Evil Beneath Innocence
Chapter Six
The flashback of the assault in the Electronics and Entertainment store faded from Aisha's mind. She looked up into Kain's face, her sight focusing on his golden eyes. She held a momentary look of shock, once again filling Kain with content. But he noticed the corners of her mouth twitch slightly, as her weakened body tried desperately to display the mirth that played out within her head.
Aisha attempted to speak, but a strangled cough escaped her lips instead of words. Droplets of blood spattered onto Kain's chest, but the vampire paid the crimson specks no heed. His narrowed eyes were locked onto her, silently demanding that she explain her merriment despite being at the brink of death.
"You think... killing me... will change... anything?" she rasped. Kain remained silent. "You... cannot... change fate. You... and Raziel... will both unknowingly... be played..., controlled..., by forces... unknown... to you. Your trials... your tortures... they will share... with you. But... they derive... entertainment from your... suffering. But, in the end... you and Raziel... are nothing."
Kain scrutinized Aisha. She was so close to death, he could smell it's cold, stagnant grasp tightening around her. Blood trickled from her mouth and dripped from her chin. Her eyes were struggling to remain focused on his. Her heartbeat was slowing, barely audible to his sensitive ears as her blood continued to drain from her body.
"It seems your fatal condition has left you delirious, wench. I am the one who holds all the cards. I am the sole individual who possesses control over the fates."
"You still... don't get it. You... have nothing. No control..."
Irritated, Kain thrust the dagger further into Aisha's stomach. Her entire body stiffened with the increased pain. Her face contorted into a visage of tremendous torture. Slowly, the pain ebbed, and she returned her gaze to the vampire's face.
In a calm, yet contemptuous voice, Kain inquired, "No control, eh? It seems I have plenty control over YOUR fate."
"Perhaps," Aisha barely whispered, "but you... are still... deluded. Your life..., your exper...iences..., your... successes..., failures... It... is all... nothing."
"You shall not speak of me, Lord and Master of Nosgoth, in such a trivial manner!"
Aisha continued, ignoring Kain's outrage. "No... matter... what... you do..., what you... say..., it's a... pre...ordained... story...," she spoke so softly, the vampire lord almost couldn't hear her. "The le...gacy... that... is... Kain... is no...thing... more... than—"
Driven by complete rage, Kain thrust the dagger upward into her chest, piercing Aisha's heart. The sudden, fatal movement sent her into instant shock, her eyes widening in horror. Her breath lodged in her chest. She was so weak, she could no longer keep her eyes focused on her assailant. Darkness fogged her vision. Her senses had dulled to the point that she could not feel the pain as death threatened to overtake her.
Aisha weakly lifted her head. Her blank eyes bore into Kain's face. And ever so nimbly, she lifted her bloodstained right hand, and brushed her fingertips against Kain's cold skin. At the brief contact, Kain's mind unwillingly breached Aisha's, and she spoke her last thoughts into his mind.
"The legacy that is Kain, is nothing more than a mere game..."
Kain immediately released Aisha at the sudden intrusion. Her cold, lifeless body fell carelessly to the ground. Motionless, she remained in a pool of her own blood. The vampire lord stepped back from the scene, the look of shock still present on his face. He continued to stare at her lifeless form. Her telepathic words still rang in his head.
'...a mere game…'
The thought brought a sensation within the powerful vampire lord, a sensation he hadn't truly experienced for centuries. Fear. For the first time in eons, Kain was afraid. He believed he held all the cards. He believed he was in complete and utter control. He believed he had everything planned out and going according to HIS plan. What if Aisha was correct? What if he wasn't in control? What if someone else really was playing him like a character in a well-written plot? The sound of the chamber doors opening behind him disturbed him from his thoughts.
"I beg pardon for the intrusion, Milord, but we thought we heard a commotion."
The voice unmistakably belonged to Raziel. Loyal, naïve Raziel. Kain regained his composure and replaced his prior look of doubt with a façade of complacency. He turned to face his first lieutenant and found that not only was he present, but Turel was there as well. Turel. He too, was guilty of the same loyalty Raziel held for their master. So loyal was Turel, that he would betray his elder brother at Kain's command.
"There was no need for you to concern yourselves," Kain calmly replied as he circled around the conference table. "Do not forget who you speak to. There is nothing that can harm me, ruler of Nosgoth."
'Oh, but there is. You try to deny it, but you know it's true, and you can not stop it.'
Kain snapped around at the sound of the voice, Aisha's voice, ringing in his head. He snarled as he looked back in the direction where he body lie, though the table obstructed his view of her. His lieutenants were confused by their master's peculiar behavior. Worry over their sire etched their minds.
"Lord Kain, is something the matter?" Turel boldy inquired.
The vampire lord snapped his attention back to his sons. His teeth remained gritted together as he glared at them. Turel almost visibly flinched at the ire his master directed towards he and Raziel. To his relief, Kain settled himself and passed between them, headed towards the exit.
As he passed by, Kain replied, "I am fine. Now fetch a servant to clean up that mess over there. It disgusts me."
Raziel and Turel silently complied, rounding the table to find the mess that needed cleaning. Upon inspecting the scene, puzzled looks marked their faces.
"Milord..."
Kain had made it to the doorway when Raziel had addressed him. Irritated, he turned on his heels.
"What?"
His sons stammered under his fiery glare. There was obviously something they needed to say, but knew Kain would not be pleased to hear it. Finally, Raziel looked him in the eye.
"Milord, I'm afraid the 'mess' you speak of does not exist. At least, not here anyway. Perhaps, you meant there was a mess elsewhere that needed attention?"
Kain narrowed his eyes a his eldest. "How do you not see the body lying on the ground before you?"
"Master, there is no body here," Turel muttered.
The vampire lord's eyes widened slightly at the declaration. He leapt over the table and stared at the spot he had left Aisha in. All that was there was the dagger he had impaled her with. Her body was gone. Not even a speck of blood remained. He couldn't even pick up the scent of blood, new or old. Inexplicably, she was gone without a trace.
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Aisha stared at her bloody hand. She looked up into the face of the would-be thief with a look of horror on her face. The disbelief of the situation, combined with the loss of blood instantly sent her into shock. Everything went dark as Aisha fainted and collapsed onto the floor of the Electronics and Entertainment store.
Coldness enveloped Aisha's body. She was lying on her back, yet she felt as if she was moving. She could feel something pressed over her face. She opened her eyes. A bright, white light poured into one eye, then the other before it disappeared. Silhouettes of people were around her. It was dark, and Aisha couldn't see very well. Their muffles voices echoed in her head. She couldn't keep her eyes open any longer. She barely noticed the sudden jarring of her body as she was lifted into the ambulance when darkness overcame her once again.
A steady, beeping noise pulled Aisha from her slumber. Opening her eyes, she was blinded at first by the bright halogen lights from above. Within a matter of moments, objects came into focus, and she became aware of her surroundings. She was in a hospital. Aisha tried to sit up, but when she attempted to do so, streaks of pain instantly shot through her abdomen. This bitterly reminded of the wound she had so recently suffered, the wound that was just starting to heal.
Aisha carefully lifted her hospital gown, and looked down at the damage. Just below her ribcage, on the left side, was the blemish that would forever remind her of her ordeal. But it was not the attempted robbery that was on her mind. It was the events that had unfolded on Nosgoth that plagued her. Had she really been there? Or was it all a silly dream? Her attention refocused on the injury, noticing how it was in almost the same spot Kain had stabbed her.
With her index finger, Aisha carefully traced the wound as it hooked upward ever so slightly towards her sternum. She counted the staples that had been placed in her flesh, holding the wound shut. Seven staples total. How lucky. At the thought, Aisha realized how lucky she truly was. She was very lucky that the knife had missed her vital organs, and extremely lucky she had not bled to death.
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Aisha had been released from the hospital later that evening. She had come to find out that after she had passed out, Erik had used the opportunity to hit the would-be theif over the head with the broom stick, rendering him unconscious. An emergency phone call and six minutes later, an ambulance and soon thereafter three police cars had arrived.
Aisha had been given some time off from her job to heal from her injuries. She spent most of the time at home recovering. Occasionally, the police would question her about the events of that evening. When she wasn't filling out police reports, Aisha found herself reflecting upon the events that she kept secret to herself.
Her experience in Nosgoth continued to plague her mind. She was almost certain that the events were real. But she could find no way to explain to herself how she could have possibly arrived there. The only logical explanation she could think of was that the entire ordeal had been a dream. A dream that seemed to last three days. A dream that left her wounded exactly the same way her ordeal at her job had left her.
Eventually, she decided it was best not to think too much about it, lest she drive herself insane. She allowed herself to dismiss the events as nothing more than a dream, a stress-induced delusion conjured up inside her subconscious mind. But every so often she would wonder.. What if? What if it had been real?
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Kain stood at the bottom of Moebius' ancient time streaming chamber. The tunnels that wound deep underground that had once been known as the Oracle's Cave. It was here, that Kain had spent the last several nights and days, searching for his answer. To his dismay, he had turned up nothing.
The girl, Aisha, remained an absolute anomaly to him. After Raziel and Turel had entered his council chamber, all traces of the girl had vanished. No body. No blood. Nothing. His lieutenants hadn't even a recollection as to who Aisha was. It was if her entire being never existed on the face of Nosgoth.
Afterward, Kain had retreated to the Oracle's Caves to search for any shred of proof that Aisha was real, and not just a figment of his imagination. But after several days of searching, he had found no such luck. Her final thoughts still intrigued him.
'The legacy that is Kain is nothing more than a mere game.'
Frustrated, angry, and starved, Kain stormed out of the chamber, intent on releasing his fury and sating his thirst on the first unlucky victim he came across. As he embarked upon the cold night, a single thought crossed his mind.
"Perhaps, Aisha, we shall meet again one day. And then, you shall tell me everything."
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That's it! That's the end! It's over! Sorry it took so long! Got caught up with the holidays. Lame excuse, I know. But I wanted to make sure I ended this the way I had planned and I wanted to make sure I was satisfied with it. And writer's block played a huge part in the delay as well. Anyway, I don't know if there's a sequel in the future or not. I haven't really put to much thought into it. Well, leave me some reviews and let me know what you thought of this ficcy.
Chapter Six
The flashback of the assault in the Electronics and Entertainment store faded from Aisha's mind. She looked up into Kain's face, her sight focusing on his golden eyes. She held a momentary look of shock, once again filling Kain with content. But he noticed the corners of her mouth twitch slightly, as her weakened body tried desperately to display the mirth that played out within her head.
Aisha attempted to speak, but a strangled cough escaped her lips instead of words. Droplets of blood spattered onto Kain's chest, but the vampire paid the crimson specks no heed. His narrowed eyes were locked onto her, silently demanding that she explain her merriment despite being at the brink of death.
"You think... killing me... will change... anything?" she rasped. Kain remained silent. "You... cannot... change fate. You... and Raziel... will both unknowingly... be played..., controlled..., by forces... unknown... to you. Your trials... your tortures... they will share... with you. But... they derive... entertainment from your... suffering. But, in the end... you and Raziel... are nothing."
Kain scrutinized Aisha. She was so close to death, he could smell it's cold, stagnant grasp tightening around her. Blood trickled from her mouth and dripped from her chin. Her eyes were struggling to remain focused on his. Her heartbeat was slowing, barely audible to his sensitive ears as her blood continued to drain from her body.
"It seems your fatal condition has left you delirious, wench. I am the one who holds all the cards. I am the sole individual who possesses control over the fates."
"You still... don't get it. You... have nothing. No control..."
Irritated, Kain thrust the dagger further into Aisha's stomach. Her entire body stiffened with the increased pain. Her face contorted into a visage of tremendous torture. Slowly, the pain ebbed, and she returned her gaze to the vampire's face.
In a calm, yet contemptuous voice, Kain inquired, "No control, eh? It seems I have plenty control over YOUR fate."
"Perhaps," Aisha barely whispered, "but you... are still... deluded. Your life..., your exper...iences..., your... successes..., failures... It... is all... nothing."
"You shall not speak of me, Lord and Master of Nosgoth, in such a trivial manner!"
Aisha continued, ignoring Kain's outrage. "No... matter... what... you do..., what you... say..., it's a... pre...ordained... story...," she spoke so softly, the vampire lord almost couldn't hear her. "The le...gacy... that... is... Kain... is no...thing... more... than—"
Driven by complete rage, Kain thrust the dagger upward into her chest, piercing Aisha's heart. The sudden, fatal movement sent her into instant shock, her eyes widening in horror. Her breath lodged in her chest. She was so weak, she could no longer keep her eyes focused on her assailant. Darkness fogged her vision. Her senses had dulled to the point that she could not feel the pain as death threatened to overtake her.
Aisha weakly lifted her head. Her blank eyes bore into Kain's face. And ever so nimbly, she lifted her bloodstained right hand, and brushed her fingertips against Kain's cold skin. At the brief contact, Kain's mind unwillingly breached Aisha's, and she spoke her last thoughts into his mind.
"The legacy that is Kain, is nothing more than a mere game..."
Kain immediately released Aisha at the sudden intrusion. Her cold, lifeless body fell carelessly to the ground. Motionless, she remained in a pool of her own blood. The vampire lord stepped back from the scene, the look of shock still present on his face. He continued to stare at her lifeless form. Her telepathic words still rang in his head.
'...a mere game…'
The thought brought a sensation within the powerful vampire lord, a sensation he hadn't truly experienced for centuries. Fear. For the first time in eons, Kain was afraid. He believed he held all the cards. He believed he was in complete and utter control. He believed he had everything planned out and going according to HIS plan. What if Aisha was correct? What if he wasn't in control? What if someone else really was playing him like a character in a well-written plot? The sound of the chamber doors opening behind him disturbed him from his thoughts.
"I beg pardon for the intrusion, Milord, but we thought we heard a commotion."
The voice unmistakably belonged to Raziel. Loyal, naïve Raziel. Kain regained his composure and replaced his prior look of doubt with a façade of complacency. He turned to face his first lieutenant and found that not only was he present, but Turel was there as well. Turel. He too, was guilty of the same loyalty Raziel held for their master. So loyal was Turel, that he would betray his elder brother at Kain's command.
"There was no need for you to concern yourselves," Kain calmly replied as he circled around the conference table. "Do not forget who you speak to. There is nothing that can harm me, ruler of Nosgoth."
'Oh, but there is. You try to deny it, but you know it's true, and you can not stop it.'
Kain snapped around at the sound of the voice, Aisha's voice, ringing in his head. He snarled as he looked back in the direction where he body lie, though the table obstructed his view of her. His lieutenants were confused by their master's peculiar behavior. Worry over their sire etched their minds.
"Lord Kain, is something the matter?" Turel boldy inquired.
The vampire lord snapped his attention back to his sons. His teeth remained gritted together as he glared at them. Turel almost visibly flinched at the ire his master directed towards he and Raziel. To his relief, Kain settled himself and passed between them, headed towards the exit.
As he passed by, Kain replied, "I am fine. Now fetch a servant to clean up that mess over there. It disgusts me."
Raziel and Turel silently complied, rounding the table to find the mess that needed cleaning. Upon inspecting the scene, puzzled looks marked their faces.
"Milord..."
Kain had made it to the doorway when Raziel had addressed him. Irritated, he turned on his heels.
"What?"
His sons stammered under his fiery glare. There was obviously something they needed to say, but knew Kain would not be pleased to hear it. Finally, Raziel looked him in the eye.
"Milord, I'm afraid the 'mess' you speak of does not exist. At least, not here anyway. Perhaps, you meant there was a mess elsewhere that needed attention?"
Kain narrowed his eyes a his eldest. "How do you not see the body lying on the ground before you?"
"Master, there is no body here," Turel muttered.
The vampire lord's eyes widened slightly at the declaration. He leapt over the table and stared at the spot he had left Aisha in. All that was there was the dagger he had impaled her with. Her body was gone. Not even a speck of blood remained. He couldn't even pick up the scent of blood, new or old. Inexplicably, she was gone without a trace.
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Aisha stared at her bloody hand. She looked up into the face of the would-be thief with a look of horror on her face. The disbelief of the situation, combined with the loss of blood instantly sent her into shock. Everything went dark as Aisha fainted and collapsed onto the floor of the Electronics and Entertainment store.
Coldness enveloped Aisha's body. She was lying on her back, yet she felt as if she was moving. She could feel something pressed over her face. She opened her eyes. A bright, white light poured into one eye, then the other before it disappeared. Silhouettes of people were around her. It was dark, and Aisha couldn't see very well. Their muffles voices echoed in her head. She couldn't keep her eyes open any longer. She barely noticed the sudden jarring of her body as she was lifted into the ambulance when darkness overcame her once again.
A steady, beeping noise pulled Aisha from her slumber. Opening her eyes, she was blinded at first by the bright halogen lights from above. Within a matter of moments, objects came into focus, and she became aware of her surroundings. She was in a hospital. Aisha tried to sit up, but when she attempted to do so, streaks of pain instantly shot through her abdomen. This bitterly reminded of the wound she had so recently suffered, the wound that was just starting to heal.
Aisha carefully lifted her hospital gown, and looked down at the damage. Just below her ribcage, on the left side, was the blemish that would forever remind her of her ordeal. But it was not the attempted robbery that was on her mind. It was the events that had unfolded on Nosgoth that plagued her. Had she really been there? Or was it all a silly dream? Her attention refocused on the injury, noticing how it was in almost the same spot Kain had stabbed her.
With her index finger, Aisha carefully traced the wound as it hooked upward ever so slightly towards her sternum. She counted the staples that had been placed in her flesh, holding the wound shut. Seven staples total. How lucky. At the thought, Aisha realized how lucky she truly was. She was very lucky that the knife had missed her vital organs, and extremely lucky she had not bled to death.
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Aisha had been released from the hospital later that evening. She had come to find out that after she had passed out, Erik had used the opportunity to hit the would-be theif over the head with the broom stick, rendering him unconscious. An emergency phone call and six minutes later, an ambulance and soon thereafter three police cars had arrived.
Aisha had been given some time off from her job to heal from her injuries. She spent most of the time at home recovering. Occasionally, the police would question her about the events of that evening. When she wasn't filling out police reports, Aisha found herself reflecting upon the events that she kept secret to herself.
Her experience in Nosgoth continued to plague her mind. She was almost certain that the events were real. But she could find no way to explain to herself how she could have possibly arrived there. The only logical explanation she could think of was that the entire ordeal had been a dream. A dream that seemed to last three days. A dream that left her wounded exactly the same way her ordeal at her job had left her.
Eventually, she decided it was best not to think too much about it, lest she drive herself insane. She allowed herself to dismiss the events as nothing more than a dream, a stress-induced delusion conjured up inside her subconscious mind. But every so often she would wonder.. What if? What if it had been real?
///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\///\\\
Kain stood at the bottom of Moebius' ancient time streaming chamber. The tunnels that wound deep underground that had once been known as the Oracle's Cave. It was here, that Kain had spent the last several nights and days, searching for his answer. To his dismay, he had turned up nothing.
The girl, Aisha, remained an absolute anomaly to him. After Raziel and Turel had entered his council chamber, all traces of the girl had vanished. No body. No blood. Nothing. His lieutenants hadn't even a recollection as to who Aisha was. It was if her entire being never existed on the face of Nosgoth.
Afterward, Kain had retreated to the Oracle's Caves to search for any shred of proof that Aisha was real, and not just a figment of his imagination. But after several days of searching, he had found no such luck. Her final thoughts still intrigued him.
'The legacy that is Kain is nothing more than a mere game.'
Frustrated, angry, and starved, Kain stormed out of the chamber, intent on releasing his fury and sating his thirst on the first unlucky victim he came across. As he embarked upon the cold night, a single thought crossed his mind.
"Perhaps, Aisha, we shall meet again one day. And then, you shall tell me everything."
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That's it! That's the end! It's over! Sorry it took so long! Got caught up with the holidays. Lame excuse, I know. But I wanted to make sure I ended this the way I had planned and I wanted to make sure I was satisfied with it. And writer's block played a huge part in the delay as well. Anyway, I don't know if there's a sequel in the future or not. I haven't really put to much thought into it. Well, leave me some reviews and let me know what you thought of this ficcy.