Chapter 4
"You won't amount to anything..."
"Who are you?!"
"You'll never be as good as Kaiban..."
"Answer me!"
"When you return to that battlefield you will DIE..."
"Shut up!"
Green Warrior struggled with the mysterious voice, trying to escape the darkness that surrounded him. Suddenly, a white path appeared. Cautiously, Green continued forward. He trudged along this straight path for what felt like days on end. He was rather impatient, but he continued to walk along the path until suddenly, he saw a monstrous tower. It was easily over 1,000 feet tall, with a circular roof. Almost as suddenly as how the path and tower appeared, he was on the rooftop of said tower. He could make out a figure from the shadows around him.
"Why is it so damn dark in here?" Green asked aloud. He then pointed to the man, or creature, in the shadows. "Hey you, get out here! Show yourself!"
Green would have been prepared for anything. Conn, Kimm, Legionaires, Nulgathians, dragons, trolls, Dage himself, the list goes on. But he wasn't prepared for what he witnessed then.
The now completely visible figure was in the light and smirking evilly at Green. He was a pirate, a cutlass at his side and his left hand on the flintlock pistol on his right hip. His hair was black, and in a long ponytail, with two bangs coming out over his left eye.
"Hello Green," this familiar, yet somehow unfamiliar figure chuckled. "Been a while, huh?"
"You're not him...No way," Green said as he looked down and shook his head, as if the action would dispel the apparition before him.
"You're a freakin sharp boy now, ain't ya?" God, it even TALKED like him.
"I know you aren't real,"
"Then explain how I'm here," the ghostly image of his kin replied back.
"Just shut up!" Green said clutching his ears, trying to stop the sound of HIS voice from entering them.
"Heh, well ima just do what I came here to do...or what you came here to do," the pirate said, pointing at Green.
Green could hear his voice even clearer now.
"Do what?!" Green asked spitefully.
"You know pretty damn well why the hell you're freakin here, shrimp!" He tossed Green his gun.
Green looked at the item questioningly after he caught it.
The pirate let out an exasperated groan and pointed at Green once more.
"The hell are ya doing kid? Shoot me already! You know you want to!"
Green dropped the gun in shock.
"I'd never want to do that!" He exclaimed back, shuddering a bit.
"Oh please! You always were jealous of me! Come on now! Do it! You're here to kill me, so why don't ya!"
Green's eyes went wide. Was that the real reason why he was here? Was his being inferior to him the cause of his search? Did he want him alive? Or...did he want him dead?
"Tsk, pesky runt..." With that the pirate seemingly disappeared, only to reappear with his face right next to Green's.
"This is why you could never beat me. You always..." Green didn't notice, but the pirate's cutlass was lodged in his stomach.
"Hesitate..." He could hear the spite in his words. He could feel the sting of the blade even more as the pirate twisted the cutlass in his gut before Green finally gave in and fell to the ground.
He could barely speak. He looked up at the pirate.
"Kai...Kaiban..."
"Green wake up! Wake up, kid!"
"Huh?" Green suddenly shot up awake.
"A dream?" Green asked Conn. It was little after midnight, and Conn was an early sleeper.
"Yeah..." Replied the tired and somewhat pissed off Conn.
"You were talking out loud. It woke me up, and I thought it was a normal dream until..."
"Until?"
"You started groaning in pain. I got up to check on you, and your face was contorted in so much anguish and hurt it was unbearable...then you said his name..."
"Kaiban..."
"I heard everything you said...something about killing him..."
Green fell silent.
"Is that why you're really here?" Conn asked, a stern, yet worried look on his face.
"I...I don't know..."
"I see...Just remember, he's the only family you have left, and a good friend to all of us," Conn said as he went back to his mat and slept once more.
"You DESPICABLE!..."
Punch
"MEAN!..."
Uppercut
"TRAITOROUS!..."
Another punch
"SNEAKY!..."
Right hook
"UNDERHANDED!..."
Left hook
"UNCARING!..."
Kick to the gut
"JERK!"
Headbutt.
He almost forgot how, no matter how much more powerful he was,an angry Kimm was always a threat. Her power when angry was close to Nulgath's. Not past or equal to Nulgath's, but pretty close. Her kicks hurt the most too, thank God there was only one.
Kick to the head.
Spoke too soon.
"And that was for good measure!" Kimm yelled out as she knocked down one of Nulgath's Demon Hunters.
"I'm pretty sure I deserved everything before that kick for freakin good measure...that crap was OD," Kaiban said as he got up, rubbing the back of his head. She almost broke one of his horns.
"Shut up...jerk!" Kimm said as she crossed her arms and turned around with a pout.
"Look I can explain everything," Kaiban said as he was trying, and failing, to make Kimm less angry at him.
"Damn Kai, you sure are great with the ladies," another voice teased from the tent's entrance.
"Shut it Bird Boy! Unless you want me to mention you and little miss Greiha-"
"Sh-shut up! Is that anyway to treat the guy who trained you in how to use those katana?" A blushing Revontheus interrupted, obviously trying to avoid the topic, pointing to the katana strapped to Kaiban's hip.
"Those aren't them, worms for brains!" Kaiban said poking Revontheus' forehead with enough force to push him back a bit.
"These are a gift from Nulgath," he continued, "the one you gave me is in my tent,"
"OUR tent," Bird Boy emphasized.
"Eh whatever! It don't matter! Sheesh dude, simple mistake!" Replied Kaiban.
"It does matter! Only a lazy bum like you wouldn't care to correct your speech! Let alone a simple mistake!" Revontheus fiercly rebutted.
"I knew it! You're still mad cause of the time I sliced you good during traini-"
"AHEM!" Interrupted the ignored, angry, hopefully not PMSing Kimm, glaring daggers at both accomplished warriors. Who were both shaking in fear.
"Yo Bird Boy...why you shaking?" Kaiban asked, eyes-...erm nose? Towards Kimm. The blindfold made it hard to tell if he was looking at her, or could just smell or sense her presence.
"You told me stories of this girl, remember? How when she was angry she took out half an undead army, and about the one time at the river when she-"
"Don't remind me," Kaiban said, trying to interrupt the memory before it replayed in his mind. That was so nasty. He didn't know you could do that with a fish's head. Definitely OD.
"And about what happened to Sharkbait on that ship in Lolosia..."
"I never wanted sushi ever again after that..."
"Yikes...Uhh I should go now..." Revontheus said as he flew away, and rather quickly might I add, out the tent flap and far away from the pair.
Revontheus suddenly flew back in.
"Oh yeah, and uhmm if I'm not at the tent tonight I'll be with uhhh...you know," he said as he blushed and flew away faster than before.
Kaiban inwardly chuckled. A fallen angel, blushing like a little girl. And that angel trained him. Kaiban then relized his current situation once more.
"Can I explain now, please?" Kaiban asked, cautiously moving towards Kimm, when suddenly the tent flap opened once more.
"Rev, really? Freakin get goi-" Kaiban stopped as he saw who was at the entrance to the tent.
"L-L-L-Lord Dilligaf!" Kaiban stuttered out, giving the general a salute. Kimm followed his example to avoid trouble.
"Rally. Outside. Now," Dilligaf simply said.
"Kaiban, follow me," he finished before leaving without another word.
Kaiban turned to Kimm.
"Look, this is important, I'll explain myself later okay?"
Kimm then shoved him out of the way.
"It better be a freakin good explanation," she said spitefully as she walked out, arms still crossed.
"We're going to have to sign up to be officially part of the Legion. It'll be easier to have at least one side fighting with us," Conn said as he walked with Green Warrior towards Dage's headquarters.
Green ignored him, however, because the dream kept replaying in his mind.
"You always hesitate..."
"You won't amount to anything..."
"...you will DIE..."
"Green!"
"Huh?" Green snapped out of his daze.
"We're here," Conn said pointing to a huge black tent with glowing blue trim, outside stood two Undead Bruisers, guarding the tent. The pair entered the tent only to see Dage sitting on a throne, discussing things with another soldier. This soldier had angel wings, and wore intricate black armor with glowing light blue runes floating atop the side of the shoulder pads. The armor also had a dark green gem in the middle, and under it another glowing blue light. He had on a helmet that completely covered his face, with four glowing light blue eye holes. On the helmet were two small wings where the ears would be, an untied dark blue ribbon with light blue writing wrapping around the helm wings, and a glowing blue halo in between the wings.
Suddenly Dage took notice of the two intruders.
"Aranx, you may leave," Dage said with a wave of his hand. The angel then bowed his head and flew out of the tent.
"Come forward," Dage commanded the two.
"State the reason for your intrusion," he continued.
"W-We're h-here to j-j-join the L-L-L-Legion," choked out Conn. This man...no, not a man, a monster. This monster sent chills down Conn's spine.
"Hah, the Legion has no need for weak fools like you," he said pointing to Conn.
"You, however," He continued, pointing his finger to Green this time,"You could be a great asset to us in the future,"
"What must I do, then, to join the Legion?" Green asked.
"Simple," Dage replied, "Give me your soul,"
Kimm was getting nervous. She hated rallys. She always did. Whether they were the corny, "do good!" rallys back at the academy in swordhaven, or the inspirational ones in Battleon, she hated them. This one was no different. She stood amidst the whole of Nulgath's army. She was surrounded by Bloodfiends, Dreadfiends, Infernal fiends, Neofiends, Vampires, little dark makai, and every other Nulgath soldier including the occasional mercenary. A million forces of evil and even some thousand forces of good were in the army. On a stage in front of all of these adventurers, monsters, and mercenaries were the Archfiend and his most loyal subjects themselves. Some of the people on the stage didn't surprise her at all, like Klunk, Dilligaf, Revontheus, and this warrior lady Neesha, who was very scantily dressed. She was the closest seated to Nulgath. No surprise.
The people that DID surprise her though were people you really wouldn't expect up there. The first to surprise her was this quiet, sweet looking girl, she had short black hair and blue eyes, and wore the robes Nulgath's worshipers usually wore, kinda like what Kaiban had on, except the straps on her arms and belts were grey, not dark red. She also had this metal thing around her neck, kinda like what dogs have for a leash, but it had a chain on it instead. Whether the chain was cut or not Kimm couldn't tell, because she was pretty far from the stage. The person next to the sweet-looking girl was weird. She wasn't even sure if he was human. Or if it was a he. He/she was this short little guy(or girl), with a hood on and a grey face. You couldn't see its nose or mouth, and it had glowing red eyes. He/she was so thin, and you couldn't see his arms or legs. Next to him was honestly something she couldn't believe. It was Kaiban. Kaiban was on stage. Like, what the heck? How? He's loyal and close enough to Nulgath to get a spot on stage? What has he been doing?
"Attention!" Nulgath called out from where he was seated on stage, his teeth completely visible from where Kimm stood. Kimm swore the guy never closed his mouth. Either that or he was always smiling.
"As you all know, we have lost the entrance to the Underworld to the traitorous Dage," as he said Dage's name, shouts of disgust and hatred came from the crowd. Klunk even stood up and yelled out, "SMASH DAGE FACE!" which sent everyone into a frenzy as they screamed and cheered and boo'd Dage.
What happened next honestly amazed Kimm. All Nulgath had to do was raise his hand, and every single person in the army fell deathly silent. They respected him that much.
"As I was saying, that Traitor surprised us with how many followers he had amassed over the years...He was fortunate. Fortunate to have even got a foothold in MY land, but now that we have seen the extent of his power, he has become... unfortunate," Nulgath said with a smile.
Cheers loudly rang from Nulgath's army once more, then they all fell silent again.
"Dage thinks his victory is an omen of MY defeat. He could not be any more wrong. Although Klunk's men were defeated and driven back, we were able to witness the extent of Dage's power, and shall I say... He. Is. NOTHING!"
Like a volcano, the cheers once more burst out of his soldiers and flowed out with chants of "Nulgath!" till they, once more, silenced.
"Although we now know the extent of his power, the loss came with many casualties. Even three of some of my most trusted generals have fallen... and for that I say, Dage will pay!"
Shouts of agreement poured forth before another silence engulfed the attentive crowd.
"That is why, today we are here to recognize my three newest generals. You all know of these people to my right. Lord Dilligaf, King Klunk, and Revontheus,"
At the mention of their names, each stood and greeted the crowd in their own way. Revontheus flew out of his chair and over the crowd as he received cheers, Klunk jumped off of the stage and in front of the crowd and hyped them up by chanting "Nulgath Nation" over and over again, and Dilligaf simply raised one of his twin blades which sent the crowd into a bigger frenzy than they had already been in.
After they all finished, Nulgath continued, "And you all know of my sweet Neesha," the lady next to Nulgath stood and bowed, causing cheers to erupt once more from the army. The men probably cheered cause of how little she wore, and the women probably cheered cause they looked up to her and her strength. Kimm remained silent though. She was in awe of how wild, passionate, and dedicated Nulgath's army was.
"Now! You will be introduced to the next three generals in my army!"
Everyone patiently watched the three candidates to the left of Nulgath.
"First is Skew, my main enchanter. He will be in charge of the creation of weapons and armors, and the back up defense force," Skew then stood up and bowed before returning to his seat.
"Next is Greihart," the sweet looking girl who was sitting proper then stood up, "she is one of Revontheus' most loyal followers," at that both Bird Boy and Greihart blushed,"and she is also incredibly loyal to our army. She will be in charge of reconnaissance and scouting," with that, Greihart calmly walked up to the edge of the stage before suddenly yelling,"KILL DAGE!" while pumping a fist into the air. The army, of course cheered fervently. She then returned to her seat and sat down, looking proper once more. Kimm had to admit, Nulgath had an interesting army.
"Lastly, Kaiban, one of Revontheus' pupils, and one of my most successful Demon Hunters, will be assigned to lead the main defense force of our camp, and the secondary strike force," as he finished, Kaiban stood from his seat and waved to the crowd, gaining cheers just like the other generals, before once more sitting down.
Was Kaiban really that powerful now?
"Now that that was settled, Nulgathians! Prepare yourselves for victory!" Nulgath announced, "Soldiers to the armories! Generals, follow me!" And with that everyone left to go to where they were assigned. Except for Kimm. She had yet to discover where she was supposed to go, so she just went back to her tent.
Her tent was on the complete other side of camp, so it took her a while to get there. When she entered her tent, a surprise awaited her. It was Kaiban.
"Why are you here?" She asked.
"The meeting was just adjourned, so I ran here so that I could finally explain myself,"
"Fine then," Kimm said somewhat arrogantly, "Proceed,"
A/N: that's all lol thanks for reading xD R&R and have a nice day :D