Welcome to Gaia! ::

((Seizing control for a bit to set up a powerful battle))

As the jewel exploded Mike let go of the wyrm, letting it fall to the ground. It was drained of all of it's energy and just fell asleep. He hadn't seen where the other one had gone, but he was sure it had returned to the earth it came from.

Suddenly Mike noticed a black shadow hovering infront of him. It was the black energy that was inside the jewel was hovering infront of him, looking to return to a host. Mike was stunned since nothing like that had ever been released when an enemy was destroyed. He had only known that this sort of energy could be summoned. Then he realized what had happened: Shiango had put a piece of his own darkness inside of the jewels. He knew how full of hatred and evil he was, so even this small amount could corrupt a normal mortal. Mike's worry was that it would drive him beserk forever. The small orb darted back and forth. If Mike grabbed it, he could destroy it with his own darkness before it infected him. That's when Ashe leapt forward and took the blow.

As they both hit the ground Mike swung over to see what had happened. The energy was like a mist now, seeping in through a cut in her side. Mike's hand was covered in darkness, and with one precise swing he destroyed it. He looked at Ashe's face and could see he wasn't fast enough: the darkness had already seeped in and was trying to take over her body. In a living host the dark energy can either corrupt the person's soul or destroy the body. Ashe was strong, but he knew that evil would never allow the body to be shared.

Mike leaned over Ashe. He had to act fast if he wanted to save her. She was too kind of a person to be allowed to die. She was adventurous, intelligent, and also beautiful. He knew what had to be done.

"Ashe...forgive me." Mike reached forward with his right hand and placed his palm on her forehead. Being a demon meant to destroy the land of the living, he was allowed to absorb the darkness from any demonic presence there was. It was how he would be assured to achieve his goal. He had never done it, but it was instinctive to him. Now was the perfect time to do it.

The moment he began to absorb the corruption out of her, Ashe's body convulsed. Both her soul and the demonic energy were trying to stay anchored to her body. She gasped and choked as the darkness lost it's hold on her body. It seeped out of her mouth and eyes and into Mike's body. The moment all of it had been absorbed, Mike shot back and collapsed on the ground, grasping his arm as if it had been severed.

His eyes changed back and forth from being jet black to red as his fangs felt like they were about to fall out. He was holding back the Harbinger inside. The force of evil inside him was more powerful that ever. Mike rolled over onto his back and grabbed fistfuls of sand. He didn't know if he would even live.

((sorry, been preoccupied))

Black flames slowly danced out from under Mike before erupting out of him, creating a small crater under him and sending Ashe flying to the ground several feet away. As Mike landed he became possessed, and clawed at the horrific pain in his chest. He was tearing through his flesh like it was a think film, but the darkness was regenerating his skin faster than he could rip it off. It felt like his chest was going to cave in. Mike leaned his head back and roared like a dying beast.

Deep inside Mike's soul was being attacked by the darkness. Tendrils were trying to latch onto his arms, restrain him, and destroy him. Mike was barely managing to throw them off when he made a final choice. He seized a tendril and absorbed it. There was nothing left to do now bet see what kind of affect that act had on him. Last time he was forced to do that he became what he was to this day, albiet holding onto his soul.

Mike body turned jet black as he leapt up and clawed at himself. He was throwing pools of blood all over the place, the ground fizzing when it hit due to the seering heat and evil it emitted. Mike reared back and roared as he turned into the Harbinger and then reverted back to Nero. He collapsed to the sand, perfectly fine, but unconsious.

Inside, Mike knew what had happened already. His newfound strength had permenantly destroyed his ability to turn into a mortal. He was now a demon, through and through. To make it worse, the ability to turn into the Harbinger was now closer than before. It would take less to turn him into the destructive demon, and the chances of him turning back were now even less. The destruction of all sentient life was closer than before.

Mike felt his heartbeat slow. It got slower and slower till it suddenly stopped. Mike's eyes flashed open as he gasped a deep breath of air. He was alive, but he wasn't sure how? Suddenly a million thoughts fluttered through his mind. His power was borderline infinite, his body nearly invincible. Pain was just a feeling: there was no threat behind it, no fear of death. More thoughts flashed through his mind, that of the past, present, and future. The darkness had given him insight to the world. If Shiango lived all mortals of the world would bow before him for all of eternity.

If Michael lived...the planet would turn to ash.

Mike stood up slowly and walked towards the wall of wind. He reached forward with his left claw, and as sparks from the sand shot through the air, he tore right through it and walked out. The pain from the air and sand was excruciating. The guards lifted their weapons towards him, some with machete blades, some with large scimitars.

"Demon! It matters not what you have done, but you are not welcome on this plain!"

"You think you could stop me if you tried? You're primitive blades could hurt me?" Mike charged a guard who raised his blade. Mike pushed it down so it went straight through his torso. The guard fell to the ground as Mike stood there, frozen with the blade impaled straight through him. The smile on his face scared everyone: smug, egotistical, evil.

"Listen. I know you're no fools, but you must heed my warning. There is an evil out there that will destroy us all. It lies behind those mountains in the distance, and it stands before you, announcing it's presence."

The guards and townfolk watching were struck with fear.

"If you value your lives," Michael said much louder, "then you will listen! You must all trust in me that I am not your enemy yet! If the evil that lies out there is not destroyed you're enslaved and tortured. If the horror that stands and addresses you is not destroyed, you will be. I ask you all to believe in the soul of a mortal! Believe that no matter how much evil exists, a small amount of good will stop it! Light will survive in the darknest of days!" With that, Mike ripped the scimitar out of him, grabbing the blade and tearing the hilt through his ribs, the blood splattering all over the ground as he whipped the blade into it, covered in black and red blood. He walked over to Ashe and knelt beside her.

"Ashe...I'm sorry I couldn't take all of the darkness out of you. But now it lives inside me, connected with me, and a portion lives inside you."

Mike took a split second to think of his next words. There were two meanings to what he was saying. One was that he and Ashe would always be together now. That he couldn't be happier to know that in the afterlife, whether he was in the Paradise or the Inferno, he'd always be able to know how she felt and how she was doing. And that he was happy. Instead, he said something different.

"Like me your darkness can help you regenerate. Please, allow me to help you." Mike held his right hand on her wound. His hand was englufed in black flames, and the wound closed. The mark however was permanent. Mike had never heard through all his years of being of someone that had been touched with darkness losing the mark it left. Few lived as mortals, become sinspawns or archdemons. It was a mark that they could have looked like a demon.

"Ashe, we need to kill Shiango soon. I know what's coming. Soon he'll have enough power to defeat us, no matter what he try. I can't let that happen."

Shiango was standing on one of his castle's many balconies, watching as his army practices. He smiled to himself. "Two little flies against my army. They would be long dead before they even reach me. Not to mention my little welcoming crew should have weakened them a bit."

He turned back to his room and looked into his crystal ball. But what he saw angered him to no end. "How!? How did they get stronger? They should be weaker, tired. I've been throwing fights in their faces every night. They shouldn't be stronger!" He threw the ball at the wall, cracking the image inside, but the ball just bounced off the wall and rolled under a chair.

Shiango paced around his room, wracking his brain trying to answer the question as to how the Dragon and Harbinger became stronger. "No matter. The Dragon won't be able to survive in the Inferno for too long. She'll be drained of her energy and then finished off by my army." He couldn't see that his own dark magic now ran through both of them. It didn't occur to him that his own magic would also allow Ashe safe passage through the Inferno.

A servant opened the door to his room and looked in. "Sir? Your meal is ready." Shiango stopped pacing and sat down at his table. "Bring it in." The servant brought in a tray and left. All I really have to worry about is the Harbinger, he thought as he ate.

((Welp, I just got a wonderful little twist to this story.))

The guards shifted, unsure of what to do with the demon's request. One guard, the one that met them out in the desert, walked forward and knelt down next to Mike. "You saved this town. You saved my child. The least I could do is look after her." He picked Ashe up and carried her back to the crowed. He looked back and said, "We hold you to your word, Demon. If you fail, we will come after you, even if it kills us." He walked back into the town, the rest of them following. The last one to leave was the young child he had saved earlier. She ran up to him, kissed his cheek, and ran back.

~

Ashe was vaguely aware of being carried to a bed and placed in it. All she knew was a vast empty space. She was aware of not being alone in this space. She looked around, worry building inside. She caught movement out of the corner of her eyes. She turned to look, but it was gone. It happened again, every time she looked around, the movement had gone to another spot, never letting her rest before jumping around her.

She was tossing in the bed, tossing and turning as she struggled in her mind. Mike may have taken most of the darkness out of her body, but what was left needed to know if she was strong enough for it. That was why it was testing her.

Ashe was starting to get scared, the movement was taunting her, and she knew she couldn't catch it. She didn't know what to do.

~

Shiango finished his meal, telling the servant came and picked it up. After his meal was cleaned he went to pick up his crystal ball. Fixing the cracked image he looked back inside. And smiled at what he saw.

"Sooooooooo, the Dragon can't fight. That just leaves the Harbinger all to me..." He placed the ball back on it's pedestal and walked back to the balcony. He stood there for a minuet or two, thinking of ways to fight the Harbinger. "I'm going to need an insurance for my safety..." Then an idea came to him.

Smiling wickedly he turned back to his room and threw open the doors to his summon chamber. There he summoned two demons of the lower class. These where small and quick, but strong. Shiango didn't care much for them, they where slow and he had to speak in the simplest terms. The plus side was, because they were slow, they carried out orders to a T.

"I need you to capture someone for me," he said, bringing the two demons to the crystal ball. "You see that woman? The one with the white hair. I want you to capture her and bring her to me. I want her alive and unharmed." The demons nodded and left for the desert.

~

The two demons found Ashe easily. Due to her current condition, they had no problems with securing her and bringing her back to their master.

~

The demons where swift with their orders. Shortly after they had left Shiango had a servant ready on the guest beds. It was ready just as Ashe was brought to him.

"Perfect," he said as he took her from them. He placed her on the bed and clasped a cuff around her left wrist, noting the mark on her. "So it seems she's been tainted by the magic I used to control the Sand Wryms...That saves me the troubles of doing it myself." He took the other end of the chain and tied it to one of the bed's frame, securing her in. "Even if she wakes, in her weaken state, she couldn't even pull herself free."

He left the room, a serving girl to watch her. "She's my honored guest. I want to make sure she's as comfortable as possible." The girl bowed and entered the room to carry out her orders.

((Long post, but it had to be done this way))

The movement stopped. Ashe whipped around and saw a shadow figure standing in front of her. It smiled wickedly and rushed at her. She dodged and sent out a wind blade at it. It cut through the shadow as it moved to attack her again. It was a quick fight in which Ashe won. The shadow, which had been cut to pieces, pieced itself together and bowed to Ashe. "I am now your power. If you need my help, just call me up." The shadow disappeared, flowing into her and she woke up.

She groaned as she looked up at a stone roof, not the type one would find in the desert. ...Wasn't I in the desert? She sat up and heard the chain clink. "Huh?" she asked bring her arm up to look at it. "Where am I?" "Your in Lord Shiango's castle, my Lady," said the serving girl. "What!" Ashe cried out in disbelief

Shiango walked into the room and smiled. "I welcome you to my castle. I'm sorry about the chain, but I need you to stay here. Your confined to the room, but you'll be able to reach the bathroom with no problems."

Ashe growled and started to turn into her true form, but a shock from the chain stopped her.

"O! I forgot to mention. You can't take your true just yet. I don't want you destroying this room. It doesn't stop you from taking other forms, but your true form is just to large for your true form." Shiango turned to leave. "I suggest you take a nice warm bath to relax. The servant is yours to command and there are clothes in the armoire you may wear. Rest, your body is weak from bonding with the darkness. I'll bring someone around to bring you to dinner."

Ashe watched Shiango with crossed arms. "How do I know your not going to kill me in my sleep?"

Shiango laughed, "You are my valued guest. I wouldn't dare harm you. Though I do ask that you dress nicely and take your elven form for dinner." He looked up with a smiled. "Ah! It seems as if the Harbinger found out that I kidnapped you." He walked out of the room and waited for the Harbinger to come.

((Crap...I had a good one and then Gaia wouldn't let me post it. Gonna hafta do this all over again.))

Ashe sat on the balcony of the room she was locked up, watching as the demons below her ran towards the entrance on the other side of the large temple stronghold. She listened to the fight, letting the wind tell her what was happening.

She had taken Shiango's advice and bathed, letting the maid wash away the sand and grim that had built up during her travels. She didn't want the maid's help, but since she could barely walk, she had to resign herself to let the girl carry her to the bath and wash her. Although...it did feel good to be waited on again...even if it's in the enemy's stronghold.

Ashe had wanted to put her own clothes on, not wanting to think of the outfits that Shiango had in that armoire. But the servant wouldn't let her, expectually since the top had to be ripped open to get taken off the chain. She sat Ashe on a chair in front of a mirror as she pulled out the only thing that didn't need to cover her shoulders. I look like some slave girl in this get up, she thought bitterly, looking down at the cloth that covered her chest and the long loin-cloth skirt.

She sighed and closed her eyes, letting the darkness within her tell her where Mike was, and how he was doing. Also, she told him where she was and that she was unharmed.

((Ashe's new outfit: Think Princess Lea slave girl outfit, but with a strapless bikini top... xd ))