The Shadowman
folder
Gundam Wing/AC › Yaoi - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
19
Views:
2,579
Reviews:
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Currently Reading:
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Category:
Gundam Wing/AC › Yaoi - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
19
Views:
2,579
Reviews:
18
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own Gundam Wing/AC, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Chapter Four
Title: The Shadowman
Author: Cold Silence
E-Mail: writer.coldsilence@gmail.com
Category: Alternate Universe. Medieval Times.
Pairings: So far: 4 x Relena, 5 x Meiran
Warnings: NC-17. Yaoi. OOC. (I'm trying to keep them IC, but I don't think I've succeeded.) Death. Squick. Incest. Rape.
Website: http://coldsilence.tumblr.com/post/433113072/index
Inside the courtyard of Castle Sandrock, the most powerful members of King Winner's army gathered for the final strike against the beasts of the mountains. Each soldier wore a black cloak with the eclipsed sun emblazoned on the back over their armor, marking them as Quatre's elite force. Many of those gathered had ancestors that stemmed back to the Warriors of Light, but rather than get exiled or killed by the King once their dormant blood surfaced, they swore allegiance to the Shadowman and joined the army.
Pargan's past ran along those lines. Once upon a time, he had a wife and three children whom he cherished with all his heart. They were riding into town one day, and their carriage was stopped by a small brigand. It turned out the group of men were hired to kill both him and his family by a local merchant, who was upset that his rival's business was usurping all of his customers.
They took sadistic pleasure out of killing Pargan's wife and children first. However, instead of breaking the man's spirit as it was intended, he became enraged. The fire of his anger seemed to change something inside of him, and he surprised one of his attackers by ripping the sword out of his hands and maiming him with it.
Pargan had never touched a weapon until then, and yet he killed all ten armed bandits within thirty seconds.
When news spread of this incredible feat, he was immediately labeled "Of the Light" and hunted down. At the time, all he could think of was killing every last vagrant on the face of the planet, so he offered his allegiance to the Shadowman. For years he mourned his grief through battle after battle, and he quickly rose through the ranks to become Master of Swords.
That was thirty years ago. Now somewhere in his fifties, Pargan had finally reconciled his rage against the world and was beginning to feel his age. His hair was almost completely white save for the wings of brown at his temples, but no one would dare call him old unless they wanted to be missing a finger or two.
"Hey old man." Except Duo.
Pargan didn't look away from the work of saddling his horse as Duo stepped out of the shadows, which seemed to cling to him as if reluctant to let him go. He blew out his long mustaches in annoyance before answering.
"That is Master Pargan to you, Lord Duo."
"Aw come on! You're not still mad because a burr accidentally placed itself under your saddle?" Flashing a wide grin, Duo began donning his armor. Compared to Pargan, who wore chainmail over his vest and steel backed gauntlets, Duo's protection was light, consisting of padded leather and elbow length gloves to protect his arms. He wasn't worried about being "underdressed", after all, he was the Shadowman. Nobody ever touched him.
"That was no accident and you know it." The whisper of steel accompanied Pargan's words as he slid his swords into the crisscrossing sheaths strapped to his back. "When I was your age, I was walking two miles with buckets over my shoulders so that my mother would have water to cook with. I never had time for childish games."
"And that's exactly why you're such a stick in the mud today. I'm only trying to save you from a boring life, my friend." Belting on his own sword and sheath, Duo began making his way out of one of the many tents hastily assembled on the courtyard. Already, most of the men were standing by rank; forming rows and rows of neat lines atop their horses.
"Save me from a boring life? I'm more interested in someone saving me from you," said Pargan dryly. He led his war horse out of the tent, a small frown breaking across his features when he saw Duo looking towards the skies. "You're not planning on riding that vile creature today are you?"
"If he chooses to come to me, I will." Tilting his head up to face the sky, Duo lifted his palms and splayed his fingers wide. The full moon filled the space between his thumb and forefinger, causing white spheres of light to reflect off his twilight colored eyes. Almost as if entranced, he gazed upwards as one might a lover, his lips parting to form a single word:
"Beautiful."
He waited like this for a few moments, his gloved fingers outstretched as if beseeching the night sky to come to him. Suddenly, a black speck appeared on the surface of the moon, and with each passing second it became larger, until its figure dipped down past the clouds and hurtled towards the camp at an alarming pace. It was a horse, with a coat so black the eye could slide over it and dismiss it as another shadow. Blood red, pupilless eyes blazed from its face as it landed on the ground hard enough to send dirt and grass flying in all directions, leaving craters to form beneath its hooves.
Its lips pulled back to reveal razor sharp teeth, with two canines that protruded over its lower lip. Other horses danced nervously and backed away as it thrashed impatiently and reared up on its hind legs, snarling with a voice that belonged on the mouth of a lion. All this time, Duo had followed the Nightmare's progress with his palm, lowering it as the horse landed and keeping it outstretched as he began walking forwards.
The creature sent chills down everyone's spine. Nightmares were a strange crossbreed between a normal horse and one of the monsters from the mountains. The resulting progeny was a bloodthirsty beast that reveled in death and destruction, sometimes partaking in it as well as observing it from the skies. Infamous for choosing riders that would lead them into glorious massacres, many Shadowmen have had the privilege of riding the beast.
Once Duo was close enough to either touch it or get stomped on, the Nightmare ceased its rearing and complacently allowed the boy to touch the end of its snout. Its crimson orbs stared into violet eyes, and a silent pact was made. Duo would get his ride, and it would get its blood. Suddenly breaking into a grin, the boy patted it once more before walking over to its side and hoisting himself onto its bare back. Gripping its midnight mane of hair, he cheerfully called over to Pargan, who was currently wearing a stone face.
"Hey Pargan, you'll never believe this! In honor of today's event, it wants me to call it by its name."
A grayed eyebrow lifted before Pargan answered. "And just what does it want to be called?"
"Deathscythe."
"I'm not surprised." Pargan shook his head before nudging his horse forwards to take his place at the front of the gathered men. Deathscythe cantered right past Pargan, its hooves hovering just a centimeter off the ground as it tossed its mane, revealing that it was just as arrogant as the boy riding it.
"You know Pargan, I'm going to miss this," said Duo. "This is the last battle for the both of us, after which we'll be useless for the rest of our lives. Tsuberov's lessons will turn me into a vegetable, and you'll be like those old men that sit at parties drinking up all the wine with a cute girl on your lap."
"Actually, I was thinking of retiring anyway. I'm getting too old for this." Perhaps for the first time that night, Pargan allowed a bit of a small smile to crease his lips. "You will never be useless Duo, as the Shadowman you're supposed to be the King's companion as well as his protector."
"He's got Relena for that." There was a slight waver to Duo's voice, as if Pargan had touched upon something that caused him discomfort or ache. Perhaps sensing that its rider's thoughts were leaving the matter at hand, Deathscythe gave another indignant toss of its head and emitted a low growl.
With a wary eye on the creature Duo was riding, Pargan decided to drop the conversation. What went on between the Shadowman and his King was none of his business. Turning his horse around, he faced the two hundred men before him and began speaking at the top of his lungs.
"Today will be the battle to end all battles! You all know your places. Fight well, and the Dark will protect you!"
Quatre watched the proceedings from his place high atop a balcony overlooking the courtyard. The men broke into roars of "Hail King Winner!" and with a wave of his hand, they were off thundering down the side of the plateau. Duo's Nightmare was way ahead of the entire parade, eating up a span of two paces for every other horse's one. No doubt Duo was laughing into the night the whole way, the sound drowned out by the thunder of hooves behind him.
"Duo," murmured the king as he continued to watch until they disappeared in the forest; on their way to begin the massive fight. "Why do you feel so lonely?"
Deathscythe was borderline frenzied as it rushed ahead of everyone else, leaving Duo to crouch low on its back and cling to its mane. As Quatre predicted, he was laughing his head off the whole way, exhilarated by what he considered to be a "night of fun". Approaching the thick foliage of the forest, he squinted his eyes and concentrated on the blanket of shadows beneath the umbrage. Though nothing appeared to happen, when Deathscythe stepped beneath the leaves it vanished into the pool of black.
They emerged into a world of darkness instead of the expected foliage; Pargan and the other soldiers soon following after. The Shadowland served as a portal between worlds, allowing Quatre's army to move from place to place in mere seconds. There was no scenery, no markers to tell where they were going, just shades of gray against endless nothing that indicated shadows in the outside world. If Duo did not concentrate on there being a "floor" in the Shadowland, they would have floated listlessly in empty space.
No one could enter the this realm without the Shadowman, and because of this it was exclusively his terrain. Duo could dip in one shadow and emerge in another one halfway across the palace, but when it came to finding his way around this place, he was drawn to shades located near areas he had been before. Any other time, he had no clue where the shadows would lead him.
When the troop once more arrived in the real world, they were deep in the heart of the mountains. From their vantage point up on a high cliff, they could see clear into the valleys and gullys that cut through the huge crags that towered into the sky. Movement among the trees indicated the steady trickle of beasts traveling towards Sanc.
A thousand years ago, the monsters lived exclusively in this area, however for some reason, they began moving towards the neighboring towns and cities. They were almost completely driven by instinct, and lived only to hunt, kill, eat, or copulate. There was no explaination as to why they attack, save for the simple fact that it was pleasurable. In the world King Winner was conquering through the Dark, these creatures were its Chaos.
The plan to subdue them was relatively simple. They would engage in battle on the hillside, and drive the monsters back until they were inside the valley. Once they were in place, their allies - The Dragon Clan - would strike them from the skies while the soldiers prevented any from escaping. It would be like killing fish in a barrel. With such a great number of their kind destroyed, it would take decades to regenerate their force, and Quatre planned to kill off any remaining survivors afterwards. He would conquer them the same way his ancestors did the Mystics and the Soldiers of Light, by cutting them out of the gene pool.
"Won't they see the Dragons coming?" Pargan quietly spoke to Duo as his horse drew to a stop next to his, earning him a challenging look from Deathscythe.
"Not if I can help it." Indulging in the habit of squinting every time he used his power, Duo made a sweeping gesture into the air, almost as if he were painting the heavens. In response, the atmosphere became thick with nimbus clouds, effectively obscuring the silver moon and stars from the earthbound creatures below.
With a curt nod, the Master of Swords began the battle with a raised fist. "CHARGE!"
High above the jagged peaks of the mountain ranges, sinuous shapes slithered back and forth as if they were weaving through water instead of the air. Red scales reflected crescent shaped moonlight back into the night, and bat-like wings with the span of fifteen feet caused a reptilian shadow to follow the course of the creatures' path along the ground.
A high collared, long sleeved jacket protected the dragon's rider from the chilly headwind. Rectangular buttons traveled up the front of the crimson fabric, and a pair of loose dark pants tucked themselves into a pair of calf-length, leather tabis. Thick, black gloves clung to the dragons fiery orange and yellow hair, the boy's own midnight locks tied back into a tight ponytail to prevent the loss of visibility as he flew.
"Our allies have begun the fight!" Chang Wufei had to shout over the rush of wind attempting to drown his voice. Sure enough, the battle raged a few kilometers ahead, where forked lightening rained down from the heavens and explosions sent torrents of dirt arching several feet into the air.
"They've provided us cover, fly west!" Flying beside him on another massive dragon, his wife Merian pointed to the cluster of clouds the Shadowman had so graciously provided for them. She was clad in almost the exact same manner as Wufei, down to the waist length onyx hair that was tied away from her face. Thirty other members of the Dragon Clan followed behind their leaders, all wearing the same uniform which indicated that they belonged to the same faction.
Chocolate colored eyes flicked briefly over to Merian before Wufei leaned down and spoke to his dragon. "Fly west Shenlong, into the clouds!"
Shenlong opened its fanged mouth to emit a shuddering roar, and then it banked left and tilted its claw tipped wings upwards to gain altitude. The train of dragons followed suit, flocking together as if they were another collection of birds.
Back at ground level, the scene was littered with carnage. Creatures ranging from four legged griffins to putrid trolls to even plants that seemed to come to life, railed against the semicircle of men attempting to drive them back towards the valley. Swords moved with such efficiency and speed that killing blows were a mere flash of silver in the darkness. At times, the bodies they felled piled so high that they formed small walls they had to climb over before picking up the next wave of attack.
Deathscythe was in the thick of it all, adding to the mayhem by stomping its opponents to death or maiming anything that came close to its jagged teeth. Its roars of triumph mingled with the laughter of its rider, who had to continually provide a shield of shimmering air around his form to keep blood from spattering all over him. Where he pointed, another monster crackled and burst apart from a bolt of thunder. When he waved, the ground exploded beneath his enemies, sending fleshy pieces hurling every which way.
It was the ultimate thrill; whoever he picked - died. He was drunk on his own invincibility; the cold fact that nothing could touch him making him dive wrecklessly into the fray and decimate anything that got into his way.
That was the last time he would ever feel that way.
Suddenly, a solid wall of air buffetted against horse and rider, nearly causing him to topple over Deathscythe's back. The Nightmare had to lower itself from its hover above the ground to get traction beneath its hooves or risk getting flung away like a swatted fly.
"What the hell?!" Duo raised an arm to protect his face against the searing wind. It was at that moment that a monster saw an opening and launched a surprise attack. The ground beneath him suddenly erupted as a plant creature snagged the legs of Deathscythe. The Nightmare let out an outraged howl as it began viciously gnawing on the tangled vines while Duo methodically began hurtling fireballs at the appendages.
A thought occurred to him, and he snapped his head upwards to look at the sky. Sure enough, the wind was pushing back the cloud covering meant to disguise the surprise attack by the Dragon Clan.
"No no no! I didn't tell you to move!" Once more, he made the sweeping gesture with his hands, to no avail. It felt as if there was another presence at odds with his power, pressuring it back instead of allowing it to flow forwards. His eyes rounded with surprise, for this was the first time anything ever actually resisted his black magic.
A head bearing the lifeless eyes of a troll rolled in the ground in front of him, followed by a panting Pargan as he stalked towards Duo. "What are you doing Duo? This isn't how we discussed the strategy!"
Duo's braid whipped back and forth as he shook his head and shouted over the wailing wind that continued to slam against them. "It's not me!"
His words were no sooner out of his mouth when all the creatures engaged in battle began screaming in outrage. The charade was over, they had spotted the dragons. The smarter ones immediately put two and two together and figured out Quatre's plan, and doubled their efforts to break through the soldiers pushing them back.
The monster's efforts were not in vain, because suddenly their opposition was catapulted into the air in a series of explosions.
"Who did that!" Duo whipped his head around, searching for the unknown source of magic, and his violet eyes came to fix on a series of figures standing on a ridge. They were clad in purple cloaks, their features hidden beneath the shadows of a hood pulled low over their brows. "No way..."
Pargan's face twisted with hatred, his next words ground out through clenched teeth. "Mystics."
Up above, Wufei was having some serious problems.
Not only was the wind taking away their cloud covering, but it was disrupting Shenlong's glide, who had to flap furiously to keep from loosing altitude. At this rate, the dragons would get too tired to keep in the skies. Therefore, he did the most prudent thing and ordered his fellow men and wife to land.
The entire flock scattered as they began a stumbling decent towards the mountain side. He cursed when Meirian became separated from him, but he trusted in her abilities to make it safely to the ground. Gripping Shenlong's multicolored mane tightly, he locked his legs against the sides of the dragon as it soared towards the chaos.
"Oh hell no! I'm not losing against a bunch of magic using amateurs!" shouted the Shadowman.
A shield of air was the only thing protecting Duo and Pargan from being flame broiled alive from tidal waves of fire caused by the Mystics standing on the ridge. The air visibly rippled like a disturbed pond when blast after blast tried to break through the barrier. Heat was rising, causing Duo's hair to become matted to his forehead from sweat. Even Deathscythe seemed to wilt beneath the high temperature, its nostrils flaring as it took in heavy breathes and rumbled its dissent.
"Those are no amateurs. I wouldn't be surprised if they were full blooded Mystics." Pargan had his back to Duo and his horse, twin swords held in the ready. He was guarding against hind attacks from the creatures, who seemed to get it into their heads to attack the Shadowman while his back was turned.
"I don't care who they are, their asses are mine! They singed my hair!" complained Duo. He counterattacked fire with fire, the blaze becoming even bigger as the crests merged and remained deadlocked in the center.
Pargan snapped his head up as a resounding screech came from the air. A twisting shadow passed overhead as Shenlong flew low to the ground and ended the struggle by opening its large mandibles and spitting meteors of fire in the Mystic's direction. Their concentration broken, Duo's wave of fire engulfed them shortly afterwards.
Wufei stood up on his dragon's back, and then somersaulted towards the ground while Shenlong made its crash landing into the trees. In midair, he curled his hands into fists, causing his thick gloves to suddenly sprout two pairs of five inch blades from the knuckles. With a yell, he ran the razor sharp steel down the back of a pigheaded trolloc that was aiming a crossbow at Duo's heart upon landing to the ground, his momentum nearly causing the creature to split entirely in half.
Lifting back to his feet, the leader of the Dragon Clan rushed towards Duo, who was busy picking lint off his cloak as if he wasn't just about to be turned to shish kabob.
"We have to regroup!" Wufei's tone broke no argument as he glared up at the impassive Duo. "They knew our strategy beforehand, the plan will not work!"
"Regroup? Are you daft? I still have everything under control!" The sound of a human soldier choking out a gurgling yell as he succombed to his death made Duo reconsider his words. "Then again, regrouping sounds like a damn good idea."
The Shadowman began turning Deathscythe around, when a shout from Pargan made him stall.
"Arrows!!! Get down!"
In a heartbeat, Wufei and Pargan were stomach first on the ground and covering their heads as a hail of arrows shot directly over them - heading straight for Duo. The boy only had time to utter a startled squawk before deliberately making himself tumble off Deathscythe and into the Nightmare's shadow.
"Death by arrows. How lame is that."
Duo floated in the gray on black space of the Shadowland, giving himself a breather as he thought of a way to regroup Quatre's and Wufei's forces. He could always move them through here, they just needed a big enough shadow--
"Capture the traitor!"
The Shadowman whipped around at the sound of another voice, his eyes widening in surprise for the second time that night. Figures were beginning to spill from the gray patches; violet cloaked Mystics and horrific creatures of the mountains alike completely surrounding him.
"No way, I am the only one alive who can walk the Shadowlands. How did you enter the shadow?!" said Duo in disbelief.
"Obviously you were misinformed. We enter in the same manner as you, traitor." A distinctly feminine voice answered from beneath one the hooded cowls, and her pale fingers began to emerge from the long sleeves.
Recognizing the start of an aggressive attack, Duo launched his most powerful spell at the Mystic. If they could walk the Shadowlands, there was no telling what else they would be able to do. An obsidian glow surrounded his body, before branching out into a three foot bar of pure darkness. It was an attack he affectionally called the "Soul Drain" because it felt like he was pitting his entire existence against theirs.
Viscously lashing out with the same spell, the Mystic met the wave of energy head on with one of her own. Duo felt as if his very bones were being sucked dry and thrown against her beam, and he gritted his teeth against a pain beginning in his temples. He was so intensely focused on this match of power, that he didn't notice the enemy creeping up on him until it was too late.
Something suddenly snapped around his neck, and instantly his beam collapsed as if someone had blown out a candle. He felt his skin ripping off, then his flesh, then his very bones shattering and the pieces ripped apart molecule by molecule until nothing but his atoms remained.
And then there was nothing.
End Chapter Four
Author: Cold Silence
E-Mail: writer.coldsilence@gmail.com
Category: Alternate Universe. Medieval Times.
Pairings: So far: 4 x Relena, 5 x Meiran
Warnings: NC-17. Yaoi. OOC. (I'm trying to keep them IC, but I don't think I've succeeded.) Death. Squick. Incest. Rape.
Website: http://coldsilence.tumblr.com/post/433113072/index
The Shadowman
-Chapter Four-
Inside the courtyard of Castle Sandrock, the most powerful members of King Winner's army gathered for the final strike against the beasts of the mountains. Each soldier wore a black cloak with the eclipsed sun emblazoned on the back over their armor, marking them as Quatre's elite force. Many of those gathered had ancestors that stemmed back to the Warriors of Light, but rather than get exiled or killed by the King once their dormant blood surfaced, they swore allegiance to the Shadowman and joined the army.
Pargan's past ran along those lines. Once upon a time, he had a wife and three children whom he cherished with all his heart. They were riding into town one day, and their carriage was stopped by a small brigand. It turned out the group of men were hired to kill both him and his family by a local merchant, who was upset that his rival's business was usurping all of his customers.
They took sadistic pleasure out of killing Pargan's wife and children first. However, instead of breaking the man's spirit as it was intended, he became enraged. The fire of his anger seemed to change something inside of him, and he surprised one of his attackers by ripping the sword out of his hands and maiming him with it.
Pargan had never touched a weapon until then, and yet he killed all ten armed bandits within thirty seconds.
When news spread of this incredible feat, he was immediately labeled "Of the Light" and hunted down. At the time, all he could think of was killing every last vagrant on the face of the planet, so he offered his allegiance to the Shadowman. For years he mourned his grief through battle after battle, and he quickly rose through the ranks to become Master of Swords.
That was thirty years ago. Now somewhere in his fifties, Pargan had finally reconciled his rage against the world and was beginning to feel his age. His hair was almost completely white save for the wings of brown at his temples, but no one would dare call him old unless they wanted to be missing a finger or two.
"Hey old man." Except Duo.
Pargan didn't look away from the work of saddling his horse as Duo stepped out of the shadows, which seemed to cling to him as if reluctant to let him go. He blew out his long mustaches in annoyance before answering.
"That is Master Pargan to you, Lord Duo."
"Aw come on! You're not still mad because a burr accidentally placed itself under your saddle?" Flashing a wide grin, Duo began donning his armor. Compared to Pargan, who wore chainmail over his vest and steel backed gauntlets, Duo's protection was light, consisting of padded leather and elbow length gloves to protect his arms. He wasn't worried about being "underdressed", after all, he was the Shadowman. Nobody ever touched him.
"That was no accident and you know it." The whisper of steel accompanied Pargan's words as he slid his swords into the crisscrossing sheaths strapped to his back. "When I was your age, I was walking two miles with buckets over my shoulders so that my mother would have water to cook with. I never had time for childish games."
"And that's exactly why you're such a stick in the mud today. I'm only trying to save you from a boring life, my friend." Belting on his own sword and sheath, Duo began making his way out of one of the many tents hastily assembled on the courtyard. Already, most of the men were standing by rank; forming rows and rows of neat lines atop their horses.
"Save me from a boring life? I'm more interested in someone saving me from you," said Pargan dryly. He led his war horse out of the tent, a small frown breaking across his features when he saw Duo looking towards the skies. "You're not planning on riding that vile creature today are you?"
"If he chooses to come to me, I will." Tilting his head up to face the sky, Duo lifted his palms and splayed his fingers wide. The full moon filled the space between his thumb and forefinger, causing white spheres of light to reflect off his twilight colored eyes. Almost as if entranced, he gazed upwards as one might a lover, his lips parting to form a single word:
"Beautiful."
He waited like this for a few moments, his gloved fingers outstretched as if beseeching the night sky to come to him. Suddenly, a black speck appeared on the surface of the moon, and with each passing second it became larger, until its figure dipped down past the clouds and hurtled towards the camp at an alarming pace. It was a horse, with a coat so black the eye could slide over it and dismiss it as another shadow. Blood red, pupilless eyes blazed from its face as it landed on the ground hard enough to send dirt and grass flying in all directions, leaving craters to form beneath its hooves.
Its lips pulled back to reveal razor sharp teeth, with two canines that protruded over its lower lip. Other horses danced nervously and backed away as it thrashed impatiently and reared up on its hind legs, snarling with a voice that belonged on the mouth of a lion. All this time, Duo had followed the Nightmare's progress with his palm, lowering it as the horse landed and keeping it outstretched as he began walking forwards.
The creature sent chills down everyone's spine. Nightmares were a strange crossbreed between a normal horse and one of the monsters from the mountains. The resulting progeny was a bloodthirsty beast that reveled in death and destruction, sometimes partaking in it as well as observing it from the skies. Infamous for choosing riders that would lead them into glorious massacres, many Shadowmen have had the privilege of riding the beast.
Once Duo was close enough to either touch it or get stomped on, the Nightmare ceased its rearing and complacently allowed the boy to touch the end of its snout. Its crimson orbs stared into violet eyes, and a silent pact was made. Duo would get his ride, and it would get its blood. Suddenly breaking into a grin, the boy patted it once more before walking over to its side and hoisting himself onto its bare back. Gripping its midnight mane of hair, he cheerfully called over to Pargan, who was currently wearing a stone face.
"Hey Pargan, you'll never believe this! In honor of today's event, it wants me to call it by its name."
A grayed eyebrow lifted before Pargan answered. "And just what does it want to be called?"
"Deathscythe."
"I'm not surprised." Pargan shook his head before nudging his horse forwards to take his place at the front of the gathered men. Deathscythe cantered right past Pargan, its hooves hovering just a centimeter off the ground as it tossed its mane, revealing that it was just as arrogant as the boy riding it.
"You know Pargan, I'm going to miss this," said Duo. "This is the last battle for the both of us, after which we'll be useless for the rest of our lives. Tsuberov's lessons will turn me into a vegetable, and you'll be like those old men that sit at parties drinking up all the wine with a cute girl on your lap."
"Actually, I was thinking of retiring anyway. I'm getting too old for this." Perhaps for the first time that night, Pargan allowed a bit of a small smile to crease his lips. "You will never be useless Duo, as the Shadowman you're supposed to be the King's companion as well as his protector."
"He's got Relena for that." There was a slight waver to Duo's voice, as if Pargan had touched upon something that caused him discomfort or ache. Perhaps sensing that its rider's thoughts were leaving the matter at hand, Deathscythe gave another indignant toss of its head and emitted a low growl.
With a wary eye on the creature Duo was riding, Pargan decided to drop the conversation. What went on between the Shadowman and his King was none of his business. Turning his horse around, he faced the two hundred men before him and began speaking at the top of his lungs.
"Today will be the battle to end all battles! You all know your places. Fight well, and the Dark will protect you!"
Quatre watched the proceedings from his place high atop a balcony overlooking the courtyard. The men broke into roars of "Hail King Winner!" and with a wave of his hand, they were off thundering down the side of the plateau. Duo's Nightmare was way ahead of the entire parade, eating up a span of two paces for every other horse's one. No doubt Duo was laughing into the night the whole way, the sound drowned out by the thunder of hooves behind him.
"Duo," murmured the king as he continued to watch until they disappeared in the forest; on their way to begin the massive fight. "Why do you feel so lonely?"
Deathscythe was borderline frenzied as it rushed ahead of everyone else, leaving Duo to crouch low on its back and cling to its mane. As Quatre predicted, he was laughing his head off the whole way, exhilarated by what he considered to be a "night of fun". Approaching the thick foliage of the forest, he squinted his eyes and concentrated on the blanket of shadows beneath the umbrage. Though nothing appeared to happen, when Deathscythe stepped beneath the leaves it vanished into the pool of black.
They emerged into a world of darkness instead of the expected foliage; Pargan and the other soldiers soon following after. The Shadowland served as a portal between worlds, allowing Quatre's army to move from place to place in mere seconds. There was no scenery, no markers to tell where they were going, just shades of gray against endless nothing that indicated shadows in the outside world. If Duo did not concentrate on there being a "floor" in the Shadowland, they would have floated listlessly in empty space.
No one could enter the this realm without the Shadowman, and because of this it was exclusively his terrain. Duo could dip in one shadow and emerge in another one halfway across the palace, but when it came to finding his way around this place, he was drawn to shades located near areas he had been before. Any other time, he had no clue where the shadows would lead him.
When the troop once more arrived in the real world, they were deep in the heart of the mountains. From their vantage point up on a high cliff, they could see clear into the valleys and gullys that cut through the huge crags that towered into the sky. Movement among the trees indicated the steady trickle of beasts traveling towards Sanc.
A thousand years ago, the monsters lived exclusively in this area, however for some reason, they began moving towards the neighboring towns and cities. They were almost completely driven by instinct, and lived only to hunt, kill, eat, or copulate. There was no explaination as to why they attack, save for the simple fact that it was pleasurable. In the world King Winner was conquering through the Dark, these creatures were its Chaos.
The plan to subdue them was relatively simple. They would engage in battle on the hillside, and drive the monsters back until they were inside the valley. Once they were in place, their allies - The Dragon Clan - would strike them from the skies while the soldiers prevented any from escaping. It would be like killing fish in a barrel. With such a great number of their kind destroyed, it would take decades to regenerate their force, and Quatre planned to kill off any remaining survivors afterwards. He would conquer them the same way his ancestors did the Mystics and the Soldiers of Light, by cutting them out of the gene pool.
"Won't they see the Dragons coming?" Pargan quietly spoke to Duo as his horse drew to a stop next to his, earning him a challenging look from Deathscythe.
"Not if I can help it." Indulging in the habit of squinting every time he used his power, Duo made a sweeping gesture into the air, almost as if he were painting the heavens. In response, the atmosphere became thick with nimbus clouds, effectively obscuring the silver moon and stars from the earthbound creatures below.
With a curt nod, the Master of Swords began the battle with a raised fist. "CHARGE!"
High above the jagged peaks of the mountain ranges, sinuous shapes slithered back and forth as if they were weaving through water instead of the air. Red scales reflected crescent shaped moonlight back into the night, and bat-like wings with the span of fifteen feet caused a reptilian shadow to follow the course of the creatures' path along the ground.
A high collared, long sleeved jacket protected the dragon's rider from the chilly headwind. Rectangular buttons traveled up the front of the crimson fabric, and a pair of loose dark pants tucked themselves into a pair of calf-length, leather tabis. Thick, black gloves clung to the dragons fiery orange and yellow hair, the boy's own midnight locks tied back into a tight ponytail to prevent the loss of visibility as he flew.
"Our allies have begun the fight!" Chang Wufei had to shout over the rush of wind attempting to drown his voice. Sure enough, the battle raged a few kilometers ahead, where forked lightening rained down from the heavens and explosions sent torrents of dirt arching several feet into the air.
"They've provided us cover, fly west!" Flying beside him on another massive dragon, his wife Merian pointed to the cluster of clouds the Shadowman had so graciously provided for them. She was clad in almost the exact same manner as Wufei, down to the waist length onyx hair that was tied away from her face. Thirty other members of the Dragon Clan followed behind their leaders, all wearing the same uniform which indicated that they belonged to the same faction.
Chocolate colored eyes flicked briefly over to Merian before Wufei leaned down and spoke to his dragon. "Fly west Shenlong, into the clouds!"
Shenlong opened its fanged mouth to emit a shuddering roar, and then it banked left and tilted its claw tipped wings upwards to gain altitude. The train of dragons followed suit, flocking together as if they were another collection of birds.
Back at ground level, the scene was littered with carnage. Creatures ranging from four legged griffins to putrid trolls to even plants that seemed to come to life, railed against the semicircle of men attempting to drive them back towards the valley. Swords moved with such efficiency and speed that killing blows were a mere flash of silver in the darkness. At times, the bodies they felled piled so high that they formed small walls they had to climb over before picking up the next wave of attack.
Deathscythe was in the thick of it all, adding to the mayhem by stomping its opponents to death or maiming anything that came close to its jagged teeth. Its roars of triumph mingled with the laughter of its rider, who had to continually provide a shield of shimmering air around his form to keep blood from spattering all over him. Where he pointed, another monster crackled and burst apart from a bolt of thunder. When he waved, the ground exploded beneath his enemies, sending fleshy pieces hurling every which way.
It was the ultimate thrill; whoever he picked - died. He was drunk on his own invincibility; the cold fact that nothing could touch him making him dive wrecklessly into the fray and decimate anything that got into his way.
That was the last time he would ever feel that way.
Suddenly, a solid wall of air buffetted against horse and rider, nearly causing him to topple over Deathscythe's back. The Nightmare had to lower itself from its hover above the ground to get traction beneath its hooves or risk getting flung away like a swatted fly.
"What the hell?!" Duo raised an arm to protect his face against the searing wind. It was at that moment that a monster saw an opening and launched a surprise attack. The ground beneath him suddenly erupted as a plant creature snagged the legs of Deathscythe. The Nightmare let out an outraged howl as it began viciously gnawing on the tangled vines while Duo methodically began hurtling fireballs at the appendages.
A thought occurred to him, and he snapped his head upwards to look at the sky. Sure enough, the wind was pushing back the cloud covering meant to disguise the surprise attack by the Dragon Clan.
"No no no! I didn't tell you to move!" Once more, he made the sweeping gesture with his hands, to no avail. It felt as if there was another presence at odds with his power, pressuring it back instead of allowing it to flow forwards. His eyes rounded with surprise, for this was the first time anything ever actually resisted his black magic.
A head bearing the lifeless eyes of a troll rolled in the ground in front of him, followed by a panting Pargan as he stalked towards Duo. "What are you doing Duo? This isn't how we discussed the strategy!"
Duo's braid whipped back and forth as he shook his head and shouted over the wailing wind that continued to slam against them. "It's not me!"
His words were no sooner out of his mouth when all the creatures engaged in battle began screaming in outrage. The charade was over, they had spotted the dragons. The smarter ones immediately put two and two together and figured out Quatre's plan, and doubled their efforts to break through the soldiers pushing them back.
The monster's efforts were not in vain, because suddenly their opposition was catapulted into the air in a series of explosions.
"Who did that!" Duo whipped his head around, searching for the unknown source of magic, and his violet eyes came to fix on a series of figures standing on a ridge. They were clad in purple cloaks, their features hidden beneath the shadows of a hood pulled low over their brows. "No way..."
Pargan's face twisted with hatred, his next words ground out through clenched teeth. "Mystics."
Up above, Wufei was having some serious problems.
Not only was the wind taking away their cloud covering, but it was disrupting Shenlong's glide, who had to flap furiously to keep from loosing altitude. At this rate, the dragons would get too tired to keep in the skies. Therefore, he did the most prudent thing and ordered his fellow men and wife to land.
The entire flock scattered as they began a stumbling decent towards the mountain side. He cursed when Meirian became separated from him, but he trusted in her abilities to make it safely to the ground. Gripping Shenlong's multicolored mane tightly, he locked his legs against the sides of the dragon as it soared towards the chaos.
"Oh hell no! I'm not losing against a bunch of magic using amateurs!" shouted the Shadowman.
A shield of air was the only thing protecting Duo and Pargan from being flame broiled alive from tidal waves of fire caused by the Mystics standing on the ridge. The air visibly rippled like a disturbed pond when blast after blast tried to break through the barrier. Heat was rising, causing Duo's hair to become matted to his forehead from sweat. Even Deathscythe seemed to wilt beneath the high temperature, its nostrils flaring as it took in heavy breathes and rumbled its dissent.
"Those are no amateurs. I wouldn't be surprised if they were full blooded Mystics." Pargan had his back to Duo and his horse, twin swords held in the ready. He was guarding against hind attacks from the creatures, who seemed to get it into their heads to attack the Shadowman while his back was turned.
"I don't care who they are, their asses are mine! They singed my hair!" complained Duo. He counterattacked fire with fire, the blaze becoming even bigger as the crests merged and remained deadlocked in the center.
Pargan snapped his head up as a resounding screech came from the air. A twisting shadow passed overhead as Shenlong flew low to the ground and ended the struggle by opening its large mandibles and spitting meteors of fire in the Mystic's direction. Their concentration broken, Duo's wave of fire engulfed them shortly afterwards.
Wufei stood up on his dragon's back, and then somersaulted towards the ground while Shenlong made its crash landing into the trees. In midair, he curled his hands into fists, causing his thick gloves to suddenly sprout two pairs of five inch blades from the knuckles. With a yell, he ran the razor sharp steel down the back of a pigheaded trolloc that was aiming a crossbow at Duo's heart upon landing to the ground, his momentum nearly causing the creature to split entirely in half.
Lifting back to his feet, the leader of the Dragon Clan rushed towards Duo, who was busy picking lint off his cloak as if he wasn't just about to be turned to shish kabob.
"We have to regroup!" Wufei's tone broke no argument as he glared up at the impassive Duo. "They knew our strategy beforehand, the plan will not work!"
"Regroup? Are you daft? I still have everything under control!" The sound of a human soldier choking out a gurgling yell as he succombed to his death made Duo reconsider his words. "Then again, regrouping sounds like a damn good idea."
The Shadowman began turning Deathscythe around, when a shout from Pargan made him stall.
"Arrows!!! Get down!"
In a heartbeat, Wufei and Pargan were stomach first on the ground and covering their heads as a hail of arrows shot directly over them - heading straight for Duo. The boy only had time to utter a startled squawk before deliberately making himself tumble off Deathscythe and into the Nightmare's shadow.
"Death by arrows. How lame is that."
Duo floated in the gray on black space of the Shadowland, giving himself a breather as he thought of a way to regroup Quatre's and Wufei's forces. He could always move them through here, they just needed a big enough shadow--
"Capture the traitor!"
The Shadowman whipped around at the sound of another voice, his eyes widening in surprise for the second time that night. Figures were beginning to spill from the gray patches; violet cloaked Mystics and horrific creatures of the mountains alike completely surrounding him.
"No way, I am the only one alive who can walk the Shadowlands. How did you enter the shadow?!" said Duo in disbelief.
"Obviously you were misinformed. We enter in the same manner as you, traitor." A distinctly feminine voice answered from beneath one the hooded cowls, and her pale fingers began to emerge from the long sleeves.
Recognizing the start of an aggressive attack, Duo launched his most powerful spell at the Mystic. If they could walk the Shadowlands, there was no telling what else they would be able to do. An obsidian glow surrounded his body, before branching out into a three foot bar of pure darkness. It was an attack he affectionally called the "Soul Drain" because it felt like he was pitting his entire existence against theirs.
Viscously lashing out with the same spell, the Mystic met the wave of energy head on with one of her own. Duo felt as if his very bones were being sucked dry and thrown against her beam, and he gritted his teeth against a pain beginning in his temples. He was so intensely focused on this match of power, that he didn't notice the enemy creeping up on him until it was too late.
Something suddenly snapped around his neck, and instantly his beam collapsed as if someone had blown out a candle. He felt his skin ripping off, then his flesh, then his very bones shattering and the pieces ripped apart molecule by molecule until nothing but his atoms remained.
And then there was nothing.
End Chapter Four