Fall from Grace (Closed to Pat)

[color:ccc5=333366]”Aaawe, why. So. Sad? Ahahahaha.” The voice echoed throughout the palace. Silus sat there and fiddled with the ring as the laughter seemed to envelope around him. Silus only blinked, only to find that the second he opened his eyes, he was face to face with the horrific creature form the dark realms, the one known only as “Lucifer““Lucifer“ Silus didn’t even flinch, he had grown used to this. He had not long ago done one of his many ventures into the various realms in the multiverse, he had happened upon one universe far different form his own. The Meta-gene was actually some form of infection. One of the creatures he had met there was a tyrannical overlord with a God-complex. A once good man who watched his loved ones die, and so he began to harbor all the evil spirits of vengence and Darkness. The creature before Silus was the son of that creature, but he fought against his father and the power of darkness. The creature was hence called “Lucifer” for the names meaning. In result of his trechery, his father bound him to the dark construct known as “The Citadel” and from there he began to tempt mages and magical powerhouses from all walks of life, tempting them with forbidden knowledge and mass power. Once there, the darkness devoured them…forever.

Silus’ venture into that realm accidentally sparked a “reawakening” of the forces of darkness, and with Lucifer’s father running about trying to kill him, Silus had a moment of weakness. He took this creature with him, a decision he had come to regret. This creature could not be seen, heard, sensed or even detected in any form except to those it touched with it’s telepathy. Now “Lucifer” or “Luci” was following Silus around and tormenting him. Every time he passed a human he heard a whisper to kill them, or a whisper to torment them. Every time he passed a jewelry store, he heard whispers to steal, or take them. This thing was a living temptation…but honestly, the guy was decent company when he wasn’t busy being a bad influence. ”Stop it…” Silus murmured, trying to keep in mind that no one else could see this creature. It had even gotten to the point where he began to wonder if he were perhaps insane. He heard Sean plop down next to him, and Silus looked at him, trying to keep tears back. Sean offered him some, when he nodded with a forced and broken smile, before he dropped his head and leaned into Sean, resting his head on his father’s shoulder. He held up his hand, and an enchanted orb appeared, allowing him and anyone close enough by to see what was happening with the current predicament on the Isle. Silus gave a little bit of a calmed sigh as he seemed to nestle into Sean and latch onto him like a parasite.

Xeir waited for Brandon to get up, flopping himself to Brandon’s side, barking with excitement. It clapped it’s hands and tucked it’s head forward, placing it’s tail into it’s mouth as it began to roll around in a circle around Brandon, with rather impressive speed for the little thing. It rolled it’s way from Brandon to Silus where it lunged at him, knocking him on his back, before snuggling the little fur-ball, who returned to it’s rolling position and returning to Brandon. The little guy was apparently surrounded by people it liked. Silus sat up wiping his face, not bothering to smile or get excited as he usually did. The child seemed…devoid of all innocence, as if this event had completely changed him. He went back to leaning on his father as he looked into the sphere.

“Is he gonna die?” Silus asked quietly.
* * * * * * * *

The Lych just let it happen, he found himself impaled on Arianna’s sword. The Lych let out a loud scream in pain, his head flew back, his mouth open wide as the cries of pain roared through. The Lych’s screams turned into laughter though, seamlessly. His head turned at one hundred and eighty degreed, cracking and snapping bones as he turned to look Arianna in the eyes. His arm rotated swiftly as he snatched Arianna’s shoulder.

”Ha-Ha! What are you aiming for?” The Lych laughed as he threw his other arm back, the pseudo glowing Arm of Ragnarox grappling onto Arianna, proving to not be as powerful as Niall’s however still very potent against the energies of the soul-stream, which were now working to sustain him. This was a literal stalemate. "I thought you knew I was HEARTLESS!" The blade damaging Lych’s essence, but in the same return his arm draining the souls from within Arianna, and likely to be her own soul soon as well. Ouroboros’s eyes began shifting, watching the movements of the other “Lych’s” in the area. The Lych let out a roar, and suddenly, all three of them exploded. Ouroboros’s eyes blew open, and he instantly formed a shield of Ethereal energy around Arianna, meanwhile his armor triggered something within him, causing his energy to also shield him upon it’s own volition. The Lych had done it perfectly. He waited for Arianna to be close, too loce to get away, sap her energy to weaken her armor, and then let out an explosion. Meanwhile, Ouroboros was placed perfectly between the two clones, and his energy was not able to save him entirely. The energy shield was shattered by the first explosion, and his armor protected him from the worst of the second, but the blast was still stronger. The paladin armor chipped, broke and shattered. Smoke was thrown everywhere. His shield had protected Arianna form certain Death, however it was not likely enough to protect her entirely.

The Lych stood there, and looked at his work, marveling as the gaping while in his chest began to seep dark ethereal energy. He let out a roar of laughter as the dust and decay thrown into the air settled. He first noticed Arianna. Apparently he and her had both had their wear and tear this battle. Though he was far more durable than herself. Not only was he able to take more punishment, but he could continue to exhaust himself, he and Arianna were in the metaphorical “arms Race” where they sent Magic energies clashing and raging…and in the end, she would simply run out of energy…and it would be an easy kill, and another powerful Soul to assimilate into himself. He began to laugh as he put his hands up, as if he were opening his arms to the skies, awaiting a light to shine upon him. A large sphere of dark Ethereal energy formed between his hands, and the amassing energy made it quite clear what he intended to do. He planned on discharging the “Ethereal-atom bomb” on the Veil, eliminating Arianna and Ouroboros, should he have survived the dual explosion. He released the Bomb, and it engulfed the entire Veil with irrefutable power, The Veil itself actually tore, the boundaries between life and death had been overwhelmed. The ground blackened, and was nothing more than an ashen blast as the Lych himself remained untouched, his robes soaking the energy in.

”This is by far the most powerful congregation of creatures I’ve ever encountered…my only regret is Marie isn’t here to try and blast me with that wretched Mana-cannon. I was so hoping to reveal my counter-measure. Thank you Arianna, you have just delivered to me…my most powerful weapons.” Lych said, in a heart-beat there were suddenly Niall, Cyril, Zakaken, Abyssal and Animositus were gathered, suspended in the air by bright tethering. Their very essences were being drained, siphoned and funneled into the Lych’s power. He grunted, noticing that something now stood in the ashes of the ruined ground. It was none other than Ouroboros. His survival was ensured assured when he shift-stepped to Arianna, and placed a hand on her. He was able to use the power of his Ascention in order to allow both himself, and the Matriarch Hale moments of survival into their time of need. (+4 ABL Intangibility (to self +1) for one post.) Ouroboros looked to Arianna and smiled slightly.

“Close…” Was all he could whisper with his calm eyes fixated on Lych. He could have let her die…he could have let the Lych continue on and destroy the Hales. In fact, he partially felt justified in letting her die to the Lych…. But he had saved her, or so it seemed at least. He stood up and looked to the Lych.

”Little consequence.” Lych said smugly as he began to heal over, his power growing. A Maelstrom, a large funnel of souls rotated over the Veil, screaming and roaring out as they passed by. The beautiful pale essences danced like water in the moonlight, as energy began to pull pieces of the ground into the sky, disrupting the reality that was gravity. Ouroboros energy sparked as he closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he could feel the energy ripple, the world of the Veil had come undone, and this was the end. Ouroboros space-slipped himself between the tethering of Niall and Cyril. With a ferocity unrivaled, his Arm shattered away like glass, revealing the Arm of Ragnarox, and he swiftly cut out the Ethereal tethers to the Lych like umbilical cords. The Lych roared as Ouroboros allowed skin and armor to reform. His eyes kept moving, he watched everything, and without hesitation he began to channel his Ethereal energy in the air, disguising the growing mass overhead as he kept on the defensive. This would be over very soon… and though he hated to admit it…it was up to Arianna to do it.
* * * * * *

Silus watched, unsure of what to do. He closed his eyes and the orb faded. He didn't want to see what was happening. He already saw the Veil tear...he knew where this was all headed. He just nestled into Sean and looked to the wine bottle. Realistically he could age and take it, totally legal. On the other hand he could just remain the innocent one. He knew what it was like to have Ouro and not Sean...but now he had to face the fact that he was losing Ouro...and had Sean. HE was sort of excited...he made countless prayers to whatever was out there that he could be a real son to Sean one day...he just never guessed it would be at the expense of his daddy's life. His grip on Sean tightened a little.

I'm sorry" He mumbled, tears threatening to fall...but he kept strong, refusing to let a single one escape

Michael took himself a seat, crossing arms and resting chin on the palms of his hands. His brother was sitting sadly in a corner, looking perhaps more morose than usually and it had something to do with their father. Silver pools flecked with neon greens canned about, before glowing lightly and taking on a deep purple color, taking on their new natural color. A strange sensation ran through his chest, followed by a racking cough that came with a small amount of blood against his palm. Pulling the hand from his mouth, Michael looked down and narrowed his eyes, slightly annoyed by the fit but otherwise not reacting. Wiping away the flecks of red liquid on his pants, Michael plucked a turkey leg from the spread and bit deeply into it; rivulets of juice running down his chin. The seal form of Xeir rolled about on the ground, clapping loudly and seeming to enjoy the company of most of the people in the room.

Niall’s idiotic mate simply watched the thing move around with a goofy smirk on his face. Something about his expression was endearing in a way, yet again nothing about it was at the same time. For the first time in a while, he didn’t even react negatively to Sean’s presence, something that was new to Michael, an interesting prospect in hindsight. Across from him sat the blonde Hale twin, still a little weak perhaps from being exposed to the arm of ragnarox, but otherwise in good form for having been exposed to it. Michael looked up to him for a moment before letting his gaze fall back down, once again taking a bite from the turkey leg.

Sean took note of Silus not really accepting his drink offer, instead nestling against him like a little pup. It was a new feeling, having his son give him the same attention that he would give to Ouroboros, but something about it felt hollow in a way. A feeling that could not quite be placed, empty and in a certain way painful, causing him to press the wine bottle against his lips again. Even with that in mind, it also felt good, the feeling of having his son show him affection, one that he had never felt before; from Silus anyway. The taste of the wine was tart, slightly muddling his senses but not by much, only a pleasant tingling sensation that went as soon as it came. His son asked quietly a simple question, one that Sean was unsure that he could answer, as the young man conjured a small orb showing the events unfolding.
--
Arianna felt the blade sink into Jehovah, flesh giving way under the power of the weapon that was made to kill him. A weapon that channeled the pure ethereal energy she wielded, one that should have destroyed the being run through, but instead it did not. Flesh was damaged for sure, but it was not what she expected,, The Lych was not dead. Within seconds of the pained howls, she could head what sounded like laughter, one that was seamless from the sounds of pain that he was letting out. Arianna was dumbfounded to say the least, realizing when it was too late that she had been fooled, and the attack itself was worthless. He formed what looked the very limb that Niall wielded, and grabbed her, draining away the endless energy of the Soul Stream that was coursing through her body, hoping perhaps to drain away her soul as well.

Arianna was trapped now, unable to escape what would have been an absolute death. If she were alone, this would have not lasted long at all, but then again she had a powerful ethereal on her side, though why he helped her was unknown. She could have activated her own true ace in the hole, but then again she needed more time to activates it than what the arm was allowing her. Once again the pseudo Jehovah let out a roar, and caused his doppelgangers to explode, creating a powerful explosion that would have easily been able to kill anyone caught in it. Ouroboros adapted well to the battle, but Arianna was not, her body already beginning to show signs of wear and tear, getting close to its breaking point. Things were not going good, and at this rate she was likely going to die, something that Marie would not let her hear the end of.

Even with the protection of the ethereal king she was taking heavy damage, rivulets of blood falling down from where the armor had been decimated, and where cuts were abundant. Above them was a large gathering of ethereal energy, one that would have been more than enough to annihilate both her and the ethereal king without a trace, an attack so powerful that Arianna knew she stood no chance against it. At this point the bastard had truly become a god, a being of such power that even reality would be unable to deal with such power. He was powerful enough to tear the very fabric of reality asunder, something that no mage would take lightly, not even the great Elena Marie. Within this moment she accepted death, waiting to be destroyed by the energy that would fall down upon her, but a mutual ally did not let the woman down, even though he held no inclination to actually help the Hale. Looking up, she saw where all of this power was coming from, being siphoned from beings that together would have been able to sustain such a powerful attack; Niall Atterrius numbering among them. She grit her teeth silently, eyes narrowing as Arianna considered doing what Elena Marie suggested strongly against, even if it could have destroyed her in the process. She felt Ouroboros energy change, and within a moment the tethers binding Lych and the powerful beings was severed, leaving him with less power than before, or so she assumed. Arianna felt a burning sensation within her right arm, something that caused the very flesh to scream in agony, but she simply bore it with a wry grin.

Skin began to turn burnt black, cracking along her arm as droplets of blood would defy gravity, evaporating with a hiss and small puff of black smoke. The cracks formed archaic looking runic formations, ones that radiated a dark energy that felt like it could devour the very soul, malevolent and vile. ”Didn’t think I would have to use this.” She muttered untainted fingers wrapping around the forearm of the affected limb, dark power coursing through it and within an instant she dashed forward, speed seeming greater than before as dark red energy seeming to rush forward from the cracks in her arm. All aimed to tear apart the ethereal users, though she had the strange gem in case he lashed out with any ethereal attacks of his own.
--
Sean saw it, the veil tear as the power of the ethereal energy did so. Not much was seen after that as Silus dispelled the orb, and tightened his grip on Sean a little, fingers digging into flesh somewhat. The child apologized to him, but he had no idea what for, placing the bottle on the floor, and resting his arm over Silus shoulder, perhaps trying to comfort him in some way, unable to really say anything

He didn’t hear anything…not that he expected anything of Sean really. He just decided to look back into his orb, with a little more focus it was just like a mini-television. The creature known as Lucifer began to wonder the castle, eyeing up the soulless beings that inhabited it, maybe a body to take for himself. He watched the events unfold until he saw Niall being tethered when he shot up and looked around, as if he were double-checking what he had seen.

* * * * * *
      Ouroboros felt the energy from behind him, closing in. Arianna’s new weapon was rather…unnerving. He was prepared to do what had to be done, his mind prepared though his heart sank a little. Ouroboros leaned forward slightly, his right arm lamely, yet somehow gracefully swiped at the Lych, no true desire to harm him should he strike. The length of his ‘slash’ had a strange visual displacement. Traces of Ultima energy flew through the air, vibrating molecules and the more it went out, it grew and expanded as it went forth. Dust flew through the air, a makeshift smokescreen of sorts for him to duck away as fast as he possibly could, all the same The Lych extended a hand and held it still, his feet scraping the ground as he was driven back. With a squeeze of the skeletal hand, Lych dispersed the ultima energy. Ouroboros glared as Arianna passed, his eyes narrowed the “grey energy” pupils fixated on the weapon. The energy was so…familiar…yet altogether annoying. His eyes flashed open fully as he suddenly assessed the full gravity of the weapon she was wielding. There was suddenly a flaring distraction, before Arianna, in the ground was a glowing energy, one Ouroboros could see thanks to his eyes.

     Ouroboros landed on his feet and closed his eyes for a moment of intense focus. The souls of the stream roared and wailed as the ground began to dematerialize. He went to warn her, but she was blind-sided, or so Ouroboros believed. A pillar of Obsidian shot up form the ground, and black fire energy circled around Arianna, rotating around her at fast velocities, expanding as it rotated. Ouroboros reacted appropriately, with a simple thought he threw a large blast of Ethereal energy into the ground, once more causing a smokescreen of sorts. Behind the cover of the smokescreen, Ouroboros began to manifest his energy within the form of eight orbs, each one t least twelve foot in diameter, floating in the air appearing to burn like that of an Ethereal fire. They burned so brightly that the dirt and dust screen wasn’t enough to conceal it’s light. Ouroboros gripped tightly, causing energy to well up, with a snap of his fingers the energy harmlessly whipped around him, pushing the smoke back and revealing the flaming orbs that seemed trained right at Lych, meanwhile a small Ethereal mass began in the air, nothing truly noticeable yet, but still growing at an exponential rate. ”After the way I ‘prompted’ the death of your son I’m surprised with you!” Lych’s mouth ran on and on. The second Shael was mentioned and the Lych taking credit for it, Ouroboros’ eyes shot open and he fired the barrage.

    Lych evaded the first fire out, and made himself intangible for the second. Then he went to the offensive. He warped forward, avoiding the third, leapt to the side avoiding number four, a blast of dark Ethereal to counter numbers five and six, number seven missed altogether, and number eight was a sure-fire, until Lych threw out his own make-shift arm of Ragnarox to consume the sphere. Bursting through the barrage, Lych laughed as his arm broke through the Ethereal defense and gripping the armor and spinning Ouro around, throwing him back into the Obsidian pillar. ”You’re doing well. You’r mother would have shot herself by now.” The Lych said. Ouroboros’ eyes went fornm glowing green, to glowing red and a stom formed over head, Ethereal energy striking down upon the Isle, which was slowly disappearing into the soul stream. Ouroboros charged himself with Ultima energy and sent the Lych flying back, the Obsidian pillar crumbling, with Arianna atop of it.
* * * * * *

   The Lych was even behind Shael's death? Silus wondered if that meant all of his years as a powerless Ethereal were thanks to the boney bastard. Silus wanted to just walk up to /?Marie and get sent back to teach The Lych a lesson of his own. He just wanted to change…to show off his power ad to tell Michael, Jordan, Sean and everyone else to back the fuck up. Silus didn’t though…doing it would be pointless. Doing it would be destructive and not helpful in anyway. He calmed himself and walked to the fireplace to sit by the fire.

If Sean could have thought of something to say, would that have made any difference? It was something running through the raven haired male’s mind, grey orbs half glancing at the orb showing them what was happening, and half looking over the people that were sitting around the feast hall. His mother was alive, after all of this time she was alive and that meant that he had some major catching up to do. He could feel something happening, his body growing weak instantly, before once again gaining strength, much like a wave washing over him. Sean felt like he would collapse on the ground, if he were not already sitting down, so all he did was lay his head against the wall. Marie took note of this, face changing into one of concern before becoming unreadable again, her husband sitting next to her. He was one of the few that went mostly untouched by the fight, and with his opponent that was a blessing.

He could have died and Marie was unsure if she could have revived him from that point.  ”Is something on your mind Elena? You look  alittle tense.”

”Alots happened within the span of one day, I just need a little time to react.” She said simply, tossing down a glass of wine, and feeling the warmth crawling down her torso. Marian was walking about, rapier tapping lightly against her thigh as she looked over everyone, making sure that there was enough food out to keep the guests comfortable. Her siblings were simply enjoying the venerable buffet, devouring food with gusto as she simply enjoyed the company of everyone. One thing she did notice however that the younger Michael was missing, perhaps having wandered off into the castle, a maze that one could get lost in if they did not know where they were going.

The young ethereal however was chasing after a strange energy source, one that he had been following for a while but never really found. It beckoned him forth, calling him specifically and no one else. This sensation seemed to take control and nearly force his muscles to move, drawing him close and closer, until he found himself exiting the castle and walking along the rolling hills that surrounded it. Strange flowers sprouted among the dark green grass, atmosphere rich in magical energy it would seem, and a single figure standing ahead of him. He looked somewhat like that Naes character, but his ethereal energy was much greater, yet he somehow was able to hide it from everyone else within the castle. He turned to Michael and smirked widely, as if expecting the male to come to him in due time. ”So you come at last, took you a while but I have been playing hard to get haven’t I?” He said with a wicked grin, disappearing and appearing by Michael within an instant, one arm around him.

”Trouble on paradise I see and not a single thing you can do about it…well not as you are anyway. As powerful as you may be, your power pales in comparison to me, and he is stronger still. Frustrating isn’t it? To have your birthright taken from you in a misguided attempt to protect you.” Michael lashed out with some of his own dark ethereal energy but he found it easily countered by the strange prismatic energy that this man used. ”You do however have the potential for great power, one that I could help you…unlock.” He said whimsically stepping away from Michael, floating in the air as if gravity were a quaint notion rather than a law of the universe.

”Who the hell are you, and why should I believe you anyway?”

The male smirked widely, as if expecting this question, tapping fingertip against his forearm.”I’ve gone by many names within my life time young Michael, too many to fully recount. I was here before your father’s race even crawled from the muck of The Abyss, well when I formed them from it at any rate. One name that has stuck with me is Raziel actually.” He noted smirking widely, and waiting for the ethereal male to speak up.
--
Arianna ran past Ouroboros, who was preparing an offensive of his own, the entire battle beginning to grow direr by the second. Even without drawing power from the beings he was powerful still, and she had a feeling that her power would run out soon enough, especially with this new weapon of hers. Elena said that this was a weapon that was made to kill a true immortal, one that could not die permanently by normal means, and she had a feeling it was not made for ethereals, but someone else. Whatever the case was, she planned to destroy Lych with it, and perhaps forever cleanse the world of his evil influence, even if that meant dying in the process.

A pain racked through the limb affected by the weapon, blood and ethereal energy mingling together to perhaps form a strange synergy that seemed to radiate within the atmosphere. A smoke screen was thrown up, impeding her vision and making combat harder as she rushed through next thing she knew, a pillar of obsidian formed beneath her, forcing her upwards as black fire formed around her, restricting her movement even more as the tendrils of energy extending from the cracks in her arm whipped about. It seemed that Lych knew what the weapon was for and planned to keep her from using it against him, something that showed she had something that was cause for fear from the ethereal. Arianna found herself unable to react as the fight went on, the soul devouring tendrils awaiting for when they could feast.

It was however when the obsidian pillar tumbled that Arianna saw her opportunity to react, crystalline material beneath her falling as she moved with superhuman speed, jumping from piece to piece, and then charging The Lych, red energy forming a drill that she would then drive through his chest.
--
Sean noticed Silus get up and walk over to the fireplace, leaving him to continue drinking, the wine tasting fine as it washed down his throat. It was then however that Brandon noticed that Niall was not here, a worried look forming in his eyes as he went about to search for him, to see if he perhaps appeared in another section of the castle.

Silus walked away, he began to look around and he felt that deep seeded pain in his stomach. Here he was, just sitting there when his father was drinking. Silus’ head lowered and he began to tear up, silently sobbing and trembling, but not enough to let anyone hear. He wiped his eyes and bit his lower lip, walking over to the table and picking up a green apple. He picked up the apple and took a bite of it, his puffy pink eyes not hiding that he was crying, tears still falling…but he was silent. It was easily noticeable that he had been adept with hiding his whimpers and sobs. Like he was used to doing this…Silus closed his eyes and remembered Ouroboros having Silus up on his shoulders, and looking out at the glowing waters of the Ethereal Isle. His hear was light, and his stomach clenched, threatening to have him to immediately throw up the piece of apple he just took in. How did this happen? How did this come to it? How many people did he see that had a mother, and a father who loved them!? Why couldn’t he have that!? Sure, brothers and sisters fought and didn’t get along all the time…but why did his torment him all the time like they did? Now, Ourobroors…his Daddy was going to die. Lych was sitting there…mocking Ouroboros about his mother, Silus’s late grandmother shot herself, and as he continued to wail away at them. Nothing seemed to be enough to defeat the Lych. Silus felt bad, watching his old mentor throttle away at his father and a sweet woman like Arianna. He looked back to Sean, still drinking and he squeezed his eyes shut as fast as he possible could.

”What is wrong?” Lucifer whispered into his ear. Silus looked to him, to everyone else though it seemed like he was looking to mid air. Lucifer floated there, his tri-directioned face and maw of total darkness seething black clouds. It extended a long-appendage hand of claws and placed it on the boy, almost trying to comfort him in a sense. ”Why do they hurt you? Who are they to you?” The Fallen one asked, almost inquiring for insight to Silus’ perspective. He looked to Michael, his brother who was stuffing his face like a pig, you had Sean who was drinking like a fucking fish in wine, and you had Jordan who was just a general asshole. He thought of Ouroboros who was back on the Isle, fighting to save the Ethereal…and to save Arianna. He thought of Shael, who fought for him on a daily basis sometimes. Shael who actually lived with him in the human world, had a job and supported him. Ouroboros and Shael…he didn’t take them for granted…because they were the only family he had. Silus looked to Sean, a stern but otherwise emotionless look to him, a building up of disgust…then he looked to Sean. ”Who are they to you?” The crawler pressed, unsure if Silus had heard him. After a moment of silence…he answered.

”they’re nothing to me…” Silus whispered as tears rolled down his eyes. Michael suddenly up and left, how fucking typical. Silus needed someone, he needed ANYONE and no one was there. He had nothing…he was alone, cold and scared. He was mad, and sad all the same as well. ”Because I’m nothing to them….” With that he looked around and he finally realized it. He had no family here. He had a brother who didn’t care about him, in face…his brother fucking hated him, might have killed him at times too. He looked up to Michael, and all he did was push him around, scare him and act like he was the king of the damn Isle. Them he thought of Sean, did he even need to start? The man never tried to get close to him, he never tried to understand why he stayed away, the man didn’t even fucking care enough to try and hep him. He just offered him alcohol and started drinking. Dad of the fucking year.

”I’m leaving.” He said, a little whine in his voice as he turned to walk away. He didn’t care if he died, he didn’t care if the Lych tore him limb from limb, ripped out his liver and ate it. Her just wanted to be with someone who actually cared…someone who actually loved him. Someone who actually wanted him. The boy was obviously broken, and he didn’t try to hide it as his staggering and highly distracted steps began to walk for the nearest exit
* * * * * * *

Arianna had leapt to him, impaling the Lych with her energy. The Lych roared, out the pain was very real. Ouroboros held his hands up to the sky, beginning to not only siphon souls from the Etherium, but the surrounding Soul stream itself. He normally wouldn’t have the means to access the soul stream. Mainly because he did not know what area of the multiverse to call upon, but with the veil here being so weak, he could easily draw from it. While Lych was under the assault of Arianna’s energy, Ouroboros walked up to him, activating his arm, the skin peeling away once more, and he placed his hand onto the Lych’s face. The creature screamed as the immense power wracked it, and shackled the bones that composed it. The Lyched watched as Ouroboros’ second eye went form pure energy to a solid actualy physiological existing component. He also made an extra ‘measure’ while he was at it, just to make sure that he kept himself ahead of the game. So far this venture was going better than expected, despite the near endless power of the Lych. Ouroborors’ mass in the air had reached a grand size of eighty feet in diameter. The storm had charged the ground full of Ethereal energy, ultima to be exact…and now it was under Ourobroro’s control. He created a tall cylindrical piece of earth, as durable as his own energy and he smiled and relinquished his storm, revealing the mass overhead. The Lych looked up before the eye and it’s power left him, to see the Mass of energy. Ouroboros chuckled Arianna and he nodded. He drew his arm back, grabbed onto her and snapped his fingers. The mass hurdled down It easily ate away at the earth that was freakishly durable, and before it could hit them, Ouroboros snatched up Arianna’s shoulder and transitioned himself as intangible, Arianna as his ‘guest’ in this. The Energy virtually destroyed the entire area…Arianna was probably on the verge of death, Ouroboros was weakened…severally, and the Lych was lost in the rubble, no where to be seen on the broken battlefield. The sky above, still the soul-stream, a tear in reality and the fabrics of the multiverse. The damage was near irreparable.
* * * * * *

Silus halted for a moment, noticing something very dire, something grave. Ouroboros’ energy was something he was so in tune with, and somehow he could feel it no matter where he had gone, or how far away he was. Now…he could not feel it. His father was weak…suffering, finally dying. Daddy was dying…and Silus was stuck in this place with the people who masquerading as Family, part of him was certain that he was stopped only hear Elena’s protest. But he knew deep down…his Daddy was in danger…and no one here relly cared about him at all…no one loved him…they just…tolerated him. Shael and Ouro were his family…and he’d die to be with them….because they were the ones who cared.

Neas watched his other half drowning himself in alcohol. Hoping to wash away the problems within his life. His son possibly hating him did not go well with the former Titan, plus the fact that he could not help his family when it came down to it. Silus seemed to be sulking, which made him wonder, what was going through that little kids head. He set his food down on the nearest plate and stood to his feet turning to everyone else for a moment, cracking his knuckles before walking over to Sean and snatched the wine bottle. The atmosphere of depression was smothering, causing him to grimace. ”Stop drowning your sorrows in wine you dumbass. Your son needs you more than ever now, and all you can do is sulk like a bitch.” He growled to Sean tossing the bottle against the wall as glass and wine fell along the floor.

Sean looked to him dumbly, grey eyes widening as if being slapped. ”Don’t give me that look.” he muttered simply turning from the raven haired male and following after Silus. Closing the distance, he wrapped his arms around Silus, his son and held him close. Sure he would squirm but then again that would not allow him to escape the iron grip placed upon him. It was then that he felt a dark presence, one that caused him to shiver for a second before the sensation stopped. ”He does care…believe me he does.” he said with a slight sigh. ”And with his powers gone, he now can’t even protect his family, and he thinks you hate him. Hell, he loves you Silus, enough to give up his own powers to save your life, even while he thought you despised him.” Naes noted running his fingers through Silus hair before turning his attention from Silus and back to his other half.

”And while it may not mean much, I care about you too.” He added, Marie seeming to have seen that the situation was taken care of and relaxed. Sean however seemed a little buzzed, but Naes could sense something within him, a black hole of dread that was consuming him. He for a moment pitied his weaker half, and then sat back down, letting his mind wonder where their other son was.

”What power?”

”The power that I wield, one that your father could have unlocked if his power were not siphoned from him. I could teach you to wield the power of ultima, or so it’s comes to being called. The power to gain your throne, maybe even return to you what was lost, restore even your father to his former glory.” He stated plainly smirking lightly He could do it, that much Michael was sure of. ’All you have to do is….give me your hand.” Raziel extended a hand forwards, palm held upwards and his Ultima energy sparked upwards. Michael looked at the hand for a second.

”How can I know you won’t kill me or something?”

”Why would I do that? I would gain nothing of killing you when I’m offering you ultimate power.” He stated simply, Michael pressed his palm against Raziel’s and felt the spark of energy course through his entire being. His own ethereal energy surged, increasing until it rose like a pillar to the sky, radiating a powerful light and yet at the same time it was isolated so that no one else could feel it. He could feel the power bursting from his, increasing over and over until he could barely contain it, body feeling as if it would tear apart. Raziel did not let go however, simply holding into his hand with a vicelike grip, smirking widely while he did so. ”And its done.” He said simply, letting Michael go and stepping back, a powerful energy roaring around him as the very ground found itself rent asunder. ”What do you think of this power?” He asked, the young ethereal unable to really even vocalize how he felt.
--
She had landed a hit, the dark energy that the woman summoned up dug into The Lych, however before any deadly damage was done, Ouroboros made her intangible and then came the powerful finisher. The power of the attack was more than Arianna expected, dust being thrown up and creating a large cloud as the very ground was rent asunder. Within that time, Arianna was unsure if Lych was dead, but she was more than sure that he was damaged. It was then that she felt the strain of her energy, falling to her knees as the arm reverted to its fleshy form, steam issuing from the tissue that was now pink from the heat. ”Well that’s that.” She noted with a smirk.

Silus began to storm away when a bigger blonde male latched onto him. Silus squirmed, he knew exactly who this was and he wanted nothing to do with him. The thing just went on about Sean…and then he heard about Sean giving up his powers. Silus froze up, totally shattered and devastated. Utter shock drowned out his anger and replaced it with despair. He cost his dad his powers? Why does all the bad stuff in his family happen to him? His mind ran over every event of his life. He remembered watching blood drip from his split lip drop into the Ethereal waters over the bridge. That was the first day one of the people had ever physically bullied him…just because they knew he couldn’t fight back. When Ouroboros asked what had happened…Silus lied. Why? He didn’t want anyone else to get hurt. That’s always been Silus though….not wanting anyone to get hurt. He just waned everyone to get along. Somehow he ended up in the most dysfunctional family since the creation of life itself.

Silus wanted to hug back, but he couldn’t. He only managed to lift the one arm and let out an audible gulp before his mind continued to flash. He remembered Jordan being a jerk, he remembered Sean’s Nether keeping him at bay, he remembered The Lych’s training and he remembered Shael dying. Shael died…because of him. The Lych learned of Ouro’s eyes…Ouro lost his eye and all of this happened…because of him. Now Sean…a Titan who valued his powers lost them…because of him. Silus had finally lost it. He had finally felt it, in the pit of his stomach, in the aching of his abdomen and the burning in his eyes. He was a monster…destined to hurt anyone he cared about. He was truly a monster. He was one massive jinx on his family. He should have died back in Death’s Embrace…everyone would have been happier in the end. Somehow though…Sean still supposedly loved him…and Naes at least cared. Silus got what he wanted, people who loved and cared. But he knew what was going to happen…until he was strong enough to do something about the disaster that surrounded him. HE had to get away from it. Silus just hugged Naes back…enjoying the fact that even though Naes hated his daddy….at least Naes cared.
* * * * * * * *

”Well that’s that.” Arianna said with a smirk, glad that things had finished and come to conclusion. Ouroboros just hummed, as if he weren’t so sure. While the blast was certainly powerful, it wasn’t entirely enough to simply end it…was it? The Ultima entity growled as he looked into the Soul stream. He analyzed it, knowing that one day he may need to learn how to break the veil between the worlds once more… to harness the souls of not only the Ethereal, but the Soul-stream as well.

“That item…it‘s taken quit a toll on you.” The Ultima stated his observation, looking at her with what was almost concern. She was an innocent in all of this, well…not entirely, but ultimately Death was not her price to pay. They were now in a large crater, a scar on the ground of the Isle as they solidified. The dirt beneath the center of the crater, the dirt was disturbed. Ouroboros move between Arianna and the dirt, suffering a lash that broke through his ultima shielding and tore off the armor like it was paper. Two large bone wings sprawled out as the Lych spiraled out of the ground encased in a form of Ultima Crystals as his barirer, the body of the Lych mangled and broken, battered and beaten, the wings branching out as if they were the limbs of a tree. The branches of the wings began to produce Dark Ethereal energy, conjuring copies of several Ethereal. The ground all around began to uproot and quake ad large Lych-bone roots came from the ground. The roots began “drawing out: the residual ethereal energy within the unearthed corpses and the branches brought them to new life as a Dark-Ethereal servant. The branched made their way around the arena. Cyril was wrapped up in the roots and pulled in towards the Lych, Niall was also in the process of being consumed, along side Zakaken and the rest ho had been transported. The Lych officially produced resurrected clones of Zakaken, Cyril, and several other Ethereals who died in honorable combat, who all died warrior’s death. The son of a bitch.

”If we can hit the Lych the thralls will return to the Etherium. I can keep the masses off you…or do you have an idea?” Ouroboros asked, his breathing ever so slightly unsteady as he was feeling the repercussions of his restless energy expenses. He stepped forward, brandishing Ethereal dual-blades as he ran forward, his slashes were precise and lethal upon contact, but for every one he slew, it simply returned as another Dark Ethereal clone. Though he made good on his word and he managed to prove a very powerful distraction, quelling masses with the flourish of ultima energy. The Lych looked to Arianna, glaring at her, they had been in this situation before…but alas she was as weak as he, and appeared to have nothing up her sleeve. The Lych’s roots began to ascend and aim for Arianna. TheLych would have his unstoppable army, he would not be denied… he was counting on this. The Ethereal energy sparkles, the screams of the soul-stream continued forth… as a requiem for the Great Deceiver.

Even with such low expectations of what he said, Naes felt the wave of emotions washing over him from Silus, eliciting a slight sigh from him as he felt the child’s arms wrap around him. Now there was only despair and self-loathing, much like what he was feeling from Sean, and something within the ethereal just wanted to make it stop somehow. Yet, he knew there was nothing he could do but be there for both of them, even if that was just to slap them around a little. Deep within he knew that he didn’t hate Ouroboros, no matter how much he wanted to, in fact his feelings mirrored Sean’s sadly and that was what angered him. Even after all the ethereal king had done to them, Sean still loved him and by some celestial default so did he.

Once again wrapping his arms around Silus, he didn’t let the child go, not saying anything, as much like Sean he found himself unable to say anything. Perhaps it was a quirk from Sean, but then again the blonde did not find the need to do so, he would simply be there for his son and that would be more than enough, for now anyway.

Michael felt the nearly unlimited energy coursing through him, a power that was so great that he could not quite place how that rush felt. This was what Raziel had given him, an energy that would perhaps allow him to truly take his place as Ethereal king, with or without his families consent. Once silver irises took on a different appearance, a strange magical symbol with seven sigils decorating it and one glowing within his pupil as what seemed like the knowledge of many filled him, and with it he only grew bolder. ”Wonderful isn’t it? This is only a fraction of what you’re capable of, only a fraction of the power that I can bring you, all you need to do is…a few things for me.” The suggestion within itself did not seem malignant but then again Michael knew nothing of this Ethereal, not that he was thinking anyway.
--
The Soul Stream howled around them as Arianna took herself a quick break, muscles screaming in agony and her entire body feeling weaker. This battle had taken a huge toll upon her, and with her quickly declining time, Arianna knew that he would have a problem of her own soon enough, even with the ethereal king around. Standing to her feet, she let the ethereal armor around her reform over the pained skin, slightly soothing the sensation but otherwise only proving to be an aesthetic thing. Something about having the armor covering the exposed flesh made her feel safer in some way and that was more than enough of a reason. It was all over however, and if now she had to die, then Arianna was more than willing to accept the consequences of it,, as  long as her family was safe, and those that they cared for.

However that was not the case, as what appeared to be The Lych rose from the ground in a crystal of ultima,, and with him the copies of many ethereals, Niall being dragged into it swiftly. It seemed that even now she was having to fight for the lives of those that she lived, even with waning power. "I have an inkling of an idea." Drawing upon the near infinite energy of The Soul Stream, Arianna rushed forward, using the roots that rose upward as solid ground as the ethereal energy within her,, that which remained formed around her hands. Hurling one blast at the root that would drag Niall upwards, it turned into a rotating blade that was meant to slash through it and set him free, while she concentrated all the ethereal power she had left into her right hand, using the boosters upon her back to leap at The Lych, aiming to pierce the crystal and destroy him once and for all. Ouroboros would be able to deal with anyone not fast enough to stop her rampage.

Arianna had taken the inclination to strike at Niall's bindings, preventing the Lych from ever-so-slowly consuming the Ethereal creature. Ouroboros continued to use the Ethereal Barrage powers to quell the ever-growing masses. He noticed Arianna's advance, and he made a particular note of the branches attached to the Lych. They twitched with anticipation, ready to move in the defense of their unholy master. He already knew where this was headed, and Arianna's attack would simply be deflected.

    "Hmpf." Ouro grunted, obviously unimpressed. He stepped back, and with a fierce whip, his clawed draconian styled boot was lifted and whipped across, the heel cracking an Imperfect in the jaw, severing it completely. Ouroboros' eyes narrowed and Ultima energy flooded to his gauntlets. With a knee to the stomach, the Imperfect doubled over and began to stagger. Ouroboros stepped into it, and swiftly used the creature's bent knee as a step, and then then leaping from it, driving his heel into the center of the creatures neck, launching himself off slightly and snapping the creatures neck. Ouro's eyes scanned over the area he would be landing, making best guesses at the movements of his enemies.

Upon landing, Ouroboros threw his right fist into the ground, Ultima energy was released in the form of a beam. Ouroboros was propelled into the air, where the beam stopped. Ouroboros opened his left hand, and pure soul-energy was drawn, straight from the Etherium itself, manifesting as an Ethereal sphere. With narrowed eyes, the Dragons began to rotate around, the 'energy' appearance that was one his eyes was alight with the same energy...turning from silver-grey to the color of the sphere in his hand. The skin on his arm, the Paladin armor....all of it was gone. The Arm of Ragnarox, the pure unadulterated Ultima energy forced into assimilation, starting from the shoulder. His eyes still rotating, the sphere itself began to do so, and before the arm could be completely assimilated it was cast with a throw. It was propelled like a crack of lightning, spinning over one hundred rotations per second. The Branches moved to defend The Lych preemptively, but the better part of it was caught unawares. The sphere rotated, grinding away ate the bone branches, the vibrations of the particles strong enough to grind the bones to dust, causing a smooth and perfect crater as it began to sink. The Lych's time in this incarnation was at it's end. Ouroboros quickly constructed an aerodynamic "shield" over Arianna, a nice tip to pierce through anything that would otherwise cause friction or delay her movements. It likely confused her...until Niall was shielded by the energy as well. It was then she was most likely to notice what was going to happen. The Sphere exploded. The ground was leveled and everything upon it was now dead, Ouroboros himself was consumed by the blast that was generated. His Paladin Armor sensed the danger, and tried to defend him, but it wasn't enough...even his Paladin Armor was nigh obliterated in the explosion. Ouroboros fell to the ground, hitting it with a grunt of pain....only to lay there and trying to catch his breath. The masses The Lych constructed had been decimated, only ashes and bones remaining, dust thrown everywhere. Ouroboros rolled over with a gasp of sudden pain. His one eye forced shut as he pushed up, not ever allowing his knee to touch the earth. He looked up and saw it.

The bone branches gone, annihilation by the Ethereal energy...and there was Arianna, the boney bastard at the end of her attack, lower jaw dropped open and grunting in frustration, pain and total confusion.

"H-how? I was ready for everything...T-the mana cannon. The use of Ethereal...The Soul stream...That bastard....He was...ahead of me." The Lych cursed, spitting venom at Ouroboros, despite his imminent demise being to Arianna...again. His weak hand reached up and rested upon her wrist. "Time to join your son....in the Etherium." The Lych whispered as his bones began to glow, his dense and durable bone latched onto Arianna. The Ethereal energy in the area gathered into him, and the Soul-stream wailed as he called upon the energies of the dead to empower his grand exit to the world of the living. Ouroboros grunted as he brought his energies to a focus... the Arm of Ragnarox reformed, and flew out, using his own energy manipulation to extend the length of the arm like elastic bands, expanding to rip the Lychs arm from the body, and dragging the arm (with Arianna) still attached towards him, away from the fatality of the blast.

While Arianna’s attempt to save Niall from being consumed was not absolutely successful, it was good enough. It slowed him down even more, and gave the ethereal endowed mage the power needed to keep running onward, rushing towards her ultimate goals of destroying the being, even with his crystal of Ultima energy. Still empowered by the last glimmers of ethereal coursing through her body, Arianna would keep running forward, Ouroboros still proving useful within his own rights, continually defeating the never ending army that The Lych had created with his seemingly endless power. Within this dash, Arianna found herself surrounded by a strangely aerodynamic shield, one that easily stopped any attempts to stop her on The Lych’s part, meaning that the matron could go unopposed. A large amount of ethereal was swirling around her hand, enough to form what would appear to be like a powerful spear extending three feet from the tips of the finger.

She had unintentionally formed a weapon out of the very energy, one that would be able to slay the immortal skeleton. There was then an explosion, energy being released outwards as the very ground was obliterated, and Arianna barely knew what she was doing as she rushed forward, lashing out with the weapon now formed around her arm, nearly solid it seemed as the energy formed around it. Upon contact large cracks formed along the crystal that encased The Lych, bits falling away as her hand dug deeper into it. She could feel as she struck him, damage too great for the weakened foe to recover from, as more and more the construct around him fell apart. The damage had been done. Arianna could not help but smirk, even within the heavy amount of dust that had been tossed up.

Luckily within the last seconds her armor had performed as needed, one part absorbing the most dangerous part of the blast, and her skin being reinforced to the point that she would not be hurt too greatly. Chips of the pure ethereal armor fell away, mostly around her legs and arms as clothing formed where that was. Her time as an ethereal it seemed was over, it was time that she reaped what she had sown. Perhaps she would end up as her foe was, a living skeleton obsessed with whatever it was that he was. What caught her offguard was Lych speaking of her son being within The Etherium, and for some reason Brandon came to mind instantly. He called upon all of the radiant energies around him, latching an arm around her wrist as he seemed to prepare to kill with one fell swoop.

Within that second, she saw the joint of Lych’s arm break off, being pulled towards the ethereal Ouroboros, as a barrier of energy formed around her, composed of the energy that the crystal had absorbed only moments ago. It was then that she felt the touch of the Soul Stream leave her, perhaps returning to someone more familiar.
--
The room was dark,, a single item spiraling in the midst of it, throwing off its own light. Four strange items were within this item, radiating a rainbow of prismatic colors. Within an instant a flash of light brightened the room, and a single crystal of similar appearance materialized, placing itself within one of the slots, leaving only two more. Elena Marie looked over the people of the feast hall as a smirk played across her lips. ”Looks’ like her time is up.” She mused sipping lightly on a cup of wine.

The Soul stream....was silenced.

     Ouroboros struggled to his feet, felling forward onto the ground. He was totally exhausted, unable to even stand upon his own accord. While he may not have fought as LONG as Arianna, he certainly showed up like a bat out of Hell and left the mark of one too. Not to mention that while he was able to use fragments of the soul-stream...it was not his to command...and forcibly taking essence from it (while augmenting him greatly) was far more exhausting that it was worth. It was not long before he would fade form consciousness. He heard Arianna rolling on the ground towards him, the residual of the kinetic pulling motion from the arm. The eyes of the Omnipotent immortal faded away, into dim-lit emerald eyes. He rolled onto his back, wincing as he looked down at himself. His torso was cut up, scarred and bloodied. Skin was peeled and blackened-charred, the smell of smoldering flesh made him sick, as a result of his sensitive nose.

    "Aaron....is fine...." Ouroboros said, the Ethereal removed from his voice, his heart as heavy and labored as his breathing at this point. He looked over to Arianna, looking to find the condition she might be in. She wasn't going to last long. He focused for a moment, and it strained him, but he was able to activate the Emerald eyes in order to view her energies...and they were fading fast. His eyes faded... he wanted to smile. He wanted to smirk, part of him deep down wanted to laugh, and enlighten the matriarch about how she was going to die here. That she truly knew nothing...he wanted to mock her for being such an arrogant blonde bitch about "not allowing" a threat to live or exist. But oddly enough...the bigger part of him felt... just frigging awful. He growled as he punched the ground. The Burning sword was reinstated upon his command. No one could see him now...no one could enter his dominion again. Even the Crimson Bitch would find it rather difficult to worm her way back in... difficult as in taking time.... not impossible.

   Ouroboros sat up, grunting as he placed a hand over his sliced open stomach, warm blood oozing from the skin. He forced himself to a standing position. Blood streaming over his chest and arms, he was a total wreck...simply because of his own attacks. He walked slowly, but as composed as one could be, and loomed over Arianna. His Ultima energy had not left him completely...but it was about to. He summoned forth Godsbane, the manifestation of his Ethereal powers in form and function. He looked down at Arianna, the overcast skies overhead, where the Souls once screamed lingering overhead, blackening out his features other than the glowing emerald eyes.

   "Don't move." Ouroboros said. The Arm of Ragnarox formed, weakly as if it were a spectral appendage. He reached down and placed his forefinger on Arianna's head. He closed his eyes. A Glyph formed beneath him on the ground. A web of intricate runes, the likes of which none had seen before. His Ultima energy focused on the Arm of Ragnarox, and reversing the process of Soul absorption. By doing this he was able to sacrifice his own ultima energy in order to heal her...replenish the life that was lost.

   Saving Aaron...using his abilities without restraint. He was totally and utterly exhausted...he was aiming to give her Ultima energy...but he had none to give. Instead...he decided to do what none would have expected him to do. He began to feed his own life essence into the fallen Hale woman. His glowing emerald eyes peered at her through the shadow that seemed to cover his features. He began to remember things...that Ouroboros himself had not done. He even remembered countless days training under Ryurou Shi. He remembered a kid...a brother...he remembered Niall as a...computer? He smiled as he remembered meeting Brandon and Aaron. They hated him from the get go.

    "Aaron insulted me...threatened me the first time I met him...I didn't even want to argue or fight. I was just the driver...doing what I was told..." The voice broke the silence, the eyes glow was not the normal look of malice, but rather...a subtle and non aggressive glow...like a night light to a child...or more specifically...to Silus. "Who would have guessed this would happen...to a monster like me..." He chuckled. In his mind he was racing through memories...not as an involuntary action...but as a whimsical little thing he opted to do... IT was funny. He admitted to the fact that he was a monster. Something the original Ouroboros had never done. It was a reminder to him just how much he was like Niall...and Silus. "They...never gave up on me did they?" He asked himself. A few tears of joy welling up, threatening to spill, but being denied. He scoffed a little, more of a lugh than anything, but he was still dismissive of the theory.

    "I guess even monsters have to die....take care of them." Ouroboros said. His eyes went from their passive lit eyes...to a faded silver-grey. Runic markings snaked from his Ouroboros tattoo, and ran all over his body like silver ink...then spreading out...and soon the silver consumed the body. A strange magical metal was covering the Ethereal King...he stepped back, leaving Arianna be as he staggered back and his head drooped forward.

    Arianna would soon find that where an Ethereal soul is required, there was one given up in place...and the Arm had undone the destructive properties against her. Her "debt" had been paid, and Ouroboros was left there...a statue of spikey-jagged and nearly indestructible and unknown crystalline metal.
* * * * * * *

   Silus felt his life snuff out....and he immediately fell into despair. Falling onto his ass and staring straight ahead, tears streaming but no sound coming from him. His heart....it hurt. He didn't want it to hurt anymore...he was so cold....so broken... but at least he wasn't alone. Naes had made sure of that...Silus was thankful in that respect. But nothing could fill the gaping void in his heart...the void  of proverbial cold and bitterness that frosted over the beating muscle....almost bringing it to a sudden stop.
* * * * * * * *

  Niall's eyes opened up, and he looked around. He was in the Veil...or what was left of it. Bodies everywhere, and nothing but disturbed Earth and looming skies. Niall gimped over towards Arianna, looking down at her.

  "Are you okay!? Arianna!?" He called out, wanting a response. Once he got what he wanted, he began to wonder what had happened...until he turned around and saw the statue. The statue of the Fallen Ethereal King. Niall froze up...unsure if he wanted to leap for joy...or bawl his eyes out.

Arianna could feel it, the cold sensation running through her body as her heart itself seemed to beat loudly. She was dying, each cell railing against such a possibility but all she could do was coldly accept it. If it meant that no one would ever have to suffer the evils of The Lych, she would die, accept it gladly. In fact, it reminded her of her mother, a woman who had died for her family, not as dramatically but it didn’t take away meaning. She smiled when she was informed that her son was alive, that she had not lost another child within a seemingly meaningless conflict. Arianna could truly die happy, after all of these years, she could perhaps die, or simply live on as something else entirely. Ouroboros was a mess himself, blood spilling from wounds that decorated his body, and she could feel internal damage beyond her skill to repair, beyond anyone’s.

The matron chuckled bitterly to herself, a small gout of blood issuing form her lips as it splashed across the ground. A single spectral fingers touched her forehead, something about it strange. She was told not to move, and that was something that Arianna would have no problems following. He was doing something…saving her life? After all she had done, Arianna expected the male to simply let her die, to left her suffer the fate that she had laid out before herself. Instead, was he going to give his own life in return. The male spoke. Aaron did hate him, upon the first moment he saw Ou…Zell, no he didn’t truly hate him, it was just Aaron. Even under that cold exterior of logic, he was human and he was jealous, especially knowing Sean as well as he did. Within a matter of seconds, he was simply a statues one of a strange material, dead.

”You fool.” She chuckled bitterly. ’That’s what I wanted to say to you.” She knew the feeling of losing a parent, and she didn’t even want to imagine what it would feel like for his children. Niall spoke up, asking if she were alright, though pausing as he looked upon the deceased Ethereal King. ’I’m fine Niall…we need to get out of here.” She said weakly, yet strongly at the same time. ”I…believe someone may need support.”
--
Naes could feel it, the energy snuffing out, though he could not tell how. Perhaps it was his connection with Ouro that Sean seemed to share, but whatever the case was, he felt his heart being squeezed and perhaps trying to force tears from him. Instead he would be there for Silus, the one who was perhaps hit harder by this tragedy than most.
--
A fist slammed hard against the ground, doing so against the ground, a small amount of blood welled up between the knuckles. ”Dammit…you had to play the hero.” Michael cursed, moisture collecting around the fringes of his eyes. Raziel simply looked upon the ethereal, passive in his expression. Something about the display confused the male for a second, but only for that second. An orb floating ahead of him showing the image of what looked like the macabre crystal of Michael's father.

Niall just stood there...looking into the silver-gray eyes. Something about them was just...so familiar. The face was all wrong though...those eyes didn't belong on it. Rather a morbid thought, but Niall wished he could pluck them out and give the eyes to the person they really belonged to. Niall cried, but he smiled. He wanted to break down... not in sorrow...but in joy. The nightmare was over. In the end...Zell did it. He found a way back. Niall grunted as he gimped.

"El'thera Mor'll" He said, and as he did the Spell took effect, beginning a long regeneration process for the Ethereal. He walked over to Arianna with a smile. It was unfortunate that he couldn't bring Zell back and keep him. But somehow...it felt like it was going to all work out. [color:6577=#orange]"So uh...who's gonna need support?" Niall asked.
* * * * * * *

Silus sat there, he was emotion dead at this point. He felt the cancerous feeling within him grow. It was eating him away...tearing into the very fabric of his being. His face paled as tears seemed to flow like a leaky socket. His hand began to tremor as his eyes began to turn oddly silver and the iris' ridges began to glow an ungodly indigo, like silver alien-saucers with the space-aged underglow. He felt what felt like...crawling... itmade it's way from his chest to his neck...thankfully due to his hoodie, no one could see. He moved his hooide, the shirt beneath it and looked. He let the shirt ling back to him and shifted his hoodie. He held the ring...feeling almost as if Ouroboros were somehow with him...sentimentality was a powerful thing. He looked to no one, keeping his eyes mostly concealed under his brown hair, that seemed to have the faintest traces of black roots.

He looked for Marie, didn't see her....looked to Sean who was still murdering himself. No doubt that Silus would have to say goodbye to him...the pang in his heart....the sheer thought was enough to make Silus clutch at his chest and his eyes to narrow as he winced and turned back to his normal glare. He was going to use his hoodie to wipe away the tears...but they might have been obscuring the subtle eye change just enough for him to manage...so he left them.
* * * * *

Jordan actually arrive on the scene...he immediately ran to the gem-covered Ouroboros...the grey gem then began to splinter and fracture....dust. Jordan dropped to his knees, looking at the statue...mortified. He let out a pained Yell as he drove his fist into the ground...again and again. He only stopped when he had broken every bone in his fist. He cried like a child...but then again. He was a child...just like Silus. Jordan cursed as he threw his broken fist into the statue of Ouroboros, upon contact his entire wrist cracked. Jordan dropped onto his knee and groaned as he turned around, falling onto his ass and leaning his back against the remains of his father.
* * * * * * *

Shael was perhaps the first one to feel it. The energy was gone, and Silus immediately after him grew cold...almost dead. Shael marched out of the coffee shop and started towards the Chicago "Safehouse". Once he got there, he began looking around for any sign of struggle, any sign of Silus. He called out for his little brother, flipping the table. His face bright red with rage, sweat beading on him as his heart raced to find the little Ethereal Exile. He found that inside Silus's room, there was a note neatly on the perfectly made bed. The bed was never made...why did Shael think this shit was gonna be bad?

It was. Silus apparently left with the those Hale dweebs and the Phaux-Ethereal bastard. Shael drove his fist into the wall, wrapping his hand around the stud and ripping it from the wall, an exposed pipe ripping into the wall. Shael could only image what happened. The Hales actually bested Ouro...and then turned on the innocent little guy. Shael's eyes began to glow red...energy everywhere within the city block lost power...Shael absorbing it all. He would need to repay the Hales for their "friendly nature" towards his little brother. First he needed to fix the damn house. He'd run by the hardware store soon....or maybe he could call up that old Ethereal friend that was in town...
* * * * * *

Niall was already beginning the process of self-repair, Arianna’s face sullen in expression as she looked upon the ethereal king. He asked who would need support, his more specifically. ’I would imagine the child who just lost a father.” She said solemnly, something within her tone that spoke an infinite amount of understanding. She latched onto Niall and with a spoken word they were gone.
--
”You couldn’t have done anything ethereal prince.” Raziel spoke with an even tone, the dark haired ethereal silently mourning, no, he cried without restraint. His father was dead, having truly sacrificed himself.  The ultima energy itself slowly rising around his body as he violently coughed up blood. A pain rose through his body and sent Michael into spasms. ”Well isn’t that interesting…we need to go now.” Michael however could not argue if he wanted to, Raziel placing his palm upon the ethereal and within a moment they were gone.

Brandon wandered aimlessly around the castle, looking for the ethereal known as Niall, his eyes filled with fear as they darted around. It was upon passing the teleportation chamber that he was met with a bright flash of light, Niall and his mother stepping out of the room. Without even thinking, Brandon ran upto the male and hugged him tightly, unable to really say anything just then. ”Brandon?”

”You’re alright! I thought I’d lost both of you.” He said a small amount of relief flowing into his voice as he embraced the two, near the point of crying.
--
Naes felt a change within Silus, something but not enough of something to worry about. He was changed, ever since his father’s death. Sean also changed…he gave up in a way. He sighed, and walked away, knowing that marie would have a room for him, and Sean, plopping down and letting the effects of all of the radiant emotions wash over him. Naes found himself crying, and he hated it. Turning over he looked at Sean, sighing lightly and motioned for him to join him in the pointless grief; and so he did.