Raphael opened his eyes,
at least that's how it felt like, the truth is that such a concept
was alien to this realm since he had no eyes to open. Raphael knew he
had come here in body, and for a fleeting moment wondered if his body
was truly here or if it had been destroyed and would be reassembled
upon him leaving here. Of course that was if he would ever leave this
place. Raphael firmly set such thought aside, he had done things like
this long enough to know that such ponderings were meaningless at
best, dangerous at worst.
Perhaps in the
time of the eldar gods, before the coming of chaos perhaps then such
thoughts and concepts had a meaning here he
considered. Before the doom of
Eldanesh.
He
forced the thoughts from his mind, non of that mattered here. The
beings who ruled this place had no use for such thoughts and thoughts
was everything here. Thoughts formed his surroundings and shone like
a beacon upon the skies. They would find him if he considered such
things.
Raphael
put one foot before the other, if he could even be considered to have
feet, and started walking. He knew exactly where he was, what he
didn't know was how he had ended up here. He focused part of his mind
on being totally blank not revealing his presence to the inhabitants
of the realm, the other he focused on considering what had happened.
There had been a battle, a warp rift had formed, the Unforgiven had
been closing in on him. He had closed the rift sealing himself
inside. He considered for a moment if he had done it to avoid capture
or because of some lingering loyalty to those who had once been his
brothers. That proved to be a mistake, even considering such emotions
here so different from those who ruled the realm, was like a scream
of dissonance. And he immideatly saw heard the effects, he couldn't
see anything but barren ground and mist around him, and even that was
just his mind trying to enforce familiar concepts upon what it
registered, but he could hear growls snarls and howls coming from
deep in the mist.
They
inhabitants of this realm was now aware that someone who didn't
belong was walking their home. They would find him regardless of what
he did.
Raphael
stopped, coming here was a mistake he knew. He wondered for a second
why he had made such a decision, but then realized it didn't matter
and such emotions would weaken him. He drew his daemonsword from his
scabbard. The dark runes on it glowed. Alone amongst all objects in
this realm it seemed solid and real. The runes that sealed the demon
inside it protected it from the chaos that ruled this land. Raphael
began muttering incantations under his breath and drew lines in the
sand around him, he felt the warp solidifying in the circle he drew
and his own representation as well. Doing so would make him easier to
find but it would also weaken those who were coming for him.
Then
in an instant a blood coloured demon hound came charging towards him.
The flesh hounds of khorne he realised. They had been created out of
the blood gods hatred for psykers and of course they would find a
psyker here faster than any other being.
The
demonhound threw itself at him jaws wide, passing the runes on the
ground and solidifying just before Raphael's daemonsword scattered it
essence. But before the hissing vapour of it had even dissipated
another came at him and right behind that yet another. Howls were now
heard from every direction. As Raphael killed the daemons, he could
see the fog being pushed away from him. Revealing more barren ground.
And revealing more hounds. Unfortunatly also revealing him to the
hounds proper.
They
were everywhere now charging him like a tidal wave. But Raphael was
the truthseeker, once of the most powerful space marine librarians of
the great crusade, he had fought under Lion el Johnsson he had fought
under Horus. He had fought in the siege of the emperors palace. He
had fought both sides on Caliban. He had bested champions and demons
of every god in the cosmos.
Yet he
was no longer in the cosmos. And for every demonhound he slew he
could feel the massive presence he knew was their master stirring a
little realising what was going on. Long before he fully did so
daemons of immense power would already be aware of it and would
destroy Raphael in an instant.
There
was also another problem. His own demon sword was gorging itself upon
the daemons he slew growing more powerful every second. For now it
helped him stay in controll of the battle. But he could already feel
it beginning to attempt to take him over, laughing at him. The
daemonprince in the blade would possess him and consume these hounds
long before any greater servants of khorne manifested themselves
here. Then the hounds would become the hunted ones. Not that it would
matter to Raphael.
Or
perhaps it would. A fully fledged demon prince was for to much for
these demonic beasts, now beign posssessed wasnt an option but...
Raphael lowered his barriers towards the sword, the demon inside
wasn't stupid it knew something was odd when he did that on his own
accord, so it hesitated, that was a mistake, if it had surged into
him when he lowered its defences it might have possessed him now
Raphael switched from defence to offence, he grasped the demonpricne
with his psychic power drawing it into himself. Drawing power from
the runes on it to remain in controll. The cicles and signs he had
written in the snad flickered and died. But it didnt matter any more.
Raphael felt the full power of a demonprince fill him. He towered
above the demonbeasts, no longer a mortal psyker to be hunted in
their eyes, but one of their own kind a daemon so far above them in
the heirarchy of these things that a mere thought from it could wipe
them from existance. Ofcourse this was just what it appeared to be.
Rapahels full power was being spend holdig that form and not giving
in to the demon. For every ounce of its power he used he felt that
the lines between them blurred. The demon was not amused, but not
angry either. It knew this might end with it getting the chance to
consume Raphael anyway.
The
flesh hounds whined and backed away from the being losing solidity as
they went, then turned and ran. Long before they had reached the
mists in the distance they faded away.
Daemon-Raphael
began to walk again, in this more powerful form he could see much
futher into the mist than before seeing cities and mountains in the
far distance and while he was walking at a slow dignified pace he
moved much faster though the landscape.
He
didnt know how long he had been walking, time or space had no real
meaning in this place, and attempting to force these concepts on the
realm would either reveal him or weaken him so much that the demon he
had merged with would end up on top.
He
could constantly feel memories slipping away, into the realm itself
or being stolen by the daemon he was struggling with. If he could not
leave this place soon he would be entirely lost to it. The problem
was he had no idea how to get out. Daemons got out by being summoned,
or by finding places where the barrier was weak between real space
and the warp. Finding such places in real space was easy, but here
space had no real meaning, and Raphael had no idea whatsoever of how
daemons found these rifts from their side.
And as
the daemon in him stole away his memories it created vivid pictures
in the warp of things from Raphaels past hoping to distract him.
At one
time Raphael felt the entire warp shift, although he was sure no one
else had felt it, and found himself standing inside a ruined
building. A few feet from him stood a younger version of himself
fighting against a black armoured opponent, back to back with him
fought another armoured giant. And in the distance two figures, one
even larger, was fighting with each other. All of sudden one of them
fell on his back. The other loomed over him with sword held high, the
one on the ground blasted the standing one with a bolt of multi
coloured light and the largest one fell. The smaller one got up on
his feet and looked at the larger one then fell on his knees beside
him. The figure that had fought back to back with Raphael deispatched
his opponent and cast an eye towards the duel.
“No!”
he he creamed when he saw what had happened “Emperor on Terra, No!”
Raphael saw himself cut the throat of his foe and then turnign
towards what his firend had reacted upon. He saw the look of surprise
in his face than realization and resignation. In that same moment the
entire building was rocked by a discharge of energy and the vey goung
began trembling.
“We
have to get out of here old friend, the planet is going to break
apart” the younger Raphael said.
“We
have to save the lion, he is more important than either of us!” his
friend shouted.
“He's
to far away, we have to go now!” Raphael responded.
“Then
go! I will not falter from my duty” Raphael's friend screamed in
rage and took one step toward the fallen and the kneeling man.
Raphael
watched himself take a step to block the other marines path.
“I
am afraid I cannot let you do that Tyrell” He said.
“What
are you talking about?” The other one said surprised.
“We
need to go”
“Never!”
“very
well, this must come to pass”
“What
are you talking about?” Tyrell to force his way past Raphael, who
blocked him. Tyrell snarled with anger
“get
our of my way!”
“I
once told you that I had seen that the lion had to live, that why I
placed you in his vicinity”
“So
then lets save him!”
“it
was so this could come to pass, if you've ever believed in my vision
old friend...”
“What
are you talking about...” Tyrell began, then a look of horror was
upon his face. “You're a traitor” he said aghast.
“I...”
“Why
Raphael? why did we cast down the statues of the dark gods on our
homeworld? Why did thousands die fighting our dark overlords? Just so
you could sell the emperor's fist born son to those very gods here
and now?!” the larger marine growled and swung his glittering
powersword against Raphael who parried it with a force sword.
“It
must come to pass” snarled Raphael while parrying a few more blows.
“I'll
kill you before I let it come to pass”
“Perhaps,
you always were the better swordsman, but in the end my life matters
little in the grand design of things, and you are not skilled enough
to kill me before the warp storm tears this place appart.
Daemon-Raphael
watched them circle each other in total silence, the closest of
brothers on separate sides of a conflict at last.
After
a few minutes the younger Raphael took a step back away from the
larger marine, they had circled so that he was facing away from the
lion's duel.
“Its
to late to save the lion old friend, and I am leaving, please come
with me” Tyrell looked above his shoulder. And saw that a massive
chasm had opened between him and the primarch.
“I
will never join you traitor” he spat, and turned back to his foe,
but Raphael was already fading away into the darkness of Caliban.
“Then
I bid you goodbye he said”
“I'll
hunt you to the ends of the universe Raphael! Let a thousand times a
thousand years pass and I'll never stop hunting you! I'll come back
from death itself if I have to!”
daemon-Raphael
saw the last vestiges of his younger self fade away and then the room
on Caliban started to fade. He heard the man who had once been his
best friend scream his name after him.
He
found himself standing back in the warp upon the same plain as
earlier, he had probably been there all the time. He felt a moments
remorse for what he had just seen. But then he shed it, remorse was
weakness and with the daemon in his mind he could not afford such
things. He pressed on.
Another
time Raphael felt something stirring in the warp close to him, and
all of sudden something came out of the mist, though walking slowly
the being moved at great speed. The being shone with inner power and
while nothing in the realm had a real physical form this being least
of all Raphael immediately knew what it was. He knew the presence and
his mind made it look like it knew it would look in the physical
world. In real space it was dangerous but here it was definitely the
top predator. Its beak gleaming and its form being less stable than
anything else. Both a anthropomorphic bird and cloud of pure energy
at the same time.
A lord
of change, a greater demon of the god of change himself.
Raphael
drew more of the demon in the sword into himself. If the lord of
change attacked him he wouldn't stand a chance against it, but his
illusion wouldn't last for more than seconds against such a master of
magic. The demon looked at him for a second when passing by, but then
obviously decided that either he wasn't worth the effort to consume
or that he was so weak that he wasn't worth the time it would take to
consume him. The greater demon hurried by and Raphael felt more of
his memories being stolen by the demon in the sword. The lines
between their two identities blurring.
He
pressed on.
Onwards
and backwards.
He saw
many memories as they slipped by, some was his own others were those
of the daemon. Other still were of those that the daemon had
consumed. Raphael could really not see the diffrence any more. He saw
himself betraying the dark angels, he saw himself leading the local
population at the dark angels side against the followers of the dark
gods. He saw himself on dark throne commanding the death of millions,
he saw himself fighting followers of khorne in a ruined city. He saw
himself turning over entire planets to chaos worshipping despots. He
saw himself fighting Tyrell a thousand times over thousands of years
on thousands of different worlds. He wondered if if was the memories
of the demon who had been in the sword for many of these encounters
or his own.
He
pressed on.
The
cities and mountains had all disappeared in the distance, not slowly
but all of sudden, he was ina blank void. Even the ground was
loosing detail, daemon Raphael was wondering if he was pushing closer
to the edge of the realm of chaos or to its centre. Then all of
sudden before him was a tree. A tree so massive it covered the entire
horizon. Raphael had completely forgotten who he was by now, the only
thought he could hold on to was not to let the daemon merge fully
with him and find his way out of this place. He began walking towards
the tree. It had 8 mighty branches and four great roots. Each digging
deep into the depths of the realm below. Each branch spreading across
the sky larger and wider than anything Raphael could relate it to.
Then all of sudden he stood before the tree. He touched the bark and
knew, all of sudden, this tree was a remnant of what the warp had
been before chaos. The gravestone of the gods that had resided in the
realm before the birth of the four.
Raphael
began walking around the tree. Then in one place the four roots
somehow bended and overlapped and created a window. In the window was
steel bars. And inside was a being even larger and more powerful than
the lord of change that Rahael had seen before. Its scaled body and
claws constatly tearign at the roots of the tree and its fans and
poison gnawing it them. At the same time the dragon was a man
however. An old old man, in tattered cloths trying to break the
mighty roots with his teeth and nails. Both the dragon and the man
suddenly stopped and fixed its eyes on Raphael. Raphael drew more of
the daemon inside him to try to hide.
“You
dont belong in this realm” the dragon hissed.
“I
dont?” daemon-Raphael responded.
“No
you are mortal...” the dragon hissed “I was once mortal” he
continued, now in the voice of the old man. “Before... this place”
Raphael
considered heading on for a second, the daemon was urging him to, but
somewhere deep inside he still didnt trust the daemon. He took a step
towards the prison. And knelt before the entrance.
“who
put you here old man” he asked.
“Why,
the gods of course” the dragon answered hissing and Rpahael
realised it was laughing. “in my pride I sought to use the gift
they had given me agaisnt them. And they chained me here by the tree,
they always chain those they have defeated here. The tree itself is a
prisoner of this realm.”
“The
tree is sentient?”
“This
realm you see is just your mind trying to cope with the madness of
this place, its not a tree and i'm not a dragon, neither am I an old
man.”
“What
are you then?”
“A
daemon of course, one of the first, a man once captured the gods
themselves and freed them in exchange for a portion of their power, I
slew that man and took his power for my own, and when I died after a
cursed life, I became the very thing I had slain, I then challenged
the gods and failed and they chained me here”
Upon
hearing that the dragonhad challanged the gods themselves Raphael
drew more of the daemon inside him.
“You
really dont want to do that mortal” the dragon said, in the voice
of the old man.
“Why
not?” daemon-Raphael asked.
“I
am no danger to you I cannot reach out from behind my bars and even
if could i'm not interested in eating mortals. And the more of the
the daemons power you take the more you become him. And you dont want
that”
“No”
Raphael realised, “I dont” The dragon looked at him.
“Do
you even remember why you came here?”
“Do
you?”
“Once
I would have known, but I cannot see beyond the shadow of this tree
now. But seeing that you're in this place I think you are capable of
making tough decisions.”
A part
of Raphael's self stirred. “Stop sweet talking me daemon and get to
the point”
“Very
well, release me from this prison and i'll free you from that daemon
and grant you safe passage back into reality”
“And
how do I know that you wont just consume me as soon as you're free
from the chains that bind you.” Daemon-Raphael asked.
“That
is your daemon talking mortal, he knows i'll consume him but i've
told you I have no interest in eating mortals”
“So
you say but how do I know that? I dont even know who you are”
“ I
was Sigror who slew the daemon dragon Fraenir, who ate his heart
stole his power and lived a cursed life and on my death in flames I
became a daemon dragon myself”
“None
of these names mean anything to me daemon, you might be making them
up as we speak again why should I trust you” Raphael asked. The
dragon growled.
“What
choice do you have mortal? Risk being consumed by me or certainly be
consumed by the demon in your sword. But you want to be assured I am
not interested in you? I serve the outcast, the banished one.”
Raphael could feel the hatred that the daemon within him had felt
towards this being change to something akin to fear. As the daemon
drew a way little a memory slipped back into Raphael's mind.
“Malice”
he said. The daemon within him screamed with rage. And he could see
the dragon in the prison growing more solid while the old man grew
less so.
“So
many years” the dragon said “I am not allowed to speak that name
myself, but with it I feel power surging though me again, and the
very name spoken here weakens those who serve the other four.”
Raphael could feel that the words were true, as he had spoken the
name many of his memories had returned.
“Malice!”
he said again tasting the name, seeking the question that he wanted
to ask. “Is Malice the one who have been guiding me?”
“That
I do not know mortal, I have been chained here since time before
time, release me and I shall find your answers for you”
“Deal!”
Raphael spat, some part of his old self said that perhaps there was a
reason he had come here after all. He swung his daemonsword towards
the bars blocking the dragons escape, as the blade met the metal the
daemon inside it screamed and there was a flash of light. When
Raphael opened his eyes that were not eyes again, he was fully
himself again. The sword stood trust into the ground a few feet away
from him. The bars were as solid as ever. He rose to his feet, for
the first time in what could be described as an eternity he realised
that he had no feet nor eyes that he was just a being of energy, and
that he didn't belong here. He didn't pick up the sword, he didn't
trust the daemon right now. It had gleaned far to much of his secrets
he was for to vulnerable now. The sword would have to be sealed away,
if it was destroyed the daemon would be free to spread his secrets in
the warp, and he could not afford that, no more could he afford
another person wielding it in his lifetime.
“I'll
deal with it for you once i'm out of here” the dragon growled “But
you'll have to come up with soemthing a little more creative when it
comes to breaking these chains”
“Why
should I care? I could just throw the sword into your prison and it
wotn ever matter to me again, I'm free of the daemon, I can find my
own way out”
“You
cannot touch the sword, and you'll never find a way out without your
disguise” Raphael nodded, it made sense. But now that he could
think more clearly there was certain precautions he could take.
“I
will release you daemon, if you tell me your true name”
The
dragon roared in his prison. “Do you even know what you ask
mortal?”
“I
know full well, without me you'll rot in there to the end of days.”
“and
without me the hounds of khone will eventually find you sorcerer”
“they'll
destroy me and that will be it, while you will suffer in there for
eternity”
“Very
well mortal, I am Nithhogg, now free
me!” Raphael could feel the power in the name as he spoke it, no
daemon could lie about its true name at least not to a trained
psyker.
Raphael ocne again walked
up to the prison this time he touched the bars with his hand, reached
into them seeking answers to how they were made instead of just
trying to break them. He found the asnwer then withdrew his hand.
“Ingenious”he
said softly.
“I'm glad you
appreciate the craftmanship mortal” the dragon said drily. “now
release me”
“I cannot”
Raphael stated.
“Are you trying to
cheat me mortal? You will never get out of here without me help.”
“These bars aren't
steel or iron, they are made of pain, remorse and guilt. They've
chained you with your own mortal feeling that you shed when you
became a daemon, thats why you have two forms in there, the old man
is you with these emotions the dragon is you without them”
“And how will you
free me?”
“As I said I
cannot, only you can, you have to push though these feelings and
escape”
“I cannot” the
dragon hissed
“No, you cannot
but the old man can, you must shed the dragon”
“this is what I
get for trusting a sorcerer, you ask me to leave my power behind?”
“No I ask you to
shed this false image of yourself you've created.”
“I wont” the
dragon spat.
“I wasn't about to
give you any choice” Raphael responded “To much is at stake” He
lifted his hand and slowly began whispering incantations, summoning
mixed with banishment. Full well knowing that the gods of chaos would
surely feel that someone was messing with their prison.
This time it wasn't the
servants of Khorne who found him but the servants of Tzeentch,
perhaps the lord of change that he had passed earlier was not as far
away as he thought for he had barely begun the incantation before the
sky rays of the god of change arrived. Swooping over him slashing at
him. Without his sword and with his psychic abilities directed at
another task Raphael had no choice but to continue. Once again he
felt the greater presences in this realm stir. Much faster now.
Whatever Nithhogg had done they clearly didn't want him freed. Blood
if such a thing could even be said to exist in this realm was running
down him in torrents yet he carried on the summoning. If he failed
he'd be subjected to a fate worse than death anyway. He could feel
the dragon trying to resit the summon on the other side of the bars.
In the end he couldn't but he could hold out long enough for the
daemons of the great architect to destroy Raphael. He would just have
to hope that freedom was more worth to Nithhogg than escaping the
pain. Raphael saw the man inside fallt o his knees and embracing the
summon. He felt the ritual falling into place. Then he felt another
pressence.
“You must not free
him mortal” A shrill voice said. Raphael turned around just in
time to see a bolt of multi colored light hit him right in the chest.
He was thrown of his feet, quite how far he didn't know, but distance
didn't matter here. He jumped back up and saw that it was the lord of
change who had finnally arrived.
“Raphael
Truthseeker” it said and Raphael could see it dismantled what was
left of his ritual with no more than thought. “I am dissapointed in
you, had you just come to me I would've granted to passage away from
this place for the simple price of your eternal servitude. Instead I
find you trying to free an enemy of all reason.”
Raphael didnt even bother
answering instead he threw a bolt of multi coloured light back at the
daemon, the effect was spectacular. You had to admire the daemons
skill, he simply caught the spell mid air and threw it back. This
time Rapahel reacted and threw himself to the ground avoiding the
spell. He heard the flapping of wing and knew it was all over. Then
he heard the screech of a bird and the roar of a much greater being.
He got to his feet and saw the old man, standing over the smoking
carcass that had once been a lord of change. Raphael was created not
to feel fear but in that moment he realised that he had been cheated.
Knowing this beings true name would be difference between lasting
couple of seconds and a couple of minutes and neither seemed very
gratifying at this point.
“Its been so long”
the old man said. Then laughed, the laugh semmed to fill tehe void
between land and sky.
“So you are free,
I believe you owe me safe passage home and some answers” Rapahel
pointed out.
The old man turned against
him.
“I owe you nothing
little mortal, you didnt free me, I freed myself”
“So you're going
to destroy me now?”
“I told you
before, destroying mortals doesnt intrest me I am the Malice Striker,
I have a war to wage against my lord bothers.” He looked at
Raphael. “And while you do not serve my lord, you seems to be a far
to valuable tool to simply break. I will send you back Truthseeker,
but if you ever cross me, then I will consume you.” he lifted his
hand, and for a moment it was the dragons claw Raphael saw, and then
a flash of light and Raphael was gone.
Nithhogg transformed
himself into a dragon and lifted of, so much had changed since he had
last been free, but some things hadn't, this realm was still filled
with his enemies and they still needed to die.
Raphael opened his eyes,
his real eyes this time. A hooded man was kneeling beside him and he
felt an echo of seeing Luther kneeling over the lion many many ages
ago. This man wasn't Luther however.
“Welcome back,
Truthseeker” Cypher said with a wry smile.
