The Reaper crawled out of the hole he had created. The demon still above him and an echo of laughter on his lips.
How is it, The Reaper thought as he stood up and stared with a strange sense of amusement at the demon, that these toys are so frail and easy to break.
As his thoughts finished a sword came swinging down on him. In The Reapers view, it was as slow as a tortle, or maybe even slower, as he pulled his sword, Oathbreaker, out of its sheath and knocked the sword to the side. A winged creature stood in front of him looking astonished by his prowess.
The Reaper shifted a bit, elbowing the winged creature in the chest sending her flying backwards towards a group of onlookers. The smile, half crazed from the madness he had experienced, disappeared as he saw one of them waving his hand in a circle. A spell was being cast, a spell that would take his prey away from him.
The Reaper looked to the sky's, his eyes looking for the demon that should be falling towards the ground, only to find a vast grayness above him. Fury bit at The Reapers mind. This creature took away one of his toys. It must pay.
The Reaper charged forward and swung his blade at the scaled vermin that stood before him. His blade was stopped partway by the winged creatures sword. She was shouting something, but The Reaper wasn't able to process the words at first. Then, a blade pierced his side and he understood what she said.
"Tyril," she said, "flank him while I have his attention."
Tyril, who had been the one to catch the winged creature before, disappeared and did as the winged one said. He attacked the only part of The Reapers body that wasn't armored. This angered The Reaper further as he grabbed the sword that had pierced his skin and lifted the wielder off the ground, throwing him and the sword off to the side.
"If you want to be my play thing," The Reapers words sent chills down everyone's back, "then I will make you ONE."
The Reaper pulled out a second sword, a now unnamed blade for no one truly knew what its name was, and slammed the side of the blade against Cassandra's head. Cassandra fell to the ground in pain, sparks flew in her eyes and darkness threatened to close in.
What is this? Cassandra asked herself, panic welling up inside her. She hadn't felt such fear, pain, or panic since her fathers death. Marik had been the source of all of that and since he is now dead, Cassandra had thought those kinds of feelings were gone as will.
Cassandra saw a flash of steel in the corner of her eye and quickly rolled to the side. Oathbreaker pierced the ground, narrowly missing her wing as she rolled out of the way. Cassandra quickly pushed herself onto her hands and knees and started to crawl as fast as she could, tears streaming down her face.
With every inch she took, Oathbreaker was right behind her piercing the ground. Cassandra managed to make her way to the top of a boulder, oathkeeper never to far behind, The Reapers laughter causing sobs to wrack Cassandra's body.
Save me! Cassandra thought, her body cut up from the sharp rocks and bruised from constantly having to dodge the deranged orcs attacks. Gods! Some one save me, please!
Just as Cassandra made her way onto the boulder, a sword thrust out in front of her. Cassandra fell back a step and coward where she was.
Tyril had managed to quickly recover from the throw. He stood up and began to search the area for his sister only to find her crawling on all fours away from the party that was now giving chase. Grall, or the thing that was once Grall, stabbed at the ground anytime she slowed down. When someone from the group managed to catch up to them or cast a spell, the creature would knock the attack to the side as if swatting flys.
"Help me!" The words were not spoken, but Tyril knew of their origins. "Gods! Some one save me, please!"
Tyril moved through the spiritual realm, placing himself in front of Cassandra. He knew if he wanted to fight a monster such as this he would need the help of his sister so he placed his sword in front of her, stabbing deep into the stone, and attacked the thing that chased Cassandra.
The Reaper caught Tyril and threw him once more, this time into the almost sealed tear into hell. Seconds later, the tear was repaired, trapping Tyril in the final layer of hell.
Cassandra, who's mind had almost been broken by the horror of what this creature was, kneeled on the ground staring into the sky, ready for the sword that would kill her to do as it user promised. As she kneeled on the ground, a shadowy figure appeared before her. It looked the same as her attacker but its blade was sheathed.
Cassandra cried out in fear before passing out. The fear and shock of everything had proved to much for the altain. Later, when Cassandra had managed to get ahold of herself, she would remember this incident as her greatest failure.
Grall
Grall lifted his body, or at least what could be called a body. He didn't have a physical form and shadows danced around him with every movement he made. He was dead, or at least the closes to death he had ever been.
For Grall, it had been several hundreds of years since he was killed, but to the material realm, it had been less then a day. At first, Grall had felt petty for himself. He had gotten what he wanted for so long but at the price of the one he cherished most of all. Wreag, his grandfather and the first reincarnation of Talengar was the one who forced him out of his funk.
"There is still plenty more a dead man must do." Wreag had told him, he had explained everything he saw from the time of Gralls birth till now. "You are dead, but The Reaper still controls your body. He uses it to fight those who seek to protect this cycle."
"Why?" Grall asked, his mind had been thrown into confusion. "The Reaper was meant to refresh the cycle, not force an end to it."
"After spending so long trapped in your body, the body of the man who threw himself onto his sword countless times, his mind snapped." Wreag lifted a drink to his lips, after Gralls death, the Shadow World had began to change. Great halls seemed to appear out of no where. Casks of ale and meat from game were in every room.
"So..." Grall stared at his hands that had a shadowy figure to them. "I am the reason for this."
"I am afraid so." Wreag finished his drink and threw the mug against a far wall. "That is not how you are going to leave it, Grall."
It was more of a statement then a question. "No." Grall rose as his words echoed off of the great halls. Wreag smiled, it was time for him to train his grandson.
Present time, Grall stood over an unconscious Cassandra, his heart ached to see the altain that had bested him turned into a crying mess. He knew she would never forgive him, even if he was not the one who tormented her so.
Grall took Cassandra into his arms, lifting her up, and carried her to the group. The creature that had taken hold of Gralls body protested and began to attack Grall. Grall, having better knowledge of his weaponry, easily knocked all incoming attacks off to the side.
Grall walked to Imp and stood in front of him for a moment. Imp seemed prepared for an attack, one that he was sure would end his life. Grall smiled, if Imp was scared of him then that means the training Wreag forced upon him was worth it.
"I have not come to hurt you, dasari." Imp flinched and seemed to recoil at Gralls voice. A sense of confusion crossed his face for a moment before being replaced with understanding. "Please, take her and leave this creature to me."
"How do you plan to destroy the creature, Grall?" Imps voice trembled with exhaustion and, to Gralls amusement, fear.
"Destroy?" Grall asked, his voice deepened with a strange sense of foreboding. "He cannot be destroyed. He is a being that only the source could hope to destroy. No, I do not plan to destroy him. I plan to help those who wish to fight destroy me."
Grall placed the unconscious Cassandra in Imps arms and turned to the attacking creature that had taken his form. The entire time Grall and Imp had been talking, The Reaper had been attacking Grall. Grall had been able to hold back the attacks long enough to do what was needed before turning to him.
The Reaper quickly withdrew to a safe distance, he had acted out of instinct rather then with a purpose. He seemed to hate the act of retreating, but Grall hadn't noticed. He knew what he must do and what it meant to do so.
Grall drew his sword, he only had one sword on his person, Oathbreaker. It wasn't the same as the sword The Reaper held, Gralls version was shadowy, as if he wielded the swords shadow.
The Reaper let out a terrifying scream as he charged forward. Grall parried his blade and slammed the hilt of his sword into the creature's forehead, causing him to stumble back. The creature stopped moving for a moment as it got the first real taste of pain it had felt in years.
Grall half expected the creature to attack out of fury, but instead, something more menacing occurred. The creature began to laugh again. Its shrill laughter echoing out of Gralls own body sent chills running up and down his spine.
Grall shook his head, clearing his mind of the chilling laughter, and jumped forward. He had only one job he needed to do, and that was to become whole once more. The Reaper pulled his blade up, pointing it at the charging Gralls chest. Grall was moving to fast to change directions so he allowed the blade to pierce his body.
The pain of having the magical blade peirce through him was nothing compared to what The Reaper felt moments later. Grall thrust his blade into what was once his own body and chanted a short phrase.
"May my body become the vessel to hold the dead. May its blade seek vengeance for those wronged. May it be the house that holds all your sorrow for I give to you my life to use as you will."
It was a simple spell, one meant to trap souls of the dead in small vessels to later be released in the spirit realm. However, Grall was already dead and he could choose who or what held his spirit until it was ready to leave. He chose his own body to hold him, this meant he had returned to his body.
Grodak
Grodak had just finished his preparations for the battle to come when his stone, a communication device given to him by Imp, started glowing.
"Grodak," Jaxales voice was coming through and it sounded panicked, "there are two Gralls here and they are fighting each other. None of us can stand up to either of them. They managed to knock Cassandra out and we do not know what happened to Tyril."
Grodak lifted the stone to his lips and said only one line, one that instilled hope into the group, and dread into himself. "I am on my way."
Grodak knew of only one place they might be, the area where Imp had decided to start evacuation. The once proud kingdom of Alurtynia, which had fallen, like many other kingdoms, to the might of Milindar. Grodak moved swiftly, using the Shadow World to save time, he teleported himself to the location.
As Grodak arrived he saw a shadowy form with Gralls appearance get impaled on Oathbreaker. He heard words of ancient and unknown origin spoken. Then a flash of green light shine and standing in the shadowy figures place was Grall and a sword that emitted a green glow.
Grall looked confused and conflicted, as if he didn't know what to do. Every move he made was countered by another. It was as if two beings fought for control and neither were able to get the upper hand on the other.
Grodak stepped forward, determination on his face as he lifted his sword. This was now his battle, a battle of brothers. Grodak leapt forward swinging his sword at the monster his brother had become.
Grall made no move to block Grodak and the sword easily cut through his armor. Grall let out a scream of pain and anguish as he reared back, dropping his weapons. This was a mistake, Grodak wasn't facing his brother Grall. Grodak was facing the being known as The Reaper, the harbinger of souls. The being that ends all life with a swipe of his blade.
Grall reached forward and took hold of the sword in front of him, the green aura pulsated. Grall quickly withdrew his hand in pain, blisters covered his palm where he had touched the sword.
Grodak realized this wasn't a weapon for those who wish for destruction, this was a weapon for those who wished for peace. Grodak swung his sword again, this time Grall dodged, taking a step back to evade the blade. Grodak quickly raised his free hand and took hold of the sword.
As Grodaks hand touched the hilt, the green light pulsated once more and Grodak could feel thousands of minds enter his, all talking at once. It was too much and Grodak let the sword go rearing back in pain. Grall leapt forward and punched Grodak in the chest. The force of his hit sent Grodak flying, his body colliding with a stone that jutted out of the ground. The breath knocked out of him with the impact.
Grodak sank to the ground, gasping for breath, pain racked his body with each breath he took. Blood tinkled down his forehead into his eyes causing him to become momentarily blind. He wiped the blood out of his eyes in a hurry and looked for Grall.
He found him where he had left him. Gralls hand wrapped around the swords hilt, pulling on the blade with all of his might. The blade seemed to refuse to move and the green light took on a redish tint.
Grodak pushed himself off of the ground and began to walk towards Grall. He refused to allow his brother to become something that would destroy all of life. He refused to allow any more death at his hands and would be the one to avenge all those who had lost their lives to his madness.
Grodak charged forward, slamming his body into Grall. Grall stumbled back, both hands blackened from trying to force the blade out of the ground. Grodak grabbed the hilt once more, mentally preparing himself for the onslaught. As his fingers wrapped around the hilt, nothing happened. No insane amount of minds attacked his. Replaced by the multitude of minds, one voice spoke out.
"We will be the weapon to defeat this great evil that exists before us."
Grodak grunted an acknowledgement, he knew this meant whatever magic possessed this weapon, it would allow him to use it for now. Grodak pulled the sword out of the ground and with a quick swing of the blade, a green light flew off. Grall tried to jump out of the way, but he moved to slow. The green light that came from the sword cut Gralls arm off.
This enraged the creature. "My arm!" It shouted in anger. Grall leaned down and picked up Oathbreaker with the arm he had left. "You damn demons," Grall said, his voice coming out muddled as if he was having a fever dream, "I'll kill you all. Its what she wants. Its what I must do for her to return to me."
Grodak held the green sword at the ready as Grall charged forward. Grall slammed his sword against the green blade. Even though Grall now fought with one arm, Grodak could barely hold out. The strength of the attack was such an unimaginable feat that Grodak lost his balance for a moment, and that was when Grall knocked him to the ground.
Grall leapt onto of Grodak, lifting his sword into the air and slamming it down. Grodak let out a shout of pain as the blade pierced his gut. Grall lifted the blade again and again, stabbing it into Grodaks gut repeatedly. The pain was almost unbearable as several times Grodak had thought this was the end for him.
"This is not your end." The voice that spoke to his mind said. "We will make sure none of your major organs will be damaged. This will come at a price, however, so be prepared to pay it."
Grodak tried to grunt but it was interrupted by his screams of pain. Out of desperation, Grodak brought the hilt of the sword up, hitting Grall in the temple. This caused Grall to stop, and it seemed that a part of him had returned.
"Grodak.... kill.... me.... kill... the demons." Like that Grall returned to the savage monster he had became. He lifted his sword once more to drive it into Grodaks gut.
Grodak caught his hand, a tear slid down his cheek. He couldn't allow his brother to kill him and he couldn't allow his brother to live. This was all he could do for him.
Grodak brought the sword up and pointed the tip of the blade to Gralls throat. Grall fought desperately to get free and took all of Grodaks strength to hold him.
Hey, Grodak shouted in his mind, hoping the voice from before could hear him, if you can send out one more of those beams, then do it now.
As Grodak finished his command, a bright green beam shot out of the tip of the blade, killing Grall. Gralls body dropped to the ground, the light that had been in his eyes faded. He was dead.
Gralls tale ends here. Grodak thought, his mind twisted and churned at this realization. I killed my brother. The last person who truly supported me throughout my life.... is dead.
Grodak let out a scream of anguish, as he tried to come to terms with this. "Why!?" He demanded of the heavens before falling to his knees and grasping his head in pain.
His body began to change before his eyes. His green skin began to turn red with black stripes, he could feel something growing out of his head. He knew he was changing, his body had somehow began to change, but he did not care. He wanted to know why he had to kill his own brother.
Imp
Imp looked on at the battle, the last of the civilians had been ushered to safety just as Grodak appeared. The battle that raged between the two brothers was fierce, but Imp couldn't help but notice that Grall wasn't showing the kind of power he had when fighting Cassandra.
As the fight ended, Grodak let out a horrid scream of anguish and pain. His body was taking on a new form. He turned red, black stripes seemed to mark his body, and horns jutted out of his skull.
As the scream died down, laughter took its place. "Its been a long time since I took this form." The voice came from Grodak, but it wasn't his. "I guess I owe thanks, brother, for providing the perfect vessel for me."
Grodak stood up and held out his hand towards Gralls lifeless body. "Rest. Rest and never awaken from deaths embrace." With those words, Gralls body turned to ash.