Aelianus Kahstar's Story

Raiyn Illander

He glared up at the taller man, his chest heaving as he struggled to get his breath back from the last attack. Raiyn's eyes narrowed as the Shade spoke of how he would be begging for death before the end of the night. The man pulled his arm back and began his first assault. The sword master felt his own jewel glow in response as he tried to protect himself from the attack. What he thought to be a downward strike to his body, turned out to be an attack using the earth around them. This startled Raiyn as he thought the Shade was a user of wind magic.

It was always impossible to tell with Demonic Jewels as they were all black, corrupted in their evil ways. The surge of the earth underneath him tossed him in the air and he flew quite a ways before hitting the ground. His body turning in the air as he went, he hit the dirt on his side and the air exploded from his lungs yet a second time. His back arched as he rolled onto it. Coughing, he tried to get to his feet, but wasn't fast enough.

The dirt vibrated around him and in a matter of seconds, his similar trick ensnared him. Vines latched onto him, wrapping him tightly. They shot up and encircled his neck, to which his free hand shot out to try to tear off, but the vines caught that arm and pulled it back. He could feel the thick undergrowth pushing at his back as it wrapped around his torso and chest, lifting him slightly off the ground. Then his legs were wrapped as well, vines going around his right leg individually then pulling both of them together, immobilizing him completely.

"Begin begging whenever you want..." Talazar said as he slowly moved towards Raiyn.

He twisted and turned, trying to no avail to get free from the entrapment. Every muscle screamed in protest as he pulled at the strong vines. His hand was still wrapped around his sword, and the jewel was glowing. His jaw clenched as he tried to think quickly on what to do. Begging was the last thing on his mind, he would never give the Shade that satisfaction. Raiyn's breath was uneven as he struggled, his hand tightened around his sword and he summoned his own power to attack the Shade.

The vines erupted from the earth around Talazar, some to ensnare his legs to keep him where he was, others shooting at him with the intent to run him through.

Kirrah Shay

"It's me, we've got to go! The shades are here, Raiyn's taking care of them I think downstairs. There's got to be a back exit. C'mon!" The voice belonged to a young man who Kirrah didn't recognize. She didn't know who he was or when he'd join with them, but he seemed eager to help them. So Kirrah started to stand off the bed. She felt only a little dizzy but for the most part she was alright.

"Is he alright?" She asked without thinking. Why did she want to know if Raiyn was alright? The blonde haired boy was nothing but cold to her, yet... she didn't want to think about it if anything terrible should happen to him. She didn't even really know him all that much. Where her thoughts coming from the Princess inside her instead? Maybe, the Jewel Princess had seen more of the young man than herself.

"Morning Princess, can you walk?" the boy smiled at her. She nodded to him, though her thoughts were still on the blonde boy. Kirrah retrieved her weapon and slid it back in its sheath. Somewhere inside her, something stirred. A feeling that perplexed her entirely. She didn't know what it was that she was feeling, or where it was coming from. All she knew was that she wanted to see Raiyn. The longing to see him was almost overwhelming. Kirrah concluded it was the Jewel Princess inside her that was feeling this and not herself.

She started for the door, trying to ignore the sudden emotions plaguing her. The young boy with messy hair had said something about there being a back way to get out of the town. Kirrah looked down the hall but saw nothing in the sense of a way out. She turned to the other two, "I don't think we'll be leaving from this level," she stated, then continued down the hall towards the staircase and started down. At the bottom of the stairwell was a man in black who looked the worse for wear. She carefully sidestepped him, noting that his clothes marked him as a Shade.

In the inn area, she spotted another lying on the floor with blood on the counter and on his face. Another Shade as well. The inn was empty now with the scuffle scaring off the patrons and the inn keeper was peering in to the tavern area from his hiding spot at the kitchen door. Kirrah ignored him and went outside. A third man lay in the dirt with blood on his chest from an apparent stab wound. Nothing told her about Raiyn's whereabouts and her heart seemed to seize up. She did notice two other men near the inn, one was wielding a pair of swords -she'd seen him before and knew he was with their little group- the other she hadn't seen before and didn't know what to make of his presence here.

"If he said we're leaving, then lets start towards the other side of town. He must be fighting out there, we should go help him," she said. Kirrah was astonished at her own actions. Since when did she care about someone so much that she was willing to risk losing herself to the Jewel Princess to help? Not that she didn't want to help anyone in need, it was just she knew he was more than capable enough, and yet... Kirrah shook her head and started down the street. All the while she blamed it on the Jewel Princess inside her, all the new thoughts and feelings.

Nearing the edge of town, she felt a sharp burn in her chest. She fingers curled into a fist as she pushed the hand to the middle of her chest and ground her teeth. Someone with an active Demon Jewel was nearby, and she'd gained enough energy for the Princess to come fully awake. She stumbled and hit the wall as she fought off the Princess.

"Not now..." she cursed. Then looked back to the others, "Someone's using a Demon Jewel," she managed before she lost herself to the Princess again. The transition was becoming easier the more frequent it happened. In the darkness of her mind, she heard the Princess' words.

"I'll teach you not to be fearful. I'll teach you control. You and I are one, if you would only let me become one with you. There's no need to be fearful. He can help us both."

"What do you mean? You're terrifying to me, so powerful and destructive. You destroy everything! You killed them all!"

"Because you do not understand me. Your fear causes us to be uncontrolled," the Princess heaved a heavy sigh full of annoyance, "We will speak of this later. Whether you wish it or not, I am becoming more a part of you every time."

Aelianus

"Is he alright?"

Aelianus frowned, turning away for a moment. He couldn't answer, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He was well aware of the grudge Talazar had formed against the boy and knew that no doubt he'd of already been taken away to be dealt with. The thoughts formed a sickly picture in Aelianus' head, images of what Talazar had caused before flashing through his mind, but with Raiyn's face. He turned to the Princess and was grateful as it seemed she had let the question fall aside for now. Quickly, he followed her out the door.

"I don't think we'll be leaving from this level," she said, and Aelianus had to agree. He glanced back to ensure the girl in red was with them, checked himself to make sure he had the scythe, then proceeded down the steps.

What he found was truly a shocker as a massive man was present, currently occupied with dealing with one of the shades. The other was sprawled out on the floor, and the third was outside. Aelianus tilted his head at the man from earlier, finding him now in the vicinity as well. From the looks of it too, he was the one who had executed the shade just outside the doors of the Inn.

The boy was grateful for the two men who seemed to make his job simpler. He couldn't possibly have fought a shade, but he would've had to to prove himself to this group in order to gain their trust. At least now that much in his mind was settled, but considering Raiyn was nowhere to be found, his earlier presumptions seemed to be correct. He still couldn't tell the Princess though as she suggested he was on the other side of the town, but trailed after her again as she dashed off to aid him.

Aelianus came to an abrupt halt as suddenly the Princess stopped, her teeth barred and fists curled into tight white-knuckled balls. "Not now..." she had said, "Someone's using a Demon Jewel." Glancing around, Aelianus knew that either more shades had arrived, or Talazar and Nira were around. He couldn't see them yet, but he knew. Glancing to the girl, he had to do something before she went on another rampage. Without even thinking his sword was suddenly drawn and his arm had whipped around to bring the pommel of the weapon hard against her skull. The blow should knock her out without causing any damage, and it wasn't until after the action was complete, did he realize what he had done.


Talazar

Talazar smiled delightedly as he approached the boy who struggled in vain to escape the entanglement of vines. He would've let him go in order to make it more fun, but it seemed the boy had other ideas. As the green jewel glowed, Talazar readied himself and let out an actual audible sigh as it seemed the only retaliation would be a replication of his own attack. Stumbling back, Talazar took a few paces in an attempt to escape before finally one of the vines caught him, the others acting quickly on this and doing the same. He had to commend the boy, he was strong and persistent, but this definitely wouldn't work.

Talazar swung the hammer out at the vines that lunged at him and nodded in respect to the idea. He made silent note of it and would be sure to utilize the attack later. Deciding this was enough for now though, the man suddenly brought the weapon up over his head, the jewel glowing brightly still, the black seeming warm yet dark at the same time.

This sent the earth below Talazar lurching upwards in the same manner it had done to the boy, though Talazar used this instead to break from his current predicament. Flipping a few times through the air, Talazar flew over the boy who was still trapped in his attack before coming down about three meters behind him. Landing on one knee, with the pommel of the hammer plunged firmly into the ground and both hands clasped around the handle, Talazar smiled. "You're good," he said after a moments pause, "but I'm better..."

Suddenly now, the head of the weapon dropped into the earth and Talazar turned quickly. The massive steel hammer followed him in his rotation until he finally faced the boy. In the same motion, he brought the weapon up out of the ground and swung it far to his left, sending forth a good chunk of the earth aimed for the sword the boy carried. As long as that weapon was out of his grip, Talazar wouldn't have any issues to deal with. He could easily take him out now, even with the sword, but it was more fun to play some games. Besides, he had all night.

Raiyn Illander

From the corner of his eye, he watched as the Shade slammed his weapon into the ground and threw himself out of the trap that Raiyn had tried to get him locked into. His voice growled in anger as he watched the Shade land on the other side of him. "You're good, but I'm better..." Talazar said, his voice telling Raiyn that he had a smile on his lips as he spoke. Whipping around, Talazar launched a large piece of earth right at him. His eyes widened as he watched it come at him, realizing that the attack was not specifically aimed at him, but for his weapon.

His fingers tightened on the blade, and he twisted violently in the vines, trying to pull his arm free to keep the only chance he had against the Shade. However, his pulling only made the vines tightened around him and he winced as the ropes tightened around him. His wrist and fingers exploded in pain as the large piece of earth cracked into his wrist. He was sure a few bones broke from the impact as everything from his wrist down to his fingers went numb. His sword fell out of his grasp them, clattering to the earth and the green jewel fading in it's brilliance.

Raiyn turned his eyes to glare at the man, though his chest twisted with a sense of fear. Not for himself, but for the Princess whom he'd been trying to protect. It was a reminder of things that had happened to him in the past. Twice he'd failed to protect someone he cared about, and now it looked as if he were going to fail once again. Though, this time it would be marked by his death rather than hers. Having just met her, he still knew that she would be upset about it if he were to die. Pulling his good hand into a fist, he pulled at the vines again, trying to ignore the pressure that built around his chest and body as the leathery ropes tightened around him.

Damnit.. I'm not going to die here, he cursed, grinding his teeth in the process. There had to be a way out, some how...


Kirrah Shay

Something hard connected with the back of her skull and she stumbled forward. Her vision swam in and out as she slowly turned around to see who had hit her. Kirrah's eyes met the young man's who had told her that they needed to leave the town. A thin eyebrow rose up in confusion as her lips parted to ask him why he had done that too her. However, the world swung around and a moment after she dropped to the ground in total darkness.


Nira Ku

"My my, what a cruel thing to do to a woman," the elven Shade cooed as she came out of the darkness to meet the group. Her lips parted into a smile as she leveled a cold stare at the Shade and the others. Pulling her sword from it's sheath she looked at the blade and the jewel embedded in it. "Thanks to that meddlesome boy, I was forced to receive a different sword and jewel, but that won't be a problem. You see, I like this weapon very much," she continued then pointed the weapon at them all. The blade hummed slightly as the steel vibrated with the power from the Demon Jewel. Black strings of light cracked up and down the length of the blade as she held it.

"He's already tasted it's power. Quite... electrifying," she laughed. Turning to Aelianus, her lips lifted in a deeper, more malicious grin. She still had plans for him, so in the mean time she didn't say a word about her order to him, "That was a bad move for you, Aelianus. Knocking out your only hope at defeating me. That's alright, this will make it all the more pleasurable."

Nira turned back to the others and picked her target. The young man who had attacked her last time, his sweet voice trying to make her see reason in turning her back on the Shades. He was quite the opponent and so her first shot of powerful magic was directed at him, "Don't worry, I won't kill you all. Just one of you. I think two deaths will be enough to start things."

After the magic was launched, Nira lunged forward, her sword leading as she went right for the young man's throat.

Okashi

Okashi had been trying to hit the last shade who was still alive. After constantly missing he went over to his pipe that still laid by the table he had been drinking at and picked it up. Turning around he expected the shade to attack him, but he had not. Looking at the stairs he understood why, the young girl who was unconscious earlier was walking down the stairs. As the shade went to attack her Okashi made a dash for him and tried to reach him before he attacked, but he was to slow. Even though he didn't stop the attack the girl acted as if he wasn't even there, dodging the attack effortlessly. By the time the shade stopped his attack and turned and prepared for another attack Okashi had closed the distance and was now on top of the man. Shock that he was there the shade went to attack. but Okashi just dodged it, grabbed his wrist , and used his pipe to break the shades arm at the elbow. A cry of pain was heard as the mans arm was broken, not wanting to listen to this Okashi picked the man up with one arm by the neck and held him in the air until he stopped moving.

After having finished off the last of the shade he turned to follow the other that had left. It wasn't that he wanted to help these people it was that if he followed them they would probably lead him to more shade and more money. Looking around It was obvious that he would have to leave, everyone had either left or was petrified after seeing the fight. He threw the shade that now dangled from his hand over his shoulder and walked over to the other that lay unconscious and did the same. With both of his prisoners over his shoulders he headed out of the inn, before leaving he said in a plight tone, "Sorry for the trouble." and headed out the door.

Once outside Okashi looked around and seen the girl from before on the ground with her hand over her chest. Before he could go over and see what was wrong a young man knocked her out with his sword. At first he wondered why the young man had done what he had done. After thinking about it Okashi realized why, If she's unconscious she can't feel the pain. Okashi dropped the men off of his shoulders, there body falling to the ground and turned to see a young women appear. This one again was a shade and went on about how she was going to kill one of them and leave the rest for now. Pretty sure of herself he thought, right before she launched a lightning attack and charged after it.

Kiriko

Kiriko had killed the shade with ease and was standing over his body when Raiyn came out of the inn. He was going to say hi or something like that, but before he got his chance an old lady came up to him and took his hand in hers. At first he thought it was a nice old lady worried about what had happened. Before he could do anything though both of them disappeared. Then before he even had time to think about what had just happened the Princess came out of the inn. She looked around quickly before saying they should head for the end of town. Just as he was about to tell her that he had seen Raiyn disappeared, she sank to the ground clutching her chest saying that someone was using a demonic jewel. Having a quick flash back to the last town Kiriko knew he couldn't let that happen again. Fortunately for him someone else had the same idea and knocked her out. It was the young shade. Kiriko probably would have attacked him, if it weren't for the fact that he was about to do the same thing.

Kiriko was about to tell him good job, but was cut short by and unmistakable voice. Turning he saw the elven women from before holding a new sword. From the looks of it Kiriko could tell there was a lighting jewel inside from the black strings that ran up and down her blade. From past experiences he new that they were no fun to fight against. Then doing what would seem foolish to most, he up his blades back in there sheaths. Instead he drew 2 of his throwing knifes in his left hand and his spider wire in his right. Then As he had predicted she launched an attack of lighting straight at him. Unfortunate for the women this is why he carries throwing knifes. So he aimed his knife so that when he threw it, it would go straight at the lighting attack. And for the elven women along with her own attack that the knife would conduct.

Raiyn Illander

His eyes widened as the Shade slammed his sword against a rock and to his utter horror, the jewel came bouncing free. The green gem landed in the dirt, still sparkling brightly. Raiyn's eyes widened as he witnessed his weapon destroyed in such a fashion.

"Now then. Catch."

Startled, he lifted his eyes to catch the weapon already in mid air, flipping handle over end at an amazing speed right at him. Having already been beaten pretty badly, he knew there was no way he could catch the blade as it came at him. At the same time, behind the blade the Shade rushed him, raising the wickedly large hammer that also wielded earth as it's power. Though the darker side of that power was much more deadly than his own had been. Raiyn was running out of options and time. With his mind made up, he shifted to the left, hoping to at least lessen the wound he was about to take.

The sword connected with his shoulder, going half through. His mouth opened in a silent cry that he managed to stem before allowing his scream to pierce the air. Stumbling backwards, he used the distanced he'd gained from being run through by his own sword and pulled back his good hand that held the dagger. In a single thrust over his shoulder, he released the dagger, sending it flying right back at the Shade. Losing his balance to the sword that still vibrated through his shoulder, he fell onto the ground hard on his back. He never saw if his dagger did what it was supposed to or not.

Instead he reached over with his free hand and attempted to pull the weapon out of his shoulder. The other half of the blade having gone deep into the soft dirt beneath him, made it all the more difficult to remove the weapon. He clenched his teeth as he pulled at the sword, his voice half crying out as the weapon slid slightly. His breath was short as it heaved out of his chest, one leg pushing against the ground as he tried to ignore the burning all through his right shoulder and chest. Raiyn had to dislodge the sword, and quickly in order to use it to defend himself against Talazar, who was most likely still standing.

Nira Ku

The dagger came out of the darkness of her magic. There was no time to move from it and her pale eyes widened slightly in surprise. The knife cut through her shoulder, and with it brought back a good portion of her own magic. Her scream cut through the darkness as she stumbled in mid run and dropped. Her hand let go of her sword and clutched the weapon that was the source of her pain. With a single, fluid pull, she managed to get the blade out and toss it to the ground. Quickly, she picked up her blade again and took several nimble steps back away from the group. Her teeth clenched together as she glared at them.

Then she straightened and smiled at them, a wicked grin that showed her white teeth. Her beautiful pale face gleaming in the darkness and her eyes reflecting the fire light from the town behind them. A soft laugh echoed from her lips, then slowly it grew until her sweet voice was loud with laughter. As the sound fell from her lips, she'd slowly taken steps backwards into the darkness. The power in her sword crackled as she let it build once more. Once she'd faded into the darkness, she snapped her fingers, black magic curling around her hand.

She shot that power out at the taller man who was new to the group. Nira hadn't seen him before, but assumed he'd joined them. Without waiting to see if her attack hit, she let the darkness over her blade extend and in a hard swipe she sent a blast of magic at them all. Still moving in the darkness, she snapped her fingers once more, dark magic filling her hands. This time she sent the blast at Aelianus, though it was less potent than the one she sent at the new comer. Another barrage of her black electricity came right after. Still stepping around in the darkness at a good distance, she sent one final elven spell at the woman in red before her voice called out to them amongst the crack of power.

"It matters not if I cannot kill you now. The boy will be dead before the end of the night. That is just the start of our little game," she laughed. Without another word, she let her teleportation spell take her away from them and back to Talazar to see how the fighting was going. She came into the darkness next to Iri who was watching the fighting with a sick gleam in her eye. Nira turned just in time to catch the boy taking his own blade right through is shoulder and throwing a little dagger at Talazar.

Raiyn Illander

He barely heard the elf's voice as she spoke to Talazar, his heart beat was too loud in his ears as he could feel the blood simply pouring from his wounded shoulder. Breathing was hurting and he wondered idly if his sword had cut his lung or not, how far to the left had he really gone in order to avoid the hit? Possibly not far enough, the pain was too much to think properly though.

His head was lifted by cold steel and his eyes barely focused on the Shade before him. Talazar continued on about the Princess, trying to get Raiyn to tell him his true feelings for the woman. He ignored the man's words, only gazing at him blankly, breath wheezing in and out of his lungs in short, heavy sets.

"I'm curious how the girl will look... Wonder if she'll cry, scream your name even though she knows you'll never respond. And then, if she'll continue while she allows herself to give in."

Raiyn's eyes widened as he listened to the man. Both women before the Princess came to mind. Their voices screaming his name over and over again as they were brutally killed before him. The images were brilliant in the back of his mind, playing out clearly as if it had happened just moments ago. Their screams of pain and anguish, their cries to him, tears in both of their eyes. Raiyn's heart jumped in his chest, his breathing sucking in sharply as he shook violently, even the vines holding him trembled lightly from his reaction.

"Perhaps she shares the same feelings you do, but oh yes, that's right. Weren't you simply intending to use her like everyone else? Certainly someone like you couldn't see anything in the girl besides a tool, something to be used, especially with the abilities she possesses. Oh no, you could never get past narcissistic ways and feel anything more... But then, even if you could. What would come of it?"

"Enough," Raiyn muttered between quick breaths, almost pleading in a way.

"I wonder if this boy could possibly pull of the oldest trick. If she indeed feels something for him, and I do believe I saw it, could she fall madly in love with him and use him to cling to as hope? Use him as the pillar upon which she builds her iron will to survive? While he goes around with no intention of reciprocating, but instead allowing her to follow blindly while he bends her to his will?" Talazar turned to the elven Shade as he spoke.

A burn filled his chest, his tongue felt dry and he a bitter taste filled the back of his mouth, "No. Never," he managed to mutter out. Something was stirring deep inside. A being that he'd carefully kept under control all these years. A cruel killer that had thought of nothing but revenge after the loss of his last lover. The cold, calculating and utterly powerful creature was slowly being woken by the Shade's words and actions before him.

A flash of silver and then a sharp burn had him biting his tongue as a groan of pain escaped him. His eyes squeezed shut to fight off the clean cut across his upper arm, but as he opened them once more the normally bright green that held life to them was now a dark green that was nothing but cold and calculating. He didn't hear anything else the Shade said as he was held there tightly in the grip of the vines. His hand that wasn't broken flexed, tightening into a fist that squeezed the leather of his fingerless gloves. The power that gave him the ability to nullify magic boiled deep with in, turning into something else entirely.

Off to the side, where his green Angelic Jewel lay the ground trembled. The gem glowed brighter than ever. Lifting his head, he looked at the Shade, the green of eye color seemingly swirling slightly just like his jewel was with power. A cold smile lifted his lips slightly as he pulled himself forward in the encasement of the vines. The elven woman gave a soft growl and drew her weapon, shoving the steel underneath his chin, the tip of it just barely piercing his throat. His eyes turned to her and without needing to touch the gem, the black Demon stone darkened.

"Insolent child!" Her voice raged, drawing her sword back, she swiped at his chest, cutting the fabric cleanly and drawing more blood to cover him. Raiyn winced and drew back slightly but this only enraged him further and from the ground around the elven woman, vines shot up and encased her tighter than himself. With a single thought, he threw her to the ground using the vines and turned his attention back to the Shade before him.

"Here is my thanks to you for waking me," Raiyn said, though it wasn't himself talking. The cold killer had come back, driven by old memories and thoughts of blood only. The vines shot forward, some to wrap around the large man, others to run him through. Whether Talazar managed to escape the attack or not, Raiyn didn't care. So long as they were there, he would rip up the entire earth if it meant killing them all. From the darkness behind them, a shrill voice screamed in rage and pain. Raiyn paid it no attention. His mind was set on killing the two he saw before him, his power controlling him completely even as he bled out.

Kirrah Shay

The Jewel Princess brought her back into consciousness. The pounding headache the only thing that kept her on the ground for a few seconds more. Slowly she got to her feet, just as a powerful swipe of black magic erupted from the darkness and went right at them. The Princess was in full control now and brought up her sword and deflected the attack with a slight thrust of wind. Turning, she looked at the group to assess the damage. She'd felt the Shade's magic and knew that the woman was no longer near them.

Her eyes narrowed in on the young boy who had knocked her out, "We will talk later," the Princess voiced angrily. At the back of her mind, Kirrah watched the events as they happened, her heart in her throat and her eyes wide as she listened and heard herself talk but had no control over herself at all. A sudden scream echoed in the dark, agony filling the sound and both Kirrah and the Princess' heart filled with fear. Turning sharply to the sound the Jewel Princess looked out into the darkness, her eyes wide.

"Hurry!" She yelled at the others and sprinted towards the dark trees just beyond the road. Her jewel called out to her, begging to be used and she allowed it. Drawing on the power of the wind, she shot forward several times, speeding her advance towards the scream she'd heard. As she came up the hill, she spotted a dark cloaked figure that was standing with their back to the Princess. Pulling her sword back to her chest, she held it in the position best for running someone through. Another burst of wind beneath her feet and she was launched at the Shade, giving them no time to defend.

Her weapon went right through the woman's back, causing her to scream in shock from the attack. Removing her blade, the woman fell to the ground and rolled, dead before she stopped at the bottom of the hill. Without waiting, she rushed down the small slope as her eyes set on the boy who was entangled in vines. A dark glistening liquid could be seen all across his back and the vines around him. Her heart tightened as she realized it was blood that was dripping from him. Was she too late? Was he... dead? The scream she heard earlier played again in her head and she thought the absolute worst had happened, however in front of the boy the two Shades from before stood there. Between them vines writhed in agitation, but the Jewel Princess didn't know who's power that was.

Without another thought, she rushed forwards, her voice erupting from her throat, "Raiyn!"

Aelianus

Aelianus had watched the whole exchange. He wasn't sure how to respond when Nira commented on his knocking out the Princess, but was relieved when her attention was diverted from him. The boy witnessed it all, watched as the attack was made from both sides, resulting in Nira's being wounded, the small knife lodging firmly into her shoulder and causing a momentary fault. At this, Nira let out a sound he'd never heard from her before, a true scream followed by a laugh that sent chills up his spine. Truly it wasn't a joyful laugh, but that of the kind Talazar usually dabbled in, a more psychotic one, or at least, that's how Aelianus described it. He'd known what to expect next, but still wasn't ready as she retaliated.

Aelianus was already retreating back as the first blast of magic flew forward, targeting apparently the newest presence, that of the large man he'd seen earlier in the Inn. Aelianus didn't have time to figure out if it had hit or not as suddenly another wave came right after the first attack, targeting everyone and knocking the boy backwards. He landed hard a yard or so away, but when he sat up is when the actual attack hit. Whether or not it was meant to do any real damage, Aelianus wasn't sure. He was still technically on the shade's side, but he still wasn't ready for the power Nira possessed to be thrown at him.

Taking the impact square in the chest, Aelianus could feel the energy surging through him as it hit, knocking the wind from his lungs and sending him back farther. He coughed and winced, even let out a cry of pain as he slid across the rough ground to a stop. The chains he carried seemed to have mixed effects and he had no idea if they helped block the attack, or conduct it, but he didn't have time to answer as yet another round came at them from the shadows, a web of crackling electricity like a net. This the metal links did conduct, and Aelianus hadn't realized he had bitten his tongue until the taste of blood was in his mouth.

It was about now the Princess woke again. Whether or not it was because Aelianus hadn't hit her hard enough, or because the creature inside her forced her into consciousness, the boy would never know. He did however give her a weak smile and shrug as he stood, the only reply he could manage as of now. He'd expected nothing more, and at least his actions were in a way just. He could easily defend them from whatever point of view he chose.

The scream cut everyone off. Who it belonged to was undeniable, Aelianus knew it as the Princess did and he just barely had time to gather himself again in an attempt to suggest against going towards the source, but she'd already shot off. Aelianus didn't bother checking anyone else, but followed immediately. She was far ahead and he had even lost her once in the process of pursuing her, but finally he reached their destination, though it seemed too late. He came up onto the hill just in time to see the Princess to fleeing down it again, the shade she'd just killed lying idly by. Surveying the area, Aelianus took stock of the situation.

Talazar

Something changed in the boy that was for sure. At first, Talazar had smiled, thinking he'd either broken him or managed to pull what last bits of fight he could from the bloodied body. It wasn't until Nira had stepped forward, placed her blade to his neck and found that her jewel had been rendered utterly useless did he frown again. He was about to suggest she move back, he was even going to pull her away himself, but the boy beat his movements.

Talazar watched as Nira was caught in an entanglement of vines, lifted and tossed away uselessly. He didn't need to see the attack to know he was to be targeted next, but registered the boy's words.

"Here is my thanks to you for waking me," he said. As Talazar looked at the boy he noted the change; what was once a broken shade of light green was now a steely dark hue, one that held in them the same coldness and calculating abilities Talazar himself usually bore. He leapt immediately to the side and rolled, easily evading the attacks and swinging the boy's sword he still held to fend off any other of vines, taking several cautious steps back in the process. He needed distance now, then he’d attack again.

"Raiyn!"

Hell seemed bent on escaping now as newcomers had decided to join the party. Talazar's eyes moved quickly to where the voice had come from, though knew already the source. The Princess had decided to deliver herself to them, to come for the bait and protect this boy. This was perfect. Talazar let out a laugh at her, and then looked up to the top of the hill now as another figure materialized. The boy was unimportant. Totally disregarding Aelianus and instead registering what was on his back, Talazar smiled wider still.

A new fight seemed to have started itself now with just the right collection of pieces. The boy, Raiyn, had found in himself his second wind. The girl, the Princess, had just brought herself to the place of slaughter simply to answer the boy's plea in the night, his screams, and Aelianus had managed to make himself useful for once in bringing Talazar's scythe.

The man continued laughing, as if everything was perfect in the world, as if all his unvoiced prayers had been answered by a higher being despite all the sins he'd ever committed. Smiling probably the most he’d had in the long time, the man prepared himself for what he needed to do next. He turned to Nira now, having managed to retreat away enough to reach her and picked her up. Ignoring anything she may say or do, he harnessed the power in his own jewel and launched himself and her up towards Aelianus.

Talazar landed gracefully, skidding slightly with the combined weight of himself and Nira, but still stayed upright. Aelianus took a pace back, unsure now of what Talazar was going to do as he set down the woman and then paced around him. The boy was aware that Talazar would go for his scythe, but he hadn’t expected the world to go black a moment later. As the man brandished his weapon again, he frowned at the fact that no jewel was present, but that was only a minor setback, it worked fine either way. He looked to his feet, to where Aelianus lay and simply stepped over him, now proceeding down the hill again. Talazar disposed of the hammer, throwing it to the side now as he was about to unleash a combination he rarely used. It was one of his most deadly, dual wielding a sword and his scythe, and ensured that a good fight was to ensue.

“Stay here,” he said simply to Nira. “I’ll make their deaths slow and painful; just make sure no one forestalls my judgment.”

Kirrah Shay

"Raiyn!" Her voice called again as the Shade used his large hammer to throw himself and the elven woman away from her as she approached. They went into the air and landed at the top of the hill that Kirrah had just come down. Her heart slammed in her throat at the amount of blood she saw covering Raiyn's toned body. She could only stare at him as she came to a halt in front of him. Though he was taller than her to start with, she had to look up even more as he was now held off the ground several inches.

As her eyes met his, the normally cool green that always seemed to be harder than they should like he was hiding things, was now a deep dark emerald that sent chills down her spine. He'd changed completely and she wasn't sure what it was that happened to make him the way he was just then. His lips pulled into a small grin as he looked down at her. The vines in the ground still writhed around them, and slowly the ones holding him up were beginning to shudder and release their hold on him. Kirrah watched in fear as he just gazed at her, the vines around him whipping around in a deadly fashion.

Her gaze was taken as she spotted the Shade coming back down the hill after leaving the elven woman there. In his hand was his scythe and the sword that she'd seen him with. A sharp gasp filled her lungs as she realized that the bloodied weapon was Raiyn's. As he was still untangling himself, Kirrah stepped around him and raised her weapon at the white haired man. Her gem glowed brightly in the darkness, the cool air began to pick up as it whipped around her body like a shield. She'd seen his power with that weapon and was ready for any earthen attack he would send at her.

However, nothing like that came and she was slightly perplexed as to what the man intended to do as he continued down the hill. She couldn't tell if he was ever going to use the power in his scythe, so, instead of waiting, she pulled her power to her sword. Directing the wind to the blade, she slashed at the air in front of her and sent three wind blades at the man. Before she could see if she'd hit anything, Raiyn dropped to the ground next to her, freed from his confinement. It took the young man a moment to gain his balance, clearly weakened by the loss of so much blood.

Still, he turned and with a strong hand, pushed her behind him. In the same motion he pulled her blade from her startled hands and held the weapon downwards, the tip pointed to the ground as he stood there. He watched the man approach them and Kirrah narrowed her eyes at the back of his head. She didn't know what he meant to do, but fear of his getting killed in the process was almost overwhelming.

"Raiyn, what are you doing?" She asked him, her voice hissing between her teeth, a mixture of anger and concern.

"Stay out of this," came his sharp, cold reply. He'd always been cold to her before, but now it seemed as if he truly meant what he was saying. The Jewel Princess lifted an eyebrow as she was caught off guard. At the back of her mind, the girl shivered.

"What's wrong with him?" Kirrah asked.

"I don't know. This power is so strong, much like mine. But he's so cold, so distant. I don't know where to start to calm his rage."

"He's angry?"

"It's overwhelming, can't you feel it?"

"No," Kirrah shook her head to the Jewel Princess' confused question.

Inside her mind she felt the Princess sigh heavily, "You have much to learn if we are going to meld together. That power he's wielding is out of rage. Utterly pure and cold. Something's triggered this and he's lost to it right now. There has to be something we can do to bring him back to how he was before."

"Do you think that's a good idea? He's about to start fighting. What if he loses this strength and gets killed?"

"As it stands now, he's got more of a chance of being killed like this than when he's himself."

"Raiyn," the Jewel Princess reached out and touched his arm, trying to get his attention once more. However, he only looked over his shoulder and glared at her. In a single swipe of his arm, he knocked her away from him and stepped forwards.

"Let's see who's more deadly, shall we?" Raiyn's icy cold voice didn't seem to be his own as he called out to the Shade. He flipped Kirrah's sword in his hand, the fluid motion almost blurred as he did it.

Kiriko

Kiriko had been able to hit the elven women with his attack. Unfortunatly this just made her go into a fit of rage. She just launched wave after wave of attacks. Her first target was the new guy, she launched a lighting attack straight at him. Then she launched another attack that was wide spread, aimed for the whole group. Then her former ally, and another wave. Finally she ended with an attack aimed straight for Krisiana. Before she left she said, "It matters not if I cannot kill you now. The boy will be dead before the end of the night. That is just the start of our little game." At first he didn't understand what she had said then it clicked, Raiyn. It's wasn't that Kiriko was fond of the guy, but no one who fought like him deserved to die by a shades hand.

Before he could do anything to the Elven women she disappeared. Kiriko got ready to deflect the attack's, but before he got his chance the Jewel Princess woke up and sent them away like nothing. Then she looked at the former shade and at first he thought she was going to kill him, but fortunatly for the young guy she just said, "we will talk later," and then turned to the forest and said "hurry," before taking off. Kiriko figured that she new where they others were and took off after her.

As he chased her he realized who powerful and smart the jewel princess must be. She copied his technique of using his jewel to speed himself up. Even though they were using the same technique she managed to stay ahead of him. By the time he reached the battle field she had already killed one shade and had went over to Raiyn. As he looked at the battle field, the shade had got his scythe back and was now using it and a sword. Raiyn had taken the Princesses sword and was now read to fight, evn thoguh he had injurys all over his body. Then there was the elven women who was just standing on top of the rock watching the fight.

His first instincts were to go and help Raiyn, but he decided against it. Just from the way he was standing and how the princess had reacted when she looked at him, he could tell that this fight was a matter of pride. So instead he headed over to the elven women and thought that it would be fun to tease her for a while and to keep her out of the fight. As he made his way over he made sure that she didn't notice him, until he jumped on the rock. With a quick jump and a smooth landing he faced the elven women with his hands in his pockets and noticed that the former shade was out cold.

Not really caring about the boy, he decided to apologize to the elven women for the shoulder. In a actually sincere voice said, "Sorry about the shoulder," then in a more childish-joking voice, "but you started it." Then before she did anything he said in actually serious voice,"lets just watch for now," pulling his hand out of his pockets and putting them in the air parallel to his head, "no fight, ok."

Okashi

Okashi had just watched the really short guy throw a knife at the lighting attack. At first he thought, why would he do that. Then he seen the blade conducted the attack and sent it right back at her, landing in her shoulder. After prying it out of her shoulder she launched an attack straight at him. Taking a stance instead of dodging he placed his right foot forward and punched the attack with his right hand. This sent a pain racing down his right side, but after years of fighting his nervers were numb and the attack didn't hurt that bad. Next came two wave attacks for these all he did was switch stances so his left faced her and placed his pipe between him and the attacks, they bounced off like nothing.

Looking to take some revenge he looked for her but didn't see her. Before he had time to think about where she had gone all he heard was, "hurry" and the young girl that had been unconscious was now heading towards the woods. Deciding that she would lead him to more shades and more money he headed after her, leaving his two prisoners behind for now. It was insane how fast she was in no time he couldn't see her, the only reason he knew where she was going was becasue of the giant trail she was leaving.

It took some time, but he finally made it to the battle ground and looked around. The girl was behind a man who seemed to be fighting a guy with a scythe and sword. Then he seen the girl from before ontop of a rock talking to the guy that had injured her earlier. He was going to go and attack her, but decided to watch the other two fight. If it came down to it he could go and take down that other shade, from his fighting style he seemed to be quite dangerous. The more dangerous, the more bounty on there head. Looking around he went over to a near by tree and leaned up against it. Then just sat back and enjoyed the fight, saving his energy for later.

Raiyn Illander

The kick connected hard against his side causing him to stumbled sideways. He glowered at Talazar as the man fought to get some distance between them. However, Raiyn's eyes glinted with satisfaction as he noted the blood the man spat up and the torn up left portion of his chest. Another close encounter with him and another wave of wind blades would put the Shade at a serious disadvantage. Then Raiyn caught the sight of the elven woman who was throwing magic around like nothing. Her hair whipped around her face, lifted up completely off her neck as she stood there in the swirl of her own power. Symbols were etched on the ground beneath her feet as she stood there.

Across from the elf was another man whom Raiyn had never seen before, however, he caught the man's name and his eyes widened slightly. That was Kreon, the leader of the Shades. The one man who was the cause of his pain, the man who had essentially killed both the women he'd loved. His lips pulled back into a sneer as he glared at the man who was fighting the elven woman. Ignoring Talazar completely, he turned himself slightly and lowered Kirrah's blade. The earth shuddered under his feet, then it became a ripple of dirt that raced at Kreon with exceptional speed. Flicking his wrist forward, his sword came up and the wind expelled from it in five blades that followed the earthen attack.

He didn't have time to see if the attack hit his intended target or not as he felt a warm, yet much smaller body, collide with his. He fell to the ground with the blonde woman on top of him, her eyes fierce as she gazed down at him. She looked between a mixture of anger and fear. He glared up at her, irritated that she'd gotten between him and the one man that had started everything and deserved to die. Her hands took his face between them and forced him to look at her.

"Raiyn! Stop! We need to go!" She shouted at him in desperation. He could tell that it was the Jewel Princess talking through the girls body. The girl he knew wouldn't have possibly had enough courage to take him down or even suggest leaving.

"Get off of me," he growled back and tried to push her off, but she slapped his hands away and stayed where she was. Then the Princess did something he was not counting on. She leaned forward and pressed her lips against his causing him to stiffen under her. It took a moment, but he finally could feel himself relaxing and from the weary depths of his conscious he carefully put the killer aside and fell limp under her warmth.

The girl pulled away, her eyes shimmering in the dark, "We have to go," she whispered then looked around them and Raiyn followed her gaze. It was hard to focus as he'd lost all the power that he'd gained moments ago. His body burned from all of the damage he'd taken and he wasn't sure if he could get to his feet again. However, the Princess had a plan in mind already and took hold of her sword that was in his hands and used the air to pick them up off the ground. She held tightly to him as they were righted and the wind pushed them passed the fighting towards Kiriko and Krisiana.

Once they were set down on the ground, Raiyn collapsed, unable to stand any longer. He could hear the Princess' voice call for Kiriko to help her get him back to his feet and to leave. It was the last thing he heard before he was overcome by darkness.

Nira Ku

She expanded her shield, deflecting Kreon's attack as he launched blast after blast at her. All the while, her lips were pulled into a smile as she fought him. Did he really think that he could overcome her? After all, he was the one who had taught her all about magic and from there her own native magic had become more powerful than any elven mage could possibly hope to gain. Another wave of magic pulsed through the air and she batted it aside as if it were merely a fly. In her free hand she weaved another spell, much more complicated than what she'd been using as of late.

The symbols on the ground stretched and expanded allowing more magic to flood into her body. The black crackle of electricity filled the air as she lifted her fingers and exploded a shot of pure energy at the man across from her. It was then that she noted that many black forms were appearing out of the darkness. Her gaze flicked to them as they all came into view. Her lips curled into a crueler smile.

"You call upon the Shades to help you? How pitiful, Kreon. Why would they help a man such as yourself? You are weak and incompetent. It's time for something new," she spat at him. Her eyes flicked between all the other Shades, their pale color daring any man or woman to stand against her and Talazar. She would kill them with a single thought. Nira's arm rested against her side, the black magic crackling up and down the arm entirely, from shoulder to finger tip. Her eyes turned to Talazar who had stood up and was facing her slightly. However, what she saw made her lips pull into a growling frown as she quickly spotted the Princess and the boy leaving the fighting ground.

"You'll pay for what you've done boy!" She screamed into the darkness. For now he would be allowed to leave, she had something more pressing to deal with. That included the new Shades who had just appeared and her husband. She moved to Talazar and placed her hand against his bleeding chest. The wounds were deep and that alone was putting her into a highly enraged state. He wasn't supposed to be anything but in perfect shape, and what the boy had done to him was unacceptable. She would have killed him on the spot if he hadn't run with the Princess. Her magic extended to the large man, not so much to heal the wounds, but to cauterize them and stop the bleeding.

"I'll kill him," she told Talazar her voice growling each word, "Right after we kill this pathetic excuse for a Shade."

Talazar

Talazar as fine with the boy's plan, as he'd completely ignored him as well. It seemed everyone was entirely focused on Kreon, everyone had a score to settle. The man brought his right arm up suddenly as another wave of coughing hit him, then frowned as he saw that his sleeve was covered in a sick, warm layering of his own blood. The boy's attacks had done damage, that was evident, and the close range didn't help, but he'd get his revenge later. With one final glance to Raiyn, Talazar simply scoffed.

Apparently his assumptions were right as he looked down on the two, the girl laying over the boy in a vain attempt to stop him, to recall him and get him to leave. That was probably for the best, because any longer and the boy would either die from loss of blood, overstress in battle or simply by Talazar's own hands. Talazar turned away now as the girl leaned down towards the boy, he knew what was happening behind him. The Princess then whispered again that they had to leave, and the man nodded. "Boy," he began. His voice was cracked and he found speaking was actually painful. He took a breath as he continued, "You've got skill enough to face me in combat and do more than survive, and that's granted you time to live. Cling to this time, go."

Walking forward now, Talazar didn't care about the boy or the Princess anymore, not until it was their time to die. The man approached Nira and looked down at her, his eyes showing how hard he was trying to hide his hurting behind a cold, hardened glare. The woman's fingers intruding through his torn cloak and touching his wounds caused a sudden pain to surge through his entire body, and he found himself collapsing forward into her, grabbing at the back of her shirt to support himself while a coughing fit ensued.

He felt terrible, especially in front of Kreon, in front of the other shades, simply falling apart like this. All his work he felt was being shattered in these few moments, the strong merciless killer beaten, bloodied, and brought down by terrible bloody coughs. For a moment after he finally gained control again he simply stood resting on the woman as her magic ceased his blood flow. He somehow couldn't help but feel as if this was familiar, and he knew exactly why. He had made sure that day though that something like this would never again happen, but it seemed even that was broken tonight.

"I'll kill him." Nira's voice finally registered in the man's mind. He'd drifted off a moment, just a second and he wasn't sure why. He was definitely off tonight, and he was hell bent on making sure everyone present would know his wrath, even in a state such as this. "Right after we kill this pathetic excuse for a Shade." Talazar smiled somewhat at the her last words, and nodded, though a bit awkwardly as his chin was resting on the woman's shoulder.

Finally he stood and pushed himself off Nira as if he'd just realized what he was doing. He looked at her angrily and brushed past her, fueled now with rage and a need to redeem himself after the show he'd just put on. The man flung out his right arm with the sword to push aside his cloak before finally he reached up and simply undid the single button that held it in place. He let it fall to the ground now to reveal his underclothes; a torn sleeveless shirt that clung to his body and showed easily the muscles beneath, tucked under his black pants that were secured by a belt embedded with dormant jewels. His boots came up to just beneath his calves, and around his neck the gold chain was painted over in places a dull crimson.

Talazar took a moment to look at the jewels along his waist before selecting one and placing it in the vacant spot in his scythe where his old one sat. The fact that it was missing was something to worry about, but not now. The man let the tiny rock shine a moment as he shut his eyes, harnessing the power of the air around him.

"Kreon," he said quietly as his eyes opened once more. He took a moment to situate a fire jewel into Raiyn's sword, then looked up at the man, a steely gaze locking directly onto him. "You shouldn't have intervened in my passing of judgment..."


Aelianus

Aelianus shot up, unsure of where he was, what had happened and why. As he looked around through blurry eyes and a jumbled mind, he began to allow things to register in his head, a clear picture painting itself before him. All around, black cloaks were massing and down the hill he could see the power swelling around Nira. The fact that so many shades had appeared and that Nira seemed to be using all her magic could only mean one plausible thing. Aelianus' eyes shot to the man who stood opposite her, and he immediately found himself backing up.

Why was Kreon here, what could possibly have happened that would call him? Aelianus wasn't sure, and he had plenty of questions. As he watched the scene unfold he just saw Talazar stumble away from the boy who then got more or less tackled by the Princess. He couldn't tell what was happening, but Talazar looked fairly beaten up. His cloak appeared to be torn and his chest glistened an unnatural red. Had the boy just beaten him? Talazar? That wasn't right, but he didn't question as suddenly the Princess and Raiyn came forward to meet up with Krisiana and Kiriko who stood to one side. The shades it seemed were focused entirely on Nira, Talazar and Kreon, so at least they were safe for the moment.

Aelianus stood now and quickly made his way over to the group. "Hurry," he said in a voice just above a whisper, "We've got to go unless you feel like being caught between a battle that'll probably leave this place littered with bodies and lingering spells." His eyes flicked back and forth now to the shades around the clearing, some of whom were watching them. "If we can get going before all hell breaks lose, we should be able to make it a fair distance and they'll lose our trail, but we have to go now."

Kiriko

Kiriko had somehow convinced the elf not to attack him and had planned on watching the fight, but his hopes were short lived. Out of no where the shades leader appeared. At first he couldn't believe his eye, there was no way that there leader would come to the front lines for no reasons. After a short conversation between the elf and Kreon he left and went to the battle field. Just now did Kiriko realize he had to act. He looked over the battle field and seen that Kreon was going to hit his own man just to hit the enemy.

He would have gone to try and save the men fighting, but he was to slow. Before he could even leave the rock the elfin women had teleported to the battle field and had stopped his attack from hitting them. After another short conversation the elf started to use immensely powerful spells to attack him. Kiriko thought that he would be over powered by the combination of the elf and scythe wielder, but he quickly realized that was wrong when a lot of shade appeared out of no where. Now would be his time to attack, while the two were fighting the others he could fight Kreon.

Just as he was about to attack the Princess came over to them and asked him to help carry Raiyn. He really wanted to help them, but he would probably never get another chance like this again. "Sorry, but I have to do this," After that he got ready to fight. This time he was serious, he wouldn't hold back a single ounce of his power to kill this man. He drew his blades holding them in an over hand style, a style he only uses when he intends to kill. Using the jewels in his blades he extended them to 4ft each, using this all the weight was at the hilt of his blades and he could swing his swords faster that a normal blade.

Looking quickly to his side he saw the formed shade get up and start talking, he ignored what ever it was he was saying. Finally ready to attack Kiriko ran down the side of the rock until he was parallel with the ground. Using all of his might he pushed off the rock and used his jewels to turn himself into a rocket, aimed straight at Kreon. With the blade in his right hand extended straight out and the one in his left at his side encase Kreon dodged he was ready to kill.


Okashi

Okashi had planned to stay back and watch the fight, but was surprised to see a new figure appear on top of the rock with the others. At first he disregarded, until he heard the name "Kreon". Looking in shock he did see that the man was in fact Kreon, the leader of the shades. The bounty on his head was immense and if he killed him Okashi would be set for life. Okashi decided to stay back and wait for just a moment to see what his plans were. After what appeared to be an argument between him and the girl who attacked him he went down to the battle field and sent a massive attack straight at the two that had been fighting. Okashi thought that those two were dead when the elf teleported and deflected the attack.

Kreon's dead, he thought. But his hoped were destroyed when a ridiculous amount of shade appeared out of no where. To the others this was bad, to Okashi this just made his pay day a lot bigger. Thinking how to approach the situation he decided to use the elf and scythe guy to his advantage. He didn't waste any time making his way over to them, knocking three shades out in the process. Once there he went up to the two and after hearing, "Kreon you shouldn't have intervened in my passing of judgment..." he decided now would be the time to tell them his plan. Talking loud enough to catch there attention he said,

"Hey elf, scythe guy I want you two to listen to me. I got a deal to make with you two. I'll take out the small fry's and you two go and help that little guy take out Kreon. In exchange I want you to let me keep his body. Do we have a deal."

Kirrah Shay

"Wait! Don't, you'll get yourself killed!" Kirrah shouted at Kiriko as he rushed down the hill. Her hand shot out to grab him, but she was a second too late. He was down into the clearing in a matter of seconds, his wind magic speeding him along. To add to it, the other man who had joined them also followed Kiriko down to the fighting. Her heart shot to her throat as the Jewel Princess receded in her mind, only lending her strength to keep Raiyn's still frame upright. God's he was heavy, she pulled him up closer to her, struggling to stay standing under his weight.

Kirrah shifted her gaze to Aelianus, the only one who seemed eager to leave just as she wanted to. She motioned for him to come help her with Raiyn and held her other sword in her hand. She would use the wind to help them get a fair distance away from the fighting. Things were going down hill so quickly that she was afraid they wouldn't even get far enough away to make a difference. Fear clouded her mind as she stood there with Raiyn. Behind her magic exploded across the valley, thundering through the air as if a storm had been brewing and was now unleashing its torrent.

Once Raiyn was secured, she let lose the magic in the jewel with help from the Princess inside her. Turning she looked to Aelianus as they quickly moved through the forest, light on their feet, "Do you know where we can stop to heal him?" Her heart was in her throat as she shot a quick look back at Raiyn's unconscious form. Blood was all over him, and she could still see it glistening as it slowly trickled from each of his wounds. If they didn't hurry, she feared the worst for him.

Nira Ku

Her pale eyes caught the flash of steel and she could feel the air shift as the boy who had met her up on the hill came flying from the darkness at Kreon. She watched with an amused smile on her face as her husband looked at the young man with a deep frown. Then, as if he were swatting away a fly, Kreon unleashed his own power on the child. Black wind swept up around the lithe form of the jewel user and tossed him away into the darkness. Kreon had no time for such an insolent boy as he returned his steely gaze to Nira and Talazar.

Her eyes sparkled as Talazar lifted himself off her and put himself between her and Kreon, his voice thick with rage and acid as he spoke to the Shade leader. Her thoughts mirrored Talazar's. Yes, Kreon was going to regret ever interfering with her and Talazar's plans. Just as Talazar was about to attack the man, another figure came from the darkness, voicing his opinion of the situation. Apparently the tall man wanted to strike a deal, one that consisted of helping the young man who had been flung away in killing Kreon. Nira shifted her gaze to the man in the darkness for a mere moment.

Laughter bubbled from her lips, maniacal and on the edge of hysteria. Nira couldn't believe what she was hearing. Why would she even consider teaming with someone who used an Angelic Jewel? Power erupted from her fingers as she slowly controlled her laughter. She aimed just at the man's feet, exploding the dirt around him in a show of her energy.

"Lets say you survive my Shades, all of them," she swept her gaze around the area that was swarming with men and women in black cloaks, "Then you'll have to deal with me. I'll enjoy killing you," she promised him. With a flick of her hand she ordered those that had sided with her and Talazar to attack the tall brute of a man. Weapons were drawn and the air was filled with dark magic as each Shade powered their Demon Jewel. One man couldn't stand against the thirty or so Shades that had joined with Talazar and Nira.

Across from her, she noted that Kreon had flicked his own hand forward, ordering the rest to attack her and the two men that had jumped down into the fighting. With her eyes bright, she flexed her hand and waited for the enemy to grow closer to her. The first one to reach her got a chest full of her electricity. Her scream was the first of many to penetrate the air. Nira leaned over and took the girls sword from her dead fingers, weighing the blade in her palm. The light weight was perfect for her, the demon jewel sprang to life as well. A different kind of power that she'd never used before but would enjoy getting used to. Shadow magic wasn't something she'd used before but it seemed to be a perfect match for her innate powers.

Leaving her magical circle, Nira disappeared and reappeared right in the midst of Kreon's Shades as they slowly came forward to try to encircle those that had joined her and Talazar. Letting the magic from the jewel expand, the darkness swirled around her, filling her with a different kind of power that she knew she was going to relish. Tendrils of dark magic reached out and encircled six of the men around her that had whirled around to face her the moment she had appeared. The misty darkness crushed their throats, lifted them off the ground and slowly pushed its way down into their body via their mouths. Their choking cries were exceptional as she watched each of them writhe and struggle in her hold.

Once their twisting forms stopped struggling she let them all drop from her demonic hold. Two rushed her from the side, but she saw them before they could get close to her. Snapping her attention to them, her hair flying about her face and shoulders, she lifted her hand and from her finger tips her dark magic crackled through the air as it rushed at them both. Together they were flung backwards, hitting the ground with a bone crunching force. Once more Nira disappeared only to reappear right next to Kreon. He was quick as she swung the sword at him, her lithe form easily countering his next strike. The dark magic swirled around the blade and extended towards him. Only his own Demon Jewel and power kept the darkness from killing him.

This fight was just barely beginning, Nira grinned at the thought. Oh how the night was going to ring with the sounds of the dying.

Talazar

The man gave only a sideways glance to the boy who came flying out of the darkness at Kreon. True enough Talazar thought of Kreon as a pathetic weakling who hid behind an army of shades, but he knew he wasn't totally powerless, in fact he was well aware that one slip up and even Talazar could meet a foul end. Nevertheless, it seemed the boy, in a sudden burst of over excitement, had naively overlooked this, and thus resulted in him being thrown away like a rag-doll. Where he landed, Talazar didn't know, but that was hardly of importance as Kreon's eyes came back to meet his own. The man matched his cold gaze and for a moment he simply stood there, waiting, until another voice and presence broke through too his conscience.

"Hey elf, scythe guy I want you two to listen to me. I got a deal to make with you two. I'll take out the small fry's and you two go and help that little guy take out Kreon. In exchange I want you to let me keep his body. Do we have a deal."

Talazar couldn't help it. He broke Kreon's gaze now to look back at the man, somewhat shocked. To even suggest such a thing was beyond comprehensible. Talazar refused to work with anyone besides Nira, and only put up with Aelianus for the few times he'd actually come in handy in a sticky situation, yet here this man was, a total stranger wielding an angelic jewel with the audacity to approach two of the most dangerous shades, and suggest a temporary alliance? The man scoffed loudly, then fought back the need to break down coughing again as his stomach tightened. Luckily enough, his own voice wasn't needed as Nira stole his words, sending a spray of magic towards the man's feet in before speaking.


"Lets say you survive my Shades, all of them. Then you'll have to deal with me. I'll enjoy killing you."

Talazar smiled at the woman and couldn't help but chuckle, though once more this act turned into a fit of bloodied coughing. He took a moment to collect himself before speaking, his cold tone leaving no room for argument. "You best move along, you're outmatched here."

At Nira's orders, he noted a large grouping of the shades advancing and knew that she'd ordered them on the man, then was pleased to see Kreon do the same as he turned to him again. His smile widened as he readied himself for combat, and he ignored the pain that ran up his arm as his torn muscles worked to balance the weight of his scythe. He just registered the woman now as she began her assault, killing off one woman before instantly appearing within Kreon's forces and in moments, unleashing a magic that he'd only seldom seen. The cries of those dying were music, and Talazar laughed again, though controlled his fit this time.

Stepping forward towards Kreon, Talazar had waited for Nira to occupy him before making his own advance. In one motion he brought Raiyn's sword around the front of his body as he turned slightly to the right, the hilt held just in front of the left shoulder whlie the blade extended parallel to the man and out to his side. He then thrust forward as the weapon ignited into hellish flames that licked at the metal, the tip aimed directly for Kreon. With a twist, it mattered not if Kreon evaded as Talazar then pulled back the weapon and pivoted his body, now coming forward with his left arm that held the scythe. In a way it was the same concept he'd pulled on Raiyn, positioning the weapon to either meet the evasion, or go beyond it and pull back. Even with a block, the scythe would be a deadly flanking attack, and this time, Talazar was ready for any tricks.


Aelianus

The boy watched the other two quickly disappear to join the fray, and knew that it was a deathwish. Shades were powerful, and in a mass like this it'd be too easy to just get overwhelmed by stray attacks. However, that was the least of the boy's worries. He nodded quickly as the Princess motioned for him to help her with Raiyn. With the boy situated between the two of them, Aelianus allowed the girl to whisk them away by means of her air attributed jewel. The travel was efficient, ans Aelianus was glad to be rid of the clearing, though he knew that Nira or Talazar would no doubt find the simple letter he'd left for them, concealed in a place only they would think to look.

"Do you know where we can stop to heal him?" Aelianus thought on the question a moment before finally nodding. Seeing Raiyn's bloodied state, the idea hit him immediately as he recalled the sight of Talazar just years prior. There was a place, yes, and it was probably the single spot on earth that the scythe-wielding man refused to revisit.

"Yeah," Aelianus said, "I've just the place, and I can assure you that Talazar wouldn't even think of going there. We've got to go west though, I'll show you." As Aelianus spoke, he readied himself to face what he knew awaited. A old tattered house, decorated in the most beautiful way anyone could image, a beaming face, no doubt a kiss on the cheek despite his age, some treats, but most of all, help. Their destination would be the boy's old home, the place he'd taken Talazar after finding him in such a desecrated state where his mother had tended to the man until he was fit enough to travel. Aelianus knew how much Talazar despised the cheery woman, the overly decorated house with all it's flowers and sweet fragrant smells. Yes, surely they'd be safe there, he thought as once more a warm, happy smile appeared on his face.

Kirrah Shay

"Yeah, I've just the place, and I can assure you that Talazar wouldn't even think of going there. We've got to go west though, I'll show you," Aelianus said as he looked to her. Kirrah nodded her head and directed her wind to go west. Light on their feet, and with most of the air cushioning Raiyn's unconscious body, they made the trip quicker than the Princess expected. Tucked away in the country side was a small house that looked like it was nothing but a flower garden. Kirrah raised an eyebrow as she set her eyes on the place.

Coming up to the door, she knocked on the wood with the handle of her weapon, not allowing the wind to falter lest they drop Raiyn from sheer weight and her own exhaustion. It was a few minutes after that the door slowly opened and an elderly lady looked up at them, her gray hair swept back in a bun with strands of it curling around her weathered face. Oddly enough, portions of her face and especially her eyes matched Aelianus and it didn't take long for Kirrah to realize that this was his mother. A hot blush worked it's way up to her face as she looked over Raiyn's still form to the Shade standing next to her.

"My my it's been a while," her voice croaked out as she reached out, fully swinging the door open. A bright smile lit her face as she took hold of Aelianus' face and brought him down to kiss him. Kirrah wasn't sure what to do or say, so she just stood there waiting for the woman to notice that they had someone who was in dire need of healing. After a moment, the elder woman finally turned to Kirrah.

"She's very pretty by the way," the elder woman said slyly then turned to the boy between them, "Bring him inside now. Lay him on the bed over there," she waved her hand off to the right as they all slid into the house. Only when they had Raiyn laid on the bed did Kirrah let her magic fade. She felt the drain on her energy immediately and swayed on her feet. Abruptly she took a seat right next to Raiyn, holding her head between her hands as her sword clattered to the floor. The steps of the elder woman could be heard in another room as she gathered whatever it was she needed.

After a moment, Kirrah finally looked up. The house was small but well furnished. Flowers were everywhere, their pots in different shades of color and situated in just about every corner of the house. Yarn balls were in a huge basket next to a rocking chair and a half finished blanket lying half on and half off the chair was right across from the Princess. Her face heated again as she looked to Raiyn and realized that his bleeding body was going to ruin her bedding, but the thought was quickly chased away as she felt a twinge of fear at his well being curl in her chest.

"Help me remove his shirt," the woman said as she came back in with a large bowl of water and several clothes. Slowly, Kirrah reached forward and began undoing the ties to his leather shirt. Once it was off, she had to look away as the sight of his wounds filled her with fear. Not only that but his tone skin was making her nervous. Needing something to do, she got up and went in search of Aelianus. Once she found him, she looked at him for a moment before looking away.

"She's your mother, right? She's very sweet. I appreciate you're taking Raiyn here to have him healed," she started, then her forehead wrinkled slightly as she looked back at him, "Why?" she asked softly.

"Why did you join the Shades," her voice dropping to keep the words from the mothers sharp ears.

Aelianus smiled as his footsteps beat up the cobblestone path towards his old home. Nestled within the trees, positioned at the edge of the small clearing, the house was old yet sturdy, with a strong tiled roof and slightly cracked walls, though one probably couldn't even see them past the vines that wove up the sides. Immediately the first thing everyone would notice was a tangled mass of green over what could be just recognized as a building, making it almost seems as though it was some sort of abandoned or ruined house, if not for the fact that the plants were so vibrant, lively and well kept. The small size of the structure probably didn't help either, as over the years since the boy's departure, the plants had seemed to have multiplied ten-fold. The simple chimney that always was spewing out a thin trail of grey smoke, and the door and windows that had the plants around them well trimmed were just the few signs that any sort of human life existed within the masses of overwhelming, yet delicately balanced, flora.

The pathway was simple stone with a barrier of shrubs on either side, harboring a multitude of various flowers, and teaming with insects and small birds. Past the walls to both left and right, were two small gardens that held even more plants. Unlike the norm however of probably vegetables, the gardens consisted of large decorative pots, watering cans, old bird baths, broken cart wheels, benches and anything else under the sun.

What was truly spectacular was the way it was all set up, no doubt the result of years of meticulous work. Everything seemed to have a place and blended together in just the right way that, when looked at, it was almost as if the placement of everything was part of nature's design. The way a vine wrapped intricately and delicately around an old wheel, cradling it as it supported itself on the side of a beautifully carved stone bench that was surrounded by several old shelves, all of who's drawers were inhabited by green. An apple tree positioned over a birdbath with its base encompassed by small rocks and pots, a miniature statuette here or there. It truly was as if, on first glance, everything man-made belonged.

Approaching the door, Aelianus let the girl knock and couldn't help but beam at the old woman who responded. He didn't bother fighting back the woman's warm embrace and hug but instead returned them both eagerly and warmly. The woman was missed truly every time the boy left, and he was always happy to return now and again, always to receive the same old ""My my it's been a while." Smiling still, Aelianus nodded as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Yes, indeed mother. Glad to see you!" He then allowed her to take in the sight of Raiyn and the Princess, but couldn't help but blush at the woman's comment. True enough he agreed, but he'd never thought about it. As far as he was concerned the girl's only priorities were to the unconscious figure held between the two, and Aelianus was fine with that.

At the woman's orders he helped Raiyn down, but then had to walk away as he couldn't bear even the slightest amount of blood. How he'd overlooked it all, especially when he had some on his shirt the whole time, he didn't know. Wandering off now, the boy made his way to an old room down the hall. The smaller plants in their respectively sized pots greeted him all along the way, on shelves, decorating corners with rocks and more statues. How the woman kept everything so tidy while still having her own life, he didn't know even to this day, but then again, tending to all of this may very well be her life all together.

He smiled at the thought as he entered his old bedroom. Replacing his old worn clothes, he dawned a new shirt, pants and boots, but left the cloak that marked him as a shade. As far as his mother was concerned, she was unaware or simply overlooked it. Whatever the case, himself being part of such an organization would be the one thing that Aelianus knew would most likely cause the woman to have a stroke. Absolutely nothing else seemed to bother her.

Walking back out into the hall, Aelianus found the Princess who seemed to have been looking for him. He smiled at her as she spoke, asking about his mother, saying she as sweet and then asking him why exactly he'd brought Raiyn here to be healed. The boy's eyes trailed upwards for a moment as he considered this, but finally he shrugged.

"Because I help people." he said quite frankly, as if the statement spoke for itself. "Because he stood up to Talazar and for what he thought was right. I suppose I just don't like seeing conflict and.. everything else. I like to help, and actually, seeing Raiyn like this reminded me of seeing Ta-" Aelianus cut off quickly, his eyes now darting away entirely from where they had traveled to meet the Princess'. Now was probably a good time to answer the other question, so quickly he jumped to that subject instead.

"Because," he shrugged, "Ah.. Well I don't know." Truly the boy was still unsure of his choice, but he did know why. Now however wasn't the time to say anything, so he disregarded both topics and instead glanced back to the door. "Care to go outside? He's in good hands." He looked at her again now, then added the last statement to bring the conversation back to a friendly exchange on neutral ground, someplace they could start while hopefully avoiding the subject of the shades. "I don't think I ever got your name."

Kirrah Shay

"Care to go outside? He's in good hands. I don't think I ever got your name," Aelianus said. Kirrah gave a slow nod to him and they headed for the back door of the house. Her gaze flicked to him, unsure about his answer. She wasn't sure if it was just that he didn't want to speak about it, or if he was just avoiding the question entirely for some other unknown reasons.

Kirrah didn't know, nor did she really care at the moment. As they walked outside, she let her gaze roam about the garden. It was all very well tended to, the roses in full bloom, tulips and gardenias as well. The garden was alive and full of flowers that she couldn't even begin to name, the greenery pleasing to the eye. Fountains were placed all around as well, the water inside them trickling loudly and creating a nice sound in the back yard that mixed with the sounds of the birds. Kirrah took a moment to take a deep breath and smell the lovely scents of the flowers and the clean air. She couldn't remember the last time she'd been in such a reprieve.

"My name's Kirrah. Kirrah Shay," she said to him finally. It was almost nice to give her name, though she still feared getting to close to anyone.

It's too late for that, the soft voice that was the Jewel Princess' whispered to her.

How so?

We both know our feelings towards him. You can't deny it forever.

Kirrah sighed then as her eyes softened with the thought of Raiyn firmly present in her mind. She worried over him more so now than before. She continued to blame the feelings on the Princess who'd seen more of him than she herself had in the past few days. Being constantly under attack by those that wielded Demon Jewel's was becoming draining and she was beginning to think that she would soon lose herself to the Princess inside. To that thought, the other half of her being huffed in annoyance.

We are one in the same, you just refuse to believe it.

Kirrah let that one go and instead turned to Aelianus, "You're sure we're safe here?"

Nira Ku

She could tell that Talazar was losing his energy quickly. The overextended scythe that meant to catch Kreon straight across his back missed the Shade leader as the man simply sidestepped away from the weapon. In the same motion, he brought up his sword and connected with the stolen weapon that Talazar was using. Nira cursed under her breath and prepared to launch a flurry of attacks against her husband. As the power filled her, she noted that one of the Shades was doing particularly well in the fighting, and to her pleasure, he was fighting for her.

She recognized him, his dual weapons something rare seen among the Shades, and his choice in Demon Jewel's was a rare one as well. She couldn't recall his name, but she'd seen him enough to know he was one of the better Shades of the entire group. With a wicked grin, she knew that they had won this battle. Her weapon raised, the shadowy mist filtering from the Demon Jewel and sliding down her blade. Mixing with it, she dragged her magic forward and disappeared. Nira reappeared right behind her husband as he was still locked with Talazar and shoved her blade right through his side. The ugly look on her face told that she'd missed her mark for Kreon had suddenly stepped to the side.

Even so, the blade had done it's damage and her magic electrified and spread across him. Pulling her blade slowly from him, she savored the sound of his scream. Her magic rippling all across him. Moving slowly, she flicked her blade, throwing crimson liquid all around as she moved to face him. Her lips returned to their smile as she put one hand on her hip and leveled her blade underneath her husbands neck.

"Oh, how satisfying this is."

"Nira," the man started, the sickening sound of his voice grating on her nerves.

"Oh please. Don't start begging for your life, Kreon. It'll only drag you further down. Besides, I don't want to hear begging, I want to hear screaming," she hissed as she pulled her blade back and shoved it through his shoulder. To her annoyance, the man bit his tongue and didn't utter a sound. Nira twisted the blade cruelly in his shoulder.

"I knew you were a traitor," he spat at her, blood coating his lips.

The elf grinned in response, leaning forward she whispered to him, "Then why did you marry me?"

"The same reason you married me," he replied, the cold look in his eyes making her grin widen. Then she laughed, her rich voice lifting over the din of fighting. Pulling her sword free, she prepared to land the final strike, cutting off his head would be sufficient enough for her. As she brought the weapon back down with the misty shadows stretching out in eagerness, Kreon faded from sight and never reappeared. Nira's smile turned into a harsh snarl as her voice screamed out in rage. Twirling around, her eyes were wild as she looked for the cowardly man. A growl issued forth from her throat as she stood there. The Shades who had been with Kreon took that moment to retreat.

With a sweep of her hand, she yelled out, "Hunt them down! Kill them all! You!" she pointed to the one who wielded the unique dual weapons. Curling her finger towards herself, she beckoned for him to come to her, "Help him," she jerked her head to Talazar. In his fighting he'd managed to re-open the wounds that she'd cauterized. "Take him up to the top of that hill. We'll be making our head quarters out of the village that is near by. Stop the bleeding," she ordered him. Once the Shades had finished carrying out her orders, she would send the bulk of them to the village and kill the villagers, officially making it hers.

After a moment of calming herself, she went up the hill as well to wait for her Shades to return. As she made it to the top, her sharp eyes spotted a white piece of paper just barely hidden under a lump of dirt at the base of a tree. The paper was too obvious and her only thought was that it was Aelianus. Only he would think to do something like that. Bending over, she picked up the paper and opened it. Once she was finished, her eyes were narrowed and she crumpled the paper between her fingers. She would show it to Talazar once he was in better shape, however, if she laid eyes on the boy again she'd run her blade through him without hesitation.

Aelianus

"My name's Kirrah. Kirrah Shay," said the girl.

Aelianus simply nodded before saying, "Not sure if you'd caught mine, but," the boy took a moment to gather the highest esteemed and most humbled voice he could before continuing, "Aelianus Kahstar, at your service, Princess." He mocked a bow simply for fun, then stood up straight, smiling at the girl. The look on her face as his gaze came back up, told him that the Princess had zoned momentarily, lost in deep thought. Aelianus waited a moment before she finally seemed to come to, immediately asking about the safety of this place they had chosen to seek refuge in.

Smiling still, Aelianus couldn't help but chuckle. His eyes wandered around for a moment as he considered this question, and immediately, memories came back of Talazar, the strong willed man whom considered himself almost invincible, brought down to near death and forced to be cared for like a child. For someone like him, it must've been truly humbling, if not humiliating. For two months Talazar was bed ridden, completely sapped of energy due to the many wounds he'd sustained. The battle had of course caused his blood to flow more rapidly, and then the long journey only aided in the man's loss even more. Aelianus knew though how much he hated it. He'd watched Talazar wake, always with the same spiteful look and try to fight back the hands that healed him, but to no avail. The man could barely turn his head without passing out from dizziness, let alone hold down his food.

It wasn't until after the first month, when the man was able to maintain consciousness and request that Aelianus fetch the scythe from the battle scene, did he finally calm, somewhat. Apparently it was his prize, with the wager being that if Talazar could beat the man and his friends without the use of a jewel, while they had in their possession earth, air, and fire, then he could have the weapon. What it meant to him other than a trophy, Aelianus didn't know, being, he wasn't sure why the man had wanted it in the first place. He didn't ask however, but simply carried out the order and brought back the weapon, if only to cease the profanities and constant struggles against restraints to be set free, despite still having several broken bones and delicate stitching.

After the second month, when Talazar couldn't stand being locked in the house any longer, with all its natural beauty and overly happy occupants, Aelianus' mother finally let him lose. Her words of warnings were lost to the man as he shot out the door. It seemed that with so much time lying in bed, his restlessness was too overwhelming, and at that point, in his mostly healed state, Talazar had immediately begun destroying everything in sight.

Finally satisfied with his work in successfully turning everything within a thirty meter radius to a genocidal aftermath against all things plant-like, the man had given the boy a wicked smile, the cruel gleam in his eye now returned from when he had first met him. Aelianus remembered the words perfectly, and in his head, he recited them. Be thankful I'm sparring you and this house, and be lucky that this place sickens me so much, saving my life or not, that I'll be damned if I ever come back.

Nodding again and still smiling, Aelianus looked back to Kirrah and spoke, "I'm certain we'll be safe here."

Talazar

The man's usual beginning combo with the scythe and sword had failed, but Talazar couldn't think of anything more. As Kreon batted away the boy's sword with his own, Talazar found himself faltering slightly. His adrenaline was beginning to wear, and the pain in his chest from three wind blades was becoming more evident. He bit back the stinging sensation that came with each breath, ignored the warm moister that poured from his now reopened wounds, but it wasn't enough.

Nira had now begun to distract Kreon, and Talazar just had looked up from another coughing fit just to see a rather audacious shade come at him, but he was going to ensure that they'd know even in this state, he was just as deadly as ever. As the man's sword came down in a diagonal overhead sweep, Talazar simply mirrored the movement in a reverse, his own sword moving across his body from his lower left, to his right shoulder, severing the man's arm just below the elbow. The man's screams were then cut short as Talazar's left arm followed, sweeping around his body and bringing the shaft of the scythe hard into his temple. The movement was powerful, but clumsy, and as he did it, Talazar realized just how much damage had actually been inflicted on him.

The weight of the scythe brought the man down and another bloodied fit ensued. It was about then that Kreon had retreated, and though Talazar hadn't seen what Nira had done, he was sure she could come up with an adequate punishment for him.

"Hunt them down! Kill them all!"

The elven woman's voice rang out to those shades who allied themselves with her's and Talazar's side, ordering for them to hunt down the fools who dared oppose them. Talazar slowly lifted himself off the ground at this, hell bent on pursuing the treacherous rats and delivering judgment, but his body wouldn't allow it. Despite how hard he tried to keep himself upright, the man swayed a moment from his kneeling position, which was as far as he got in standing, before the world seemed to topple and go dark. Somehow the sensation was familiar, and the man frowned in both confusion and anger as he recollected the event; Aelianus, stabbing him, passing out, waking in the boy's house and being stuck there. He would've preferred dying, truly.

Nira Ku

Black circles extended out from under her feet and encased both her and the sleeping form of Talazar right next to her. The screams from the village had long since died down and her satisfaction from them was sated. The elf teleported herself and the large Shade into the town, appearing in the middle of the dark street littered with bodies of the dead and dying. A large building just to her right that probably once belonged to a wealthy owner caught her gaze and she walked inside it to take a quick look. She didn't leave Talazar's unconscious body for long and was soon right next to him, teleporting them into the house. She didn't have the strength to lift his heavy weight so she settled for putting a pillow beneath his head on the floor and covering him with a heavy wool blanket. Once finished she ignited all the candles in the house with a sweep of her hand.

Nira easily found paper in the house and with a prick of her finger, the droplet of blood extended out and wrote a summoning message to all the Shades who had been wise enough to join her and Talazar. Another black circle extended and the papers disappeared one after the other to call the Shades to the building that she'd taken as her own. They needed a plan for both Kreon and the Princess. To her, the girl wasn't all that much of a threat to her plans, however she was a nuisance and the fact that the boy had shown superior power to Talazar was infuriating to Nira. In the end it was merely vengeance that drove her thoughts to kill the woman and her lover.

Kreon, was a matter entirely different. The man had started off brilliantly in his plans and endeavor to create a weapon from all of the Demonic Jewels to wipe the slate clean. Destroying the world and starting over with nothing but scratch. The perfect balance to the world. Nira knew that the man had collected a good amount of Demon Jewel's and she wanted them. Not only for her own stores in case she or any of her Shades lost their jewels to the boy, but also because if she had them, then she would be four steps ahead of Kreon in creating this weapon he dreamt of. Retrieving the stones would be difficult, but she'd seen the vault that Kreon kept them in and knew exactly where to teleport to in order to get in.

A sly smile lifted her lips as she stood there with one hand over her chest while the other traced the curve of her mouth. The firelight reflected in her pale eyes and made her figure seemingly glow in the dim lighting. It would be soon that the Shades would be answering her call. The first thing she planned to do was find the Princess and her companions and slowly tear them apart.

Raiyn Illander

Groggily he opened his eyes and groaned as he shifted on the soft mattress beneath him. His body felt tight as if something were wrapped all around him and he glanced down to his chest to see that his entire upper body was indeed wrapped up in white linen. Some places were stained a dull red, the rest was a brilliant white. He pulled his arms up beneath him and pushed himself up into a sitting position.

"My, the young are so eager to get moving. Be gentle dear or you'll ruin what I've done," a soft voice chided him. Turning his head Raiyn met a warm, wrinkled face with white hair piled in a bun and a smile.

"Where am I?" he asked softly.

"My son brought you and a pretty girl here several hours ago, dear. You were just about dead by the time they got here, glad you made it when you did," the old woman got up then and started busying herself with the many pots of plants that lined the windowsill. Slowly, Raiyn shifted his body so that he could lean against the wall, the movement paining him as he went. Talazar's attack had taken a great toll on him, he'd lost a lot of blood and he still felt as if he could sleep for days.

"You're son?" he muttered.

"Yes, Aelianus. He's a good man, always helping those around him even if they're strangers," she chuckled softly. The name Aelianus rung a bell, but it took him a moment to react and when he did, he shot a startled look to the old woman who was clipping the dead leaves off of a shrubbery.

"Aelianus? Good... you can't be-"

"Raiyn!"

His attention snapped to shout of his name, his hand immediately going to his sword at his side only to brush air. Simultaneously he met the gaze of the beautiful Princess as he literally freaked out about his missing sword.

"Princess!" He cried in shock, half because of his missing weapon and half because of her sudden appearance. The girl rushed into the room and took a seat right next to him.

"You shouldn't be moving, you're injuries are still fresh. I'm surprised you're awake. You should be sleeping," she bombarded him. Raiyn could hardly keep up. Was it the Princess he was talking to, or the girl that she inhabited? He couldn't tell. The only time it was really apparent was when there were active demon jewels around. He arched an eyebrow at her before looking away and resuming his stony features. Memories of how Talazar had broken passed the carefully constructed barriers filled him with fear. He was going to have to be much more careful, the killer inside him was obviously still very much alive.

"I'm fine," he told her, his cold tone returning. He refused to meet her gaze. Raiyn wasn't about to let himself lose his structure, and next time he would be sure to fight harder against Talazar. Next time, he would kill the Shade and be done with him.

Aelianus

The boy watched as the girl exclaimed happily the boy's name when he awoke. He himself stood in the doorway as the Princess went to sit next to the newly conscious Raiyn, and he couldn't help but smile and shake his head as he had caught the man's attempts at drawing a weapon. Talazar had done the same thing, though when he found he didn't have a weapon he also tried to simply strangle the woman whom catered to him, but didn't get too far as just moments later he was sprawled on his back again trying to catch his breath. Raiyn at least was in better shape.

Aelianus waited as the girl sent a torrent of statements at him and chuckled. She sounded just like a concerned parent, looking out only for his health and urging that he simply rest. True enough that was best for him, but if he wanted to wake so be it. With death at the doorstep, Talazar certainly didn't just lie back and die, no, that's what sedatives were for, otherwise, the boy knew, he'd of gone on a rampage and killed everyone and himself in the process. Looking to his mother, he simply returned her warm smile and shrugged, then paced into the room as Raiyn gave his response, but something about it seemed off, as if for some reason he was trying to shut everyone out suddenly.

Tilting his head, Aelianus dismissed the thought for now as he looked at the man.

"Morning," he said cheerily, "Took quite a beating, surprised you're already awake. How're you feeling?"

There was a slight pause as Aelianus waited for the answer before his mother broke in, her inquisitive eyes taking a moment to rest on everyone present. The boy couldn't help but feel though, always, that her eyes, or frankly any parent's, seemed to go beyond simply looking at you, but instead they dug into you and sought out the truth behind everything you said, every excuse you made. The boy gave a half-hearted smile at the woman's words.

"Indeed, the wounds were quite substantial," she had said, "I'm curious, what happened exactly?"


Talazar

"Ha, fancy meeting you here. Is this really who I think it is?"

Talazar looked up, an eyebrow raised, from his drink. He was sitting near the back corner of a bar, slouched over in a booth with his feet perched up on the table. An ornate sword was lying across the hardwood next to several emptied glasses, and the man himself was donned in a rather tattered and beaten old brown cloak. As his gaze came up, he found himself looking at a sneering man whom reminded him too much of a rat.

The cold beady eyes stared at him expectantly, the dark color nearly eliminating his pupils altogether, adding to the effect. From what Talazar witnessed, it seemed like always, some part of his body was twitching, while his poor excuse for a mustache was unkempt, uneven and wiry, falling down his lips like some grotesque whiskers. His hair was combed back in the same manner as Talazar's, but it was a pure black and looked greasy. The man knew exactly who this was, so he set down his drink and faked a smile, as if pleased that this hideous presence was invading on his, until now, rather enjoyable night.

"Titus," he said quietly. "What a rather, unpleasant surprise..."

The man scoffed as he forced his way into the seat opposite Talazar, and immediately he was taking hold of the sword which he had left on the table. Never being one to beat around the bush, the man's words cut directly to his point. "You're becoming quite popular my friend. Murders, raids, sounds like something a group of bandits would do. Some organized crime group."

"Like yourself?" Talazar cut in. He gave the man a wicked grin before tilting his head back and downing the rest of the coppery-colored liquid he was drinking.

"Well you'd think so, but it seems someone, one man, has been doing the work for me, or rather, instead of me... But he's a little more sloppy, leaving witnesses to report a single male, white hair, traveling alone."

"Oh?"

"We can't have business being ruined, can we?" the man said as he set down the sword and leaned in across the table. His breath stunk terribly of blood, and Talazar had to wonder exactly just what he was doing prior to his coming here. Even so, the man simply shrugged.

"You mean to tell me the mighty Titus, leader of a supposedly not half-ass mercenary group, is being outdone by a single man?" Talazar laughed as he brought his boots to the floor with a rather loud thud, then turned in the seat to better face the man. "Perhaps you are just half-ass."

Titus shook his head, his face contorting into a cruel grin, one that belonged to someone who was scheming about something, plotting the imminent downfall of a competitor of business. "You're a funny man, you know that? It's bad enough operating with shades around, makes life difficult enough, but now a single man, you, are ruining my work even more. There's no profit in it, and now people are beginning to doubt me, we can't have that, you understand, right?"

"You were never good enough for the profit, and besides, no one ever had faith in you." Talazar said flatly. "But, nevertheless, what do you plan to do about that?" The sword was now perfectly centered on the table between the two, and neither had any other weapon. The man's grin, Talazar noted, had grown even more and now, to the point that it resembled a cat, cunning and sly. Leaning back, he awaited the response, but registered the presence of several others now standing from the booths to either side of his own, as well as from other randomized tables through the bar.

"I've got a proposition for you," he said quietly, his group of twenty or so men having finally congregated. "But I warn you, the stakes are pretty high."