After this chapter I'm going to get back to my usual updating schedule of about once a week until the end. I hope you guys have enjoyed these back to back chapters. I know I have enjoyed writing them.

Anyways read and review and on with the show.

Chapter 10: The vessel.

Perhaps it was the fact that he was a demon, but Marik never tired of seeing the streets drenched in blood, the sky being blurred by smoke and fire, or the howls of death, anguish, and suffering. Yup, it reminded him of home alright. Unlike Landon, Marik didn't remember his life before this, so the only thing he ever knew was hellfire, blood, and pain. This was nothing new to him, but what was new was the Dragon adding to the flames.

Marik sighed happily, "Son of a bitch did it."

"You doubted me?"

Marik left his view of the city from the top of the church balcony when the voice of Wrath called him from bellow. "I figured it was fifty fifty."

Wrath smirked as the demon joined him on the floor of the church. "I've been doing this for centuries my friend, believe me, I know what I'm doing."

"Now we just sit back and watch the city burn." Marik's attention was pulled to one of the benches we're both Greed and Sloth had sat themselves. "You've served our father well."

"Indeed . . . . but . . . he needs . . . . something . . . . more from . . . . you . . . . Marik."

Marik raised a brow to Sloth. "What more could he need of me?"

I smile creeped slowly up Sloths bearded face. " . . . you. . ."

Marik's confusion was quickly forgotten when a tentacle, made of pure hellfire, wrapped around his arms, neck and legs and brought him to his knees.

"What . . is the . . . meaning of this . .?" Marik struggled against the fiery bonds, but they wouldn't budge.

"Well it's like my brother said," Wrath stepped up to the bound Lucifarian demon, "More is needed from you."

"What on Earth would Trigon want from me now?"

As Marik spoke the air began to thicken with black and red mist, effectively cutting them off from the Earth they knew and brought them all face to face with the multi-dimensional demon Lord himself. Once again, Marik was in the presence of four blood red eyes and a fiery red S in the center.

"Lord Trigon, May I ask what this is about?"

Trigon chuckled, a deep booming chuckle that shook the church. "Of course, my loyal servant. As my son mentioned, more is needed from you and in this case, your vessel."

Marik gave a weak and nervous laugh, "But I thought Raven was to be your vessel?"

"True. But I have absolutely no faith in her ability to complete her task, so I require another, and your vessel my friend, believe it or not, is strong enough to contain me."

Marik shook his head in fear, "No, No you promised I would watch this world burn?!"

"And you will. You shall get a front row seat to the destruction of this world." Trigons laughter thundered around the church as Marik fought against his minions, but it was useless. Red mist surrounded him and gradually began to consume him.

While stumbling to get to his feet, Drake struggled to take in his surroundings. He recognized the beaches not far from the Tower, but for some reason he couldn't find the it, nor the city behind him, or anyone on the beach for that matter. In fact, the beach seemed to stretch on for miles and miles and far as the eye could see in all directions. And looking behind him, he just saw sand. He looked back to his father who stood before him. Corwin Daniels, Dragon Master Of Kuarlong. He'd recognize his hard ass exterior anywhere. It actually reminded him of the guy in the helmet. What was his name? Mento?

"Where are we?" Drake asked him.

Corwin raised a brow. "You'd don't know?" He tapped the side of his head with one finger, "We're in your melon son."

Drake looked around again, unsure if he was relieved or disappointed. "So your not really here then? Your just in my head?" His father nodded in response. "Great. One of those 'self realization trips' right? No thanks. Where's the exit?" He started walking, not sure where he was supposed to go, but anywhere was better then there.

"I can't let you go back to your unstable body." Corwin stepped in front of his son and placed a hand over his chest.

"Unstable body," he looked up at his father confused, but gradually, the memories started coming back. "Oh . . . Right . . ."

"You remember don't you?"

"Well how can I not, I held the woman I loved in my arms as she died-"

"-and in your anger you destroyed your own gem, thus releasing the dragon inside you to lay waste to the city."

Drake scoffed, "And?!"

Corwin looked at his son with great concern. "Is that all you have to say. You may have killed hundreds of innocent lives, and you don't even care?"

"Well I'm fresh out of tears Alright! I have spent days, weeks, months crying over my lost family only to KEEP losing those I care about and for some reason I'M still here and for WHAT?!" Drake was practically begging at this point, "WHY AM I STILL HERE?!"

Corwin waited a moment for Drake's to calm down before speaking. "So that's it huh? What your really afraid of?"

Drake shouldered past his father. Again he wasn't sure where to go, but he didn't want to be there. "Other then an irrational fear of the ocean, I'm not afraid of anything."

Corwin followed behind him as he spoke. "I know you not, You don't fear pain, or death, monsters or demons, but you know what your afraid of Drake?"

"If I begged ya, would you share it with me?" Drake spoke with a blade of sarcasm, knowing full well where this was going.

"Your afraid of living!" Corwin grabbed Drake by his shoulder and spun him around. "Your afraid that you'll learn that everything you've done, everything you've lost has been for nothing."

"Well isn't it? The only reason I'm here is because of some stupid notion that I'd be able to lead the descendants of Dragon Knights, but where are they? Hm? No one told me how to find them?"

"Isn't Draco working on that now?"

Drake rolled his eyes, "Yeah using a spell from Malchior, not exactly the most trustworthy now is it?"

Corwin shrugged a shoulder, "Fair enough."

"Right, So If you'll excuse me. I've got to get the hell outta here." Drake turned away, but couldn't see any way out of her current predicament.

"And go where Drake?" Corwin called to him, "Back to your body. You'll be awake for five seconds before the Dragon takes over, is that what you want?"

"Doesn't matter what I want." Drake muttered as he searched the beach for any way out.

"Is that what you really think?"

"YES!" Drake stomped over to his father, "YOU TRAINED ME UNTIL I COLLAPSED FROM EXHAUSTION, DAY IN AND DAY OUT UNTIL THAROG TOLD YOU TO STOP AND GIVE ME A BREAK. I HAD ONE FRIEND. ONE! AND I LOVED HER. BUT WHAT HAPPENED? I HAD TO LEAVE BECAUSE IT WAS BEST FOR MY PEOPLE!"

"What do you want me to say Drake? That I'm sorry? That I was wrong? You know it wouldn't matter since this isn't really me, it's you-"

"Then why are you here? What is my subconscious trying to tell me?"

Corwin was silent for a moment, "Well what do you want to hear? That it wasn't pointless? That you didn't lose everything you loved for nothing? I can't tell you that, but you believe that with all of your heart and soul and that's why you smashed your gem-"

"Because I'm done right? I'm done losing everything I love and ready for the dragon to take over right?"

Corwin watched his son with a quizzical expression, "Is that . . . What you really want?"

"Pfft What are you talking about?"

"You forget son, I'm part of you meaning I know everything you know, even the things you don't want yourself to know."

Drake scoffed again, "I've been wanting this to be over for years, and if that demon hadn't dragged me into this then I would be vacationing to all points nowhere."

"But then you never would have met these kids?"

"Yeah And Maybe my heart won't be shattered right now." His throat instantly tightened when his thoughts were pulled back to Kole. The young woman who stole his heart, made him feel that he could love again, that he could actually stop fighting, but now she was gone. "So what now? Your gonna tell me it's all good? That I loved after Elsa, I can love after Kole too?"

Once again Corwin was quiet. "That's not really what's on your mind though is it? Your still wondering what the point of it all is?"

"Well why me?" Drake spoke through the ever growing lump in his throat, "why am I cursed with having to be alone forever? Why am I cursed with having to fight forever? Why am I just . . . CURSED!"

"One question at a time son. I'm sure someone is already searching the beach for you as we speak."

"Fine, then answer me this. Why am I still here? Why am I still alive?"

"Believe it or not Drake you already know the answer. When we met together the night before you left, the Oracle said you would be the one to save your people."

"And how am I supposed to do that?"

"I don't know Drake!" Corwin snapped, "All I know is that through YOU, our people would live again."

Drake scoffed again with a shake of his head, "Leave it to an Oracle to be cryptic." Drake began pacing about the beach, no longer caring about escape, just in thought. "Was that my purpose then? To leave with Draco when he said he had the ability to find other knights? Is that how I'm supposed to save our people?"

Corwin shrugged. "I don't know. Again, if you don't know it, then how do you? You could always ask the dragon."

Drake stopped his pacing. "I can do that? Actually talk to him?"

"Well we are in your mind after all. Why not?" The wind around them began to pick up, kicking about sand, water and stone, signaling that the beast in question was on his way to them now. "This should be interesting!" Corwin shouted over the ever increasing wind. Drake shielded his eyes from the sand just as a dark shadow looked over them. With a boom, an enormous scale version of his dragon form landed in front of them, its glowing green eyes narrowed at Drake.

His head swiveled from Corwin to Drake, and back again. "Family reunion?"

"Something like that. I need to ask you something?"

His head swiveled in Drake's direction, "If it's about any humans that may have been in the path of my blaze, the answer is no, I don't care."

"Geez Drake, it's like you two were separated at birth." Corwin smirked.

Drake ignored his fathers off handed remark, choosing instead to keep his attention on the dragon. "My father told us a long time ago that we would help to save our people, do you know what that means?"

The dragon got comfortable by laying down on the sandy beach. "Unfortunately I do not. Even though only a fraction of me exists within you at a given time, I still only know as much as you do."

Drake sighed in frustration, "Great so I still have no idea what any of this means, or what my true purpose is."

"Drake it'll come in time."

"Don't give me that shit!" Drake spat at his father. "I've done my waiting!"

The dragon snorted, "I always assumed we would continue the species once our hatchling was born."

Drake wasn't sure if he was still hallucinating, or if he had sand in his ears. "Wait . . . What did you say?"

"Your hearing is not that bad Drake, I said when our hatchling was born."

Drake felt like he had been punched in the gut, making it difficult to breath, or even speak properly. "But-what do you mean 'hatchling'? Like a . . . Baby?"

The dragon tilted his head on confusion, but then appeared as if he remembered something. "That's right. Humans are unaware of such things. I knew the moment we made love to the queen of Arendelle that we had conceived a child."

There is was again, the punch to his gut and gasping for air. His father was by his side when Drake fell to his knees. "I . . . Had . . .We . . . . Had . . A child. I . . Have to find them."

"Drake you won't be able to. It's been at least a hundred and seventy years-"

"-then I find their descendants." He looked into his fathers eyes with a sparkle of hope. "Dad, I have a descendant out there somewhere. I have to find them." It was perfect. He thought to himself. I mean Kole is . . . . But I have a family out there. I have to find them.

Trigon paced back and forth looking down over the five Titans. "So these are supposed to be the heroes of this world?"

"We did it before." Robin snarled through clenched teeth.

Trigon glanced in his direction and smiled smugly. "Ah Yes, the acrobatic orphan. True, you beat me before, because I underestimated you," he looked disgusted at the others, "children. Nothing like having your true form shredded into pieces in order to teach you a pinch of humility."

Raven scoffed, "You? Humility? Please."

Trigon narrowed his eyes in a fury and stomped over to her. With a soft arc of his hand, he brought it across her face. Hard. "You will speak when I SAY you can, you ungrateful child!"

"HEY!" Cyborg shouted, "YOU WANNA BEAT ON SOMEONE? BEAT ON ME!"

Trigon glared, But only in amusement. "A yes. The talking trash can, pretending to be a man. While your offer is noble, it's unnecessary." His attention was still on Cyborg when Raven spat at his feet, bringing his fury ridden attention back to her.

"Don't, speak about my friends that way." She croaked.

Once again, Trigon smirked in amusement. "I see it will take some time for you to be broken. Humanity has made your spirit strong," he grabbed her by her hair and forced her to look at him, "but anything can be broken." He pulled her from the group of Titans and tossed her to the stone floor and proceeded to kick, and stomp, and beat her, all the while her friends pleaded for him to stop, but he paid them no mind.

After ten minutes he stepped away to the other Titans while she vomited blood and held her body in agony.

"You CLORBAG!" Starfire shrieked as loudly as she was able, shooting Trigon with her eye bolts.

He shrugged off her attack like it was nothing as his four eyes fell onto Starfire and Terra. "Well isn't this an interesting turn of events. I have two princesses in my hold."

Robin, Cyborg, And Starfire did a quick headcount. Starfire was a princess, then who was-

"Terra?" Robin wondered. "A princess?"

Terra looked away sheepishly. "Yeah, um, fun fact about me, but not really the issue here."

"Oh I see," Trigon smirked, "you didn't know that she was a shamed and illegitimate child of Markovia? Well you'll have plenty to talk about later on." Trigon then turned to the entrance of the cavern and bellowed, "WRATH! SLOTH! GREED!" A few second later, his three sons had emerged from the shadows, all on one knee and bowing before their father.

"You . . . Called us . . . Father?"

"Yes," Trigon motioned for his fiery minions to get Raven to her feet. "Mariks vessel is powerful, but it can't contain me for long so we're going to have to get her prepared." Raven, hanging from the creature tentacles, let out a soft gurgling sound that no one caught. "I'm sorry dear What was that?" Trigon leaned in closer to her face.

Her head snapped up so she could spit a mouthful of blood into her fathers face, and then with a newfound strength she snarled, "You. Will. Not. Have. Me."

Trigon looked enraged for a moment, but slowly it melted into amusement. "Oh my dear daughter," he pinched her chin, forcing her to look into his eyes, "I will have you, and you'll let me in. Do you want to know how I know that?" Silence was his answer. Trigon motioned for Sloth to slink behind the Titans. "Because I'm not going to kill your friends. You are. You see. I will take you, and them into the deepest corners of my kingdom and every minute of every day and night I will torture them. I will cut them. I will stab them. I will burn them. I will inflict any and all manner of pain upon them, until they are begging for death. And when they are at my feet pleading for the pain to stop, I will make sure you hear their cries, hear every second of their pain so that when they beg for death, it is you that gives it to them. And once your vessel is scared, then it will be mine."

Raven couldn't help the look of horror that came over her expression. She knew of the horrors he was capable of and so much more, and the idea of that being inflicted on her friends was . . . There weren't words to describe it. And she would have to listen to their cries each and every day. Breaking down, she furiously shook her head. Violet hair, blood and tears whipping about as she shook. "No, no, Please. Just take me! Take me!"

Trigon chuckled, "You know I can't. You have to kill, and you haven't." Trigon looked to Wrath. "Tell the armies to take them alive. They will each suffer at my hands. And make sure they know that SHE is to blame for all of this." Wrath nodded with a smile and vanished. Trigon then turned to Sloth, who stood behind the Titans. "Get them ready for transport into my kingdom."

"You won't get away with this!" Trigon turned to Robin again who was now glaring daggers him.

He snickered, "Why? You think your 'Justice League' will save you? Not where I'll take you."

"No, cuz we will beat you. We did it once and we'll do it again."

This time Trigon and his sons howled with laughter. "Is this the time where your going to tell me the "there's always hope" speech? That's not going to work this time, because there IS NO HOPE! Go ahead tell him Raven."

The broken, bruised and beaten girl looked to her friends who were silently pleading with her to prove him wrong, while Trigon waited for her to admit defeat.

But she quickly remembered the feather, her friends, penny and the words, "You don't realize it, but your actually the most hopeful person I've ever met. From the day you were born, they said you were evil, that you were created to do unspeakable things, but you wished for more. You dared to hope you could be a hero."

She scowled with unspeakable malice at her father. "Screw. YOU!"

Trigon only shrugged. "So be it," And he looked back to Sloth. "Sloth I said get-". Sloth suddenly fell to his knees, before falling flat on his face. An open wound on his back oozing fresh blood.

Everyone looked at the corpse with puzzlement and confusion just as someone stepped in from the shadows.

"Dear god he even takes forever to die." He said. He stepped over the body and into the center of Trigons minions. "I guess my invitation got lost in the mail."

"That's not possible. You can't be here Envy!" Greed shouted. "Your door wasn't open! Father his door wasn't open!"

"I know," Trigon frowned at his son. Envy. "But your not welcomed here anyways. Envy."

Envy only smirked at his father. "Awe. Well you just talked yourself out of a 'Worlds greatest Dad' t-shirt." Envy began waving a black blade at his father. "Azarathian blade. Never leave home without it."

Trigon glared furiously. His eyes glowing with red hot malice. "You treacherous little worm. I should kill you were you stand."

Envy continued to smirk. "So this is the Hello I get after all these years?"

The Titans however looked on with confusion. Why were they calling this guy a Envy? They only knew him by one name.

Carnus Valogneus.