Dark Secrets
Chapter 1
Darkness. That is all he could see. The very fabric of his reality was thus; trapped eternally in this prison by the so called "Champion's of Light". "You will be freed." A voice rang out through his mind. "I am coming for you, Xenotsu." The voice slowly echoed through the dark void. "Who are you?" Asked Xenotsu, his long silver hair floating in nothingness. "What do you want with me?" He slowly glanced around him; knowing he would only see darkness, though hoping that he has not yet lost his sanity. "Master, what are you doing?" Xenotsu looked to the weapon in his hand... his Doom Weapon; The Necrotic Sword of Doom. Slowly he raises the Sword to his chest. "I heard a voice... could you not hear it?" he replied to his devoted weapon. "I have not heard anything other than us since we were trapped in this forsaken prison." The Necrotic Sword replied. Xenotsu just sat there for a long while; his crimson cape coming to lap at his crimson armored leg. "Maybe... I am just slowly going insane. It would seem fitting, I suppose." he stated as he slowly laid back and floated silently in the void.
"How long has it been since I heard that voice? Hours? Days? ...Was it even real?" Xenotsu thought to himself. "This place... there is no time here; no ageing, nothing but this empty, dark, timeless void." He slowly brought his hand to his head and slipped his fingers through his hair that was protruding from his helmet and slowly pulled his fingers through it. Watching as his hair slowly drifted back into place, the young Lord marveled at how this place sort of resembled water. Go deep enough and there is only darkness; no gravity, just floating there with no bearings on up or down. Was this place infinite in space or was it small and he just kept circling around endlessly? He truly did not know. "Was what I have done truly so horrible that I was to be imprisoned in... this?"
Shifting slightly, he looked at his devoted Doom Weapon. Images of what led to his imprisonment flashing before his eyes. There was fire everywhere; the buildings burning to ash, screams of the town folk high in the air as his undead minions slaughtered the masses. Slowly he approached the guardian tower; the heavy plate mail of his Doom Knight armor clinking with each step. Clearing the smoke from the burning town, he glanced up at the night sky. "Crescent moon tonight... fitting I suppose." he thought to himself. "My lord, are you alright?" the Necrotic Sword asked, bringing Xenotsu out of his thoughts. "It's nothing. Just thinking is all. The time is neigh; tonight we will collect the orbs and complete the Masters plan."
Approaching the doors to the guardian tower he raised his sword high and stuck with mighty force, showing all nearby the power he wielded. Moving quickly he began dispatching nearby guardians while attempting to reach the basement of the tower. "STOP HIM AT ALL COSTS! HE MUST NOT CONTINUE!" yelled out a guardian to his comrades. Ducking, he easily evaded the barrage of arrows that flew towards him. Xenotsu dashed to the side and swept an enemy off his feet; moving faster than most could hope to see, he raised his Necrotic Sword high and brought it down on the guardian, cutting him clean in half before he even came close to hitting the ground. Blood spewed in all directions, coating the walls, floor and even the other guardians in a sickening bath of blood. Moving before they could catch their bearings, Xenotsu came up to another and beheaded the poor girl; fear clearly in her eyes as her head rolled off her body. Once of the tower defenders gave a savage battle cry as he charged the invading Doom Knight; raising his sword quickly, Xenotsu parried the attack. Striking the poor fool with all his strength, Xenotsu's attack cut clean through the guardians blade, followed by his armor and finally his torso.
The soldier gave a gargled cry as his upper body slid off his lower half and fell to the floor with a loud clank. Xenotsu slowly righted himself, staring at the blood-soaked corridor. "Master, we must move quickly if we are to get the orb of nature." the Doom Sword stated loudly. "I am aware." replied the Lord. "I merely..." "THERE HE IS! ATTACK!" came the roaring cry of another group of guardians. Xenotsu's eyes narrowed beneath his helmet. "These fools never seem to learn." he thought to himself as he charged the small group. Dodging their swords he rolled past them, quickly getting to his feet he plunged his sword through the chest of one of the guardians. With his sword still imbedded in the man's body he flung his weapon to the right, tossing the corpse off his sword and into his remaining comrades. Quickly Xenotsu raised his left hand and charged a powerful beam of pure darkness, shooting it at the two remaining guardians.
They screamed loudly as their armor and flesh was quickly purged from their bodies. Using his dark powers, he revived the three fallen guardians as more undead minions. "Clear a path to the tower basement. Let nothing get in my path." "Areww" the skeletons moaned as they carried out their masters orders. Moving quite quickly for corpses they began to clear the corridor of more incoming defenders. Lord Xenotsu slowly made his way to the tower basement, reanimating all guardian corpses into more undead along the way. "Now with these cretins distracted there should be nothing in my way of the orb." he though smugly. As he approached the doors to the basement he raised his sword and bashed them down with brutal force.
The dark Lord ran down the spiraling staircase with speed that mortals could only dream of obtaining. He stopped running as he reached the last of the steps. Glancing around the room, he noticed a giant door in the center and two corridors; one to his left and the other to his right. "Something's not right. All those guards up above and yet here, the most important part of the tower where the orb is located, and no guardians at all?" Xenotsu cautiously approached the door, raising his hand he placed it on the center of the contraption. "A gem based entrance system... elaborate but not enough to warrant it to be undefended. Something is definitely not right here." he mumbled to himself. "Just now catching on I see?" Stated a smooth female voice from behind him. An elegantly armored woman slowly descended down the staircase; her silver armor glistening off the torch light. She slowly raised her sword and pointed it at Xenotsu.
"For the atrocities you've committed you will forever been imprisoned in a place where you can do no more harm." she stated coldly, her long raven black hair shifting slightly as she raised her head to look at him. For sever moments silence ensued. Only the sound of the fire torches crackling slightly echoing though the grey stone corridors. "Andrase..." Xenotsu whispered faintly; his voice holding something she couldn't quite place. "You who condemn me, should be at my side most... why do you stand against me... my love?" he stated so softly she had to strain to make out what he said. "Don't call me that!" she exclaimed. "You... I trusted you... loved you... gave myself to you only for you to embrace evil." she half sobbed. "I saved you." Xenotsu replied, taking a step forward. "I nursed you back to health." he proclaimed, taking another step forward. "I gave to you all that I had left to give; My heart, my soul... my heir." he took another two steps closer towards Andrase, his silver hair flowing elegantly in sync with his crimson cape.
Andrase visibly flinched, yet kept her sword pointing at her lover. "None of that matters. I am a Paladin, a warrior of light and justice. Had I known what you are I would have never given my heart to you. I would have accepted death in place of your care." she whispered, tears running down her cheeks. "Don't lie." Xenotsu stated calmly. "I'm not lying!" she exclaimed. "Yes you are." he stated, taking a few more small steps towards her. "You enjoyed every minute we spent together. You still love me... as I love you." Xenotsu stood calmly and proudly in front of his forbidden love. "I can't believe that... how can anyone who commits the horror's that you have, have the capability to love? No... evil cannot love; only lie, deceive. Even if you were telling the truth, my feelings for you are irrelevant. It is my duty as a paladin to stop all evil; that includes you."
"Andrase..." "NO!" she interrupted loudly. "I may not have it in me to kill you... I still love you too much to do so... but I can at least put you somewhere where you can do no harm. I will raise our child to be a great warrior who fights in the name of justice; of good." "And when the child asks of me then what? What will you tell our child then? Will you be so dishonorable to deny my heir knowledge of me? Of the truth about himself and what he is?" Xenotsu asked softly; crestfallen that this is happening. "What do you mean by 'the truth about what he is'?" she inquired. "We don't even know if it's going to be a boy or a girl." "I can tell. I can since my son within you, Andrase. And I tell you now, he will live for hundreds of years, wondering why he ages not as all of his loved ones grow old and die. He will not understand the pull that will be within him; the pull to me."
Xenotsu and Andrase stared at each other for a long while; the silence almost becoming stifling. "He must not and will not know about you. For his own sake if nothing else; I won't allow him to be corrupted to serve darkness. I will not allow him to become a Doom Knight and follow in your destructive footsteps!" she exclaimed loudly. Andrase quickly raised her left hand towards the ceiling and began chanting something too softly for Xenotsu to hear. Looking at where her hand was aimed towards, his eyes locked onto a ritualistic design painted onto the ceiling of the room. It was then that he realized that his instincts were in fact correct; this was a set up.
Quickly he ran, attempting to flee the circle's perimeter only to be stopped by an invisible force. His speed was so great in his attempts to flee, that he actually bounced off the invisible barrier and landed painfully on his back. Rising to his feet, Xenotsu locked eyes with Andrase. "Don't do it" he stated softly. "We belong together, don't divide us because of some foolish notion of good and evil." he attempted again. If she heard him, she did not show it; for she continued as if he said nothing. A blinding light began to engulf one of the Doom Lords of the Shadowscythe. "What is going on? Master?" the Necrotic Sword asked, only to be met with silence from its master. The light continued to intensify; spreading throughout the entirety of the guardian tower. It was then, just before the imprisonment ritual completed, that Xenotsu uttered the six words that would haunt Andrase for the rest of her days. "Andrase, I will always love you..."
Andrase's eyes widened in shock; the light becoming blinding just before it began to fade away, leaving the spot where her love was just standing, vacant, except for one small black pearl that quickly vanished to some unknown location. It was then that she realized that he wasn't lying about his love for her, and that tore through her greater than any other wound that could have ever been caused. Her hands went lax, dropping her sword; falling to her knees, she cried like she had never cried before in her life. Xenotsu had to cover his eyes with his free hand as the light became blinding, only for it to fade into darkness. Upon opening his eyes, he found himself floating in a void of pure nothingness. The only things visible were his sword and himself.
"Now here I am..." he chuckled darkly to himself, though it held no humor. It was a bitter laugh; one reserved for those who have suffered greatly. "Reminiscing again my lord?" asked the Necrotic Sword. Xenotsu nodded his head ever so slightly. "Yes... there is not much else to do here." he stated, barely above a whisper. "Indeed." it replied softly. They both settled back into silence, for there is only so much that can one can say without repeating one's self when nothing new ever goes on. Though no words really need be said. The Necrotic Sword and its master share a bond that transcends words. Vocalization merely adds comfort in this dark place; comfort that you are not alone, that you still have one companion that will be with you for all eternity. That one fact, that one piece of information, keeps the young Lord sane in this abyss of emptiness.
They floated there; for how long, neither could tell. Xenotsu began to drift in and out on conciseness; after all, why not sleep when there is nothing else to do? He began to dream. Dreaming of things that would never be again; of pleasant times, the taste of food and cool, tasteful drink... the warmth of a woman laying next to you in a comfortable bed after an exerting round of pleasure. He continued to dream, only to be disrupted from his small tranquility of the realm of slumber by a voice. The same voice from before; the one he wasn't sure was real or not.
"At last I've finally found you." It echoed through his head. "It is time to rejoin the ranks of the Shadowscythe, Lord Xenotsu; The Master demands it." All of a sudden a chanting could be heard echoing throughout the void. "My lord, what is happening?" the Necrotic Sword asked. "It seems... that the master has tasked someone to our release. We are being freed from this dark abyss." he replied coolly. Suddenly the darkness began to brighten slightly; shapes forming around him. The chanting was getting louder, so loud it was beginning to give Xenotsu a splitting headache. Then all seemed to go quite. The silence persisted for what seemed like an eternity for one trapped in a realm where there was no time. Finally a blinding light erupted out of nowhere; a silent explosion echoing around him, the force of which he could easily feel.
For the second time in his life, Xenotsu had to cover his eyes from a blinding light. After a few moments he lowered his left arm from his face and slowly opened his eyes. Everything was blurry for some reason... but one thing was for certain; he could smell the rot of death. Shaking his head slightly he attempted to clear his vision. Xenotsu focused on a red blur that began to clear. This person looked almost exactly like him. He was shocked to say the least. Taking in the man's appearance, he took note of every detail. While the armor and helmet were identical, this Doom Knight held no cape; he carried a Doom Weapon that greatly resembled Xenotsu's own, though while his held the symbol of the Shadowscythe as his swords guard, this Doom Weapon had a skull. The blade also resembled his Necrotic Swords, though it was thicker and straighter. The swords literally could almost pass as twins.
The two Doom Knights merely stared at each other for a few moments. "Welcome back, Lord Xenotsu." the man stated, his voice smooth and silky. "I am Sepulchure, current Doom Lord of the Shadowscythe... you have been sorely missed." "HAHAHAHA! YES THE MASTER WILL BE PLEASED THAT YOU HAVE FINALLY BEEN FREED FROM YOUR IMPRISONMENT." Stated Sepulchure's Doom Weapon. "Indeed." confirmed Sepulchure. "...Sepulchure. How long was I locked in there?" Xenotsu asked. "I do not know." replied Sepulchure. "I DO. HAHAHA." interjected the other Doom Weapon. "And you are?" "I AM THE NECROTIC BLADE OF DOOM. AS FOR HOW LONG YOU HAVE BEEN IMPRISONED, IT HAS BEEN WELL OVER TWO-HUNDRED AND FIFTY YEARS." it stated loudly.
Xenotsu's jaw nearly dropped, his eyes widening slightly. Truly? Has it truly been that long? So much must have changed. The gentle breeze of the wind played with Xenotsu's silver hair, tossing it to the right gently. A burning rage began to fill him like none other. Over two-hundred and fifty years! He had been robbed so much time. His son now a fully grown man. At that thought his heart sank. His son he never got to meet, grew up without his influence, his teachings. Now he only had two purposes to exist in life. The first being fulfilling the Masters will... and the second? Find his son and attempt to build some sort of bond, some connection to his child and maybe, just maybe... be a family.
"Come Lord Xenotsu. We have much work to do." Sepulchure stated, snapping him out of his thoughts. "Yes..." replied Xenotsu. "Yes we do."