Extermination

We stood there for an instant in a pitch black night. I’ve never seen just darkness. Imagine, closing yourself in a room void of all light, then plugging up all cracks or crevices into the outside world with whatever you could. Then, putting your hand on your face with your eyes wide open…it was so dark, even then – even though you can feel your hand on your skin…you’re still not even sure it’s really there. Add in all the other elements, the slow breathing of those around me, the unholy sound of those shadows orbiting around Katurian and the slime-like, slithering of what sounded like a dozen snakes coming into an abandoned building…if Tarawath hadn’t been at my side, clutching my arm, I don’t think I’ve ever felt so alone.

On Gideon’s command, the entire coast-line of the reef was suddenly lit up by Katurian’s magic. From his hand a blinding flare gave day to the horrendously dark night. The cliff face, which moments ago was bare and empty was now a living mural of the Lamian Beastmen. Just as Gideon and the others had described them, a monstrosity between snakes and men, all seemingly female. They wielded an assortment of weapons, everything from bow and arrows to daggers and scimitars. Along side them, another abomination I couldn’t quite make out. Small, dwarfed little men. Wrapped in gauzes and bandages, like they where mummified. Their torso’s hunched over, their limbs long – eyes empty and mouths hungry for life. Bits and pieces of their dead flesh where visible and stayed as such. Qutrubs, is what they were called. The magic Katurian had used to light the area hovered above us, giving complete life to the situation rather then just illuminating a horrifying, fleeting dream. The entire scene cast a spell over me which made these mere seconds seem like an eternity. The sheer numbers of Lamia above us took all hope from me, I thought only of Tarawath. The kitten by my side, and how I could save her. It was Gideon’s voice that shattered my trance.

“From the sides as well!” her hands shot to her side as they drew her pistols with speed, before the last consonant had spilled from her lips she punctuating each syllable with lead. “Both sides! Push a perimeter! Don’t let them box us in! The Corsairs will see Katurian’s flare! Move!” She broke into a solid run heading straight for the forces to out east. Fire was burning from her finger tips as she pulled the triggers, hammers slamming like they where on automatic; lines of red sizzling through the creatures before her, tearing open skin and melting the entrance wounds back together as the bullets exit wound was blown so wide the moon could fill it. As she closed in on the front line of Lamia the explosions from her handhelds turned to furious clicking as she ran out of ammo. Inches before she was within weapons length she hit her brakes, slamming to a stop on her heels and spinning full force with her elbow cocked. The first beastmen within range got a full spinning pistol whip to the face. It’s jaw, skin and bone alike, was actually separated from the bottom of it’s skull. As she came back around she pushed her other pistol forward, the barrel entering the Lamia’s ocular cavity and exploding out of the back of it’s head. Gideon yanked the body to the ground as it slid violently off of her firearm, then swung her limb upward like an uppercut, the steel razors on her arm sleeves shredding the already grotesque scale-like skin of the beastmen. As she delivered another bone-crushing blow to a Lamia she planted her foot into the abdomen of the beast, propelling herself high into the air as she tossed her guns way up above her. Her small body reached it’s peak as both her hands grasped the great sword hilt holstered on her back and upon descending to the ground slammed the blade with such force that the reef and rocks around her in a 10 foot diameter burst upward with sheer force! Jagged particles mincing and shredding the Lamia flesh, clearing a perfect circle around Gideon. She stood quickly hurled her great sword straight up into the air, just in time to catch her Pistols as they came back down. Using years of well honed memory reflexes she had reloaded one pistol in time to put it point blank against the head of another Lamia and send it’s brains straight back to the hellish lab that produced them. Kicking another away from behind her she impressively tossed her pistols up slightly into the air behind her, just over her shoulders as she caught her great sword in the same fashion it had went up, immediately using it’s momentum to swing in a complete 360 degrees, clearing all on-coming Lamia before she slid it back into place onto her back, then swooping low to her knees, catching her pistols as they came inches from clattering to the ground and gracefully coming back to her feet with a devilishly precise grin as she reloaded the second pistol.

She took a moment to smile arrogantly at her flawless execution before she continued with the extermination.

Katurian turned heed to an equally as dangerous aspect of the situation and perhaps more imminently so; all the archers up on the high ledge began to string their bows with arrows. With Katurian’s heightened awareness he could see the sharp barbs showed more threat then just that of ordinary projectiles. Each one was coated, dripping feverishly with a dark green, insidious-looking venom. The priest’s eyes narrowed and the bright yellow that shone through dimmed as the arrows where let loose, arching high up into the sky, vanishing for a moment into the blinding, artificial light above the two Windurstians and Faction 5. Katurian put his hands high, palms out and as the arrows plummeted toward the earth, his eyes went as dark as his image for a moment before snapping back with intense light! There was a visible disturbance in the air in the form of what appeared to be a nearly transparent rush of air as the arrows stopped several feet before impact. The Shadow Priests eye pulsated with energy as he turned his hands, the arrow following suit and aiming back up towards the heavens. He whispered inaudibly for a brief moment, I couldn’t hear it, but I could see his lips move. The where only a few words, names, actually that I could make out.

“Nasu…Yoichino…Namas…” as his incantation reached it’s completion I could see a worried, dreaded look fall upon the Lamia – as though something unseen was speaking to each of them individually. As the words finished all the arrows rose back to the sky, retaking the same path they each had flown only moments ago and then descended into the chests, throats and hearts of the Lamia which had launched them.

I could see something light up in Stitch. Like a Tarutaru on the morning of the Starlight Celebration. She knew what was coming and it was reflecting through her eyes, like a mirror augmenting a blinding light. Her entire petite frame shook with excitement and anticipation as she turned to Vael like a child turns to their father. She grabbed a hold of his pant leg and tugged furiously, “Gimme a boost Vaely!” she squealed!

He grunted somewhat un-approvingly then bent down extending his arm and hand. She sat on his enormous bicep, holding onto his shoulder and wrist as he tensed his body before flinging the girl through the air into the Lamian hordes. Stitch looked like a child on a chocobo for the first time, sailing through the air like it was a Windsday morning run with the breeze blowing through her hair. It was all cut short as she collided into a Lamia, her heels planted right into it’s upper chest as she landed gracefully with her hands in the air, balancing herself out like a dancer. The force of the landing of course caused the Lamia’s spine to snap and as Stitch pushed off back into the air the Beastmen’s body collapsed in on itself. The happy White Mage landed on the back of another Lamia and quickly crawled atop it, her knees slung over it’s shoulders as she sat on it’s neck, smiling down at it, “Enjoy the view?” she grinned as her thighs tightened around it’s neck and she drew her dagger high into the air before she let it plunge down into the Lamia’s skull, once, twice, three times, four, five…her arm became a blur as she stabbed it over and over and over again. The beastmen staggered and slithered back and forth, never falling as it collided into it’s sisters around it. Each one that came close Stitch would masterfully slash across the eyes, the face, the neck, rendering most of them, and soon to be dead as they bled out. After which, she’d go right back to turning the first Lamia’s head into mashed thunder melons. Blood spattering all over Stitch’s front half. Her joy ride was cut short, however, when the dagger went in deep for the final time and wouldn’t come out. Her face contorted into a confused, silly little grin as she tugged the hilt over and over, the halting of the violent stabs giving away to the lamia’s body’s momentum and it slowly teetered back and forth like a tottering tower before it collapsed to the ground with Stitch wailing in a panic as she landed with a thud beside it.

She looked up through slightly dazed eyes, similar to a small child who had fallen off their first chocobo, and hovering above her was another lamia swaying back and forth with a rusty scimitar in her fist.

“Wanna play?” Stitch smiled, rolling deftly out of the way as the blade clattered down, missing Stitch but carving into the corpse of the mutilated lamia Stitch had used as a mount moments before. As Stitch rolled to the side she moved her body into a backwards somersault and propelled herself to her feet hands at the ready since she was currently unarmed. She grinned, her teeth glinting as he eyes narrowed in preparation for the Lamia’s assault. Stitch’s assailant plunged the blade toward her and she gracefully twirled to the side striking an elegant pose. Then she did a limbo as the blade across, bent backwards at the waist watching the blade glide harmlessly over her bare stomach and small bust. She could smell the diseased ridden metal as it passed over her face and nose. Her body snapped back up into position and her hands lashed toward the Lamia taking it by the wrist and the forearm before effectively and brutally snapping the bone right in half! The snake-woman let out a hideously grotesque moan as she dropped the scimitar to the ground.

Two more Lamia approached from behind Stitch, but she could sense them coming. Still holding the first Lamia’s broken arm in her hands Stitch smiled as she looked over her shoulder and timed a jump kick perfectly to put her left foot into the lower abdomen of the first lamia behind her, boosting herself high to kick her right foot into the second ones throat, then propel herself with one last push into a mid-air roll so both her feet had the chance to connect solidly with the first lamia’s face – all the while twisting the broken arm of her current victim like a rope. She was hardly done, though. Using her natural grace and agility Stitch boosted herself up onto the Lamia’s shoulder, mounted in front of it’s face just as before. This time, with no dagger available she cracked her knuckles obnoxiously as she glanced over at Vael, who was effectively disarming and effortlessly pushing his own attackers aside. After this small lapse Stitch slammed her fist down into the Lamia’s face, it staggered to the side. She hit it again with her other fist and it fumbled backward. She rode the beastmen hard pushing her knuckles into it’s skull again and again until it collapsed onto the ground with her surfing it into the rocks still bashing away! Her eyes a blaze with joy and glee as blood and bone spattered all over her, laughing hysterically! Even as Stitch continued to pummel the remains, the Lamia ceased to move. After a few seconds Stitch stopped suddenly, putting her palm on her chest as her body rose slightly and a hiccup erupted from her lips, “Hiccup!” she whispered, then blushed looking down at the face of the lamia, “Ew…that’s a little gross. Fix up time!” she placed her palms flat against the mess of blood and bone and after a small gentle light faded in then out, the entire outside of the skull was reconstructed in perfect symmetry, though the corpse still lay deceased. Stitch leaned down and pressed her lips against it’s nose, “All pretty again!”

“Stitch!” Katurian shouted across the battlefield as a Lamia with it’s scimitar raised behind the White Mage suddenly imploded in itself. “Stop playing around!” the Shadow Priest chastised her. She returned his concern with a fully extended tongue before slipping it back into her mouth and retrieving her dagger from the skull of an earlier victim.

Meanwhile, Tarawath had pulled me back and gestured back to where Gideon and Stitch were, “I’ll handle this side, Tigerrr.” She purred. I could see her eyes as they began to glaze over with a dark, earthen brown. As I took only two steps back I was nearly thrown off balance as the ground began to crack and erupt. Tarawath crouched low to the ground as it opened up beneath her. As the rocks crumbled away, falling into the earth a large palm calmly rose from the depths, gently wrapping around Tara’s lower torso. Another hand, seemingly made of the same stone that was breaking way reached through the reef and grabbed the still solid land as the ancient Avatar of Earth Titan, pulled his colossal frame into our world. He stood tall under the light of Katurian’s magic, towering over all else in the field. With Tara still in his hand he reached up, setting her carefully on his shoulder as he grunted toward the oncoming Lamia, ancient dust billowing from his rock-like nostrils. My fiancé’ grinned down at my from a top her antique guardian, “Don’t keep those ladies waiting, Tigerrr.”

And following her jest Titan let out a terrible roar as he broke into a dead run, barreling toward the Lamian hordes like a freight-ship! There was nothing they could do to halt or even hope to hamper his approach. Like a boulder cascading down a hill when he hit that line it was an explosion! Bodies flew as he tucked the shoulder opposite Tara down, smashing head-on into the soft reptilian frames. Bones crunched, flesh tore and organs ruptured upon impact! The beastmen came in around him, flailing their measly steal about, but it simply bounced off old rock-face that served as Titan’s skin. He spun around in circles with his limbs flailing, the effect was using a club to smash to San d’Orian Tomato’s. As the Qutrub pushed to the front of the battle they where able to use their long, somewhat nimble limbs to attack themselves to Titan, and soft, already dead bodies to absorb most of the impact, slowly climbing up his frame, working as a single unit to overwhelm him. Just as it seemed they were about to accomplish their goal, just as their blue-ish, grotesque fingers came within inches of Tara’s body, she whispered an archaic cant into Titan’s ear.

Titan’s body seemed to flash with a dull, earthen brilliance. From the cracks and crevices in his skin a historical light shone through. To the Qutrub, it seared and burned, causing them to lose grip and clatter to the floor. The intensity pushed the Lamia back a few steps as the ground began to shake and several smaller rocks and stones, light boulders started to rise slowly into the air as though gravity no longer existed. In this confusion, Tarawath slid off her mammoth protector, taking cover next to his leg, shielding from above by his monstrous arms. All the rocks and boulders gathered above Titan and flattened and hardened into one enormous shape several yards long and several feet thick. The Avatar growled deeply and as the light he emanated ceased, the giant rock plate above him feel to the ground! All under it crushed under immense pressure – except for Titan and the Summoner he was protecting. Right in the middle of the Geocrush Titan thrust his arms upward breaking a large hole in the center of the rock, creating a ring around the two that crushed all Lamia within range.

By this time, I had reached the other side where Gideon and Stitch had engaged the Beastmen horde. I had only but put my own blades to a few Lamia before I found myself back to back with Stitch, she was covered from head to toe in blood but I suspected not a drop of it was hers, she was enjoying herself way to much to be wounded. As soon as our backs had touched she spun around quickly, looking up at me with a playful grin.

“Let’s Dance Kallo!” she exclaimed, letting her dagger fall into place at her side before grabbing both of my wrists. “Now, spin me!” she giggled. Half concerned about my own blades, still in hands cutting her wrists, I put all my weight into spinning her around. She was nearly as light as a Mithra was, as soon as we built momentum she was using the Lamia and Qutrub that came anywhere near us as stepping stones, her heals putting holes in their soft skin, scarring their face, blinding and permanently removing some. When she finally let go she managed to do so while simultaneously stripping my hands of my own daggers and letting loose a flurry of stabs and jabs into several incoming beastmen. She was just barely out of arms length as I reached around her waist, taking her own blade in time to parry several blows from another Lamia wielding two scimitars. The beast was lightning quick, it was only by pure instinct that anyone could have blocked so much steel in such a short period of time; deflecting the first blow away from my head, bouncing the other blade to the left of my thigh, pushing the first one again, away from my shoulder before having to completely dodge another attempt at my head only to be on the guard swat the next attempt down into the dirt. I kept up the charade as long as possible slowly being pushed backward as Stitch slowly worked forward behind me, clearing a path. After a few more steps I could feel Stitch bump into me, pressing the front of her body into my back as I saw both her small arms shoot out from under mine the Lamia swung both blades down to parry her thrusts, opening up it’s own guard and throat as I made haste and slashed it open. Stitch deposited my daggers back into their sheathes as I tossed hers over my head and she snatched it out of the air quickly, in time to parry and dispatch another Lamia which had tried to close in.

The dance continued as we pranced around each other, taking turn defending and vanquishing each other’s foes. As I’d thrust forward, knee low, like a step she’d use it to boost herself into an impressive aerial as gravity brought her down, her dagger poised to sliced from head to toe like a miniature ground strike. With her small body crouched over I dodged to the side, rolling across her back from left to right to close any opening an enemy might have on her as I take up the offensive on her right side.

From there she springs up giddily into the fray of blades, pushing them aside and deftly dodging through them as her daggers make their way into the hearts and heads of more and more beastmen.

As seconds passed, gallons of Lamia blood was spilt to the floor of the Arrapago Reef, and moments further into the fight we made our first mistake. Both anticipating the same attack, we parried one blade at the same time to my left, and her right. Our dagger forming an X that trapped and quickly disarmed the Lamia, but leaving our other side open. I just barely caught the Qutrub, blades moving like an airship propeller as he came near us. With our other arms still in close proximity from the parry an instant before I entangled my limb with hers, pulling her petite frame quickly around me and away from the attack, which in turn opened my entire chest to the assault. The blades deflected off the Scorpion Harness the first few times, slicing through and knocking me back into stitch, after the first initial blows I could feel the searing pain as the serrated edges of the steel began to tear through my flesh. The burning hotness as my body began to expel my blood. My eyes blurred a bit from the pain and all I could see was a flurry of steel in front of me, however, after several seconds that was replaced by a flash of red! The Qutrub had just burst like a grape in front of Stitch and I. Standing a few feet behind it with his hand outstretched was Katurian.

“Heal the Insect, Stitch.” He hissed as I staggered back, hitting the ground in a sitting position, my breath growing ragged. Katurian stood next to me as Stitch kneeled down. From Katurian’s hand shot a single stream, a thread of light that rose straight up above our heads then from which a dome of golden light showered down around us. Several Lamia and Qutrub alike swung, shot and cast upon but all harm fell to the shield that Katurian had draped over us.

“Hold still now, Kallo!” Stitch smiled as she straddled over my lap. “This is going to hurt a lot! But at least one of us will have fun!” she peeled back the bits of my harness that was splintered open and wiggled her tiny little hume fingers into the wound. The pain caused my chest to constrict and tighten, I could barely breath before now it was as if my entire upper torso had been paralyzed. Tiny needle like pin pricks lit my veins on fire as I bled all over Stitch’s hands, but eyes wide open but I could see nothing through the fuzz. Stitch gave me another smile as her fingers squeezed and pinched my insides before she tugged her fingers out quickly! Trails of blood still linking my body to her fingers. But, it was as if she pulled a cork out of my lungs that allowed me to breath. In one large, long gasp I inhaled and felt my body inflate with oxygen. The pain in turn receded away into a lost, gentle numbness. As my eyes came back into focus Stitch smiled from ear to ear and tapped my nose with her bloody finger!

“Doctor Stitch saves the day again!” she said gleefully!

“Enough play.” Katurian growled as the shield began to flicker. “Make yourselves useful!”

As the shield fell, Katurian kneeled down to the ground and as he did the shadows within the area seemed to be pulled toward him – everything grew a bit darker and within an instant he burst up! An explosion of pure darkness all around us. Stitch and myself unharmed, the Lamia and Qutrub reeled back in horror their skin melting and bubbling as though scalded with intense heat. In this small lapse of time, Katurian seemed to enter a state of focus, a trance almost. His hands where out to his sides, palms up as he slowly began to levitate as the Lamia had regained their composure. On each of the Shadow Priests hands, a small, faint, blue light appeared. The first Lamia that came near him swung her scimitar downward! Inches before the blade would have cut him down, Katurian was gone in a puff of smoke and shadows. All the Lamia looked around frantically before he appeared behind one, hovering in the air. He reached out one hand and place his fingers on it’s head. The blue light appeared around that Lamia’s head and neck, before any of them could take the Shadow Priest, he was gone in another explosion of smoke reappearing several feet away between two other Lamia. He placed his hands on both their shoulders and the blue light slithered around their neck. As they whirled around to catch him they swung helplessly at a pool of dissipating shadow energy, simultaneously, the blue aura around their necks suddenly lashed out towards the first Lamia, a solid beam of blue energy now connecting them like a chain. All other foes who touched, or tried to sever this connection found themselves caught in it as well – like a web of pure energy. Still the Shadow Priest popped in and out of the crowd with a bamf, attaching his blue lasso to more and more fiends. Each time briefly appearing then vanishing in a puff of smoke and mirrors. The more victims he added to his web the more seemed to get tangled up as they tried to apprehend him. Finally, he re-appeared, this time on the ground with a wicked grin on his face behind his veil of shadows. He raised one hand upward and in his palm was a bright blue light. He tightened a fist around that light and a single beam shot from the group of trapped beastmen to his fist, like a leash on a pack of stray dogs. With one solid tug on the line, every body part and appendage that was connected to the line suddenly popped off! Arms, legs, heads, entire torsos! I had to actually advert my gaze from the carnage. Blood streamed from the severed limbs like he Drachenfall in North Gustaberg. However, I never thought I’d hear anything quite as horrible as the battle cries of beast men amongst the wailing screams of innocent people, I was wrong. Hearing our own battle cries and shouts amongst the painful agony of Katurian’s victims comes damn close. I’ve never thanked Altana more then I did that day, that he was on our side and not against us.

I looked back up in time to see the last couple of the Lamian horde buckle over and fall to the ground limp or worse before I looked over at Katurian. His face painted with pure satisfaction.

“Katurian!” Stitch yelled pointing behind him!

Some Lamia had managed to slither close enough from behind, not even I had noticed it until Stitch pointed it out. Katurian spun around just in time to bring his arms up in attempt to block, but even that wasn’t enough the crooked blade passed through his dark cloak and sank into his flesh. I could see his eyes fill with rage as he let go of the Lamia’s arm, letting the sword cut further into his shoulder. He put one hand on it’s shoulder, his teeth grinding together to hold the pain back, the other hand he put on the Lamia’s throat, just around his fingers I could see the skin turning black, as though it was being burned or introduced to a very potent acid, then in one swift jerk upwards – he Lamia’s head came off it’s shoulders and from out of it’s body it’s spine also followed, dripping with gore. The Shadow Priest whirled around running his hand down the length of the spine as it dangled and a he did the piece of Lamian anatomy became more erect, hard, steel-like and as he reared back his good arm he launched the bone as though it was a spear! Spiking two oncoming Lamia through the chest, impaling them into the nearby cliff face. The Priest fell to one knee as he clutched his shoulder.

“Kallo~!” Stitch chimed at me as she knelt beside Katurian and started to dig her beautiful little fingers into the Elvaan’s wound, “Please cover us! Thanks, hun!” she smiled as Katurian gripped a dead Lamia in one hand, his face contorted with pain.

I felt someone grab my harness and pull me up, “You heard her Long Ears! Let’s give ‘em some time!” it was Gideon, she dragged me to my feet and together we worked to keep a small circle cleared as Stitch healed Katurian’s deep wound. As Stitch was just finishing up, Vael had made his way over to us, kneeling down to make sure both our mages where fine. Stitch gave him a quick hug and Katurian quickly shrugged him away.

“We’re just about out of time here Gid!” Vael responded to the situation, “We’re not doing too bad but when the Archers and other re-enforcements on the top of the cliff recover we’re going to be out done! Even with Lady Jayles summoning magic.” He motioned to Tarawath, Titan was starting to have a little trouble being overwhelmed on the other side, but both him and Tara were still managing to hold strong.

“Then give me a boost, old fella.” Gideon smiled wickedly. “I’ll take care of our Archer problem.” She slung her great onto her back and held her hand out to Vael. The Galka took her by the wrist and forearm with both his hands and she put her free hand on his wrist, holding on tight. “Let’s try not to dislocate anything this time, Ok, Big Guy?” Vael smiled as Gideon braced herself and he began to swing the Hume Dark Knight around in circles before finally letting go and launching her upwards into the air toward the top of the cliff. As she neared the peak of her flight she took her great sword from it’s place on her back – already I could see Gideon glowing with an intense red aura, she looked like a terrible Angel as she descended to the ground. The Lamia on top seemed to just open up a clearing as she touched down harmlessly. When she looked up, her eyes were a blaze with a look I can only describe as feral.

“Kat.” Vael looked to the Priest, “Give her a hand.”

Katurian vanished in a whirlwind of shadows, as though a gust of air had blown the some from the fire. Moments later he appeared above Gideon’s head, channeling a dark force into her Great Sword which she was currently grasping with a single hand. As Katurian’s spell was channeled into Gideon she reached her other hand over to the hilt as she pulled it away and copy of her Great Sword, infused and created specifically from Katurian’s shadow energy was pulled from her original. She stood up tall and erect, with a Great Sword in each hand, one resting it’s tip on the ground and the other she lugged over her shoulder smiling still with that look of a wolf.

I’ve always believed, very firmly, there’s something about Faction 5 that makes them…more then anything else in Vana’diel. It’s never something I’ve been able to fully explain. However, the way even Beast Men react to their presence it’s always left an everlasting impression on me. I’ve never met any other group, let alone single person anything like these four – and I doubt I ever will.

The Lamia on the ledge actually attempted to run away. The archers, the mages, all of them after seeing whatever it was that was in Gideon’s eyes turned to flee. What happened next? It was like watching a kid take all the candy he could from a candy store with no employees present. Gideon was the child, and all the Lamia were the candy. Those Great Swords were like feathers in her hands, they cleaved through skin and bone, they lathered the ground with blood and gore. The problem they had was other then off cliff, with so many of them in such a cramped place, they had no where to go. Once Gideon managed to cleave her way to the entrance onto to the Cliff, it was nothing short of a colossal massacre. Like a huge pair of scissors each and every Lamia was being cut literally in half, I could see top halves trying to slither away as they left trails of their insides behind them. Gideon was a whirlwind of destruction, being fueled by Katurian’s dark enchantment. The more she slaughtered the quicker her pace picked up, to the point where each slash, each chop, every movement was bigger then the last and fueled by it’s momentum. A hurricane of endless motion and impressive inertia! At the climax of her terribly, beautiful dance of death she was propelling herself in the air with arms outstretched, turning as quick and deadly as a loose airship propeller as she minced entire Lamia bodies. As the last archer atop the cliff fell to the slaughter, Katurian vanished from sight and with him Gideon’s second sword faded away. The Shadow Priest appeared behind us once more as Gideon shook off her bloodlust and began to quickly descend down the cliff face.

We were all brought back to reality by a terrifying sound. A Mithran scream coming from the last of the Lamian hordes. My heart sank at the sight – like a great tree being fell I looked over just in time to witness Titan being robbed of his balance at the edge of the reef, with leagues of jagged rocks before the water and atop his shoulder, my love, my kitten, my Tarawath.

I watched on as they vanished from my sight and the Lamian warriors and Qutrub all seemed to praise each other with joy before turning their deadly sights on the rest of us. I gripped my steel tight, I could feel an anger, a rage growing inside me, unquenchable it was so much more overwhelming then anything I had ever felt before. It even dwarfed the attempt at Tara’s life in Giddeus at the hands of my brother. A sudden breeze swooping in from the shore took that all away, my head cleared and the burning fire was extinguished by an unseen force. This tidal wave of relief was soon painted before me as the legendary serpent, lord of the high seas, Leviathan rose from the dark waters, with it’s master, my fiancé atop it.

Following our gaze, it was almost comical to see the entire horde of Lamia turn at once as Leviathan let out a howling screech! The foam in the ocean behind him rising at an astronomical rate and racing toward their location.

“Katurian!” I turned to the Elvaan, “Can you make that shield again?”

He glared at me for a moment, “Power Word shall protect us.”

The Tsunami came in at full force, wiping everything in it’s path away – all bodies, living and dead, all parts, all gore, blood, weapons – the carnage that had happened in that very night was completely washed away. The force of the Tsunami actually seemed to move all of us as Katurian projected his protective shield around us, the force of Leviathan’s tidal wave seemed like it was too much for the Shadow Priest to hold back, but after a few seconds the waters died down and as we were left standing on wet, now clean and clear section of the reef, with all the bodies and dead bleeding out to sea…something about it did seem, refreshed and renewed. My trance was cut short as I got focus back on Tarawath. She was several feet away where Leviathan had set her down, the avatar no where in sight, the Mithra Summoner was on her knees swaying gently back and forth.

“…T-t-tiger?” she whispered before collapsing onto the ground.

~ by Kallo on September 3, 2008.