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Realms Converge	By : Candice Category: +G through L > Legacy of Kain Views: 3563 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Legacy of Kain, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.Don't get to Nosgoth itself til chap 5

Chapter List
- 60
- 61
- 62
Again thank you all
Chapter Sixty-one: No Plan Survives Contact With the Enemy
The Seer froze at Kain's cold words, her hands clenching about my own almost painfully tight. She swallowed roughly and then released my hands so that she could stand and turn to look at Kain. She bowed low at first and then straightened up and tilted her head to the side in an obvious baring of her throat.
"I have given you what oaths and promises that I can, my Lord Scion," she said in a soft yet firm tone despite the small tremor in her fingertips. "I can only say again that I understand your wariness... and will submit to any punishments if that becomes necessary..."
"Hn," a low rumble escaped Kain as he stepped forward, Soul Reaver still sheathed at his back.
He reached out with one talon and forced her chin up and to the side, further baring her throat to him. His eyes narrowed upon her form, taking in the sight of the small tremble and the open scent of fear on her person. He nodded a moment later and then turned away. She started to relax and then tensed when he let out a low hum of breath as he looked at her over his shoulder.
"Your very doubts may lead to a self-fulling prophecy woman," he said in a firm tone. "Calm yourself and focus on the task at hand."
"I..." she smiled faintly, weakly and bowed her head. "As you wish my Lord."
I smiled myself as she visibly relaxed and then tensed when I looked back at Kain. From this angle I could see an odd pattern of shimmers upon his form. I waved a hand in his direction, catching his attention.
"There's an odd shimmer on your arm and shoulder...?" I said in a questioning tone.
"Hn," he looked down and then nodded his head as he flicked his talon at one of the shimmers. "The Parasite's blood. He took great pleasure in mocking me regarding the 'subversion' of our relationship and I was able to return a blow of words with the blows of a sword."
I let out a soft snort of sound and he shot me a brief, feral smile. His expression turned serious a moment later.
"You did well mine own, speaking as you did," he said softly. "Your cleverly spoken responses left room for him to assume what he wished to. To our benefit and his detriment."
"I did not let my speech-craft skills go fallow," I responded with a chuckle and a fanged smile of my own. "The Vampiric politics of Gaia were just as convoluted at those found here at home. More so in some ways, given the sheer number of Clan sub-sets that exist."
I did not miss the brief flash of pleasure that crossed Kain's face at my use of the word 'home' when speaking of Nosgoth and Gaia. He let out a soft chuckle and then he turned to glance at the Seer. She bowed her head and smiled knowingly as she turned and left the word at his silent order. He looked back at me a few moments later.
"Raziel is recovering slowly," he said in a soft, yet bland tone. "But he is showing clear signs of recovery."
"How long do you think it will be before he is back on his feet?" I asked.
"I believe that it will be a month, perhaps two, before he wakes," Kain replied. "In the mean time, we will continue with our plan. Wait for a few days before you seek out the Parasite for more 'advice' however."
"Of course," I responded with a small smile. "Even had I not known the truth of him, I'd not have gone down there so soon after our little 'conversation'."
Another chuckle filled the air.
"You are a stubborn and independent creature mine own," he said in a fond tone.
"Damn straight I am," I responded with a laugh. "At any rate, this will give me some time to test a few more things."
"Ah?" he tilted his head. "You will be flying about then?"
"Yes," I answered and I moved over to his side. "I need to gather some soil samples to test another hypothesis."
Kain nodded and flicked one talon in the direction of the small bat that still lay wrapped firmly about my bracer. I glanced down at it and fondly scratched it behind its' ears. Kain shivered a moment later and I laughed softly as I noticed that the bats eyes had started to glow again. When he was focused so upon one of his bats, he could see what it saw... and feel what it felt. I smiled gently and reached up to run my claws lightly through his hair.
"I have an escape route already," I said bemusedly, knowing that he wanted me to keep the bat with me. Just in case.
"You do mine own, you do," he said and he nodded his head as he reached up to trail his talons through my own hair. "I would rather have the ability to reach you swiftly if needed, especially if something happens that renders you unable to activate said escape method. Besides, did you not state at one point that you enjoyed the company of such creatures?"
"Smart ass bastard," I said fondly, my wings twitching forward to curl around him gently.
"Again mine own, my legitimacy is and has never been in question," he said with a chuckle and a fanged smirk.
"Mmhmmm," I hummed.
I rolled my eyes and then leaned into him for a kiss. He bent down to meet my movements and we shared a long, gentle kiss. We indulged for several long minutes before I pulled back with a satisfied purr. He let out an echoing rumble of noise and allowed me to pull away. I smiled at him and then left the Seer's home. Kain would be remaining here to watch over the Hylden woman's movements, ensuring her continued loyalty to our cause. I felt a deep-seated certainty that she would do nothing to betray us and that the Parasite no longer had any allies or puppets to call his own. We had him very firmly in check.
It was almost time to clear the board...
I spent the next four days flying about Nosgoth, getting the samples that I needed whilst keeping a careful eye out for any shimmering tendrils. I'd brought numerous kits and items with me in preparation for my return. Items that, had I chosen to remain on Gaia, that I still would have sent through to Nosgoth's side with instructions on how to use them. A handful of kits were used to test the soil fertility of Nosgoth and I had to contain a relieved noise as those tests came back positive for most of the areas that I checked.
Nosgoth's ground, though seemingly a barren wasteland in many areas, was fertile ground. As Cu and I had thought it would be. The only reason why there was not more growth, more life, was the simple fact that there were not enough souls in the world to sustain more than that of an almost desert-like ecosystem.
I jotted down my findings eagerly in my journal as I worked and then carefully tucked everything away in one of my pouches once I was done with the current sample. I scratched the chin of the small bat on my wrist and smiled happily at it, earning a contented little chirr from it. Spreading my wings wide, I took flight once more and winged my way towards Kain's retreat. I landed silently and then made my way to the Eldar Raziel's room. I looked the Eldar over and then moved to open the drawer of the dresser nearby. I took out several of the pouches that I'd been using and set it into the empty drawer. I slipped off the stone necklace and set it next to the pouch. I could not risk that any of the objects within those pouches nor the necklace itself being knocked off by the Parasite during the upcoming, expected battle. Not with those pouches holding such the sheer amount of helpful information found within the pages of the books that I'd brought back with me. The rest of the pouches held various objects like healing potions, blood vials and a few other vials of things that I and Cu had thought might be useful in the future.
Raziel shifted uneasily in his sleep as I wrote out a series of instructions out on a piece of parchment. I was hopeful that we would all survive unharmed, but there was always the chance that I could be injured if not slain and the same was true for both Kain, Raziel and the Seer. Whilst I was optimistic about our chances, I was also a realist. I finished writing the message and left it next to the pouches and the necklace before I turned to look over the Eldar male. His eyes were moving rapidly, a clear sign that he was dreaming. I smiled and pushed a few dark strands of hair aside and kissed his forehead lightly. I brushed my Aura against his soothingly and his shifting movements eased.
"Hush sweet Raziel," I said in a soft and soothing tone. "You are safe now. You are whole. Sweet Knight..."
The tense expression on his visage eased at the touch of my Aura and the sound of my voice. The last of his uneasy movements stopped and he seemed to fall into a deeper slumber. I smiled gently and continued to comb my claws lightly through the silken strands of his hair as dreamless sleep seemed to claim him once more. I let out a soft sigh. Kain and Raziel had both been through so much over the centuries and whilst Nosgoth might never be a 'kind' world, these two had earned a reprieve for their long-term efforts.
After making sure that our spirited Knight was tucked in, I left the retreat and took flight once more. This time I made my way to the underground entrance that led to that lower platform beneath the Pillars where I knew the Parasite would be waiting to speak with me in an effort to further convert me. As the Seer's vision regarding her own fate had not yet changed, I proceeded warily into the lion's den, taking note as I did so the different branches that the tunnel broke into as I moved down the main path that led to the Pillars. Were one of those the route we would take later if this failed? If the Parasite had seen through our ruse? That I had not seen any shimmers nearby did not mean that he had somehow tracked my movements over the past several days. I had been careful but...
My wings tensed around my shoulders as I leapt over the water and onto the platform. The surface of every wall was practically writhing with shimmers and my unease ratcheted higher still. I kept my face blank of everything but a seeming pensiveness...
"Voice!" I called out in a mildly upset tone. "I have questions for you!"
Kain's bat lay silent once more, wrapped firmly around my bracer. The eyes yet gave off a soft glow, signaling that Kain was watching. I controlled the uneasy urge to reach out to scratch at the bats ears and focused instead upon the rippling water. The algae within started to glow, filling the room with a 'mystic' light as the Parasite agitated it. He spoke a moment later.
"So you return to me, Fair Lady of the Skies," the Parasite purred in a soothing tone. "You say you have questions for me?"
"Several," I answered with a frown and I started to pace about the platform. I stopped abruptly and let out a frustrated snarl of breath. "You claim that Kain went mad. How did he go mad?"
"You know the history of the Pillars, yes?" he asked, rather than answer outright.
"Of course I do," I let out a scoff. "What does that have to do with my question?"
"Everything," he purred and I had to fight down the urge to tense as several shimmers drew closer to my form. "You see, Kain was born insane my Child. Functionally insane yes, but still as mad as the rest of the Guardian's that he eventually put down."
"Many people can be labelled as functionally insane voice," I said coldly, "up to and including myself."
"Ah, but I do not speak of insanity as defined by societal norms my Child," he said. "I speak of insanity caused by the slow deterioration of the mind itself over time. Kain had been a wondrous Guardian... at first."
"Brain deterioration does not affect vampires Voice," I said, allowing my frustration with the Parasite to bleed through into my tone.
"But magical deterioration can," he responded in a swift and firm tone.
"Hn," I frowned. He wasn't wrong in saying that. More truth used to conceal the lies. "And you claim that he is mad due to such an affliction?"
"Indeed," his tone changed, growing faux-mournful. "I had hoped that despite, or perhaps because, he had been born so, that the madness would not claim it as it had his fellow Guardian's..."
Silence filled the air. The shimmers... were growing closer still to where I stood. I shifted my stance and crossed my arms to conceal my sudden tension. Every nerve, every instinct, was coiled tight as a spring wound far too tight. Had he...?
"I was wrong..." he said, that faux-mournful tone thrumming through the air almost soothingly. A moment later those dozen or so tendrils launched toward me and his voice rose in anger. "... to believe that you would be of use to me!"
"Fuck-!" I dodged to the side swiftly to avoid those shimmering limbs.
One of the limbs still clipped my left shoulder and wing and I was sent sprawling as a wide gash was opened. My blood was flung outwards by the blow in a wide arch over the platform itself. Surprisingly enough, my blood actually stopped mid-air, splasing against one of those tendriled limbs and outlining it. I rolled to my feet swiftly, raising a hand to cover the wound as I looked about. I wasn't sure if it was because he was focusing on affecting the physical world or if it was due to Raziel's partial purification of my person that allowed my blood to remain on those limbs but...
"So you can see me," the Parasite's voice filled the air again, this time thoughtful. "At least in part. Interesting..."
"Hn," I cupped my hand carefully to allow my blood to pool. "What gave me away beast?"
"I do yet have my ways to track my enemies, child," he hissed angrily. "And I know very well Kain's usual methods of using his bats as a means to spy on others, as Vorador used his ravens to do the same."
"Hn..." I shifted warily as the shimmers writhed in the air, mindful of any further sign of attack. It was not an easy thing to do... "The Sluagh. They are your own spies!"
"Very good," he said in rumbling satisfaction. "You are a quick and clever little thing, aren't you? Not that it will do you any good. You will be the perfect bait that I need to lure Kain to his death. I imagine after all the desperate, futile effort that he put into saving Raziel, he will be equally desperate to save his treasured 'Queen'."
"You are an egotistical creature indeed if you think you have won the day, beast!" I hissed and flung my hand out wide, sending my blood in a wide arch to splatter over several tendrils. The move helped me see the individual outlines a bit better.
"And you are as blind and worthless as your vaunted Scion!" he roared and several limbs swept outwards to strike at me.
I rolled, tumbled and leapt swift as I could to avoid the blows meant to knock me unconscious. Kain's mind pushed against my own.
~Katrina, be mindful,~ Kain's voice was a dark thrum against my mind. He was displeased with the turn of events, but it was also something that we had planned for. ~He has all avenues of escape cut off.~
~Wonderful,~ I growled as I rolled to avoid another blow. ~Do I allow myself to be captured? We now know for certain that he will be using me as bait for you. Once you arrive, I could simply use the ear-ring to teleport to your side. We would then have the advantage when dealing with this bloated carcass~
~I dislike the idea of using you as bait yet again,~ Kain growled into my mind. An outright snarl rumbled through my mind when I was unable to dodge properly and my wing was clipped a second time. ~Return to me! Now!~
~Fine,~ I responded as I winced. I twisted about, having to stand and lean to the side in order to dodge another limb and gave the Parasite the two-fingered salute. "Dominus!"
The teleportation spell took hold seconds before several blood-splattered limbs converged upon my location. I appeared in front of Kain and his hands immediately closed with a steadying pressure upon my shoulders to help steady me after the abrupt teleportation. A taloned hand ran gently over my right shoulder and wing where I'd been wounded and he let out a frustrated hiss of rage. I closed my blood-covered hand over his larger one and gave it a small squeeze to help reassure him that I was alright. We both ignored the blood. I raised a brow at my Eldar Mate and smiled faintly at him.
"I am capable of taking care of myself," I said in a soothing tone. "I am fine, you can see that I will heal with no complications. The wounds are clean enough. Though... are you sure? We could have been able to take him by surprise."
"Perhaps," he answered, his voice a low rumble and his eyes flashing briefly white in either warning or upset. "However, it is equally likely that the Parasite would have bound you up in such a way that the spell would not work or where you would have been left unable to fight. I would not risk such a thing happening and leaving you in his grasp with no true way to escape."
"A fair point," I said with a nod of acknowledgement. I let out a soft sigh and looked my wounds over, noting that they were indeed healing properly. "I had hoped that we would have been able to avoid that vision of the Seers."
"She has proven an apt ally thus far mine own," he rumbled understandingly. "We tried our other plans and her own vision was a last resort. Thus far, the Parasite has proved to remain ignorant of just what he is facing. As long as that remains true, then she is true. Besides, she is now the only one who can lead us down to his lair where he will consider himself safe indeed from our vengeful rage. We will have to take the risk that her vision comes to pass as we seek the lion's true den."
"Hnn, " I stepped back with a sigh and his hands fell away from my shoulders. "You would think that being responsible for another's life so would be an easier thing to deal with after so long..."
"War can make callous creatures of us all if we allow it mine own," he responded knowingly.
"At least you have an excuse," I said as I turned to go retrieve our ally.
"Oh?" bemusement tingled his tone now that I had acknowledged his reasoning.
"You are literally heartless after all," I said over my shoulder, a low and teasing purr in my voice.
A low laugh followed me out of the room and I smiled as I tracked the Seer down easily by her scent. I found her staring at an odd tapestry that looked old and frayed despite the preserving magics that I could sense upon it. It took me a moment to realize that the tapestry was a mix of Hylden and Ancient styles. That alone easily explained the wistful, sorrowful look upon her face. I scuffed my foot lightly against the stone ground of the tunneled room and her head turned in my direction.
"Seer," I said in greeting.
"Lady Katrina," she responded. She turned partially towards me and flashed me a weak smile. "I take it by your expression that your efforts to deceive the Parasite failed and I will need to lead you down the path that I saw in my vision?"
"You would be correct," I said with a nod. "I had not realized, nor had Kain, that the Spectral Sluagh act as the Parasite's spies much as Kain's bats can. Though, I imagine that it is not precisely the same. Kain's bats are literally a part of him whilst the Sluagh are their own creatures."
"It is likely that they only aid him in return for food," she said thoughtfully.
"Which would be the souls of others," I said as I moved closer to her. "My Brother, Cuthbert, said that the Sluagh are natural creatures of the Spectral Realm. Even Gaia has them. A natural means of reducing the number of souls on a world without drastically reducing the cycle of life and death."
"True," she said with a soft hum of breath. "Too many souls on a world would be near as bad as too few..."
"Likely so," I looked up at the tapestry. "I am sorry that we were unable to successfully fool the Parasite."
"It is quite alright my Lady, you did not have all of the facts of the situation available to you," she turned to look at the tapestry as well. "I had long ago resigned myself to my fate, though I do yet fear what that fate will be. I will face my future head on as I always have. Though, I will be honest, simply having someone to speak to regarding my fate has helped and your promise to end things for me if the worst comes to pass and I have remained true has done much to ease my fear."
"I had hoped to bypass your vision in its' entirety," I started a few moments later and she waved her hand.
"I understand and appreciate the attempt my Lady," she said softly, yet firmly. "You are a good leader, a good ruler whom attempts to do her best to ensure that all of her troops and people survive an encounter with the enemy. However, we both know the truth..."
"I am aware of the old adage," I said with a small, pained smile. "It might only be a small incident gone wrong that does not impede the overall plan itself, but still..."
"Exactly," the Seer let out a soft laugh and then turned to pick up a small pack that I had not noticed. Glass clinked lightly against glass and I raised a brow at her.
"Healing potions and blood vials," she said in answer to my silent question. "I would rather have them on hand in case of injury and find that we will not need them, than not have them at all."
I let out a low laugh at that.
"Wise," I said bemusedly and I gave one of my own pouches a small pat. "Do you need anything else?
"No," she said and she squared her shoulders, giving the tapestry one final look before she turned away from it completely. "I am ready. Let us go."
"Yes," I smiled, a vicious baring of fangs. "Let us be off."
We made our way out of the room and found Kain. He looked us both over critically and then nodded his head. He held out his hand to me and I moved over to take it. I waved the Seer close and then wrapped one arm around her shoulders. Kain wrapped his teleportation magic around us both and teleported us to an area close, but not too close, to the Sanctuary. From there, I wrapped my Gift around all of us and, keeping hold of each other's hands to maintain my Gift, the Seer began to lead us.
From there, we led the Seer to the tunneling path that would eventually branch off. One path which led to the lower platform where I had spoken to the Parasite, the other... well, it would be up to her to guide us to where we needed to go from there. We reached the branching point swiftly enough and from there the Seer was the one to silently lead us forward whilst Kain kept an eye out for any of the Parasite's limbs. Glowing mushrooms and other plants helped provide a modicum of light for us to see by.
At one point the Soul Reaver shuddered and glowed violently upon Kain's back and Kain yanked us all into a small alcove until the Reaver stopped moving. I frowned at him.
~What was that about?~ I asked.
~Whilst you were speaking with the Seer, I took the time to speak with Raziel,~ he answered silently. ~Whilst I can see the Parasite, I cannot see anything that naturally belongs in the Spectral Realm. Raziel however? As long as he is in the Reaver form, he is more aware of the Spectral Realm and its' denizens.~
~He can sense the Sluagh?~ I asked, startled by the realization.
~Somewhat,~ Kain rumbled in reply. ~Either the Sluagh or the wandering souls of those yet to be reborn. With us being this close to the Parasite, do you really believe that the later could exist here of all places?~
~Fair enough,~ I responded with a nod. ~I am glad that he can sense them...~
~Indeed,~ Kain responded, his tone equally bemused and dark.
From there we proceeded with caution, falling back when we needed to in order to avoid having our souls sensed by the Sluagh and thus warn the Parasite of the presence of intruders. It was slow going because of that and at least two days passed simply travelling along the winding tunnels that led further downwards. Thankfully, both the Seer and I had thought to bring blood-vials with us. None of us were surprised by how long it was taking, yet all of us were eager to reach our destination. We were on the hunt and tensions were understandably high for all of us.
Despite the knowledge that we were entering the place that housed our greatest enemy, when we came to the wide entrance that led into the massive underground cavern and the wide lake within, I found myself filled with the same sense of awe and wonder I would often feel when Eli dragged me on some of his little nature adventures. The place was beautiful, filled with bio-luminescent algae and plant-life whose souls had likely been ignored simply because they were too small for the Parasite to bother with eating. It was vast, large enough for me to fly about easily enough and the underground lake was wide enough that I could not see the other side of the shore. I doubted seriously that even Kain, with his full-blooded, Eldar's sight, could see the other side either.
What we could see easily however, were the Pillars themselves standing tall in the very center of the cavern. The white-grey lengths looked to go down to the very floor of the underground lake, yet from the Seer's descriptions in her vision, we knew that they ended in spear-points just before they could actually reach the bed of the lake. The glow of the plant-life filled the cavern with an ethereal light that only enhanced the noblesque beauty of the Pillars. Yet... as I looked on at the Pillars, that beauty was marred by a huge, shimmering mass that I realized filled at least half, if not more of the damned cavern. I winced at the sight.
~I imagine that what you see is far worse than what my own eyes are able to perceive,~ I Whispered to Kain, my mental voice soft and sorrowful.
~Indeed,~ Kain growled back, his own voice filled with disgusted awe. ~The Parasite looks like a cancerous blob with massive limbs snaking outwards through the various tunnels in the walls. Its' very existence is an affront to nature itself. We will need to sneak down to the...~
Kain abruptly yanked us all forward, down and to the left away from where we had been standing against the right wall of the entrance. We may well have been concealed by my Gift, yet the beast had sensed our general location and had either realized that we were not his little Sluagh puppets or had recognized the presence of my own unique soul. Either way, a massive shimmering limb had launched in our direction to try to catch us unawares.
Despite Kain's swiftness, the limb still caught hold of the Seer and her hand was yanked from my own. She hit the far side of the wall with a sickening crunch of sound. It happened so fast. She hadn't even had the time to scream. Kain shoved me to the side, behind a large boulder and he stepped away from me as he drew the Reaver from his back. The Reaver lashed out lightning fast and a wide arch of shimmering fluid, the Parasite's blood, flew in an arch to cover the ground. A roaring, enraged bellow filled the air and Kain rolled to the side, another massive limb hitting the ground where he had been. A wide dent appeared in the ground, cracks spreading outwards from the force of the blow and Kain let out a challenging roar of his own.
~Take to the air! Now!~ Kain roared in my mind as he Misted to avoid another blow.
Rather than leap into the air as ordered, I rushed over to check on the Seer first. I made sure that her limp form was out of sight and then checked her over.
She was breathing...
I let out a soft sound of relief and looked over her wounds. The wounds were, for the most part, not critical, yet it was the head wound that was the worst of them. Right over the temple... I winced and pulled out a healing potion and poured it into her mouth, forcing her to swallow. Another roar filled the air and I rushed out from the nook that I'd tucked her into and leapt straight up, beating my wings fiercely to gain height. I could not afford to tend to her any further than what I had, not with the battle joined as it was.
I avoided the large shimmer that was flailing wildly in my general direction and sending more spurts of its' blood being flung over the general area. Digging my claws into the wall next to me, I used it as a second launch point to send myself higher still. With Kain's bat yet wrapped around my bracer even now, he was able to keep some of his attention on me in order to help me better dodge the limbs now flailing around the cavern trying to catch me.
Kain was darting about near the shore line, using his Mist ability to phase out of the way of attacks and then striking out as he reformed with the Reaver blade. The swords hungry cries for blood filled the air and the glow around the eyes was unmistakable even as I winged my way about the cavern. Even with all of the natural light around us, it was still too dark for even our eyes to see where his 'core' might be.
Thankfully, I'd come prepared for at least this potentiality.
I reached into one of the pouches on my waist and pulled out a large vial, one of a dozen. Inside was a glowing mixture, a variation of the fluids found in glow-sticks that had been invented roughly fifty-years after my capture. Non-toxic, could last for hours and sticky. It would remain on an object, person or animal even if said subject was submerged in water for an extended period of time. Considering the damned Parasite was affecting the physical world, that meant that the fluid could stick to him as he had to be more in the Physical Realm in order to do so. I popped off the lid and flung a wide arch of the fluid outwards to the wildly flailing limbs. The fluid stuck, and the more the beast flailed about, the more it spread over the limbs.
Kain's bat suddenly dived off of its' perch on my bracer and flew about a largish area before darting off.
~Here! Use that fluid of yours to blind the beast!~ Kain ordered over the Whisper.
A grim, fanged smile came to my lips as I realized just how effectively we would be able to use the fluid I'd brought with me. I back-winged swiftly to avoid one of the limbs searching for me and dove towards where the bat had been and dumped a large amount of the glowing fluid around that area. Another enraged, and this time pained, roar filled the air and I had to dive to the side to avoid the mass that abruptly moved to cover and wipe at the area. I pulled out another vial and flung the fluid outwards to splatter over yet more of its' massive limbs.
"You foolish little ants!" the Parasite roared. "Do you really believe that you can defeat me?! I am Eternal! I am the ethereal Wheel upon which this world turns! There is nothing you can do to stop me! Nothing!"
"You are nothing more than a canker. A blighted cancer to be excised!" Kain yelled out with a triumphant roar as he successfully cut away yet another limb. "A vile, gangrenous mass of flesh that will be removed! Your time of turpitude has ended and the corruption that you have spread across my world, my Nosgoth, ends now foul beast!"
"You are nothing!" the Parasite snarled and he lashed out with now glowing limbs at Kain's form. He Misted and then reformed, then had to burst into his cloud of bats to avoid another blow. "You can do nothing!"
Kain reformed again and again, darting into Mist for and then Bat form to avoid blow after blow, lashing out whenever he reformed to do a brief bit of damage. He timed one transition just a little too slow and a limb manage to catch hold of his leg and he was dragged underwater.
"DIE!" the Parasite roared in pained satisfaction.
"Kain!" I shouted frantically as I allowed my Gift to drop.
I dove for the water where he had disappeared and a mass of shimmering, and in some cases glowing, limbs abruptly blocked my path and forced me back up. The Parasite's mad laughter filled the air and he started to jab his limbs towards me with the kind of cold air that a cat might bat at a trapped mouse. He thought he had won.
Little did he know that things were going according to plan...
My job now was to continue to act as a distraction for the Parasite, to keep his attention on me and away from Kain's currently not-melting form. With that in mind, I flew about frantically, flinging the fluid about with a distracted air as I dove again and again to try to 'save Kain from the water's burn'. Cold laughter filled the air and I was suddenly flung backwards with all the force of a mild-backhand. I twisted about and caught myself before another limb could catch me in its' grasp.
"You'll not be able to save him now, child," the Parasite purred, voice filled with vile and dark satisfaction. "The vaunted Scion of Balance will die knowing the very agony that he had doomed his precious First-Born to. Both of the so called 'Champions of Nosgoth' have failed! Nosgoth is mine!"
"Damn... you!" I roared in unfeigned rage as I dodged another blow. "You will not win!"
A large mass abruptly slammed into me and pinned me painfully against the ceiling of the cavern. I let out a pained grunt and struggled violently in an effort to claw free of the limb that held me trapped. I realized dimly as a shimmer began to coat my hands that my claws were able to do some damage, but not nearly as much damage as Kain had been doing earlier with the Reaver. I managed to get one of my wings free and I re-doubled my efforts to get free.
"I have already won little 'queen'," the Parasite purred. A tendril covered in glowing fluid darted forward and wrapped around my freed wing and I let out an enraged hiss. "As I always knew I would!"
"You are nothing more than a predictable, contemptible piece of filth!" I shouted. A roar of rage and pain escaped my lips when his grasp about my wing.
"Perhaps I should keep you a time," the Parasite rumbled with a dark chuckle. "I am in need of a new servant after all..."
"As if you could break me," I said with a pained scoff of breath.
"We shall see now wont we?" he purred in a disgusting tone.
"No, we shall not!" A voice roared.
Not even a second later Raziel was suddenly in front of me. Magic flared in his hands and the Parasite's limb was forced away from my form. I caught myself with a rapid series of wing-beats, taking note that they were sore but mobile, and I flung another vial of glowing fluid at the beast to coat it further still.
"What?! You...!? HOW?!" the Parasite roared and several tendrils swiped at the area I'd thrown the bottle at. I'd managed to nail another of his many eyes.
"Dammit Raziel!" I hissed as I flew close to the other winged vampire. "What are you doing up here?!"
A dark chuckle escaped him, his gaze yet locked on the Parasite's writhing form.
"I am confusing the beast further still," he said.
The next words out of the Parasite made me realize what was going on.
"HOW?! How is this possible?!" the Parasite roared in sudden pain. "How are there two of you?!"
I blinked and almost laughed as I dodged a madly flailing limb.
"Were you playing at being comatose?" I asked and Raziel dove next to me, lashing out with his claws and doing damage to a limb that I'd not noticed.
"Not at first," he said in answer as the Parasite roared again. "Kain and my Younger self are currently attacking the main bulk of the Parasite's body. With Kain being purified, the Parasite has no avenue of escape."
"Not with the Pillars spearing him so," I said with a grim smile and I pulled Kindness free from one of my pouches. "Let us continue to distract and harry the beast from above then."
Eldar Raziel nodded his head in agreement and we dove as one to attack. Even with Kindness in my hand, the damage that I was doing seemed to be less than what Raziel wrought upon the Parasite's half-seen flesh. Beset as he was on four sides by at least three individuals able to do extensive damage, the beasts roars of pain and rage filled the air with an almost constant cacophony of sound. It was music to my ears in truth. Shimmering movement along the Pillars caught my attention and I called out to the Eldar Raziel rather than attempt to Whisper and end up speaking to both males. I did not wish to distract the younger of the two...
"Is he trying to bring down the Pillars?!" I shouted.
"No!" Raziel spun about and used the cavern ceiling to aid him in dodging a blow. A massive hole appeared in the ceiling and it was obvious that the Parasite had tried to spear Raziel upon the limb. "Kain and my younger self have done a significant amount of damage to the main bulk of the Parasite's form beneath the water! He is trying to lift himself up and away from the other two. See how several of the glowing limbs are ducking under the water? He is trying to protect the damaged areas."
I noticed that he was right, several limbs coated with the glowing fluid had darted under the water, leaving most of the limbs that were not covered above water in a way that would leave me more reliant on Raziel's warnings to avoid the swiftly moving limbs. Raziel suddenly held out his hand towards me.
"Toss me your sword!" he shouted.
I blinked in confusion but tossed Kindness his way. He caught my blade easily in his hands and then winged his way back up to the highest point of the ceiling. He dived. I let out a cry of vicious satisfaction as I realized he was targeting the largest of the limbs coiling about the Pillars. Kindness connected viciously and the shimmering mass shifted downwards slightly. Raziel flew past for a second strike and the Parasite's roar of pure pain filled the massive cavern. A third passing strike did yet more damage and I could swear that I heard the sound of flesh tearing away from flesh as the shimmering mass dropped back down. The thick limb had been damaged enough that it could no longer support the Parasite's bulky weight.
"Damn you, you insignificant little gnats!" pain suffused the beasts tone as he roared. "Worthless rats scurrying about and not learning when to just die!"
The entire cavern rumbled ominously and I had to dodge a falling stalactite. Raziel snarled and flew up to my side.
"You are alright My Lady?" he asked.
"I'm fine!" I responded. "The hell is he doing?"
"He intends to bring the cavern down upon our heads!" Raziel had to dodge a falling rock himself. "We need to stop him and swiftly!"
"Damnation!" I snarled and then lit in on an idea. "Raziel! Do you trust me?"
"Of course My Lady," he looked over at me as he regained some height.
~Kain!~ I called out over the Whisper. ~I've a plan!~
~Tell me!~ he snarled and his voice sounded pained. Kain too had been injured during the fighting.
I did so and a dark, rumbling, victorious laugh filled my mind a few moments later.
~Do it,~ Kain ordered, hungry satisfaction in his tone.
"Raziel! Change into the Reaver. Now!" I called to the Eldar.
His eyes glowed for a moment, a beautiful, ethereal light and then he nodded, a faint smile upon his lips. He flew up to the roof of the cavern and then his form blurred and condensed as it solidified into the form of the Soul Reaver. I flew up and caught the hilt of the Reaver in one hand and Kindness in the other. Kain abruptly appearing in the air on the other side of the Pillars, the younger Reaver blade in his right hand. I coiled my Telekinetic Gift around the Reaver in my hand and knew that Kain was doing the same. I threw the Reaver in my hand toward the main mass of the beasts body, speed boosted by Telekinetic power so that the blade would not merely stab the beast, but pierce through and into the beasts body. Kain mirror my movements and both blades disappeared into the shimmering mass.
It was difficult, but I was able to keep hold of the Reaver even though I could no longer see it. A roar of pure agony filled the air as I started to focus on spinning the sword as if it were the blade of a blender as I forced it deeper and deeper into the Parasite's bloated, soon-to-be corpse.
"AARGH! You vile little ants! GRRAAAAGGGH! Worthless little- GNNHNH! I WILL KILL YO-!"
The Parasite's roaring voice abruptly cut off and the shimmering mass and limbs that had been writhing about violently suddenly stilled. The cavern was abruptly filled with a deathly silence. I held my breath and simply worked at that point to maintain my current height. Kain shifted to bat form and then reformed near the ceiling, talons digging into one of the Pillars. I watched for further movement but the shimmering and fluid covered limbs remained still as stone. My eyes widened in shock as the massive form slowly became visible to my eyes, a massive, wounded and bloody blob of flesh that looked very much like a cancerous growth.
A shudder seemed to run through the form but then I realized that it was not that, no, the form was dissolving into motes of... of 'soul stuff' for lack of a better term. The motes of light rose up and then slowly disappeared from sight. Kain held out his hand and one of the Reaver's shot out of the water and into his hand. I focused and did the same, calling the other to my own hand. I sent out a pulse of reassuring energy and then dropped the blade. Eldar Raziel appeared in the air a moment later next to me and the younger Raziel next to Kain.
Another odd rumble filled the air of the cavern, but this sounded... less than ominous somehow. Kain let out a startled hiss of breath that I could easily hear even with the distance between us. He pushed away from the Pillar in question, his movements oddly jerky and he shifted to bat form nary a second later. He reformed upon the shore-line and I moved swiftly to land nearby. Both versions of Raziel made their way to our side.
"Kain? What... are you alright?!" I yelped in shock and reached for his hand.
One of his talons was badly crushed and stained with blood. The amount of force to have caused such damage had to have been immense! His expression was filled with pain and yet he did nothing but wince when I took his larger hand into my own, his attention focused elsewhere. I looked over the wounded digit carefully and then jerked when he reached over to tilt my head up and to the side with his undamaged hand. He forced me to look at the Pillars and I started in surprise, dropping his hand in shock.
The Pillar's had started to glow with a light that was steadily becoming brighter and brighter. Soon enough, that light was brighter than any fluorescent bulb found on Gaia. The four of us watched in stunned silence as that light slowly spread upwards along the length of each Pillar. One of them stood out from the others however. The Pillar of Balance. Rather than a pure light, it was a mixture, like a black-light and a normal light twined together in a fusion of not-quite-color. Kain let out a small hiss and I caught his undamaged hand in my own.
"No," I said softly. "Look at it. That's... it's not a sickly coloration at all. Even with the dark light, it looks pure..."
"Katrina..." his voice... I turned and looked at him. His tone and expression remained blanked of emotion yet I could sense his concern through our Marks.
The light seemed to dim, or perhaps merely moved higher, yet the cavern remained well lit indeed by the light of the Pillars. Kain shook himself and then looked at the two versions of Raziel. They moved closer and placed a hand on each of Kain's shoulders. I released Kain's hand with a small noise and then rushed back toward the area where the Seer had been flung. With the battle and the sudden glow of the Pillars, I had nearly forgotten about our Hylden ally. I felt a brief sense of annoyance with myself but that eased when I found the other woman where I'd left her hidden. A small sigh of relief escaped me when I heard her slow breathing.
That she was still alive was a good sign.
I picked up her form gently in a fireman's carry and felt briefly surprised at how light she actually was. I pushed the thought from my mind and made my way back over to Kain's side. I closed my hand back around Kain's and his hand tightened around my own. He briefly took in the sight of the Seer's still breathing form before he wrapped his Teleportation magics around all of us. We reappeared on the dais in front of his throne, where the Pillars yet appeared broken and decayed and yet...
Even here they glowed with that odd, internal light...
I set the Seer down gently and we waited and watched. The four of us remained silent as the glow slowly intensified to filled the room. The broken portions of the Pillars suddenly shifted and... and started to grow. It was like watching a flower or a plant grow via a time-lapse video. They grew higher and higher still until they reached the ceiling. Kain's hand tightened around my own, ready to teleport us out in an instant if it looked like the ceiling of the Sanctuary was going to collapse but... there was no need. Somehow, even though each Pillar was 'growing' in an enclosed space, they grew through the ceiling itself, leaving the stonework of the Sanctuary undamaged. Not a single fleck of stone or marble fell to hit the ground. The bright glow about the Pillars slowly faded.
The younger Raziel let out a startled hiss and then pointed at the Pillars where each Symbol once more shone with a bright and proud light. The colors around each symbol also looked to have been restored and stood out against the marble in sharp relief. What was he pointing at...?
"The designs..." the younger Raziel started.
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