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NerdyBoy1104

Murder

Jan 22nd, 2017
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  1. The tournament had already been done in Loranthis... and Gorandis hadn't even been told. That thought... it welled inside of him like a black spot, Nahele, the one who oh so wanted his help... She didn't even give him the courtesy of telling him. The black rage boiled within, distilling, refining down into a deep, abyssal rage. One that would be left to simmer...
  2.  
  3. He needed to get away from the city for a while, otherwise he was unsure on if he could hold himself back. Even just imagining that bitch's face... His hands clenched in a fit of crimson lightning, scorching the land around him. He could hold himself back, yes. But it felt oh so right to just let it out. At least a little bit of it, out into the grasslands around him.
  4.  
  5. For his feet had taken him to Nostvale, his old home... He was probably wanted here though he was never quite certain whether or not Valeria had actually reported on him. Regardless, he was keeping his distance from the walls. With his hood pulled down over his face he took to rest again a rock outcrop some hundred feet away.
  6.  
  7. Perhaps he would enter later, but with how his thoughts were brewing inside him there would be no doubt that something vile would come of it.
  8. (Gorandis)
  9.  
  10. Alfarez wanted to walk away- walk away from the memories of his children that shunned him, the children who wanted nothing to do with him because of the race that he bore. He wanted to stomp that prejudice out of their minds, but he knew from history that this discrimination has always been present. He didn't want to do anything but wail in despair at the moment, but he had to work and focus on what the King has commanded him to do.
  11.  
  12. Nevertheless, he exited the city. New Alteros contained one painful memory and a reminder of how much he has failed his children, and Nostvale meant nothing to him but a place to work and pass the time until he died. The scholar walked across the grasslands but felt a surge of despair accompanied by a flash of crimson lightning. He had found someone who probably shared a similar situation as him, but he dared not ask.
  13.  
  14. Instead, he sat down in a field just near the outcropping where the hooded man stayed, and meditated. The same crimson lightning that the man used surrounded him as he kept on chanting:
  15.  
  16. I stand witness (Surge, charge) upon which the foundation was built.
  17. Knowledge begets (Circuits, prime. Flow, circulate.)power,
  18. And it rises above the abyss (Energy, flicker and shift. Focus, release gate.) of oblivion.
  19. A lone man wanders the road (Rebound.) to enlightenment,
  20. but despair and contentment (Lightning primed.) can never be together. (Discharge.)
  21.  
  22. He needed to affirm his dedication to live, for after recent events, he might as well just have lost everything.
  23.  
  24. (Alfarez Vichenstein)
  25.  
  26. "Of all the people to harass..." Gorandis growled under his breath, barely audible as he pushed himself up from his leaning position. The crimson power cascaded off of him in rivulets as he strode over. He was very much not in a good mood and Someone had had the audacity to come near him and disturb him. The man likely didn't mean anything, but Gorandis was beyond caring.
  27.  
  28. "Do you have to do that ridiculous chant nearby!?" Gorandis roared at him, taking even the barest slight far too far. "And stop with your stupid discharging of power." As he said this his own power rather hypocritically flared up and scorched the grass around him deeply. "I don't care about any kind of stupid religious thing you seem to have going on!"
  29.  
  30. "So shut up! Shut up before I shut you up!" He raised his hand, his index finger pointing accusingly as his eyes glared from beneath the depths of his hood. "I've had enough of people like you ignoring me and then going on to completely piss me off... So apologise to me, get on your knees and beg my apology and maybe then I'll let you off. Maybe."
  31.  
  32. The venom dripped from his words as his anger swirled in his stomach like thick bile. It was really unfortunate to run into him at this time.
  33. (Gorandis)
  34.  
  35. Alfarez opened his eyes and looked at him. Noticing the man's dangerously pissed off demeanor, he obliged, got on his knees, and said in a pleading tone, "I will not recite this chant again near you. I will leave you alone in peace, so please, let me go." He bowed his head as he knelt, and while the man wasn't able to see him, he thought of his next move.
  36. The man was probably superior in terms of combat ability to him in every respect, especially his usage of Hellstorm. If the man decided to fight, Alfarez will resist, but only give enough effort to drive him away if that was even possible. Otherwise, he might as well accept Azrael's damned judgment.
  37.  
  38. He has left his papers in a place that no one will be able to reach except for the one man who he told it to, and he wished to die for his failures. If he managed to get away, however, he will continue his work in the same way as before, not giving a damn about what this man said. His way took priority over anyone else's, and even despite the threat of death hanging over him, he did not want to compromise on his beliefs any more than he already had.
  39. (Alfarez Vichenstein)
  40.  
  41. Gorandis continued to quietly growl in his throat with every breath. Any attempts to calm himself down simply made him think of why he was angry in the first place and that just reaffirmed his anger tenfold. Even now, he wanted to break and burn and destroy that woman... and this poor man before him was nothing more than a proxy for his own anger.
  42.  
  43. "Let you go? After you've already done everything in your power to wind me up? To harass me and disturb me and to remind me of--" He cut himself off, his fists clenching with more wordless contempt. In all honesty it was only the barest of slights that was done against him, any normal person would have waved it off but no, it festered within him.
  44.  
  45. "I can't let you go just yet. No, not until you pay for your actions, not until I can relieve myself of some of this hate. Not until I break you..." His hands came to wrap across the staff strapped to his back which exploded in a dazzling array of scarlet. The red lightning running along the staff's handle before exploding outwards at its crystal head.
  46.  
  47. "So get up and fight me you despicable worm... Or you can try and run... but you will not get very far from me... you will not get very far at all." From beneath his hood, Alfarez would barely be able to make out the grimace on Gorandis' face, and the twitch that seemed to have formed in his eye.
  48. (Gorandis)
  49.  
  50. Shutdown. He may have sought death and relief, but he will still fight either way, and do his best to live for something else. He turned off his pain receptors by directing all electrical impulses that signify "pain" away from the brain, and he felt completely numb. Without hesitation, he continued chanting,
  51.  
  52. I stand witness (Surge, charge) upon which the foundation was built.
  53. Knowledge begets (Circuits, prime. Flow, circulate.)power,
  54. And it rises above the abyss (Energy, flicker and shift. Focus, release gate.) of oblivion.
  55. A lone man wanders the road (Rebound.) to enlightenment,
  56. but despair and contentment (Lightning primed.) can never be together.
  57.  
  58. He did not smile, and he did not wish any ill will upon this man. But the stare he gave the man was one that was cold, dark, and devoid of all emotion. He did not speak as the words of Astoria Hirano and Hauk Fildegarde rang through his mind, and he released the floodgates of his aura, channeling it around him and into his staff. He will not use Sakra today, as this was a fight of survival. Then, he whispered, "Come... show me your despair, and I will reply in kind."
  59. (Alfarez Vichenstein)
  60.  
  61. "Enough. With the fucking. Chanting." The red streaks flared up once more, stripping out the grasslands all around him. The base of his staff struck the earth and the air around it began to quiver and waver. A shape formed, grotesque and inhuman. It collapsed to the ground before standing awkwardly in a shape foreign to all life on Valmasia.
  62.  
  63. A demon, one of the many that Gorandis had under his employ. The strange creature bore its fangs towards the other man and Gorandis took a few steps back, his energy shaking with every step. This was unfettered rage being brought forth here. All it needed was a target, there was no logical thinking behind it. Just raw, powerful emotion looking for an out.
  64.  
  65. "I will not show you my despair. I will show you something far worse. I will show you your own." His fingers gripped the wooden shaft of his staff tight enough to draw blood. This was going to be sloppy and unfocused. but that was what raw emotion did to you and Gorandis had never felt this angry before. He had never felt so wronged in his entire life.
  66.  
  67. Someone he thought who actually respected him... to do this... to show such disrespect... The scarlet power arced around him even larger now, he was not going to be kind.
  68. (Gorandis)
  69.  
  70. And the anger truly showed. Gorandis wasted no effort in his attacks. All forwards, always pressing. He would give Alfarez no quarter and would show not even the barest hint of mercy. He lunged and kept lunging, the chaotic power followed him, striking out as often as it could, the hellish power of his own mistreaten soul. The power of his rage.
  71.  
  72. Of course, it was inaccurate and he often completely missed, but when he hit, when his powerful lunges landed, Alfarez would feel it, the power behind it, the strength. He might have made himself numb to the world but there was only so much that could be ignored, especially when Gorandis' own magic was attuned to strike out at those very same nerves.
  73.  
  74. "How is it!? How is it to know how little you are!?" Gorandis roared as he continued to push forwards, continued to strike without abandon. "How do you feel!? Knowing that I could END YOU whenever I wanted!? I want to hear you scream! I want to see you squirm! I want you to show me your despair! And then, maybe then! I'll end your suffering..."
  75. (Gorandis)
  76.  
  77. He felt it- the power behind the blows, the spirit assisting Gorandis as he was beaten down harshly. Yet, he found a certain sense of serenity amidst the pain, and while he wanted to scream and groan at the bruises that were reopened by the man's assault, he burned off those nerves with Shadowflame. He will not allow anyone to gloat over his death, and he stood up shakily as he looked straight at the man.
  78.  
  79. He laughed- a laugh not born out of misery or sarcasm or hatred- a sincere and honest laugh that showed a sense of happiness that has long since left Alfarez. He said, "I'm glad... I'm glad that you were the one I met today. I can finally see him...!" Had Apollion been here, he would have scolded Alfarez, saying "You idiot! Your recklessness has gotten you into trouble again!", but this time, the scholar didn't care.
  80.  
  81. He said, "You are worthy of seeing my death, so I thank you from the bottom of my heart." He knelt down, summoned his boar, said "Find them", and sent him away. He sat down completely, and chanted his words, finally happy that he will see his friend again.
  82. (Alfarez Vichenstein)
  83.  
  84. This wasn't what he wanted. He didn't want to fight a prone target. "No! Defend yourself you stupid man! Fight back, get angry with me, let me beat you with satisfaction!" Gorandis screamed as his attacks became little more than fist blows. Lightning infused punched that battered away at Alfarez's form. Blow after blow intent on sending the man to the dirt.
  85.  
  86. And once there, Gorandis wasted no effort in continuing his assault, climbing atop the man and just punching him. Blow after blow aimed at the man's face. The man Gorandis didn't even learn the name of. He was just some poor man, one who had nothing to do with any of this... but he had gotten in Gorandis' way, he had poke the very angry bear.
  87.  
  88. And so the pummelling continued way past when Gorandis should have stopped. His own knuckled broke and bled as he flayed the skin from them with his own magics. He was intent on this, on getting all of his anger out, but no matter how much he tried, no matter how often the blows came, his anger did not subside in the slightest.
  89.  
  90. "Why!? Why. Wont. This. Stop!?" Each word was punctuated with another blow, another strike from his fist until, finally, he stopped, looking down at what was left of the man. He would be alive, barely, but his condition would be too poor for him to survive anything besides immediate medical treatment. And Gorandis made no effort in providing it.
  91.  
  92. He looked down at his own bloody and broken hands before clenching them through the pain.
  93. (Gorandis)
  94.  
  95. He thanked the gods that his control was precise enough to burn his nerves off with Shadowfame, for the beating that came on him was brutal and terrifying. He smiled, and thought only of Judith, his pride and his joy, the one person he had complete faith and love in. He was meeting her soon...
  96.  
  97. He recited his chant one last time, happy that he has at least tried to lived up to it with all his effort. But now, at Azrael's door, he looked at the man and said, "I accept your hatred. You are much better than you think you are." He chuckled, coughing up blood with each passing second. He has never felt more peaceful- peaceful enough to think of one last short stanza:
  98.  
  99. And so the schoolboy dies,
  100. alone outside his city as no one cries.
  101. Who can come and give the last word on a life
  102. that was as brief as lightning, but not nearly as bright?
  103.  
  104. (Alfarez Vichenstein)
  105.  
  106. Gorandis stood back, shaking. Not out of exertion nor out of shock. He was shaking because he was afraid. The anger had only grown, he had done this, done something so brutal and had poured every bit of the rage into it. But instead of subsiding, the rage had only managed to bolster itself, it had only managed to swell up, feeding on itself.
  107.  
  108. His eye twitched again at Alfarez's comment, not that Gorandis knew his name... He could do it, just like the others he could harvest this man's essence, his spirit. Trap him from moving on, make the rest of his life endless torment until he was finally set to release. Gorandis could do it... and he would do it, but even if his own soul was black... there was still a single shred of humanity left.
  109.  
  110. He didn't have to take it all. He stepped forwards, stepped over the man's broken form and raised his hands. The crimson lightning shot out again, arcing to the floor and settling onto the grass into a wide, runic circle, one that began to spin idly. It was his usual method... though there would be a twist to it, something he had not felt for a long time...
  111.  
  112. Mercy.
  113.  
  114. He unfastened his robes and laid his chest bare, showing the world the intricate runes that lay there. With a spell he empowered them and the thick cloying sense of depravity exuded outwards, thickening into a purple shroud of corrupt darkness. The purple wormed out and sank down, dripping to the grass before falling over Alfarez's form.
  115.  
  116. "You will be mine... but not all of you. Your memories, who you are... they will pass on but your power, the rest of your spirit... they shall be mine... They shall be the power to fuel my rage..."
  117. (Gorandis)
  118.  
  119. With eyes closed, Alfarez thought that he saw a dark figure descending to him from heaven, but he knew that it was all in his mind. He smiled and said, "...I have nothing. My memories are my strength, and you will never be satisfied at what you take. I have no talent, no natural gift or power, and nothing that you would ever want. Your anger is enough to make the world tremble, but you have released my despair with your own. Thank you."
  120.  
  121. He raised two of his fingers, aiming at the man's face, and placed them on top of his forehead. He charged up his Hellstorm, and he shouted, "Azrael, the Dark Viceroy of the Reapers greets you as an equal." He released his aura one more time at full power and without the excellent control that all kinds of people- from Hauk Fildegarde and Astoria Hirano, to Apollion Hertlend, and to Kidoku Takashi, lauded him for, frying his brain and his heart into smoldering ash in an instant.
  122. (Alfarez Vichenstein)
  123.  
  124. The attempt at suicide was not stopped, after all, Gorandis needed him dead for this to work. And yet, the more he thought... the more the rage welled up. Why should he show this man mercy? Especially now... he was... he was disrespecting him... A deep frown formed on Gorandis' face. No, no he wouldn't show kindness... he couldn't show kindness, not to this man.
  125.  
  126. Not while his own soul felt like this.
  127.  
  128. The shifting runes halted, morphing back into their usual patterns, he would take all of it, all of Alfarez's spirit. He would not be moving on to see whatever god nor people he seemed to hold in his now charred heart. His life was over and it now belonged to Gorandis!
  129.  
  130. The purple limb descended and clawed at the recent corpse, clutching at the strands of the man's spirit and just barely managing that. The tether, the only thing keeping the spirit in this realm began to reel in. Alfarez's soul managed to escape, of course it did, Gorandis could barely even comprehend altering that, that was far beyond his reach.
  131.  
  132. But a man's spirit... that was well within his power.
  133.  
  134. The dark, cloying purple encompassed the spirit and began to shrink down, just as it did with the last two spirits and it crystallised into a large, red gem. Something that filled his palm and he could sense the power within it. Alfarez's use of hellstorm magic would serve Gorandis well in the future with his own creations...
  135.  
  136. He stopped and looked down at the body, no doubt the nearby guards would be able to see it from here. Sighing and buttoning up his chest, Gorandis walked off slowly. He was done here.
  137. (Gorandis)
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