[centre][h3]Ialu[/h3] Level 3 Demigod of Avarice, 9 Might & [i]Invidia, the Liaison Level 25 Hero, 40 Khookies[/i] & [colour=Green][b][i]Mirtagn,The Glaring Serpent Level 12 Hero, 23 Khookies[/i][/b][/colour] & [colour=red][b]Kanros, The Warhound Level 1 Demigod, 4 Might[/b][/colour] & [color=black][i][b]Grandmaster Thulemiz, Son of the Celestial Above, Champion of Chaos, Lich Lord Level 30 Hero, 65 Khookies[/b][/i][/color][/centre] [hider=Sumary] [list] [*] Ialu marches his men to Garakai [*] Thulemiz and the Silent Six take control of the undead dragons without notifying their foes [*] Ialu tortures a deserter then kills him [*] Thulemiz brings the deserter back to life - he is Bjorn son of Dahud, and he is a pretty cool guy really [*] The Episode of Bjorn (really, a must read) [*] The undead, 'led' by Mirtagn, appear over Ialu and his forces [*] Invidia and his Monks sense that something is terribly wrong and race to warn Ialu [*] Kanros dives down at Ialu while Bjorn gives the Warlord a friendly hug [*] Ialu and Kanros go head to head while the undead dragons begin their assault [*] Mirtagn summons more dragons and the battles the undead horde in the skies [*] Ialu gets angry and destroys all the undead dragons, as well as a good number of his own [*] Ialu and Kanros clash again and Ialu breaks the Blade of Chaos on Kanros' head, causing a tremendous explosion and terrible damage to both [*] Mirtagn chases down the Silent Six in an attempt to apprehend one of them, but Thulemiz chases him off, only for Sauranath's avatar to appear [*] Thulemiz and Sauranath talk for a bit before Thulemiz escapes [*] Appearing near Ialu and Kanros, he seizes what broken shards of the Blade he can and demands the rest of Ialu [*] Alfid is attacked by Ryak and eventually killed by Invidia [*] It turns out that Ialu is dead and Thulemiz proceeds to tear out his soul, only for Ialu to return to life and burn the Lich away [*] Thulemiz escapes just before Invidia gets to him, but Sauranath's curse falls upon the Lich and he loses all his powers [*] Invidia carries Ialu off to heal him...and maybe put an end to his constant emotional outbursts. Teenager Ialu will be no more! (Maybe) >.> [/list] [/hider] [center][i][b][colour=Red]Battle of Dragon Fall - The Clash of Gods[/colour][/b][/i][/center] Ialu marched down the dusky path at the head of his procession of warriors, rehearsing their orders and amusing himself with idle chatter. He was as vain and prideful as ever; the compliments and worship of those that followed him were visibly pleasing, and he much preferred the company of his own hunters to those of his newfound allies. Invidia and his monks were no doubt somewhere nearby. They didn't seem to like travelling in plain view on the well trodden paths, though that was fair enough. He wouldn't complain about them scouting ahead, as he assumed they were doing. Mirtagn and his horde of skeletal dragons were somewhere behind but they would be catching up soon, his forces being all grouped well before they got far into Garakai's wretched lands. The traitors were treacherous and Ialu fully expected some sort of devious ploy or ambush to be in wait. Aztoc surely knew that his master would return to assert his dominance once more, shortly before slaughtering the chaos dragons and putting their entire pit to the torch. Perhaps he would put any surviving members of this ill-fated rebellion inside the dragon pits when he set them ablaze. He wondered if Sauranth would approve. And so Ialu plotted the demise of his foes in his mind. All the while, however, his foes were at work - and from where he may not have expected. Not too far back, the contingent of skeletal dragons flew, beating their empty wings in flight. It was certainly not the bones keeping them in the air, but that inner spirit of dragon-kind - so very different from the souls and spirits of those creatures imbued with souls by Escre. Thulemiz knew this, for he could sense it personally as he glided down towards the great undead beasts, flanked by five of the Silent Six and Kanros further behind. These souls were certainly unlike those of the CimeXenos, and they were nothing like those of men or Outsiders, or even Uri. He could feel the power radiating from them, and his necromantic energies seemed to almost purr at this undead treasure, his for the taking. They would do very well as a distraction. [colour=black][b][i]'Prepare thee all,'[/i][/b][/colour] he commanded the Silent Six, his deathly voice echoing in their mind. He had sensed, over the days and weeks he commanded the Outsiders, that they were very reluctant servants. They certainly did not follow him out of any particular loyalty or love, it was truly nothing more than the prospect of forever ending the Chaotic One's curse of darkness. He wondered what would happen once that was done... Shaking off the thoughts, he synchronised his energies with theirs and began weaving his magic. Carefully at first, so as not to disturb or alert Mirtagn or the other undead. One by one the dragons were plucked away from the fragile control Mirtagn had over them. Thulemiz knew he would have been capable of accomplishing the feat alone, but he did not wish to over-extend his new powers lest they fail him, so he allowed himself to lean on the support of the five Silent Brothers. With the dragons completely under their control, he transferred those he had captured over to the Silent Six, commanding them to keep the skeletal dragons behind their 'leader' until he signalled them to attack. With that, Thulemiz took his leave of them and descended further down towards the ground. Since his first hunt, Invidia had always lead his monks down the less-traveled path. Despite the new alliance between the Sanguin Communion and the forces of Ialu, they seldom traveled together. Normal men had something of a giveaway presence on them. Those attuned to magic could sense them in one way or another. All outsiders, for instance, could faintly see the outlines of humans past terrain, detecting the signatures of Vowzra upon them even now, long after their creation. Escre heard and felt the beat of any soul in miles. Invidia was not that lucky, but with the organic augments gained from his Lifeblood infusion, he had gained a sense of smell. The same was true for the other monks, but in a wooded area like this, with so many smells, it was difficult for mere humans to detect those they weren't familiar with. Still, all shared an uneasy feeling, and increased their levels of caution. Brown robes blended in with the sea of trunks, and footsteps softer than a puppy's fur made no noise. Ialu had told Invidia about his misgivings, and the outsider had agreed that this would be the perfect place for an ambush. Still wary of the enemy's unknown magical edge, the monks kept a close watch as they drifted through the trees like ghosts. In any case, Ialu's paranoia of some sort of ambush kept him on edge. Even as he boasted to Ryak about his past feats in some old skirmish or battle, his mind probed outwards as it was ever in search of hidden enemies. With a small startle he sensed something and immediately fell silent. Those nearest to him looked at him funny; it was usually impossible to shut up the warlord once he took to bragging about some conquest, though it wasn't as if anybody ever dared to silence him. "Is something wrong?" a warrior asked. "Enemies?" They were met with nothing for a few moments. In a casual tone, their God-King broke the silence, [b][color=Gold]"Do you hear that? The frenzied heartbeats and ragged breathing of a coward? Prey hides somewhere near; I can smell its fear.[/color][/b] He silently gestured towards a nearby tree. Understanding what he meant, several men drew their weapons quietly and began to creep forward. [b][color=Gold]"Nevermind, we've wasted enough time here,[/color][/b] he said. He could literally feel the wave of relief coming from the Garakain that hid behind the tree. It lulled him into false relief, tricking him into staying put rather than running for his life. Too bad that was only a ploy. The unfazed soldiers crept on knowing their warlord's words to be empty. Suddenly they were upon the Garakain deserter with weapons in hand, dragging him out before he could run away. They pinned him against the tree. Silently Ialu approached and with a snap of his finger severed the man's right arm. Blood spurted over the men that held him steadfast, though that was nothing new for the grizzled veterans. [b][color=Gold]"We really don't take kindly to deserters.[/color][/b] The soldier howled in pain but somehow still managed to choke out pleas for mercy. "I-I b-beg of you, king! I have a family, in the name of the gods-" Ialu dragged a finger across the deserter's stomache, his Wi slicing it open and eviscerating the coward. From the gash in his clothing entrails cascaded out. [b][color=Gold]"YOU WILL REFER TO ME AS GOD-KING!"[/color][/b] Ialu bellowed like a wounded boar, clearly enraged by the smallest of things. His warriors stepped back; when he got angry it was good to stay out of his way. They had all heard horror stories about what happened when he was only agitated, and right now his mouth was almost frothing... [b][color=Gold]"...and do not presume to mention the gods. I AM A GOD. The others seem content to be pathetic puppet masters or cowards hiding in the sky...BUT I AM HERE GRACING THIS LAND WITH MY PRESENCE AND I DEMAND RESPECT!"[/color][/b] With another flick of his wrist Ialu severed the man's other arm then finished the job by crushing his skull. Even Ryak seemed somewhat aghast. One of his more ruthless warriors tried to break the uncomfortable silence that followed and gauge the warlord's mood. He guffawed, "Too bad he just didn't get that you're now in control of this land." [b][color=Gold]"He does now. Nail his arms to a tree and have the fingers bent so as to point back to the Garakai; he seemed to have gotten lost out in those woods. Best not let any other deserters lose their way..."[/color][/b] Ialu let out an unsettling laugh, his hand straying to the scepter at his belt. [b][color=Gold]"Ryak...you look rather pale. Come now, you've seen far worse than this! Do the dead frighten you?"[/color][/b] Silent and concealing his presence, Thulemiz watched as the deserter was given a short speech before being ruthlessly killed. If Thulemiz had a face - and maybe he did - he would have smiled at Ialu's words to Ryak. If the dead did not frighten him now, he would certainly learn to fear very soon. As Ialu and his men walked away, he plucked the soul of the poor deserter from the air before it could escape to the Astral Home. Ialu had crushed the man's head and severed his arms, but healing a corpse was nothing for Thulemiz. Slowly, the nails dug themsleves out of his flesh and the holes closed. Severed arms reattached themselves and bones snapped into place, blood leapt off the ground and returned into the body and brain matter righted itself and the skull fit back into place. Before Thulemiz lay a body as perfect as could be - there was nothing so perfect as death. He slowly guided the soul back into its body. The eyes flew open and his arms flailed around for a few seconds before he sat up and looked around, dazed. Intelligence returned to his eyes and memories, and his death flashed before his eyes again and again. But there was no fear. [colour=black][b][i]'Rise, Bjorn son of Dahud, thine time is not yet come, thine existence is yet needed,'[/i][/b][/colour] and with that, Bjorn rose to his feet, feeling for the first time the inescapable need to obey everything his master dictated, [colour=black][b][i]'go and teach them to fear the dead.'[/i][/b][/colour] Stumbling forward in nothing but a cotton shirt and breeches, he certainly did not strike a very frightening figure. The real terror would be from realising the man was not dead, Thulemiz mused to himself. It would be quite funny to see how they reacted. Keeping himself concealed, he moved silently and swiftly from tree to tree, watching as Bjorn approached the first of Ialu's men. Would they notice him? How could they miss him was the question. They would certainly notice him when he fell upon the first of them and bit at any exposed area with sharp teeth and extraordinary strength. After Ryak responded by making some japes about Ialu being the craven (something that only one very close to the warlord would dare) the demigod at last regained track of time and ordered them to fall back into formation. So it was that they resumed their march down the road for a ways, some of them ambivalent to or even delighting in the savagery that had just occured, while some of the squeamish tried to avoid thinking about it. Better that man than them as far as they were concerned, and deserting your brothers in arms was worse than mere abandonment; it was putting them all in danger. It was only a few minutes later when they heard scuffling from behind and the warriors, Wi users all, sensed something approaching. Spinning to see some sort of wild man dressed in only light clothing charging at their rear, training kicked in. There were a hundred Strong Tribe hunters and they could all make a man's heart explode; it was easy to send someone crashing to the ground face first. Naturally, even with some being slow to react Bjorn didn't get too close. "Another deserter, eh?" asked one as he approached, using magic to flip the writhing man onto his back. "See what we did to your friend just a little way down the road? Not find yer courage 'til his screams stopped?" They laughed and one readied a spear for a quick execution next time, but then it sunk in. They realized that this man was dressed just like the one before, and looked like him too...it would seem that the dead man had a twin! Ialu would like this. Which one would he get to scream louder? 'Friend? Didn't see nobody down the road mates. I was jus' tryin' ta catch up with ya is all,' he attempted to get up, but their Wi kept his body down, 'if I'd 'eard 'is screams I would found'ja all sooner, no?' he laughed and tried to look up at them, maybe they'd share the joke. "You peasants ne'er learn...desert the army then think o' yerself a hero?" the soldier spat back. Seeing that the men had stopped and hearing an unnacceptable amount of chatting and laughter, a rather aggrevated Ialu was making his way back there. 'Oh no no sir! A hero? Me? I'd never think meself a hero sir, no,' he said, 'I seen many heroes in me time and none o' them looked like me. I think they looked more like..' he tried looking up but could not get his head very far up due to the pressure, 'I think they looked more like you sir, but I wouldn' know 'cause I can't bloody see ya can I?' [b][color=Gold]"What is the meaning of this?[/color][/b] came out a low voice, one that Bjorn would surely remember. It was the last one that he heard, after all. "Looks like another deserter, m'lord." Being referred to as a mere lord was starting to become insufficient; were that not one of his own men, Ialu might have pressed the issue...as is, he was done wasting time. He would make this quick. The hunters back away and released their hold over Bjorn as Ialu walked right up to the man. Mortals would quiver with fear at such a sight as the mighty warlord in all his ire. As the pressure removed itself, Bjorn got to his knees and looked up at the man who had killed him. He remembered very clearly what he had told him before he killed him. 'Really dunno how you can let 'im speak to you like that me God-Emperor God, sir,' he blabbered, 'really don' think it very nice of 'im at all God sir. You's here after all, gracin' us all wiv yer divine presence'n'all. Really think ya deserve more respect than jus' bein' called 'm'lord' m'God sir,' Bjorn managed a slight smile before bowing his head in respect. He really would have liked to stand up, but that part of him which was still very much alive and wished to stay alive told him that it was far better for him to get on Ialu's good side than otherwise. The moment that the meaning of the idiotic man's burbling became clear, the soldier that had spoken out visibly began to shake in fear and nervously back up. The warlord was in a foul temper and he had just butchered a man for calling him [i]king[/i], how would he react to one calling him a lord after that display? But Ialu didn't even focus on the meaning of Bjorn's words, he merely stared closer. The wording did sound familiar, though. Then it clicked. [b][color=Gold]"No, you fools...not another deserter, but the same one!"[/color][/b] They all instantly saw it now. 'Wha- wait what? Deserter? Same one? I ain' no deserter! I was comin' back. Got lost is all. Why's everyone callin' me a deserter?' Bjorn looked quite visibly crestfallen and afraid - though that was understandable given the fact that Ialu himself had just accused him of being both a deserter and a man he had only just killed. He wasn't answered directly; those with half a brain that might have jeered at him for getting 'lost' halfway back to Garakai were very confused now, and the more intelligent hunters were getting rather nervous. Ialu used Wi to grip the man by the throat and suspend him in the air, wracking his body and creating what would cause a great deal of agony. Ignoring what was just said, he voiced the thoughts of many of his men, [b][color=Gold]"I do not know what sort of black magic this is, but you shall tell me![/color][/b] Mixed in with the usual cruelty and rage in Ialu's eyes were a few of the demigod's more rare emotions...confusion, perhaps? Maybe a bit of panic? Most likely just some form of morbid curiosity. Upon being lifted into the air Bjorn let out a terrified scream and the memory of the pain Ialu had wreaked upon his body returned to him. 'No! Please, it hurts! It hurts!' he wailed in terror, 'please Lor-Lord God, I don't want to huuurrr...' his voice slowly quietened down and he looked around himself in shock. There was no pain. Before he could say or do much more, however, a great shadow fell across the land and the unmistakable body of Mirtagn appeared, followed by his undead horde. Bjorn looked up in awe, for he had never seen so many beings in flight, let alone deathless dragons. The undead dragons suddenly ceased flying above them all, merely hovering where they were, and Mirtagn stopped too. Perhaps he was confused as to why his dragons had suddenly stopped, perhaps he would put it down to Sauranath's will - for that was Ialu down there, would it not be wise to stop and join up once more with the great warlord? Hidden in nearby underbrush, a pair of monks watched. These partners had been the closest to the head of Ialu's forces from the beginning, and had witnessed, if not fully understood, the entire ordeal surrounding Bjorn. Though neither were outsiders, deprived of those magic-attuned eyes, the monks could sense a discrepancy surrounding the 'deserter'. Some sort of strange smell wafted through the air, and after Ialu's sudden observation pointed it out, the members of the Sanguine Communion made the connection. Only their order presided over bodily regeneration, and Bjorn had, with most definitive certainty, died. It took a different, abominable sort of magic to restore life after death. When the dead dragons soared overhead, the monks were already moving, darting through the underbrush to share their revelation. As they ran, they shifted into predator forms, spraying blood across the leaf litter and ferny plants, to cover more ground. In short order Invidia had been alerted, and the knowledgable outsider thought it a very real risk that whatever force reanimated Bjorn could also potentially return the undead dragons to their living state, transforming a massive host of allies into a devastating armada of adversaries. Recalling its scouting parties, the body of Sanguine Communion monks made a beeline for Ialu's position, hoping that it would not be too late. Ialu grew visibly enraged as the man pleaded for mercy, refusing to answer the question, and then...nothing. The pain that would have brought a giant to his knees weeping did nothing to this one. A glimpse of the sudden stop of all the undead dragons and appearance of Mirtagn was relieving for him, though he did wonder whether Mirtagn or Sauranth would approve of this. Bah, he had more important things to worry about! This seemingly immortal man was concerning; what sort of dark powers had the Garakains been hiding from him all of this time? Ialu slammed Bjorn back to the ground with his Wi, still awaiting an answer. Even as the Sanguine Communion raced to warn their ally, the undead dragons descended ever so slightly. Amongst all those powerful souls, if one were focusing, the undeniable presence of something even more powerful wafted down. Something neither human nor dragon, nor even dead. The presence grew stronger and a mighty roar reached all below as Kanros descended to the ground, a great comet of war spearing towards his rival. Bjorn was blabbering even more now, something about his mother's ring being lost in the river they crossed and how he had simply been looking for it. He was no deserter, not him! It was quite clear that something was afoot, and whatever it was would not be good for the warlord and his allies... At this point Mirtagn began to speak, [b]"Ialu, it is good to regroup with you, though I cannot approve of whatever it is that you are doin-"[/b] The sudden presence of something powerful approaching made both Ialu and Mirtagn look up to see some fool bellowing as he rocketed downwards with a longsword in hand. Was that Aztoc? It was hard to tell, but Ialu supposed he might never know. There wouldn't be much left of this one! Mirtagn suddenly snapped his neck upwards and opened his maw to reveal countless jagged teeth, each one of the great dragon's canines like a sword. Ialu immediately released his hold on Bjorn and grasped at Kanros to hurl him straight at Mirtagn. Did dragons actually eat people? Ialu supposed that he would just have to see if Mirtagn spat out whatever was left of this one. Unfortunately, Ialu would never quite find out, because just at that moment, all hell broke loose - perhaps quite literally. Skeletal claws were suddenly seizing upon Mirtagn while more of the undead dragons above descended, more swiftly than before. Some rocketed down for a physical collision with the earth, where their masters had commanded them to rip into their foes, while others would hover above, breathing black necromantic fires upon forest and men alike. Kanros felt the other demigod's attempts to force him from his furious dive, but he met the other's energies with his own and merely accelerated, preparing his blade to skewer the tyrant upon collision. With Ialu distracted, Bjorn found himself suddenly free. He let out a whoop before realising that the danger was not over and quickly looked around himself for an escape route. For someone dead and enslaved to the Lich Lord, he felt oddly free, and so decided to dash for the forest while he could. It was rather shocking for poor dead man to find himself running straight for Ialu. 'What? Wait, nonono!' he shrieked, panic gripping him completely. Without any power to stop himself from disobeying his master's command, Bjorn leapt upon Ialu, and held on like his life depended on it. 'Uh...' he looked up at the warlord and smiled sheepishly, 'just...just givin' me favourite God a-a...a hug?' Ialu was bewildered for a moment, but then acted on instinct. Seeing Mirtagn being attacked by a hundred of the skeletal dragons that were supposedly theirs to command, combined with those dragons bathing everything in some sort of black flame that caused everything to wither and die while the crazed flying man was still coming, instinct kicked in. Thinking of his men first, Ialu's thunderous voice roared, [b][color=Gold]"Withdraw! Withdraw![/color][/b] His tribesmen having already been in a tight formation, it had been easy for them to create a near impenetrable shield around their small platoon. From there they had easily fended off the one or two dragons that immediately dove towards them. They knew how to fight men, dragon, Cimex, and anything to walk Galbar, yet this was too much and they knew it. They were all too glad to maintain their shield and flee further down the road. The trees provided little cover with the black dragon-breath decaying them all to dirt and ash within seconds. Ialu made no attempt to retreat, moving to kill the one diving down on him. Aerial attacks were always foolish, leaving no way to backpedal. You could only land to the side of a prepared foe and waste your time, or skewer yourself as they raised their weapon to impale you as you came right down and did the work for them. In this case, however, he suddenly found something clinging to his back and pulling. Ialu elbowed backwards with what would be enough to break half of Bjorn's ribcage, then reached back to drag the insolent deserter off of him... His hand never made it, for as Mirtagn struggled to fend off the skeletal brood, the elder dragon wildy breathed his crystalline breath. The stuff obliterated any of the flying sacks of bone that came close, though as he thrashed about a wave of the breath accidentally washed down upon both his friends and foes alike. The crystalline breath simply disintegrated Bjorn. Ialu was buffeted and sent backwards by its force, staggering and barely managing to stay on his feet. It was impossible to een see from within the blinding flames, so he knew not what became of the fiery, diving swordsman, though he hoped that the wretched flames had done him the favor of at least handling that one. Ialu's hopes would be crushed however, for the diving swordsman erupted from the flames, his speed and own fiery aura acting as something of a shield. However, Mirtagn's fires had their effects, much of the demigod's flames had been consumed and his face had been charred, and even as he descended a tail of Mirtagn's own flames ate at his feet. His cape was no more and his largely useless leather armour was melting about him, leaving him almost naked, with the stench of burning skin and leather wafting about him. His furious descent continued however, the battle which had begun already empowering him. Ialu himself had not went unscathed; whereas normal dragonfire left him unmarred, this hand rended his flesh and flensed some of his muscle clean off the bone. The warlord fumbled with both empty hands. With one he clutched the sponge of lifeblood Invidia had given him and squeezed with all his strength. The other hand grabbed out his scepter from his belt. One hand clutched his salvation and the other what would most likely be his death, but he would not submit. When the flames abated, Ialu's eyes were bloodshot with rage and he was in the mood for slaughter. At that moment, reinforcements arrived. A platoon of brown-robed warriors, unclad in armor but bristling with axes, pikes, and crossbows, erupted from the treeline. Once out in the open area, they immediately became targets, so they wasted no time in engaging their powers straight off the bat. Blood fairly exhumed from the Sanguine Communion ranks as dozens of them transformed, some shifting to vicious and powerful predator forms, and some simply growing several times their own size. As the new wave of ferals and giants surged forward to challenge the undead dragon turncoats, either leaping from where they were, scaling trees to get a mid-air attack, or clinging to them when they swooped down, Invidia himself stepped out into the battle. He spent a moment assessing the situation. This, he thought, was an equal fight in terms of power, if not numbers. For now, in accordance with their orders, the monks were clearing the immediate area to secure it for Ialu and nearby warriors. They took severe damage whenever they tangled with one of the enemy, but as always, the blood sprayed across the earth and the monks fought on barely hindered. As the outsider watched, some of the dragons attempted to disintegrate his monks via degenerative breath. Such an assault forced any monks subject to it to cower down, paralyzed, all energy focused on counteracting the degeneration with healing. Fortunately, not all of them could be breathed upon at once, and the largest monks were the ones with the best healing. Invidia decided, however, that an edge was still needed to end the immediate skirmish quickly. The Liaison doubled over, the air around him resonating in a toneless thrum. His robes ripped apart, with huge, finlike wings sprouting from his back, and one of his forearms exploded outward in size, growing larger than his torso. Invidia, the air around him now resonating in a menacing, guttural shriek, leaped into the air, beating his wings. A dragon spotted him and moved to snap him in its jaws. Instead, it found its jaw dislocated by a superhuman punch, splinters of bone showering the clearing. Invidia grabbed the beast's skull and threw it into the ground, where its skeleton cracked, broken long enough for the others to end it. Another undead monster loomed over him, but it soon met a second end to the hero's poleaxe. A couple of moments later, this little part of the fight had been concluded. Invidia drifted to the ground, his wings never designed for sustained flight anyway, and the monks regrouped around him. Ialu, empowered by both lifeblood and the Blade of Chaos, had not been idle during the skirmish. Due to the efforts of him, his nearby soldiers, and the Sanguine Communion monks, the phalanx of dragons attacking this area had been decimated. [i]"Now is an opportune time to flee."[/i] Just as the words left the monk's mouth, a great tremor shook the earth and a great crater appeared where none had been before. Dust and bits of rock rose up like tidal waves, and surge after surge of energy burts outwards from the crater, knocking any men down and causing anyone with greater power to lose their balance slightly. Before the dust had fully settled down, Kanros ploughed his way out of the crater, his battle fury leading him right towards his target. Red and white energies whirled about him and his eyes burned a bright red, and even his skin had a slightly red hue to it and was swelled up slightly, veins bloated and spittle flying from his mouth. Though an almost naked man was a most strange sight on the battlefield, there was no doubt that underestimating him was not an option. His speed was bizarre, and he was upon Ialu in no time, thrusting his sword at the warlord with fervour and cataclysmic strength and precision. Ialu may have been a demigod whose skin was impenetrable, but it would take skin even greater than his to stop this blow. Ialu's skin didn't stop the blow, yet it came across as more of a blunt trauma. The mundane steel blade had its edge fold in upon itself completely unable to cut the warlord's skin, and then the sheer impact shattered the bastard sword like glass. The amount of force the demigod of war had put behind it was enough to leave an ugly bruise and drive Ialu back, but that minor injury was nothing. Lifeblood from the sponge dripping down Ialu's hands as it was absorbed into his skin, all the damage from that blow and the dragon's breath were rapidly healed as the substance augmented his own regeneration abilities. Casting that sponge to the side, Ialu leapt backwards and squeezed two more from his side to give him additional strength. As he did so, he taunted his dapless enemy, [b][color=Gold]"I know not what fool would dare stand against me! I am the scourge of man, Dyun, Cimex, and gods alike, diamant and undefeated! I shall break you, nameless warrior, much like your sword.[/color][/b] Ialu raised up the scepter that he clutched so dearly in his left hand, and as he did so it began to glow and the very air began to sizzle and hum with chaotic energy. Though Ialu might have enjoyed bombarding a foe with pure chaos, his the Blade of Chaos could not do that, at least not in its current form. It was no weapon and could not harm Kanros, though it could certainly empower Ialu. With the power of the scepter's unadulterated chaos, the sacred lifeblood, and his own wrath all surging through his veins, Ialu opened his mouth and let out a draconian roar. A wave of destructive magic spewed forth from the warlord's mouth just as the crystalline fire did from Mirtagn's. The empowered warlord and his combination of malice made manifest and raw magic were unrelenting in destruction. The magical flames had a life of their own and bent to pursue Kanros, to wash over him and wreak utter havoc on his body. A mere mortal would be destroyed by the mere heat and aura of the flames, though the most powerful of them might have their physical forms survive the ordeal if barely. As a demigod, however, Kanros might be able to weather the storm or perhaps even counter the deadly attack somehow. With his aura of red and white flames growing as the battle around them intensified, Kanros threw away his useless blade and clenched his fists, and when Ialu roared, he responded in kind. Raising his right foot and smashing it down upon the ground, Kanros loosed his own howl, and the energies around him intensified as he drained even more of the battle energy all around. All around, those of Ialu's men and those of the Sanguine Communion who had been felled began to slowly rise once more. They bumbled to their feet, confused and uncertain, but soon enough the commands of their masters kicked in. The dragon breath had flayed them and many were walking around as grotesque effigies of what they were in life. Most of these simply ran off after Ialu's retreating forces, though a few of them turned to the one figure who had stood his ground and attacked him. Ryak would find three of his former-comrades running towards him, giving low moans and groans - they would have talked were it not for the fact that the dragon breath had completely destroyed their tongues and most anything that would make them recognisable. The some hundred warriors now numbered perhaps a dozen less. A few had fallen in their haste to erect a magical shield, but with that done and them working in a cohesive group, fighting them would prove far more difficult. Those in the center of the spear block used Wi to repel attacks from above, while those on the corners hacked to pieces anything that came close using both Wi and weapon. In the face of this onslaught their retreat was quickly halted, their best bet seeming to be simply digging in and enduring. In any case, while they remaiend nearly untouchable in this defensive formation, they still managed to take a fair few of the dragons out of the skies. Ryak, meanwhile, recalled the Vistoc users that had been present at the last battle. Though he had never liked the Garakain ilk and thought the mages to be cowards afraid to face a man where he could reach them and fight back, he had taken the time to learn their strange magic. That came in handy now. The three charging at him had no flesh or organs to tear apart with the Wi, and simply obliterating three charging skeletons was beyond the power of any save Ialu. So Ryak simply summoned three great spikes of earth to skewer the things in their tracks from below. Drawing his sword and quickly decapitating the three immobilized wights, he suddenly felt a great whoosh of wind and turned to see one of the skeletal dragons. Adrenaline fueling him, he used strength that he didn't even know he had to tug on the great beast. Normally bringing down a dragon single handedly was a near impossible task for any in the tribe, but this one's bony and rather light form helped, as did the fact that its dive already brought it low to the ground. Suddenly crashing and tumbling on the ground, bones splintered and broke. While the damage to its body was enough to bring rest to the undead dragon, the heap of bones still managed to tumble towards Kanros, though the flames surrounding him made short work of it. Many of the undead dragons also chased after the retreating forces, both by air and on land - the further they were from Ialu, the easier it would be to get the weapon Ferghus had demanded. And all the while what remaining dragons flew above continued to battle with Mirtagn and with the monks of the Sanguine Communion who fought just as ferociously in air as they did on land. Mirtagn signaled with one clawed, reptillian finger for what seemed to be invisible guards in the sky to soar down on the carnage that was already reaping havoc on the armies below. But there were undead dragons all around him and they prevented his signal from reaching its destination. One of the skeletons slashed towards Mirtagn's right wing, attempting to damage them and make him fall. Mirtagn was a Crystal Brood Dragon, one of the oldest, a brood which is superior to just skeletal remains of a dragon, even with their breath weapons. So the slashing attack was far less effective than normal. Mirtagn, as a wizard and the best of his Brood, also possessed protective magic, which warded off the slashing blow. However, the Ancient One known as Mirtagn was getting annoyed. This wasn't the first time, or third, he attempted to alert his allies to come down on the assault which ravaged the battlefield. So, Mirtagn sighed, taking in clouds within his nostrils, and soared with his massive wings absorbing the power of thunderbolts, known as lightning, in scientific terms. He soared upwards, spinning as he went, through scores of the nightmare creatures, and finished his summit. His eyes glared towards the Brood City known as Erstakh, and one hundred Crystal Dragons, one hundred Golden Dragons and one hundred Sapphire Dragons made their way towards the battlefield with their mystical power over teleportation. . . Finally, the last to arrive were the Storm Dragons, who traveled like oversized lightning bolts to the place of battle. Mirtagn smiled. This will be much harder for the enemy to fight now. With enemy reinforcements having arrived, many of the undead dragons took to the skies where the great living dragons and the skeletal ones clashed against one another. Many skeletal dragons were crushed, but so too did living ones also fall, only to rise again as undead monstrosities to fight against their allies. Those down below would find skeleton raining down upon them and blood and scales. Mirtagn himself found himself suddenly assaulted by an undead Storm Dragon from above, its lightening breath bolting towards him as its claws ripped at him. Storm Dragon's claws were much harder than a skeletal dragon's piercing and ripping attacks, and while even a Storm Dragon's claws could not cause instant death, this assault was strong and fierce enough to pierce through scales, but not through sinew and muscle or bone. Mirtagn retaliated by lowering his majestic neck and biting off the monster's entire head with his snapping jaws. And so the battle in the skies went on, Mirtagn ferociously destroying the undead in his way, while skeletal dragons and living ones alike fell to the strikes of one another. With all this carnage about him, Kanros could not help the power which filled him, and even as he howled at Ialu, his body grew in size and the fires around him grew even brighter, until they were blue and crackled with a life and desire of their own, whipping out towards anything within Kanros' immediate radius. Thus when Ialu's flames lunged towards the demigod of war, his own flames found a target and leapt at them. It was a most bizarre sight to see flames consume flames, but that was exactly what occurred. Ialu's flame would not find an opening except that Kanros' own closed it off and penetrated elsewhere, and so it went. 'You list your conquests with great pride, Tyrant Ialu. But the true warrior is not he who forges his name through battles and wars and conquests. The true warrior is he who does not lift his weapon except in defence of the weak, the one who is truly strong is he who can contain his greed and desire despite being capable of taking it all,' he stepped forward and raised a fist towards the warlord, 'you have been weighed, Tyrant, you have been measured, and you have been found most wanting indeed! Now, prepare yourself!' and with that, Kanros leapt through the flames, his own eating at and beating aside Ialu's own - just barely - and the warrior was soon upon the warlord once more, this time swinging a punch with the full weight of conviction behind it. It was easy for Ialu to banish his fear and shut it out; he had a lifetime of experience in fighting, and in any case while he was wroth and avaricious, he did not allow his other emotions to get the best of him. Now was not the time for that, though. Fear had its uses. As he witnessed the skeletal dragons down several of his men only for them to return as undead, and he saw his own opponent break through his attack and surge forward, some fear crept in. He harnessed it, and when Kanros threw a punch, Ialu let it land. It would do more harm to Kanros than him, anyways. The moment that body contact was established, Ialu was able to bridge himself into his enemy's thoughts with some effort. Though he only had an instant before the contact would cease and with it his power over Kanros' mind, he only needed that one instant to seize the opportunity. With a surge of weakness and crippling energy, Ialu transferred all of the fear and anxiety that had built up in him into Kanros, using his own magic in a bid to increase its intensity tenfold. That would be only a seed; any such insecurities within Kanros would only add to the damage. The man's talk of 'true warriors' was pointless and laughable. If that was what a 'warrior' was then Ialu was no warrior at all; he did not fight fair, and he did not fight [i]for[/i] others. He fought to [i]kill[/i] others, whatever that took. While Kanros had no such insecuirities - he was a man of morals and upright character, and his conviction left no space for doubt or hesitation - the flood of paralysing fear and anxiety which filled him was rather debilitating. It grew within him and overwhelmed him with its ferocity, causing him to freeze in place and for his flames to die down as he attempted to work out where this fear had suddenly come from. It did not help that the panic was making it rather hard to concentrate. He could not help but feel, however, that the fear and panic and anxiety were not his own. He felt them, surely enough, but it was as though he was a man across a glass wall, staring at something completely foreign to him. Reeling backwards from the force of the blow he had just suffered, Ialu suddenly snapped back into the real world. Hoping to take advantage of a dazed enemy, he sent a fist crashing forward at Kanros' face, causing Kanros to stumble a good few steps back, though the blow was not enough to tear the fear out of him. Ialu then reached out with another hand in a half-hearted attempt to gouge out an eye, but Kanros' still unstable legs meant that the warlord misjudged and ended up hitting Kanros' forehead instead. With what little guard the Warhound could muster in such a state most likely being used to get Ialu's hands off, the warlord did a third and final attack: simply unleashing a blast of pure concussive force, the telekinesis strong enough to propel somebody backwards. With that, Kanros found himself thrown completley off his feet and through the air. He smashed into a few monks before landing and rolling a few times before he was still. He lay there for a few seconds and the fear within him slowly began to fade away as the energies of the battle seeped back into him and the fires of his battle-rage began to consume the fear and heavy anxiety. His attention once more drawn to the skies, Ialu hoped that the pest that had just bothered him would remain incapacitated if only for a brief time; while death would be ideal, he was beginning to see that this was a hardier foe than he had first thought. It was strange that he had never heard of this man before. His thoughts of Kanros were quickly cut off as a particularly large dragon descended upon the warlord, breathing its noxious, necromantic flames upon him. Until now whoever it was that was commanding the damned beasts had not appeared. Was it possible that this was all the work of that warrior? How powerful was he to command such a large number of undead while simultaneously matching up against the warlord? It was a frightening notion indeed... Yet then Ialu remembered the cryptic words and warnings of Invidia, whose spies told him that Thulemiz had magic that [i]reeked of death[/i]. All doubt was banished; this was not the work of the damned fool that had attacked him. The very thought of losing a battle to the pretentious fool that had already claimed half his army was nauseating. It was preposterous, [i]infuriating![/i] Whether through his own temper or the work of the Blade of Chaos or even Kanros, Ialu was once again in a fit of rage that took him to the brink of being berserk. He would not take this affront to his power lightly; he would hunt down Thulemiz like he had hunted down so many animals, even if it took a hundred years! He would have liked to open his eyes to the Sight and search the battleground for his true enemy, but there was far too much chaos. The sunlight was blocked by the thousands of skeletal wings overhead, the heat of Mirtagne's breath was setting what remained of the nearby forest aflame, and the dead walked freely. It had to end. It would end. He would make it so! First there was his great bellow, [b][color=Gold]"ENOUGH![/color][/b] What followed was a throbbing in the head of everyone present, a shaking and humming in the air as it trembled with saturated magic, and a horrific cracking sound. Ialu raised his arms in the air and called upon his Wi, using far beyond his normal reserves or that of any man's comprehension. He gripped all of the skeletal dragons as one and pulled, pushed, smashed, and tore. They cracked to pieces, crumbled to dust, exploded, or fell crashing down. Whatever the case may be, each individual dragon was pulverized within mere moments by the demigod. The sheer pressure of the force that he used to bear down upon them was so crushing that it brought nearly everyone to the ground. Mirtagn's wards, the crystal dragon's wards, and the Sapphire dragon's wards, along with the Golden Dragon's wards, shielded the living dragons from the superior assault of Ialu's Wi reserves, which were powerful enough to assault demigods and utterly demolish nearly any foe on the face of Galbar. The creatures swerved, even as they hoped their wards could preserve them. While Storm Dragons were the quickest among the four broods on the battle fields, the others relied also on their Wards, while the Storm Dragons had no wards. However, the broods could also simply attempt not to get stung by the obscene power wielded by the might of Ialu. While the living dragons had magic and great power to help them avoid the brunt of Ialu's magic, the undead were not quite so lucky. If they did, indeed, have magic, their masters clearly did not have them use it - after all, controlling three thousand dragons was no easy task for the Silent Six without Thulemiz's support. And so the undead fell all around, unable to resist the might of the demigod. Even Ialu's knees had begun to buckle, but when the task was at last done, he let out a triumphant cry. Bones crashed down upon the combatants and the forests, with the Strong Tribe barely managing to maintain their shield and go unscathed. With their main adversaries downed, they finally began to resume their hasty retreat. One might have thought that Ialu would be exhausted from such an impossible feat of magic, but that was far from the truth. [i]It had invigorated him.[/i] Calling upon the reserves of divine energy that he had thus far left entirely untouched, the feeling was beyond words. He was intoxicated by his own power, but that wouldn't stop him from obtaining the joy of slaughter and the sweet taste of blood. He opened his eyes to the Sight, scanning the battlefield for his hidden foe. His enemy seemed too cowardly to face him a second time, but that did not matter. He would be found, and he would be cut down! Ialu roared out, [b][color=Gold]"Your petty tricks are nothing; your power but a mere candle before mine which is like the sun! Show yourself, Thulemiz, so that I can finish what I began last time.[/color][/b] Kanros was not the only one that could empower himself through blood; the anger building up within Ialu was beginning to have noticeable effects. A malevolent crimson glow emanated from the warlord's eyes, and the already giant man seemed to loom over his lessers ever moreso with so many bones and corpses underfoot. The phenomenal feat of power whipped the fear and anxiety completely from Kanros' chest, and the deaths - if the dead could die - of thousands of skeletal dragons at once filled him with power at a rate faster then he had ever experienced. So great was it that he found himself lifting from the ground against his will and the very air around him shimmered and shook with barely restrained energy. It was far too much and he had to find a release, but even as he thought that the energies only built up. His body bloated and his veins rippled and his eyes glowed a bright blue. Those same flames from before, now even a lighter, even more blistering blue, whipped around him and grew, leaping towards unlucky monks around him and eating ravenously at their flesh faster than they could hope to heal. Trembling with the energy, feeling it overpowering him, Kanros let out a long groan and closed his eyes. Then all was silence for the briefest seconds, all sound melting away completely. The ear-piercing roar which followed - was it truly a roar or more of a thunderclap? - caused the very ground around Kanros to fall apart, but it was the surge after surge of energy waves which subsequently rippled from Kanros that caused the real damage. Trees cracked and the earth uprooted itself, and even the mighty monks of the Sanguine Communion would found themselves flung into the air like dolls. Even Ialu would feel the power of the waves, and he would sense the permanent increase in the other demigod's power. 'You dare challenge others while I still stand?' came his rumbling voice, 'you have indeed reached a level of pride and arrogance something grand,' his words would echo within Ialu's very soul, and those who heard them would feel themselves brim up with a desire to follow and serve the strange demigod of war; to die for him if he wished and to do him no harm. Around the Warhound, everything calmed and the fires dissipated, though his eyes still shone a piercing blue. 'I am your opponent, so face me!' he landed upon the marred earth and prowled forward towards Ialu, like a panther making its way towards its prey. Such was Ialu's hubris and singular desire to find Thulemiz that he had nearly forgotten about Kanros. When he came prancing closer like some sort of cat sneaking up on a bear, Ialu surged forward like a bear. Brute strength, unnatural speed, and savagery were his philosophy. He did not intend to disappoint. [b][color=Gold]"I GROW TIRED OF YOUR GAMES, LITTLE ONE!"[/color][/b] the warlord bellowed, effortlessly deflecting a punch and then moving to smite his enemy. He raised his scepter and swung down with all his strength. The Blade of Chaos struck Kanros with all its force, and for the briefest moment Ferghus' curse seemed to understand Ialu's intentions and weigh the scepter down. That only made it come down harder. Unfortunately, the Blade of Chaos truly wasn't a weapon, though Ialu in his wrath had certainly forgotten and tried to use it for such. That turned out to be a foolish and shortsighted move, as the scepter simply cracked and splintered over Kanros' skull before exploding. A godly amount of raw chaos was unleashed in the blast, propelling several of the artifact's shattered pieces outwards while the scepter's handle remained firmly rooted in Ialu's hand. The blast itself created a small crater and the energy destroyed anything in the immediate vicinity, while mutating and twisting the bodies of anybody too close. Those fortunate enough to have kept their distance would merely feel sick, though the chaos would leave its mark on them too. On no one did it leave a mark as much as it did on Kanros, however. Having been the target of Ialu's strike and received the brunt of the explosion, the pain which ran through Kanros was unimaginable. Not only was it physical - indeed, the phsycial pain was only the tip of the ice-berg - but it was also mental pain, pain on the level of the soul. The powers of the chaotic blade ravaged his body, tearing on skin and burning flesh, but it was at his mind that it clawed and at his soul which it tore most terribly. Even when the explosion subsided, Kanros could still feel the voice of the Blade whispering in his mind and tearing away at his sanity, he could feel the corruption and decadence seeping into his quintessence and attempting to grip on any semblance of corruption already rooted within him. It was a terrible thing indeed, and so great was his focus on combatting the Blade's attempts to corrupt him that he could not see or in any other way sense his surroundings. The seemingly ever-invincible, dauntless warlord was closer to death than he had ever been before. The energy had been mostly directed towards Kanros, but what rebounded was enough to tear the flesh off Ialu's bones. Being exposed to a great deal of chaos and being rather chaotic by nature meant that his mind was rather unaffected, but physically he was near death. The nine foot tall paragon of strength collapsed onto his knees charred beyond recognition, bones exposed with some bending outwards or splintered in unnatural ways. Barely breathing, he was in a pathetic state. Mirtagn felt the Chaotic energies form against him, and the blade of Chaos was broken. . . he retaliated by forming it into a storm to barrage any enemy survivors. The Six Necromancers fled to the forest, and Mirtagn followed after them as the storm raged, lashing out at the half dozen creatures that called themselves Necromancers as they fled. Mirtagn found one of them he grasped the creature with one clawed hand. "You are to be taken prisoner". But even as the great dragon spoke, the armoured Outsider disappeared within his grasp, only to reappear beside its five Silent Brothers - for Greyus was with them now. [colour=black][b][i]'I do not think so, Lizard,'[/i][/b][/colour] came a deathly voice from behind Mirtagn, [colour=black][b][i]'thou hast erred greatly in coming here after us. Consider thyself lucky that I do not make of thee a pet for me,'[/i][/b][/colour] Thulemiz's concealment disappeared and his deathly aura burst out with all its cold and merciless pressure, actively challenging Mirtagn to attempt anything foolish. Even as he did, the Silent Six disappeared. "Well now. I just don't know what to say about that. Just that you should have learned that a conjurer as old as I am has far more than a few tricks up my sleeve." Mirtagn vanished as well. Sauranath, Avatar of the Arch Dragon Lord appeared in Humanoid form, as the dragon god of death, he wore the scales of a Crystal Dragon on his armor, he wore a helmet made of dragon's scales and he took out a sword, all were just magical forms of his natural body. He drew his sword. "You're not getting away that easy Thulemiz. I have a contract, but I'm no longer into indiscriminate, wanton violence. Come under my jurisdiction as prisoner and we can accept your terms of surrender. If not, my power is greater than Ialu's, and you've seen what he has done." Even as Sauranath spoke, forty of each dragon Brood among the living fell from the sky. Storm Dragons can easily survive if they avoid any such assault from the enemy, and they were quick and alert enought to do so. Sauranath cringed at seeing his Brood family fall to their deaths, but he felt no ill will towards Ialu. At least not quite yet, and it most likely wouldn't be severe enough for betrayal. He looked to Thulemiz. "You have respectable power among the residents of the world of Galbar, but I suggest you come quietly". Thulemiz was quiet for a while as he considered the Great Reptiles words. He had certainly not expected a god to show himself on the battlefield, and he knew his limits. A god was not something he could hope to combat. [colour=black][b][i]'I understand not thine logic, Great Reptile Sauranath. Thou dost ally thyself to a human and givest him thine children that they may die for him. Look, even now they fall to their deaths thanks to his uncontrollable rage and emotions. What in him dost thou see that makest him worthy of thine children's deaths? Didst thou not return the Eternal Darkness to this world to avenge the killing of thine children? I have never a dragon killed - if anything, I have returned them to life. Why is it that I am thy foe and he thine ally?'[/i][/b][/colour] Thulemiz levitated towards the god and looked at him closely, awaiting a response. "Necromancer, you are losing my approval of your continued existence." Sauranath spoke. He curtly and concisely ended the conversation. Thulemiz cocked his head slightly, his cloaked head moving to the side. [colour=black][b][i]'Kanros did say to me that thou art a being better than I had at first concieved. I thought he may be right and that thou art indeed simply misunderstood. I see now that Kanros was mistaken. Thou dost disappoint me greatly, Great Reptile,'[/i][/b][/colour] and with that he floated backwards and a Silent Brother appeared beside him. [colour=black][b][i]'We shall meet again, though I hope that thou wilt have seen reason by then,'[/i][/b][/colour] and with that, the air around the Great Lich Lord shimmered and he was gone. He appeared almost immediately around Kanros and Ialu, his skeletal hand extended and the shattered pieces of the Blade of Chaos whirling towards him. He did not touch them though, not wanting the taint of chaos to corrupt his deathly purity anymore than it already had. Kanros was still reeling from the blow and Ialu would undoubtedly be shocked by the chaotic explosion, but Thulemiz yet had his wits about him. [colour=black][b][i]'Hand over the Blade, Warlord, and I will leave thee be,'[/i][/b][/colour] even as he spoke, one the the Silent Brothers was upon Kanros, steadying the demigod, and another kept an army upon the Great Lich Lord. Anything funny from Ialu, and they would all disappear, having acquired some of what they needed. Ialu had collapsed into a great heap and tumbled to the ground. Despite being ruined, he clutched onto the handle of his scepter for life. Even as Thulemiz appeared a few moments later he was unable to stand. No words came out of his mouth and his eyes saw nothing. Still, he finally sensed Thulemiz, and so his blinded and bloodied face still stared at the lich with a look of utter hatred. He shuddered then went still. Thulemiz watched coldly as the great warlord let out his final breath and his soul began to slowly leave his body. Thulemiz looked towards his Silent Brothers, even he surprised at this turn of events. He had certainly not expected that this little encounter would see the great warlord dead, it was rather pleasing; it was only fitting that he bring back this powerful rival as a servant in death - he had much to redeem himself for after all, and an eternity of servitude should redeem him. Thulemiz reached for demigod's soul, ready to wrench it out completely. Ialu might have had the last of his life fade away, but even in death he was stubborn. His soul resisted being plucked out and he fought with all his willpower to burrow back into his body. A streak of blood ran down the end of the fractured scepter to touch one of his lifeless and burned fingers. Shattering the thing over the Warhound's head had drawn a fair deal of blood, and upon contact with even the lifeless husk of the warlord the divine energy in that blood empowered him. Ialu greedily devoured that as well as his own to strengthen himself, then easily broke the necromancer's attempts at dragging him out. While that happened, Ryak had been watching having survived the ambush thus far against all odds. The sight of Ialu dying seemed to drive him wild; in a fervor, he lowered his spear and charged the necromancer that held Kanros, aiming to run the point clean through the back of that particular one of the Silent Six. Alfid sensed the wild charge immediately and turned to ward off his attacker, bringing his naginata to bear. With speed and agility impossible for any human, he batted the spear point aside and sent a an armoured foot upwards towards the man's jaw, hoping to knock him out and save them both anymore pain than absolutely necessary. Alfid was here to save Mankind, he did not want the blood of any more men on his hands than necessary. Before the inevitable blow struck and the blackness settled in, Ryak managed to barely utter a curse and summon his Wi. He twisted Alfid's leg unnaturally to the side, using the Wi that Ialu taught him to disjoint the outsider's other leg and break it. It would fall to another to finish this crippled enemy, as the kick still landed and Ryak fell down to accept the defeat and fade into unconsciousness. Falling to the ground, Alfid was silent. He looked towards Thulemiz, hoping that the Lich Lord would quickly heal his broken leg, but he was too busy attempting to harvest Ialu's soul. Wincing, Alfid dragged himself away from Ryak and stayed put, keeping an eye out for any other surprise attacks. He had been foolish in going for a physical attack, a simple bit of Wi would have been sufficient... Though the wounded outsider looked in every direction, his confidence in the grip of his necromancy prevented him looking up, and so when Invidia fell from the sky atop him, he had all the time in the world. The distorted figure landed upon the other outsider with all his weight, and hoisted Alfid into the air by his throat with his enlarged forearm. [i]"And here I thought that the outsiders corrupted by Vestec had become Anju. No, they've turned far worse. They side with and use a magic that defiles life and spirit, doing Vestec's bidding, and for what? If you're not simply his mindless servant, then you think that the devil will play you straight? You are a fool, traitor, and you deserve to die like one. I am glad that your demonic Thulemiz will bring you back after I kill you; the Astral Home does not deserve to be tainted with the twisted spirits of the six who have betrayed Escre."[/i] Even as those accusations rained down upon him, Alfid made no response. It seemed that his choices and those of his Silent Brothers had not only made them outsiders to other races, but they had made them outsiders even to their own. He regretted nothing, for he knew, within whatever heart he had, that he had served Man faithfully to the very end. Invidia swung his axe, cutting straight through Alfid's eye, before tossing him to the ground and taking off again. The sight of a being so unrepentant almost made him sick with hopelessness, but it would not pay to remain in the enemy's line of sight for long. Sputtering back to life, Ialu's lifeblood and natural regeneration began to resume their work. Warping and twisting, his muscles seemed to flow like water as they wrapped back around bare bone and skin quickly formed around them. Crawling on all fours at first, then stumbling upwards and shambling forward, he made his way closer to Thulemiz. His vision was blurred to the point of barely being able to see and he saw only a smear of unholy black as he looked upon the Lich Lord, but he was undeterred. His glazed eyes still burned with malice. Thulemiz gave a disappointed sigh, causing a wisp of black vapour to fly into Ialu's face. It was harmless, of course. [colour=black][b][i]'Look at me not with those hate-filled eyes, Warlord, for thou hast known the cold of my touch upon thy soul. Admit thine fear and thy defeat; hand over the Blade,'[/i][/b][/colour] a cold hand reached for Ialu's face, an icy finger trailing down his cheek. A rattling sound emanating from somewhere inside of the warlord's destroyed innards was the only answer; it would seem that he was letting out some sort of agonized chortle. At last he spoke out telepathically, for he could form no words. [b][i]"I will never forget...I will destroy everything that you know and leave you alive to suffer it, even if it takes a thousand years!"[/i][/b] His promise made, he continued to shamble closer. Feeling something touching his face in the black mist, he somehow tightened his grip on the scepter even harder and used his free hand to conjure a stream of pure wrath; the malicious fire that Thulemiz had wanted more of in their last encounter. He would give the Lich more, for he had no shortage of anger to call upon and manifest as flame. In this moment, he wanted only to see the world burn and simmer as his anger destroyed it all. Thulemiz flinched away from the flames as they came for him, though he was not quite fast enough. They licked at his fingers and clung to his smokey cloak, and once they had a grip on him, they grew with frightening speed. It was not just the flames, however, for it seemed that Thulemiz's body was particularly vulnerable to flame. The slightest spark clung on and grew quickly, and before long the completely black-clad Thulemiz had erupted into a tower of deep red and purple flames. The Great Lich Lord made no sound, though his body continued to move away from Ialu's attack. As suddenly as they had latched onto him, they began to recede, his black cloak seemingly consuming the flames, before what had initially took hold of the Necromancer leapt back to join Ialu's assault. A black mist surrounded the Lich and he summoned his Silent Six to him, the dead Alfid leaping to his feet all of a sudden and leaping upon Kanros, where both shimmered and disappeared. [colour=black][b][i]'We shall not meet again for a long time, Warlord. But I shall not forget, and for thine soul I shall return,'[/i][/b][/colour] with that, he too shimmered and disappeared along with the remaining Seers, and even as he left he felt his powers depart from him as Sauranth's curse fell upon him. From the shadows behind Thulemiz, there came a sigh, and Invidia strode into the light toward Ialu. [i]"Curse my body...I wasn't fast enough."[/i] Overhead, the aerial brawl between dead dragons and living had long drawn to a close, the reanimated ones destroyed by Ialu and now also deprived of their overlord. The scattered and diminished forces of Ialu were beginning to regroup; the only problem now was the warlord himself. Invidia watched the seething, half-regenerated mess distastefully, watching the flames of wrath dancing furiously about him as the once-great Ialu beat the ground in his mindless rage. [i]"This one will require much healing."[/i] The outsider said boredly. He pulled a wad of bloodied sponge from his robes and tossed it into the inferno, where it immediately burst and evaporated, the bloody fumes mixing with Ialu's aura of rage. Over the course of the next hour, the maelstrom of fire subsided, its living core hastily regenerated, and the Sanguine Communion, whose dead from the fight could be counted on a single hand, took all of the wounded into their care. With Ialu and his close friend Ryak disabled, the remainder of the hordes could only follow the cabal of strangers, trusting in their pledge to bring their human god back to health. But they would not restore the god-king exactly. This time, Invidia thought, there would be no might-obsessed, rage-filled Ialu, at least not all the time. The perfect being, Invidia could hypothesize, would represent a balance of emotion and logic, human and outsider, heart and mind, intense yet intelligent. [hider=Stats][centre][u][b]Casualties:[/b][/u] Forces of the Great Lich Lord Thulemiz: [list] [*] 3000/3000 Skeletal Draongs [*] 1/6 Vowzra's Victors; Seers of the Silent Six [*] 15 Undead (Bjorn, 14 Strong Tribe Undead) [/list] Army of the Northern Warlord Ialu: [list] [*] 14/100 Strong Tribe Hunters [*] 5/(?) Sanguine Communion Monks [*] 203/400 Dragons (subject to change, min. of 160 brought down by Ialu) [/list][/centre] [centre][u][b]Souls Harvested by Great Lich Thulemiz:[/b][/u] 3000 Undead Dragon Souls 1 Silent Six Soul 5 Monk Souls 203 Dragon Souls 1 Soul of Bjorn 14 Strong Tribe Hunter Souls[/centre][/hider] [hider=Ialu's Might Usage] 1 might spent to destroy the undead dragons 2.5 might spent to level from 3 to 4 [/hider] [hider=Kanros Might] 3 Might to level up from Level 1 to Level 2 [/hider] [hider=Invidia] Level 25 hero, empowered by lifeblood, leader of the Sanguine Communion, and Escre's Liaison -40 khookies [/hider]