Ryudo Lee's Legacy

[Aisha deCabre]

Aisha's heart rate shot up the instant that Gareeku grabbed her wrist, though there was relief when the travelers were released and had fled for their lives.  She was looking into his eyes, no longer their usual peaceful blue shade.  Even though he was staring back with an almost calm demeanor, the eyes still looked menacing...

But when she realized that he wasn't attacking, she relaxed her tensed-up muscles.  Okay...this is a good thing...nice and calm...  Aisha took a deep breath, her focus returning and surprise etching into the spaces made by fear.  I can't believe it.  I CAN bring him back...I hope.

She smiled lightly back at the transformed Gareeku, wondering if the real him was watching in the back of his mind somewhere.  "Okay...come on...let's go back," Aisha said, her voice level and soothing as she started walking back with him towards the portal.  Now to just try getting him to snap right back to his usual self so that nobody attempts to kill him...

On the way, her sensitive ears swiveled, her concentration bent on finding anyone hiding in the desert.  Psh...like anyone would have followed me.  But then, as soon as the portal was in sight, she could hear someone nearby.  Whether or not they were making an effort to be undetected, she couldn't be sure.

Okay...maybe someone DID follow me.  "If I hear a weapon, I will answer in kind," she just said aloud to the air.

[Gareeku]

It was strange; even though he was still in his transformation, the wolf was no longer a raging beast; he was now a somewhat docile creature, letting Aisha lead him back to the portal. As they walked, Gareeku stayed silent, no longer emitting any growls or hisses as the two of them walked back to the portal.

[Stygian]

Alright... Come on! Hurry up! Gah... I can't stand waiting for these people, and if the wolf gets too aroused by my magic... Stygian thought to himself. Still, it seems that despite their capability... Well, these ones seem more intriguing than the others. That werewolf too... He had better hurry up, or he's going to get stuck here.

   The wolf woman decided that she was definitely not going to stay here anymore. Or rather, she did, but obviously not in so composed thoughts. She wobbled to her feet and as well as she could started making her way away from the darkness as fast as she could, tears streaming down her cheeks. Coincidentally, she was headed straight for where Carran, Winger and the others were. But she couldn't get away from the dark fast enough, it seemed, because she kept looking over her shoulder at it, expecting it to jump at her any second...

[Azlan]

Exiting the dark forest, Carran crested a small grassy hill, atop which was an old flagstone road.

The staff that the fox had been seen with earlier had reappeared as he walked, it did not seem that he needed help walking, but yet he used it.  The solid taps of metal upon stone held a solid beat as he strode down the flagstone path that headed roughly in the direction of where he had observed the Angel coming from. 

Turning a bend, he stumbled upon the remains of a small wagon; the driver was laid out in the seat from where he drove the beasts of burden.  His chest was caved in and he was quite dead.  The wagon's occupant was a few steps behind from what remained of the carriage portion; some non-sharp object had been shoved through her midsection.

Carran stopped for a second and shook his head; the passenger had been a mage of some sort herself and judging by the broken staff at her feet, had challenged the Fallen and paid by having her own staff forcefully shoved through her abdomen.

"There is something to be said for the lack of wisdom in mages."  Carran commented as he turned to continue up the path. 

The valley beyond held the sight he was seeking, a large black crater, still smoking with small fires burning the remaining vegetation.  The remains of a small farm could be seen around the impact zone, but judging by the condition of the carriage driver and mage, the occupants were likely very dead.

 

[Cogidubnus]

 Cogidubnus stretched as he exited the portal. The forest around him was largely as he left it, the black sword still stuck in the tree, the crater still smoking, the Angel, still dead. Although he could no longer make it's form out. Realizing he had forgotten something, he turned around. He was about to go back through the portal when his hat was once again blown to him by a stray breeze, a coat of ash and sand on it this time. He narrowed one eye, suspicious of his fortune, and picked it up again. He sniffed it, the hat smelling of the shadows he had left, and of the desert. He dusted it off and placed it back on his head.
He supposed that Aisha and Gareeku would make their way back to the forest soon. In the meantime, he would try and catch up with the others that had gone ahead. He began to jog towards where the smoke still rose from the sky, expecting to find the others already there.

[Cheese Foxlee]

The smoke was finally starting to clear.

Winger walk with his head down, looking for anything that might be a clue to what had happened to the angel.  Why it had retuerned was a mystery, but the most improtan thing now was it's heart. "When the angel leaft the last time it left intacted."  Winger said still searching.  "Something may have happened to it when it got here. Maybe it was attached."

Winger walked on for a bit then stoped and bent over to pick something up.  " It was some kind of sering, the liquid inside had aready been drained.

[this one is a nod to Tophers little friends]

[Aisha deCabre]

Hearing no reply to her outburst, Aisha shrugged and continued forward to where the portal was being held open, and consequently, the forces holding it open appeared to be dwindling.

With Gareeku in tow, the pantheress stepped up towards the edge and made to step over it, when a thought occured to her.  Her gaze was cast back to Gareeku, still under the influence of his feral form, but still looking placid.  What if there's still lingering bits of darkness...?  I might not be able to hold him back...

Gently taking his wrist with her hand, Aisha snapped her bracer around it for the time being...the light magic in it might not snap him out of it, but most likely it will keep him from sensing whatever lingered.  She could only guess at what would get his true self to come back without hurting him.  "Let's keep going," her voice soothed, just in case he happened to notice the extra accessory.

Then, they stepped through the portal, away from the dry sand and back onto moist forest soil...back beneath the encompassing shadows of the trees' sheltering boughs, just as the thing was closing.  Aisha stared forth towards their original destination, pausing to find the scent and paths the others made towards the trail of smoke still lingering in the air.  She happened to be right behind Cogidubnus as she exited.  Hmph.  Maybe that was HIM I sensed back there.

[Stygian]

When the wolf woman looked around, she could see figures just coming out from the darkness behind her, which was just receding. They seemed to be a pair of wolves and a feline of some kind... but she didn't know any of them. Shakily, she got behind a tree and supported herself against it. Her whole body felt like it was made from jelly, so the tree was a thankful support. Cautiously, she turned her head around to look at them. They had emerged from the darkness... but it was receding. Her look was frightened and suspicious, but she stood still, waiting out of hesitation.

   Stygian made another spell in his mind, this one a sort of ward, and then spoke again in that whispering voice, now not just to Aisha but to Cognidubnus and Gareeku too.
   The others have gone to find the heart of the chaos. You should go too, he said, and sent them another strong sense of direction. Likely, they will be hurt if this goes on. It is wiser to observe first and strike later.

[Gareeku]

Not noticing Aisha slip the light bracer onto his wrist, the transformed wolf continued to follow the panthress, walking with her through the portal and back into the dark forest. It was then that, before the wolf had a chance to pay attention to the sense of darkness around them, he suddenly fell to his hands and knees, groaning slightly as the wings on his head and back slowly dissolved into nothingness.

"Nnnuuughh...what...what happened?" Gareeku asked groggily, looking somewhat half asleep as he looked up, his eyes now back to their normal blue colour.

[Cogidubnus]

Cogidubnus's stopped dead and turned around when the voice began to speak to him. His ear twiched, and though he saw Aisha and Gareeku, he knew that the voice belonged to neither of them.
"I knew the bastard was too stubborn to die." He said, his mouth quirked in a strange smile. Perhaps now he knew what exactly the feeling of darkness was around him: and perhaps, what the shadows were that congregated around Stygian's lost sword. He shook his head and nodded towards Gareeku.
"Welcome back to the land of the living, sir. You've been somewhat out of sorts recently." He said, gesturing to Aisha. "She seems to have managed to bring you back. It's good to see you in control of yourself."
He nodded to Aisha. "Congratulations seems to be in order. Well done with waking him up. You'll forgive me if I did not wish to disturb either of you in the desert, but frenzied creatures can be somewhat temperamental." His ear twitched again, and he motioned to the directions that Stygian had 'shown' him in his mind. "It would seem the others have continued on to the source of this darkness. It might be wise to join them.", he said, turning around and continuing along the path again.
As he passed a tree along the path, a strange sensation ran up the back of his neck. He hesitated, and shrugged, continuing on.

[Aisha deCabre]

The whispering voice was once again lingering in Aisha's mind...The directions she recieved could be followed easily enough once they matched with the path that their other companions had taken.  Aisha started to walk across, bypassing the path altogether and taking the shorter straight run through the forest.  But she didn't get to far--about when they were but  a few feet behind Cogi--when she stopped and watched with widened eyes as Gareeku had started to come to again.

Oh, thank the heavens... Aisha sighed, her free hand resting on her chest for a second before reaching down to help the wolf up, still holding on to his wrist.  She cast him a relieved smile, but quirked her ear to hear Cogi's statement before following up with her own.  "Yeah...you sorta fell unconscious while fighting the angel..." she said with a short, slightly amazed laugh.  "But I'm just glad you're back."

Once he was composed again, Aisha caught up with their other companion as they found the path.  On the way, the pantheress had sensed someone's presence hiding nearby.  A quick glance upon passing a tree soon identified that someone to be the wolf woman that had been with Sebastian.

"You might as well join us," the panther said in passing with a quick polite smile, while waiting for her to catch up with them.  They soon were coming up to where Winger was with the others...and suddenly smelling an acrid burning in the air that no doubt belonged to the crater that they were sure to come upon.

[Gareeku]

Hearing what Aisha and Cogi said, particularly the werewolf's referencing of him losing control and mentioning frenzied creatures, Gareeku's ears dropped as the wolf realised what had happened.
"Damn it..." he cursed softly, angry with himself for losing control, before a look of great worry appeared on his face. "Oh god...did I..."

Deciding to try and not think about it, Gareeku followed Aisha, albeit a bit clumsily due to him still being very groggy after coming out of the transformation. Noticing the wolf woman, Gareeku recognised her as the assistant to Sebastian. However, this time she seemed different, almost like she was a completely different person.

Deciding not to ask, Gareeku gave her a warm smile as he passed her.
"Aisha's right. There could be danger out here. You'd be very welcome to join us." the wolf said, making it clear that none of them were any threat to her as he stretched out a hand in the hope she would follow.

[Stygian]

The woman looked fearfully at Aisha, but the fact that she was in the middle of a dark forest and scared out of her wits seemed to win out over the suspiciousness toward a stranger, and she joined up behind them, walking two steps behind them, which seemed far enough to keep an eye but close enough that she should feel safe. The dark of the woods wasn't exactly shifting, yet they could all sense as if something were watching them from the shadows, though from where and how there was no telling.
   "Who... are you people...?" she said after a while, sounding frightened. "What happened to me?"

[Cheese Foxlee]

Winger didn't know what to make of the needle he had found; so he took it and contued his search for clues.  He stopped when he saw Aisha retuning, with Gareeku, and the wolf woman.  He had been paying too much attention to his own fight to realize what happend to Gareeku, or to remeber the wolf woman. He gave them all a little wave and walked on.

Winger started cleaning his feathers as he walked

Before too long he came upon some foot prints.  Five or six different set's each belonging to a different kind of creature.  what he found odd about it was that the print seemed to be headed toward the crash site rather than away from it. "Strange" He said with his wing tip still in his beak.

[Snuggles]

Even though the angel is gone Rei still seems to be in a state of transparence that is very odd. The oddest of it is that she is transparent but she kind of shows a different world through her. The world comprises three things. One side of it is light, Beautiful sight to see one of things growing in good nature. On the other side of it being dark, mostly dead things that look alive right now, like skeletons, moving about in this side. Lastly, it almost looks like an inland in the middle of both. Mostly showing signs of both sides no more light then dark. In the middle if you look carefully, there is a figure inside this world and what looks like the dark side of this is almost preparing for something.

(hopefully this doesn't intrude on anything... hopefully.)

[Aisha deCabre]

Thankfully, the path through the woods wasn't too long.  By the time the smoke trail disappeared, they had finally come upon Winger and the others as they stood around looking at the massive crater.

"Definitely deja-vu," Aisha muttered.  The area was huge, the trees for quite a few feet around having been blown apart by the shockwave of the impact.  Splinters lined the ground...and the panther, her feet usually bare, watched for such things as she started strolling the perimeter.  There was a great round bowl in the earth so neatly made that one could count the different layers of soil straight down through the solid bedrock.

With a sigh, she the panther started to join the rest of the others as they moved along, but paused to glance at the wolf woman when she timidly asked her question.  Aisha's look was inquiring, but not intimidating.  "You don't remember us...?"

I wonder if she hit her head before... Aisha thought with a light flick of one of her ears.  "What's the last thing you do remember?"

[Stygian]

The wolf woman looked into Aisha's eyes for a second, green meeting red head on. Then she turned her head away and blushed.
   "I... I was just going out of the bathroom to leave work, and then... I heard something. I remember I got really scared... And then something came at me from behind..." her eyes seemed to glisten a bit, and her expression looked as if she was just remembering while she was talking. "I... I..." Her eyes went wide, and then she shook her head. "Then I woke up just now, over there," she finally said, and looked at Aisha again, then Gareeku, Cognidubnus, then Aisha once more.

[Gareeku]

Catching up to the others with Aisha, Gareeku's eyes widened as the scene before him came into view. It was truely an awesome sight. The crater was truely massive.
Whoa...that must have been one hell of an impact... the wolf thought to himself, remembering the shockwave that he and the others felt earlier in the inn.

Listening to what the wolf woman said, Gareeku raised his eyebrow slightly.
"You don't remember anything at all?" he asked. It was then, however, that the wolf remembered the wolf woman aiding Sebastian, turning to Aisha. "Hmmm...you don't think..." he began, before shaking his head slightly. What was he saying? Sebastian was a man of the church!
"Where is Sebastian?" the wolf questioned, noticing that he had not seen him for some time.

[Cogidubnus]

Cog narrows one eye and looks at the wolf woman.
"You honestly remember nothing? I wonder...the name Fors means nothing to you? Sebastian?" He said, looking around slowly. He turned back to the wolf woman."Do you remember your name, madam? He said, searching for some light of recognition in her eyes. He scowled.  "In any case, you're having a very bad day. You're in the middle of the woods, near where something very dark fell out of the sky. We're here to kill it." He said, turning to Gareeku.
"Sebastian's...kind of dead." He said, motioning to where the Crozius was still stuck in the tree. "Although I'm not convinced he's completely dead. Doesn't...feel like he's dead." Cog said, waving his hand in the air. "Maybe she'll regain her memory. Maybe not. Perhaps the Cleric neglected to tell us certain things about his 'secretary'." He said, walking on, following Winger.

[Stygian]

The woman just stared at Cognidubnus with a confused and fearful look. She apparrently didn't get anything that was going on.
   "Fors? Sebastian? I knew a Sebastian in junior high..." she said. "My name is Clarissa Greene. I don't know anything about any secretary. I work in a bar back in town. We are near town, aren't we?" Once again her look was fearful.

[Joat]

Pan is back with the others now.

“I learned to control my darkness, but I’m not sure that Gareeku, not being a necromancer, can do it in the same way I can, even if I try to teach him,” Sylva thinks, “I think I know how to get a lead on how to help him, but it’s too risky. I can’t do it, at least not without an exit strategy.”

A metaphoric light bulb appears above her head. “Pan, where are you?”

“Right here,” Pan says from behind Sylva.

She turns around and whispers in his ear.

“That’s the craziest plan I’ve ever heard. Let’s get to it,” Pan says.

[Aisha deCabre]

Aisha listened to Clarissa's explanation with a rising curiosity as they kept walking around the perimeter of the site looking for clues.  She remembered nothing of Sebastian, and right after his disappearance...it was as if she was controlled.  But how could that possibly be?  Not for the first time, something had struck the panther as strange about the priest.

Shaking her head to get rid of the entangling questions, Aisha only nodded at the wolf woman.  "Yeah...we're within reasonable traveling distance of a town.  Don't know if it's your town, but it's as good a one as any."  After Aisha smiled apologetically, her dark ruby eyes were cast back across the forest's darkness, and one hand was resting comfortably on one hip.

"At any rate, we all may be heading right back to the inn pretty soon.  If there's another quest starting, we'll need time to gather supplies and rest...and all of that other good-and-wise jazz."  The panther then sighed and made a polite bow.  "Forgive me, Clarissa, we should've introduced ourselves.  I'm Aisha, that's Gareeku, and Winger," she points to various respective people she knew well, and any others could re-introduce themselves.

[Joat]

“I’m Pan, this is Sylva, and I’m sorry, but the two of us are leaving. Be back soon. TELEPORT!” Pan says. The two of them disappear in a puff of smoke.

Another Dimension

The two of them arrive in a large, empty, white room. On one of the walls is a large mirror and a door. The other walls are blank.

“Where are we?” Sylva asks.

“We’re in the APD training room,” Pan says.

“How is this a training room?”

“It’s a holographic training room, more specifically. We train in virtual what-if situations to prepare ourselves for the real deal.”

“That sounds very advanced, but how will it help with my plan?”

“This room is large and empty, so you have plenty of room to loose your power. This room is never used on thursdays and today happens to be, you guessed it, a thursday. This way, nobody will stumble in and get hurt.”

“Nice thinking.”

Pan clings onto the back of Sylva’s neck. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“I need to know what was going on in Gareeku’s mind if I hope to help him. Besides, nothing could go wrong.” She isn’t even fooling herself with that last sentence, but she nonetheless continues her plan.

She takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly. She begins to glow with a black aura. “RELEASE!”

[Azlan]

Carran exited the remains of the hovel looking a tad bit pale, only to be shocked to find nearly the entire group standing around the crater like a bunch of tourists.

"How did all of you get over here so fast?  I can long-stride because I am half-fae and I have this staff, we are however the only ones besides elves that can do this without the aid of magic.  Extraordinary.  Well anyways, do not go in the house, it is fairly gruesome.  Whatever killed the family here, is different then the Fallen we battled."

He sat down upon a large stone, produced a small bag of candied fruits and munched away on his lunch.  "What attacked the farmer, his wife and their children was brutal and sadistic.  The carriage you might have seen on the way here from the road is the Fallen's work, heavy-handed and brutal.  Regardless of, we really should bury the dead, lest the rise up and join the unliving."

[topher chee]

    Oddly enough Topher found himself sitting on a tree stump examining a queer foot print. This can't be right, he thought, this can't be right at all.  "Hey guys, come check thi-----Guys?"
    Beginning to be fretful of what could be lurking the shadows of the forest Topher stood up and took a deep breath.  He thought of what to do and it hit him, he must go higher and investigate.
    With this Topher hopped to the nearest branch, excited to be jumping again.  Limb by limb he climbed the rather thick tree til he reached a considerable hight.  In the distance he saw a large crater, this can't be good.

[Cheese Foxlee]

Winger dropped the needle in the sand.  he was really starting to feel the effects of being up all night.  "Ok" he said in a cranky tone. "Lets get this over with. Are there any tools around?"  Winger glanced at the east and he could see the sun was already out in its full glory. He longed to be at home in bed, but he knew that he might not have that luxury for a long time to come.

[Cogidubnus]

Cog nodded at Carran and grinned to himself. "With flutes of fear they filled the ear, while their grisly masque they lead: and long they sang, and loud they sang, for they sang to wake the dead", he said, sitting down. "Zombies are not something I'd like wandering around behind me." He looked around, taking a roll of the party. A few people were missing: the necromancer and the pixie were gone, and so was Topher. At least, he didn't see him. He leaned back. "Of course, a shovel might be nice, unless someone has an earthmove spell handy. I don't think I'd be up to...making enough holes in the ground to bury all these people." Sensing that danger had perhaps passed for the moment, he reached inside his jacket and grabbed his shades. A quick flick and they were back on his head. He looked at the bodies and then over at the hovel. "Well, an earthmove or fireball spell, anyway." He stood, and dusted off his pants. He bowed in Clarissa's direction.
"Apologies if I was somewhat brusque with you a moment ago, Mrs. Greene. Something....does not bode well." He said, turning once again towards the hovel and the bodies.

[Stygian]

There seemed to drift a sort of laughter in the air, so silent it could barely be heard, yet still so clear... And then came that voice again.
   But deathless time and deathless mind, have strength mortals have yet to find: and the shadows so returned in kind, as the darkness never fled...
   Clarissa looked at Cognidubnus, her green eyes glinting a bit in the rising sunlight. The shadows at the edge of the forest were fought back, but within they still clinged under the treecrowns.
   "It's miss," she said, more calmly than she looked.

[Aisha deCabre]

Burying dead... Aisha sighed quietly as she heard Carran's suggestion, her head shaking slightly before turning to the edge of the crater and noticing briefly that the rest of the party had started to join them.  Everyone was together again, she thought, and it was hoped that it would stay that way.  Pan was exempt from that thought...with his ability he could have been anywhere.

"Let's definitely get this over with," she said in agreement with Winger, noticing the sun starting to rise, and the shadows lengthening towards the west.  "Shame on me for thinking that I could get some sleep around here..." she muttered with a snicker and started looking around for some sturdy branches.  If shovels weren't brought, then certainly some could be made...

[Gareeku]

Nodding his head slightly as Aisha introduced him, Gareeku then listened to what Carran said of the victims of the attacks, a grim expression appearing on the wolf's face as he did so.
"Innocent lives lost...I can only imagine what they went through..." Gareeku muttered softly, looking down at the scene of carnage as he spoke.

It was then, however, that he heard Cogidubnus speak of Sebastian's death, his eyes growing wider as he heard the were speak of the priest's death. Feeling weak, a look of slight despair manifested itself on the wolf's face as a feeling of nausea also began to make itself known. Not only had he killed, he had murdered a holy man.