Speed - Galaxy ~~ Grand Re-Opening!

[The Host]

 "Nothing. Never heard of such a name," replied Vulture, lying on his back, his arms outstretched awkwardly.
 Patrick extended a hand towards the deamon, but it was not to help him get up. The sand underneath Vulture seeped out from below him and made its way across his chest, all the while controlled the Patrick's hand. When Vulture was covered completely in sand Patrick closed his hand into a fist and tightened his grip and the sand split apart, forming bonds that held Vulture against the desert floor.
 "You may not know of the name, but the small organisms on your body know of that name. Command them to speak or I kill you and I'll find out what I need to know without you."
 "... Tell him," said Vulture, gasping for breath underneath the bonds of sand.
 "Ragnon is the most powerful dragon, as well as the last dragon. His home is not on Speed mainland, but rather the Valley of Dragons, in the far western reaches of the Speed Minora Islands. We as a group have been to the valley, but it is shrouded in mist and caverns are numerous, so locating the right cavern in which Ragnon resides is nearly impossible. However, we say this not to discourage you, for we know you will go no matter what. We tell you this because our host, Vulture, has eyes that we find most extraordinary. He may be able to locate Ragnon's cavern, but we, nor he, will help you on your journey of one of us dies. Release Vulture and we can begin to make our way towards the Speed Minora Islands."
 Patrick opened his fist and the bonds of sand holding Vulture went limp, and as Vulture stood up the sand dropped away from him as if it were ordinary sand- which it was. But Vulture had no intent of helping the human mage. Patrick realised this much to late, and also realised his fatal mistake of assuming that the only micro organisms present were with Vulture already.
 As Vulture ran towards Patrick, the magician raised his hands in defence, only to find his palms covered in Yits, the micro organisms. Vulture's body grew with each step he took, as more and more Yits attached themselves to the host. With his palms covered, Patrick had no way to emit the energy inside of him, and his body grew weaker with each second. Then, suddenly, the energy inside of him was outside of his body, and yet, it still felt contained within him. He turned his head to see what had happened, and there, standing where he had just been standing was his body.
 Patrick looked down at himself and cried out in shock. His arms and legs were transparent- no- they weren't there at all. Instead, his body was blue in colour, with wings on his back and armour like he had never seen on a human before. His neck was much longer and his arms were no longer in front of him, rather, they were on the ground. He had four legs.
 The energy inside of him suddenly changed from what it had felt like into something completely different. It was as if the energy were no longer filled with anger, but with sadness and emotion. "What the hell is going on?" he cried out.
 -Fear not. You are fine. I will guard your body while you fight with my own. I am Crioone, the deamon you have searched long and hard for. Use my body to destroy this deamon's hope, but do not kill him. What the Yits said was true: he will be usefull in the search for Ragnon. And one more thing. The energy that you feel now is Deamonic energy. It is much more powerful than human magical energy, but it is much harder to use. Don't try any of your stunts with it. It won't work out the way you plan for it.
  Patrick was in awe. Not only had he found the Crioone he had been searching for, he was using her body. But he was not adapted to the deamon body, and when he first moved he was slugish and slow. The Yits caught on quickly to what had happened, but Vulture had not. He was still rushing for Patrick's body, and as he did he was shoved hard by Patrick- in Crioone's body. The Yits held up Vulture and explained what had happened, and after they did Vulture ordered the Yits to attack Crioone's body.
 -Do not fear when they cover you. Like I said, Deamonic energy is different from Magical Energy. You don't need to focus my energy anywhere; it will come out in a wave of power from all over my body, so it can't be blocked the same way they blocked your power.
 Patrick nodded, through Crioone's neck. The Yits covered him and in seconds he could not see. But he built up the energy the same way he did in his human body, then released it, all at once. The Yits exploded from Crioone's body and Patrick's body suddenly dissapeared only to re-appear behind Crioone's body.
 A light flashed and Patrick was blinded. When he opened his eyes again he was looking out from his own body. Millions of Yits were scattered all around him, and Crioone's body was no where to be seen. Vulture was lying on the ground once more, this time on his front. As he tried to get up Patrick raised his hand and prepared to attack. But a voice stopped him.
 No. Do not kill him. He will be of use to you.
 It was the same voice as before, and, just as Patrick had expected, a blinding light was just to his right.
 In your current state of only one body, you cannot communicate with Crioone, and although she can here you, she cannot communicate with you either. I am not sure how you were able to split your beings apart like that, because of according to the laws of Deamonic and Magical beings, once together like this you cannot be split without meeting where you destinies would normally meet. However, what you did in your deamonic state was incredible, is not fatally dangerous to the world of Speed. The amount of energy you released was amazing. Don't do it again. It offsets the balance of enrgy in the atmosphere.
 And once again, the voice was gone, leaving Patrick in the middle of a thought.
 "He can never stay long enough to answer my questions, can he?"

[The Host]

 Patrick's hand stayed pointed at Vulture, and as he slowly brought his hand away Vulture began to get up. "Don't do anything stupid. I've had enough of your stunts," staid Patrick in a steely voice, filled with contempt.
 "You can't order me around, because if you do I'll leave here and never help you. You need me," replied Vulture, sneering with evil happyness.
 Patrick punched Vulture and the deamon's mouth opened, air rushing out and being replaced with water vapour from the air. Vulture grabbed his own throat and gasped as Patrick pulled his fist away. Spluttering, Vulture regained the ability to move and cursed at the magician.
 "I don't need you for this. It will only help me if you come along. Don't push your luck, and don't get me mad. I'll kill you."

***

 Ninmeko looked at Bellcast, ruler of deamon's and leader of the four remaining warlords and Anlatta. Omnimega stood beside Ninmeko, his skin changing colour and form constantly. Geminist, who stood at Bellcast's left side, was staring at each of the four deamons who follwed Bellcast along with himself.
 "Why'd you call us, Geminist?" asked Ninmeko, silently hoping that Bellcast had a new plan to put through.
 "I have decided that it is time to head out for Terra Eterna. With a war on the verge of beginning in Speed we will not be needed here. Terra Eterna, our sister planet, will be much more fun to act over."
 Ninmeko silently hated Geminist's plan. After Bellcast had banished four deamons into the Fog, Geminist had taken over Illyare's position of leader of Bellcast's elite force. Bellcast had agreed to this plan, simply because Geminist had been brave enough to declare himself leader under Bellcast. Anlatta followed Geminist with pride- of course, Anlatta followed anyone in power with pride. Omnimega followed Geminist, only because Geminist seemed to always propose plans that involved pain and destruction. It seemed that only Ninmeko was truly against Geminist's role in power, because even Alkyra followed Geminist.
 Bellcast stood up, and Anlatta rushed over to his side. "Do as you wish, Geminist. I will stay here, beneath the body of Craiyo. Our new fortress will be built here. I will have the Attalna build it while the four of you enjoy yourselves. Anlatta will stay with me for the time being, until Crioone returns to detectable presence. Then the hunt will begin."
 "Yes my lord," said Geminist. Alkyra saluted, and Omnimega bowed. Ninmeko was the only one who did not respond immediately.
 "I won't be joining Geminist this time, Bellcast," was her final responce. Bellcast gave her a questioning look.
 "Ninmeko, you're needed at Terra Eterna with the rest of us. I've already devided the world into four regions."
 "No. I've already sensed Crioone's returned presence. Just now. She was here, but now she's gone, as if she never existed. I'm taking Anlatta with me in search of the deamon. You go on without me. I'll catch up. Maybe." And with her words that astounded everyone, she was gone, Anlatta by her side. Omnimega looked at Geminist, who only shrugged.
 "Let's go. Earth awaits us, those who will conquor the world once and for all!" Shouted Alkyra. Geminist nodded and Bellcast smiled.
 "Farewell," said the king of the shadows of Speed.

[The Host]

Interlude Fourteen
Through the Eyes of a Stranger

 Crioone flew through the airs of Speed, wings outstretched and eyes open, taking in the beauty of real life, true colours, and beautiful tyrany, which was not actually beautiful. But the sights were more vivid and much more breath taking than anything found within the Fog. The red of fire, the green of grass, and the blue reflection upon the waves on laks and seas.
 And yet, she always found a nagging sence that something was pulling her from her destination. She could not control her pathway. She would head east, and she was pulled west. She found herself having the urge to flip in mid air, then dive towards the ground at high speed and pull up just before colision.
 It was on her fifth day in Speed that she began to understand that something was wrong. She had missed the detail because she had been isolated from life in the Fog, but even back in Speed she was isolated. She had not seen a deamon or any creature for that matter since she had arrived. It was as if she was the last being alive.

***

 Three weeks later Crioone's eyes stayed closed at all times. She could see where she was going in her mind, something to due with her sixth sence was what she had guessed at first, but she doubted herself. Her mind carried her wherever she went, and she had no fear of encountering deamons or any threat. She was alone.
"Crioone, where are you?"
 "What?"
 But the voice did not respond. But Crioone had definately heard it. She was not alone. Quickly, she looked all around herself for the voice. When nothing appeared and no sound was made, Crioone purged deamonic energy from her body and the area surrounding her was devastated by a blast of pure power. Nothing was left standing. Anything that had been there was gone by now, and the immediate danger was gone. If the belonger of the voice had escaped, Crioone did not know. But nothing could survive a blast of that strength at such as close distance.

[The Host]

Chapter Fifteen
Rebels

 Taverna looked at the fifty deamons assembled in front of him. Standing there, the deamons all aknowledged Taverna as their new leader. He had, after all, freed them from the ruins of Fortress Metawar where they had all been slaves. Each deamon was fully prepared to die for Taverna. In the revolution against Bellcast that Taverna had warned them was approaching, each deamon would follow Taverna to death.

***

Four weeks earlier...
 Exaltoskull exploded in a cloud of dark shadows. Nara and Taverna watched in horror as their companion who had guided them through the Fog departed in death. Whatever had just happened was beyond anything Nara had seen.
 The three deamons had just returned from the depths of the Fog, and as they entered Speed, Exaltoskull was attacked, or hit by an unseen force. Taverna had acted on instinct when he had dived over Nara and carried her out of harms way. Nara growled at Taverna once Exaltoskull was gone, but inside she knew he may have saved her life.
 "What now?" she asked.
 "What d'you mean? We go back to normal, like before Crioone led us into Metawar."
 Nara eyed Taverna, then responded to him.
 "What about Crioone?"
 Taverna shrunk back. He had forgotten that Crioone might still be alive. He even remembered when Crioone had wanted to find Nara even after she had betrayed them, whatever her motives had been. "... Fine. We look around for Crioone, but we stay away from Bellcast or anyone who's working with him. We don't do anything stupid that wrecks our cover."
 "Okay. But if we do this we have to not attack each other every minute."
 "Just don't do anything that might kill me or banish me from Speed."
 Nara looked at the ground. "One day I'll tell you why I did that. And maybe then, when the time is right, you'll understand."

[The Host]

 It had been three days and Nara had seen nothing that gave her any hope that Crioone was on Speed, or alive, for that matter. There were times when during the search she had wanted to give up, and maybe, just maybe, go back to a normal life the likes of which Taverna had suggested to her. Then she hated herself for thinking it. She had already betrayed Crioone once, even if in her own mind she had a good explanation for it, and she would not do it again. Nara began flying faster, scanning the ground more precisely, and her senses for any energy that resembled that of Crioone were at their peak. And yet, in the back of her mind she found that she knew the search was pointless. Crioone was not on Speed, and in the unlikely even that she was still alive, she would not be returning to Speed for a while. It was during these thoughts that Taverna spoke up.
 "Crioone's not here."
 "So you're just gonna give up?" replied Nara sceptically, even if she had been thinking the same thing for the past few hours.
 "No. Only in the actual sense of stopping to search."
 "What's that supposed to mean?"
 "She's not here, so why waste time looking for her. It's like trying to find a butterfly in an empty coccoon. It will never be accomplished."
 "So what are you saying we do, oh great one of crazy plans?"
 "Shut up. I don't need you insulting my plans. And this one happens to be good."
 "Sure. Get on with it. Tell me your great plan of bound to be success."
 "We can't find Crioone, so we take out Bellcast, bit by bit, piece by piece, until his empire of deamons is down to one: himself. Starting with the dog from hell."
 "Yeah. That's a good one. How 'bout I just kill you here on the spot. It will be much simpler and far faster."
 "Do what you want. I'll see you in two months time infront of Bellcast's fortress. We'll see who was smarter."
 Nara and Taverna took off at the exact same time. They would not see each other for two months, but as they worked, they would be watched. Exaltoskull stepped out from the shadows and stood where Nara and Taverna had been quarreling. It had taken a lot of effort to explode his body, but with the power of a Deamon Shadow anything, almost, wa possible. But his dissapearence had been on purpose, and it had served its purpose. He had found out a lot about the two deamons who had accompanied hi through The Fog. They were both selfish to an extent, but they also hated Bellcast and what he had done with Speed. They would be the perfect pawns to use in Exaltoskull's great plan of redemtion. No longer would he be the exile of Speed, but the bringer of light. The recreator of Speed.

***

 Taverna landed in the middle of Extapolis, Crioone's hometown. The village had suffered a lot since the dissapearence of Crioone, but it still thrived, since it prospered from it's location so close to the former Metawar. At once Taverna was recognised, and deamons gathered around him. He was, after all, one of the most respected deamons. He had faced Bellcast in a deathmatch only weeks earlier. And even if it had ended with Taverna being banished he had still gained enough respect that no one in Extapolis attacked him- if anyone had dared to move against Taverna he or she had been stopped by others and murdered.
 " I need fifty of you who are willing to die in a revoltuion against Bellcast. The fifty of you will be trained in combat with me. Actually, make it seventy-five of you. Many of you are bound to die in this training, because when I make my move in rebellion against Bellcast I don't want anyone who's not prepared. The fifty who succeed my training will then march our way to Bellcast's fortress and die. But not before we make dammed sure that Bellcast knows what he's up against. I have a friend who will finish the job we begin, but anyone who follows me now is guaranteed to die.
 "So who's with me?"
 No one stepped forwards. Taverna waited. Five minutes passed. No one had moved.
 "Okay. You're all dead. When you look at me on my way out, you'll be seeing some one who's proud to rebel. Proud to fight for a cause- not only to free the land of Bellcast's evil, but also to avenge a fallen friend, Crioone, from this town. But none of you can follow me now, because you know my true intent of the mission, and you'd be held back by that. So stay here. Don't do anything at all. Pretend I was never here."
 Taverna turned around and flew off to the south, towards the remains of Metawar. It had been his true intent to recruit the slaves of Metawar, but he had to see what Crioone's own village thought of the idea first. After all, an army of one hundred is much stronger than an army of fifty, if not just a bit harder to control.

[The Host]

 Exaltoskull snapped out of his daydream and back into reality. True, he was going to Nara and Taverna as pawns in his plan, but it would not be for somethign too dangerous, something that would affect their lives in a great way. Exaltoskull would not be revered as the great deamon who tore life from Bellcast the evil, but rather as the deamon who rebelled against the kind, the regicidal deamon. The deamon who killed his own brother.
 No, if Exaltoskull was to succeed, he needed Taverna and Nara to rebel first. Then he could act out his own plans. But all the while, he would remain in the shadows as he had done since birth. And at last, when Nara and Taverna would confront Bellcast, and as Bellcast reached out to kill them, Exaltoskull would kill them all, if necessary. First Bellcast would be murdered. The others would be left alone, unless they needed to die.

***

 The deamons who had for years stood around Metawar, gradually fortifying it, building better defences, and slaving away during the day and the night recognised Taverna immediately. He had once worked along side some of them, and his power and prestige were known throughout the mob.
 Taverna landed on one of the stone pillars that was still intact and looked at the deamons, blood covered with bones almost showing. Since Axerion had died, no one had bothered to release the deamons from slavery. Bellcast had even come by and ordered then to rebuild the fortress. But he had not stayed, and he had left no one to oversee the work being done. The deamons were not fed, and so the deamons that remained were the strongest, all of the weaker ones had died off or been used to keep the alive ones undead.
  When Taverna landed, the chains that bound the deamons to their positions rattled, as each deamon forced its way nearer to Taverna, the emerald warrior who brought them hope.
 Taverna opened his mouth, and the crowd went silent. Bones from dead deamons rustled in the wind, but no one paid attention to that. Taverna was their focus. The green deamon began his speech.
 "I am going to lead a rebellion against King Bellcast, ruler of Speed and tyrant of the universe."
 Boos resounded when Taverna pronounced King Bellcast, but they were followed by cheers as Taverna disgraced his name. Taverna raised a hand, and a gust of wind escaped from his wing, blasting the deamons with air, immediately shutting off their voices.
 "But a one man rebellion is not very strong, nor would I stand a chance at fighting the dark lord." A few deamons laughed, while others hit those who laughed, ensuring that they stayed silent as Taverna had made them. "Anyone who joins me will surely die. But your death will be quick and filled with pain. I'm sure that it is preferable to staying here and dying. So, I need volunteers. Around seventy of you, who I will train in combat. Of those who choose to follow me, only fifty will survive long enough to begin the revolt, and later rebellion against Bellcast. Who will join me?"
 Many deamons cried out in responce, while others began fighting those who responded in order to kill them, to ensure a spot with Taverna. Seeing this, the emerald coloured deamon flew over the crowd and blasted the agressors with deamonic energy. Within minutes the crowd was silent, half of the deamons who had been listening were silent- dead.
 "If you wish to follow me, then break free of your bondings and fly up to me. As I flew by I weakened the power of the metal. Those who I've already selected should find that escaping is easy.
 Seventy-five deamons broke free during Taverna's words, but on their way up to meet the deamon they fought, and eight fell from the skies into the hands of the unchosen. They were devoured, giving the deamons below a little bit longer to live. Or it would have given them longer to live, had Taverna not given out his first order.
 "Kill the remainders!"
 Most of the deamons who were now free launched themselves at the slaves still imprisonned, but a few stayed behind. Those who hung back were killed by Taverna himself. They had not listened to orders, therefor they could not be trusted on the battle field.
 The prisonners cried out in fear, but their restraints held them in place, and the massacre was easy. Blood splattered the ground and stone, and death was in the air. Taverna shut his eyes, then dropped down to the ground, where he grabbed one of the dead deamons, seemingly at random. He addressed his warriors when he spoke.
 "This deamon, like all of the others here this day, heard my speech. When Bellcast or one of his followers discovered many of you missing this deamon would likely give away my plan in a second, just to save his own life, which he would losse as soon as he finished his story. By killing this deamon, and all of the others here, you have ensured that we will have more time to prpepare for the war that is to come."
 Taverna dropped the dead deamon to the ground, then released a small wave of deamonic energy. The dead deamons exploded from the inside out, leaving everything in their systems on the ground before Taverna and his warriors. "Take whatever may be of use to us here. Many of these deamons swallowed weapons. They may come in use in your training. Also, feed on them until you no longer need to feed. You will need your energy."
 And with that, Taverna stooped down and sunk his teeth into the blood that covered the area. He was a true beast at this time. He was a true deamon.

[The Host]

 "Where are we headed?" asked one of the deamons who followed behind Taverna. The green hued deamon had flown due west for three hours without speaking to anyone. His eyes moved back and forth, catching glimpses of the ground below, probably looking for anything that looked as if Bellcast had spies following them.
 Taverna turned his head in mid flight, then flipped over, his hand blasting wind in the faces of the flying slave-used-to-be's. At once they stopped and floated in the middle of the sky. "We're headed to the mountains to the west. There are many valleys and caves which we'll use for training, and it gives us cover from anything Bellcast sends our way."
 Jirba, the deamon who had spoken to Taverna, nodded. Taverna flipped back into the position he had been flying in and began to fly once more. The others followed him. Jirba casually flew slower than the others, allowing him to soon be at the back of the pack. He began to drop in altitude, and at once he felt a great pain in his back. Taverna's claws pulled out from the lifeless body Jirba, and as the deamon fell to the ground, Taverna released a wave of deamonic energy at the ground. The trees of the forest rustled as a gray coloured deamon tried to get out of the way of the blast, but Jirba's body colided with the deamon, and both bodies exploded in a bloody mess.
 "Traitors are unacceptable. If anyone plans to betray me now, come forwards and attack me!" No one stepped forwards. "Good. Your second mission in my training is as follows. Destroy any living being in that forest. Incinerate the forest if you need to. And if you knwo of a traitor who did not step forwards when I asked, kill him."
 The deamon warriors of Taverna dropped down to the forest and began using their powers to set fire to the forest. They somehow had learned to fight in unison and with strategy, as not all of the deamons were lighting up the forest. Others skimmed across the top of the massive inferno, looking for anything that was struggling to live, or anything that tried to escape. And as the deamons began to come back up to Taverna, two were struck from the air and tumbled into the fire below. The traitors.

***

 Nara's wings carried her across the desert of Craiyo to the northern shores of Speed. The ocean surrounding Speed's main island was gray-blue in colour and waves over fourteen metres high rolled along the top, collapsing down on each other and rising with twice the force. Aquatic deamons lived in the ocean, although they were few in number, as the beasts of the sea were generally larger and much more ferocious. Nara began her descent and as her altitude rapily dropped her speed rose, up until the point where she was in pain because of the air resistance.
 The red hued deamon's head crashed through the water and Nara's speed quickly decreased. But her built up speed carried her down quite a ways, and when she felt deep enough she extended her wings, arched her back, and began to move forwards and up in direction. This direction resulted in her entering a small cave that, due to it's position, allowed air to remain and kept water out. Once Nara had surfaced from the water and was breething again she beat down with her wings and propelled herself up into the cave, through a small network of caves and tunnels. Whoever had originally forged this place had been sure to dig well so as to prevent water from flowing into the cave in the unlikely event that it was forced up.
 Nara had originally found the cave two years ago when she had been seking refuge from Axerion's henchmen. She had been chased to the northern most point of Speed- Lislama Point, and from there she had headed west, to where she eventually collapsed from exhaustion and fell into Iskarna- the ocean the surrounded Speed's main island.
 She had somehow survived and found herself in the first tunnel, floating in the water, face up and breathing. It had then been her life saver. It would now serve a purpose much greater. From here she could gain access to Terra Eterna, and from there, she could re-enter Speed almost anywhere, since flying in Terra Eterna was much safer than flying in Speed.

[The Host]

 Three weeks into Taverna's training of the deamons, Taverna realised that the ones he had chosen to follow him were near perfect warriors. After eliminating the weaker deamons from his group, and killing off all traitors, Taverna had finally recieved total control of the deamons following him. They acted upon hearing his voice, and they encountered death and laughed in its face. Many times the fifty one deamons had attacked wandering deamons who were alone or in groups of two or three. These were easy wins, and by doing this, Taverna's group of murderers became more known, and deamons began travelling in groups across large distances to avoid began raided and attacked. But this only spurred Taverna on, and it grew to the point where his crew began wiping out small villages.
 Taverna looked at the fifty deamons assembled in front of him. Standing there, the deamons all aknowledged Taverna as their new leader. He had, after all, freed them from the ruins of Fortress Metawar where they had all been slaves. Each deamon was fully prepared to die for Taverna. In the revolution against Bellcast that Taverna had warned them was approaching, each deamon would follow Taverna to death.
 "Today we do not fly. Nor will we fly tommorow or for a month to come. No. Today we begin our journey towards Craiyo Desert, to a place deamons refer to as the Sorceror's Shadow. The desert of Craiyo holds many secrets, but one of them was not uncovered until a month or so ago, when Bellcast the tyrant destroyed Craiyo and built his fortress within the sandy dunes. He calls his fortress the Palace of Panredden, for unknown reasons, but the fortress is known to be hidden in the shadows of the hills, and some deamons even claim that it is underground. Nevertheless, it is well guarded, and we will most likely die upon entry.
 "Anything you encounter upon our march of suicide is to be killed. Today the genocide of the Attalna begins, and the regicide of Bellcast is to follow. Today, we are the lowest of deamons- merely murderers, with blood on our hands and in our bodies. But later we will be heroes. We will be remembered as the slayers of evil!"
 Cheers from his army erupted during his speech, and by the end of it each deamon had it in his head that Taverna was the only being worth listening to. So they marched, from the southwestern end of Speed- the Bay of Forna- towards the Desert of Craiyo, in the middle of Speed.

***

 Exaltoskull looked at the Attalna surrounding him. Once more, Bellcast was trying to delay his brother from arriving at the Palace of Panredden. But Bellcast must have known that Attalna could no longer contest with deamons who knew of their existance. It was for this reason that the Attalna had been upgraded. Not a major difference, only one percievable if you were looking for it. The Attalna were now able to move faster, slightly, and their bodies were covered in a transparent film of metal.
 The Attalna launched themselves at Exaltoskull and hit him before the black hued deamon had time to realise what had happened. It was then that Exaltoskull realised that they had been upgraded. He had noticed that they moved in groups, but now that they allowed him to stand back up he realised that they were all in groups. The groups, when using the imagination also resembled deamonic bodies. Exaltoskull released a small wave of deamonic energy and the Attalna fell back before the wave made contact with them.
 So, invisible host bodies. This should be interesting.
 The Attalna regrouped and surged forwards. But this time, Exaltoskull was ready. The Deamon Shadow within him released itself and lashed out at the invisible bodies, and immediately the area was shrouded in mist. The bodies became semi-visible, but that was all Exaltoskull needed. The Attalne fell group by group, until only one remained. From this group a dog like deamon came slowly into view, and from behind it another deamon entered, a female.
 The dog rose onto it's hind legs and barked at Exaltoskull, but the black deamon only shrugged in responce. The female deamon spoke up.
 "You probably remember me from before your banishment, and if you don't, that's alright, I know who you are." Ninmeko fell silent while looking at Exaltoskull's face. Deep down, there was a slight resemblance to Bellcast. But the skin tone and the attitude made them different enough that you'd have to know they were brothers to see the resemblance.
 "I'm Ninmeko, princess of Panredden and soldier to Bellcast. Leave now, I have other business to attend to and you are not to be harmed, except by Bellcast himself." She didn't bother to mention that Anlatta and Geminist also had the power to attack Exaltoskull if necessary. No use giving Geminist anything else to be proud of.
 "I'll leave, if you tell me what you're here for."
 "Like that's... gonna happen..." replied Anlatta in a slow and slurred voice. The dog deamon's chain rattled and Anlatta growled at Ninmeko, who had taken hold of the leash.
 "Shut up. You don't have permission to speak." She turned to face Exaltoskull."Nor do you have permission to know why I'm here." Ninmeko rushed towards Exaltoskull and as she neared him Anlatta passed her and took down Exaltoskull.
 "You have no... permission... to attack..."
 Exaltoskull began to step back up, but Anlatta's paw rested on his chest, the claws extended. Ninmeko released the chain and circled her hands around Anlatta's neck. A blast of light erupted from her palms and Exaltoskull was blinded. He heard Anlatta roar at Ninmeko, but the deamon princess only shushed him and took off. They must have opened a rift to escape, as their voices were gone long before they should have been. Exaltoskull rose to his feet and his vision slowly returned. Panredden was still quite a ways off, but the two deamons had not moved him away. Instead, they had brought along an army of soldiers dressed in shining black armour, swords raised and eyes all focused on Exaltoskull. When their mouths opened no sound came out. Instead, Exaltoskull's ears rang with pain as Bellcast's voice resounded within them.
 Do not move any closer. These deamons are not what they seem. They have all been infected by the Attrezlets, the virus that infects you and I to this day. They can kill you, but really, it will be me killing you, and you killing yourself.
 Bellcast laughed in delight as Exaltoskull stood still as the deamons in armour advanced upon him. He was neutralised and chained up in less than an hour. He had put up a fight, but only to delay the soldiers. He blacked out at the end, and when he was awakened, Bellcast's smiling face greeted him.

[The Host]

 Nara looked around at the earth from the sky. Smoke billowed from towers, and cars and buses moved about constantly, emmitting toxins into the air. Birds circledher, trying to figure out just what the giant red being was. Nara shoowed them away and descended to the ground of Terra Eterna, otherwise known as Earth to the people who inhabitted it.
 She immediately discovered that she was an outsider and would be tracked as she moved by everyone. She was also likely to be found by any deamon currently on Terra Eterna, not that that was a lot. So Nara flew bac upwards and landed upon a tall building and began her journey from there.
 Inside of her head she had a mental image of Speed combined with Earth. From this image she positioned herself to fly towards the approximate area of Craiyo desert here on Earth.
 But in her haste to find the area she had not checked her surroundings for deamons. She had not thought to look around to see if she was being followed. Had she done this, she may have spotted, or at least discovered the presence of Omnimega, the large green-black coloured deamon, who currently worked with Geminist.

***

 Omnimega watched as Nara slipped into the skies of Earth. Omnimega hated Earth for the sole reason that his powers were greatly reduced by the amount of energy in the air. Following Nara was tough, especially since in Earth's atmosphere it was physically demanding to fly, and because Nara kept dropping to the ground to inspect the smallest details.
 <Where are you?>
 Geminist's drone voice made its way to Omnimega's ear, and the deamon growled quietly to himself.
 "I'm following Nara the red. She's quite annoying. You?"
 <I'm flying with Alkyra in the south. Land troups have been rapidly organising. Someone's starting a war before we can even start.>
 "So what do we do?"
 <Alkyra's gonna watch the land troops movement down here. I'm gonna head east and try to intercept Nara, if I can. You turn around now and head west towards a large ocean- the Pacifica- and get ready to intercept and water vesels that are aligned for war. Once we're in position we'll take over the command of land sea and sky. We'll rule the world while Bellcast and Ninmeko dominate Speed.>
 "I just forget about Nara?"
 <Yeah. She's not important.>
 "Sure."
 Geminist's voice did not return. The plan was made. Within forty-eight hours Terra Eterna would likely be controlled by three deamons.

***

 "Hawk. Jet. We have newcomers to our game. Leave all formations as they are and begin to recruit new forces, but don't organise them. All current formations are to be ordered to stay in position and end all movement for the time being. Our forces are gonna be taken over soon, and when they are we need to be able to counter our own forces. Move to another location immediately. When war breaks out, everyone whom we've allianced is gonna be against us."

[The Host]

Interlude Fifteen
Through the Eyes of a Stranger

 Crioone raised her head to the west and cried out as a pain struck her light a bolt of light. Fear entered her, for she could not sence anything unnatural aound her, which meant that the attack had come out of no where. Unless the pain had come from an actual bolt of lightning.
 But she was not that lucky. The pain continued and seemed to grow with each second she stood in place. Crioone took to the air, but nothing she did could get her away from the pain. And she was blinded, and as her eyes widened, not taking in anything, she crashed into the ground, her legs cracking and her wings folding uderneath her body.
 The blue deamons opened her eyes once more to see if her vision had come back, and she was shocked at what she saw. The deamon called Vulture was in front of her, and he was covered in small micor bugs. She looked at herself and cried out when she observed a human body, with hands and dark hair.
What the hell is going on?
 Suddenly the body she was looking through twisted it's head and cried out in shock. Crioone tried to see what was wrong. At first it eluded her. Then she noticed why. She was in her own body. And then the image flashed away and he was back in the human body.
 Waves of deamonic energy spilled over her and she looked up at her body ten feet in front of her. It was at this point that she finally realised what was going on.
 -What the hell is going on? The human echoed Crioone's own thoughts from her own body. But Crioone was ready to respond.
 "Fear not. You are fine. I will guard your body while you fight with my own. I am Crioone, the deamon you have searched long and hard for. Use my body to destroy this deamon's hope, but do not kill him. What the Yits said was true: he will be usefull in the search for Ragnon." Crioone continued and explained the basics of deamonic energy, as well as to caution the human in his actions with it.
 The micro organisms that covered the human's body that Crioone was watching through reall bugged her. Their constant movements were a distraction, but she tried her best to ignore them She was protecting the human's body, not fighting with it.
 "Do not fear when they cover you. Like I said, Deamonic energy is different from Magical Energy. You don't need to focus my energy anywhere; it will come out in a wave of power from all over my body, so it can't be blocked the same way they blocked your power.
 The human nodded, and a wave bigger than any Crioone had seen in her life exploded from her deamon body. All around the micro organisms fell to the ground. Crioone almost cheered, but as she opened her mouth to do so she found she was opening her own mouth. Crioone stayed quiet, waiting for a sign that what she had experienced was real.
 A voice that sounded familiar echoed in her head, but quiet at first, so she did not understand the words. Focusing more, she began to here more of what the voice was saying. "In your current state of only one body, you cannot communicate with Crioone, and although she can here you, she cannot communicate with you either. I am not sure how you were able to split your beings apart like that, because of according to the laws of Deamonic and Magical beings, once together like this you cannot be split without meeting where you destinies would normally meet. However, what you did in your deamonic state was incredible, is not fatally dangerous to the world of Speed. The amount of energy you released was amazing. Don't do it again. It offsets the balance of enrgy in the atmosphere."
 The voice finished, never giving any hint as to who it was. Then the human voice returned, and Crioone knew that what she had experienced was real.
 -He can never stay long enough to answer my questions, can he?

[The Host]

Chapter Sixteen
Axerion's Finale

 "Even if death has consumed my body, my mind and soul alone stay free from its grasp. The evil Bellcast has surpassed everything I ever thought he would amount to. Thnking back to his beginning, it seems almost obvious he would amount to a great evil, who would eventually push me aside and take everything I had built up. Thinking back to his birth, if it can be called that, is almost as scary as what my life has become."

Six hundred thousand years ago

 Axerion watched in awe as a being clad entirely in blinding light floated in front of him. Even more disturbing was the dark shady figure behind Axerion. Each one carried a small ball shaped like a cocoon, deamonic energy eminating from each of them. The being of light and the being of dark had no energy eminating from them, or atleast, if they did, they were able to hide it completely, nothing Axerion had ever thought possible by any individual deamon.
 <We're here to place these two 'deamons' into your hands for you to care for them. We trust you will not disturb their growth in any way.>
 -If you disobey our orders you will be killed by one of them. And I myself will see to it that you die if you disobey.-
 "And if I decline?"
 <Loxtrida will see to it that you die immediately.>
 -Death to those who go against the Lox Beings.-

[The Host]

 Fourteen years passed before the Lox Beings, as they had called themselves, returned to Axerion. In the fourteen years, Bellcast and Exaltoskull, as they had named themselves, had grown into great deamon warriors, capable of defeating Axerion in pure hand to hand combat. The day that the Lox beings returned, there were three of them. The third being, a new one, attacked Axerion at once.
 //You are no longer needed. No one can know about what has happened here. Our little, experiment, is to be kept a secret from everyone. You are a livin deamon who can let word out of our presence.//
 -The Lox are not to be disobeyed. Turn around and allow Phantomalox to kill you.-
 "Why? Who are you to order me around?"
 <We are the Lox Beings. For this reason alone you are to die.>
 Phantomalox stabbed Axerion and the deamon fell to the ground. //In just under six hundred thousand years maybe you will remember this. But by then Exaltoskull will be the ultimate genocidal deamon. You will be killed by his hands. Your only hope will be in Bellcast's hands, and yet, he will be your greatest enemy. And when, if you do, remember this, you may seek we three, the Lox beings. Finding us will be hard, and on your way a human may kill you. But through it all, remember this. The Lox Beings are the greatest beings to ever live. We are Gods.>
 Axerion's body crumpled against the ground, and Phantomalox removed the stabbing blade. Loxtrida laughed, and the Lox Being of light remained silent.
//Farewell, Axerion.//

 When Axerion awoke, he had remembered nothing. Bellcast and Exaltoskull were nothing to him, for they too were gone. He had fourteen years of nothing. He did not relive those years until nearly six hundred thousand years later.

Present day
 "I guess I have remembered this for quite a while, although the Lox Beings are somewhat more recent. But what they said was wrong. Bellcast is the genocidal deamon, while Exaltoskull tried to help me destroy the evil one."
 //It took you quite a while to remember me, didn't it?//
 Axerion stood still as the icy voice of Phantomalox breathed down his back.
 "How am I alive? Bellcast murdered me. My blood splattered on his hands."
//Axerion. You raised Bellcast and Exaltoskull, and even if you did not remember until the moment of your suppsed death, they did. Bellcast left you alive, but banished your soul into the Fog, land of the Lox Beings. Here you will walk forever, gathering an army capable of destroying Bellcast the failed. And once he is destroyed, Exaltoskull must also be killed. For he has failed all of our tests as well. Do not ever speak my name or my fellow Lox Beings names again. Here you can live in our protection, but if the word Lox is spoken you die. This is your finale, for we are done with you. For six hundred thousand years you have lived a planned life. A lie. You are a fool. You always have been. Farewell.//

[The Host]

Chapter Seventeen
The Flag's March

"Keep moving are I'll kill you. We march our way to the kingdom of Bellcast. Nothing can stop us, because even Bellcast himself has a weakness. He fears Exaltoskull, who is not in fact dead. Nor is Nara. Keep marching, because when we arrive, the bell that rings death will ring for us. We cannot die before then."

***

"Who are you?"
The question was irrelevant, to say the least. Lying face down with a claw dug into her back, Nara was in no position to ask questions, and her capturers were in no real position to reply.
"Answer me or I'll kill you!"
The threat was irrelevant, to say the least. Lying face down with bllod pouring out of her neck, Nara was in no position to demand and answer, and her capturers did not need to reply.
"Aaaaaaaarggggggggggggghhhhhh!"
The scream was irrelevant, as all screams are. They don't change a position in a fight, war or argument. Needless to say, they do provide a distraction. As Nara screamed her wings pulled together tightly, and her shoulder blades tightened. The claw that was dug into her back was not moved or hurt at all. It was simply stuck, because unless Nara died, she would not release here hold on the claw. And this was relevant.
"We are your killers."
She recieved an irrelevant answer, as it told her nothing she did not already know. The monotone voice offered no clue as to gender, nor age. The tone did not imply what her killer wanted, nor why. But the power it was spoken with gave her the answer she needed.
"Geminist. Your name is Geminist. I saw you just before I was banished. You're with someone else. I'm sure of it."
"Yes. You're right, I guess I slipped. The claw is my own. The one holding you is Omnimega. You're in Terra Eterna. This is the last thing you''l ever see before dying, so get a good look."
Nara tilted her head up and saw a sword blade shoot towards her. It was the last thing she saw.