Black Hooves Unleashed (ThorokxValamLym)

[Thorok]

In such a dangerous and barbaric land, the apexes created the law. And the law was followed only by them, as all others were forced into bloodshed or slavery. But it mattered not for this specific horseman, for he was one whom no other has challenged willingly. Many times had this horseman traveled here, and many times had not a single horde show their face.

Of course, it would be Gladiux upon Athok, the Horse from Shadow, sprinting forth with an unmatched speed. Atop of such a mighty horse the warrior would be leaning forward slightly, sword sheathed as his burning red eyes glowed ever mightily. His willingness to kill could be seen by every insect to every God above him. A Man, yes, but not of wholeness anymore.

Gladiux continued to ride through the lands of everplain. His eyes continued to gaze forward as he did not need them to find what he was searching for. A demon, an infant, of course. No man nor mage could ever fall a demon on their own, at least not one of yore. And yet, they still bred. Demon Infants were the most dangerous creatures on this realm, for Gladiux at least. He had slain many a monster and killed many a man, but none have ever kept up with the ferocity of such a creature as an infant.

Athok would suddenly stop, a screech heard that echoed the lands around them. The horse began to sharply turn, walking in half circles and finding a location for where the demon would be residing here. Gladiux held his sword in his left hand mightily, the reigns of his horse in his other as it was lowered to his lap, a helm atop his head continuously pivoting, panicked. Of course, he was excited, rather than panicked, but any warrior would mistake it, for not many have survived an infant's wrath. His horse made a complete circle before it continued to charge further into the lands, jumping up onto his hind legs before hand to let out a powerful neigh. And with that, the search was still on, and a trail of black mist gave off where the Unforgiven traveled. The grass beneath Athok's hooves grew black, and took approximately four or five minutes to finally shed off such a shade upon them. Truly, not much was known about Gladiux's current alliance, but none could ever say he was trustworthy for any side.

However, as the continued to thunder through the plains, his eyes lifted, picking up a second sense. A vampire, traveling without a care. However, Gladiux minded her much more than she minded him currently, his sword outwards, forming half of a 'T' with his body as his right arm clenched onto his reigns, leaning forward as he only had a small window of opportunity to cut this figure in half before she would hear the hooves of his mighty horse gaining on her with speed like the wind.

[ValamLym]

''Really? REALLY!? of all places you idiots think we can find artifacts you think its in a creepy dragon skull!? I should..

Kirsten sighed, slipping down  the slope and unto the clearing where her men were gathered. They weren't very impressive, in fact she hoped they would die so she wouldn't have to pay them. They were scum anyway, lowest of the low. Barbarian brutes of this godforsaken hell hole. Another sigh, what did she do to deserve this anyway?

She strode past the five men she had brought here. Her soft tail curling around her chest, her fangs shining in the moonlight. She really didn't feel like addressing them. To be honest she felt bad she hadn't brought her usual bunch of loyal goons, at-least they were fun to talk to. Her fingers caressed Sōru sakenomi's hilt, pursing her lips as she gazed at the massive skull before her. 

Her current companions hadn't been wrong though, there sure was something worthy of her attention here... But it wasn't this empty skull. Her catlike ears perked upward as the thundering of hooves came closer -fast-. That wasn't a normal rider... not a normal horse. She reeled backward, attempting to lunge herself out of the thunder horse's path, but also drawing her blade, in case it didn't have the intention of just thundering past - this was her saving grace as steel met steel and sparks lit up the area for a brief instant, she landed nimbly several feet away, lunged further away by the mighty strike of the horse rider. She had been lucky that it was Sōru and not a regular blade that met the clash.

''Are you a fucking idiot! you could poke someone's eye out with that you know!?''

She smirked at the direction of the rider, twirling her blade expertly in her hand before pointing it in his direction, moving her fingers over the blades sharp edge, somehow managing to draw no blood.

''I always thought my knight in shining armor would have a bit more class! Buy me dinner before you try to impale me on your thing!''

She exclaimed, her hirelings giving her odd glances at her childish remarks. But one gaze upon her fangs and blade immediately rectified any doubt about her; she was a stone cold killer. Capable of anything. They drew their blades as well, forming a defensive line with their boss. Whom, in return simply sighed once more. Even in combat she'd rather not have these idiots about.. although...

She twirled on her feet, doing several back flips before landing behind them. They looked at her, no doubt wondering why she of all people was hiding behind them, but none dared ask.

[Thorok]

The mighty warrior slowed his horse, turning it and halting. In its rest, the ground beneath the horse grew with shadow, a dark mist rising up from the grass below its feet. Its upper left hoof trotted against the grass, dragging it as he sputtered, dark eyes blinking with patience. Alright, a vibe of intimidation could've been sensed, but not so much by this bounty hunter than it was for the others. For little did Gladiux know of this female's own surprises.

Kicking a foot over, the heavy sound of his feet hitting the grass and his armor bouncing slightly gave silence to the moment. His mighty sword was held firmly in his left hand, letting it point to the ground as he stared to the group. The backflips did not bring any visible signs of impression coming from the stranger, nor did the warrior become impressed with it within. Another footstep drew the gladiator closer to the group, staring to the lineup with glowing, violent eyes.

At that moment, Gladiux would stand there, soaking in the moment. Many months had passed before he was blessed with the opportunity of fighting a handful of people. But the mighty warrior should've been quite intimidating to such figures, especially with his current state of being undead. So with that, Gladiux spoke, his voice booming through the air with power and depth.

"I will not warn you again, mortals." Gladiux's chest vibrated with the effort he put into his words, thooming them out as best as he could. His armor shined in the light, though it was still quite dark and seemingly durable. His blade was twisted in his hand, letting the light gleam off of it as well the teeth along the blade. "Walk." With that last small bark, he stood there, glowing, red eyes staring deep into the group, past them, in fact. His intentions only covered that of the vampire behind them all, and once she was slain, he would only continue this fight.

Oh, how he hated killing men of this realm. It wasn't in his morals, but yet, with their standing, they'd be better off dead. For an undead, who'd already lost his own life, to take others' for their first time, he found it a true sin. But the creature behind them, the female of blood and fang, she deserved to return from whence she came back. And so, he would prepared himself for a possible chance that these warriors would stand there ground. At least they would earn an honorable death.

[ValamLym]

The men were offered an ultimatum, fight and die.. or.. They looked at Kirsten, a mere glance strengthened their resolve. They more a thousand times more afraid of her then of death, she knew just what to do to make the pain last.. They shuddered eyeing the knight again, weapons clenched.

"They won't run, betraying me is rewarded with a fate worse then death...''

Kirsten snickered her blade twirling in her hand, cutting some of the grass as she simply continued. It may seem like showing off, but in reality it helped her keep her mind on what was important right now; combat. Nothing better then a blade constantly spinning around your face and having to keep it under control to keep you ready and able. She pushed past her goons, her red eyes meeting his, not a sliver of fear in her eyes. 

''You should be more careful about the prey you pursue, you may find me... hard to kill.''

She sniffed they are. The stench of un death filling her nostrils. She eyed the knight. He was tough, really tough. But she was unbreakable. The moon was high, the odds were in her favor. At-least from what she could tell, she just hoped this wouldn't drag out all night. She whistled, in response her men charged at the knight weapons in the air like a bunch of untrained lunatics.

She herself soon followed after, whether her men survived or not; she'd launch herself at the knight, hoping to use her un-natural agility against him, she spun through the air, bringing her blade down on him in a slashing motion.

[Thorok]

"Not with an opponent like me."

That simple sentence was all that he uttered out. A sentence filled with pride. But that wasn't the only emotion that colored those words with the utmost intimidating design a voice could paint them with. Determination, confidence, rage, and preparation, all were the colors to use upon this mere sentence. Athok neighed as he trotted down the hill, continuing to circle them now as Gladiux swirled his sword once in his hand, a step forward as he lowered himself for a moment.

With the men charging him first, his wrist flicked as his blade soon pointed to the ground, his thumb grazing the bottom of his hilt as he held his sword in the form of a dagger. The closest to charge at him was the first to die, as the gladiator took a single step forward while cocking his arm back. Unleashing his weapon, he slashed upwards into the air as he spun, the center of his nearest opponent's torso cut through with utmost ease. Not only that, but it lifted the warrior's body, throwing itself onto another warrior as he fell to the ground a few feet away. However, as the dark warrior sensed the other's embrace in action, he continued his spin to a full 360, slamming his fist into the vampire, sending her back with a renewed velocity and direction.

At that moment the other warriors would've gathered around him for a moment. A sudden second thought caused Gladiux to dive over them, rolling to a stand as he turned around, a monstrous grunt heard as his sword was held upright once more, leaping into the air as he twirled diagonally, his blade slashing down after a half circle downwards to the right. The closest to him lost the entirety of his head down to his center left rip, literally detaching that part of his body from the rest of him. Back swinging, he countered a swung-down axe, which launched the weapon out of the male's hands. His right fist was cocked back at that moment, which was swung downwards over his right shoulder, connecting with the fool's jaw, resulting in a mighty loud chorus of snapping tendons before the warrior fell limp onto the ground.

The last two were scattered out now. The closest one was on his center-right side, only four feet away from him. Seven feet away, however, the other warrior was now getting off the body atop of him. Gladiux's sword was tossed from his left hand to his right, jolting at the warrior for a moment to make him flinch greatly, making him chuckle with a horrid voice before a sudden, blinding step forward was emitted. At the same time, his right arm thrusted forward, cutting clean through the male's center and past him. From there, the gladiator clutched mightily onto the impaled warrior's shoulder, bringing him in as he stared straight into his eyes with his own. And suddenly, just like that, Gladiux wrenched his sword upwards, a gaping hole in the body of his once-fellow human.

The last warrior didn't get to see much, as the mighty undead's horse suddenly trampled over the male with sudden appearance and speed. A few crushes and snaps were heard in the second or two that occurred during the trampling. Switching hands once more, the gladiator looked to Kirsten, crouching down for a moment as he cleaned his blade and brought his bloodied hand to his mouth, which entered the shadow dirty and exited it clean. From there, he twirled his sword once more, stretched his shoulders out back and forth, and took a step towards the vampire.

[ValamLym]

Kirsten suddenly felt a surging ache in her chest, sending her tumbling backwards, her agility proved sufficient however as she corrected her flight mid air, landing gracefully on her feet with a grunt. She watched for a moment, as the men charged to their death. She watched as the undead warrior expertly took them apart. Honestly, if she were mortal she'd be peeing herself now. But instead she simply smirked, cocking her head to the left as watched the spectacle. This will save me so much money...she thought to herself.

For what seemed ages to her were mere seconds of work for the gladiator. She was nothing short of impressed. It was a shame he'd have to die, again. She snickered, she could always raise him as her own private enforcer after this, this thought amused her. But she quickly had to shake it off when it turned out the man was already quite done with her grunts.

''You know you're helping me by putting them down right? They cost a lot and do little.. such as the life of this petite little girl.''

She smiled a toothy grin as she seemed to simply disappeared before re-appearing right beside him. A normal human could never keep track, heck even an a seasoned warrior could not. But this man was of course neither of those, he was much greater. Kirsten herself however, wasn't quite bad either as her mighty blade came crashed toward the crouching man's throat.

[Thorok]

For any mortal man, this would've been an inevitable death. For a skilled warrior, death was already possible. For any one aside from Gladiux's position, death was surely promised. But within the ages that Gladiux has lived, darkness was his only specialty in this realm. And she wasn't the first, nor the last, vampire Gladiux has slaughtered. With an already anticipated motion, the gladiator's left arm torqued upwards, his arm still bent at his elbow as the sword clashed against his armor, knicking into it enough to catch it, but not enough to damage truly.

With that, the beast let out a heavy grunt, as while standing up his right arm curved into his body, sending a powerful uppercut into her bottom jaw, directly upwards. From there, the gladiator attempted to twirl around counter clockwise, his arm wailing outwards to attempt to halve her body. A roar was heard with such a blow as he continued his action with as much faith as a saint in God at this moment. Surely, this would be a quick match... right?

[ValamLym]

Kirsten heaved, pulling her sword clean from the armor just in time to avoid it being lost through the uppercut. She had anticipated it, but at this point it had been un-dodge able. His fist met her jaw with a loud crack, splintering bone and sending her toppling into the air. She attempted to correct herself, but the sickening sensation of a sword cleaving through bone disrupted her trail of thought, splitting the girl in two halves.

Both these halves hit the ground with a sloppy thud....

Truly, this was the most fun she had in ages!

Black tendrils shot forth from one half to the other, reconnecting the two and pulling one half toward the other. Black ooze emerged, re knitting broken bone and rend flesh. The sickly sounds of squirming flesh was heard as her body healed from the impossible, within mere seconds she stood before him once more, her clothes growing back on her. She reached up with a hand, correcting her jaw with a sickening pop.

''That's no way to treat a lady..''

She muttered, her hellish red eyes fixated on him once more. She spread her arms, cackling like a maniac, before shutting up as quickly as she had begun laughing.

''I haven't felt this alive since years!''

She rolled her shoulders, before taking up a combat stance again. That same taunting smirk on her face once more. She disappeared from sight once more, this time appearing behind the man. Her mighty blade crashing down at him with the same in-human speed, fully intent on putting more then just a dent in his helmet this time.

[Thorok]

The warrior's eyes grew content with the halved woman in front of him. Suddenly, however, his weapon was raised again, as his eyes glowed with interest with what occurred in front of him. And with a simple witness, she rose. A gasp of confusion could've been heard, his eyebrows frowning with hesitation to this figure. Truly, this was the maddest creature he'd fought in a while. And with a small statement like that, she was gone. His body turned to his left, before swirling around to, with panicked eyes and a sudden movement, clash his blade against  hers.

However, her strength proved itself in this moment, as she could witness her blade cracking his helmet, going into his upper right dome. The warrior stood there for a moment, eyes closed before opening one at a time. His gaze was pitch black before one orb of red grew to be and then the other, proving whatever shadow lied beneath truly effective. The warrior expected that the vampire would let him adjust, as he calmly lowered his blade and shoved her own out of his head, a bit of skin seen along her blade.

And with that, the warrior dropped his sword into the ground, staring to the vampire with narrowed eyes. "What are you..?" He questioned, with more curiosity than anything else. He still believed that he could've killed her, and still could, as his hands reached above, taking his helmet off formally to reveal the face that lied beneath.

Aside from a few marks of blood upon his face, the gladiator proved to be quite intact. His skin was pale in comparison to his black-skinned torso. His face bared no acne of any kind, his complexion pure and smooth was his skin. His glowing eyes bared one lowered eyebrow while the other was raised, interested as he lifted up his blade once more, the slide slash in his head seemingly not an issue, rolling his shoulder quickly before taking a defensive stance, waiting for her response.

[ValamLym]

She let a short moan pass her lips as their blades clashed, finally getting some sort of hit in at him. She was surprised however when he casually pushed her blade off, seemingly undeterred by her blade, she shook her blade a little.. wondering if it broke somehow. However, when the realization came she hit her face with her palm He's undead.. you idiot.. she thought to herself.

She quickly turned her gaze back to the man, whole heartedly expecting him to come at her game. He didn't seem keen on giving up. Another surprise shook her body though when she realized he hadn't moved an inch, even going as far as stabbing his blade into the ground and asking questions. She could attack once more, but she felt he seemed somewhat honorable and as such returned the gesture, stabbing Sōru sakenomi into the soil, the ground hissing in dismay as the cursed blade met it, grass around it dying in a circle.

''You seem more reasonable then most.. I am a vampire, as you no doubt already concluded. But I've been used as a test subject as well.. ever since then, I cannot seem to stay dead.''

She moved a hand through her white hair, while placing another on her hips. Eyeing at the now revealed face. He was handsome, especially for someone who was supposed to be un dead. And he sure as hell was skilled. However, the black skin did give him that creepy touch, a shiver went down her spine. Not as much of fear as of anticipation. She was genuine with what she said earlier, she had never felt alive... never so scared.

''However, allow me a question as well.. How did my blade not split your skull?''

Her tone was polite and respectful, she had gained a form of respect for him after all this. She supposed this was that -warrior's respect- people spoke about. She tried, in hopes of ending this conflict leaving her blade in the soil despite him grabbing his again. Perhaps he'd understand she was more then just a monster? or perhaps she was going to have to grow a new head again...

[Thorok]

The tall gladiator looked to her with a bit of curiosity as he took off his helmet, holding it for a moment as he looked to his helmet, then up to her with a slight turn of his head, a raised eyebrow to her statement. She can't seem to stay dead. "Well, we will fix that." His voice crawled out, still deep and powerful as he dropped his helmet gently, then grabbing his sword and then shrugging his shoulders.

And then she spoke again, while her sword was in the ground. But his was lifted once more. And at this moment, he looked to her, his face growing a bit more serious, but still holding a calm sense over it. She questioned why he hadn't been broken. Why his skull defeated this magical blade of hers. And such a question was asked before, many times on that. His life consisted of many calm speeches between two dark foes.

But at that moment, he shrugged for a moment. She deserved an answer, for having such extraordinary powers. And he would give her his most truthful answer. An answer he'd given to all of his foes before him, at least, the few who were capable of speaking. His voice boomed out calmly, almost soothing with how he said such a devastating statement. "Because I am meant to break you." And at that moment, he paid attention to her fully again.

He inhaled that blood, the blood of a vampire within her. He heard the knicking of teeth upon fang, he heard the distorted hearbeat within, be it from vampire's curse or biological horror. He nodded his head to her sword, giving her the subtle hint, before giving her even more time as he hopped into the air, spinning diagonally in the air clockwise as in his right hand his sword was. Crashing down sideways, expecting it to bash against blade, he would continue to march forward. However, in a much more intimidating action. This way, he continued to slash forward with his strength, an 'X' formation that didn't cease to end, his feet walking forward with a common speed.

[ValamLym]

''You don't get it.. do you? I won't stay dead..''

She sighed. She knew all too well she couldn't. She had tried taken her own life numerous times after escaping from that godforsaken hell hole. But now, she had purpose again.. Adventure was in the air and she longed for the embrace.. to be away from the constant assuming and hostility. She was a kind creature.. sure she had to feed, but nobody died unless she wanted to. A sorrowful sigh passed her lips as he came toward her. She figured this -had- to end bad. She knew she couldn't play dead with him like she does others, he was too smart for that.

In her excitement before her other side had no doubt ceased control for a moment. But she was fighting it every step of the way. This thing seemed noble, he may not have spoken like it. But it was in his body language. It was in how he pointed out that he was coming again, not just hoping to catch her off guard. Her ears drooped as she pulled her blade from the ground. She had honestly lost her will to fight him, she could no longer picture him as the big ''baddy'' despite being hunted by him. Maybe this was because after spending so many years being tortured the meaning of -hostility- lost its power to her, or maybe it was because she genuinely felt it, maybe for once this was her heart doing the thinking.

Her hand reached up, tucked gently on her bosom, feeling her heart thump, as she gave him a glance. She didn't know this stranger, but she felt he deserved a fate better then this. She didn't presume she could beat him.. but she did feel he may have very good reasons to hate her. After all, her kind isn't well liked and she completely agreed with that. She shook her head as he came closer, readying her blade, attempting to interject her  own blade against his blade and disarming by moving it in a circular motion.

[Thorok]

And suddenly, with a newfound chill within his spine, going straight to his eyes, the warrior dropped his sword before theirs even connected. His unarmed left hand clutched to his eyes as suddenly, fear could be seen to induce him. Or was it instinct, or caution. Or- Either way, flashes of the beast grew to him, and suddenly, eyes lit up with much surprise, for it was already here.

With a sudden whip towards his right, literally out of nowhere, an enormous cloud of shadow was seen launching towards him. The night was silent except for now, which an echoed roar was heard moaned out by multiple voices. In the moonlight, the shadows upon the creature were seen with tentacle-like characteristics as it was launched over Gladiux by his blade. The howl echoed into a childlike laughter, where the large clump of shadow halted for a moment, looking at them for a second before an enormous, opened grin grew and it disappeared into the ground again.

It stood at least 10 feet tall, and the shadows from its back stretched the body to about 13 feet long. The grin was completely organic, however. And as the creature stood there, the physical details could've been seen shortly, yes, but enough to keep in mind. The mouth crawled from the tiny head of the creature, an illogical size that was disproportionate to the supposed head. The body was short, simply a clump of shadow with multiple, three-digit hands grasping onto the ground below it. A childlike laughter was heard once more, before it grew dark, mutating into that of a rumbling laugh.

"If you care to prove yourself, now would be opportune, Fang." Gladiux said with glowing eyes. "Stay quiet... I will tell you when to strike..." He backed up till his armor pushed against her, hearing nothing. His eyes, glowing with search, stared around them. And then he looked down, tackling the vampire with sudden vigor as the enormous shadow flew through the ground below them into the air, a child's cry heard slowly distorting once more, landing upon the ground, the reddish-orange mouth opened once more, without lips, and dozens of sharp, gaping teeth, a tongue flat and wide within it, panting like an animal. And then it pretended to dig into the ground once more, a baby's cooing heard distorted into a rumbling scream as it disappeared once more.

Gladiux stood there for a moment, rising as he walked forward, a good six feet apart from the vampire. His unarmed hand gripped onto the end of his blade, as all was quiet again. And then, from his left, he was thrown through the air, a shadow seemingly engulfing the warrior. But the truth lied with his blade, blocking the creature's upper jaw as Gladiux grasped onto a handful of the shades, wrapping his arm around them and switching his sword to knife-position once more, stabbing into the side of the beast. A whimpering cry was heard as suddenly the beast dove into the ground, Gladiux smacking against the ground and tumbling a good eighteen feet along the ground before halting.

As the warrior acted defeated for the beast, from Kirsten's peripheral view she could see a handful of black tentacles whipping around gently in the air, and if she turned towards it more she would see parted jaws with a happy-seeming face, as slowly small thuds were heard as the creature was low to the ground now, at most three feet tall as it slithered along the floor towards Gladiux.

[ValamLym]

An surprised expression crossed her face as the warrior suddenly dropped his blade. Rather then seeing this as a chance to strike, she seemed in doubt. Was he scared? she couldn't quite tell. But whatever it was she probably had little to do with it.

A shadow, a roar.. it all happened so fast even for her eyes. The childlike laughter sending a shiver down her spine. What the fuck -is- that.. she thought to herself, looking to the warrior for guidance. He came close to her, spoke to her, she instinctively rested her hand on his armor as he spoke. She felt no hostility toward her from him anymore, he seemed entirely unconcerned about her. At-least so she thought until she was thrown to the ground, she wanted to scream about betrayal but she soon learned he had not betrayed her trust but instead saved her, she exclaimed a yelp as she eyed the creature. All sorts of horror shooting through her mind.

She however did try her best to follow up on his advice and stayed quiet as the scene unfurled before her. Why was it making child's noises and behaved like a dog? She shook her head, once more questioning what in all the damned hells that thing was. When the beast struck again, she watched in silent awe, not just impressed but also shaken to the core. In all her life she thought -she- was a monster... but this thing seemed made of nightmare!

When she saw him fell she felt she had to do something. But she dared not approach the vile creature. So instead she used her black magics to create a chain around her blade, attaching it to the hilt of her blade before tossing it like a javelin, hoping to impale the creature as it crawled toward Gladiux.

[Thorok]

A heavy snarl was heard mixed in with an echoing baby's cry as the blade entered into the side of the creature. The shadows upon the creature began covering where blade entered once more, where they sprunt away as a reflex. And then a childish giggle came once more as the feet pounded into the ground, turning to face her as the face opened up, staring to her before a sudden horrifying experience would occur.

A loud, barkish-roar came out, ten times the normal volume as with sudden immnese speed it leapt into the air, teeth growing to an impressive length as a mroe enraged mouth took shape. And then Athok would take charge, literally, crashing into the side of the creature with Gladiux upon his back. The monster tumbled and gave out a cry once more, before fading out of existence with the tumble, poofing as the echoes of a chuckle were heard throughout the land around them.

Her sword was ripped out of the beast during the tackle, which showed the blood that suddenly began to turn into rust on her blade. If she didn't wipe it off soon, the blade would've been incredibly corroded and unable to use. Meanwhile, Gladiux prepared for another attack, the beast comming out straight at him, crying out an annoyed coo as it charged forward at its full height. From there, Athok charged forward, where with that incredible speed, Gladiux added to it by leaping off of the horse and crashing blade first into the creature. The monster staggered to the floor and cried, where Gladiux continued to pound his fists into the creature, stabbing it multiple times around the mouth, stomping onto the shadow where he could.

As the creature tried to devour the beast with its enormous mouth, he was unable to. For Athok was above the creature as well now, stomping and punching his front hooves onto the creature. And suddenly, suddenly the crying would echo loudly in the night, like an infant being born. And an explosion of shadow was seen as the demon suddenly launched itself at Athok, making the horse neigh wildly and tumble. The meteor-like shadow formed back into monster form, slithering now towards Kirsten with a snake-like maneuver as it charged towards Kirsten. Meanwhile, Gladiux was upon its back, continuing to impale the creature's spine as his other hand was wrapped up in the shade tentacles.

[ValamLym]

Kirsten's blade glew a pinkish hue, cleaning itself from the blood to avoid the rust. She pulled the blade back by the chain, letting it land in her hands. She observed the fight for a short moment before she realized the creature was heading straight for her. She used her un-natural strength to launch herself into the air, against a tree and over another, landing a few trees away on the branches.

She hoped it had been enough to get the creature to forget about her again, so she could continue her simple tactic; wearing it down. She sighed, how did she end up in this mess anyway. She huffed, clearing her mind. Now was not the time to ponder this. She figured she'd let Gladiux do the hard work, since the creature had clearly been after him and not her, but she felt inclined to at-least try to help.

She spun the chain again, her vampire sight honing in on the creature before launching her blade at it again, hoping to stab it in the spine as well.

[Thorok]

The monster chased towards the tree, a moaning cry heard escaping with much volume from the creature. The gladiator hung as the creature began to climb the tree, slowing down as the weight of the creature began to go against that of the tree's. However, the warrior gave a mighty roar, echoing through the night as his armed arm slashed down the center spine of the beast, a red, blinding light following behind the blade, proving some magical incantation that tore through the beast with sudden power. And then the blade entered through the gaping wound, which was nothing more than hundreds of different body parts within the creature, as well as one, enormous eye, staring straight to Kirsten after her blade was thrown.

And suddenly, with that, the mouth grew sad, and in pain, as it collapsed backwards, where it would fall atop of Gladiux. The creature spazzed and tried to escape, but a burning hole began to glow red in the center of the creature, and with one final, horrifying mix between crying, roaring, and screaming, the creature exploded into shadow, fading as the black fog around the small circle where the red dot was dissipated as well. Standing where the circle was, however, was Gladiux, his sword pressed into the air with both his hands, his face stern and bloodied with black, his teeth gritted as he was filled with triumph and pride for the moment.

A minute would pass before he exited this stands, dropping his sword to his side as he began to pant. Looking around for a moment, he sheathed his sword, though his sheathe wasn't visible. In fact, it was simply a circular metal ring along his belt which carried his sword. Looking back to the vampire, who remained in the tree, his glowing eyes softened, turning back as he began to march towards his helmet. And eventually he'd find it, although his armor homed in onto him. Placing it upon his head, the shadows consumed his face once more, looking back to Kirsten to see if she followed, or what she would do in any case for that matter there and then.

[ValamLym]

Kirsten watched the creature die. A bemused giggle as it died a clearly horrifying death. Her ears drooped however, could such a creature even die? She shrugged, it seemed gone for now and when she noted Gladiux's stance she figured she was right to assume it at-least gone. Nimbly, she threw herself down the tree and landed on her feet. She made sure to keep some distance between her and Gladiux, still not quite certain he had given up on his crusade to slay her.

A yank, and the sound of metal sliding through grass broke the silence somewhat as she worked to return her blade, when it arrived she would dismiss the chain and slide the blade back in its scabbard, though resting one hand on it should her new friend here attempt anything again. He seemed tired, but he had surprised her more then enough today.

''I'm hoping you're done hunting me now.. I'm not as bad as you think. As a matter of fact me and my kin don't get along all that well.''

Her ears perked up as she heard him slide the helmet back on and turn toward her. She gave him a soft smile. She probably shouldn't show so much friendliness to him, but hell he went from fighting her to saving her ass. Despite all this being no doubt because of him the least she could do is drop what happened, she wasn't dead after all. She should have been, but she wasn't. But that was life wasn't it? things that should be aren't and things that shouldn't be are. This world seemed to exist upside down.

''What will you do now... I don't think I ever got your name.''

[Thorok]

The warrior turned back to her, the crack in his helmet visible, with the raw, metal color seen along the interior of the crack. His eyes were as raging as they were before, and the helmet even intensified the gaze. But at that moment, his shoulders were lowered, and his hands were softened, fingers fallen as he stared to his fellow beast. She seemed curious to his action, as if he'd be capable of fighting her after that, mentally at least. And he wouldn't blame her. Many a time had he seemed calm with others and have killed them easily. But for this instance, it was very different. She helped, as little as it was she helped, him slay this beast, which was enough to purify a thousand souls for such bravery.

And then she'd speak again, which made him curious to her sudden motives at that moment. And as she spoke of her innocence in comparison to that of the rest of her kind, he believed her. Easily, at that moment, she could've left. But no, she didn't, and that was respectable, respectable beyond many measurements of such honor. And so he decided that he would vocalize his opinion on this, as she deserved a response with that statement. "I believe you, Fang." That was the name he'd be calling her now. Fang. It seemed fitting, as her own name was unimportant to Gladiux now, for he'd given her a new one for him to call her by.

And then she spoke again, about his name and questioning his future actions. Gladiux waited until the shadow known as his horse trotted up next to him, sputtering as Gladiux lifted his arm up. It bent around the bottom of the horses neck, reaching to the other side as he scratched somewhere beneath the mane. The gladiator looked to the horse, who turned its head slightly back. And a softer face could've been seen behind the shaded helm.

Turning his head back to the vampire, he spoke calmly. "Gladiux, that is my name." He walked around Athok's head, hopping onto the horse from the opposite side of where he was. Staring down to Kirsten, he would continue to speak. "But someone like you should assume that I am a busy soldier, who has an entire legion of your kind to slay. Legions upon legions of other creatures, as well." He added to it, trotting his horse around a full circle before staring to her. "But for now, I have slayed you once, I suppose that will suffice.. for now." If that was a joke, it came out poorly. But yet, Gladiux awaited there, and asked suddenly, "What is it you shall do?" He asked suddenly, as he rarely has conversations anymore.

[ValamLym]

Kirsten slowly let her hand slide off her blade, resting both her hands on her hips instead. She quietly looked at him for a moment. A look of surprise covered her face when he mentioned believing her to be not like her evil kin, she had assumed that he wouldn't believe her, even after helping him. Most people think her aid is some clever ploy to make them let their guard down. Then again, he had little to fear from her, she had absolutely no interest in going through the -joy- of being split in half again.

''You believe me... that's something I haven't heard in years..''

She almost mumbled the words. She didn't want to seem to happy about it. But when a creature like her finally hears the words she had hoped to hear for years it does melt the ice off her vengeful heart a little. After all, after saying this she couldn't go about pretending he was a bad guy anymore. Like she normally would. Her red eyes fixated on his for a moment as he circled.

''My name is Kirsten, by the way.''

She gave him a coy smile. The nickname fang didn't really bother her, but it might become problematic should they speak in the presence of others... She shook her head. Why was she thinking about that? He didn't seem the tavern going type at all. Not to mention his looks would be downright scary to most. When he mentioned his name she nodded ''Its an honor to meet a warrior like you, Gladiux''

She spoke rather softly again. She didn't go about complimenting people all that often. Especially ones that were hell bend on killing her before. But his skill was undeniable to her, he after all split her in half. A sensation she had never felt before.. Luckily her wicked side took the brunt of it. A finger slit down her neck, caressing the skin and the tattoo that was laid upon it. It was odd, this was split in half before... She shook her head once more, not wanting to ponder the gruesome details.

''I can understand that.''

she muttered as he spoke again, tracking him with her red eyes. She raised an eyebrow when he spoke about slaying her. Letting a short giggle pass her lips. She didn't actually do the whole dying thing so she could take the joke. When he inquired what she would do, she pondered for a moment before her eyes were drawn to the skull behind her and her dead goons.

''I'm glad to hear I'm off your hitlist for now.. As for my plans, I'm going to sell that somehow.''

Her hand extended to point at the skull. She considered raising the goons but didn't want to disrespect Gladiux, as he probably didn't feel to well about that, not to mention that her head was fine on her shoulders.