Tying Up Loose Ends In Order to Move On

The Redemption left its port at midnight on schedule. This ship started its engines and began to make its way to the unknown island on the south. On the starboard deck, two Sarafan guards casually conversed. "Clear night tonight, isn't it?" "I don't like it when it's this quiet. There aren't any seagulls over head." "Oh, quit complaining. You know, you have the bluest eyes." Suddenly a shadow fell upon them, wheedling a staff with two axes on each side; Lent made short work of the two Sarafan. He had stowed away on board, the cargo would be his prize, and all he had to do was take it.
"There, below! Sound the alarm," the captain said. Green flashes struck the air, in the distance Lent could hear the guards mass on interceptor ships to catch up. Guards came from below, drew their swords and attacked him. Lent remained calm, he felt his new power and strength aid him, and he took out another five guards, dodging their blows so fast that most of them hit each other. He didn't have much time; the interceptors were almost to the ship.
Lent ran to the bridge, and a guard swung his sword at him. Lent blocked the sword with the staff part, kicked it out of his enemy's hands, and thrust his axe into his opponent's side. The captain drew his sword, but Lent kicked the previous guard's sword as it fell. It flew in the air and impaled the captain to the wall. Lent looked at the decks, seeing that two Sarafan interceptors had already caught up and lines were drawn up. They were climbing up to swarm him. Lent grabbed the wheel and turned it clockwise, causing the large freighter to turn sharply and crush the smaller ship on the starboard side. He ran down to the main deck and started cutting the ropes. Screams of Sarafan filled the air as their bodies splashed in the water with each rope Lent cut.
More guards came out from below deck; Lent met them and fought them back. There were too many - seven guards on the deck and at least ten were climbing up the port side. Lent killed two guards as four more made it up top. Despite his new abilities, he could not hold them back forever. A sword was thrust at his side, and he was hard pressed to dodge it. He quickly spun around the guard's back and took off his head. Six more climbed up and surrounded him. They looked at him grinning. "So, thought you could steal this cargo, did you? Think again."
Suddenly the ship hit land. Lent and all twelve guards were thrown forward, off the ship and onto the snowy shore. Lent hit the ground and felt his left arm break with a snap. He shook his head as he stood. He reached to grab his axe staff, but dropped it. "Oww," he groaned as he grabbed his broken arm. He chanted a few words. Blood dripped down from his hand, despite having no cut, and his arm was healed. The powers he gained as a Loki Priest were starting to pay off.
Lent regained his senses and looked around. Two guards died in the crash, the other ten were regaining their composure. 'Ten against one,' Lent thought, but he didn't care for a fair fight anyway. The sound of crushed snow struck his ear. He turned and saw a familiar vampire face. Lent looked and gasped in disbelief, "Lessa."

The thing that was Lessa saw the puny mortal in front of her and stepped over him. The Sarafan were her concern. She hungered. She ran at them, cutting and slicing, drinking their blood, reveling in their cries. Before they knew it, it was over. She turned and looked at one she thought she knew and the others huddling behind him for protection. Then she turned and walked into the blaze of white falling snow. Smiling, the thing that was Lessa turned North. There was work to be done.

Jessie looked around her, trying to adjust to the shimmering unreality of the spectral realm after having been away for so long. 'This place would be almost beautiful if it wasn't a prison,' she thought to herself. Slowly she dragged herself up into a sitting position and faced the eye of the Elder God.
"Don't flatter yourself," she began. "You know I had no other choice." The Elder God chuckled and replied, "Still, you chose my company over that of the Nerayan. You really should consider that offer I made to you." Jessie was about to yell 'Never,' but she held her tongue. Her friends needed her and she had no time to figure out how to escape. Last time it had taken her forever, and even then she had had help.
She said, "So, you are familiar with the Nerayan, then? You know of them, of their nature?" The Elder God answered, "I have some knowledge of them. It took a threat like that to get you to return to me? I'm hurt." Jessie thought for a moment how to respond. She knew he was toying with her, but she needed for him to release her voluntarily. She replied, "Don't be. I like the material realm and that's all there is to it. Speaking of the material realm, my friends are waging battle against the Nerayan as we speak. I need to rejoin them."
This amused the Elder God, that Jessie would actually expect for him to release her just because she wanted to prevent her friends from dying, from rejoining the Wheel of Fate. She was up to something. The Elder God decided to play along for a bit and perhaps take advantage of Jessie's desperation to return to the material realm. He said, "I'm listening."
'Good,' Jessie thought to herself. 'Perhaps this will work.' Out loud, she said, "If you have any knowledge of the Nerayan at all, you know that they feed upon minds. They will consume all beings in Nosgoth, especially the mortals. Where does this leave you? Your Wheel of Fate will have no souls for you to turn on it. You will starve."
The Elder God had not expected this, but once said, it seemed rather obvious to him. Why hadn't he thought of this before? Jessie was rather clever, but perhaps he could still out-maneuver her. "Ah...So you want me to release you to fight the Nerayan and save my source of sustenance. Very well," he said as he moved some of his tentacles to create a clear exit. "But before you leave, answer my question. How do you regenerate energy?"
This was exactly what Jessie had been waiting for. With an unanticipated burst of speed, she moved for the exit. Before the Elder God could even respond, she was gone. All that remained behind was the echo of her final taunt, "Very slowly!" 'Oh, well,' thought the Elder God. He had almost expected for that to happen. No matter. Jessie was sure to get herself killed again, and when she did, the Elder God would be waiting.

Izael looked into forest, trying to make out any signs of movement. He was growing worried. "Lessa still hasn't arrived. We've been waiting for too long. Something must've happened. Hiding our tracks cannot take this long. Does anyone have any suggestion? What will be our next move? We're missing many members, and are without a place to stay. The hour is dark for us indeed."

Novanus sat up with a start. He had been gone from his body for so long that it felt as if he didn't belong, but the feeling soon subsided. Novanus tried to stand up but found that his legs would not support him. He fell back to the forest floor with a thud.
"Let me help you, my lord," said Admar, putting down his bowl of food. "Sit down, Admar, eat your meal, I'll be fine." Admar sat back down grumbling to himself but he knew better than to argue with his lord. Novanus was far too stubborn for his own good.
Gadorian turned his head to look at the newly wakened Novanus. "You're awake then." "Gadorian," Novanus said weakly. "You have an amazing talent for stating the obvious. Where is everyone? What's happened while I was gone?" "Jessie disappeared. We don't know where she's gone. Her body just dissolved not long after she went to help you. Izael and Lessa met her, but got separated. Izael doesn't know where she is now. She raced off on that confounded horse of hers." "Jessie will be ok," Novanus smiled softly. "Losing a body has never stopped her before." Gadorian smiled dimly, casting his eyes down to the forest floor. He had been gone for such a short time but so much had happened since they had left the inn. Novanus crawled over to Gadorian. "What's wrong, old friend?" "Friend?" laughed Gadorian. "Novanus, we may be many things, but we are not old friends." Novanus sighed, "None-the-less, we are friends now, I hope, and I can tell something is troubling you." "Reading my thoughts again, you mind leech? Be careful, you may not like what you find." "I don't need telepathy to know that something is wrong with you." Gadorian cast his eyes down to the forest floor and said, "I apologize, Novanus, that remark was unbecoming of me. I am just not feeling too sure of myself." He was staring into the flames of the camp fire as he said this.
Novanus struggled over to Gadorian and laid a comforting hand on his shoulder, saying, "We can win, you know. We will win." Gadorian looked up at the other vampire and smiled. "Can we? Are you so sure of that?" "Gadorian, don't think like that, if the Nerayan sense any kind of weakness in any of us they will exploit it." Gadorian turned and rummaged through the bag of things they had brought from the Temple. He handed the blood chalice to Novanus. "Here," he said, "You need this."
Novanus took the chalice and drank greedily. He didn't know how the chalice's magic worked, but it kept the blood warm, and that was all he wanted. He felt the heat of the blood spread slowly through his body. He had drunk all of the blood when the chalice cracked and refilled itself. Novanus drank again. It would take time for the blood to fully infuse his body, but he was already feeling better. He stood up and walked shakily away from Gadorian towards Izael, who was sitting staring at the Sword of the Serioli.
"It says 'Albornia'. It means 'bringer of hope'," he said, noticing that the young mortal was staring at the runes carved into the hilt. "I carved those myself a long time ago." He sat down next to the ex-Sarafan. "That was the name my masters gave it and instructed me to carve. May I?" he asked. Izael smiled and handed him the sword. Novanus took the blade and held it in front of him, the pommel stone resting on his wrist and the point reaching into the forest. It hummed as he held it as if remembering his all-too-familiar touch. "Mastering Albornia is like mastering yourself. You see, you are both part of each other. You must stop seeing a sword in your hand. Instead, see an extension of yourself. That's why your use of the sword has been so sporadic. The power of your ancient heritage is in every part of your being, but the sword is the key to tapping that power. Without it, your power lies dormant."
Izael look at Novanus, puzzled, so Novanus added, "You'll get what I mean, just think about it a little. Don't be afraid to practice, it's the only way the two of you will truly get to know each other." "What do you mean know…. You mean it's alive?" Izael's face showed his surprise. Novanus explained, "After a fashion. It has a consciousness and a sense of being, but there is no personality or any such thing. The sword was forged with a purpose, to defend this realm against the Nerayan, and it will help you in any way it can to achieve that goal." Novanus stood up slowly and smiled, saying, "I'll leave you to your thoughts now."
Novanus walked back to the fire and sat down. Gadorian had listened to the entire exchange between Izael and Novanus. "Thank you, Nova." "The talk was long overdue, Gadorian. He needed to know in order to fulfill his role in the upcoming events. The Nerayan have got much stronger far quicker than I expected. We will have to quicken our pace. Time is running out."
A crash in the forest made all of the party turn their heads in unison. Something was heading their way. Another crash, and this time Novanus could see the tree that fell. With a screech, a demonic steed leapt into the clearing. Novanus recognized the mind of Seth, Lessa's stallion. "Seth," he said, "where is Lessa? A look of pure panic was in the horse's eye. Novanus walked over and took hold of the bridal just as the horse reared up. The vampire laid a gentle hand on the dragon-like neck of the animal. "That's Seth?" asked Izael. "Aye, lad, it is. I remember the first time I saw what he really looked like, I nearly soiled myself." Novanus smiled at Admar's comment.
"Easy, my friend, no one will harm you here, easy," Novanus continued to sooth the uneasy Seth until it was as docile as usual around the group. Slowly, ever so slowly, the mirage of the black stallion that they all knew once again settled over his form. "There, you see? Our own Seth, he was just frightened," said Novanus. "Wait, if he's here, then where's Lessa?" asked Abel. The blind vampire had asked a very apt question. Where was the female vampire?

Lent watched Lessa walk away. He knew better than to stop her, just as he knew that the creature he saw was not Lessa. He wanted to help her, but had not the knowledge to do so. "You there!" a voice said behind him, "What's your business?" Lent turned to see four Sarafan Knights. 'They must have been following her,' Lent thought to himself. He didn't bother with explanations, he just ran straight at them, taking out one after another in a series of acrobatic feats. When it was all done, Lent stood in the blood-soaked snow with the four bodies sprawled in pieces around him.
Finally feeling a sense of accomplishment, Lent climbed aboard the ship and made his way below deck. Sounds of moaning and agony filled the cold ship. Inside, cages were stacked one on top of another, just like in his dream. Grabbing a set of keys, Lent went over and began to unlock all of the cages. Lent watched as the people rushed out and made their way to the upper deck. He guessed there were about fifty cages all together, each carrying twenty people or so. 'That's almost a thousand people! What were the Sarafan planning to do with these slaves?' Lent wondered.
After each cage was opened, and all the people had left, Lent made his way to the upper deck and was greeted by a thousand faces. Their arms reached out to touch him, "Thank you! You saved me. Thanks! We all owe you!" they cried out. "Go to your homes, go to your families, and know that you do not owe your lives to me, you owe them to the one who sent me." "And who sent you?" one asked. "Kain, the vampire balance guardian destined to rule all of Nosgoth," Lent answered proudly. "We have nowhere to go, the Sarafan took all from us," came their protests. Lent answered, "Then tear this ship apart and use its wood and metal to build a town right here. Start a new life, build new homes, and tell your children so they might tell their children; you owe your life to Kain." "What is your name good sir?" "Lent." "Bless you, bless you, Sir Lent."
Lent made his way through the crowd. It was difficult, their out-stretched arms blocked his view, the crowds of people said many praises and thanks. "Sir Lent, the living Saint. Hail Saint Lent." But Lent was no longer interested in them, he had done his job. He ignored their praise and made his way to the snowy ground. Lessa had to be found. Whatever it was that possessed her, Nerayan or Demon, it now had Lent to deal with. Meanwhile, far away, Izael was muttering to himself in frustration, "Dammit, every time I look away, Lessa gets into trouble. No doubt she's run into the very same group she tried to distract away from me and Jessie, which means she is probably being held at the Keep right now. Any suggestions on how do we get her out of there?"

The Grotto… Kour had heard tales of the Deva, of her dwelling underground, but he had passed them off as just that… tales of myth without substance. Now the tales were truth. 'Ironic,' Kour thought. He should have paid more attention. As they cleared the forest, the air grew colder and distant fog gave way to a view Kour had not seen in a long time. The mountains… silent, unforgiving, majestic and cruel… he reveled at the inherent contradiction. He loved to breathe the cool, fresh air and regretted not spending more time here. The climb up the mountain served difficult for the horses. Kour and Orugarde would have to leave them behind at the next plateau.
As they rode, Kour's thoughts lingered on the timing of the Nerayan emergence. "Why now? We've been at 'war' for so long, why this time in particular?" The words cascaded through Kour's mind to no conclusion. They reached the final plateau. "The horses can go no further, we'll have to go on foot." Orugarde dismounted while Kour hooked the reins to a nearby outcrop. "The entrance to the Grotto is up ahead, we should reach it before dusk."

The thing that was Lessa was getting mad. The mind of Lessa was stronger than it had expected. It constantly assaulted her mind to get her to tell her where her friends were, and of their weaknesses, but she with-held the information from them. All the thing could hear was an old song, and it was driving it mad. No matter. It could sense where they were roughly and so it headed that way. No doubt her blasted mount would be there. That thing would be harder to fool, it had nearly warned Lessa that they were coming but, luckily, it had run in fear. As the thing that was Lessa walked, it sensed a mortal behind following, but it was of no consequence. Finally it came to a forest and could see trees that had been newly felled, probably by that horse. It smiled. There was a fire in a small cave in the center, and around the fire it could make out the forms of the ones it wanted. 'Their dream of defeating us will be over soon,' it thought at Lessa, and it smiled at her cry of anger. It would wait until they felt safe...then destroy them.