Warning: minor swearing - nothing too bad, but still...
Disclaimer: all chars are mine except Adularia, who belongs to the fantabulouse Kiana Caelum. The Nightworld, as you probably guessed, belongs to the wonderful LJS - whose books I still can't find I might add!
p.s. Anguis is LJS's too, I think... either hers or Kiana's in anycase..
FERULTORVIS CHAPTER 3 :
memories and battles
Shadows prowled these dark forgotten alleyways. Shadows reigned supreme, blanketing any attempt light made to encroach on their domain trailing unwanted life and laughter. These potent shadows fed on life.
They left alone the one who strode through their twisting depths; the one who had held the fate of the world in his hands and laughed. The one who had scoffed for so long at the Old Powers, at the silly flights of fancy so many seemed to bow to.
Now, he believed. Oh yes, how he believed.
He hissed and the shadows shrank back from his tall frame, not fleeing from light for this boy had little of that commodity hidden in his soul. They shrank from fear of things far darker than themselves, things this boy had once been. But perhaps he would not take the same path again, perhaps not now when that slight wraith had entwined a silver thread of light round his soul, light that was slowly permeating his being no matter how he fought. Light as silver as her long long hair.
The figure looked up at the stars and felt the soft glow of the moon wash his face. Perhaps the light wasn't so bad. Turning and heading for home, Zane Venari smiled.
***
Lilli didn't want to believe, but oh god, she *remembered*. And the truth hurt.
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Death. That acrid smell that burnt the nostrils, that delighted the flesh. This was what she was made for, this her sole purpose and she revelled in its glory.
"Anguis, my sweet. What naughty things have you been up to?" Perfect. That was the only way to describe the being beckoning to him with her sensuous smile and her razor sharp teeth. She lay reclined on her perfect couch in her perfect robes reaching for him with her perfect arms. Ready to rip his throat out. 'The Juror' they called her, this being of the night. Justice? Pah! He knew what justice *she* meted out. The kind that none could argue, usually because a corpse can't plead innocence.
And sure, he'd done the crimes he was accused of, but really what was the problem? He was a *dragon* - who had the temerity to say what he could or could not do? A niggling little voice chimed in 'she does', but was immediately squashed along with the niggling little feeling called fear that followed in its wake. Nothing could stop him having his fun. Nothing. And so what if his idea of fun was toying with other dragons' young?
"You've been a busy little bee. Haven't you?" The power in her stare was phenomenal but held nothing to the power she used to bring him to her side, kneeling in forced supplication. She giggled, a sound that had no place in this world of perfect beauty masking certain death and for that was all the more terrifying. Soft fingers trailed down his cheek and again that little girl's giggle. "Buzz buzz," giggle, "buzz, buzz buzz. Do you know what happens to busy little bees like you?" Those eyes - everchanging orbs that at the moment had settled on blood red - widened in mock innocence. "Why, they have their fun, then we have *our* fun." Faster than a lightening bolt and oh so many times more deadly those creamy hands snatched up his neck while the eyes looked on in fascination as the dragon slowly choked before her.
The perfect head whipped round though the figure at the door was sure he'd made no noise at all. He smiled. His little idea had worked out better than he'd ever imagined. Better even than *They'd* imagined. Though of course They'd never have envisioned Their little gift could be corrupted in such ways. But oh, the result had been... *perfect*. Once more he smiled, and even the dying dragon on the floor thought the monstrous glaciers a harmless joke in the force of its sheer coldness.
A sour look marred her perfect features. "You're late. And you interrupted." Turning to the choking dragon she once again smiled sweetly, and released his throat. "This time, little bee, I'll let you free." Another mad giggle, then, "Buzz, little bee - buzz off." To her howls of laughter he ran from the cold stone building, never once looking back, thankful that the Dark One had come, and terrified because of it.
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A whimper escaped her throat. ~That can't have been me, it just *can't* have!~ And yet in the depths of her soul, Lilli knew the truth. Knew in every fiber of her being that indeed she had once been that soul-eating creature, used to exact justice but at a price so high the term lost all its meaning. And yet, she had been used in other ways too...
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Awakened once more, this time into a world centuries older. Still a world of fire, where passions burned far longer than lives lasted. Yet now the fire was dimming - 'order' was being established. The people demanded a new world, a world free from the dragon's rule and the dragon's wrath. A time when witches meddled with the very essence of the world to bring about such an end, and the Old Powers retaliated.
The ritual was different this time, the intentions pure. No unwilling sacrifices though of course blood was still required. Bound again to the soul that awoke her she was an embodiment of its purpose, the enforcer of its will. Bound again to the same soul, changed through its many lifetimes since that first awakening.
This was the scene from the vision Lilli and Zane had shared that first emergence of the Power in their time. The creature was in one of its many forms - the form closest to that of the creatures it hunted. And indeed that was its purpose: to aid the witches in their quest for peace; to quench the dragons' fire. Yet still the creature rebelled against the restrictions placed upon it by the witch's soul. It was required to do that being's bidding but knew somehow that it had another purpose, one that would linger through all the centuries and all the awakenings.
Ferultorvis vented its anger in the only way it knew how.
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Lilli woke with a start from the dream she'd been having and cried aloud with the realisation that it had not been a dream. All those people had died because of her! Because of the monster Ferultorvis' rebellion innocent children had perished. The monster that was her.
"I've gotta get outa here," she muttered while throwing herself out of bed, grabbing some clothes from the floor and literally *running* out of the house gulping for air. She didn't notice the hulking flame-haired figure that shadowed her.
It was some time later when Lilli had calmed down enough to realise she was hopelessly lost. More importantly, hopelessly lost in the dark twisting back streets of Vegas. Not a good place to find oneself at one in the morning. Gravel crunched behind her but whoever it had been disappeared before she whipped around into a fighting stance. She did however catch the muffled curse, and due to her excellent eyesight she soon located the would-be stalker concealed in a rickety doorway.
"Look, I dunno what it is you think you're gunna get from me, but I can tell you what you *will* get: a helva lot more that you bargained for!" On the outside she was all calmness, but on the inside Lilli was quaking. Strange things were happening to her - sounds, smells, even sights were flickering between normality and inhuman perceptiveness; even her muscles felt weird - like she could easily have picked up the hovel she was standing next to.
"Sure girlie, whatever y' think." The voice was rough, uncultured to a degree bordering on intelligibility - it fitted perfectly with their current setting.
In a bored voice, "Look mister, I've had one bastard of a day. I'm *really* not in the mood to be provoked right now. Just save us all the trouble and bugger off."
He stepped out in front of her, looking her up and down and chuckling suggestively. "Oh, I don't think that'll happen any time soon. I won't be going anywhere, not 'till I've had my fun first!" This last was a yell - almost a battle cry as he leapt towards her inhumanly fast ready to grab her neck and satisfy his bloodlust.
Slipping into the mind frame she always used when fighting - allowing her body to do the moves it knew so well while her mind looked on adding input when necessary - it was a while before she realised she was moving just as fast - if not faster - than the vampire. A momentary break in her guard and like lightening his fist shot towards her face; arm numb from the block she whipped round into a reverse hook breaking his ribs, landed it then straight into a sliding sidekick that would normally have knocked an opponent down but this time merely winded him. Seeing her chance as he knelt catching his breath she struck out with an axe kick dropping her heel on his head - with her whole body weight behind it this one had more of an effect: the vampire fell like a stone, knocked unconscious.
Chest heaving Lilli turned the body over with her foot, making sure he'd be out for a while. A sardonic clap behind her altered her to the fact that the danger wasn't over yet. "Very impressive. For vermin." Turning slowly she lifted her head, eyes flashing blood red with silver pupils. A sharp breath, "Or maybe not. So he was wrong about you. Never mind."
The utterly confused girl paused for a second, saying, "Huh?" Not one of her best moments. Shaking her head at her own stupidity and in an unconscious repetition of her current assailant, "Never mind. But what I wanna know is, are we gunna sort out this misunderstanding like civilised people, or am I gunna have to crack your skull too?"
"Oh, I don't think so." His eyes travelled to either side of her, and behind her. "I have a feeling you won't be cracking anyone's head anymore."
Without having to look she knew she was surrounded. ~Great. Trust my luck to land me in the middle of World War Three! What is it with these people?~ Settling down for another long fight the waves of heightened perceptions once again overtook her, only this time they didn't stop. Like a revelation they enveloped her till she was so fired up, so full of raw energy she *knew* without a doubt that indeed that creature of her memories lived, and was more powerful than ever. An evil grin spread over her face, "Bring it on." All the warning the guy got was a glint of those unnatural eyes before he was thrown down the alley by her flying sidekick that fluidly changed into a back kick to take out a 'wolf , then whipped round in a crescent that connected with yet another attacker's face. She had time to think ~if only it had been like this in Taekwondo back home!~ before their leader was up and flying towards her. Too fast for her to block his fist connected with her jaw, making her see stars long enough for his foot to slam into her stomach, sending her into a wall.
Dimly she was aware that he was still hitting her but somehow it didn't seem to matter anymore. There was something *pulling* on her newfound powers that felt as though it'd split her mind in two - which was in a way what it was trying to do. She fought it, for a second thought she had beaten it and her attackers ceased their beating as she glowed the unholy red of her eyes, but just as quickly it rose and literally ripped her mind apart, her powers buried under what felt like a blanket in her head. No longer glowing her body slipped to the floor in unconsciousness.
The leader of the gang bared his fangs. "Now, we have our fun."
"I rather think not," came a deep-voiced reply from the mouth of the alley. A flame-haired warrior stepped from the shadows, eyes glinting dangerously. "You'll get no pay for this kill, assassins, nor any others. Corpses can't collect blood money, can they?"
***
"It is done." Adularia managed to gasp that out before collapsing on the ground. She was stark white - they all were. It had almost beaten them, had almost risen to exact the vengeance it was created for.
***
Moonlight bathed his face, causing his flaming hair to glow eerily from the shadows. Looking down at the precious cargo in his arms Loki wondered just what the strange girl truly was. He smiled slightly, thinking ~well I *know* she's my Wren's sister - that's something none can deny. But whatever her body is, I'll bet all I have her soul's that of no normal 'shifter. Speaking of which, I wonder what type of shifter she is?~ His features softened with thoughts of the girl's silver haired sister. Remembering the days before the fear, before the flight; before his parents were killed. Days when they were free from worry, caring only about the glory of the sun on their backs and the wind in their fur. He gave a lopsided grin - his girl had no fur. ~She'd be a pretty funny looking snow eagle if she did!~ he thought, then lost himself once more in memories of those happy carefree times.
Finally he trotted up the now familiar steps and almost bashed the door in with his knocking - Lilli's condition had steadily worsened so that he was beginning to worry she mightn't survive. But he had faith in her great aunt - unlike the girls he knew some things about her; knew that she could heal anything that still breathed and even sometimes things that didn't. If only she would hurry up!
Thankfully the door opened to reveal a sleep-mussed Solaer Striga who nevertheless looked - as always - as though she'd been expecting them. "Quickly now, take her to my workroom. There's not a lot of time left if I'm to save her, mythical being though she is.
At the back of the house Loki laid the girl out on the wooden bench in the middle of a room covered in shelves and shelves of herbs and containers of strange concoctions. Solaer came in behind him, at once altered in this strange room. The thought struck him that this was probably her true form - that of an all-knowing, all-powerful, calm and oh so mystic witch. She nodded in his direction even though he was *sure* he'd not spoken his wish to leave aloud. All the same he was thankful to escape from that room where his bulky warrior's body was so painfully out of place. Not to mention his clothes - the huge trench coat and army boots, stark black against the flames of his hair, were definitely discordant with the air of peace and healing calm in there. Sighing he went to bed, knowing he had done his part in keeping the girl safe through what he knew would be the most difficult trial in her life.
***
Nefarius Venari was furious, and when he got angry heads did more than roll. "All you had to do was kill one girl! One lonely *vermin* girl! How hard could it be? And instead of completing your mission you lose an entire squad! Is that how little you respect me?"
The sorry lump huddled on the floor at the vampire's feet shivered in fear. He knew full well the chances he had of surviving this interview - about one in ten billion, if that. Still, he had to try. "N-n-n-n-no, y-your lordship. O-o-of c-course not, most wonderful -"
"Shut up you snivelling waste of space. I have no use for your empty titles. I expected better from my most trusted assassins - assassins who, I might add, managed to kill this worthless girl's parents quite easily despite the fact that one was the niece of one of the most powerful witches this world has ever seen and the other was an elite assassin himself. So what is it about these girls that can not only thwart you, but has caused me to lose three squads of my best men? For I seem to remember you telling me, after the last two failed to kill the silver haired one, that if only you could be given your chance you'd show me just what I had trained you for!"
The vampire on the ground cringed. *Why* had he said that? "M-master, that girl - she's not human!"
Nefarius knew that, but he'd not let it on to this imbecile.
The man continued, "She *glowed* - glowed blood red. I've heard rumours, sir; ancient beasts are awakening, there's a war brewing that'll decide the fate of the entire world!"
"Indeed. And I suppose you think this girl a part of that battle? Idiot." He turned away saying, "Get out of my sight. And tell none of what you saw."
"Y-y-yes sir!" The man literally sprinted from his master's sight, bewildered by his great good fortune.
The evil vampire chuckled, smiling with glaciers in his eyes. "Idiot," he spat. And in the distance a lanky body crumpled to the ground, its soul fleeing the useless corpse.
.