Stepping forward.

[Noa]

arkitip
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Posts: 56
(6/18/02 2:33 am)
Reply | Del All  Stepping forward.
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A question arises..
Does death follow a man or does the man follow death?

The Scourgefist certainly had no answer. It was stumped. Did it tow death along with it, or were all its endeavors leading it along the path toward death?
Daily, it seemed, the Scourgefist found itself in a dire situation. They always arose from a task it had chosen, on its own, to complete. Was death luring it along?
Those dire situations never finished the Scourgefist off though... instead the bodies of its foes created a trail to wherever it was the Scourgefist was resting. Was it reeling death inward?

Whatever the answer, the scenery of the path was certainly beautiful. The horror forever etched upon victims brought a certain darkness to its eyes. Nearly the exact opposite of a twinkle..

The Scourgefist allowed its lips to twist in what may have been a smile.

Somewhere nearby, Jiren lay his head in his hands and wept.

[Noa]

arkitip
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Posts: 57
(6/24/02 12:40 pm)
Reply | Del  Satisfaction
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The Scourgefist was... pleased with itself.
Its conversations among the past few days were proving fruitful. The shamaness admitted being drawn to it, regardless of the fact that it raised no pretenses as to its goals or the means in which it obtained them. This brought the Scourgefist great satisfaction, for it had recognized potential within her! Now it just needed to awaken that potential.
The Scourgefist could think of many ways to do so. Although usually an honest creature, it was quite the capable liar. It was glib enough of tongue to pass itself off as blunt... brutally honest in everything it said. That way even the most outrageous of lies could pass its lips and seem like absolute truth.
Something worried the Scourgefist though...
The past few days had also made it rather acutely aware of some emotion it had never wished introduced to. It almost would smile when the opportunity to speak with her arose. Such weakness was not something it had dealt with before...
Regardless, perhaps it could make use of this slight understanding it had realized. Perhaps this would make it easier to prey on the emotions he did not entirely grasp...

Jiren tried to warn the Shamaness, but the words never came out.

[Noa]

arkitip
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Posts: 60
(7/11/02 12:13 am)
Reply | Del  Intrusion
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And so they had finally met, face to face.
There was a beauty about her, tempered by numerous trials. It probably went unnoticed by many, but in the many years of dormancy, the one thing that lent itself to being almost second nature the quickest was observation.
The conversation was light, it was just speaking without much thought whilst studying every detail. It didn't doubt that she noted this also, two of a kind in many ways, it knew she was an equally shrewd observer.
The meeting was quick though. Intrigued, and confused... it headed toward a bed to rest.

The Scourgefist railed against the intruding presence.

"You're supposed to be dead you bastard!" 

[Noa]

arkitip
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Posts: 64
(7/16/02 1:04 am)
Reply | Del  Re: Intrusion
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Jiren studied his confines.
It was a tiny cell, not enough room to lay down without being curled as tightly as possible. The walls... weren't really walls. They were souls. Souls of those murdered by the thing that held him captive. Horrible things that wailed, an absolute cacophony without any semblance of unison. Even worse, whenever their mouths opened, streams of blood followed. Jiren was being drowned in it, literally.

His training as a monk made it possible for him to ignore the things that would have driven another mad though. He had overcome his panic through sheer focus of the mind. He was single minded now... he would escape.

There was enough willpower in him to coerce the demon into slight cooperation. This is what brought the Scourgefist to be "intrigued" by the Shamaness. This is what confused the Scourgefist, as it normally would have desired nothing more than her blood. This is also what diverted the Scourgefist slightly on its path. The demon was really a fiend of absolute hatred and vileness. While it was an adept liar and manipulative speaker, it rarely wanted to expend its energy in such ways. It preferred to just slaughter things that proved stubborn. Jiren coerced it to attempt converting the unenlightened instead of simply murdering them with hardly a word. Jiren liked to think he had more honor than that.

There was enough of Jiren left to intrigue the Shamaness too... or so he hoped. Perhaps it was more the Scourgefist's glib tongue. Regardless, in her he saw his opportunity for escape.

So he focused. 

[Noa]

arkitip
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Posts: 68
(7/31/02 12:16 am)
Reply | Del  Poison
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The Scourgefist was fed up.
Over time it had learned that the monkly training he had put Jiren through had intertwined his mind, body, and soul well. Too well. The Scourgefist could not kill one without the others following. So instead of destroying what remained of Jiren's spirit, he was instead reduced to imprisoning it. This irked him, because the bastard liked to "put his hands through the bars" as it was. Jiren caused problems. They didn't sit well with the Scourgefist.
On top of that, it was fed up with this Shamaness. It was Jiren's hands through the bars that had brought the two of them to talking anyway. The Scourgefist would have rather flayed her and twiddled with her organs than have deep conversation. But Jiren forced him to talk. It never said what Jiren wanted it to, but it never was hostile.

And so the Scourgefist decided Jiren had to die. His body wasn't worth the hassle.
Now, the Scourgefist had a twisted sense of humor. It decided to call upon the Shamaness. She seemed so bent on "saving" Jiren, so it thought it would give her the chance. It knew full well the impossible nature of that situation, but it would be worth a giggle to see her try and kill Jiren in the process for him.

Well of course, the Shamaness came. She was unconvinced of her inability to do the deed. They faced off in the arena in Qeynos... another idea of the Scourgefist's sense of humor. It figured someone may recognize the bloodied body of Jiren enough to give it a pauper's burial. In all its arrogance, the Scourgefist faced the Shamaness unarmed.

And then it happened... the Shamaness, weakling that she was, poisoned the body of Jiren. The Scourgefist cackled inside. She was torturing Jiren's body without even knowing! He rushed her quickly and attacked bare handed, striking her before rushing off again. It was mystified by how weak her combat skills were, and also quite amused...
That's when something felt wrong though... something... w... was missing.

The Scourgefist had no time for words before it was sent reeling back toward the Plane of Fear.

[Noa]

arkitip
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Posts: 69
(7/31/02 12:28 am)
Reply | Del  Re: Stepping forward.
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I have gathered my senses.

First and foremost, I thank Katryna for her assistance. She was a catalyst in what has become.

When she poisoned me, the demon that was the Scourgefist let its guard down to focus on her. The "cracks" in my prison's security widened for an instant. Having been freed, I myself took on the poison flowing through my veins. Her poison was strong indeed, but it had not the strength to fight two souls inhabiting that one body. It had a choice to make.. my sudden attack made it choose the Scourgefist. Wise choice, as I joined in the attack.
The Scourgefist has been expelled, and the poison that would have wracked my body went with it.

An even more curious phenomenon has followed. The Scourgefist was within me for ten years, my soul imprisoned. During that time, my soul didn't age, it was in stasis. My body aged to match the corruption of the demon, making me grey quicker than normal. With my release... it seems that has been overturned. In fact, I am not only no longer greying, I also feel younger and more vigorous. Apparently I have gained back the ten years I lost in that thing's clutches... even though I remain 43 years of age. What I will do with the extra time I have cheated, I do not know.

The casualty of this has been my skills.
I learned the craft of a monk under the possession of the demon. More appropriately, "he" learned to be a monk. The attachment was as much in tune with his spirit, if not more so, as it was to mine. His expulsion has left me without those skills. This is a most unfortunate occurance... I do not know what I will do from here.

I will most likely seek employment with the Qeynos underground. It is the only life I know. I don't expect us to cross paths as friends, nor as enemies. We occupy different lives, that is for certain.

Nothing personal.