Love is something that you can’t exactly put into words. It’s an incredibly powerful, overwhelming feeling. One that has twisted men’s hearts into dark knots, yet also granted them incredible strength, the strength to do the impossible. It has always been in existence, waiting for anybody to take a hold of it, grasp it, and take it in, if they so wished. It doesn’t have to be for a particular person or thing, as it can be felt for truly anything. Shadic, although he hadn’t fully understood it yet, had a great love and admiration for Sanara, but he still had a lot of maturing to do before his feelings for her could come to true fruition. Sanara also loved Shadic, and their love for each other grew over time, but neither of them completely understood what it all meant. Sanara was older than Shadic, but the world still had much for her to learn about love, life, and many other things. Everybody has their own personal loves. Even Xepher, whose dark past was finally blossoming into something much darker, had “love” for something.

Rain continuously poured over the two figures who were unfortunately trapped in a deadlock. If anybody else had been staring at the scene, they would have seen the crimson being soaked into the ground, washing into the surrounding waters, and disappearing, then being replaced by more and more, flowing modestly out from two wounds.

The first was from the punctured stomach of Taxuteta, who at this point had finally fallen backwards and onto the ground. He still had a wide grin smacked across his face, but you could see the shock showing behind his glasses, which were slowly defogging. A steady stream of blood seeped through his trench coat. What had saved him from an even worse wound was that godsend bullet that had still remained in his left gun. When he had stopped to reload, only his right pistol was completely empty, and the left still had one shot remaining. That one shot may have saved his life, but he couldn’t be sure if that was enough.

Which brings us to the second wound. That final bullet had managed to hit its target, and in a pretty bad place, too. Sanara’s left shoulder had been hit by the bullet, causing her to violently jolt back and remove the dagger from Taxuteta’s stomach. She was still standing, but she had failed to finish the job. Looking at her shoulder, she could tell that there was only an entrance wound. She had managed to instinctively slow the down bullet with her abilities. The effectiveness of this maneuver wasn’t very apparent, however, as she was unable to move her left arm below the wound. Sanara collapsed into a sitting position on the ground and began to poke at the wound with her other dagger in an attempt to gouge out the bullet. She winced just at the thought of probing into her own wound, but actually doing it was a little more sickening.

A chill inducing clatter of a pistol began to ring through the air. Sanara was just in time to thrust herself out of the way as a bullet pounded in her direction, aiming to finish the job the other had started. “You were still alive?!” gasped Sanara, regaining her footing on the soggy ground. A cackling laugh issued from Taxuteta’s upturned mouth, sending a slight shiver down Sanara’s spine.

“Alive? I’m a damn Doll, of course I’m alive!” Taxuteta picked himself up, trembling and shaking as he stood. His trench coat was slightly redder near the torso, but he was still alive and willing to fight. “You underestimate us, girl!” he spat, his grin widening more and more.

“My name isn’t girl, it’s Koja.” She shifted slightly, ready to pounce if anything unexpected were to happen. “Just what is a Doll, anyways?”

Taxuteta lifted his head up, staring straight into the sky, rain pouring down on his insane face. “The sky here isn’t real, did you know that? It’s fake, all of it is. This whole place just bends to his will, so it doesn’t matter what you do, you’re all just going to die, so why not go here?” Blood surrounded the man’s feet, trickling down from under his trench coat. “Ah, I’m sorry I’ve failed you, my lord.” The man then began to laugh, but it just wasn’t in him at the moment, so instead blood spilled from his mouth in a choking cough.

“I can’t deal with people like you,” remarked Sanara, slightly irritated. The man had failed to answer her question pertaining to the Dolls and now he was becoming more insane than before. At this rate, he was no longer of any use to her.

“This operation you’re trying to stop…it’s much greater than somebody trying to take over the world, or destroy it, even…” He shifted slightly with a clatter under his coat, but before he could do anything, a jolt pounded through his body. He toppled over, face first. The top half of his body was hung over the side of a strip of land. His head was submerged in the red-dyed water. There was no denying it; he had to be dead, now.

“I knew I was faster than you,” muttered Sanara. She crouched down and began treating her wound again, this time successfully removing the bullet without interruption. “But that was a waste of a kunai just now.” She continued by wrapping her shoulder with a bandage as it hung limp and useless from her torso. “You didn’t fail, either, you paralyzed my whole left arm…” she continued cursing under her breath until she was finished treating her arm, now held in a temporary sling until she could regain control of it. There was something in that bullet that had caused the paralysis. She could tell by the green streak of liquid that had trailed down from the wound before. There was nothing she could do but clean it as best as she could and wait for her body to reject the rest itself. It hadn’t spread to any other part of her body, so she assumed it would just fix itself, with any luck.

Or perhaps it was something else that was protecting her. Another bond that she had with somebody else – her blood oath. That powerful magic that prevented her from hurting Shadic, physically or emotionally. If Shadic saw Sanara’s arm like it was, he would be devastated to know he could not protect her, so her body was doing all that it could to fix itself, if only a little. That was the meaning of Sanara and Shadic’s bond, and their promise to each other.



Sorry I haven't posted in so long...=( I'm going to try to continue writing the story whenever I get the time.

I'm still here. ^^ Short continuation to the story, but the story is finally rolling into action. The path to Xepher is unrolling itself, waiting for our heroes to follow it. All that remains is for them to find Alex and put a stop to his evil. Posts from here on out are going to get much more serious as the story takes a darker tone. Good stuff. =D

There's a lot of talking at the moment, but that's going to change soon...I'm going to make things more exciting soon enough.

___

You who have issued forth your love…
Look to the sky in this world of madness.

“They know about us,” muttered Drake, stirring the coffee that sat before him. “I’ve also been researching the River Styx. Aside from that-”

Jenshi yawned, interrupting Drake. “This many years and they’re just now finding out that we’re here? Damn.”

“What do you expect?” asked Veil, chuckling. “It’s not like they thought we were still alive.”

Spike, feeling out of the loop, tapped his fingers on the table impatiently.

“Shut up you two, I’m trying to hear!” barked Jem.

“Your yelling hurts my ears, Jem…” spoke Hana in an almost motherly fashion. “Please keep it down.”

Jem quieted down.

Korai groaned out of annoyance, striking a file against her nails. She winced as she accidentally scratched the skin of her finger.

“As I was saying,” continued Drake, rolling his eyes for the umpteenth time that day, “I was going to explain something, but you morons just don’t let me get a word in edgewise.” He continued to stir his coffee. The cup was full to the brim, untouched by his lips. “They kidnapped a relative of mine. That’s why I think they know about us. Otherwise they wouldn’t have chosen to take her…it wouldn’t have made sense. Now, I haven’t been paying much attention to this relative of mine, but I got this information from Korai, and-“

“You have relatives nearby?” asked Spike. All eyes turned to Spike, looking down upon him for interrupting Drake.

“Yes,” answered Drake, drawing the attention back to himself. “Her name’s Hannah. I got a feeling that her MIA status is a sign that Alex knows about us, and he wants us to know that.”

“And where does that get us, huh?” asked Veil, “We haven’t made any breakthroughs recently. If we want to approach Alex before he approaches us, we must take action.”

Drake grinned. “Exactly! That’s why I’ve been checkin’ out the River. That robot that Spike brought along has maps of the region. After lookin’ at those, I noticed that at the very most eastern-edge of the maps is a river.”

“A river? At the edge of water?” asked Hana. “How do you suppose we get there, Drake?”

The widest grin spread across Drake’s face. “I have a new toy, remember?”

Spike’s eyes widened. “Aosoth?” he asked.

Drake chuckled excitedly. “Yeah, yeah! And guess what? I studied her so much that I’ve found some traces in her memory that can lead us straight to that big old river!”

“Perverted bastard…” grumbled Korai.

“Shut it!” yelled Drake, raising from his chair. “Using those traces, I’ve almost got a device together that can warp us right to the entrance of the River Styx, but no farther.” His grin suddenly straightened out, and he sat down. “But we’re going to need a way to get across the water.”

Spike, realizing how close they were getting to Alex, volunteered. “I know a guy with a ship.”

“Eh?” muttered Drake.

“Think he’s willing? asked Jenshi.

Spike grinned. “More than willing.”

Drake stood up again, laughing. “Hell yes! That’s damn wonderful, newbie! Alright then, somebody go with him to get that ship, and I’ll finish my device!”

“I’ll go,” piped up a girlish voice.

“Huh? Jem? Why would you ever wanna do anything?”

“Anything to get away from your stupid butt!” she yelled. “C’mon dummy, let’s go get that ship.”

Spike stood up. “We’re off, then.”

“Very good,” grinned Drake devilishly.

Now, your eyes should be here, eyes that never fade…
But you don’t know anything.

---

“You all know your duties, my friends,” spoke a soft voice to the small army of vampires that stood before him.

Saeletis, along with his brothers, placed his hand over his heart and kneeled down on one knee, bowing to the man before them. “Yes sir!” they all said.

“I will kill Mamorichi Ombre,” said Saeletis in confirmation.

I wonder when it began?

A year ago…

With the King Black Dragon destroyed, the great veil cast over the island of the Moonclan had disappeared. A race whose sky had been clouded for ages was now clear, with a bright sun shining down on them.
And driving them away.
The Moonclan, vampires living in the isles of Zanaris, knew nothing of light. Their world was meant to be a dark, dim one. The light did not blind them. Instead, the darkness protected them. Did that make them evil? That depends. The world’s view, society’s view, of what makes a thing evil is written in stone. Light vs. Darkness. Heroes vs. Villains. Good vs. Evil. In the eyes of a developed society, the darkness was evil. And light was good.
So, were the Moonclan evil? In the fearful eyes of most creatures, yes. Darkness is fear. And the greatest type of darkness is the unknown.

Spike, Argen, Faria, and Nightwish left the island with the impression that light would be brought to the clan of Moldovia. And it was, unfortunately. The Moonclan, never exposed to the light, knew not of its baneful capabilities. The dream of a shining island was in reality a nightmare. Saeletus and Vanstrom Klaus returned home after the battle to find a diminishing village where escape was not a possibility. That is, until a savior arrived within a month of the incident. It was a man by the name of Lunacus.

---

“With the destruction of this city will come the rebirth of our homeland,” the soft-spoken man preached, looking upon his followers. They listened attentively, ready to leap into battle at his command. He smiled a soft smile, one of reassurance. One of guaranteed promise that the vampires would one day have safety from the sunlight, a bane they had just begun to fear. “Our repressors are those who have brought this light upon us. In order to bring about a peaceful world, they must be destroyed.”

“Sir!” the small army replied. Their bodies had a sickly pallor to them from the new exposure to sunlight, but their wills were strong. Determination kindled inside of them, telling them that this man would lead them to the life they once knew.

“Sir!” another group shouted. A bundle of five men quickly approached the other vampires, pushing along a figure tied with rope and covered with a sack. Wearing a victorious look on their faces, they stopped within a few feet of the priest.

“What is this?” asked Lunacus.

“We found him wandering around our temporary base,” said the largest man, obviously leading the group. He pushed the covered figure forward. It stumbled and fell onto the ground.

“Well done, Vanstrom. Let us see who this is.” Lunacus took a moment to kneel down, his fat stomach getting in the way of his legs as he tried to reach down. He was somehow able to successfully remove the sack covering the body’s head, revealing a silver hedgehog. He used his foot to flip it over, revealing the face of a man with valor in his eyes. Spikes stretched out from his forehead elegantly. He had the look of a warrior about him.

“Judging from his appearance, this looks to be the one called Ayitak,” surmised Lunacus. He paused for a moment, lost in meditation. The surrounding vampires looked in awe, observing him as he glowed. “Well done, you have captured one of the troublesome Veloce Marauders. God has sent me his decision. Vanstrom, you may kill this man.”

Vanstrom Klaus cracked his knuckles. “If it’s for the good of my people, then it must be done.” He approached the hedgehog, looking condescendingly upon Ayitak. “Any last words, suppressor?”

Ayitak smirked triumphantly. “I haven’t the slightest idea why I would honor you people with ‘last words.’” He closed his eyes. “Do it.”

Vanstrom held a golden hammer in his hands, which he raised high above his head. “May God show mercy upon your soul,” he whispered as he thrust his fists downward, impaling the hedgehog’s head.

“Now, look!” shouted Lunacus. “The fate of our repressors!” He held the body of Ayitak above his head exultantly. “Now we shall find the rest of them, my chosen warriors. Saeletus, take half of these men and head towards the west docks. Vanstrom, follow me and the rest of these men through the city. We will begin our extermination now.”

The men agreed and split up, leaving behind Ayitak’s body as it withered away into the cold wind.

I wonder where we may go to visit with the end?

“Where does this guy live anyway?” asked Jem.

“I don’t know, quit pestering me.” Spike and Jem were walking through Flame City. They were headed toward the coast. The man they needed to see, Locke Keyes, was a man of the ocean. Surely he’d be found roaming the coasts or sailing in his ship, the Dutchman. One of Locke’s traits was that he was popular, so asking around was bound to be the way to find him. “It will be morning in a few hours. If he’s hungover, he’ll probably be sleeping somewhere.”

“Just hurry up and find him already. Shouldn’t you have already known where he was? You sure as hell were excited when you mentioned him earlier!” the fox scolded, becoming increasingly annoyed with Spike.

“Yelling at me doesn’t help…Just keep moving. We’ll be out of the city soon.” He was getting better at ignoring the girl’s remarks, however annoying they were. He then remembered how Hana had managed to silence her at their earlier meeting. They had to have some sort of relationship with each other. Hana was a bit terrifying, though. Spike saw an alleyway and promptly turned, going in between the narrow space next to two buildings.

“Where are ya-“ began Jem, but Spike quickly ‘shh’ed her.

“Quiet. We’re being followed.” They continued down the alleyway until it opened into another street. Flame City was full of buildings, especially in the recesses of the ghettos. Not exactly the nicest buildings, but tall enough to give cover. “This way,” he motioned, breaking into a run. Jem followed, not having sensed the footsteps as Spike had. She had developed enough trust at this point to follow his instincts.

“Trying to run away from your sins?” A slender figure slipped down from the sky in front of Spike. He skidded to a halt before the being that wore a masking straw-hat.

“This the guy that was followin’ us?” asked Jem.

“Yes,” answered Spike. “Although it looks like he’s a little lost,” he said, recognizing his hat. “What is a member of the Moonclan doing here?”

The hatted one scoffed as if that statement was a stupid one. “Like you don’t know. You’re the one who destroyed our lives, after all.” The figure took off his hat and dropped it on the ground next to him, revealing a boyish, handsome face, complimented by shining, silvery hair.

Spike thought for a second before recognizing the face. “Is that you, Saeletus?” He remembered the face back from when they had helped the Moonclan recover control of their island from the King Black Dragon.

“How flattering. You recognize me.”

“Tch,” muttered Jem. “For somebody so flattered, you sure don’t look too happy to see him.”

“Yeah, you really don’t. What’s happened since I last saw you? You’re not making any sense, Saeletus.” He was genuinely confused, trying to put together the vampire’s words into something that actually made sense.

“You know exactly what you did, Mamorichi. Do you understand just how many lives you have taken, you murderer?!” Saeletus gritted his teeth, baring his fangs at the hedgehog.

Spike defensively balled his fists. “I deny killing anyone of your village. And my name isn’t Mamorichi. Who sent you here? Was it Alex?”

“Who is that, another one of your friends?” asked Saeletus. “Our savior has descended upon us to revive our clan, and you’re just going to act like you know nothing?!” He began running towards the black hedgehog. “So be it, I’ll beat you down to Hell for your actions!”

Jem jumped out of the way as Saeletus burst past her with incredible speed. Spike moved fluidly to his right, dodging a flying kick from the vampire. Saeletus pivoted on his landing foot, throwing an uppercut at Spike, who had already prepared to counter the attack. “Take this!” The vampire dashed forward before Spike could recover, blazing past him in a flash. Spike fell back, feeling a sharp sensation in his neck. That speed…could he keep up with him? Was his speed able to match his own? He moved his hand to his neck, feeling the stinging pain grow. He tried to stand up, falling down under his own weight.

“How is that, then? That little bite carried a great poison in it.” Saeletus grinned maddeningly. “It will quickly move through your veins and destroy you from the inside out, as you have done to our island.” He smirked, adding. “Looks like I was faster than the devil.”

“You…fool. I thought…we freed you from that dragon.” A strange feeling was creeping down Spike’s shoulder, spreading to his chest.

“Of course you did,” barked Saeletus. “And then you revealed that horrible light to our island, the one that has already killed so many of us. Even the poor Oneiromancer. I couldn’t save her! Knowing that, you still-“

“I knew nothing…of that!” Spike supported himself on his arm and pushed himself to his feet. The pain was receding. “You idiot…looks like you’re serious about this. Whoever told you these lies is full of it, though!”

“What? But, the poison-“ Saeletus was worried. How could Spike still stand with the vampiric venom flowing through him?

“I’ve already been bitten by a vampire on your island, you moron. You really think I’d fall for the same trick twice?”

Saeletus became outraged. “That’s impossible! There’s no way anybody could become immune to our venom!” The hedgehog began approaching Saeletus.

“You’re as blind as any human is. If you won’t listen to reason, then I will give you no mercy. This is your last chance to get out of our way.”

I'll try to post more frequently for awhile.

---

It was the right thing to do. We were lost. The shield that had protected us for so long was gone, and we couldn’t do anything by ourselves. ‘We need a savior.’ That’s what everyone believed. After much pain and suffering, finally, one arrived.

“I am Lunacus,” he boldly announced. “I have come to end this turmoil and save the Moonclan.” That’s what he told us. That’s what we believed. That what we wanted. And that’s what I must fight for. In order to save our people. I have to put the remainder of my trust into this man, in order to shut out the deathly light.

“I will not allow you to go any further, Mamorichi!” Saeletus stood his ground firmly. From behind him, footsteps arose, growing louder and louder by the second.

“Looks like the cavalry finally got here,” commented Jem. “I’ll leave the small fry to you, dummy.” She proceeded to introduce herself to the vampires who had joined the fray.

“Sir! We weren’t sure where you had gone off to,” explained one of the other vampires. There were five or six total. “We tracked you down as soon as we could.”

“It’s fine,” replied Saeletus. “Just…take care of that girl. I’ll handle Mamorichi.”

Spike moved his hand to his side, wrapping his gloved hand around the handle of his sword. “That’s the last time I’ll let that name pass your lips, Saeletus.” In a swift movement Spike withdrew his sword and charged at Saeletus. He threw his arm up in a circular movement, grazing the vampire’s chin as he attempted to dodge. He lost his footing and stepped back, allowing Spike to hit him in the ribs with the flat side of his blade. He was thrown back, his spine smashing against a rail on a small set of stairs.

“Were you not prepared for me to use a sword? Get up if you think you can still defeat me,” he mocked. Despite his words, it wasn’t in his mind to kill the vampire, only to incapacitate him. A splintering crash sounded from behind Saeletus as Jem threw two of the vampires into some wooden boxes. “Would you keep it down over there, Jem?” Spike shouted.

“Shut up, stupid!” She was handling herself well. Even without her demonic powers, she was incredibly powerful. It was a scary thought that the Hidden might be more powerful than Spike himself.

Spike began walking to the rail, on top of which Saeletus lay. “Who is behind this?” he asked, imploring. The vampires’ sudden appearance was a mystery to him. He had to find out the truth. “Who sent you here with these lies?”

“Lies?” Saeletus laughed in a choked breath, spitting out blood, his confidence unfaltering. “Lunacus would never lie to those of his race.”

“Who?-“ Spike was cut off. His attention had been too focused on Saeletus. He had not noticed the larger, more bulky vampire charge at him from behind. Just as a golden hammer nearly landed upon his neck, a shining dagger flew through the air and parried the blow. Spike turned around in a defensive stance, staring down the massive man. Vanstrom Klause. He remembered the name vividly. A face as mighty as his is immediately paired with a title.

“How did you block that, hedgehog?” he asked. “The murderer of our people Mamorichi Ombre. Let’s see if you can block it again!” He rose his hammer once more, preparing to smash Spike into pieces.

A voice thundered down from above the night sky. “He didn’t block it. It was I.” All of the battle’s participants looked above. On top of a building on one side of them stood a silver hedgehog, holding red and blue blades as he beamed down on them.

“Ayitak!” called Spike, surprised.

“Hey there.” The warrior leaped down from the building and stood in front of Klause, blades crossed. “You and I have unfinished business, do we not?”

“But how? I killed you personally!” he shouted in disbelief. He gripped the handle of his hammer feverishly.

“Ah, the body?” Ayitak smiled. “It was the best I could do. But it was clever, right? A faux body. You can thank my sister for that.” He uncrossed his swords and attacked the behemoth vampire.

“It’s pathetic how easy it is to make monkeys fight.” In the more populated area of Flame City, Xepher stood atop the tallest building, listening to the sounds of cars, stores closing, and people talking amongst themselves far below him. “No matter how much this city takes, it gets back on its feet. If only Usana were so fortunate.” He thought for a moment, going over his preparations in his mind, assuring himself that they were complete.

“What are your plans?” The door to the roof of this building had suddenly opened, and from it emerged a tall figure wearing a black cloak. He had to be six feet tall. From under his hood, a white mask with cross-stitched teeth peered fiercely at him. The cloak absently fluttered in the bitter wind.

Xepher looked at the figure for a moment before scratching his nose innocently. “I’m sorry, were you looking for somebody?”

“It’s a steep fall from here, isn’t it?” he asked, ignoring Xepher’s question as if it were trivial or stupid. “A 1,000 foot tall tower, the tallest in Flame City, if I’m not mistaken?” The voice was that of a male, calm and elegant. “We wouldn’t want to fall, would we?”

Xepher shrugged. “Who would? A descent of that distance would indubitably be the end of one such as you or myself.”

“Well, only one of us would have to be foolish enough to fall. The other would learn, and step away from the edge. The sound of a head cracking on the pavement could reach here in the silence, don’t you think?” The figure was approaching Xepher.

Xepher, unwavering, grinned. “It may reach here in the silence, but not amidst the sounds of a city such as this.” The being’s presence amused him. “My name is Skyye. Typhus Skyye. And you are?”

“Typhus? Is that the name you wish to go by now, Xepher?” The cloaked form stood only a couple feet from him. Xepher lowered his eyes cautiously, observing the figure. They both stood upon the edge of the building, firmly holding against the breeze.

“Who are you?” he asked again. The man’s being here wasn’t was troubled Xepher – it was the fact that he had intruded upon him undetected.

“You want to know who I am? Is this what they call fear? Tell me, are you afraid of me?” the masked man implored. “Are mysteries and shadows too much for even you?”

Xepher could tell that from beneath this mask, there was a pair of laughing eyes. It was mocking him. Mysteries and shadows. The words struck him significantly. “From our little banter just now, I can tell that you are somebody from my past. Is it you, Cytor? You would know better than anybody that I was created without fear.”

The figure laughed. A cold, knowing laugh. “No, I am not Cytor. My, my, you do have quite the memory, though. So is that it, then? Typhus Skyye Xepher. You do not have fear, yet you have yet to strike me. That’s an accurate description of our meeting here, is it not?”

“There’s a difference between harboring fear and being wise,” he retorted. “An analogy between the two is unreal.”

“So you say.” The two paused for a moment, staring the other down. The ferocity between the two was silently powerful. “Very well. I’ll leave you here then,” finished the man. “I’m can’t stop you here.”

As he turned to go, Xepher called out, “Wait.” He strummed his hand across the air in front of him, creating and firing a dart of diamond dust at the figure. It turned around, catching the dart in a pale hand, swiftly forming a fist and incinerating it.

“What kind of nameless hero would I be if I couldn’t do something as simple as that?” At this angle, Xepher could see a single eye beneath the mask. A deep hazel hue, drowning in ice, the irises surrounded by a golden ring. Before he could observe him further, the figure dropped a leg off the edge of the building, his body following in a billow of darkness.