Post by lordtwinblade on Dec 17, 2008 13:53:14 GMT -6
Chapter Four: A Glimpse
Steel chains bound a seething dark figure, clattering as he wrestled against their vice-like grip, vying for freedom. His cries of rage were unheeded by five of the six beings surrounding him. Runic symbols lacing across his body flared with multicolored light as he thrashed, causing the marble walls to glitter with each movement.
The creatures surrounding him were all roughly his stature, save one, who stood only half his height, and each gazed impassively at their prisoner, save one.
“You will all be damned for this, my brothers, and you, my traitorous vassal, will not escape this punishment!” The prisoner raved, straining against his bonds. The chains flared with dark energy as he summoned his strength for another assault.
“Who are you to damn us, Caius? It is your actions that would have doomed us all, not ours.” The speaker, clad in sage green and gold armor, raised his hand, splaying his fingers wide. “Accept now the punishment for those who toy with the fates of millions.” The other entities followed suit.
Save one.
Fiery red, ice blue, sage green, incandescent copper, and ebony energy radiated from the raised hands, lacing across the imprisoned titan’s body. Still he struggled, roaring in fury. One of the chains at his wrist snapped, and in the freed hand he summoned a scimitar crafted of crackling black power.
“Zaborg!” The jade titan thundered. “Use you power!”
The white-clad king stood, still as a statue, as the battle of wills raged around him. Caius waved his brand in the air until a mote of icy cerulean extinguished it. The Shadow Monarch lunged forward, the chains holding him fast creaking as his massive weight pushed against them.
“Brother! Please!” He begged, his free hand reaching towards Zaborg, his violet eyes pleading. “Help me!”
Zaborg stood motionless, as though neither monarch’s words had reached him. Raiza cursed, raising both hands to confine Caius as his struggles became more frantic. “Zaborg! You know your duty! Use your power!”
Zaborg flinched, as though a whip had struck him. His eyes closed for a moment, and behind his molded faceplate a tear ran down his pale cheek. His fist clenched, and pure white energy darted across his arms as he raised his hand. A beam of brilliant ivory leapt from his palm, joining the other beacons in their dreadful task. Together they laced around Caius’s body, steadily dragging his limbs towards his body until he was tightly bound, unable to do more than scream. The floor beneath the giant peeled back to reveal a writhing black abyss that seemed to reach out toward the Shadow Monarch, waiting to wrap him in its loving embrace. A long tendril of pulsating darkness reached out to entangle his chest, and drag him slowly into the fog below. With a final shriek, the floor snapped shut like a pair of hungry jaws, leaving behind only the echo of the monarch’s passing.
An unholy silence filled the chamber. The six stood motionless for a time, barely daring to breathe. At last Raiza heaved a sigh and turned away from the tomb. “It is done.” Without another word, he strode towards the exit, breathing heavily. The others quickly followed suit.
Save one.
___________________________
Mataza groaned and coughed, opening his eyes. He was lying on his back, his face pointed skyward. Dust wafted through the air above him, stinging his sensitive irises. The samurai sat up, feeling his muscles shriek as he did so. The setting sun cast its golden rays across the landscape, illuminating the carnage that had been wrought throughout the day. Columns of black smoke rose from glowing craters, and corpses littered the uneven pumice beneath Mataza’s feet.
Thought drifted back into the green-clad warrior’s mind, and he leapt to his feet with vigor, running to the top of the hill. He looked down at the place where Daemon had clashed with the frenzied mage in what was left of Thestalos’s command center.
The command center had been flattened and scattered across the plain, there were no discernible remains. A sharp wind picked up, carrying with it the scent of charred carbon. Mataza fell to his knees on the hilltop, stabbing his katana into the stone. He pressed his palms together in front of his chest and bowed, whispering a prayer for the demon mage, now gone to his final rest beside his gods.
“Get up, samurai.”
Mataza’s head whipped around, his hand instinctively grabbing the hilt of his weapon. “You…”
Daemon stood a few feet away, his body completely unblemished by any mark. “How did you survive?” The samurai’s voice was hoarse as he spoke. The vampire had been mere feet from the epicenter of the explosion; he should have been nothing more than a wisp of greasy black smoke.
Daemon smiled, showing a pair of sharp canines. “I’m magical.” His voice was light and flirtatious. “Sometime I’ll have to show you.”
Even after a brush with death, this guy’s still creepy as all hell. Mataza raised an eyebrow. “I’ll pass, thank you.”
“A pity.” The vampire sighed and turned away. “Someday soon you’ll see things my way, Mataza.”
The samurai tensed. “What exactly does that mean?” His grip on his katana tightened.
Any explanation the vivacious man might have been planning was interrupted by the tornadic wing beat of a gigantic dark bird that swooped down from the heavens, coming to rest on the lava plain only a few dozen feet from where the two commanders stood. Caius slid down from his mount’s back and strode quickly towards them. Mataza ducked his head, and Daemon sank to one knee, averting his gaze.
“My lord.” The vampire’s tone was reverent.
“Rise, warriors.” Caius came to a halt between the two, a few steps past where Daemon knelt. The two men did as they were bayed, and waited silently for their leader’s next utterance.
“Thestalos must have fled.” The Shadow Monarch clenched his gauntleted fists. “No doubt his faithful mage covered his escape. Let us examine the martyr’s grave; I suspect we will find my brother’s means in the ashes.”
___________________________
It didn’t take long for the trio to uncover the Firestorm Monarch’s escape route; a stone plug covered the entrance to an underground tunnel. Caius summoned several Zomas to investigate. The demons found several forking passageways beneath the ground. Unfortunately, the heated stone all but ruined their sense of smell, making it impossible to tell which path Thestalos had followed.
Caius turned to Mataza and Daemon. “Sweep the tunnels. Take as large a force as you need. If you find Thestalos, inform me immediately.”
“Yes, lord.” The two commanders bowed and turned away. Caius started towards his mount, sitting atop the hill, when a voice called his name.
The speaker was a violet serpent, a member of the White-Horned Dragon’s regiment. The monster flew down to land lightly in front of the monarch, bowing its head. “I come with a message from our leader, Empyrean.”
Caius folded his arms across his chest. “Speak, dragon.”
The beast nodded its arrow like head and straightened its two stubby legs, flexing its razor sharp talons. “You have two visitors, from the provinces far west of your kingdom. They have brought an entourage and they…request an alliance, sir.”
The monarch’s brow furrowed beneath his helmet. The only province west of my kingdom is… “Thank you, dragon, I shall meet with them at once.” The beast bowed. “Take a message to the Shadowpriestess of Ohm, I wish to see her on the front line. I will meet with her as soon as I am finished with our guests. You may go.”
As Caius leapt onto his mount, he wondered, what would a king of demons desire from the realm of the living?
___________________________
The dark avian touched down next to Caius’s field tent. The White-Horned Dragon waited for him by the entrance, curled up like a cat in a patch of sun. It raised its head as the Shadow Monarch approached.
“Caius!” The dragon’s voice was gravelly, but not unpleasant, and distinctly feminine in quality, carrying a welcoming tone. The monster bumped its head gently against the monarch’s chest, and he reached up to scratch the scaly ridge above its right eye.
“Empyrean.” Caius’s eyes smiled as his friend rumbled deep in her throat, and he moved his hand down to rub the bridge of her nose. “You said I have visitors.”
“Two demons.” The dragon purred distractedly. “They brought a small party of winged monsters with them. I’m sure you’ve already figured out who they are.”
“Yes…” Caius murmured, gazing at the thick fabric that served as a doorway. “But what is he doing here?”
“No doubt he has more on his mind than adding his forces to yours.” Empyrean shifted her head to look up at her companion. “Watch your back. I know you can take them in a fight, but they might have something else planned.”
Caius nodded. “If I need assistance, I’ll call for you.” He gave her one last affectionate scratch and turned towards the tent.
“Good luck.”
___________________________
Neo plummeted like a stone, the wind ripping into him like a massive scythe. His skin shrieked in irritation as drops of rain struck him in the face like shards of ice, biting his cheeks and poking his eyes viciously. He wondered if this would be the last thing he ever did.
Wow, what an engaging tale. Neo, the Stupid Swordsman, leaps off a huge tower of stone for some unexplained reason, and is consequently splattered all over the mountainside. Neo shook his head. No, they’ll probably never even know it was me. I’m dead already, I keep forgetting. Come to think of it, they might not even know I jumped. Maybe I was dropped from a great height by the dragon that lives in these mountains.
Speaking of that dragon, where the hell are you?
The sound of howling wind was his only answer.
Neo calmed his rampant thoughts. If I am going to die, I want to die in dignity. Die a hero, even if only to myself. The wind rushed past. A firm resolve gripped the swordsman, and he reached for his sword.
“Bring it on, cliff! I’m ready for you!” A fierce light flashed in his eyes, and he drew the weapon with a flourish that sent him into a pinwheel spin. I’m not afraid.
The ground drew closer. Neo was sure that it would only be a few more seconds now.
Something thick and solid struck the swordsman from beneath, and Neo passed out before he even had the chance to wonder what it was.
___________________________
Captain Rowan leaned out the Overdrive’s window and raised his hand, signaling for the rest of the team to stop. He opened the door and stepped out, one hand resting on the hilt of his longsword, the other scratching his chin.
The clearing ahead was medium-sized, big enough for a scout station to set up comfortably for a few weeks. It met the low foothills that led to Thestalos’s realm at a perfect angle, making it invisible from the north. The Captain nodded and turned to his party.
“We’ll set up here! I want sensors lining the edges of all these hills, and I need our scouts to begin exploring the area immediately north of here. Everyone else, you’re on general setup. Let’s move it, people.” Rowan clapped his hands and moved to the truck behind his Overdrive. Soldiers leapt out, grabbing equipment cases as they did so. The Captain hefted a heavy box of sensor arrays over his shoulder and carried it out to the middle of the field. As he set the case down, a man clad in green steel armor approached him. Rowan straightened.
The man was tall, clad in a green and gray breastplate and wearing a helmet of the same make. His trousers were dark brown, and he wore matching boots. A single longsword hung at his belt, its pommel adorned with a red stone. His face was narrow, and his eyes were an unnatural shade of crimson, like fresh blood, the impression enhanced by a pair of tapered triangular tattoos beneath his eyes. He didn’t salute, battlefield personnel never saluted officers, but he did incline his head respectfully as he spoke.
“Captain Rowan, Grove reporting. I’m in charge of the scouts.”
“Excellent.” Rowan pointed to several cases. “Have your team pick up some of these sensors with them and set them up outside the perimeter. I’d like to have some warning if Caius decides to send an advance party after us.”
“Right away, sir.” Grove motioned for four similarly clad soldiers to join him. “Distribute sensor packages between our units and move out immediately.” The scouts nodded and gathered up the gear. In seconds they had disappeared into the trees surrounding the clearing.
Rowan signaled for the Overdrives. He stopped next to the lead driver. “Organize these vehicles in a semicircle along the side of the camp.” He gestured to the hills. “Be sure that the turrets have interlocking fields of fire. I don’t want to be caught with our pants down when the troops come rumbling over those hills. I want someone on every gun at all times.”
With the Overdrives rolling into position, Rowan attended to the perimeter sensors, making sure they linked properly with the alarm system. Grove’s scouts finished their tasks with alacrity, and Rowan had them set up a series of camouflaged watch positions, in case the sensors failed. Each station had a manual trigger for the alarm. Two of Grove’s scouts would man each position at all times.
As the sun began to set, Rowan laid his head down on his bunk, feeling tired but satisfied. As he drifted off to sleep he reminded himself that the hardest part was yet to come.
___________________________
Caius threw the tent flap aside, his dark cloak flowing with the motion. His violet eyes surveyed the makeshift room and its two inhabitants. Both creatures were large and skeletal, their faces gaunt and stretched, exaggerating any expression they bore. Pulsating muscles rippled next to polished bone, giving the impression that their skin had been forcefully removed. Both beings rose as the monarch entered.
“Caius.” The shorter of the two demons spoke, a gruesome mockery of a smile slithering onto his face. Razor-like teeth flashed as his jaws formed his next words. “How kind of you to see us.”
“It is no trouble at all, Hellion.” The monarch’s tone was guarded. He extended a steel gauntlet, which the demon grasped in its eldritch talon. “The messenger mentioned an alliance you wished to form.”
“Indeed, he spoke truly.” The monster’s grin never faded, though any charm his voice had carried oozed away with each syllable. He gestured widely to his comrade, his dull burgundy cloak fluttering as he did so. “My general, Nexia.” The taller beast inclined its horned head towards the monarch, reminding the emperor that it was a bit taller than he was. He noted the demon’s leathery wings furled behind his back.
“A pleasure.” Caius turned back to Hellion. “Now, your proposal.”
“Yes.” The grin looked even more unnatural now, and the demon’s eyes carried no hint of pleasantness. “I have brought two thousand strong soldiers from my realm to join the war effort against the realms of the living.”
The Shadow Monarch nodded, folding his arms across his chest. “Yes, I see. Is that all?”
Hellion’s smile faltered, but for only a brief moment. “Of course, why?”
Caius stepped forward, so his visor nearly touched the demon’s boneless nose. “Come now, Hellion. You must have some… motive for being here.”
“Other than to help crush the humans and their allies? No!” The demon king gasped. “I’m affronted, Caius! What are you accusing me of?
“Nothing.” The monarch rumbled. “Nothing at all.” He turned around and moved to sit in a chair at the high wooden table in the center of the room. “Report back to your soldiers. A messenger will bring your orders to you when I have some for you.”
“Don’t you need us on the front line?” Hellion replied hesitantly.
Caius laughed. “Thank you, but my forces are handling the situation well. You are dismissed.” He turned towards the map on the tabletop and began to study it with mock interest. The larger demon growled deep in its chest and took a step towards the monarch, but Hellion placed a restraining arm across its chest. Caius looked up from the map at the pair, still standing awkwardly in the middle of the tent.
“You may go.” He nodded courteously to them and returned to surveying the map.
Hellion and his general waited for a few more moments, and then the demon king bowed slightly. “As you…wish.” His voice dripped with poison. Without another word, he turned away and stormed out through the tent flap, Nexia close behind him.
Caius sat at the table until Empyrean stuck her nose underneath the edge of the tent. “Are you coming back out?” The monarch joined her moments later.
“What do you think? Can we trust them?”
Caius shook his head. “Can a demon smile sincerely?”
The dragon chuffed quietly. “I see your point.”
___________________________
Shadows swirled around Neo’s head like black doves, their presence oddly soothing in this vast white nothing. The swordsman turned his head. No bump or blemish marred the expanse of ivory that stretched out in every direction. As he searched, the shadows faded, leaving him naked in his bleached prison.
You come seeking something. The voice boomed from the very air around Neo, thundering in his ears and vibrating his skeleton. But it is not what you were told to seek.
“I suppose you can tell me what I am seeking, then?”
Purpose.
Neo was silent. The omnipotent voice continued to speak. You seek a reason, a reason for your existence, and a reason beyond survival. You have one, but you must discover it on your own.
“Why are you telling me this?”
Existence for its own sake is futile. Each of us needs a reason to live.
“Damn, you sound an awful lot like Sable. Did you guys attend the same seminar or what?”
There was a spark of amusement from the white, not a sound, but a feeling, like a ripple in the air. That ripple became a rush, and then a roar. Neo turned to see an obsidian arrow hurtling towards him out of the white. He instinctively sidestepped, but found that it tracked his progress. As it drew nearer, the shape become more solid, more defined. The tip of the projectile transformed into the snout of a dragon, and the shaft resolved into the same muscular body that Neo had faced in the cave. He braced himself, summoning his energy for another assault.
Just as the dragon was about to collide with him, it dove beneath him, passing through what should have been the ground, where Neo stood. It was still completely visible, but flew below where it should have been able. The swordsman swayed, blinking. Wow, that’s disorienting.
The dragon rose from beneath, coming up directly under Neo. He reached for his sword, which was not there. By the time this fact registered, the dragon was millimeters from his feet. The beast struck him, and he was lifted on its back high above where he was before.
Neo rolled across the black scales, scrabbling to grip the metallic plates across the monster’s neck. The creature banked, and the swordsman cried out as he slipped towards the white below.
You will not fall. Trust me. The dragon snorted, and Neo finally stretched his legs across the beast’s back, straddling its spine. His cloak tugged at his neck, threatening to rip him from his mount, so he reached up and detached it with a quick twist of his wrist. The garment released him, and fluttered in the wind behind, slowly descending into the nothing.
“Where are we?” Neo shouted against the roaring wind.
This place exists only in your mind, young swordsman.
“Then what are you, some sort of fever dream?”
The dragon turned its head to gaze back at its cargo with a single yellow iris. No, I am the same dragon you fought in the caves.
“How are you here, if this is all in my head?” Neo was getting very tired of shouting.
I could not be here unless you allowed me to be here. Which you have.
“I don’t remember sending out invitations.” Neo growled, more out of confusion than any real anger.
Nevertheless, the fact that I am here indicates that some part of your mind has allowed me to enter. The dragon’s pupil sparkled. You brought me here, just as I brought you to the top of that spire.
“Wait, I fell. Does that mean…” Neo swallowed, the taste of bile rising in his throat, “dead?”
The dragon laughed, a low, barking sound. No, little warrior, I caught you. You are merely sleeping.
So, why am I here? Neo wondered.
To discover your purpose, Neo. To look into you own heart.
___________________________
Hellion stomped into the barracks, shoving a simpering aide aside as he passed through. “How dare he speak to me like that!” He aimed a sharp kick at one of the Pandemonium Hounds chained to the wall, causing it to jump and bark angrily. “How dare he treat me like some common sergeant!” With a stab of one clawed finger, he touched the dilation node next to the door to his private chambers, and the portal relaxed, sliding aside with a meaty squish.
The chamber was quite elegant by demon standards, the red muscular tissues of its walls lined with tastefully placed blue and green veins, which oscillated pleasingly each time the room adjusted itself. Purple spines rose from the five corners, sharp spikes extending from each vertebra and plunging delicately into the surrounding flesh. The floor was coated with a vibrant yellow colony of plants, which swayed as the demon king passed by, crooning softly at his footsteps.
From the floor in the middle of the chamber, a desk rose, grown from the same tissue as the rest of the room. A bony armchair sat behind it, tiny spikes rising from its surface as Hellion sat down, gently piercing his skin and rotating ever so slightly. On a normal day the king would have enjoyed such a sensation, but now it only served to irritate him further.
“Damn the monarchs and their foul, earthly pride!” He swung his gold-plated arm across the desktop, knocking a pile of carefully arranged orange stones aside and scattering them on the floor. The yellow moss squeaked in alarm, and then chirruped curiously, some of its stalks poking at the intruders, inspecting them with rapt interest.
The demon king sank back into his chair, his skeletal claws gripping its fleshy arms. “No matter. As long as I can be close by, it matters not what he says.” A thin trickle of blood began to dribble down from the spot where his talons rasped the pulsing muscles. “As soon as I find what I want, I will make him pay for every single word.”
___________________________
The sun sank slowly behind the dark veil of horizon, its light dwindling to nothing. In the few moments before the amber rays disappeared entirely, four streaks of golden energy ripped through the sky, leaving trails of vapor in their wake. They passed over the border to Thestalos’s realm and flew high, just below the cloud line. The dark mass that was Caius’s army took no notice of the brilliant bolts, uninterested in simple phenomena like shooting stars, with a single exception.
Crimson flares examined the golden trails, curiously watching their circling patterns. A pair of pale blue lips pulled back in a snarl. The vampire stalked to the edge of his hilltop and crouched, knuckles sinking slightly into the warm pumice. The lightning bolts whirled once more, and headed back into the southern sky.
___________________________
Steel chains bound a seething dark figure, clattering as he wrestled against their vice-like grip, vying for freedom. His cries of rage were unheeded by five of the six beings surrounding him. Runic symbols lacing across his body flared with multicolored light as he thrashed, causing the marble walls to glitter with each movement.
The creatures surrounding him were all roughly his stature, save one, who stood only half his height, and each gazed impassively at their prisoner, save one.
“You will all be damned for this, my brothers, and you, my traitorous vassal, will not escape this punishment!” The prisoner raved, straining against his bonds. The chains flared with dark energy as he summoned his strength for another assault.
“Who are you to damn us, Caius? It is your actions that would have doomed us all, not ours.” The speaker, clad in sage green and gold armor, raised his hand, splaying his fingers wide. “Accept now the punishment for those who toy with the fates of millions.” The other entities followed suit.
Save one.
Fiery red, ice blue, sage green, incandescent copper, and ebony energy radiated from the raised hands, lacing across the imprisoned titan’s body. Still he struggled, roaring in fury. One of the chains at his wrist snapped, and in the freed hand he summoned a scimitar crafted of crackling black power.
“Zaborg!” The jade titan thundered. “Use you power!”
The white-clad king stood, still as a statue, as the battle of wills raged around him. Caius waved his brand in the air until a mote of icy cerulean extinguished it. The Shadow Monarch lunged forward, the chains holding him fast creaking as his massive weight pushed against them.
“Brother! Please!” He begged, his free hand reaching towards Zaborg, his violet eyes pleading. “Help me!”
Zaborg stood motionless, as though neither monarch’s words had reached him. Raiza cursed, raising both hands to confine Caius as his struggles became more frantic. “Zaborg! You know your duty! Use your power!”
Zaborg flinched, as though a whip had struck him. His eyes closed for a moment, and behind his molded faceplate a tear ran down his pale cheek. His fist clenched, and pure white energy darted across his arms as he raised his hand. A beam of brilliant ivory leapt from his palm, joining the other beacons in their dreadful task. Together they laced around Caius’s body, steadily dragging his limbs towards his body until he was tightly bound, unable to do more than scream. The floor beneath the giant peeled back to reveal a writhing black abyss that seemed to reach out toward the Shadow Monarch, waiting to wrap him in its loving embrace. A long tendril of pulsating darkness reached out to entangle his chest, and drag him slowly into the fog below. With a final shriek, the floor snapped shut like a pair of hungry jaws, leaving behind only the echo of the monarch’s passing.
An unholy silence filled the chamber. The six stood motionless for a time, barely daring to breathe. At last Raiza heaved a sigh and turned away from the tomb. “It is done.” Without another word, he strode towards the exit, breathing heavily. The others quickly followed suit.
Save one.
___________________________
Mataza groaned and coughed, opening his eyes. He was lying on his back, his face pointed skyward. Dust wafted through the air above him, stinging his sensitive irises. The samurai sat up, feeling his muscles shriek as he did so. The setting sun cast its golden rays across the landscape, illuminating the carnage that had been wrought throughout the day. Columns of black smoke rose from glowing craters, and corpses littered the uneven pumice beneath Mataza’s feet.
Thought drifted back into the green-clad warrior’s mind, and he leapt to his feet with vigor, running to the top of the hill. He looked down at the place where Daemon had clashed with the frenzied mage in what was left of Thestalos’s command center.
The command center had been flattened and scattered across the plain, there were no discernible remains. A sharp wind picked up, carrying with it the scent of charred carbon. Mataza fell to his knees on the hilltop, stabbing his katana into the stone. He pressed his palms together in front of his chest and bowed, whispering a prayer for the demon mage, now gone to his final rest beside his gods.
“Get up, samurai.”
Mataza’s head whipped around, his hand instinctively grabbing the hilt of his weapon. “You…”
Daemon stood a few feet away, his body completely unblemished by any mark. “How did you survive?” The samurai’s voice was hoarse as he spoke. The vampire had been mere feet from the epicenter of the explosion; he should have been nothing more than a wisp of greasy black smoke.
Daemon smiled, showing a pair of sharp canines. “I’m magical.” His voice was light and flirtatious. “Sometime I’ll have to show you.”
Even after a brush with death, this guy’s still creepy as all hell. Mataza raised an eyebrow. “I’ll pass, thank you.”
“A pity.” The vampire sighed and turned away. “Someday soon you’ll see things my way, Mataza.”
The samurai tensed. “What exactly does that mean?” His grip on his katana tightened.
Any explanation the vivacious man might have been planning was interrupted by the tornadic wing beat of a gigantic dark bird that swooped down from the heavens, coming to rest on the lava plain only a few dozen feet from where the two commanders stood. Caius slid down from his mount’s back and strode quickly towards them. Mataza ducked his head, and Daemon sank to one knee, averting his gaze.
“My lord.” The vampire’s tone was reverent.
“Rise, warriors.” Caius came to a halt between the two, a few steps past where Daemon knelt. The two men did as they were bayed, and waited silently for their leader’s next utterance.
“Thestalos must have fled.” The Shadow Monarch clenched his gauntleted fists. “No doubt his faithful mage covered his escape. Let us examine the martyr’s grave; I suspect we will find my brother’s means in the ashes.”
___________________________
It didn’t take long for the trio to uncover the Firestorm Monarch’s escape route; a stone plug covered the entrance to an underground tunnel. Caius summoned several Zomas to investigate. The demons found several forking passageways beneath the ground. Unfortunately, the heated stone all but ruined their sense of smell, making it impossible to tell which path Thestalos had followed.
Caius turned to Mataza and Daemon. “Sweep the tunnels. Take as large a force as you need. If you find Thestalos, inform me immediately.”
“Yes, lord.” The two commanders bowed and turned away. Caius started towards his mount, sitting atop the hill, when a voice called his name.
The speaker was a violet serpent, a member of the White-Horned Dragon’s regiment. The monster flew down to land lightly in front of the monarch, bowing its head. “I come with a message from our leader, Empyrean.”
Caius folded his arms across his chest. “Speak, dragon.”
The beast nodded its arrow like head and straightened its two stubby legs, flexing its razor sharp talons. “You have two visitors, from the provinces far west of your kingdom. They have brought an entourage and they…request an alliance, sir.”
The monarch’s brow furrowed beneath his helmet. The only province west of my kingdom is… “Thank you, dragon, I shall meet with them at once.” The beast bowed. “Take a message to the Shadowpriestess of Ohm, I wish to see her on the front line. I will meet with her as soon as I am finished with our guests. You may go.”
As Caius leapt onto his mount, he wondered, what would a king of demons desire from the realm of the living?
___________________________
The dark avian touched down next to Caius’s field tent. The White-Horned Dragon waited for him by the entrance, curled up like a cat in a patch of sun. It raised its head as the Shadow Monarch approached.
“Caius!” The dragon’s voice was gravelly, but not unpleasant, and distinctly feminine in quality, carrying a welcoming tone. The monster bumped its head gently against the monarch’s chest, and he reached up to scratch the scaly ridge above its right eye.
“Empyrean.” Caius’s eyes smiled as his friend rumbled deep in her throat, and he moved his hand down to rub the bridge of her nose. “You said I have visitors.”
“Two demons.” The dragon purred distractedly. “They brought a small party of winged monsters with them. I’m sure you’ve already figured out who they are.”
“Yes…” Caius murmured, gazing at the thick fabric that served as a doorway. “But what is he doing here?”
“No doubt he has more on his mind than adding his forces to yours.” Empyrean shifted her head to look up at her companion. “Watch your back. I know you can take them in a fight, but they might have something else planned.”
Caius nodded. “If I need assistance, I’ll call for you.” He gave her one last affectionate scratch and turned towards the tent.
“Good luck.”
___________________________
Neo plummeted like a stone, the wind ripping into him like a massive scythe. His skin shrieked in irritation as drops of rain struck him in the face like shards of ice, biting his cheeks and poking his eyes viciously. He wondered if this would be the last thing he ever did.
Wow, what an engaging tale. Neo, the Stupid Swordsman, leaps off a huge tower of stone for some unexplained reason, and is consequently splattered all over the mountainside. Neo shook his head. No, they’ll probably never even know it was me. I’m dead already, I keep forgetting. Come to think of it, they might not even know I jumped. Maybe I was dropped from a great height by the dragon that lives in these mountains.
Speaking of that dragon, where the hell are you?
The sound of howling wind was his only answer.
Neo calmed his rampant thoughts. If I am going to die, I want to die in dignity. Die a hero, even if only to myself. The wind rushed past. A firm resolve gripped the swordsman, and he reached for his sword.
“Bring it on, cliff! I’m ready for you!” A fierce light flashed in his eyes, and he drew the weapon with a flourish that sent him into a pinwheel spin. I’m not afraid.
The ground drew closer. Neo was sure that it would only be a few more seconds now.
Something thick and solid struck the swordsman from beneath, and Neo passed out before he even had the chance to wonder what it was.
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Captain Rowan leaned out the Overdrive’s window and raised his hand, signaling for the rest of the team to stop. He opened the door and stepped out, one hand resting on the hilt of his longsword, the other scratching his chin.
The clearing ahead was medium-sized, big enough for a scout station to set up comfortably for a few weeks. It met the low foothills that led to Thestalos’s realm at a perfect angle, making it invisible from the north. The Captain nodded and turned to his party.
“We’ll set up here! I want sensors lining the edges of all these hills, and I need our scouts to begin exploring the area immediately north of here. Everyone else, you’re on general setup. Let’s move it, people.” Rowan clapped his hands and moved to the truck behind his Overdrive. Soldiers leapt out, grabbing equipment cases as they did so. The Captain hefted a heavy box of sensor arrays over his shoulder and carried it out to the middle of the field. As he set the case down, a man clad in green steel armor approached him. Rowan straightened.
The man was tall, clad in a green and gray breastplate and wearing a helmet of the same make. His trousers were dark brown, and he wore matching boots. A single longsword hung at his belt, its pommel adorned with a red stone. His face was narrow, and his eyes were an unnatural shade of crimson, like fresh blood, the impression enhanced by a pair of tapered triangular tattoos beneath his eyes. He didn’t salute, battlefield personnel never saluted officers, but he did incline his head respectfully as he spoke.
“Captain Rowan, Grove reporting. I’m in charge of the scouts.”
“Excellent.” Rowan pointed to several cases. “Have your team pick up some of these sensors with them and set them up outside the perimeter. I’d like to have some warning if Caius decides to send an advance party after us.”
“Right away, sir.” Grove motioned for four similarly clad soldiers to join him. “Distribute sensor packages between our units and move out immediately.” The scouts nodded and gathered up the gear. In seconds they had disappeared into the trees surrounding the clearing.
Rowan signaled for the Overdrives. He stopped next to the lead driver. “Organize these vehicles in a semicircle along the side of the camp.” He gestured to the hills. “Be sure that the turrets have interlocking fields of fire. I don’t want to be caught with our pants down when the troops come rumbling over those hills. I want someone on every gun at all times.”
With the Overdrives rolling into position, Rowan attended to the perimeter sensors, making sure they linked properly with the alarm system. Grove’s scouts finished their tasks with alacrity, and Rowan had them set up a series of camouflaged watch positions, in case the sensors failed. Each station had a manual trigger for the alarm. Two of Grove’s scouts would man each position at all times.
As the sun began to set, Rowan laid his head down on his bunk, feeling tired but satisfied. As he drifted off to sleep he reminded himself that the hardest part was yet to come.
___________________________
Caius threw the tent flap aside, his dark cloak flowing with the motion. His violet eyes surveyed the makeshift room and its two inhabitants. Both creatures were large and skeletal, their faces gaunt and stretched, exaggerating any expression they bore. Pulsating muscles rippled next to polished bone, giving the impression that their skin had been forcefully removed. Both beings rose as the monarch entered.
“Caius.” The shorter of the two demons spoke, a gruesome mockery of a smile slithering onto his face. Razor-like teeth flashed as his jaws formed his next words. “How kind of you to see us.”
“It is no trouble at all, Hellion.” The monarch’s tone was guarded. He extended a steel gauntlet, which the demon grasped in its eldritch talon. “The messenger mentioned an alliance you wished to form.”
“Indeed, he spoke truly.” The monster’s grin never faded, though any charm his voice had carried oozed away with each syllable. He gestured widely to his comrade, his dull burgundy cloak fluttering as he did so. “My general, Nexia.” The taller beast inclined its horned head towards the monarch, reminding the emperor that it was a bit taller than he was. He noted the demon’s leathery wings furled behind his back.
“A pleasure.” Caius turned back to Hellion. “Now, your proposal.”
“Yes.” The grin looked even more unnatural now, and the demon’s eyes carried no hint of pleasantness. “I have brought two thousand strong soldiers from my realm to join the war effort against the realms of the living.”
The Shadow Monarch nodded, folding his arms across his chest. “Yes, I see. Is that all?”
Hellion’s smile faltered, but for only a brief moment. “Of course, why?”
Caius stepped forward, so his visor nearly touched the demon’s boneless nose. “Come now, Hellion. You must have some… motive for being here.”
“Other than to help crush the humans and their allies? No!” The demon king gasped. “I’m affronted, Caius! What are you accusing me of?
“Nothing.” The monarch rumbled. “Nothing at all.” He turned around and moved to sit in a chair at the high wooden table in the center of the room. “Report back to your soldiers. A messenger will bring your orders to you when I have some for you.”
“Don’t you need us on the front line?” Hellion replied hesitantly.
Caius laughed. “Thank you, but my forces are handling the situation well. You are dismissed.” He turned towards the map on the tabletop and began to study it with mock interest. The larger demon growled deep in its chest and took a step towards the monarch, but Hellion placed a restraining arm across its chest. Caius looked up from the map at the pair, still standing awkwardly in the middle of the tent.
“You may go.” He nodded courteously to them and returned to surveying the map.
Hellion and his general waited for a few more moments, and then the demon king bowed slightly. “As you…wish.” His voice dripped with poison. Without another word, he turned away and stormed out through the tent flap, Nexia close behind him.
Caius sat at the table until Empyrean stuck her nose underneath the edge of the tent. “Are you coming back out?” The monarch joined her moments later.
“What do you think? Can we trust them?”
Caius shook his head. “Can a demon smile sincerely?”
The dragon chuffed quietly. “I see your point.”
___________________________
Shadows swirled around Neo’s head like black doves, their presence oddly soothing in this vast white nothing. The swordsman turned his head. No bump or blemish marred the expanse of ivory that stretched out in every direction. As he searched, the shadows faded, leaving him naked in his bleached prison.
You come seeking something. The voice boomed from the very air around Neo, thundering in his ears and vibrating his skeleton. But it is not what you were told to seek.
“I suppose you can tell me what I am seeking, then?”
Purpose.
Neo was silent. The omnipotent voice continued to speak. You seek a reason, a reason for your existence, and a reason beyond survival. You have one, but you must discover it on your own.
“Why are you telling me this?”
Existence for its own sake is futile. Each of us needs a reason to live.
“Damn, you sound an awful lot like Sable. Did you guys attend the same seminar or what?”
There was a spark of amusement from the white, not a sound, but a feeling, like a ripple in the air. That ripple became a rush, and then a roar. Neo turned to see an obsidian arrow hurtling towards him out of the white. He instinctively sidestepped, but found that it tracked his progress. As it drew nearer, the shape become more solid, more defined. The tip of the projectile transformed into the snout of a dragon, and the shaft resolved into the same muscular body that Neo had faced in the cave. He braced himself, summoning his energy for another assault.
Just as the dragon was about to collide with him, it dove beneath him, passing through what should have been the ground, where Neo stood. It was still completely visible, but flew below where it should have been able. The swordsman swayed, blinking. Wow, that’s disorienting.
The dragon rose from beneath, coming up directly under Neo. He reached for his sword, which was not there. By the time this fact registered, the dragon was millimeters from his feet. The beast struck him, and he was lifted on its back high above where he was before.
Neo rolled across the black scales, scrabbling to grip the metallic plates across the monster’s neck. The creature banked, and the swordsman cried out as he slipped towards the white below.
You will not fall. Trust me. The dragon snorted, and Neo finally stretched his legs across the beast’s back, straddling its spine. His cloak tugged at his neck, threatening to rip him from his mount, so he reached up and detached it with a quick twist of his wrist. The garment released him, and fluttered in the wind behind, slowly descending into the nothing.
“Where are we?” Neo shouted against the roaring wind.
This place exists only in your mind, young swordsman.
“Then what are you, some sort of fever dream?”
The dragon turned its head to gaze back at its cargo with a single yellow iris. No, I am the same dragon you fought in the caves.
“How are you here, if this is all in my head?” Neo was getting very tired of shouting.
I could not be here unless you allowed me to be here. Which you have.
“I don’t remember sending out invitations.” Neo growled, more out of confusion than any real anger.
Nevertheless, the fact that I am here indicates that some part of your mind has allowed me to enter. The dragon’s pupil sparkled. You brought me here, just as I brought you to the top of that spire.
“Wait, I fell. Does that mean…” Neo swallowed, the taste of bile rising in his throat, “dead?”
The dragon laughed, a low, barking sound. No, little warrior, I caught you. You are merely sleeping.
So, why am I here? Neo wondered.
To discover your purpose, Neo. To look into you own heart.
___________________________
Hellion stomped into the barracks, shoving a simpering aide aside as he passed through. “How dare he speak to me like that!” He aimed a sharp kick at one of the Pandemonium Hounds chained to the wall, causing it to jump and bark angrily. “How dare he treat me like some common sergeant!” With a stab of one clawed finger, he touched the dilation node next to the door to his private chambers, and the portal relaxed, sliding aside with a meaty squish.
The chamber was quite elegant by demon standards, the red muscular tissues of its walls lined with tastefully placed blue and green veins, which oscillated pleasingly each time the room adjusted itself. Purple spines rose from the five corners, sharp spikes extending from each vertebra and plunging delicately into the surrounding flesh. The floor was coated with a vibrant yellow colony of plants, which swayed as the demon king passed by, crooning softly at his footsteps.
From the floor in the middle of the chamber, a desk rose, grown from the same tissue as the rest of the room. A bony armchair sat behind it, tiny spikes rising from its surface as Hellion sat down, gently piercing his skin and rotating ever so slightly. On a normal day the king would have enjoyed such a sensation, but now it only served to irritate him further.
“Damn the monarchs and their foul, earthly pride!” He swung his gold-plated arm across the desktop, knocking a pile of carefully arranged orange stones aside and scattering them on the floor. The yellow moss squeaked in alarm, and then chirruped curiously, some of its stalks poking at the intruders, inspecting them with rapt interest.
The demon king sank back into his chair, his skeletal claws gripping its fleshy arms. “No matter. As long as I can be close by, it matters not what he says.” A thin trickle of blood began to dribble down from the spot where his talons rasped the pulsing muscles. “As soon as I find what I want, I will make him pay for every single word.”
___________________________
The sun sank slowly behind the dark veil of horizon, its light dwindling to nothing. In the few moments before the amber rays disappeared entirely, four streaks of golden energy ripped through the sky, leaving trails of vapor in their wake. They passed over the border to Thestalos’s realm and flew high, just below the cloud line. The dark mass that was Caius’s army took no notice of the brilliant bolts, uninterested in simple phenomena like shooting stars, with a single exception.
Crimson flares examined the golden trails, curiously watching their circling patterns. A pair of pale blue lips pulled back in a snarl. The vampire stalked to the edge of his hilltop and crouched, knuckles sinking slightly into the warm pumice. The lightning bolts whirled once more, and headed back into the southern sky.
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