The Altered Author

"To-Do" and "Am-Doing"

2011-04-05T19:33:00.000-07:00

Tonight I'm reorganizing my work and my thoughts. Tomorrow I'll be reorganizing my workspace, which really means I'll be throwing away a lot of junk and removing a nasty pile of crap from my desk.
Here's a link to share LINKAGE! It's a great article from http://www.austinkleon.com/
(I stole the Calendar idea - He told me to!)

Currently reading: The Elements of Style. Recommended reading for all writers.

I also recommend adding www.ericnylund.net to your bookmarks, while I'm thinking about it.

Building Characters: Archetypes

2010-10-13T13:03:00.000-07:00

(I can't remember where I copied this from, but it's helpful for character building)

Archetypes, Myths, and Characters

An archetype is a prototype or model from which something is based. The character archetypes listed here derive from Joseph Campbell's The Hero with a Thousand Faces and are deeply rooted in the myths and legends of many cultures. A significant character's role can often be associated with one of these archetypes, because storytelling is as old as these myths and legends and is how they were handed down to us. Archetypes connect your story to the rich heritage of all storytelling.

Hero

   The essence of the hero is not bravery or nobility, but self-sacrifice. The mythic hero is one who will endure separation and hardship for the sake of his clan. The hero must pay a price to obtain his goal.

   The hero's journey during a story is a path from the ego, the self, to a new identity which has grown to include the experiences of the story. This path often consists of a separation from family or group to a new, unfamiliar and challenging world (even if it's his own back yard), and finally a return to the ordinary, but now expanded, world.

   The hero must learn in order to grow. Often the heart of a story is not the obstacles he faces, but the new wisdom he acquires, from a mentor, a lover, or even from the villain.

   Other characters besides the protagonist can have heroic qualities. This can be especially true of the antagonist.

   Heroes can be willing and adventurous, or reluctant. They may be group and family oriented, or loners. They may change and grow themselves, or act as catalysts for others to grow and act heroic. The hero can be an innocent, a wanderer, a martyr, a warrior, a vengeful destroyer, a ruler, or a fool. But the essence of the hero is the sacrifice he makes to achieve his goal.

Mentor

   The mentor is a character who aids or trains the hero. The essence of the mentor is the wise old man or woman. The mentor represents the wiser and more godlike qualities within us.

   The mentor's role may be to teach the hero. These characters are often found in the roles of drill instructor, squad leader or sergeant, the older officer policeman, the aged warrior training the squire, a trail boss, parent or grandparent, etc. An effective teacher may be an otherwise inept or foolish character who possesses just the skill or wisdom the hero needs for his challenge.

   The other major role of the mentor is to equip the hero by giving him a gift or gifts which are important in his quest. These gifts may be weapons, medicine or food, magic, or some important clue or piece of information. Frequently, the mentor requires the hero to have passed some sort of test before receiving the gift. The gift may be a seemingly insignificant object, the importance of which doesn't emerge until later.

   The mentor may occasionally be the hero's conscience, returning him to the right path after he strays or strengthening him when he weakens. The hero doesn't always appreciate this assistance, of course.

Threshold Guardian

   The threshold guardian is the first obstacle to the hero in his journey. The threshold is the gateway to the new world the hero must enter to change and grow.

   The threshold guardian is usually not the story's antagonist. Only after this initial test has been surpassed will the hero face the true contest and the arch-villain. Frequently the threshold guardian is a henchman or employee of the antagonist.

   But the threshold guardian can also be an otherwise neutral character, or even a potential ally such as the police lieutenant who warns the hero private detective off the case, or the Cowardly Lion who first frightens and then joins Dorothy on her journey to Oz.

   The role of the threshold guardian is to test the hero's mettle and worthiness to begin the story's journey, and to show that the journey will not be easy. The hero will encounter the guardian early in the story, usually right after he starts his quest.

Herald

The role of the herald is to announce the challenge which begins the hero on his story journey. The herald is the person or piece of information which upsets the sleepy equilibrium in which the hero has lived and starts the adventure.

The herald need not be a person. It can be an event or force: the start of a war, a drought or famine, or even an ad in a newspaper.

Shapeshifter

   The shapeshifter changes role or personality, often in significant ways, and is hard to understand. That very changeability is the essence of this archetype. The shapeshifter's alliances and loyalty are uncertain, and the
sincerity of his claims is often questionable. This keeps the hero off guard.

   The shapeshifter is often a person of the opposite sex, often the hero's romantic interest. In other stories the shapeshifter may be a friend or ally of the same sex, often a buddy figure, or in fantasies, a magical figure such as a shaman or wizard.

   The shapeshifter is sometimes a catalyst whose changing nature forces changes in the hero, but the normal role is to bring suspense into a story by forcing the reader, along with the hero, to question beliefs and assumptions.

   As with the other archetypes, any character, including the protagonist and antagonist, can take on attributes of the shapeshifter at different times in the story. The hero often assumes the role of shapeshifter to get past an obstacle. Mentors often appear as shapeshifters.

Shadow

   The Shadow archetype is a negative figure, representing things we don't like and would like to eliminate.

   The shadow often takes the form of the antagonist in a story. But not all antagonists are villains; sometimes the antagonist is a good guy whose goals disagree with the protagonist's. If the antagonist is a villain, though, he's a shadow.

   The shadow is the worthy opponent with whom the hero must struggle. In a conflict between hero and villain, the fight is to the end; one or the other must be destroyed or rendered impotent.

    While the shadow is a negative force in the story, it's important to remember that no man is a villain in his own eyes. In fact, the shadow frequently sees himself as a hero, and the story's hero as his villain.

Trickster

The Trickster is a clown, a mischief maker. He provides the comedy relief that a story often needs to offset heavy dramatic tension. The trickster keeps things in proportion.

The trickster can be an ally or companion of the hero, or may work for the villain. In some instances the trickster may even be the hero or villain. In any role, the trickster usually represents the force of cunning, and is pitted against opponents who are stronger or more powerful.

It's Christmas in May!

2009-05-04T00:19:00.000-07:00

Two posts in one month? In one DAY?

I'm doing more than just writing, I'm relearning my drawing skills too. It's a long process. I haven't been serious about my art in more than a decade. I'm re-learning things my hands had forgotten.

http://tinyurl.com/cj4z5t for a peek.

I'll upload more sketches there on flickr, completed works on my deviant art page.

Deviant art page URL is to your right ------------------------>

Stories in parts of 140 characters or less.

2009-05-03T23:57:00.000-07:00

I'm here, really I am.
I'm also on twitter - twice.

I'm currently telling a short story on twitter. Each part of the story has to be 140 characters or less. It's an interesting exercise and I've found that it's easier to get my brain working if I can make a few posts there and then move on to my other stories. It's become my warm-up exercise!

Take a look and try it out for yourself...let me know if you can make it work for you!
http://twitter.com/Twit_Trek

Making awesome new posts.

2008-06-27T18:34:00.000-07:00

I'm making this post from a blog client called semagic. For those of you who want to publish your stories to your blog and still want them to keep the original format that you used on whatever word processor you use, this is a good product for you.
I'm composing my stories in Word '07, then I'll copy and paste them into the edit window of the Semagic client. Semagic will give you two options - paste text only or paste with HTML. Make sure your story is ready to go before you copy and paste. You don't want to have to edit it later. Choose to paste with HTML and semagic will adjust html tags to automatically get your document looking like it did on your word processor.

http://semagic.sourceforge.net/

I used to use this same program for my livejournal, and I was thrilled to learn that it works for Blogger AND wordpress too.

Links to documents are also found at the above URL.

Enjoy

Short Story - An Incident of Colossal Proportions

2008-03-25T23:57:00.000-07:00

A Big Misunderstanding/An Incident of Colossal Proportions/Insert witty title here

This isn’t happening. This isn’t happening. This isn’t Happening!

Obviously the shrink ray didn’t work as it was supposed to. It was certainly cool enough. Got it real cheap offa Ebay. There were only a few problems with the damn thing when it was finally delivered. One: the Directions were in Japanese. Two: The end that looked like the butt of the ray gun, wasn’t . Three: No trigger, so I pushed the red button. I took the full beam right in the face.

Now I’m outside. It was really the only place I could go once I realized that my body was doing the opposite of shrinking. I wasn’t about to grow right through the roof of my garage; my mom would kill me. Only the concussion I received from the beating keeps me from recalling my punishment from the time I broke one of her precious little frog figurines. Admittedly, standing out in the middle of the street while my body soared to new heights wasn’t a smart choice. In retrospect however, running into the city in a blind panic to find help wasn’t such a great idea either. I really didn’t think that one through at all, but that’s where the hospital is, and that’s where the doctors are. I got the reaction one would expect to get – if one is a three story tall giant in distress (which I am) and thinking clearly (which I am not). People are running in every direction to get out of my way. Cars screech to a halt, drive onto the sidewalk, or crash into each other as I try to step over them in my haste to get to my destination. I’m causing a real panic, but they’d understand what real panic is if they were in my shoes right now

Crunch!

Shit.

I look down at my feet. I just stepped on some dude’s Volvo. I barely felt it, just heard the sound of the thing collapsing under my weight. It kinda sounded like I was stepping on a bag of potato chips, with a hint of metal-on-metal grinding and a horn honk that died quickly, muffled under what was once a size ten shoe. I sure hope that nobody was in there. I try to say a simple “Sorry!” or “My bad dude!”, but the only sounds I’m able to produce are a series of loud grunts and wheezes. I think the damn thing scrambled my brain a bit when it shot off.

Pap Pap Pap!

A cop in blue is shooting at me. I’m pretty sure he’s hitting me too, I just can’t feel it. I dunno if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, but I ignore him for the moment. The hospital is less than a block away. Thank God. Before I can take another step though, I see the one thing I had hoped to avoid,a Superhero.

It’s Kid Indigo. Obviously I’m not perceived as a really serious threat yet. The League of Good Guys have sent out the lamest hero they’ve got on their payroll. Kid Indigo’s a freakin Cowboy. I swear to God it’s the truth. He’s a cowboy in a bluish-purple getup. With a robot horse he calls jet. I didn’t even rate a visit from the Golden Archer. I’m almost offended. This guy doesn’t even have any super powers; Just a Winchester and some kinda magical lasso. Honestly, I think he’s got one foot out of the closet, but that doesn’t mean he can’t do some serious damage to me. I realize that I’m going to have to actually fight this guy just to get to the damn hospital. I’d rather not. He is a Good Guy after all.

He’s directly ahead of me, street level, and sitting on that ugly robot horse of his. The Winchester is aimed right at me and I hear the shot an instant before I feel the sting of the impact on my chest.

Ouch dude! C’mon, I just wanna get to the hospital! “Ug Ug!” Wheeze. Growl. “Ug!” I don’t wanna fight you! Bwaaaaaaaag!

So much for communication. He takes another shot, this time it stings my cheek. No choice left for me. I swing my fist down like a hammer right down on his head, but a flash of flame shoots from the horse’s ass and he rockets out of harm’s way. I kid you not – a flaming horse’s ass. My fist hits the pavement and leaves a pretty impressive crater. I’ve also managed to set off nearly every car alarm within three blocks with the sheer force of the impact. The sound of a hundred shrill alarms sounding at once is pretty painful. I can just feel the sound reverberating through my skull. At least Indigo’s out of my path now, the hospital is in sight. I take other step towards salvation.

“Stop right there beast!”

Oh what now?

A sudden and blinding shock of pain thunders through my skull and my head is suddenly spun around, followed by my body as I’m sent reeling into the closest building. I rebound off of the corner and land on my backside in the middle of the adjacent street. I’m stunned for a moment, and try to shake the sudden cobwebs from my already sluggish brain. When my eyes finally focus, I find myself staring up at my greatest sexual fantasy. Standing on my chest and glaring down at me, with her feet set far apart and her hands on her hips, is Mistress Buxom. Wearing an outfit which is essentially a leather corset and a thong, and possessing a perfect hourglass body and the largest pair of gozongas this side of an honest profession, Mistress Buxom has been my dream woman since the seventh grade when she first appeared in the March photo of the League of Good Guys yearly calendar. Right now I have the option of getting so turned on and popping one hefty boner, but then I grasp the reality of the situation. She thinks I’m the bad guy, and she’s going to use her incredible strength to kick my ass.

In a moment of desperation I fumble blindly for something large fight back with, and my oversized swollen fingers wrap themselves around a Volkswagon. Beggars can’t be choosers I guess, and I swing the car, smacking the bottom of the chassis into her body as hard as I can, sending her smashing through the brick wall of another building. I roll to my left and start to push myself to my feet just as the sharp report of Kid Indigo’s Winchester sounds off, and my left ass cheek is suddenly stinging. I hear him let out a self congratulatory whoop somewhere behind me. Congratulations asshole, you can hit the side of a barn with a bullet. I cut his celebration short by blindly tossing a mailbox in his direction.

Mistress Buxom is pulling herself out of the hole in the wall as I get to my feet. Now, for most people in my predicament this would be a ‘fight or flee’ moment, with the latter being the more sensible of choices, but I’ve already proven that my brain just ain’t right today. I find myself staring down at her ample cleavage, my attention fixed on every jiggle and bounce of those large globes of flesh as she staggers out of the rubble. My God, how do they keep from popping right out of that outfit? By the time I regain my senses, she’s glaring up at me and wiping a trickle of blood from the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand. “So, you like it rough huh?” She smiles and somehow it makes me real nervous. “Good then. I might enjoy this more than I had thought!”

That’s so damn hot.

She bends her knees and crouches, every muscle in her body tenses as she gathers her energy for one of her famous standing leaps. Then she’s in the air, flying towards me like a human missile, her arm cocked back and ready let me have another trademarked jackhammer punch. I react in a way that surprises us both as I lash out instinctively and snatch her from the air in one quick swipe of my meaty fist. She’s only got one arm free, and she immediately starts pounding against my thumb with all of her strength. I squeeze firmly and she stops hitting me, but continues to squirm and struggle in my grasp. Figuring that she’s in the one place where she can’t hurt me I keep my hold on her and turn back onto the street for the hospital.

A tug on my other hand reminds me that there’s still one other ‘Hero’ left to deal with. Kid Indigo has brought out his trusty Magic Lasso now, and has managed to loop it around the index finger of my left hand. I’ve really had enough of this. All I wanted to do was get to the hospital, and this prick is really starting to tick me off with his persistence. He pulls on the rope again, and I tug back, yanking him off of his horse and into the air – only to smack into the palm of my hand and bounce off in a kinda twisted imitation of a paddleball toy. The lasso loosens and slips from my finger the moment his hands let go of his end of the rope – just before he lands face down on the broken pavement. He’s down for the count, and I don’t even care.

In the meantime Mistress Buxom has freed her other arm from my grasp and is making a real effort to free herself. I resort to the only plan I have left. I shake her hard, over and over, until her eyes roll back into her head and her body goes limp in my hand. I mumble a barely coherent apology as I set her down gently on the ground and pray that I haven’t done any serious damage to her. I'm still amazed by the fact that her breasts are still within the confines of her skimpy outfit. I honestly believe that's one of her secret superpowers. I resist the urge to peek. My body shudders and an aching sensation travels alone my spine and outward along my limbs, reminding me that I still need help.

The Hospital is only a few long strides away for me, yet it feels like it takes and eternity to reach the front doors, which I stagger through in my normal, smallish human body and right into the arms of a nurse. I have no logical reason for why I’ve suddenly reverted back to my original form, but I thank my lucky stars for the timing and I offer no arguments when the doctors treat my bruised and weakened body and attribute the injuries to my close proximity to the recent fight that involved two Superheroes and a supposed Man Eating Giant. They make me lie down and they give me something to dull my pain. It makes me drowsy and I fight sleep, but as my eyes close I consider the fact that they’re going to call my mom to come and get me. I’m miles from home with no explanation of how or why I’m here and I’m in the hospital. She’s gonna be pissed. I think I would have preferred to die by Mistress Buxom’s hands. With that thought firmly planted in my brain, I discreetly adjust my crotch and turn over on my side to enjoy few minutes of stress free rest. At least I’ll have something worthwhile to think about at night.

Studying Short Stories (quickie)

2008-03-12T22:48:00.000-07:00

I've been trying my hand at writing short stories this past year. I've been rather frustrated by my habit of making my stories too complicated or too long - or both. Now I've taken someone's advice and I'm reading the works of other established authors to see how they manage their short stories. Despite my love of science fiction and fantasy, I keep picking up a favorite author of mine - Louis L'Amour. Not only have I been reading his Sackett novels for years, but I've got a pretty massive collection of his short stories as well. He really was a master of telling a good and entertaining story in only a few pages. I really have to suggest the Collected Short Stories of Louis L'Amour (See the link on the right bar). Even if you're not a fan of the western, you really can't deny how engaging these stories are. If you really pay attention I think you can learn a lot on writing Short stories just by emulating this style, or at least by learning what elements make these tales great.

funny word'perfect'

2008-01-30T22:50:00.000-08:00

I'm working through a bit of a block right now for a character named 'Gaspain'. A moment ago I took a break and got some coffee. When I returned my attention was drawn to wordperfect's suggestion to replace the character's name with 'Gas Pain'.

It was worth a chuckle, and I am now nearly frustration free.

:)

I'm also rethinking that particular name.

:(

changes.

2007-12-10T19:48:00.000-08:00

You may, or may not have noticed that certain posts have gone missing from my 'blog'. That is because I'm planning on focusing more on my fiction and my art here. I've realized lately that I'm just not serious enough about my writing and so I've devoted a large portion of my home time to that and nothing else. Hopefully results can be seen before too long.

Oh ho! he's still here!

2007-08-14T23:44:00.000-07:00

What's this? I'm still posting? EGAD!

I've been busy and my brain started to rot, but now I'm being somewhat productive again. I just wanted to leave a small post here with something very important:
Remember the difference between Affect and Effect!

An earthquake will affect all areas around it
The effect will be widespread devastation!

Think about it!

Catch up.

2007-05-30T23:01:00.000-07:00

It's been twenty-five days since my last post here. I've been in kind of a slow period where I have lots of ideas but just can't seem to make them work on paper. I think part of the problem is that I visualize things in a kind of mental movie when I think about them, but I'm not very good at writing about what I "see". This has led me to start thinking about writing in a different way - maybe in the form of a script(s). I've always wanted to see a story of mine on the small screen. Fantasies of an epic mini series have turned it into something of a goal of mine. I've always thought that one of my stories would be turned into something like that; Now I wonder if I should just simply write the story as a script first.
I wonder if I'm taking the easy way out of my writing. I'm not really frustrated by my lack of progress. I really just don't have a lot of time to devote to the effort anymore and I don't have the money to stop working so damn hard to get more time to myself.
(I'd honestly devote more of that time to my wife anyway...)

Meh. This is the most I've typed all week.

Sigh

2007-02-20T23:24:00.000-08:00

I'm bored, and the words aren't flowing as easily as they did this morning so I'm stuck.

In the meantime I recolored a sprite and made Tails cool...and added a tail.

Maybe Nikoda will let me use him on her page

Comments

2007-02-12T22:56:00.000-08:00

Comments. I had wondered why I didn't receive any. Apparently you have to turn them on here, and just about anyone can tell you that I can get anything turned on.

They are now activated. Post about my brilliance on that matter.

Quotable Quotes

2007-02-08T22:45:00.000-08:00

Writing is just having a sheet of paper, a pen, and not a shadow of an idea of what you're going to say.
-Francoise Sagan

So true.

Old story, Old Memories.

2007-02-04T22:36:00.000-08:00

A long time ago I belonged to a great group of people on MSN's fledgling community system. We loved our group so much that we even wrote our own "fan fics" for the place..using our own myriad of ID's and characters. This was the begining (and longest) contribution to the fan fics.
It's a few years old and dated and I was tempted to go through and change a lot of this before posting it, but I figured 'what the hell' and posted it with only a minimum of corrections.
I present My story with no real plot (there was one..a really complex one too!) but some decent fight scenes.
The one thing that was to be constant through out the entre story was a series of running battles with SilverRaven. For some reason I had always wanted to kick her ass ;)

BETWEEN REALMS

There are creatures in the night forest that can move quietly and unnoticed. They can kill without being detected and carry off their prey to feast in relative obscurity. No creature exists, however, that is as silent or as deadly as a vampire on the hunt for blood....

SilverRaven enjoyed the fact that no matter how hard or how fast she ran, her footsteps made no sound. Her stealth was really unnecessary, for her prey was still a good five kilometers off and already knew that the Vampire was coming for her...but Raven loved the quiet, the only sound being the wind rushing by, and she loved pouncing on a victim when they least expected an attack.

The only thing that soured this hunt was the fact that it was more of an assignment. It was not for the thrill of the chase or the exhilaration of feasting on the girl’s warm blood as her life was drained away, but a simple mission for The Kingdom.

After another kilometer, the girl’s scent started to become fresher as Raven closed in. Raven gave up a little of her stealth in order to move faster. Better to get this over with and find someone worthy of the hunt, she figured.

It was then that she stopped short, surprised to see a cloaked figure step into her path. It had been centuries since anyone had gotten the drop on her, and she had thought that she was just too well experienced for it to happen again. Guess I was wrong, she thought.

The figure stepped forward, but not out of the darkness, "Hello Raven, it’s been a while."

Did she know this man? Even with the enhanced sight of a Vampire, she could not pierce the darkness to see him. "Out of my way stranger, I am hunting"

"I know" was his simple answer

Raven went to walk around him when he again stepped onto her path "You are close to angering me and losing your life stranger."

"You don’t recognize me? Even by the sound of my voice?" he chuckled quietly "I hadn’t thought that I had been away that long"

A look of genuine surprise flashed across her face when she did recognized him. "Nass!? Is that you?"

He chuckled again, and the shroud of darkness seemed to lift from him and she was finally able to see his face. "Now that’s better" he said.

"Nass I’d really love to stay and chat my friend, but you really have interrupted something important here."

The smile faded from his face and was replaced by a look of sadness in his eyes. "I know Raven, that’s why I’m here. You can’t kill this girl."

"Excuse me?" another surprise. She hoped this wasn’t going to become a habit with the Jedi.

"You cannot kill the girl."

"Nass, the fate of Nexus depends upon this girl. I must kill her" again she tried to go around him and again he moved to block her path.

"The fate of the universes also depends on this girl. I cannot allow you to pass." the look of sadness deepened.

"You cannot...." she started

"I will not"

There it was, the challenge. He dropped his cloak to the ground but made no move other than that. He was his usual black Jedi Tunic and trousers, but there was one significant difference, his lightsabre was nowhere to be seen. Instead he had a long dagger shoved into his belt. Most unsettling was the simple and unmistakable wooden stake on the opposite side.

"So you have come here to kill me." she said.

"No, only to stop you." he replied, a look of total sadness in on his face. Whatever reason he was doing this, it was obvious that he took no pleasure in it.

"Then.....You will have no choice but to try to kill me Nass the Jedi. I cannot abandon this." She stood ready to defend against the Jedi, yet he made no move towards her, nor did he move out of her way.

"It would be best if you did not provoke me SilverRaven." His voice was suddenly cold and emotionless. "I don’t think that I still have the capabilities to control my anger." The only motion he made was to imitate Raven’s defensive posture.

It was SilverRaven that was trying to control her anger at that moment. Nass had been away from the Nexus for the past six months, there was no way that he could possibly know what he was interfering with. Or did he? His words and actions stated that he did know-something-at least. Had he turned? Fallen to the "Dark Side" that these Jedi fear so much?. She tossed those thoughts aside in an instant. He was in her way. That’s all that mattered. She didn’t want to kill him, but if he would not move.....

"I do not know what your problem is Nass, but this problem is beyond any friendship we may have. If you do not get out of my way I will have to kill you." He didn’t move, not a muscle. "So be it then...you have decided your fate" She leapt at him with the speed that only a Vampire could achieve, her hands in front of her and aimed at his throat. Once again he surprised her by unexpectedly moving out her way. He had moved faster than she had thought a Jedi could and without making barely a sound. Maybe he’d been holding back in his mock battles with War and Ghost, she thought.

She turned around just in time to catch a kick to the side of her head that had been meant for the base of her skull. The force of the blow actually spun her around. Before she regained her balance, she felt a slight impact on her chest accompanied by a soft "whump" sound. She looked down to see the wooden stake buried deep into her chest, just centimeters from her heart. Another surprise. Nass seemed to be full of them tonight. "You missed" she coughed.

He backed away from her a step and shrugged, "I know. My Jedi instinct got in the way".

Then Raven received her final surprise of the night. As Nass stepped back, he moved directly into moonlight that had penetrated the thick upper layers of the forest canopy. The dim light illuminated two distinct marks on his neck...."My god Nass," she breathed, "what have you done?"

He quickly turned away. "I did what was needed to win this battle Raven. Much rested on me being able to defeat you this night."

Everything about him made sense now, and for the first time in centuries, Raven’s felt the beginnings of fear creep into her soul. At the same time, she felt anger and an exhilaration of a challenge flow into her as she realized that this was a battle that she could easily lose. She could not let that happen. With a feral yell she leaped at him again. This time he made no attempt to move away as she assaulted him with a flurry of punches and kicks. At first he slowly fell back, blocking most of her attacks with a speed that no mortal had yet mastered. Then he counterattacked with a ferocity that matched Raven’s own. Neither made any attempt to reach for the daggers they both kept at their sides. This was a contest of skill not of weaponry as they traded blows and ground back and forth. Finally, a lucky roundhouse that connected with Nass’ jaw caused the Jedi to stumble over an exposed tree root and onto the ground. Raven followed close behind him as he rolled away to right himself on one knee. His arm shot out from his side as he came up and she remembered too late about his mastery of the Force. Sharp pain shot through her chest followed by a more intense explosion of pain as he used the force to push the wooden stake still embedded there even deeper before ripping back out of his chest to fly into his waiting hand.

He leapt in front of her again before she could completely recover. Using his free hand he grabbed her by the hair and yanked her head back. "I’m so sorry." was all he said as he stabbed the stake into her chest again. She wanted to fall to the ground, but he quickly move behind her and held her up. She felt no pain this time as his hand grabbed her chin and pulled her head around to the sound of snapping vertebrae.

Only now did he let her limb body fall slowly to the ground as another person emerged from the darkness. "That was most impressive Jedi. I never thought anyone could defeat her" The figure stopped with a bemused look on his face "You’re not crying are you?"

"Surely you know something of personal betrayal Nigel Eternity. What I have done goes against everything I have ever learned as a Jedi...and....She was my friend" He wiped the tears from his eyes and turned away from the Vampire hunter. "There is a cave about three kilometers east of here. Take her there and wait for me."

"You’re not coming? It will be daylight soon."

"I know Eternity, but I have other matters to attend to this night. I will return when I am done."

Nigel Eternity shrugged and reached down to heft Raven’s body onto his shoulder. By the time he stood and turned around, Nass was already long gone.
*****
It wasn’t the first time that he had to care for someone else and play bodyguard, but it was probably the only time that Ghost had ever done it with out the thought of getting anything in return. He dropped another log onto the camp fire as he sat down close to it to warm his hands. He that there wasn’t much time left before one of the Nexus search parties would find them. He just couldn’t move as fast as he wanted to in this weather, and with his charge in such a condition.

He glanced over at his companion whom he was protecting. So this is what it takes to get me to play the good Samaritan huh? At least it’s worth it.......for once.

"If you keep looking at me like that Ghost, I’ll start to think you have a crush on me."

He chuckled and rubbed his hands near the fire. "Maybe I do Rogue, maybe I do."

Rogue stood from her position on the opposite side of the fire from Ghost and gathered her blankets around her as she moved to sit next to him. "I would hope that you do, it’s the only way to explain why you followed me all the way out here." She laid her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. Normally he may have shied away from such a personal gesture, but not this time...and not her. He put his arm around her and felt her shivering from the cold. She already had a thick wool jacket and both of their blankets on her, but they just didn’t seem to be enough. He didn’t say so, but he knew it wasn’t just a cold going through her system, though he suspected that she already knew that.

He moved only to slip his own jacket off of his shoulders and drape it over hers. She started to protest, but she was simply to weak to argue. They stayed like that for almost an hour until he was sure that she was asleep. Then he gently laid her down, taking a spare shirt out of his pack to use as a makeshift pillow for her head. It’s a good thing nobody can see me now. It would just ruin my image for anyone to think of me as "sensitive" He stood and stretched his tired muscles. For two days they had been on the run. He didn’t even know why, he just knew that the Hosts had been the ones to order execution, and they were afraid of something that she might do, or say, or something. Not for the first time in the past few days he thought of Nass, one of the few Hosts that had ever supported him and his crazy ideas, and wishing he was around right now. If only I had someone to make fun of.....Nass would be a perfect target right now....

"Well I’m glad somebody misses me....even if it is only you"

Ghost spun around to face that voice before it was finished speaking. Both of his short swords lay at his feet. Within reach but not close enough for him to grabbed them without taking some damage or just being killed. It all depended on his mood. Instead he began to focus energy in the palm of his hand as he turned to face this threat. Even as he did, he knew this was no threat...still best to be prepared...."Dammit Nass! You trying to get yourself killed?" He said forcefully but quietly, so he wouldn’t wake up Rogue

Nass stepped out of the shadows with a big grin on his face. The tears in his tunic and cuts on his arms were curious, but Ghost thought it might be best if he didn’t ask.....yet.

"How is she?" the Jedi asked, nodding towards Rogue.

"Weak, to say the least." He balled his fists by his sides. "She’s dying Nass"

"Don’t worry Fiend, I won’t let that happen" He bent over and gently lifted Rogue in his arms before turning back to Ghost "Put out that fire and grab your gear, I’ve got a safe warm place for you to bed down tonight."

* * * * * * * * * *

SilverRaven couldn’t remember the last time she had ever had such a pounding headache. She felt a firm grip on her shoulder when she tried to move.

"Easy Raven, your neck may not have healed all the way yet."

"Nass....." she hissed his name through clenched teeth, all the anger of the previous night threatened to boil to the top again. She knew that she could not fight him in this condition and even hope to come out the victor.

"I’m letting you go Raven. You lost this time. Ghost and Rogue are long gone...." he stated matter-of-factly. There was no humor in his voice, but then, no sadness either.

She didn’t push him away when he helped her to her feet, and they both said nothing as she moved to the mouth of the cave and peered out into the darkness.

"Nexus is only a couple of miles due west of here Raven. If you leave now you can make it before dawn."

She gestured towards Nigel Eternity who was leaning against the wall and staring daggers into the Vampire, as if his looks alone could kill her. "What about him?"

Nass glanced back at Eternity then turned back to Raven. "He won’t harm you...tonight."

She believed him. The fact that they both were still alive meant that it somehow benefited the Vampire hunter to take orders from Nass.

She turned back to the cave’s opening and stopped before going outside. She didn’t turn around when she spoke, "You should have killed me when you had the chance. You will never have that chance again....Jedi" With that she ran out into the darkness, straight for her home.

"Don’t be so sure Raven" he said to himself as he watched her go. As soon as she was out of sight the Jedi turned to Nigel. "Follow her, make sure she goes straight to Nexus. If she looks like she might try to come back here or resume her hunt for Rogue, kill her."

"I thought you told her that I wouldn’t harm her." Eternity replied, confused by Nass’ sudden change of heart.

"Forget what I said....And do what I am saying. Follow her." Without another word Nigel Eternity ran out into the darkness.

* * * * * * * * * *

Two Nights later

"Are you sure about this Sorce?" Shell asked nervously, not really wanting to hear the answer.

The former host shook his head so emphatically that it looked as though it might just roll off of his shoulders if he went to far. "Quite sure. In addition to Rogue living up to her name and becoming a true "rogue" as well as Ghost living up to our expectations and once again playing the bad guy. There will be one other Nexian that will stand against us with the power to destroy the Nexus. But this time through pure violence. The Rogue girl has no idea how she will destroy us, it probably won’t even be intentional, but it will happen. But whoever this other figure is, he or she can and will knowingly destroy Nexus if they must, provided Rogue doesn’t get to us first.

Mongo leaned forward, "Do you know who this Traitor is?"

"Not yet...The translation of the scrolls is slow work, and this person has only been referred to as the ‘Herald of Light and Darkness’ so far.

"I can tell you who this traitor is" called Raven from the doorway. "Nass has betrayed us."

Wildcat chuckled softly. "Nass the Jedi? I can’t see that happening anytime soon."

Raven gave the Host a cold stare. "He is no longer a Jedi and he has caused me to fail my mission"

The startled hosts started conversing with each other for a few moments. Everyone but Sorce and Raven appeared to be extremely distressed over this new information. When the commotion started to die down, all eyes turned to Raven, who now stood in the center of the room. Mongo again leaned over the half circle table at which all the hosts sat. "Please Raven, tell us what happened."

The looks of worry and distress at the table increased as she told of the battle and her defeat and her release from the cave to return home.

"I can’t believe Nass has turned against us." Shell said as she slouched back into her seat. "and a Vampire now too!"

"Who could we send to stop him?" asked Corran from the corner of the table.

"I would have thought the answer to that would be simple to figure out" Raven answered, rather tersely. "Warhammer must go. He is the only one here who has sufficient experience in battling both Vampires and Nass himself."

"Will you go with him Raven?" Mongo asked.

She shook her head. "No. I must rest until tomorrow night. Then I will resume my hunt for Ghost and Rogue. I will find them, and I will kill them both. And this time no one will stand in my way"

**********
Is there a Good reason why we must walk at night?" Ghost asked again for the millionth time.

Nass didn’t bother to reply this time, his mind was on more important matters. Since nightfall, they had hiked north along the foot of the mountains with Nass leading the way, Rogue in the middle, and Ghost and Eternity bringing up the rear. Snow was starting to fall, and even though they had been provided with warmer attire and blankets, the coldness was starting to get through.

Rogue actually seemed to be feeling a little better tonight. The color had returned to her cheeks and the cold didn’t seem to affect her as badly, but he still worried about her. "It’s getting colder Nass"

"Wuss" came the muttered reply of the Vampire hunter beside him. It was one of the hardest things he had ever done, but Ghost managed to fight his anger down and ignore him. Instead, he moved to walk beside Rogue. After a few moments of worried staring as they trudged along, he finally asked her how she was doing.

"I’m tired Ghostie, but I’m better. Nass used some of his healing techniques last night....they seem to have helped a bit." They moved on in silence for a while longer before she spoke again. "He’s not the same anymore Ghost. I can’t put my finger on it, but Nass is not the same person we knew."

Ghost stared ahead at the cloaked figure leading the way for them. It had been obvious from the start that something had changed in his friend. It was unsettling, to say the least. "I’ve noticed it as well. If he wants to tell us, he’ll do it when he’s ready."

"I think he wants to tell us Ghosite, but he’s afraid to."

"Heh! Nass afraid? He’s one of the most cautious fighters in Nexus Rogue, but I’ve never seen him afraid of anything."

"I hope so Ghost. The force tells me that his fears could cost him his life very soon." At this, they both grew silent again.

By the time they stopped for the night, the snowfall had increased. The surrounding area was already covered in a crystalized blanket of white. Camp was made in a small hollow in the side the mountain sheltered from the freezing wind. The fire Ghost made wasn’t big, but it was warm enough. Once again, he let his tough demeanor fall away as Rogue settled beside him. Most of the night, they remain close to the fire while, curiously, Eternity and Nass seemed to stay at a considerable distance from the warmth. The Jedi only came near to check on Rogue during the night and to give her some kind of tea when she had a coughing fit. Before he moved away again he turned to Ghost who was fighting to stay awake. "Sleep friend, you have protection enough for the night." Nass passed a hand over his eyes and he finally fell into a short but restful sleep.

* * * * * * * * * *

A cold breeze and lightly falling snow woke him late the next day. The sun was almost directly overhead already. Great, I slept until noon. This trip is gonna ruin my reputation in Nexus forever. The smell of cooked meat directed his attention to where Rogue was preparing some kind of animal over the fire.

"It’s rabbit" Rogue said as she cut a piece off and handed it to him. "They left it for us early this morning."

Ghost bounced the meat from one hand to the other until it was cool enough for him to hold. "They?"

"Nass and Eternity. They left before dawn."

"Hmmm." was all he said. He finally took a bite of the rabbit meat and smiled. "Well how ‘bout that....It tastes like chicken."

"Everything is packed up and ready to go." she added. She lifted a small pot from near the fire and poured some kind of tea into a tin cup before handing it to him. "We should leave camp as soon as you’re done eating."

Just how long has she been up? "Uh......ok. Shouldn’t we wait for Nass? I mean he is the one who knows where we are going after all."

Rogue looked at him as if he had just said the dumbest thing in his life "I know where we are going." She laid a finger against her head "Telepathy Ghost. Nass told me a lot last night."

Telepathy, the most annoying weapon in a Jedi’s arsenal. Sometimes the Jedi would sit and talk in each other’s heads for hours on end and it would drive Ghost nuts not being in on the conversation. Usually, Nass’ ability in telepathy was extremely weak, so he preferred speak like normal human beings do. Though he whispers an awful lot. thought Ghost. It was unusual for him to speak with a non-Jedi using that technique. "So why didn’t anyone tell me where we were going?"

There was that look again. "You didn’t ask....Now hurry up and eat. We have a long day ahead of us."

* * * * * * * * * *

Warhammer had stopped actually looking for tracks by midday. It had become increasingly apparent that Nass and his three companions had dispensed with stealth in favor of speed and the direction in which they were going grew more obvious with every passing mile. The snow capped Alasian Mountains, where the tracks of the fleeing party headed, was shrouded in heavy clouds. "Might have a storm brewing, that could slow them down a bit." He muttered to himself. On the other hand, he might get caught in that storm as well. Luckily, he had come prepared for just such an emergency. Raven would catch up with him after nightfall and they would track their quarry together for a while. With any luck, He and Raven would have them before the end of the week. His thoughts drifted to Raven. Her desire to finish her mission was a little strange. War understood why she would want to get to Rogue just to spite Nass for preventing it the first time, but there was something more to it than that. There was a hunger in her eyes when she had spoke of the hunt, something that went beyond a normal Vampyre bloodlust.

A raucous cry from above interrupted his thoughts and he looked up into the afternoon sky. A large black bird circled high overhead. Keeping an eye on me Raven? he chuckled to himself. Turning his attention back to the mountains, he frowned and spurred his horse forward again to his imminent encounter and inevitable battle with Nass the Jedi

* * * * * * * * * *

When they had started out around noon amid an ever growing snowfall, Rogue had led the way, shouldering the heaviest of packs and leading them on a narrow path up from the base of the mountains to higher ground. By the time evening came around, she had grown incredibly weak again, and ghost had taken both packs onto his shoulders to give her a rest. Whatever Nass had given her the night before seemed to have suddenly and unexpectedly worn off, leaving her sickness (or whatever it was that ailed her) to take hold again. Despite that, she insisted that they continue on, and that Nass and Nigel Eternity would soon be back.

Almost two hours after nightfall They did indeed return. No one spoke as Nigel took both packs off of Ghost and Nass picked up the exhausted Rogue in his arms. They moved on in silence for the next five hours before stopping. Eternity went about setting up camp as Rogue and Ghost collapsed on the rocky ground, completely spent and unable to move any further.

Once a they had a fire going, Nass spoke for the first time that night and called Ghost over to him.

He crouched down beside his friend as the Jedi removed the small tin coffee pot from one of the packs and filled it halfway with water from one of the canteens. Once he set the pot into the white coals of the fire (Ghost noticed how carefully he moved near the fire) He reached into his cloak and produced a small cloth bag. "Listen closely Ghost. You will have to do this tomorrow during the day and you will have to do this right." he drew three small dried leaves from the bag. "These are L’lenga leaves Ghost, they have certain healing powers. If you can administer these to Rogue daily and correctly then she will be able to make it through this leg of our journey until we can fully help her." He took the pot from the fire and crushed the leaves into fine pieces in his hand before dropping them into the boiling water. A sweet scent drifted up from the pot and almost immediately Ghost felt some of his energy return to him as he inhaled the aroma. Nass smiled "You see how powerful they are?" Ghost nodded "Good. Now, you must take three leaves and grind them up over boiling water twice a day. Once around noon, and again after midnight. Only use three leaves Ghost. More would certainly help her, but these are extremely rare, and you do not have that many. Got it?" Too tired to mention that Nass was treating him like a child and a CafeBot with the brain of a coffee machine could get it right, Ghost merely nodded again.

Nass poured the brew into a tin cup and handed it to Ghost. "Take this to Rogue. Take a few sips yourself, but give her most of it." As Ghost walked away, Nigel Eternity moved in to take his place next to Nass.

"He’s been quieter than usual." he said as he knelt down beside the Jedi "I’m used to him talking so much that I just want to put a bullet through his thick skull."

Nass watched Ghost as he gave the tea to Rogue. "he’s out of his element for the first time in a long time. He has no idea what is happening or why. He just jumped in to save Rogues life, and this is where it’s got him."

"Why did he do that? Save her I mean. His so-called code of honor?"

Nass nodded, "And because he cares about her. He’ll fulfill his part of the prophecy nicely....." his voice trailed off and he stood to look off at the direction they had come.

"What is it" Eternity asked his hand strayed to the gun he kept by his side. Ghost, also noting the change came to stand close with a sword in hand.

The cawing of a large bird was heard coming from deeper in the forest. "Is that a Crow? way out here?" Ghost asked.

"It’s a raven....and he’s mine." he held up a hand to cut off Ghost’s next question. "I’m being hunted.....Warhammer is coming." He turned to Eternity. "Take them as far as the cabin at the pass. Help is waiting there. Move fast, SilverRaven is not far off."

"What about you?"

"I’ll be fine...meet me at Dragoon in two weeks. Ghost...Keep Rogue safe at all costs."

"No problem." he glanced back at the sleeping young woman. "No problem at all."

Without another word, Nass disappeared into the cold winter night, to find and battle a great Warrior he called "friend".

**********

Sunlight to a Vampyre is like a flame to dry grass. It does not kill immediately, but prolonged exposure will destroy any Vampyre unfortunate enough to caught in the sun’s rays. Fortunately for her, Raven was no longer an ordinary Vampyre. Sometime ago, on her birthday, Warhammer had given her a magical pendant that gave Raven the ability to withstand the sunlight. The only drawback was that her powers were considerably weaker during her time in the sun, but she was able to hunt her prey continuously through night and day. She had been running and fast since she had come across the fresh scent of her prey two hours earlier. Now she knew she was only a few minutes away from her ultimate goal and, even in her weakened state, she knew that there was nothing that they could do to prevent her from catching them both and killing them. Nightfall was still a good five hours away, and they were alone and without the protection of the Vampyre hunter until then. Her anticipation was so great, she could almost taste Rogue's blood on her lips.

In the two days since Nass had left the small company, Rogue and Ghost (and Nigel Eternity during the night) had quickly made their way through the wind and snow towards a gap in the mountains called Goeza’s pass. Eternity had explained that there was a cabin at the entrance to the pass, and there they would find more help. They Raven wouldn’t be foolish enough to try to fight when she would be so greatly outnumbered.

Stopping every day to make a small fire for Rogue’s "medicine" was time consuming, but seemed worth it. Ghost noticed a surge of energy and strength in her every time she drank the tea, but it’s effect seemed to wear off faster each day. Today as she finished the last of the brew, she noticed Ghost’s focused attention on the land behind and below them.

She moved beside him at the edge of the small outcropping of rock that was sheltering the from the wind and sat down. "What is it?"

He pointed below. "Someone is down there, at the edge of the treeline. Following us."

Her gaze followed the direction his finger was pointing and, sure enough, a distant figure was moving rapidly up the side of the mountain along the same trail that they had used. "who could it be?"

"Easy.....it’s SilverRaven."

She gave him a skeptical look. "Raven’s a Vampyre Ghost. It’s still daytime and..."

Ghost shook his head and interrupted her "I don’t know how she’s doing it, but I guarantee that that’s Raven down there."

He got up and hurried to the fire and kicked it out before slinging his pack over his shoulder, "we need to move now and we need to move fast. If we can’t make it to the pass by nightfall, we’ll be in for the fight of our lives." He waited until Rogue had her pack before heading up the trail and hoping that whoever was up there would be enough to repel the demon below.

Stopping at an old campsite near the bottom of the mountains, Warhammer dismounted his horse and bent down near the earth to study the various markings and tell-tale signs of passage. "At least three days old. I’ll be lucky if a I catch up to him before next month." He muttered to himself, frowning. He was so intent on searching the ground for more recent markings that it was a good three minutes until he realized that he was not alone. Standing abruptly and reaching for his blade, he whirled to face the newcomer. The words "One more step and I’ll cleave you in two!" never were uttered when he saw who that person was.

Nass stood at the edge of the small clearing, not leaving the treeline. It’s was still daylight, and Warhammer could not make out any signs of jewelry or other talisman’s similar to the pendant he had given to Raven. If Nass was truly a Vampyre, he shouldn’t be able to be outside during the daytime. Even though he had known the Jedi for quite a while, this recent turn of events had surprised him. He wanted to believe Raven’s description of what happened, but at the same time, he couldn’t believe that Nass would do such a thing. He had to see for himself just what his old friend was up to, and if Raven was right, he would have to kill him.

They stood there for a moment, staring at each other and evaluating ech other as that had done many times in the past before their sparring matches. It was Warhammer who first broke the silence. "Raven told me that you’ve become a Vampyre."

"She has told you the truth" there was a strange look on the Jedi’s face.

"If that’s so, how are you able to be outside in the sunlight?"

Nass stepped out of the trees and the shade they provided and into the brighter light of the clearing. Warhammer noticed his sharp intake of breath and the slight, almost imperceptable wince as the sunlight fell on his face. However he’s managed this, the sunlight still effects him.....that is .....useful.

"It’s a long story Warhammer.....and we don’t have time." He gestured to War’s sword. "You came here for a fight.....do you plan on proceding?"

"Do you plan on interfering with Raven’s hunt?"

A cold smile creeped onto Nass’ face that chilled Warhammer to the bone. "Oh....most definitely... and I will stop anyone else that may follow afterwards." Then the smile disappeared to be replaced by a sad frown. "I don’t want to kill you my friend. There are things that are happening that will effect not just our world, but space and time itself. The Nexus will be just a small pebble in the avalanche that awaits. I would rather you fight by my side than against me."

"I would never betray Nexus Nass...not even for Raven."

"Not even to save millions of lives?" The Jedi/Vamp asked.

Warhammer shook his head. "I would need proof Nass...and somehow I doubt that you have any."

"I’m sorry War. I don’t...not with me, at any rate. I just ask that you trust me."

"I....I can’t....not this time." The air itself seemed heavy as War said those words.

The cold look returned to Nass’ face. "So be it." He reached to the hilt of the sword he kept by his side and drew it out of its scabbard. It seemed to be made of a dark blue crystal instead of steel and a dim light glowed from within the opaque blade. "From this point on there is no turning back....Our friendship will be over."

War unsheathed his blade as well, holding before him in a defensive posture. "Then..." he sighed "..our friendship is over."

Nass wasted no more time to talk. He leapt high into air, swinging his blade down in a massive arc aimed at War’s head. War stepped to his left and parried the blow as the Jedi landed. He turned back just in time to block another cut as Nass pressed the attack. Launching into a flurry of quick cuts and slashes, he proceeded to push Warhammer across the clearing. The big knight was just barely blocking each swing and a few actually grazed the light armor he was wearing.

When War finally ducked under a cut meant to catch him at the neck Nass staggered forward having put to much force behind the swing. War quickly rose up and brought the pommel of his sword down on the back of the Jedi’s head. Nass dropped his sword and fell to the ground but managed to roll away just as War tried to stab down. The knight yanked his sword out of the earth as a dazed Nass stuggled to stand a few feet away.

"You have the Force....and you may be some kind of Vampyre, but I have almost a hundred years of experience and I have killed more Vampyres than you could ever imagine." He said, using the moment to try and catch his breath.

Nass glanced at his sword at War’s feet and then at the knight. "I’ll not make this easy for you."

"Nor I for you." Warhammer replied.

Without another word Nass leaped at War, his hand outstretched and using the force to call his weapon to him. The mighty Warhammer met the attack head on with his own sword and the battle began again.

**********

Ghost and Rogue were running as fast as they could possibly run. The winding mountain trail, deep snow, and heavy packs slowed them down considerably. "Faster!" Ghost yelled to Rogue who was running ahead of him, "Faster! She’s gaining!" SilverRaven was unburdened by anything other than her clothing and seemingly running on top of the snow. She had quickly closed the gap between herself and the two Nexus "fugitives" in the ten minutes since she had spotted them running from the cover of the small rock outcropping. Now she laughed out loud as she watched them scurrying away like mice from a cat. "Run mice, Run!" she laughed again as they picked up their pace, trying to push faster through the snow. She was almost upon them now, and she gathered her self for one final leap.

Rogue never had a chance. Raven landed just behind her, her razor sharp claws ripped through the tough fabric of rogue’s jacket and cut deep into her back. Raven twisted her hand out in such a way that Rogue spun around to face her even as she fell into the snow. The scent of hot blood kept the Vampyre’s attention so focused on Rogue that she forgot about Ghost until he stabbed one of his swords through her chest. She howled in rage and backhanded him away so hard that he went sprawling back down the mountain side in a rolling cascade of snow and rocks. Leaping down after him and landing in a spray of snow, she kicked him in the chest as he struggled to stand.

Ghost tried to crawl away from the Vampyre but she again kicked him in the side of the chest, rolling him farther down the mountain trail. Confident that he was no longer a threat, Raven turned around and lightly sprinted back up the trail to where her prey lay helpless.

Warhammer ducked as Nass’ crystal sword hissed by overhead. The Jedi had learned from his last mistake and didn’t put all his weight into the swing. Instead he twisted around and swung the sword low at War’s legs. The large knight blocked that blow and Nass hopped back a step before stabbing in quickly and retreating again.

War stepped in quickly to close the gap and pressed the attack. Nass was an aggressive fighter, but usually faltered when it came to counter attacks and defense. This time however, it looked as though the two warriors were evenly matched due to Nass’ new vampyre speed and coordination. Despite that, War was confident that he would win as he had won all of their sparring matches in the past.

"I don’t want to kill you!" he shouted as he thrust his sword at Nass’ chest.

The Jedi easily knocked the sword aside but didn’t counter attack. Instead, he slipped into a defensive posture to parry the next blow. "You think that I want to kill you....or risk being killed myself?" he yelled back above the clanging of the swords. "I met you here for a reason Warhammer." Before the knight could respond a wave of force-energy slammed into him and knocked him to the ground. Bright light burst in his sight as his head hit the earth hard. As he struggled to remain conscious, he heard the Jedi’s voice in his mind "I have something to show you.....my friend. Let me explain who, what, and where...... we are."

Rogue had managed to turn over onto her back. The cold snow did nothing to alleviate the burning pain along her spine. By the time Raven had reached her again she had managed to stop most of the bleeding with a simple spell, but not before a pool of blood had melted the snow under and around her. The smell was intoxicating to the Vampyre, and once again she forgot about Ghost as she concentrated on the young girl at her feet.

"You reek of fear Rogue." Raven kneeled down beside her and scooped up a handfull of bloody snow. "Do you fear me?"

Rogue tried to crawl back away from Raven, but was too weak to move more than a few inches "I fear nothing...especially you vampyre." she answered quietly, hoping she sounded braver than she felt. "You can’t hurt me." She tried to sit up but Raven placed a hand on her shoulder and easily pushed her back down into the snow.

She chuckled dryly as she leaned in close to rogue’s face "You’ve been around Ghost far too long girl...you’ve even picked up some of his worst lines" She smiled, and bared her fangs for the first time. "and yes child....I can ...and will... hurt you" Raven grabbed Rogue’s neck and roughly pulled her up as she opened her mouth and prepared to feed.

Rogue closed her eyes as Raven leaned into her neck. Just as she felt Raven’s breath on her skin, a flash of blue light and crackle of electric energy caused her to open her eyes in time to see Raven lifted of of her and knocked down the mountain side by a bolt of blue/white mage lightning.

SolarMage prepared to attack again as Raven stood and dusted the snow off of her body. "they say lightning never strikes in the same place twice" he called down to Raven as he moved to stand by Rogue. "Care to test that theory SilverRaven?"

The lightning had struck at Raven’s right shoulder and had traveled down her arm leaving her skin blackened and blistered. Amazingly enough she moved the arm freely as if she felt no pain or didn’t even realize the damage that had been done. Her eyes flashed a fiery red and she glared at SolarMage. "You should not mettle in affairs that do not concern you...." She began walking back up the path "Now you will be the next to die." She easily dodged the next bolt, leaping to the side of the path as the blue energy melted a large patch of snow behind her. She leaped again as another hit at her feet. She landed only a few feet from Rogue and SolarMage. A slight movement directed her attention to her right where Gabby the Warrior Bard stood quietly.

Her presence made Raven stop and think. Killing Rogue and Ghost was easy. She might even get away with killing the husband of a Host. But killing those three and a host? She hesitated for a moment, but the smell of blood and the power that she felt coming from Rogue was irresistible, and she took another step forward.

"Don’t Raven" said Gabby. "we don’t want to hurt you."

"Oh yes we do....." a voice rasped from behind the Vampyre.

Ghost...thought Raven. The only thing worse than a mortal is a stubborn mortal. She turned slightly to see him. He stood about three meters away. Although he tried his best not to show it, she knew she had hurt him. She knew that her last kick had broken several of his ribs and that at least one of them had punctured a lung from the bright red blood that dribbled from his mouth and the way he held his side. Raven smiled, but it quickly turned to a frown as she analyzed her situation. Though she had never fought against SolarMage or Gabby, she knew that they were a formidable pair....and even an injured Ghost could almost be as dangerous as Warhammer if he had reason to fight. The odds were against her....and she smiled again...this time at the thought of such a challenge.

**********

A million memories flooded through the mighty Warhammer’s mind, memories that he knew were not his own but at the same time he knew that they were his. They were of a place he had never known, but it was the place of his birth and life. Some were of the places of his brushes with death and some of his death itself. Through it all he felt the presence of Nass, the Jedi turned vampyre, guiding him and helping him sort through the memories of his life that he had forgoten.

Then, after what seemed like an eternity, he understood everything. As all the pieces fell into place he felt as if he were bathed in a bright light, and all of the secrets of this universe were revealed to him. In the next instant as the connection was abruptly broken and Nass was torn away, Warhammer plunged into darkness and pain, the likes of which he had never experienced before.

Mavre Ash’la, the Dragon Knight, had two faults. First, he was young and reckless, and was always jumping into a situation that he did not fully understand. Second, he practically worshiped his hero...Warhammer. It was his hero worship that caused him to track Warhammer into the mountains when he had heard that the Knight had gone hunting a new vampyre. His recklessness was what caused him, upon finding a shadowed form leaning over War, to go charging into the clearing against a foe he knew nothing about.

The execution of the attack was perfect and fast and without sound. The enemy was so distracted with whatever it was doing that it never heard the cursed blade Anaxnia slide from it’s scabbard. The enemy never knew Mavre was there until the blade was driven into its back and slid through its ribs to expose itself at the base of the enemy’s chest.

SilverRaven wished for the first time that she had brought more than just her small dagger along for the hunt. Ghost had been the first to attack. Even in his weakened state he still moved with surpirising speed and agility and had actually managed to drive Raven back quite a distance during his first attacks. Still she had managed to block or parry every cut with only her dagger. She was patient, his lungs were filling up with blood and fluid and he was losing strength and concentration rapidly. Then at the right moment, she struck out with her hand and raked her claws through his chest and sent him down onto the ground. Before she could finish him off, Gabby jumped into the fight with a storm of quick blows from her quarter staff. Raven actually heard the bones snap as a lucky blow connected with her wrist. Not feeling any pain, she used that very hand to punch Gabby in the stomach before backhanding her to the ground. A bolt of SolarMage’s blue/white lighting exploded nearby, knocking her off her feet as Ghost rushed in again with his one remaining sword held as if he planned to stake her to the ground. She rolled away, but not before he stabbed down on her hand and removed two of her fingers. Raven quickly got to her feet and looked at both of her hands. She roared.....more in anger then in pain. The fight was not going as she expected, but at least she would still win.

Ghost leaned heavily on his sword and smiled. A steady stream of blood trickled from his mouth and nose and he was coughing up more with every breath. "I hope......that it doesn’t...hurt....too much......"

The fire in Ravens eyes flashed red again and she moved closer to Ghost. "you are a worthy opponent Ghost.....for a mere mortal. You have just one problem......you refuse to die."

"Oh I’ll die.....soon....enough vamp....", he choked out the words..."after....I’ve killed you"

The Vampyre laughed out loud at that. She laughed even harder when he yanked his sword out of the ground and stood ready to attack her again. He could barely stand and was beginning to lose consciousness but still held his ground. "You are a brave man ghost, and Rogue was fortunate to have a warrior of such skill and blind loyalty by her side." She moved close to him. His eyes were unfocused, and she was sure he could barely even see her as she grabbed his shoulders. "I am giving you an honor no mortal has ever recieved from me....I am going to give you a quick and relatively painless death." Her hands went to his neck "to put you out of your misery......and mine."

SolarMage jumped onto her back and wrapped his arms around her neck. "Gotcha!". Currents of mage energy surged from his hands into her body and she pushed Ghost away to land limp in the snow. She raked her claws along Solar’s arms but still he held on and still he poured raw energy into her. She screamed as she felt her flesh begin to heat up and blister. Her whole body seemed as if it would burst into flames. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Gabby charging at her, ready to rejoin the battle and help her husband. As the Warrior Bard swung her staff, Raven twisted around with a tremendous speed that sent Solar’s legs flailing outward into Gabby’s head. Then he finally lost his grip and went flying off of Raven’s back.

Raven had lost all control now, in the past week she had suffered the embarassment and humiliation of being beaten by a mere novice warrior Jedi and now had almost been defeated by three even worse warriors...one of which had been half dead. "I HAVE HAD ENOUGH!" she screamed as loud as she could. Her entire body seemed to take on a nightmarish feral state as she let loose all of her fury and anger. "YOU WILL ALL DIE NOW! I WILL FEED ON YOUR BLOOD AND I........." Suddenly she stopped mid sentence andher whole body trembled as she fell to her knees.......

"Warhammer..........no......" she breathed........In an instant she was up and running at full tilt back down the mountainside, hoping that she wasn’t too late.

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Anaxnia. The Dragon’s Bane. Forged with enchanted steel and the scales of the hated Black Dragons it was an evil weapon with the ability to instantly cut through the thick hide of Dragons and enchanted to keep them from being able to heal their wounds even with the help of magic. A wound caused by Anaxnia on any other creature would simple begin to rot instantly without any hope of recovery. The creature that now had Anaxnia sticking out of it’s back did not move even as the wound festered around the sword. Mavre left the blade there, holding it firmly in place, hoping that the wound would grow to encompass the entire body.

His confidence was quickly shattered when the enemy stirred, then stood straight, with the blade still sticking through it’s chest.

"Have you ever known fear?" It asked. It still faced away from Mavre, looking down at the still form of Warhammer. It reached around and grabbed the blade of the sword just above where it entered it’s back and pulled it out as if he felt no pain.

"If fear nothing." The young knight replied.

Nass the Vampyre turned around to face the young man. "In the last few remaining moments of your life you will know fear.