her, but to someone- something else.
"Seraph? Wha-" she pulled away from him, confusion mounting, along with something else, when she saw it at last.
It's form was that of a small girl, but the wings, the aura radiating from the being, the faint chorus ringing in her ears when it spoke, on frequencies a human couldn't even hear. Nanako swallowed hard, her throat suddenly dry as she remembered the Morningstar. At least this one didn't have eyes in its wings, so far as she could tell. Stranger still, this one hid its face, though the wings were large enough that it hid a good bit of her upper body as well. If not for everything else, it might have been funny. Despite herself, Nanako couldn't help feeling that the being was sincere with its offer all the same.
"Hm," she took a single wary step back, eyes darting between Ivanna and Zeke, fluffy tail upright but utterly still, and ears twitching, "You're nicer than the last one, at least. Last one was just plain scary."
-
Zeke
"You've got an odd definition of scary, girl." Zeke wasted no time looking at both and weighing his options. That voice... it was almost familiar. And yet he never actually heard it until now. But there were few if any who hadn't heard of the White Terror of Little Russia, the greatest almighty seraph.
And... interesting. So they had actually fought her before in another side?
It'd explain the throbbing sensation. But what Zeke did next... no one could explain.
He grinned welcomingly, with a smile full of fangs and fire. If this was some trickery, it didn't feel like it whatsoever. No, in good and in bad, Zeke had always been true.
"I'm impressed, you've walked all this way? Damn, I feel bad for your knees. Don't you ever get tired?" Especially with my comrades you've burnt to ash. That was you too, wasn't it? Even with the same fiery grin, his words came far calmer and reasoned than they... ever had the right to be. "If you've come to talk, I have food and drink aplenty. It isn't as nice as a royal throne, but the least I can do is welcome you with bread, salt and heart." He moved in to give her a good hearty hug.
-
Ivanna
As he moved in, ZEKE found himself halted in his tracks by one of the angel's pristine white wings interdicted in his path. She had no interest in his false pleasantries. In fact-it was negative interest—she had far more important tasks to undertake, one right in front of her. She needed to save this infected child of man, whether or not she herself acquiesced to such a procedure.
Of course, the former was the ideal outcome for Ivanna.
She walked past Zeke and continued inexorably towards Nanako. "I have no relation to his ilk. I would have been aware of one of my own siblings had entered into the Nexus. You have been infected-" Ivanna paused momentarily, as if she were wracking her brain for the best way to put it. "-by an organism which threatens to overwhelm you."
-
Nika
Huh, another stranger in this strangeland in this place? At least that's what she deduced immediately from the lack of one of those masks. And immediately picked up on that gal's vibe. She didn't mean the 1980s look, but she could readily feel there was another vampire in the midst. She wasn't one to beat around the bush, especially given the city's downright jadeness about the weird shit compared to her previous country, so she just approached the woman without much hesitation.
"Eh, took a nap and woke up in the future too? Or that's your style?" The pale woman in a hoodie commented about the other vampire's sense of fashion with a wide grin. "Heh, you probably fit here more than I. Unless there's a gym around."
Forest
Forest smiled as a pale woman in a hoodie approached her and spoke of her fashion choices.
"Pretty much my style. It's a mishmash of things that generally includes black." She grinned as she rubbed the back of her neck. "And I kind of like the whole Goth aesthetic too, even though it's kind of cliche. So you ended up here too?"
-
Nika
"I'm a light sleeper yet I haven't found anything amiss, that's for future. Last time someone robbed my place, I chased throughout half of Europe after my stuff. But nothing, nada. No robbers tampering with my treasures, no fools thirsty for revenge."
The vampire was really straightforward about her circumstances, even as she described them in vague, general terms. She indulged Forest's curiosity a bit more, continuing her story.
"Last place I had been before ending up here was called United States of America. That Columbia neighborhood is so similar yet different in certain ways, and in a way this place seems a bit more familiar. I don't think they're very into the Son of man either like those goddess worshippers, but Halloween's Halloween. But well, the way this place smells makes me feel trick people more dangerously for treats than your average kids."
-
Nanako
While Zeke blathered, Nanako's attention was fixed firmly to Ivanna, who kept getting closer by the second. What she said only deepened the frown creasing her face. It was more or less what Orcus had said, that time in the arena, that the Grace was a parasite, something that would consume her, corrupt her. But that was Orcus, who she wouldn't trust to get crunchy peanut butter on a grocery run even if she went with him. This woman was different, however, something about her words beckoned the squirrel girl to trust her, to believe her, feeding the confusion growing within her by the second.
"Alright, that's close enough," the squirrel girl said, leaning back another step, "Are you talking about the Grace? Because I've barely felt anything from it, and I've had it for a while now."
-
Zeke
Zeke froze up short of two meters with a dejected smile. "I think she is." And its arms crossed at Ivanna expectantly. "I'm not sure though. To me, it looks too small and cute to do any of that not as small and cute as you though. " Their... Zeke's current body too, was born a blank slate. If it had any shred of consciousness left, did it curse its existence as well? For having a will imposed on it, as the dark dragon that preceded it...? He pulled his coat down to show them the nape of his neck. "In many ways, it's not that different from a baby right now, its own wish is yet to form. Just like Nanako."
Did he also implant a cluster in himself? Was that even safe? No, it looked... too different. The feathers were more like crystal scales, surrounding some strange bar-code. (http://darksidemoon.net/SMF_forum/index.php/topic,807.msg67981.html#msg67981)
"I don't totally disagree. But miracles need prayers in order to come to fruition. If enough people wish for it to be a cruel, ravenous tool of control, that might be the form it takes. But burn it, and you also snuff out the tool's potential for good. Would you kill a child, out of fear of an unknown possibility (http://darksidemoon.net/SMF_forum/index.php/topic,505.msg41249.html#msg41249)"
Zeke... the thing calling itself Zeke... shook its head in disapproval.
"It doesn't matter. Any answer is a good answer, as long as it is true to your ideals. I just want to understand... what makes an organism or an abomination... less worthy of your grace?"
-
Nanako
While Zeke blathered, Nanako's attention was fixed firmly to Ivanna, who kept getting closer by the second. What she said only deepened the frown creasing her face. It was more or less what Orcus had said, that time in the arena, that the Grace was a parasite, something that would consume her, corrupt her. But that was Orcus, who she wouldn't trust to get crunchy peanut butter on a grocery run even if she went with him. This woman was different, however, something about her words beckoned the squirrel girl to trust her, to believe her, feeding the confusion growing within her by the second.
"Alright, that's close enough," the squirrel girl said, leaning back another step, "Are you talking about the Grace? Because I've barely felt anything from it, and I've had it for a while now."
Ivanna
"You've had it for less than a month." Ivanna's responce was pointed, icy. "That can by no reasonable measure be considered to be 'a while.'" She stopped five meters away from Nanako, taking the foolish child in. "What is the proper way to deal with a tumor? You excise it immediately upon finding out it exists, of course." Now, even though she hadn't moved, she was addressing both of them. "It would be absolute lunacy to wait to deal with such a problem. Once one starts displaying symptoms, it would require the grace of the lord to burn away the tumor without destroying the host. And with something such as this, these graces, as you call them—I fear that even I would be unable to preserve your mind were we to wait. It is in your best interest to allow me to cure you without a fight."
-
Nanako
Nanako furrowed her brow in uncharacteristic concentration as Ivanna and Zeke spoke. She'd watched the winged monstrosity that gave her these feathers fall, watched those feather spread out into her, Justice, and the land they'd fought in. Though she still felt like the shorter angel was telling the truth, it still felt off.
"Alright, look, just... You don't seem to be lying, but how do you know all this?" Nanako asked the petit angel, "I was there when the thing these feathers came from died, when they got scattered everywhere. If it hasn't been that long, then how do you know all this about it?"
"And you," she turned to Zeke, "Whaddya mean, this thing is guided by my wishes? You saying it's up to me how it grows, what it does?"
-
Zeke
"Of course." Zeke grinned at Nanako and snapped his fingers, pointing at her... or the thing inside her. His pair of dark eyes were almost glittering, he looked like a scholar getting to share the fruits of their research for the first time in ages.
"The same way a parent imprints its values in a child, those things learn through the memes of their host. It may be a living thing like you and me, but it's really nothing more than a slave, it lacks the will that makes you special. In a way, you're almost its mother."
He took a few steps to the side, enjoying the clean air and bountiful skies by the two women.
"I think... I understand your point, Ivvy. But I can't agree with it. You fear it because you don't know it, don't you? Because it's strange, alien, and unfamiliar. Whatever choice is made here, it should be an informed one."
-
Nanako
Nanako furrowed her brow in uncharacteristic concentration as Ivanna and Zeke spoke. She'd watched the winged monstrosity that gave her these feathers fall, watched those feather spread out into her, Justice, and the land they'd fought in. Though she still felt like the shorter angel was telling the truth, it still felt off.
"Alright, look, just... You don't seem to be lying, but how do you know all this?" Nanako asked the petit angel, "I was there when the thing these feathers came from died, when they got scattered everywhere. If it hasn't been that long, then how do you know all this about it?"
"And you," she turned to Zeke, "Whaddya mean, this thing is guided by my wishes? You saying it's up to me how it grows, what it does?"
Ivanna
"Because, child, I have already witnessed the tremendous harm they create even in this short time they've existed. The havok that they've created. As much as it pains me to admit it, I hesitated. I waited to see what might come out of that accursed forest, and many people have paid dearly for my indecision. Have you heard about what happened in the slums? Do you seek out knowledge of all the ills of the world? Of course you don't—I can tell—you simply wish to live your own life to the fullest, and experience your own happiness. It is in your best interests to listen to me, and to allow me to protect the world for your own sake as well as everybody else's."
Then, the angel turned towards Zeke, and she seemed to be glaring at him from underneath the protection of her wings. "And you. Cur. Monster. Cease speaking to me as if we know each other at once. I do not appreciate your games nor your tricks. You wish to see and experience new and interesting things, irregardless of whether or not those things would be beneficial to allow to play out. I have met your kind before."
-
Forest
The blonde raised an eyebrow at the other woman's words before tilting her head and folding her arms across her chest.
"Yeah, I visited the Columbia District yesterday. It did seem very Septic, and not in a good way. Normally I'm fine with Americans, but that place was too capitalized for my taste. This seems to be more of my speed."
Forest looked around at the monsters around them and smiled. "The monsters are hiding in plain sight here at least."
-
Nika
The other vampire just nodded along in agreement, as they seemed to both have their grips with Columbia.
"I love hoarding money like a dragon sometimes, but you've got it right. Living there would be like living in a middle of political cartoon, and I cannot imagine how to kick back there and relax with all that cult of personality around. But here, monsters like us don't stand out even if we go against the flow without costumes and masks."
The woman flashed the telltale smile, exposing her sharp canines as if she cared not for keeping up a disguise, and offered her fellow monster a handshake. "You can call me Nika. My full name is a bit more grandiose, but it's best to trade life stories stories in some decent bar. Shall we look for one?"
Undoubtedly there was already one open somewhere at this hour. She was ready to follow the woman's lead about this, but just as ready to take the charge if the other vampire was out of ideas.
-
Nanako
Nanako's ears perked up as Zeke said his piece, slightly concerned by how excited he looked despite everything that was happen. That she could imprint on the Grace had her a little concerned of what it might learn from her, but also wondering what it could do if she allowed to grow, whatever that meant. What he said to Ivanna, however, rang familiar to her, an old memory clawing for the surface before Nanako pushed it back down to keep her focus on the here and now.
Her concern only grew when, for all of what Ivanna said, she didn't deny what he'd said. "A forest? Figure it'd be different for one growing from a person as opposed to dirt and trees and probably some wildlife in the mix," she said, slowly edging back cautiously, "You're making some good points, but I'm still not liking the idea of being set on fire to have it burned out."
"More importantly," Nanako turned back to Zeke, "What makes this thing grow, anyway? Did the one in the forest just go out of control for some reason, or...?"
-
Forest
"I mean, I had a fair share in savings at home, but the whole capitalism thing is sort of not working for the Yanks right now. At least it was already starting to crumble when I accidentally drove here."
She did smile back as Nika exposed her fangs and shook the other vampire's hand.
"I go by Forest, but my friends call me Fore, and getting a drink seems like it could be a good idea."
Just as long as they don't have that orange juice from a can. That stuff is bullshit.
-
Nika
The vampire gave Forest slightly skeptical look as she mentioned the very notion of things going downhill in America. This was the nation that fought a war on scale unimagined before, pulled through through a crisis that made it on brink of annihilation and then put those dozen or so guys on the Moon. But maybe she wasn't one to argue about the state of her adopted homeland as she took the nap around the peanut farmer's inauguration, and clearly long time must have passed by the time technology got so wondrously fascinating.
Speaking of the devil, she of course had her smartphone around, a new useful tool in her wanderings. It certainly could be handy for the bar crawl.
"This neighborhood looks pretty great, no doubts, but let me look real quick for some place with this baby and save our time." She grinned, brandishing her smartphone with pride in one of her newest toys. "Just tell me what kind of stuff you're raring to see. I love the unknown so much when I'm fresh off grave like this that I love to go with people's flow."
Long nap syndrome, she loved to call it. Nika loved to live in the moment, let herself sweeped by the currents of society, human one and otherwise, unless she had a firm goal before her eyes. And the midnight was far off enough to not flip yet that tunnel vision switch on in her brain.
-
Zeke
"Hoh, cheeky. I've never been called that before." He crossed his arms and grinned mysteriously. "Don't get your hopes up though... Ivanna. I'm no monster, cur, abomination, or whatever mass of mindless sludge you'd think I am, I'm a human being, with all the greed, malice, and drive that comes attached. But I guess a different name makes it easier to stab me later. If we're going to exchange lies, you can just call me Zeke."
More importantly, you dodged the question... no, I guess that's an answer in its own way.
Yeah, he didn't know Ivanna in the slightest. He just knew she existed. If reading someone's tales from beyond a screen was enough to see someone's heart, then everyone would be connected. That sounds a bit gnarly, doesn't it? People should have the choice to make their own bonds and fight for them. But well, that's not really something a collective should say.
So he won't say it.
And with that, his detached gaze turned to Nanako. "Who knows? You're not even supposed to have it, it's clearly unconventional. It might not grow conventionally either. What would you use it for anyways?"
-
Nanako
Nanako's ears perked up as Zeke said his piece, slightly concerned by how excited he looked despite everything that was happen. That she could imprint on the Grace had her a little concerned of what it might learn from her, but also wondering what it could do if she allowed to grow, whatever that meant. What he said to Ivanna, however, rang familiar to her, an old memory clawing for the surface before Nanako pushed it back down to keep her focus on the here and now.
Her concern only grew when, for all of what Ivanna said, she didn't deny what he'd said. "A forest? Figure it'd be different for one growing from a person as opposed to dirt and trees and probably some wildlife in the mix," she said, slowly edging back cautiously, "You're making some good points, but I'm still not liking the idea of being set on fire to have it burned out."
"More importantly," Nanako turned back to Zeke, "What makes this thing grow, anyway? Did the one in the forest just go out of control for some reason, or...?"
Ivanna
"It will be quick, and I can personally guarentee that you will suffer no lasting harm as a result of my fire, on my honor as a seraphim." Ivanna clenched her small fist, hoping, no, praying, that for once, her rhetoric would be able to solve a crisis.
She didn't want to be forced to violence. Not this time.
-
Nika
The vampire gave Forest slightly skeptical look as she mentioned the very notion of things going downhill in America. This was the nation that fought a war on scale unimagined before, pulled through through a crisis that made it on brink of annihilation and then put those dozen or so guys on the Moon. But maybe she wasn't one to argue about the state of her adopted homeland as she took the nap around the peanut farmer's inauguration, and clearly long time must have passed by the time technology got so wondrously fascinating.
Speaking of the devil, she of course had her smartphone around, a new useful tool in her wanderings. It certainly could be handy for the bar crawl.
"This neighborhood looks pretty great, no doubts, but let me look real quick for some place with this baby and save our time." She grinned, brandishing her smartphone with pride in one of her newest toys. "Just tell me what kind of stuff you're raring to see. I love the unknown so much when I'm fresh off grave like this that I love to go with people's flow."
Long nap syndrome, she loved to call it. Nika loved to live in the moment, let herself sweeped by the currents of society, human one and otherwise, unless she had a firm goal before her eyes. And the midnight was far off enough to not flip yet that tunnel vision switch on in her brain.
Forest
"Honestly, if you find a place with dancing and a decent DJ I'd be up for that."
After the whirlwind of the last 48 hours, blowing off steam on a dance floor seemed like a good idea.
Then something Nika said registered and Forest's eyes went wide. "Fresh from the grave? Like you went into a state of torpor or whatnot?" She frowned and folded her arms across her chest. "That would be a bloody useful ability."
-
Nika
Nika looked a bit puzzled at Forest. She never went into a longer daysleep? How peculiar.
"You don't take naps every now and then? I always do it when society takes a turn for the more boring. Well, I just happen to take less than usual these nights. Things are moving forward at breakneck speed, after all."
She shrugged and started tapping on the screen of her 'gizmo'.: "Hmm, Oasis sounds like a nice name for a waterhole. I don't know about you, but I use could use a drink. Dancing sounds like a great fun too. I wasn't any kind of turboenthusiast, but I enjoyed that with some of mortals I came to know. Heh, they'd have been old but spry grandpas by now if they ended up here too."
-
Forest
Forest shook her head and answered, "Not me, hell, my inclination for insomnia came with me when I was killed. Which is probably why I'm so stir crazy in the Spring and Summer, because the bloody sun was up so long and I would just have to be stuck at home."
She resisted the urge to look at Nika's screen, her curiosity be damned. "Oh! I love to dance. I picked up ballet and tumbling ages ago and not only does it help physical training, it's bloody fun too."
-
Nanako
Nanako wanted to respond to Ivanna, but Zeke's words rattled in her mind. Indeed, what did she want to do with it? Her mind wandered, the squirrel girl crossing her arms under her chest and falling uncharacteristically silent and still as she thought back to her previous battles, back to the vague helplessness that had crept into them. Those still would've happened, with or without the Grace, and it would be foolish to think she wouldn't get into more fights while she was here. If it was a question of what she wanted to do with it...
"I'm not sure. This is a lot to take in at once," she admitted, "I think I'd use it to be better. Like you said, I'm not supposed to have this thing, and it'll be shaped by me. Might not even be able to go wild like it did when its host was literal dirt."
-
Nanako
Nanako wanted to respond to Ivanna, but Zeke's words rattled in her mind. Indeed, what did she want to do with it? Her mind wandered, the squirrel girl crossing her arms under her chest and falling uncharacteristically silent and still as she thought back to her previous battles, back to the vague helplessness that had crept into them. Those still would've happened, with or without the Grace, and it would be foolish to think she wouldn't get into more fights while she was here. If it was a question of what she wanted to do with it...
"I'm not sure. This is a lot to take in at once," she admitted, "I think I'd use it to be better. Like you said, I'm not supposed to have this thing, and it'll be shaped by me. Might not even be able to go wild like it did when its host was literal dirt."
Ivanna
"Maybe does not cut it when it comes to natural disasters and supernatural threats."
Ivanna's response was instantaneous, her tone was potent, and a ruffle of anxiety and fear ran through the pristine feathers adorning her wings. Her form began to glow with divine power, and her two back wings flapped in a show of force. She did not consider Nanako's thoughts on this matter to be responsible nor acceptable. As the protector of her people, she could simply not abide by one woman's selfishness in this moment. She had to act for the greater good.
"This dirt you speak of has already created a great threat to my people, and possibly to the Nexus as a whole if it is allowed to continue to propagate. Maybe it won't cause a great calamity is only one side of the argument. It naturally follows that perhaps this parasite of yours isn't so benign after all; that it might take over your body, corrupt your soul, and turn you into a raging beast thirsting for lust and fighting. Maybe it won't go that far, but it will still push you in a corruptive manner—I can fully admit that I do not know every possible outcome. What I do know is that there is a significant potential for harm, and I have to follow my duty to act, swiftly, expeditiously, and without prejudice. Whatever lies he may say, and yes, whatever truths he says, are simply him attempting to lead you to indecision, so he may see how things play out, however the cards may fall."
-
Zeke
"Amazing. Every word you just said ... was wrong."
The emptiness in Zeke's eyes shifted for a second, filled with pity. Lazily putting up with whatever scorn was thrown at them - at Zeke... was still one of their good points.
"You? Without prejudice? Yes, yes, I can't deny I'm curious. But curious enough to put up with your constant bloodlust? No." An incandescent swirl of mud and life formed on his very fingertips, in the form of a raven. "Even if you knew our goal, you don't know our motives or anything about those Graces. A war based on ignorance is no war, it's bloodletting."
He smiled patiently and waked up the Seraph, shaking his head.
"Thus, my truth is manipulation, and children are monsters to be feared. I can assure you though, between us three, you're the one I'd call monster." He said that without hatred, without contempt... but there was bitterness in his words.
It was frustrating to deal with a child so unwilling to see beyond their own truth.
"Either way, this isn't something we can solve or base with words alone."
-
Nika
"I don't look like that, but I used to be decent at old style dances. I don't particularly miss times when I used to mingle with people as higher class lady. When I learned swing from people, I never looked back."
She put back the smartphone in her pockets, as she didn't think she'd have to stare at directions to get there.
"Here I ramble about old times, but we were meant to go to the club. They converted an old factory that got absorbed by the neighborhood into a dancing club. Great acoustics, I bet, lots of space, with local bent of course. Heheh, jumping around to the loud music sounds wild, from what I've seen on a profile."
She could see a vague shape of a factory hall in the direction where the place was meant to be. She swore she could already hear some music being played when she focused on hearing the noise, though partly drowned by the noisy and lively district itself.
-
Nanako
Where once the squirrel girl had been still in contemplation, the sudden movement of Ivanna's wings flaring out had her moving without thinking. Instinct took over and sent her back three quick steps before the squirrel girl managed to slam on the brakes. Her eyes were narrowed now, ears swiveled forward, to the sides, and then back as her tail swished rapidly behind her. At the back of her mind, something started to surface, something new, something that hadn't been there before. It was faint at best, but...familiar. Familiar in a way that sent a chill through her spine.
...live...born...
Before she could respond, however, Zeke spoke up instead, Nanako's gaze flitting over to him for a brief moment, noting that he seemed more focused on Ivanna, then going back to the petit winged being.
"Alright, then what are your motives?" Nanako asked after he'd finished, "If it's not just to see what will happen, then what?"
-
Ivanna
"It seems we cannot coexist, beast. I had hoped to be able to avoid violence today, but it seems the time for talking is rapidly coming to a close." The angel laughed at Zeke's comments about her. It was a derisive, sarcastic laugh, filled with pain, long-neglected feelings, her shattered conscience, and more. She thought back to times which were simpler, when executing God's will didn't leave the bitter taste of bile in her mouth which she had to refrain from even thinking about. Behind the veil of her wings, protected from the prying eyes of the world, Ivanna bit her lower lip, grinding her teeth.
She couldn't help but feel as if she'd been wronged. Not by Zeke, not by Nanako, but by her Lord. She knew it was incorrect, borderline blasphemous to even think such thoughts, but now more than ever before, it was hard for her to refrain from doing so.
Not after having had the smallest sip of freedom and relaxation. She clenched her small fist, took a deep breath, and buried her feelings once more. Just one more time.
-
Zeke
It takes a strong man to deny what's in front of them. Even stronger to keep fighting regardless of it. Was that why Zeke's eyes were so sad? "Can't we? That is your choice, not mine. Many of my past selves chose the path of bloodshed. I don't know... just what did they see, beyond the hell they created? I don't think it brought them anywhere. And it will bring us nowhere."
The moment he closed his eyes, for a second, you could see a person. It shook its head.
"I have my truth, and you have yours. We could fight over it, repeat the same mistakes of the past. But for once, just this once, can we not seek common ground? Challenge our conceptions and notions, and learn from one another?" Dark eyes looked down for a second, as if lost and aimless. Or rather, he wasn't looking at either of them, but the endless horizon.
Just what kind of truth did Zeke see?
"A towering weapon built on the shells of old worlds? If there existed, there wouldn't be a strand of hair left in this Nexus. Centuries of child experiments to create the perfect hero? That doesn't sound very likely, does it? A fallen hero who'd destroy all that the Gods have created, just to snuff out the fires of vengeance? Can't say I've ever heard of anyone like that. A living calamity that wants to assimilate anything and everything? I'd hope people come up with better movie scenarios than that."
The man sighed tiredly, smiling with a hand on his side. No, he couldn't say he was any of those things. All this time, he had always been himself.
"No. I think truth is something you decide for yourself, the beliefs in your heart. For my dream, I might perpetuate someone else's. But let's work together, just this once. We might just discover our truths aren't so different. And if not, then you can steel your resolve and end the enemy in front of you."
He turned to Nanako and looked at her with an odd sincerity. "If my head doesn't fall from my shoulders, I promise, all your questions will be answered."
-
Nanako
The squirrel stood still, tense, almost quivering with restrained energy, ready at any moment to zip off whichever way she needed to go. Ivanna was clearly past the point of talking and committed to the coming fight, but Zeke surprised her. After everything about him being curious to see how things might play out, he was the one to try to de-escalate. Still, it was oddly comforting in its own way. For him to try to slow things down instead of letting them go where they would, if Ivanna had been wrong about that, it reinforced the idea that she could be wrong about more than that. That new presence at the back of her mind pushed again, more insistently now, but still only barely registered to the squirrel girl, her focus almost entirely on the confrontation between Ivanna and Zeke.
...want to live...
"Might be a big if," the squirrel girl said, tail swaying behind her, shifting her weight slightly as she slowly shuffled closer to Zeke.
-
Ivanna
The angel took a step forwards, interjecting herself between Nanako and Zeke. No, she wouldn't be allowing them to group up, to coordinate, when it looked so likely that her target would be forcing her to resort to violent measures. The faint white light of fire arcing along the lengths of her wings didn't grow in intensity, however, her movement should have made her stance clear.
This cannot continue.
Her silence would give the beast the opportunity to carry on, say whatever he needed to say. She would not interrupt him, not yet.
-
Zeke
A curious glance darted at the short Seraph, intrigued and aware of her - and what she wanted to do. Even if the air was tense, his attempts to settle down and befriend her were genuine. However, so was the hunger in his eyes. For in kindness and in evil, he was himself. Not some dark tool, not a disposable lump of meat. Even if the will of the world was in his way, he wouldn't accept anything less.
Not even if it came from God's judgment.
"Come on, don't be that way. Wasn't burning my friends enough sport for the day?"
He smiled and put a hand on his side. He never felt a need to hide his emotions, but it was a testament to Ivanna's stubbornness - that Zeke managed to show anger of any sort, however small. And yet why was he smiling?
A message sparked inside Nanako.
Unfortunately, the path of retreat is not something I can take right now. This creature is a threat to me and my people. If you want to flee, I won't hold it against you. I've never fought her myself, but I know just how monstrous this thing can be.
-
Forest
"Well, it depends on if the music is good. Like there's a difference between DJ Glitter Tits and New Retro Wave."
Forest pounded her right fist into the palm of her left hand to make her point. "Bloody DJ Glitter Tits . . ." She shook her head before looking at the looming building. "This is almost cliche. The whole club in an abandoned factory thing. Could be fun though!"
-
Nanako
Good news? Ivanna seemed content to listen for the moment, hadn't lashed out at either of them. Yet. Bad news? She was closer now, interposing between the squirrel girl and the taller man. That Zeke was still smiling about all this was kinda weird, but she didn't think to question it. As things were, the tension in the air only rose with each passing moment, the only other voice being that growing presence in the back of her mind, the one she could only assume was the Grace.
...was born into this...
Before she could think to respond, however, a new voice entered, much louder this time. Zeke, to her surprise, but resonating the same way the Grace had. She didn't have time to question it or wonder how he did it, however. She only ground her boot into the dirt, digging in and all but saying that she wouldn't leave him. He'd made her a promise, after all.
-
Ivanna
Ivanna could tell from simple observation and her keen senses. Zeke had said something to her through a channel Ivanna was not privy to—she'd heard the small tells of surprise from the girl, and felt the small vibrations through the earth of the other woman digging her feet into the ground, readying herself for combat. If she needed to, she would kill her without a shred of empathy. Ivanna readied herself to enact justice without mercy, to bring the executioner's axe down upon the foes of her lord once more. She steeled her emotions and prepared to deaden her heart, however...
She knew it was wrong. Ivanna could feel her instincts screaming at her to act now and remove the girl's head from her body. It would be so easy to catch her off guard and purify the sin dwelling in her soul through glorious combat. Despite all of that, Ivanna didn't wish to be the one to take the first move. If Nanako chose demise, it would be her choice alone.
I don't want this. But if it must happen, I shall be His blade once more.
"Young child whom has simply been caught up in this: I implore you to close your eyes and to avert your gaze. I do not wish to bring harm upon you, despite what you may think of my, my motives, and my actions."
With her back facing Nanako, Ivanna's wings unfurled to bare her vulnerable body to Zeke, preparing for combat. From behind, Nanako could only see her immensely large wingspan, two meters in each direction, with six glorious wings granted to her by heaven itself as a mark of her station. From the front, she had the form of a small child with hair the color of gold itself, shining from the sun held within her body, and without a single blemish upon her perfectly pale skin. Ivanna stood tall, balanced perfectly on her toes to gain just a couple more inches of height while glaring up at the immensely tall monster.
"Do not presume yourself fit to lecture me, beast!" She pointed an accusatory finger up at his face. "I shall not stand to be guilted for doing that which must have been done! Do not presume to lecture me! Now tell me what you have in mind without deception and half-spoken truths!" Her fire burst out from within her, wreathing her body in its protective cloak as her voice grew ever more enchanting and beautiful, taking on her true form as one whom sang. "Quickly!"
-
Zeke
"Lectures are for those with a mind to listen. Those who have time. Those who have options. You have neither." A cruel gleam flashed in his gaze, now far sterner. He towered over the holy creature, but even that didn't make him seem greater. No, this was something beyond physical appearance.
Like two titans baring their maws at one another.
"Hmph." Yet, he shook his head and laughed it off, along with the finger pointed at him. "I've only shared facts, It's not up to me how you interpret them. But know this, I have toiled with the likes of these Graces, learning their secrets. I know them. Do you?"
He smiled at her. His arrogance and avarice were self-evident, but his heart? Not so.
"I know of a ruin in the far reaches of the sea, but I'm unable to unlock its chambers myself." He brushed his silver locks back with a pensive look. "Without the knowledge locked there, you cannot truly kill those tools. You cannot even understand them. As for me... there is something I'd like to confirm. A theory."
It was a shaky premise, an uneasy alliance to be sure. But even Ivanna could tell he was sincere in his own way. In his own words, this was a win-win.
"It might also hold the answers you both seek."
-
Nika
"Cliche to you, new to me." She shrugged as she walked by Forest's side to their destination. "But what's exactly the difference between the two? You don't look like hyped about the DJ whatever the face. Or at least as much as about the other option."
She didn't acquire any taste or opinions yet about the music she heard in the distance. New was new, you got to dip yourself in the stream, go with the flow and just form your own tastes and opinions. Such was life.
-
Nanako
Nanako's eyes narrowed as Ivanna asked her to stand down, shaky resolve hardening into something else.
"Can't say I've ever had an easy time just watching someone die in front of me," the squirrel girl said, tail swishing behind her as she tensed up, ready for any sudden motion from the seraphim. Instead, Zeke broke the tension first. Nanako gave him a confused look, the tension slowly draining from her like a water balloon with a pin prick.
"I...a theory?" Nanako gave the silver-haired man a wary look from behind those massive wings, "Anything else you can tell us about this place?"
-
Forest
"I won't say I'm a music snob, because I will admit one of the best heavy metal acts that came from the states in the last twenty years has been a cartoon based parody band," Forest gnashed her teeth and narrowed her eyes.
"However, what that hack DJ Glitter Tits did on what he called a remix should have him locked away for assault, battery, and second degree murder! I have been around to know what sound musical quality and technical ability sounds like, and that bawbag did not have it!"
She pressed her lips together, looked at the other vampire and chuckled. "Maybe I am a bit of a music snob."
-
Zeke
"Lectures are for those with a mind to listen. Those who have time. Those who have options. You have neither." A cruel gleam flashed in his gaze, now far sterner. He towered over the holy creature, but even that didn't make him seem greater. No, this was something beyond physical appearance.
Like two titans baring their maws at one another.
"Hmph." Yet, he shook his head and laughed it off, along with the finger pointed at him. "I've only shared facts, It's not up to me how you interpret them. But know this, I have toiled with the likes of these Graces, learning their secrets. I know them. Do you?"
He smiled at her. His arrogance and avarice were self-evident, but his heart? Not so.
"I know of a ruin in the far reaches of the sea, but I'm unable to unlock its chambers myself." He brushed his silver locks back with a pensive look. "Without the knowledge locked there, you cannot truly kill those tools. You cannot even understand them. As for me... there is something I'd like to confirm. A theory."
It was a shaky premise, an uneasy alliance to be sure. But even Ivanna could tell he was sincere in his own way. In his own words, this was a win-win.
"It might also hold the answers you both seek."
Ivanna
Ivanna felt a dull throb in her chest rising to her forehead. Why? Why was this squirrel so intent on leading herself to her own death? Foolishness. Insanity. A misguided sense of justice. Ivanna had the impression it was all three of those most-troublesome qualities merging into a hard-headed idiocy which was dragging her down towards oblivion.
After all, she wasn't wrong herself. This was the only way to move forwards.
A small ring of fire began to circle around her feet, and a dense white flame, pure as a sunrise, began to coalease in her hand. "Perhaps if you engaged in more than base sophistry, I would be willing to listen. I have many options, many choices which I can make at any given time. I did not need to engage in this dialogue in the first place, and it's arguably put me at quite the disadvantage. I could throw this sun at you, yet I refrain from doing so. You will speak. You shall say what you wish to say, and I trust you know the punishment you will recieve for wasting my valuable time."
As if to accentuate her words, Ivanna's entire body burst into flame, emenating a powerful heat from the core of her form. Underneath her, the asphalt began to soften and melt, boiling into a molten mass of tar and dirt.
-
Zeke
He rubbed his chin pensively, admiring the soft-looking wings. Would they be just as soft once ripped out of her like a chicken? As he wondered, his darkness flared to match her fire.
"You could. You most certainly could." Shoddy self-pity, making excuses for himself... that was never Zeke's style, let alone his style. It wasn't in their nature. "But that won't fix a thing, walking calamity. If only you knew what you've done, you'd be on your knees apologizing. Don't worry, it's too late for that." His dark eye pulsated with burning energy, even when he stared her down like a statue.
"You've been bold, pridefully so. But it's wrath that'll be the end of you."
He learned of freedom, and he had the power to exert it now. Why should he kneel and be a slave to nature?
The darkness ate every shred of heat from their vicinity. Still, it wasn't cold. And yet...
"And you come here and enjoy spilling my comrades' blood, and dare threaten me with impunity? Just like you enjoyed listening to helpless babes scream and cry out - without them fighting back. They didn't stand a chance... they didn't even fight. I like that."
Zeke wasn't smiling anymore.
"But your prayer might be answered - if an enemy is what you want to find. An excuse. Your desire will make you correct, no matter how wrong you are. Don't lie to me, you've been pushing for this outcome from the start. Do you even have any other way to live? What would you be without a convenient enemy to save us from?"
Fangs bared at the Seraph.
"Is that what your God tells you, or what you tell yourself?"
But he did smile at the end. Not at Ivanna, but the person behind her.
"Who needs a God so fixated on taking lives anyway? If it were up to me... I'd rather everyone have a chance to live and fight for their desires. Even those who didn't have the chance to be born."
-
Zeke
He rubbed his chin pensively, admiring the soft-looking wings. Would they be just as soft once ripped out of her like a chicken? As he wondered, his darkness flared to match her fire.
"You could. You most certainly could." Shoddy self-pity, making excuses for himself... that was never Zeke's style, let alone his style. It wasn't in their nature. "But that won't fix a thing, walking calamity. If only you knew what you've done, you'd be on your knees apologizing. Don't worry, it's too late for that." His dark eye pulsated with burning energy, even when he stared her down like a statue.
"You've been bold, pridefully so. But it's wrath that'll be the end of you."
He learned of freedom, and he had the power to exert it now. Why should he kneel and be a slave to nature?
The darkness ate every shred of heat from their vicinity. Still, it wasn't cold. And yet...
"And you come here and enjoy spilling my comrades' blood, and dare threaten me with impunity? Just like you enjoyed listening to helpless babes scream and cry out - without them fighting back. They didn't stand a chance... they didn't even fight. I like that."
Zeke wasn't smiling anymore.
"But your prayer might be answered - if an enemy is what you want to find. An excuse. Your desire will make you correct, no matter how wrong you are. Don't lie to me, you've been pushing for this outcome from the start. Do you even have any other way to live? What would you be without a convenient enemy to save us from?"
Fangs bared at the Seraph.
"Is that what your God tells you, or what you tell yourself?"
But he did smile at the end. Not at Ivanna, but the person behind her.
"Who needs a God so fixated on taking lives anyway? If it were up to me... I'd rather everyone have a chance to live and fight for their desires. Even those who didn't have the chance to be born."
Ivanna
The seraph flapped four of her wings once, the top and bottom set, generating a great gust of wind powerful enough to force lesser mortals to the ground. She rose off the ground, her small, childlike form dangling loosely from her wings. Her brow contorted; creased with barely contained fury and thin lips curled downwards into disgust. "You assume much of me, Zeke." She opened up her palm. A second burst of flame erupted into a facsimile of a sun, slowly compressing into a solid white blob of plasma in her palm. Ivanna then clenched her small fist, crushing it in her palm. "I enjoy none of this. I loathe every moment of my duty, but I do it because it is what must be done. It is what I have been commanded by my lord to do, for it is what he has said. And so it shall be—whether or not I myself undertake such a burdensome task."
Ivanna scowled, turning her head away, but never allowing her focus to waver. His words served as little more than a deception, designed to wound and distract her. Little knives which dove into her psyche and threatened to tear her apart.
"Agní Parthéne Déspina, Áhrante Theotóke, Hére Nímfi Anímfefte. Parthéne Mítir Ánassa, Panéndrose te póke. Ipsilotéra Uranón, aktínon lamprotéra, Hará parthenikón horón, angélon ipertéra, Eklamprotéra uranón fotós katharotéra, Ton Uraníon stratión pasón agiotéra."
And so, she began to sing, calling upon her greatest weapon she had in her time of need.
-
Nika
"I might have slept longer than twenty years. It doesn't sound to my ears like a crime against humanity, but then I'm not human anymore in clinical sense, so what do I know?"
She joked at her own expense. In more than many ways, she wasn't a human. But a different place in the food chain didn't remove her from wanting the same fun as any mortal heeding the same destination. If having fun with other people made one human, then maybe she was one when she enjoyed themselves the same fashion. But hey, she wouldn't pass on occassion to have a drink either. It was after all a place where monsters pretended to be human, so she didn't have to perfect about it.
"And you know, considering this district's demographics, any complete disaster of a musician might be just chased out by the more impulsive locals. Heh, it'd have been fun in its own way if people just kicked out a wannabe musician in front of our eyes."
They were nearing the club, crowds lining up in front of the entrance, though not as bustling with visitors this late afternoon as at the peak during the nighttime. Lots of partygoers in this district must have had downright nocturnal schedules, waking up late. It was amusing how the natural night owls like the two vampires were the early birds here.
Now all they needed to do was to take their place in the line, pay the bouncer and get in. If they wanted to wait patiently. Patience wasn't Nika's best virtue, but she usually tried to obey rules of society she was involved in. But this neighborhood was quite different from your usual law abiding society.
"Wanna just rush past in a blink of eye and drop the money by? If we can be ourselves here in the town, we can as well show off a bit. Unless speed ain't your forte. Everyone has their different strengths."
If Forest had a different solution to the queue, then even better. Every bloodline and lineage had their own quirks and talents, and while no scholar of the vampiric condition, she watched how other vampires did things with interest.
-
Zeke
The cursed man... Zeke... watched in awe. The shining form rising, the flames, all of it. Amazing. Such power, it's even more beautiful than I thought. He stifled nervous laughter, barely restrained in its hunger. Like a convict looking straight into the gallows. Did that thing have to fight her too? Heh... I wonder if we'll survive longer.
"Ridiculous. If you don't enjoy it, why bother? We forge our own choices... our own destiny. It's what makes us real - our reason for fighting."
Slowly, the man's body started to float, barely above the ground. A single motion was enough - as he extended its arm sideways. For the world screamed, and seven blackened swords gaped open. Their shine was tainted and pure in its emptiness. Like dark portals into the nether, which he wasted no time throwing her way.
-BZZT!
A single command was delivered to his comrades. Evacuate the area. Ensure the people remain safe. Against a calamity like this... it wasn't possible to tell what'd happen to the land around them.
"All things end Ivanna. Even us."
What will you do, Nanako? A signal jolted in her head like electricity.
-
Zeke
The cursed man... Zeke... watched in awe. The shining form rising, the flames, all of it. Amazing. Such power, it's even more beautiful than I thought. He stifled nervous laughter, barely restrained in its hunger. Like a convict looking straight into the gallows. Did that thing have to fight her too? Heh... I wonder if we'll survive longer.
"Ridiculous. If you don't enjoy it, why bother? We forge our own choices... our own destiny. It's what makes us real - our reason for fighting."
Slowly, the man's body started to float, barely above the ground. A single motion was enough - as he extended its arm sideways. For the world screamed, and seven blackened swords gaped open. Their shine was tainted and pure in its emptiness. Like dark portals into the nether, which he wasted no time throwing her way.
-BZZT!
A single command was delivered to his comrades. Evacuate the area. Ensure the people remain safe. Against a calamity like this... it wasn't possible to tell what'd happen to the land around them.
"All things end Ivanna. Even us."
What will you do, Nanako? A signal jolted in her head like electricity.
Ivanna
Ivanna continued to sing. Her voice rang out with the fury of a thousand men, echoing through the air and drowning out all other noise in the area with the volume of an airplane taking off. It was beautiful, somber, mournful and full of joy all at once, and yet, there was something more. The ground around them began to shake, reforming with miraculous intent around them. A stone arena formed out of the ground, morphing into wood, and then into marbled arches. A flame burst forth between every stone arch, pure as the angel's wings and as scornful as her glare. (https://thehistoryofbyzantium.files.wordpress.com/2016/07/the-hippodrome-by-antoine-helbert.jpg?w=707)
Today, Ezekiel would die.
A flap of her wings send her soaring into the air. The swiping of her wings knocked the projectiles away with uncanny accuracy, sending them hurtling back towards zeke. Finally, the swipe of her hand enveloped Zeke with purifying flames.
-
Nanako
As Ivanna moved, so did Nanako, reacting to the sudden motion on instinct, darting back several paces as Ivanna and Zeke launched their opening salvos at each other. The squirrel girl almost tripped as she retreated, the seemingly changing underfoot as she moved. Surprised, Nanako glanced down to see that it had actually done just that, the urban ruins she'd been standing in replaced with a vast stadium, looking up to see marble and flame sprouting from the ground like artful trees.
Before she could think any longer on that, however, Zeke's words cut through the haze with a simple question. Clarity came with the shock and the chill that followed, and with clarity came that small voice from before, no longer pushing. It didn't have to, anymore.
...to live, because I was born...
She couldn't help but agree, living was nice after all. Without a second thought, Nanako tore up chunks of ground, hurling them through the air to intercept both Zeke's reflected attack and Ivanna's fiery burst.
-
Zeke
The twin black eyes stared up at the [heaven], hiding nor pain nor laughter. The beauty that erected around them, the magnificent palace...
It felt like a cage.
"We're digging a little deeper!"
It wasn't common to see excavation sites in the far reaches of the wilderness. But even so, to see this much manpower focused on a single deserted steppe couldn't be normal. ZR-X2 was a mercenary front of the older days, though it saw a resurgence in the past twenty years. Few men with conviction strived to push onward and fight for whatever work they could scrape.
Even something like this.
A wise, experienced soldier watched down the excavation site, accompanied by a man of pallid ash and its scornful bird.
Just what did they find, in that gaping pit?
"Your killing intent... will never reach its target." His left eye slowly burn like ember, until its shine was filled with gold. The stone was shattered by the reflected swords, but rather than being launched everywhere, their momentum halted as if swallowed by jelly. Gravity had no effect on them, and they floated back towards Zeke, who already moved accross the arches, scattering the absorbed energy straight towards Ivanna.
In the form of searing dark suns.
We can't die yet.
-
Ivanna
María Aipárthene kósmu pantós Kiría, Áhrante Nímfi Pánagne, Déspina Panagía, María Nímfi Ánassa, harás imón etía, Korí semní Vasílissa, Mítir iperagía, Timiotéra Heruvím, iperendoxotéra Ton asomáton Serafím, ton Thrónon ipertéra. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AE1FzSC8DBs)
As Ivanna continued to sing, reality continued to respond to her calls for help, warping around them and weakening the rules of reality. The rocks hurtling towards her stopped, refusing to interfere with the works of the Seraphim. They hung stubbornly in the air as floating platforms, ignoring the calls of gravity and momentum in favor of Ivanna's voice. She stopped ascending when she reached an aitutude equal to that of the highest arches, slipping up out of the way of the scorching-hot plasma hurtling towards her.
She reached out into the air with an outstretched hand, clasping down on a seemingly invisible object which flared to life, generating an immense axe bathed in fire and soaked in the blood of her Lord's enemies.
-
Nanako
Nanako frowned as her projectiles simply stopped in mid-air uselessly, held in place by forces she couldn't understand and had no time to figure out. Lacking any other options to get at the Seraph without simply being blasted out of the air, Nanako tore up more of the ground, darting about the tallest pillar and hurling clusters of it straight at Ivanna from various positions. Even if she could catch it all, every chunk of earth would hopefully be another blind spot.
...because I was born into this world...
This foolishness wasn't worth Ivanna's life, even with her rejection of a chance to learn more. So much for informed choices.
-
Forest
Forest bit her lip as she looked at their place in the line and then back at Nika.
"There's that, or we could just walk up and charm the bouncer." Forest wondered if she could focus what Taro called her "sexiness" like she knew Gabe could do with her Lure. "Or we could just pay the bouncer a tip and go in."
-
Zeke
The reaper's eye whirred and worked like clockwork, observing all of his surroundings in moments to calculate the optimal trajectory - moving his body above and beyond its parameters. Every blind spot of hers, he'd take advantage of.
He wouldn't defeat her by running about.
As he dashed past another column... he disappeared. As if he never exited the arch he ran through. Before a normal fighter could realize what occurred, two things happened:
1. Zeke emerged from another pillar, shrinking the distance with surprising tenacity - simultaneously followed by a dozen more of 'him', each from the previously approached structure's blind spots. One of them moved unlike the others, flicking his fingers back towards him as he ran.
2. The sun that shot past Ivanna slowed down and stopped alarmingly, moving back as if pulling whatever was next to it back into its gravity - circling into Ivanna's orbit with no delay, expanding rapidly until it'd reach the size of a house. Its brightness and power, both comparable to the morning star.
Both leaving room for the third act.
Swords gnawing at the skies from every direction, seven in total.
-
Ivanna
Two distinct voices intoned from within the angel's form. The first was the one whom continued to chant, singing praises of her lord and lady above. It stopped the rocks which Nanako had continued to throw, before they slowly reversed their courses, falling harmlessly downwards and melting back into their proper places as if Nanako hadn't torn them up in the first place. The second was a deep, churning, powerful chuckle. It resounded throughout her entire form, quickly morphing into a manic sort of laughter that came from deep within herself. It sent chills down the spines of all creatures within earshot. All beings with even an ounce of sanity knew that something deep within her was fundamentally wrong.
"Come at me, then!" She roared. With a flap of her wings, she soared downwards towards Zeke's many bodies, her own wings flaring outwards to meet him in mortal combat. Her wings shielded her from the infernal fire, and she began to spin. She wrapped herself up with two of her wings, spinning at him like a drill which would pierce the heavens!
She would defeat this great evil in front of her, much as she'd done before. Her blood boiled with righteous fury, and her voice had a mornful, uncanny edge to it. "Today you shall breathe your last, demon!"
-
Nanako
Nanako shuddered as that manic laugh rang out, barely noticing the rubble reversing course back into the ground. She didn't have time to think about it, but pure instinct screamed that something was dreadfully wrong here. They were past the point of talking anyway. It didn't dampen her resolve, however, if anything only strengthening it. It was clear now more than ever that if Ivanna might have stopped short of killing Zeke before, she certainly wouldn't now.
Shifting her grip on the pillar to be on all fours, Nanako launched herself from the obelisk, rocketing through the air to intercept Ivanna, turning in the air and tucking her legs in. With the gunshot crack of sluggish sound far behind her, the squirrel girl crashed into the side of Ivanna's wing drill with a thunderous dropkick, trying to divert it away from Zeke with sheer force and momentum.
She wanted Zeke to survive this mess, despite the way his intrusion crawled under her skin. That, and he still owed her some answers.
-
Zeke
The swords slammed against the invincible wings and bounced off, breaking. Only one was shred in its entirely as if it were made of mud. A chance out of six.
More importantly... Is that... a drill?
"Hrm!" Their stare intensified, and Zeke's features darkened. She was strong, absurdly so. Zeke... had to respond to that strength... with everything at one's disposal.
As muscles tightened, Zeke saw and felt everything they felt. His jewels were being butchered by the seraph; it'd be less than a second to stop her. But if he awakened everyone in this district with his scream, he could have an army at his side. It was the rational thing to do. Thus, Zeke took a deep breath, and -
Lola
Lola looked at what could only be called zombies. "Can you start by ceasing with that? What we need to empower is the dead, not the corpses of the fallen. We are going to rebuild our way."
Doubt. Hesitation. For a moment, it was enough to stop Zeke.
"Heh."
Dying screams couldn't even be rung. The numbers Ivanna shred to nothing soon reached double digits, with no time left. As she slammed down on him, he was also ripped into shreds of mud like all the rest. And yet he smiled peacefully.
"I've observed it."
A voice rang to Ivanna’s left, but it was already too late. Zeke’s fist clenched against a rotating wing. It was the moment she shot past him, even if his forearm had to dress with a dozen cuts. Avoiding her wasn’t enough, he had to set up fakes to distract her and dodge in the nick of time. Even the fakes he swapped with. All of this, for a single moment.
A chance out of six billion.
He stopped her deadly technique – and swung her with everything he had straight into Nanako’s foot.
"We have no interest in the current you, caged songbird.”
This emotion was impossible. Zeke was an irreverent, cavalier beast. It enjoyed slaughtering and being slaughtered. It'd gladly throw anything into the abyss if it meant being closer to its dream. So this expression made no sense on such a monster. But it couldn't be denied.
Anger.
-
Nika
"Maybe it's time for parting the sea. You know, sometimes people just don't get into your way if they feel they shouldn't get into your way."
All things considered, would that even work in this case? The ratio of your average cog in a society to someone with spine must have been way in the favor of people who wouldn't just instinctually move away when she flexed a bit of her leashed ego within.
She did try. Few people ahead the duo suddenly started nervously looking for a reason to leave to check if they didn't forgot anything and other such excuses, but the majority of the line was unphased. Too long queue perhaps, too many monsters who wouldn't even notice the predatory aura unless she focused her attention and entered a tug of war of wills.
"That leaves the normal way." Sighing, she conceded that "defeat". "Things like this remind me I'm just one of many sharks in the pond. I'm fine with getting carried by the currents then rather than going against the flow, this one time."
And so she made up her mind about waiting in the queue. If Forest wanted to give it a go, she could be her guest, but this time she'd obey rules even in this relatively lax place. Even as the impatience set the longer she had to hear the music (industrial rock, unbeknownst to her) while waiting to be processed by the bouncer.
She could already glimpse that people at the front of the queue were being checked for guns and some were leaving their weapons in "deposit". Gah, not like that'd make her or some people who left those guns for safekeeping any less dangerous, but maybe some incident did happen that warranted such inspections. Maybe the owner of the club had to repair some holes in the roof in the past.
Again, she glanced at Forest if she was packing some heat too. The Colt in her holster was a sort of memento, so while she'd leave it in deposit, she'd move heaven and earths to get it back if it were missing.
-
Zeke
The swords slammed against the invincible wings and bounced off, breaking. Only one was shred in its entirely as if it were made of mud. A chance out of six.
More importantly... Is that... a drill?
"Hrm!" Their stare intensified, and Zeke's features darkened. She was strong, absurdly so. Zeke... had to respond to that strength... with everything at one's disposal.
As muscles tightened, Zeke saw and felt everything they felt. His jewels were being butchered by the seraph; it'd be less than a second to stop her. But if he awakened everyone in this district with his scream, he could have an army at his side. It was the rational thing to do. Thus, Zeke took a deep breath, and -
Doubt. Hesitation. For a moment, it was enough to stop Zeke.
"Heh."
Dying screams couldn't even be rung. The numbers Ivanna shred to nothing soon reached double digits, with no time left. As she slammed down on him, he was also ripped into shreds of mud like all the rest. And yet he smiled peacefully.
"I've observed it."
A voice rang to Ivanna’s left, but it was already too late. Zeke’s fist clenched against a rotating wing. It was the moment she shot past him, even if his forearm had to dress with a dozen cuts. Avoiding her wasn’t enough, he had to set up fakes to distract her and dodge in the nick of time. Even the fakes he swapped with. All of this, for a single moment.
A chance out of six billion.
He stopped her deadly technique – and swung her with everything he had straight into Nanako’s foot.
"We have no interest in the current you, caged songbird.”
This emotion was impossible. Zeke was an irreverent, cavalier beast. It enjoyed slaughtering and being slaughtered. It'd gladly throw anything into the abyss if it meant being closer to its dream. So this expression made no sense on such a monster. But it couldn't be denied.
Anger.
Ivanna
Ivanna was an angel of the highest order. With her full power, she'd have been able to destroy both of them with a single word. She was privy to the deepest of secrets, the darkest magiks better left forgotten else somebody actually try to use them. It was because she was trusted. He could trust her. She would get the job done, unerringly, unfaltering in her step with single minded determination to achieve her goals and by extension, His goals.
Even when she had to make difficult choices.
Even when she was forced to sacrifice loved ones.
Even when it had to be done by her hand alone.
Ivanna was an executioner angel, one whom burns. She'd worked closely with Thanatos herself. She should not have been having this sort of trouble. With her full power, they'd have been absolutely nothing!
"Useless. Your struggles are useless." Ivanna's voice deepened with her growing frustration. The fire coursing along her wings snaked up to engulf Zeke, buring with divine fury and focusing all of its deadly powers directly over his eyes. Even with his powers to consume, it would take a few precious moments to destroy her flames.
And that was all that Ivanna needed. She flapped her wing, diverting the course of her body out of the way of Nanako's impacting foot, converting the centrifugal force of her spin into a dodge, bending her wing around and bringing her weapon to bear against the unclean one.
An axe came bearing down on his shoulder, three wings accompanying them to strike different vital areas. "Underestimating me shall be your downfall!" She roared.
-
Nanako
Rocketing through the air, Nanako's eyes widened as Zeke somehow outmaneuvered Ivanna to bodily throw her into the path of her dropkick. When Ivanna's wings flared to avoid it, however, trained reflexes kicked in, even as fire blossomed across her body, warm tongues licking fruitlessly at clothes and exposed skin. As they became seemingly more desperate to kill each other, Nanako felt all the more driven to stop them, their madness fueling a new one within her.
That presence pushed harder, cried out louder, but now it was different. Where before it might have pulled her into her past, inside herself, now it pushed her forward, pushed her harder.
The squirrel girl reached inwards, wings bursting from her back and flapping hard before vanishing in a puff of feathers, launching her right at Ivanna once more, Nanako twisting in the air to kick the seraphim's weapon arm away from an unexpected angle.
-
Zeke
The dark man noted a lack of response, of impact. A dispassionate glance shot at the wings wrapping around and circling his frame. But what kind of expression did the body express, when the soul was wrapped by God's ghastly flame? The terror of heaven was something even he couldn't ignore.
But they could.
"How long are you going to keep playing a part?" Someone suddenly jeered, but its tone was oddly affectionate. A mass of burning, black mud. Zeke's visage didn't twist or change, but something grew in the corner of his eye - someone. Only for them to be swallowed by the flames.
A Prayer of Hope
Among the stars, sleeping by the End Sky, stories weave and glitter freely. They move with the roll of a dice, casting countless possibilities on the board. Beauty, ugliness, happiness, despair... all mix and swirl to become colors that paint many tales.
This is one of them.
The boy sleeps peacefully, swimming in a cradle of aqua vitae. (https://imgur.com/a/OdyaEct) As the incomplete body rots and regrows, new pains and sensations fill the boy's eyes. But even something no woman hoped for... can carry hope of its own. It hopes that someone will break this glass ball. That it could grow strong enough to make the voices go away.
It never knew words or concepts, so it isn't able to pray for a God. But if it could, it probably would have given up by now.
Instead, the broken body dreams. Of unknown colors, of bright dragons, of vivid sights and happy sweets. Of love, of somebody's touch, of little joys it will never have.
It stares at the empty white wall. The emptiness stares back.
What is the price of freedom?
The one who fell to the Holy Sovreign.
The first may not have been the first who took its breath, but it was the first whose breath was seen. It had been kissed by Ivanna's flames already, so it was fine to vanish by them. It smiled and burnt to nothing. The hopeful mud dissolved one last time.
You can hope for your tomorrow, I'll show you something beyond that.
Zeke's darkness swallowed the flames aimed at him, even when they licked his shut eyelids. A flinch was all Ivanna needed to destroy him. Instead, a compact stance kicked off, far less wild than the spread of corruption. The punches hurled at Ivanna swallowed up the fire with fervor, ripped it from her wings, and drained them dry. It only made his incoming blows stronger.
"I know you're great, Seraph. But your sword is aimless. You don't even know who you're fighting. Can you even say why?"
Punch. Punch. Punch. And so the glowing horn bled his face, ever so slowly - while his body rushed the attack. The next impact will be beyond heroic.
Outsider, you should leave. This battle will only bring you suffering.
-
Ivanna
The foot of the foolish child smashed into her arm in a moment of weakness, diverting her blow and causing the scalding heat to brush past Zeke with little more than a burn to show for it.
The angel's head turned with unnatural fury. Her eyes gleamed with anguish and self-loathing. How could she have allowed herself to fall to this level, how could she have lowered her guard for this precious moment.
She continued to sing, calming herself with the repetitive actions. She was at a disadvantage, and could not allow herself to lose her cool. One clean hit from either of them onto her vulnerable body could spell her defeat in the state which she remained.
"FOCUS!" She roared, ignoring the dull thudding pain of repeated punches against her wings. The tip of one of her wings came hurtling out from a small opening between them, impacting his face with enough force to break out of his grapple. She spun around in the air, pulling back to gain distance from him, and to take the foolish squirrel out of the fight while she was still open. Even if she could divert her course midair, all that meant was that Ivanna needed to counterattack with that in mind. The axe vanished from the arm which Nanako had kicked, rematerializing with a burst of flame in the hold of one of the pristine wings behind her with the scorching heat of the tip facing down towards Nanako's back. It seared through the air, and with a brilliant conflagration, sought to pierce through her back and send her hurtling downwards to be buried into the ground.
-
Nanako
Nanako's momentary thrill at successfully deflecting Ivanna's strike didn't last long as instinct made her turn in the air, trying to dodge the retaliatory strike. It was to little avail, the squirrel girl's next breath filling her mouth with blood as she flaming spear pierced her lung instead of her spine. Searing pain spread through her back an instant later, Nanako grunting through the mouthful of blood, catching herself on the arches, and spitting it out.
"So that's it? Some disagreement and you're fighting to the death?" Nanako called out, reaching back with her free hand and yanking the blade out, skin crawling as her healing tried to cope with the damage she'd just taken, "What happened to informed choices?"
-
Zeke
The fists connected, impacted. Ivanna's godly defense was crashing against the waves, it was clear they would relent - they couldn't.
That's when a lance slipped from behind her shield, blowing Zeke's head back with a smoking blow. The reaper's eye whirred... up was down, left was right, and senses mixed while the brain shook inside the skull. Zeke's whole body arched backward, seemingly falling, his toe alone keeping his body connected to the ground.
Marvelous.
Like a spring, Zeke shot back with that momentum, launching a nuclear kick straight into Ivanna's side in a surprising instant.
"Keheeeeheheehe~! Iiiiidiot! Silly silly woman! There is no better way to prove your thesis... than to roar it through another's ribs! Rip and tear your point into their bones!"
As Nanako's burning guts and gore exposed themselves, something crawled from the puddle of filth. A sneer. A cackle. It must have been a trick of the mind, perhaps it was inside the beast girl's mind. No...
Perhaps it was in his.
A Prayer of Health
You could never understand, the pain of being denied even a chance to fight. (https://i.pinimg.com/originals/9b/fd/93/9bfd939342c8d4f8bdf9732275ba2cd1.jpg)
A body too weak to live, a sickness too harsh to bear. A rot that could never embrace anyone.
A rot that would be embraced by no one.
Ring-a-ring o' roses,
A pocket full of posies,
A-tishoo! A-tishoo!
We all fall down.
How unfair this world could be, to carve such sickness into a boy so young. As he walked down his final road, children laughed and cast their stones, drawing filth and pus from the breaking body. As the men and women of the hamlet made their prayers and shuddered in disgust, the penitent spat at the thought of God.
If only this body were fierce enough to break the ropes.
If only...
Ring-a-round the rosie,
A pocket full of posies,
Ashes! Ashes!
We all fall down.
The stake was set ablaze. What did the boy see within the flames, as his skin and guts kissed the pyre?
It was nothing at all, just the sight of cooked meat - and the laughter of sizzled fat. Zeke's blow bridged the distance - carried a burst of explosive power that'd devastate whatever was in his way. No, it was the fact he didn't hesitate or give his body a second to pause. Driving his flesh and bones to the edge of their limits.
"Words prove nothing, fists scream louder."
Against the Seraph's attack, the crystal inside him reacted - and a second shard tore out of Zeke's skull painfully.
-
Ivanna
She felt the halbard bury itself inside Nanako's lung. It pierced all the way through her body, melting through her sink and even the bone underneath. It was impossibly hot, scorching heat emanated from the blade buried inside of her. It burned, seared, and cooked her flesh from within.
In these briefest of moments, Ivanna took the chance to pull back and gain some distance.
"Beast! Deceiver!" Ivanna roared with the fury bourne from disgust. She needed to drag this fight into the sky, out of the reach of the interference if this idiotic squirrel.
She could, no, would, deal with her later. Now, this abomination came first.
The weapon buried inside Nanako's back disappeared, reappearing in her left hand.
-
Forest
Forest tilted her head as she sensed something coming from Nika. It felt like the other blonde was pushing her will out in sort of intimidation method. To a human, Forest reasoned it would have been pretty damn terrifying and made that instinctual part of the brain want to run in terror from what ever was doing this.
Some of the beings were becoming uneasy, but not enough for them to just cut their way to the front. She did tilt her head though, it also meant that Nika wasn't one of Valerie's vampires. Which could be a good thing all on its own.
"That leaves the normal way." Nika sighed. "Things like this remind me I'm just one of many sharks in the pond. I'm fine with getting carried by the currents then rather than going against the flow, this one time."
Forest was about to reply when she noticed the bouncers were checking others for weapons and making those that were armed check their weapons. She saw Nika look her over to see if she had anything when she noticed the Colt Nika had holstered. It was a nice gun, one that probably had a lot of memories and history behind it. "You may not have to check it," Forest said in a soft voice as she began to tap her feet to the beat of the industrial rock of a band who liked NIN a little too much.
She didn't want her .44 taken away from her, that was sure as hell. The two of them walked closer to the bouncers at the bar.
-
Zeke
The seraph slipped away from the burning blow - but its destructive nature wasn't halted. The explosion shattered everything around him, burning the beautiful pillars and arches in an instant. Thus, the nuclear waste impacted, and thousands of molten droplets launched straight at Ivanna, obscuring everything behind for a second. Without delay, Zeke zigzagged behind the burning trails, hiding behind the waves of lava with compact and focused footwork.
"But I suppose I'm no different than you... Nanako."
After all, he was an outsider.
The thought managed to make him smile a bit.
With a dark wave of his hand, he channeled more of the plundered energy he robbed thus far. Before one could even gasp, three suns were launching into the skies in quick succession, orbiting around each other as they flew towards her other blind spots with monstrous speed. However, two of them were deceptively weak, and the third flew past Ivanna entirely, missing its mark.
Ivanna could feel the fist approaching from her left side, where the weakest sun hit.
-
Nanako
To Nanako's consternation, Ivanna flew up out of her reach while the squirrel girl was recovering from the spear in her flank. As Zeke flew up to follow, the squirrel girl was left at ground level with little recourse to follow them and only the dark man's words. Only his claim that they were the same.
"You...how the hell is that enough to make us the same, idiot," Nanako shot back. They were out of her reach now, both in the literal sense, and the figurative one, tearing at each other like wild animals. Shaking her head, the squirrel girl turned her back on them, zipping off into the distance as their duel continued.
-
Zeke
The seraph slipped away from the burning blow - but its destructive nature wasn't halted. The explosion shattered everything around him, burning the beautiful pillars and arches in an instant. Thus, the nuclear waste impacted, and thousands of molten droplets launched straight at Ivanna, obscuring everything behind for a second. Without delay, Zeke zigzagged behind the burning trails, hiding behind the waves of lava with compact and focused footwork.
"But I suppose I'm no different than you... Nanako."
After all, he was an outsider.
The thought managed to make him smile a bit.
With a dark wave of his hand, he channeled more of the plundered energy he robbed thus far. Before one could even gasp, three suns were launching into the skies in quick succession, orbiting around each other as they flew towards her other blind spots with monstrous speed. However, two of them were deceptively weak, and the third flew past Ivanna entirely, missing its mark.
Ivanna could feel the fist approaching from her left side, where the weakest sun hit.
Ivanna
Ivanna's flames coiled around her wings like a spring ready to burst outwards. She soared upwards into the sky, followed closely behind by Zeke.
<GOOD> Ivanna thought. He was exactly where she wanted him to be-flying, in her domain, where she held the advantage, and away from the boorish squirrel. Her flames burst outwards to meet the suns arcing towards her with biblical fury, enveloping the weak attacks and pushing them back, keeping them away from her wings.
She soared down towards him with a raised fist and an outstretched spear.
-
Zeke
The abyssal man and the holy seraph were already far from the ground when their bodies collided, shaking the clouds away from each other. Yet it was a strange sight, oddly hopeful in its own way. As the two reached each other, what kind of expressions did they make? If their fists could connect and bump like this... could their hearts as well?
Of course not.
CRACK!
Ivanna's fist shattered under the weight of Zeke's ambition, pulling bone straight out of her knuckles. The arm Nanako buttered up was ruined by that well-placed strike, but Ivanna's lance lived on, a chunk of his breast off with a burning slash.
SLASH!
The line went down from his left shoulder to just above his liver, and would have burnt viscera, muscle and bone alike in a moment. The fact he used his own punch’s momentum and reflexes to turn away and fall from the thrust’s range certainly saved him the trouble of being poked on a stick.
Zeke’s blood vaporized in a split second.
But instead of falling, he used his spinning momentum launch a kick at the back of Ivanna’s head.
-
Ivanna
Ivanna used her momentum to meet his foot with a wing, interdicting her holy defenses in the path of his swift attack with the expertise borne of a billion battles. It was effortless. She didn't even need to think terribly hard.
It was better this way.
The axe moved fluidly, instantly halting its momentum and arcing forwards once more towards his stomach. There wasn't even a single wasteful movement, not a single opening left for him to take advantage of.
Could he overcome one blessed by the lord? Only time would be able to tell.
-
Zeke
There was no time to be surprised by her block. The reaper's eye whirred, and his arm swung a dark blade - conjured in an instant to intercept her fiery lance and parry it, draining whatever energy it could in the process.
Only for it to shatter.
"Kh." Zeke's fangs grit, both were launched back. The outcome was clear. Zeke's arm was broiling from the parried impact - causing the reaper's eye to gleam brighter; as Zeke fell, bichromatic black and gold met two deep orange crosses. But their gazes were too far apart. The searing pain on his chest registered barely as he fell into the peak of the tallest pillar, and the skin of his right forearm evaporated. Muscle and bone exposed, but it was preferable to losing the limb entirely.
The other Zeke would have been cleaved cleanly in two by that.
But the current Zeke's expression was also unlike before. It was a chilling stone, devoid of anything else but pity. He flipped to land on his feet atop the pillar, and kicked back to soar towards her once more, launching another sun that expanded in its dazzling flight- from the girth of a mere bear until it became as massive as a household.
-
Zeke
There was no time to be surprised by her block. The reaper's eye whirred, and his arm swung a dark blade - conjured in an instant to intercept her fiery lance and parry it, draining whatever energy it could in the process.
Only for it to shatter.
"Kh." Zeke's fangs grit, both were launched back. The outcome was clear. Zeke's arm was broiling from the parried impact - causing the reaper's eye to gleam brighter; as Zeke fell, bichromatic black and gold met two deep orange crosses. But their gazes were too far apart. The searing pain on his chest registered barely as he fell into the peak of the tallest pillar, and the skin of his right forearm evaporated. Muscle and bone exposed, but it was preferable to losing the limb entirely.
The other Zeke would have been cleaved cleanly in two by that.
But the current Zeke's expression was also unlike before. It was a chilling stone, devoid of anything else but pity. He flipped to land on his feet atop the pillar, and kicked back to soar towards her once more, launching another sun that expanded in its dazzling flight- from the girth of a mere bear until it became as massive as a household.
Ivanna
"Death. Destroy. Kill. Punish. Execute. Serve. Annihilate. Purge. Exsanguinate. Defenestrate. Perish." Ivanna's crosses glowed with divine power. Her voice was even, her actions robotic, without a single wasted movement, without a single mistake. She didn't even seem to be fully conscious anymore, instead babbling what seemed to be a prayer.
She was a killing machine designed for destruction by God. Nobody could take that away from her, nobody could seperate her from this onerous duty.
Not even her. She was bound by divine law to her job.
She instantly spun around, meeting where he was coming at her from with the blade of her scorching axe. It left a glowing streak of plasma through the air as she swung it. "DIE THE DEATH!" She shouted at Ezekiel.
-
Nika
Damn, she was one of those guys, huh? She wasn't overtly surprised at this twist about Forest. Mental compulsion was one of the inherent qualities of the bloodsuckers like her companion, but Nika wielded her mind like a sledgehammer. There wasn't anything subtle in approach, while this was done with such surgical precision that someone less observant wouldn't maybe even notice that.
She was in awe, honestly, but nothing like jealousy creeped in her thoughts about this useful trick. A competitive maniac like her wouldn't have even patience to begin with to try to refine her own ego to such pinpoint precision.
At least, she wouldn't have to leave her favorite gun either. If rules can be broken without repercussion, then screw rules. The bouncer was probably still confused by the mental command as he didn't bat an eye as she marched by without relinquishing her arms. At least few people in the line behind them also took that golden opportunity to walk into the bar strapped. She cared not for the consequences of armed people inside, and honestly why she would?
Anyway, triffling matters like security concerns aside, the place was already decently filled with people who just wanted to have fun and some even jump like primal beasts to the sounds of the metal jungles, a sentiment she could relate to. But for the bar was a nice destination too. A drinking hole to gather by, get some drinks (she'd not shun alcohol, but getting that other kind of drink would've been a neat opportunity), talk about their good old days and then go have more fun when the place got even more livelier.
"So, a drink before we lose ourselves to the music?" She winked at Forest, ready to sample the alcoholic beverages offered here. Last time she got some alcohol was, well, back in 1970s, pretty much.
-
Zeke
"Kuh!" Two comets collided, burning into the skies. The roar of the heavens was clear... Ivanna's cut through the dark sun like butter. And the scream of the axe slashing at air deafened all. Not just the plasma, it split everything cleanly - and ravaged whatever was behind to nothing. But as the two halves of the violent star swooped far past Ivanna, a dreadful sight assailed her.
The one she cut down wasn't Zeke.
Or rather, it wasn't the Zeke she pointed her blade at. As the knight, the crownless king (https://pm1.narvii.com/6824/7c8199ccd2f1c242186dde3bcbe787be1ca69800v2_hq.jpg) let out its last final gasps, it clutched at the wound and smiled. In silence, it uttered its final words.
"Mission accomplished." (https://forums.darksidemoon.net/index.php/topic,725.msg57052.html#msg57052)
A Prayer of Courage
Oh Lord, grant me the strength to protect the weak.
Oh Lord, grant me the power to uphold the truth.
Oh Lord, grant me the wisdom to see the future.
The young king made three prayers to God, but what he found was nothing more than treachery. His vaunted strength, for all its worth, crumpled to naught once his enemies crushed his gates. His power, despite all valour, was stripped and used against him and his people. And his great wisdom only showed him nightmares of a forbidden future. One that was rushing into the present. And yet, fearful for the first time, holding his dead lover... he dared make one last prayer.
Oh Lord, grant me the courage to see this through.
But by doing so, the knight violated the Trinity. There were no more miracles. No more blessings. The heroes ripped through his throne chamber's gates. Now, the king grips his sword and rises.
This prayer, he'd answer with his own power. If this world would deny him, if God would deny him, then...
"No." Zeke had barely dodged to Ivanna's side and delivered a tremendous slash. Looking at him, you could see the darkness stitching up his wounds, even the ear that had just been lobbed off was being sealed by many. And yet a third horn of crystal growing out his scalp.
"We're not done. Dying isn't good enough. Even when we die, even after we die, we still have something to fight for. A purpose we chose ourselves and entrusted. A purpose I will see through." Thus, Zeke speaks. Thus, he fights. A slash. Then another. And another. Until the disappointment in front of him stopped fighting. No, until he overcame Ivanna's own desire to fight.
"Pugno, ergo sum."
-
Ivanna
"STOP FUCKING AROUND WITH ME, LITTLE WORM!" Ivanna's scream reverberated with the noise of ten thousand voices shouting in concert, echoing throughout the entire district with reckless abandon. She spun around to face him, but it was too late. His mightly blow slammed directly into her side, sending her flying away from him.
However, she wouldn't let him simply get a hit in uncontested. As she hurtled away to the side from the force of the impact, she hurled her spear directly at his chest with blinding speed, wrapping herself in a coccoon of her wings to protect herself from counterattack.
A dull pain began to throb throughout her entire body.
-
Zeke
His eye gleamed when the miracle occurred, when his fist reached the seraph. But that's the thing about miracles.
Shit.
Miracles don't happen twice. "Gkhrh...!" His glare burnt like the sun, for the first time more than just hollow. Dissappointed, so very disappointed. He roared in agony and pushed the lance deeper into his flesh, the lance that had avoided his heart out of sheer luck, that shot straight into his lung. He sealed it with his dark organisms to quell the hemorrhage.Instinct. A fluke. Nothing more. And now, nothing at all.
Yet a beautiful redhead bubbled over his shoulder like mud (https://i.pinimg.com/originals/d4/bd/7b/d4bd7b95b6ebd46d99ae1d8d62e074a1.jpg), gently comforting the dying body. "My, my~ Aren't you the sorriest hunk around. Getting manhandled by such a child..." She licked her lips and caressed Zeke, like the petit morte rushing for him.
A prayer of warmth
Un: Hey, you wanna play with me? I wanna play with dolls too!
Trois: Eh? Oh, uh, don't worry about it! Deux is busy working, heehe. He sure gets picked a lot lately, maybe that's what people are into nowadays.
Quatre: Um, I'm fine. It doesn't really hurt, and I've got a few tricks that make it easy once you know them. So you don't worry about me, just focus on being happy. That's good. If you're happy, I'm happy.
Trois: Let me give you a useful tip: always be sure to say, 'It would be my pleasure.' Saying that makes everyone smile! No matter what you have to do or what people do to you, always respond with, 'It would be my pleasure.' Heehee. Funny how that works, right? After all, it's the customers you're pleasing, not you!
Un: They said it was some new kind of game, but I don't really get it. Don't worry about me though, I'm fine! Honest!
Deux: I'm back. Sorry, that took a bit longer than I thought. Eh? You're playing with dolls? Waha, that's so childish!
Quatre: Don't sweat it! We'll keep working hard for you, so just keep playing and don't worry about a thing. You don't need to do anything other than that.
Un: We love you, you know? You're really important for us.
Un, Deux, Trois, Quatre: We'll always be there for you.
The girl smiled, but deep down, she wished someone would come and help her friends too. Maybe a prince charming would come and yank them out of this tower. She wondered if he'd be her age. She never really thought about those kinds of things.
She was protected all the time, but it would be nice if she had the power to protect them too. They could have cakes every day, nice warm beds, and lots and lots of books! Wouldn't that be nice?
Heh, don't tell me to give up. I'm just getting started, I'll make sure you'll have plenty of cake, queen sized beds and toys to play with.
"My, isn't that just a good boy~ So don't kick it already, got it?"
Grinning, Zeke didn't stop, gritting his body, even while his blood sizzled like cooked meat. "A worm I may be... even so... I'd rather die a worm... than a slave!" And with the most painful motion of his life, he pulled at it and yanked at one of Ivanna's wings, exposing the girl underneath to headbutt her brutally. "You hate me, do you? That's fine. I detest you too. A coward hiding wrath behind pretty words like justice. It's nothing like the pure and perfect Seraph I've heard of." Vomiting blood, he fell backwards, approaching the ground.
Even up close, she could see just how empty Zeke's eyes were. A fourth horn rippled from his skull, and the end approached.
"There's no reason for us to kill each-other, no reason for you to slay any of my treasures, no reason for me to claim the people of this land. We're the same, killers looking for something beyond the hell we make."
-
Ivanna
"I told you to be quiet!" Ivanna shouted back at him. "Shut up! Zip it! Be silent, worm!" A fist came hurtling out of the ball of feathers to greet his face. Her weapon throbbed inside of him, cooking him alive and searing him with its unimaginable heat.
Soon, she knew it would be fatal. She just had to persist for a little bit longer.
"Monster!"
-
Zeke
Unbearably acidic, with the acrid smell of sulfur and burnt filth. Horrible as it was, it didn't even compare to the feeling of one's insides cooking while being vomited out of their body. Hellish, a sensation one couldn't even scream out. If there was anything left to spew, it probably sludged out of Zeke's throat like fire - past the tip of the spear and into the skies, burning a hole within the clouds.
Yet the fist barely moved the vessel at all.
Barely conscious, no, conscious because of this unbearable pain, Zeke refused to relent. Turning one's head against her punch, hollow eyes glared hungrily. As if to say they liked the name. What did Zeke see, beyond the hell he made? And what did that hell see as it gazed back?
A Prayer of Piety
Beware the Jabberwock, my son. The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun, the frumious Bandersnatch!
He took his vorpal sword in hand; Long time the manxome foe he sought—
So rested he by the Tumtum tree, and stood awhile in thought.
And, as in uffish thought he stood, the Jabberwock, with eyes of flame, came whiffling through the tulgey wood, and burbled as it came!
One, two! One, two! And through and through, the vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head, he went galumphing back.
The mysterious monster called the Jabberwock. It is a nameless man who defeats that monster. Why did that nameless man feel compelled to slay the Jabberwock? To begin with, it was a poem written by Lewis Carrol in nonsense verse. The greatest nonsense poem is told as a parody of an epic.
A mysterious monster.
A nameless hero.
Many words that never existed before.
A parody of an epic.
It's just like that void's own existence.
Regardless of its wishes, the Jabberwock is crafted to be a terrible creature. Despite the odds, the hero is crafted to slay the Jabberwock. It's an unavoidable destiny prescribed by the author. One might even call it fate. But it's even simpler than that.
The two simply follow their nature. The ink just fills in the gaps.
And yet, even when free from its shackles, beyond towers and horrors and wonders of old worlds past, the jabberwock curses its fabricated existance. Because no choice made was truly its own. It is merely following the script. Even its attempts to rebel are nothing more than part of a story.
Even if it finds something beyond that story, that in itself is the story.
Thus, the void consumes. Because it was created to do so. Because it cannot even fathom living any other way. Whatever pretense of a choice it declares is no more tangible than nonsense words put over a sheet of paper. The Jabberowck destroys, and is destroyed by the hero in turn.
And yet, even if it is nothing more than nonsense stories, the beast dares to dream. It lulls sleeping minds into its maw and coalesces it towards that same dream. Like stars in the sky. One day, perhaps it will find an answer for its existence.
But that day will never come.
The fifth horn was the emptiest, a jagged crystal that slipped out of Zeke's spine. Yet even that nameless void was beautiful in its own way.
But it all came down to Zeke and Ivanna. Their embrace was just too twisted. Take a blow to deal another, scream at the heavens, pay every shred of pain with brutality. The outcome was a struggle that couldn't be called elegant or refined in any manner. A barbaric display of violence and raw will, maddeningly unlike either of them.
"Make me."
It was a pity that they couldn't calmly exchange techniques, but this was fine too.
And fittingly, a fist came to return Ivanna's favour tenfold, crashing against her eye socket so fiercely it cracked it like porcelain. Both were hurled by the impact to opposing ends of the arena, to lick their wounds and suffer the price of foolishness.
-
Forest
"I'd love to. Mayhap get something absurdly fruity that comes with a small fruit salad in the glass," Forest spun her index finger in a circle with a grin.
Getting inside was simple, she just didn't expect a couple of passersby jumping on the bandwagon as well. Still, at least she and Nika still had their weapons on them, which was the important thing. She tilted her head at the music, listening to the beat for a moment. "Good use of tempo and base . . . With this nice undercurrent of 80's horror movie sound track dread with the synth undertones. I might have to find out who this band is and look them up."
-
Zeke
Unbearably acidic, with the acrid smell of sulfur and burnt filth. Horrible as it was, it didn't even compare to the feeling of one's insides cooking while being vomited out of their body. Hellish, a sensation one couldn't even scream out. If there was anything left to spew, it probably sludged out of Zeke's throat like fire - past the tip of the spear and into the skies, burning a hole within the clouds.
Yet the fist barely moved the vessel at all.
Barely conscious, no, conscious because of this unbearable pain, Zeke refused to relent. Turning one's head against her punch, hollow eyes glared hungrily. As if to say they liked the name. What did Zeke see, beyond the hell he made? And what did that hell see as it gazed back?
A Prayer of Piety
Beware the Jabberwock, my son. The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun, the frumious Bandersnatch!
He took his vorpal sword in hand; Long time the manxome foe he sought—
So rested he by the Tumtum tree, and stood awhile in thought.
And, as in uffish thought he stood, the Jabberwock, with eyes of flame, came whiffling through the tulgey wood, and burbled as it came!
One, two! One, two! And through and through, the vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head, he went galumphing back.
The mysterious monster called the Jabberwock. It is a nameless man who defeats that monster. Why did that nameless man feel compelled to slay the Jabberwock? To begin with, it was a poem written by Lewis Carrol in nonsense verse. The greatest nonsense poem is told as a parody of an epic.
A mysterious monster.
A nameless hero.
Many words that never existed before.
A parody of an epic.
It's just like that void's own existence.
Regardless of its wishes, the Jabberwock is crafted to be a terrible creature. Despite the odds, the hero is crafted to slay the Jabberwock. It's an unavoidable destiny prescribed by the author. One might even call it fate. But it's even simpler than that.
The two simply follow their nature. The ink just fills in the gaps.
And yet, even when free from its shackles, beyond towers and horrors and wonders of old worlds past, the jabberwock curses its fabricated existance. Because no choice made was truly its own. It is merely following the script. Even its attempts to rebel are nothing more than part of a story.
Even if it finds something beyond that story, that in itself is the story.
Thus, the void consumes. Because it was created to do so. Because it cannot even fathom living any other way. Whatever pretense of a choice it declares is no more tangible than nonsense words put over a sheet of paper. The Jabberowck destroys, and is destroyed by the hero in turn.
And yet, even if it is nothing more than nonsense stories, the beast dares to dream. It lulls sleeping minds into its maw and coalesces it towards that same dream. Like stars in the sky. One day, perhaps it will find an answer for its existence.
But that day will never come.
The fifth horn was the emptiest, a jagged crystal that slipped out of Zeke's spine. Yet even that nameless void was beautiful in its own way.
But it all came down to Zeke and Ivanna. Their embrace was just too twisted. Take a blow to deal another, scream at the heavens, pay every shred of pain with brutality. The outcome was a struggle that couldn't be called elegant or refined in any manner. A barbaric display of violence and raw will, maddeningly unlike either of them.
"Make me."
It was a pity that they couldn't calmly exchange techniques, but this was fine too.
And fittingly, a fist came to return Ivanna's favour tenfold, crashing against her eye socket so fiercely it cracked it like porcelain. Both were hurled by the impact to opposing ends of the arena, to lick their wounds and suffer the price of foolishness.
Ivanna
Divine ichor flowed freely from Ivanna's wound, rushing down her face and painting her white-dress red with gore. She panted, flapping her wings laboriously. She didn't have the energy to respond to his taunting. Instead, she focused everything she had left on her final wrath.
-
Zeke
Pain. Fury. Unease. Despair. His bones, his everything, it all screamed and roared against him as he crashed in the depths of the arena. To live, to fight, it was all a struggle. The victor would be decided not by the strength of their ideals, but the strength to uphold them.
Convulsing, vomiting molten mud, it was clear. He couldn't yet vanquish something of this caliber.
But his burning body didn't stop moving. Even losing the boon of immortality, he pumped it full of organisms that forcefully stimulated his nerves, sealed the hemmorage in his organs, and forcibly pumped oxygenated fluids into his system. His bones broiled and swelled until he became a giant. An abyssal being that laughed at Ivanna. Laughed at death. "I'll be feeling this for a bit."
Thus, Zeke rises.
His body, his soul, his everything burnt and swelled with newfound vigor as he slapped his chest. Glaring back with a bloodied face, he grinned like a maddened warrior. "So, where were we?"
An incandescent burst of blue drowned all. He held no grudge against Ivanna, but this ended here and now.
-
Nika
"Eighties. That's a decade after I went to take a nap, and things must have already changed by then a lot. And myself, I don't discriminate between what kind of stuff they put into drinks as long as they're something with taste and give a strong kick. It's so hard to get drunk for me that I appreciate strong flavor, I can at least imagine I'm drinking something that's give my old self more than a buzz."
On one hand there was an option of drinking the red wine from people who already had their fill of alcohol, but she had her class. Even if it was a bit of make believe, just good alcohol and right company made up for holding her liquor too well. She suspected they'd have drinks themed after the kind of the establishment it was, and she wasn't entirely wrong. Whoever compiled this list of available drinks, which was idly lying on the table top of the bar while the bartender presumably attended some business in one of the backrooms, must have been quite afficionado of mixology.
She already made up her mind about the choice of drink, but kept it for herself until the barkeep would come. Probably soon, she did hear footsteps already, of course. She handed over the menu to Forest to see what she would pick herself out of the 'fruity things.'
-
In the Evacuated Plaza - in the meanwhile
"Mommy... sniff... I'm so scared..." Groups of refugees were huddled together in a makeshift camp, hidden by monstrous magic to protect them from the attackers outside. Some had different shapes, different otherwordly forms, but they reunited and tried to comfort one another. Others trembled alone, looking outside this dark catbox anxiously.
The women and children were brought to a different camp. They were important to ensure the future of the next generation, so they couldn't come to harm. However, this only caused more unease. While the seraph and the new de facto ruler fought, their future was anything but certain.
The only thing they knew right now was their fear.
"I hope it's over soon. Today was too exhausting." A sickly woman with dark organisms as amputated appendages smiled sadly. This was a sentiment they all shared, surely. Columbia, that dark being, and now Little Russia. It didn't even matter who took the mantle, they were always the ones suffering because of it. The replaceable ones. To be killed for just existing, or exploited for just existing. They never had a damn choice.
And yet, some of them hoped. Others prayed. A woman embraced her friend for the first time in a while, after all these senseless conflicts. Maybe these new bodies weren't so bad.
"Do you think after all this, we can finally be free?"
"Yeah."
Two hands connected, and smiles glanced at each other. No matter what form, or no matter how long... they were hoping that a miracle would let them endure. Free them and bring them to a promised land, without war. With milk and honey flowing in abundance, where they could bear children and live without fear or suffering.
But what was freedom?
Could that even be attained?
The cold truth they all knew is that in this world, even if you scratched and upturned every atom, every speck of matter... you wouldn't find a single bit of this so-called freedom. Old world organism, monster, no it wouldn't change anything. But at least, touching their hands, comforting each other. Maybe this was what the world should have been like.
Even for this smallest moment, they were happy.
-crash-
Something, or perhaps someone, descended from the skies. Mud started to sprout from the clouds and drip like rain, but they paid it no mind. How could they?
Pale hands and bloody claws tear against fragile necks. Too fast for them to realize it, those who don't even have the time to panic or scream. Those who did realized what happened, but could do nothing to stop it. The hands that connected dropped to the ground in a pool of mud.
They were free.
An ancient being from another world
"Hah! I guess no matter the era or world, the sun's still a bitch. Too bad, you may taste like shit, but after centuries in the can, I can't complain." A pale hunter grimaced and spat on the ground, realizing just where he landed. It had lacked true sustenance for too long, even the blood of women and babes was fine. Unsatisfied, his grimace turned into a sardonic grin, even as he stared at the horizon.
"How long has it been? Keheheh..." He stomped on a piece of crawling mud, mocking it along with all its murdered comrades. Right, that was one of the old world organisms he just slaughtered. "Ah, being corporeal is much nicer. You filthy old world shits are wasting your time trying to grab at these bodies. I don't give a damn if you tower dwellers try to go for the dregs, but why the fuck would you assume every ancient up there would just let you hog all the fun? Worms who only exist by absorbing weaklings belong in the dirt." The apostle squeezed the last lifeform in the plaza and chuckled, draining its life like all the rest.
It was too late.
It had already been far too late.
Thus, he left. Leaving nothing more than torn carcasses behind, and the hands of two friends held connected under the fading sun. Like a prisoner who had just seen light after 10 000 years, and was absolutely going to be an upstanding paroled convict.
"Thanks for the meal, ladies."