A New Begining (Page 194 of 214)

George was surprised. He didn't expect that. That's what happens when you go about lying... His hand was on the barrel of his lightsaber ready to be pulled out. His eyes were battling with Riordans He made a sigh and just said one word: "Vampires."

George you use to many links . and starr stop using so much bleach stuff such as Zangetsu(bankai) cheater

Hush, hush, Konah dear. I’ll have none of that. Bleach is awesome enough to be used in any situation. ^_^ Besides... I used a real version of Zangetsu. Not an anime picture so it does't count. And I’ll use other anime than Bleach... eventually. Like Death Note or Durarara or something.
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A vision of Razvan ripping out his father's heart flashes before George's eyes for an instant, causing him to close them on a heavy sigh. Shouten Yaiba seems to quiet substantially, the weapon's whispers confined to Riordan's own thoughts.

"He is no pawn, Riordan. His taint is much like your own... a fire without wood to sustain it soon dies out."

Riordan remains indifferent. "It is not so easy to cast aside, Shouten. I of all people know this well."

While Shouten is silent, Riordan watches George and finally speaks up again. "This one... he does not realize the affairs he involves himself in. He seeks knowledge of the Elders in a brash effort to gain power. In such a quest he only feeds his raging hunger and hastens into the snares laid before him."

"Each tainted soul must learn to cope differently, Riordan. Do not be so harsh. It is our duty to aid him. Perhaps in aiding him... we may also aid ourselves."

Riordan's voice fills with spite. "Freedom is far beyond our grasp now, Shouten. The taint remains and I will not be able to ignore its call much longer."

"Then we shall seek the only thing greater than freedom, my Lord..."

Suddenly, Riordan's blade shatters inwardly, the thousands of tiny pieces retreating to inside the handle of the sword. Riordan sighs. "Yes, I know of what you speak. I have come across such creatures myself many times before..."

Sorry, dear. Sometimes I get rushed when typing and lots of typos pop up. I generally catch them but occasionally one slips by me.
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Riordan closes his eyes, slipping the handle of his sword back into his robes. "Even if I possessed the ability to wield a lightsaber, I would not. Shouten Yaiba was a gift from a man I revered more than anything. He has served me faithfully through the years and he does not falter. What more could I ask?"

George found himself wondering why Riordan referred to his sword as if it were alive. Questions for another time perhaps. Riordan opens his eyes calmly at George's mention of the darkside, leaving his hand resting in the folds of his robes, his gaze falling on George once more with a chilling glare he didn't hide.

"You are tainted, Jedi... even now his black poison courses through your veins. There is no escaping it... no denying its hunger. You have a limited amount of time until it drives you mad and consumes you. You will become one of them or you will find his insatiable fangs at your throat. Your only salvation lies in the dead corpse of him who marked you..."

A faint growl escapes the noble's throat. "Razvan..."

"The black poison belongs to none other, Riordan..."

"Yes, I am aware. Still... to hear his name uttered after all these years..." A brief pause which seems to last for eternity. "Shouten..." he whispers, deep longing in his voice.

"I understand, my Lord..."

Shouten Yaiba glows faintly beneath the noble's robes, Riordan's hand closing tighter around the grip. As the years passed it had become harder and harder for Riordan to ignore the burning desire within himself. He wanted to find Razvan. Needed to kill him. But to do so would have only quickened the poison's flow through his body. He understood this.

It had taken years of meditation and constant training to quiet the roar, to keep his mind calm and distant or otherwise occupied. Shouten Yaiba occasionally had to lend the noble his own strength to keep the man going. And now this.... However, with another who's taint was so fresh perhaps things would be different. But only fools rush in.

"You alone will never be able to defeat him," Riordan begins, hiding the strain of discussing such a sensitive topic, his voice as icy as ever. "You're going after a monster which has taken on the most powerful Jedi Masters of numerous generations and squashed them like they were nothing more than troublesome cockroaches, consuming them until their powers merged with his own."

"And that... has made his power unimaginable. His lightsaber..." he pauses, fear and fascination creeping into his voice, "when they merge, when he forces their souls into one body... it's the most frightening thing I've ever seen..."
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Ooh, we're getting hints at Razvan's powers... wonder what they could be!

Riordan closes his eye on a sigh. "Indeed... I am tainted much like you, Jedi." A pause as his fingers run over the familiar grip of Shouten Yaiba still hidden in his robes. "Shouten Yaiba and I were corrupted some fifty years ago."

George is completely shocked. Fifty years?! Riordan didn't seem any older than twenty-five. Unless... there was another explanation for his agelessness...

"But we're just mortals, Jedi," he continues. "We could never defeat Razvan with our level of power. Their master Mortis is even further beyond our reach."

"Riordan..."

Another sigh. "However, were you to obtain the power of the Elders... there is a greater chance Razvan would fall to your blade."
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It'll happen somehow. But you haven't seen the full extent of Razvan's power yet. He gets even more bad ass. Way more bad ass. ^_^

I'm not sure if I'd go as far as to say that. I mean Mortis could possibly do something like that if he wanted to (since he is the leader of the Force vampires after all) but it is really unlikely he'd ever be in a situation where that use of his powers is necessary.

And each vampire is different. Just because they feed on the Force does not mean they're fighting style and powers are entirely warped by it. Razvan is a very special vampire. You'll see what I mean when you engage him in later. XD

Be back to post later.
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Oh no. Vampire hierarchy is very simplistic and brutal: they only bow to another when they've been thoroughly beaten by said being (as in almost killed). Only the strongest can claim the title Master Vampire.

Thus, Mortis is by far, far, far the most powerful vampire. Razvan is special because he mimics Mortis's powers to some extent and then uses his own as a sort of... amplifier I guess. You'll see later. ^_^

And this is more my style.
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"You misunderstand, Jedi," Riordan corrects him. "Yes, the life can be ripped from their bodies and they die just as any other being but the only way to truly kill them is to burn the heart. However, even then they possess incredible capabilities we will never be able to grasp completely."

Shouten Yaiba hums low through the Force, the sound much like a slow beating heart. Black smoke swirls around the sword's grip and Riordan subconsciously pulls his hand from his robes, shaking it so that the smoke disperses. George barely catches the faint and eerie whispers he believes is emitted by the weapon itself. "Ashes rise now and become my shield... flames burn now and become my blade..."

Riordan looks down at his hand briefly, as if studying it. "Their bodies can regenerate at immense speeds. Not only that but if Mortis's age is anything to go by then feeding off other living organisms replenishes their own life or can even be used to heal wounds. They are ageless. Immortal."

"Long ago... they used to be plentiful. Thousands of them spread across the universe. The Elders and others banned together to cleanse life of the 'dark taint' it had allowed to emerge. After all, it is the evil within men's souls which gives birth to these cursed creatures," he adds, shame buried somewhere within his voice.

"They created something... I... I'm not sure I understand how or even what it was exactly. The vampires numbers rapidly diminished into a mere dozen; the entire species on the very verge of extinction. But in the end, victory was stolen from the Elders and their allies and the glory they had known... came at a grave cost. Mortis eradicated their entire civilizations like they were nothing...."

A pause. Reflection. "All that was left of once great empires is but what remains today: buried secrets and rubble." He sighs. "If there is any power which can be used against one of the vampire blood... then it lies in an Elder tomb. Perhaps the very one which you saw in your vision, Jedi."

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Okay, I realize this may get confusing (cause I even get lost from time to time), Shouten Yaiba is now in what is referred to as his 'sealed' state. The blade has 'shattered' and now only the handle remains. This is what Riordan is holding just on the inside of his robes.

There is a slit inside the fold of Riordan's robes where the handle usually rests, allowing easy access or (as you see here) him to use it to merely keep Shouten close at hand. Shouten acts to comfort and calm Riordan in many situations much as a Jedi's lightsaber does the same.

Hell yeah. ^_^
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Riordan pushes the bottle away from him in a polite manner with a simple shake of his head. "No thank you, Jedi."

Despite the Riordan's history, he is still a noble of the Malinov Family. He had to keep his wits about him; they were the only thing which had allowed him to outsmart and survive the taint thus far.

"Indeed, that would be the wisest course of action. As I mentioned before I will aid you however I am able. My knowledge and blade are yours in this quest. But... I must warn you, Jedi..." Riordan's voice lowers with a dark tone.

"Mortis did not gain his power by mere brute strength. A king is no fool; especially one who has lived tens of thousands of years. The Elders and their allies were the first to rise against the vampires and almost succeed. Whatever their power was... it remains as the greatest threat to him and his underlings. No doubt the Master Vampire entrusted guardians to keep the Elders' secrets from being unburied..."