Chapter 2
Bringing Back the Black
drip... drip... drip... drop...
The cave was dark and damp. Rain and thunder echoed through the stone clearing, which was home to a small, humble house and a lone campfire. Reaper sat illuminated only by the flames of the fire and the small lantern placed on a flat stone next to him. He wrote in his journal, recording the findings and events of the brothers' journey through this strange land to the south.
Diligently as he writes, he stays wary of his surroundings, so that his siblings can rest easy, as it was his first watch. He looks over in the direction of the house. The lights inside went out quite a while ago. Leaving the three in near pitch-black darkness. His studies of these beings, such as Marcelene, would suggest that they have desperately walked into her trap to consume them, or perhaps worse, enthrall them into her service. Despite her pleasant demeanor after the small scrimmage, Reaper felt on high alert...
Earlier in the house.
Scorcher's eyes were sparkling with wonder, from the floor of the den as Reaper and Marcelene sat on the couch.
"Wow, Marcelene! So... that means you're technically dead?"
"That's right. All dead, all powerful, all badass." She grins with a wink.
Reaper turns to her. "Vampires are quite rare where we come from. The ones I've heard about certainly wouldn't invite us to their lair so quickly..."
"Well, you're not wrong... I wouldn't say vampires are rare here though. Not if you know where to look." Marcelene said, sharpening her bass-axe. "You guys just seemed totally lost and unfamiliar. Although the two of you reminded me of this dude I like to pull pranks on, so I thought it would be a waste to leave you guys out in the rain... So, what are you guys doing out here anyway? Where are you from?"
Scorcher smiles and looks excited to speak, but before he does, Reaper gives him a stony, vacant look that he knows all too well means "keep your mouth shut." He had planned for something like this. A situation where his younger sibling nearly blurts out their true intentions, and knew just what to say. He turns to her with an upbeat, hopeful expression. "We are looking for our friend." He checks her face for any sense of doubt. "He took us in off the street and has raised us from toddlers. We got recently separated and got tired of waiting for him to return. We came across a few clues that brought us to the south." Marcelene raises an eyebrow inquisitively. "Oh, yeah? Well, I doubt I've seen them. I don't meet people so much. What does he look like?"
"He's quite an old fellow, grumpy too if you can believe it. He's about knee height to you and walks with a staff," Reaper said, shooting a glance at Scorcher.
"Big ears too, and creepy yellow eyes." Scorcher giggled, catching on with his brother. "Hmmmm... nope, don't think so... I suppose I'll keep an eye out for you though." "We appreciate it." Reaper said conclusively. "I appreciate the hospitality so far; you've been quite pleasant since we fought." He stood up, motioning for them to head back to Beast at camp. Scorcher's stomach growled. "Is it finally time to eat? I hope so. I'm sure Beast has finished cooking by now." "What!? I thought it was your turn to cook this time!" "No. You just really don't want to eat fish. You always think I'm cooking." "Damn it! I hate that you're always right!" He runs out the door, probably hoping to grab whatever leftover soup is left before Beast steals it all.
"Your face heals quickly, by the way," Marcelene teased.
"Ha!" He feels his face where the once raised scratch is fully closed and almost fading back into his skin.
"It comes in handy with the company I keep."
"Oooh, I see... You like it rough, huh? I think I can work with that..." She floats around him, looking at him from head to toe.
"Very funny. I meant my brothers' roughhousing, though. No offense, but I prefer my bed warm and soft. Although I'm not known to shy away from the cold..." He closes in, stopping her, with them trailing inches from each other.
Their dark raven hair falls in front of their vision, blocking out any distraction. Marcelene stares deeply into his dark sapphire eyes.
Marcelene's nerve buckles, and she blushes.
"Woah! N-not so fast!" She shoves him away.
She sees his lips move as if he were mouthing words.
'All...time' ... That's all she could make out.
"Oh geez, relax. I was just kidding. You've been teasing the three of us all night."
"I didn't expect you to counter me like that." She brushes herself off, calming down. "You seem a lot sharper than your brothers."
"...Someone has to take care of us." He smiles and shrugs. "Well, anyway... I should get back before Beast eats my share."
Reaper waves and moves to open the door.
"Well, if you find yourselves lost or stuck, I guess I don't mind opening my cave up to you guys again. You guys aren't too lame. And don't worry, I won't prank you guys while you're asleep. I have some... self-control." She giggles.
"I appreciate it, but we need to keep watch up anyway... Got to keep the boys disciplined."
"Ooo... so tough and scary," she floats back to her couch. "And try not to get that pretty face messed up." She said smiling.
"We'll meet again, and next time don't hold back. I want to see how much I've improved."
"All right, you asked for it." Her demeanor from the couch oozes menace.
Reaper waves and walks towards the flickering flames and the bickering of his siblings.
The beast wakes to a nudge from a boot.
"Your turn, Beast. It's been about three hours."
"Alright... Alright..." He stands and towers over his brother's head with his own. "Get some rest, then." He rubs the grog out of his eyes and sits on the stone in Reaper's place.
Reaper nods in approval and lies down in his quarters. "See you tomorrow.."
He grunts at the stone and begins rummaging through his pack.
He moves a few items around.
Oil for maintenance,
Canteen of water.
Journal,
Red and blue potion,
And pulls out his large chunk of nether crystal and checks its condition. It's pristine, just as he found it.
After a while of inspecting and waiting, he senses a presence. "Finally.." He whispers.
He gets up and paces the far edge of the cave, following the feelings energy. Behind a large stalagmite, the ground begins to rumble and shift.
A green minion pit emerges from the shifting stone. Pale green light emanates upwards, and out pops five well-equipped greens, who look overjoyed to be, once again, in their master's presence. "Great Master! Decay, Bile, Shrubs, Vanish, Nix! Here!"
"Quiet!" he corrects in a hushed urgency.
The minions widened their eyes and gathered around them, awaiting instructions.
"Good... Now you five, find me a secluded cavern in this cave and show me when you have found it." The minions' skin hypnotically melts into the backdrop of the cave. Only the dim light of their eyes could be detected, other than their stench, of course...
He returns to camp to see his brothers still sleeping soundly. He retrieves the chunk of nether crystal from his pack. He leaves the light of the campfire and adjusts his eyes to the dark. He feels a tug on his belt bag and looks down to see Bile urging him to follow.
He finds a crevasse just large enough to squeeze his imposing figure through. The minions await on the other side, eagerly awaiting the next command. This section of the cave has no ceiling; moonlight streaks in, illuminating the cavern.
Beast tosses the crystal into the center of the clearing. Immediately it reacts. Corrupting the stone below it. Beast feels the concentrated evil energy release and commune with his presence. A pillar of crystal protrudes, and the greens start happily dancing around it, knowing the ritual well. Beast catches Decay and throws him to the top of the pillar. He radiates his presence into him, taking over his mind and body...The minions follow, their form completely corporeal. Entering under the house through a large, loose floorboard, they scan the house.
The vampire seems to be out at the moment. Loot the place for treasure, but leave no trace. Bring anything of use to me, and if I don't take it, put it right back.
The minions scatter, and Beast moves swiftly into the kitchen and dining room. His minion form gives him enhanced senses that make him especially useful as a burglar.
He spots a red and white striped box on the table. Sniffing the box and opening it reveals them to be some sort of snack. Fried potatoes diced long and thin. They are untainted as well. He picks one up and licks it.
"Hmm, cold and dry... slightly salty. It's been at least an hour since these were prepared."
His minion's stomach growls...
Decay must not have eaten for days since it made the dig all the way up here to the surface.
The other four come in and out of the kitchen, bringing knick-knacks and things of any value. Beast turns down almost all of them, except one.
Bile brings him a scroll. Intrigued, he opens it. It is titled "Map of Ooo" and marks many locations, including this cave and the Ice Kingdom nearby.
He dismisses him and motions for him to keep looking.
Very pleased with himself, he skips off to loot more.
"Master... please... so hungry..."
Pathetically, Decay grovels in his mind. Beast turns back to the fries on the table and thinks for a moment...
"These don't seem to be part of the diet a 'vampire queen' would eat. I suppose I'll indulge you. She probably won't miss them."
Beast allows Decay to move and eat the fries.
And he does so viciously, losing control of himself and gobbling them all up.
"What?! What was that? Who is there!" Marcelene burst through the door and hissed.
The minions go camo immediately, but not before she can get a glimpse.
"Dad? My fries!! Not again! I'll kill you, you psycho!" She leaps and swings where she saw the form, but all she meets is empty space.
"AAAAAAAHHHHH! Where did you go? Come out so I can tear you apart!"
The minions swiftly and silently exit through the battered front door and sneak back to the crystal pillar.
Retaking his form, Beast dismisses his minions back to the pit and races back to camp. Hopefully, before anyone notices he was gone...
The moon emanates a blood-curdling red glow. Riding on his dire wolf with mace in hand, I leap over battling ice giants and minions. An icy red river flows down the hill as he charges upwards. The howling and crashing of steel approaches louder and louder. A huge pillar of evil energy explodes and protrudes into the sky.
"Reaper! Scorcher! Hang in there! I'm almost there!"
The hilltop is quiet. A slurry of snow and rain patters the ground. A stain of blood comes into view. Reaper lies in his blood, motionless, his body burned, and his fingers frozen.
The challenge echoed and faded into silence. Slowly, the wind began to pick up. Beast knelt beside him and rolled him onto his back. Reaper's eyes still shone with a faint glow of mana. The wind surrounded them, howling in fury. A voice rang in his ears, commanding him. An image dominated his vision: a golden owl screeching.
"Youre Alone"
The icy ground cracks apart, and reapers body starts to fall into the chasm. He jumps to grasp his arm just in time. The wind explodes into a hurricane of snow, ice, fire, and ash. It closes in on them with no mercy.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaah!" Beast jolts awake from his bedroll. With a small panic, he looks around and feels his surroundings slowly sink in. The faint chirping of birds can be heard coming from the cave's entrance. As well as the playful clashing of steel from what must be his brothers. Dull blue light illuminates the area. Dawn has arrived, and camp has been broken except for a small amount of his belongings, including his bedroll.
A small green inchworm narrates his moments as he crawls across Beast's bedroll and blanket. "Wee.. woo... wee.. woo"
It lifts itself on its back half, vibrating and chanting "wooOoOoOooOoOoo".
"Insolence!" He cries and strikes the worm off his quarters.
He rubbed his face and stood up. "Just another stupid dream..." he muttered, picking up his share of the load and attaching it to his pack. He looked back at the vampire's house and compulsively checked his neck. "Hmph... She's got issues... It was pretty funny though."
The worm reapproaches him, with what he indicates as faint fervor. On his back, he mounts again, and chants and vibrates. Clearly an act of aggression. One that cannot be tolerated! He picks up his leather, nethersteel-gilded boot and crushes the worm like the... WORM IT IS. A surging hatred for it boils in his blood. He declares war on their kind in his heart.
He starts over to the boys. The steps of his boots echo, becoming lighter and lighter as he reaches the outside clearing.
Reaper and Scorcher are sparring with each other, axe against sword. Reaper appears to be coaching him on the awareness of his blade, saving the flames for his opponent rather than the area around him.
"Breakfast?" Beast asks, interrupting the fight.
"No! No breakfast. You guys ate way too much of the rations last night. If we want to eat today, we have to earn it. Not to mention you stole the rest of the mead, you drunk." Reaper pushes his finger into his chest at the last word and past him to grab his things. He smirked and shrugged. He watched Scorcher approach and stopped him as he tried to pass.
Beast looked him straight in the eye. "Do I still have your vote?"
"Hmm... I'm not sure if the mead was worth it... I don't know, Beast. Maybe Reaper is right?"
"Listen, guy, you didn't see what I saw. That 'Ice King' is the only sentient being around for miles. It's actually depressing how much dormant potential is wasted there."
"You said you saw creatures there, right? I would love to eat some real meat... I guess it's at least worth an afternoon's look."
"Hell yeah, that's the spirit! Now go get your pack." He smacks him on the back, sending him stumbling into the cave.
Rejoining Reaper in the cave, he is fully dressed in his traveling gear. He pulls his heavy bag to his back and nods expectantly to his brother.
"Not so fast. I have a surprise for you two," Beast says, brandishing the scroll.
"What is... that?" Reaper suspiciously looks at the scroll.
"It's a map of the area! I found it while snooping around the Ice King's castle."
"Really?" They crowd around Beast and study the map.
" 'The Land of Ooo' is a strange name... You've had this since last night? And you never brought it up at dinner?"
"I was busy cooking... and drinking... by the time you two got back from that demon." Beast affirmed, trying to deflect all suspicion.
"Well, regardless..." Reaper takes the map from Beast and places it on the stone table and lights his lantern.
"Let's use this to figure out where to explore next. Where should we go, boys?"
"We've already decided, goodie goodie. We're marching to tour the Ice Kingdom." Beast aggressively marks the point on the map.
"I see you're still drunk. That's a waste of time right now AND could escalate into conflict when we don't even have Gnarl over here yet."
Scorcher shuffles nervously. "I mean it doesn't have to..."
The other two turned to him. Beast looked with approval, Reaper with utter disbelief.
He stutters, "Ww-well, we all know that magic has to come from some sort of source, right... If the Ice King built that entire mountain into his palace using just magic... Then he must have a large well of power of some kind... perhaps similar to the tower heart?"
Beast slaps his leg. "Exactly! Well put. The knowledge of it could prove vital for our efforts. And as I said last night, just like last time, we can enter completely neutral with the worst consequence being his madman ranting."
"Wait. Scorch, you can't, in all seriousness, actually be considering prospecting that mountain as the cornerstone for the new tower's heart? You realize what the Beast's goal is in going there? For it to be our home."
I think you're right, Reaper. Don't get me wrong. I don't want to live there. I'm more focused on the easy pickings that he is promising. While gathering information on whatever makes the fool so powerful. I'm hungry and am partial to the seal that your mom makes. Let's go get some.
Reaper gives a disapproving glare to Beast. "I see you both need another lesson on how I'm always right. Fine. It's a learning opportunity."
Beast and Scorcher high-five each other, laughing, and start heading outside as Reaper clears the table. He puts everything away, then pauses... He opens another large satchel and pulls out a few artifacts before stopping at a large gauntlet. He runs his hands over the pitch-black draconic steel. It reacts to his touch, revealing a mask-like image glowing fiery red, as if approving of his presence.
"Sorry, goodie..." Reaper looks over to Beast a few paces away.
"Just in case things get hairy, I claim birthright." He motions for him to hand over the gauntlet.
"Hmpf..." He tosses it to him. "Your scheme worked out just as planned, didn't it?"
"What are you on about now?" Beast scoffs.
"Don't think I haven't seen through it. I don't know what you're planning yet, but I just hope that it's worth burning another day of progress when the Nethertower is collapsing and Gnarl is on the verge of abandoning us."
You aren't the only one with a stake in this. It's my family too.
"Whatever, let's just get this over with."
Beast slides his hand into it. When his hand reaches the center, the gauntlet shimmers.
It, seemingly in pleasure, shrinks to fit his hand perfectly and roars in a fiery yellow as he clutches his fist...