Kail: The ruined enclave

[Cynon]

The soulless one climbed up the wall blocking off the ruined Banite towers in their forest enclave. The moon glinted of his new grey and blue enamelled armour giving a ghostly appearance to him as he carefully braced himself atop the heavy wooden structure.

He looked down at the dead grass and empty suits of armour that remained from the dead orcish, Banite force that had fallen protecting this place when the army of shadows had invaded.

It had been a slaughter. Not long had it been since the towers had returned from the shadow plane they had been sucked into after the carnage. So much disrespect had Kail been shown by the dark mage whom had delivered the favour unto him, making him feel so small and insignificant for his request.

It had not been such a loss. The people of the hin village had their souls back, even if he still didn’t. Perhaps that favour would be remembered of him at least. He had passed through there on his way here. Some didn’t even know him without his old fiendish looking armour, some did though, the children who had their souls back, somehow they knew. They would dance around him as he walked through on his way up and down the road. So tiny, like their souls had been, smaller than human babies yet running about and playing so agile and full of life.

Kail pulled his helmet from his head and looked down with white, wolf like eyes, empty as if of a corpse, yet moving about searching the floor of the enclave. He stroked back, out of his face, his oily black hair then began to fasten a rope to the top of the hefty wooden wall to make easy his departure.

Kail’s feet hit the ground with a thud. The shadows swirled and swept back avoiding the impact of his feet. A form rose up from them, a ghostly and twisted face of one of the Banites, now shadow. It groaned menacingly and came towards him. Kail looked dark, his grey skin almost black now out of the illumination of Selune. He responded with a dart forward towards it, eyes wide and a cold empty expression upon his face. The shadow buckled and twisted sweeping back low to the ground and flowing away into the trees and dark corners, accompanied by the many others that abided here since it's return to the material plane. Strange moans followed their departures.

The doors of the towers were locked, as the main gate had been. Kail would have to see to that as soon as he could. This place was needed now, it was to be cleaned out, and used for a new purpose. It would serve the entire region, any who wished, would use it to gather men of skill for tasks the militias could not handle. Those of cause, noble or selfish, he would bring them together in unison, People to map out the lost places of the Delimbyr, those who sought treasure from deserted underdark areas, those who wished to fight something and had the means to rally others, here, those who needed help would find those who would help. Maybe some would help him find his soul, maybe some would help him make those responsible pay.

As Kail paced into the field beyond the towers, the huge shrine to Bane lay desecrated and broken, strange things flitted, swirled and moved amongst the broken stones in the dark.

A cold chill went up Kail’s back as he heard a voice, his own.
He stood in the safety of moonlight looking into the shadows at an image of himself, his old self. A black cape swayed in the breeze revealing dark and hideous armour crafted like muscles and sinew, large spikes protruding from elbows, knees, and shins. From the sides of the helm arked down huge black horns around a devilish grining face lined with obsidian teeth, eyes humming with a dull red light.

“I will be free Kail …soon”

Kail stood frozen. He tried to talk but he could not move his jaw to speak. The fiend clutched one horn and pulled it’s helm away from his head, looking back, eyes full of hate, eyes full of life, not empty as Kail’s were. Kail stood staring back at the image of himself as it spoke unto him again.

“If honour is truth and a lie is respect, then a secret is sacred.
Confide in me my friend and I'll love you like no other.”

At that moment the sun cut over the trees darting like a rod of fire right into the image before him and across Kail’s back making his armour appear as if almost white in the light of the dawn. The fiend vanished leaving Kail screaming and falling to his knees. He clutched at his heart in pain, sweat dripping from his face.

“Passion, anger, love and hate, is it really better then the void? My tortured friend, do I really want you back?"

The enclave of the towers stood empty, the sun rose and the birds began to sing. Kail raised his forehead from the wet grass and looked about. Maybe this place was cleansed now. It was as it had been offered to him, now. What he had seen in the night, perhaps just a warning. He was a man of two minds, and many decisions to make. How was this going to work, until he knew what was in store for him. Was he even a person without his soul? If he took his soul back, would he even be human?

Kail lay down flat on the grass, exhausted with despair. What was to become of him, when would this end?

[foaloke]

Very cool.

[Cynon]

I know, *polishes nails upon my lapels*

[Ros-King]

Good show Cynon.

[pyrokinetika]

Nice... some of the best written stuff I've seen in awhile.

[Cynon]

Dude you is from India! OMG!