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In the Name of the Almighty (Razgriz x Karameida)



[The above are links to the respective character images.]​


It burned.

His rage and hatred burned her. It was hot, fierce and amidst all that was his disgust and disdain for her. All of it plain as day in the fires that burned in his gaze. It petrified her and she cried out, her cry was cut short as pain shot through her shoulder. Before she could register what had happened her world was sent spinning as she was hurled through the air. She felt her body slam through the beams that supported the canopy of her bed before she hit the wall with enough force send cracks splintering out across it. She fell to the bed but found no respite. Before she could even exhale she felt this agony rip through her torso as the horsemans fist connected with her mid-section completely destroying the bed her and Endymion had used for so long. She couldn't even scream. There was no pause in his attack, she hadn't even recovered from the pain that blow to her midriff had caused before she felt his hand tug at her top with a ridiculous amount of force. Her body jerked forward and she heard a terrible shredding sound. For a moment she feared he'd actually ripped her skin from her body but when she gazed at him she realized it was only her shirt that had been ripped away. She could feel the heat of his flames lick at her bare skin.

Even at a moment like this she tried to cover herself. Before she could her head yanked violently as her hair was used to pull her up and off the ground. There she dangled in front of the horsemen. She felt like her scalp was about to be ripped from her skull. Tears fell even faster down her face and then she caught his eyes. There was no sexual lust there, no bedroom desire. Only a scorching rage that burned her without actually touching her. How did she come to make an enemy of such a monster? What had she done to earn the hatred of this demon? Amidst her panic and fear and desperation her own irritation swirled up. What HAD she done to deserve this? She'd been a damn good leader. She'd sacrificed everything. WHAT. HAD. SHE. DONE!? But, it was no use. The irritation she briefly felt that might've given her the courage to at least struggle was once more swamped and buried beneath her raw fear. And then his onslaught began again.

She couldn't react.

She couldn't react at all. His attacks were too much for her to handle. In power and in intensity, there was nothing she could do. She heard him talking but none of it made any sense to her. The pain that was searing through her body wouldn't let her think either. A pain so intense it enveloped her mind, body and soul. She didn't know where one injuries pain met another, didn't know if there was anything left of her that was undamaged. She watched through tear blurred eyes as he raised his fist to deliver the finishing blow. She squeezed her eyes shut tight and waited. And she continued to wait.

She heard him speak and felt the building shake time and time again. Each one worse than the last one but still she felt nothing. Cautiously she opened her eyes and watched in horror as he swung down at her but before he could connect a bright light enveloped her stopping his attacks. At first she felt relieved, happy almost and then she spied the great cracks that were forming along the invisible wall. It was about to break. She watched him raise his arm one more time and bring it down and with that her shield shattered. The building shook violently, a testament to the power behind his attack. The demon that attacked her spoke then. And his words sent her over the edge.

She raised her arms as if they might be enough to block his attack. She opened her mouth and she screamed. The high pitched shriek came from deep within her and contained every ounce of fear, pain, despair and desperation that had been swirling inside of her since he'd first appeared before her.

"I can't die...." she thought as she drowned in her own self-pitying tears.

Chibi-usa, unable to stand the sight of her mother in such a state had left the tower to do what she could for whatever remained of her world. She wasn't going to cower away behind the tower walls and wait for death to come find her. If she was going to die, she was going to die fighting. However, she heard something that caused her to stop and look back at the tower. Her eyes widened in shock. The stronghold looked ready to collapse, as if it had weathered eons of harsh conditions. Great fissures had formed in the side of the crystal and cracks had branched off in every direction. Something had arrived in the tower as she had left. For a moment she stood rooted to the spot a cold fear uncurling within her "Mother..." she thought. She had lost her father, was she about to lose her mother too? "NO!" she screamed defiantly. She crushed the fear inside of her ruthlessly and turned on her heel running back to the tower. "I should have stayed put. I shouldn't have left. Mother, wait for me!" she thought her chest rising and falling rapidly with every breath she took.


Pluto momentarily closed her eyes against the pain that barraged her. It was a pain unlike anything she had ever felt before. It was intense, vivid, clear and indescribable. Nothing in any of her lives would have ever prepared her for this. Pain etched lines into her face as she kept the scream she knew lingered inside of her from escaping her lips. She would not cry out, she would endure. She was grateful that Jupiter had backed off, she had a feeling that she'd have died if Jupiter had gone through with whatever she had planned on doing. She vaguely heard Death reassure Jupiter but felt that some of the reassurance was for her as well. "He needn't have bothered. If my death will cease this senseless destruction then I welcome it." she thought but was still a little touched that he'd gone so far as to reassure her. Only a little though.

Off to the side Jupiter and Saturn watched everything transpire and wondered what Pluto was feeling. She, like Saturn never truly showed what she felt but it was plain as day that Pluto was in agony. Jupiter clenched her jaw tightly and clenched and unclenched her fist as time wore on. He said she would live but how much was he planning on taking from her? Would she truly be alright? She wanted to interject again but Pluto's words rang in her mind and stopped her. Pluto seemed to trust him and for now, that would have to be enough. It wasn't like they had a lot of choice in the matter anyways. Death was right, of the three of them, Pluto had the least amount of damage. Certainly no physical ones. If anyone was to survive it, it would be Pluto. Still didn't mean she liked it.

As if sensing Jupiters inner turmoil and frustration, Saturn turned to look at her. "She'll be fine." was all she said before returning her gaze to Death and Pluto.

Surprised Jupiter cast a quick searching look in Saturns direction before also returning to watch Pluto and Death. Saturn was strange but there was no doubt that she could sense things others could not. Much like Pluto. If she said it was alright then more likely than not it really was alright. Jupiter relaxed slightly and let out a breath.

When his hand withdrew from inside of her, Pluto collapsed on the spot. She felt utterly drained and devoid. She faintly registered footsteps coming closer to her. She felt someone lift her upper body up and position her more comfortably, when her head came to rest it was on something soft and warm, looking up she saw Jupiters face. So, she was using Jupiter as a pillow. Slightly off to the side was Saturn but she wasn't looking at Death or at them, rather she was glancing around looking troubled. "Whats wrong Saturn?" she asked though her voice was weak and a bit shaky. Saturn turned to her slowly and frowned "I don't know...." she said slowly "but I sense blood lust. A lot of it." she said pursing her lips together.

"Could it be War?" Jupiter asked. Saturn only shook her head. "No, this is.....different" she said uncertainly. A cold wind howled through the area as if heralding the coming of another battle.

And then a voice bellowed across the barren clearing. Saturn froze and slowly turned her gaze to the familiar voice. "You, you should be dead." she said simply though he did not hear her. She did not have it in her to fight anymore. She raised her weapon up readying for an attack from the demon. However, Death stepped between them saving her from having to fight a lost battle. Saturn watched the demon closely as he was confronted by Death. Saturns gaze was drawn to the crown that now held Conquest as well as three other Senshi and she mentally cursed herself to oblivion. She should have grabbed it before she left. She should have never left it lying around. She had blundered. Before she could say or do anything the tension in the air suddenly hiked way up and the two began to fight.

Death was at a disadvantage. Saturn mentally berated herself for her screw up, it wasn't like her to make such a glaring over sight. She had lost consciousness after she'd used her attack since whatever force she didn't use in the attack had rebounded back on her but still, she knew the first thing she should have done after being woken was take the crown. And make sure everyone in the area was truly dead. This whole mess was her fault.

The battle continued and from the sidelines it moved excruciatingly slow until it came down to a grappling match between Death and the demon. Saturn had been watching things unfold very carefully, and in this instance there was no way Death would be able to push the Demon off of him. Not in his current state. She also realized what Death had been trying to do from the start. She watched the scythe that protruded from the demon move when the demon moved. She didn't have any power left and barely any strength left. She wasn't even sure she could run if she was forced to but....if she could get the right leverage even with the strength she had she could certainly help Death out. With that she moved around behind the Demon so he wouldn't see her and inched closer, when the demon moved it brought the scythe within grabbing distance of her and she took hold of it.

Gripping it tightly she swung her legs up and planted them on the demons side and pulled on the scythe with everything she had left. For a few heartbeats nothing happened and then she heard something being shredded and she fell backwards the scythe in her hand, torn from the demons body exposing that which Death needed. She hit the ground hard and bounced once or twice before rolling to a stop. She wearily got on all fours and leaned back.

She wondered fleetingly how each of them managed to call on reserves and strengths when they thought that they were finally at their end. There seemed to be a wellspring within each of them that let them borrow strength in their otherwise decrepit bodies.

Saturn smiled wryly before collapsing once more.
 

Kill.

Kill.

Kill.


That one word - so simple yet in this instance holding so much meaning - resonated within the Red Horseman, his entire remaining arm ablaze with a raging inferno as it poised to deliver a truly punishing final blow. His anger, his sheer will to spill her blood...All of it would be dealt to Serenity. Just as she'd abandoned so many in the name of her own self-preservation, now she too was abandoned. Alone as she faced retribution for her crime.

However, War seemed to make no movement; it was like his body was frozen. But there was no contemplation, no remorse for doing this; no, his pause was for a different reason. Beneath the burning flame that encased his clenched limb, the flesh could be seen shifting; within moments, the sounds of rending flesh and snapping bone filled the air. His seemingly limitless rage forcing his body to mutate, to adapt to the power that flowed through him; when completed, Serenity would see that his right arm had grown to twice its normal size, making the Horseman appear incredibly lop-sided. The limb dwarfed even his massive frame, the right side of his torso disproportioned to account for the increase in mass.

The only sound Serenity would hear after that was the war cry, that howl of sheer bloodlust as he then swung the massive fiery limb down; his fist covered her broken form from her hips to her shoulders as he crushed her beneath him. What force did not go to utterly crushing her was transferred to the Spire, where after already suffering such abuse, it could take no more. The fractures on the outside seemed to explode, causing the entire structure to crumble, the sounds of breaking crystal echoing into the dead landscape. Ruin whinnied loudly and leapt from the balcony, intent on not joining his master in the great fall. War and Serenity plummeted as the floor broke and gave way beneath them, quickly becoming buried by the newly-formed mountain of rubble...And for a few long moments, nothing moved. Not even a twitch from the pile of shards.

But then a stir, then a rise in the center of the debris as War's misformed body rose, the oversized hand holding the Queen's limp form in its grasp. Hollow, enraged grunts left War's throat; his eyes fixed firmly on the Queen, as if not satisfied with this. No...He needed to destroy her utterly. She was not yet broken enough, not enough blood was spilled. More....He needed more!

These thoughts of blood-rage drove his anger even higher, his body starting to writhe visibly at the surface; the flesh roiled and turned, as if something within was clawing to get out. War then gave another bellow of pain and anger as the sounds of snapping sinew and breaking bone filled the air once more; his enlarged right arm seemed to shrink until he held her by the throat, before two arms identical sprung up from his shoulder. War's form twitched, then had another two appear from the shoulder where Death had severed his arm; strangely enough, the stump did not regrow into the original limb. But bodily parts severed by Death's scythe were forever lost...And no one was excepted from that.

The new limbs then grabbed the Queen, one hand attaching to each of her limbs as she was hoisted over his head. Then he started to pull, the fingers breaking skin to grip at the bone beneath; the hand around her throat pierced both jugular to take her spine, making copious amounts of blood spill and stain both the crystal and his skin. His muscles visibly strained, white light emanating from each of the Queen's shoulders and hips as an unknown force worked to save Serenity...But it would not be enough.

All at once, tears could be seen forming in the Queen's skin and making more blood flow from her; with one last great pull and cry of rage, War made true his promise and tore the Queen limb from limb. Great crimson fountains spurted from the severed joints, splashing large areas of the rubble and dousing the Horseman in Serenity's life fluids, her torso falling uselessly to the ground with a sickening 'plop'. And there the blood-soaked giant stood, each of the Queen's limbs held by one hand of War...Her head held firmly by the spine in his right hand. His chest heaved from the exertion, rising and falling as the urge to kill pounded through his body; his eyes then fell to see a most unexpected witness to the grisly deed.

"How quaint...The daughter of Earth's greatest failure is here to witness what happens to those that flee before me. Be thankful I have other business to attend to, but make no mistake, you will be joining your mother soon enough" War growled, his blood-stained silver hair matting his face; his extraneous arms then tossed Serenity's arms and legs aside, but kept her head for himself. Giving a whistle, he could hear Ruin's hooves galloping madly towards him; in the same manner he'd gone off to pursue the Queen, he now rode back to destroy his brother and the remaining Senshi for daring to interfere.
Death did not know how much longer he could hold out; the energy that he'd taken from Pluto wasn't helping all that much. And he couldn't maneuver himself to grip at the scythe wedged into his assailant's armor; if he didn't keep the beast's hands occupied, Death knew he would be killed. The demon pinning him down laughed, his putrid breath washing over Death's exposed ivory head, "What's the matter, Horseman? Surely you, the undeniable master of slaughter, aren't afraid of dying? And to think YOU lead the Horsemen. War was right...You're soft! Weak!"

"There is more to existence than killing....Than death. But you, a servant of my brother, don't understand such a concept!" Death replied heatedly; maybe he was soft. But being soft didn't imply weakness...He of all people needed to be cautious about the use of his power. He was more powerful than anyone could imagine, and because of it he had to assume the largest responsibility of all: Ensuring that the Universe continued, for better or worse.

And ironic that a fellow agent of destruction would come to his aid; Death picked up a faint sound of exertion and tilted his head, away from the demon's snapping jaws, to see none other than Saturn herself pulling on the scythe blade; before he could worn her to get away, she actually succeeded. The sound of shearing metal resonated as the chest plate fell off the demon, exposing the right area Death needed. Even better, this distracted his attacker; the demon turned his head and subconsciously loosened his grip as he gazed upon the nearly-unconscious Senshi. "Damn harlot! Once I kill the Horseman, you're...." he started to say, but a squelching sound preceded a massive flash of pain. He looked down to see that Death's hand had buried itself in his chest, blackened blood oozing down the gold-accented bracer. "As I said, there is more to existence than just killing. But do not mistake my hesitance for weakness, fool; I kill as I must. And right now...You have been slated to die" the Green Horseman stated in a disturbingly cold tone; the air seemed to rapidly drop in temperature as the demon choked before rolling off of Death, the gaping hole in his chest emitting green plumes of energy that seemed to flow into the Horseman.

"Yes...Your energy will do quite well" Death added as he rose his feet, standing over the demon's paralyzed form before plunging both hands into his chest and making the beast scream in utter agony. Green arcs of electricity flowed up Death's arms, surrounding him in an aura of pure vital energy; the Horseman's power could be felt growing stronger and stronger with each passing moment. The howls of agony that left the demon's throat quickly died down, his spiritual energy becoming 'food' for Death himself; however, the demon's eyes then shot wide as he felt this physical manifestation start to wither. He weakly examined one hand to see that it was growing smaller and wrinkled; as he tried to reach Death to push him off, his efforts became more visibly strained. Slowly, the demon warrior's body withered, its flesh shrinking like cellophane until only the contours of the skeletal structure were visible; it was like whatever Death had done turned the demon into a mummified statue. The demon just remained paralyzed on the ground. his hollowed sockets peering at the Horseman, his own empty holes staring right back into the demon's face; before long, a gust of wind seemed to cause the body to disintegrate, the demon's form and soul drained of every last drop of energy it had to give.

Death now stood before the three Senshi, a pair of deep-purple, fleshless wings comprised of pure spectral energy sprouting from his back. The air remained fairly frigid even now, a side effect of Death's current state; he then heard a massive shattering sound and turned just in time to witness the Spire crumbling, leaving not even the foundation intact. He then felt the reviling wave of rage power wash over him, along with the Queen's life force being violently eradicated. "So...War has done it. The Queen is dead" he stated solemnly; there would be hell to pay for this. And Death knew his brother all too well; now he would return to kill them for trying to stop his blood-fueled rampage.

"There isn't much time" he then said as his gaze fell upon his brother's weapon; raising a hand out, he forced the weighty blade to levitate. The twin miniaturized Harvesters flew to the Horseman, the gold-bladed one wrenching itself from Saturn's weak grasp before recombining to form the original article. Grasping it, he then swung to create another rift before hurling the sword into it; this was but a temporary measure, and it would prevent War from accessing his full potential. Though right now, he was under so much anger and bloodlust he might not even need his sword at this point.

Then came the next of his damage control plan: Inverting his scythe so that the skull at the base of the snath pointed to the heavens above, he began to chant; it was a strange and melodious sound that seemed to form no real words, but it carried a message of grave importance. An orb of green light began to collect as the incantation continued; before long it ceased, leaving the green sphere hovering over the skull's mouth. Death then made a single, inexplicable sound and the orb of light streaked upwards with a faint whistling sound, quickly disappearing from sight. Satisfied at his progress, he then looked towards the three Senshi that so selflessly aided him despite his original intent on destroying them; extending his left hand, the metal-encased appendage glowing that same ghastly shade that covered the demon he'd drained, a warming radiation spreading outward through the chill. Regardless of the extent of their injuries, they would soon find themselves enshrouded in a healing glow; within minutes, their bodies were fully repaired and their massively depleted energy reserves fully restored. All of this might have seemed taxing given how much energy he'd had to spend, but for someone like Death, even this was quite trivial.

"I hope you three feel better, because War is going to be here soon; needless to say, he's not happy. With any of us. Despite however revitalized you might feel, I'm going to have to ask you to hide. Hide and for no reason at all reveal yourselves until after it's over; I wish I could explain more but you're going to have to trust me this one last time" he then said directly and somewhat cryptically, urgency lacing every syllable. From the ground, a great wall of crystal and earth rose to obscure the Senshi from view before they might have a chance to argue; returning his attention to his front, his empty sockets remained focused before him. He could feel it. The rage that screamed to annihilate them, growing ever closer by the second; he could not and would not fall to his brother here. Too much depended on it...And he would win, no matter the cost.
 


[The above are links to the respective character images.]​

Chibi-usa ran with all her might but she would find that she was too late. Much too late.

Inside the tower the fight was coming to a close and as it did so too would it mean the end of the Queens life. The curtain was finally closing on the cowardly queen. Soon she would be no more and with her fall so too would the world begin to crumble. Without a ruler any who would survive would fall to their baser instincts. In order to survive they would rely on their animal side. And in this primitive life they would slowly slip even farther into the grips of destruction. It was over.

Above her stood War. He stood ready to deliver a blow that would crush her frame. A blow that would break her bones like glass thrown against stone. For a timeless moment both were frozen as they were, neither made a move. Serenity made no move to escape and no breath escaped the Queens lips as she stared up at her killer. And War made no move to finally end her life. Before she'd have taken the pause as a sign of regret or remorse. But not this time. She wasn't very smart but even she wasn't foolish enough to think he'd regret killing her. For at that moment there was nothing more that he wanted to do. She would soon find out why he'd stopped and it only made the end that much more terrifying.

Then the sounds began. Stomach churning sounds. The sounds of flesh and bone breaking and tearing. Of muscles and tissues shredding. She flinched back and watched horrified as his arm twisted and changed, growing larger. When it finished she feared even more. It nearly covered her entire upper half, this fist would mutilate her till she was nearly or completely unrecognizable. He looked wrong, like some creature from hell that had clawed it's way to the surface. It should have been funny, he was so lopsided and disproportionate...it really should have been funny to see. But to Sailor Moon it only made him more terrifying to look at.
"It's not symmetrical! It's asymmetrical garbage and must be destroyed!!!"
The silence was finally broken by the cry that War unleashed as he swung down at her. Serenity closed her eyes tightly against the image and tears fell from her eyes and then it hit her. It was as if time had slowed down for just a moment to let her suffer. She felt her bones crack, snap and splinter as they were crushed. Her rib cage shattered and bone fragments pierced her lungs and heart. Blood poured freely from the damaged heart and burst blood vessels drowning her from the inside out. It seeped from her mouth and from her eyes as well as her nose. Streaming from any opening. The blood filled her lungs but she was saved from suffocating on her own blood. As his fist came down fully her life ended in that instant. What was left was simply an empty shell of the Queen. The cause of everything, the unworthy Queen was finally dead.

And as the Queen died so too did the Tower that had been her sanctuary begin to crumble. The force of the blow was too much burden for the spire to endure and it began to fall in on itself. And with a mighty groan it fell burying the Queen and the horseman in the rubble. Debris and smoke rose up and obscured the air even more.

Chibi-usa stopped and shielded herself as remains of the tower were sent flying in all directions. When things had finally quieted down she lowered her arms and stared at the destroyed remains of her home. Somewhere inside that mess was her mother. "No..." she whispered. She hung her head and tears burned her eyes, she wiped them away and made to move towards the pile. She had to at least find her mothers body. But just as she started walking something began to shift the stones away. For some reason her body froze in place. And from the destroyed remains rose a monster. Darkness seemed to cling to this creature. Not even the fire that emanated from him could dispel it. And for as long as she lived, Chibi-usa would always remember the eyes that burned within that darkness. The eyes of a devil.

It took her a moment before she realized her mothers broken and lifeless form dangled from his grip. You could easily see from one look that she was dead and yet the beast before her did not exude triumph, instead she sensed his desire for more violence. Her gaze was transfixed on him and her mothers corpse. She watched his arm shrink till he had Serenity by the throat, she barely heard a thing. Just watched. And when she thought he couldn't possibly look more like a monster, hands ripped from the skin on his shoulders to grab at her mothers form. She wanted to close her eyes to whatever was about to happen, close her eyes and pretend the demon wasn't real. But she couldn't.

Before she could even blink blood started pouring from her mothers throat. She didn't know what had happened. So far as she knew he hadn't really even moved. But he had to have...there was so much blood falling. So much. It looked like a waterfall falling from the dead Queen's throat. And between one breath and the next she watched as her mothers limbs were torn from her body. Watched as her mothers head and spine were torn away. Watched her own mothers torso fall to the ground. Serenity's blood sprayed everywhere becoming a fine mist that floated through the air. Chibi-usa's eyes widened in horror and she began to shake violently. She felt some of the blood hit her. Felt it's warmth ooze down her face and arms. Her mind went completely blank and her face was frozen with a look of pure shock.

Then the demon turned towards her. Heard it's words sink into her heart. She watched without seeing as he tossed her mothers limbs aside. But he kept the head and spine with him. And before she knew it he was gone.

She stood there for a long time looking at the mutilated remains of her mother. Tears burned hotly behind her eyes. Emotions swirled violently inside of her. "No..." she whispered hoarsely. "No..." she said again louder this time. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" she screamed out grabbing her head. She fell to her knees as the scream continued echoing around the area.

Slowly, hatred and revenge began to swirl about in the young Senshi's heart. Darkness tainting the pure light she'd once held.


Jupiter watched helplessly as Saturn forced herself to move in order to aid Death. While she sat there cradling the drained Pluto's head in her lap. Saturn herself looked to be in the same state as Pluto and still she moved. If that golden beast caught sight of Saturn before she got a hold of the Scythe he'd kill her. She held her breath and watched Saturn maneuver herself. With surprising speed and strength she managed to catch hold of the Scythe and more surprising still she pulled it free. Saturn stumbled back and acting quickly, Jupiter set Pluto's head down before running over to Saturn. She carried the unconscious Saturn back to Pluto and set her down. She turned her gaze to the Demon and Death and watched him drain the demon. "Impressive." she said as the Demon was slowly mummified.

She looked down at her two comrades and frowned sadly. She wondered what was going to happen to them all. To their world. It was likely that the extreme exhaustion, depletion of power and injuries they'd sustained would kill them. Just as Death had finished she saw the tower in the distance fall. A sign that brought with it news of death. She had felt the Queens life force wink out just as the tower fell. "And so she finally falls. Not even she could run from the Horsemen." she said as a wind howled hungrily through the area. At Deaths words Jupiter turned to look at him. She knew exactly what he meant. Now that his main target had been slaughtered...he would come back to finish the fight with them. And no matter the circumstances, in their present state the remaining Senshi could not fight.

Jupiter watched Death go to work. When he'd seemingly finished with his tasks he turned to look at them. For a moment nothing happened and then he raised his hand towards them. Jupiter braced herself expecting an attack but instead she felt something warm surround her. The darkness that had been at the back of her mind retreated and with it went the deep exhaustion she'd been fighting. The pain from her battles and her battered body soon began to heal and mend. Jupiter raised her hands and stared at them before looking at Death confused and mystified. She heard a sound and looked down to see Pluto and Saturn stirring. Color returning to their faces. She was so happy she could have cried in that moment. However before she could thank Death he was speaking. He'd healed them but he did not want them to fight? Before she could say anything a giant wall rose up between them completely cutting off the Senshi from Death and War.

Jupiter stood there surprised before she slammed her fists against the wall. "Damn..." she said clenching her jaw.

" Jupiter...whats going on?" Pluto asked as she slowly sat up. She expected to feel the pain completely overwhelm her. When that didn't happen she stared at herself. She watched Jupiter slowly turn away from the wall she'd hit and face her. "Death healed us. Sailor Moon is dead. War is on his way to finish us off. Death wants us to hide behind this wall while he fights him." Jupiter said in way of explanation. Pluto was silent for a moment letting it all sink in. "I see..." she said opening and closing her fist. It made sense. He would have no problems restoring them to full power. "I suppose we'd just be in the way then?" Pluto said closing her eyes and smiling a bit.

"He'll have an easier time fighting if he doesn't have to worry about us getting injured in their fight." she said standing up. She brushed the debris from her body and went to stand beside Jupiter. She placed her palm against the wall and closed her eyes. "What I'd like to know is why. Even if things derailed big time...they were here to kill us. All of us. We were at Deaths door as it was...why did he save us?" she said pursing her lips. "Who knows? We can't even begin to understand him or his reasoning. He really is beyond us all." she said with a mysterious smile. Jupiter just stared at Pluto for awhile. She'd never heard Pluto talk of someone like that. Jupiter didn't know what had happened between Pluto and Death while they were alone but whatever it was Pluto deeply respected him. Maybe even trusted him. And she wasn't sure how accurate she was but there might just be a bit of personal affection.

While Jupiter struggled with what to say, Saturn rose. She took one look around before standing up. "Should we stay put as he asked?" she asked before brushing the debris from her body as well. Pluto opened her eyes and glanced over to Saturn. "I'm....not sure." she said frowning. Jupiter bit her lip and clenched her fists remembering Death's words. "I...think we should stay put." she said struggling to get the words out. Saturn and Pluto looked at Jupiter completely surprised. Jupiter dropped her gaze to the ground. "Before Death created this wall...he was talking...I've never felt anything more serious or urgent in my life. He was really trying to keep us from interfering. Whatever it is, it's likely it would kill us. Before this he had us actively involved as there was no immediate danger to us. This time...it's different." she said. She didn't like it. Not one bit. But she also realized it was probably the best course of action.

"We may be warriors but we are human and we have our limits. The rest....is up to him." she said grudgingly.

Pluto and Saturn continued to stare at her in shock. They'd never heard her back down before. Never. It seemed, there were a lot of firsts in this battle. For all of them. "I see." Pluto said staring at Jupiter strangely. "Then we will sit and wait." she said turning her attention back to the wall. Jupiter raised her head quickly and looked at Pluto. Relief written on her face. "However, I hate not knowing what is going on. So we shall keep watch. If things start looking bad we will help." she said firmly. "So be it." Saturn said. Jupiter nodded slowly "Alright." With that Pluto raised her arms and wiped her hand across the Wall as if wiping away the mist from a mirror.

As she did so the area cleared and became almost see through, allowing them to watch what was happening. However from the other side it looked like an ordinary wall. And with that, the Senshi's decided to heed Deaths words and stay put. For the time being anyways.
 

Death could practically feel the stares of the Senshi as he stood ready for his brother's arrival; at least no one could see through it. But he knew that War would be able to tell where they were, but they would be partially protected by the crystal barrier set before them. However, to this end, Death actually moved farther away from the wall to avoid letting War slip past him and go after the three women. Healed they might be, but War was too powerful for them to handle. Especially now.

As the minutes ticked by, nothing sounded. The land, once rife hours ago with the screams of the dying and the howls of battle, had long fallen into a deafening silence. Then came a distant rumble, growing closer by the second; if one were to strain their ears, they would hear a steady four-beat rhythm. The sound of hooves clopping against the mangled terrain could soon be heard clearly by all, a large shroud of orange, yellow, and red rapidly encroaching on Death's position and burning away the chilling mist that had settled. Standing before them was War atop his mount, his five arms tensed for combat as he jumped down from Ruin's saddle. His form, devoid of any armor from the waist up, was covered in crimson streaks and blackened ash as roaring fire burned around him like a cloak. A heavy 'thud' resonated, the same following each step as he walked towards his brother, his tongue held silent and his eyes burning with unrelenting fury. In one of his left hands, the original limb, Death saw the Queen's head, still attached to the spine, her eyes empty but frozen in the same state she died: Fearful. It was the look of a coward backed into a corner. Death could almost feel sorry for her...Almost, but not quite.

For a while, this titan of a warrior and the Reaper faced each other, neither of them speaking; as Death tried to speak, War just shouted "BE! SILENT!" His voice boomed with the ferocity of a thunderstorm, the sound carrying for miles in all directions and Death stopping in his speech for a few moments. Death could see it, now more than ever; something was twisting his brother.

"War...This doesn't have to continue. You have the Queen's death on your hands, isn't that enough?" Death tried to reason after the momentary pause, but War was not hearing any of it.

"So many times we have done this, Death. Brought the end to countless worlds. All to maintain a Balance that keeps the forces of Existence in check. And now you choose to betray me? Betray what we stand for?"

"Brother, let me explain. This time is different, we have done something wrong. VERY wrong, but we can still make it right"

"The only wrong I've seen today is your stabbing me in the back, Death! All because you lost your nerve! For these filthy, savage primates no less! The same ones that danced upon your domain as if it were their own personal playground!"

"NO! IT WAS BECAUSE I HAD TO! THERE IS MORE TO THIS..."

"NO THERE IS NOT! WE ARE DESTROYERS! THIS IS WHAT WE DO, AND IF YOU CANNOT ACCEPT THAT, THEN YOU ARE NO BROTHER OF MINE!"

At this Death fell silent once more and bowed his head a little; War then spoke once more, rage lacing every syllable, "You tried to destroy me, Death. You would allow this filth to continue living because you can't take it anymore. I have done what you could not, despite your efforts to stop me. And now you and your three little whores will pay the price for your indignation." Death then looked back up and said simply, "No, brother. This is where it ends. Believe it or not, I was holding myself back. I know the true reason why your rage is so great, and for that, I will not kill you. But your rampage ends now." And with that Death began to chant in that tongue of breezy tones and strange emissions, more freezing mist beginning to blanket the area; War, however, was not foolish enough to let Death finish. He charged in, shouting "You can try! And since you love this damned Queen so much, you can have her!" War's arm swung the detached cranium like a flail, the Queen's face mashing with Death's own before it exploded into a shower of brain matter, bone and blood. Stunned by the sudden strike, it was all Death could do to try and counter his brother's relentless assault. And with five arms to contend with, it wasn't going to be easy.

If the Green Horseman were at full power, dealing with War would have been a trivial matter; however, with what he needed to do and his relative lack of power, it would take more effort, patience and time. The third of that list was something not on his side, but even weakened, he was showing that he could easily keep pace with War's incredible combat prowess. Blow after blow was delivered to each other, the speed of their fighting inhuman and nearly impossible for even the more accomplished masters to track. But things started to look grim when Death tried to use his scythe to sweep War's leg; the Horseman jumped and kicked Death right in the face, sending him flying backward. And with surprising agility, War appeared behind him and dealt three elbows into his back, forcing Death into the sky. Before he could shoot up too high, War grabbed Death's ankle with all five hands and swung him hard into the earth, the impact creating an angry quake in the aftermath as the ground heaved upward.

Grabbing Death's form, his body rotated around and around several times before he shouted, "I KNOW WHERE YOU'RE HIDING, COWARDS! COME OUT AND DIE LIKE YOUR PATHETIC QUEEN!" and then threw Death full force at the shining barrier. The Reaper's body crashed through as if the wall were nothing but wet tissue, with War charging in behind him like a beast from Hell.
 


[The above are links to the respective character images.]​

The silence that had settled over them all was deceiving. It spoke of an end that did not exist, not yet. The horizon was streaked crimson and burned with the colors of a raging fire. It heralded his arrival. In the silence the sound of a horses hooves could be heard and at the sound all three warriors shuddered involuntarily. Even from here they could feel the malign rage of the red horsemen. It reached out and grabbed them, it wrapped around their bodies as if it alone could kill them. It was an unnerving feeling and it made them feel uneasy and on guard even though they knew consciously that the feeling alone could not possibly kill them.

And then he appeared. But what he'd become was something straight out of a demons nightmares. And in one hand he still held his prize, the head of the queen. All three of them closed their eyes and looked away from the look in her dead eyes. As much as they resented her, they did not think she deserved such a horrific death. She did deserve to die but not in such a way. An unnerving and deadly silence once more set over them. This time the Senshi's barely breathed for fear of breaking the fragile stillness.

And the first person to shatter the silence was War himself. The rage that laced the two words made the ground shake. It was obvious to all that War had fallen and become a nearly mindless destroyer and still Death tried to reason with his brother. Pluto wondered if the words War spoke had hurt Death in some way. For he wasn't the cold merciless entity the books and tomes had portrayed him to be. He felt. He hurt. He lamented. He cared. The fact that he was trying so hard to save his brother was proof enough of that. In his current state though, War was not willing to listen.

The first to make a move was Death. His low haunting chant swept through the area bringing with it a chill that battled against the heat of War's wrath. But as far gone as War might have been he was not so far gone as to let Death finish what he was doing. In a gruesome attack he struck Death with the head of the cowardly queen with such ferocity that it shattered it leaving nothing but skull and brain matter behind. Shock registered on the Warriors faces; just what was he? And then once more the two beings straight from myth began to fight. And like before the fight was terrifying and epic. The three could not take their eyes off the fight, they stared transfixed. As the battle escalated it became nearly impossible to follow the fight with their eyes. And the power behind each blow they traded was powerful enough to warp the wind in the area. Made the ground rumble and air hum. The battle took a turn for the worse when War got the advantage.

As soon as Death was slammed through the wall, thats when the Senshi stopped being bystanders.

"Well, at least we tried to do as he asked." Jupiter said with a bit of a smile. She looked over at Pluto and Saturn and saw in their faces what she knew was on hers. They weren't likely to survive this encounter. "Can't much be helped." Saturn said closing her eyes. Without another word all three summoned their weapons and went to work. Without warning a bolt of lightening dropped down onto Wars head. "You were looking for us?" Jupiter called out. "Well, here we are you damn monster. Kill us if you can." she said as another bolt of lightening struck down. Beside her stood Saturn who just stared on coldly. And without another moment they both began to attack War. They knew they didn't have a chance in hell of winning against him which was fine since their only aim was to distract him. And in his current state War turned from his brother Death and engaged the Senshi.

While Saturn and Jupiter attacked War, Pluto ran over to Death, upon reaching him she went down on her knees and checked on his condition. "I think the only way this will work is if we step in. We will distract him for as long as we can. You do what you need to do in that time." She said standing up. "I don't think we'll be able to distract him very long though." she said with a small little smile. "But we'll hold out for as long as possible." she said. Her smile disappeared and she bowed her head a little before going to join Saturn and Jupiter. She knew very well that in all likeliness she was heading straight to her own demise. And if she was going to die she would not die cowering and begging. She would die as a warrior.

Saturn slipped in and out of Wars grasps cutting at him and moving around him quickly. She also made great use of her weapons long distance, throwing it and aiming it at a different area than where she attacked herself. Jupiter moved in when openings presented themselves and cut into him with her blades as well as attacks from the sky with her lightening. Pluto moved in attacking as well as using her defensive abilities to lessen the blows they received. The three of them continued this, fighting as if they were actually trying to kill him. Within each of them was the knowledge that at any moment they could suffer the same fate as their dead queen. But unlike their queen was the acceptance of such a fate as well as an inner calm that showed through. They would not back down from this fight nor would they let his rage consume them.
 

War was too focused, too focused on slaughtering itself to focus on any attacks that might have hurdled towards. Fully revitalized, the first thunderbolt struck him with enormous force; however, the act of violence only empowered him further, rising his strength to ground-shattering levels and beyond. Each mighty step of his foot made the ground shake, each punch driven having the air itself feel as if it would be torn asunder from his might. He offered no words of retort to Jupiter's taunt, only a howl of anger that might seek to stir even the innate rage of someone as cold and unfeeling as Saturn herself. However, the first two were simply still too agile for him; his bulk, despite his speed being increased by an unbelievable factor, made it difficult for him to grasp them and rip them apart. And every time he did, the other would just interrupt and force him to let go.

Death looked to Setsuna as she knelt beside him, explaining what they would do; he was honestly hoping to avoid them interacting at all, but it seemed it was inevitable. "Very well...But be cautious. War's power is growing to a level that has not been seen for some time. It's still not anywhere near there, but it will reach it quickly if something is not done soon." he then stated; he watched for a while as Setsuna joined her comrades in combatting his brother. So far, they held their ground, stopping him from getting a firm hold on any one of them. And with that, he stood himself up and restarted his chant; the air became more and more frigid, the vapor beginning to condense despite the overwhelming heat of War's fury. Rune-like symbols then seemed to materialize, ice growing on his bones and over increasingly larger portions of his strangely-dressed form, his visible cranium becoming covered in a thick cap of solid ice as tendrils of it snaked down his spine.

War continued his assault, growing ever more frustrated as his power escalated; now that Setsuna had joined the fight, her techniques - mostly for long range combat - adding just another obstacle for him to deal with. Thankfully, one of her own strikes let him grab hold of her scythe weapon, followed by a quick strike which shattered it to bits; Jupiter's timely Thunder Dragon, however, saved her from incurring a fatal blow and forced the cycle to continue. Time and time again, he would get so close to killing them...But they would just slip away. And soon enough, he had had all he could handle with their evasive tactics. His mouth started to spew incoherent gibberish, as if the anger were driving him to the limits of culpable sanity, before he finally shouted "ENOUGH OF THIS! I WILL BREAK THIS WORLD AND BE DONE WITH IT!" Raising his five fists to the sky, just as the Senshi were all charging him at once, he drove them down...And turned Crystal Tokyo - whatever remained of it - into a record-breaking crater.

The force made the Earth groan in agony, its surface splintering as the winds went from still to something straight out of an atomic explosion. What few structures might have survived the carnage before now were swallowed whole as the ground shifted, seismic waves turning the shattered stone into literally tsunamis of debris and wreckage. Death himself rode out the rolling waves unfazed, his task nearing completion as the crash subsided; the Reaper had captured the three Senshi in a telekinetic bubble and hauled them out of harm's way. All three of them were a good distance above their beloved, but horrifically descreated city, allowing them to view the carnage in full: All of Crystal Tokyo was gone. The traces of what happened before annihilated in the blink of an eye. They hovered for a few moments before they were lowered to the lip of the crater itself. The massive impact went for miles across and miles down; where they were now, none could likely say.

A good thing too...Because now Pluto would see the power of a true Dead Scream. And the true power of Death itself, the Horseman standing at the very edge, his gaze focused intently on the bright light that glowed intensely even at this distance; the Horseman just hoped this would be enough. The heat of War's fury was immense, and he could even feel it all the way out here.

War stood in the center of the massive hole, the rock melting from the sheer heat he was radiating and pooling to boiling magma; it was a wonder he did not continue sinking, but nonetheless his rage - and henceforth, the connection he had to the rage of everyone - intensified. "DEATH!!!!!" the Red Horseman bellowed as he launched himself from his hole straight at Death, his fire acting as massive engines as he clearly tried to use his own body as a battering ram. Death then took the four main fingers on his hands and raked them in opposite directions across the golden band that sealed his jaws, cutting it open. "I suggest you three cover your ears." he stated to them; an odd warning, one might think. Then all that was heard was an unusually loud inhalation, the sound echoing deep within the minds of all present before the real power came.

Ice seemed to blast like a hurricane out of the Rider's gaping maw, an awe-inspiring storm of bone-shattering wind that bombarded War with its chill and ferocity. The loudness of the Scream itself was so great that it seemed to shatter the sound barrier and create a sonic boom. The sudden force slowed War's brutal launch before he was finally brought to a standstill, the Red Horseman trying futilely to push himself towards Death; the cold seared at his flesh, turning it black with frostbite and thermal shock as the flames that once burned so hotly were slowly extinguished, ember by ember. Finally Death could maintain the technique no longer and let the winds come to rest as he closed his mouth, the gold band resealing itself as War fell only to catch himself on the lip of the crater.

What little flesh had not blackened from Death's technique was now a prominent shade of blue, evidence of the severe cold that he'd endured; War shivered as he pulled himself up, his mind still intent on murdering his brother for his betrayal. "Y, y, y...you th...th...th..think it's ove...over? N..n..n..no...Ugh...Not over....NEVER...over" War stuttered; Death then grabbed his hair and yanked, holding his own brother up with sheer strength. "Yes...It's over now." the Horseman stated plainly, dropping his semi-frozen brother onto the hard ground just outside the lip. Without warning, he then plunged both his hands into War's chest, forcing a strangled howl out of the Red Rider as green chain-like tendrils erupted from Death's body and surrounded him. They flailed wildly before wrapping around every inch of his frostbitten body, creating burning sigils that lessened War's once-massive energy output to nothing less than a glimmer. This continued for several minutues, before long Death had finished and his brother lay broken and barely breathing. Death gave a sigh as he resummoned his Harvester; a single swipe cut yet another portal, the wind threatening to suck everyone through to some unknown darkness. "I'm sorry it has come to this, War...But you are a danger like nothing else. This must be done for the sake of all...And you. I only hope you realize this soon enough." Death stated as he impaled War through the chest and flung him through the opening, the latter unable to do anything as he was banished from this world...For the time being at least. And with that, the tear in front of them closed; up above in the heavens, the sky began to heal, evidence of its wounds disappearing in seconds.

A loud trumpet then sounded high in the heavens; Death looked skyward to see various winged figures pouring down from the clouds, the tears that once permeated the sky like open sores slowly disappearing. "Thank goodness...." he muttered before he collapsed to a knee. Raising a gauntlet-covered arm up high, a whizzing sound could be heard before Conquest's crown flew into his grasp. As much as he wanted to retrieve Famine's scales as well...He was too worn out. Evidenced as such by subsequently falling to his face and just laying there, his cheek resting on the hard earth. "I'm sorry...For all of this. But please...Fight on as best you can. This battle might be won...But the real fight has only just begun." he then grumbled as his body glowed an eerie green; he then faded away, stating "War will make his return...Be ready" before he vanished completely, leaving only his scythe in his wake and a very uncertain future for what remained of the Sailor Senshi.
 


[The above are links to the respective character images.]​

This game with War was terrifying and adrenaline inducing. While they danced around him in the back of their mind lay the knowledge that if he gets half a second chance to grab them then they are finished. That knowledge alone was enough to keep their hearts racing at a million miles an hour. They were all truly terrified of this beast they battled with. He was like nothing else they'd ever faced or seen in any life time. He was a true nightmare. And they were fighting it. That knowledge was as exciting as it was horrifying. They kept their minds from wandering, kept the "what if's" at bay and just attacked and danced.

Pluto felt a chill snake over the ground and she glanced in Deaths direction which proved to be a mistake. In that second War grabbed her scythe and shattered it. Nearly shattered her too but Jupiter jumped in with a well timed attack that let her slip free. Placing her hands together and facing outwards towards war she shouted " My guardian Pluto lend me the powers of time and of the dead, let me see before they act and bring them to their knees in absolute defeat" she chanted out. The world around them dimmed as if something was sucking away the light. She saw War scream in fury and raise his arms skyward. Her eyes widened as she saw a vision of what he intended to do. Moving her arms protectively in front of herself she strengthened the barrier that had kept them from being completely crushed.

Had it not been for Pluto's foresight what happened next would have never been understood. It all happened so fast and so violently. One moment they were attacking and dodging war, the next the world around them began to shake and debris clouded their vision. And then a sphere formed around each of them and shot them skywards. There they could see everything. Their home. They watched the ground shake and split, watched as a destructive blast waved crumbled anything that had managed to remain intact. All that remained was a crater. Their city would never return. It was so far beyond destroyed, there was no hope of reviving it. It was likely they were the only remaining survivors. Three in a city of millions. After a moment they were gently brought down to the edge of the crater and from here they watched.

"I can barely see..." Jupiter muttered.

"It begins now." Saturn said her eyes transfixed onto the figures in the distance.

Pluto raised her hand and wiped the air in front of her as if wiping away dirt. A glass mirror formed and on the face it showed a close up of Death and War once more facing off. The heat from War lapped at the edge of the crater threatening to burn them should they come near. The chill from Death crept through the heat and threatened to freeze all things. And then War launched himself at Death. At Deaths instruction all three Senshi covered their ears with their hands to shut out the noise.

While they didn't hear anything they certainly felt it. The heat that had been scorching the land was suddenly gone. And in it's place was a bone chilling cold. The shock of the drastic temperature change seemed to suck all the air from their lungs. They watched as Wars heat was snuffed out and his body was slowly frozen. They watched completely transfixed by it. And when War finally collapsed, defeated by his brother, Death cast him out. When the portal closed the senshi removed their hands from their ears and stared for a moment. Not quite believing it was over. And then Death Collapsed.

The three ran over to him but would not make it in time. Before they arrived to where he had fallen he had disappeared. Only leaving behind his words on the wind. A warning.

Pluto arrived well before the other two and she stopped, she couldn't sense his presence anymore. She lowered her head. "Thank you." she murmured. Her gaze fell to the Harvester, his weapon. She frowned a little and made her way over to it. It took her only a moment to decide to take the weapon as her own for now. Leaning over she wrapped her fingers around the Scythe, the moment she did she let out a horrendous scream. Pain shot through her body and her muscles instantly tensed up. Her head filled with visions, thoughts and memories and felt like it might burst wide open. Her eyesight begin to fade and before long she could see nothing at all. A few more moments ticked by as she screamed in pain before her entire body collapsed and she fell unconscious. The harvester however glowed for a moment before fading away.

Far away from the battle stood Chibi-usa. Her expression was filled with hate and rage. She hungered for and desired revenge above all things. As she wandered her demolished city in almost a trance like state she fell farther and farther into the clutches of darkness. As she wandered she heard a kind of whispering. It called to the hunger in her heart and drove her to seek out the source. She would have revenge, even if it killed her and everyone else. She would see him pay for everything.
 
Episode 7: Aftermath​


War tumbled through space and time, the utter chill of the passage making the journey that much more unbearable. His own affinity helped take some of the edge off, but it was not enough; the hair upon his - soaked to a crimson shade even still in the Queen's blood - was blown back and frozen solid from the technique his brother used, and icicles of the red fluid could be seen covering every inch of his form. Ice covered the stump of his left arm, the scabbing from his cauterization having fallen off and been replaced by his own frozen blood. Hardened rock, solidifed by the icy winds, caked the boots of his leg armor, the metal chilled to nearly fracturing from the stress.

And even as the cold seeped into his bones from all these sources, his only thoughts were those of vengeance. He would find Death, those three damned harlots that were with him...And he would end them all. But for now, he would need to rest; little did he realize how of his remaining strength Death had truly sealed from him. And how arduous the future would be in trying to get it back so he could complete his goal.

Eventually, he would find himself back within the Void, a chilling wind blowing out as he exited the portal before it sealed up behind him; his body flew forward onto infinite nothingness, bouncing a few times as if there were something there in the black emptiness of where the Horsemen made their home. He lay there rigidly for a while, unmoving and unresponsive. Eventually, he stirred, using his one good arm to push himself up...And realize that he was not alone. "You...How did you get in here?" War demanded to know, barely able to keep his jaw from chattering as he stared at the intruder.
The rubble of the city finally settled, large growths of ice now sticking from the ground like frozen obelisks; some of the icy stalactites were streaked with debris, others were a solid red and filled with the gore of countless slain. Even after Death's vanishing, the chill hung on the air, a bleak addition to an already grimdark landscape.

And beneath one particular pile, lay a set of golden scales, glowing with black energy; it pulsed with what seemed like a heartbeat, the energy intoxicating and alluring. "Well...Now I know how the slaves felt." commented Famine dryly, his essence contained within his own tool of destruction. He couldn't help but wander how long he would be stuck here. Unable to move while potential sources of entertainment were taken from this world to either the kingdom in the clouds or the pits below.

However, he soon felt an energy approaching; it was fairly dark, but still held a light. A corrupted soul, ripe with hunger. But not hunger for food, sex or sleep. Vengeance was the key to this puzzle. "Ohoho...Dearie me, someone wants someone dead" chuckled the Black Horseman; this might very well be his key. Perhaps whoever this was, they might try to use him to get what they want. And through that, he could replenish himself; after all, such a potent lust should not be wasted.

And it would be he that was the whispers to her heart, her newest and sole desire. "Yes...Come to me. I can grant you power. Power beyond what you thought possible. You want vengeance, yes? Well, let me help you sate that hunger. Let me help fill that howling void in your soul..." he whispered again, wanting her to come to him. To find him. To give him the strength to be free again.
 


She waited in that dark void.

Waited in silence and seclusion...

Waited for him, the one who had awakened her...

Waited for anyone to come through...

Venus sat there with her bare ass resting on her calves, her thighs spread apart revealing her womanhood fully. Her upper body bent forward slightly while she supported herself with her hand that was placed flat on the ground between her spread thighs. Her chest was rising and falling rapidly with each short and ragged breath she took, her face was flushed and her eyes were glazed over with wanton desire. She wanted more. So much more. That hadn't been enough for her, she needed more of it. She stuck her tongue out slightly and licked her lips. The bow that had been in her hair had come undone at some point and now strands of her hair had fallen over her shoulders and had stuck to her moist lips as well as partially concealing her exposed breasts but showing her nipples that were taut with arousal. She let out a soft desperate moan as the need within her intensified. It felt as if she'd been given an aphrodisiac that was reserved for the gods. It was an all consuming high that drugged her mind until nothing but carnal desire and pleasure filled her thoughts.

Famine had unleashed a deep hungering within her that would not abate. There was only one thing she desired now and she didn't care whose it was. Just so long as it was used on her.

Before she could do anything to satisfy her ravenous sexual desire though, a blast of cold wind hit her and cooled her heated skin. The source of the cooling air was a portal not far from her and she felt a thrill course through her at the thought of him finally coming for her. However, it was not who she'd thought, for it was not Famine who emerged through the opening. Instead a frozen... thing came hurtling through the opening and into the nothingness of the void. She watched it bounce across the ground a few times before finally coming to a rest. It took her a moment before she realized what the thing actually was. He was horribly mutated and disfigured but she could vaguely make out that it was War. His form was still for awhile but he eventually stirred and sat up. His gaze fell on her and surprise registered on his face and he demanded to know why she was there however the chattering of his teeth took most of the bite from his words. "Famine put me on his horse and we were supposed to come here together... but something happened to him and I was sent off alone..." she said in response to his question. There was silence for a moment before Venus got on all fours and began crawling towards him, her breasts swaying provocatively. "But he never came. He left me here alone." she whispered. When she got closer she reached out a hand to touch him but when she did she drew her fingers back "You're so cold..." she said trailing off. "My body feels like its burning up. Would you quell these flames? Will you satisfy me? " she said in a breathless whisper that could barely be heard. Placing her hand on him she spoke a single word "Please..." her voice was desperate and pleading. She leaned forward, bringing her over-heated body closer to his colder one. A part of her mind was desperately trying to tell her to stop but the hunger - the desire - it raged uncontrolled and unsatisfied drowning out anything that might sway her from the release she so craved.

However, before War could react and kill her, a small wind blew through the void and a noise echoed around the space. Venus turned her head and was met with the sight of a Succubus. Desire ran like molten lava through her veins and her breathing became more ragged, even for a succubus she was intoxicating. The succubus's gaze fell on the disfigured War and something akin to disgust registered on her face before she switched her attention back to Venus. "You're coming with me." the Succubus said before she grabbed Venus and vanished from the realm, leaving War alone within the void.


"Kill."

"Kill who?"

"Kill Him...."

"Kill who?"

"Kill War..."

The dark voice whispered in her head, whispered to her of sin, of evil. Promised sweet promises and continued to taint her once beautiful heart. Chibi-Usa wandered the frozen wastelands that had once been her home and haven. But that was before he had come to her world and taken everything from her. Destroyed and slaughtered everything she had once held dear until nothing at all remained. The once beautiful city was now a heap of rubble and corpses and a horrible stench of decay filled the air, her utopia was nothing more than a giant unmarked grave now. All because of War, because he had decided they had done something wrong. He had eked out his version of justice on the innocent, and she would see him slaughtered for his sins. She would make him pay for the blood he had spilled with every drop of his own. To ease the rage and pain in her heart as well as the rage of all the people who had died at his blade. She would quiet their hungering screams for revenge.

The whispers pulled and guided her feet and like a mindless doll she followed them unquestioningly. Darkness swirled like a malevolent force around the young woman, enveloping her, embracing her, imprisoning her within its walls and she welcomed it with open arms. For power she would abandon her heart, her purity, her soul and her memories. Her absolute desire for revenge would allow for nothing less. It was a deep agonizing and tortuous hunger that drove her onwards. She arrived at a portion of the city that lay in even worse ruin than other sections of the once powerful kingdom. The ground was torn asunder as if the gods themselves had appeared and had struck down the wicked. The voice grew stronger here, more encouraging in its words. Here, where Jupiter had battled the Horseman Famine and had sealed him away within his own scales. Where she had fought fiercely to save Venus as well as battle to keep her own soul, the entire area a testament to the fierceness of the fight. Here is where her promised power lay. Somewhere within the rubble and jagged ledges of earth and crystal. Somewhere...

With empty eyes she followed the sound of the whispers that echoed in her mind. That dark, seductive voice that was feeding her own immense hunger was telling her to find it. And she would find the voice that spoke so sweetly of power and revenge. The darkness continued to grow, spilling out from within the young female. It did not take her very long to find what she sought, for the black strings pulling her along had shown her exactly what she desired. The scale gleamed though no light touched it and inside lay the power and the promise. She dropped to her knees and gingerly touched the beautiful scales and as she did a maelstrom of intense hate and bloodlust erupted from within the young princess twisting and reshaping her into a dark and dangerous witch. And like a shadow banished by light, her and the scales disappeared.
 
Voice in the Dark::War​

War tried to move, his mangled body frozen near-solid, as Venus approached. "Typical...of my brother. Always wanting to take someone for his...own amusement. I hope one of your friends was not easy on him." the Horseman snarled as angrily as he could muster. Rage still consumed him, even more so now that he found one of those they were tasked with eliminating had been left alive. Green streaks started to appear over him as he tried to summon his strength, but his power was heavily suppressed. Like it was being forced back in on itself.

As she approached him, he hissed at the heat of her touch on his chilled skin; he was so cold that the mere warmth caused him to blister and crack. He then gave her a stupefied look as she asked to satisfy her; grimacing he replied, "Do not mistake me for my brother, wench. I do not allow...myself to succumb to such useless things. Touch me again and I will rip you worse than I did your Queen". Of course, that first part was a lie. A very well hidden lie. But the rest was true, even if she was too far drowned in lust to take it seriously.

But he had long since shunned all forms of...that. Never again, he told himself.

Then came another surprise: Stepping through another portal came another woman. One who looked VERY familiar, but he could not who it was. When she took the Senshi for whatever purpose, he tried to lunge but failed, only landing on his side. Leaving him very much alone to stew in his own anger.

For now, it seemed the beast would have to rest, allowing the unknowing Senshi a small respite from his fury. But he would return soon.

And then their lives would be forfeit.

ALL of them would pay.

*Years Later*

The rest of Earth became a battleground, a war raging with no end in sight. It seemed Death's actions prior to his own disappearance had summoned many legions of warriors that legends had claimed to be on the side of good. Of Light and Hope. But then, that was just legend. How much of it could be true? What was right and what was wrong was still a subject of debate, but it seemed the majority were in fact on the side of the humans.

Humanity, even with their ultra-terrestrial reinforcements, was slowly being taken from the Earth. What countries remained mustered as much military equipment as possible and began to fight back. Even still, it was difficult to tell just how successful they would be in holding off these otherworldly monsters. The smaller ones went down just fine with sustained gunfire, but even the heaviest weapons could not kill the larger beasts. And those who were not in the military had to resort to other methods of self-defense: Knives. Fireworks. Gasoline. Anything they could use to keep them and their families safe.

It wasn't long before the Earth was terraformed: Many regions had fallen to the forces of darkness, becoming strongholds where they could easily summon reinforcements. The land grew black and dead, with their captured prey being taken to holding camps for 'processing': A very broad term meaning whatever the monsters felt like doing with their prisoners. Some would become demons themselves, corrupted into joining the unholy ranks. Others were used for 'therapy', as the generals liked to call it, be it by their consent or not. And others still were simply toys for amusement and experimentation, or ended up as sustenance for some of the more ravenous breeds of monster.

And the side of the light had done the same, except it was more for defending what few they could save: Those who could no longer fight were cared for, and those who had been corrupted were cleansed. Those mortals who wished to fight were deputized as warriors of the Upper Plane, allowing them to at least hold their own for the moment. Unlike their demonic counterparts, they had to be very selective about who could join them. And it was not a matter of who was capable and who was not: It was a matter of treading carefully, for once made, the conversion was permanent. The side of the light preferred giving their charges choice as much as they could possibly mustered, though it also helped that it was VERY strictly enforced law.

Needless to say, sides were chosen that day. Fighters were made and lost, day in and day out.

And for a particular fighter, an old ally was about to wake up.

A faint moaning could be heard, before long a voice speaking from the cold depths of a strange place. He couldn't see. Anything. All that surrounded him was darkness. "If I didn't know better, I would think I was dead...But it doesn't explain why I'm flying blind." stated the voice, his tone neutral and more inquisitive. "I can't help but wonder...Did it work? Has he returned yet? Or is there nothing to return back to?"

So many questions, but so few answers...That and the speaker felt so muted. Like his voice was on the lowest volume possible. "Hello? Is anyone there? he then asked, raising his voice a little higher.
 


The senshi had been victorious in their fight against the horsemen. Victorious and yet looking around at the world, one would never guess as much. The battle with the horsemen had taken turns none of them could have ever guessed, even Pluto had been surprised by how it had turned out. They had successfully sealed two of the four horsemen and with the aid of Death had driven War from their world and when Death had finished he was sealed within his own Scythe. However, things just got worse and worse from there.

Pluto had lost her eyesight when she'd taken Deaths Scythe and her visions were stronger and more frequent than before. They had been able to recover Conquests crown however, they had been unable to find Famines Scales. Jupiter had searched wanting to find away to seal away the scales themselves so that Famine would never again walk this world or any others. But no matter where she looked she had been unsuccessful and a part of her felt that she would once again come face to face with that horseman. The thought of him free made rage well up within her. However, she was forced to stop the search when the whole of earth became a battleground between the legions of hell and forces of heaven with mortal man caught in between. The righteous helped where they could and gave those who were able a means of which to protect themselves, armies from various nations had been deployed but it didn't take long before they were broken down and decimated leaving fewer and fewer to launch another attack. As the years wore on it became less and less of a war and more and more a game of simple survival. Civilians who'd never experienced battle were forced to fight off hellspawn and demons, things they thought were but mere legend or myths. Things in religious texts, not actual creatures.

While the Angels took humans and made them one of them, demons did the same but at a faster rate. It took everything to merely hold them off, forget about beating them back.

Though they'd had very little respite between the Horsemen and this new war, the remaining Senshi fought. Crystal Tokyo may have been lost to them but they fought to protect the world as best they could. Their attacks were very effective against the Demons but their sheer numbers and fighting strength gave them an edge that was hard to win against. They had fought off an army when the Horsemen had attacked but they could not be compared to the ones who'd crawled from the pits of hell and attacked them now. So many of them were larger and stronger, tougher to take down. It was a war they were slowly but steadily losing.

The senshi had lost their homeland and had become traveling warriors who fought off the demons time and time again. Those they saved began calling them the Eternal Soldiers, beings who had been fighting all their life, died from those battles only to be resurrected or reincarnated only to fight again. A cursed life. Even Pluto was uncertain how long this had gone on, sometimes it really felt like it had been for all eternity.

Jupiter watched as the large demon fell before her as so many others had, this was one of the countless others that humans could not take down or even injure. The three senshi left most of the smaller demons to the humans as they could kill them and tried to focus on the ones that man could not bring down on their own. Jupiter let out a long slow breath and glanced to where Saturn and Pluto were finishing up with the ones they had engaged. She watched Pluto weild Deaths Scythe Harvester, as her Scythe Kazahana had been destroyed. Jupiter had worried about what it would do to Pluto since she'd collapsed from taking hold of Deaths Scythe shortly after he'd been sealed within. She was blind now but you'd never know it by watching her. Jupiter closed her eyes and let out another slow deep breath trying to stabilize her breathing and slow her heartbeat back down. Once it had calmed she opened her eyes and looked around at the barren landscape where they'd been fighting.

Before long the entire world would share Crystal Tokyos fate and there wasn't anything they could do. They were only three in number where before they had been nine. It had been a long time -or so it seemed- since the other Senshi had fallen. Mercury, Mars, Uranus and Neptune gone. And Venus, Jupiter still did not know what had become of her. They had also been unable to find Chibi-usa anywhere, Pluto had been unable to find out what might have happened to her and that was worrying.

"Is that it for this area?" she asked as Pluto and Saturn walked over to her. "Yes, I sense no more are here. At least for the moment." Pluto said with a small sigh. She turned her head as if she was staring at something in the distance. "Well, lets find somewhere where we can get clean." Jupiter said wrinkling her nose. They were covered in dirt, sweat, demons blood as well as their own blood. Saturn and Pluto simply nodded as they all turned and began walking. After the Horseman incident, the three of them had grown closer in a manner of speaking and when battling seemed like they could read each others minds making them even more effective in the many battles they had fought since then.

They walked for awhile in silence but something caused Pluto to stop. Jupiter and Saturn also stopped and looked at her quizzically. "Pluto what are you do---" " Hush a moment." Pluto said cutting Jupiter off.

Pluto furrowed her brows and listened intently, she could have sworn she heard something. A voice that was quite familiar to her but one she had not heard in many years. After several moments she got the answer she was hoping for. ".....Death? Is that you?" she asked. Saturn just waited but Jupiter was staring at Pluto quite intently. Pluto had tried and failed for a long time trying to get a fix on Death, find out what happened to him. Find out something that might aid them. Pluto wasn't entirely certain if he could hear her or not but waited all the same for an answer.
 

The voice waited for a response; though honestly it was not entirely if anyone could hear. Everything was so dark, so alien and unfamiliar. It was a voice without a body, without any form of manifestation other than simply being. Where was this place, he fathomed a guess...But if that were the case, someone would need to wield...

"Oh no...." it muttered; someone had taken hold and assumed control. This was bad, especially if it was someone to be avoided. If the voice could speak, that meant it was connected. But to what? Anything that was even nearby would slowly be devoured.

But then it heard a response to its previous query, the voice faded and echoing in the vast emptiness of its 'surrounding'. The voice strained to comprehend, to 'listen' as best it could...And when it did, the words were clear as crystal.

".....Death? Is that you?"

That voice...So familiar.

"Setsuna...Setsuna, is that you I hear? It's me!" Death then responded back, his voice relaying faintly in her mind. Truly he was worn, but her presence was giving him some form of energy to work with; though she would find it was quite parasitic in nature, even if the effects were not all that apparent yet. If it was Setsuna wielding his scythe, he could rest easy knowing it was in the hands of one who was willing to listen. But, any prolonged contact with his weapon was signing a proverbial death warrant.

"Setsuna...My brother, has he returned? Have the warriors from the Upper Realm come to our aid? Are they helping the humans fight back? I tried to summon them before the last of my energy left me, but I only saw a small number emerge before everything turned black" he then asked, a slight hint of desperation in his voice. Without a presence on the outside, he felt so disconnected. So cut off from everything. And though he could probably try to use Setsuna's senses to get his bearings, even that much was not feasible at the moment. Just when he thought he had seen everything the universe could throw at him, now he was being utilized by another.

In his own weapon. Were the catalyzing circumstances not so dire, he would have laughed.
 


Pluto could faintly feel some kind of energy coming from the scythe. Something was stirring within the depths, waking back up. But the sensation was weak and faded in and out, it was as if something sought to pull this force back under the depths of darkness where it had previously been. Then whatever it was fell silent and after awhile she wondered if whatever it was had fallen back into whatever nothingness it had briefly emerged from. Several more minutes ticked by in silence with no response and no more sensations. She was starting to think that she may have imagined it when ever so faintly she heard a weakened voice, weakened but familiar. She felt relief wash through her upon hearing his voice. "Yes, it is me. What happened to you?" she asked furrowing her brow slightly. Neither Saturn nor Jupiter could hear him speaking. It was as if she was speaking on a phone minus the phone, it was a little odd. Any passerby might think she'd gone mad and was talking to the wind.

"No, War has not returned. We've kept watch and there hasn't even been a slight stirring to suggest that he was even trying. We haven't felt anything of any of the four horsemen these past several years. Yours would be the first." she said in response."We have Conquests crown with him sealed inside. But Famines scales went missing and we have been unable to find it." she said with a little sigh as she thought of Jupiter. Pluto knew it weighed heavily on Jupiters mind. "Ah, so it was you who called upon them. I had wondered...." she said trailing off. Shaking her head she continued "Yes, they did descend and began aiding the Humans however, more demons emerged. Stronger ones. The Angels are doing what they can to fight them off as well as trying to give humans the means in which to defend themselves. Jupiter, Saturn and myself are doing what we can as well but....." She hesitated a moment before continuing To be honest we are losing. Right now all are focused on simply trying to survive this hell. Even most of the Angels seem to have given up on winning." she said weariness creeping into her voice despite her efforts to conceal it.

So many years of fighting endlessly. All the Senshi had lived many lives and had been forced to battle in all of them. However never had there been a time when it was non-stop over the course of several years. And whereas before they had nine plus Endymion, they were now down to three. And while previous enemies had tried to take over the world their forces tended to focus solely around Tokyo which made things easier but now the entire world had become the battleground. There had been reports of them going after Japan and at the same time in America, Britain, Egypt and so on and so forth. There was no way the three of them could protect everyone. The days dragged on and the nights dragged on even more so. They were weary and crumbling, hope had been almost entirely diminished from their hearts. Every day they witnessed new horrors and more fighting. So much pain, rage and sorrow. And the guilt from arriving too late to save even a single soul.

The first time they had dealt with that was not long after the fighting erupted. They had been unable to save a school. The sight they witnessed when they arrived was horrifying. The Demons still remained, some were still gnawing on what was left. Pluto had been unable to truly see the sights but even without her eyes, she knew. Her senses had all been heightened by the loss of her sight but she was able to pick up on the emotions that remained attached to the world and these were so fresh. It had been nauseating. Jupiter had been enraged and had acted on that to ignore the pain but afterwards she and the others had been left to linger on. Sometimes they wished that something would simply kill them and let them finally rest, their hearts and souls were so torn and heavy it was a surprise they could still raise their heads let alone fight. But fight they did and they knew they must continue until it was all over.

Damn it all to hell..." Jupiter said harshly, clenching her fists. They had gone through so much to drive back the invasion of the horsemen, lost so many. And in the end, not only had Crystal Tokyo been completely destroyed but now the entire world had been plunged into a waking nightmare. One that had no end in sight. Jupiter cursed again. "What did we really win in the end?" she whispered before clenching her fists and letting out a heavy sigh. She felt useless, some protector she was.

"We have won nothing, simply bought more time with which we could struggle some more." Saturn stated. A heavy silence fell over the small group, no one said anything for a long time until Saturn began to speak again "Eventually this will come to an end. There will be few left alive but there will be some, that at least is a better number than none at all." when she finished she closed her eyes for a long moment as if she was looking inward for something. Pluto and Jupiter looked at her surprised. Who could have predicted a day when Saturn would be the one to lift their spirits? "Saturn has a valid point." Pluto said. She turned her head in Saturns direction as if she could see her, after a moment she shook her head. Jupiter let out another sigh and relaxed a little. "I suppose that is one way to look at it." she said closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. Yes, she needed to focus on positives wherever they may be found or she might drown in the darkness.

"Death, what exactly is going on here? I knew there would be many Demons who remained from the battle with you and your brothers....but with you four out of action so to speak, why have more Demons ascended? And why did you feel a need to call forth the Angels?" she asked furrowing her brows. "Did you know this would happen?" she posed the question to him quietly her voice barely above a whisper that carried well nonetheless.
 

Well, it was relieving to say the least that War had not returned yet; Death could only imagine the trouble he would have caused. Especially if the vision of what he saw was even half-true. Would it play out exactly as he had seen it? He couldn't say, not for certain, but War's drive for bloodshed was putting the Earth on a very dangerous course. Even now, the imprisoned Reaper wondered if he had acted in time to save this planet from its fate.

"Honestly? I do not know how this came to happen. I've never been so fully drained from a fight before now; this is fairly new to me." was his reply. He had been inside his scythe once before, but that was more out of sheer boredom than anything meaningful. He wanted to see if his essence could be contained in a weapon, even more so one his own. The result being that he could seal himself in case there was ever a danger of someone grabbing it for truly upsetting the Balance. By going within the Harvester, he could lock it from being used and becoming instant death for anyone who tried to touch it. But it seemed in his weakened state, anyone could use it.

Now, Death hadn't seen what was going on, having been almost comatose all these years. So he had no real idea about what it was like on the outside. "As to why I've summoned the Angels, as your people call them, I knew from what I'd seen that you were going to need as much help as you can get. It was to counter the massive surge in the dark ones rising, as you pointed out. They rise because there is now nothing to truly stop them; they can only battle each other for control of this planet and its inhabitants. And with the Universe falling more and more to Darkness, the Light would need everything it could get to beat them back."

And it was here that he thought to take a peek for himself, since he couldn't see anything at all. However, as a tendril - sensationless and silent - reached out to let him see as Setsuna saw the world, he was met with only darkness and shadows. Was she...

"Setsuna...What happened to you? Why are you blind?" he then asked the Senshi of Time; he couldn't help but wonder what could have caused such a debilitating shroud to fall over her eyes.

Was it something he did?
 


The three senshi stood together in a desolate place of hard cracked earth and little flora growing and no fauna in sight. If something was not done the entirety of Earth would look like this. The wind howled around them as if to add to the setting where they now found themselves.

"I see..." she said trailing off for a moment before she continued. " Do you have any idea how to extract yourself from your scythe?" she asked. They needed some kind of a miracle at the rate everything was moving. She was glad that Death had, had the foresight to do such a thing even as drained as he'd been. That did raise a question on her end though. Even with what he did to aid them, they were still only barely managing to survive. So, had something else happened to make things worse? Something to aid the darkness even further? For some reason, Famines missing scales came to mind. She frowned uncertainly wondering if he somehow had, had a hand in the development of things. There was also the possibility that War had also possibly exacerbated matters as well. She pushed the troubling thoughts aside. She kept quiet about her musings especially concerning Famine. She was not at all certain how Jupiter would react and she could not risk it, it could very well serve to distract and unbalance Jupiter which may very well get her killed. She knew the thought of him possibly running around free had haunted Jupiter every moment for the last several years. Pluto mentally shook her head clearing it of unnecessary thoughts. She'd inquire about Famine when Jupiter was not so near. "I thank you for your precautionary steps. Without them we would likely already be lost." she said.

There was silence for a long moment and she was about to speak, to see if he was still there or if he had fallen back into a slumber. However, when he spoke the question caught her by surprise. She was going to ask how he knew she was blind but decided against it, she should not be so surprised. A rueful smile played on her lips. "Ah. I am afraid I was not being very cautious. After your battle with War had ended the three of us ran over to see what had happened. When we arrived we saw neither war nor yourself. All that remained was your scythe. I decided to take it into my safe keeping until we found out what had happened to you. I felt it was far too dangerous to leave lying around. However, the moment I touched it...." she said trailing off remembering what had happened. "Pain the likes of which I've never known coursed through my entire being. My head was filled with thoughts and memories, it felt like it would kill me. It seemed to last an eternity but was likely no more than a few moments. After that I then fell unconscious. When I awoke a very long time later, I found that I was blind. Not only blind but the visions I have always had, became stronger and more frequent." she said on a sigh. Being blind had not troubled her overmuch but the increase of the visions had troubled her greatly. She had gone to great lengths to try and stop them as much as possible and now she found that her efforts were for naught. Nothing had been able to stop them and they were far clearer than they had ever been before.

Some would count it as a gift but it was a curse. More often than not, she was unable to alter the course of events and stop whatever tragedy she had seen. This curse had driven others throughout history to end their own lives to simply stop seeing the nightmares that they could not alter in any way shape or form. Because thats all one ever saw. It was never a happy vision, never one of hope it was always blood drenched nightmares with screams filled with agony and terror. They haunted you every waking moment and tormented you in your sleep.

"Is there anything that you were trying to ascertain when you discovered I was blind?" she asked. He had not known she was blind at the beginning as he had not inquired about it. Of course it was all conjecture on her part. "Do you have any idea how to turn this battle to our advantage?" She queried a little too hopefully. She ruthlessly stamped out that dangerous little flame of "hope". Hope was all well and good however in this it was far too dangerous.

Jupiter listened as Pluto conversed with Death. It was odd, Pluto had spent much time trying to ascertain what had happened to Death. Saturn and herself had helped in the search as well and to think the whole time he had been so close to them. Pluto had been -in a manner of speaking- holding him in her hands and carried him on her back the entire time. Jupiter glanced across the barren landscape, her eyes seeking something but not quite seeing anything at all. Turning her head slightly she spoke to Saturn and Pluto "We should keep moving. We still have much left to do and not much time remaining." her voice was weary and resigned but still full of strength. Everyone was of the mind that this war had already been lost, it was just a matter of time before whatever remained of the resistance finally fell beneath the onslaught of the demons. Few remained hopeful. They pinned their hopes on the three eternal soldiers who remained and the Angels who still fought. Even though defeat seemed imminent, Jupiter would still fight back the tide until her last breath left her. She knew Pluto and Saturn would do the same. How could they not? It was their fault that this had come to pass. The blame lay at the feet of their dead leader Moon as well as at the feet of all the Senshi. The guilt was a heavy burden that at times threatened to crush them. The three of them turned and began walking towards their next battleground.

Saturn had fallen silent as she wandered her own mind and was confronted with the same questions she had, had years ago when the battle with the horsemen had come to an end. She wondered if she would ever find the answers she sought.

Behind the three senshi lay rivers and mountains of corpses and before them waited a seemingly endless sea of fighting.
 

Death took in Setsuna's words with a touch of sorrow, and though she kept her thoughts silent, through their connection he could hear them. Very valid concerns, and ones he knew he would have to address. "I do not know entirely what caused this massive unbalance. But I know that our arrival as a whole made it much worse, and War's release of the monster inside him unfortunately did the most damage. It set forth something in motion, something you humans would call 'knocking over a domino'.

He was touched that she had asked his thoughts on the matter of pulling them out alive, especially given he and his brothers' actions at starting this mess in the first place. Normally with resistance, everything went relatively smoothly. Letting out a muted sigh, he replied with some hesitation, "As for corrective actions, I have no real set plans as of yet. I just tried to buy the Earth some time, but with any luck something will be figured out."

Pausing for a moment, he then added on, "The fact that your visions are increasing in frequency does somewhat surprise me; I do not know if it is because you hold my weapon as your own, or if it is another factor altogether. Regardless, it seems we are bound as one for the time being. I do apologize for the inconvenience."

As they started to move towards their next destination, Death commented to the Senshi of Time, "And you're right to leave Famine alone for the moment; the three of you need to be as focused as possible. Her vendetta will have to wait." However, he soon felt a presence around them. Threatening, but not overly strong, quite faint in fact, but who knew how reliable his sense of strength was with him locked away in here. Still...Maybe they could prove useful. It would be a great way to recharge himself, and hopefully get himself unstuck. "Setsuna...I'm sure you've noticed, but we're surrounded. By what, I do not know for certain." said the Horseman to his wielder, as a stout-looking, flat-faced red-skinned halfling with nothing more than a loin-cloth to cover himself stood before the three of them, apparently alone.

"Oi, you three! Stop right there! You have something our Master desires!" he then commanded, his voice brimming with confidence. "I have you surrounded, so I suggest you lay the scythe down and step away from it before we have to take it from you by force!"
 


The three women walked along in mostly silence, with only occasional breaks when Pluto answered or asked Death something. The sun was beginning to sink low and it painted everything the colors of fire and blood. A color it had been painted every evening following the dawn after the battle with the Horseman.

"The Domino effect...." she said trailing off. "So, you are unsure of what will be triggered when the last one falls?" she queried. "Speaking of....what exactly happened to War? What....was that?" she asked recalling what had happened years prior. The images were forever seared into her memory and the images were just as clear as if it was happening all over again. A visible shiver coursed through her body, at the memory. He had transformed into a creature pulled from the nightmares of Demons and given life to destroy all. She knew the memory was just as seared into Saturns and Jupiters minds. At different times during the past years it had kept one if not all of them from sleeping much and almost not at all in the beginning.

"I see, well, we did gain some time but I fear we are running back out." she said letting out a long slow sigh. Hearing him say it was odd caused her to lift her brows slightly. "Odd? You're not sure? Has no one other than yourself ever held your scythe?" she asked somewhat surprised despite everything. She had figured he would know if it was because of the scythe or not but perhaps there was something else she had over looked. Shaking her head slightly a ghost of a smile flitted across her mouth " It is no inconvenience, Death. I will help you how I can from out here." she replied. "She knows." she said nodding her head slightly.

She could feel Jupiters and Saturns eyes on her "So? What does he have to say?" Jupiter asked. "He is unsure what caused the imbalance but whatever happened to War was the first Domino. There are no corrective plans as of yet and he is unsure why my visions have increased." she repeated back to them what she had been told.

"Not a whole lot..."

"Not that surprising though."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, his fight with War drained him pretty bad on top of the injuries he received. He's been in a coma like state sealed within his own scythe for several years. Even if he did have a solid plan, he'd likely have trouble remembering. But it sounds as if it was in a bid to gain a little more time."

"Ah, I see what you mean...."

Pluto listened to the two of them talk back and forth together for a time. All talking eventually stopped and they traveled along in silence. "Ah, yes." she said as they all came to a stop. "Just some more Demons." she said. Un-swinging the scythe from her back she held onto the snath with both of her hands. The air around her chilled until ice particles formed. Next to her, Saturn and Jupiter had summoned their weapons, she could hear the electricity crackling around Jupiter and the soft sigh of movement that said Saturn was also preparing to attack. "And it seems, they wish to take your Scythe as the prize to their master." she said.

"Where is your master? We'll take it to them for you." Jupiter said sweetly.

Saturn, Jupiter and Pluto moved forward and began attacking the demons without a warning of any kind. Pluto calmly made her way towards the halfling that had ordered her to set the scythe down. Demons fell before the rage that burned within Jupiter, she used the Demons to exercise all the pent-up frustration that she held within her. Just as many fell to the elegant dance of death that Saturn performed as they decapitated and gutted their enemies. Arms, fingers and limbs mercilessly chopped from the demons as they cut them down to size. Pluto reached the halfling, a few drops of frozen demons blood on her face. The cold that emanated off of her slowly began freezing the demon, raising the Scythe she cut him open before he could even register trying to plead; from his neck and down across his abdomen, the two halves slid apart and toppled to the ground, ice shards clinging to the torn flesh and muscle tissue. Re-slinging the scythe across her back, they began once more walking towards their next destination and they knew it would not be a silent journey

In another realm a creature stirred feeling things once more begin to move forward. Before long she would have what she sought.
 
Episode 7: A Queen's Ransom​

War​

How long had it been?

How long have I sat here, in this infernal void?

How long have they been allowed to live?

These were the questions that ran through the Red Horseman's mind, his strength slow to return to him; his rage, however, had not allowed him very much in terms of patience. In this realm, it was likely a matter of days; even still, it was too long.

Too long had the few remaining Senshi been granted the freedom of life. If only his thrice damned brother hadn't interfered! They would all be dead and things would have gone as they always had. Death, however, had turned on them; now two of his brothers were defeated, and he was sealed here to fester. He would not have it...Death would pay for what he had done!

"Death...That is what I will give to you, brother. And I will not be quick about it." War muttered, his body shaking as he tried to stand, a feat made more difficult given that his left arm was nothing more than a burned, dully-aching stump. After a few moments of effort, the weakened Horseman was on his feet. Without his sword or his mount, carrying out his mission would be incredibly difficult in his condition; those were items that needed to be recovered if he were to get his vengeance. He wondered where Ruin was, and his fists clenched at Death having banished him as well.

No matter...He would find his steed and his blade, then he would kill every last living thing on that world.

Of course, that plan of action hinged heavily on him getting out; and with these new restraints Death placed on him, he found it excruciatingly difficult muster even the smallest fraction of his former strength. He'd been trying and trying to break the bonds, but they gave not even an inch to his ire.

This fact alone only served to elevate his already insatiable anger, the emptiness having started shimmering as heat began to radiate in greater quantities from him. And as his rage grew, a series of green sigils ignited from around him, ancient arcane archetypes designed to suppress energy and counter it against greater growth, essentially forcing it back in on itself. But as it tried to repress the Horseman's fury, the sigils themselves started to flicker and fade; War's body tensed as he felt the first layers of suppression start to give out, his teeth clenching as he allowed himself to become even more enraged. And with a mighty cry, he threw his massive arm skyward and howled to the emptiness.

Moments later, a loud shattering ripped through the featureless space, the first of the numberless suppression magics having broken from the sheer effort. War felt some of his power return, his breathing heavy and chest heaving from the exertion as his remaining arm fell back to his side. His eyes slightly hooded from the effort, he took a shaky step forward and nearly collapsed to a knee, serving only to have buckled in a forward half-step. It was indeed something...But would it be enough to allow him exit?

Without a word, a thin sheet of flame engulfed his right hand; raising the limb up, he then brought it down in a diagonal chop, a tear to the other side able to be seen...And through it, Earth itself. Finally, he could escape and exact retribution, something he wasted no time in doing. And with more effort, he launched himself through the rip, flying through the vacuum of space and hurtling towards the dying world.

And as the Horseman's body hit the first layers of the atmosphere, it became redder and redder until it glowed the white-orange of reentry; for what felt like hours he fell, the ground slow to approach but increased as his descent shattered the sound barrier. And when impact came, the ground groaned and exploded from the force, sending broken splinters of molten terra firma in all directions. And for a time, only smoke could be seen rising from the crater; before long, a shadowed hand clawed at the rim, War's hulking physique pulling itself out to stand on his own two feet.

Little did he realize just WHO it was that he had attracted the attention of.

"So...You're back, Horseman. The Great Beast of Hell, Skall, has come for your head!" War then heard a gruff voice say to his left; the Rider turned his head to see a massive ogre - covered head to toe in blackened demon battleplate - wielding an enormous iron club. Thick tusks grew up from his lower jaw, peeking out just in front of his heavy helm. War said nothing, only turning to face squarely against this encroacher. Skall could only laugh "Don''t tell me you're actually thinking of taking us all on? Hah! Maybe before you were sealed, you would have a measure of success. Once you were strong, but now you're weak and alone, Rider...And besides, there are more of us than you." At this, he soon found himself surrounded by hundreds if not thousands of similarly armored warriors, all more than ready to charge should this enormous brute give the order. Chuckling, the ogre then added with smug confidence"So let me offer you a deal...Surrender now, and I'll end you quickly..."

But before Skall could give the classic alternative, he soon found the Horseman's hand lodged in his throat; the demon could only gurgle as he fell back, feeling War's iron grip crush his trachea. He quickly dropped his club and tried to pry the Rider's hand from him, his eyes bulging from the restricted airflow as he pounded ever-weakly against the strong digits; however, War gave something of a yell and grunt and literally tore into Skall's throat, his hand ripping out the demon's windpipe with massive force. Skall's arm fell with a dull thud at his side, War now standing with the bloody tube in his grasp as slimy green-red fluid coated his fingers and wrist.

"You talk too much...You want to kill me, just do it!" War then bellowed, Skall's minions frozen in fear momentarily before they all rushed in to avenge their fallen commander.

The Horseman's body tensed, his stance widening as he readied himself to face the berserking hordes. Before at his former strength, he would have slaughtered them in an instant. But now, there was the faintest niggling of doubt in his mind about his success. Still, he would show no fear and go down fighting, as much as the thought of unfulfilled vengeance made his blood boil.

Of course, he was also very much unaware that a certain someone had too noticed him back on Earth.
 


Earth had fallen. Or, at least, it was about to. The planet was a mostly barren world, devoid of nearly all the life the place once boasted. In the place of the Flora and Fauna, Demons and Angels fought with man in the middle struggling to keep up.

Things had been utter chaos in the months following the Riders attack and defeat on Earth. With Conquest and Famine sealed, War's Banishment and Death's disappearance, all clamored to take claim of the planets corpse. It had been glorious. Demons swarmed from the deep cracks in the Earth's surface and blanketed the land. They washed over humanity like a tide breaking over the shore, destroying everything it hits; the screams had been beautiful. Then the Angels descended from their perch in the Heavens and began aiding man in fighting back the tide of Demons and Monsters that threatened to consume them. The feathered mongrels provided what the humans could not; sport. Without the strength of Heaven, everything fell one after another. It got so boring.

The Angels were severely outnumbered and so, decided to bring Man into the battle. Boosting their numbers with willing Humans, the Angels bestowed them with a part of their own strength. As the war raged on between the factions, all waited for signs of the Riders return. Two were more anxiously awaited than the others, Death and War.

As the months wore on into years the thrill and excitement had faded. The Demons were pressing the Angels and Humans back, but it was an infuriatingly slow process. They both were annoyingly persistent creatures who didn't give up hope that they might win. That a miracle might happen. The Angels who remained were far fewer in number but much stronger than any of the others and then there were still three Senshi who lived. They were the main reason for the mortals and angels hopes, no matter how many they sent, no matter how strong, they all fell beneath the fury of the Senshi. They traveled across the broken land, devastating hoards of Demons and Monsters along the way.

However, the Angel and the Senshi weren't the only ones fighting Demons. Another faction with her own interests in the Horsemen, starts to move.

Right as a mad rush was about to commence, a female laughter froze everyone as they all looked for the source of the sound. "Oh this won't do at all." the voice said, laughing. The laughter was like a little tingling bell, soft, feminine and false. "I'm afraid you beasts really must die now." the voice said, still sounding sweet. "Delilah, we were given a specific task by our Mistress..." the second female voice wasn't quite as feminine, instead she sounded more serious in temperament. "I know, Elizabetta. Find War, Subdue War and bring War to our mistress post haste!" she recited off their to-do list. "Exactly, Delilah, we don't have time to play with the Riff Raff." Elizabetta said in admonishing tones. "Awh. Really? None? At all?" she asked, pleading a little. "We really shouldn't. You know how long Mistress has been waiting for him to appear?" Elizabetta responded. "Fine....." Delilah said trailing off.

Still in a state of confusion, the demons turned and twisted trying to find the source of the voices, War forgotten for the moment. Eventually they spotted two women who looked identical, standing together. When found, one was standing behind the other, fondling her twins chest. "Ah. Looks like they found us, Elizabetta." a slight blush had appeared on Elizabetta's cheeks "We should finish this quickly and get War back to our Mistress, Delilah." Elizabetta said looking over the crowd. Delilah smiled and placed Elizabetta's breasts back into the skeletal hand that held them "Ok. But, I'll have fun with you later. In exchange for being rushed here." she said stepping from behind her twin. Delilah was also wearing a bra in the shape of a skeletal hand but unlike Elizabetta who wore a skin tight short dress under the hands, Delilah had nothing more than a skeletal hand covering her lower region. "Alright." Elizabetta agreed.

The demons laughed at the two women and leered at them, their own ideas in mind for the two. However, before a single lewd thought could be uttered, the two women had vanished from in front of them and when next they appeared, it was ripping through a large section of their forces. The two women didn't even seem to be using any actual weapons, they were ripping through the Demons flesh and bones with their bare hands. Before long the Demon hoard was in a chaotic, panicked, uproar. They tried, time and time again to cut them down but no one seemed to be able to keep up with how fast they moved or how they moved.

Delilah's hand speared through a Demon's gut before slipping between the attacks and ripping anothers throat out as she moved past. Elizabetta snapped a demons neck so hard it nearly ripped off before jumping over her attackers, grabbing onto their heads and spinning as well, their heads twisting all the way around or all the way off. All over the field they moved slaughtering the Demons like lamb. Many began to flee, not wanting to risk their own lives any further. Blood, flesh, organs, limbs and bones flew about as if they were blending the demons alive. The screams rang out, travelling out over hundreds of miles with their intensity. And then everything was silent. Surrounding War was a scene of pure carnage and in the middle, splattered in the blood and remains stood the twins. Elizabetta licked her lips, her face flushed with sexual excitement, Delilah licked her fingers and they both turned to the Horseman.

They stared at him in unblinking silence for a long while before the one called Delilah, tilted her head. "Not quite what I imagined..." Elizabetta commented. The other one straightened and nodded in agreement. They both moved forward simultaneously toward the horseman. However, they stopped when he raised his weapon slightly. Something glinted in their eyes and one of them smiled. The next moment, something heavy came down on the back of his head, knocking him partially unconscious. One of the twins faded away in front of him, as she now stood behind him. "It seems Mistress was correct, I was a little concerned at first, but most of his strength does seem to be gone...." Delilah said, staring down at his body. "Come, Elizabetta, help me carry this behemoth back to Mistress." Delilah said, grabbing onto a stump. Elizabetta walked over and grabbed the other side and the two of them started dragging him across the ground.

Meanwhile...in the Second circle of hell, Lilith smiled and turned from the pool of blood she'd been using to watch the entire show. Finally, she was so close to gaining what she'd desired for millennia. "War..." Lillith cooed softly with a lascivious grin. Off to the side the Succubus who'd taken Venus all those years ago, wrinkled her nose in disgust as she listened to the Succubus Queen. "War..." she thought, clenching her fists slightly. Turning away, she walked off.
 

The Horseman braced himself, readied his eons of intense combat experience to slaughter them despite his lack of energy. With their commander dead, he would still have some difficulty but he would eventually win out, the fools laying dead at his feet. What he didn't expect was assistance, even if the intent was not to actually help him out of kindness.

War, along with the Demon horde, froze as the sing-song and very familiar voices echoed across the now-silent landscape. "Those two...What are they doing here..." War snarled, clearly not at all pleased with their arrival. The ever-obedient lap dogs of the bane of his existence, the ONE being who chased him without end and without surrender. Why would she have sent them here? Did she honestly think that sending these two to aid him would change how he felt? What he thought of her? She was a damned imbecile if that were the case; though the true intent was soon revealed. Them? Take HIM? "YOU CAN TRY, WHORES!" he shouted angrily; like hell he would let them lay hands on him.

And after a rude and lewd display by the sisters, a spectacle that seemed to shift the thoughts of everyone but War himself, the two charged the mass of demons and began butchering them like cattle. A small number of particularly brave ones dared charge the Horseman, four of them in total and thinking their numbers would aid them.

On this, they would be sorely mistaken.

The one at his front raised his weapon, a simple but wicked longsword, above his head to cut War down. A move that was rebutted with a swift open strike to the throat by War, the sword falling from the demon's hands as the Horseman caught it and with surprising precision drove it through the monster's windpipe, the demon falling with War standing above him and choking on his last few seconds of life, blood welling around the cursed blade. The two to his sides, slightly larger than the first, then tried to pincer-strike him, their swords readied but quickly dodged as War ducked, the pair nearly decapitating each other before they pulled their strikes.

Something that they should have followed through with instead, for their deaths would have been swifter. War pointed his stump of an arm at the one on his left, a pillar of fire erupting and lighting the attacker ablaze. Were it his full strength he would have been incinerated instantly, but now the demon could only roll around on the ground as he slowly cooked to death from the inextinguishable flames. And in one swift motion, just as the largest one behind him was ready to strike, the Horseman rotated his body hard, the sword clutched in a reverse grip as it was driven into the third attacker's chest and run through, only for his hand to let go and hammer-fist the last one, making it stumble and grunt.

Letting out an enraged bellow, War continued his attack; his stance shifted, a dark resonance surrounding him as he charged forward. It was a small booster, a call to the hungering of his soul; and though severely limited because of Death's seals, it would prove effective enough. His fist drew back and swung forward, punching the demon square in the chest. The power of the blow was so severe that it shattered the chestplate and quite literally made it take on the appearance of a hunchback for a moment before the heart, lungs and ribcage exploded outward in shattered fragments, the demon falling instantly dead and the Horseman falling to all threes. His breathing was heavy and ragged, blood covering him from the violent confrontation and his silver locks worn and beaten, hanging limply over his head.

And it would seem that he was not the only one done with his battle; he could hear them, walking towards him and her comment about him not living up to expectation. With a heavy grunt, he stood and turned to face them, wrenching the sword with significant effort out of the demon he impaled it with and raised it before him, one eye closed from the exertion as he glared them down as best he could in his current state. "You can...tell Lil..." he tried to say, only to feel a presence behind him; and just like that, he was knocked down and unable to resist. Free to be dragged anywhere they decided, his vision fading to black as the familiar sensation of rift-warping overtook him.

When he regained consciousness, he felt his knees dragging, grunts of effort to haul his limp form to somewhere. Were the twins still dragging him? He didn't know, but his head raised a little to see a giant grey set of double doors before, the large panels swinging open to a glorious throne room. "So...It seems we've finally been able to capture you, after all. Who'd have thought the great War, Rider of the Red Steed, could be subdued so easily?" he then heard a voice, one another so familiar...But it wasn't *hers*...No it could only have been....

"Namaah..." War muttered, to which a slightly bemused 'Humph' as the Horseman was unceremoniously dropped at the Queen's feet before slowly to a knee as she continued to speak. "I'm surprised you recognize me; usually you don't really care to know people's names, War." The Mother of Lilith narrowed her eyes at him, her disapproval of his very existence not hidden in the slightest. "Rage...Such an ugly facet of mortality. I truly don't understand what my daughter sees in such a hideous creature such as yourself...But it's not my place to play chaperone. We have our uses for brutes such as yourself."

Grunting, War's teeth grimaced as he replied weakly, "I thought your whore of a daughter was too busy keeping men between her legs to think for herself." Namaah's fury upped a couple of notches, an elegant hand raising out as she rapidly spiked the pressure around War, making the Horseman yell in a gargled fashion at the pain. "Speak about my daughter that way again, and you will regret it!" she barked, clearly upset at his rude words. War buckled more and more, the force becoming almost too intense for him to handle, but he would not let this lust-riddled abomination win over him...And it didn't help that her fury at his words was feeding him, slowly returning some power to resist her spell. "Your whole kind should be wiped from existence; had I not other business, I would kill every last one of you here and now!" he roared, having enough strength to raise his head at the very least and glower at her, the rage evident in his gaze as the space around him warped from her spell, cracks already forming in the floor but the Horseman not budging a single inch.
 


"The beast still howls as well as ever, it seems dearest sister." Elizabetta said as they walked. "His bark was always quite sharp." Delilah replied giggling. "But we can't lie and say his bite isn't also quite sharp as well." Elizabetta said, her free hand coming to rest over her covered mid-section. Underneath was a scar she'd received from him. One of many her and Delilah had both received from the Horseman over the eons. Lilith had long sought him and they had always been sent to retrieve him whenever she thought she had what it would finally take. And he never came along easily, if he came at all. "No we can't. But it gives us excitement we'd miss otherwise." Delilah said flashing a wicked grin. "But he'll be useless for that in his current state. Or if Lilith gets her way." Elizabetta said, her hand dropping from her midsection to swing at her side. They did not speak to War directly at any point, as was their usual.

Elizabetta and Delilah dragged the Horsemen into the Throne Room and before their mistress, Lilith. They unceremoniously dropped his body and bowed before her in unison "My Lady, your quarry..." they said in the same tone of voice, trailing off before moving off to the side to watch things progress. With the crowd that had gathered, things were bound to be interesting and they certainly were. But the twins had never cared for such things. They showed no interest in the goings on around them, answering only Lilith directly they ignored everything else except each other. And as the back and forth between Namaah and War continued they lost more and more interest until they began entertaining themselves with each others body. As they showed with the Demons, they cared not who watched them nor saw. But they did keep a watchful eye on their Mistress.

Lilith sat on her throne and watched as the Twins brought in the Horseman War. He looked a little worse for wear but she'd be able to fix that. To an extent, anyways. However, before she could get a word in edgewise, her mother, Namaah, had cut in. She drummed her fingers on the arm of the chair as she watched the two of them go back and forth with each other as if she wasn't even there. "Really." she thought as the Horseman insulted her and Namaah punished him. "This is becoming more than a little irritating..." she thought as she oversaw their little spat. With a loud and exaggerated sigh she stood up "That is quite enough of that." she said, her voice traveling clearly through the air, her annoyance evident in her tone. "You're being extremely rude Mother. You've disrespected me more than enough. As you can not still your tongue around him, you're going to have to leave." she said placing her hands on her hips. Her "family" had a very bad habit of voicing their very unwanted opinions, especially in regards to her lust for the rider of the red horse.

Hearing her daughter, Namaah paused in her assault of the horsemen, her hand paused in mid-air as her daughter spoke. She withdrew her attack and placed a hand to her ample bosom "Well." she said managing to instill the word with completely offended shock. "Did you not hear what he said about you? About US?" she asked, her hand still pressed to her bosom. "I was merely attempting to defend you from the venom that he just spit at you. And yet you say that to me now?" she asked, with just the right touch of hurt thrown in at the end. Straightening her shoulders and spine, she tilted her head back a bit "Have it your way but this beast doesn't have what it takes to feel what you hunger for, Daughter." she said before vanishing.

Lilith rolled her eyes and stifled a sigh. As dramatic as always and she knew how to make an exit. Shaking her head slightly she refocused her thoughts on her scheme and a small smile appeared on her lips. Looking at him she began walking down the steps. "Poor War." she said caressing his name. "Look at you. And you couldn't even wound my pets Elizabetta and Delilah this time..." she purred out softly as she glanced at the two off to the side. "Life's been quite cruel to you it seems." she murmured. "You're not even a shadow of your former self..." she said with a touch of sadness in her voice. "What has Death done to you?" she said coming to a stop beside his form. How she had hungered for him but he had always denied her and she had never been able to sway him. Leaning down beside him, she let her eyes travel over his disfigured form. "I can give you, your arm back." she said, her fingers travelling over it. "As well as reunite you with some familiar things." she said with a ghost of a smile. She did not wait for him to agree, she doubted he would so easily. So she forcibly yanked him up and dragged her behind him. Elizabetta and Delilah fixed themselves and began trailing behind her.

Lilith dragged the Red Rider through her underworld palace as she made her way to where the Technician, Sabine, worked. Sabine was the one who had given Lilith the idea to aid War and provide him with Wrathfang. Help him gain his revenge and then she may be able to coax him into her bed. Sabine was also the one who'd created the arm that would enable him to use Wrathfang, not an easy task. If this worked, she would have to thank Sabine, somehow. Reaching the doors, she pulled War to his feet and dragged him through the doors, tipping him over into a chair that was near a work table that was filled with large and small objects. "Sabine? He's here." Lilith hollered.

Something crashed and someones else let out a surprised yell. "I'LL BE RIGHT THERE!" a female yelled shortly after the surprised yell. A moment later a Succubus came from behind a large stack of materials and paused taking in the crowd for a moment. Her eyes settled on War and she blushed. Luckily, with her purple skin it wasn't so easy to notice. "Is everything ready?" Lilith asked. Sabine blinked once or twice then switched her attention back to the Queen, she noticed the Demon Twins Elizabetta and Delilah behind her and hid a small shiver. "Ah, yes, I'll just take some measurements to make sure everything will fight right." she said pulling out a measuring tape. "Very well. I'll be outside, once he's fitted let me know." she said running her hand through her hair as she turned and left the room. "Right." she said with a cheery smile as Lilith closed the door behind her, the twins following her out. Sabine's gaze turned back to the Horseman, contemplating him for a moment. "Well, now. Let us see how much fun I can have..." she murmured a little. Unknown to Lilith, Sabine had her own designs on the Horseman. She intended to add a few modifications to his new arm to make it better, it wasn't often that she got to work with someone on his power level but she needed to know what sort of body she was working with. "I intend to outfit you with a new arm with a few....modifications added to it to make it better. I would appreciate you wait to cut me up till after I'm finished, otherwise I may mess up." she said smiling brightly as she moved toward him with tools in hand.

Lilith heard noises in the workshop and sighed stretching.

"Mother is most upset, dear sister...." a voice off to her side said. Lilith sighed and turned her head, looking at her succubus sister. "Did she send you to interfere, Eisheth?" she asked with a raise of her brows. Eisheth raised her hands up in front of her "No but she was in quite a mood so I came to see what caused her such distress." she said smiling, her eyes travelling to the door where War was. "But I see. Really dear. Must you chase that creature about?" she asked raising one of her brows slightly. "He wouldn't know how to satisfy a human, let alone a Succubus." she said with a dismissive little gesture. "My business is my own, Eisheth. I will remind you like Mother that I do not care to hear your counsel on the matter of who I do and do not show interest in. You are merely wasting your breath and trying my limited patience." she said letting the annoyance show in her words. Eisheth's other brow rose up to join the other "I see Mothers not the only one in a temper." she said amused. "No, she isn't. So please don't try what little patience I have left, Eisheth." she said turning her head from her sister. There was a short pause of silence "Mm. I see. Well, don't get mad and make the rest of us suffer when the beast brushes you off...again." she said before vanishing. Lilith ground the back of her teeth together.

Whoever created "Family" was the true source of Evil in the world.
 
War:: Sabine​

War did not particularly care for being led like a hound; try as he might, however, he still did not have enough strength to tear her away from him. A grimace formed as he grumbled, "Enjoy this while you can, whore". By this point in history, he knew that calling her such a thing was never really a thing to bother her. He was never very good with insults, mostly because he never saw any use for them. Any that opposed him were fought and if he was victorious, they were dead. It was how his whole life was; very few battles did he ever waste moments passing words.

And now here he was, forced to endure meaningless squabble before Lilith began cooing at him in her usual sickening manner, leading him away to be experimented on like some pet of hers. And there he arrived: It was an operating chair, tools of all kinds laid out neatly and readily available; before long, he was shoved down and a purple-skinned Succubus had appeared from out of nowhere. Soon the two of them were alone, her eyes eagerly roaming his form and fixating on the stump of his arm.

"Whatever you plan on doing, it won't....." he started to say viciously, but soon let out a grunt as she took a scalpel and started to dig out what remained of the tendons and nerves; if this was to be a success, she needed as many active connections as possible. "Sorry, sorry...I don't mean to hurt you, but if you want this to function, I have to do this" Sabine apologized sincerely, War's remaining hand already having crushed the armrest from his effort to resist crying out. This shouldn't hurt, not like this, he thought to himself; before long, she finished and placed the scalpel before picking up a splicing tool, An instrument that looked something like a hand-vise and forceps fused together, its junction pulsing with a red glow. Being who she was, many demons came to her for 'augmentation', upgrades to their corporeal forms that would make them stronger, faster, tougher, the same old song and dance.

This case excited her the most for two reasons: She got to work on the fabled Red Horseman, the legendary harbinger of annihilation himself and that alone was enough reason for a girl like her to be excited. And she got to do some work at restoring lost functionality, a project she had done all of two times before in her many ones of living. But even those paled to this: She had rebuilt an entire limb! The other two were just missing hands, child's play really.

Even as she stretched the nerves out, feeling his body shake from pain, she felt a pang of guilt; though before she could reply with sincere apologies War grunted, "If you have time to beg, you have time to finish this". Truth be told, he was still incapacitated from the short battle on the surface and little whines of agony tore from his clenched lips as she pinched each nerve to a metal thread, the pointed ends of the splicer forcing the tissue and wire together to make a junction; though because his body was so heated and the material used to remodel the gauntlet he wouldnt' have to worry about rejection. Soon enough that part was over, War collapsing into the chair, his breathing heavy now that the ordeal was over for now.

"Good, good...I really am sorry about the pain, but that's the worst of it. You won't feel anything else once we put it on..." she then reassured, disappearing into the back to retrieve what the Horseman could only believe to be the replacement arm. "I can fight without an arm, damn it all. I don't NEED YOU LOT CODDLING ME!" he then shouted angrily, his pride feeling bruised by the fact Succubi of all creatures were aiding him. Of all the monsters Hell had to offer, he viewed these ones with the most contempt. However, his anger turned to shock when she wheeled the arm out on a cart.

It was his father's gauntlet, no doubt about it. Even with the changes to the upper and lower arm, he could recognize the shape all too well. And the memories of that day came rushing back anew, his teeth gritting in anger.

Letting out a growl, his next question pointed, "Where did you get that, harpy?" Sabine seemed to freeze, the indescribable rage like poison to her, her figure shaking slightly in fear, "I...I don't know; Mistress just said to bring you here and attach it once she learned what happened." War's fist clenched harder, the poor armrest now completely useless and would probably be made into scrap for another use. "Please, just let me finish...I promise you'll come to appreciate it." she pleaded, already beginning to thread the wires connected to his major tendons and nerves through ports in the armature, soon able to slide the entire thing up to where it was now perfectly seated against the stump. Metal bands were then threaded around his chest and over his other shoulder, clasping together with molten bolts of brimsteel before she then took out an arc-torch and started fusing the wires inside the sections of the arm, opening up panels along it and the sparks flying before she would then seal them up again.

"How much longer will this take?" War asked in his usual impatient tone, his body fidgeting despite still not feeling anywhere close to even one percent. "Almost done, then Mistress will put the finishing touches on you" she replied, seeming quite thrilled that everything had gone quite smoothly and her voice conveying as such. "Don't expect that you'll be experimenting on me again, witch! I promise once I deal with my brother, you're all next!" he then barked, still visibly upset but the succubus deciding to let it slide. He was only mad that he felt trapped, she told herself; Lilith probably dragged him here, knowing full well that it was the only way but also cognizant that it would only raise his ire against her.

Closing up the last panel, she then stood up and let out a sigh, her purple cheeks flushed from both the concentration and the thrill of being so close to this...this animal. If only now she could find a way to make him recognize her feelings, to truly SEE her...But that would have to wait.

"Please excuse me, I must go find Lilith" she then stated, giving a respectful bow and taking her leave. Allowing War to (try and) explore his newest attachment. He found soon enough that he couldn't move it; grumbling he just said "Force a false limb on me that doesn't even function...This is must be some humorous stunt that witch pulled. No matter, I'll just slam my enemies with it....Including you, brother".
 


Sabine exited the room and looked around a bit before spotting Lilith off to the side "Uhm, Lady Lilith? I've finished attaching it but..." she said trailing off. Lilith rose her brow slightly "But....?" she prompted after the silence continued. "Bones, bones are the issue mistress Lilith. The prosthetic limb is connected but theres some issue and the bones won't grow back so the prosthetic is just kind of hanging there..." she said trialing off and with a little frown. Lilith just chuckled "Well, considering who took the arm, I'm surprised that, thats the only issue we've run into. But never mind, I can deal with something like that. Anything else?" she asked "Not that I noticed but I'll want to have him use it before he leaves." she answered. Lilith only nodded her head once and headed back into the room where the Horseman waited.

Lilith entered the room where he sat, the little technician behind her. "Having some trouble moving the arm?" she asked teasingly. "Well, well, whatever shall we do?" she said mockingly tapping her upper arm in thought. "I suppose the only thing to do is re-grow the bones myself..." she said trailing off on an exaggerated sigh. Coming to a stop beside the operating chair she grinned, her eyes alight with expectation. "I should be able to do it but it will be touch painful." she said her smile growing larger. "I hope you're ready." she said as she took a deep steadying breath. Reaching her hand up she touched a finger to the base of his neck and pressed down until she could feel his bones beneath her fingers. She traced a short path from there to where the prosthetic met the skin. Her eyes narrowed as she concentrated, her brows furrowing and the outer rim of her silvery eyes turned a bright blood red. Then her finger began moving down the prosthetic at an agonizingly slow pace, the bone forming underneath the prosthetic limb and growing as she traced downward. You could hear it as she drew down, it sounded like bones were being snapped and shattered. She could see the Horseman's body tense and his pupils dilate in pain. She shivered a little in excitement. The torture continued as time ticked slowly by, by the time she had reached the elbow his body and face were beaded with sweat though he'd managed to remain fairly silent during the process. However, as the elbow bone started to form, War let out a pained grunt as he clenched his teeth together. Lilith licked her lips and let out the slightest little moan. The technician watched from behind, fidgeting slightly as she watched the Succubus queen tend to the Horseman War. She definitely wanted his attention and she thought she knew how she might be able to soften him towards her. She'd take advantage of her Mistresses little plan to enact one of her own.

The minutes quickly transformed into hours, beads of sweat beginning to form on Lilith's brow as she concentrated on the project at hand. When at last her finger got to his wrist and hand she traced a line to every digit, the bones all forming at the same time. The sounds of snapping and splintering bones increased drastically until it was almost like a deafening scream. A mangled cry of pain escaped his lips, his already tense body tensed up even more, his veins were bulging up against the skin as he tried to keep silent. As the last of the bones formed, War slouched forward his breathing ragged and heavy. Finished she took a few steps away from him and stretched her body out. "Now you should be able to move the prosthetic." she said. She rolled her eyes at the dirty and disgruntled look he shot her but tested it by raising his hand. To his surprise, it actually did move. "Why don't we give it a try? I've got something in mind...." she said with a sensual smile. "If you'll follow me, I have something that will truly be able to test the ability of your prosthetic." she said. "I have to be sure the calculations are correct. You are War. I want to be sure it will hold up to your power levels." Sabine said in the silence that had stretched out after Lilith's invitation. For a few heartbeats he continued to remain silent before heaving himself off of the chair "Fine, lead the way then wench." he ground out in irritation to the succubus. "Sabine, lead our guest to the place. I'll go make sure everything is ready." Lilith said to the technician as she disappeared from the area. "Uh....yeah, ok..."" she said to the area where Lilith used to be. "Didn't expect that...." she thought to herself blinking a few times. Shaking her head she brought herself back to reality. "J-just head out of the door we came in and...." she said trailing off a little intimidated by him and thrilled by her reaction. "Uh-uhm, if you'll just wait outside a moment, I need to grab and take care of a few things before we set off." she said turning her head away from him as she bent over a pile of papers and began sifting through them, grabbing a few here and there. War stared after her for a few heartbeats before making a small grunting noise and heading for the door.

As War exited the room a low, sultry voice echoed out of a pocket of darkness. "Well, well, War." the female voice said, practically caressing his name with her tongue. The Horseman stopped and turned his head squinting, trying to find the source of the voice. He eventually caught sight of a very familiar succubus. She'd been the one who'd taken Venus from the void and away from his wrath. "You...you're the one who took my prey." he spat out to the succubus. The woman only offered a slight sneer. "Oh? Did I? I'm so sorry, I had no idea you could still feel those kinds of urges..." she purred out swaying her hips back and forth slightly. " If you'd like I could return her and you could have some fu-- " she started saying but was cut off as War interjected "Don't twist my words whore! I've no interest in your lusts, succubus. What have you done with my prey?" he demanded.

"No interest in lust?" she said. He didn't like the way she stressed the word "no". "Well, now, I am going to have to be a naughty girl and call you a liar." she said her eyes shining coldly in the light "If that were indeed true, I wouldn't be here." she said licking her lips. "What the hell is that supposed to mean bitch?" he asked annoyed with her taunts. "Exactly what I said." she said with a smile that did nothing to lessen the ice in her gaze. "I've had enough of your riddles and games..." he said turning to leave "Nanaja....was it?" she asked innocently enough. She was rewarded in the form of his reaction, he turned back towards her his gaze both surprised and enraged "Never say that name in front of me again..." he growled out threateningly. "Ahhh, I thought you might remember her....she is the one who..." she said trailing off and making a slight "popping" noise with her mouth "your cherry, so to speak." she finished as she stared at the rider of the red horse. "Who the hell are you and how do you know all of this?" he ground out, his voice low. " "I wonder if you remember her because she was your first and only or because you couldn't kill her?" she asked not really wanting nor expecting to receive an answer.

"Are you perhaps wondering if maybe I had a little chit-chat with the Goddess?" she asked taunting him. "Did we gossip about it over tea?" she said grinning widely, toying with him. "Do you think this is a joke?" he said his eyes narrowing into small slits. The smile dropped from her face "Still just as boring as always, I see. Don't worry, your sweet little goddess didn't tell me what took place between you two." she said. "You are trying my patience." he said between set teeth."I know you quite....intimately." she said. "I know because I was there with you. In you, driving you. I'm what you threw out after the goddess had, had her way with you." she said placing a well manicured hand on her hip. "I am your Lust, War. I am proof that the Rider of the Red Horse, wants." she said seductively, but hints of anger clung to her words.

After you cast me out I took the name Daemera for myself." she said smiling humorlessly. "Were you happy to be rid of me, War? Thankful to be no longer burdened by those impure thoughts and feelings? How humiliated would you be if anyone knew? Imagine if Lilith were to find something like that out...." she said covering her mouth in a mocking scandalous way. She saw the rage that burned in his gaze and felt a bit satisfied. "Your actions that night will cost you in so many ways to come. Why, if you'd kept me trapped inside of you, I could never have claimed a prize like this for one..." she said trailing off and motioned for someone to come forward. From out of the shadows walked another woman whom he did not recognize at first. It was another Succubus but she seemed different and sort of familiar. "Another succubus whore?" he asked, his face showing clear disgust "Mmm, she is a succubus. Now. But think really hard War." she said reaching up and grabbing the succubus's face "Who does she remind you of?" she asked smiling smugly. War glared at the woman's face, the way she looked at him, his eyes widened in anger and recognition "My prey..." he snarled out. "Well, I guess I can't blame you too much for your inability to remember names. Yes, this is her. She was once a Sailor Senshi of the planet Venus, a woman you were to kill but failed to. After your brother Famine unlocked her, I took her and turned her into one of us. Isn't she a wonderful succubus?" she asked moving a hand down Minako's body. "Now I have more of a reason to kill her.." War said in disgust. The succubus just laughed at him. "I also noticed that you're giving Lilith some attention, get tired of her howling?" she asked him tauntingly. "And I'm not even there to push you along either...." she said feigning pride in him for it. "I will kill you, both of you." he promised, his hands tightening into a fist.

"Well, when you're done playing with Lilith, feel free to look us up. But for now we must go. People to meet, things to set in motion, you know..." she said as her and Minako disappeared from the area.

A few minutes later Sabine walked out of the room "Alright, sorry that took so long, we can go no-" she started to say but stopped when she saw War. He looked absolutely murderous. She stayed silent staring at him for a few moments before finally speaking up "U-uhm...is everything alright?" she asked tentatively. For a few heartbeats he didn't answer her and when he finally did speak, it was only to tell her to take him to his destination. The two walked in relative silence, Sabine not wanting to strike up a conversation with the force of nature next to her. Well, not when he was like this. He was usually in a bad mood, especially around Succubus but this was much different. "Nanaja....I wonder who she is...I wonder if Lilith would know..." Sabine thought to herself. She hadn't been able to hear most of the conversation but she'd heard a female say that name, as well as a few others, but that one had seemed to have an effect on the horseman. She also did not recognize the voice of whoever was speaking. "Nanaja. Minako. Daemera. Once War leaves, I'll ask Lilith about the names." she thought, not wanting to risk War learning about her inquiries. She was fascinated by him but not fool enough to dig into his past with him still around and with Lilith no less! A small shudder she could not suppress, coursed through her body. It had nothing to do with excitement and everything to do with fear. "W-we're almost there.." she said as they neared where Lilith was finishing everything.

"Is that clear?"Lilith said to a demon who nodded and walked off. She placed a hand on her hip and chewed on her lower lip while she waited for Sabine to bring War. Everything was more or less set-up for the Horseman's as well as the opponent who was already set up near-by. When they appeared she smiled "Finally, now that you're here, why don't we get started. You'll be fighting him." she said not wasting any time and pointing to a goat-like demon. "I know he doesn't look like much but in your condition, I'm sure he'll prove to be enough of a challenge for you." she said as she and Sabine walked to an observation deck of sorts so Sabine could get the information she required. Lilith on the other hand, just wanted to watch him fight. As the demon was released for its fight with War, they heard Lilith shout one more thing.

"Good luck! Remember, Jibao, if you win against him, you can have your way with me tonight." she said leaning over the railing slightly.
 

Oh, how War seethed, his body all too primed for the coming fight as heat rolled off his body to make the air shimmer around him like a cloak; too close and one could very well be incinerated. His muscles seemed to strain under the weight of his rage, each limb like a tensed spring waiting to be released. A low growl left his lips as he finally went up to Lilith. Needless to say, the underlings that had been trying to set up the make-shift arena for this fight were all too quick to get out of his way; even the one that showed him his armament for the fight - a blade resembling the size and weight of his true weapon but instead possessing no remarkable features aside from the durability of it being a Hellforged weapon, was all too quick to scurry away. While, sure, they wanted to witness the rare sight of actually witnessing the Red Horseman battle...They weren't too keen with how close it was and wanted some form of safety cushion. When Sabine and Lilith made their way up to the observation platform, she would find a number of others here as well, some being young Satyrs themselves whilst others were demons from various castes and archetypes.

"L-lady Lilith, Miss Sabine...Apologies if this inconveniences you, but the Horseman is damned scary and a weak thing like me would probably be blown to bits just from the shockwave of his swordswing!" said a tiny pugdy imp that was naked save for a loincloth, the technician sighing in reply, "No...No it does not, for I share your concerns; I fear my premilinary design will be inadequate. And a safe distance will do well to ensure I can carry out my observations." Another demon spoke up, this one a young Satyr like Jibao, then commented heartily "Hah! Jibao isn't our King's favorite son for no reason, you know! Your and Lilith's newest toy is as good as done!" Yes, the Satyrs were a proud people, ones that were quick on their feet and stronger than most would anticipate. And of all the Satyr Princes, Jibao's ferocity - and as Lilith's remark led credence to, his lust - were unmatched by any fo the King's other progeny.

Jibao laughed as the Horseman approached, his hairy digitigrade legs flexing powerfully as he stood fully upright; even with how tall War was, Jibao towered over him by at least another foot. And though not as muscular as the Horseman, his entire physical presence definitely possessed exceptional levels of strength. "Lilith, what is this?" the Satyr prince mocked after eyeing her bountiful cleavage and wide hips, adding confidently, "I thought you said I was going to have to work to get the right to breed you! You must want me quite badly to send such weak pr-- Before he could finish, however, Jibao soon found a hunk of rock hitting him square between the eyes, leaving quite the open wound on his 'forehead' as he yelled out in pain, War already charging and landing a gut shot on the Prince with his new arm. Jibao rocketed backwards into the opposite wall, a plume of dust preceding the entire wall collapsing on top of him. The goat demon's massive body suffering hundreds of tons of falling stone to instantly bury him, War's metal fist steaming with heat.

He flexed the new appendage appreciatively; were he at full strength, that punch would have turned Jibao into giblets. "All you Demons...You spend time gloating instead of fighting...It's no wonder you have to cower down below!" the Horseman shouted, the air quaking at his outburst and making many of the smaller demons hide behind Lilith's curvy legs; before long, Jibao burst free of his temporary stone prison, his long tongue snaking out to loll freely. "I see...She must have promised you the right to mate her too...Very well, let us see which is more worthy of that right!" And in a flash, Jibao disappeared, the powerful legs carrying him to speeds that should not be achievable ones his size. The hard thumps of his hooves impacting the stone seemed to lag desperately behind where the demon actually was. Such was a unique trait of the Satyr race; and before War could react, Jibao delivered a powerful headbutt to War's sternum, the hard bone of his horns delivering tremendous force that would have normally crushed those weaker than he. War cried out in agony as he was thrown backwards from the force, Jibao above him in seconds with his hooved legs tensed; the Horseman reacted quickly, his new arm and sword coming forward in front just as the Prince was about to drive his hooves downward; the two slid violently along the rocky floor, stony debris being thrown up before Jibao launched himself off to get a safe distance.

The Satyr Prince's lips curled up into something of a smile as the Horseman struggled to get up for a few seconds, his voice cocky as he said to her, "Not to worry, Your Grace...I promise to be gentler with you, since you'll have my children after I finish this pest. I've heard he was strong, but frankly...I'm disappointed." War did nothing to acknowledge the beast's taunts, his only thoughts murder and how much he wanted to kill this braggart many times over. "If you have time to gloat, you have time to fight, demon." War growled again, letting his hate saturate that last word. A deep-red aura covering him as he readied his blade for another assault, blade raised in front of him. Jibao just let out a little 'tch' sound and readied himself as well, "At least the tales for your ability to take punishment don't seem to be exaggerated too much; I'll enjoy breaking you one bone at a time, then I'll fill Lilith again and again until she bears the next generation for the Satyrs!"

And like that, the fight resumed once more; War was certainly having trouble keeping with a fully-rested Jibao, the Satyr's exceptional speed and power proving to be quite a match...Maybe even more of a match. The large goat demon seemed to evade almost every blow War threw at him, while being able to hit him hard with fast-striking counterblows much; many of the smaller demons were watching with glee and horror at the same time. It hadn't taken long for the arena they fought in to become cratered and destroyed: Massive holes and gashes covered the walls and floors, War's already worked over body covered in fresh lacerations and puncture marks, the Prince's horns stained with streaks of blood. Each collision sent a massive shockwave of air blasting outward; it wasn't long afterward that War was left still standing, his legs shaking and his head bowed, sword never dropped in front of him and Jibao laughing weakly. The young Satyr among the observers laughed quite obnoxiously, "Hah, see?! Big Brother Jibao's no pushover! Go, Brother! Stomp his guts out! Finish him!"


"You must want Lilith quite badly if you're taking this much punishment...I commend you, Horseman." Jibao said in a boosting tone, turning to Lilith and addressing her once more, "I apologize, Your Grace, but it seems I'll need a good shower before we can do anything fun...This cretin decided to sully me with his blood, you see."War just hunched over, clenching his teeth as his grip tightened on his blade. His rage had been boiling over this whole fight and yet...He could do nothing. Just as he could not finish those Senshi....Just as he could not finish Death....

Not even that whore Nanaja! But he would not lose here!

"But watch now, as I prove I am the superior specimen! If anyone should have the honor of breeding the Queen, it should be a Prince!" he then bellowed confidently, feeling a burning in his groin as he turned back to the Horseman. "In any event, this is your end! You die now, Horseman!" Jibao shouted, his form disappearing as War raised his sword to try and strike this monster down; however, the Prince was just too fast. War's body ragdolled as his midsection was run through by the Satyr's horns, the hard head of the Prince driving the Horseman into a partially compromised section of rock wall before drawing back. "From me...To you, Horseman" were his final words as he leaped up and delivered twin crushing kicks to the stone above; the force propelled Jibao to safety, while the heavy stones quickly fell and buried the Red Rider densely. It was here that Jibao then turned and bowed his head to Lilith, his voice brimming with pride and confidence as he stated, "As if there was any doubt? I knew he was strong, but I am Jibao! A Hell-Lord and the strongest Prince to the Satyr Kingdom! And as for you, My Queen...After I clean the vermin from my horns and appreciate the sight a little longer, I will prepare to shake the foundations on everything you know about our people!"

Sabine was barely paying attention to any of this, her eyes focused on the rubble pile where the one who owned her heart lay buried; there was...there was no way! Weak as he was, Jibao should have been able to be beaten! Tears pricked the corners of her eyes as she clasped her hands together and her eyes shut, almost like she was praying.
 
Lilith :: Sabine ​

Sabine chewed on her bottom lip, brows furrowed in concentration as she watched the horseman. Her design had mostly been made on guesswork based on peoples verbal reports of his power, she had yet to see him fight. The data she'd gain here would be invaluable. Her eyes followed the movements of the warrior, watching the way he moved the prosthetic as he fought. Already she was making new calculations for another arm because the one he was wearing would not survive this fight. She was mostly deaf to the words that burst forth from the satyrs mouth, however she did catch his statement about Lilith promising to bed War if he won. It took everything she had not to start dying of laughter on the spot. Lilith wanted to bed the Horseman not the other way around and most beings were aware of that. Or at the least had heard rumors of her lust for him, things got around quickly in the underworld. "Satyrs are rather foolish." she thought shaking her head slightly. As she watched she got an idea for an addition to the new arm that she was certain he would like. She looked at Lilith "Is there any reason you promised to bed him? I thought you were against sleeping with the Satyrs..." she asked curiously. She saw Lilith cringe visibly "It was the only way to get him to agree to fight, War." she replied, grimacing at the thought. Comprehension lit the techie's eyes and she turned back to the fight "I see." she murmured. It made sense, not many would willingly agree to a battle with War with no reward in it for them.

However as the fight progressed, Jibao was actually starting to dominate. Lilith watched the fight in growing dread. She'd known he'd be a challenge for the Horseman in his current state but she had been certain that War would win. Had she underestimated Jibao's strength and ability? Or had she over-estimated War's current abilities? A bead of sweat dripped down the side of her face as she watched the Satyr go at War again and again. "Oh no. No. No. No. No. No. No. No." she repeated in her head. "This can't be happening..." she murmured in complete disbelief. "He can't actually be losing against a...a...Satyr" she said her eyebrow twitching slightly. She felt herself become ill at Jibao's comment on his plans for her. "NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!!! I'LL BE DAMNED TO ETERNAL TORMENT BEFORE I BEAR A SATYRS CHILD!" she mentally screamed out. The Succubus Queen's body had gone very still, her knuckles whitened noticeably as her grip tightened on the railings and her eyes were wide in growing horror and anxiety. It was rare that Lilith let her thoughts and emotions show through. She usually wore that playful, condescending smile, no matter who or what she was dealing with. "No!" she screamed out and leaned over the railings as the stones fell on-top of the Horseman. Her eyes shot to Jibao and she could think of no reply and no way to get out of what she'd promised. "War, get the fuck up. NOW! Damn you!" she mentally cursed, unwilling to believe he had actually lost. "What the fuck am I going to do? I can't actually....bed..him." she thought feeling ill all over again. "What to do...I wonder if I could work a spell on a succubus to look like me...." she thought, thinking of literally anything to get out of her promise to the Satyr prince.

Sabine squeezed her eyes shut, her clasped hands tightening around one another. "Come on, War. Get up. You're stronger than this. You're not finished yet..." she thought, afraid he was gone. She cared not for her Queen's fate with Jibao, she had made the promise. But she had, had so many plans for him. He was unlike anything she'd ever worked on before and she wouldn't believe he was dead. "Get up..." she thought again. She pressed her hands close to her chest and bowed her head slightly. "Don't let him die." she thought in prayer, to anyone who might listen.
 
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