Well, no response from you cold-hearted otakus. Special thanks to
Apex_Techie at Cafe Nintendo for actually reading this. It's been awhile,
but I'll give it a shot. I hadn't planned to make this any more than seven
chapters, so I think I may wind it down soon. Chapter 4's in the works,
FYI.
I still do not own Silent Mobius. If I did, that goth chick's name would be Tara, I suppose.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter 3: Darker
"Are you really that slow?" Klein asked, turning his back and sheathing King Bleeder.
"I suppose. What is your plan, anyway?"
"The advancement of humanity."
"But I thought..."
Leonid spun to face Gnosa, a wicked grin on his face. He drew his weapon again, and held it high about his head, "blood" pouring from every part of it, even on its master, who seemed to find it enjoyable. The substance began to spill neatly, and started to spread across a greater and greater area, cutting away anything in its path. Maximillian stumbled away frantically and climbed a large rock outcropping that was substantially higher than most in the area. It was a good place to avoid the miasmal stuff, as well as to have a viewpoint of what the Chaos Paladin was doing. He stared down in shock to find that the sword and wielder were now located in the center of a large, perfect circle of the liquid, and that lines of crimson had created a gigantic six-pointed star. The symbol began to shine a fiery red. Gnosa couldn't believe his eyes, thought better of himself, and was taken caught off guard once more as the very ground became an inferno, the symbol now outlined by black energy that rose far higher than the flames. The dark pair could still be seen clearly, though.
"What the..."
As Maximillian spoke, the cataclysmic power under the surface of the rubble escaped all restraint, and a great, white flash nearly blinded him. The brilliance lasted for nearly a minute before it slowly subsided. When he could see again, the Lucifer-Hawk sorcerer saw that the ruination of his previous surroundings had been replaced with a rolling plain. The cleft he had been standing on was rounded into a smaller, quaint hill. Gnosa looked up as a gentle rain began to fall in the twilight. It didn't smell or feel like the acidic deluges that drenched most parts of the city. He looked back to Klein, who was, ironically, holding a small tree sapling in his palm. The dark form looked at the ground, which quickly formed itself into a hole. The beast of a man calmly got to one knee, set the tiny plant in the moist soil, and packed dirt in around its root. Leonid stood and looked down at the new life he had planted. The sprig with its three leaves was unharmed by the rain, and even seemed to accept it as the water seeped into the earth around it. Maximillian's mouth hung open as he stared all around him, fertile, unscarred land stretching for miles, eventually ending in the darker tones of the wasteland.
"No..." Gnosa stuttered. Klein leaped to where the astonished half- human stood trembling. He placed a hand on Maximillian's shoulder, looked down for a moment, and jerked his head back, his eyes burning black. Leonid grinned once more, the wings, horns, and fangs re-emerging. The wizard of Nemesis stood frozen, staring into the Chaos Paladin's eyes in sheer terror and amazement. Klein's voice boomed:
"Gigelf Liqueur was my pawn. Little did he know that I was working through him. Do you understand now?"
"You!" Gnosa shouted as he tore away and took several steps back. "You did it!"
"That's right!" the now-otherworldly voice roared. "I brought about the Silent Crisis! I orchestrated the deaths of billions from start to finish! Even now, I control what lives on this planet! And do you know why I'm doing this?"
Maximillian suddenly began to laugh uncontrollably.
"You intend to remove humanity's weakness! You brought Lucifer-Hawks to this world to... breed with humans! I suppose I should be thankful!"
Klein's voice speech to a more regular tone, but he wasn't pleased, and showed it.
"You're just a side-effect!" he sneered. "It's not about Nemesis at all! Not to say that your species wasn't useful in the grand scheme of things."
"Then..."
"The Silent Crisis is just like any other time of hardship in human history. It allows only those who are stronger to survive."
Leonid paused, and turned away from Gnosa on his heel.
"But in this case, do not get me wrong, Gnosa Maximillian. It's no longer about who's strongest. When people become isolated, they live their lives the ways they really want to. Eccentricities can thrive. Differences are necessary for survival. What happens to some won't happen to others."
Maxillian, having recovered a bit of his strength, moved to face Klein.
"So, what's this thing that's going to happen?"
"An ultimate, horrible truth that would end humanity forever."
"Why do you care about saving mankind?"
Klein sighed, and the burning in his eyes partially subsided.
"It's not easy being me, the supreme indecision of the human race, and something just as destructive, though a bit less unpredictable. I need to destroy, as a rule, but I'll need something to destroy. This final truth would remove everything I could really destroy, and I would be obsolete. If mankind, and the Lucifer-Hawk, cannot learn to fight for themselves, then I will, but I will be forced to eliminate them before the apocalyptic truth comes. It would be necessary."
"So...you want the strong, or unusual, I suppose, to survive and stop...whatever this great verification of the universe and what not, correct?"
"That's right! You can be sure of my word. When I eliminate all other intelligent life, the planetary death and torment will bring my power beyond all else. But then, I would destroy the universe, and everything would cease to exist, my self and King Bleeder included. I'm self-centered in the fact that I don't intend to ever be removed from reality. And, if there was no universe, where would I find any women? The AMP, other elite human groups around the world, and the spawn of Nemesis are the forerunners of a new super race that I need for my own selfish intentions. I can imagine that they would like to not go extinct, as well. Your cooperation is necessary for your survival."
"I see. Very well," Gnosa agreed with a nod. "But must humans and Lucifer-Hawks coexist?"
"If one world was to be eliminated, it would end up being Nemesis. I personally don't hold anything against your brethren," Klein explained.
"So be it."
"You know," the Chaos Paladin began. "You and that Rally Cheyenne would've made a cute couple."
"WHAT?!"
"Just a wild suggestion..."
"So long as it's not mandatory," Maximillian grumbled with a sigh of relief. "Well, what are we supposed to do right now?"
"Good question. We could continue to devour those who won't be much use in the long run. Such people are far too common. I refer to the fools who are only interested in their own lives remaining normal and safely uneventful. Such creatures are useless. There is no such thing as safety. I'm really itching for another fight now, though. Would you like to attack these AMP women who bother you so much?"
"That would do nicely!" Gnosa rejoiced. "But I'd say I'm in no shape for that right now."
"Not a problem," Leonid reassured. "I'm going to completely reverse your curse, and give you a nice increase in power that should help you deal with Ms. Cheyenne's pact with the Lord of Nemesis. Sound nice?"
"Indeed. Go ahead."
"This may hurt," Klein warned as he drew King Bleeder.
"King Bleeder! Augmentation Severance!"
"Bleed!" the no-longer-silent sword screamed as it began to writhe in its wielder's hands, the blood covering Maximillian in crimson. To finish the spell, Leonid brought the blade to his side, then swung it back around and straight through Gnosa's chest. The sorcerer of Nemesis experienced no pain, even as the weapon was removed, pulling along the crimson with it, and leaving no physical mark. He felt that his dark energies were completely restored, and to far higher levels than he had previously been able to reach. The seamlessly patched Lucifer-Hawk suit and cape now reflected no light, the same way the Chaos Paladin's did. Leonid resheathed his blade.
"No pain?" Klein asked.
"None," Maximillian replied, feeling proud.
"Well then, you're just as cold as I thought you were. Had to make sure, though. Barring Katsumi Liqueur, I will allow you to kill one of the AMP, as required by that spell."
"Why would you let me do that? You didn't have to give me a power upgrade."
"I need to cause pain, and attacking the AMP could prove to be a fun little affair. I need to keep Ms. Liqueur alive to study her power. It could some day come somewhere near rivaling my own. Somewhere near, but never quite, of course. I'll give you a good one-on-one fight. So, who do you pick?"
"That's simple. Rally Cheyenne," Gnosa said without a second thought.
"Saw that one coming," Leonid replied. "Wait until around midnight. That's what they're expecting. It does for atmosphere."
"By now, she knows I'm headed there, anyway. In fact, she's been monitoring my movements since my last attack went awry. I'll need you to hold the rest of them off."
"Guaranteed. Arrive however you wish, but wait until I've gotten there. You'll know when I do."
"Alright," Maximillian concluded. "I'll be off, then."
He vanished into the night without another word.
"I guess we better be on our way, too," King Bleeder mentioned.
"It's a good half an hour by foot," Klein answered with a nod, and started off, bounding over the ruins at a mad pace until he reached the first intact street, where he broke into a run for several miles, startling countless motorists into collisions. Afterwards, the Chaos Paladin calmly walked the final stretch.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And that's an update, now after about a month. Please review, if you're actually out there. Anyway, I refuse to apologize to Rally fans. I have to kill off someone SOMETIME in my fanfics. Chapter 4 should be along by the weekend. I thank you all in advance, should you have R&R'd this.
I still do not own Silent Mobius. If I did, that goth chick's name would be Tara, I suppose.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter 3: Darker
"Are you really that slow?" Klein asked, turning his back and sheathing King Bleeder.
"I suppose. What is your plan, anyway?"
"The advancement of humanity."
"But I thought..."
Leonid spun to face Gnosa, a wicked grin on his face. He drew his weapon again, and held it high about his head, "blood" pouring from every part of it, even on its master, who seemed to find it enjoyable. The substance began to spill neatly, and started to spread across a greater and greater area, cutting away anything in its path. Maximillian stumbled away frantically and climbed a large rock outcropping that was substantially higher than most in the area. It was a good place to avoid the miasmal stuff, as well as to have a viewpoint of what the Chaos Paladin was doing. He stared down in shock to find that the sword and wielder were now located in the center of a large, perfect circle of the liquid, and that lines of crimson had created a gigantic six-pointed star. The symbol began to shine a fiery red. Gnosa couldn't believe his eyes, thought better of himself, and was taken caught off guard once more as the very ground became an inferno, the symbol now outlined by black energy that rose far higher than the flames. The dark pair could still be seen clearly, though.
"What the..."
As Maximillian spoke, the cataclysmic power under the surface of the rubble escaped all restraint, and a great, white flash nearly blinded him. The brilliance lasted for nearly a minute before it slowly subsided. When he could see again, the Lucifer-Hawk sorcerer saw that the ruination of his previous surroundings had been replaced with a rolling plain. The cleft he had been standing on was rounded into a smaller, quaint hill. Gnosa looked up as a gentle rain began to fall in the twilight. It didn't smell or feel like the acidic deluges that drenched most parts of the city. He looked back to Klein, who was, ironically, holding a small tree sapling in his palm. The dark form looked at the ground, which quickly formed itself into a hole. The beast of a man calmly got to one knee, set the tiny plant in the moist soil, and packed dirt in around its root. Leonid stood and looked down at the new life he had planted. The sprig with its three leaves was unharmed by the rain, and even seemed to accept it as the water seeped into the earth around it. Maximillian's mouth hung open as he stared all around him, fertile, unscarred land stretching for miles, eventually ending in the darker tones of the wasteland.
"No..." Gnosa stuttered. Klein leaped to where the astonished half- human stood trembling. He placed a hand on Maximillian's shoulder, looked down for a moment, and jerked his head back, his eyes burning black. Leonid grinned once more, the wings, horns, and fangs re-emerging. The wizard of Nemesis stood frozen, staring into the Chaos Paladin's eyes in sheer terror and amazement. Klein's voice boomed:
"Gigelf Liqueur was my pawn. Little did he know that I was working through him. Do you understand now?"
"You!" Gnosa shouted as he tore away and took several steps back. "You did it!"
"That's right!" the now-otherworldly voice roared. "I brought about the Silent Crisis! I orchestrated the deaths of billions from start to finish! Even now, I control what lives on this planet! And do you know why I'm doing this?"
Maximillian suddenly began to laugh uncontrollably.
"You intend to remove humanity's weakness! You brought Lucifer-Hawks to this world to... breed with humans! I suppose I should be thankful!"
Klein's voice speech to a more regular tone, but he wasn't pleased, and showed it.
"You're just a side-effect!" he sneered. "It's not about Nemesis at all! Not to say that your species wasn't useful in the grand scheme of things."
"Then..."
"The Silent Crisis is just like any other time of hardship in human history. It allows only those who are stronger to survive."
Leonid paused, and turned away from Gnosa on his heel.
"But in this case, do not get me wrong, Gnosa Maximillian. It's no longer about who's strongest. When people become isolated, they live their lives the ways they really want to. Eccentricities can thrive. Differences are necessary for survival. What happens to some won't happen to others."
Maxillian, having recovered a bit of his strength, moved to face Klein.
"So, what's this thing that's going to happen?"
"An ultimate, horrible truth that would end humanity forever."
"Why do you care about saving mankind?"
Klein sighed, and the burning in his eyes partially subsided.
"It's not easy being me, the supreme indecision of the human race, and something just as destructive, though a bit less unpredictable. I need to destroy, as a rule, but I'll need something to destroy. This final truth would remove everything I could really destroy, and I would be obsolete. If mankind, and the Lucifer-Hawk, cannot learn to fight for themselves, then I will, but I will be forced to eliminate them before the apocalyptic truth comes. It would be necessary."
"So...you want the strong, or unusual, I suppose, to survive and stop...whatever this great verification of the universe and what not, correct?"
"That's right! You can be sure of my word. When I eliminate all other intelligent life, the planetary death and torment will bring my power beyond all else. But then, I would destroy the universe, and everything would cease to exist, my self and King Bleeder included. I'm self-centered in the fact that I don't intend to ever be removed from reality. And, if there was no universe, where would I find any women? The AMP, other elite human groups around the world, and the spawn of Nemesis are the forerunners of a new super race that I need for my own selfish intentions. I can imagine that they would like to not go extinct, as well. Your cooperation is necessary for your survival."
"I see. Very well," Gnosa agreed with a nod. "But must humans and Lucifer-Hawks coexist?"
"If one world was to be eliminated, it would end up being Nemesis. I personally don't hold anything against your brethren," Klein explained.
"So be it."
"You know," the Chaos Paladin began. "You and that Rally Cheyenne would've made a cute couple."
"WHAT?!"
"Just a wild suggestion..."
"So long as it's not mandatory," Maximillian grumbled with a sigh of relief. "Well, what are we supposed to do right now?"
"Good question. We could continue to devour those who won't be much use in the long run. Such people are far too common. I refer to the fools who are only interested in their own lives remaining normal and safely uneventful. Such creatures are useless. There is no such thing as safety. I'm really itching for another fight now, though. Would you like to attack these AMP women who bother you so much?"
"That would do nicely!" Gnosa rejoiced. "But I'd say I'm in no shape for that right now."
"Not a problem," Leonid reassured. "I'm going to completely reverse your curse, and give you a nice increase in power that should help you deal with Ms. Cheyenne's pact with the Lord of Nemesis. Sound nice?"
"Indeed. Go ahead."
"This may hurt," Klein warned as he drew King Bleeder.
"King Bleeder! Augmentation Severance!"
"Bleed!" the no-longer-silent sword screamed as it began to writhe in its wielder's hands, the blood covering Maximillian in crimson. To finish the spell, Leonid brought the blade to his side, then swung it back around and straight through Gnosa's chest. The sorcerer of Nemesis experienced no pain, even as the weapon was removed, pulling along the crimson with it, and leaving no physical mark. He felt that his dark energies were completely restored, and to far higher levels than he had previously been able to reach. The seamlessly patched Lucifer-Hawk suit and cape now reflected no light, the same way the Chaos Paladin's did. Leonid resheathed his blade.
"No pain?" Klein asked.
"None," Maximillian replied, feeling proud.
"Well then, you're just as cold as I thought you were. Had to make sure, though. Barring Katsumi Liqueur, I will allow you to kill one of the AMP, as required by that spell."
"Why would you let me do that? You didn't have to give me a power upgrade."
"I need to cause pain, and attacking the AMP could prove to be a fun little affair. I need to keep Ms. Liqueur alive to study her power. It could some day come somewhere near rivaling my own. Somewhere near, but never quite, of course. I'll give you a good one-on-one fight. So, who do you pick?"
"That's simple. Rally Cheyenne," Gnosa said without a second thought.
"Saw that one coming," Leonid replied. "Wait until around midnight. That's what they're expecting. It does for atmosphere."
"By now, she knows I'm headed there, anyway. In fact, she's been monitoring my movements since my last attack went awry. I'll need you to hold the rest of them off."
"Guaranteed. Arrive however you wish, but wait until I've gotten there. You'll know when I do."
"Alright," Maximillian concluded. "I'll be off, then."
He vanished into the night without another word.
"I guess we better be on our way, too," King Bleeder mentioned.
"It's a good half an hour by foot," Klein answered with a nod, and started off, bounding over the ruins at a mad pace until he reached the first intact street, where he broke into a run for several miles, startling countless motorists into collisions. Afterwards, the Chaos Paladin calmly walked the final stretch.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And that's an update, now after about a month. Please review, if you're actually out there. Anyway, I refuse to apologize to Rally fans. I have to kill off someone SOMETIME in my fanfics. Chapter 4 should be along by the weekend. I thank you all in advance, should you have R&R'd this.