@Lurking Shadow

---

Sarafine smiled with narrowed eyes, a gesture that was deadly in its own right, as the Lycan looked down upon her with disrespect in his voice and figure.

"Mistake number three." she said, venom in her voice. She grabbed Conall by the neck, lifting him up several inches before dropping him, demonic energy surrounding her like red lightning. "I am Sarafine, third Darkling to ever exist. Bonded with Asmodeus, Archdemon of Lust. Over three thousand years I have walked this planet, shaping events as I see fit. Remember this, pup, and remember your place. Be happy I let you live," she growled, pointing Purge at him.

Asmodeus snickered.

"You have been bit, and have partaken of Infected flesh. You are diseased. You have a week before you are completely insane like the rest. Perhaps you can find a way to cure yourself beforehand, perhaps not. You may very well want to say your goodbyes now, before the rot in your brain takes over."

Two Infected ran towards them, and Sarafine blasted them into dust with a wave of demonic energy.

I'm surprised you didn't kill him. Asmodeus mentioned, back in female form.

Sarafine glanced at Asmodeus. "There's still time for that, my love."

---

@Override

Zeiss put on her covert green overcoat and hat as she watched the Mountain's Wind dispatch of every enemy they came across, and couldn't help but wonder how she had never heard of such a legend. Compared to other witches she was young, a mere 24 years of age, but if people like him existed and he was a simple Druid, then she really should go sight seeing more often in Britain. Around them, the chaos brewed and seemed to only expand as the streets became a battleground of elements flying across the sky and animals going at each other in a show of dominance. While her current associate seemed to have no problem bursting through bodies like it was a horror movie, Zeiss wouldn't really stomach all the action. She wasn't so much a fan of blood as she was not used to it being from a well to do environment. Instead, she kept to her observation on what was happening to keep her mind on the task at hand; figuring out what the hell was happening. The crazed look in the enemy's eyes were obvious to see; a look of madness that was more in line with a curse than any disease that's she's ever looked into. It seemed to spread through bodily fluid, particularly blood, as she saw the wounded cackle as they stood over an infected opponent. She was now working in tandem with her assistant now, and she could hear her manic little sickkick over the phone scurrying around the workshop getting everything that she asked her to do. While Zeiss herself wasn't very good at handling any other magic besides her own, her protege had a lot more promise and could get the job done with plenty of mana to spare.

"You're doing fine, sweetie; I was just very anxious because I was being attacked by a man pulling off some new breed of sexual harassment. I've got a bodyguard now so it's all fine now," she gave a friendly little wave to Arthur as he waved back before crushing a man's skull with his fist, "Be careful of the blood, hun; that might make you into one of them if it gets into any of your wounds."

"My body is a fortress; I won't be hurt by something like this," the warrior boasted, grabbing the wrist of a vampire trying to be clever with a dagger and throwing him into a wall on the third story building across the street.

Zeiss would've clapped at the spectacle if she were holding her phone. "Quite the ubermensch, he is. I do not want to be with him in bed; he would crush me. Anyway hun, how's the perhibeo process coming along? I hope that it wasn't that difficult for you."

"No ma'am," replied Sarah, having fully shifted into her professional facade after getting set up at the workbench, "The runic origin is Glagolitic script, so I've applied the Byzantinian algorithm to the perhibeo. It seems like whoever made this had quite a bit of a grudge if they went for a Slavic curse. That primary method of infection is bites, so it's very likely that patient zero was Vampire or Lycan, not that it really matter at this point; at this point we look for a cure. It'll take a while before I can pinpoint the exact location of the one who placed the magic, but overall i'll have the result for you within five minutes."

"Thank you hun; maybe I'll reward you when I get back to the office.~"

She could hear the little warlock getting a bit uncomfortable by the sound of nervous and impatient fingers, "Ma'am, please this is not the time. Besides, you don't give me a lot of things as presents, most of the time you're having fun by yourself while I'm the sober one. I-I'll feel weird about it."

"Not around this time; your birthday is tomorrow. Did you think I would forget? It'll just be dinner; is that fine?"

"Hmm, alright, that's fair enough. Can we have a carpaccio, haven't had it in a while..."

"Alright, call me back when you get the results. I'll see you when this is all over, I promise you that." She hung up the call and turned to her new warrior friend, "Do you even know where we're going?"

The man turned around, scrubbing the blood off his hands and sword with a rag, "...No."

Zeiss sighed; at least he was honest. The two went through a wide alleyway until they came onto another street, and saw a man single-handedly fighting off several of the infected by himself. The man looked unkempt, a rogue with curly black hair and blue eyes that seemed to leave a trail as he spun around and projected whatever kind of magic that was. The ruby hue of his magic contrasted well with the cyan flame that followed his eyes, and it blasted his enemies into dust without any hesitation. As red lightning streaked across the man's fingers, it was clear to both the Witch and the Druid that the nature of that magic was not elemental; it was something much more primordial. As she watched the man fight, the way his body reacted and moved around his enemy felt as though it was dancing in tandem with another, and when the man turned his head enough for her to noticed that he was talking to air, it hit her; that man was a Darkling.

Zeiss could feel herself quiver, she had never tried experimenting on a Darkling before, let alone seen one. She had to know why kind of effect her Stasis magic had on them; if their mind is interlinked with a Demon, what happens when the host goes into stasis? Would it cause the Demon to go into stasis too, or will the Demon simply watch their host stand motionless as they are incapable of breaking them free? Or what if they could break them free from the inside, but would that relieve mental Stasis, physical Stasis, or both? So many ideas were laid out before her, and Arthur had to tap her on the shoulder before she had gotten too lost in her daydreams. He gave a concerned look, and gave off the aura of wanting to make sure she was okay by patting her on the back.

Zeiss shoved his hand away from him, she didn;t liked being touched in the middle of a event that could mean touch causing an infection.
I'm fine, Hercules; I was just seeing if that man over their was infected. From what I observed, he wasn't. He might have some pertinent information about the situation we're in; he looks suspicious, couldn't you agree?"

"I'm not sure; I'm not a judger of character like you do, and I'm not as observant as you or the person you were talking to, using so many complex words for simple meanings. I think the man looks like a good ally to have right about now."

"Alright then, let's go introduce ourselves." With that, she came out from behind the corner and walked toward the man in the red flannel shirt, the warrior following closely behind her in case any of the cursed came around the bend as well. As the man turned to go elsewhere, Zeiss called his attention.

"Hello sir, we want to ask you a few question while I have your attention. I want to know if you have any idea on what seems to be happening here. I am the witch, Morgana le Fay, and here is my trusty knight, King Arthur."

The warrior let out a sigh, though it was more out of amusement than annoyance, "She's not Morgana, she's known as the Witch of Isa. And only the fae call me King, particularly in jest."

"If the fae call you King Arthur, then I can call you King Arthur."

The man chuckled, never seeming to lose step from her teasing. He turned his attention back to the man in front of them, sticking his sword down on the ground next to him, "I can't win with this girl. My name is indeed Arthur, though I'm not exactly a king; I'm here to serve in the War of Meridian in service of the Darkworld and its Council. Suddenly, Arthur squinted to look at him, "I've...I've seen your face somewhere, on the news maybe or a Wanted poster somewhere; you're name is...Jackson. Jackson Grey. It's nice to meet a comrade on my first day here, I've gotten some cold shoulders in the Lycan territory since they weren't that hospitable to Druids."

"Ye-" Zeiss froze in speaking; the man she was with was in favor of the Council. She was fighting AGAINST this behemoth in the war? You have to be shitting me; of all the people I meet, it's Darkworld faction Superman? That would explain the fractured barrier wards and the dead Warlocks. Wait, could this Darkling work for the Council as well? I need to play it cool or I am done here.

She took a deep breath, cleared her throat, and continued her word, "Yeah, I'm just here for the ride. So, do you have any information for us? It's best we stay in groups anyway."

@Old Amsterdam

---

Conall’s disdain turned to surprise as the stranger seemed to have the strength to lift him, before quickly turning to a happier mood. She seems to be a cut above the rest, she could help him achieve his goal. She would be able to influence this war for a faction, though if she has been here for a while, she has some other goal in mind.

I need to choose my words carefully if I am to influence her, politics has always been more difficult than killing… Or, just kill her now and be done with it, how dare she insult me! Conall was shocked at the sudden turn of his thoughts, an emotion that almost changed his visible expression. … No; at least, not yet. If I can gleam her intent, I might be able to twist it towards a more likeable scenario. Perhaps if I offer assistance, and she accepts, I can gain trust. Trust leads to the opportunity and opportunity leads to betrayal eventually, maybe…. No wait, that’s not right… Conall thought, deciding on most of a plan. No longer maintaining a threatening appearance but not wanting to appear submissive or weak, he shifted to a more neutral tone.

” Bah, I am not worried about insanity, mental facilities are, thankfully, not required for my cause. I feel that I should apologize some for my demeanor. I fell into the trap of assuming that everyone was incompetent, due to the long stalemate lingering over this city. It is clear that you however, harbor some alternative end, and I daresay it aligns somewhat with mine. I fall somewhere within the rebels state of mind, though I do not share the love nor contempt of humans as my pathetic ‘allies’ do. I serve another. What I ask, is what do you seek? I seek conflict. Others perish in war, but I do not just survive, I thrive in it. War is my religion, the battlefield is my temple. Thus I choose to follow The Morrígan, for she offers rivers of blood and fields of flesh for me to feast on. This is not the war I was promised, this mere squabble pales in comparison to what comes next. If this sounds ideal to you, let me join you so that the very Earth itself may sunder from glorious war. Otherwise, leave me so that the next time we meet may be on the field of battle.” Conall said, beginning softly but with each word grew more and more force behind them till the end where he announced with zeal for his goal.

It wasn't till the end that he realized Sarafine was talking to a patch of nothing a few feet from her. An act that confused him, was she hallucinating a companion? Or was someone there that not even Conall could detect. His gaze shifted from Sarafine to the plot of land he thought she was looking at. His expression shifting to a quizzical look. She either is lacking of mental facilities, or there is some non-corporeal being residing there...

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

@Carnic

Jackson stood amongst dead infected as a couple of new folks joined him. Two were women, and adorable at that. He made no effort to hide his gaze traveling over their bodies. Lilith pouted at this and Jackson smiled, "Hush love, you know you're the one for me." Finally his gaze flicked to the giant man she had called King Arthur. He snorted at the nickname "I know Lancelot and he's told me about Arthur. You aren't him." His gaze flicked again to the women. It was clear to him that they were witches. They weren't offering him violence though, so he would offer none in return. It was a bad fucking idea to make enemies of folks who didn't want to be enemies in the first place. Never let it be said that Jackson Grey wasn't diplomatic. Lilith gave a throaty laugh at the thought.

"Lycans don't like druids for the most part. It's good to see one though, not many have been around the War. They love nature and shit." He looked around him and gestures at the infected bodies, "This is a curse. I haven't seen it in some time. Only one way to get rid of it." He lifted his Katana in a gesture that seemed to explain his meaning. Lilith pouted and Jackson drew her to him, wrapping his arms around her. "You're pouty today." She leaned against him and said nothing. He sighed heavily and looked at the night sky filled with stars. "Something is coming. I don't know what, but I can fucking feel it."

@Lurking Shadow

---

Sarafine looked at the Lycan curiously for several minutes, finally lowering Purge.
"Well, pup, I am pleasantly surprised. I'll even gift you answers, since I haven't been surprised in decades," she said with a small laugh. "I noticed the look, so I'll address that first. I alone see and hear Asmodeus, as I mentioned previously is my Demon. On why I'm here....I don't think it's time for anyone to know. Not yet."

He will be dangerous. It has already set in.

"Yes, luv, I'm well aware of how the Curse works."

Turning back to Conall she continued, "So here's the deal, Conall. You find a cure for yourself, and then you find me again. Then we can talk about a potential partnership. In the meantime.... Cause some chaos when able to, yes? Surprise me, and be rewarded."

---

@Override

Zeiss felt Jackson's eyes on her and promptly put her hands on her hips so he could get a better look at her silhouette.

Arthur chuckled to himself as the Witch of Isa's little ploy to call him King of Camelot went under, but he did get some interesting information out of it; Lancelot of the Lake was in this War and of supernatural being.

The witch's eyes darted between looking at the Darkling and the Mountain's Wind, almost letting out a laugh when Jackson put his arms around what visually looked like air. If she hadn't already deduced that he was possessed by a malignant astral parasite, she would've decided to leave him to his own devices. She never quite seen the conversations that a host would have with its demon, but it seemed at though direct speech is used along with sharing their thoughts. Rather, it seemed direct speech was preferred to get more feelings across. Seems this Darkling has a intimate relationship with his demon, but she has heard that it wasn't uncommon for the host to be intimate with them since they share the same thoughts. Did that mean they share the same memories as them? What would that be like? She'll have to ask those questions later when she had the time.

"You had less information than I had hoped," She said, staring at what he was supposedly holding just to see if concentrating might make it easier to see the demon, "You are correct, however; you can tell it's a curse from the way the people are acting. Cause of the curse is runic in nature, particularly the Byzantine style of Glagolitic script. It's an newer type than most but it has a very potent madness agent in the hands of both novice and professional Warlocks. Right now an associate of mine is getting back to me on the source, but I'm sure that if we follow the trail the infected came from, which is a little more east from here, we can be little closer to the epicenter before we get the specifics. Since you seem interested, why not tag along with us?"

Arthur stared at the opening they cam out of, wondering if the mass chaos will start seeping back into this street.

@Old Amsterdam

---

Conall’s words brought a partial victory. A temporary alliance was not gained, but some amount of trust was formed. Not ideal, but given time will be all he needs to subtly influence her if necessary. AS for her goal, it still eludes him, though the hints that linger in her words indicate some similarities with his own. The question is, how much does it align?

Pup… her need to downplay me must derive from a sense of superiority. She has yet to show me a reason to believe so. And this… demon seems to manifest only within her mind? Or perhaps maybe to other of her kind. Doesn’t matter, If I can’t see him I can’t kill him. Doubt he can affect me though. Good point, I … wait. Why am I suddenly conversing with myself? Maybe there is something to this insanity thing. Besides, I think I gleamed all I could out of her for the moment. Need to remember that rebel victory comes first, going to be harder to take the Darkworld on by myself and maybe a few likeminded individuals. Much easier to take on a weakened, war-weary council. And then influence war against the humans for terrible, terrible chaos. Now to take my leave, the sewers make for stealthy travel. Not to mention the various maintenance rooms could store prey and hide my crimes… All that is left, is to leave with final words.

” Still leaving me with mysteries? I suppose that will have to be enough to satiate my curiosity and besides, it matters little to fate. The future was already determined by the one who controlled the past. All that is left is getting the present there. A task that falls to those like me who drive destiny. I’m sure you are well aware that Chaos is never far away. Even in times of ‘peace’ there were threats of war with individuals puppeteering the empires. So do not worry for Fate, War, and Death is alive and well with The Morrígan. War gives me my strength, but to cause War, I drive Fate and Death always follows. One last thing, more of a personal request than anything else, I am uncomfortable with using names due to our mutual ‘probably won’t kill each other quite yet’ relationship. Though I prefer you use the title I earned, at least ‘pup’ gives some idea of my capabilities. Likewise, I’d prefer to refer to you as Cúpla. At least that will remind me of you as ‘Sarafine’ just draws up a blank.

Conall waited a moment for a response before taking his leave back the way he originally came. Stopping briefly only to grab the remains of the infected and draw a symbol that was crude, but easily recognizable as a crow in flight. “ If you see that symbol, that means that I, or someone like me is around. May we meet again with Death behind us and may we never hear the banshees wail for us. With those last words, Conall descended in order to figure out his next steps.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Jackson snorted. "I can tell it's a curse because I've seen it before. How they're acting just supports it." He kissed Lilith's creamy white shoulder, "What do you think love, should I go with them?" She smiled, her fangs showing, and nodded her beautiful head. Jackson let go of her and pointed east. "Let's get this the fuck over with then." He didn't waste time waiting for them, simply set off in the direction he had pointed. The cool night air was filled with the smell of infected blood, or cursed blood if you preferred to call it that. He heard screams and loud noises and the sounds of combat. As he followed the roads, he paused. Holding up his hand for his companions to wait. There was a scrambling and infected burst out of a nearby building. Some howled in rage and others cackled with mad laughter as infected Warlocks shot lightning at them.

Shields seemingly made of red lightning appeared out of the air to intercept them. Crackling bolts of his demon magic blasted forth from his palms and incinerated another infected. He tore open a whole in reality as a Lycan ran at him, it ran through the portal, not pausing to think, and his neck met the blade of Jackson's katana, cutting the head from his deformed body. Well, at least he would get to see how his companions faired against the lot.

---

@Override

Zeiss and Arthur simply watched the man take point and they followed along, Zeiss being particularly irked by the way he snorted at her; just because you are a stronger being doesn't mean you can talk to me on equal standing. Zeiss positioned herself to the right of Arthur in case she needed to duck out of his way when they eventually meet up with more of the cursed. Zeiss had been in both her element and outside of it, a rich environment for learning but also quite dangerous; just like any day in the workshop. Still holding her enchanted steel dagger in her right hand, she pulled out a notepad and blue pen from her original handbag to start jotting down notes on the inspiration that she had gotten from when she had talked to that chronicler. His carnival experience is something that I didn't expect from him, but at the very least it made for an intriguing story. The idea of freedom being born out of the gifts they were given as supernatural beings is not something special, but the way that the world view-

"Isa, is it very wise to be taking such arbitrary notes? We're in the middle of a battlefield; you can at least focus on the task at hand," Arthur suddenly interjected, again having that worried look on his face. Zeiss was starting to get annoyed with that expression; she's not a pet that had to be taken care of.

"I'm not afraid of being bitten; I'm sure you big, strong men know how to protect one little lady. I don't think I really have to explain myself, the train of thought I just lost because of you is probably worth your weight in gold if I actually had a breakthrough, so why don't you zip it and do what you are good at, and fight."

Arthur sighed, this time out of annoyance; he couldn't really argue with her words but they still bothered him. It was then that they heard the building rumble.

Zeiss watched as the buliding internally exploded with bursts of static and the smell of ozone, Warlocks streaming with electricity around them. It didn't make sense for them to be able to use it so freely; that was more in line with what Wizards can do. Then she saw the runes across their wrists and hands, marked with blood as they have carved it into themselves; they were using their own nerve signals as a conduit of amplification. Their hands twitched erratically and began to cackle from the tingling sensation. Rather than arming herself immediately, she watched Jackson, being able to see a Darkling fight up close was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Moreover, she was valuable in this situation; being a Witch she was the only one who knew how to break the curse without any possible side effects. She watched the she saw red lightning, destruction magic, be projected into a shield to intercept the opponent's and bolts of his demonic energy surged out to pierce his foes. She stared in awe as he did the same to the rabid Lycan, its fur singed from both Jackson and its fellow cursed as its body feel to the ground decapitated.

That red bolt has to be the concentration of the demon's energy; it is possible to be of a different consistency than lightning? Or is the material inheritly chaotic and when it's in a concentrated shield it's more like bonding the energy together like how water vapor and condense into droplets of water? Would it have to be red or is it based on the demon's preference? Or were demons born with different colors other than red? How effective is the extent of its offense and likewise for its defense? Does it-

"Witch, behind you!" yelled Arthur as a vampire had managed to flank them and dashed toward Zeiss.

She dodged at first, the vampire sailing over her head and before turning to charge again. She could see Arthur coming to aid her, but she had enough of his chivalrous and irritating act. She tossed her hair behind her back and took out an expendable knife, it being made of rusty metal with a wooden handle.

"What a very rude vampire; I'm trying to STUDY!" she drove the knife into its eye as it lunged at her as she thought the incantation; 'Ani Rae Isa!'

The vampire was now stuck in time and space, frozen in midair to the world around it. She sighed from having to expend energy on it, grabbing her notepad and pen off the floor from when she ducked and got on top of the vampire's frozen form; it'll be like this for as long as she liked and it was a good way to look over the street. She could see Arthur's baffled face and smirked.

"What's wrong, Arthur Caufield? Surprised a woman can take care of herself?

The druid smiled instead, feeling his two handed great sword shake in his grip from noticing the unknown magic, "Not at all; in fact, as I don't have to worry about you, I can focus on the task at hand!"

Zeiss watched as the man blitzed toward the wave of infected, his skin suddenly shining with a iron gleam. His footsteps sounded heavier and heavier, cracking the pavement as magic bolts pinged off his skin and Lycan and vampire alike couldn't scratch or bite through him. He threw the few who tried to get past him back into the crowd that had started to surround him then held his sword out in front of him. Darting his eyes around, he saw only Lycans, vampires, and warlocks. Good; Jackson had said there weren't many druids in the cities and the wizards weren't here. It was time to enact justice. The air began to hum and become harsher as Arthur turned his body slowly as if to gather all the energy in the air. Then, with a quick slash, he called out the name of his blade:

"By the condor's wings, Caledgwynt!"

It was as if a tornado had suddenly touched down. All the cursed were blown into the sky, screaming and hollering before landing on rooftops, the buildings they came from, and the hard stone street way, paralyzed from the shock of air deprivation and the disorientation of suddenly moving at 120 mph. The stone wasn't too kind to them either, crippling their arms and legs as the hero of justice walked among the neaby bodies and stabbed each of their heads to ease their pain with his cold steel blade. Arthur looked pleased with himself as Zeiss stared flabbergasted from her perch above her frozen vampire; she really was surrounded by the strongest Darkworld had to offer. She would have ran if she didn't know that that would cause the most suspicion.

Instead, her nervousness came out as a simple, "Holy shit."