[h3]Duchy of Pelgaid, secluded pond, in the dark embrace[/h3]
[IMG]http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u79/SharpshooterJack/markerGerald_zps253683a8.png[/IMG]
[I]I wonder what that is,[/I] Gerald pondered as he watched the hands of bloody shadow start to spread from somewhere behind the Grand Master and begin the process of capturing them both in a dome of darkness. They had appeared as soon as he had set the tip of the quill against the parchment, but to his eyes it did not seem as though it made any difference when Jillian set her signature on the contract; the hands seemed to continue their spread relentlessly, regardless of what the two of them were doing now that the contract had been infused with the power of their free wills. That was where Gerald presumed the contract drew its power from, anyway; it siphoned the freedom of others to the sealed demon lord, letting him use the freedom of others to act rather than the freedom that was taken from him. [I]Those hands... I don't sense any magic in them. In fact I don't sense them at all; I don't think they're real. But what are they, then? Are they appearing? Because of the contract?[/I]
He felt more than saw Jillian move closer to him, staring at the wicked embrace that was moving to surround them, and he realized that she had not been able to see this visage before she had signed the contract as well. [I]We can see them because we made the bargain,[/I] he thought grimly, thinking that maybe he had some semblance of understanding of just what those hands really were. [I]They must be the embodiment of his sealing; captivity incarnate, not truly magical, but made up by his contained will. We can see it because we partake in a small part of his imprisonment now, and the hands are reaching out to seize the freedom we have given to him. Very interesting... and quite unnerving, honestly. I wonder if the vision is necessary, or something the Grand Master does to make his partners realize the gravity of the bond they have just made?[/I]
Frowning, the wizard looked behind him, wanting to check what could be seen there before the shadows completed the sinister dome around them and blocked out the outside world completely. He noted that the two others back there both seemed frightened at what was happening, but for different reasons. Renold was staring directly at the demon's avatar, eyes wide in horror, as was to be expected; especially now, when it was emanating such a sickeningly strong sense of raw power. Crone, on the other hand... Crone was looking at the shadowy hands. [I]Aah, I see... so you made a deal as well, since you can see them. Interesting.[/I]
His attention returned to their infernal accomplice. [I]The Grand Master, the Ancient One, oldest of the immortals, one not made by the Spirits of Union... just what are you?[/I]

Then, once the apparent euphoria that came from receiving the freedom they had just sold him had passed, the Grand Master wasted no time in keeping his end of the bargain. The necromancer furrowed his brow as he listened intently, determined to find a way to end the Withering within their allotted time and to not betray the trust Jillian had shown him in agreeing to this. He would find a solution, he had spent years of his life on this... he would not fail now, when they were so close to achieving what no other being in all the planes had ever done before.
"How indeed," Gerald murmured in response to the witch's defeated remark, but he was not ready to forfeit just yet. Their enemy was not Himyth, as he had thought, but rather Kreshtaat himself, the most powerful immortal in existence. And he committed his deeds from the Spirit Realm, which mortals could only enter in their sleep. That explained why demonspawn and tarken appeared to be immune to the Withering, at least; neither of those species were capable of dreaming, tarken because their souls were too interwoven into their physical bodies, demonspawn because...
"Immortals can't enter the Spirit Realm," he said out loud, looking at the Grand Master in wonder. "That is a well-documented fact. Kreshtaat shouldn't be able to go there. And why would he do that, anyway? The Spirit Realm is parallel to Reniam; he could reach our plane as easily as that."
"Because it is [I]not[/I] Kreshtaat," the Grand Master explained gleefully. "I told you that the one spreading the Withering in the Spirit Realm is Kevin the Insignificant, though few remember that name today. The Lord of Darkness remains imprisoned in the Lower Plane."
Once again Gerald found himself frowning confusedly. "What do you mean?"
The demon sighed. "You are aware of the fact that most powerful immortals are capable of splitting themselves into fragments and existing in multiple physical forms and places at the same time, yes?" He continued without waiting for an answer: "This is the ability that Kreshtaat is taking advantage of now, in spreading the Withering: not only is he shaving off splinters of his essence by the thousands and planting them in mortal souls to spread the Withering, the fact that he is in a position to do so is because of this property of deities as well. Immortals cannot enter the Spirit Realm, this is true, but Kreshtaat was not always immortal. Even now, millennia after his ascension, part of Kreshtaat retains the humanity he once had, and this miniscule part of him remains mortal. By breaking off that part of him and forcing it into hibernation, Kevin - Kreshtaat's human self - is still able to dream."
"So Kreshtaat is not actually in the Spirit Realm?" Gerald asked, starting to grasp the situation. "Physically, I mean."
"Only Kreshtaat's mortal soul is in the Spirit Realm," the other confirmed. "His mortal avatar, if you will... with only the power Kreshtaat had before he became immortal and, as a mortal, capable of being killed."
Gerald's eyes widened in disbelief. "We can kill Kreshtaat?!"
"No," was the disappointing reply. "I thought I told you that Kreshtaat isn't in the Spirit Realm already? You can kill [I]Kevin the Insignificant[/I], not the Lord of Darkness. And in killing Kreshtaat's mortal self, you will make it impossible for him to ever return to the Spirit Realm."