10-20-2013, 04:14 AM
Footsteps echoed through hollow walls as Nyx, Dobson and Thanatos made their way deeper into the caverns. The weathered rock offered no clues as to where Whirda and Van Helsing had gone, the darkness swirling around their ankles ruining any hope of tracking their footsteps – not that either Nyx or Dobson would have been able to do so themselves. Using Thanatos to track their scent may have been an option, but the shade’s influence hampered that, too. Instead, their search was led by blind faith.
They walked in silence. The young guard may not have been particularly apt, but he was alert enough to recognize that something had changed, he just couldn’t quite put his finger on what. Whatever it was, it was making him uncomfortable. So uncomfortable, in fact, that the idea of starting a conversation with the blood mage was out of the question. He glanced over at her, but she didn’t seem to register his interest. Her crimson eyes looked glassy and distant, as though her mind was elsewhere. egg
‘You’re not going to like this...’ the demon taunted in a sing-song voice. ‘That thing you’re hunting? It knows you’re coming, and it’s not impressed.’
‘Tell me something I don’t know,’ Nyx snapped, upping the pace to more of a brisk walk. Dobson, still staring vapidly at her, jolted into action and fell into stride with her.
‘And ruin all the fun? I don’t think so.’
The ruby on the tip of the blood mage’s staff boiled, a perfect visual representation of her anger. ‘Tell me.’ It was clear that her words were intended as more of a demand than a request.
‘Something’s coming.’
Nyx struggled to bite her tongue, though the urge to snap at the demon was almost irresistible. ‘How vague of you. Could you be a little more specific?’
‘Okay, fine. Two things,’ the demon responded childishly.
The blood mage rolled her eyes, drawing her bloodied gaze back into focus. She was met by a very concerned looking Dobson, who was peering at her as though she’d just regained consciousness. His brows were furrowed into a crease as he studied her intently.
“Are you okay?” he asked tentatively, leaning in a little closer, weaving his head around in front of her to check she could follow her eyes.
The blood mage stared at him blankly, but her eyes followed his. “I’m fine,” she reassured him.
“Then what was that?” Dobson folded his arms, stepping in front of her, still studying her suspiciously.
The blood mage resisted the urge to roll her eyes, and shrugged dismissively. “I was just thinking, that’s all.”
“Oh.” The young guard seemed to slump a little, but stepped aside and waited for Nyx to continue guiding him through the cavern. The concern was still painted across his face, as though he didn’t fully believe her. The suspicion he held was more out of concern for her safety than anything else, however.
Nyx took a few steps forward, and then paused. She turned to look over her shoulder, and shot Dobson her best winning smile. “Don’t worry about me!” she insisted airily, beckoning him to follow with a slight nod of her head. “I’m a big girl, I can handle myself.”
Dobson of Darkshire opened his mouth to complain, but was interjected by the sight of something moving in the distance. A flash of green light quickly followed – Dobson and Nyx raised their hands to shield their eyes in perfect unison, while Thanatos buried his head in his paws. They heard a distant crash, and when they looked up, part of one of the arches in the distance looked broken.
The blood mage and the young guard shared a look, then cautiously moved closer to the broken archway. It was clear that chunks of rock had been blasted away from the ceiling – they lay scattered around the cavern floor. Before they could come any closer, something began to drip from the ceiling.
The blood mage soon realized it was pure shadow. It poured from the cracks in the rock, swirling ominously and eventually beginning to form two figures. She suspected these were the two “things” the demon had alluded to before. As Dobson went to take a step forward, she blocked him with an outstretched arm, drawing her staff with the other. The dark red liquid that boiled within glowed. Both mage and weapon were ready for battle.
The two figures stretched, their bodies still seeming to swirl from the essence of pure shadow. They shared a look with each other and lunged forward to attack with a horrifying cry. It was unlike anything else Nyx had heard – it was guttural, animalistic, terrifying. As the two creatures drew closer, Dobson ducked beneath Nyx’s arm and began to sprint towards them, his sword outstretched.
The shadow beings weren’t entirely sure how to react to having a small human hurtle towards them, and this surprise bought Nyx enough time to slam her staff into the ground, creating a distraction – another illusion of the blood mage, created by blood. The illusion wasted no time in barraging the enemies with blood bolts. The shadows were winded by the impact of the blood bolts, but didn’t seem entirely bothered. They were also trying to avoid Dobson’s slashes and strikes – though many may have refused to take him seriously, something that Nyx was quickly learning was that he could handle a sword.
Watching Dobson strike with a blade was something else. It was as though the sword was just another part of his arm – his movements were fluid and rapid. The blood mage couldn’t account for the strength of the blows – the shadows were dancing around so much that Dobson’s hits were struggling to connect, - but one thing she could safely say was that she would not want to go toe-to-toe with him in a swordfight.
As Dobson and the shadows duelled, Nyx ran around them, until she was facing what seemed to be the back of the shadow creatures. She swung her staff in one long swoop, using the last of the ruby’s energy to barrage the two shadows with blood bolts. The liquid splattered against them, winding them and pushing them closer to Dobson. Whether by luck or skill, one of the shadows was impaled upon Dobson’s blade. It writhed and struggled, its lithe form twisting and wrenching, but something kept it there. Dobson looked shocked at what he’d done, but that didn’t stop him from twisting the blade. The shadow let out an ungodly noise, then withered and disappeared.
“Is it dead?” Dobson asked, slightly bewildered, examining his sword as if for clues. The remaining shadow used this opportunity to smack him on the side of the head. Dobson fell to the floor, his blade skidding along the cavern floor with an uncomfortable screech. It was at this point that Nyx realized she could easily leave the human to die and just blame it on the shadows. It would be the perfect crime.
But then, what would Whirda and the Professor think? The Professor seemed to be baying for her blood anyway; he really didn’t need much more of an excuse to have it in for her. As for Whirda… would she buy the blood mage’s lie, or would she see through it? What would happen, regardless of which way things went? There were so many possibilities to consider that Nyx decided that ultimately, for the time being, she would keep Dobson alive. Perhaps he had further information about Darkshire that both she and Whirda could use to their advantage. If she saved his life from this shadow thing, surely he would owe her?
The young guard hauled himself towards his sword, nails raking against the cavern floor. The shadow loomed over him, and if it had a tangible face, it would most certainly be grinning. It extended a claw-like arm towards Dobson, but was intercepted by Nyx’s staff. She swatted the creature’s arm away and, in perfect sync with her illusion, sent a fresh wave of blood bolts towards the shadow creature. It grunted and groaned as it was pelted with coagulated and congealed blood, shrinking away from the blood mage and buying Dobson enough time to collect his sword.
His fist closed around the hilt of his beloved blade, and with a determined cry, he charged towards the shadow. He impaled it easily upon his blade, and wasted no time in twisting the steel, much to the dismay of the creature writhing and struggling on it. As Dobson withdrew his sword, the shadow dissipated.
“Is that it?” Dobson asked, still looking rather bewildered. He shot an uneasy glance at the blood mage, remembering her method of combat. As if in response, her illusion dissipated, melting into a pool of blood on the floor.
”Too soon to tell,” Nyx admitted darkly. ”Be on your guard. I can’t tell if they’re dead or just hiding.”
They walked in silence. The young guard may not have been particularly apt, but he was alert enough to recognize that something had changed, he just couldn’t quite put his finger on what. Whatever it was, it was making him uncomfortable. So uncomfortable, in fact, that the idea of starting a conversation with the blood mage was out of the question. He glanced over at her, but she didn’t seem to register his interest. Her crimson eyes looked glassy and distant, as though her mind was elsewhere. egg
‘You’re not going to like this...’ the demon taunted in a sing-song voice. ‘That thing you’re hunting? It knows you’re coming, and it’s not impressed.’
‘Tell me something I don’t know,’ Nyx snapped, upping the pace to more of a brisk walk. Dobson, still staring vapidly at her, jolted into action and fell into stride with her.
‘And ruin all the fun? I don’t think so.’
The ruby on the tip of the blood mage’s staff boiled, a perfect visual representation of her anger. ‘Tell me.’ It was clear that her words were intended as more of a demand than a request.
‘Something’s coming.’
Nyx struggled to bite her tongue, though the urge to snap at the demon was almost irresistible. ‘How vague of you. Could you be a little more specific?’
‘Okay, fine. Two things,’ the demon responded childishly.
The blood mage rolled her eyes, drawing her bloodied gaze back into focus. She was met by a very concerned looking Dobson, who was peering at her as though she’d just regained consciousness. His brows were furrowed into a crease as he studied her intently.
“Are you okay?” he asked tentatively, leaning in a little closer, weaving his head around in front of her to check she could follow her eyes.
The blood mage stared at him blankly, but her eyes followed his. “I’m fine,” she reassured him.
“Then what was that?” Dobson folded his arms, stepping in front of her, still studying her suspiciously.
The blood mage resisted the urge to roll her eyes, and shrugged dismissively. “I was just thinking, that’s all.”
“Oh.” The young guard seemed to slump a little, but stepped aside and waited for Nyx to continue guiding him through the cavern. The concern was still painted across his face, as though he didn’t fully believe her. The suspicion he held was more out of concern for her safety than anything else, however.
Nyx took a few steps forward, and then paused. She turned to look over her shoulder, and shot Dobson her best winning smile. “Don’t worry about me!” she insisted airily, beckoning him to follow with a slight nod of her head. “I’m a big girl, I can handle myself.”
Dobson of Darkshire opened his mouth to complain, but was interjected by the sight of something moving in the distance. A flash of green light quickly followed – Dobson and Nyx raised their hands to shield their eyes in perfect unison, while Thanatos buried his head in his paws. They heard a distant crash, and when they looked up, part of one of the arches in the distance looked broken.
The blood mage and the young guard shared a look, then cautiously moved closer to the broken archway. It was clear that chunks of rock had been blasted away from the ceiling – they lay scattered around the cavern floor. Before they could come any closer, something began to drip from the ceiling.
The blood mage soon realized it was pure shadow. It poured from the cracks in the rock, swirling ominously and eventually beginning to form two figures. She suspected these were the two “things” the demon had alluded to before. As Dobson went to take a step forward, she blocked him with an outstretched arm, drawing her staff with the other. The dark red liquid that boiled within glowed. Both mage and weapon were ready for battle.
The two figures stretched, their bodies still seeming to swirl from the essence of pure shadow. They shared a look with each other and lunged forward to attack with a horrifying cry. It was unlike anything else Nyx had heard – it was guttural, animalistic, terrifying. As the two creatures drew closer, Dobson ducked beneath Nyx’s arm and began to sprint towards them, his sword outstretched.
The shadow beings weren’t entirely sure how to react to having a small human hurtle towards them, and this surprise bought Nyx enough time to slam her staff into the ground, creating a distraction – another illusion of the blood mage, created by blood. The illusion wasted no time in barraging the enemies with blood bolts. The shadows were winded by the impact of the blood bolts, but didn’t seem entirely bothered. They were also trying to avoid Dobson’s slashes and strikes – though many may have refused to take him seriously, something that Nyx was quickly learning was that he could handle a sword.
Watching Dobson strike with a blade was something else. It was as though the sword was just another part of his arm – his movements were fluid and rapid. The blood mage couldn’t account for the strength of the blows – the shadows were dancing around so much that Dobson’s hits were struggling to connect, - but one thing she could safely say was that she would not want to go toe-to-toe with him in a swordfight.
As Dobson and the shadows duelled, Nyx ran around them, until she was facing what seemed to be the back of the shadow creatures. She swung her staff in one long swoop, using the last of the ruby’s energy to barrage the two shadows with blood bolts. The liquid splattered against them, winding them and pushing them closer to Dobson. Whether by luck or skill, one of the shadows was impaled upon Dobson’s blade. It writhed and struggled, its lithe form twisting and wrenching, but something kept it there. Dobson looked shocked at what he’d done, but that didn’t stop him from twisting the blade. The shadow let out an ungodly noise, then withered and disappeared.
“Is it dead?” Dobson asked, slightly bewildered, examining his sword as if for clues. The remaining shadow used this opportunity to smack him on the side of the head. Dobson fell to the floor, his blade skidding along the cavern floor with an uncomfortable screech. It was at this point that Nyx realized she could easily leave the human to die and just blame it on the shadows. It would be the perfect crime.
But then, what would Whirda and the Professor think? The Professor seemed to be baying for her blood anyway; he really didn’t need much more of an excuse to have it in for her. As for Whirda… would she buy the blood mage’s lie, or would she see through it? What would happen, regardless of which way things went? There were so many possibilities to consider that Nyx decided that ultimately, for the time being, she would keep Dobson alive. Perhaps he had further information about Darkshire that both she and Whirda could use to their advantage. If she saved his life from this shadow thing, surely he would owe her?
The young guard hauled himself towards his sword, nails raking against the cavern floor. The shadow loomed over him, and if it had a tangible face, it would most certainly be grinning. It extended a claw-like arm towards Dobson, but was intercepted by Nyx’s staff. She swatted the creature’s arm away and, in perfect sync with her illusion, sent a fresh wave of blood bolts towards the shadow creature. It grunted and groaned as it was pelted with coagulated and congealed blood, shrinking away from the blood mage and buying Dobson enough time to collect his sword.
His fist closed around the hilt of his beloved blade, and with a determined cry, he charged towards the shadow. He impaled it easily upon his blade, and wasted no time in twisting the steel, much to the dismay of the creature writhing and struggling on it. As Dobson withdrew his sword, the shadow dissipated.
“Is that it?” Dobson asked, still looking rather bewildered. He shot an uneasy glance at the blood mage, remembering her method of combat. As if in response, her illusion dissipated, melting into a pool of blood on the floor.
”Too soon to tell,” Nyx admitted darkly. ”Be on your guard. I can’t tell if they’re dead or just hiding.”