MARSHALING
Fides had gifted Kage with a finger which served to point the way to Scourge, in doing so it assured that Kage would be able to find the abomination quickly. It also served another function with a piece of fides in his possession it allowed Fides to be acutely aware of all that happened during this outing. FIdes was able to see how quickly and efficiently the young shade set about its task, even if it was a personal issue with Kage it was a matter of business to the Evencar. Fides watched eagerly as Kage hunted down this abomination, a once proud Kinn that had fallen so far the poor creature was no longer recognizable. It had fallen so far from grace the only sensible thing to do was to put it out of their misery. Though its transgression saw to it the beast would be granted no modicum of mercy, it was incredibly pleasing watching Kage dispatch this fallen abomination. Fides took particular note of it apparent descent into insanity, and did ponder just how that had come to pass, true not all kinn were “in their right mind” it could be, and likely was, argued that most kinn were crazy...a matter of perspective. The Evencar often pointed out that little in creation could withstand a touch of divinity and not descend into some form of madness, but this, Scourge...its blasphemy was unacceptable. This creatures perversions demanded recompense, it was beyond redemption as far as Fides was concerned. That being what it was the Evencar had sent Kage to deal with it, a sort of deal, Fides wanted Scourge ended, as did Kage, it was mutually beneficial to reward Kage with a task that in the end needed to be done. Kage saw it as a reward likely, it was offered up as such in any case, and the task accepted with grateful glee.
Another aspect of this deal was a proving of sorts, the Evencar found itself wanting for a Martial, this task would serve to prove the worthiness of Kage of such a title, demented as Scourge had become the fact remained it was in some ways a superior kinn, or one of once higher standing, once Kage had fell the fouled beast it would prove to Fides that Kage was ready to take up this mantle. The Evencar was most pleased with the retorts of Kage against the blasphemy of Scourge, Kage knew its place, that had already been proven, and the righteous rage which Kage visited upon Scourge both physically and mentally were nothing short of delicious, it had brought a smile to the Evencar, it nearly invoked a chuckle in fact. It was a brutally effective assault, both short and sweet, not too drawn out but not lacking the recompense demanded. Fides took particular note of the method used to ensnare Scourge, it was indeed quite similar to the action FIdes had taken to bring Cel into himself. He had since released the newly formed Celatin into the umbra to do as she saw fit, now her majesty bestowed with the position of Lord marshal, Strongest and most dominant of the Bellator. Sent out to wreak whatever havoc she saw fit to visit upon the realms for now. Soon Kage would stand before the Evencar and also be bestowed with a fitting mantle.
Kage was unsure if it was a sense of pride for himself, or the fact he had accomplished yet another task that was set out before him by Fides, sure he could be seen as the Evicars dog, but he truly didn’t care at this point, he knew what he was good at and was grateful both the All Father and the Evincar wanted to use those talents, so even if it was a sense of pride for himself, it was a shared sense, he was given a gift from the All Father to be able to do what he did best, covering the lands in darkness as he did so. The rewards were rewards nevertheless, no matter how miniscule they may have seemed to many others, it was more than any had ever shown him in the past, more than any had advanced his skills in all the years of his existence, and for that alone, he would forever remain loyal. Even now as he flowed through the shadows of realms, he could hear the demented whispers as he had for many years now, the songs sung by the twisted souls of those claimed in honor of their All Father, the delicious scent of sinn filling the shadows made it that much more real that he had finally found a place that felt like home, a place where he truly belonged.
It wouldn’t take him nearly as long to return to the citadel as it had for him to locate Scourge, it was the gathering for all kinn and their pawns, that was if a simple pawn would be so lucky to ever be granted such an honor, such disgusting creatures of the flesh would lose anything remotely called sanity simply from the sight of such a small shadow of the true darkness that was held here, grinning darkly at the thought of one coming face to face with the Evincar or even the All Father himself, he relished the idea of their screams as their forms would be crushed by the weight of the shadow from the Evincar alone. He would take his place back within the rafters high in the citadel, shifting from the shadows into a more solid looking form as the bright green orbs of his gaze shifted about the space, only shifting through the shadows to the floor before Fides, taking form once again in a kneeling position, one knee against the floor as his hands rested along the other with head bowed, more or less a sign of respect that he held for the being in front of him, before long he would rise back to his feet, allowing his shadows to flow from his frame as he drew the being Scourge from within, leaving the pathetic excuse for a kinn to lay sprawled along the floor before Fides. “Duximus ordinandum caperes minus placent ipsi Evincar.” (We thought you might take a bit of pleasure in disposing of it yourselves Evincar.)
Once Kage returned as expected he offered his respects to the Evencar. Fides offered a slight bow in return as its gaze fell upon the wayward Scourge before shifting once more to Kage offering a nod of appreciation. It was true Fides would take great pleasure in disposing of this “monster”. There was a hint of nostalgia as its mind went over this creatures history, it origins, Scourge was made by the Cardinals “oblitus canis bellum”. It was almost a shame to have to dispose of it himself, he would do so though, the Cardinal had long since gone missing, his presence a thing of the past, a memory of better days long since past it seemed. Fides was Evencar now, and for all intent and purpose the kinn were its to command now, the duty of spreading Veritas and gifting the worthy with the blessings of Umbra fell upon its shoulders now.
Fides shook its head slowly as it lifted the broken body of Scourge to look upon the monsters face as it began addressing him. “foedus, quomodo unquam venit in saltum, qui quondam, ut ipse venit ad maculæ deliciis affluentes, in tali sordes. vere tibi ceciderunt. tua factorem erat ad fidem nostram genus, licet in tates eo erant dubiae.” (disgusting, how did it ever come to pass that once such as yourself came to revel in such filth. truly you have fallen. your maker was a credit to our kind, albeit the tates of it were questionable.) Fides pushed its hand away, intentionally causing Scourge to avert its gaze, its head hanging lipm now, still exhausted from the ordeal with Kage. Scourge likely knew the jist of what was to come, there was only a hand full of outcomes, none of them pleasant. It would have its pool torn from it, that much was certain. The only real question is what would become of scourge himself. Even Fides was not entirely sure just what to do with him, for now though the evencar would eviscerate him, slowly and painfully. To make a particular show of it Fides would let lose its aura in a fairly small area, large enough to cover the manifestation of Scourge, and cush it under the Evencars immense soul pressure. It was enough that as FIdes had directed the pressure it caused the floor to crack and buckle slightly under its weight, “squishing” scourge into something that much resembled a puddle of filth, there was virtually no resemblance to the manifestation it had once been. It was left completely prostrated before the might of Fides, even if it had the idea to offer some sort of resistance it would be a moot point, strong and as powerful as Scourge had once been even at its full power with no exhaustion afflicted it could never have hoped to offer any true resistance to the likes of Fides. With that the Evencar lifted its hand and began a slow siphoning of Scourges pool, the way it would feel to a kinn would be similar to both burning slowly alive and being skinned, the puddle shrinking in accordance to the loss of souls as it screamed out in agony, a rare sound for a Kinn to make. At this point though the screams sounded more like a gurgling mixed with the tearing of metal, a horrible and loud screeching gurgle, which the Evincar was delighting in.
Despite FIdes rending the souls from Scourge it was not consuming them, no, it was holding them. What was left of Scourge lay on the floor motionless a naked Umbral skeleton, still conscious enough to see that what was once its own would now be given to Kage. These souls would make for a marvelous addition to the new Marshals pool, some of them would be used to soul forge a physical mantel to represent its new title and position within the kinn. The disembodied damned souls condensed in the vissers open palm an orb of evil ready to bend to the will of the Evencar. It paused for a moment to examine them, its gaze shifting throughout the mass so as in to chose the most worthy and useful in the construct of the mantle and which would be incorporated into Kages soul pool. It gave a nod bringing its hands together for a moment before separating them once more, now holding two orbs. ”Gradum et suscepit iustus praemia nostra venator, damus vobis haec dona sunt, fideli servitio ad nos, et tenebrae, quae iussa est nobis. accipietis utraque pars hoc, lacus addere tua, ut, ceteris utemur dare super te, corona Militum, ita ut progredi, et mandatum vestrum fratres et adducam dignus coram nobis. (Step forward and receive your just rewards our hunter, we give to you these gifts for ones faithful service to us, and the darkness which commands us. you shall receive both a portion of this pool to add to your own might, the rest we will use to bestow upon you the crown of Marshal so that you might go forward and command your brethren and bring the worthy before us.)
Not a single sign of anything crossed over it’s features as Kage watched the punishment for Scourge unfold, even though the very idea of the kinn losing every ounce of it’s soul pool was a horrifying thought to any Kinn in existence, past or present, but even as the agonizing screams flooded the surrounding room, never once did Kage show a sign of sympathy for the monstrosity that Scourge had become. Falling so far after it’s creation it was almost a shame to waste such …. Power, a tool so well structured to have have crumbled so violently, it all played into the very creation of Kage itself, though it would never give Scourge the satisfaction in hearing it speak the words.
What did hold his interest greatly was when the Evincar held the soul pool within it’s own hands, the very mass of darkness that was drawn from the form of Scourge, the energy that it would take to hold such a concentration of souls alone was one to stand in awe of, but then to watch as it was further split in two, Kage couldn’t help but stand in awe. When Fides spoke to it however, Kage reacted almost instinctually to it words, stepping closer to the Evincar the oddity of its gaze locked on the orbs that were held out to him, taking into consideration of the very feel of them before reaching out to the orb within Fides left hand. Kage would hold it’s hand out towards the orbs as though it were a pet within the grasp of a dealer, allowing his own will to call to the souls that made up the orb itself, commanding them to come into its own form, it would have been like watching a drug addict getting it’s fix, Kage’s head fell back as he enjoyed the sensation of the souls joining into his own pool, a shudder of a sigh escaping past the pitch black lips as he was overwhelmed with the increase of such energy and power, than lifted it’s odd gaze to the being before him as he spoke of this Marshal title, “Nos sunt honoratur a servis tuis, et plus quam placuit accipere utrumque, oramus exhibito nobis, quod non auferetur a te, ut monstrosity habet.” (We are honored by your decision and more than pleased to accept both, we pray to the darkest of us that we do not fail you as the monstrosity has.)
The souls which Kage was to take in were considerable, the euphoria that washed over him as he took in the some of five thousand souls from the pool so Scourge was to be expected an indeed would be much like a junkie getting their fix. The number was considerable but their skills were negatable, nothing of any particular note, it seemed as though the plagued Kinn had little concern in its madness for the usefulness of the souls it had taken over the years. Fides had kept the bulk of the ones deemed “useful” for the construction of what would become Kage’s “Martial mantle”. It would serve as a symbol of position and power within the ranks of Kinn a clear symbol of the authority which he would be bestowed with.
Fides took the sum of six thousand sols to forge the construct. The construct was made of souls, though it resembled a silver shrug of sorts and had a vaguely armour like look to it. It had a rather wicked look to it over all and did emanate with an aura, which Kinn commonly called “profane presence”. This is generally only displayed by the Vissers of the Kinn but Fides had thought it a fitting “gift” of sorts to give to the Martial Kage, something to further his appointment to the position. The mantle had also been instilled with a number of souls which were well acquainted with a plethora of knowledge and experience concerning sickness and plagues, and as such it bestowed Kage with that knowledge as well. As the mantel had yet to be gifted but it was instilled with a security measure of sorts. In the center inside of the shrug there was a hungry and gaping maw, that once it had been handed to Kage and put on the maw would latch itself to Kage, from that point forward it would recognize only Kage. if it were to be worn by another the Martial's mantle would latch into the poor person to put it on and begin consuming them totally, hungrily devouring every bit of them.
Fides would offer the mantle to Kage now with it’s left hand, its right hand lifted and summoned the broken form of Scourges face into its right palm. As the face of the broken Kinn made contact with FIdes palm it bore down with unimaginable force, which began to cause the skull to begin to fracture. The fractures which began in the skull manifested as what appeared to be inordinately dark spider web like fracturing, which worked its way through the skeleton in a slow and agonizing fashion. As the webbing crawled over and through the form of Scourge it would press out rending the portions from one another, fracturing the individual dominant soul of the Kinn, the ordeal was obviously one of agony, that had been drawn out for effect. The pain was two fold, there was the physical pain of being slowly torn apart, which was beyond the tolerance of most beings, the pain inflicted would be more than enough to kill most beings through shock alone. The other perhaps more profound pain was of a psychological nature. Scourge would be acutely aware of what was happening, the significance it bore. It was in fact being subjected to “erasure”. In truth souls could never truly be destroyed, at least not by Fides itself. Such a thing was beyond the reach of even the Evencar. What was within reach however was a fracturing, which in effect had much the same end result. Scourge would be shattered into so many pieces that it would be virtually impossible to ever assemble its form or ego. The pain this inflicted was beyond definition, only those ever subjected to the fate would ever be able to fully comprehend the torment, perhaps the fragmentation bestowed a small mercy in that once it had been accomplished there was never a large enough fragment to ever form any form of sentient thought or memory, the pain was temporary in that fashion, but the comprehension of the act in and of itself bestowed a degree of terror. It was more terrifying to creatures of an immortal nature, as this was as close to a true death as could ever be bestowed such creatures.
Kage had taken to his knees as the overwhelm surge from the added souls washed through his entire frame, though they were deemed as nothing significant they were souls to him, they were still an increase in his current count and power, and to him that was all that mattered, at least for now. He took a great deal of pleasure knowing that the souls he had received were from Scourge, after all he was the reason Kage even existed in the first place, but more so knowing that no other ’black blood’ monstrosities would be created from one that had fallen so far out of favor with the All Father itself, that is was no longer seen as Kinn, a feat Kage himself felt was entirely on him to deal with, it was his mission, his goal in ‘life’ as it were to bring an end to such a being, even if he never truly understood the full connection until after he was embraced by Darkness.
Kage lifted it’s gaze to watch as Fides used the remaining souls from Scourge to create a new artifact of sorts, a rather intriguing process to watch as a whole really, the way the souls would mold to the desire of the Evencar and form a solid material, much like how the kinn themselves could take on just about any appearance they so desired for the task at hand, merely shifting the darkness that they were with their will alone, sad that this sort of ability was only available to so few of their kind. Once the piece was constructed Kage rose back to his feet, the shadows of his form shifting all around him like smoke loosely holding onto that which it flowed from. Reaching out to take the ‘armor’ from Fides he turned his gaze to watch the final moments of the being known as Scourge, the agonizing screams that flowed from the being was not something you would expect from one so weak, the withering being stood 0 chance of even being able to move let alone fight back in any way of form, and then came the song of the bones fracturing and crumbling into such miniscule pieces that there was truly no hope of reconstructing Scourge, not even a small amount of the being would be able to be pieced back together at the full extent of the ‘erasure’. A mercy if he had ever saw one, the fact this thing was to no longer exist, no pain, no madness within the mind, nothing, just ‘gone’ from any form of existence, in Kage’s opinion, Scourge did not deserve such an act, but then again he was nothing more than a Shade, it was left to the Evencar to decide such fates now.
Kage had turned his attention back to the armor that had been gifted to him, the sight of the gaping maw on the inside of the armor was a rather odd sight to see, to think such a thing would sink it’s hungry teeth into his frame was a touch ….. Unnerving in a sense, but it did not deter Kage in the least as he turned it around and slipped it over his shoulders, groaning deeply as the teeth sunk into his frame, relaxing only when the maw was certain that it was Kage’s shoulders that the armor rested on, the knowledge of Scourge’s plague like abilities washed through his mind, taking care to run through it all carefully, not to miss a single piece of information. “Si nos, ut inquirere, quid sit agendum cum Ossibus Umbra?” (If we may inquire, what is to be done with the Bones of the Shade?) Kage spoke up after a short amount of time, turning his gaze to see that the armor that had started it all was all that was truly left of the being. “Ut rogamus, ut talis arma dari nobis, considerans illud est, quod creavit nos, in primis, videtur conveniens fuisse quod ossa debet, transiit ad successor talis esse, ita ut eorum vires esse posuit ad propper usum eorum intentio, et auxilium nobis in deferentes retro tenebris?” (Might we request that such armor be given to us, considering it is what created us in the first place, it seems fitting that the bones should be passed to the successor of such a being, so that their powers be put to the propper use of their intent and aid us in bringing back the darkness?)
The Evencar expected Kage to shudder, falling to his knees only made it more sure Kage truly appreciated the cornucopia of soul he had been gifted for this task. It was a convenience that the young shades life goal was in sync with the task, it help to assure it was accomplished expeditiously and with a great deal of zeal. Fides found a fair deal of irony in the story, how the created came to destroy the creator, even if the connection was an indirect one. It just made the completion of it all the more succulent, no loose ends, and the details which could be inferred may make for an excellent cautionary tale. It had a parallel to something the monkeys said which carried an uncommon wisdom, “raise you no more demons then you can put down”. His eyes narrowed reflect a smile as the thought crossed his mind. Fides did wonder just how the event and the way it unfolded was perceived by Kage, the finer points of his perception. Perhaps in time it would come to ask the Marshal to tell it the tale from its own view.
Fides had crafted the souls as one would craft clay, the tainted souls from the soul pool were particularly malleable, as they already had already been saturated with the taint of Kinn. Scourge had fallen far, but in the end it was still one of them, regardless how repugnant and unbecoming its mind and mannerisms had become. Had it been some other loathe creature it may have been spared the fate of erasure. FIdes was able to craft this portion of the pool in much the same way a person works with clay, pressing and stretching out the souls, working in finer details with its claws, very little of this was formed by mental acuity, for the most part the only piece of this mantel done in such a fashion was the maw, to have crafted it by hand would have taken quite a fair deal of time, the many jagged and wicked teeth, the long and pointed tongue, it was a thing which most would feel a degree of horror to behold. As Kage took the mantle he took the time to view the fate of Scourge, perhaps a bit surprised with its wails as it spent the last few precious moments writhing in agony. The cracking and fissuring of the bones despite the wails still somehow managed to echo here, a small detail hinting at the finality and significance what was transpiring, something like this required such a degree of power that not only could the fissures be heard here in this place, but it was a sound which reverberated also in the depths of the Umbra, and and all Kinn or closely aligned beings of darkness could hear this sound as it happened. Kinn would be acutely aware of the sound and what it meant while other would be left to wonder. The bones shattered falling to the floor as if they were little more than shattered pottery, fracturing even further as they fell...And then a moment of deafening silence as the small particles barely the size of dust would disperse, scattered to the winds. Though curiously there was some small remnant from the fallen beast, so perhaps in a way it would not be completely forgotten in the perpetual march of time. This had the possibility of forming issues later on and the Evencar would squint as it took in the sight and what it might mean in the future. It pondered if it should keep those thoughts to itself or not, for now though it would remain silent on the matter.
Kage let out a small groan of complaint as the maw sank its eager teeth into his umbral flesh, it was barely noticeable in truth. It was understandable the process of this binding of sorts was indeed quite painful, though depending on the inclinations and appetites of a person it could be a delicious sort of pain, and perhaps the groan was in fact more of a moan of elation. It was of little concern to Fides though, it had in its own early years indulged in less than savory actions and hobbies, as do most being in their youth. It brought to the Evencar a small sense of nostalgia as Kage took in the wealth of knowledge the mantel would bestow him with. It was Kages voice that brought FIdes attentions back to the present, he wanted to know what was to become of the armour Scourge had worn, Fides had intended to destroy it, but if it was something Kage had wanted, perhaps that too was fitting. Fides let out a murr as it mulled the thought over for a moment before responding. Kage being so young was likely unaware some of the finer points, like Kinn existing outside the conventional rules of time and space, Kinn, when they are erased are broken so completely that it makes a particular sort of temporal displacement to prevent “meddling”, lest the perpetrator should have some possession of that kinn. The souls shattered in such a way that it causes an echo to flow back in time, making that particular Kinn something “out of reach” to nearly everything, certainly out of reach of any mortal meddling. It blinked slowly as it took in a deep breath letting out a sigh having come to a decision. ”nos si quis habet punctum..."venator umbras". Est gradus decet "iustitia". Nos autem abs te accipere, sed, est propositio, condicione, aliquid tibi conveniunt ad primum. Ut ne hoc reliquias, si iurare in nobis erit non venire in possessionem alterius sed te. Oportet accipere, quod si deficiat, ut custodiam verbum tuum in hoc eius fatum erunt facta tua...contulit per manus nostras. Conveniunt ad hoc et erit tua”
(we suppose one does have a point…”hunter of shadows”. There is a degree of fitting “justice” to it. We shall allow you to take it, but, there is a proposition, a condition, something you will agree to first. You may keep this remnant, if you swear to us that it shall never come into the possession of any other but yourself. You must accept that should you fail to keep your word on this his fate shall become yours...bestowed by our hands. Agree to this and it shall be yours).
Kage listened to every word the Evencar had said about his conditions to it being allowed to take possession of the bones, it wasn’t entirely the response Kage was expecting, he truly thought the Evencar was going to ask for something else in exchange, as nothing is ever given for free, this armor however was different, in Kage’s mind it already belonged to him, Scourge having used it to taint the man that was his biological father, than further ownership would have been the fact Kage was the one who brought Scourge in, it was far more than just fitting in his head. ”Nos accipere conditiones, dicemus, ut nulla alia unquam venit possidere, hoc arma. Etiam si essemus in occursum vera mors, haec ossa, numquam relinquere possessionem.” (We accept the conditions, we shall ensure that no other will ever come to possess this armor. Even if we were to meet true death, these bones will never leave our possession.)
FIdes had agreed to let Kage have the armour, it was fitting, and in way Kage deserved it. In a way it would serve as a medal, or symbol of having earned his place as a shade of sinn, and the mantle proved him to be the “cream of the crop” as far as shades were concerned. Once Kage had agreed to the conditions the Evencar gave a nod with a slow blink as motioned to the bones, they now belonged to Kage. ”Plaga ' ornatus est, et nunc tua, damus vobis in bona fide, est conveniens illis, ossa, ut ornare vos putamus. Debent servire bene, melius, tunc priorem dominum imaginamur. Esset destitutione erant vos cadere, ex gratia et obviam fatum, si solus pater scit quid futurum teneat. Nunc exire in regna, do tibi et servire dominus et magister noster, ferre decus et gloria, nostro nomine et causa venandi umbra, nos magna spe ad vos
(Scourge’s armour is now your own, we give it to you in good faith, it is fitting those bones should adorn you we think. They should serve you well, better then their prior owner we imagine. It would be a disappointment were you to fall from grace and meet the same fate, though only the father knows what the future may hold. Now go out into the realms, do as you will and serve our lord and master, bring honor and glory to our name and purpose hunter of shadows, we have high hopes for you.)
Kage would turn its gaze to the Bones of the Shade left along the floor where Scourge’s remains had been, a stream of shadows flowed across the short distance between them and begin to completely wrap themselves around the bones, before long they would slowly begin to disappear, in that same moment Kage would wince slightly as slight bulges under the black flesh would grow, he was using the shadows to take the armor into himself as it were, allowing the energy of them to fuse within his own frame. The fusion was anything but harmless, the pain that wracked his body during the process was more than enough to kill any mortal, as it included fusing every ounce of the energy, the material and even the souls that went into the armors creation with his own dominant soul, a sort of soul forging in a sense, but not like that of the Evencar. Kage fell to a knee once again as the process took it’s time, it wasn’t easy using shadows to fuse souls to a dominating soul, but before long the process was be complete, the shadows returning to their master once again, Kage’s frame shuddering as the ribs emerged from the thick black flesh like surface of his frame, followed by the hand bones and the jaw bone, once it was done he would rise back to his feet and take in a deep breath, a calming in a sense before looking back to the Evincar before him. “Nos autem non confundit.” (We shall not disappoint) he would bow towards Fides as his frame would be engulfed by the shadows at his command and vanish back into the darkness to wander the realms once again.
Fides had gifted Kage with a finger which served to point the way to Scourge, in doing so it assured that Kage would be able to find the abomination quickly. It also served another function with a piece of fides in his possession it allowed Fides to be acutely aware of all that happened during this outing. FIdes was able to see how quickly and efficiently the young shade set about its task, even if it was a personal issue with Kage it was a matter of business to the Evencar. Fides watched eagerly as Kage hunted down this abomination, a once proud Kinn that had fallen so far the poor creature was no longer recognizable. It had fallen so far from grace the only sensible thing to do was to put it out of their misery. Though its transgression saw to it the beast would be granted no modicum of mercy, it was incredibly pleasing watching Kage dispatch this fallen abomination. Fides took particular note of it apparent descent into insanity, and did ponder just how that had come to pass, true not all kinn were “in their right mind” it could be, and likely was, argued that most kinn were crazy...a matter of perspective. The Evencar often pointed out that little in creation could withstand a touch of divinity and not descend into some form of madness, but this, Scourge...its blasphemy was unacceptable. This creatures perversions demanded recompense, it was beyond redemption as far as Fides was concerned. That being what it was the Evencar had sent Kage to deal with it, a sort of deal, Fides wanted Scourge ended, as did Kage, it was mutually beneficial to reward Kage with a task that in the end needed to be done. Kage saw it as a reward likely, it was offered up as such in any case, and the task accepted with grateful glee.
Another aspect of this deal was a proving of sorts, the Evencar found itself wanting for a Martial, this task would serve to prove the worthiness of Kage of such a title, demented as Scourge had become the fact remained it was in some ways a superior kinn, or one of once higher standing, once Kage had fell the fouled beast it would prove to Fides that Kage was ready to take up this mantle. The Evencar was most pleased with the retorts of Kage against the blasphemy of Scourge, Kage knew its place, that had already been proven, and the righteous rage which Kage visited upon Scourge both physically and mentally were nothing short of delicious, it had brought a smile to the Evencar, it nearly invoked a chuckle in fact. It was a brutally effective assault, both short and sweet, not too drawn out but not lacking the recompense demanded. Fides took particular note of the method used to ensnare Scourge, it was indeed quite similar to the action FIdes had taken to bring Cel into himself. He had since released the newly formed Celatin into the umbra to do as she saw fit, now her majesty bestowed with the position of Lord marshal, Strongest and most dominant of the Bellator. Sent out to wreak whatever havoc she saw fit to visit upon the realms for now. Soon Kage would stand before the Evencar and also be bestowed with a fitting mantle.
Kage was unsure if it was a sense of pride for himself, or the fact he had accomplished yet another task that was set out before him by Fides, sure he could be seen as the Evicars dog, but he truly didn’t care at this point, he knew what he was good at and was grateful both the All Father and the Evincar wanted to use those talents, so even if it was a sense of pride for himself, it was a shared sense, he was given a gift from the All Father to be able to do what he did best, covering the lands in darkness as he did so. The rewards were rewards nevertheless, no matter how miniscule they may have seemed to many others, it was more than any had ever shown him in the past, more than any had advanced his skills in all the years of his existence, and for that alone, he would forever remain loyal. Even now as he flowed through the shadows of realms, he could hear the demented whispers as he had for many years now, the songs sung by the twisted souls of those claimed in honor of their All Father, the delicious scent of sinn filling the shadows made it that much more real that he had finally found a place that felt like home, a place where he truly belonged.
It wouldn’t take him nearly as long to return to the citadel as it had for him to locate Scourge, it was the gathering for all kinn and their pawns, that was if a simple pawn would be so lucky to ever be granted such an honor, such disgusting creatures of the flesh would lose anything remotely called sanity simply from the sight of such a small shadow of the true darkness that was held here, grinning darkly at the thought of one coming face to face with the Evincar or even the All Father himself, he relished the idea of their screams as their forms would be crushed by the weight of the shadow from the Evincar alone. He would take his place back within the rafters high in the citadel, shifting from the shadows into a more solid looking form as the bright green orbs of his gaze shifted about the space, only shifting through the shadows to the floor before Fides, taking form once again in a kneeling position, one knee against the floor as his hands rested along the other with head bowed, more or less a sign of respect that he held for the being in front of him, before long he would rise back to his feet, allowing his shadows to flow from his frame as he drew the being Scourge from within, leaving the pathetic excuse for a kinn to lay sprawled along the floor before Fides. “Duximus ordinandum caperes minus placent ipsi Evincar.” (We thought you might take a bit of pleasure in disposing of it yourselves Evincar.)
Once Kage returned as expected he offered his respects to the Evencar. Fides offered a slight bow in return as its gaze fell upon the wayward Scourge before shifting once more to Kage offering a nod of appreciation. It was true Fides would take great pleasure in disposing of this “monster”. There was a hint of nostalgia as its mind went over this creatures history, it origins, Scourge was made by the Cardinals “oblitus canis bellum”. It was almost a shame to have to dispose of it himself, he would do so though, the Cardinal had long since gone missing, his presence a thing of the past, a memory of better days long since past it seemed. Fides was Evencar now, and for all intent and purpose the kinn were its to command now, the duty of spreading Veritas and gifting the worthy with the blessings of Umbra fell upon its shoulders now.
Fides shook its head slowly as it lifted the broken body of Scourge to look upon the monsters face as it began addressing him. “foedus, quomodo unquam venit in saltum, qui quondam, ut ipse venit ad maculæ deliciis affluentes, in tali sordes. vere tibi ceciderunt. tua factorem erat ad fidem nostram genus, licet in tates eo erant dubiae.” (disgusting, how did it ever come to pass that once such as yourself came to revel in such filth. truly you have fallen. your maker was a credit to our kind, albeit the tates of it were questionable.) Fides pushed its hand away, intentionally causing Scourge to avert its gaze, its head hanging lipm now, still exhausted from the ordeal with Kage. Scourge likely knew the jist of what was to come, there was only a hand full of outcomes, none of them pleasant. It would have its pool torn from it, that much was certain. The only real question is what would become of scourge himself. Even Fides was not entirely sure just what to do with him, for now though the evencar would eviscerate him, slowly and painfully. To make a particular show of it Fides would let lose its aura in a fairly small area, large enough to cover the manifestation of Scourge, and cush it under the Evencars immense soul pressure. It was enough that as FIdes had directed the pressure it caused the floor to crack and buckle slightly under its weight, “squishing” scourge into something that much resembled a puddle of filth, there was virtually no resemblance to the manifestation it had once been. It was left completely prostrated before the might of Fides, even if it had the idea to offer some sort of resistance it would be a moot point, strong and as powerful as Scourge had once been even at its full power with no exhaustion afflicted it could never have hoped to offer any true resistance to the likes of Fides. With that the Evencar lifted its hand and began a slow siphoning of Scourges pool, the way it would feel to a kinn would be similar to both burning slowly alive and being skinned, the puddle shrinking in accordance to the loss of souls as it screamed out in agony, a rare sound for a Kinn to make. At this point though the screams sounded more like a gurgling mixed with the tearing of metal, a horrible and loud screeching gurgle, which the Evincar was delighting in.
Despite FIdes rending the souls from Scourge it was not consuming them, no, it was holding them. What was left of Scourge lay on the floor motionless a naked Umbral skeleton, still conscious enough to see that what was once its own would now be given to Kage. These souls would make for a marvelous addition to the new Marshals pool, some of them would be used to soul forge a physical mantel to represent its new title and position within the kinn. The disembodied damned souls condensed in the vissers open palm an orb of evil ready to bend to the will of the Evencar. It paused for a moment to examine them, its gaze shifting throughout the mass so as in to chose the most worthy and useful in the construct of the mantle and which would be incorporated into Kages soul pool. It gave a nod bringing its hands together for a moment before separating them once more, now holding two orbs. ”Gradum et suscepit iustus praemia nostra venator, damus vobis haec dona sunt, fideli servitio ad nos, et tenebrae, quae iussa est nobis. accipietis utraque pars hoc, lacus addere tua, ut, ceteris utemur dare super te, corona Militum, ita ut progredi, et mandatum vestrum fratres et adducam dignus coram nobis. (Step forward and receive your just rewards our hunter, we give to you these gifts for ones faithful service to us, and the darkness which commands us. you shall receive both a portion of this pool to add to your own might, the rest we will use to bestow upon you the crown of Marshal so that you might go forward and command your brethren and bring the worthy before us.)
Not a single sign of anything crossed over it’s features as Kage watched the punishment for Scourge unfold, even though the very idea of the kinn losing every ounce of it’s soul pool was a horrifying thought to any Kinn in existence, past or present, but even as the agonizing screams flooded the surrounding room, never once did Kage show a sign of sympathy for the monstrosity that Scourge had become. Falling so far after it’s creation it was almost a shame to waste such …. Power, a tool so well structured to have have crumbled so violently, it all played into the very creation of Kage itself, though it would never give Scourge the satisfaction in hearing it speak the words.
What did hold his interest greatly was when the Evincar held the soul pool within it’s own hands, the very mass of darkness that was drawn from the form of Scourge, the energy that it would take to hold such a concentration of souls alone was one to stand in awe of, but then to watch as it was further split in two, Kage couldn’t help but stand in awe. When Fides spoke to it however, Kage reacted almost instinctually to it words, stepping closer to the Evincar the oddity of its gaze locked on the orbs that were held out to him, taking into consideration of the very feel of them before reaching out to the orb within Fides left hand. Kage would hold it’s hand out towards the orbs as though it were a pet within the grasp of a dealer, allowing his own will to call to the souls that made up the orb itself, commanding them to come into its own form, it would have been like watching a drug addict getting it’s fix, Kage’s head fell back as he enjoyed the sensation of the souls joining into his own pool, a shudder of a sigh escaping past the pitch black lips as he was overwhelmed with the increase of such energy and power, than lifted it’s odd gaze to the being before him as he spoke of this Marshal title, “Nos sunt honoratur a servis tuis, et plus quam placuit accipere utrumque, oramus exhibito nobis, quod non auferetur a te, ut monstrosity habet.” (We are honored by your decision and more than pleased to accept both, we pray to the darkest of us that we do not fail you as the monstrosity has.)
The souls which Kage was to take in were considerable, the euphoria that washed over him as he took in the some of five thousand souls from the pool so Scourge was to be expected an indeed would be much like a junkie getting their fix. The number was considerable but their skills were negatable, nothing of any particular note, it seemed as though the plagued Kinn had little concern in its madness for the usefulness of the souls it had taken over the years. Fides had kept the bulk of the ones deemed “useful” for the construction of what would become Kage’s “Martial mantle”. It would serve as a symbol of position and power within the ranks of Kinn a clear symbol of the authority which he would be bestowed with.
Fides took the sum of six thousand sols to forge the construct. The construct was made of souls, though it resembled a silver shrug of sorts and had a vaguely armour like look to it. It had a rather wicked look to it over all and did emanate with an aura, which Kinn commonly called “profane presence”. This is generally only displayed by the Vissers of the Kinn but Fides had thought it a fitting “gift” of sorts to give to the Martial Kage, something to further his appointment to the position. The mantle had also been instilled with a number of souls which were well acquainted with a plethora of knowledge and experience concerning sickness and plagues, and as such it bestowed Kage with that knowledge as well. As the mantel had yet to be gifted but it was instilled with a security measure of sorts. In the center inside of the shrug there was a hungry and gaping maw, that once it had been handed to Kage and put on the maw would latch itself to Kage, from that point forward it would recognize only Kage. if it were to be worn by another the Martial's mantle would latch into the poor person to put it on and begin consuming them totally, hungrily devouring every bit of them.
Fides would offer the mantle to Kage now with it’s left hand, its right hand lifted and summoned the broken form of Scourges face into its right palm. As the face of the broken Kinn made contact with FIdes palm it bore down with unimaginable force, which began to cause the skull to begin to fracture. The fractures which began in the skull manifested as what appeared to be inordinately dark spider web like fracturing, which worked its way through the skeleton in a slow and agonizing fashion. As the webbing crawled over and through the form of Scourge it would press out rending the portions from one another, fracturing the individual dominant soul of the Kinn, the ordeal was obviously one of agony, that had been drawn out for effect. The pain was two fold, there was the physical pain of being slowly torn apart, which was beyond the tolerance of most beings, the pain inflicted would be more than enough to kill most beings through shock alone. The other perhaps more profound pain was of a psychological nature. Scourge would be acutely aware of what was happening, the significance it bore. It was in fact being subjected to “erasure”. In truth souls could never truly be destroyed, at least not by Fides itself. Such a thing was beyond the reach of even the Evencar. What was within reach however was a fracturing, which in effect had much the same end result. Scourge would be shattered into so many pieces that it would be virtually impossible to ever assemble its form or ego. The pain this inflicted was beyond definition, only those ever subjected to the fate would ever be able to fully comprehend the torment, perhaps the fragmentation bestowed a small mercy in that once it had been accomplished there was never a large enough fragment to ever form any form of sentient thought or memory, the pain was temporary in that fashion, but the comprehension of the act in and of itself bestowed a degree of terror. It was more terrifying to creatures of an immortal nature, as this was as close to a true death as could ever be bestowed such creatures.
Kage had taken to his knees as the overwhelm surge from the added souls washed through his entire frame, though they were deemed as nothing significant they were souls to him, they were still an increase in his current count and power, and to him that was all that mattered, at least for now. He took a great deal of pleasure knowing that the souls he had received were from Scourge, after all he was the reason Kage even existed in the first place, but more so knowing that no other ’black blood’ monstrosities would be created from one that had fallen so far out of favor with the All Father itself, that is was no longer seen as Kinn, a feat Kage himself felt was entirely on him to deal with, it was his mission, his goal in ‘life’ as it were to bring an end to such a being, even if he never truly understood the full connection until after he was embraced by Darkness.
Kage lifted it’s gaze to watch as Fides used the remaining souls from Scourge to create a new artifact of sorts, a rather intriguing process to watch as a whole really, the way the souls would mold to the desire of the Evencar and form a solid material, much like how the kinn themselves could take on just about any appearance they so desired for the task at hand, merely shifting the darkness that they were with their will alone, sad that this sort of ability was only available to so few of their kind. Once the piece was constructed Kage rose back to his feet, the shadows of his form shifting all around him like smoke loosely holding onto that which it flowed from. Reaching out to take the ‘armor’ from Fides he turned his gaze to watch the final moments of the being known as Scourge, the agonizing screams that flowed from the being was not something you would expect from one so weak, the withering being stood 0 chance of even being able to move let alone fight back in any way of form, and then came the song of the bones fracturing and crumbling into such miniscule pieces that there was truly no hope of reconstructing Scourge, not even a small amount of the being would be able to be pieced back together at the full extent of the ‘erasure’. A mercy if he had ever saw one, the fact this thing was to no longer exist, no pain, no madness within the mind, nothing, just ‘gone’ from any form of existence, in Kage’s opinion, Scourge did not deserve such an act, but then again he was nothing more than a Shade, it was left to the Evencar to decide such fates now.
Kage had turned his attention back to the armor that had been gifted to him, the sight of the gaping maw on the inside of the armor was a rather odd sight to see, to think such a thing would sink it’s hungry teeth into his frame was a touch ….. Unnerving in a sense, but it did not deter Kage in the least as he turned it around and slipped it over his shoulders, groaning deeply as the teeth sunk into his frame, relaxing only when the maw was certain that it was Kage’s shoulders that the armor rested on, the knowledge of Scourge’s plague like abilities washed through his mind, taking care to run through it all carefully, not to miss a single piece of information. “Si nos, ut inquirere, quid sit agendum cum Ossibus Umbra?” (If we may inquire, what is to be done with the Bones of the Shade?) Kage spoke up after a short amount of time, turning his gaze to see that the armor that had started it all was all that was truly left of the being. “Ut rogamus, ut talis arma dari nobis, considerans illud est, quod creavit nos, in primis, videtur conveniens fuisse quod ossa debet, transiit ad successor talis esse, ita ut eorum vires esse posuit ad propper usum eorum intentio, et auxilium nobis in deferentes retro tenebris?” (Might we request that such armor be given to us, considering it is what created us in the first place, it seems fitting that the bones should be passed to the successor of such a being, so that their powers be put to the propper use of their intent and aid us in bringing back the darkness?)
The Evencar expected Kage to shudder, falling to his knees only made it more sure Kage truly appreciated the cornucopia of soul he had been gifted for this task. It was a convenience that the young shades life goal was in sync with the task, it help to assure it was accomplished expeditiously and with a great deal of zeal. Fides found a fair deal of irony in the story, how the created came to destroy the creator, even if the connection was an indirect one. It just made the completion of it all the more succulent, no loose ends, and the details which could be inferred may make for an excellent cautionary tale. It had a parallel to something the monkeys said which carried an uncommon wisdom, “raise you no more demons then you can put down”. His eyes narrowed reflect a smile as the thought crossed his mind. Fides did wonder just how the event and the way it unfolded was perceived by Kage, the finer points of his perception. Perhaps in time it would come to ask the Marshal to tell it the tale from its own view.
Fides had crafted the souls as one would craft clay, the tainted souls from the soul pool were particularly malleable, as they already had already been saturated with the taint of Kinn. Scourge had fallen far, but in the end it was still one of them, regardless how repugnant and unbecoming its mind and mannerisms had become. Had it been some other loathe creature it may have been spared the fate of erasure. FIdes was able to craft this portion of the pool in much the same way a person works with clay, pressing and stretching out the souls, working in finer details with its claws, very little of this was formed by mental acuity, for the most part the only piece of this mantel done in such a fashion was the maw, to have crafted it by hand would have taken quite a fair deal of time, the many jagged and wicked teeth, the long and pointed tongue, it was a thing which most would feel a degree of horror to behold. As Kage took the mantle he took the time to view the fate of Scourge, perhaps a bit surprised with its wails as it spent the last few precious moments writhing in agony. The cracking and fissuring of the bones despite the wails still somehow managed to echo here, a small detail hinting at the finality and significance what was transpiring, something like this required such a degree of power that not only could the fissures be heard here in this place, but it was a sound which reverberated also in the depths of the Umbra, and and all Kinn or closely aligned beings of darkness could hear this sound as it happened. Kinn would be acutely aware of the sound and what it meant while other would be left to wonder. The bones shattered falling to the floor as if they were little more than shattered pottery, fracturing even further as they fell...And then a moment of deafening silence as the small particles barely the size of dust would disperse, scattered to the winds. Though curiously there was some small remnant from the fallen beast, so perhaps in a way it would not be completely forgotten in the perpetual march of time. This had the possibility of forming issues later on and the Evencar would squint as it took in the sight and what it might mean in the future. It pondered if it should keep those thoughts to itself or not, for now though it would remain silent on the matter.
Kage let out a small groan of complaint as the maw sank its eager teeth into his umbral flesh, it was barely noticeable in truth. It was understandable the process of this binding of sorts was indeed quite painful, though depending on the inclinations and appetites of a person it could be a delicious sort of pain, and perhaps the groan was in fact more of a moan of elation. It was of little concern to Fides though, it had in its own early years indulged in less than savory actions and hobbies, as do most being in their youth. It brought to the Evencar a small sense of nostalgia as Kage took in the wealth of knowledge the mantel would bestow him with. It was Kages voice that brought FIdes attentions back to the present, he wanted to know what was to become of the armour Scourge had worn, Fides had intended to destroy it, but if it was something Kage had wanted, perhaps that too was fitting. Fides let out a murr as it mulled the thought over for a moment before responding. Kage being so young was likely unaware some of the finer points, like Kinn existing outside the conventional rules of time and space, Kinn, when they are erased are broken so completely that it makes a particular sort of temporal displacement to prevent “meddling”, lest the perpetrator should have some possession of that kinn. The souls shattered in such a way that it causes an echo to flow back in time, making that particular Kinn something “out of reach” to nearly everything, certainly out of reach of any mortal meddling. It blinked slowly as it took in a deep breath letting out a sigh having come to a decision. ”nos si quis habet punctum..."venator umbras". Est gradus decet "iustitia". Nos autem abs te accipere, sed, est propositio, condicione, aliquid tibi conveniunt ad primum. Ut ne hoc reliquias, si iurare in nobis erit non venire in possessionem alterius sed te. Oportet accipere, quod si deficiat, ut custodiam verbum tuum in hoc eius fatum erunt facta tua...contulit per manus nostras. Conveniunt ad hoc et erit tua”
(we suppose one does have a point…”hunter of shadows”. There is a degree of fitting “justice” to it. We shall allow you to take it, but, there is a proposition, a condition, something you will agree to first. You may keep this remnant, if you swear to us that it shall never come into the possession of any other but yourself. You must accept that should you fail to keep your word on this his fate shall become yours...bestowed by our hands. Agree to this and it shall be yours).
Kage listened to every word the Evencar had said about his conditions to it being allowed to take possession of the bones, it wasn’t entirely the response Kage was expecting, he truly thought the Evencar was going to ask for something else in exchange, as nothing is ever given for free, this armor however was different, in Kage’s mind it already belonged to him, Scourge having used it to taint the man that was his biological father, than further ownership would have been the fact Kage was the one who brought Scourge in, it was far more than just fitting in his head. ”Nos accipere conditiones, dicemus, ut nulla alia unquam venit possidere, hoc arma. Etiam si essemus in occursum vera mors, haec ossa, numquam relinquere possessionem.” (We accept the conditions, we shall ensure that no other will ever come to possess this armor. Even if we were to meet true death, these bones will never leave our possession.)
FIdes had agreed to let Kage have the armour, it was fitting, and in way Kage deserved it. In a way it would serve as a medal, or symbol of having earned his place as a shade of sinn, and the mantle proved him to be the “cream of the crop” as far as shades were concerned. Once Kage had agreed to the conditions the Evencar gave a nod with a slow blink as motioned to the bones, they now belonged to Kage. ”Plaga ' ornatus est, et nunc tua, damus vobis in bona fide, est conveniens illis, ossa, ut ornare vos putamus. Debent servire bene, melius, tunc priorem dominum imaginamur. Esset destitutione erant vos cadere, ex gratia et obviam fatum, si solus pater scit quid futurum teneat. Nunc exire in regna, do tibi et servire dominus et magister noster, ferre decus et gloria, nostro nomine et causa venandi umbra, nos magna spe ad vos
(Scourge’s armour is now your own, we give it to you in good faith, it is fitting those bones should adorn you we think. They should serve you well, better then their prior owner we imagine. It would be a disappointment were you to fall from grace and meet the same fate, though only the father knows what the future may hold. Now go out into the realms, do as you will and serve our lord and master, bring honor and glory to our name and purpose hunter of shadows, we have high hopes for you.)
Kage would turn its gaze to the Bones of the Shade left along the floor where Scourge’s remains had been, a stream of shadows flowed across the short distance between them and begin to completely wrap themselves around the bones, before long they would slowly begin to disappear, in that same moment Kage would wince slightly as slight bulges under the black flesh would grow, he was using the shadows to take the armor into himself as it were, allowing the energy of them to fuse within his own frame. The fusion was anything but harmless, the pain that wracked his body during the process was more than enough to kill any mortal, as it included fusing every ounce of the energy, the material and even the souls that went into the armors creation with his own dominant soul, a sort of soul forging in a sense, but not like that of the Evencar. Kage fell to a knee once again as the process took it’s time, it wasn’t easy using shadows to fuse souls to a dominating soul, but before long the process was be complete, the shadows returning to their master once again, Kage’s frame shuddering as the ribs emerged from the thick black flesh like surface of his frame, followed by the hand bones and the jaw bone, once it was done he would rise back to his feet and take in a deep breath, a calming in a sense before looking back to the Evincar before him. “Nos autem non confundit.” (We shall not disappoint) he would bow towards Fides as his frame would be engulfed by the shadows at his command and vanish back into the darkness to wander the realms once again.
Moderators: Kage (played by ZeekHarbinger)