I sighed, watching the monks of this temple prepare cannons filled with holy water. While the holy wouldn't affect the fiery ghosts behind me the water would. Seriously that stuff just gave me a slight uncomfortable feeling. To actually rip out my demon side would be to half kill me. And I wasn't one for that.
"Pointless fighting for their lives I suppose," I mused, twirling the sword in my hand. Father had given me another one, this made of metal, with the same carvings as the stone sword. Everything I wore now actually bore his mark. He had said it would resist any kind of wear and so far it seemed like it. Although I wouldn't have minded the blood staying on for a bit longer.
One of the ghosts looked at me. I shook my head. We wouldn't attack yet, because I wanted to see how far these fools were willing to wait. And plus I was waiting for a report back from the shadow ghost I had sent out to scope the area. In the meantime it was rather amusing to listen to the desperate screams of the monks preparing for war.
"Get ready you foolish idiots for you've no children in your midst," I snarled, flexing my hand. That I was sure of otherwise I would have teleported them to another dimension already. I could teleport others, not myself. Not that I really cared anyway. It was a hassle and I'm pretty sure I would freak at the feeling of traveling between dimensions.
"There's a small gate on the north wall," the soft hissing voice of my shadow ghost greeted me. I turned, looking to where its eyes were; which were just black soulless holes that penetrated you to the very core. I loved looking into them. "Unguarded, fools." This ghost I called upon often because he was on the same page of thinking as I was.
"Mm I'd have you take a few of the fire ghosts Father lent me to there and ransack the place but they tend to stand out," I responded, tapping my chin. My friend hissed with displeasure. "Or not. Hum…" The sword in my hand hummed through the air, leaving trail marks of fire. "Would you mind taking my form and leading the attack for a while?" My shadow ghost sighed. He did mind but leading attacks were always fun to him. Even at the head of fire ghosts who didn't have enough smarts to even talk. Another reason I called on this ghost often.
"Fine. But you owe me." I smiled, knowing that meant I would just have to leave him a few people to kill for himself. Nodding I started walking away, the ghost already having taken my form. The shadows wrapped around me, making me look like him. It was a plan we had used many a times. "Alright! You've had your petty chances of preparing. Now you're going to die!" He couldn't mimic my demon voice but the dark and dangerous tone he matched perfectly. I smiled again.
With the sounds of attack starting I slipped away, to the north. There was a small gate, next to a deep hole. From that hole came the smell of waste. I wrinkled my nose and eased through the door. I couldn't blame my friend, he couldn't smell. So in the mean time I would just have to suck it up and live on.
The first person I came across was a woman, her stomach swollen with pregnancy. That caused me to hesitate. While she might not change her ways the child could be convinced otherwise. Then I smirked. Wiping the memory of someone was always tricky and I ended up with a bunch of weird stuff in my head for it. But if I wanted to spare the kid I was going to have to do this.
"Sad day isn't?" I asked, softly, grasping the woman's shoulder. She gave a small gasp and looked at me. Right into my red eyes. Perfect. "Trigon has sent out his minions to conquer and destroy. Tell me, what were the ways of this place?"
"W-we were peaceful," the woman answered, already lost under my spell. When I was born I had a 'choice' of the one spell I was allowed. Everyone had grumbled when I chose taking away the memories, and in turn their knowledge, from someone. "We gave aid to those who needed it. Oh we could fight, but not without cause." I nodded. That sounded about right. The poor woman didn't know the truth.
"Mm. Do you want to get away from here?" I was talking lightly, so as not to startle the woman. If she rose an alarm I would be forced to kill her.
"I-I don't know. Would it be selfish me, to do so? There are some many nicer people here that are more deserving." I raised an eyebrow. Hum she was different than most.
"Who are these people?"
"Old Man Greg and his lady, Annabell. They've been here since I was a little girl. Both are quite old now, nearly ready to embrace death." I smiled. That made my life a bit easier.
"Are they the only two?" The woman nodded, a sort of sad happiness in her eyes. "Then don't worry about it. I'll make sure they don't die horribly."
"You will?" I nodded. A smile lite the woman's face. "Thank you. I wasn't sure but now I am. Thank you, thank you."
"Do you know why I'm offering you the chance to get away and not any other?" I asked, curiously. People seemed to write me off as some horrible creature twisted with hate. While that was true to some extent my weakness were kids. The woman looked confused.
"No. Is it important?" she replied back, laying a hand over her belly. I had already caught the motion of the kid kicking. A sort of smile, tight so as not to show my sharpened teeth, wormed its way onto my face.
"You're with child my dear. When you give birth I want you to tell them about me okay? That's all I'm asking for a price." The woman's face lost its confusion, lighting up again.
"Of course. You, in a sense, are saving his life."
"A boy?" How could she tell? The woman nodded, another sad smile on her face.
"Yes. His father was hanged for a crime he didn't commit. I plan on naming him after Jared." A distant look entered her eyes and I was about ready to send her off when she spoke again. "What's your name, so that Jared might be able to search you out some day and thank you personally?" I blinked, having never been asked my name for that reason. Then a small smile lite my face, sort of wicked and cruel.
"Zaven." The woman's face turned to horror as I teased out a small memory of Greg and Annabell from her mind. Her mouth was opening to scream a warning as the shadows wrapped around her and teleported her away. I smirked, stalking through the area again. The sounds of monks screaming filled my ears.
Using the memory I went to the old couple's house. It was a simple thing, two stories with a cozy atmosphere inside. I looked around, trying to locate the old couple. Upstairs then, for they weren't in the large main floor that was just one room. The stairs were dark and signaled a change in the atmosphere. Here the couple was, depressed as the fiery ghosts attacked. They had a nice view of it from their window. I stopped for a moment and watched, my shadow ghost imitating me perfectly.
"Sad isn't it child?" the man asked in a raspy voice. I jumped a little, sure I had slipped in unnoticed. The woman chuckled at my shock. "Oh we know when anyone enters our little home. Didn't you sense the spells?"
"I was never taught to sense such things," I answered softly, keeping my voice low. I didn't want to scare them either. "They thought me to be stupid."
"Oh? Is that so?" The woman's voice was high and sympathetic. She turned to me with a gentle smile. "And are you girl? You don't look it."
"If I stay focused on my anger and goal then I'm not. But if that focus slips I'm as innocent as a little child." Had learned that the hard way and nearly died from it. Now the man chuckled, peering at me through one eye.
"A goal huh? And what would that be?" I pursed my lips, wondering if I should just kill the old folk right now. Then I decided to humor them, considering they would be dead by the end of the day anyway.
"Someone broke a promise to me. I want to make sure they know how much it hurt." The bitter anger and long hatred was in my words. My grip tightened around the sword's handle. Both the old timers looked at me with sympathy.
"How long has it been since then?"
"Ten years. It's consumed my every waking and sleeping moments." At the word 'sleeping' my spell, the one I had learned about making people insane, started. The wrinkled eyelids started to drop. "I don't know the meaning of decent sleep. Every time I close my eyes that memory is played over again. If I was asked what I wanted, just for one day, it would be to sleep peacefully, without dreams or nightmares, and understand the deepness of those black murky depths that evade me." Their breathing had slowed considerable and I waited, watching the fight outside. Soon enough it slowed to the point there was a full minute between each breath. Their hearts were slowing too. I started moving out of the room. When I got to the door they were dead.
"Now it is time for the rest of you useless fools to die," I snarled softly, flying out of the building. The sword in my hand sprang to life, leaving a trail of light behind me. My pupils disappeared, red taking over and opening the other set of eyes on my head. The desperate screams of monks reached my ears and egged on my rampage.
"FOOLS! TODAY YOU DIE!"