The vibrations

A creeping vibration hummed through the ground , all around Mirage could feel it. Her heart ached, it raceed with fear, a deep fear on that was almost out of control. Her hands trembled, beads of sweat poured down her forehead into her eyes, stinging them. The vibrations were getting stronger, she must do something, anything to get the key back. She knew if she didn't that those vibrations would become the thunderous sounds of the evil beings that were after it....and the thought of that was....mortifying. Tears ran down her cheeks, the vibrations causing painful spasms in her chest , nmaking it difficult to breathe, Mirage dropped to the ground, clutching her chest and heaving for breathe, Everything started to blurr as she fell to the ground, she looked up into the sky, nothing but a mass of grey blurr, the vibrations stronger then they have ever been before, she knew they were so close, searching looking. If only she were stronger, if only she had a way to stop this right now... this pain would stop, the key would be gone and they could be defeated. But as of right now there was nothing she could do but hope and gods, she was losing it slowly, she clung so tightly to what little hope she had left, she had come so far but lost so much with this war. the blurring got worse, mirage pressed her hand against her chest so hard that her hand began to ache and then her arm, then came the most severe pain she had ever felt, her body wriithed in agony. A firelike feeling ran from the base of her spin e to the top of her head making her cry out in pain. A voice came into her head as the vibration grew stronger around her, it cackled inside her head....telling her that all is lost for her and that she would die.....we shall see she thought and collapsed in pain, the vibration gone.

Musings of a Vampire...

*thinks to himself* Today was quite a day. I wake up and bite a hole in my lip... bad start right? Then on my way out of my ship, I suddenly fall. I realise halfway to the ground, that my ship has been stolen. Sleeping in a barn does not do good things to the back. So halfway down or so, I catch myself, landing softly on my feet, and set off, whistling for my displacer beast and my catgirl. I'm walking through Market Square about mid-evening, when I spy the newest Rose Knight, Bethia. I had heard about her... Something about an oath to destroy the Sabbat, if I recall correctly... So at any rate, I strike up a conversation in the usual manner, and she brings out... Get this, a stake and holy water. So we're bantering back and forth a bit, then Eleni, and Tanaka, a knight of the Rose, come into the picture. Tanaka bared steel, and Eleni had the gall to actually charge me. I kneed the woman in the mouth, unfortunately. Tanaka was never a threat. Once I grew tired of listening to thier chatter, I sank my fangs into Bethia's neck, immobilising her. I then spirited her away to a special hiding place that only I know. She sat there in the dank, dark room, in water up to her waist, waiting. Once I had Bethia safely locked in the cell, I wrote a ransom note listing my demands in return for Bethia's life. The note was answered rather quickly by a Knight of the Rose named Angelica. We are currently in negotiations for the release of Bethia... More will come soon. Jhinta il'Sthan, Leader of the Sabbat, Leader of the Black Fist.

The tormented visions of a young woman

Bethia sits in a small room, its stone walls cracked allowing slits of light to tease her with the distant smell of fresh air, far different from the dank and decay she smells now. She rocks silently, looking down at her pale skin smeared with slime from the moss covered walls, and the foul water she sits waist deep in, silently she calls out to The gods, her faith holding true, as her swollen and glassy eyes peer about her. Standing, she slips, and plunges into the water, jumping slightly as rats run about her, holding back tears she calls out "Somebody help me?, please!"she falls down again almost in defeat. They will not let me die, The Vampires can not win. Bethia folds her arms, and rests her head upon them, and sobs quietly for a while. She laughs suddenly looking about her, "I'm mad, who could possibly hear me, who would know I am here?"Bethia sighs, and begins to dig at the wall with her hands.

Wondering

A baren wasteland of jaged rocks and unforgiving terain streatch out endlessly in every direction. The midnight sky was clear of clouds but rich with stars that shed a meager helping of light onto the teraine below. It was late, well past the nights mid point whene it came. All this time without so much as a whisper on the winds and now this. The call sent out by his god was strong, so stong, it nocked the figure of his perch slowly turning to the stars the figure whispers to the wind "I hear you M'lord, as you call, so shall I take up the fight, I am yours to command" with that, a new star was born in the heavens as if to guid the wonderer on his path. standing, the lone figure frees the dust from his robes, gathers his gear and sets out on his journy. pausing only to ask himself "has the godess returned aswell?'

A conversation with Samoth

Mirage stood just south of Market Square, thinking on so many things that her mind whirled so badly she did not even notice that Samoth had follwed her from Market Square. She turned to him and said in a rather rude way "What do ye want?" Mirage was not to keen on seeing him, afterall they taught eachother so badly with bloodshed. Samoth looked at her in his wicked way and said "I want to talk to you." Mirage looked a little surprised and said quietly "About?" Mirage rose her eyebrow in a questioning way and backed up a bit as Samoth said his peace. "The key I've been hearing about." Mirage looked away abruptly,her heat pounding even more...."I no longer have it...." "What is the significance of it?" Samoth asked. Mirage forcing herself to speak said quietly and reluctantly "It opens the four winds and all the resources of the realms, gives the owner full power"Samoth then in an almost demanding way asked "And who has it now?" His voice was forceful but Mirage continued with her explanation trying to stall. " ....of many things, but ye must be of magical aquaintance..." Her voice was shaky....deep within her heart she knew this was a terrible person to ask her such things....someone she despised.....what did he want? Samoth chuckled as he spoke hi words cut through her almost as though a knife were peircing her "My mere existance is magical, but you stray who has the key now?" Mirage looked at Samoth and sighed. " Seline would not give it back t' me after I sent it t' her to look at....it almost killed me....she is hiding it...ye will not find it"Samoth let a slow wicked grin come to his lips, Mirage could feel herself almost swallow her heart, it was beating so hard, her fear almost uncontained. "If ye do find it....I ask that ye give it t' me t' be destroyed..." Her plea was a shot in the dark what else could she do? Mirage did not know why Samoth wanted that key, nor did she know his in tentions Samoth looked at Mirage his grin in full scale, her steps going backwards slowly and then stopping, a hard lump had developed in her throat but outwardly she was as cool as a fox. Again he spoke this time confidently. "People talk, under the right influence...remember what I said? How people serve purposes?" Mirage bit her lip slightly and nodded. "You have just served mine greatly." Mirage narrowed her eyes on Samoth her outward appearace dark and serious... "Let me just say, if ye do happen on that key, ye will have a sect of evil beings after ye ten times worse then ye are...go for it....they are coming......" "And they will find ye and they will get the key...and all that ye hold dear t' ye and true t' yeself will crumble" Samoth rolled his eyes at Mirage, all that had been dear to him had died long ago and he could have cared less. Besides , he was retained to get the key, by whom he wasn't going to mention, even though the lil' one was demanding to know, he would never tell her. After a moment of painful vibration, Mirage decided that she had enough of the conversation. Mirage stood her heart racing as the pain left her slowly....the vibratrions in the ground, it was them....she could feel them....she had to go...she turned to Samoth her hand on her sword and said "Goodbye Samoth."

A silent observer. RE: A conversation

Unknown to Mirage or Eleni, there had been a shadowy observer to their conversation. Ron Macdougall sat in an alley nearby, listening silently to their exchange. He had not been liking their line of thought. They seemed a little to mad at Seline who only wanted to help. This sounded like it was going to need a little interference. Seline didn't have her entourage, they had said. This was true, but she did still have him. For some reason he couldn't explain, he still wanted to protect Seline. He had given her a oath, and his word was the only thing he had left. Making sure the conversation had ended, he bounded off into the alleyways, making his way for the gate. By daybreak, he would be in Torregiano and heading for the Cloud Strike. His duty was clear. Mirage had said she needed Eleni to help, that she couldn't do it alone. Looked like Seline would be needing his...

A Dragon Lament (cont)

Ryel's voice quieted, along with the others as a small statue rose out of a large goblet on the altar and moved to one of the shelves. Eleni quietly wiped her face as she watched. Ryel kissed Eleni's forehead as the ghosts began their lament again. Eleni whispered, the words barely audible, "I'm sorry... I'm so very sorry..." Ryel whispered in Eleni's ear, "Shhhh... he knows you loved him." Eleni shook her head softly and rested against Ryel, closing her eyes as she listened to the song, lost in thought and memory. Ryel rocked back and forth, Cyel's body crumbling as he watched. Eleni wiped her face with her hands and wrapped her arms around her legs, curling into a ball on Ryel's lap, her soft voice whispering with the ghosts. Ryel lifted his voice with the ghosts again as he closed his eyes. The two sat there for a week, no food, no drink as the lament was lifted in their son's name. Ryel smiled to himself, knowing that Cyel would get to meet the woman who had given him life. Their souls meeting again in the cross over, he had many years yet before he got to see his many sons, daughters, friends, and family again. He was still needed here, his desire to follow them across stopped by a promise once made to the greatest friend he had ever known. But he wondered... would they be there waiting.. would they welcome him when it was his time.. The lack of sleep kept him thinking, the past, his son, watching him grow.. hearing his first word.. the word echoed in his mind. He saw the clearing then, and his best friend. As Cyel climbed on Tenchi and hugged him he spoke, his voice small and with the sweet sound of innocence, "Tentree." The memory walked away as the lament entered his mind again. He watched his boy grow again and he looked down at the little halfing in his lap. Ryel thought, trying to figure it out, he should be dead by now. The curse that went with seeing the ghosts should have shattered his heart by now, sending him to be a ghost until it healed and he could return to his body. He should have felt that pain by now. It should have happened.. and during the week he waited, waited for it to come, but it escaped him. He realized with his brother's ghost crossing over that the shattered hearts would come no more.. and so now he had to deal with his son's death in a way that he had not had much recent experience in. He must live through it. Ryel tightened his arms around Eleni. He lifted a silent prayer to Kossuth, in the final moments of the lament. The ghosts stopped singing, the voices trailing off as the end of the lament echoed in the shrine, around the realm, and in the ears of all those that had ever held the three of them in their hearts. Another child was gone.