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Hell’s Fury- Dark Armed Chapter: XI Burdened shoulders Let’s not be hasty! Day had become night, night had become day. The fog was too thick to tell which was which, but Kalbe and Shielsia were happy not seeing each other. Instead they held a forward marching Yazl’s hands, nearly pulling the boys arms apart, in an attempt to be further from one another. In the adults mouth the taste of one another lingered. A dark memory in Shielsia’s otherwise pure mind. His lips were rough, redefining an unfinished diamond. She dread that man more than ever, but now in her mind he wouldn’t leave. The more she cursed him the longer he dwelled within. On the other hand after feeling lips so pure Kalbe only thought of splendor thoughts, associating them with the girl. Sure it was a kiss of death, a kiss of last life, but they were saved by a strange hovering man. “Heh…” He was about to start a sentence, usually with his typical, clearing of the air laugh, that had sleaze tinged to it’s breath, but his eyes wandered to the figure of Shielsia and he remained silent. “Who do you think that guy was?” The child broke the silence, though aware of the dangers that lurk in the foreboding mist he was quiet about it. “He was real cool, I bet he’s a relative of Tamoka’s!” “He could be one of my relatives.” Kalbe pointed to his nose, hoping he would get the same idolism the boy devoted to Tamoka. “SHHH!” Shielsia demanded of both of them. No logical reason, it was just the sound of Kalbe’s voice caused her heart to flutter, while it crashed. They were lost. At attempts to found the cave they instead ran into a brick wall of Lucifer’s abode. With shock and awe they kept touching the bricks, until they realized it was a building. “Hey, a place for shelter!” Yazl exclaimed. “It’s probably a church.” With idiotic hope Shielsia suggested. Kalbe immediately damned upon her ideal. “No. It’s definitely not a church.” His head was tilted up, he moved his glasses down studying the sky. “What makes you so certain, AnRak said that building a church here would be evangelical. Perhaps his ideal was righ-” “This is Lucifer’s base.” Kalbe knew it for sure. “EEK! That big freak who came out of nowhere?!” Yazl squeaked clinging to Shielsia’s plump thigh. “There’s no way to know that!” Shielsia yelled at Kalbe who was walking along the wall, looking for an entrance. “Yeah there is, look above.” They all gazed at the sky as well seeing an odd puncture through the fog. It was small, but from the puncture a bright glimmer of sunlight gazed in. Kalbe continued his explanation. “That bitty hole up there, it’s not natural. This fog is all artificial. Also, it’s quite obvious that the fog was meant to separate and throw us off. There’s gotta be a powerful generator at the top of this place, take it out and the land will be as bright as your lovely face.” He smirked his hand brushing the side of Shielsia’s cheek. With a scowl she went to strike him with a bible, but he was out of reach and the large screeching of a metal door was heard. “Found a way in, come on!” He egged them on. There was no chance Shielsia would enter that horrid place. She turned away, but Yazl was clinging to her. “Come on mama Shielsia, let’s go with papa Kalbe.” This cute, yet repulsive statement almost drew her to smash the boy’s face in with the bible, but she held back. Instead used reason to denounce the idea. “It’ll be very dark in there, we have no light.” “As Tamoka would say would be a useful thing.” From his smoker’s jacket Kalbe pulled a foot long flash light and beamed it in. In the fog the light would bare no use, but within the dark corridors of the castle it could shine their way. On the opposite side of the castle Ducard had led Tamoka to the other entrance. It was the front gate, but with all of Lucifer’s droned ghouls out to find them it would be an easy entry. “We will encounter Lucifer within.” Ducard fearfully warned. Her teeth grinned, eyes glowing red. “Well that’s the point.” Her hands clenched within one another. She wanted to destroy him, then the fog would disappear and she could confirm AnRak’s and the other’s where a bout’s. Ducard shook his head and opened the gate. It was heavily guarded, so he inquired to Tamoka’s help. She removed the giant iron bar with ease. The doors then were pushed open, but the clanging of these guards were most likely heard at the top floor where Lucifer waited. The blue eyes of Lucifer reflected Tamoka’s face. He smirked a boasting grin. “Soon I will bequeath your blood to my own.” His eyes became so wide many blood vessels burst as his maniacal laughter filled every corridor of castle. Echoing around all the travels. “Yack!” Shielsia jumped holding onto Kalbe, who just smirked, holding her as well. “It’s just noise…” Yazl realized as the laugh kept going on and on. “yeah ba- Shielsia, I’m sure he doesn’t even know we’re here, but this definitely means we’re in Lucifer’s home.” His flashlight was now shined up against the sealing due to his grip on her, where an etching of a bald gremlin was portrayed. Shielsia removed herself from his arms and dipped her head to the ground. “I’m sorry… Let’s keep going.” “That a girl.” He smirked, fixing the flashlight forward, walking behind the two of them. The portrait on the ceiling had disappeared, for it’s soul had come to life. Tamoka was not as subtle. Upon hearing the laughter she began giving death threats shaking her fists in the air. “Shut up!!!! If it’s so funny come and fight me!!!” “Shhhh…” Ducard instinctively desired her silence, showing his fear to her. The rage of Tamoka was also blasted among the castles corridors. Those screams were much more frightening than the obnoxious cackle of Lucifer. Shielsia, Yazl and Kalbe stood still upon the desolate sound. “Wha..what is that..?” The boy scampered toward her squeaking. “Lucifer?” She broke her silence towards Kalbe. “No. It sounds bigger…” The ears of the darker being picked up feet trotting behind them. Quickly he turned flashing his light down the endless hall which they came from, but it was as empty as Shielsia’s belly which began to growl loudly. “You ate all your rations and I shared mine, how are you hungry!?” Kalbe scolded her. “I shared mine with you too miss.” Yazl tilted his head looking at her curiously. “I can hunt you a rat, I think I heard one scurrying about.” It wasn’t a rat. “I’m not eating a rat.” She complained. A growl attempting to speak a human tongue asked if it would make a more delicious meal as it jumped onto Kalbe’s back. Immediately he elbowed it in the face then shined the light upon to see what it was. “What the hell.” It was a flesh colored imp with long ears and sharp teeth. It had already taken a bite out of Kalbe’s jacket which pissed him off. “Son’va b***h!” He let out his black land rage and slammed his flash light into the gremlins face. “You lil piece of s**t!” His fist then shattered many of it’s teeth. Gremlin’s really were delicate, if you got the jump on them. “Stop!” Shielsia scolded Kalbe before he could snap the things neck in half. The golden bible hit his head and he fell over. She picked up the flash light and shined it upon the battered gremlin, who was now shivering in the corner, hiding it’s massive eyes from the light’s glow. What an ugly thing… The large girl thought, but she kneeled before it and held out her hand. “It’s okay. We weren’t hurt you more.” Her warm smile, offered friendship as she pointed the flashlight slightly aside. The gremlin then nipped her hand, drawing blood from her two longest fingers. She pulled her hand back whimpering. Yazl then jumped on the gremlin’s back and pulled it by the neck. “That’s the way!” Kalbe was amazed Yazl did something else in the story other than act like an aimless child. He took the flashlight from Shielsia and flipped it. “Hold him now.” He swung the light like a bat, slamming it against the poor monster’s head. The creature fell over, it’s body twitching. “Yeah boi!” Kalbe knuckle bumped with Yazl and made both woman and child turn away. He held his boot over the twitching gremlin’s head and stomped, crushing it’s skull and spilling it’s juices. “Eww.. Now let’s go.” They traveled for while, until they found a green lit room, with no door. They entered and it was massive. There were several water tanks against the walls of the hexagon shaped room. Each tank had hoses leading to what looked like a dentists chair, which was surrounded by apparatuses containing blood bags and I.V. needles. Two of the chambers had bodies. Shielsia gasped upon seeing them. “Impossible…” Down the hallway heading toward the same room Ducard and Tamoka were walking. The laughter of Lucifer stopped, which relieved the demoness because it was pissing her off, but Ducard knew better that the only reason the cackle would cease is because he was on his way to find them. With a sniff the girl caught a familiar scent. “No way!” She ran into what was a small operating room. There was a table with an ankle to foot bones on it. Slowly her feet clanked against the ground, her tail swaying about behind her. She was cloaked by her wings like a jacket. Her hand carefully lifted the bone. It was surgically removed, but beneath the cut marks of the saw there was a distinctive signature break. “Creed.” Her eyes trembled. Recalling the battle with him, where a large Hellain soldier stomped upon his own leaders leg crushing it. Last she saw him, Creed was limping away. She explained whom the bone belonged too. Ducard had helped Lucifer wrangle Creed up. “They are not dead, but…” He lead them to the now empty room, where the lingering scent of Shielsia, Yazl and especially Kalbe remained. “They’re alive! I smell them, my friends!” Heavily she sniffed looking for AnRak’s scent. Ducard shyly stood by the door. The green glow of the tanks glimmered upon his scabbed and bandaged body. There was no trace of the one she cared about the most, but in her search she was up against one of the tanks. Upon looking at it she saw Creed. He was lifeless. “What the hell is this?” She backed away, looking upon the other tank, which contained the taller female demon Xoyel. Both seemed like bags of bones, their bodies much scrawnier and drained. Pointing to the heart monitor Ducard shown that their hearts were still beating. “Lucifer created this machine to drain the blood of all Hellian’s to give his body the power he requires.” “That blood sucking fiend, well let’s crack the egg and say hello.” Her fist knocked on the glass, seeing if it would wake Creed. “If that were to be done, they would die. They have no muscles, hardly any blood, life cannot be sustained for them. That is why.” He paused looking down. “That is why he requires you, he must feast.” “Yes and you’ve delivered my meal straight to me, perhaps I’ve underestimated your usefulness after all.” Lucifer’s horrid voice spoke. His tall figure filled the height of the door frame as stood. His blonde, hair was green in the glow of the tanks. “You’re trapped, like rats. Muahahaha!” His tormenting laugh once again angered Tamoka. Like a cat with it’s back hair standing on end Tamoka’s wings spread out, knocking Ducard away on his feet to keep him out of harms way. “Let’s finish this, between you and me!” She hissed. “Actually it’s just me.” He smirked. He opened his cape, like they were wings and spread thousands of bat shaped needles through the air. Tamoka spread her left wing wide to take the brawn of the hit, the needles only stuck into her leathery flesh like tree barbs. She couldn’t shake them off, but instead she ran toward him, slashing her elbow blades. The blackened wings of Lucifer’s cape closed around him and made a perfect shield against the blades. They struck it as if striking against a steel stronger than an airplanes wing. “Your wings aren’t as strong as mine!” He mocked, backhanding her cheek. Her claws caught his arm. He was powerful, but didn’t have the proper speed to use against her. Her sharp toes kicked up toward his arm pit, the area where the cape was opened. He cringed moved back by the attack. Also hopping back on one leg, Tamoka held her foot up high, allowing the blood drenched limb to drip into her palm. “It’d be more fitting if I killed you with your own blood.” She frowned created a crimson whip, out of Creed and Xoyel’s fluid. “Hmph, I claim that essence, it is mine!” He began creating two crimson whips from his bloody arm pit. “You can’t manipulate your own blood!” She cracked the red lightning against him, which was met with his own oncoming storm of blood. Ducard was scurrying about behind Creed’s tank, he was seeking a safe haven. Among the three bolts flowing against each other’s Tamoka’s slithered slickly around Lucifer’s. For each thunderous bolt he would strike Tamoka edged her whip, curving it at each side to block both of his. She had a lasso shield which twirled unpredictably and was very effective. “You can’t keep this up!” He howled. “You can’t keep up!” She threw her whip, so that it circled around him, in the air. Through the split second loop she jumped through, catching the twirling halo and landing behind Lucifer, slinging the remainder of her weapon around his neck. “Die!” She threatened pulling on his neck, the whip burning away at his pale blue flesh. This took away the death king’s concentration and he lost the maintenance of his whips. Though he was not beat. His cape wings unveiled him and wrapped around Tamoka, crushing her. His deviant grin gleamed with joy as he felt the power of her whip weakening. Through the iron walls of Tamoka’s enclosing cage several more bat shaped needles stuck through, threatening to turn the girl into a pin cushion. Her tail maneuvered it’s way to his ankle, through the closing wings and pulled as hard as she could. Lucifer stumbled a bit, but kept his footing. “You’re going to burst, my blood ball.” He grinned his wings crushing her. The grey Lucifer was sliced in half, by the long rapier held by AnRak. “Behind, another, to the side there’s more!” Through the fog the man heard the itsy bitsy voice of a female, as if it were in his ear. With ease he chopped down each shadow copy of Lucifer. Until there were no more left. Through the bright abyss he called out to the voice. “Where are you?” He couldn’t tell where the voice was coming from, it was behind him, it was in front of him, it was above. Whoever it was, kept helping him. With great triviality, but in an answer the voice replied. “I am here and here is there and I am on you.” In his ear! AnRak roughly brushed his hand, against his ear. The voice squealed. He was then gentle and felt something tiny hop and cling to his hand. “Spider?” He cocked his eye brow, bringing the arachnid close to his nose. It was too hard to see, but he made out it’s shape. It was a spider, but had the body of an ant, keeping eight legs. “You can speak?” “All will speak, if they are heard.” The voice was much more faint, than AnRak put it back to his ear. “What’s your name and why are you helping me, have you seen a Hellian?” “A relative to you, yes? I’ve seen many. A large one, a black one, a small one, and two sad fates.” The other descriptions met the mutinous members of AnRak’s group. “Sad fates?” Two? Was she dead already. “Bring you to them all, perhaps or not. The journey is not one for comfort.” The voice chuckled as it tickled his ear. “Very well, if you can see, lead the way.” AnRak had no other choice, but to blindly follow this spider’s command who introduced herself as Rakuga…Eventually. She led him to the castle, but instead of going through any of the entrance ways he was meant to scale upon the walls. A bit difficult, but AnRak managed. Rakuga pointed out many gaps in stone that he could grab and cling to. With the crushing wings upon her Tamoka was running out options. Her arms took many of the puncturing needles and small slits of blood poured out of her. Lucifer kept laughing as he was finishing her off. “Lucifer, you may have had one last meal here huh?” Ducard stood by the tanks of Creed and Xoyel, before he slammed his rotted fist into the glass of each tank. Both tanks shattered to many pieces, the lifeless bodies of Creed and Xoyel fell to the ground. With greed Lucifer flinched despairingly. His grip weakened. Tamoka burst free and jumped away panting heavily. Ducard took her by the hand and led her to the passage way behind Creed’s broken tank. It was a tight squeeze, but they both fit in and crawled away. With anger the girl panted. She wanted to kill Lucifer, but lost… Lucifer kneeled before Creed and Xoyel’s bodies. He studied the pieces of glass as if counting grains of salt, until he found a suitable blade. He slashed the back of both Hellian’s necks and drained any of the remaining blood. He regained his power and grinned. He knew exactly where the passage way lead and would meet them their. Guile stood in the door way smirking. He felt shame for Tamoka. He saw nothing, but heard her miserable loss… Shielsia, Yazl, Kalbe, Ducard, Tamoka, and AnRak all headed for the same direction to meet their final confrontation with this horrid Lucifer…

Finally able to see more than the vague shape of her head, Phrixos eyed the female as she left the deeper water, his stance wary. At her drawled greeting, he relaxed enough to offer her a flick of an ear in acknowledgment.

"The Acropolis packlands," he said in a clear voice that would grow smooth and rich with age. The young male non-chalantly lowered to his haunches, watching her approach with curious eyes. "Do you swim often?" he asked, choosing that question over something more obvious and less intelligent then "Do you like to swim?"

Stupidity was not a trait he had been affected by.

He gave her a sheepish look, his ears flicking back. To be honest, he'd never stepped into any body of water, out of respect of his mother's anxiety about the river that bordered the pack lands.

"I...well...no. I've never swam before," he finished quietly, looking at the water with a neutral expression. "My mother nearly drowned when she was a pup. She never let my siblings or I near the water except to drink."

Sighing softly, he looked back at her, and his bi-colored eyes were curious. "Is it...hard? To swim, I mean..." After he asked the question, he ducked his head a little, berating himself for sounding like the adolescent he tried so hard not to be.

He gave the water a slightly nervous glance, one ear flicking briefly flat. Then he puffed his chest and stood, walking with a determined stride to the water's edge.

The warmth of the lake water surprised him as it tickled his toes and he took that as a good sign, continuing forward until the liquid just lightly brushed his belly. Looking at the femme over his shoulder, he smiled slightly.

"It feels nice. Oh..." He gave her a meek grin but his eyes sparkled with the sudden, random happiness of youth. "My name is Phrixos."

Tail wagging, his confidence gaining, he went farther, the water now lapping gently against his chest. "This is pretty easy!" the young male laughed, his voice edged by newfound arrogance.

Unbeknownst to him, however, a steep drop-off lay in his path, and as he took another bold step, the sandy bottom was suddenly gone and he disappeared under the surface with a yelp.

He panicked as soon as the water closed over him, inhaling it. A cold fear gripped him, and he wondered briefly if his mother's fears would come true as he felt his lungs fill with the deadly liquid.

A sharp tug to the longer hair on his head galvanized him, and his pain-filled eyes opened to see the white patches of the female's fur. Realizing that she was trying to save his panicked dead weight, he started kicking his legs in an attempt to help. But his vision was started to grow spotty, dark patches flitting over his eyes at his lack of air, and he felt his limbs grow heavy.

He was going to die...

He felt something beneath him, the terrible sinking feeling suddenly gone as Adriana dragged him into the shallows. Her words reached him, but they were muffled, as if cotton had been stuffed down his ears.

But his own brain kicked in, sending him a desperate message to breathe, that it was safe to inhale again, and he took that needed breath.

Gasping, his eyes flew open and he retched up the lake water, his sides heaving until there was no water left in his lungs or stomach. His nostrils burned and his strong body shook with weakness as he stumbled out of the water, collapsing before his hindquarters could make it to dry land.

Phrixos lay there panting and terrified, his body shaking. He couldn't meet Adriana's eyes, his adolescent male ego severely wounded. "Thank you..." he muttered, voice hoarse from his retching.

"Breathing water is a terrible feeling," he said softly, his panting slowing to deep controlled breaths as his body finally stopped heaving up water. He looked at her and gave her a weak smile. "Maybe I should try again some other day."

Getting to his feet, he moved away from her to shake the water from his pelt without getting her wet too.

"I can see why my mother is terrified of water. She was carried by the river for who knows how long before our alpha saved her." He shivered slightly at the thought of being swept away by that raging river at the edge of their land.