Re: A New Begining
Yes, the world would be a horrible place without me.
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Slade follows the group though the vampire leaves some distance between them as he always seemed to do. Every now and then, however, George could feel those cold eyes on his back as if Slade were waiting for something. But then they were gone, the blonde returning his gaze to the never-ending sea of sand. George sighs. The Jedi had decided that Slade was a complex creature even he might never truly understand.
He wasn't even entirely sure if he wanted to understand him. Not yet at least. The vampire might have saved his life but that didn't change what he was. And it sure as hell didn't atone for what he'd done. Then again, that was what made Slade so... interesting. He didn't want to be understood, and he didn't want a few good actions −no matter their weight −to cleanse him of past wrongs. He had long ago accepted his damnation. Perhaps that was why the Sur'haai pitied him.
Kal stops suddenly, the Mandalorian bending down as bandaged fingers trace ancient symbols in the sand. "It's here," he whispers absently in Mando'a.
Safira nods, waving George towards them. "The Temple's directly beneath us. Kal can only open the passageway for a short amount of time so we should be quick about this. However, I will not fall for the same trick twice," she quickly adds.
"The Orik'baar will attempt to flank us and trap us inside the Temple. The Shade should be more than capable of handling any threat we face within, but I suggest leaving behind some men with Kal to fortify this position and deal with the Orik'baar reinforcements."
o.O.o
It was always a city, a massive metropolis filled to the brim with towering skyscrapers but not a single person other than the demon which always seemed the haunt his subconscious. Piercing eyes warily watch the figure before him, muscles tensing in anticipation as adrenaline-laced blood courses through his veins. The figure looks up abruptly, gold on black eyes burning into the remains of Kain's soul as Hakai rises to his feet, a menacing grin curling those cruel lips as he twirls a doubled-bladed lightsaber hilt in his fingers.
"Hiya King," he welcomes in that distorted baritone voice which somehow managed to send a sharp chill down Kain's spine. "Long time no see."
Kain immediately draws an identical lightsaber from his belt, red and black clashing in a blaze of dark colors as Kain blocks Hakai's mad attacks. The black-haired demon laughs psychotically, suddenly pushing against their locked blades with a tremendous amount of Force pressure which sends Kain flying back into a nearby building.
The redhead coughs, waving the cloud of dirt and smoke away from his face in an attempt to get a clear line of sight, pieces of rubble rolling off his shoulders. He roars with building rage, unleashing a burst of Force energy in a blind attempt to hit Hakai and rid himself of this nightmare. Hakai smirks, raising a quick arm, the appendage acting as a sword, slicing the beam of energy in half, effectively causing it to miss its intended target.
Kain emerges from the wrecked section of the building now, green eyes burning with golden fires.
"When will ya learn, King?" Hakai wonders, golden eyes gleaming with power as he continues to twirl his blackened lightsaber in his fingers. "The more ya try 'nd fight me, the easier it becomes for me to take over your body. The more ya struggle," he adds sinisterly, a devious tongue flicking out to lick his lips hungrily, "the deeper I sink my teeth into that delicious soul of yours."
Kain growls, eyes narrowing coldly. "Is that so? If that's tha case, then if I kick your ass in 'ere," the redhead concludes confidently, "I'll regain control of my body."
"You? Beat me?" Hakai's own eyes narrow in defiance. "That ain't happenin'."
"Ya sound so damn sure 'bout that," Kain remarks.
They move as one, Kain and Hakai, each drawing their own version of Mekura from her hidden sheath, the silver knife plunged deep into the raging heart of their lightsabers as their voices seem to merge to become one and the same.
"Enrage... Kyōbōna!"
...Ilum, Valley of Glass; Crystal Caverns...
Dmitri pulls his lightsaber from the chest of the great wolf, the weapon humming with dark hunger. The Guardian would not have left this creature's side willingly, and yet there were no signs of struggle or any great battle. Golden eyes mingled with traces of red linger on the hilt of Kurogitsune as he deactivates the blackened blade.
This would be interesting...
...Ilum, Valley of Glass; The Crystal Temple...
The giant ice door suddenly shatters into millions of tiny pieces, falling down around them like crystalline snow. Sangria takes a deep breath before turning to face the two vampires, motioning towards the large ice pillar in the center of the next room.
"There... there is your Key," she states cooly, disgusted with herself for even agreeing to this. But it was for Alaric... if she could protect nothing else she would protect him. No matter the cost. "Remember our deal, tappa. You will take the Key and leave Alaric and I in peace. You will never return."
Sabien bows slightly. "Of course, valsai'ium."
A feral grin curls Daisuke's lips. "But first..."
Sangria is suddenly thrown against the wall with such incredible force that she drops her axe, Daisuke and Sabien using the opportunity to drive their lightsabers into her shoulders, keeping her pinned against the cavern wall like some trophy.
"Te'ekam!" she shouts, struggling to get free. The souls trapped inside the vampire's cursed blades, however, were consuming her power. The more she tried to use it, the weaker she became. "Coett i'vekii!"
Sabien chuckles darkly. "Exactly valsai'ium," he explains with a small smile, his nails extending into vicious claws which torturously tear away at the flesh of Sangria's chest, "we had a deal..."
...Near the Gate of Mukem...
His eyes widen in shock, his lungs robbed of air in a sharp gasp as his gaze focuses on the tip of the white blade less than an inch away from his face. I-Impossible! It had to be...
"You seem rather surprised, Tyrael," a disturbingly calm voice observes, dark power slithering across his skin, leaving him utterly helpless. The tip of the sword suddenly pushes against his chin, the valsai'ium forced to raise his head and meet eyes which burn like the fires around them. "Did you truly believe your pathetic chains could hold me? You're more naive than I suspected."
"You... you escaped," Tyrael manages, dark blood leaking past the gauntleted hand pressed desperately against his abdomen. "H-how?"
Mortis chuckles softly. "And still you are blind, valsai'ium. It was never a matter of how but when. I allowed myself to be captured, allowed Central 49 to judge me as they pleased, and allowed you to bring me to this desolate hell... all that I might break the Eighth Gate's seal..."
Tyrael's heart skips a beat as Mortis fingers softly land on his exposed chest, the vampire wise enough to keep his blade at the valsai'ium's throat. "I... I don't understand. The... the Eighth Gate... you need..."
Mortis closes his eyes on a small smile. "Is it truly that difficult to understand?" the vampire ponders, his nails beginning to sharpen like claws as they trace a circle above his captive's frantic heart. Tyrael's eyes widen in sudden realization, Mortis's dark words sending unbearable power coursing through his veins.
"The cycle repeats..."
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Whoo! I did it! Another post. Hell yeah. ^_^ Okay... explaining time.
Vampire Vocabulary:
Te'ekam! Coett i'vekii!: You bastards! We had a deal!
You can have the group enter the Temple and wander about and stuff but there's something kinda significant I have planned so don't have them reach the Orik'baar god or anything yet. Now the whole ordeal with Kain and Hakai is actually inside Kain's mind [which is why it's not in italics]. It's real so if Kain dies he actually dies in reality and Hakai takes control of 'their' body or vice versa so it's a real struggle... just in Kain's mind.
Regarding Kain's weapons: I explained in another post that Kain has two remaining pieces of his soul. Thusly, as a Force vampire, he has a weapon to represent each. Mekura was introduced early on as a silver knife. Hakai is an incredibly powerful red doubled-bladed lightsaber [Hakai's version in Kain's mind is black].
Kain and Hakai are essentially identical beings so they can use the same power or abilities -which includes summoning Kyōbōna. Kyōbōna is Kain's first release [all fullbring have two releases while purebred vampires only have one]. Kyōbōna is a result of Kain merging Hakai and Mekura into a single devastating weapon [which we'll see in the next post hopefully].
A fullbring's first release is nowhere near the power of a purebred's release which is why I'm elaborating on it. Kain's final release [the equivalent of a purebred's release] will be revealed later. Hope all this is making sense.
Alaric and Sangria are dead? Had to be done...
Mortis never ceases to surprise ya does he? I'm so proud. ^_^ It's not over yet though. I mean sure he's escaped and all but there's still like 40-something valsai'ium who aren't going to be too happy that he's escaped. Plus Gaiden. Can't forget Gaiden. So this will be interesting to see how Central 49 reacts to Mortis's escapes and what exactly the Vampire King needs to break the Eighth Gate's seal... besides the seven keys of course.
Oh, and that sword up there Mortis is holding? Yeah that's Kodaiou. Mortis is pretty much a god so yeah, he can summon his sword no matter where he is. Cause he's bad ass like that.