Am I my brother's Keeper? [Magina and Terrorblade]

[Strange_Kid]

AAAH ITS MONDAY KEN WHERE ARE YOU D:

[kennotlah]

Act 5 Scene 6
There she stood, unmovable as a rock. The iron-clad amazon faced down the winged demon who folded his arms in pure arrogance. All about them, the demon's minions, formed a circle around the two fighters, gnashing their teeth and sharpening their nails for the lunge.

“Warden you would do well to lose hope. For clearly you are at the end of your rope. I outnumber you a hundred to one. It is hopeless even if you run.”
Terrorblade's posture visibly relaxed, completely at ease with his advantage.

The glinting helm of the Warden tilted.

Both Warden and demon stared at each other, sizing up each other in silence. The Warden was observing her foe warily, her hands were ready to draw.
Terrorblade beat his gargolye wings and snarled menacingly at his opponent. Underestimating the wardens would be a deadly mistake.

She called out his name. His birth name. His true name. That gave even the Terrorblade paused.

"No one outside my family calls me by that name. Warden. It is obvious you have no idea why I am called the Terrorblade."

"In the name of the law, I bid thee hearken to me," She pronounced his true name again.

"You have been warned, Warden. Do not say my name again."

She called his true name again.

Terrorblade's mood grew fouler.

"Under the power vested in me as Head Warden, I arrest you under the charges of treason and necromancy."

Then Terrorblade let loose a huge maniacal laugh.

"You are not prepared!"

She did not reply, instead she threw a powerful magically charged bolt at him.
Smack! The ball of arcane energies hit Terrorblade in the chest and exploded in a loud concussive blast.

Terrorblade roared in pain, his head felt like it was spinning.

Forget what she said. He would have to take her down. Now.
He summoned all his magic and his skills for battle. Terrorblade raged, letting demonic energy flood his veins. His power kept on increasing and increasing. Not enough. He didn't have enough. He needed more.

Swiftly, Terrorblade sent out huge magic sucking green energy tendrils. Each were as thick as his waist and endlessly long. They were out to steal from the
living in order to power up their demonic master. The very best necromancers can send out nine evil tendrils to destroy everything about them to empower
their master.

Terrorblade sent out one hundred of them, causing the sky to shimmer in the evil tinge of phosphorus green.

The iron-clad elf seemed frozen by such a spectacle of power. Terrorblade gave her a wicked grin.

The evil tendrils burst out, snaking greedily to trees, shrubs and animals.*For one mile around, the forests of Edeaic Valley and the living things
shrivelled up. This is power. Overwhelming power.

Very visibly, the warden was gripping her blade tighter than normal. She was not his match to begin with.

Now he was showing her true despair by showing her how much power he could gain easily with his necromantic skills.

"Come and play, little girl." Terrorblade gave her a wolfish grin.

[Strange_Kid]

i almost think you died or something. Where have you been?

[kennotlah]

Yikes. Slipped my mind. Forgot to post. And It's up! I'm taking a break for two weeks due to exams. See you on the 24th Sept

@Strange Kid: Sry about that. btw that was an old military song
@Ex_Venomancer: Its only here. sry kiddo. unless some guys rips off me and post it as theirs
@Mortality11: I have exams too. all the best. See you in two weeks times

[Strange_Kid]

wait what song?
goodluck on your exam.

[Ex_Venomancer]

oh, it's okay. keep going dude!

good luck on your exam! we'll wait patiently.

[Geno.]

Damn, that was pretty well written.

[kennotlah]

Act Five Scenes 7

The winged demon brandished his large blades with ease. His glowing eyes watching everything with great interest.

The warden zipped past Terrorblade's monsters and engaged the demoniac elf in melee combat. A concealed dagger went for his abdomen. Terrorblade narrowly avoided it.

He aimed a kick. But the warden was swifter. Her blade slashed hard.
Terrorblade recoiled his foot with a howl.

Taking her opportunity, the masked warden prepared another magical bolt and slammed it at Terrorblade's chest in a loud concussive blast of light. The entire forested area exploded into a large cloud of dust.

The warden tilted her head, puzzled. It was not supposed to be that powerful.

When the dust cleared, a horned figure was still standing. As if he was not even injured during the battle.

"Too slow," he breathed.

The Warden threw another magical bolt.

Terrorblade side-stepped the attack and with a deft twist of his blades, he pinned the ironclad warrior to the ground. She tried to squirm out, but Terrorblade suppressed her struggle.

She hissed and screamed her head off, thrashing hard to get free.
"What would Magina think of you?"

Terrorblade was stunned.

"Wait one moment. You speak as if Magina is not dead? What is this?"
The warden took advantage of his momentary confusion. She secreted a shard of a diffusal blade in her boot. She kicked the demoniac elf hard, burying the shard into his thigh. He doubled over in pain.

The Warden recovered and began violently beating him down. She grabbed him by his hair and slammed it to the ground.

Repeatedly.

Terrorblade tried to draw on the vast reserve of magic he stole. To his surprise, the shard in his thigh reacted violently with the magic. His whole body shuddered and began changing. Chaotic energies ran afoul in his body, auras emanating from him so thick that they looked like a

Metamorphosis.

It was as if some invisible force lashed out at the ironclad warrior, like a rag doll she was slammed against a tree. Terrorblade got up; his body ran afoul with runaway demonic energies. Tiny whispers from another realm seemed to emanate from the energies.

"You are going to regret that. Warden”
Mortred Silkwood," the demon uttered in a legion of sonorous voices, voices that chilled the marrow, voices of torment and hate and anguish and lust and envy. The demon rose and grabbed the warden and lifted her bodily. The winged demon had the Warden in his grip.

She squirmed and tried to break free with her martial arts, but it was futile.
Terrorblade overpowered her.

The metamorphosed Terrorblade who was transformed by dark demonic powers, unsheathed his blade. The warden was helpless in his grip.

"Surrender to me. Now"

"Never."
The helmeted face jutted out the jaw in a most defiant manner.

"Then I will enjoy the look on your face. When I stick you with my blade over and over again until you submit," Terrorblade breathed.

He called for all of his undead to hold the warden in place. Dead hands gripped her arms and legs with a deathlike-vise. With his left hand, he steadied a wicked curved blade. With his right, Terrorblade grasped the heavy set helmet and ripped it off.

Beautiful violet hair spilled out, revealing a face that was not Mortred Silkwood.

But Shendelzare Silkwood.

Shock registered in Terrorblade's eyes.

"You are not Mortred Silkwood." Terrorblade mouthed, completely dumbfounded.

There was a sudden wosh. A whistle in the wind. The blade knocked out of his hand. It fell among the grass. Terrorblade withdrew his arm, numb from being struck by a thrown rock. The demon turned about like a vigorous bull, looking for the assailant.

Who was so daring as to attack him?

It was Mortred Silkwood. Except that she was not wearing any armour at all, only a dull tunic and leggings. There was no mistaking her features.
"What! Two wardens?" Terrorblade looked completely bewildered.
"Let my sister go, you pig."
Instantly, he let go.

***
Terrorblade lost his chance right there and then.

\Mortred leaped on him and floored him in one move. The winged demon was useless in spite of his massive girth. Mortred pinned him down by sitting on his chest.

Mortred removed a fan of blades from her pouch. In quick succession she aimed for his critical points in his body and drove the blades in. The animal meridian points. Sure way to pin down any being.

"Yak. Octopus. Urchin. Ant. Rat. Elephant. Scorpion. Cat. Rabbit. Eagle. Wyvern. Eel. Dog."

Pinned violently, Terrorblade screamed his head off, his neck veins gorged with blood flowing to his head and his face was flaming red.

"I'll rip you in half you crazy b-"

In a wild spurt of blood, the demon elf screamed and shuddered, violently trashing against the deadly pins. Slowly and surely, Terrorblade weakened.
Before he passed out, he whispered,

"Akasha... I'm sorry."

"For good measure." Mortred said savagely before she plucked out Terrorblade's eyes. She ruthlessly crushed them into a messy splat.

Mortred double checked that the demon-elf was downed before she got off. Shendelzare clasped anti-magic chains over Terrorblade.

Breathing heavily, both sisters were covered in thick perspiration.
"Got him. Thank you Sister, "Shendelzare panted her hair slick with sweat. Her violet visage filled with tiredness.

Suddenly she stiffly kissed Mortred on the temple.
"I love you, Sis."

Surprised, Mortred stared at her sister's shining eyes.
"You're welcome." Mortred replied gently.

Suddenly, fifty wardens sprang out of their hiding place. In a disciplined orderly manner, they surrounded the two wardens and drew their blades.

"That's the signal! Go go go! Don't let her break through!"

"What's the meaning of this?" Mortred yelled. She was on her feet, a tad unsteady, her weapons drawn.

Mortred breathing was heavier. It sounded like slime dripping off a wall. Thick and slow. Something was wrong.

One Warden stepped out and read from a piece of parchment.

"Mortred Silkwood. You are under arrest for the unsanctioned provocations of war and provoking civil war amongst the Wardens."

Mortred's eyes drooped with a drugged heaviness.

Realization hit her right there and then.

That kiss was drugged. Shendelzare must have -

Mortred seethed. She turned and looked at Shendelzare.

"Sister, please come in quietly. We are trying to smooth the flow of the judicial process," Shendelzare asked quietly.

"So has Furion completely subverted the proud Wardens to be his puppets? Are you now bending over to be cronies of Furion?" Mortred screamed with all her might.

There was silence among the grim wardens.

No one spoke a word. No one lowered their blade. Mortred looked about and around her.

"I see betrayal. I am betrayed. There are conspirators out to get me. Even from my own sister. My flesh and blood!" Mortred shrieked. Her face was more terrible than the horrid visage of the harpy."

“I can no longer be a Warden,” She hissed.

Reluctantly, she gave in to drugged sleep.

[Jonmcdonald]

Bas-ass.

At first, when Terrorblade gets his eyes ripped out, I was like: He's dead? But then I realised he's blind in the future.

[Yuri Bakura]

why u so weak ? stupid terrorblade !

[Strange_Kid]

Originally Posted by Yuri Bakura

why u so weak ? stupid terrorblade !

I won't expect less from someone that slay balanar at night XD

GOOD STORY CANT WAIT TILL NEXT SUNDAY!!!!11!!!!!

[Ex_Venomancer]

humaygawd... *shock in disbelief* I keep cupping my cheeks until I can move on....

nice nice.. XD looking forward for the continuation!

[kennotlah]

Act 5 Scene 8

Shendelzare marched down a tunnel of polished marble lit by numerous magical torches. Her armoured greaves clicked against the cold hard floor. She greeted the wardens on patrol. Her aide was beside her, holding a sheaf of papers and reading from them.

"Mistress. I fear that the Wardens are are not happy with the imprisonment of Warden Mortred. They have been making violent protests. I fear that they may resort to assassinating you very soon."

Shendelzare bit her lip, her brows furrowed and her left foot made a clicked hard on the ground.

"Who are these people. I thought that we have support of all the Wardens."

"Those dissenters are mostly those die-hard supporters of your sister, Mistress."

Shendelzare bared her teeth for a brief moment, before a mask of authority descended over her face. She waved at the warden.

"Arrest the ringleaders. Put them all into prison. They will take this time in prison to think which Head Warden will they obey. My sister or I."

The warden gave her a toady smile, "A Warden lives to serve the system. Not to destroy it."

"Indeed. I'll take that and the reports you have." Shendelzare spoke as her feet turned her left and went to her office.

Shendelzare Silkwood was ready to bury it away. She kept the sheaf of papers. Dentention forms for Terrorblade and Mortred. Her underground office felt like this some days. A place where good or evil are being subjugated by paperwork. The paper tyrannizes good and evil.

She had bypassed one of the few administrative officers working at the line of appeals. The Luigi family had a son who murdered someone's daughter were appealing against the judgment. As fate would have it, the ven Fentress family also sought to appeal against the judge's light sentence of the murderer of their uncle. It was ugly.

"There will be order here, if you want to fight, stop wasting my time and go to the back of the queue."

She superciliously ordered them out of the queue and carried on stamping and signing forms.

Shendelzare averted her eyes and quickly browsed through the Detention Orders.

-also known as Terrorblade. Detained indefinitely. Indefinite interrogation. Execution on a later undetermined date. Approved.

Signed, Head Warden Shendelzare Silkwood. Counter Signed, Prophet Furion Stormrage

Mortred Silkwood, previous Head Warden. Detained indefinitely until review of case. Indefinite Surveillance. Approved.

Signed, Head Warden Shendelzare Silkwood. Counter Signed, Leshrac Keeper of the Grove. Ezalor Archmage of Dalaran and High Delegate to the Kal'dorei.

she heaved a heavy sigh and filed those papers away.

There was a rap on the door.

"Mistress. You would not believe it. He's awake."

she rose up, her eyes shining.

Then she ran.

Shendelzare burst into her room. There was a figure on her four poster bed. His back faced Shendelzare. Looking out there somewhere. The servants surrounded him and tried to push him back to bed.

She threw her hands around him and wept.

Trembling hands reached up to hers and clasped them.

His voice was dry and raspy, "Shendelzare..."

"Shh...Don't speak now," she cried and locked her embrace tighter.

"Shendelzare..."

"Everything will be fine. everything will be fine," she whispered fiercely to Magina. Trying hard to believe her own words.

Then his words came back to her. "Shendelzare... I can't see where you are. It's so dark here."

Disbelief battered Shendelzare. She broke out of the embrace and took a good look at his face.

They were a shell of his former glory. Once handsome, now gaunt and thin. Long wispy strands of hair cascaded down his face.

Then she saw his eyes, it was blank and vacant.

She waved in his face thrice, biting back her horror. He did not even flinch. His eyes were still blank and vacant.

***

Magina was at the manor of an Kal'dorei healer. One of the few who specialized in rehabilitative healing. Galenus Hippocrates was a druid famous for his poultices and regime of massages and exercise that boasted swift recovery. Fame has its price. His patient lists are longer than a snake and his prices cost a fortune. Furion arranged for Magina to go to Galenus. In hours, Magina was in the manor and recuperating.

"Galenus would fall head over heels just to get famous Magina Stormrage as a patient. What is more," one of the assistants bent over to whisper into her colleagues' pointy ears, "Furion himself asked a favour from Galenus in person. You never saw that old man bend over so quickly before."

They burst into giggles.

"Yeah. So are the whole team of Turks are being discharged just like that?" the nurse snapped her fingers. "They have one more physiotherapy scheduled."

"Galenus' orders. What difference does one session make? I was never really fond of human assassins."

"Shhhhhh. Not too loud. I heard that their boss runs business empire of cutthroats...that red-haired high elf dreamy look and such a handsome name. Rufus."

"Ooo...you are scaring me."

Shendelzare watched the two Kal'dorei who were covering their violet visages with their hands in their mirth. Her face was dour.

"Such a mindless gaggle," Shendelzare thought imperiously. Then, an assistant healer came up to her, dressed in white.

"Mistress Silkwood, He is at the gymnasium doing his excercises."

The healer led her to the gymnasium, a brightly lit room stacked with many different railings and mirrors and weights. It took Shendelzare quite some time to locate Magina.

"Master Magina made it very clear that no one is to disturb him," the assistant healer advised Shendelzare.

Up down Up Down. Atrophied muscles strained hard, pushing against weights. Pain-streaked bones held up a wobbling figure. Sweat glistened around his forehead.

Suddenly Magina slipped.

One of the healers gripped him by his arms.

"You have to slow down, Magina. You are tearing your muscles beyond repair. You also need to adjust to your lack of sight."

Magina turned his face towards the healer blindly. His sightless eyes gazing everywhere. His face was earnest.

"Healer, give me a few hours more to train. I think I'll recover my ability to walk by a day. Then in two days I'll run. Then In one week I'll be able to enter active service again."

Shendelzare bit her nails watching Magina. The young handsome elf was not willing to rest.

Not sure if he was blind to his circumstances or really blind.

Shendelzare rested her head against the wall and shut her eyes.

There was no reason. Magina's eyes were not damaged. Why did he suddenly go blind? Was it because of his head injury? The healers had examined him and they pronounced that his eyes were working fine.

Except that he is not able to see a thing.

Magina's blind eyes met hers. it was almost as if he could see her in pain. But it couldn't be. Magina was blind for crying out loud.

She bit back a cry. Magina hated sympathy. He hated being pitied.


***

The prayer rooms in the Temple of the Moon Goddess were seldom occupied at dusk. Night Elves preferred to sleep in the day, conducting their activities in the night. One night elven devotee was there praying. Dressed in a simple white gown, she was kneeling and praying. Her body rocking as she did.

Suddenly, Shendelzare got off her knees, bearing a measure of peace in her heart. She turned, ready for her purification rites when-

"Mistress Silkwood!"

A messenger came to her. Dying sunlight reflected off the crest of the Silkwood Family. Shendelzare welcomed the diminutive Kal'dorei. The young elf went down on one knee and placed her hand over her head and heart and placed it in front of her. A customary greeting. Shendelzare clasped it and raised her up.

"What news?"

"Mistress, the healing druid had pronounced that Magina had recovered."

Shendelzare sighed in relief. Magina took one month to recover, while others would have taken months to recover. Her prayers were not in vain.

"Praise Elune. What has he been doing? I am so busy with the prosecution of Terrorblade and my sister I had very little time to see him."

"He is asking for his brother."

"The servants did not divulge anything did they?"

"They did not, as per your orders madam."

"Good. He can't handle all the truth now."

"Mistress, I have to report that Magina is obsessed with regaining sight."

"What?"

"He contacted a few demon hunters. And consulted druids. I fear he is too desperate. He may do something rash."

***

A Field Guide to Demons, Fallen Angels and Other Subversive Spirits
By Purist Thunderwrath

Canto XXXIV
On the Matters of Ritual Blinding.

Ritual Blinding is a known practice to a certain occult group known as Demon Hunters. Through a series of rituals, they blind themselves with the claw of a Demon. This is to gain what they call Spectral Sight. The ability to see all manner of spirits and foul sorceries. Some of its practitioners describe it as light reflecting off of objects allowing the Demon Hunter to navigate unhindered. Beings (namely Fel Users and Demons) shine a radiant assortment of colors making them easy to detect even when disguised. While the demon hunters dedicate their lives to eradicating demons, one cannot help but wonder if they have become the demons themselves.

***

He was back on his feet and ready to take the next step.

Something consumed him. An obsession.

He wanted to see again.

He needed to fight back the asphyxiating darkness. Put some light back into his world bereft of sight. He wanted to see her face again.

He remembered.

After the thrill of defeating another battery of rehabilitation test, he wanted to get on his feet again so badly. So badly that he called for the commander of the mages to visit him with his reports and the date of his return.

The commander was kind. Constantly telling Magina to rest and take things easy. Magina heard the commander leave the hospital room. he heard a few more footsteps and Shendelzare's voice began to urgently ask him many things.

"He's not likely to rejoin the force after this. We don't accept blind people."

"Not so loud! He might hear."

"It is all fine Head Warden, I've closed the door behind me."

They thought he could not hear. Tears crept into his eyes and his hands balling up so tightly. He was glad that they could not see.

There was a click on the door and a perfumed smell. Harried breathing. Shendelzare.

"Magina, you look well." Her voice was strained.

"I'm getting much better. Did the force commander say anything to you?"

There was a pregnant pause.

"Nothing much." She hastily changed the subject, "You look much better already."

"That is good news. That is good news."

Then he heard crying.

He gritted his teeth in anger. Then he channelled that anger into his concentration.

Burning candles were set on intricate arrays. Magina was deathly quiet. He ran through the patterns of the ritual in his mind over and over too many times. He knew how it must and will be done. He picked up a dried up demon claw.

He raised it up to his face and muttered words of power. Power derived from the evil. Demonic voices began chanting in his head. In their mad orchestra of shrieks, they promise the pleasure of sight. The promise of power.

He drove it in.

Everything about him exploded in blinding light.

There was a woman's scream. Shendelzare.

***

"DDamn yyou SShendelzare... DDamn yyou..." the woman cursed.

Magina flailed against the drowning darkness. He had no body. Only consciousness.

"AAre yyou aawake TTerrorblade?" the woman spoke with scorn.

He must see. He must see what is happening

Suddenly, all about him, his darkened world began to lighten and everything took glows of their own.

He was in a deep underground cell. Huge bars kept him in. He tried to move. But he was chained so heavily, there was no escape.

"S-So...t-this i-is h-how t-the m-mighty T-Terrorblade e-ends u-up. B-Blind a-and l-languishing i-i-in a s-shared c-cell with me-e."

This was too real to be a dream.

Suddenly he was dragged by some unseen force. The screech of a thousand raking nails speared his ears. His eyes snapped open as Magina howled.

Magina was suddenly jolted out of his trance. He lay sprawled on the cold stone floor.

They suddenly flared blue with power. Unmistakably, he could see spectral light reflect off Shendelzare's soft and feminine face.

He succeeded.

"Shendelzare?"

Her response was a harsh flurry of kisses. Magina accepted them.

His hands instinctively grasped her arms and pushed her back. His magical eyes were alive with azure chaotic fury.

"Where is my brother?"

---------- Post added at 09:49 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:39 PM ----------

Hi guys. thanks for your lovely responses.

@Ex_Venomancer: Wait for it, it's going to be...
@Yuri Bakura: Thanks for reading!
@Strange_kid: Thanks for explaining many of the finer points to others. Appreciate it.
@Jonmcdonald:

[Strange_Kid]

did he go blind because of his brother?
Anyway I lost the sense of time here, suddenly he is one day out, training and then its been a month and he's fully recovered? And how did he read that book ._.

[hope_knight]

where's act 5 scene 9?

[Jonmcdonald]

I love it, this act is explaining so much about the characters, but... It feels like it's coming to an end

[Strange_Kid]

It feels like "book one is coming to end" stuff. The war is very far from over, and I would be really happy to see it continues in book 2 or 3

[Ex_Venomancer]

noo.. I don't want to feel it that this would be the end... XD
he don't know about the book, right? did he know the purpose of his blinded eyes? XD
always a good job!

[Yuri Bakura]

Wondering who is the woman in the cell ? Mortred ?

[Strange_Kid]

yes its mortred