Uskius
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Once Bitten
I raise the draught to my lips, hoping it won't kill me. "Are you sure about this?"
I look over to my companion Marna, who has an eyebrow cocked. "Yes. I have this all planned- increase my power the good old-fashioned Nightbane way; this is the first step."
"Nightbane was special, Uskius. He was a dracopyre like none other will be. That potion... could just ruin your mind, or make your curse uncontrollable..."
I sigh. As always, Marna has to be the voice of reason and spoil the mood. But she's right- Nightbane grew in strength over time, gradually ascending to the top of the Darkovian food chain. What I'm about to do is condensed years of dark magic and blood, drunk all at once. But it's not like I haven't grown in strength naturally- I have drunk the blood of dragons, werewolves, an insecure thief disguised as a woman(who really should have known better), and vampires, becoming more than just a mere dracopyre(if there is such a thing). I'm a beast of many bloods, human and monster, all at once. "Well. There's only one way to find out." I slam the first flask, the mixture of dragon, werewolf, and vampire blood cascading down my throat. I frown as I swallow; I'm not overly fond of drinking blood in human form. The second goes down just as fast, but the third takes a moment to go through. I finish it slowly, taking small sips. Marna has a quizzical look on her face, dark eyes searching. "Not so bad, actually. I feel just-WRRRRRRYYYYYYYY!!!" I flail around for a second, until Marna slaps me on the back of the head. I chuckle, but she's not amused. "I do feel fine, Marna. But..." I note the hot, churning feeling in my stomach. "I think I need to get some fresh air, and transform." Marna nods, and turns to stare at the empty flasks on the table.
Stepping out of my cabin, I immediately feel the moonlight on my skin, a cool burning sensation. The feeling in my stomach grows stronger, and I barely make it out to my orchard before I transform. I involuntarily roar, the world blurring as my senses sharpen and flesh shifts. Shaking my head, things come clear: the strong scent of the dirt and the trees, and I realize that the unfamiliar but pleasant scent in the direction of my cabin must be Marna. I feel maddeningly alive, my existence magnified. The moonlight feels glorious, the pale shafts streaking through the trees seeming more like sunlight breaking through the clouds after a storm. I blink, my senses are sharper, check. Whether there are any other changes I'll soon find out. I jump up and unexpectedly bump into a tree branch, but recover quickly and stretch out my wings, twisting through the canopy and flying off. Faster reflexes, check. I surmise that I'll have improved strength, too, but I'm not in the mood to go hunting right now- I just want to fly. And fly I do, circling wide around my estate and hunting grounds. I savor the rush of the wind beneath my wings, and after several moments return to my cabin.
Landing gracefully, I focus for a moment and shift back into human form, and step back inside. "Feeling better?"
"Yes, very much better."
"Uskius," Marna says, taking a step closer. "Leave off this next step you have planned. I saw that look before you ran out, and your pupils are so wide I feel like I could stick my pinky in them. I think this was a bit too much for all at once."
"This was a rush, I'll admit. But I think I'll be able to handle step two now." I exhale. "I'm sure of it."
"Just remember what happened to Jaques," Marna says, as she walks over to my potion shelf and picks ups the flask holding the blood of The Eternal Dragon of Time, "Before you drink the blood of the Mana Dragon and whatever vampires and werewolves."
"Point taken. And I guess this means I'll be sleeping in the chair?"
"I put the pillow on the table while you were out."
In spite of myself I smile, and walk over to sit down. There's a short silence, and Marna comes to stand beside me. I glance up at her, and think of why I hatched this plan in the first place. "...Which side will you take?"
"You can't be sure fighting will break out. Don't they have a truce?"
"Did. Apparently they think a dracopyre's hunting grounds are a neutral zone where it's safe to bury bodies, because I've found plenty of vampires and werewolves on the Darkovia side of mine."
"But not any more than normal, I'd imagine."
"Far more than normal. The Darkovian vampires know better, and at least try to cover their trails when they pass through; the werewolves generally head straight for my estate instead of dumping things off at the edges."
"I think Safiria would want to keep the truce, though. It benefits everyone in Darkovia."
"On the surface. That's so like her, to tell you one thing being completely honest, while actually meaning the opposite..."
"A war's the last thing Darkovia needs right now, though. There wouldn't be any 'winning' side if one broke out."
"Which is exactly why the skirmishes have picked up. A rumor of a war is almost as effective as the real thing, and on top of that the power chain's been shaken up since the necromancers have died out. Someone needs to take their place."
Marna closed her eyes and sighed before speaking. "And I suppose you aim to be on the winning side?"
"A two-way balance is too easily tipped. I intend to be the winning side, Marna. Years from now, people will tell their children of MoonBiter's rampage to keep them from wandering into Darkovia."
"Uskius, no."
"I don't like it any more than you do..." I say, staring at the table. Marna sighs and shakes her head, and walks over to the bed.
~oOo~
The vampire walked up, her booted footsteps echoing in the empty hall. "MoonBiter," She spat, clearly disgusted, "The queen is waiting in the study."
"A pleasure to meet you, too." I get up from the bench and slink off down the hall, wondering why I've been summoned. I can think of only one other time I've been summoned, which was after Safiria learned I had become a dracopyre a few years ago. She'd told me about how she had been looking to recruit a few to establish themselves in werewolf territory, to slowly expand her holdings through them. I hadn't exactly refused or accepted, just... made sure werewolves didn't intrude on my estate. As I take the stairs up to the study, I conclude that I'm going to be used again. Safiria never rewards her supporters, she just kind of casually expects you to go along with her order because she assumes you know what'll happen if you don't. Taking a deep breath, I knock on the door- and it's answered by Safiria herself. Uh-oh.
"Uskius, come in." I nod and we step over to the nearby table, where there are two chalices with a dark red liquid in them. Facedown on the table is a familiar black leather book, and my stomach sinks down to somewhere around the area of my ankles. "A beautiful night, isn't it?" She says, sitting down.
"No, not too bad."
"No wretched howls, just a deep silence, as it vas meant to be. You know, vhen these lands first darkened, the screams never stopped. It drove me mad, that the night which had once been a refuge vas now defiled by such lowly creatures. So, I began to silence them the best way I could," She said, taking a sip from her chalice. "Tell me, Uskius: vhat do you think of the werewolves?"
"They're... aggressive. But I sort of understand them, in a way. They just want a place in Darkovia like us vampires."
"No," Safiria says, leaning forwards. "They vant a place in my lands. Constantin had no interest in this place before the lands darkened, Uskius. Luminovia belongs to me. I afforded him and his followers a small place, thinking they would soon die out. But I think you know vhat happened there." Safiria took a long drink from her chalice, and looked deep into my eyes. "I am tired, Uskius. Tired of this struggle between us that should not be. But at last, I have uncovered the truth. You think you know this book?" She asked, tapping The Dark Waltz between us. I nodded. "You do not. It is not a book of necromancy and dark magic, it is a book of ascendence. Life, in a state vhere it need not fear death. Life, strong enough to withstand the unknown dark. Do you see? I have found the vay to free myself and my children from such fears."
"...How?"
Safiria continued, as if I hadn't spoken. "Deep in my lands, there is a cave which is said to hold a cure, to free the unvorthy from their 'curse'. It burns away their gift, but... it may be controlled. I had no interest in such a thing before, as you know. My lands already have enough natural magic to acquire and master. Constantin also knows of this place, Uskius. But vhat he certainly does not know is that it is most likely a natural focus site."
"Focus site? Like the one on Dragonclaw Isle?"
"Yes. And vhile he may also plan to use the site in a ritual, Constantin has been ignorant of the site's inherent magic. I have not. You will help clear the vay to the cave, and watch over it vhile I speak the words that will save my lands from their fear of death and the dark." Safiria looked down at her copy of The Dark Waltz. "If I decide that you have done adequately, I will give you this book, as I vill no longer have any use for it."
I gulp. Safiria's copy? Perhaps there are handwritten notes, or I could gather some insights by which pages are the most worn. At the very least, it would put four of the seven copies I know of in my possession, which is something I desperately want. I nod. "Yes."
"Good. Ve will march at midnight tomorrow." Safiria then begins to detail some of her observations of the ritual, along with when it's most vital the cave be guarded.
~oOo~
The sun is beginning to set, a dark orange and red color. "Ready, Noxus?" My nightmare wyvern nods, and I hop on. "Head over, and see if she's ready..." It's a quick flight over to Marna's house, out past my hunting grounds and a few huts out to her orchard, touching down in front of her cabin. I slide off and walk up to the door, and knock two and a half times(two knocks and a thump leaving my fist against the door). There's no answer, and the door's unlocked, so I open it and poke my head in. It's empty. "Didn't see her in the orchard..." It's still early, so maybe she's in Battleon getting something. And it's not like she doesn't know where I'll be in Darkovia; there are very obvious planes and angles of attack the werewolves and vampires will meet. I decide to just fly over there alone, and with a sigh hop back onto Noxus.
I think of the next stage of my plan. Part of the reason I've decided to align with Safiria(temporarily, I think) is that fighting against the werewolves would give me a chance to meet the Were King, Constantin. If I have a dubious reputation amongst the Darkovian vampires, that's just a shadow of the hate the werewolves feel for me. They saw me as the perfect spy: an adventurer who'd died hundreds of times, fairly non-threatening; someone who knew the vampires and despite his apparent weakness was still capable. And then I became a werepyre, and shortly after that a dracopyre. They've been after me ever since. Safiria, of course, plays that period of time as me being deep in cover and carrying out covert operations for her, which made it easier for me around the vampires, and even worse with the werewolves. Maybe if I let myself be captured, they'll bring me to Constantin so he can execute me personally. Or, maybe... No, that's foolish, even by my standards. It'd help speed up my plans but I'm in a sticky situation as is.
So, naturally, when my guess of the werewolves' base camp is correct and werewolf soldiers surround me as I land, the first thing I say to them is, "Take me to your king. Tell him MoonBiter has information on the vampire's plans direct from Safiria."
"And how do we know that you are MoonBiter, or that you're not another assassin?!" Shouts one werewolf, getting in my face.
"If I was an assassin I wouldn't have come straight to your base camp. And you can know I'm MoonBiter, because..." In a whirl I transform, shaking my mane and stretching out my wings. I stare down at the werewolf, and growl. "Need any more proof?" The werewolf snarls, and steps back. Six werewolves grab hold of me, two for each of my arms and my tail, and march me forwards into the forest. The light grows darker as we head deeper in, and the scent of more werewolves intensifies. A werewolf comes to greet us, and they trade a few rough whispers, and the werewolf leaves. A glare is sent my way from the lead werewolf, who then smiles cruelly.
"You are fortunate there are so many new pups, MoonBiter. After your little audience with our king you'll get to show them how we deal with traitors."
"Technically, I've never betrayed the cause of the werewolves. I just happen to go after anything that moves in my hunting grounds."
"We know you went back to that witch and her spawn."
"And you cannot serve two masters," Says the lead werewolf. As I think of that, just a handful of moments later we come to the cave, and enter through the stone jaws. The cavern erupts in chaotic noise when the gathered werewolves see me come in, some letting out shouts of triumph and others starting to chant "Eat his heart!" Lovely.
I roar, and surprisingly am able to fling off the werewolves holding me without much trouble. "I come here as an equal," I say. Hmm, not offensive enough. "Not to you, but to your king. My message is for him, not a pack of pups who have yet to taste the blood of a vampire!" The werewolves get even louder, but still not loud enough. I want Constantin out here, so that I don't have to fight through a cavern full of angry werewolves. "You all are expendable, and interchangeable! The only worth you have is as a group! I am the only one of you who has ever meant something, I am a Chosen of Battleon! I have become more than a man, more than a werewolf, and certainly more than any of you will ever be!" There we go. Thankfully my plan has worked, as I smell Constantin approaching from the throne room. The werewolves part like a stream flowing around a boulder, and Constantin appears in front of me. He growls, and I'm confronted by the full weight of my stupidity. The werewolf to his right smell somewhat familiar, but that's the least of my worries right now.
"I have been waiting for this day..." The cavern fills with howls of triumph. I roar to quiet them down, and raise my voice.
"Constantin, my business is with you only. Send these pups away so we can talk in private-"
"You will say what you have to say before me and all my brothers." The gathered werewolves roar in approval, and Constantin raises his claw for silence.
"Very well. This source of magic, a place one known to cure your curse? It is known to Safiria as well. And it is also known to her what you plan to use it for. But I can only assume that even someone such as you would expect that of her, correct? So hear this- do not strike at midnight, when they will be expecting you to. The ritual to ascend to even greater power will take time, and it would all come to nothing if the final moments were interrupted- this is when you must make your assault. Furthermore, Safiria herself dictated the ceremony to me. So if we left for the site now, we would be able to perform it, and then regroup and strike with higher force when Safiria is convinced she has won."
Constantin nods, and I relax a little bit. "Your words mean nothing, Uskius. Hand me my Dualight!" The cavern is deafening, and the werewolf to his right reluctantly hands the sword to him. "Kneel," He commands, and involuntarily I obey. At this point I'm not sure if things would be worse if my plan succeeds or not. "Any last words?" The "Eat his heart!" chant starts up again, and I close my eyes for a second to focus.
"Just two: Red Fog!" Constantin's eyes widen in surprise, and the werewolves around me howl in pain as the soupy red fog surrounds us. Hoping Noxus followed us here, I try to call my sword Gyrfang to my hand- and apparently Noxus is close enough, as Gyrfang pops up. Constantin roars and swings, and I find I can block. With my enhanced reflexes, I discover I'm able to deflect shots he would have connected with before, and even land some of my own- but I'm not looking for a killing blow here. I fight through my nerves for a little bit longer, but soon they overtake me and I'm frozen in fear for a second; Gyrfang doesn't make it to where it needs to be, and I take a hard slash to my shoulder. The pain jolts me back into awareness, and I send a flurry of swings at Constantin, flapping my wings and swatting him with them. A couple of these swings hit, but they're not quite deep enough and the damage is healed by his regeneration. We lock blades, and I feel fear beginning to creep in again. Then with a flash of inspiration, I know what to do. I slide Gyrfang's twin blades up and catch Constantin's Dualight between them, and then twist as hard as I can. The surprise attack catches him off guard, and scores a deep cut across his chest. I quickly follow it up with a claw swipe along the same line, deepening the wound. Constantin looks shocked I've been able to do this, but I don't wait for him to get over that feeling. I call an empty flask from Noxus' saddlebags and command, "Fill!" The simple spell draws out Constantin's blood. He watches spellbound for a moment, then his eyes narrow and I can see the exact moment he realizes what I'm doing. Not good, as while I may have been able to hold my own a moment ago, Constantin was still holding back, and is far more dangerous barehanded. Time to get the Heck out of Krovesport.
I stop up the flask and cast the fire spell H4XBBQ, putting almost all my mana into it. The flames burst out around me and send werewolves flying, and I rocket back out of the cavern, knocking aside the werewolves in my way. "Noxus! Circle around towards Safiria's castle!" The nightmare wyvern looks at me for a second and then takes off, and I jump above the treeline and fly full speed back to Marna's house. I shudder at the enormity of what I've just done. There won't be any justifying this or walking away from it, and essentially I've just set up a lose-lose situation for myself. Unless... I can make it to Safiria's castle before the news spreads. Darkovia has eyes and ears everywhere, so you never know how fast word will travel, or who heard what. I drop down and land in the canopy of a tree to think for a minute. Do I continue to Marna's house and let her know where I'm headed, or head straight to Castle Darkovia? I mull it over for a second and decide to head to Marna's house, so she'll know what's going on. Her house is close to mine, and could easily get overrun if the werewolves and vampires send any soldiers my way. I spring off the tree limb and resume my flight. I realize that I'm flying almost as fast as Noxus, and put on a burst of speed. Despite the circumstances the flight lifts my spirits, and the fear has faded away as Marna's cabin comes in sight, leaving only urgency.
Two and a half knocks. No answer. I knock again, and still no answer. The door's still unlocked so I look in, and the cabin is empty. Where is Marna? Maybe she went to my house while I was in Darkovia, thinking I'd be there. "Alright. Leave a note then stop by my place before heading out..." Uttering a short spell, a globe of light pops into being, and I find some paper and a quill. "Ran into a bit of trouble in Darkovia. You weren't here when I got back, so I left to take care of it. ~Uskius" I extinguish the globe of light and headed back out, assuming my dracopyre form and winging back over to my place. A dark feeling settles on me, a chill creeping up my spine as I draw closer to my cabin. I don't smell any monsters hiding around my estate, but the feeling doesn't go away. I land on my porch and extend my hearing and smell to their limits, still finding nothing. I shift back to human form and head in. I light a lamp, and find my cabin empty. I sigh, and turn around to blow out the lamp and leave when someone knocks at the door. Two and a half- that's Marna! I hurry over and open the door, and my blood goes cold in my veins.
"Hello, Uskius. May I step in?"
"How did you get here?" I stutter. Safiria raises an eyebrow, and I move aside for her. She walks in and sits down on the edge of my bed, motioning for me to join her. "How. Did you get here."
"Vhat, you think I must valk or fly as you do? I learned to teleport many moons ago. You should learn sometime, and not run around so much."
"But," I swallow, "What are you doing here?"
"Oh, I cannot visit a loyal supporter?" I don't answer, and she shakes her head. "You do not exist in a vacuum, Uskius. You are a Chosen, vhat you do echoes." Safiria turns the full weight of her gaze on me, and I can't breathe. "Imagine how it looks to me vhen a loyal vampire siphons the magic of my lands to create a focus site of his own, or how it is vhen this vampire debases my gift with the blood of wolves and dragons. And especially how it looks vhen I share my plans with this same vampire and he goes running off to betray me. I keep an eye on you, Uskius, because vhile you may not be powerful you always end up on the winning side. And I do not intend to lose my lands to Constantine."
"Just... kill me..." I force out.
Safiria laughs, actually laughs, holding the back of her hand to her mouth. It's actually a quite lovely sound, but that barely registers with me at the moment. "Kill you? How do I use death to threaten a necromancer that has died five hundred and sixty-four times?" I feel my face heat up, it always embarrasses me when the exact number is brought up. "No, Uskius, there are far more powerful things than mere death. You see, vhile the fear of death drives you, it is not vhat you are really seeking. I have alvays known vhat you want from me."
My face burns, and I become aware of my pulse. "What... are you saying..."
Safiria lays a hand on my shoulder, touches the base of my neck. "Nothing more than I have already said, Uskius." Safiria says, rolling my name around her mouth like a piece of candy. She undoes her collar, and flicks it onto my table. I momentarily get lost in her golden eyes, and feel as if I'm falling towards her.
"No! This, this isn't right..." I stand up, dizzy and light-headed. I glance towards the spot on my potion shelf where I have the ring hidden.
"Ha... still you talk of right and wrong. Vell then. Vhat is this mysterious thing you want from me?" I keep my eyes fixed on my potion shelf, knowing that if I look back towards Safiria I'll break.
"Your blood."
"My blood? And nothing else?"
I gulp. "No. Nothing else." I walk over to my potion shelf and grab an empty flask, and with my eyes fixed on the floor I turn back to Safiria. "Here. If you want me on your side, give me your blood."
Safiria sighs, and stands up. "Very well." She uncorks the flask and takes it from me, and reaches into her bodice for something. Apparently, she's able to somehow hide a knife in there, as I hear a small cut. Moments later I dare to glance up, and see the glass flask filling up, nearly full. "Is this good?" I wait a second, then nod. Safiria stops up the flask, and puts it down on my bed next to the one holding Constantin's blood. "Vell. Being a dracopyre, I am sure you know what I must do after losing that amount of blood." Before I have time to fully process what she just said, Safiria slams me against the door, and bites my neck. Or so I think. As I realize what she's doing and move to throw her off her fangs sink into the base of my neck, and my resistance fades. I'm being played like a fool, as easily as stealing from a blind man. "Ah..." Safiria breathes, looking into my eyes.
"You need to leave," I stammer. I stumble over to my table and pick up her collar. "Here, take this and go."
"No, keep it," Safiria says with a smile. "It is one of many." She opens the door and takes a half step out before turning back to me. "Oh, and Uskius, you may want to know: my eyes and ears reported a woman leaving a nearby cabin for Constantin's lair earlier this evening." The front door shuts behind Safiria, and I sink down to my knees. For what seems like forever I can only hear the sound of my own heartbeats.
~oOo~
I stir the contents of the cauldron, and then reach for the final flask- the blood of The Eternal Dragon of Time. I collected it shortly after its mutated heads were defeated and it resumed its normal form a couple years ago, a rare opportunity that even I recognized. After filling up the flask I called up water from the Pool of Immortality to clean its wounds, and nobody suspected anything out of the ordinary had happened. Until just recently I'd never thought to use it for anything. Hesitating, I remove the cork and pour the blood in, stirring it clockwise a few times. I close my eyes and breathe for a moment. I stir the mixture a bit more, my arm trembling. I raise the flask I just emptied, and speak the simple spell. "Fill." The command is magically carried out, and I repeat it twice more. This is it. I've stepped up from splashing in a tiny puddle to wading into an ocean, so to speak- now it's time to dive in. I look up to the moon, full and white. "A terrible night to have a curse..." Commending my soul to Lorithia, I raise the draught to my lips, hoping it doesn't kill me. I force down the first flask as quickly as I can, and the second almost as fast. Again, the third takes longer, but not as long as the last time. The flask drops to the ground as my arm shakes, and cracks.
For a moment, my nerves calm and I feel nothing. Then my arms tremble again, and the hot, boiling feeling in my stomach returns. My whole body begins to shudder, and the blazing, uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach travels back up my throat. It comes out as a yell, my heart pumping white-hot fire through my veins. My bones have a burning ache in them, and the fire spreads until my whole body seems to burn from the inside out. It flares up and then fades, and in the back of my mind I hear a faint steaming sound. My senses come under assault from several angles. My sight seems too sharp, everything bathed in a bright silvery light; my hearing is pounded by the sound of my heartbeat and the wind rustling through the trees; the smell of the soil and grass invades my nose, as do the smells of my pets and house guards; my skin is far too sensitive, the night breeze seeming as if I'm swimming through needles; and I can taste the blood draught, a distinct and savory blend. I look down, and realize that at some point I transformed into a dracopyre. My hide is the same shade, but its color jumps out at me. I stretch out my wings and see that they're larger, but still retaining their shape. I shake my head, knowing that there's more left to do, but I'm still reeling from the sensory overload. I stumble and fall down, trying to shut everything out and retreat within myself to a place of calm. Focusing with all I can, the storm fades into a headache, and I dare to open my eyes.
The world is no less dim, still awash in bright silver light. I suddenly seem back in myself, and look around: there are my mana collectors, bubbles rising up through the ethereal and oddly familiar green liquid inside the forked, flame-like tongues, and behind me is my guard tower, the dragon crest on the side standing out against the timber. Then I look back towards my mana collectors, and see the spell circle on the ground, an artificial sort of focus site. I created it to cast Power Word Pie(long story), but haven't made use of it since. Then the frantic rewording of the circle's language earlier comes back to me, and in the middle of the circle, apart from the cauldron and empty flasks, is a large bottle. My heart sinks, as I remember stealing it from Marna's house. She must have kept it there for after the war was over, when she would no longer need to be a werewolf. It's only fair, I suppose, that she has a way out. I clear the circle of everything but Marna's bottle of The Cure, and fight to calm the painfully sharp rush of my senses. It's time. MoonBiter will kiss the night, and swallow the stars.
I open the bottle, and take a deep breath. Unlike the blood draught, I'm not exactly sure of what this will do, and if my system will be able to handle another large shock so soon after the last one. I nick my forearm with my claw, and a few drops of blood fall into a small circle on the outside of the larger one. It sizzles in the moonlight, and I begin speaking the words of the ritual. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the words are very similar to a basic concept of necromancy- binding a spirit to a corpse. Except this isn't a spirit I'm working with, but a curse, that of a dracopyre. Safiria said that by attuning the substance to the vampiric curse, by imprinting our essence on it, it would become a tranformative catalyst instead of a scouring force. And while I'm no longer just a vampire, I've certainly become familiar with dragons and werewolves and dracopyres, the ritual's language is easily adjusted. However, pronouncing certain words with my dracopyric tongue is tricky, so I go slowly so I can enunciate as clearly as I can. As I speak the last few words of the ritual, I feel a closeness, as if the world is leaning in to listen.
Shivering with anxiety now, I step into the circle, and pick up the bottle of The Cure. My magical senses tell me waves of heat are rolling off the bottle, and I faintly can physically feel them, contrasting with the cool touch of the moonlight. It pours onto the ground not like a sludge, but a liquid, spreading out into a puddle filling the inside of the spell circle. This of all things worries me, because the bottle wasn't quite as big as my human forearm, and the spell circle can fit a few people inside it. I lift my feet up so the sludge can run under them, and then before I can get too nervous I finish the ritual with a shout, raising my arms to the moon. The sludge bubbles up at my ankles and then leaps up around me, covering every inch of me. I feel a heat so intense my brain subconsciously shuts off my nerves grip me, smothering me against the ground. My vision whites out, and for a moment I swear I can smell with the tip of my tail and hear from my armpit. I can briefly taste with my left palm, and overwhelming sensation. My senses continue to shift and heighten, until with one final sharpening they solidify.
I blink, and find myself on the ground in my spell circle. The dirt is visible again, the green sludge gone- and I'm still a dracopyre. I don't feel different, per se, but I feel full of health, and new- as if I became unstuck in time and appeared in a brand new world, starting over fresh and clean. My senses are no longer painfully sharp, but they still press in on me, begging for my attention. I take a deep breath, and then another, relishing the air filling my lungs like everything I'd breathed before now was a cheap imitation of what air really was. I take my deepest breath, and roar from the bottom of my lungs. I've been told MoonBiter's roar sounds like the cry of a creature in pain, and while this roar is recognizable as my own there is a depth to it that seems to declare that this pain will soon be yours as well. Far away, I hear running. Good. Those around my estate and hunting grounds will learn to run.
~oOo~
The strong scent of werewolves reaches my nose, and I land in the forest a short ways from the werewolf base camp. I don't bother to be stealthy as I walk forwards, because that's not what I'm here for.
"Who goes there?" I want to reply with something snappy like "your worst nightmare", but rage begins to creep up and I simply growl. "Show yourself, this is werewolf territory!" Instead of steeping around the thin Darkovian tree, I snap it off and keep walking forwards, and the werewolve's eyes go wide, and he points at me. "There he is, that's Moon-" I punch him, sending him flying into another tree.
"Didn't know I had a fan club. Where is she?"
"There are several 'she's right here," Says a female werewolf. "You'll have to be more specific."
"WHERE. IS. MARNA?!" The werewolf flinches and takes a step back.
"I don't know anyone named that-" A harder punch, and this werewolf connects with a tree and gets contorted up in its branches.
"If none of you can tell me where I can find Marna, then I will tear Darkovia apart until I get to her!"
"Don't act all high and mighty, MoonBiter! Even if we did know we wouldn't tell a traitor like you." The werewolf gets in my face, and continues, "More than a werewolf? More than a dracopyre? You aren't special, MoonBiter- you're the same piece of trash that you've always been-" I bite into the werewolf as hard as I can and bring him down to the ground, pummeling and slashing his face. I hear the growls of the werewolves around me, and smell someone approaching. It's an Alpha, their spiked cuffs glinting in the moonlight. I don't wait for the welcoming party to start, and inhale deeply. I breathe out my energy breath, a bright lance of lightning scarring the air between us. It stuns him for a moment, and I draw Gyrfang and rush in. The first slash goes unblocked, and the second isn't deflected in time, also connecting. Slashing at full speed and strength it only takes a few more strikes to finish the job. The surrounding werewolves back up, and I race through them to the lair, not bothering to strike twice. Before long the werewolves seem all the same as they step up to stop me. Gyrfang does its brutal work, the twin golden blades slicing through the night like the howl of a banshee. I find myself swarmed by a pack of werewolves suddenly, and realize I've made it to the lair. I spin around in a circle slashing with Gyrfang, and leapt high into the air. I release my energy breath with a roar, the pillar of energy stabbing into the ground bursting out in a shockwave that swept the gathered werewolves off their feet. I angle towards the stone maw of the cave entrance as I descend, stabbing with Gyrfang as I land on a werewolf.
I step in, and roar as loud as I can. The werewolves who weren't aware something was going on outside whirl around and focus on me, and once again I have a cavern full of werewolves in front of me. But there is a ravenous, persistent anger in my heart, and I'm in no mood to provoke them right now. "Where is Marna? I will only ask once!"
"Unlike you, we would never betray one of our-" My energy breath erupts in a livid streak of purple lightning, clearing a long path through the werewolf and towards the throne room. I roar again, and begin marching to Constantin's chamber. The mass of werewolves remains parted, and I don't bother to step around the fallen in my path.
"CONSTANTIN!" The werewolf king doesn't immediately show himself, which I take as a personal affront to my quest. I let out a long roar, starting to run towards the throne room. The two Alphas guarding the room step in front of the doorway, Dualights raised. I put on a burst of speed and jump straight at them, deflecting their swords with Gyrfang and my forearm and clotheslining them into the wall, cracking the rock. I walk into the room and Constantin has just stepped off the throne, visibly angered.
"Who do you think you are?! What do you think gives you the right to do this?"
"WHERE DO YOU HAVE HER?!" I demand, stomping up to Constantin.
"Who."
"Marna!"
"...Marna? Of Battleon? She's not here-" I take a swing at Constantin but he blocks it, and shoves me back. "She isn't here!"
"Then you will tell me where she is!"
"She was part of a prisoner exchange- Safiria left with her just before you-" I don't wait for Constantin to finish, and drop Gyrfang and start mauling him. He recovers quickly, and strikes back with several slashes to my chest. We begin circling around, pounding each other with blows like the beat of a war drum. He scores a vicious slash to my cheek, I hit him back harder with a clawing strike at his heart; he retaliates with an even harder punch to my ribs, and I land an elbow that sends Constantin flying into his throne, breaking off the top as he tumbles over it. I've heard all that I want to, and right now don't care to stay and see if I can defeat Constantin. I pick up Gyrfang and focus all of my power into my energy breath, aiming at the roof of the cave. The beam drives through the rock and into the open air, and I jump and begin climbing up. The air smells crisply of blood, and far off I can hear the sound of fighting. I growl, and take off for Castle Darkovia.
~oOo~
The sound of howls and screams is audible from this distance even with the wind rushing past me as I fly. I can see the werewolves and vampires locked in a bitter clash at the bridge as I close in, and swoop around to it. It's split down the middle, the vampire warriors on the castle side, the werewolves pushing hard against the vamp front line. With a bit of my energy coming back, I let out a crackling bolt of energy breath that blasts apart the arc in front of the two statues. I land on the bridge and finish the job, punching the rest of the far side down into the blood moat. I twist around and backhand the nearby werewolves off the bridge, then leap over the vampires and glide down to the gate. I knock, and the guard's window opens. "MoonBiter. Here to interrogate the prisoner from the exchange. The vamp nods and opens the door, giving me an unsure look as she points me to the dungeons. I stalk off with purpose, not looking to the right or left. The monstrous rush of rage and adrenaline has faded, leaving me a little shaky. The vampires I pass on the way there are surprised to see a dracopyre walking their halls, but strangely none of them question me, though one stops and stares as if to say something as I pass them on the way down the stairs. The scent of werewolves blends with other less pleasant smells as I come to the dungeon. The guards stare blankly at me, and I growl. "Marna."
"Why would Lady Safiria pick you to question her?"
"Because I know Marna personally."
The vampire's eyebrows go up, and he hands me a key. "Back corner on the left." I nod and walk down the long hallway, seeing dark shapes scurry to the shadows in the backs of their cells as I pass. I close my eyes and take a deep breath to prepare myself, then turn to my left. What I see is still a shock: Marna is in her human form, manacled to the wall and slumped down to her knees, only wearing a large shapeless sack. She's already been roughed up, bruises and abrasions visible on her cheeks. Trying not to shake, I unlock the door, and she looks up.
The look of pain and surprise and hope on her face stabs into my heart."H- how...?"
"The how isn't important. Now listen," I say, leaning in, "I'm going to take us up to the study, and we'll leave from there. DON'T TALK BACK TO ME!" I rip out the manacles from the wall, and haul Marna up, marching her off. The vamps guarding the door look very skeptical, and I walk up to the one who handed me the key. "Where's Lady Safiria?" I growl. Marna has a moment of genius and lurches away from me, but I reign her back in.
"In her chambers. She asked to not be disturbed."
"Fine. Tell her we'll be in the study, I got something out of Marna she needs to hear." The vampires nod, and I hand the key off as we go back up the stairs. Coming back into the hall, Marna looks around before whispering to me.
"How did you know I was here?"
"I paid a little visit to the werewolves earlier tonight. They pointed me over here."
"...Uskius, I-"
"Save it. I just don't want you anywhere even close to Safiria."
"I, I need to explain. There's more to it-"
"You aren't safe among the werewolves. Or vampires."
"What difference would it make between them? And, you know, I wasn't-" A vamp approaches, eyeing us suspiciously. "-Planning on getting captured, you fangface. My king will eat Safiria's heart!" Marna shouts at the vamp. I give Marna a thwack on the shoulder and growl, and speed up our walk. The study is on almost the other side of the castle, and I want to hurry just in case someone actually alerts Safiria to my presence. There are the other vampire lords, as well, who don't have the tolerance for me that their queen does. Thankfully the only one I see is carrying a VampSpear, giving a curt nod as he passes. I'm reminded of how my luck runs in extremes both ways, and that this upswing is going to head South sometime- probably soon.
Though I don't meet any more vampire lords, every vampire soldier we pass is very suspicious of us. A couple stop to ask questions, and I stick with my holding-her-captive-in-the-study-so-Safiria-doesn't-have-to-visit-the-dungeons lie. This is good enough for everyone we meet... except Carmilla, one of Safiria's personal guards, who sees us from down the hall where she is keeping watch at the door to Safiria's quarters. "Yes; I vill watch with you. Edwina vill be fine on her own for a little while."
"There's no need, Carmilla. I've come across frogzards more dangerous than Marna."
"That may be, but there must be something special about her if MoonBiter has been assigned to interrogate her, and hold her."
"Enough with your flattery, it will get you nowhere. I can handle this."
Carmilla shakes her head. "No, I am certain now."
"Fine then, you can join us- on one condition."
"Vhat?"
"Do the dance." Carmilla glares at me, and I clear my throat and open the door for her. Marna looks over her shoulder at me as I push her forwards, and mouths "Frogzards?" Thank Lorithia I can't blush as a dracopyre. I take Marna in and sit her down roughly at the rear of the study, in a chair near the fireplace. "Carmilla."
"Yes?"
"You question her for a moment, ask her about what she found at the Bridge of Souls and on her surveillance missions, I need to find something real quick." Carmilla nods, and her expression turns cold and hard as she leans in to talk to Marna. I turn back to the study, and inhale. The normally faint scent of vampires is strong in the room, but there are a some spots that stand out, where I guess Safiria and other vampires spent a good amount of time. There's the table near the entrance, the other chair near the fireplace, and a few spots on the shelves. I step over to the first area, nothing of note there. The second, a few feet away, holds an ancient book with a faded title, Arch something or other, but though I'm very tempted to lift that it isn't what I'm looking for. Then, my eyes are pulled to a book closer to the door away from the third high traffic area: an ancient black leatherbound volume, that would be unremarkable except for the words contained within. As I pull The Dark Waltz off the shelf, I hear Marna raise her voice and say, "As it was meant to be!" Quickly I open the book, and on the front page is a short handwritten note: "My dear Safiria, I have failed you but I know that with this book you will save Luminovia, and the world at large. Blood calls to blood, and I hope to one day hear your voice again." Before I can get absorbed in the implications and meaning of the old note, I snap the book shut and walk over to Carmilla and Marna. "This is the book? The one you told me that Constantin had?"
Carmilla's eyes widen and she gasps in shock as she sees The Dark Waltz, and she levels a formidable glare at Marna. "Yes, that's the one."
"That's not possible! There shouldn't even be any other copies on this side of the continent!"
"Then how would my king know the rites to perform?" Marna says to Carmilla, eyebrow arched.
"Who found it for him?" I ask. "Constantin's never had any interest in this sort of thing before."
"Why, that sounds like a question a vampire would know the answer to," Marna replies with a smirk.
I growl and shoot my energy breath at the window, blowing it out. "Don't play games with us! We need a name. Now."
Marna grins, and in that moment, to me she seems more beautiful than she ever has before. "Edwina."
"That's- Edwina hasn't been to that side of Darkovia since... before..." As Carmilla's sentence trails off, the door to the study opens. I don't have to look to know who's just come in, and in a flash I grab Marna and dive through the window.
~oOo~
"-I want to at least change out of this sack," Complains Marna, as we get to the clearing and touch down.
"No can do, it's too dangerous to go back home right now. Both sides will be looking for us there."
Marna looks down at the ground for a second. "...Fine. But if we aren't going home there are a couple places I'd like to go."
"Alright then. Where to first?"
"Just a couple minutes West of here. You'll know the place when you see it." I shrug and pick up Marna again, heading off West. As she said, it's not very long before a building comes in sight, and I adjust my course straight for it. The small fort appears rundown and in need of repair, and smells of rot and decay. I land and set Marna down carefully.
"We're here..."
Marna nods, and straightens up. "I'm here, WolfWing!" WolfWing? Wait-
Before I can collect my thoughts, the man himself appears, swooping in to land next to us. "...And you brought him with you... very well. Prepare yourself to accept my curse, Marna." Waiting for her to take a few deep breaths, WolfWing steps over and bites into the base of Marna's neck. She doesn't even flinch. After WolfWing leans back she closes her eyes and shakes her head, swaying slightly. "So you've survived. Congratulations, Marna: you are now a werepyre, burdened with glorious purpose!"
"Is this why you became a werewolf?"
"Yes... I realized finally the path I'm on isn't the same one you walk, and wouldn't walk. So, I decided to follow you down yours." Marna tilts her head, offering me the other side of her neck. "If you would, Uskius..."
In the midst of the insanity of this night, I've forgotten something that I now remember- it's officially Snugglefest. I calm myself and focus, and shift back into my human form. Forget the ring, I'm doing this now. "Marna, I... have been afraid of losing myself to my curse, scared that it would swallow me up and leave me for dead, but it didn't, because you were there. When I felt like I couldn't even crawl, you said I could, and I did. When I thought that I couldn't walk forwards, you told me I could, and I did. So now, I'd like to say that I'll follow you wherever you go; if you should die, then I will go with you, and I will say to Death, 'no, you can't have this one- she's mine'. A- and..." I swallow as I begin to tear up, and I kneel. "Marna, will you marry me?"
Marna slaps me. "Uskius Landarine, after everything you've put me through, and all we've done together, NOW is when you ask?!"
"W- well, I just thought- I mean, it seemed like the-"
"The answer's yes, you idiot." Marna leans down and kisses me, and I return it from the bottom of my heart-
"I'm not renting out this place for honeymoons, so you'll have to stay the night somewhere else." I look towards WolfWing, and he gives a good-natured chuckle. "...And now, you two are burdened with a glorious purpose of a different kind."
I smile and nod. "Things are far from over, with the war and for us. After all, the first step is the one you believe in."
Marna squeezes my hand. "Let's go take the second."
Blood to Blood, Pain to Pain
The shattered twin golden blades of my sword Gyrfang lie at my feet, the fires of the burning and wrecked remains of what was once the Darkovia forest glinting off of them. "It's finished..."
Beside me the newly turned dracopyre SunEater looks over, her breath hanging in small white mists. "Nothing will ever be the same, will it? No going back..."
"No going back," I confirm. "Now it's up to us to see where we go from here." At the edges of my sight I catch something moving and turn my head to look. A group of people running towards us; further inspection shows them to be three vampires and a werewolf.
"There! Head for the red one!" Shouts one of the vampires. They speed up, and then begin shouting the last thing I expect: "Shelter! Please, help us!" I stretch out my wings and their advance slows to a halt. "Please... they're- they're all gone-" I stare them down, almost asking who's gone. But as I'm covered head to toe in blood and other fluids, I think I already know. "Armstrong, and Hydra- they... the castle is destroyed, and the lair demolished..."
"If that's true, what makes you think the rest of Darkovia is any safer?" Asks Marna, flexing the claws of her dracopyre form. While very slender, she certainly looks capable of eating a sun- or anything else that should cross her, for that matter.
"...We heard that one of the dracopyres, MoonBiter, he stood up to Safiria and Constantin," Said the werewolf. "That he'd set out on his own way. I knew that after the fighting started, I'd have to throw in with one of the werepyres or dracopyres if I wanted to make it out of here alive..."
"The four of us met on the run from Armstrong and the others," Explains the vampire who'd first approached. "You have to understand, Constantin and Safiria- they're gone! There's no one left..."
After a moment, it finally gets through to me what these four are after. I literally can't believe it; I shake my head as I bend down to pick up the handle of Gyrfang, then start to walk off. "If you follow me you will die."
"We're already dead!" I pause for a moment, and think of my last conversations with Safiria, and her dreams for these lands.
"...Then let's go haunt Darkovia." I shake out my wings in a shower of red, and fly off with a roar.
< Message edited by Uskius -- 2/21/2014 19:56:36 >
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