HeartEater

[NicTei]

They walk amongst us, their unsuspecting prey.
They devour our hearts, their own cold and black.
No one knows who they are, but everyone knows what they are.
They are the HeartEaters, and they will find us.

Okay, I'm not sure exactly if I'm going to do this one as an Interactive Story.  I just know that I'm kind of bogged down right now, and my best chances at getting this one written are as an Interactive, with you guys helping me along at the DPs.
At any rate, this will be more like my bigger stories, with long chapters, but with the DPs at the end.  I just hope this'll get more attention than Fearmaster...

Alright, we're in business in Story Street!  *rubs hands together*  Should've gotten rid of that stuff above a while ago, to avoid any confusion, but whatever.  You know what to do; get readin'!



Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1:  Mere Pawns
Chapter 2:  Bigger and Meaner
Chapter 3:  Sister!?
Chapter 4:  Orange Alert
Chapter 5:  Wisdom of an Owl
Chapter 6:  A Universal Burn
Chapter 7:  Burned Fur
Chapter 8:  Claws and Sorcery
Chapter 9:  By Blood
Chapter 10:  Monday Morning
Chapter 11:  Combat Team
Chapter 12:  Brother, Where Art Thou?
Chapter 13:  The Bleeding Hearts
Chapter 14:  Concerto in Rock Minor
Chapter 15:  The Past
Chapter 16:  Is Life Fragile?
Chapter 17:  Fighting Blind
Chapter 18:  HeartReaver
Chapter 19:  Combat Meet
Chapter 20:  All-Out War
Chapter 21:  Ready to Go
Chapter 22:  Infiltrate
Chapter 23:  Introducing, Heartless!
Chapter 24:  There's Something In The Woods...
Chapter 25:  Divine Arts
Chapter 26:  Lightning
Chapter 27:  Surprise!
Chapter 28:  The Lord of the Sea
Chapter 29:  The Lord of Thieves

[NicTei]

DARN IT!!  DON'T READ; WRITE!!  I DON'T HAVE MUCH TIME!!! 

[NicTei]

Alright.  I'm going to delete what I've currently got written for the current chapter, as I'm not sure that it works.  It's pretty much just a monster hunt, anyways.  Actually, it's a vampire hunt, but I'm fed up with vampires.  New chapter plot underway.  This one may be up soon, depending on how well I do with it.  For some reason, my current writing seems...lackluster.  I'm not satisfied with any of it.

[Saint]

For some reason, my current writing seems...lackluster.  I'm not satisfied with any of it.

I hit that rock a while back.  It took a bit of enthusiasm on my part and from Tomeians to get me back into it.  If that fails, I'll gladly force you to write by threat of gunpoint/getting you a girlfriend.

Your stuff is better than you read it as.

[Chinaren]

You should never be satisfied with your writing I say. 

[NicTei]

This one is very near completion now.  Not only the chapter, but the book.  Woo.  At any rate, expect it up soon.

[Rocket Rabbit]

Woo! Go Nic! 

We should throw a book-completion party.  That's what I'm going to do when I finish the first episode of Nocturne.

[NicTei]

   Sakura was enjoying herself out in the streets of Lamedia, ignoring the shocked stares of the other civilians.  Seemingly out of nowhere she realized that the shirt she was wearing had been tight even on Kraven, and wasn’t doing wonders for her modesty.  Though it wasn’t visible, she blushed slightly and zipped up her sweater, though people still stared.  It wasn’t often that one saw a demon walking down the street, after all.

   She became gradually aware of a slight chill in the air, the temperature dropping as she got closer to a house near the park in which she had fought Reaper.  Curious, she summoned a small ember to each of her fingertips and quickened her pace.  The sight that met her in the park, however, caused the flames to disappear, her concentration disappearing from the shock.

   A half-frozen Umi was sitting on a tree in the park, her sword pointed at something in the pond.  As Sakura drew closer, she saw the figure that was nearly standing on the top of the water, with only its lower legs not showing.  Strange waves of power fluctuated from it, as if it was completely unbalanced.

   Before Sakura could get close enough to see its features, it seemed to sense her presence and disappeared under the surface.  Hesitating for a moment before going any further, Sakura finally decided that it was safe and stalked forward, fire at her fingertips once more.  Umi saw her coming and, after cutting into her arm with Muramasa, sheathed her sword.  Sakura raised her eyebrow.

“Trying to off yourself again?” she asked condescendingly.

“Of course not!” Umi retorted.  “Now hurry up and get rid of this ice!”

   Sakura looked at the solid ice and sighed, looking up at Umi.

“You really don’t like making things easy for me, do you?  First the fight here weeks ago, and now getting yourself frozen by a high-level freezing spell?” she complained.

“Well sorry for getting attacked out of the blue while I was asleep,” Umi retorted, trying to break her arm free of the ice.

   Concentrating on the fire at her fingertips, Sakura started trying to melt the ice.  After realizing that it wasn’t melting, she increased the output of energy, gradually increasing until the flames were at a temperature that would melt human flesh.  Only then did the ice seem to be melting.

“Get comfortable,” she said to Umi, “this will take a while.”

“Did you feel that?”

   Mikah looked up at Vox, who was now staring out the open window and into the woods behind his house.  There was a strange intensity in his eyes, as if he were focusing on something she couldn’t see.  Turning around, she saw that Rena was also looking towards the woods, though she was looking right at the door instead of out the window.  Both of them were flexing their claws, as if getting ready for a fight.

“Are you two okay?” Mikah asked, looking back and forth between them.

“There’s something in the woods…” Rena muttered.  “I can smell it on the air.”

“Do you think it’s that HeartEater?” Vox asked.

“Couldn’t be,” Rena answered.

“Why not?” Vox inquired.

“I already took care of him,” Rena replied.

“As long as you cleaned up the mess.”

   Slowly, Vox started towards the door, with Rena close behind.  Shrugging her shoulders, Mikah stood up to follow them, but Vox turned and shook his head.  When she started to protest, he pointed to Michelle, who was sitting in the living room watching the television.

“Someone should watch her,” he insisted.

“I’m not going to let you just charge into the forest by yourself,” Mikah argued.

“Rena’s backing me up,” Vox retorted.

“Hey, if anyone’s doing the ‘backing up,’ it’s you!” Rena snorted.
Vox ignored her.  “If something happens to you in the forest, I would just blame myself for it,” he said quietly to Mikah.

   She thought about this for a moment, then finally shrugged her shoulders.

“Fine, do what you want.  But if you come back with so much as a scratch, you have to promise me I can come with next time,” she warned.

   Vox nodded and walked out the door after Rena, who had left shortly after having her remark ignored.  Together they stalked into the forest, both of them ready to attack should anything leap out onto the path in front of them.  Both were led by their heightened senses towards their goal; Rena could smell something foreign in the woods, the scent carried on the air, and Vox could feel a large aura ahead, in the direction of the pond.  It wasn’t anywhere near that of Serenda or her companions, but it was large enough to be a threat.

“Whatever it is, we’re getting closer to it,” Rena muttered as they moved.

“Way to state the obvious,” Vox replied.  “Something’s coming up behind us, too.”

“What?  How do you know?” Rena asked.

“I can’t explain,” Vox answered truthfully, “just be ready for a flanking maneuver if this thing is hostile.”

   In reality, Vox had a good idea of what was chasing them; it was Umi and an aura he didn’t quite recognize, though it was as potent as Rena’s.  Hoping it wasn’t one of Umi’s former comrades, he glanced at his claws.  They were now completely white all the way up to the middle of his upper arm.  Only six inches or so of his shoulder scales were left the original, dark shade, and though he preferred black, he was beginning to like the new color.

“Vox, look at this,” Rena said, snapping him out of his thoughts and pointing at something just off the trail.

   The object she was pointing at was a small sapling that had been completely frozen, and despite the warm, balmy temperature, it remained covered in ice.  Reaching forward, Rena tried cutting it with her claws, but left only a small scratch.  Realization hit as she looked at it.

“It’s magic!” she exclaimed.

“Really?  And here I was, thinking that a tree frozen solid at the end of the summer was a commonplace sight!” Vox retorted sarcastically.

“Vox, this is high-level magic; stronger than what that Siren used to freeze me before,” Rena answered, sounding annoyed and a little frightened.

“If you want to turn back, it’s okay.  I won’t be mad,” Vox replied as if to a scared child.

“Shut up!  If you get frozen, don’t expect me to help you!” she shouted back.

“You’re assuming that I’d end up frozen before you,” Vox retorted.

“Will you two shut up?  We could hear you all the way at the start of the trail,” a condescending voice interrupted.

   Vox recognized the demon girl when he saw her, remembering that she was the one that had fought Reaper and succeeded in throwing him into the pond in the park.  Umi was behind her, hand on her sword and looking warily at Rena, who had been taken aback by the appearance of the two.  Regaining her composure, she turned to face them, crouching slightly with her claws forward, pointing towards them.

“Looks like you were right, Vox; they’re trying to flank us,” she growled.

“What’s she talking about?” Sakura asked Vox, pointing to Rena.

“Shut up!  You know what I’m talking about!  You’ve got your Siren friend waiting at the pond so she can take Vox!” Rena roared, charging forward.

   Rolling his eyes, Vox decided not to get caught up in the conflict and kept walking towards the pond, only stopping and turning around when a wave of heat washed over him.  Rena was caught in the middle of a ring of fire, the demon girl flying up above her and laughing.  Sighing and clutching his temples, Vox finally strode forward and intervened, sticking his clawed hand in through the flames and tugging Rena out.

“Will you all just cut it out!?” he hissed.

“She started it,” Sakura pouted, still flying.

“It doesn’t matter!  I don’t know why you two are here, but if you’re going to follow us, then shut up!” Vox retorted before turning around and walking on.

“Hm…  Kraven could learn a thing or two from him,” Sakura said, smirking and taking off after the HeartEater.

   Umi and Rena were left behind, the latter glaring daggers at the fore.  Umi’s hand was still on Muramasa, and Rena had resumed her crouching position, ready to charge at any moment.  Finally, with a sneer, she stood up and turned around.

“The only reason you’re still alive is because you helped bring Mikah back to my brother,” she growled.  “I don’t know what you’re up to, but I swear I’ll tear your heart out when I figure it out.”

   With that she walked off, following Vox and Sakura.  Umi stood there for a moment, trying to figure out how she could prove to the HeartEater that she was no longer an enemy, but finally decided that it didn’t matter; as long as Vox was around, she wouldn’t try anything.  Shaking her head, she started off after the other three, but remained wary of where Rena was.

   As he walked through the forest, Vox’s claws went to his left shoulder, where the Immortality Seal was held in place with an old workout band that wasn’t too tight, but was snug enough that the valuable object didn’t fall off.  He’d considered asking Zack if it was possible to have the Seal carved into a ring or other similar object, but had never found the time.  Now, with a possible threat just up ahead, he was wishing he’d made the time.

   A sudden wave of cold air washed over him, and he ducked just in time.  Seconds later a sphere of some strange energy shot over his head and froze a tree solid on impact.  Staying low in the brush, he glared forward, hoping to glimpse whatever had attacked him.  Unfortunately, he saw nothing.

   Making sure that Sakura was still flying overhead, he slowly and carefully stalked forward on all fours, the tall plants and bushes hiding him from view effectively.  Swearing as another sphere of energy hit the bush to his right, he leaped to the side to dodge a small barrage of them.

“Watch out!” Sakura called.

   It was too late for him to move, however; one of the freezing spells had managed to get close to him without his knowledge, and was aimed right at his face.  Instinctively, he raised his scaled arm to block it, waiting for the cold sensation as they were frozen.  To his astonishment, not only was he unharmed, but his claws weren’t even cold.

“What in the world…?” he muttered.

“Don’t just stand there!” Sakura yelled, diving forward and shoving him out of the way of another spell.

   Getting off of him she strode forward, fire on her fists.  She began to counter the spells with her own fireballs, the collision between the two opposing elements causing a smokescreen.  Eventually, Vox couldn’t see his hand in front of his face. 
Sakura, however, was still firing fireballs with accuracy, countering the spells as they came.  Finally she stopped, as the spells had stopped coming.  The smoke began to clear, and Vox got a good look at their assailant.

   Satin a deep shade of red formed her skirt, shining golden embroidery at the very fringe of the garment.  The sleeves of her shirt, which was made of the same material and of the same color as her skirt, were just four inches short of the wrist, a small cut at the collar extending down a couple of inches and tied via a crossing pattern with a shining golden string.

   In keeping with the gold and red theme of her outfit, her hair was a deep auburn color, with blonde streaks running through it as it flowed down her back like a waterfall.  That was where that particular color scheme seemed to end, however, for her nails were painted the same color as her eyes:  black.  At least, Vox thought they were black, until a sunbeam flashed across her fair-skinned face, sending a streak of blue through her irises.

“I think we may be in trouble,” Vox muttered to Sakura as the Aloja pointed at them.

“What do you people think you’re doing!?” she asked in a high-pitched voice that Vox knew was going to get on his nerves very quickly.

“What do we think we’re doing?  You nearly froze us solid!” Sakura retorted.

“I’m just practicing my freezing spell!  You, however, are interrupting my practice!” the girl shouted back, crossing her arms.

“So you take it upon yourself to freeze people sitting innocently in the park?” Umi asked as she approached.

“Where’d Rena go?” Vox asked her quietly, not taking his eyes off the Aloja.

“I saw her step off the path to try and ambush me, so I took a different route,” Umi replied as she drew Muramasa slightly out of its sheath.

“I only did that because you wouldn’t let me fix your hair!” the girl said in response to Umi’s earlier remark.

“My hair is fine!” Umi shouted back angrily, Muramasa fully out of its sheath and pointed at the Aloja.

“Women…” Vox muttered as the two started to verbally assault each other.

   Back at Vox’s house, Mikah and Michelle were watching a comedian on TV, a large bowl of popcorn between them.  Despite being unable to talk, Michelle understood what the comedians were saying and laughed occasionally, though mostly because she saw Mikah laughing.  After a while she turned to Mikah, as if she wanted to say something, but she had to stop to find the words.

“You…love…Vox?” she managed to say after a while.

   Mikah, who had just lifted a handful of popcorn to her mouth, nearly choked.  Looking at Michelle in shock, she managed to stammer out a sentence.

“C-come again?” she asked as her face turned a deep shade of red.

“You love Vox?” Michelle repeated, a little more confident this time.

“I…I don’t think…” Mikah started, but she couldn’t find the right words.

“Let’s just watch TV,” she said after a while, though she was still beet red.

“Enough!”

   Vox had finally had it with Umi and the girl hurling insults at each other.  They turned to look at him, startled by his outburst.  Taking a deep breath, he glared at them in turn.

“What’s your name?” he asked the Aloja.

“Penelope,” she replied snobbishly.

Wincing at the sound of her voice, Vox went on.  “Alright, Penelope.  Is there a reason you’re hiding out in the woods behind my house?” he asked.

“What!?  I’ve always been here!” the Aloja replied, outraged.

“This is the first I’ve noticed it,” Vox retorted.

“Maybe you just haven’t been paying attention,” Penelope shot back.

   Vox was about to reply, but stopped.  It was true that now he was beginning to sense things that he couldn’t before, such as Penelope’s presence.  Could that be because of his awakening identity as a HeartReaver?  If it was, what would he be able to do when he was fully matured, as it had been made clear that he wasn’t even close yet?  While he was lost in thought, Umi and Penelope resumed their insult match, with Sakura egging them on from the air.

“That’s it,” Vox muttered, “I give up.”

   No one heard him, and similarly no one noticed as he walked away, headed back to the comfort of his home and Mikah.

   Mikah was awakened when the back door closed, the sound carrying just enough to break her from her dreams.  Sitting up on the couch, where she had fallen asleep with her hand still in the popcorn bowl, she looked around in confusion for Michelle.  She was sitting on the floor in front of the television, still watching and laughing at the people on the screen hitting each other in the head with overly large clubs.

“You’re back already?” she asked Vox groggily as he walked into the room.  “Where’s Rena?”

“Still in the forest,” Vox replied casually as he sat down beside her.

“What?”

“Well, she tried to kill Umi and a demon-girl that’s helped me in the past, and then she tried to ambush Umi later when I stopped her from killing her the first time, and after that, she just stayed behind to make enemies with the new girl in the forest.  I assume she’s either killed them or in the process of killing them right now,” Vox answered, looking at the TV.

“Vox, that’s nothing to joke about!” Mikah scolded.

“I didn’t think you were fond of Umi,” Vox retorted.

“She helped you save me, so I’m giving her a second chance,” Mikah answered.

“You are far more forgiving than I could ever be,” Vox said, sounding amused.

“No, you’re just as kind; you simply don’t show it,” Mikah replied.

“Not to anyone but you,” Vox shot back.

“How sweet,” Mikah said with an exaggerated sweetness.

   There was a silence for a while as they both seemed to realize how good it felt to be in each other’s company once more.  It was then that they noticed Michelle looking at them with a smug smile on her face.  Vox looked to Mikah.

“Do you have any idea what she’s smiling about?” he asked quietly as he glanced back at her.

Mikah started to turn red again and looked away from Vox.  “N-no idea,” she muttered.

“You realize that you can’t lie to me, right Mikah?” Vox said, though he didn’t press the matter further.

   At the Hillbourne estate, Serenda, Reaper, and Hyde were all kneeling in front of a large image, listening to the dark voice that issued from the speakers on the sides of the screen.  Hyde had since snapped his neck back into place, though Serenda was still rubbing the place where she’d been pierced by Vox’s claws; for reasons she couldn’t fathom, it actually hurt.  Reaper had been silent ever since the events of the previous day, not believing that he was weak enough to be taken out by a door.

“I am severely disappointed in you three,” the deep, rumbling voice said.  “Not only have you, Serenda, failed to bring me your designated target, but the three of you together couldn’t keep a single girl in your custody!”

“In all fairness sir, Reaper has failed you as well; it was his duty to help me bring the young HeartReaver to you,” Serenda argued calmly.

“I understand that,” the shadowed figure replied, “and I am equally disappointed in Reaper.  However, you were designated as the member of your team to subdue your prey.  Reaper and Roderick were simply there to wear him down.”

“Roderick was too weak to do his job,” Hyde replied.

“Yes.  It is a shame that both Haze and Roderick had to fall in the line of duty.  They wouldn’t want us to mourn them, however, so we must press on,” the dark voice answered tersely.

“What would you have us do, now that we’ve lost both our prey and our bait?” Hyde inquired.

“If they’re both in this ‘Lamedia,’ then the answer is simple,” the dark voice answered.

“Do you mean…?” Serenda asked, a smile growing on her face.

“Yes.  You must invade the city and find them.  When you have, subdue them and wipe out the entire community while they watch as punishment for defying us.  Then bring them here, so the ritual may be completed,” the voice answered.

“The girl is a threat, isn’t she?” Hyde asked.

“She is far more dangerous to us than they think, despite the fact that her role in my plans isn’t one that can only be filled by her.  If she were to discover her power before we could begin, the results would be catastrophic,” the figure answered.

“After the ritual, though, you’ll have no need for her?” Hyde inquired.

“Such interest in the girl is unhealthy, Hyde.  I’ve already provided you with more than enough pawns for your experiments.  She won’t survive my plans, anyways.”

“How…unfortunate,” Hyde muttered.

“Do not be disheartened; I have already sent another shipment of ‘patients’ to your little lair; they will be there now,” the dark persona replied, hearing the remark.

“When shall we strike Lamedia, my lord?” Serenda asked.

“They will be ready for something right now.  It would be best to wait a few days before
striking.”

“Pardon me, but they’re likely celebrating their rescue, even now.  It would be far easier for us to wipe them out now, while they’re distracted and self-assured,” Hyde countered.

“A valid point, but I stand by my previous decision.  You will wait for three days, and then you will destroy everything between you and your objective.  I must go now; do not fail me again.”

“Yes, my liege,” Serenda and Hyde replied in unison.

[NicTei]

Figured I'd better give you something early.  I'll work on...er...something else...when I've finished this chapter.

[Chinaren]

Gooder.  Though this bit...

“Do not be disheartened; I have already sent another shipment of ‘patients’ to your little lair; they will be there now,”

...is a bit semi-colony.

[Saint]

Woo! Go Nic! 

We should throw a book-completion party.  That's what I'm going to do when I finish the first episode of Nocturne.

I want one for The Midnight Tower. =(

Okay, I didn't actually finish it on Tome but it's finished and on Tome.  Plus, it led me here via bebo and an orange thing.

[Chinaren]

We should throw a book-completion party. 

...via bebo and an orange thing.

We should have some kind of award or showcase for works completed on Tome. 

...and

~mulls over what this orange thing might have been~

...and

[Saint]

Sakura, however, was still firing fireballs with accuracy,

Can't decide if I like or hate that.

Warning - while you were typing a new reply has been posted. You may wish to review your post.



I believe Ashkent has his 'First Short Story Completed on Tome' award.  Perhaps 'lordy could make just a 'Completed Story' award.

[NicTei]

If you're paying attention to the very first post in this topic, you'll see that I've finished chapter 26 and moved on to 27.  However, you're not getting a chapter, simply because I gave you one early.  In other words, YOU'VE GOT TO WAIT!!

At any rate, I update the first post every time I get a chapter done, so you'll always be able to get at least the title of the next one.

[Overlord]

Congratulations NT!  Your story is now a FeSt! 

Don't leave the next chapter too long, a FeSt needs to post once a month to remain FeSty!

Well done on being the first FeSter! 

[NicTei]

Er...another chapter in a month?  I'll try, but it might be tough, what with NaNoWriMo going on...bah, screw the mental stress.  I'll get on it.

Come to think of it, I've been stockpiling a couple of chapters for this...



EDIT:  Is there a due date that I should go by?

[Angel]

I'd say preferably by the end of November. It has to be updated at least once during the 2 month period.

[Saint]

'member that review?  Just checking I can use quotes from this in it.  I can has permission?

[NicTei]

Aye.  You can haz permishunz.

[Overlord]

Your time as Featured story is up Nic.  Welcome to your new forum for Hearteater.

However, you need to update this to keep this in it's own forum,  or I'll move it back to the normal area!

[Saint]

Ovey, this isn't interactive.  *raises eyebrow*

Unless he's asked for it here.  If so, my bad, and I apologize for butting in.

[Overlord]

Oops!     Finger slipped. 

There, put in its proper place... 

[NicTei]

Er...right.  This one.  Hehe.  Funny story, actually...

[NicTei]

 

Dunno why I keep using those cards, but I do.

Anywho, just for sh*ts and giggles, I shall post another chapter of this either tonight after I get back home from work or The Farm (having a relatively short window of time between getting back from work and going to The Farm).  As I've stated elsewhere, I've been 'stockpiling' these chapters, so I've got at least one in reserve that I haven't posted yet.  November was hectic, so though I wanted to update this topic, I couldn't as I feared I'd lose momentum on Purity.

As a bit of another update, I've been thinking about returning to Lonely Island Inn as well.  Reading through it last night and the better part of this morning, I've been trying to get a feel for where I was.  I'm pretty confident on my place in this story, so I haven't been doing much in the way of rereading HeartEater, but I may put up at least a synopsis if I can't stick up a chapter before I go to The Farm.

As another update, I've been working on the next chapter of Pocketwatch, which should be up relatively soon.

[Chinaren]

Bring me some eggs from the farm will you?

I'm looking forward to the next Pocky chapter, though I plan on being drunk tonight. 

So drunk.   

[NicTei]

   Vox awoke in the middle of the night, a strange noise awakening him.  The place where Mikah had been when they’d gone to bed was empty, the covers thrown back.  Vox was across the room in an instant, robe thrown on over his undershirt, though he didn’t take the time to tie it.  The large, bell-shaped sleeves covered his hands unless he stretched his fingers out, and it flowed behind him as he stalked quickly through the hallways, pulled forward by a feeling that he knew was Mikah.

   This feeling led him through the house and up to the attic, where it seemed to dissipate slightly before returning, just as strong.  When it brought him to the window, he realized that she might be on the roof.  Without thinking, he smashed the window open and leaped up, catching the wood with his claws and pulling himself towards the shingled roof.  Once up, what he saw would be burned into his mind forever.

   Standing facing the full moon, which seemed larger tonight than any other night, Mikah’s hair was blowing in the wind, flowing to her right.  Her left arm was left bare and visible because of the tank top she was wearing, but it was far from normal.  Crystalline scales of an emerald color and extended hexagonal shape covered her shoulder and most of her arm, stopping halfway down the forearm.  As the wind blew her hair fiercely, he could see that it also extended to her back, though how far it went he didn’t know.

   As he pulled himself up, he tried to be quiet, not wanting to startle her.  Standing, he started towards her, only to have a twig that had been blown down onto the roof of his house snap.  Mikah spun around, and as she glared at him, he felt something hurl him back, off the edge of the roof, and he fell…

   Vox jolted awake, sitting straight up in his bed.  Mikah was right beside him, fast asleep.  With a feeling of dread, he brushed her hair away from her shoulder to reveal…smooth, pale skin.  No crystalline scales at all.  It had all been a dream.  Sighing with relief, he looked at his clock and realized that the alarm was about to go off.

   Carefully, he disabled it and leaped out of the bed, landing softly on the floor.  He gathered his clothes and changed before he left the room, closing the door quietly behind him.  Once downstairs he made himself some breakfast before collecting what he’d need for school.  It was then that he remembered what Father Seymour had told him:  effective immediately, he’d be learning Divine Arts.

“You’re up early,” a voice said from behind him.

“Zex, how many times do I have to kick you out of my house before you get the message?” Vox sighed, eyes closed.

“At least a couple more,” Zex replied cheekily, walking in and sitting down opposite his younger brother.

“One less after this one.  Get out,” Vox shot back.

“Make me,” Zex retorted with a grin.

   The glare that Vox gave him caused his grin to fade, and he had to look away to regain his composure before he could talk again.  Unfortunately, he’d forgotten what he was going to say, as well as the reason for his visit.  After a few minutes of silence, it finally came back to him.

“Oh, I was going to remind you that the Heartless Tour starts in less than a month.  That means that you’ll be coming with the band on a road trip across the country,” Zex said, smiling again.

“I can’t,” Vox replied, taking a sip of coffee.

“What?  Why not!?” Zex asked.

“I’ve got to stay here and protect Mikah,” he replied.

“Then we’ll bring Mikah with us,” Zex answered.

“Who’ll watch the house?” Vox retorted.

“Rena isn’t helpless, Vox.  She can handle herself,” Zex pointed out.

“I haven’t been practicing with the band,” Vox argued.

“We can do that on the road,” Zex countered.

“Are you hell-bent on getting me into that van and driving me all over America?” Vox asked.

“You bet your butt I am,” Zex answered cheerily.

“I guess it can’t be helped then.  Fine, I’ll go along.  Now get out,” Vox sighed.

“Don’t have to tell me twice!” Zex said as he started towards the front door.

“I know; more like five times,” Vox muttered into his coffee.

   In silence he sat, observing the early stages of the sun’s lonely journey across the sky.  At length he put his dishes in the sink and collected what he’d need for school, hoping that Mikah would wake before he had to leave.  To his chagrin, she didn’t, and he was forced to leave without saying goodbye.

“He’s on the move.”

   Zex heard the voice of Zack, coming from the speaker of the earpiece that he was wearing.  If Vox knew that he was being tailed by the ninja, he would’ve likely killed his brother, but at the moment Zex wasn’t concerned about his own safety.  Clearing his throat, he tapped the microphone before replying.

“Alright, keep after him,” he instructed.

“Affirmative,” Zack answered before going silent.

“Why are you having him followed?” Shiina asked, apathetically flipping through a fashion magazine.

“I don’t want him attacked,” Zex replied.

“Zex, he killed one of those three already; he’ll be fine,” Shiina argued.

“Who said I was worried about him?” Zex answered.

“What do you mean?” Shiina inquired, tossing her magazine onto pile of others.

“Vox is a HeartReaver.  He can tear out someone’s soul if he’s strong enough.  My theory is that he was extremely lucky when fighting Roderick, as his ‘Absolute Release’ weakened the condition of his soul by merging it with that of his weapon,” Zex answered.

“But that’s only if our information is to be believed,” Shiina pointed out.

“Yes, but Umi wouldn’t lie to us about this; her life is on the line as well,” Zex countered.

“You trust her too much,” Shiina snorted.

“Like it or not, she’s the only information we’ve got.  At any rate, Vox still thinks he can do that just any time, when the truth is that he’s either got to become stronger or weaken his enemy before he can grasp their soul,” Zex said.

   Suddenly, Zex froze.  As if a trigger had been pulled, he began frantically searching the drawers and counter in the bus.  Shiina watched for only a moment before asking, though she was reluctant to.

“What are you doing?”

“Grasp their soul, grasp their soul; that is a fantastic lyric!” Zex muttered in response.

   Crying out in triumph when he found a notepad and a pen, he wrote it down.  By the time he looked up to continue his explanation, however, Shiina had left.  Sitting down in a chair, he rolled his eyes.

“That’s real mature; walk out on the guy after asking him a question,” he muttered.

   In his time away from school, Vox had forgotten just how much HeartEaters were hated.  If it had just been Gordon that had been against him because of what he was, he would’ve been fine.  It didn’t stop at the school snob, though; almost everyone made a wide berth around him, and the occasional student would even stoop to spitting at him.  Enduring the whispers, looks, and ‘projectiles,’ he finally made it to his locker.

“Vox, I’ve finally realized how I can get the upper hand,” John’s voice called to him from down the hall.

Rolling his eyes, he looked in the direction of the voice.  “How?” he asked indifferently.

“Sheer numbers!” John answered with a devilish smirk, indicating the much larger crowd of lackeys he had surrounding him.

   Sighing, Vox ignored them and took what he needed for his first couple of classes.  When he closed his locker, however, John was standing right behind the door, a superior smirk on his face.  Grabbing Vox by the neck, he shoved him against the locker.

“Filthy flesh-eaters like you shouldn’t be protected; you should be hunted!” he growled at Vox.

“Let me go before I give the authorities a reason to hunt me down,” Vox replied, his voice barely above a whisper.

   John’s grip faltered for a moment, but with another one of his annoying smirks he pushed Vox further into the lockers.  Vox grabbed his forearm with his left hand, pulling it off enough that he could breath; due to the time the jock spent in the weight facilities, he was physically stronger than Vox at the moment, and couldn’t be fought off so easily.  As the rest of the group closed in, they suddenly stopped, a collective gasp coming from them.

“If you want to keep your head, you’ll leave him alone,” a cold voice said to John.

   Umi was standing beside Vox, Muramasa at John’s throat.  Snorting, John let the HeartReaver go, but didn’t step back.  Instead, he seemed to be ready to attack Umi, his hand on the hilt of his sword.  With one swift motion, he drew his blade and slashed at Umi.

   Vox’s sense of confidence in Umi was shattered momentarily when he saw the sword connect, scoring a cut up her arm.  Lunging forward, he ducked under a slash of Svelljir’s saber and grabbed onto John’s sword as he was about to thrust it at Umi, his scaled fingertips digging into the blade and cracking the metal.  The top quarter fell off as John tugged sharply on it.

   Helping Umi to her feet, Vox inspected the wound quickly.  It wasn’t too bad; John’s sword had somehow missed the vein in the elbow, but the cut was fairly deep further up the arm.  It wasn’t a mortal injury, but it could turn out nasty if it wasn’t disinfected right away.

“Where do you get off attacking others in the school?” Vox growled, pointing his claws at the jock.

“Hey, she’s not a registered student,” John answered, shrugging, “so I could just claim that she’s an intruder.  After all, she did aim her sword at me.”

“John, you saw what I did to Solomon, so you know what I’m capable of.  If you leave me one opening, I’ll make sure you regret it,” Vox growled.

   Silence followed this statement, the tension between John and Vox almost visible.  Umi seemed to come to her senses and stood up, clutching her arm.  She’d been stricken by whatever had affected her in Vox’s kitchen once more just as John had moved, and was unable to dodge.  Vox let her stand, but kept his eyes on John.

“What is the meaning of this!?”

   Everyone in the hallway turned as Mr. Abramovich strode down the hall furiously.  In mere seconds, the corridor had become deserted, save for Vox, Umi, and John’s usual gang.  Mrs. Abramovich was following her husband, appearing just as angry, though Vox could see that she was more worried than infuriated.

“Put your sword away now!” Mr. Abramovich commanded.

“Sir, she tried to-!” John complained.

“I don’t want to hear it!  You attacked someone in the premises without sending anyone to alert a teacher, which is a serious violation of the rules!  You could lose your position in the combat team and your weapon rights for this!” Mr. Abramovich interrupted.

   Scowling, John sheathed his sword and stormed off, Mr. Abramovich yelling and taking off after him.  As Umi started to leave, Mrs. Abramovich stopped her, looking over her injury.  Turning to Vox, she gave him a small slip.

“Here; this is a pass that will get you out of your first half of your first class so you can take your friend here to the infirmary.  We’ll review the tapes to see what happened here, and punish John accordingly,” she said.

“That will be rather hard, Mrs. Abramovich,” Vox replied.

“What?  Why?” the teacher asked.

“She’s gone.”

   As Vox had said, Umi was nowhere to be seen; she’d slipped away quickly and quietly while Mrs. Abramovich was giving Vox the pass.  For a moment the teacher looked down the hallway, as if expecting her to pop out of thin air as suddenly as she’d disappeared, but seemed to see that it was futile.  Bidding Vox a good day, she took off after her husband, who could still be heard yelling at John down the other corridor.

   Vox tossed the unused pass in the trash can as he walked by, as he didn’t want to carry around something he wouldn’t have a use for.  He strolled into the Basic Alchemy room just as the bell rang, and found that Mr. Tarau was still there, his large form abusing the legs of the chair he was sitting in.  Vox held in a snort of disgust as he walked past the fat man, noticing that for some reason he had attracted the substitute’s attention; he could feel the beady eyes watching him as he walked back to his desk.  Sitting down, he glared forward and wasn’t surprised to see Mr. Tarau looking back, a strange, almost hungry look in his eyes.

“If he’s moved on from teenage girls to teenage boys, I’m changing classes,” Vox muttered to himself as he pulled out a chunk of metal and started practicing alchemy.

   To Vox’s relief, and renewed disgust, Mr. Tarau’s attention was still focused mainly on the girls, going so far as to ‘support’ one of them as he had her check one of the top shelves for his keys, which he conveniently found in his pocket after a half an hour of searching.  Rolling his eyes when the bell rang, he noticed for the first time that something in the room had a large aura compared to all the others.  He’d almost forgotten about this new sense he’d acquired, and was beginning to wonder if he could use it to his advantage.

   Unfortunately, everyone was out the door, and it would’ve seemed odd if he were still sitting in the room when everyone else had left.  Not only that, but he didn’t want to be left in the same room with Mr. Tarau, so he left as quickly as possible, noting that the aura had since disappeared.  Resolving to try controlling the sense during Monster Studies, he walked quickly to Illusions.

   Very little happened in Illusions; there was a written test that Vox was required to make up, so he got to spend the period alone in an empty room.  Though he enjoyed the silence, the test was actually fairly difficult for him, as he’d missed so much school lately.  It was because of this that his plan of testing out his ‘aura sensing’ ability didn’t work; he’d wanted to take advantage of the seclusion, but the test effectively took up his time.

“Are you alright?” Mrs. Abramovich asked him when he handed her the exam.

“Of course,” Vox replied, confused.

“Well, John isn’t!  We played the tapes and saw what he did, so he’s been suspended for a week,” Mr. Abramovich called from behind his wife.

“That might not be good for the combat team,” Vox muttered.

“Really?  We were told that it was you that led our team to victory in the last meet,” Mrs. Abramovich said with a smile.

“Whatever.  I’ve got to get to my next class.  See you tomorrow!” Vox said as he took off down the hallway.

“Vox, where are you going?” a voice called after him.

   It was Father Seymour.  He was standing by Mrs. Abramovich, though Vox couldn’t remember him being there before.  Mrs. Abramovich herself seemed startled at his sudden appearance and jumped.  Seeing her reaction, Father Seymour took off his hat and apologized.

“Forgive me for my sudden appearance, Sara,” he said, bowing slightly.

“It’s alright, Seymour; she’s been jumpy lately!” Mr. Abramovich called from in the room.

“Oh, didn’t see you there, Joshua!  How’s the wife?” the priest joked.

“Scared, last time I saw her,” Mr. Abramovich replied, causing his wife to roll her eyes.

“To answer your question, Father Seymour,” Vox interrupted, “I was headed to Monster Studies.”

“Well, that’s been pushed back to after lunch for you,” the priest replied casually.

“What?  Why?” Vox inquired.

“You’re taking Divine Arts with me, remember?  That’ll take from third period until the end of lunch,” Father Seymour answered.

“What?  What about my required course?” Vox demanded.

“It’s all taken care of.  Mr. Thornton agreed to pass you this semester,” Father Seymour answered calmly.  “Come, we have no time to waste.”

   Dumbfounded, Vox followed Father Seymour to the chapel.  Instead of going in the front door, however, they went in through a back entrance that the young HeartReaver had never seen before.  Instead of leading into a study, the door opened onto a stairway that led upwards, though Vox didn’t see how an upper floor was possible on the chapel, as the inside of the domed ceiling was visible from the floor of the sanctuary, murals and all.

   As it turned out, an upper room was possible, just not visible.  The floor of the room was transparent material, suspended a good twelve feet above the floor of the sanctuary.  Remarkably clean, Vox figured that if there was a hole in it, he wouldn’t know until he fell through to the carpeted floor below.  The domed ceiling was another eight feet above them, though Vox couldn’t tell where the extra height had come from.

“Wait, won’t they be able to see us when Advanced Clerical begins?” Vox asked as he stepped reluctantly on the transparent surface.
Father Seymour, who was already standing in the middle of the room, laughed.

“No, there’s a small camera on it that will only show them the top of the chapel, not us.  That’s also why the chapel ceiling looks like it’s average height,” the priest explained.

“Is it soundproof, too?” Vox asked.

“Yes, unless you jump on it, which would be audible down below.  I’ve instructed Sister Terese to either take her classes outside or play the organ so they won’t hear us,” Father Seymour replied.

“Enough questions,” he said before Vox could voice another inquiry.  “We’ve got a lot of work to do if you’re going to learn even the basic Divine Arts by the time you’re attacked again.”

“What do you mean by that?” Vox asked.

“Fine, I’ll answer this last question, and only because it’s crucial.  We’ve got a spy in the Siren’s midst, so we know what her superiors are planning.  We also know that in three days time, Lamedia is going to be attacked by the Siren and two others with powers just as great as hers,” Father Seymour answered gravely.

“What!?”

“If you can learn Divine Arts by then, there’s a possibility you’ll be able to stop the other two, as they’re somehow tied to unholy powers,” Father Seymour replied.  “If you can’t, then it’s hopeless.”

“Why can’t you and the other priests stop them!?” Vox shouted.

“We don’t have the strength that you have as a HeartReaver,” Father Seymour answered.  “Besides, weren’t you going to just kill them all anyways?”

   Vox was quiet.  It was true that he’d been saying he’d kill all of his enemies, but that was only if they tried to kill Mikah.  Before he could answer, Father Seymour cut him off again.

“I’ll also tell you this:  they’re planning on going after Mikah as well.  She’s got some important role to play in their plans, but what it is, I don’t know.  If we had more-!”

“Let’s get started,” Vox growled, interrupting the priest.

   All he’d needed to hear was that they were going to try and take Mikah again.  Cracking his knuckles, he glared at Father Seymour, awaiting instruction.  The priest gave a half smile and walked to the other end of the room, but stopped Vox when he started to follow.

“I’m going to demonstrate the basic Divine Arts.  They only work on things that possess traces of unholy energy, so don’t go thinking you can use it on just any enemy,” the priest said, tossing his hat to the side and taking a deep breath.

   Thrusting his hand forward, he started to mutter something that Vox couldn’t hear, though he guessed was a prayer.  As Vox looked on, something in front of the Father Seymour’s hand started to shine, and then began to grow.  In seconds, there was a large fireball in his hand.  He stopped muttering and looked at Vox, gauging his reaction.  As always, Vox had kept a neutral expression on his face.

“This is the most basic form of Divine Arts possible.  It uses the power of the Holy Spirit that resides in your body, beckoning Him forth in a manner that would destroy His enemies,” Father Seymour explained.

“So is the prayer like a counter to an incantation?” Vox asked the priest as he walked forward with the fireball.

“It’s more of a way to focus on the Holy Spirit and show Him your will so that He can become the weapon you need,” Father Seymour explained after a moment of thought.  “To fully utilize it, you’ll need not only the prayer, but the proper use of your energy, and that in itself will be difficult.”

“Alright, teach me the prayer,” Vox said, preparing himself mentally.

“Holy Spirit of God, lend me thy power to bring to the light all that lay in the darkness.  Amen,” Father Seymour recited.

“Try it; see if you get anywhere,” he said after seeing that Vox was memorizing the prayer.

“Holy Spirit of God, lend me thy power to bring to the light all that lay in the darkness.  Amen,” Vox repeated, holding his hand out.

   For a moment he thought he felt something gathering at his palm, but in an instant it was gone.  Father Seymour was giving a small half smile; he knew that Vox wouldn’t get it right away.  Seeing his expression only frustrated Vox further, and he tried again, reciting the prayer a little more forcefully.  Yet again, nothing happened.

“Try putting a little more power into it,” Father Seymour suggested.

“And how would I do that?” Vox snapped.

“How do you control your Bloody Lance?” the priest inquired.

Vox had to think for a moment.  “I don’t really know; my body just told my mind what to do, like I already knew how to do it,” he answered at length.

“Okay, try this:  use a Bloody Lance, and try and memorize that feeling.  When you think you’ve got it, apply it to the prayer,” Father Seymour instructed.

   Nodding, Vox cut open his palm with his claw and thrust his arm forward.  At that moment, he felt as if a bit of his strength left him, though it was only an insignificant amount.  As he watched the Bloody Lance fly, he saw the power in it, shaping the blood and making it into a formidable weapon.  Time seemed to slow down as it hit the wall and dissipated, the energy returning to Vox with the blood.

   Taking his former stance with his hand out in front of him, he recited the prayer, focusing on the sensation of his power leaving him.  Once more, nothing happened.  Growling, he recited the prayer again, and again.  Finally Father Seymour stopped him.

“Vox, if you haven’t figured it out by now, then you’re not going to unless you change something about the way you’re doing it,” Father Seymour interrupted.

“What am I doing wrong!?” Vox roared, swiping his claws through the air.

“I don’t know.  What are you thinking about when you’re trying it?” Father Seymour inquired.

“Mikah, the Siren, Neo’s bad jokes, I don’t know!” Vox retorted in frustration.

“Try thinking of nothing,” Father Seymour answered with an amused smile.

“Nothing?  Nothing!?  Are you serious!?” Vox retorted.

“Fine.  Think of what will happen if you don’t manage this and can’t fight off the enemy.”

   Vox’s reply was cut short.  What would happen if he were to lose?  All that mattered to him was that they’d take Mikah unless he beat them, though it was true that they’d take him as well and destroy Lamedia.

“Unless you pull this off, you won’t be able to protect anyone.  You’ll be another worthless pawn on the chessboard,” Father Seymour continued harshly.  “If you don’t do this, you’ll be too weak to do anything.  You’ll only be able to watch as they destroy the town, kill anyone they find, and take Mikah away from you.”

“Shut up,” Vox growled.

   Something inside the HeartReaver had snapped.  The familiar shade of red entered his eyes again, and he fiercely shoved his right hand out in front of him.  As had happened every other time this change occurred in him, his aura was nearly visible, dancing wildly about him as he recited the prayer once more, authority in his voice.

“Holy Spirit of God, lend me thy power to bring to the light all that lay in the darkness!  Amen!” he roared.

   A large fireball burst to life in his hand, but it did not scald him.  The flames danced about his claws, larger than what Father Seymour had invoked moments before.  After a few seconds, they sputtered out and Vox began to pant, exhausted.  He was snapped out of his sense of wonder by clapping, and looked up to see Father Seymour smiling.

“Bravo; you’ve just passed the first of many lessons.  They’ll only get more difficult from here, so don’t think you can depend on your HeartReaver power every time you need to invoke the Divine Arts,” the priest congratulated.

“When do I have the next lesson?” Vox asked, panting.

“Right now,” Father Seymour answered with a devilish grin.

[Angel]

Good to see this one back up Nic.

[NicTei]

Yup.    Just started writing more of Chapter 27 today during my computer classes, but I probably won't get much more done over the weekend.  I'll be gone for a while tonight, and all of tomorrow for work and some Quartet thing.  It's all rather annoying; I just want to go to sleep...

[NicTei]

“I’m not going to last two days.”

   Serenda rolled her eyes at Hyde’s comment, turning her attention back to a cup of what looked like wine, but was in reality an unpleasant attempt at creating a new blood type.  Sipping from her glass, she cast a glance towards Reaper, who’d been pacing back and forth in the same spot ever since they’d received orders.  It was beginning to vex her, and she set the glass down.

“Reaper, cut it out.  The white of the carpet is starting to show through,” she snapped.

   Making a noise that could’ve been a grunt, Reaper kept going one direction, exiting the room.  Hyde sighed and flopped down on the sofa, obviously bored beyond belief.  Serenda smirked.

“Don’t worry, Hyde.  It’ll go faster than you think,” she said.

“You’re just saying that because you know it won’t,” Hyde groaned.

“You hag!  I’ll tear out your throat!” the right temple of his mask shrieked.

“Perhaps you could all stop talking long enough for me to point out that there’s an intruder in the house,” the left temple interrupted.

“Again?  Is it Vox?” Serenda asked, intrigued.

“No.  It’s one of our own men.  Actually, the aura suggests a traitor,” the mouth answered.

“Well then, why don’t we give our ‘subordinate’ a proper welcome?” Hyde suggested, getting up and cracking his knuckles.

   As the lesson progressed, Vox learned to control his energy more efficiently, invoking the fireball without tapping into his HeartReaver powers.  From there he learned to get the fireball to circle around him for a brief moment of time, its blazing orbit stopping when he lost his concentration.  Finally, after the seventh time he’d sent it spinning around his body in the barrier formation, he collapsed to the floor, utterly wiped out.

“What are you doing, Vox?  Get up.  We’re not done here,” Father Seymour said upon seeing the HeartReaver on the ground.

“Are you serious?” Vox gasped.  “I can hardly stand!”

“Do you think the enemy will give you time to regain your stamina?  If that’s what you think, then don’t even bother trying to fight; stay off the battlefield and let us do the rest,” Father Seymour replied harshly.

“Geez, I get the picture.  No need to give me a lecture,” Vox growled as he staggered to his feet again.

“Now, you’ve managed to manifest the Holy Spirit as a ball of fire in your hand, and figured out some ways of manipulating it.  Sadly, we don’t have time to teach you all the possible techniques.  We’re going to move on from the Holy Spirit inside of you to the Wrath of God outside of you,” Father Seymour explained.

“And how do you propose I do that?” Vox inquired irritably.

“It’s simple, really.  You merely need to direct your prayer at a mass of unholy energy,” Father Seymour explained.

“You’re not going to summon a demon, are you?” Vox asked warily.

“Don’t be ridiculous!” Father Seymour nearly spat.  “Since I can’t teach you the actual technique, I have to teach you the theory.  This will be the most dangerous thing we do during the lessons, so you have to be extremely careful.”

   Vox nodded; he knew full well what was at stake, at least in the long run.  He wasn’t sure what was coming next, or how it would be dangerous.  What he was sure of, though, was that Father Seymour wouldn’t try and push him to learn something that was unimportant, and would likely say that this could mean victory or defeat.

“Alright then,” Father Seymour said, taking a stance, “let’s begin.”

   Serenda and Hyde were both alerted to the fact that Reaper had found the traitor first by the loud scream that echoed around the mansion.  Looking slightly disappointed, Serenda followed after the noise, Hyde behind her.  Upon entering the back room where the tentacle monster was hiding in the freezer, they saw Reaper holding the traitor in the air, his claws impaling the poor man through the chest.

“Traitor,” Reaper growled, a sadistic smile on his face.

“Yes, we know that,” Serenda replied apathetically.

   Reaper lowered his arms and kicked the dying man off of his claws before evaporating into cloud and floating away.  Walking swiftly forward, Serenda lifted the man by his neck, holding him so that he was looking into her eyes.  A futile attempt at kicking her only left him with one foot stuck in her watery midriff.

“Now, who have you been working for all this time?” she asked as she glared into his eyes.

“I’ve worked…for you…” he gasped.

“If that’s true, then you know what I’ll do if you don’t tell me the truth immediately,” the Siren retorted dangerously.

“Father…father…” the man replied, but his heart gave out before he could finish his answer.

“How pathetic,” Serenda muttered, hurling the lifeless body at the wall.

“Can’t you just reanimate him and get him to tell us?” Hyde pointed out.

“That’s what I’m planning on doing.  Follow me, and bring him with,” she instructed, sweeping out of the room.

“That bossy little who-!” the right-temple mouth started to shout.

“I’m not telling you again to watch your language!” Hyde barked.

“Yeah, I’ll bet…” the offending mouth muttered.

“Perhaps we should follow after Lady Serenda before she gets angry?” the left-temple mouth suggested.

“You guys never shut up, do you?” Hyde groaned as he lifted the body and followed the Siren.

   Vox was unsure what had happened.  One moment, Father Seymour was at the opposite end of the room, hands clasped in prayer.  The next moment he was in front of the HeartReaver, a barrier blocking what looked like a bright flash of light.  It was gone in a second, and Father Seymour was walking away, rolling his shoulders as if he’d strained them in blocking the flash of light.

“What was that?” Vox asked.

“Holy Lightning,” Father Seymour answered.  “I couldn’t direct it at anything, so it struck randomly.  I didn’t think that it’d try and hit you, though.”

“What’s the prayer?” Vox asked, eager to attempt the technique.

“Slow down, Vox.  There’s quite a bit about it you don’t understand.  For instance, it will likely drain most of your remaining energy,” Father Seymour answered, holding his hands up.

“All I need to ‘understand’ is how it works so that I can fry whatever enemy comes at me,” Vox growled.  “What’s the prayer?”

   Father Seymour sighed.

“I guess some people never change.  Alright, I’ll teach you, but you have to be careful,” Father Seymour warned.

“Okay, I’ll be careful,” Vox promised hastily.

“Lord of power, show your wrath to all that would oppose thy servants,” Father Seymour recited.

   Vox took a moment to go over it in his head, not wanting to forget it.  Then, as an added precaution, he recited the other prayer mentally.  If he forgot either, he wouldn’t be the happiest person in the world.  Once he thought he understood, he took a deep breath and focused.

“Lord of power, show your wrath to all that would oppose thy servants!” he invoked.

   Vox immediately felt what was left of his energy rush out of him as a bolt of lightning crashed down in front of him, the barrier under his feet shaking when it hit.  With his vision blurring and his knees buckling, he didn’t bother to try and figure out why there would be lightning indoors, but rather staggered backwards against the wall, bracing himself against the sudden loss of power.  Father Seymour had a faint, knowing grin on his face, though he hid it from Vox as best he could.

“Told you it could be quite tiring,” he gloated.

“Shut up and give me more energy,” Vox growled.

“Sorry, no can do.  I won’t be here during every fight to help you out,” Father Seymour answered.  “Now get up and try again.”

“What?  I’ll die!” Vox protested.

“Perhaps.  But if you’re not willing to put your life on the line, even in training, then you can stay home and let the professionals fight off the enemy when they come,” Father Seymour answered nonchalantly, inspecting his nails.

“If I die now, there won’t be any fight!  You couldn’t defend yourself if your life depended on it.  And I’m not going to get myself killed on the battlefield just because I want to use some Divine Art!” Vox roared.

“First off, I could kill you in one of three different ways right now.  Second, if you don’t use Divine Arts you’ll lose and everyone you know and care about will die instead,” Father Seymour answered sternly.

“No!  There’s another way to win that doesn’t include Divine Arts!” Vox argued.

“Really?  Then tell me what that is,” Father Seymour retorted.

“I don’t…I don’t know.  But I’ll find it.  I’m not going to die pointlessly,” the HeartReaver growled.

“If you think dying for the good of others is a pointless death, then you can leave right now,” Father Seymour said harshly, glaring at his would-be pupil.

“Fine.  Have fun watching while I beat them my own way,” Vox uttered as he staggered out of the chapel.

   Father Seymour watched the HeartReaver leave, but he wasn’t feeling guilt.  Rather, anger was burning through his veins at Vox’s words.  In no way, shape, or form were the sacrifices made in battles ‘pointless,’ at least not to him.  His thoughts briefly touched upon his father, a battered, lifeless form devoid of warmth lying amongst dozens of zombies, all of them immolated.

“He’ll be back any second now,” he muttered, watching the door.

   A few seconds passed, but no one entered the hidden upper room of the chapel.  Seconds turned into minutes, and there was still no sign of the HeartReaver.  Father Seymour slapped his forehead, cursing under his breath, though immediately regretting it and spending the next few seconds in prayer.

“Great.  Now look what I’ve done,” he muttered, shaking his head as he sat down on a chair that had appeared from nowhere.

“Speak.  Who sent you?”

   In one of the many unused rooms of the Hillbourne Estate, Serenda was standing in front of the recently reanimated spy, a dangerous look on her face.  Hyde was standing in the corner, observing her techniques and practices as she attempted to torture information out of the lively corpse.  Even with the pain of being brought back from the dead, however, the spy resisted.  The Siren shrugged, and with a quick motion tore off his arm, relishing the scream of pain that issued forth.

“Foul spawn of hell!” he yelled.

“How flattering,” Serenda remarked.

“If I may,” Hyde interrupted.

“What is it?”

“This is getting us nowhere.  Perhaps I should interrogate him?  After all, I’ve got many…unique…methods,” the masked man replied.

“He’s all yours,” Serenda assented, stepping off to the side.

“Hi there.  How’re we feeling today?” Hyde asked as he stepped up to the zombie.

“Burn in hell!”

“Well, that’s rather uncalled for.  May I, sir?” the left-temple mouth inquired.

“Be my guest,” Hyde answered.

   The mouth stretched forward more than should’ve been possible, given the material of the mask, and bit the corpse’s left eye.  Ignoring the screams of pain, Hyde began to chant in a harsh, guttural language.  After a few seconds, the mouth released the man and slid back into place, though upon further inspection it was merely a hole in the temple; there were no teeth or lips.  Hyde inspected the corpse for a moment before poking it.

“You in there yet, Barlowe?” he asked.

“Indeed,” the mouth’s voice replied, though it was the body’s mouth uttering the words.

“Good.  What have you found out?” Hyde asked.

“I’d forgotten how marvelous it feels to be in a body once more!” Barlowe breathed, moving the spy’s hands as his own.  “How glorious!”

“Tell us what you found out, dammit!” the right temple mouth screamed.

“Someone needs to watch their vulgar mouth,” Barlowe retorted.

   Then, in a calmer tone, he answered Hyde’s question.  “This man was sent by the pastor of the nearby church, Father Seymour.  He and a few others have been infiltrating our group for quite some time now, it seems.  Oh my, he knows that we were going to attack in three days, and has passed on the information!” he explained.

“Bastard!” the right temple mouth shrieked.

“Shut up!  This is unfortunate,” Hyde muttered.

“What should we do?” Serenda asked.

“I think we should do something to throw them off completely,” Hyde answered slowly as he thought.

“What do you have in mind?” Barlowe inquired.

“Let’s attack tomorrow.”

   Vox was still walking home, letting his anger clear, when he ran into Umi.  She had been sitting on one of the low walls outside the apartment building in which Kraven lived, apparently deep in thought.  Upon seeing him, however, she stood and stepped into stride beside him.  He glared at her, but she didn’t step away.

“What do you want?” he asked.

“You looked pissed,” Umi answered.

“Don’t I always?” Vox pointed out irritably.

“More so than usual, I mean,” Umi replied,

“What of it?”

“Thought you could use someone to talk to.”

“That’s why I’ve got Mikah.  Leave me alone.”

   Umi stopped walking.  Vox didn’t even seem to care; he kept on at his rapid pace, headed towards his house and Mikah.  Umi stood where she was for a moment, staring after him.  Finally, she turned and walked back towards the apartment complex, knowing that she’d probably be in a bad mood the rest of the day.

“Why are you home so early?” Rena asked as Vox walked in through the door.  “School’s not even over yet!”

   Vox didn’t reply, instead choosing to glare at Rena until she left him alone.  Collapsing onto the couch, he was amazed that he’d managed to make it all the way back to his house.  His entire body ached, and was screaming at him to take up a policy of liberal use of painkillers.  A cool hand touched his face, and he opened his eyes.

“Are you alright?” Mikah asked, looking down at him.

“I will be,” he croaked back, attempting to smile.

   Smiling back down at him, Mikah rubbed his shoulder for a moment before stalking off into the kitchen.  Vox attempted to get up and follow her, but a slight twitch was the greatest extent of motion he could achieve.  Groaning as the slight movement sent twinges of pain through his entire leg.  Closing his eyes again, he decided to rest momentarily, but soon drifted off into a deep, untroubled sleep.

   Mikah looked into the living room to see if Vox was still awake, intending to offer him some supper, but saw that he had fallen asleep.  For once, there wasn’t a troubled look on his face; in fact, he seemed to have a slight smile pulling up the corners of his lips.  Seeing him without anger or frustration on his face brought another smile to her own lips.  That was one of many things she found interesting about Vox; though he didn’t smile often, when he did it was infectious.

“You love Vox,” Michelle stated smugly from behind her.

“Sh!  He’ll hear!” Mikah snapped, spinning around.

   Michelle raised an eyebrow, and Mikah groaned.

“Don’t even say it!” she muttered, though she realized that Michelle couldn’t really say anything.

   Michelle simply walked away, still grinning smugly to herself and occasionally turning back to flash the expression at Mikah.  It occurred to her that they still hadn’t found out where Michelle lived before the forest, and that they still needed to get her home.  The thought left her mind the instant she saw Rena limping out of the forest, bleeding from a wound on her shoulder with her shirt torn in a few places.  There were some scorch marks on the fabric, as well as a few places that looked as if they’d been frozen.

“What happened to you?” Mikah asked as the HeartEater came in through the back door.

“Stupid bi-ow!” Rena’s explanation was cut short as she sat down and gasped at the pain that exploded in her wounded leg.

“Care to try again?” Mikah asked, now more amused than concerned.

“I got in a fight, and I can’t say that I won,” Rena answered irritably.

“Want to explain, or should I go check for survivors?” Mikah inquired, only half-joking; she was worried about Umi and the other two that Vox had mentioned were in the forest.

“They got me a couple times, but I made them all regret it!” Rena crowed triumphantly.

“Why do you distrust them so much?” Mikah asked.  “They seem to want to help.”

“First off, one’s a demon, and you never trust a demon.  The other one probably still works for the Siren, and therefore wants Vox in their hands.  I’m not going to let that happen,” Rena answered.

“But you trust me, and I was with the Siren for quite a while,” Mikah pointed out.

“Yes, but you were a hostage,” Rena answered.

   It was apparent that Rena wouldn’t be convinced otherwise, so Mikah dropped the argument.  In her defense, it was hard to counter the HeartEater’s logic.  She had, after all, been held against her will, and she wasn’t about to sympathize with her kidnappers, as some people did in the same situation.  Rena staggered to the bathroom to get cleaned up, remarking that Vox would kill her for bleeding all over his kitchen.

   Mikah finished making her supper, a simple turkey-and-cheese sandwich.  Just as she was about to start eating, there was a quiet knock at the back door, and she got up to get it, already guessing that it might be Umi or the demon girl that Rena had mentioned.  Her first guess was correct; Umi was standing in the doorway, cradling her arm.  Blood covered most of the broken limb, as it had been almost completely torn up by what Mikah assumed to be Rena’s claws.

“Is she in here?” she asked in a hoarse whisper.

“No, but you should probably be at a hospital instead of here!” Mikah answered, concerned.

“I know you can heal,” Umi answered quickly, casting a wary glance around the kitchen as she entered.

“Well, I’m not that good at it.  You’ll still have to have a doctor check it out,” Mikah replied, sitting Umi down as she set to work on the damaged limb.

   Mikah first snapped the bone back in place, and then concentrated on the torn flesh as she muttered the prayers to heal the wounds, a slight glow from her hands washing over the torn skin.  Slowly, the bleeding ceased and the skin even seemed to close slightly, though Mikah ran out of energy before she could completely heal it, leaving a few shallow gashes.  After quickly checking through the cupboards, she found a roll of gauze and antibiotic cream.

“This will sting quite a bit,” she warned, though Umi didn’t wince as the substance was applied to the wounds.

   Finally, Mikah stepped back, looking at her work.

“You’ll still have to check with the doctor.  I’ve managed to reduce it to a hairline fracture, but if you strain it, it’ll get worse,” Mikah instructed.

Umi seemed lost in thought for a while.  “Why do you help me?” she asked.

“Because you helped Vox rescue me.  I figure that you can’t be all bad,” Mikah answered plainly.

   Before Umi could respond, Rena walked in, took one look at Umi, and charged.  Instantly, Mikah was between them, her open palm pressed onto the top of Rena’s chest, preventing her from coming any closer.  Rena started to roar in protest, but a glare reminiscent of Vox stopped her, though she was surprised that it came from Mikah.  There was something in her eyes that suggested an inner darkness.

“Rena, leave her alone.  You’ve done enough.  All she wants is to help, so let her,” Mikah demanded, her voice calm in contrast to her expression.

   Rena’s words caught in her throat.  The uncharacteristic glare had startled her, even scared her a little.  The only thing she could think of doing was walking away, so that’s what she did.  Mikah turned back to Umi, the glare disappearing instantly and replaced with a smile.

“Want some food?  I’d made some for Vox, but he fell asleep,” she offered.

Umi declined politely.  “No, I’d better go back and see if Kraven-er, Sakura-needs any help.”

“Did Rena get her as bad as she got you?” Mikah inquired.

“No, I think she managed to get away with a torn wing.  Not sure how that’ll translate onto Kraven’s body when he regains control, though, so she’ll probably find a healer for that,” Umi answered.

“Well, be careful.  There are zombies out there, though they’re only a real problem after dark,” Mikah replied.

   Umi looked at her for a moment, as if stunned that someone would wish her a safe journey, however short it was.  Finally, she shook her head, as if ridding it of a thought, and left, the door closing behind her.  Weary from healing and restraining Rena, Mikah finished her supper and stalked back into the living room, sitting down beside Vox and falling asleep on the couch as well.

[Angel]

 

Another chapter at last. Rather enjoyed that there Nic. Nice one.

[NicTei]

   Vox awoke to a gentle prodding.  Flexing his claws once, he opened his eyes and looked at Mikah disapprovingly until she stopped poking his shoulder, smiling apologetically.  Pushing himself into a sitting position, he yawned as he stretched his arms and legs, twisting both ways to crack his back before standing.  With each crack, Mikah winced; he’d forgotten that she wasn’t fond of the noise and immediately stopped.

“How long was I asleep?” he asked groggily, still flexing his claws.

“I’ll give you a hint:  you have about twenty minutes until you’re supposed to be at school,” Mikah answered, laughing when his head snapped up to look at the clock.

   Swearing under his breath, he raced up the stairs and found a new set of clothes to wear for the day, throwing his other clothes carelessly to the floor as he stepped into the shower just long enough to wash his hair before changing and jumping over the railing of the staircase to land on the ground floor, misjudging the distance and pausing when he landed to recover from the shock.  Shaking his foot, he strode into the kitchen as casually as was possible given the racket he’d made, barely restraining a growl when he saw that Rena was laughing at him.  There was no food made yet, as he was usually the one who cooked breakfast, but by the looks of the pan on the stove, someone, presumably Mikah, was in the process of making scrambled eggs.  As if on cue she appeared through the door, pulling the pan off and scraping what was in it onto the plates on the table.  Rena sat down beside Michelle, and Vox took a seat as well, wolfing down the eggs before standing up and grabbing his bag.

“I’m off, Mikah,” he called as he headed for the door.

“Wait,” she answered, soon appearing in the hallway.

“Be careful,” she ordered, hugging him.

“Me?  I’m the scariest thing here; no one’s going to try and jump me,” Vox reassured her.

“I’ve just got a very bad feeling about today,” Mikah insisted.

“Alright, I’ll be careful.  If the Siren or any of her comrades come here, let Rena fight them off; she has a score to settle, after all,” Vox relented.

   With a final squeeze, Vox broke away from Mikah and left the house, hoping he wouldn’t be too late for school.  As he strode quickly down the sidewalk, he became aware of the fact that the sun was out for once, and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky.  Sighing, he slowed down for a moment to look around before speeding back up again; no amount of scenery was worth being late for school and possibly missing a Divine Arts lesson.  It was at that point, however, that he remembered his fight with Father Seymour the day before and snorted out loud.  No way in heck was he going to run back to the pastor with his tail between his legs, wanting to be forgiven for trying to stay alive long enough to defend the people he cared about.

   As he passed by the street café where he’d seen Neo more often than once, he half expected the Shapeshifter to call out to him and offer a ride in his car.  To his delight, however, he was allowed to keep walking, and after a quick glance ascertained that Neo wasn’t at the café.  His car was parked in front, but he himself was absent.  Deciding that he was likely ordering inside for a change, and as such wouldn’t see the HeartReaver passing, Vox turned his thoughts back to the upcoming fight.

   According to Father Seymour’s sources, the Siren and the others she had with her would be attacking in two days, an all-out assault on Lamedia and the people that lived there, all because he was there.  He still had no idea why the pastor had insisted that the Divine Arts were the only way to win the fight; he’d beaten Roderick easily enough with just his claws, and he doubted that the Siren or the other one, Reaper, were much stronger than the pyromaniac had been.  Admiring the white of his claws in the sunlight, he could already see himself tearing out the Siren’s soul while Father Seymour watched on, grumbling about being wrong.

“Vox!  Look out!”

   Time slowed to a halt as the yell rang out from behind him, the voice belonging to Neo.  Looking up ahead, he saw a large wave of water headed towards him, surrounded by bolts of electricity.  He could only watch as it hurtled towards him until he was finally tackled to the ground by the Shapeshifter.  Shaking his head, Vox jumped to his feet, slinging his backpack underneath the nearest table as people started to run from the café, screaming.  Vox glared straight ahead, his claws slicing through a fireball that had followed the water.

   Serenda was standing just ahead of him, her staff planted firmly on the ground in front of her as another fireball was the released from sapphire clutched in the mouth of the carved dragon at the top, this one dispatched as easily as the last by Vox’s magic-proof claws.  Behind the HeartReaver, Neo sprang to his feet and lunged at the Siren, changing into a wolf mid-leap.  As Neo passed through her watery form, she suddenly solidified when he was halfway through her, trapping his midriff in her body.  Spinning the staff so that the dragon’s mouth was facing her, she tapped the butt of her staff on the ground once.  A thunderbolt fell out of the sky, striking her head-on, causing Neo to roar as all of the electricity, amplified by the Siren’s watery body, was passed through him.

   Cursing, Vox drew a claw across his left palm, cutting a wide gash that instantly began to bleed.  Before he could call out the words, the blood seemed to respond to his thoughts, erupting forward in a large, crimson lance.  Serenda dodged out of the way, leaving the twitching Neo behind to be stricken by the HeartReaver’s powerful technique.  Any attempt he could’ve made to stop the Bloody Lance was impeded by the Siren, who placed herself between him and the Shapeshifter and proceeded to hurl a large sphere of electricity at him.  He dove to the side and looked up just as the blood impacted Neo.

   No cry rang out, even as the crimson lance began to fragment into smaller spears, and Vox could feel his rage building.  Neo had been annoying at times, there was no doubt about that, but he’d also been a loyal comrade, helping him on more than one occasion despite his attitude.  A familiar shade of red started to bleed into his irises as his claws flexed involuntarily, a pale glow emanating from the razor-sharp tips.  He began to charge straight at Serenda, gripping his right shoulder as he brought his claws up for a powerful thrust.

“Stop, you idiot!”

   This time it was Umi that tackled him to the side just as a large circle that had been drawn on the ground started to glow, erupting upwards in a column of blue fire that emanated a cold wind.  As Umi had managed to push him out of the way, he was unhurt, but she herself was caught in the middle, obscured by the cold flames.  The column disappeared and she fell to the ground, her skin scorched and her clothes carrying the azure blaze all the way to the dirt with her body.  Vox stared for a moment, stunned at the sudden appearance and disappearance of the magical trap, and equally shocked at Umi’s self-sacrifice.

“What a pitiful little louse,” Serenda spat, looking down at Umi’s still form.  “To think that she’d still be a traitor to the end.”

   Roaring, Vox hurtled towards her faster than before, his white scales contrasted by the black fire that had now enveloped his entire right arm.  Swinging the claws, he was only driven into a further rage as Serenda exploded into a puddle mere seconds before impact, reforming a few feet away.  Mist was starting to gather around the café, undoubtedly the work of the Siren.  Vox paid no attention to the encroaching fog, both irises completely red as he
continued to charge Serenda, striking faster than even he could see.

   Finally, he struck Serenda, the claws stabbing easily into her slick, perpetually wet flesh just above her heart.  She shrieked, batting at him with the heavy end of her staff, but he wouldn’t let go.  Drawing his claws out slowly, she flailed around with renewed fervor as she saw her own soul, inky black in color, impaled on his claws.  The quick reaction of Reaper, suddenly erupting onto the scene as a dark cloud that swarmed Vox, saved her from suffering the same fate as Roderick.  Confused even in his anger by the sentient black mass, the HeartReaver let go of the Siren’s soul and took a quick step backwards, lashing out at Reaper as he did so.

   The claws simply passed through the cloud, and a husky, grunting laugh emanated from somewhere in its center.  Reaper solidified and pushed the HeartReaver back with a quick swing of his own, much longer claws before taking a few steps back to stand beside Serenda.  Glaring at Vox with all the hatred in her now wounded body, the Siren stabbed the butt of her staff forcefully into the ground.  With a voice that carried on the dying breeze, bearing a strange echo, she uttered two words.

“Cei Myrw.”

   A large, circular hole opened in the air in front of her, cold wind and snow buffeting Vox almost immediately.  As when she’d fought Rena in the parking complex, the gargantuan ice dragon stepped through, pale white fur almost invisible against the mist and snow around it.  Both eyes were glowing with a white fury that fully reflected how the sorceress that had summoned it was feeling.  Letting out a roar, it lowered its head to Vox’s level and exhaled a large wave of ice.  Vox reacted the only way he knew how; throwing his hands up, he erected a barrier in the hopes that it wouldn’t be as weak as his others were.  A loud shattering noise told him he was in trouble, and he waited for the sensation of being frozen alive, staring down the approaching icy breath in a final act of defiance.

   Out of the blue, a man clad completely in black was in front of him, a familiar bowler hat blown of his head by the wind as he calmly raised one hand, a slight shimmer occupying the air just in front of him.  Though the dragon’s breath had finally reached him, it was stopped by a barrier far stronger than what Vox had created earlier.  The breath died down as the dragon had to inhale once more, and the HeartReaver’s suspicions were realized; Father Seymour was standing before him, an uncharacteristically angry look on his face.  He glanced back at Vox.

“You didn’t even try Divine Arts?” he asked critically.

“Not the time,” Vox growled as Reaper charged.

   Father Seymour threw his other hand forward, muttering what Vox assumed was a prayer of invocation, a fireball erupting from his open palm and slamming into Reaper despite the fact that he’d changed into his vaporous form.  Shrieking to wake the dead, Reaper instantly solidified and fell to the ground, clawing at where the flames had hit him.  Serenda stared at Father Seymour for a moment, as if trying to place where she might’ve seen him before.  Finally, an eerie grin broke out on her face, her eyes widening as she stared at him.

“I never expected Vox to have you on his side, Seymour,” she exclaimed, her voice trembling from a combination of excitement and fear.

“I’m sorry, but I’m afraid I don’t know your name,” Seymour answered tersely, clasping both hands in front of him.

“Of course you don’t.  Unlike you, I try not to make my name known,” Serenda retorted, gathering a strange, black energy to the sapphire on her staff.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Seymour shot back sharply.

“Don’t lie to me, Seymour.  We all know what they call you when you’re not around,” Serenda cackled.

“What’s she talking about?” Vox inquired, beginning to doubt the priest’s loyalties due to his apparent familiarity with the Siren.

“You don’t know, Vox?” Serenda inquired with a feigned expression of shock.  “You don’t know that the man you’ve been training under all this time has been branded as ‘the Left Hand of God’?”

   In that instant a lightning bolt exploded from the sky, blocked by a black sphere that surrounded Serenda even as another streaked down towards Reaper.  Suddenly recovering from his injury, the cloaked figure rolled out of the way, though was still tossed into the air by the impact on the ground.  Throwing her staff forward, Serenda yelled something to the dragon, and it released another blast of icy wind.  Throwing his arm to the side, Father Seymour seemed to redirect the cold gust, blowing the dragon back through the hole, which closed as soon as the beast was past the threshold.  Father Seymour shifted back to the offensive, hurling a set of fireballs at both Serenda and Reaper in quick succession.  Neither of them were hit, though Reaper was moving much slower than before.

“Wow, look at him go!”

   The awed exclamation came from Neo, who had suddenly appeared beside Vox, causing the latter to jump.  To his surprise, Umi was also walking towards him, gripping Muramasa tightly in her hand.  Neither of the two were injured in the slightest, despite the hits they’d both taken on Vox’s behalf.  Neo noticed his expression and grinned, pointing to Father Seymour, who was in the act of redirecting a lightning bolt of Serenda’s back at Reaper.

“He healed us up pretty well,” the Shapeshifter explained.

   Vox rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to Father Seymour, who seemed to be doing quite well against the Siren and her comrade.  Tensing his legs, he lunged forward as Reaper charged in for an attack, tackling him to the ground and stabbing downward with his claws.  Stunned by the unexpectedness and ferocity of the attack, Reaper was unable to vaporize, taking the claws through the chest.  Though Vox attempted to pull his enemy’s soul out, nothing was attached to his claws as he drew them out from Reaper’s ribs.  Recovering from the attack, Reaper kicked Vox off and returned to the offensive, though focused on the HeartReaver.

“Vox, get back and protect the others!  I’ll handle both of them!” Father Seymour barked.

“Shut up!” Vox shot back, blocking Reaper’s claws with his scaled forearm and hurling a Bloody Lance with his left hand, which still bore a cut.

“Vox…” Reaper growled.

“You know Vox, you really should listen to Seymour.  He is, after all, one of the Highest Priests,” Serenda taunted as another bolt of holy lightning was stopped by her black shield.

   Resolving to ignore both the Siren and the pastor, Vox snarled at Reaper and hurtled forward, releasing another Bloody Lance while slicing with his claws.  As his opponent ducked out of the way, Vox quickly licked at the cut on his palm, the Blood Beast state invoking almost immediately.  Streaking forward almost faster than anyone could see he started to slash at Reaper with all the strength he could muster, glaring in determination.  His opponent was dancing nonchalantly out of the way of the strikes, his usual insane grin gleaming from underneath his hood.  When one of Vox’s claws caught him in the face, however, he roared in anger and used his strange power to throw the HeartReaver back.

“Vox!” he bellowed, rushing forward.

“Holy Spirit of God, lend me thy power to bring to the light all that lay in the darkness.  Amen,” Vox muttered hurriedly, throwing his hand forward.

   Though the fireball that hit Reaper was weaker than Father Seymour’s, it seemed to curve and hit the same exact place on him that the pastor’s had, eliciting a deafening shriek from him.  Pushing himself up, Vox repeated the invocation prayer and released another ball of holy fire.  This one curved as well, though Reaper tried to turn his wound out of the way, striking the same place yet again.  Feeling his Blood Beast state beginning to fade, Vox charged and tackled Reaper to the ground again, managing to jab his claws into the monster’s face.  Drawing them out, he stabbed again and again, continually thrusting his hand into the hood until Reaper stopped struggling underneath him.

“That’s what you get,” he muttered, shrugging as he stood.

   A loud explosion caused him to jump, and he ducked just as Father Seymour sailed over his head, thrown back by a spell the Siren had used.  As a ball of black fire hurtled towards the likely wounded clergyman, Vox threw his claws in the way, smirking as the flames were dispersed.  When his claws exploded, however, he was considerably less smug, thrown high into the air before landing hard on the ground a few yards away from where he’d been standing.  Cursing, he pushed himself to his feet and countered the next black fireball with a Bloody Lance, noting that it was weaker than the others he’d used.

   Father Seymour was staggering to his feet just behind the HeartReaver, throwing his hand up to create another barrier as more black fire flew towards them.  Waving a hand over his leg, which had bent awkwardly upon his landing, he limped towards Vox as the bone mended, strengthening the barrier and launching another counter with his holy lightning.  To the astonishment of both the pastor and the HeartReaver, Reaper rose to his feet, surrounded by a large black aura, which condensed seconds later as he charged towards the two of them.  Now being attacked from both sides, Father Seymour laughed as they stood back to back, each facing their enemy.

“I’ve always wanted to end up in a situation like this!” he mused as another lightning bolt narrowly missed its target.

“Shut up and keep that woman’s spells away from me,” Vox retorted, stopping Reaper with another ball of holy fire.

“Finally trying to use Divine Arts?” Seymour inquired smugly.

“What did I just say!?” Vox snarled, bracing himself against one of Reaper’s pushing techniques.

   Both became quiet as Serenda and Reaper increased the power and frequency of their attacks.  Vox hurled the spheres of holy fire at Reaper as fast as he could, not having time to wonder why it wasn’t tiring him out as fast as it had during practice.  Father Seymour, being the stronger of the two at the moment, was constantly switching between shielding Vox, shielding himself, and attacking the Siren.  In an effort to feel somewhat useful, Vox reached around Father Seymour’s side while he was in the process of blocking another spell and hurled a fireball at the Siren while he blocked Reaper’s assault with his claws.  Throwing the cloaked assailant backwards, chased by Divine Arts, he felt his blood boiling when Father Seymour sighed disapprovingly.

“Vox, just focus on your enemy,” he scolded.

“The same could be said for you,” Vox shot back.

   Apparently annoyed by the banter between the two, Reaper charged even faster, pushing while me moved to try and bring Vox down so that Serenda could hit them with her spells.  Nearly buckling under the force acting against him, Vox gritted his teeth and pushed back, claws out in front of him.  Just as it seemed that Reaper would win, something sliced into his side and he backed away, hissing in anger as Umi took her stand with the HeartReaver and the priest.  A snowy white owl landed on Vox’s head, despite his angry growl.

   As if to counter the entry of Vox’s other comrades into the fray, a third man appeared on the scene, walking regally to stand beside Serenda as she raised her staff to cast another spell.  She glanced at him and the corners of her lips twitched upwards momentarily.  A dirty, ragged mask covered his face, two ear-like extensions hanging down in front of his face, and there were various mouths incorporated, including on the eyes.  He was wearing an dirty, worn suit, and though he inspected his nails, Vox had the impression that he was watching the fight intently, waiting for an opening.  Reaper took advantage of Vox’s distraction to attempt an attack, but Umi and Neo were faster, Muramasa blocking his claws and Neo’s fists throwing the cloaked assailant out of the way.

   Seeing an opening, the new arrival took a step forward, suddenly disappearing and reappearing right in between Vox and Father Seymour.  Before the priest could warn them, they were all hurled away from each other by a powerful, sweeping kick.  Vox rolled along the ground, managing to regain control so that when he stopped, he was crouching on the ground, legs tensed and ready for a quick lunge.  Father Seymour had recovered more quickly, and was already throwing up more barriers to stop the Siren’s spells.  Neo, still in his owl form, was currently hiding in a tree, and Umi was on the ground, frantically fending off downward thrusts of Reaper’s claws with Muramasa.  Vox started towards her to help, but was suddenly stopped by a powerful strike to his stomach.

“Sorry, I can’t let you interfere with Reaper’s execution of the traitor,” the masked man apologized as Vox retched once, nearly throwing up on the ground.

“Just kill him, Hyde!” one of the mouths on his mask shrieked.

“You guys are all such freaks,” Vox muttered, standing up shakily, still holding the place where Hyde had hit him.

“Now, now, that’s not very nice,” another of the mouths scolded.

“This is going to give me a headache,” Vox muttered, flexing his claws.

“Settle down, Vox.  I’d really rather not fight right now.  You see, I’m rather tired after torturing and executing a spy, as well as capturing a target weeks ago, so I’d like it very much if you’d simply sit still and watch my friends kill your friends,” Hyde said, raising his arms.

“Not likely,” Vox growled.

   Lunging towards the masked man, Vox sliced open his left palm quickly and hurled a Bloody Lance straight ahead.  Sighing, Hyde ducked underneath the crimson spear and countered Vox’s charge with another sweeping kick, nearly connecting with the HeartReaver’s face.  Something lifted Vox out of the way just in time, though, and Hyde’s heavy boot hit nothing but air.  Glaring up at Neo’s owl form in the tree, Vox attempted another charge towards Hyde, though he was stopped by a wave of mental energy.

“Go help Umi with the big guy; I’ll take this Halloween reject,” Neo’s voice instructed in Vox’s head.

“Fine,” the HeartReaver muttered, charging towards Reaper.

   As Hyde moved to intercept Vox, Neo descended from the tree, shifting to his human form almost instantaneously and kicking the masked man directly in the face.    Cracking his knuckles and clenching his fists, he watched Hyde carefully as he got to his feet, wiping the back of his palm against the corner of his mouth and staring at the bit of blood that came off.  Instead of attack, however, he merely laughed, confusing Neo.

“Perhaps I’ll have to show off Janus’ power, after all,” Hyde remarked, an unnerving grin lighting up his face.

   The instant Neo had jumped out of the tree, Vox trusted him to take care of Hyde and turned his full attention to assisting Umi.  She’d sustained two wounds to her shoulders already, though they were shallow and didn’t appear to be bleeding too badly.  What concerned him was that Reaper was slashing at her and stabbing towards her, but she was moving slowly, barely managing to block the blows.  Sprinting forward, Vox slammed into Reaper with his shoulder, throwing the hooded beast off of Umi.  Snarling, Reaper rose to his feet quickly and rushed towards the two of them, stopped by a hastily thrown ball of Holy Fire from Vox’s hand.

   Pulling Umi to her feet, Vox stared down Reaper, claws twitching in anticipation.  He’d been itching to finish the fight he and Reaper had begun in the parking complex, and this looked like the best opportunity.  Recovering from the Holy Fire, the cloaked monster lunged towards Vox, claws outstretched and aimed for the HeartReaver’s heart.  Ducking underneath, Vox slashed with his own claws, but his enemy turned into a black cloud, floating away.  Umi leaped into the air and slashed with Muramasa, eliciting a shriek from Reaper, who solidified and fell to the ground, clutching at his throat.

“Good aim,” Vox murmured, nodding to Umi.

“Sheer dumb luck,” she countered, still watching Reaper warily.

   Snarling like the wounded animal he was, Reaper’s black aura began to expand once more, an terrifying sight to behold.  For a moment, Vox thought his eyes were playing tricks on him, but when Umi gasped and began to back away, he knew what he was seeing.  In the midst of the inky blackness surrounding Reaper, there were people.  Looking closer, Vox realized that not only were they were transparent, but some of them were no more than floating heads.  Reaper was surrounded by souls, and judging by the looks on their faces, they were far from at peace.

“Any idea what we’re seeing here?” Vox asked Umi.

“No; I’ve never seen him like this,” she answered, frightened.

“Charming,” Vox muttered sarcastically.

“Hades,” Reaper growled quietly as his claws began to extend even further from his cloak sleeves.

“Well, I guess that answers the question,” Vox muttered as Reaper charged.

   Feeling Reaper’s power surge, Serenda smirked, nearly hit by a bolt of holy lightning from Father Seymour.  Flicking her wrist in an almost bored manner, she reflected it back into the sky, and the priest groaned in a way that seemed childish.  It was obvious that neither of them were actually trying their best quite yet.  Serenda cast a lazy glance towards Hyde, who was in the process of fighting the Shapeshifter, and then back to Reaper, who had just begun to rush Vox and Umi.  Looking back to Father Seymour, she grinned again.

“Does that count as a warm up?” she asked playfully.

“I guess so,” Father Seymour answered, reaching up to pull the bowler off of his head, tossing it behind him.

“Good.  I was beginning to get bored,” Serenda answered, stabbing the butt of her staff into the ground.

   Mist began to surround her, swirling near the top of her weapon even as Father Seymour clasped his hands at his chest.  Water erupted from out of the ground near the Siren in ten powerful geysers, shooting far into the sky before dropping down to eye level.  As one, the streams began to bend until they all fed into the Siren, forming long, flowing blue robes embellished with sapphires.  Pulling the hood up over her head, Serenda pulled the edge down over her eyes, blocking off her sight.  Father Seymour had seen this before both at Combat Meets and in real warzones.  The theory behind covering one’s eyes was that the blindness allowed you to focus more on the flow of magic energy through the earth and through the body; by allowing the energy to guide itself, the power of the magic was greatly increased.

“I’ve been wanting to destroy you, Seymour, ever since you became one of the Highest Priests,” Serenda remarked.  “Now it seems I’ll have my chance.”

   Father Seymour wasn’t listening, but instead had his eyes closed.  His lips were moving, as if muttering a prayer, and there was a strange current running through the air around him, clearing the mist away from him in a meter-wide radius all around his body.  Mouthing the word ‘Amen,’ he opened his eyes and took a step forward.  Instantly, all of the mist disappeared, and Serenda took an involuntary step backwards, away from the priests.

“You’re nothing but an ignorant child; come back when you’ve got less of an ego and more of an intellect,” Seymour said calmly, his eyes glowing white.

“No!  You will not stand in front of Poseidon and I, not now, not ever!” Serenda hissed, thrusting her dragon-headed staff forward.

“So be it,” Father Seymour sighed.