"...NIMENI!"
The image of her face was so vivid, her voice so real that it woke him from his sleep in the most abrupt way. For two weeks he had heard nothing from her, no letter or contact to let him know she was alright or that she'd even returned. The last time he'd spoken to her she had told him that she was beginning a journey, a journey that she promised would bring them closer together. He'd asked to follow with her but she'd begged him to remain behind while she saw to whatever plans she'd made. Every instinct told him to break his promise and follow behind her in secret, and normally breaking a promise meant nothing to him..but when it was a promise made to her, he had to keep his word.
For the last few nights he had dreamt, and that in itself was odd considering he'd never had dreams before. His dreams were far different from those that occurred in the minds of sighted people. His minds eye didn't create images but instead it cast shadows; outlines and shades that resembled how his "sixth sense" allowed him to perceive the world. What he "saw" was somehow incredibly familiar as if he'd been present there before, only now it was Syeira who's shadow filled the place and not his own. He felt fear and he felt pain, but they weren't his..they were hers.
At first he had thought it to be nothing more than his own apprehensive mind creating the most dire situation possible, after all that's how his mind always worked. But as the dreams continued to happen and the sounds became all the more real he knew it was more than just an over-active bit of distrustful instinct. Two weeks and no word? Something had gone wrong and though he'd made a promise to her, he could no longer sit in the dark and hope for the best. He had to do something. The only problem was that he had no way of knowing where she was or what was happening. He hadn't felt this powerless since his days as a slave...and it was with that realization that something triggered in his mind. It was as if fate itself thrust a large missing piece of the puzzle into his mind. In an instant he knew what he had to do. Though it may not be his final destination, he knew where to begin his search.
~TWO WEEKS AGO~
Syeira had been having recurring dreams for quite some time, dreams of a life not her own, yet somehow linked to hers. She'd told Nimeni of the things she saw and felt and he explained to her that the memories she spoke were of the woman he'd loved in the past, the woman who'd been taken from him by the zealots whom he'd served. No matter how much she seemed to remember of this past life and despite how he'd done his best to tell her of the woman they'd taken from him it just never seemed enough. Syeira had searched for texts, records, any information about the woman and the cult from Nimeni's past, but it didn't provide her with all the insight she desired. She needed more--and that led to her decision; she had to travel to where it had all begun.
The location of the former cult land was near impossible to find unless you'd been there before, but eventually she was able to gain that last bit of information from Nimeni himself. Had he known what she'd planned to do he may not have told her, but in the end he gave her everything. Names, dates, exact locations..everything. She'd given no word to anyone about her plans and departed immediately after informing Nimeni that she was taking a journey, a journey that she'd made him swear not to accompany her on. Perhaps if she knew what was waiting for her she might not have gone, but then again knowing her personality she may have left anyway.
Finding the lands wasn't difficult in the end. After what had happened there at the hands of the blind lycan there was said to be a curse of death upon the place, and none ever ventured there. Syeira had expected to find a commune left in ruin but what she encountered was a faction that was not only not in ruin, but apparently thriving. In the past they had been nothing more than a large group of humans in service to Gods long since forgotten, but after what had been done by Nimeni and his uprising those who'd been left alive knew that certain precautions had to be taken so as to prevent such an event from ever happening again. Sorcerers had been brought in along with non-human associates so as to protect the zealots as well as their place of worship. Those who couldn't be manipulated were paid large sums for their service, enough to where they would follow orders without question. Apparently the money the cult offered was well spent because the sorcerers informed the cult leaders of Syeira's approach before she arrived. They recognized the life force of the young demoness, recognized it as the same life force which had nearly brought an end to the zealots, the woman they'd taken from their former slave. If they had only one belief it was that the God's were offering them a blessing, a second chance to right their initial wrong. This time they would kill her and pay proper tribute to their Gods, and this time no one would meddle with their plans.
Syeira had walked right into a trap, and even though she was capable of defending herself in the end there was just far too much opposition for her to escape. Once she'd been subdued she was immediately imprisoned, gagged and restrained at all times due to their having seen the effects of her voice on several of their guardsmen. Fortunately they did not kill her out right, her death had to occur at the proper time, when the full moon lit up the sky and the God's open eye was upon them. The sorcerers worked day and night to keep her from reaching out magically for assistance, but even their combined powers were not great enough to block the strength of the blood bond she and Nimeni shared. It was that bond that let her mind cry out to him despite the distance between them.
~PRESENT DAY~
No word was sent to the Redmonts or even Maxim himself. This was a situation he had to handle quickly, one that wouldn't wait for approval from the Redmont lord. The instant he'd risen and dressed he had left to find her, relying on instinct and what the "bond" told him to find her. Though difficult to explain it was as if a higher force was guiding him. On land he traveled by foot until reaching the ocean, and from there he stowed away on various merchant vessels, letting his feelings guide him like an internal compass. With every passing day the feelings grew stronger, but in time he no longer needed such guidance..his own memories told him where he was being led. With those memories though came a feeling he hadn't known in many years...fear. Not for himself but for just what awaited him when he finally arrived at his destination. It was happening again, the sense of angst and worry, the anger..it was as if reliving the past once more.
By land and by sea he traveled, not stopping to eat or sleep, scaling bluffs and cliffs rather than going around them. His anger grew with every step, his mania which had always threatened to shatter the thin thread of sanity he'd somehow managed to maintain over the years was weighing down his ability to think rationally. When he finally arrived on the outskirt of the lands he'd never thought he'd dwell in again there was no longer a methodical assassin, but a man driven by a nearly obsessive dementia. He could not see but he could "feel" the life inhabiting the lands. The cult he'd thought had been left in ruin had once more established itself and that only fueled the manic determination in him. Maybe they knew he was coming and maybe they hadn't but in the end it made no difference. There was no trace of stealth in him now, just a mindless need to find her. One way or another this would be his last time setting foot in this land; he would either carry her from it or be buried beneath it.
The commune that had been constructed resembled a small town with a large cathedral like temple at its center just as he remembered it, and he made no attempt to hide his approach..he simply charged up the main road, driven by a fury and compulsion that only those who'd lost their grip on reality could possess. In each hand he clutched a large rectangular blade, his hands dirty from climbing the many cliffs, his clothing tattered and torn from enduring the elements without pause. There was no mask to hide his face or hinder his senses now, only clenched teeth which restrained the animalistic seething and sunken eyelids covering his hollow sockets. Had they not known of his approach by now it would be heralded by a scream that carried through the night, a scream that tore his throat and sprayed blood mixed with saliva from behind his teeth. The sound was so broken and inhuman sounding that it alerted many of those who kept watch over the commune. They were quick to establish a line of defense but..to Nimeni it made no difference. Be it one man or a thousand his path was the same, straight ahead like the point of a spear, a spear sent to pierce the heart of this place once and for all.
"YOU'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!"
Several vampires were the first to meet him, and their speed and strength were no match for his sheer insanity. He didn't fight like a trained killer tonight; tonight he fought like an animal that had been cornered, an animal that had tried to exist in the world of men and failed. Gleaming steel cut through the darkness, and for every wound that he suffered he seemed to become more menacing. Limbs were severed, throats were cut, entire segments of torso and lower body cleaved in two, rendered useless by harsh collisions with hefty steel. Those who didn't or couldn't fight fled in fear, witnessing this single person dismembering those who'd been brought to protect them. Those who ventured too close in their attempts to flee were treated to the same lack of mercy as those who opposed him. Soon there were bodies lining the road, severed limbs resembling a trail of bread crumbs in his wake. For if blood could carry the heat of rage his own would have set fire to the ground by now.
"WHERE IS SHE?!?! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HER?!!? WHY COULDN'T YOU LEAVE US ALONE?!?!"
Lycans, vampires, even humans attempted to stop him, but no matter their training or their numbers it seemed that he wouldn't be stopped...couldn't be stopped. The world had taken everything from him. His sight, his voice, and even his heart, there was nothing left..only her. She had become his world, his life, his obsession. Wounds littered his body and blood ran from his arms and legs, several arrows that had pierced his torso had been broken off where they entered his flesh and yet he still pressed on, ignoring it all. His life didn't matter any more..if only she was left alive when all was said and done than he had won. This was no longer a battle between himself and some cult, this was a battle between him and the world, its Gods, every force that had ever stood between him and the life he'd wanted. He knew now that there would never be peace..not for him. If the world wanted so badly to bring him down than so be it...but he wouldn't go alone, he would bring the world down with him. For her he would scorch the earth and bring down the sky.
Soon it was difficult to see the ground beneath all the blood and fallen bodies, the small homes which lined the road had been left empty, deserted by those who'd fled from the massacre. He'd fought his way through their outer defenses and finally arrived at the temple steps. It was odd that with all the guards that had stood in his path that this place, the cults "heart" would be left so open. He might have questioned such a thing had he the presence of mind to think logically, but instead he simply ran up the stairs, blood running from his wounds as well as bits of flesh and remains of those he'd killed falling from his body. The doors of the temple had been sealed but they were as useless as those who'd stood before him. Wood was no match for sharpened steel, especially sharpened steel in the hands of one so driven. He screamed continuously as his blades cleaved into the oak, eventually breaking through the doors and their barricades
"..SYEIRA!!!"
His memory had served him well; every detail of the commune was known to him, having been a slave to the cult for so many years he knew every inch of the "world" they'd built. With no need to "map" his surroundings he continued on, sprinting down long corridors and stairways until finally he passed an all too familiar stone archway..the archway he'd passed through years ago, only then he'd entered too late. This time he arrived to find a room with a large alter in its center, several priests kneeling around it along with over a dozen sorcerers standing in a circle. Between them was a large monolith and it hummed with the magical energy that the sorcerers had been tirelessly channeling into it. For days they had been imbuing the stone with their magic, waiting for the full moon so as to take Syeira's life and add her own energy to it, hoping that it would appease their God and bring its blessing upon them. But as Nimeni entered the chamber the head priest took notice..his eyes narrowing hatefully.
"...You. No! You cannot be here! I won't have all we've worked to rebuild be destroyed by you..NOT AGAIN! Whoever brings me the head of the infidel shall be given more than they can imagine! STOP HIM!"
Syeira remained shackled and gagged upon the alter which sat before the monolith on the circular stone floor. Nimeni could feel her presence and the fact she was alive seemed to renew whatever strength he might have lost, his hands gripping tighter to his blades as the sorcerers turned their attention from the monolith to him. They all began to charge him, each proceeding to attack with their own particular magic. Some came with fire, others with ice, they tried to manipulate the stone beneath his feet, from all directions they attacked him. Blades and flesh he could handle with ease..but magic was far different, there was no perfect defense for it so he did the only thing he could do, he dodged and avoided as best he could, darting between hurled balls of fire, ducking and leaping over spears of ice. Large chunks of stone fell from beneath his feet and he had to keep moving, trying to close the distance between himself and his enemies.
In time it became apparent that there were just too many for him to have any hope of getting close enough for his blades to be of any use. The large cleaver like weapons were dropped and quickly he began to slip the solid metal "spikes" from his sleeves. Darting and avoiding he used any moment of stability he had to launch the pointed rods through the air. The one thing that worked in his favor is that with all the different objects and energies being used against him it was difficult to see such thin lines of steel racing through the air. The first two he'd thrown had been deflected but the 3rd caught one of the sorcerers in the throat, and when their body fell the monolith seemed to tremble. Nimeni noticed the sudden change in the air, his honed sense of "seeing" energy revealing to him the sudden fluctuation of magic in the stone.
Unfortunately that momentary lapse of focus caused a brief pause and thus one of the large shards of ice pierced through his torso and exited through the back. Nimeni's body was burning through too much energy too quickly, losing blood faster than he could heal; he was starting to become fatigued.
Clutching his right hand over the wound in his abdomen he continued to try and evade, but he was slowing down, and soon a large chunk of rock struck him in the face, causing him to tumble back. The head priest circled around to the alter upon which Syeira stood and began to remove a blade from within his robe.
"You will not stop us this time! You disrespected our God once before, and now it is time for you to endure his wrath! For he is ALL POWERFUL! HE IS THE ONE WHO SHALL RULE THE WORLD WHERE ALL OTHER GODS HAVE FAILED! HE WILL DESTROY ALL WHO OPPOSE HIM, AND TONIGHT, FOR OUR OFFERING HE WILL BEGIN WITH YOU!"
Though kneeling, Nimeni was able to draw a spike from his forearm wrap and throw it forward toward the priest. Not possessing the strength he had before the priest was able to evade the spike, but the sorcerer behind him was not. The steel pierced the mage in their heart, and as they fell to the ground the monolith again trembled, only this time a crack formed on its surface and instantly Nimeni could feel the immense power radiating from it. The priest's eyes quickly turned to the stone and in that moment; everything seemed to become clear to the sightless lycan. There was no hope for him being able to kill them all, and before he could; he knew that the priest would take Syeira's life faster than he could save it. From where he knelt his head slowly raised up while the surrounding sorcerers began to summon their magic, ready to strike their final blow upon him. Though he had no eyes, his attention focused solely on Syeira and despite the pain and circumstance...he smiled, his broken mind seeing only one way for he and his mate to win this battle. With a look of calm he'd never seemed to harbor before he mouthed the words;
-I love you...always-
Summoning the remaining strength he had he pushed to his feet and sprinted forward, his free hand dipping down to scoop one of his blades off the floor in mid run. The sorcerers launched fire, ice, and stone, and he waited until the last moment to vault over their attacks, making no attempt to strike at them or even the priest who now focused on the blind assassin. The leap caused Nimeni to land beside the monolith and instantly a look of concern took over the face of every sorcerer and the priest himself.
"..Tonight we will die, but it won't be your God who decides it."
The priest's eyes widened as he shook his head furiously.
"No! You CAN'T! YOU'LL DESTROY US ALL!"
Raising the blade in hand, Nimeni nodded his head..
"Yes, I will. This time...it ends."
One last turn of his head was offered to Syeira, and a smile that seemed to reveal that everything would be alright for them. He would find her again, perhaps not in this life, perhaps not the next, but he would be with her again. The blade was swung with all the strength he had left inside him and its edge collided furiously with the stone just beneath the crack. Soon the minor split spread across the black rock and the priest as well as the sorcerers looked on in horror as all the magic that had been imbued in the stone was released all at once. Such power given off so quickly caused a cataclysmic discharge of magic; like a meteor striking the earth the explosion could be seen for miles around, the light which shined was blinding as buildings were blown apart, stone was shattered to rubble, and the very ground concaved deeply from the incredible impact of unleashed magic. Nothing was left standing for a mile in all directions and the ground now possessed a crater that reached over 20ft down into the earth. Just as quickly as the destruction occurred, tranquility once more returned to the land just as swiftly.
Where the temple stood there was now just piles of rubble and debris. All signs of life had gone and the skies somehow appeared much clearer than they had been before. So ironic it was that such blood shed and fury could bring about this level of calm and peace. But this time the destruction and death hadn't been brought about due to revenge...
..this time, love had brought a reckoning..leaving only darkness, and silence behind.
Posted: Tue Mar 31, 2009 1:24 pm