Regrouping

Izael was standing near a river. Around him, the first snow was slowly falling from the clouded skies. The river was half-frozen, its water like liquid crystal. All was quiet. Peaceful. Suddenly a female voice called out for him, "Izael..." Izael followed the voice across the river and into the nearby woods. He stumbled onward, deeper into the forest, following that strange voice. Suddenly he came upon a cottage that looked familiar. It was the cottage where he was sleeping right now! He opened the door and came in seeing Lessa and Jessie talking around the table. Lessa concentrated on whispering someone. Izael could hear her thoughts. "Gad, where are you? How can we find you?" and he heard a response coming far away... so far... "In Meridian. Where are you? Is everything ok?" and Izael could hear Lessa reply, "We're in Jessie's cottage," and suddenly the image of the cottage came into his mind, then a route into there. Gadorian replied, "Stay there, I am coming." Lessa opened her eyes again. Suddenly Izael was drawn away from the cottage. He traveled miles in an instant, and was suddenly in the Keep. Izael saw Him, His eyes burning with eternal fire. Near Him was a vampire, who too, like Lessa, opened his eyes and said, "They're in a cottage hidden with magic, a few miles from here." A female voice said again, "Whatever happens, you MUST NOT enter the portal, Izael!"
Then he awoke. Izael was in his bed. Darkness surrounded him. He hadn't meant to sleep, but obviously he had been all too tired. All was quiet, except for the talking coming from the next room. "Gadorian says he is coming. We must wait." Izael looked out of the window only to see snowflakes fall slowly from the sky, confirming his worst fears. "They ARE coming. It wasn't a mere dream. We must leave." He had fallen asleep in full plate, and his body ached as if it was on fire. Izael needed to use healing magic to be able to stand. It took him a lot of precious time, but then he was up. Slamming the door open, Izael burst into the room where Lessa and Jessie were talking. "They are coming! You have just revealed our location to them! We have to get out of here!"

Far away, in Meridian, Gadorian suddenly felt a great feeling of nameless dread creep into his mind. Something was very wrong. Novanus walked to the door of his room and attempted to put his key in the lock, but dropped it on the floor. The vampire cursed his clumsiness. What was wrong with him? He'd never felt so ridiculous in all his life. "If my masters could see me now," he mumbled. With his key in the lock, Novanus twisted it and entered his chambers. The sun was just beginning to appear through the windows. Novanus walked over and closed the shutters and looked around the room.
The furnishings were far from the elaborate surroundings he was used to. The wooden boards which made up the floor were a mish-mash of different colors and wood. There was no decoration around the room save for a rustic picture above the fireplace. The image was of the Nosgoth's landscape before the corruption of the Circle of Nine. In the background of the picture, the Pillars were just visible disappearing into the clouds.
Novanus walked over to the bed and sat down. He was troubled. He had managed to suppress the voice that he had been hearing of late, but it was requiring all of his concentration. He felt as if his mind was being constantly struck by a sledge hammer, and it left him feeling weak and vulnerable. He needed to know what was wrong with him. Novanus lay back on his bed and began to slow his breathing.
In the Astral realm, the elemental tides had shifted from the predominance of air and water which were at there highest at night. Now with daylight beginning to fill the landscape, fire and earth had moved to be the dominating elements in the astral planes. Novanus looked through the eyes of his ethereal form. The landscape of Nosgoth appeared the same as in the material world, but it was less distinct. The outlines of all objects were blurred and infused with the different elements of which they were composed. Novanus' astral form floated out of the inn and into the sky above it. In the distance, Novanus could see the astral form of the Temple. In an instant, he was floating next to the ancient structure. If he had been living, his heart would have skipped a beat. If in the material realm the temple was considered beautiful, then here, on the astral planes, it was ten fold the sight. The colors that infused it were incredible and it glittered like a gem stone catching the light. Snakes of elemental energy ran up the columns, which supported its weight, all leading towards the centre of the dome. At its pinnacle a beam of golden light lanced off into the skies above. In the distance, Novanus could see the Pillars emitting the same type of beam, but the light was less bright, less pure. Occasionally, Novanus could see one of the beams faltering and then resurging in power. The decay that infused them was sickening.
You were foolish to come here. Novanus whirled his body around to see where the voice had come from. Just to the left of the temple, a black cloud had formed. The mere sight of it made Novanus cringe. The cloud was an affront to all life and the vampire could sense a great unsatisfied hunger reaching out towards him. "Who are you?" he called out to the emanation. We are the inevitable. Join us Novanus. Come to our embrace. Novanus felt himself almost uncontrollably drawn to the emanation and he had begun to float towards the dark outstretched tentacles of the cloud before he regained control of himself. He yanked his mind away from the darkness and returned to his body.
Novanus sat up breathing heavily. What had it been? Why did it want him? Before he could think any further, the rising sun forced his body into the sleep that all vampires must have during the day.

Izael burst into the room where Jessie and Lessa were, but Jessie did not hear his frantic warning. The cottage faded away from her and her mind retreated into itself. The Nerayan were growing stronger, and with that strength came boldness. They did not even bother to hide themselves from her. In fact, they seemed to be gloating, happy. Their goal was in sight...they were about to claim victory...their joy and excitement spilled over into Jessie, but she knew those emotions weren't her own. Then, as quickly as these alien feelings of joy had come, they were replaced by a great sense of disappointment and Jessie regained control of herself. She smiled. This sense of relief was her own. For the time being, the Nerayan had been denied their prize and she remained free.

Novanus' party set out the next night. Somewhere, a few paces ahead of them, a fox darted forward. It avoided the moonlight, and so its presence was only known by the rustling it made through the leaves. The trouble was the fact that it was running at all; they were traveling not nearly as stealthy as a typical party of vampires. Novanus, supported by Gadorian, leaned forward and mumbled something; whether it was human, ancient, or some tongue the world had not yet heard, Gadorian could not tell. Abel seemed much more capable of interpreting the sounds, but he listened not so much to any words as to the emotions Novanus labored to express.
"He's in a bad way...If he doesn't wake up, I'm not sure if we can maintain this pace," Abel warned. "No...we have to." A strange foreboding colored all of Gadorian's words. He was filled with a terrible sense of trepidation, yet the feeling seemed as if it were displayed through the lens of another's soul. It was not vampiric, for the whisper had a distinct signature in the mind's eye. Still, Gadorian could not put his finger on the source. They continued onward, until Gadorian halted at a curious sound from behind them. "Ignore it. It's just a bird...yes...an owl." Novanus pulled harder on Gadorian's shoulder. His feet dragged across the forest floor.
"He keeps getting worse, I don't understand it...He managed to get out a sentence or two as we left the inn." Gadorian was not sure if Abel was listening. The winged vampire moved along through the woods like a fish in some great sylvan reef. While Gadorian struggled to keep thorns and twigs from snapping against his face, Abel managed to leave not a feather behind, though his wings seemed to span further than his height. In such darkness, Abel was finally in his element. The group continued as such for another mile or so before again Gadorian was struck with a terrible fear in the pit of his stomach. This time, the source was clear. These emotions stemmed from Izael...

Abel, who by now had managed to move to the front of the stumbling party, stopped to rest the foot of his staff against the forested floor. "Ssussun." A gentle light radiated outward from the small crystals that hung from the carved spiral and spilled out into darkness. "Just follow my light," he said, glancing back with a smile before pressing on. "You shouldn't worry so much, Gadorian, it will only grow to be worse." He then said after a silent pause, "When one remains calm in hectic situations he will be the one with the most control." He added, "Especially when one knows what may befall him." The last of it, however, fell quieter.
"Is there something you're not telling us?" Gadorian questioned, finding it just a bit easier to lug Novanus along now that he could see the ground below his feet. Abel answered, "I hold back nothing, all that is needed to draw information is the proper question and nothing more." Abel was growing increasingly strange as he retained the calm and collected demeanor, the same as when they had first met.

"My Lord, I have never seen you this despondent." Kour took a deep breath and looked up at the young apprentice. "I have to admit, Orugarde, for the first time I fear there is no hope." "There is always hope, My Lord." "Not this time, Orugarde. One cannot change the very nature of Man. Slaves to our thoughts and emotions, captivated by the senses, they guide our every move and action. Ill will turns to killing, hatred into violence. How can one change what is innate, to which one is inextricably bound?" A soft, gentle voice permeated Kour's mind and slowly came into focus... "Kour, my loyal friend and protector. There is still hope. Seek out the fallen one…. The Deva of the Grotto. Once a dweller of the higher realms, she now lives in seclusion below the surface. She has knowledge of the lower realm." "My Lady, what could she know that is not already known by the Elders?" "She knows… because she has been there."

"Izael, what do you mean? They shouldn't be able to hear me whisper," said Lessa, quickly rising from her chair. "Well, they have," replied Izael. Lessa bared her teeth in annoyance. How could they do that? She knew not, but it was plainly obvious it was no longer safe here. But where would they go? The snow was already deep outside. Their tracks would be plain for anyone to follow. "Jessie, you take Izael and head north. Izael can contact Gad and find out where to meet him. The sword should protect against outside influences listening in," Lessa said while quickly gathering her things and motioning for Seth to get up. "But Lessa, what are you going to do?" Izael asked, looking at her. She answered reassuringly, "I can create an illusion and make it look like we have all left and headed south. They will only see my tracks and an image of yours and think we have all traveled that way. It will buy you time to get to Gad." Lessa turned to leave.
"No, Lessa, I'll come with you," said Izael, putting a hand on her arm. "NO. You are too important, we must get you to Gad so he can finish your training. You do not yet know how to use the full powers of the sword. Look what it got you last time. This is the only way. Don't worry, I don't plan on being killed by the Sarafan." Lessa took Seth's reigns and led him to the door. "Take care of him for me, Jessie, and get to Novanus quickly. I think he needs your help," Lessa said over her shoulder and opened the door into the night and the waiting snow.

Jessie watched Lessa leave with Seth. She wanted very much to stop Lessa from acting so foolishly—she did not want to see Lessa get hurt. However, strategically speaking, she knew Lessa was right. She set off with a reluctant Izael and they walked toward Gadorian and Novanus. In this form, Jessie still retained a small degree of power over the wind. She used this now to sweep away their tracks as they went.
After an eternity of cold, blank, dreariness, Jessie thought she could sense a flicker of life up ahead, someone familiar to her. She could not place it, though. Suddenly, Izael forgot how much he hadn't wanted to come and rushed ahead urgently. Jessie hurried to catch up. There was definitely someone up ahead, and Izael seemed to know who it was, and sensed the need to get there quickly. Gadorian had said he was coming to them, so perhaps Jessie and Izael had met him halfway.
Izael ran up to one of the figures that seemed to be carrying someone. Jessie saw this, but was immediately distracted by another image. She ran to this one, but checked herself before she got too close. She didn't want to run him over. "Abel?" she cried out. "What are you doing here? I didn't even know you had completed your metamorphosis. You seem somehow different, which is probably why I couldn't sense you. Nice wings, by the way."
Abel smiled. He hadn't expected to find Jessie here, with Izael. He hadn't seen her since, well, since before she lost her last form. He wondered how she had managed to go and get that material body killed after all the work he had put into healing it. He wondered what she looked like this time, but dismissed the thought immediately. Jessie, however, had seen the quizzical look on his face and answered, "I appear human." Abel nodded, taking that into account for the next time Jessie decided to try something stupidly heroic and needed to be scraped up and repaired.

Astral Struggle

A shout from Gadorian drew the attention of both of them. They rushed over to catch Novanus as Gadorian's strength finally gave way. Jessie thought to herself, 'He looks so fragile. I've never seen Novanus like this before. Oh no! I can sense the Nerayan's consciousness around him. They are trying to wear his mind down into submission! Novanus is the one they intend to possess.' The realization carried with it a profound sense of dread. Jessie liked Novanus a lot and refused to kill him just to spite the Nerayan. She would have to find a way to save him.

Gadorian kneeled in the snow, catching his breath. As he stood up he noticed for the first time the girl crouched over the collapsed Novanus. She seemed familiar, and yet he had never seen her face. Something told him she too had the same sense of amnesia. Izael trudged up through the snow, "You made it! My warning! You got it! So now you-" Gadorian lifted his hand to momentarily silence Izael, and returned his attention to Novanus. "I'm not sure what's wrong with him, exactly, but he's fighting something inside. And it doesn't look like he is winning."
Jessie looked up, flicking snow out of her eyes as she did so. "I think I can help him, but we have to hurry. Come," continued Jessie, "Help me carry him over there. Underneath that small rock overhang, we can work without the snow in our faces." Gadorian and Izael helped Jessie carry Novanus to the small bubble of quiet in the storm. Abel followed the sounds of their straining against the wind. Finally, Novanus was settled down and the others knelt closely around him. "What do you think?" Jessie asked Abel. His golden eyes stared blankly ahead as he studied Novanus. After a moment of thought, he replied, "They have him. It is only a matter of time before he gives in. There is no other choice." Izael jumped, interpreting this to mean that Novanus would have to be killed. He did not, could not, know what Jessie and Abel were planning to do.
"Back away a little bit," commanded Jessie as she reached into her coat. She removed the red and gold jewel she had retrieved earlier. She handed it to Abel. "Ah...the HeartStone," Abel breathed out as he turned it over in his hands. He placed it on Novanus' chest and reached for Jessie's hand. She wrapped her hand around the HeartStone and Abel placed his hand on hers, reciting an ancient incantation.
Izael drew in a sharp breath as the stone began to glow, softly at first, then very brightly. Gadorian had the nagging suspicion that he had heard of this artifact before, but he couldn't remember any details about it. The stone emitted a bright flash and Jessie groaned in pain, but did not move. The world faded away from her and she joined Novanus, who had once again been drawn to the Astral realm. The cloud of the Nerayan was very close to him. Suddenly, the Nerayan realized that they had company and began to move in Jessie's direction. Jessie realized that she and Novanus had one major battle on their hands. She hoped Novanus' mind would be strong enough to fight.

Novanus hung in the astral plane. His ethereal form was tattered and torn as the amorphous black cloud had slowly cut away at him piece by piece. He didn't know how much more he could take.
He had been so close to escaping its clutches by returning to his own body but in his sleep he had, through no action of his own, projected his consciousness back to the Astral plane. The Wraithen had yanked him back and forced him into a confrontation. He had had no choice but to stand and fight. It was a losing battle. The immensity of the Nerayan's inhabitants was far to strong for one lone vampire to confront. Even with his knowledge of the spells of the ancients he was helpless. The magic was of no use here, all he could use were the weapons of the astral realm, and so far, Novanus could see very little damage inflicted.
A bright flash caught Novanus' attention and the vampire knew that someone else had joined him. The Nerayan moved towards the newcomer, its black tentacles reaching for the form. Novanus wasted no time. He summoned up a spear of pure elemental energy and flung it straight into the dark emptiness of the Nerayan's form. The Nerayan flinched and turned its attention back to Novanus, its true prize. The vampire began to throw spear after spear at the oncoming cloud, but each was a little less powerful than the last, inflicting less and less damage. The black cloud sent a tentacle out which wrapped itself around his right forearm. It burned his ethereal form, sending waves of pain through his body. All of a sudden a blue ball of lighting shot straight into the cloud, breaking its contact with him. The other person in this realm was also attacking the Nerayan. Novanus glanced at the newcomer trying to see who it was. However, instead of a more or less human form which he expected to see, he saw a brilliant white mist. Jessie. Novanus had never felt so relieved in all his life. He had not seen the wraith for nearly two hundred years. The wraith released another bolt of blue energy which hit the Nerayan's dark shape and sent slivers of it shooting off in all directions, but the majority of its dark presence remained unharmed. Novanus wracked his brains for some weapon or means to help him. He knew he had missed something. He spun himself in all directions attempting to find something he could use.
With no physical weapons present in the astral realm, Novanus would have to rely on some natural solution. In the distance, Novanus could see the Pillars blasting off their golden light into the sky. If Novanus had been in physical form he would have snapped his fingers. The energy that poured out of the Pillars and the Temple was pure elemental magic. With the elemental tides far from changing, these would be the only place where it would be dangerous for any astral form to go. There was no way that an astral projection could be maintained if one should become sucked into the maelstrom which whirled around them. It was impossible. Somehow he would have to lure his enemy into the maelstrom. Novanus called out to Jessie. "Follow me!" he cried to her mind. Novanus flew away from the shapeless Nerayan and headed straight to the Temple with Jessie in close pursuit, and the darkness not far behind.

"Orugarde, quickly…gather your things. We must leave." "What is wrong, my Lord? Where are we going?" "To find the Fallen One." "Not… The Deva? But, my Lord, she…." "Yes, Orugarde. I know. But we must go. The Priestess said the Deva has knowledge of the Lower Realm." "My Lord, how can a Deva of the Higher Realm have knowledge of the Lower Realm?" Kour mounted his horse, turned to Orugarde and said… "The Deva was once an inhabitant of the Nerayan."

Abel remained still and statuesque as he held his ground as their link to the Material Plane. It was strenuous indeed, and he prayed his frail body could hold out as long as his mind could, even as the Nerayan assaulted their new target. "No," Abel would say aloud to the questions the being shot at him from the other world, "No, it's not true." They were digging away at memories he wished to keep to himself, yet it sounded too loud to his ears the stress had made him forget that the others could not hear the scenario from where they sat. Yet still he knelt, keeping strong as their bridge from world to world. Though only time would tell, as his form began to shake, if the Nerayan would be able to use this bridge for themselves…

It took seconds for Novanus and Jessie to cover the ground between the Temple and where they had been fighting the Nerayan. They both stopped just short of the outpouring of energy which stemmed from the pinnacle of the citadel. They got as close as they dared with the dangerous elemental energies crackling in the space around them. The black cloud of consciousness moved ever closer, its dark tentacles reaching out towards them. Novanus mentally whispered to Jessie, "On my signal jump out of the way." The cloud moved relentlessly closer. Its speed increased every moment. Three hundred feet, two hundred feet, one hundred feet…
"NOW!" Novanus yelled and projected his form out of the way of the oncoming mass. With an inhuman cry the tentacles moved round to try and snag at Jessie, but too late already one of them had been caught in the elemental twister, pulling the rest of its form into the column of energy. Oddly it began to laugh even as its shape was been torn apart. And your champion will fall Novanus…. And we will have you …. Soon.
The laugh faded away as the black nothingness of the Nerayan was shredded by the magic which reached from the Temple. They had lost their hold on the astral plane and would have to find another way of breaking through to the material realm, but it would not be long before that happened. Novanus clung to the pitiful shreds of his ethereal form. "You know I really liked this suit," Novanus said to Jessie, laughing feebly. Jessie sent a flow of warm emotion to Novanus showing her amusement. "Get back into your body, you daft fool." Novanus did just that.

Jessie watched tensely as Novanus left the Astral realm, then was very relieved when she knew he had made it back to his body. She gave one last look around, as if reassuring herself that the Nerayan were gone for now, then she began to concentrate on returning to her own material form.
Even before she started, she knew something was wrong. Although the Nerayan's manifestation in the Astral realm had been destroyed by the pure elemental energy of the Temple, her mind still felt somewhat constricted. It felt like there was an invisible layer of gauze all around her, and as she noticed it, it grew more forceful. The Nerayan had merely sacrificed the cloud to lull Jessie and Novanus into letting down their guard. They were still here, and they intended to consume her without Novanus' intervention. She tried to struggle free, but found that she could not move. They had taken her unaware and had paralyzed her Astral form. She had only one option to avoid joining that which she most hated—to join that which she only merely despised.
Using all the energy she could muster, she called out to Abel, "Release the stone! Break the connection!" She knew that Abel had received her message because almost instantly she felt the sense of loss and emptiness that meant her material body, sword and all, had disintegrated without a mind to hold it together. The Nerayan interpreted this as a surrender and eagerly tried to pull her to their realm, but something stopped them. Someone else laid claim to her soul and was pulling her in the opposite direction. Thus a macabre tug of war began with Jessie caught in the middle.

The Snow was falling in a thick tide of white as Lessa led her pursuers on their merry chase. She wondered how long she could keep this up. They would find her eventually. She sent waves of thought out to see if Novanus was alright, and was reassured by the strength she felt there. It felt as though Jessie had helped him. Lessa rode on, not caring where she went in this snow. She would be on top of them before she knew it. It was then that she felt something strange. The snow that before had been pure and white now looked black. The feeling of trees around her went, and a feeling of nothingness remained. Seth began to get uneasy and suddenly he reared and ran off. "SETH, SEEETH!" Lessa called, but he did not return. In fact she could no longer hear his hooves meet ground. Then a sound came from behind and her muscles froze. A growl that turned into a laugh made her skin crawl.
"HA HA HA HA. You will do for now, dark one. If we can not have Novanus, you will do to get close to him, HA HA HA!" the voice mocked in a terrible din. "I will never betray Novanus, so you can forget it," replied Lessa, struggling to get free. "HA HA HA. WHAT MAKES YOU THINK YOU HAVE A CHOICE?" the laugh almost deafened her.
The darkness started to swell, then it rushed at her as if it was the sea. It coiled around her legs and started to spread like the cold grasp of death. Lessa made one desperate cry to Novanus to tell him not to trust her, "NOVANUS, DON'T TRUST..." but the dark tide that was the Nerayan consumed her.
Seth, unable to find his mistress, ran to the one he knew she trusted. He ran, locking on the essence that was Novanus. Maybe he would know where she was, and he knew she would want him to help Novanus if she was dead.

The Nerayan tugged at Jessie's soul, and for once Jessie struggled to go with the other presence that was pulling her away from them. It seemed to be a draw. Jessie was beginning to resign herself to being here for quite some time when she suddenly felt a lapse in the Nerayan's strength. She caught a glimmer of their thought, of what had distracted them, before the other presence took advantage of the lessened resistance and broke her free.
Jessie hovered in the Astral realm for a moment, free of the suffocating presence of the Nerayan, before everything whirled out of control and she felt herself falling down to the lair of her "benefactor." She would have to be equally careful not to lose herself here, but at least she knew what to expect.
"So, you actually wanted to come here this time?" came the voice, followed by sinister laughter. Jessie mentally gulped and began to re-examine her decision. Perhaps this was a mistake after all. She wondered if she could have broken free of the Nerayan on her own as she was surrounded by several large tentacles. Escape this time might be impossible.

As Novanus returned to his physical form, Abel drew back his hands from the ancient stone, clasping his hands to the sides of his throbbing head. They were gone, but the memories unearthed and the bashing they had done to dig them up was left behind as a parting gift. At least Novanus was alright, and Jessie... "L-Little One?" he said wearily, dizzily attempting to stand, "Where is she? Is she alright?"