When Darkness Falls

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CE: Woot! 2,000 hits and 24 reviews! And to show you just how much I love you all and your kind words, I shall present you with my newest project!

[shuffles through a backpack and bring forth a Jack of Blades Doll]

CE: Ta-da! A Jack of Blades Doll for every one of you!

Jack Doll: I...hate...you...

CE: Oh yeah, did I mention each one contains a sliver of his soul? So take great care not to turn your back on him or he might stab you with a butter knife or something.

Jack Doll: UNHAND ME, WOMAN!

[tosses doll to nearest reviewer and then throws the backpack to reviewer mob/pile]

CE: Have fun! And remember! It would be best not to allow your Balverine pup to chew on him! It was hard to collect enough of his soul for all the dolls! [laughs]

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This Chapter is brought to you by the song "Emiya #0" by James Harris, album: Fate/another score -super remix tracks-

[One of the best techno/remix songs I have EVER heard!!!!]

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CE and company does not own Fable or Fable 2, she does, however own all rights to any and all characters, items, or magics not related to the game! :3 If you ever want to use them for any works of your own, please ask for permission [I will most likely always say yes] and send us a link to your masterpiece!

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"Talking"

'Thoughts'

Inner Voices/Sylver while in animal form

[Chaos Notes]

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Chapter 8

Eyes of One that Would Stare Down a Demon...

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She was drifting... Drifting through a sea... A sea of darkness. Her body felt numb, deprived of any feeling and warmth; her mind was blank as she stared up as the sea of darkness that drifted above her. How long had see been drifting in this darkness? How long had it been since she last felt the sun's embrace upon her flesh, the feel of the free wind play through her hair, or the tender feel of soft grass beneath her feet? It felt like it had been an eternity and a day since she heard the laughter of children as they raced through the city or the tender feel of her beloved companion's fur through her fingers. She couldn't even remember the sound of his voice. She couldn't remember... anything. It all just seemed to fade away within this darkness.

'Maybe... I too will fade away...' Her thoughts echoed around her as is she had spoken them out loud, her tone hinting that she would almost welcome it. A gentle orb of light then suddenly sprang out of the darkness, dancing above her with mirth. She stared at it for a long while, at least what seemed like a long while, before she felt her body lift up on its own until she was standing right in front of the little light. Raising up her arm, she gently touched the light with trembling fingers. It felt warm and gently... so why did she fear it so. As her fingers penetrated it, a blinding light burst from the darkness, causing her to cry out in pain and shield her eyes.

When the light died away and she recovered her eye sight, she found herself flying... no, rather floating, above a large mass of people. People of all shapes, sizes, and colors. People of the world. People of Albion. They all stood and stared up at dark shadows that loomed above them with a mixture of rage, fear, and defiance. She, herself, found her eyes wandering to the shadows that glared down at the world below them. There were three: two men standing on either side of a woman. They each wore black armor that radiated a piercing blackness that caused any life around them to wither and die. The woman and the taller man, she did not recognize. But the third, the smaller man, she did. He had the same piercing and cold, golden eyes that seemed to taunt her in the veil of slumber.

"Bow before us." the woman spoke, her voice colder than winter's night, blacker than the darkest of shadows. "Worship us as your rightful gods."

A single man stepped out from the crowd, his dark blue eyes shining with strong power. "We will not bow before you vile creatures." The people behind him cheered for his decision. The shadowed woman stared at the man with deadly eyes before raising up her hand. The world around them suddenly burst into flames. Cities were engulfed in a never ending fire as smoke rose up, clouding the sky until no light shinned upon the earth or its people. She could hear the people scream as their flesh slowly melted away. It seemed to last for years before the woman raised her hand once more, causing the fires to die away, leaving behind a world blackened by fire and soot.

"Bow before us." she demanded once more, her tone more forceful. Another man walked from the people, his body trembling slightly with fear. "We will not bow before you." He spoke with a faint tremble. The people behind him cheered for his answer, however it was weaker than the last. The woman motioned to the man to her left, who then stepped forward. Raising up his hand, he lifted the seas up to the darkened sky, flooding the world with deadly force. As the waters raised towards her, she tried to cry out, only to find her voice had left her body. Raising up her arms in an attempt to shield herself, she found the water passing through her, leaving her unchanged and unharmed. Her eyes wild with fear, she watched as everything was swept away with the water. Like the fire before it, it seemed to last for years before the man raised up his hand and the waters retreated once more.

"Bow before us." whispered the dark woman once more, her voice a cruel mixture of tenderness and fury. "And we shall bring peace to the land."

A third man ventured from the crowed. She could see his body tremble as his fear practically radiated from him. "We... will not bow." His quivering voice betrayed what little courage he had mustered to walk forward. The people behind him cheered a third time, however it was faint and weak, fearful of what the three shadows would do next. The woman motioned to the smaller man to her right, who stepped forward and raised his arm. She watched with rage and fear as the people below began to lose their sanity. Man slew man, mothers abandoned their children, friend turned against friend. People raped, murdered, stole, and corrupted others as meaningless violence engulfed Albion, bathing its land with innocent blood. This seemed to last longer than the fires and waters before the man raised his hand once more, releasing the people from his insane clutch.

"Bow before us." This time, no man walked from the crowd to challenge their rule. Instead, the people fell on their knees, accepting the three shadows as their lords and masters. The darkness that surrounded them suddenly rose up from their bodies, seeping into the world, corrupting it, eroding it. Everything began to fade into the darkness, leaving her trapped into the cold realm in between. However... she was not alone. Like before, she found herself caught in the darkness with the same man that threatened to take away her very sanity.

This time, he did not move towards her. He simply stared at her with those cold, insane gold eyes and even though he wore his mask, she could feel that dark grin play across his lips. "Enjoy the show, my little bird?" His voice was a low chuckle filled with amusement. She felt tears of rage sting the back of her dark blue eyes as she forced herself not to charge at him and slam her fist into his porcelain face. How dare he? How dare he make her watch those people suffer and then look upon her with amusement, knowing that she knew she could not do a thing to help them?!

"Why are you showing me these things?!" she demanded, finding her voice at last. "Who the hell are you and why are you tormenting me?!" her chest heaved as she forced every ounce of breath in the demands. He stared at her for a minute, a long pause hanging over them as the last of her words faded into the darkness. He then began to move towards her. His slow and deadly steps reluctantly reminded her of a cat stalking a mouse with a broken leg. She tried to retreat from his advancement, only to find her legs transfixed where she stood. They felt chained down and no matter how hard she tired, she could not move them. She could only watch in fear as he moved closer and closer until he was mere inches from her. Reaching down, he entangled his metal hand in her hair, forced her to look up at him.

"That woman never told you, did she?" His metallic voice was a mixture of enjoyment and annoyance. "She never told you the truth of your heritage, the curse that flows through your blood?" Moving his hand from her hair, he began to gently trace a claw down her cheek. She tried to move her head away, however he quickly grabbed her by her chin and forced her to look up at his deadly eyes. "It does not matter. You will soon know my name. You will come to fear and love it." His voice pierced her like a knife as he suddenly forced her closer to him. She felt her heart begin to race as his hot breath seeped from his mask and played across the crook of her neck. "This world shall burn..." he whispered into her ear. "And you will be the one that strikes the match."

With that, he suddenly let go of her and moved a step back, causing her body to fall. However, instead of stopping, she continued to fall. She stared up in fear as the man watched her fall, his eyes alight with evil glee. "I look forward to the day we will meet face to face, my little bird." she heard him call out as the darkness began to rap itself around her.

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With a cry, Sparrow ripped herself from her bed and once more found her face greeting the cold floor with a powerful and load thud. Groaning in pain, she tenderly rubbed her now sore nose. "Dammit!" she moaned while gripping the bed and forced herself up to her feet, popping her neck along the way to try and ease the soreness. "This needs to stop!" she shouted to no one in particular while flopping back down on the bed to stare up at her ceiling in an attempt to sort the thoughts in her mind. What the hell was causing these dreams? Was she going crazy? Did Reaver put something in her drink as pay back for beating the every living shit out of him after she found out that he demolished half her house? None of it was making sense. Who was the man that mercilessly haunted her dreams and mind? What did he mean by 'That woman never told you, did she'? What woman?

Growling in frustration, she quickly sat up and began to ruffle her hands through her hair roughly, threatening to pull it out. So many questions were filling her mind she thought it would explode. "GAH! A girl shouldn't have to go through these things so early in life!" she growled darkly while jumping out of the bed and wrapping her robe around her. Sleep would be impossible now so she would do the next best thing.

"Time to pay the creatures of Wraithmarsh a must needed visit."

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"Did you feel that?" Lifeless eyes turned from the world below to look into cold, blue depths as a tall man stepped from the shadows, his many metallic accessories jingling slightly as he moved.

"I did. I fear that it is only a matter of time before he makes contact." whispered the seeress as he moved to stand beside her. They looked out over the horizon and saw something that none other could. Dark clouds began to play across the horizon, clouds tilled with tainted will power. To normal eyes, they would have looked like any other storm clouds, however to those with the gift of Sight, they represented a dark omen.

"It may already be too late. With the Little Flower's death, the stones have begun to awaken." The man's voice was soft and filled with countless ages. "Contact is inevitable at this point. Time is not on our side. Perhaps it is time for fate to lend a helping hand."

The cloaked woman nodded faintly. "You will find her in the port town of Bloodstone."

"You will not be accompanying me?"

She shook her head. "Mt memories of that place are not very fond."

He nodded in understandment. He knew of that place and her connection to it. A city cursed to live on the edge of terrible memories. Only the most cold hearted of people could walk through it without remorse for what transpired those fateful nights hundreds of years ago. An uneasy silence washed over then before the man turned and began to walk away. However, before vanishing into the darkness of the Spire, he stopped. "Tell me one thing, Theresa. It is true what they say? Is she really the one?"

"You doubt my word?" she responded without turning.

"There have been many to claim that they have the blood. There have been many false leads to find the true decedents. How can you be so sure that she is one of them?" Another, longer silence followed his words before she reached up and gently placed a hand on the large window before her.

"She has his eyes..." her voice, though usually emotionless, was filled with forlorn desire and pain. "Those eyes that would stare down a demon in defiance."

He did not say another, but rather stared at her for a moment before fading into the shadows. Theresa's hand trembled slightly against the glass as she continued to stare out across the horizon with eyes that could see more than any human should. Six hundred years had passed... and yet his dark shadow still hung over her. Balling up her fist, she slammed it against the window, causing it to crack. This time... he would not get the best of her.

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Hammer wandered through the Bloodstone Manor in a fit of boredom. Ever since the party a few nights back, nothing really seemed to happen. It was rather eventful yesterday when Sparrow demonstrated her dominance over Strength by literally twisted Reaver's limbs around until his right foot touched his left hand. The Hero of Skill tried to fight back, however the threat of pissing off the Heroes of Strength and Will as well as a pure blood Balverine prevented him from really doing anything. When she was finally down making a human pretzel, she surprised everyone by laughing cheerfully, thanking Reaver for allowing her to release some well pent in frustrations, and then promptly healed the sorry bastard!

Since then, the Pirate King had all but vanished in what she assumed was shame for getting his ass handed to him by a woman. However, Sparrow had also disappeared not but two hours ago. She tried asking Garth, but he hadn't the slightest clue. How would he? Ever since Sparrow opened her home for them to stay in, he had spent nearly every waking minute in the study doing god knows what! Reaver was no help because he had holed himself up somewhere. All that left was her cute, canine companion her whereabouts. Sylver was, more or less, Sparrow's very shadow, so there was a good chance that he would know where she wandered off... Assuming that, for once, he did not wander with her.

With her arms tucked behind her head, Hammer continued to venture through and around the manor in hopes of finding any clues of her friend's location. She finally did find one when looking up and sighting a familiar, bulky, furry shape on the roof. "Hey!" she shouted up, drawing the Balverine's attention. "Can you come down for a second? I need to ask you something!" The white Balverine stared down at the large woman below and had a faint, gruff sound before jumping down. The moment his paws touched the ground, he reverted to his human form and looked down at the Hero of Strength. This caused Hammer to take a small step back. Damn, he was tall! She knew he was pretty tall when he could look down at Sparrow and Reaver [who were the tallest of the four Heroes], but compared to herself, Sylver seemed to dwarf Hammer.

"What is it that you need?" he asked with a slightly detached tone. Whether it was his usual tone or something else, she did not know, however she would not try the beast's patience. Now if only she could just sort her mind enough to remember why she was looking for him in the first place...

"Uh... Oh yeah! Have you seen Sparrow anywhere? I've been looking for her all morning and I can't find her anywhere." Sylver looked down at the bulky woman for a moment before shaking his head. Much to his dismay, Sparrow had managed to slip pass him and venture off somewhere. He did not like her being out of his sight for too long, not with her tendency to attract and/or cause trouble. He had expressed this many times to her as well, however she would still slip pass him every now and then.

"I haven't seen her since last night. I do have a slight idea though." He turned away from Hammer and looked to the distant shadows of Wraithmarsh. "Her scent drifts towards Wraithmarsh." His eyes narrowed slightly at the thought of her going in alone. It was hard for them to make it through when they were together and she knew this, and yet she still went off by herself.

"Wraithmarsh?" Hammer did not even try to hide her concern. No matter how much strength, skill, or will a person had, that cursed place was not a force to be taken lightly. "Well then, what are we waiting for?! I have to go and try to find her!" She attempted to run passed him, however he quickly reached out and snatched her wrist, causing her to stop and look back at him. "What are you doing?"

The Balverine shook his head. "If she went there on her own without telling anybody, then she must have a good reason. Sparrow may be reckless and even cocky, but she is no fool. She would only go there on her own if she knew what she was doing." He let go of Hammer's wrist and looked back towards the marsh. "We just have to have a little faith... and hope that she doesn't do anything to get herself killed." Despite his words, Sylver wanted nothing more than to storm the marsh, find the troublesome girl, and drag her out. However, a single problem kept him from doing just that. If she really did go to Wraithmarsh on her own, then it was to vent and immerse herself in the thrill of the hunt. Being there would prove to be a fatal mistake [as some had unfortunately experienced] as none was safe from her 'game.'

Hammer stared at him for a moment before sighing heavily. "Well... guess there's nothing else to do but drink." she groaned with boredom. A little excitement would have down her wonders, however Sylver made it seem as if she would have gotten more than she cared to experience.

"I think I'll join you." Sylver suddenly spoke as she began to make her way back to the manor. A large smile played across her lips as she nodded in agreement. As the two walked back into the manor, she thought to herself, 'Maybe this day won't be so bad after all.'

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Sparrow gave a blood starved cry as she drove her katana into the head of what would be her twenty-fifth Hollow Man. Ever since she had woken up from that dark dream, she had been carving her way through Wraithmarsh and its seemingly endless supply of creatures. Hollow Men rose up from the ground like a field of daisies in summer, giving her all the attention that she craved. However, they were the weakest of the marsh's inhabitants, and Sparrow had her eyes on a much bigger prize. Word at the bar claimed that there was a banshee somewhere in the endless fog. And because they were few in number and rather difficult to kill, Sparrow had made it her prime directive to hunt it down. Now if only she could go two feet without being mobbed by a group of undead warriors...

Balverines were a small issue as well. It seemed that they formed a bit of a society of their own, the more intelligent purebreds, that is. And because of her own Balverine companion, they made her death top priority. If one had waited about an hour before walking into the marsh behind her, they would have seen a rather large trail of Hollow Men remains [often in the form of discarded weapons and ash] as well as an incalculable number of Balverine bodies. The fog even began to take a faint reddish tone from all the blood. She finally got a bit of a reprieve when they decided to step back.

As she placed a well aimed bullet in the last of the Hollow Men than surrounded her, she groaned with exhaustion and allowed her body to slump down on a nearby rock. Ignoring the slimy feeling on her bare legs, she proceeded to reload her pistol and her blunderbuss. She had already used up more ammo than she really cared too and she was sure that her blade was in some much needed TLC as well. Once everything was reloaded and strapped back onto her body, she leaned back on her hands to stare up at the bleak sky above her. It wasn't anything special, however she continued to stare up, mostly out of boredom and need to rest her tired body.

Through the course of the day, she had desperately tried to forget about her dream and the words that the dark man had said to her. But it seemed the harder she tired, the louder his voice echoed in her mind. Who was he? Why was he showing her all these things? What connection did she have with him to make him haunt her dreams like a dark plague? Whatever the reasons were, Sparrow was beginning to hope she would never find out. There was something about him that made every alarm in her mind go off. Every fiber in her being told her to keep as far away from him as possible and it was almost as if they had met before. This, she knew, was impossible because she never forgot a face, especially if it belonged to someone [or something] like that.

"GAH!" she shouted for what seemed like the hundredth time in the last few hours. Reaching up, she began to run her hands through her hair. "The more I try to make sense of this, the more confusing it gets! Can't I just get one, clear answer?!" she shouted in a voice loud enough for any god that would be looking down at her to hear.

As well as the very banshee that she was trying to come across.

A loud, piercing wail followed her cry, causing her spine to stiffen and bumps to form across her flesh. Quickly getting up to her feet, Sparrow pulled out her katana with one hand and her pistol in the other. Turning herself in a small circle, she tried to find the source of the wail as the fog began to deepen until it was almost impossible to see no more than three inches from one's face. Cursing her lack of control, Sparrow forced small bubbles of her Will up to try and illuminate the fog. It was a trick she had picked up years ago on one of her sea 'visits.' As small orbs of light began to glow around her, she was able to raise her blade quick enough to avoid the deadly strike of one of the banshee's children. Pausing for a half a second, Sparrow shot a bullet into the little shadow's head, causing it to shriek before vanishing. At least three more followed their 'sister', swinging their blades in an attempt to draw blood. Now on the defense, Sparrow quickly countered the rather accurate blows with both her sword as well as her pistol. This was one of the things she hated about banshees. They would always send their 'children' out first and they would always cause her to pause. One reason was that they looked like little girls, the other being as [to her] they looked like Rose.

However, these feeling would quickly die away as they continued to strike at her, aiming their blades at her weaker points. One of them managed to cut through her defense and dug its blade into the side of her leg. Biting her lip hard to prevent her from screaming, she whirled her uninjured leg around and slammed it into the child's head. As it vanished with a scream, so did its blade, but the damage was still done. Taking a couple steps back, she reached down and pulled out anther burst of Will energy. The air around her began to head up to the point the swampy waters below them began to boil. As the air caught fire, the last two shadow children screamed out in pain before vanishing to join their brethren. Sparrow barely had a second to rest before a gnarled, clawed arm sudden sprang out from the fog. Crying out in surprise, Sparrow could only drop to the ground to prevent those deadly claws from taking off her head. Looking up, she watched the fog shift around her, revealing a towering banshee drifting mere feet from her. It was like any other banshee: long, torn red rags, pale clawed arms that seemed to almost always clutch its head in despair, faint strands of twisted hair falling from the shadows of its hood.

"Succumb to my embrace." it whispered darkly, the air chilling as it breathed its words. This was the other thing that made them formidable foes. They would whisper the target's darkest regrets and fears, demoralizing it to the point that they would welcome death's sweet hold. Sparrow had heard many things from them, mostly of Rose or her beloved Steel. There had been many close calls, but she would always pull through. This time would be no different.

"I think not." she responded in a cold voice.

As it reached out to strike her, Sparrow rolled out of the way and began to fire bullets into its body. It wailed in pain, causing Sparrow's ears to ring painfully. The third reason why they were a pain in the ass to travelers was their loud voices. It was enough to shatter glass from several miles away. Sparrow staggering slightly, the banshee whipped around and charged towards her. As she did her best to deflect its blows with her sword, she felt its icy breath play across her skin.

"You still hear Rose's death cry when you try to sleep at night, don't you?" It's words struck truer than one would think. Even after avenging her death, Sparrow would still dream of Rose and the man that took her life before she had a chance to bloom. Feeling her strength fading slightly, the banshee pressed its attacks, forced her once more into a more defensive situation.

"Rose would have done anything to protect you. She even gave her life, and what have you done about it? Nothing, nothing at all." The creature's words cut through Sparrows heart painfully. Despite the fact that she knew that it was only playing on her own fears, it didn't make it any less painful. She cursed darkly as she tried to force the creature off of her. She had gone too long without killing one, making her forget just how morbid they were and just how well they played on fears and weaknesses. Making a risky move, she reached up with her pistol and shot it right in its head. Wailing once again, it lifted off of Sparrow and staggered a few feet away. The ringing in her ears grew louder as she suffered through its cry up close and personal, almost forcing her to her knees in pain. She glared darkly at the beast as it clutched its head in agony. Even after a headshot, it was still alive.

'Damn their durability!' Reason number four why they were hard to kill. The banshee suddenly let its arms go limp while tilting its head back. Sparrow's eyes widened as she knew what was about to happen. Digging her blade into the tainting ground, Sparrow could only hold on as the creature began to suck everything towards it. Sparrow grunted as she held onto her sword, praying that the earth would not suddenly come lose and uproot her. The fifth and final reason why she hated banshees was because they downright sucked, both literally and figuratively [holy hell, lame pun]. It only last for about a minute, but before Sparrow had the chance to recover, the dark spirit moved with a speed that she did not know they had and slammed its gnarled arms into her body, causing her to slam into a nearby dead tree before sliding down to the cold, wet ground.

Groaning in pain, Sparrow spat out a glob of blood that pooled in her mouth. As the banshee began to drift towards her, Sparrow attempted to use her sword as leverage to get back up. "Did you know Rose didn't die right away from that shot? No, she watched you fall through that window, heard as your body thudded against the ground and cried bitter tears before a final shot from Lucien ended her life." She looked up with a mixture of anger and pain as the banshee hovered practically on top of her. She had never heard one say that before and it cut her even more than its previous words. Had Rose truly lived long enough to watch her little sister get shot out of a window and free fall from the high tower? As tears began to sting the back of her eyes, she shut her eyes tightly as the banshee raised up its arm top end her life.

However, the blow did not come. Instead, the banshee screamed in pain as something sharp and powerful cut through its body like a hot knife through butter. As its body faded away, the fog began to retreat until there was nothing left. Sparrow waited a long minute before opening one eye. Seeing that it was gone, she opened another to try and figure out what just happened and where it went. What she would, however, was a tall man in dark blue robes and golden armor. Slung over his shoulder was a large golden scythe. She couldn't really make out his features in the eternal darkness that was Wraithmarsh, however she was able to see that he had something wrapped around his face. A cloth, or maybe a bandage?

"Who are you?" she asked while getting back up to her still shaky feet. The man did not answer. Instead he simple stood there, staring at her with piercing eyes. This made her rather uncomfortable. Why shouldn't it? He had just killed a banshee with a single swipe of that blade of his and now he was just standing there staring at her. This caused her to glare slightly at the stranger as she began to wonder whether he was friend or foe

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CE: And that is where we will leave this chapter off! [once again begins to dodge flaming fruit] Aw come on! At least it didn't take me several months to update! Anyway, probably not my best chapter and a bit drawn out, but don't worry! Things are about to get interesting!

Excuse my horrible battle writing. I'm not that good at it and I probably repeated things! Plus I started writing this at about 8PM and finally ended at about 10:30AM... so I'm too beat to find all my obvious and less than obvious mistacks. [crawls into special hole and dies again]

Hope you enjoyed enough to look forward to the next chapter!

JA NE!