The light was fading away as nightfall approached. There was an eerie quite to this part of the woods. It was where one female creature made her him when she was not on the move. As a traveler in life so she was also one in death. She never did like thinking of that horrible night. Her killers face would never leave her mind. And she still feared him even though it was not likely that he could hurt her anymore.
She floated in her ghostly forum carefully moving through the woods. She knew this place like she knew her own name. As she moved she held her hands at her side. There was a curse that came with being dead for her. She had wounds on her wrists that he didn't make. The wounds bled even though she no long had blood flowing through her veins . Looking up to her face one could see her glowing blue eyes . In fact the icy blue glow surrounded her entire being. It made her all the more creepy to the living.
She now stopped as she came to a certain clearing. This was where her old home was . She felt a ping of anger and fear now. She never like coming to this place. However like all ghosts she was bound here. Forever trapped in this world. She looked around now. She got the strange feeling that something was not right. Something was here. But what would be crazy enough to follow a ghost? She cleared her heard and stared off . She figured that if there was another here they would come out eventually.
Whatever gave Raven the feeling that she was being watched, it didn't reveal itself as she stared about, but her gut feelings were correct. She was being watched.
Kruz'Iik thought it all a coincidence on an astronomical level. Here he was, observing a girl he'd drained several years ago in more or less the same spot he'd done it in! And what seemed all the more interesting, she was no longer a human, but a ghost.
The concept of spirits and ghosts had always interested Kruz'Iik, mostly because a Mindshifter's interpretation of reality meant that angels, demons, and spirits were less magical creatures from far-off realms, and more like interdimensional beings that cross into "reality" occasionally and have earned the fear and reverence of those who dwell here.
And so, Kruz'Iik continued to observe, for now.
Raven continued to look around for a few more moments. Apparently whatever it was did not want to come out right now. She then whent back to what she had been doing. She stared at her surroundings and sighed. It was sad to think of what happened here. She moved carefully as she tried to clear her mind. She knew that if she did not keep herself calm her other half would come out. That was never good when that happened.
So long ago was it that she had encountered her killer. She remembered everything as if the events had just happened . She moved along until she came to the lake that was nearby. Such a pretty place. It was when she often came to think. The beauty of the water always made her feel happy.
She moved closer to the water. The eerie feeling of being watched just would not leave her. She glanced around again. She then moved her bleeding hands in front of her. She would have changed in to her human form if not for the watched feeling that she had. Whatever was here was very good at hiding. Just like she was. That was very strange indeed.
Kruz'Iik remained hidden, yet he couldn't escape the temptation to interact with her. Oh, he knew that she'd remember, and she wouldn't be cooperative, but he'd never really interacted with such a thing as a free-roaming spirit, and he had a couple theories that he wanted to test.
Just ten feet ahead of Raven, the water stirred gently.
Raven was quietly starring at her reflection in the water. She was noting how pale her skin was. She always thought that it was a bit pretty in an odd sort of way. She shifted as she still wondered what was here with her. Then the water stirred a little ways from her. She remained quite but watched the movement carefully. Maybe whatever was out here was in the water. She just waited to see what else would happen.
The water stirred gently once again, like the furtive surfacings of a fish, when suddenly, it all went quiet. The birds, the insects, the wind. Nothing but dead silence and the sounds that raven herself made.
Kruz'Iik could still feel the vestiges of her mind. The connection was old and weakened by both Raven's ghost-like state and the time she had spent away from Kruz'Iik, which is why he was taking things so slowly.
Raven was watching the movement of the water carefully. She came to the conclusion that whatever was in the water was no threat to her. Then just as suddenly as the movent started it stopped. Actually every sound stopped and every movement stopped. It was as if something had put the forest on pause. She felt a little bit frightened by the eerie silence. She frowned wondering why it was so quiet now. She waited and got ready for whatever would happen next.
What happened next was almost horrifying in its subtlety. After a few moments of quiet, a shape moved between two trees.
Almost as quickly, Raven was suddenly bathed in a harsh, red light that came from the trees, originating from two points that looked very much like eyes.
Raven was watching as she stood there in the eerie silence. Then she saw movement in the trees ahead of her. Then something happened that really scared her. She was suddenly cover in a red light. As she saw where it came from she saw what looked like eyes. It reminded her of the evil red eyes of her killer. She was too scared to move . She just started in horror and shock at what was happening now.
The eyes and their glow remained, and Raven remained bathed in that red light. Behind her, the water gently moved.
"I haven't felt this presence in so long..."
Raven stood there in the eerie red light. She was afraid now. She always thought that nothing would terrified her now that she was dead. She was proved wrong however. She then heard the water move behind her. If she could breath she would have been breathing very fast now. She was trying to move away but could not get herself to move. Then she heard his voice.
She shivered as he spoke. She then looked around. She was not sure where the monster was. She then spoke to him. " You remember me then" she said in shaky voice. She could not believe how bad he scared her still.
Suddenly, the red light disappeared, and Raven was left with only shadows dancing at her peripheral vision as an indicator that Kruz'Iik was still present.
"And you remember me," he said. His voice seemed to come from all around her.
"And you remember our last night together."
Raven shivered as she saw the light disappear now. She knew that she should not fear the monster but she could not help it. Though it was noted that he could not kill her. After all it was not possible to kill the dead. At least she did not think that it was.
Her eyes glowed as she looked around now. He was here she knew that much. Then he spoke again. he definitely knew how to be a creep that was for certain.
"How could I ever forget. You are the one who made me like this after all. " She said in a still shaking voice. She then frowned and added. " You are a monster " that time her voice was a bit sad. She was a monster too. Though she wasn't evil like he was. She couldn't imagine being that bad.
"You're terrified," Kruz'Iik said, almost purring, and just like that, he manifested in front of her.
"Your body is long rotted away, but your mind remains, and believe me, that is all I need," he continued, slowly stepping towards her. His head twisted into the form of the sickeningly handsome man, the last face she saw before she died, before returning to that shadowy black form and hateful red eyes.
"But you have nothing to be scared of. You're a spirit now, I can't touch you."
He chuckled, and continued to walk towards her.
"Or is that just what you want to believe?"
Raven tried to keep from shivering again as he spoke. Then he came in to view in front of her. She took a step back from him now. " Stay away." She said trying to hide the fear in her voice. She did not want him to get any closer.
She heard his other words and as he moved closer she still backed away.She stopped backing up and quickly shut her eyes. She did not wish to see that face again. " I don't think that your mind tricks will work on me now." She retorted back to him. She then opened her eyes again. She was lying to herself though. They more then likely would work. She just didn't want to say that to him.
He continued to get closer to her. His words sounded almost like her thoughts. " I don't think you can hurt me either. You don't how powerful the dead are ." She said back to him. But who was she kidding. She knew he could hurt her as well. Incorporeal beings could touch her. At least most could. But again she did not want him to know that.
"Oh?"
Kruz'Iik eyes glittered rather threateningly, and he turned his open hands towards her. The tree next to him twisted and splintered before shattering like glass.
"Show me, then. Before I can think of a way to drain whatever's left of you."
Raven saw the way he looked at her. She cringed when she saw what he did to the tree as well. She did stare into his eyes with her intensely glowing blue ones. She wasn't going to let him know she was intimidated by him.
She wondered if he was like her and could be touched by incorporeal beings. If so she might be able to hurt him. For now a blue glow started in her hand. She could move objects with her powers as well a create pluses of energy. She was trying to do the latter now.
" I'll show you what I can do." She said. With that she shot her hand forward to send a powerful energy pulse. Towards the creature before her.
Kruz'Iik held his hands out, and the pulse of energy parted against him. The impact dragged his feet a bit, and he left two thin trails in the ground a few inches long. He blocked it, but it wasn't exactly an effortless feat. It seemed that she definitely posed more of a threat as a spirit than as a mere human.
He clenched his fists, and his eyes started smoking.
"It's good that you'll fight. I'll gather more information that way."
His eyes got dramatically brighter and he launched two beams of energy at Raven from them.
Raven saw that with some effort he had managed to block her attack. Well she now knew one thing. She might be able to win a fight against him if she put a bit more power in to her next attack. Though she saw his eyes smoking now. He was going to attack her back.
"Unlike our last fight thisis one you won't be wining creature. " She stated to him. She could not remember rather he had mentioned his name last time to her or not. She just knew to call him creature at the moment. She clenched her own fist making the blood that came from her wrists seep though her figures .
As he shot the beams at her a blue light surrounded her. Though she wasn't hit directly the force was enough to knock her back . She skidded over the to the edge of the lake wick was about five feet behind her. Well he was powerful that was still obviously clear. She glared at him and her hands glowed brighter.
She then shot an even more powerful energy beam at him . She would go hit for him with this creature if she had to.
When her beam hit him, he simply dissipated, and the black wisps were carried away in the wind. It was silent after that, perhaps just silent enough for her to think it was safe.
Maneuvering behind her while he was invisible, he fired some more red beams at her back. None of them were powerful enough to kill her, but definitely agonize her.
"No more games."
Raven saw what happened after her beam hit him. She looked around noting how quiet it was. She had to kind of wonder if this meant that he was gone. The blue light surrounding her now faded away .
She then was hit from behind by his attack. She felt the searing pain that the same caused and she slid to her knees. She was in a very bad position now. She then heard what he said to her. It kind of frightened her to think about what he might do next.
When she fell to her knees, Kruz'Iik moved up to try and grab her by the back of the head and slam her into the ground.
Raven gave a surprised yelp when she felt him grab her. She was right he could touch her. That wasn't something she wanted to know. She grunted as he walked her face into the ground. Well that hurt. She shivered in pain as she laid there for a few moments before trying to turn to face him.
When she turned about, three clones of himself were standing over her, so she'd have to guess which one was real if she launched any attacks.
"Even in death, you're still just as fragile. You disappoint me, Raven."
Raven looked at the creature and his copies. She wondered what one she should attack . She she chose the one to her left amiming a powerful shot of blue energy at him. She wasn't going to allow him to beat her. Not this time.
After her attacked she tried to float back to her feet. She did not want to be stuck on the ground.
The left copy dissipated, leaving the one on the right and center. The center copy merged into the rightmost one, and Kruz'Iik let her float away, allowing her to catch the peak of her float before he shot an arm forward and red lightning crackled forth.
She frowned when she saw that she had chosen the wrong copy. Well it didn't matter he would still pay one way or the other. As she got to her feet she saw him shoot lightening at her. She was hit and she gave a yell of pain. That really really hurt. She managed however to stay on her feet. If only just barely.
"You're afraid," Kruz'Iik said. He started to just walk towards her again, warping the environment around him as he exerted his power.
"And I'm loving every minute of it."
Raven heard him taunting her. She was starting to wonder just how she was going to defeat him. Maybe she should try to get away from him. As he moved closer she gave him an evil smile. Her darker personality was coming out to protect her. " I'll show you fear." She growled her voice taking on a much darker tone then before. And with that she turned invisible. She wanted to get and advantage over him.
"Oh?"
She disappeared, and Kruz'Iik just stood there and crossed his arms, mind probing the environment around him, ever ready to react to the slightest shift.
Raven was carefully moving around behind him. She was careful and silent with her movements. Once she was in a good position she then tried to take her sword and stab him in the back.