Priestess

A story about Raziel. In this story, Kain had 7 children; 6 boys and 1 girl. Raziel, Turel, Dumah, Rahab, Zephon, Melchiah, and Rasha. This is the story of love between Raziel and Rasha. This is during Legacy of Kain; Soul Reaver, Soul Reaver 2, and Defiance.

Enjoy!

The Vampire Priestess Rasha concentrated hard as she crushed an herb and poured it into boiling water. Her eldest brother Raziel stood behind her, bleeding from many wounds that even a Vampire's natural abilities could not heal.

"Lie down," she instructed, keeping her eyes on her work.

"No."

She stopped and turned, her blue eyes blazing. "Lie down," she said firmly.

He hesitated for a moment, but lay down on the soft bed that was laid out on the floor. She made sure he was situated and returned to mixing the herb with others.

"Are you certain that it will work?" he suddenly inquired.

"I'm certain it will work," she said as she reached for a vial of ground horse's hoof. (She has many vials of stuff that is useful in potions, so bear with me if it sounds gross.)

A lock of brown hair fluttered into her face and she blew it away, huffing. Raziel stared at her back, wondering what ingredients were being put into it. He didn't want to know, so he jumped up and bolted. Little did he know that Rasha had placed Dumah and Turel outside in case he tried to escape and they grabbed him.

'Damn...' he thought as they carried him back in, 'She's trickier than I thought.'

They placed him on the bed and tied him down gently as to not hurt his wounds. As they left, Rasha turned around holding a cup of greenish-yellow liquid, obviously the potion she had been brewing. There were some times when Raziel thought of his youngest sibling as a witch; spending her time brewing those potions, having no time for love. Apparently she wasn't the kind to fall in love. She bent down next to him and untied him, taking his hands and placing the cup in them.

"Drink this and you'll be healed," she said.

One sip and he spit it out all over her. She kept her cool and helped him to get the rest down his throat.

'Men, always wanting the women to help!' she thought angrily.

When he finished, Rasha took the goblet and set it on the counter. She went to her wardrobe and fetched a few blankets. She returned to Raziel and put the blankets over him. He began to protest, but she said, "No, you need rest. Lie down and relax."

Fearing her anger a little, he lay down and felt his muscles begin to relax. It felt good to be nursed by his sister. She went to Turel and Dumah and sent them away before returning to her work. (Rasha constantly works, you know.) Raziel watched her from the comfort of the bed.

"Rasha, take a rest already. You've been laboring nonstop for three days now," he said, patting the bed.

"There's a lot to be done Raziel and if this is another one of your games to try to get me to sleep with you, you've lost again," she said sighing, "I'm a priestess. It's a full-time job."

"All you do is sit around, brew those potions of yours, cast spells, and deliver babies. That's a pretty dull life."

"For your information, I find comfort in what I do. All YOU do is sit around, drink or train. As for me, I don't need training. I've already mastered my strength," she replied hotly. (Rasha has a somewhat bad temper now, but it disappears soon.)

He sighed. "I just want you to be happy. I care about you."

Her hands stopped. A good sign that she was giving up. 'Yes! Score one for Raziel!' he thought.

"I am happy, Raziel. I just don't show it too often," she said softly, her voice becoming grave.

He slipped out of the bed and behind her, encircling his arms around her and hugging her to him. She relaxed in his strong arms, enjoying the feel of being held. As she gazed into the mirror on the wall, she couldn't help but notice Raziel's full lips and his piercing golden eyes. All Vampires had golden eyes, but she had blue. But whenever she got mad, that was when her eyes flashed gold, then red. She was different from most Vampires since she was a Vampire Priestess and she was the only one. The door opened and Kain entered. He stared for a bit at the scene in front of him; Raziel holding Rasha in an embrace that wasn't right for siblings. Raziel released her and she returned to her work.

"Raziel, it's time," he said.

Rasha knew exactly what he meant. The state of change. She never did like it. It always felt like something was ripping at her flesh. Raziel nodded and hugged Rasha one more time before exiting the room with Kain. She stopped her work for a second before rising and leaving the room to the Pillars of Nosgoth.

Rasha stood with her other brothers; Dumah, Rahab, Melchiah, Zephon, and Turel, waiting for Raziel to emerge. Before long, he emerged from the shadows, unchanged. He spared a glance at Rasha, giving her a small smile. He approached Kain and kneeled. It wasn't long before she noticed what had changed. He had batlike wings situated on his back. Seconds after he had kneeled, the wings unfurled. All her brothers gasped except her. Dumah looked to her, wondering if she had known this before it happened. Kain's face was inscrutinable as he rose and walked toward Raziel. As he walked, Rasha saw a flash before her eyes. A vision of what would happen. Kain would rip the wingstalks out and leave the wings limp and useless. After that, he would throw her dear brother into the Abyss. She broke out of the vision and gasped. Dumah looked to her again and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Kain was already examining the wings. It was a habit of Kain's to examine every new gift each of his lieutenants received. Once Rasha had come out with a new power instead of a physical feature. Kain had allowed it since she was his favorite, being a female and all. That power was to shapeshift. Raziel was flinching when Kain's hands touched him. He was beginning to look a little uncomfortable. His eyes met Rasha's and they were clouded over with something she couldn't identify. Then Kain touched his other wing and he flinched again, his face contorting into an angry look. Kain's hands settled on both and then came down hard, taking the wingstalks off with one blow. Raziel yelled in pain and fell to the ground, struggling to get up and giving up, falling to the ground in defeat. Kain motioned to Dumah and Turel, who took Raziel's body and dragged it out.
Rasha noticed the high cliffs as they neared the Lake of the Dead. Raziel was half conscious as they drove him in a carriage (don't care if you say otherwise, this is MY story.), Rasha sitting next to his body.

"R-Rasha, where are we going?" he asked weakly.

"The Lake of the Dead. Kain is going to throw you in. I've seen it all in a vision," she said softly and gently, stroking his face and brushing a few strands of his black hair behind his ears.

She knew this would probably be the last time she would ever see her favorite brother alive again. She wanted to savor the moment for as long as she could. Her hand caressed the smooth pale skin of his face, lingering on his cheek. Suddenly her eyes began to glisten, he noticed, and she threw herself on his sprawled out body, crying. She couldn't stop, the tears just kept coming. As if by impulse, his hand came up and lifted her face, revealing the lovely tear-streaked face. Her deep blue eyes were so sad and so heartbreaking. His clawed finger wiped away the tears and brought her head down to his. Rasha knew immediately what he wanted and she gave it to him, a kiss. Fresh tears erupted and began trickling down her cheeks as they kissed, both knowing it would be the first, and last time they would kiss. The carriage came to a stop and Rasha broke the kiss abruptly. She stood up and hit her head on the ceiling of the carriage.

"Ow..." she murmured.

She heard a chuckle behind her and saw Raziel with an amused smile on his face. She blushed and jumped out the door as soon as Dumah and Turel grabbed him by the arms and dragged him out. Raziel was too weak to put up a fight, considering the attack on his wings left him in pain. It wouldn't compare to the pain that Rasha would feel once he was dead. He knew how much it would break her heart and she would probably waste away. By no means he wanted that. Before they reached the cliff's edge, he whispered to Turel, "Make sure that Rasha doesn't try to kill herself once I'm dead okay? And tell her that...I love her."

Turel nodded and they proceeded. Kain bent to observe the swirling vortex, then stood up and walked past the condemned. He stopped just a few feet away, then issued the command that would change Rasha's life forever.

"Cast him in."

Turel and Dumah picked up Raziel and threw him. He yelled as he flew through the air, then hit the water. Before he hit the water, an image of Rasha's face appeared in his line of vision. She was walking away, then turned around and gave him a smile, reaching toward him with her hand. He tried reaching for her, but couldn't as he hit the water and the most terrible sensation came over him. He sank as his flesh burned away and hit the bottom, coming to a rest there.

As soon as Raziel was cast into the lake, Rasha turned on her heel and ran. She ran all the way back to the stronghold and burst into her room, flinging herself on her bed and burying her face into her pillow. She could detect a hint of Raziel's scent on the pillow, remembering how Raziel had lain on this very bed and relaxed just a few hours ago. Tears erupted and she cried some more. She heard her door open and saw Turel come in. She went back to her crying. He walked over and sat on the edge of the bed, resting a clawed hand on her shoulder.

"Rasha, Raziel wanted me to make sure you don't try to kill yourself by starving. He wants you to live a long life, even if it's without him. He also wanted me to tell you that he loves you very much," he said, his voice gentle and brotherly. She kept crying. He sighed and left the room. She raised her head once he left and stared at a picture (did they have pictures?) of her and Raziel. He was giving her a noogie and she looked furious, her hair all messed up. She giggled through her tears.

'I'll try to get through life without you, Raziel. But it won't be easy.'

That's it. Hope you enjoyed!