Two Wanderers Meet

A white steed throtted through wisps of fog in the night. It's rider was clad in mail and a black heraldric coat which displayed the skull of a antlered deer. His tattered cloack fluttered behind him as he rode. Eerie blue glowing eyes filled the sockets of his masked helmet. A black heather shield, with the riders sigil was displayed on the left flank of the horse. An enormous axe hung on the right.

Godfrey stopped, his eyes gazed at an megalithic structure. It was made of six large boulders that acted as pillars, they were twice the height of a man. Large slabs of stone leaned on the pillars and acted as a roof. Smaller boulders littered the area in a circle around. There was light within the structure, a dozen candles burned around a stone altar. Godfrey dismounted and walked towards the clearly ancient but recently used structure. He walked through the circle of stones towards the middle. The smell of sweet incents prickled his nose. Flower petals littered the inside of the temple, along side small clay statues. Godfrey's naked right hand touched one of the pillars and the devil's mark glows crimson. The pillar was ripped from it's place where it had stood for thousands of years, it knocked one other pillar down and then roof collapsed. Dust jumped up and hide the former temple. Godfrey waited till it settled.

"Damn, I was looking forward to trashing this place myself," uttered a voice, whose owner was briefly hidden by the dust and debris.

When things finally settled down, the speaker was revealed, standing about twenty metres away from the rider and his mount, her crimson gaze focused on what was now little more than a wreck. Oh, how she loathed such shrines. They were a symbol of servitude to creatures who did not deserve such worship, beings that deserved nothing but to be forced down from the heavens and ripped to shreds, a task that she sincerely hoped would one day fall to her. Destroying structures such as this was a good start and she knew that if enough damage was done, they would eventually seek retribution. How did she know this? Well, she knew more about Deities and fostered a hatred for them which went beyond a simple grudge, it was as personal as it could possibly be.

Despite the disappointment of not being able to fell the temple herself, it had by no means been a waste of time. In her right hand, she carried a pair of once had once been a functioning pair of beautiful white wings. Now, however, they were stained with the blood of their honour, who was now residing in the after life. The structure had been guarded after all when she had first appeared at the site, by a creature who spoke of holiness and goodness. It would not be speaking such bullshit any more, she had made quite sure of that.

Turning her gaze towards the unusual looking rider, she approached him. It was not in a hostile manner as such although she was still caught up in the blood lust of her recent fight. Oh, how she loved the chaos and carnage that came with shedding blood, a sensation that always sent her in to the realms of madness and passion.

"Your work, I presume?" the tall pinkette said as she walked, curious about the almost ghostly looking rider.

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The dust settled and on the other side stood a person, a woman with reddish hair and strange animal-like ears. Godfrey was somewhat baffled to see someone. He instincts told him to retrieve his axe, you could never be sure, but he did not move. The woman seemed to hold some white and red objects in her hands.

“I brought this disgrace down.” Said Godfrey in his hoarse voice, the voice carried far enough so she could hear but no further. The voice held no charisma and sounded eerier than anything else, except mayhaps his blue glowing eyes. She walked closer to him. “Whom are you and what are your intentions?” Asked the hoarse voice.

"I'm Sarisha Huxx, Goddess of Water," the tall pinkette said, her tone carrying a touch of passion about it and referring to herself in a manner that she had never actually spoken out loud before. Yet, the words had come to her so readily and they felt completely natural to her. The bond between herself and Valara was complete and she could almost feel a sense of acknowledgement from her Godly partner.

He spoke with an emptiness to his voice that caused her to raise an eyebrow. There was most definitely something unearthly about him although she had no recollection of him which removed the option that he was a God. She mused to herself briefly about the possibilities and wondered if perhaps he was from the other side, a demon or devil maybe. He spoke with the same dislike for the temple as she did which scored points with her. However, the red eyed savage had never thought much of anything regarding others who wielded magic. She cared little for humanity and was indifferent to other mages as well for the most part.

"As for my intentions," she continued, "I came here to perform the same task that that you came here for. To destroy this place of holiness and to leave it in ruins, as well as end any who I found defending it. That much I did accomplish," she briefly rose the blood stained wings that she had been holding on too, "This place was being defended by an angelic being you see, one that I was fighting while you were destroying this. She tasted surprisingly sweet." Her tone was surprisingly light but the look in her eye was saying something else, she meant every word.

"So, now that I've introduced myself," she then said, "Who are you? A devil with a grudge perhaps?"

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Godfrey’s eyes throbbed orange when he heard the word goddess. He had no love for them, as was visible with the destruction of the holy site. His fists clenched together. She continued to speak, her intentions were the same. She had also wished to take down the temple. The white and red things she carried where the bloody wings of an angle. Her way of speaking made it sound lightly but her eyes, her eyes spoke the truth. She ate from it? Godfrey wondered. He was in a conflict whenever to trust this goddess of woe or water as she had said.

“The Devil is my master,” Said Godfrey in his hoarse voice, “I’m lord Godfrey of house Ushill, count of Ushill and Crachton.” He paused and thought for a short moment and decided to give his other titles as well. “I’m the Horsemen of Pestilence, of Conquest. I’m a rider of the Wild Hunt, Lieutenant of the dark legions. I’m pestilence.” Said Godfrey as his eyes pulsed bright ice blue in colour. There was an essence of joy in his voice as he spoke it. “You are a goddess who destroyed a holy site. Thus, are you my foe? Or are you something else?”

The Goddess said nothing at first and simply allowed his words to sink in. She was aware of the Four Horseman and of who they served although her knowledge was somewhat weak. The pinkette had no grudge with those who or associated themselves with demonic or devilish beings and actually admired them in some ways. They had a ruthlessness about them, a trait that she also had in spades and their ways of thinking were not all that different from hers. Yet, she recognised the anger in his eyes when she had introduced herself which caused her to briefly ponder about her next move. She had already had her fill of blood for now and the bloodlusty look in her eyes was beginning to fade away. However, if he insisted on combat then she would have no issue with fighting him, she never had issue with fighting anyone. Her only true ally was her Godly partner, who resided within her.

"Not all God's believe in holiness and righteousness, I certainly don't," she answered, her tone still somewhat light, "The only emotion that I feel towards my kin is anger and I would like nothing more than to take my fist, impale them in the chest with it and pull out their still beating hearts, something which I will one day accomplish. You see, I'm no longer among the pantheon who lurk in the heavens, I was cast out. Something that I believe that your master knows all too well about."

She paused briefly and then added, "As for your question about whether I'm your friend or foe. Well, I'll leave that up to you. I bare neither you nor your master any ill will at all and I've satiated my need for chaos for one day. I am curious as to your motives though. Is the destruction of the God's your master's aim as well?"

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There was something in Sarisha’s eyes that changed, her eyes looked less hungry. He frowned behind his helmet as she spoke, her tone changed slightly but was still light. The light tone did not fit the gruesome speech she gave.

Godfrey removed his helmet, taking it to bellow his left armpit. He shoved his mail coif from his head to his back and took off the padded coif underneath and stuffed it in his helmet. Underneath all that protection was brittle white hair and a pale face with icy blue ices. Overall, he looked morbid, with not much flesh upon the bones. “If you bare no ill to me, then I do not bare ill towards you. Yes, my master had been cased down from the heavens unto the pits of hell. But he will rise higher. His aim is domination.” His ungloved right hand rubbed on his chin as he thought for a moment, he was wandering about to bring chaos and allies for an apocalypse of his masters making. “What was it that brought you this anger that you feel for the gods?” He walked towards a pillar and sat down and laid his helmet next to him on the stone.

The Slayer was not at all surprised to hear about Satan's plan for domination and she was neither for or against it herself. The future of this world meant nothing to her in truth although the thought of one plagued by chaos and misery was appealing. Sarisha knew that she would thrive in such a realm and there would be no shortage of men and women for her to feed on. There were moments where that was her honest vision of what the natives of Fiore actually were. Simply sources of nourishment, nothing more. Was she concerned with her change in personality? No because she knew that by binding herself with a Deity, she would obviously start to inherit traits from her Godly partner. Valara cared for nothing but satiating her own desires and that need was so strong that Sarisha had begun to feel it just as keenly. There was always a price to a pay by making a deal with an entity and she had known that, even before seeking out her watery soul mate.

She followed him as he walked away and took a seat on one of the ruined pillars although rather than take a seat, the pinkette simply stayed on her feet, preferring to stand. Sarisha had been more than willing to fight if necessary but had no issue with simply keeping this peaceful for now. It was not as if she could not be reasonable, just that she was used to all of her encounters ending up in a bloodbath. There were so few that she truly trusted or respected these days which probably escalated matters but would she have it any other way that violence? No, it was part of her now.

"I suppose that you could say that I have inherited it from the water Goddess that taught me her magic," Sarisha said after some thought, "I willingly took her inside of me and by doing so, gained all of her memories, experiences, knowledge, as well as parts of her personality. Now, we are one and the same and I feel the same hatred for the God's that she does. When she was cast down from the heavens, they cruelly stripped her of the ability to feel anything and forced her to walk this world for centuries, unable to feel anything. By binding with her, I managed to unlock the spell that had been placed on her and all of those pent up emotions now run through my veins, including her hatred for her kin. No, not her hatred, ours."

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Sarisha kept on her feet and answered Godfrey’s question. He listed as she spoke. A shiver went through him as she spoke about taking the goddess inside her. He is not happy that Bator is inside him, though he had not mind it at first. His split persona was a trouble, quick to anger and overtake his actions and going berserk. He thought for a moment before he spoke.

“I too have another person within me.” He paused for a moment, he had never talked with anyone about it except for Lilim. “His name is Bator,” Godfrey’s eyes flashed orange as he said the name. “However, he is a trouble for me and sometimes overtakes the body. Do you have that problem as well?”

"No, I can't say that I do," Sarisha answered, her curiosity having being aroused by Godfrey's admission of sharing his body with another entity, "The nature of the bond between myself and Valara is one of complete harmony, rather than conflict. In order for our fusion to take place, we had to be completely honest with each other and lay ourselves bare to one another. We are closer than friends, closer than family, closer than the most intimate of lovers. In truth, we are made for one another and that's why there's no struggle for control within me. When I give in to my blood lust and spread chaos, it's because it's what we both want, Valara and myself."

Clearly, Godfrey had a rather different type of relationship with Bator although in the back of her mind, she was not at all surprised. Sarisha had done a fair amount of research in to making deals with entities from other realms, before actually starting her own quest to track down Valara and had more often than not come across various warnings. The old adage about making a deal with the Devil was somewhat daft in her mind but there seemed to be some truth to it. It took a will of steel to keep control, that much she knew.

"How did you come to meet and bond with Bator?" she asked, idly plucking a few feathers from the pair of wings that she was still holding on to. Her red eyed gaze was focused on Godfrey though.

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Godfrey frowned at Sarisha’s description of her ‘relationship’ with the goddess within her. They were as one and not as two sides of the same coin. He his thoughts drifted off for a moment, he wondered how it would be if Bator and he had a similar bond, but he was not able to grasp it.

Sarisha was plucking feathers of the angel’s wing as she asked the question that Godfrey dreaded that she would ask. His eyes flashed orange with the mention of Bator’s name. He stayed silent for a moment. For he wanted to go away, no more talking. He attempted to stand up but reminded himself of that he ought to recruit or ally her, it ended up looking like he tried to find a different pose to sit in. He sighed. “I do not know,” Crackled his voice, “he was there just one day.” He paused before continuing as he looked towards the moon. “Bator was the hangman of my father, he died of the black death.” He chuckled for a moment and shook his head when he said the following, “and according to the priest I had died of plague as well. I survived it, I’m the plague itself!” His eyes glowed intensely blue. He had actually died from the plague and the priest had brought him back with black magic. The priest was his actual father, something Godfrey did not believe and in his anger, he had strangled the priest. Godfrey had never noticed his unnaturally icy eyes with the ghostly glow, his amazing strength or his lack of need for sleep and food.

For a few moments, Sarisha simply continued her plucking while pondering over his words. She certainly preferred the relationship that she had with Valara rather than how his seemed to be with Bator. Yes, there were probably benefits to having an inner struggle as he did although if she was truthful for herself, it sounded more like a hindrance to her and it was not a situation that she would ever want with her partner. Sarisha was proud of her strength and her increasing powers but she knew that her strength came from the symbiotic relationship and that fighting with Valara would weaken her. Was the bond between mage and Deity perfect? Well, it certainly had been rather bizarre to begin with and her first few days of joining had passed in a frenzy of violence, alcohol and carefree sex, not that she was complaining of course. Her partner was a creature of passion at heart and after spending so long being shut off from her emotions, it was only natural that the sudden return of her feelings would have had such a powerful effect.

"So the pair of you now explore this land, destroying all godly and religious landmarks that you come across and infect all those that you find with your plaguish powers," she eventually said, before asking another question, "Do you perhaps hope that if you do enough damage then perhaps the God that banished Satan will show himself?"

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Godfrey’s response was a bit late, “Yes, that is how you could describe it.” The next question the fallen goddess asked took him aback. He pondered for a moment on what she said. His master had simply told him to seek allies and bring mayhem were possible yet remain below the surface. “I do not know what my master intents do, I merely assumed that I have to weaken the heavenly powers and the earthly. After which he can unleash the gates of hell and rally his allies in the eschaton of the known world, of Ragnarök, of Frashokereti.” There was a faint but cruel smile on his Godfrey’s face. “ Godfrey studied the face of Sarisha, “What will you do when the time comes?”