Call of the Unavenged

[Velnias]

D A N C E with the D E V I L

Don't you dare look at him in the eye

Six warriors froze in synchronization. Using various methods they blended with their scenery, camoflauging in the leaves or walking invisible or darting from shadow to shadow. Now they stood still, their bodies as much out in the open and real as any life form could be in that forest. They walked in an upside-down 'v' shape. Two, two, and two, and just in front of them a dark gray mist started to form and gather. It swirled and billowed like a storm rising up out of the earth. The sky overhead instantly became overcast. A black figure walked up out of the ground, his rippling muscles making his masculine ebony neck arch and his shoulders and legs bulge. The figure left no trace of his entrance but rather it was like his body was made of mist.

Facing the way his warriors looked, he was taller than all of them and twice as broad. His sheer massiveness suggested a flick of his hoof could snap a bone. Where the red of his legs used to be was now a dark shimmering black, so that his Friesian coat shone the darkest midnight. No blood from his last spar was on his coat; he looked fresh for war. And he felt it, too. The great stallion drew in a breath. In one liquid motion he made a gesture with his head, and took the first step forward. Remnants of the mist traveled around his legs. The mist furled off his back, a cloak of black that billowed out behind him and rippled with the many faces of agony and terror. The stallion's face was broad and regal in a dark way, with dark shadows where the creases of his face were. His eyes smoked and smoldered dark black and the only red mark upon him was a complicated dagger-cut symbol in the shape of a spiral, right behind his right ear on his neck. They were all Marked with this.

They traveled in mindsync. What's ahead? one stallion asked, the dark bay with transparency. I smell a horse, said another, a black with white legs and whose body warped from dark shadow to shadow, jumping around as he followed his leader. There was silence from the lead horse's mind, but all could tell he was thinking deep and strong thoughts. Finally, he spoke. Sinsai, his voice rang out, move ahead and make way. We have a guest. A blood bay with a jagged scar raked through his left eye broke formation. He was the only one showing expression on his face: a sinister sneer snarled across his lips. Carnis, Yuri, thundered his deep, slow speech. Walk ahead. The two farthest behind met eyes with each other as they peeled away from the group. They would be waiting for the others.

Hide yourselves. Without reluctance the three remaining dissipated into mist, melted into a tree trunk, and the third burst into a cloud of orange flame and was gone. The ebony stallion, his eyes cold, drew in a deep breath. He controlled the mist; it traveled up his legs and engulfed him and he was flying. The black cloud darted forward and zipped past the trees and bushes, it arced and maneuvered. And then the stallion commanded it to stop, the cloud convulsed, and his form appeared standing. Sinsai was there, too, his neck wrapped around another's, his teeth holding a curved dagger to the strange horse's throat. Sin was almost surprised to see his leader appear from nowhere, his cape of mist unfurling behind him.

A sound like a growl and a hiss came from the black's throat, and he bared his white flashing teeth. The whimper of the stranger's throat silenced itself, and Devil looked into the horse's terrified eyes. The stranger braved a glance at Devil's hooves, where the mist was, and realized that although he walked, he didn't actually rest fully upon the ground. Devil saw this and his mist-born body sprang forward and instantly, he was face-to-face with him. Despite the fright in the horse's eyes, Devil's face was stone-cold and calm. "I must use your mind," he growled. Devil stared into the horse's eyes and didn't break his gaze. He leapt inside those eyes and traveled around, using this horse to take him where he must go. He saw all this horse had seen in a second and heard the cries of war and flesh slicing. He then saw something the horse hadn't seen: a black horse stained with blood, a glint of silver. His vision transformed again and the silver blade was now the silver-gray coat of a mare. Her eyes were ice clear and sea green and sky blue and rich purple all at once. His thoughts were thrown back upon just looking at her and the horse whose mind he now controlled cried out in surprise and agony. Then Devil, in his mind's eye, stepped close to the mare and looked inside her eyes, being met with visions of red blood, violent death, and the slow sensation of burning inner pain. The other horse's face was twisted and he writhed but couldn't free his mind - or body - of Devil's control. Devil was motionless and still.

Suddenly he warped out of the horse's head and was standing again, aware of himself and Sinsai with his dagger raised. He nodded with a barely noticeable flick of his brow. Devil stared into the horse's eyes as Sin drew his knife sideways and just barely tickled the horse's neck, frightening the stranger and causing him to whimper again. I'm not in the mood, he thought; Devil's own eyes were dark glinting crystals. His jaw was set and he calmly watched the body fall to the earth, the smoke curling back out of the unconscious horse's nostrils. Stay with me. Leave no trace. We were never here. The three hidden in the trees recieved his message. "Cele," he hissed again, and looked to the grpund. The springs of grass and the leaves on the ground began moving. Roots sprouted from the dirt and grabbed the legsand side of the horse. There was a snapping sound and one by one, roots split and regrew and the horse was pulled under, and dirt rolled back over the hole. He would resurface again, somewhere far out of the way with norecollection.

Devil looked up with the darkest glare in his eye. He had Kratos' next personal target. But that would all come in time; for now, he was here, and he should well use the opportunity. In his snakelike hiss, he made the ground tremble under his feet and the leaves on the trees shake. His mist left his hooves and multiplied, crawling over the earth. It crawled up the trees around him. The sky grew darker and thunder boomed; horses of all colors and breeds emerged from the mist everywhere. As Devil walked more and more appeared in the shadows, leapt from the trees and stood up out of the ground. The vengeful, the undead. All came together to join him. They were all Marked; they all hungered for war. Redemption is coming, they all thought. Devil's dark coat began to glow with undertones of red. He thought, I am here now. The safest place in Tainted Paradise is no longer safe at all.

WORDS 1,361
MUSE average
NOTES n/a

[Deleted]

Broken Strings

Star Light, Star Bright, Where the hell’s my mister right?

<sup>Mamma, don’t stay – run away, run with me? Mamma, please. Pretty please with cherries on top? Don’t stay. Mamma, he doesn’t deserve you, you’re just his punching bag. Please baby, sleep little one. Mamma. Sleep beautiful, sleep tight. But Mamma. I said sleep darling, quiet now little one. ‘But Mamma’ her sweet voice mumbled, ending the conversation as she awoke. Mamma. Her throat tightened at the thought of her mother, she was a touchy subject and Strings hated talking about her, mainly because she missed her so much. Her father was a very different subjects, she couldn’t rave on more about the hatred that was directed toward him. But nevertheless, her mother was the one she worried about most. And she couldn’t think about her at the moment, too much was going on in the thick skull of hers’. Too many thoughts.

The mare had crept into a little cave, just big enough to shield herself from the treacherous weather overnight. The wind had been blowing, the trees swaying. A little spatter of rain, but not much, only enough to make the ground mushy, and make little puddles. Lightening had been flashing, striking close enough to the cave to make her cower in fear. And thunder rumbling overhead. She’d observed this from the comfort of the cave, although you couldn’t really call it comfortable. The floor was cushioned with a thin layer of wiry, yellow grass. Enough to annoy the hell out of her overnight. It had tickled her stomach, her muzzle, and she had gotten struck in the eye by a random thread. It spread into the rest of the sanctuary. A large mass of trees. Desirable, by a broken soul. Much like herself.

The grey mare sighed, her breath coming slightly heavier from her usual quiet breathing. Slowly, she rose to her feet. Her large frame almost reaching the cave-roof. She crept from the cave, each hoof placed slowly, carefully. Never a word erupted from her muzzle. Ears flickering unsurely as she ventured into the dazzling sun-rays. And now, her electric blue eyes shone. Like sapphire jewels. Contrasting brilliantly with her pale grey coat. Her mane hung with curls, her dirty-grey forelock covering her blue eyes. Now, she looked miserable, even in the shining sun. Pelt frozen in place from the rain last night. Her mane and tail, dirty, and curly. Her forelock covering her eyes, never leaving the ground. Her crown lowered, elegant neck stretching and her delicate muzzle searching for the good grasses.

She hadn’t even got to the good grass, before she froze. Her whole bodice, only her nostrils played, sifting through the scents. It only made her worse. Every single one of them was a bloody stallion. Not one scent comforted her. But then, why should, or would it? Curious though, she took small steps, all the while mumbling under her breath how stupid she was. They were stallions for god’s sake, good or bad. She hated them. Blame her father. The mare’s breaths become shallower, rougher as she closed in on them. With each step she trembled. With each step she wanted to take it back. With each step, she became closer. And now she couldn’t go back. Now she could never go back.

She was close now, close enough to see the figures of the stallions. There were more coming too, from every direction. They crowded around one stallion. The mare moved closer, curiously wondering what they were doing. Her electric blue eyes once again found the figure of the most dominant one, the one they were crowding around. He was a large stallion, bigger than her. He was black, with not one marking. And looked like he came from Friesian ancestry. She kept her eyes on him, although briefly looking at the others. She found not one as interesting, as demanding and dominant. She stepped forward once, peeking through the trees to see the stallion better. Her electric blue eyes seemed to meet his, and she stepped back in alarm. Her whole body shaking as some form of electricity electrified her. Freaking, she cowered in the shadow of the trees. Although her grey pelt could just be seen. Her electric blue eyes flickering with fear from her grey crown, from the black of the shadows.

words - 714/without name or quote thingy. And this.
muse - Awesomely Awesome.
others – Hope this is alright, let me know if you want anything changed, :-)</sup>

[Velnias]

D A N C E with the D E V I L

Don't you dare look at him in the eye

Eon appeared at the ebony horse's massive side. The young colt's eyes were ablaze; he did not meet Devil's stare. What took you this long? the stallion hissed into the other's mind. His words were venom; they made the slim and bony-chested dark bay cringe. The fine mane that was his forelock was barely enough to cover his faint diamond-shaped star. I hurried, Master. Devil's eyes succumbed to dark annoyance. If I cannot count on you, then I cannot trust you. Eon dipped his head, knowing this was a battle, one of many, that he could not win against the Ghost Lord's minion. And there was no backing away now. He was surrounded my the masses of mangled, dying and Cursed. All Cursed; all Marked. Of the small spiral mark, Eon had been hearing rumors that the one who gave the mark had control of that horse's mind, if they ever tried to desert or flee. The thought frightened him more than he could imagine; the thought of losing his own mind, his will, his secrets! But he'd trained for this, and he knew one thing for certain by now: ultimate fear was absolute power for the bearer.

Devil did not have to speak the command aloud. They already sensed it within the fibers of his bones. Eon turned his head first, after his closest Master's head focused on one spot, and one alone. His eyes smoked and smoldered, but his face remained set and cold, resisting any display of emotion. What is it? The question no sooner had blurted out than Devil's mind tendrils snaked through his mouth and they prevented him from creating words; all the colt could say came out as a hoarse breath, and he was rendered silent. Devil's eyes remained pinpointed in the brush, somewhere, where it was dark. And now Eon saw it. As the army of the maimed streaked past them, one by one, they turned their eyes on Devil. They began to face the way he looked, communicating not by words or speech but by his utter presence. The ebony dark horse placed his hoof out in the soil in front of him, and the result was immediate. The muscles rippled, taut up his Friesian leg; the earth turned over itself, rippling like waves in the same way his shimmering hide had. They could feel clouds rolling in the sky overhead.

The gray, soiled mare was brought from the thicket, her limber but broken body crashing through as she was jerked about by the heavy metal chains that draped her neck and chafed at her delicate skin. Devil locked onto her eyes. The pale grey horse leading her stopped and waited for a command from the Friesian. Devil's eyes shifted to a nearby tree. The stallion pulled at the heavy silver between his teeth, the end of the chain disappearing seemingly inside his throat. The horse's chain was like a tongue, whipping out at his command, and keeping this mare prisoner. Devil's eyes followed her, but not for long. He would speak with her later. For now, he returned to his army. "We will be waiting here. Rest yourselves." There was a second one to come; one of Kratos' generals would be leading the army to battle, while it was Devil's job to transport them here and plan the effort. He was still keeping his face hidden, a secret.

"Clipeo," his words created a swirling black plume of clouds. Only in the sky around his army and where they stood in the forest, the clouds billowed and formed a domed shape. They touched the ground, creating a smooth, impenetrable wall of the murky smoke. And once the circle was complete around them, it seemed to dissipate, though it was really still there. The other clouds covered back over the gaping 'hole' in the sky quickly, looking as though nothing had even happened there. As the day began to fall to night, the forest turned to almost normal around them while the ebbing evil of the Cursed army was contained within the protective circle. The stormclouds lightened a few shades, and the sky itself began to see stars.

Devil's footfalls on the earth were echoed by those of his apprentices, the dark bay and a sorrel red stallion. Devil approached the edge of the camp, where the gray-shaded mare stood with her gaping blue eyes, wide with shock, and Devil saw now her method of bondage. She had been shackled to the ground with the same heavyset chain still taut around her neck, and It would have been easier for her to lie down but there must have still been some fire left in her spirit and those eyes that caused her to stand. She was weary, though, as if she'd slept a long, tiring night. And her day would be getting no better, from the looks of it. She had been watching him all this time with the keen eyes of a hawk. And now the stallion's own eyes were upon her, overbearing, smoldering, their depths unknown, and his face impenetrable by emotion.

He halted in front of her, gesturing to the other two, and the tall red horse with fire in his eyes snaped at the younger one, and they backed away and disappeared in the tumult of shadowy figures. The horse on sentry, guarding the mare and whomever else was taken, was called Lithu, because he stood stone still, like a bounder, a big hulking mass of gray-brown flecked horse. Devil approached her, raising his head to its full height. Even his neck was muscular and veins potruded from his black skin. "I have had a reason to kill today," he spoke, words low and deep but slow and concise. "Do not make me find one to kill again." He loathed them, all of them. In days past, he remembered what they'd done to him. Mares. In fact, they'd helped make him who or what he was now. And this one could certainly, with the others, pay up for it.

"You have a task to do. But first, I must use your mind." He stepped forward, a breath's length from the mare, his mind ebbing inside his skull. He thought of waiting for some form of approval from her, though it was just as well whether she resisted or not, because he had made his mind up already. His eyes swam inside the mare's, and then he took control of them. She would see what he showed to her. He channeled her thoughts and concentrated them on the memory of he gray mare with colored eyes. At the same time, his voice echoed in her head. Brinnng herrrr to meeee, and he then withdrew. He wanted her word to him, and then he would leave her with the Mark, before she left, but he would disguise it so it would not show and give her away. If she could do this for him, perhaps then, maybe, he would allow her to live a little while longer than he'd previously anticipated.

WORDS 1345
MUSE good and awesomel O^O
NOTES xD I thank zhe Devil for bringing you here! Haha, this Devil, not the....yeah.... Also, I suppose, though it's the war and our powers, well, powerplay some, I can promise I'll keep her safe (for some time).

[Wild@Heart]

As I stopped, the mare met up with me, her prance eating up the ground quickly. And together we left her dark cave, and entered into the light of the world, heads held high with authority, and the sun gleaming off of our backs. And yet no heads turned our way, instead the army below kept focus, not missing a beat. How well trained they were, and already I felt pride swelling inside of me, knowing that I would be able to call them mine. I would be the leader of such a fierce crowd, and they would do me proud. And in return I would do Kratos proud, the new circle of life.

I will be going with you, yes. But you’ll be, in a sense, on your own. And as she said this, no longer was I standing upon the solid ground of a battlefield, but uprooted and being brought elsewhere. Beside me was still the mare, who I was sure that I would soon learn to love, but no longer were we in the land of Kratos. And as the world around me stopped moving, I gathered myself up and took in my surroundings.

Long blades of sea green grass tickled my barrel and danced around my colored tendons. My nostrils quivered, inhaling the scent of the castles that were accented with that of another. My lilac pools searched the area, looking for the beast that held this scent, and yet I saw none. It was obvious that the stag had fled the scene, and so as I turned to look at the mare that was positioned beside me, my look questioned this.

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