New Arrival

[Gladious Nightsorrow]

It was a fine day, in a dry deathly sense... the air is filled spore and dust, choking the living to their agony. The road south of the Outskirt is deserted, as it always have been, but something about it is different today...

Not long after the sun sets, the road started to come alive, more alive than it had been in years. The wind blew, the air sparked, and the ground shaken, the space just above a tree seems unnatural, and it's getting more and more distorted as time went on. Suddenly, in a flash of purple light, a man appeared through the distorted space and fell straight onto the dry, hard earth... and seconds later, everything was silent and deathly again.

Gladious stood up from the pile of earth slowly, patting himself to get all the dust off his coat.

"Next time I see the Aritha brothers, I will kill them." he thought to himself silently. As the looked up, he saw the darkened cloud wailing upon the Eastern Quadrant of this unfamiliar town, and his eyes glowed.

"As I thought, death surrounds this town, and this nostalgic sense..." he thought..."there is no mistake...Demons..."

At which moment he noticed another rather strange presence, rather strange in the way it's coming from a withering tree, but not unexpected because this presence was just like the one in his dream. Gladious tilted his head slightly in the direction of the tree, spying on any movement from the tree, and slowly, he unzips his guitarcase...

[Apocrypha]

From his perch in the tree Apocrypha sat alone in some macabre meditation, his gaze transfixed on the city ahead of him. His thoughts had been increasingly troubled as of late. Normally unconcerned with the problems of the city, he couldn't help but feel that he could not remain uninvolved for much longer, and this unsettled him greatly.

A flash beneath him abruptly brought him out of his trance. His concentration broken, he snarled angrily as his eyes dropped to the path below. A man, standing alone and confident on the path had begun to dust himself off. The man was clearly demonic, although something felt different about him.

Apocrypha's eyes narrowed, and his muscles tightened. The stranger had brought his gaze towards the very tree in which Apocrypha was sitting, and had reached over his back to his guitar case. Apocrypha silently dropped down from the branches, landing deftly on his feet, in the long shadow cast by the surrounding trees. He had already blended into the shadow, and watched the newcomer attentively, awaiting his next move.

[Gladious Nightsorrow]

As Gladious unzips his guitar case, he caught a flicker of movement under the tree, it's almost like a disturbance in space itself, any normal human would have missed it completely, but Gladious won't he has seen this before, and he remeber it clearly, at that thought, he unconciously moved his hand over the left side of his torso, where the long new moon scar taints.

He continues to unzip his guitar... Mean while moving on hand into his coat and took out his polished handgun, a 20 round auto reloader with fully blessed rounds. Gladious clicked the safty off, he took a long deep breath..."I don't know how powerful this guy is, but something about him is strange. No matter, my ability should help me, I will have to take him down quickly..." and on that thought, he let go off the guitar case, which is now completely unzipped, reavealing a shimmering great sword, a red arua surrounds it just as it does Gladious, the aura roared and twisted, engolfing Gladious within, and then it suddenly stopped, dispersed like a mistly cloud, Within the cloud, stands Gladious, now calm and leathal, pointing his gun straight at the distorted void, and blasted his blazing hatred into the abyss...

[Apocrypha]

Apocrypha smiled as he saw the guitar case drop to reveal the long gleaming weapon. He could barely contain his excitement, it had been so long since he'd had a good fight, and this stranger looked like he wasn't going to disappoint.

As the man drew his handgun and began to unload his clip, Apocrypha quickly dashed forward, jumping over the man's head, landing silently behind him, leaving him to shoot at nothing but empty space.

Apocrypha snarled as he revealed himself. "I would be careful who you pick fights with around here boy, it's an easy way for you to meet an early end". He dropped into a fighter's stance, preparing to lunge at his foe. "Although I do admire your style".

With that said, he propelled himself towards the man, the wind hissing as he sliced through the air. He extended a claw, and slashed at the chest of his assailant.

[Gladious Nightsorrow]

As he blasted away in his overwhelming blood rage, Gladious felt the deathly wind blew past him, and seconds after, he heard a low rough voice spoken behind him, full of triumph and arrogance. And split seconds afterward he felt the claw of his assassin slashing ferociously at his vitals...

But even before his opponent landed, Gladious had already moved on, stepping so swiftly as if he is floating. However he is also breathing heavily, it is not an easy task to over come one's demonic side, and he has been trying to master it for 10 long years, still he can just barely take control...

The mighty claw of his assassin swung behind him, but caught nothing but a few strands of clothing. Without even looking back, Gladious walked calmly to his sword, leaving the demon in a state of confusion. Gladious walked over to his sword, picking it up with just one hand, all the time trying to conceal the pain he suffered from withdrawing his demonic rage. Then he turns around and points the gleaming edge of death straight at the confused demon and spoken for the first time,"Come, let us dance..."

[Apocrypha]

"I knew this would be fun". Apocrypha took a step backwards and once more dropped into a fighting stance. He snarled at his opponent, and spat out his words like venom. "Like I said, I admire your style, but you don't realise what you've gotten yourself into child."

He flicked his hair backwards, off of his face to reveal his abyssal stare. Where his iris should have been was just darkness, slowly consuming the rest of his eyes; eating away at what little whiteness remained.

"Are you ready for this boy? I wont be holding back. You would be wise to do the same." With that said, he once more lunged at his foe. He brought back his left arm as if to stab the man, however, just as he looked like he was about to hit, he lashed out with his right, at the abdomen of his foe.

[Gladious Nightsorrow]

Gladious signed to himself, the demon appears to be more excited than angry from his taunt, "How typical" he thought to himself, "he does seem alittle stronger than the ones I faced before, never the less, I am not about to get another scar, not from your foul kind!"

His pupil blazed, and the void around him stretched like an elastic band, split seconds later, he is seeing into another world, a world just ahead of their own, and he saw it. The demon charges at him ferociously, stretching its claw, stabbing at him with its left hand but changed to a slash with its right at the last moment, the force so brute it would have ripped his stomach wide open. Unfortunately for the demon here, it shall never happen...

Unaware, the demon started charging, stretching out its left, as if stabbing, then switching to its right at the last moment. However, nothing was there, nothing but a gust of wind, and Gladious is by standing by its side, glaring at the demon's back and his raised sword is already making its way toward the creature's heart.

[Apocrypha]

Apocrypha slashed viciously with his right, expecting the tear of flesh, but instead he swung through nothing. "He's quicker than I expected", he thought to himself, and cursed under his breath.

However, he had no time to contemplate on how his opponent managed to dodge his strike with such ease, as he could see from the corner of his eye the man's sword was swinging down towards his exposed back. Apocrypha acted quickly, contorting his body in an attempt to dodge the blade, spinning his entire form to the right. However, he could not fully dodge the blow of the enormous sword. As he spun, the very edge of the weapon glanced the edge of his cheek, leaving a clean cut a few inches long across his face. The cut burnt furiously, searing his demonic flesh. "The bastard has blessed his weapon."

But in that moment, he saw his opening. The stranger's weapon, although powerful, was unwieldy, and that swooping attack of his left him fully exposed. He stopped himself mid-spin, planting his left arm on the ground. Using the momentum of his evasive dodge, he spun his right leg around with all his strength into a kick, aimed at the stranger's face.

[Gladious Nightsorrow]

As the sword approaches its target, a glimpse of joy rushed over Gladious, "This is the end, and I am going to win!" and at the same time, pain shot through him just as quickly. "his blade slowed, and the creature managed to roll out right under its tip, although it did not manage to escape flawlessly, it looks as if its face was caught by his blade, Gladious was slightly relieved about that, and that's a grieve mistake, the pain yet again shot through him, and the seal he had on the demon within weakened yet again. His Chest muscles contracted so suddenly as if choking him, his concentration is broken, ans as he fades back to the real world, a mighty blow struck him right in the face, sending him flying backwards. All Gladious managed to do is grab hold on to his sword and vaguely struck it into the hard earth to stop himself from flying any further, pain took over and he was engulfed by flame yet again...

"Damn it! Not now, just a bit more...just give me a bit more time!!" Gladious begged as he slowly looses control over his demon and his inner world is tearing apart...

"Don't screw with me BRAT!! If it wasn't for that cursed woman, this body would already be mine!!! And it will, in time, I will take over, and I promise, you will not like a bit of it..."

The battle raged on within...finaly, with every last bit of energy he could master, Gladious sealed his demon back into the blazing flame, and the world reappeared once again.

Exhausted, Gladious looked around him, he can see the pool or crimson blood, probably his own, laying in the middle of the pool is a snowy-white tooth; his ear still rings, and his head aches as if it would split open...then he looked up, and there it is, the demon...standing not far away from him, holding its jaw, grinning but all the while looking rather confused...

..."Shit...I can't move"...

[Apocrypha]

"I've not had this much fun in a while, I thank you for that child, but you've reached your limit." Apocrypha straightened up, looking over at his prostrate foe. He wiped some of the blood away from his cheek. The cut still burnt from the touch of the blessed steel.

"I could finish you right now" he said, slowly walking towards the man, extending a claw as he spoke. He stopped in front of his adversary. "However, where would be the fun in that?" Apocrypha paced around the man, who was still dripping blood from his mouth. He stopped once more in front of his bloodied foe. "However, do not think me kind to spare your life. I want to see you suffer. I want to see you burning with hatred and desire for revenge. I want to see that desire consume you and leave nothing of your former self. I will see you destroyed, child." Apocrypha snarled, pulling the man up by his collar, holding him up at arm's length. With one taloned finger, Apocrypha cut a deep line across the centre of the man's chest, tearing through the flesh as slowly as possible, maximising the pain. He then cut down once more, leaving a bloodied cross on the body of the man. "Let this serve as a constant reminder that you lost to me this day boy." With that said, he dropped his lacerated foe, turned his back to him, and walked away.

Apocrypha's gaze once more returned to the city ahead of him, and as he stared, a feeling of unease overtook him. He felt drawn to the place, it was a feeling he couldn't subdue. He stopped, his eyes still transfixed on the eerie metropolis. "Shit." He cursed under his breath, and began to walk towards the town he most despised.

[Gladious Nightsorrow]

Gladious knelled there, paralyzed , feeling like a bird with its wings clipped off. Blood still dripping from his face, the world is still spinning, he could not help but feel helplessly defeated...

The demons stood up and walked towards him, it was speaking to him. Although Gladious can not make out much of what's been said, but one word sunk into his head as clear as the full moon hanging in the sky..."Revenge"... and with that, he was lifted off his feet, hanging in the air like an animal about to be buchered..

Gladious closed his eyes, cursing silently at his demon, and at himself, preparing for the end to come... but nothing happened... he slightly raised his head to see what is going on, and then he felt a cold, sharp talon piercing his chest, cutting through muscle and tendents, but not far enough to kill him. The talon made its way across its way across his chest slowly, Gladious groaned, the pain was unbearable, but what's more is the humiliation...

"Let this serve as a constant reminder that you lost to me this day boy..." says the demon, then it dropped Gladious like a brick. Tortured and humiliated, Gladious was left bleeding on the hard earth once again, fury flooded through his body, and he tried to stand up and chase up the demon, but all he managed to do is look up and watch the demon disappearing into the death shrouded town, then darkness took him once more...

Hours later, Gladious slowly regained his consciousness, he looked up, it was already noon the second day... "Damn that demon, and damn you!" he looked down on his chest and there a cross shaped scar lies, and that's when everything flooded back into him. Anger stirred once again, but Gladious contained himself, he stood up slowly, still a bit shaky, but almost completely recovered and he stared into deathly down again. "You've made a big mistake demon, next time, I will definably kill you." with that, he headed out into the town...

[Damaris Y Blaidd]

((Continued from The Cafe thread, cuz I didn't see a point in starting a new one))

As Damaris stalked her way through the town, she felt the anger rising inside her.
Shit... not now... not... now....
She could feel the wolf inside her howling to be released.
Not in the town.... there are too many people....
She fought to keep her anger from taking control of her as she made her way through the town and to the outskirts, as far from the town as she could get.
I just hope there are no people here.....
In her last few moments of human sense, she removed her coat and weapons, burying them in a shallow pit between the roots of a dead tree.
And then, in a flash of teeth, claws and ginger fur, she changed.

[Damaris Y Blaidd]

The tan wolf that had recently been Damaris Y Blaidd sniffed around its new surroundings.
Food...
She picked up the scent of a flock of sheep nearby, and followed it, her nose building her a picture in scents. The country was fairly barren, but there was some fertile land.
As she sped towards the sheep, her paws threw up clouds of dust and dirt, and she growled as it flew into her eyes, but didn't stop.
As she drew near she sheep, the human part of her mind, very faintly, said Just one.. just take what you need...
The wolf growled again and pounced on the nearest sheep, which bleated in alarm and tried to run. Her claws dug into the sheeps skin, as she brought her strong jaws down on its throat, ignoring the human voice at the back of her mind.
She had only one thought now.
Food....

[Damaris Y Blaidd]

Damaris-the-wolf raised her head from the sheep she was devouring, a lump of flesh hanging from her jaws. She was being watched.
She looked around. There was a raven perched on a branch of the dead tree. She growled at it. The raven tilted its head to one side and looked at her quizically.
She let the dead sheep fall, and sat on her haunches, staring at the bird. It cawed loudly and flapped off, landing a few feet away and looking back.
She continued watching it, her anger subsiding, replaced by curiosity.
She stood up again, but scarcley moved before she felt her anatomy changing again.
Within a few painful moments, she was back to her human form. Her hair had come loose from the braid, and her clothes were torn in several places but, thankfully, still preserved her dignity. With another glance at the raven, she dug out the shallow hole between the roots of the tree and grabbed her coat and weapons, replacing them where they should have been, then turned and walked towards it.

[Austin]

Please Note
Time Jump Initiated
All following events are at least two months after those above