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+--- Thread: In Blackest Night (/showthread.php?tid=834)
In Blackest Night - Shang Tsung - 01-19-2015
There was a week of relative ‘silence’ in Darkshire following the news that an organized group of undead had been operating within a few hours of the town’s walls. In that time, news of the ‘heroics’ of the twosome of militia soldiers had spread throughout circles.
The Grecian and the Chinaman.’
‘The Spartan and the Sorcerer.’
Shang had been sitting in a more upscale tavern one night when he overheard a bard singing tales about two ‘medieval’ primes slaying a horde of demons outside the gates of Darkshire. Disguised as just another random patrician, the sorcerer had asked another patron what the bard was singing about, and the response he had received was simple—‘those two new militia soldiers.’
In a way, he appreciated the respect he now commanded… not only among the members of the garrison but also among the everyday riffraff. Prior to enlisting, he had worked hard to make himself appear as the lovable, gallant ‘every man,’ and now that he was a local hero, he had the upper half of society pining for him as well.
On one such day before the return of Atelos, Shang was sitting in his quarters mulling over the future. He was reminded of the very first day he came to Darkshire, when a returning champion had been greeted as if he were a god in human flesh. Since then, the sorcerer had seen very little of that armored warrior, but he couldn’t help but feel as if he was following a sort of parallel course in regards to his own celebrity. The last thing that Shang wanted was someone leapfrogging him in the social strata.
Plus, he loved little more than to take the souls of the strong and virtuous… they always made for such amusing company on his lonely nights.
The sun was slowly rising, and within a few hours, the middle- and upper-classes of the town would wake up and go on with their usual live, wholly ignorant of the missing criminals and vagrants in the less affluent district. A fleeting smile crossed the sorcerer’s visage as he flexed his hands. His nights in the garrison without a ‘warm meal’ had been a stretch, even by his standards. He’d only found solace in the fact that the Spartan held just as many deep, dark secrets as he did.
The bards don’t mention the Spartan’s unyielding rage or how the sorcerer sustains himself, do they?
A fresh smirk graced his features as he left the small room and made his way out into the streets. Aside from a few smiles and handshakes, his walk to the garrison was uneventful. His shift was just as boring as they had been, with the commander having him do rounds of the battlements with the greenest of the recruits. While he had nothing against forced chat with awkward, uncomfortable men in their late teens, Shang had no love for the reanimated corpses that patrolled the top of the city walls. A man who valued his charisma just as much as his hands or a sword, he hated how they lacked features or even the ability to speak. The way they watched him made him uneasy, because he could never be certain what they were thinking—if they were thinking anything at all.
The skeletons also made the recruits uneasy, but that was certainly for other reasons. It was quite possible they might have a loved one or a neighbor among the walking corpses that guarded their city.
As he returned from the last patrol before lunch, Shang was taken aback to see the Spartan walk through the far door of the common room. Looking a little battered, the Spartan strode right over to him and shook his hand.
“Hello, Shang, it has been a while.” The Spartan said as the sorcerer noticed that there seemed to be a skull jutting up from the Spartan’s shoulder.
“I’ll be sure to tell you later,” Atelos remarked when he saw the other man’s gaze fall to the deformity.
“Alright, well the commander needs to see you. Nice having you back Spartan." Atelos gave a firm nod and headed off to their superior’s office. Shang made his wait out from the garrison and into the town’s streets, where he waited for Atelos to return. The Spartan did so a few minutes later, wearing the same medal awarded to Shang last week.
“Looks like we’re officially a part of this place,” Shang remarked, eliciting a firm nod from his companion. “People talk. A lot. I don’t know how your walk was on your way into this place, but once word of your return spreads, you can expect a lot of attention.”
“Is it the same for you?”
“Yes, but I haven’t been off fighting demons for a week.”
Atelos frowned. “I didn’t say that’s what I had to do.”
“I did,” Shang said with a smirk. “It’s good for your image.” The remark caused the Spartan to grunt and roll his eyes. “Now then, why don’t we go have a drink, and you can tell me what you really did in your time away from this place.”
Re: In Blackest Night - Atelos - 01-19-2015
Atelos grinned, "Why not, I suppose we have some time to ourselves."
Atelos had no idea what the sorcerer was talking about when he said that the two were famous. Atelos' path to the garrison was rather uneventful. As the two stepped aside there were undoubtedly more people outside, selling their products. It was quite busy and for once, Darkshire didn't seem like the run down village that was constantly terrorized by unspeakable monsters. People were talking and the marketplace seemed lively.
The commotion was still lively when the ancient pair walked out of the garrison, and at first they caught a few people taking a double look at them. Others soon caught on and the commotion began to die down. Not long the entire marketplace was staring at the two. A single person began to clap, followed by another, and another. The clapping spread like an airborne disease among the crowd until everyone was shouting.
"Thank you Medievals!!!!" "You saved us Medievals!" "We owe you Medievals!"
Shang has a smug smile on his face and seemed to enjoy bathing in the fame. Atelos couldn't help to join Shang, the recognition felt nice.
"The medievals huh? Is that our names now?"
The sorcerer laughed, "I guess so Spartan. Enjoy the attention for now."
Yes Spartan enjoy the fame for now… Hades also shared the same smug the Shang had, with completely different intentions. Atelos knew that he had something in store. It didn't matter, he would resist Hades until the end of time.
Shang started to take the lead in the path and turned into a place that seemed, very run down. The sign on top was dangling by one rope. The wooden sign looked old and tattered as it proudly stated that it was "THE Pub" in a bright red paint that had a beer mug horribly drawn onto it. The two entered and sat down at the bar. A woman who was well-endowed and proud of it came to serve the two. She was wearing a top that revealed way too much and she was not embarrassed to show it off.
"Hey Honey, not gone for long I see." She leaned on the counter, making her beautiful nature known.
"Yes I just couldn't keep myself away," Shang greeted her with a wink.The bartender gave a giggle and gave one back.
"I'll be coming back for two of your usuals, for you and your friend."
The Spartan pulled Shang by his shoulder, "I thought you were taking me to get a drink, not a brothel."
Shang looked comedically at Atelos and chuckled, "This is a bar Atelos."
"Then why is that woman dressed so provocatively! Atelos had obvious discomfort in his voice, as this type of dress was not standard during his time.
"She is just trying to make a little more money Atelos, customers want to pay more for more attractive bartenders."
"So this is a brothel!"
Shang laughed and shook his head.
"I'll never understand but alright Shang."
The waitress had come back with two frothy beers and placed them in front of the two warriors. "Enjoy!" the girl said with a giggle. Atelos and Shang took a sip and he could see the dissatisfaction in Shang's face.
"I see you don't come here for good beer," Atelos muttered while trying not to laugh. Shang let out a smile and just shook his head.
"Enough about me and what I've been up to. Where have you been?"
Atelos swung his beer glass around in a circle shifting himself uncomfortably. "I went to The Frozen Fields, I felt like I needed to be alone for a while…and I heard there was treasure there." He smiled for a second before taking a sip of the watered down beer.
"I encountered some Dwarves and I climbed a mountain and killed a Dragon…Nothing major."
Shang's eyes widened for a second out of interest before reluctantly taking a sip out of his putrid glass.
"Then I got my treasure…and that's when I came back." Atelos patted his shoulder and finished off his beer in one chug.
"What was this demon you were talking about?"
Atelos grew a little pale and he felt Hades surface from the excess of his mind.
"Shang all you need to know is that if you feel that I'm not being myself…Don't be afraid to put me down. That is all you need to know."
You think this thing could stop me if I took control? Nothing, not even this Omni could stop me! Atelos brushed Hades off, like dust on his shoulder.
Shang looked at Atelos, knowing that's all the information he would get, "Alright Spartan…If that is what you wish."
Re: In Blackest Night - Shang Tsung - 01-22-2015
The sorcerer didn’t expect much from their conversation, but he also hadn’t expected Atelos’ week away to have been so… active.
As the Spartan had said nothing of the aberration jutting out of his shoulder, the sorcerer ignored the topic. If their track record indicated anything, the secret of the dragon head would make itself known to him in good time. For now, the two simply tapped mugs and drank in silence—the closest thing to a normal experience the two had shared since their arrival in Darkshire.
Unfortunately for the two of them, Fate hadn’t planned a normal day.
“He’s back!”
The jubilant shout was followed by a dozen other similar yells that pulled most of the bar’s patrons out into the main thoroughfare. As neither Shang nor Atelos had any idea what was going on, they remained firmly on their stools. After exchanging a silent glance, neither man found any need to go investigate the growing rabble out on the streets.
That was, of course, until Cheyenne and her hips swayed over and leaned across the bar. Usually perky, the woman seemed unnaturally so as she stared at the men with her wide blue eyes. “You’re not going to go see what’s going on out there?” From her tone, it was clear that the soldiers were committing some type of grotesque taboo. “You know who they’re talking about, right?”
Once more, the two warriors exchanged a quick glance that conveyed their mutual lack of both knowledge and interest. “Neither the Spartan nor myself have much interest in whoever or whatever is outside, Cheyenne. I’ve had to contend with too much public attention myself”—the statement was a flagrant like but he didn’t feel like explaining himself—“and the Spartan is just returning from a long and restless sojourn.”
“But it’s Argento.” From her tone and expression, it appeared that both men were supposed to instantly know who she was talking about. When she picked up that they were ignorant of the situation, her jaw fell open for a brief moment. “Surely you know of Sir Argento?” Both men shook their heads and drank the frothy bile from their mugs. “…you’ve never heard of him? He’s only one of the most famous warriors to call Darkshire home.”
“Yes, but what is he?” Shang asked, attempting to cut through the rambling and find the actual, useful information.
“He’s a paladin. He has many titles… ‘The Sun’s Vanguard,’ ‘The Champion of the Light,’ and sometimes just ‘Our Champion.’ Argento has stood for Darkshire and her people since the foundation of the city. When the Kingdom withdrew their forces, he renounced his fealty to King Aragorn and swore himself to Darkshire.”
Idiot. Shang thought as he suppressed a grin. He wanted to ask the important question—‘Is this guy a prime?’ Instead, he just nodded his head and placed his mug down. “Thanks for letting us know, Cheyenne. We’ll head out so you can go join the crowd.”
While the Spartan’s brow was furrowed, he didn’t protest the sorcerer’s declaration. Atelos simply set his half-full mug down, slid off his stool, and followed Shang outside once his ally dropped some coins on the counter. Once they were out of earshot, he leaned in a little closer. “What was the point of that? We have nowhere to go but out into that crowd.”
And a crowd it certainly was. Through the windows, they could see that the wide street was choked full of peasants and aristocrats alike, and every single one of them was struggling to get to the front to spot their shining champion. From inside THE Pub, Shang couldn’t get a beeline on the target of the crowd’s affections, but he had enough commonsense to be able to look at the flow of people and determine where the horde concluded. “You want to help the people of Darkshire, correct?”
“Yes.” Atelos replied firmly and without hesitation.
“Then we need to meet this guy, because I’ve been here a little longer than you have, and I’m pretty sure he’s one of only a few people who the motivation to help the lot here.” In line with his character, Shang left out the big reason: ‘We need to figure out what he’s doing and beat him.’ Back in Earthrealm, the sorcerer had always been someone, whether that was an aristocrat, a monk, a Champion of Mortal Kombat, or the tournament host. He’d arrived in the Omniverse weak and in rags, and he’d be damned if he wouldn’t regain the eminence he once had. If this paladin could play a role in his scheme, than by all means, Shang would stomach the notion of cooperation.
“Makes sense,” Atelos muttered as he look through the window and grimaced. “Do you think these people will ever disperse? I’ve fought against many phalanxes before, and even I have no desire to try and penetrate through that crowd.”
“We’ll let it disperse a little, and then we’ll trail the paladin to wherever he may be staying. We can use our status with the garrison to convince him of our worth and ask him to accept us as part of his retinue.”
“You want us to willing agree to be that man’s lesser? Someone you’ve never met?”
Shang laughed. “No, I want us to swallow our pride with the knowledge that it will be worth it twenty times over by the time we’ve finished.”
Re: In Blackest Night - Atelos - 01-23-2015
Atelos sighed, "You are probably right Shang…but it doesn't change the fact that I do not like it." Atelos stretched his arms and cracked his back. The bartender was practically shoving the two out of the bar. The two warriors opened the doors, which followed and immediate slam and the woman was off into the streets, forgetting to lock the door and change from open to close.
"Hurry, hurry I don't want to miss him!"
Atelos shot a glare her way. "I guess we should go introduce ourselves to this Hero of yours." He said, begrudgingly. The crowd had begun to migrate, continuing to follow the celebrity the so endeared. Atelos grabbed Shang by the hand and tried to lead him across the street, where the crowd was less flooded. He started to push his way through the crowd, but the onslaught of citizens were too strong. The current of people washed over Atelos, sinking him into the crowd. He was shoved to the ground and was stampeded on by the wild animals that the hero had turned.
Shang extended his hand to the Spartan, and picked Atelos up. The Sorcerer began to laugh and snicker at Atelos. The Spartan had a big purple bruise around his eye, and he was completely unaware of it.
"Looks like the citizens of Darkshire are more dangerous than the skeletons we were faced against."
Atelos had a look of confusion on his face but eventually gave up on understanding.
"What a sort life our fame was, these people can be the real monsters."
Shang gave a chuckle and smiled his classic grin.
"Let us meet this Paladin, Spartan."
Inside his head Atelos could hear the God and his satisfaction with the plan, Yes, let us sorcerer. Hades was growing in strength. What was he doing? Now wasn't the time to ask that.
"For now we shall work our way up this food-chain of Darkshire."
Re: In Blackest Night - Shang Tsung - 01-24-2015
Once the crowds had finally dispersed, the pair made their way to where the paladin was housed. At the sight of the plain, unimposing hovel, Shang felt his stomach twist up in a knot. So he’s one of these types too? Chivalry was one thing, but asceticism was another thing all together. It made Shang think back to his time with the Shaolin monks…
“Disgusting,” the sorcerer muttered just beneath his breath.
“What was that?” Atelos inquired, glancing over at his companion with an expression that indicated he hadn’t quite heard what the other man had said.
“Just admiring the house.”
“It is very simple.” As a Spartan, Atelos probably wouldn’t bat a second eye at plain living arrangements. “Let us see if he is home,” with that, he walked up the wooden steps and gave the thin wooden door a few solid raps. From the horrible sound the wood made as it rattled on its hinges, Shang was surprised the whole thing didn’t just fall down.
“I am coming!” The voice was strong, boisterous, and carried with it a natural exuberance. If he hadn’t before, Shang knew he hated this man. A beat later, the door swung inward to reveal a man of about thirty years. He was clean shaven with short brown hair and blue eyes that seemed to sparkle even in the absence of direct sunlight. It was then that Shang realized he had already seen the individual that stood before them. On his first day in Darkshire, the crowds were celebrating a man who had just returned from slaying a monster. As he looked at the paladin, he realized he was staring at the same exact man.
“Good afternoon…” Argento’s eyes drifted to the two medals that indicated to him that he was speaking with members of the town’s defenders. “Guardians of Darkshire! It is always a pleasure to speak with individuals such as yourselves. I ask that you please enter my home.”
Atelos and Shang shared a quick glance before they followed the still fully-armored paladin into his house. While the town hall had been slightly nicer on the inside, the paladin’s abode lacked even the most basic of necessities. The sorcerer spotted a few wooden stools, a rack for armor, and a large chest. In another corner, two wooden pallets had been stacked on top of one another and covered with straw. He would sleep on a straw.
“What brings two upstanding gentlemen to my residence?” Argento inquired. For whatever reason, the paladin’s voice was still as strong as it had been when they were speaking through a door. “I take it you’re not here to receive the blessing of the sun or to try and force your tithes unto me?”
People actually give this guy money? Shang cleared his throat to prevent his thoughts from spilling out of his mouth. “We were recently promoted to full members of the garrison for defeating a band of skeletons and their necromancers near the city walls.”
“Yes, I heard of this… I take it then that I am speaking with the ‘Sorcerer and Spartan’ that everyone talks so highly of?” Coming from anyone else, Shang would have thought the remark was sarcasm, but he doubted that someone like Argento was even capable of speaking anything but the truth.
“You are,” Atelos responded. “Although I believe that Shang and I are well-aware that stories often become a little inflated as they spread amongst large circles.”
Ahhh, playing the humility card, Spartan? It was not only ingenious but also something Shang regretted not thinking of on his way over here.
“You mustn’t doubt the truth of the masses, my friends.” Argento boomed with a smile as he walked over to his chest and flung it open. When he turned around, he was holding two small bottles filled with water. He proceeded to toss them to his visitors before shutting the chest once more. “The water is from a river near the Black Gate. Despite the heavy corruption that still infests the Pale Moors, the water there still flows pure and uncontaminated. It is surely a sign that there is still yet hope for this troubled verse.”
“Well that’s why we’re here,” Shang replied as he fiddled with the cork. “While we know that guarding the walls and hinterlands of Darkshire is a noble cause, we seek to make a greater sacrifice for this town. When we heard of you, we knew it was surely a sign that our fate lies with you, protecting Darkshire out there in the heart of the Pale Moors.”
Upon hearing the sorcerer’s remarks, Argento nodded his head but otherwise remained quiet for what seemed to be half a minute. “It is truly noble of the two of you to want to join my retinue, and I have never been one to turn down the assistance of competent warriors, especially those who have shown their dedication to Darkshire by shedding blood in its defense.
“I must warn both of you… my next crusade is not for the weak of heart.”
For the first time, Shang was genuinely interested in something the man was going to say. “What do you mean?”
“My retinue and I intend to travel to a place rarely visited since the souring of the Moors. A place where we know death or worse is quite possible.”
“Why go?” Atelos inquired. The Spartan cared little about the threat of death, but the expression on the paladin’s face told him that there was much more to be spoken.
“I have an associate who is an arcanist and a historian. His research has led him to believe that it is possible to step outside the Omniverse and into a realm known as ‘the Void.’ This Void is supposedly linked to every location in and outside the Omniverse…including the realm of Omni himself.”
The sorcerer knew that Omni was the entity who had created this collection of realms. Up until now, he figure that Omni was just an abstract notion, much like the Christian ‘God,’ but if such a being existed… Shang could only begin to fathom what he might gain from an audience with such a creature.
“We do not fear the unknown, Argento,” Shang replied. “Tell us, where is your group’s destination? Where do you believe you will find your clues to the truth?”
The paladin nodded, knowing that the two men were unwavering. Frowning for the first time, the paladin pointed to a map on his wall.
"We go to Silent Hill."
Re: In Blackest Night - Atelos - 01-24-2015
"We go to Silent Hill."
The Spartan wasn't sure if he was supposed to gasp at this knowledge or be in reverence. Atelos had no idea what this place was or why it was so mysterious. He assumed he would find out on this journey with the Paladin.
"Very Well. When do we depart?" The Spartan said monotonously, he was not happy to serve underneath someone of this Caliber, but he knew it was for the best. This plain tone was the best he could do to refrain himself from being disrespectful.
"We depart on the morrow. Be at the Gates at sun break, the retinue shall depart then. Be prepared." The Paladin took another brief look at the map and the frown on his face grew more sour. "Glad to have you two Gentlemen on board. I hope that you are as fierce on the battlefield as you are in the stories." He gave the two a quick smile and signaled to them the door. It was clear on his face that he wanted to be alone for a bit. The two warriors understood and soon exited.
On his way to the door Shang couldn't help but add something, "Thank you for allowing us to help serve your quest for the salvation of Darkshire." With that the two shut the door and left the Paladin to his own devices.
"Well Shang, were in. I hope this is going according to your plan. Atelos had a questioning look in his face, making sure that the Sorcerer knew what he was doing.
"Trust me Spartan it is."
The pair left for their garrison to prepare for their quest the next day. The morning came quickly, considering how early they were required to get up. Atelos was used to the strenuous conditions and he assumed Shang would be the more "pampered" type. He got up with a sigh and rubbed his eyes and went over to Shang's bed, to a surprise of no one being there.
"Come on Spartan, you need to get up earlier." Shang stood behind Atelos with a wide grin, fully aware of the Spartan's intentions. Atelos turned around, and laughed with the Sorcerer. The two then exited the garrison and worked their way to the Gates, with the brim of the sun peaking out and beginning to lift the veil of darkness that covered them
They saw a group of people walking their way, to realize that leader was none other than Argento leading his retinue of well-trained warriors. Their faces grim, as many Spartan's faces are before they die. This struck a chord in Atelos' heart, not fear but just reminiscence.
Argento led the way and greeted Atelos and Shang, "Greetings you two. Are you prepared for this conquest, it shall not be an easy one? Atelos and Shang looked at each other both receiving a firm nod.
"We didn't expect it to be."
Re: In Blackest Night - Atelos - 01-31-2015
The paladin nodded his head in admiration. He respected the two soldiers for their devotion to the city but he felt something was off about the two soldiers. He felt that they had something to hide and he made a mental note that he needed to be wary of them. While they had proven themselves to the garrison, they may have some anterior motives.
Atelos took note of the rest of the group and the diversity the party had to offer. There was a man in purple robes, laced with golden on the edges. He was holding a book and he seemed to be trying to memorize a chant and a blue circle began to wisp in front of him. It disappeared and he looked over at the Spartan and a brief smile appeared before he went back to his study.
There was a man in white robes decorated in red crosses and he was holding a cross. He was kneeling and a certain light seemed to be glowing around him. He was also muttering some sort of chant but his voice seemed to trail off and carried without much effort. The man was slightly older than the rest of the group, his wrinkles were more developed and he seemed wiser. His eyes were closed and Atelos knew his mind was off somewhere else, in a different plane maybe…There was more but his mind was forced out by the demanding attention brought to a certain feeling…or the loss of a certain feeling.
Atelos had lost feeling in his arm, not as if it were numb or asleep but he felt as if it was no longer there. Or maybe that it wasn't under his control anymore. His arm began to raise without his control and he had to force it down with the other hand.
You fool! I have been saving up my power for this and I will take control! This 'Silent Hill' is feeding me power! Your mind will not stand a chance!
"Over my dead body…Atelos muttered and Shang turned his head towards the Spartan in curiosity. The rest of the party however did not. Shang gave Atelos a looking over, but did not pay attention for long.
"Let's go team!"
Re: In Blackest Night - Shang Tsung - 01-31-2015
The tiny group traveled for about a day before setting up their camp in a small copse. Argento and the priests with him discussed their gospels and philosophy while Shang and Atelos sat and listened. It seemed that the paladin worship a deity that represented the sun. It seemed so strange to see such Christian trappings held as integral parts of what appeared to be little more than a monotheistic sky god religion. Then again, Shang had always thought little of organized religion, whether it was monotheistic or polytheistic. It was all drivel.
What had Marx called it?
Ah, yes… ‘the opiate of the masses.’ It still amused Shang at how much of the real world was alive and well in a place that defied logic itself. With a grin on his face, the sorcerer retired for the night. While he wasn’t tired, he didn’t feel like listening to old people drone on about religious gibberish.
The next day, the group continued their trek into the depths of the Pale Moors. They made it a few hours before they were joined by about a dozen more individuals. While this meant he had to listen to even more people prattle on about nonsense they felt was important, Shang was pleased that there would be more to this group than a collection of shriveled priests. The men (and two women, surprisingly enough) who joined the retinue were all decked out in various forms of armor and carrying well-maintained weapons. With them, they had two covered wagons being dragged by four oxen.
A quick glimpse into the wagon revealed that one of them was filled with food, water, and any miscellaneous goods one might need to survive in the wild. The other wagon had backup weapons—swords, maces, crossbows—along with shields and a few extra sets of armor. From the appearance and the manner in which the items were stored, it was obvious that this wasn’t the first time this party had set out into the Pale Moors. Given the lack of conversation, Shang imagined these people were all well-acquainted with one another to the point where they didn’t need to do more than shake hands and head out into the wilderness.
As they set out, however, the entire group—sans Atelos and Shang—began to sing hymns. As the two primes weren’t ‘native’ to the Pale Moors or whatever religious sect that Argento worshiped, they could only exchange bemused and eventually irritated expressions as their peers sang in unison about the sun and the stars and faith.
I’m going to wind up killing myself before we ever reach this place…
***
The singing continued all through the day and most of the evening.
Fourteen hours. Shang thought bitterly as Argento’s retinue finally stopped singing. The sorcerer glanced around and noticed that they were about twenty yards away from what looked to be some old ruins.
A moment later, the small column ground to a halt, and the paladin stepped out from the line to address everyone. “We’ll stop and make camp here for the night. Each guard shift will be two hours.” It was then that the man glanced to the two new faces in the line. “Shang and Atelos, we’ll be counting on the two of you for the first shift, okay?”
“Of course,” Shang replied without skipping a beat. The sorcerer figured this would be one of many subtle ways in which the paladin hoped to test his two new allies. This was nothing the sorcerer hadn’t been through—or put someone through—before, so he had little concern that he’d miss out on a few hours of sleep. Did he even need it? He couldn’t remember the last time he’d actually felt fatigue or even appetite. Then again, that was something that was true even before he’d arrived in the Omniverse.
As the group broke its double-file line to start collecting the tents and various other camping artifacts from the lead wagon, Argento strode over to his two new companions. “I appreciate your resolve.” He muttered. His voice was softer and more subdued than Shang had ever heard. “Where we are isn’t too dangerous, but those ruins over there have been known to attract a few unsavory elements. A few months ago, these ghoulish monsters killed our oxen, and we were forced to drag the wagons ourselves.”
“I understand,” the sorcerer replied, followed by a grunt from Atelos.
“Splendid. Castion and I will relieve you two for the next shift.” Argento placed his fist over his heart and gave a short nod before walking off to help set up the retinue’s camp. There wasn’t a fire tonight. Once the tents were erected, everyone slipped inside and went to sleep, leaving Atelos and Shang to themselves and the great unknown of the Pale Moors.
“Do you believe we’re in danger out here?” Atelos whispered as the two walked around the perimeter of the camp. The question was the first statement the Spartan had made since leaving Darkshire.
Shang shook his head after a brief moment. “Darkshire is a depressing place, but from what I’ve seen so far, the Pale Moors don’t seem that bad. We’re a long way from Darkshire, and we’ve yet to run into anything—living, dead, or otherwise.”
“Do you know anything about our ultimate destination?”
This time the sorcerer nodded his head. “It used to be a tourist town nestled around this big lake.”
“A what?”
“A lake.”
Atelos scowled. “You know what I was asking about, Sorcerer.”
“A tourist town is a place designed to pull in visitors from all over the world. Silent Hill was probably the only one in the Omniverse for all we know.”
“What makes it so special?” Atelos inquired, still trying to grasp the notion. Shang didn’t mind, seeing as how the Spartan came from a society and a time where such things would have probably seemed frivolous.
“I don’t know,” Shang offered, which wasn’t the least bit helpful. “Probably a mixture of its surroundings and the trappings of a modern city in such a backwards place. All I know for certain is that the place went untouched when the rest of the Moors were ravaged by demons, and that it was swallowed up in a fog a year or two ago.”
Atelos nodded his head. “But the paladin believes that the place hides some great secret?”
“Apparently no one ever leaves the place alive, and communication with the outside world is impossible once you’re in there. The only primes who have escaped killed themselves to do so. They told stories about monsters and nightmares and most were considered insane after the fact.”
“So you’re telling me this is a suicide mission?” The Spartan asked as the pair completed another circuit around the campsite. While neither had a watch or any sort of timepiece, they both knew that their patrol duties were almost at an end.
“Apparently there’s one prime in the town who can send out transmission. If this person can survive, I don’t expect to perish either. I imagine the stories are mostly fiction, anyway. You’re not afraid of a little fog, are you?”
“No,” Atelos grunted as the sound of footsteps from outside the camp caught their ears. Both men spun in the direction of the noise and saw a small figure approaching them from the shadows. “Identify yourself!” The Spartan rasped, trying not to wake up the sleeping members of the retinue.
Rather than waste his time with words, Shang lifted his hand and summoned a ball of fire. The flames illuminated the area around them, revealing the interloper to be a boy—probably no older than twelve or thirteen—dressed in chain mail armor with a partially closed helmet concealing his eyes. “Identify yourself,” Shang asked in a tone a little more cordial than that of his Spartan associate.
“My name is Blues,” he replied without lifting the visor that covered his eyes. “I was traveling with two friends when we were separated in the woods by darkspawn.”
Before either man could ask the question, someone standing behind them did just that: “Darkspawn?”
Shang and Atelos turned to see Argento standing behind them—his eyes firmly glued to the adolescent. “What is someone your age doing out here hunting darkspawn? The Moors start to become a very dangerous place when you get this far from Darkshire.”
“I’m more than capable of defending myself,” the youth shot back. “It’s my friends that I’m worried about. I’ve been trying to reach them to tell them of our destination, but their communicators don’t seem to be working properly.”
“I can have one of my men escort you back to Darkshire,” Argento said as he started to turn around to find someone in the camp.
“Save it,” Blues spoke, his tone surprisingly authoritative for a boy. “I’ve got to go sweep the forest again for them. If you see an elf or someone my size who looks like a snake man, you just let them know that I’m heading toward what used to be the village of Durnhill.”
“Wait!” Argento shouted, turning around to face the boy who was now in the process of trying to depart. “We are heading in that direction. You can come with us, and I will leave one of my ablest trackers here to look for signs of your friends.” Shang had to give Argento one thing—the paladin was obviously a bleeding heart. The sorcerer would have just laughed at the kid and watched him wander off into the black of the night. Instead, he was willing to part with one of his men in order to ensure the safety of someone he had just met.
“Okay…” the preteen said, his tone much more subdued. “I’m not a fan of traveling by myself in this place.”
“Splendid,” Argento replied as he stepped through his two traveling partners and knelt in front of the kid. He even offered his hand to the child, who reached out and shook it—a smile on his youthful features. “Welcome aboard, Blues. I am happy to have you with us. I will go tell Raynor to wake up and scour the forests for your allies.”
Shang and Atelos share one of their many silent glances that doubled as a full conversation between the two men.
Great. Now there are kids here.
The two warriors kept their thoughts between themselves as each went to his own tent to mull over the day’s events.
Re: In Blackest Night - Atelos - 02-01-2015
Atelos walked over to his tent, sourly looking towards the small child that had infiltrated their regiment. He looked over to see the Argento bending over and entering one of his men's tents. The a flickering light turned on and you could see the hunched shadow of Argento trying to wake up his men, which seemed to be a difficult task. The shadow of a hand lazily tapped Argento's face as if he were trying to hit a snooze button. The man slowly got up to see his commander there and he immediately got on his knees and ,what Atelos assumed to be, apologized.
Atelos chuckled and looked over to where the boy was supposed to be. However, the boy wasn't there anymore. Atelos looked around and found some movement inside the captains tent. His brow furrowed and he began to walk over to the tent that seemed to be bouncing. Atelos ignited his hand providing light in the darkness and pushed open the curtain of the tent with his left hand.
"There isn't anything good in here! It's all just plain! Oh well I'm starving!" Atelos heard as he was opening the tent. As he entered he saw the boy huddled over a personal pack, that most likely belonged to Argento. He turned, mouthful of granola and crumbs everywhere to the angry Spartan. It was hard to tell what was running through the kid's head with that visor, but the bottom half of his face seemed innocent enough. Well, except for the part that he was stealing food from a holy man. A milky color began to tint his eye.
Yes kill the boy. He deserves to go to Tartarus. the voice cooed in his head.
"That maybe a little extreme but I like where your thinking." The spartan voice seemed distant and the flame spread from his hand to his elbow. The boy sat there ,food in mouth, glaring at the looming spartan that seemed so enraged.
"You shall learn to respect people who are so kind to take you in." A hand touched Atelos' shoulder and his fire died out, and the wisp of white diluted from his eyes, almost as if it was trying to escape. Argento was standing behind Atelos with a bright smile, seemingly contrast from what Atelos might had suspected. He patted him on the back and let out a chuckle, killing the ominous mood.
"He is just a hungry boy Atelos. I'm not sure what your culture would say about this, but he is fine by my standards. Let him eat in peace." The paladin gave him a reassuring look and exited with him out of the room.
"Anyways, your shift is over. Get some rest. You'll need it for tomorrow." The man's smile grew grim again and Atelos knew that something serious was going on behind the scenes.
"Yes sir!" he begrudgingly said. The paladin had a soft spot for thieves…and with that he walked off into his tent and his lights went out.
A bright light pierced through Atelos' tent and he was forced to wake up. He yawned and exited his tent to see that the others were already packing up their stuff and putting it in the cargo wagon. Shang was already finished and was standing around looking ahead into the rising sun.
Atelos had finished packing and looked where Shang was, the bright sun blinding his eyes. Argento called to the group to move and the group slowly progressed with the little thief traveling along. They had been traveling for some time and a thick fog began to set in.
"Blues," a young girl's voice shout out from the darkness. "Blues over here!" Out of the fog, towards the forest a silhouette of a girl, not much older than blues appeared. "Blues come quick!" with that the silhouette ran off into the forest, and her footsteps' echo could be heard.
The young boy chased out after her, "I think I know her!" He stumbled into the forest and disappeared with the girl that had briefly popped into their lives.
"Blues come back! Damnite! Shang. Atelos. Chase after the boy and make sure him and the girl are safe." Argento exclaimed.
"Yes sir." The two said in unison, even though their tones were completely different. Atelos and Shang ran up into the forest chasing after the boy, stumbling over a few loose rocks on the way.
"The Paladin has a soft spot for the boy, I would have just let him go."
"The disrespectful thief doesn't deserve his kindness."
The sorcerer smiled, "Well then we agree Spartan."
The two reached the forest and saw the boy continuing to run deeper into the maze of trees and shrubs. The boy was fast and reckless completely ignoring their calls for his attention. They continued deeper into the forest until they saw a wooden cabin that seemed out of place in this dark depressing area. Sitting on the ground was Blues breathing heavily and muttering to himself, "That's... that's not Mireya." Shang helped the boy up, a little too forcefully and Atelos walked forward more.
A female silhouette was standing in the mist and Atelos tried to greet her.
"Hello miss. Did you lose your son?" He called out trying to wave her down.
"I do not think the mother would come out here to find her son, Spartan."
"Shang be quiet. I'm sure she was worried sick for her son. Miss." He was walking closer and noticed she was wearing a tattered nurse outfit…She slowly turned around to reveal her true appearance. Her uniform was bloodied and her face was completely wrapped in tape. In her hand was a bloody, rusty knife that seemed to drip blood. Atelos was taken aback and was struck with fear for a brief second.
"By the gods…what is that thing?"
Re: In Blackest Night - Shang Tsung - 02-03-2015
A horrid scream escaped the nurse’s maw as she lurched forward and slashed her knife across Atelos’ cheek. The Spartan let out noise that was a mixture of rage and confusion, but before he could react, the woman lunged at him and tackled him to the ground. With his shield pinned between his bulk and the ground, the Grecian warrior had only his hands to defend him against the nurse’s erratic slashes.
“Get-off-of-me!”
Despite his great strength, the Spartan was shocked to realize that he was struggling—struggling!—to push the bloody, emaciated woman off of him. He managed to get a hand under her neck and push her half a foot up, and just like that, she was gone. What looked to be a giant bolt of yellow lightning lashed forward and slammed into the nurse’s chest and head. Her grip evaporated and the concussive force threw her clear from the Spartan, who was left wide-eyed on his back. It took him a further moment to realize that his beard had been slightly singed by the blast’s immense heat.
Rolling onto his chest, the Grecian glanced up to see the child standing a few meters away. The armored boy’s right hand had turned into some sort of miniature cannon and was smoking slightly. While his eyes were hidden, the scowl on Blues’ face was an emotion Atelos had never seen, even on the grittiest of Spartan boys.
A few yards away, Shang stood, seemingly devoid of emotion to any passerby. The Spartan knew the sorcerer’s nonverbal cues enough to know that his partner was now silently sizing up the child. Something like this wasn’t information that Shang Tsung wouldn’t forget.
“We should move back to camp,” Blue remarked, his voice mature beyond his apparent years. “I don’t know what that was, but I don’t want to find out if there are more.” Without waiting for either man to reply to him, the armored child slipped back into the darkness that led to their campsite.
“He’s not a child.” Atelos remarked as he stood up off the ground. For good measure, he pulled his shield off his back and ensured that his sword was at the ready.
“No, he certainly is not,” Shang shot back as his eyes scanned their surroundings. “He’s probably just like you or me.”
“I struggled with that creature, Shang, and he felled it in one blast!”
“I saw that,” the sorcerer replied matter-of-factly as the two allies started back toward the campsite. “For all we know, Spartan, that… ‘child’ could be stronger than the paladin.”
Atelos scowled, clearly frustrated with that parcel of information. Shang felt the same way, but he had a better poker face than the Spartan—his emotional displays were always intentional and preplanned. Before either man could break the silence, the booming voice of their party’s leader tore through the silence of the forest.
“Foul beasts! Send them all back to oblivion!”
Drawing their weapons, the two men charged through the trees. When they burst out the other end, they saw that their camp was under attack by a collection of mortifying creatures. Some looked human… others appeared to have been ripped straight from the nightmares of an asylum inmate. At the center of the camp, the two warriors saw the paladin start to glow with a radiant white light, but before they could watch, both were swarmed.
Re: In Blackest Night - Atelos - 02-05-2015
The bright shining light was dulled out by the massive horde of disgusting horrors that seemed to flood them. These apparitions seemed to come out of some twisted person's mind or an insane asylum inmate's tortured nightmares. These monsters surrounded the two warriors and started to close in on them. Most of them seemed to be a person who had been burned alive wearing a straightjacket and the leader of the pack seemed to be a butcher with a metal pyramid on top of his head. It was dragging a giant sword behind him, letting the dirt fly while the others seemed to wobble over and close in. The main one grunted while the others seemed to moan in pain.
Atelos' mind was cloudy, he couldn't think, he couldn't even feel Hades at the back of his mind. He felt completely separated from his body and isolated from the world, as if his mind was being invaded by something…He was afraid for the first in a long time, not even the god Hades could penetrate the mist that had seeped into his mind. The vile-disgusting monsters were closing in and Shang already had a fireball in his hand, he seemed to be unaffected by this place, on the outside at least. The 'Pyramid Head' had closed in and had lifted it's giant sword, while Atelos felt like time was going in slow motion, he felt almost drunk. The sword was coming down upon Atelos and he felt helpless like he couldn't do anything. He had put in all of his energy to raise his shield to cover his face until that massive sword was brought down on Atelos. It hit him like a truck, or well to compare in his time, it felt like he was being trampled on by a herd of horses. His shield was forcefully pushed into his arm and he felt himself knock back onto the ground. He looked over to see Shang fending off the other creatures that seemed to spit out a green, noxious gas, however he was faring much better than the trained Spartan.
He looked back up to realized that the sword was falling down upon him again, not having nearly as much energy as last time, he forced his shield up blocking the sword from hitting his face, but allowing it to sink right into his leg. The antique, rusty sword cut clean through tearing a chunk of the Spartan's leg clean off. He grimaced in pain before forcing himself to fight it and stand up. The pain flared up in his leg, causing a horrible pain to fly through his leg. He told himself he wouldn't look down and continued to press on.
The sword brought itself up again and Atelos pushed on, despite the fogginess of his mind he pushed on just to avoid the perilous blow and ignited his fist, even though it seemed that every movement seemed to tax him, physically and mentally. He brought his fist up and managed to hit the thing square in the chest, leaving a black, charred imprint of his fist. The thing stumbled backwards and then proceeded to get up as if nothing had happened. It seemed to move with ease, as if it was used to this physical taxation. It walked back, monotonously as if it was routine while Atelos felt like Atlas. The sky was crushing down on him and the horribly weight seemed to damped his ability to fight.
It swung again and Atelos brought his shield up tanking the shot, instantly regretting his decision. The pressure brought Atelos to his knees but he carried onto this weight. He brought himself up and was able to punch the thing, this time with more strength knocking it off it's feet and landing on the ground. Atelos felt himself slowly run over to the fallen monster and got on top of it. The monster was struggling to get up but Atelos brought down his shield upon his neck, breaking it's neck and causing all of it's movements to become limp.
Atelos turned around and saw the sorcerer bent over vomiting, with all of the creatures burning in flames and limp on the ground. More were climbing up the hill and Atelos saw the Paladin easily wiping out all of the creatures that came at him, while the rest of the party was seeming to have the same trouble that the other two had. Atelos mind began to clear and he heard a voice as clear as day and he began to move. The weight had been lifted and Atelos felt relaxed now that his body was moving on it's own. He was walking over to the captain trying to clear out the monsters with Shang.
Wait…why was his body moving on it's own!
Hades release me! He screamed in the mist of his mind, echoing like a valley.
"Spartan this is best for both you and me. You want to live don't you? And I am not strong enough to find another vessel." A whisper in his mind seemed. It seemed so far away, he didn't know his mind was that big. Begrudgingly he had to admit Hades was right. Atelos had exerted himself on fighting that thing. He looked down and looked at his leg and he could see the bone showing. He wanted to vomit but his body wasn't his anymore…well not at the moment.
Hades and Shang walked over to Argento and cleared the path of monster's with much more ease. "Damn Spartan, you had this pressure on you? He looked over to the Sorcerer who seemed to be unaffected "The Sorcerer must be more dangerous than we think."
Atelos grew afraid again, we…the two were getting more acquainted with each other as time went…what a scary thought. By the time the two had reached the Argento the field had been cleared and many of the party had been wounded. The two soldiers had walked up the party leader and Argento looked at the warriors battle wounds.
"What were those things?" the hyena voice came out, and Shang and Argento both looked at Atelos with a concerned glare.
Re: In Blackest Night - Shang Tsung - 02-08-2015
The battle had ended. A quick glimpse revealed that no one had died, but almost everyone had suffered some sort of injury. Perhaps more disturbing was the fact that the Spartan was clearly a little more unhinged than usual. His eyes had more of a feral glint to them, and his voice was ragged and rasping—as if something were trying to claw its way up from his insides.
“I’m not sure what those things were,” Shang muttered as he pulled out a cloth and wiped some of the ichor from his blade. The blood—if such a term was applicable—was thick and clotted, which made him doubt it came from anything that was genuinely one hundred percent alive. If he had the time and resources, he would have tried to take a further look at it, but for now, he just wanted the foul-smelling bile off of his weapon and his clothes.
“They were from Silent Hill,” Argento muttered, his voice subdued as he looked over at the Spartan. “Are you all right?”
“Yes. ” Atelos replied through clenched teeth. Anyone could tell that the man wasn’t alright, but no one wanted to press the subject.
“What do you mean… from Silent Hill?” Shang asked, trying to change the subject from the Spartan’s behavior and attitude. “Is that what we can expect once we reach the town?”
“No,” Argento replied, shaking his head. “Once we enter the town, it will be much worse… or at least I expect it to be. With the exception of that behemoth, most of the monsters that leave the city limits are similar to what we fought here. They are twisted abominations… corrupted men and women who retain barely a decent shred of humanity.”
“Why the nurses?” Shang interjected, his eyes moving over to a particular corpse, much like the one that had ambush him, Atelos, and Blues right before the larger fight. Aside from some blood and dislocated joints, the still body probably could have been attractive in real life. He had no way of confirming this, as the face was wrapped tightly in bloody bandages and plastic wrap, but from the neck down, everything checked out as a’okay.
“I wish I knew,” the paladin answered.
Probably some bizarre fetish thing… Shang thought as he looked at the skimpy outfit on the corpse. What real nurse wore a skirt that high and a shirt cut that low?
“We’ll take inventory and ensure that everyone is fit to travel, and then after that, we’ll head out immediately. Do you two mind covering the flanks while I tend to our associates?”
“Of course not,” Shang answered for himself and the Spartan. As the paladin walked away, the sorcerer and his Grecian ally made eye contact, but neither had anything to say that moment in time. In silence, they parted to go cover opposite sides of the now ravaged campsite. On his way there, Shang crossed paths with the boy with the gun-arm. Unlike everyone else, Blues seemed unaffected by the battle that had nearly overwhelmed the traveling party. “You’re not a child, are you?”
Hearing the question, the youth lifted his helmeted face to look up at the sorcerer. “What do you mean?”
“No child that I’ve ever seen can shoot lightning from his hands.” Shang remarked, causing a sly grin to spread across Blues’ pale face.
“And, like you, I’m stuck in a world filled with monsters and medieval knights… should you be surprised about something like me?”
“You make a very valid point.” For a child, Blues certainly could carry himself in a conversation in a manner impossible for someone of his perceived age. “What are you then?”
“What are you?” The boy retorted. “Your clothes are from medieval China, but you don’t have an accent. Plus… you’re wearing a watch under your right sleeve and you have a cellphone. Now I know this is the Omniverse and all, but most primes go with what’s familiar to them.”
Shang held back a laugh as he knelt down in front of the boy. “I’m a sorcerer cursed to feed off the dead or wither and die. I’ve been alive for over nine centuries, and when I was pulled to this place, the world I lived in was a very modern one.”
“I’m an android created by two mad scientists. In their rush to compete with one another, I was flawed with sapience… cursed to know exactly what it means to be human but to never experience or fully understand any of it.”
“Heavy burden for a child.”
“I manage… this place has helped a lot.”
That was a statement Shang had never heard before. There were things about the Omniverse he certainly enjoyed, but he’d never heard of it actually helping someone get over pre-existing issues. “What do you mean?”
“Family.” Blues replied. “Most of them are here. I never got to know my kid sister for real until I got pulled into this place. Now I have all the time in the world to get to know here and my siblings.”
How touching. “How wonderful.”
The tone in Shang’s head and the tone that came out of his mouth were polar opposites. At his core, the sorcerer couldn’t care about some fake-boy’s equally synthetic family. He did like the idea that he could summon living things to the Omniverse. He’d heard about it before, but he’d never really given it a second thought. Now that the idea was fresh in his mind again, he was starting to warm to the idea of having a few extra… ‘hands’ around to help him.
“There you are, Blues!”
The sorcerer and the machine turned to see the paladin walking over toward them. The man was flanked by the soldier he had dispatched a few hours earlier. “We found your associates, Blues. They’ve a few miles north of here, camped out near a ridge at the base of the Arklay Mountains. My man here wasn’t able to speak with them, but he can verify that they are okay. If you hurry, you should be able to reach them within the hour.”
“Thank you,” Blues said, a smile spreading across his youthful features.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to form an escort to get you and your friends back to Darkshire? This is a terrible region of the Moors… we are very close to Silent Hill. You and your friends will be in constant danger.”
“That’s kind of you, but we have to reach our destination as well... We all have to make sacrifices for the greater good.” Just like that, Blues was off—his stubby legs carrying him with an inhuman speed as he raced off to where his friends were, leaving Shang and Argento behind.
“Do you think he’ll be okay, Shang?” The paladin inquired with clear concern for the health and safety of the young boy.
“I hope so.” Shang replied.
Who gives a shit, you bleeding heart.
Re: In Blackest Night - Atelos - 02-11-2015
“Yes. ” Atelos replied through clenched teeth. Anyone could tell that the man wasn’t alright, but no one wanted to press the subject. His wasn't his and he felt the stares even though he was only present in the back of his mind. He couldn't think and he was drifting out into space. He felt no longer in control of his body and he felt his mind getting squeezed out of his mind. He felt like he was being crushed by Hades' enormous mind.
As Atelos was going to go out and take his side, he saw Shang meet his eyes giving him an inspecting look as if he were checking to see if anything was wrong with him. However, Atelos strode along avoiding his contact with Shang and went along, leaving Shang behind. He kicked up dust and strode off to protect his side, while the rest of the party was recuperating from the fight. Hades was still in control and a smile was forced upon's Atelos' face despite his sour mood. The two walked into the forest together, on patrol for something more to come up.
While Atelos was casually strolling along, seeming to be peaceful and vigilant, inside his mind was a war zone. The fight for control was like no other and he felt himself literally beat himself up in his mind. He gained control of his hand before Hades took over once again. His hand slapped his face.
"I am in control now! My powers are returning! We are getting more powerful by the second…I am…"
His voice returned for a moment, "Hades, I will never surrender no matter what powers you give me!"
The fight for control was on. "You will never defeat me Spartan!" His laugh started to echo through the woods and Hades peered out of the forest to see the Camp of people that they had called their allies.
"My power is growing stronger. This Omni did not give you Omnilium. HE WAS TALKING TO ME THE ENTIRE TIME! YOU ARE NOTHING, MERELY A VESSEL TO BE DISPOSED OF!" The deep cut in his leg started growing tendrils and attached to one another. It drew itself together, the mere sight disgusted Atelos and made him want to vomit. Hades was getting stronger, his power growing daily. His influence was gaining and Atelos was beginning to think he was right. He had to learn for himself. Was was Atelos' fate…or was it Hades Omni was so interested in.
Atelos looked down again at his leg, fully healed. Atelos took all of his might, and the pressure of a ton of lead was pressed against his back but he did it…just to remain in control. "You are mistaken Hades."
Hades slinked back into the recesses of his mind, "Deep down, you know I am right Spartan." his voice shirked back into Atelos mind and the weight was lifted but he still felt Hades power running through his veins. It was strong and it took a hold of him. Atelos screamed in fury and his body began to scream in fiery rage searing the trees around him, yet it did not burn them. Atelos took his journey back to camp…where he knew he must answer to those that know his secret.
Re: In Blackest Night - Shang Tsung - 02-13-2015
As they continued their journey, Atelos seemed to gradually revert back to his normal self. For his part, Shang left the Spartan alone for much of the next day, allowing his ally to have some time for himself. With the machine-child and the darkspawn behind them, Argento’s retinue continued its march into the interior of the Pale Moors. Three hours after packing up what remained of the camp, they exited the forest onto what looked to be—for all intents and purposes—a highly decayed street. Not just a normal street, but a somewhat modern street. Shang raised the point to the paladin, who would only remark that they were ‘in Silent Hill country.’
The weathered and faded street wound through what was now called the ‘Raccoon Forest.’ Aside from some far-away moans and growls, the path was calm and uneventful. Fortunately for Shang’s sake, the party remained quiet as a means to ensure they didn’t detect any unwanted company. As the sun began to dip beneath the gray sky, Argento threw up his fist to signal the column to stop.
“What is it?” One of the priests whispered as he walked up to the armored warrior.
The paladin looked over his shoulder at the old scholar and furrowed his brow. “We’re almost there… the point where it will be impossible to turn back.” Although he spoke softly, Shang was close enough to hear that even his exalted ‘leader’ seemed to have a degree of anxiety about whatever lay on the path ahead of them. When the paladin next spoke, his voice was devoid of any such wavering—the perfect tone he needed to address the entire crowd. “This is the last chance for any of you to leave and return to Darkshire.
“From this point forward, I cannot promise you anything. We are following in the footsteps of lunatics and madmen and entering a place haunted by living nightmares and untold horrors both real and imagined. I will think no less of anyone who decides not to follow me. You are all brave for even having come this far.
“I march ahead knowing that He, the Almighty, shall watch over me, as he has done all my life. It is with firm conviction that I march onward.”
And just like that, Argento turned around and continued to walk as if he hadn’t just given a rousing speech to ‘his troops.’ For someone who was supposed to have sworn off the finer things in life, the paladin sure had a commanding knack for theatrics. Furthermore, the paladin also had a group of loyal men and women following him, because not a single one of them wavered in following Argento down the cracked asphalt path. Before he moved on, Shang glanced over at Atelos, who simply nodded his head.
Now at the rear of the column, the two warriors—Darkshire’s finest new garrison recruits—walked in silence as the party rounded a bend in the road. Up ahead, Shang noticed that the street vanished into what appeared to be a wall of fog. A quick glance to his peripherals revealed that the fog permeated the surrounded forests but terminated at the same place as it did with the street. It was almost as if it was marking the boundary of a country.
I suppose it is… Shang mused as he recalled the stories about how the town had been wholly consumed in the thick, white fog.
“Be brave, everyone… I will see you on the other side,” Argento boomed as he strode forward into the fog. He was followed by the rest of his retinue, until at last Shang and Atelos stood just outside boundary of the fog layer.
“What do you think we’ll find beyond this, Sorcerer?”
“Answers?” Shang replied, although his tone betrayed the fact that he was only guessing at what really resided in the town. “Now we only need to figure out what the question is.”
Without another word, Shang and Atelos stepped through the fog.
There was a fleeting sensation of cold before the opaqueness cleared away, revealing the fact that the forest only continued for another hundred feet. Aside from the thin layer of fog and a slight temperature drop, Shang felt no different than he had ten seconds ago.
Moving forward to catch up with Atelos and the rest of the paladin’s party, the sorcerer glanced around to see that the trees had been hiding the fact that they had descended into a shallow valley. Jagged little hills covered in snow—Snow?—jutted up to their left, and to their right, the trees gave way to a plain that stretch about a hundred yards before the fog became too thick to see any further. Both sides of the street were now provided with guardrails, which cemented the sorcerer’s belief that they were at least somewhat modern roads.
Up ahead, a massive sign jutted up on an old, partially weathered billboard. Inscribed in large, faded letters was the phrase ‘Welcome to Silent Hill.’ A few of paladin’s followers had stopped to glance up at it. Shang spotted Atelos a few yards ahead of him, but as the sorcerer opened his mouth to speak, he noticed the look of confusion on the Spartan’s face. Even more disconcerting was the fact that his eyes were firmly glued on something behind Shang.
“What?” The sorcerer inquired, but rather than a response, Atelos simply raised a finger and pointed back toward the forest. With a scowl, Shang turned around and saw what was behind the consternation on the face of the Spartan.
The road was gone.
Hell, the forest was gone.
It was like an earthquake had torn apart the ground and sunk half of it into the abyss, because about twenty feet in front of the Silent Hill sign, the entire world now just dropped off into the fog.
Re: In Blackest Night - Atelos - 02-14-2015
Atelos looked up at the massive rusty sign with the big white writing, 'Welcome to Silent Hill.' The sign seemed to jeer and taunt at him and he frowned as if the sign was saying how much better it was than Atelos...of that was possible. A few other party members looked up casually at the sign and continued walking. Atelos was going to say something to Shang and he turned his head to the left, no Shang, turned his head to the right, no Shang. He turned around peering around for his magical friend but was meet with something much more disturbing.
The world he was in was cut off from the rest, not just the fog blocking the view but it looked as if this town...was its own planet. Leaving it would cause one to fall down an abyss.
Shang Tsung appeared out of the group and saw the sorcerer but was greeted with a horrific facial expression between disturbance and confusion.
The sorcerer gave him a look as he exclaimed, "What?" Which was met by Atelos' shaken face and his finger. The sorcerer turned around to view the emptiness that had so quickly engulfed the land that surrounded them. The sorcerer was taken aback and the squad could hear Argento speak.
"Let's keep moving!"
The sorcerer walked over to Atelos, who still had his jaw suspended in disbelief. His magical counterpart touched him on the shoulder and started to push him along with the rest of a party. You didn't want to be left alone, especially here. The madness here was tangible, he felt the insanity seep into his mind.
"So this was what he meant by no turning back."
The sorcerer gave the Spartan a grave look as the pair walked into the Insane Asylum. The group walked into further the mist, and some of the weaker party members began to tremble. One member, who was the least holy of the group, he looked more like a Mage than the rest. He was dressed in purple robes and a cowl rose over his head hiding his face. He was at the back of the group and he was holding a book that had archaic symbols and he seemed to be muttering a chant, however Atelos dismissed this as a insane wizards ramblings and memorization of spells. Shang gave the Mage a weird look and turned to Atelos.
Shang was about speak but the Mage grunted loudly and fell to his knees. His purple cowl fell of his face and the group turned to see his bloodshot eyes. His mouth was foaming and he screamed.
"I can't take it anymore!" The Mage held out his hand and the group watched helplessly as he began to summon a fireball. The ball was tiny and it had a black dark.
He began to cry blood and it trailed over his face and he cast the fireball on himself. The Mage's blood boiled and his skin started to turn a charcoal black and the smell of his burning flesh tainted the air. His bright white smile stood out of the burning smoke and he seemed to resemble the ominous smile that had reminded him of the overlord that greeted him upon his initial contact of this world. He laid on the ground, looking peacefully, in contrast to the burning flames that were engulfing him. Relief flashed across his face as he breathed his last breathe, "Relief."
The group stood there who had no idea was going on. A priest broke out of his trance and ran over to the burning pile of flesh and made the sign of the cross.
Shang looked at Atelos as he began to chuckle. Their pagan god could not save even that poor soul. His soul was damned forever and there is nothing anyone can do about it.
"The same fate will fall upon you if you do not surrender to me.
He waved off the jackal voice in his head as he felt a increase in power in his veins. His head gaining a massive headache and he felt his power slipping for just a second.
"You know what we're up against, we need to find what we're looking for and then find a way out." The paladin said blatantly and as they were about to choose a road before a screeching sound came from the sky. Many shapes appeared and it seemed to be an antique dinosaur came out of the sky. The Paladins eyes widened and he screamed out to the party.
"RUN!"
Re: In Blackest Night - Shang Tsung - 02-17-2015
Someone was dead already…
Someone was dead already and they had only walked about a mile down the highway. Now, they were sprinting down the road, because the skies were alive with screeching, dark shapes. Somewhere to his left, Shang heard a man scream and heard a splash of what sounded like water smack the road. The sorcerer didn’t dare to look back—his eyes remained focused on the building growing on the horizon. “Up ahead!” He screamed as they reached the end of the bridge.
Argento was a few paces ahead of them, despite the heavy plate armor that covered his body. The paladin veered to their left as they approached the front side of the building. They crossed a graveyard on the other side of the street as they looped around to the walkway. The town jutted up in front of them, but Shang ignored the buildings as the retinue made a beeline for the front doors to the enormous structure.
Thirty seconds later, they were corralled inside the lobby with the doors slammed shut behind them. For close to a minute, none of them spoke as they struggled to catch their breath and process what had just happened over the last ten minutes. It was finally Argento who broke the silence in the dimly illuminated lobby.
“Who is missing?” He asked, his voice soft and somber, as if he was afraid someone or something else may hear him.
“We lost Father Basil and the one mage from the northern Camelot,” a voice replied. Shang looked over and noted that the speaker was another priest—this one a man of only thirty-some years. With the two losses, the retinue was down to sixteen members, and to make matters worse, they had abandoned their equipment and supply wagons just a few hundred yards after they entered the fog. Once that realization set in, he expected that the group’s moral would waver, and that would be when Argento’s skills as a leader would truly have to come forward.
“Does anyone know where we are at?” A woman asked from the other side of the room. Shang’s eyes found her, and he quickly took note of her appearance. She wore the usual chain mail that one would expect with a warrior, but she also carried a wand that was half-concealed beneath her sash. What was her name again? Ruby?
“That much should be obvious,” Atelos grunted as he lifted a hand to point at a landmark on the far wall. Shang followed the Spartan’s finger to a large map mounted onto the wall beneath an equally massive placard that stated ‘Cedar Grove Sanitarium.’ “What’s a sanitarium?” The Spartan asked, his eyes falling squarely on Shang, who he knew was more acquainted with the modern amenities that didn’t exist in ancient Sparta.
“They’re places where they used to house people with serious illnesses who might be a detriment to society,” the sorcerer replied. “Infectious diseases, mental sickness…”
“Where did you say you were from, Shang?” Argento asked as he walked over to examine the layout of the old facility they had run to for shelter.
“You mean ‘when’, don’t you? The twentieth century,” the sorcerer shot back as he tried to commit the first floor map to memory. In lieu of killing someone who worked here, memorization would be the best way not to get lost in what seemed to be a labyrinth of short hallways, tiny rooms, and dank passages.
“I didn’t know,” Argento muttered matter-of-factly as he ran his finger along the layer of plastic that protected the large picture. “You prefer the more old-fashioned attire?”
“Yes,” Shang shot back as he glanced around the octagonal lobby. To the left and right, little hallways contained three doors each, and across from the entrance to the building, another small corridor held three more possible paths out of their current room. “What’s our next move?”
“We split up… We’ll have two teams scour this building for supplies, and another team will attempt to retrieve one or both of the wagons from the other side of the bridge.”
The remark elicited some murmurings from the group, but no one spoke against the paladin’s plan. Shang himself preferred smaller company, but he imagined that some of the people in the retinue were struggling to hide the stripe of yellow that ran down the length of their spine. What did they have to be afraid of? Birds? For all they knew, the dead mage suffered from a brain hemorrhage or a related condition, and the stress finally put an end to him.
“I will personally lead the attempt to retrieve the supplies,” Argento said as he turned to face the others. “Sir McCauley, Lady Gemma, Sylvester, and Jeff… you four will accompany me.” The paladin spun back to face Atelos and Shang. “These two are battle-tested primes, and they will head up the scouting and scouring operation in this building. Each of you can pick from the remaining members of our party. With the Sun on our side, we will rendezvous here in one hour.”
“Is it wise to split us up like this, Sir?” The question came from the other woman in the group—the battlemage Ruby. “Surely we’d be better served to make a combined push back toward the bridge to secure the supplies.”
Argento shook his head. “We can’t lose valuable time. For all we know, this building may also hold some sort of clue to what we seek in this city. We cannot risk leaving any stone unturned as we delve deeper into the secrets of this accursed place.”
Ruby nodded, although Shang could tell by her expression that she still didn’t agree with the course of action.
“Now then… let us execute our plan.” With that, the four people Argento had mentioned before obediently fell in line behind the paladin, who drew his heavy mace and made his way back toward the door.
Shang glanced toward Atelos and smirked. When he spoke, it was at a volume so only the Spartan could hear him. “I’ll take the woman in armor and the mage in the black robes. You can have whoever else you want, and I’ll be fine with the remainder. I’ll go to the left and you head to the right?”
The Spartan nodded his head as he turned to the remaining members of their group and began to figure out who he wanted to guard his back and flanks.
Re: In Blackest Night - Atelos - 02-17-2015
Atelos turned to the rest of the group that had just experienced a rapid change of events. They were so set on following the paladin on his quest and now they had all looked-crestfallen and defeated. They had traveled many quests with their current hero but nothing had been up to this level of difficulty. Their quest had turned so sour, so quickly that they were in complete shock. They were used to death by violence, but this was tangible insanity. Vampires were a piece of cake when compared to the nightmares they were going to have to face here. Some members of the group were jittering and one priest face turned a sickly green as he ran into the corner to spew his putrid bile. The green liquid began to fill the air and began to intertwine with the mist that had permeated their skulls, and now their nostrils.
Atelos looked at the group, the pathetic lot of them. The only warrior he would feel comfortable with was the sorcerer that was destined to be on the other side of the building with him. He saw a couple particular individuals that stood out to him. He pointed to a woman in a green cloak who had a variety of knives and other small, quick weaponry on her person. She was looking forward, staring at a wall, completely blank. Atelos was not sure if she was in shock or if she was the type of warrior he was looking for. It didn’t matter, he had to take the chance.
“You, the woman in the green cloak. Come here” He spoke in a manner that contrasted Shang’s attempts to keep their selection quiet.
The woman turned her head towards the Spartan and her eyes showed no falter. Atelos smiled and he knew had made the right choice. She slowly got up and walked over to the Spartan, her slim figure, greatly contrasting the muscular build of the warrior. She was up to his shoulder and he couldn’t help but chuckle at the height difference between the two. The Spartan looked for another suitable member of his search.
The jittered peers and jumps when Atelos looked over people wasn’t very comforting. One person even hid behind another just to avoid his direct line of sight. He could still see the trembling figure but the man before him peaked his interest. The man was much like the one who had gone insane earlier, however his expression was much more calm. The man what dressed in a dark red robes, however he had a hint of green in his eyes that glowed in the darkness. The man was dark, and he appeared to be unaffected by the mist that had jittered so many of the ‘Holy Men.’ Maybe this was why he was on the trip? He was presumably dark and in contrasted many of the troop, but he was calm. The man’s eyes were locked with Atelos’ and he knew before Atelos would even speak that he would be chosen. He stood up and was followed by another man dressed in similar clothing but he did not have the dark aura that so distinguishable. They joined the Atelos’ small party before he could even say a word.
The Spartan turned to Shang and looked at him. His voice loud enough for all of the people to hear, their feelings completely ignored.
“The rest are of no use to me, I hardly trust them to stay here and survive, let alone protect me and my comrades. You may keep the rest if you want these cowards.” Atelos’ face turned into a distorted grimace as if the putrid stench from the bile had finally reached his nose. He could feel Hades smile in his mind as if he had agreed with the Spartan’s verdict. The Spartan looked towards the two hallways, broken in half by a register of sorts. There was an old sign dangling from the desk that said, ‘Check in.’
Atelos nodded to the two he had picked and the proceeded to follow him to the right lane. From the desk, a large static noise came and Atelos looked at the desk curious to what he was going to find. Two small devices were responsible for the loud static noise and was followed by a large crack, that came from the other side of the room. The screamer that had chased the party had ran itself into the wooden door, and could be seen through the glass that was used for decoration. It came again, another loud crack could be heard and some party members jumped and began to crawl towards those who had shown no fear. The static faded and the monster’s shape could be seen flying away from the doors and away from the group. An audible sigh of relief could be heard from many of the members and sweat had begun it’s descent on many of the member’s faces. Atelos grabbed the devices and walked over to Shang.
“What are these?” Atelos said, Matter-of-factly. His tone was less cordial with Shang and he had interpreted these things as things that warned the future. He had no idea what these things did. The sorcerer took one of the two devices out of his hand and looked over it casually.
“These are called Walkie-Talkies, they are commonly used for communication.” The sorcerer said. He turned the top dial and he reached over to the device Atelos had and he turned it. The Spartan curiously looked at it. The Sorcerer pressed a button on the side and a noise came out of the device.
“See Spartan?” The voice came out of the box and the Sorcerer’s lips. Atelos was taken aback by the technology gap that the two had. He looked at the magic box and pressed the button himself.
“No, Spartan it doesn’t work like that.” Shang reached over to grab Atelos’ ‘Walkie Talkie’ but the Spartan pulled his arm back, out of Shang’s reach. He grabbed the object with both of his hands and he looked at it again.
“Spartan, I... am ...trying to help you.” He grunted as he struggled to get the Walkie Talkie out of Atelos’ hand. His grip let go and Shang finally got the second of the magic devices.
“If you hold the button you can’t hear the other person, also make sure that it always stays on channel one.” He could see that the Spartan was about to ask another question. “The channel is the dial on top, make sure the arrow is pointing to the number one.” He gave the Spartan a tedious look as he pointed out the various functions of the device.
Atelos had an ‘aha’ look on his face and he took the Walkie-Talkie from Shang. The magic box was quiet it lay there dormant, waiting for it’s use. Shang rolled his eyes and turned to the rest of the party.
“See you later my friend. If you get yourself into any trouble you know how to reach me. I won’t mind saving your ass again.” Atelos chuckled and looked at the device that would ensure both of their safety and Atelos felt comfortable knowing that Shang would always have his back.
Or that was what he thought as he veered into the right hall and ventured into his deepest nightmares.
Re: In Blackest Night - Shang Tsung - 02-19-2015
The sorcerer and the female battle mage had been left with the five most useless members of the party. Aside from someone who seemed to be a trained monk (not that Shang had any love for monks), those that remained after the Spartan departed were those pulled along into Silent Hill purely through devotion to whatever god Argento worshipped. With the paladin gone and the sun barely visible through the nearly opaque fog, the five men were worthless. They gripped at their icons or rubbed beads in their hands as Shang led them into the left wing of Cedar Grove Sanitarium.
Making their way through the largest door on the left side of the lobby, Shang immediately felt the temperature drop a few degrees as he passed into the wide corridor. His eyes noted the secured double doors on the far wall and the fact that the hallway turned to the right. Holding out a hand to stop his followers, Shang bent down to pick up a broken brick. Without moving forward, he gingerly tossed the little piece of masonry down the hallway and kept his eyes glued on the turn up ahead.
“We’re clear,” he muttered after a few moments of silence followed the loud crash of brick against thick wood. Leading the way, the sorcerer jiggled one of the stairwell doors and found that it was locked. Since it was a little too early to start smashing doors and windows, he turned and made his way down the hallway. As the group traversed the corridor, they had to maneuver around abandoned gurneys and piles of refuse that ranged from torn clothes to what was hopefully decomposing animals.
“This is disgusting,” someone whispered as they reached a part where the hallway forked. Straight ahead, a door marked laundry was partially buried behind a fallen patch of ceiling. To their right, there were two simple doors labeled ‘Storage,’ and on their other side, the hallway faded into darkness. Knowing that they were there for supplies, the sorcerer grabbed hold of the door knob to one of the storage rooms and jiggled it. As with the stairwell access, the door was locked.
“I’ll try this one…” Someone muttered as they walked over to the other storage room and easily opened the door. “I got i—oh god!”
Everyone turned in time to watch as the priest was tackled into the far wall by a gray-skinned man in a straightjacket. Before anyone had a chance to do little more than gawk, yellowed teeth found the holy man’s neck and tore out a fatal chunk of flesh, muscle, and blood vessels. Shang reacted swiftly, his hand finding the sword and bringing it to bear on the growling creature. The blade of the jian cleaved through the exposed neck of what had probably once been a person. A beat later, two bloody corpses hit the ground with wet, blood-soaked thuds.
Behind Shang, everyone except Ruby looked as if they’d seen a ghost. Their resolve was shaking, and honestly, the sorcerer didn’t care. “Come on,” he growled as he stepped into the storage room. As he crossed over the threshold, he sheathed his sword and fumbled around until he found a light switch. A quick flip caused a weak, single incandescent bulb to flicker to life overhead and bath the room in a pale yellow light. “Garbage…” the sorcerer spoke beneath his breath as he ran a hand down a mostly empty shelf. He was about to turn his attention elsewhere when he noticed that his skin was a little yellower. Bringing his hand closer to his eye, he noticed that his arm had a few horns, and his forearm bones seemed a little… bulgier.
“Are you okay, Shang?” One of the men asked upon noticing the sorcerer examining what seemed to be his perfectly normal arm.
The sorcerer glanced up and smiled at the man. It wasn’t the fake one he put on when he was dealing with people he’d rather stab. No, this was the real smile—dark and sinister and full of malice. With his other hand, Shang willed the door to softly swing shut, and a beat later, everyone heard the click of the lock as it slid into place.
“What’s going on?” Another priest asked as he grabbed the knob and gave it a shake. When it refused to yield, he began to tug and yank at it while the others grew increasingly panicked at their predicament and the sorcerer’s expression.
One of the squires from Darkshire walked over to Shang and placed a hand on the prime’s shoulder. “What is going on?”
Without skipping a beat, Shang clenched his right hand and punched his fist into the man’s gut. Moments before what should have been a clean punch; a jagged blade tore up from the sorcerer’s forearm and skewered the would-be knight. With a grunt, Shang placed his other arm beneath the dying man’s armpit and threw him toward the other side of the room. Glancing ahead, the sorcerer smirked at the rest of the people trapped in the room with him. A second blade emerged from Shang’s other forearm.
“Yours souls are mine.”
Re: In Blackest Night - Atelos - 02-20-2015
Atelos took his three "volunteers" out into the hall, the darkness was looming upon them. Atelos ignited his hand and led the way, having the thief, the wizard, and the…annoyance come after him. The fire barely illuminated the halls, the numerous doors that lay ahead of them were bloodstained and reflected the places tortured mind. Atelos signaled to the group to wait as he turned onto the first door they came across. The white frame stood there, about to fall of it's hinges and the bloodstained window filled with cracks. Atelos reached out with his free hand and opened the door, the ear-piercing screech forcing a grimace to the groups faces.
The door opened easily and the room was rather large. There were plastic benches everywhere that appeared to be…blue in the dim light of Atelos' fire. Atelos nodded to the rest of the group to follow along as the two competent ones came in quietly while the third got smacked in the face with the white door. Atelos crouched low to the ground and creeped forward slowly, his eyes attentive for anything that could pop out and kill him. He remembered the difficulty he had in fighting those things up front…but with a sneak attack, he would be a goner. He walked around and he noticed that he had seen nothing and he visibly began to relax. He continued his fire and turned around to his group who had noticed the same observations that he had.
"Nothing here, let's move forward." The rest of the group relaxed visually, except for the idiot who continued to be overly dramatic. He was on the ground, crawling, looking for anything that could be a threat. Atelos had to hand it to the guy, he was putting in effort. The entire group was staring at the dirt-eating thing that was a part of their group. The Wizard rolled his green eyes as he kicked the man over, eliciting a laugh from the thief and a smile from the Spartan. The extra grunted in pain as he got up he glared at the Wizard and brushed himself off. The group wiped off their smiles and began to exit the large Dining Hall and into the hallway.
"We have nothing better to do, why not introduce ourselves?" The Spartan said with a whisper as he opened the door to the large halls that he was destined to search. He door creaked open almost overshadowing the Spartan's voice. He turned his head and he literally fell back onto the floor in horror. He brought out his shield covering his face as he looked at the monstrosity that lay before him.
It was this thing… With twin heads that look like lifeless Siamese infants and two gigantic arms working as its legs. The group behind him was about to speak but they fell back in horror as the Giant toddler grabbed a hold of the thief with one of it's hands. Atelos saw the thing reaching over him and he faced this monstrosity. His swords formed and Atelos charged at it with his shield. He came into close quarters with the thing and started to stab at it's hand…leg…whatever it was. The thief was struggling and she managed to stab this thing somehow because it seemed to relinquish her in pain. The Child wailed in pain and it managed to knock Atelos aside, hitting his head upon the wall and causing his world to go black.
The thief jumped out and did a summersault onto the ground. Her green cloak flying up in the wind. The wizard stood behind her with their lackey standing behind them. The Wizard's voice echoed out into the Lackey's head.
"Go see to the Spartan. He is more useful than you."
The lackey ran over to the Spartan, avoiding the child's wrath. It's attention was too focused on the one who had given his hand an injury and threw a fist down, as the boy ran to the Spartan's aid. He began to shake the Spartan's unconscious head. No response. Behind him the Wizard began to chant and a purple circle began to form around the Thief. She was running in, throwing knives and managed to evade the Child's fist every time. She took out a black bomb and threw it at the Child, causing an explosion on its face. She laughed and turned towards the Wizard, just as a hand flew out of the black dust and grabbed her. Her face turned from panic to confusion to terror. The wizard didn't have enough time before the child whacked her upon the wall leaving a bloody stain and a mangled corpse that used to be the woman. The wizard stood there helpless as he began to chant but it took to much time. He managed to hold a purple ball as the infant took a hold of him. His eyes panicked and he accepted his fate. The big purple ball expanded and started to incinerate the Wizard's skin and eventually the baby. The baby began to panic as the purple orb began to expand and it's wailing cries echoed through the hall as it was incinerated into dust along with the Wizard.
"Wake up Spartan I NEED YOU!" The imbecile cried, his hands shaking, hoping for once that the Spartan wasn't dead. The Spartan's eyes flashed open and his hand reached out penetrating the idiot's chest. Blood spattered on Atelos' face and the idiot breathed his last breathe.
"Turns out you're a lot easier to control when your unconscious Spartan."
Re: In Blackest Night - Shang Tsung - 02-20-2015
Moving forward, Shang drilled one of his arm-blades through the back of a man trying to rip open the door. With a gurgling scream, the priest thudded against the door and gave up the ghost. The sorcerer wrenched the blade out in time to spin and grab the on-coming fist of a young squire. A fire burned in the man’s youthful eyes as he struggled to free his hand from the grip of the older warrior. Before he could succeed, Shang buried three feet of organic steel up into his ribcage, skewering his foe’s vital organs.
“You won’t get away with this!” One of the priests screamed as he pulled out one of his religious icons and held it menacingly toward the sorcerer. “You will burn for this, Heretic!”
Shang responded by slashing apart the icon with one swing and using the next swing the cleave away the holy man’s outstretched hand. As the man fell into a screaming, blood-squirting heap, the sorcerer turned to see that Ruby and the last member of their group—some knight with a foreign name—had backed themselves into the corner of the room. Unlike the rest of their now dead comrades, neither of them lacked the resolve to face the sorcerer who now blocked their path to the exit.
“Was this your game all along, Tsung?” Ruby inquired as she rubbed a gauntleted hand down the side of her mace. Shang noted that the surface of the weapon glistened wherever her fingers touched. “What do you gain from murdering a bunch of priests and young priests?”
“Power, of course.” The sorcerer replied as he threw a hand forward and released a screaming, burning skull at the pair. Ruby had enough battle tact to duck and dive, but Sir What’s-His-Face took a moment too long to react. When the fireball hit his chest, it exploded, rending apart his chest in a dazzling display of gore.
Before Shang could readjust his focus, the mace came veering in at him from his right. Throwing up one of his blade-arms, the sorcerer intercepted the blow just before it could find its mark on the side of his face. “You have nice reflexes,” he muttered as he turned his faze to the woman.
“I have a lot more than reflexes!” She screamed as her mace suddenly fired a ray of condensed light right into the sorcerer’s chest. The impact didn’t penetrate the flesh, but the heat burned his clothes and bubbled the flesh above his heart. With a growl, Shang shoved hard with his pinned arm and brought the other swinging toward her skull. Ruby dipped beneath the arch of the blade and popped back up, drilling her helmeted cranium into her foe’s jaw.
Shang staggered, but worse than that, he tasted blood in his mouth, which was far more infuriating than anything else. Reacting swiftly, he brought his knee up into her armor-reinforced chest. The maneuver did little more than buy him a few inches of separation, but it was more than enough to summon in a fireball from right behind the woman. Even though the concussive force threw her right into Shang, he relished at the glassy look in her eyes as she slammed into him and drove him through the wooden door.
The two warriors crashed to the tiled floor of the hallway outside the storage room. Shang felt the air driven from his lungs as the bulk of the armored woman crushed down onto him, but little could dislodge the sneer from his face. “Your back must hurt,” the sorcerer whispered as he sat up with the female warrior and shoved her back into the storage room. She stumbled a few steps before twisting and crashing to the floor. Shang got a nice look at the spot on her lower back where the fireball had compromised her armor and blown apart a piece of her spine.
“Now what was I saying earlier?” He inquired as held out his hands and called out their souls. Ruby, her life ebbing away as the blood pooled around her, grit her teeth and struggled, even as the bodies around her relinquished their prizes. Unfortunately for her, Shang had all the time in the world, and in the end, she let out a frail whimper as her already pale flesh faded to a green-gray shade. Up from her open mouth, her soul floated, flashing all the colors of the rainbow before settling on that green shade that the sorcerer appreciated so much.
With a smile, Shang willed Ruby’s and the others’ souls to him, and the opaque clouds rushed at him, vanishing into his chest.
The sorcerer closed his eyes and smiled as he felt the fresh power flush over him. Memories washed over him as the dead members of the retinue joined the growing vault of souls that was Shang Tsung. Once the sensation left him, Shang took a moment to adjust his clothes and turned back to face the hallway. As he made his way toward the darkness at the other end of the hallway, the Tarkatan-inspired arm-blades slid back up into his arms until a time when he would need them.
Reaching for the door, Shang pushed down the handle and pulled it open, revealing yet another hallway that forked. At the forks, he found two more hallways beyond secured double doors which someone had left unlocked. Beyond both chambers were identical passages, but these were lined with upwards of a dozen metal doors. Each of them bore a number and two small openings—the first to allow someone to see inside and the larger one to allow food to be slipped into the chamber. A quick glanced confirmed his guess that these were holding cells for the patients in the sanitarium. Based on the lack of upkeep and the stench of piss and shit, there hadn’t been someone to keep the place clean in a long time.
Where are the patients, though? The smells that hung in the air were too fresh to be years or even months old. No… the blood and excrement stench couldn’t be older than a few days, which meant that someone had to have released or otherwise removed most of the patients and staff. But to where? Making his way passed the glorified cellblock; Shang entered another hallway and found his attention immediately drawn to the door to his right.
Infirmary. How pleasant. Stepping over to the door, the sorcerer sneered as he pushed it open… and stepped right into the path of an oncoming scalpel blade.