Eliel walked through the woods, in a complete mess. The only companion here with him today was Abel, the only other remnant of House Usreanac. Abel was once his sister's, a favorite pet. The thunderbird a a beautiful and powerful think, but it was just as cruel as the drow it was raised by.

Menakay had died but a week ago, right in front of him. As much as it would hurt any man, it had a terrible effect on Eliel, whom had thought her dead for the last 50 years. He had felt terrible at the same time, having left her to her fate, not even trying to rescue her once he'd left. He felt she'd died in pain, suffering to the last breath.

Eliel was very withdrawn, eyes looking at the ground but not focused on anything, somewhat glazed over. He was simply wandering now, trapped within himself. His face wore neither sadness nor grief, not joy nor pleasure. It was a blank mask, a cover for the chaos of emotion swirling just beneath the surface.

Eliel's hair was worn loosely, the usual leather strap hanging onto a clump of hair. His clothes were worn and torn, filthy. He had left everyone behind without further notice, to try to leave himself behind.



Nicodemus stood from his prey, a satisfied smirk adorning the cruel visage that was his face. Nicodemus had taken his fill, leaving the child in her bed, eyes blank, a look of pure terror forever carved on her face, open eyes staring into oblivion.

He walked from the open door, eyes burning bright in the darkness of night. He left the home behind him, listening to the screams of a mother whom had found her daughter dead, finding he vocalized sorrow like one hearing music for the first time.

Nicodemus walked through the town gates and into the forest, noose hanging from his neck, dagger lodged in his back. The daemon felt Eliel from afar, like a beacon to his supernatural predatory instincts.

Who did Eliel think he was, to have just walked off after leaving the drider pits? He had just left her and Fefnir, having become completely withdrawn and silent. As saddening as his sister’s death must have been, he had to face the fact that she was dead. The woman wasn’t coming back, and he had at least gotten to see her one last time before she died. Cordelia really didn’t see what the big deal was. It wasn’t like he had lost a child; Menakay had only been his sister, and therefore, he should have been over it by now.

It had already been a week, and it was time for her to find him. If he wasn’t over it, then he would be by the time she was done with him. In all honesty, the way he had acted had begun to worry her. Eliel had always been very calm, collected, and fun to be around – she didn’t think she had ever once seen him as as much of a mess as she had a week ago. Cordelia knew it hurt to lose loved ones, but she also knew that there was a right way to mourn and a wrong way to mourn, and there came a time when a person just had to get slapped in the face and told to get over it. Perhaps that was callous, but it was the truth, and Cordelia would find him and help him realize that whether he wanted her to or not. As his best friend and replacement sister-and-mother-figure, it was her responsibility to help him to the best of her ability.

It really wasn’t too wise for her to be in Norwood, considering the fact that Alaina lived here and Manic had warned her not to go see the child. As much as she hated that man and his constant ordering her around, she knew he would make good on his promise to hurt her if he found out. However, Eliel lived in Norwood too, and she wasn’t staying clear of the place simply because of one person who shouldn’t have even been involved in their vendetta. Even so, it was for that reason she had stayed off any of the pathways, to the point where one might have thought her to be lost. If she was going to try to find Eliel, she wasn’t going to get killed doing it. That would just completely defeat the whole purpose of this.

As she continued, there was a familiar figure among the trees. A soft smile brushed onto her face, mostly in relief that he hadn’t killed himself or anything crazy like that. “Eliel!” she called, beginning to walk faster to catch up to him until she was jogging. Once at his side she returned to a steady walk, a frown almost winning over her features. “Hun…” she said in a knowing voice, leaving it there for him to take or leave. She would only force him to start talking if he didn’t take it from there, in which case there would be no hope of him getting rid of her.

But since when had there ever been hope for anyone of getting rid of her?

Eliel looked up at Cordelia for a moment, looking at her like a stranger. A light of recognition flickered in his eyes and he gave a faint smile. At least he had her. She cared enough to come find him. Eliel looked back to the ground. Abel screeched overhead, alerting Cordelia to his presence. Eliel wasn't too sure if Cordelia would approve of him keeping the bird, considering it would make him think about Mena, but he had to.

Eliel remained silent for a couple moments. “Hello Cordelia.” He said with a put out tone. It had been a week since then... but it still hurt as bad as when she died. He had known her for some 200 years, most people knew their family for a couple decades. Many people underestimated how much affection would grow between a brother and a sister after so long. Eliel and Mena had nearly shared the same thought, most of the time thinking the same thing at the same time.

The drow looked at her sadly. “ Sorry for leaving.” He said simply, but the feeling was genuine. He had left behind his friends, quite possibly worrying them terribly. He probably should have stayed and talked about it, but Eliel was not a completely open man. He had never really shared his story with anybody but Carrah, whom had turned on him.

“i should probably tell you. About Menzoberranzan.” He said after a minute. A sound made his ears twitch, but nothing more. “I killed them all Cordelia.” He said sadly.



Nicodemus strode through the woods, feet moving so slowly yet so quickly, making him appear a shade in the forest. He concentrated on the strange beacon of emotion, extreme emotion in every way, every emotion at full strength in this man. A quick route to power? Who knew.

The daemon floated quicker, eyes burning gold in the green light. He approached a large bush, right next to the man. He could feel not only one, but two beings there now, and a minor one. He peered though a hole in the foliage with curious eyes, flickering rapidly. He wanted this feeding, he needed it. Every instinct told him it was not smart, every instinct telling him he had already fed, any more could have unknown results.

But it was so tempting.

Nicodemus gave short, rattling breaths as he thought of this man's soul, how experienced and full it was. He longed to clench around the man's mouth, to take in his soul as an empowerment to himself.

He needed this.

“Hello Cordelia.”

Between his tone of voice and Abel’s screech, Cordelia already knew she didn’t like where this conversation could possibly lead. He needed to get rid of that bird; the first step to moving on was disposing of everything that could potentially remind a person of the past. As soon as that was done, he could concentrate on removing his thoughts from Menakay. She nodded once at his words, taking a moment to look over his countenance. Depressed in every meaning of the word, perhaps even numb. Cordelia wasn’t an empath, but she knew what he was going through. Talking merely because it was a formality, a technically, something to keep the balance… it almost hurt her to see him in the same state she had been in years ago. Of course, she had been numb to the point where she hadn’t even gotten out of bed, so he was at least doing better than she had.

“Sorry for leaving.”

“You’d better be,” Cordelia said, forcing an arrogant grin on her face. She immediately regretted it, though, remembering how much she had hated that people tried to be normal after something like death happened. Yet, at the same time, she had hated sympathy, any sort of extreme pity… so what was she supposed to do? Eliel was her friend and she didn’t want to upset him further, especially since her goal here was to help, not to hinder. She let the grin fall from her face and allowed a more genuine smile to come upon her lips. “It’s okay.” She nodded once, figuring that was appropriate enough. If he reacted badly to anything, then she would just say so.

“I killed them all Cordelia.”

Once he said he needed to tell her something, her face became serious and once again she nodded, ready to be there for him. This was something important that needed to be dealt with, and although talking didn’t always help, she had heard that it could do wonders for a person. Her eyes widened a little bit when he said he had killed them all. She didn’t know who ‘all’ meant, but with the way he was acting it must have hurt a great deal. Cordelia judged people a lot, but when it came to killing and death she was no one to pass any sort of judgment. With a bit of hesitance, Cordelia reached out her hand, resting it firmly on Eliel’s shoulder and looking him in the eye with the same amount of confidence.

“That’s okay, too,” she said. “It doesn’t matter who they were, or what they did, or what you did… that has nothing to do with this. Eliel, you need to let it go. Just let it go.” Cordelia swallowed, a slight lump in her throat as she thought of all the possible things he could have gone through. On impulse, Cordelia pulled him to her, her right arm draped tightly over his shoulder while the left hooked around his waist. In this tender gesture of friendly affection she neglected to notice the presence of another, mostly because Eliel was just more important.

“It’s all okay, hun.”

Eliel bit his lip as she hugged him, hugging her back. “But it does matter Cordelia. It all has to do with everything.” He said shakily. “Fifty years ago, I went mad. I shattered the scimitar I have now, I slaughtered my mother. I maimed by brother and pinned him ten feet up a stone pillar. I killed off my family. Because they put Mena in those pits. I thought she was dead.” He said, a tear running down his cheek.

“I walked for about a year, lost. A woman found me, Carrah. She cared for me, loved me. I thought it would be fine. Then she tried to kill me. It was all a lie. She was a bounty hunter.” He said, looking to the side.

“Then imagine. I enter the drider pits 50 years later to find my beloved sister has been suffering, left forgotten there.” He said, shaking a little. He had trouble starting, but now it spilled out. He was too confused to know if it had helped any. His cool mask broke, becoming a face of emotion.

“They're all dead, all because of me.” He said, this time his voice was steady. He broke away from Cordelia's hug and looked to the side, seeing a pair of yellow eyes.



Nicodemus listened to the story, fixated on his words. He listened to his words as his emotions shifted, anger, despair, guilt... It was growing stronger. Voices began chiming in Nicodemus' head, the voices of so many, wanting the same fate to happen to others.

Do it, do it, Do it, do It, DO IT! The voices cried in his mind, Nicodemus gave a squeal and his freakishly long, bony fingers clawed at his temples. Nicodemus' body rocked and twisted, trying to shake the voices out.

Finally he was unable to take it anymore, between the voices and the emotions, he moved into the open. An endless chant filled the night air, arcane words going over and over, focusing on several spells. And orb of fire erupted in one hand, unraveling into a whip. He lashed out with it, wrapping around the drow's ankle. He pulled him down, throwing an inflict minor wounds spell.

Nicodemus threw a haunting tide spell at him, a gray burst of souls intended for the man. Nicodemus' senses were too blocked by Eliel's emotion to sense Cordelia there.

Nick's skinny hands raked out to grasp at air, reaching for the drow anxiously.

((OoC: Forgive the potential crappiness. Wanted to get it up before you got back though so you didn't kill me. >.>;; ))

---------------

She almost flinched when he returned the hug, but managed to keep herself still. Hugs were usually reserved for Kaiden alone, which was really what made this so awkward. Eliel needed the comfort, though, and she couldn’t exactly back out when she had been the one to initiate the affection. Cordelia listened as he spoke, silent and patient as the words flowed. Killed his mother, hurt his brother, all for nothing more than a sister… while it was passionate and oh so very violent, she didn’t see the point. She was only his sister. Cordelia bit the inside of her cheek, wanting to tell him how pointless this was but holding back.

As he went on, she did feel a pang of hurt in her chest for him. It was terrible, what he had gone through, all for his sister. She knew she had to have meant a lot to him, especially after what had happened in the catacombs. “Oh, Eliel…” she said quietly, for once not knowing what else she could say. Typically she always had the words, even if those words wound up hurting a person. As he began to shake she rubbed his back lightly, the only other thing she could really do to try and make him feel better.

“They're all dead, all because of me.”

“Perhaps it’s better that way,” she said, sucking in a deep breath as he pulled away from her. Cordelia allowed her arms to fall to her sides, her thumbs hooking into her pockets. “I mean, if they had to be dead, at least –” Cordelia stopped immediately when Nicodemus came into plain sight. Her eyes widened; afraid for a few moments as she recollected what he had tried to do to her. Her jaw clenched then and her eyes narrowed, a low growl emitting from the very depths of her throat. Her hands clenched into fists at her sides, fingernails driving into the flesh of her palms to stop herself from moving backward at the sight of the fire. He seemed to have gotten stronger since the last time she had seen him, but she still knew what he did. She had seen it up close and he had tried and failed to do the same to her.

Eliel was taken down and Cordelia snarled, not about to just let the demon have him. She lifted her hands, black magic beginning to crackle between her fingers, bouncing eagerly. Enervation was probably risky, considering how close Nicodemus and Eliel were to each other. Nevertheless, the enervation bolt left her hands, headed toward Nicodemus. He hadn’t seemed to have noticed her, for whatever reason, but that was most likely for the best. If he didn’t know she was there, then he couldn’t very well concentrate on her, could he?

Eliel was tripped by the whip, falling to the ground hard enough to knock the wind out of him. He got up to Attack when a minor wounds spell wracked his body. He twisted as he felt hundreds of cutting pains hit him. He was truly angry now. Eliel seized his wand and pulled it free, aiming at Nicodemus.

The wave hit him, washing over him. He felt like he was doused in ice, losing all hope. Suddenly this skinny daemon before him seemed powerful, too much to beat. Eliel sighed and lowered his wand, no longer caring. He was actually terrified.

Eliel looked into it's eyes hopelessly, lost in a wave of swirling emotion. His eyes glazed over as the demon neared.



Nicodemus reached for the drow hungrily, looking at Cordelia when he felt the magic. He looked at her strangely, as if just noticing her when he was hit by the bolt full in the chest. He groaned as it hit him, sounding like a wail of the tortured souls of hell.

Nick hit the ground and seemed to have grown less solid. The ground could be seen trhough him faintly, just outlines. He snarled and threw an ignite spell on the ground before her to discourage her. Nicodemus turned his attention to Eliel once more.

With one big hand he seized a hand-full of white hair, wrenching his hair back. In a second, Nicodemus swooped down, jaws locking over Eliel's mouth. He took in a series of deep, rattling breaths, starting the soul flow.

Nicodemus felt power rushing back to him as he devoured some of the drow's soul, shivering with excitement.

Cordelia was shocked to see Eliel dropping his wand and submitting like that. The spell… it had to have been the spell that parasite had used. Gritting her teeth, Cordelia watched without even an ounce of joy as Nicodemus was knocked back and away. No one messed with the people she cared about, and these sorts of situations were never fun or enjoyable in the least. A low growl emitted from his throat, warning him to stay away from Eliel.

She almost shouted when the ignite spell was thrown at her and Cordelia took a step back, moving so quickly then she fell over on her rear end. Fear widened and filled her eyes at the sight of the fire and she scrambled away from it, returning to her feet in the process. She stared at the burning ground before her eyes flicked to Nicodemus, locked on Eliel’s mouth and solid again. Again she grit her teeth and growled before going into gaseous form, passing through the flames with ease. As soon as she was through them Cordelia solidified and leapt at Nicodemus, pulling him off of the drow and with her to the ground.

“I should have killed you when you were weaker,” she said, the sound of her anger increasing with each word that fell from her lips. She had already hit him with enervation, which should have made him weaker instead of making his desire to feed even stronger. He pulled her dagger from its sheath as a threat, uncertain of what she could cast to disable him for a while. Cordelia grunted and turned to look back at Eliel, not getting a very good look at him due to her position. “Eliel, get out of here! Go, run, just leave!”

Eliel's brain went into overdrive as his soul was sucked from him, memories flashed, feeling attached with them. In a way, the feeding was organizing his mind, giving it clarity. Suddenly, he began seeing farther into his past, the two centuries of his living as a drow noble would, haughty, arrogant, confident, and powerful. He felt a sort of line growing between then and now, a gray area that was leaning heavily on the bad side.

When Cordelia tackle Nicodemus, he felt a sort of pop in his mind as his thoughts froze. Unable to finish his feeding, Eliel's mind did not return to it's previous state. Had the demon finished naturally, his mind would have become normal once more, somewhat emotionless. But the severed link seemed to cement his mind into two separate areas.

That moment, something in Eliel snapped.

The drow was on his knees while Cordelia yelled at him to go, fighting with the demon to give him time. But... did he need it? He did not need help from her, he could take care of it himself. A sort of savage, sadistic pleasure erupted as his mind drew up an image of him bathing in the demon's blood. Eliel's still form shuddered and he looked up, eyes no longer black, but normal. His eyes were ruby-crimson where they weren't white, and he had normal pupils once more.

Eliel stood and brushed himself off, popping off the brooch of his cloak. The silky material floated to the ground as if in a dream. Eliel watched the demon and bent down, then rushed at it.

The drow tackled it to the ground, seeming to sink into him as his knee crunched something in it's chest. Eliel's gauntlet soared up and pierced the skin under his jaw. His other hand seized the noose and pulled it tight as his arms would allow, leaning close to the demon. Eliel let it choke him a little and pulled the noose off completely.

A silvery wisp seemed to flow from the daemon, fleeing into the forest. T grew completely see-through, a sort of silvery fire illuminating Nicodemus' invisible form. Eliel seized the dagger from it's sheath on his leg and plunged it into the center of the form. The silvery fire and golden flaring eyes went dim, just the two yellow orbs floating in midair, Eliel's silver dagger stuck mid-air.

“Nicodemus, I banish you.” He said, drawing his scimitar, leaving the dagger floating, and cleaved down the center of the daemon.



Nicodemus felt the woman tackle him and was infuriated, but all his fury was knocked away by a most unseen turn of events. The drow had hit him as well, knocking him to the side with a knee in his chest. Nicodemus gasped for air as the dagger in his back slid deeper yet, driven in like a nail, the earth it's hammer.

When the noose was removed, Nicodemus felt his power slip away, he became completely corporeal, essentially a ghost. His collective souls were drawn in by the forest, sucked into the trees and wildlife. The dagger from his back fell away as a new one pierced his ghostly form in front. Frozen with weakness, he heard several words that were rarely uttered, and was never good.

He was banished with the final swing.

The god-blessed scimitar cleaved through his physical being, destroying his earthly body. Nicodemus simply disappeared, there were no dramatics, no show. The fires went snuffed out. He felt a falling sensation as his soul retreated back to the abyss. He found himself stopping quickly.

Nicodemus, not knowing that it was his name anymore, seemed to be floating in blackness, which was slowly lighting up with silvery clouds, groups of souls. All the souls he had fed upon and many more. Nicodemus smiled and began slowly drawing them into himself, feeling the gaps in his soul patch.

It could take months, but he would return.

Stronger.

Hearing Eliel approach, Cordelia made sure to get out of the way, not thinking it was a very good idea for him to do so. Nicodemus had just tried to suck the life out of him – what the hell was he thinking?! Her eyes narrowed slightly in anger, wondering how the drow could possibly be so stubborn. No one ever listened to her, even when she was trying to help. She didn’t understand why he was so unappreciative and felt the need to always take matters into his own hands.

The vampire lady stood at the sidelines, merely watching. Since it seemed that Eliel could very well take care of himself, she put the dagger away, only going to interfere should Nicodemus think it funny to play a trick. Such a thing certainly wouldn’t wise, considering the circumstances. Eliel was stronger than the demon had anticipated, and Cordelia wasn’t about to let anything happen to him. It wasn’t for other people to decide what happened to those she cared about, especially when that number was enough to count on a single hand.

She nodded in approval as the noose was pulled off and as Nicodemus was banished, finally smirking. A quiet laughter came forth from her lips and she cocked her head to the side, peering down at Nicodemus. “You asked for it,” she mocked, stepping closer now even though all that remained was a dagger stranded in midair. “Good riddance….” The laughter died down and she closed her eyes momentarily, a sudden ferocity to them when she opened them and put her gaze to Eliel.

“So I guess you don’t need me then, hmm?” she asked, only half joking. “Since you can so obviously take care of yourself.” She stared down to where the daemon had once laid, not caring much anymore. He was gone; one less enemy for her to have to deal with. Cordelia would have loved for her to be the one to banish him to the abyss instead of Eliel, since she had more of a reason to hate him, but she supposed deep down that the drow had more of a right. After all, Nicodemus had attacked him and had actually gotten a part of his soul.

At that realization, a tiny amount of her bitterness washed away to be replaced with sincere concern. “Are you all right?” she asked, her tone revealing that she was still just a little angry.

Eliel looked at the spot where nick's physical body had been. The dagger stayed where it was for a moment, then dropped to the ground. Eliel sheathed it and looked at the noose in his hand. It had been Nicodemus' power, and his undoing. He tied it onto his belt, yet another memory from his past he probably shouldn't keep, another reason for him to dwell on past deeds and events.

Eliel looked at Cordelia, his eyes no longer how they were. “Why the long face? You should be happy.” He said with a chilling voice. It was similar to the tone and posture he'd taken on in the drider caves, but to a greater extent. There was the cool, chilling tone of power and authority, with an undertone that was full of malice and the wishes to cause pain.

The drow swept on his cloak and smiled, a glint of madness in his eye. He could feel it all, the man in himself he'd been for two centuries, the man he'd been trying to push down for years. It was back, full force. This was Eraspeola Usreanac, First Prince of House Usreanac. Not Eliel, the wanderer. Eliel the kind-hearted.
He gave a chuckle. “I'm fine, Cordelia. Never been better.” He winked at her. He raised up his left hand, looking at it like he'd not seen it in a long time. Like something he loved and had missed,instead of something he hated, a pest he couldn't rid himself of.

Flexing the claws, he grinned. “This has potential. Potential I haven't noticed before.” He looked for a moment, then the gauntlet shot out, slam,ming into the trunk of a tree. It was without scratch nor dent, perfectly unharmed. A squirrel jumped from the tree and Eliel caught in in the metal-encased hand, inspecting it curiously.

“Why the long face? You should be happy.”

Cordelia eyed him warily when he used the same tone he had used in the underdark. She looked around, almost expecting to see Menakay. What was the point of using that tone if he didn’t have his super duper sister there to impress? Her eyes narrowed and she looked back at him, lowering her head slightly and lifting her index finger to point at him. “We already discussed you using that tone with me, Eliel,” she said, each word dripping with acid. “Who do you think you are?” Her teeth began to grind together and she sucked in a slow breath, although it did very little to calm her down. She understood that he was a drow noble and that he was two centuries older than her, but she was never going to allow him to talk to her with that sort of authority. He wasn’t any better than her.

It was then that she noticed the redness of her eyes, causing an eyebrow along with the corner of her mouth to rise in confusion. “What happened to your eyes?” she asked, more out of curiosity than worry. They didn’t look like there was something wrong with them; in fact, the red was a lot better than the previous black. Something was very odd about this, though – the sudden change of his eyes, the abrupt change in behavior, and the tone of his voice. It wasn’t very Eliel-like, to put it simply.

“This has potential. Potential I haven't noticed before.”

Again Cordelia’s face twisted into a look of utter confusion and she stared at the weapon fused to his hand. She watched as he looked at the squirrel, not entirely fazed by the action but more so the fact that he was more malicious than usual. After the display he had just showed with the tree, she wouldn’t be surprised if he chopped the animal up into hundreds of pieces. Eliel was never like this and every word he spoke, every action he made only caused things to become more and more suspicious. “You hate that gauntlet,” she stated, nodding to confirm it to the both of them that this was true. It was a beautiful, useful weapon, and she had never understood why he hated it so, only that he did and he would never tell her why.

“What the hell has gotten into you, Eliel?” she asked finally, walking closer to him so that she was but a few feet in front of him, looking up with her head tilted just a bit to the side and her eyes narrowed as she examined him. His very demeanor had changed into something more malevolent, arrogant, with heaps more confidence and strength. It was almost something akin to what he had been when she had first met him, even if he had changed very quickly during that meeting. Although she had liked Eliel before as he was, this new disposition had the potential to either become something she liked even better or began to hate with every fiber of her being. “You’re not yourself, that’s obvious, so don’t use that as an answer.”

Eliel smiled at her with a wicked grin. His tone had not changed that he knew of. It was the only way he knew how to talk to others, as far as he knew. Perhaps the run in with nick had confused her.

Eliel smiled at her, then back at the squirrel, giving it am amused look as it shivered in his grip. The poor creature's eyes were bugged out, looking around for a way to escape. Eliel held a softness in his eyes as he looked at it. The look remained even as the claws shot from his fingers, impaling the thing four times, squeezing his grip. Blood spurted onto his face and he dropped the mass of quivering flesh. The squirrel was mutilated now, unrecognizable.

Evan as he wiped the blood away from his face, the soft look remained, this time laced with a hint of pleasure at the act. He wiped the thing off with a piece of torn cloth, admiring the shining metal.

“Oh, Cordelia dearest.” He chuckled, quite amused by all of this. The vampire, usually so cold and cruel, which seemed more appealing than ever now, was replaced by a soft, concerned girl with an allergy to sunlight. “It's not what's gotten into me.” He winked.

“It's what's gotten out.”

((OoC: blehhhh.))

-----------------

“It's what's gotten out.”

It took a few moments for that statement to register in her mind. Cordelia stared at him, trying to put together what he meant until finally all of the puzzle pieces clicked together. Her eyes widened and she looked back at where Nicodemus had once been, images of when he had been sucking out the drow’s soul flashing in her memory. It’s what’s gotten out… The words repeated themselves in her head and she finally turned back to Eliel, her eyes having softened back to their normal size and contemplative look on her face.

She took a moment to peer down at the mutilated mass of fur on the ground that had once been a squirrel, an amused hum emitting from her throat. This Eliel was different, there was no denying it, but if he could do that to an animal then what could he do to a person? Strange as it was that Nicodemus feasting on him had changed him this much, she couldn’t honestly say that she didn’t like this change. Really it was odd, but perhaps a more sadistic Eliel would be better off. Her eyes lifted from the ground and up across Eliel’s visage, finally locking with his own gaze.

“What’s gotten out, of course,” she said with low sounding laughter. Her hands rested at her hips and a smirk curved its way onto her mouth. “I could easily get used to you like this. But I do think there’s one question here…” Cordelia lifted a single hand to tap her index finger against her chin, the inquiry having not fully formed yet in her mind. Once it had she merely waved her hand, dismissing it. “Never mind. Asking you if you think you’re going to want to go back to your old self is a stupid question.”

Again she laughed for a brief period of time, and then proceeded to fold her arms over her chest as she went silent. “Perhaps we should leave, hmm? I don’t exactly want to stick around here. He may be gone but that doesn’t mean I want to stay longer than necessary.” She shuddered voluntarily to show her disgust, then wrinkled her nose.

Eliel laughed as she spoke her question. “Right you are. Why would I do that? I was weak. Not making full use of my potential.” He chuckled, looking on himself as if he'd been a different person. “quite pitiful.” He smirked, looking Cordelia over. Strangely enough, he didn't see her as lees than him because she was a vampire, or base human. Perhaps some part of him remained.

Eliel nodded as she spoke. “Very well. I grow bored anyway.” He said, looking around. “Where is that damned bird... there you are.” He said, spotting the large bird. It flew to his shoulder, peacock blue feathers shining brilliantly. It seemed closer to him, more approving of him. It was a bird bred in the underdark, among drow and took upon itself several drow-like attitudes.

Eliel began walking to the west, towards his tower. He would need a few things for what he had in mind. With a grin, he wondered how to go about suggesting it. After a moment, he thought of a way.

“Say, Cordelia. When was the last time you've fed?” He said with an evil twinkle in his eye.

“Say, Cordelia. When was the last time you've fed?”

That was really the only thing he said that stuck with her. Catching the look in his eyes, Cordelia couldn’t help but return it and grin wickedly, her lips spreading apart wide enough to reveal her fangs. She had fed a bit earlier in the night before she had gone to search for him, but she could do it again. She was always up for feeding if it meant she got to enjoy some good, plain old fashioned sadism.

“Come to think of it, I am a bit hungry,” she said, following after him as he began to walk. She wasn’t quite sure where he was going, but she didn’t really think that it mattered. Wherever they went there was bound to be violence, and she was completely up for it. This new Eliel already seemed much more appealing. As long as he didn’t hurt her or her family, then he was fine in her book and was still trustworthy. He had yet to do anything that would signify that he had changed like that, though, so there was no reason for her to worry.

Walking at his side now, she unfolded her arms and let them swing gently back and forth at her sides, that grin still quite prominent on her face. “You wouldn’t happen to want to join me now, would you?” she asked, peering at him out of the corner of her eye.

Eliel chuckled wickedly at her question. “Oh but of course. In fact, I'm sure this could turn out to be quite amusing.” He winked at her and his smile widened. Eliel chuckled as he broke through the tree-line, into the clearing. A tall gray tower rose from the center, ivy vines crawling up the walls. Near the back, a small pond sat behind it merrily, lily pads and such decorating it. Eliel walked up to the single entrance to the tower, the large reinforced doors.

They swung open and he stepped into the building, into a large circular room. The walls had spider silk tapestries, dark purple, blue, and black the main colors. There were several expensive chairs in the room, as well as a soft couch

Eliel walked over to a line of cabinets. He ran a hand over a section. He opened it and smiled, looking at the assortment of gleaming weapons. He strapped his scimitar to his belt, his dagger to his leg, slipped one in his boot, slipped the want in a pocket in his cloak, and Lan de Yue Jia upside-down on his back. A strap held the blade in it's sheath.

Eliel turned back to Cordelia, fully armed. “Well then. Let's be off.” He chuckled and whistled. A purring rumble could be heard as Gwen walked down the spiral iron staircase. She walked into the room and Eliel smiled, slipping the collar over her head. She took it and looked at him worriedly, walking over to rub on Cordelia. She attempted to send a thought to the vampire, one of concern for Eliel.

Eliel walked through the doors and outside.

“Oh but of course. In fact, I'm sure this could turn out to be quite amusing.”

The grin became wider, rivaling even that of the Cheshire Cat. “Amusing is bound to be an understatement,” she said. Cordelia was quite eager to see how malicious he could be to an actual, living person if he had been able to mutilate a squirrel to the point where it didn’t even look like an animal. Between the two of them, hell was bound to follow wherever they went. Usually she was very neat when it came to feeding, but there was a difference between feeding and just plain malevolence.

Cordelia followed him as he walked toward the tower, assuming that it was his home. Her eyes widened at the sight of it, more out of shock than anything else. She had never visited his home; in fact, this was the first time she had come out to Norwood to even see him. She stepped inside after him, gazing around the rounded room and at the décor. This put her own home to shame… everything looked so expensive! She had no idea Eliel had this sort of money. The idea of taking advantage of that entered her mind for a moment until it was quickly dismissed. He was the only friend she had; she couldn’t steal from him without feeling the repercussion of guilt.

While she had been so engrossed in looking around, she hadn’t followed Eliel to his weapon cabinet. His words caught her somewhat off guard and it took her a moment to realize what he had said, but once she did all the shock and interest of his home wore off and her head cocked to the side, a chuckle rising out of her throat.

“I don’t even get a tour of your house? How rude.” She wasn’t being serious, of course. She looked down at Gwen as she rubbed on her, lowering a tentative hand to pat her on the head. Animals made her uneasy and in all honesty there were few that she even liked. Insulting Gwen in front of Eliel though wasn’t a good idea, though; she was smarter than to think it would be. The message of concern didn’t reach her, mostly because Cordelia was far too excited for this to even care. Even if she had received the thought, why should she have worried? Eliel seemed perfectly fine as he was now. Different, of course, but sadism was good for the soul.

Once outside, Cordelia reached behind her and closed the doors, then walked over to Eliel’s side. “So where shall we be off to, hmm?” she asked, going to leave the decision up to him.

Eliel chuckled. “Would you like a tour or not waste time? We could always rethink our plans. Go another day.” He laughed. “There will be time later. But for now, I feel an itch only unnecessary murder can scratch.” He licked his lips. He was truly looking forward to this. It had been so long since he had enjoyed killing at all, having grown fond of life and having a respect for all. Weak outlooks.

Eliel looked around, Gwen walking to his side calmly. He would walk, for Cordelia’s sake. The woman was worthy of his respect, as long as it did not grow to a point of too much trust. Trust had gotten him into inescapable trouble before.

“hmm. Norwood had been raided lately and it’s too close to my home.” He looked at her with a wink. “Don’t take it as mercy. It’s not much fun if there’s only a few people to kill, yes? Let them grow some.” He nodded. “Yes, yes. Off to Kellen, perhaps. Or maybe Taras. Nobody would notice there. After recent events, it seems Taras has been forsaken.”

He smiled and began walking. “So where to, Cordelia? Kellen? Taras? I don’t mind. It’s up to you.” He smiled. Abel took a perch on his shoulder, the rooster-sized bird a beautiful dark blue, sort of a dark peacock color. It’s tail was full of long feathers, foot and a half each.

Eliel drew Lan de yue jia, beginning basic techniques, with laced with an intricate twist, something deadly but graceful in it.

“There will be time later. But for now, I feel an itch only unnecessary murder can scratch.”

Cordelia snorted softly at such a statement. That was an all too familiar feeling for her, although since taking Kaiden in she had straightened out a bit so as to not risk getting arrested. The last thing either of them needed was for her to get caught and then for him to be on his own. “Later, then,” she agreed with a nod. Surely it couldn’t hurt just this once, especially with Eliel there to kill any witnesses. Or for her to push the blame on him. Either way worked.

“Don’t take it as mercy. It’s not much fun if there’s only a few people to kill, yes? Let them grow some.”

An eyebrow lifted steadily as he said that. Allowing them to grow wouldn’t necessarily be safe; Cordelia would have nipped that in the bud if it had been her home. Eliel was stronger than her though, so she supposed he had good reason not to be so worried. Even so…. “I’d kill them now if I were you,” she said. “Just be done with it. Why give them a chance to grow at all?” Perhaps there was no sport in that, but if anyone was too close to his home then they didn’t really deserve fair treatment.

She lifted her left hand, idly tapping her index finger against her chin in thought. Kellen was a small enough place, but after a recent run in with a dishonest midget she wasn’t to keen on returning there so soon. She had a sort of small grudge against the town because of what had happened, and while it might have been fun to go kill whoever was in sight there, she didn’t want to risk another run in with Spot. It wasn’t that she was afraid of him, far from it really; she just didn’t feel like getting toxins in her system again and being stolen from.

“Taras,” she said, her decision final. Balefire and Cascadia were completely out of the question, and with Taras having been nearly destroyed it would be easy to sneak around. There were bound to be a few survivors from the attack and the few that hadn’t left the city would most likely be picked off.

“It’ll be easier to go there. But do you even think anyone’s behind besides the ill, elderly and children…?” Anyone who could have left probably would have by now. She peered at him out of the corner of her eye, taking a step or two to the side to avoid the Lan de yue Jia.

Eliel chuckled and sheathed Lan de Yue Jia, smiling as he walked. “Because I need a little excitement now and then. Bandits and such have learned to keep well away, or risk being charred by lightning, diced, or eaten alive.” He smiled. “Makes for good hunting. They’ve got some elven guards that prove sport for a good fight.”

Eliel nodded. “Good. Kellen is a boring place. But Taras, you realize with all the wreckage and such, it proves a wonderful opportunity for thieves and bandits to do their jobs. There should be guards to try and cleanse the place. And families that cannot leave.” He grinned.

“Let’s get going then. Can’t miss the party, eh? I suppose many of the outlaws should be moving in iin the time we get there.” He smiled.

Eliel mounted Gwen, sitting atop the umbra while she matched Cordelia’s pace. He chuckled. “So how shall we do this? Slash them, pick them off, bathe in their blood? Or all three.” He laughed

((OoC: End post. Continued here.))

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“Let’s get going then. Can’t miss the party, eh? I suppose many of the outlaws should be moving in iin the time we get there.”

Cordelia threw her head back and laughed, the sound so loud that it resonated throughout the area. Oh yes, this would be a party indeed. A sadistic, blood filled, deathly party that something only the two of them could understand the wonders of. Already this new Eliel seemed more fun, and almost seemed to appreciate her more than the old one. In the past she never would have even dared to mention this sort of violence to the drow; she respected him, and in doing so meant that she had to respect the fact that he wasn’t a mindless killer and actually enjoyed life. Pointless as those beliefs were, she had been forced not to speak out against them by her own will not to upset the only friend she had.

“A party? Well I’m not really one for parties… but I think this one will be enjoyable.” Cordelia grinned, her voice beginning to drip with malevolence. Death, destruction, blood, agony; these were the only things that could sate her growing hunger for meaningless sadism.

“So how shall we do this? Slash them, pick them off, bathe in their blood? Or all three.”

That was a very difficult decision to make. Cordelia didn’t want to get too dirty, but the idea of being covered in blood was quite appealing at the moment. The wicked glint in her eye seemed to strengthen, every inch of her ready for killing whatever crossed her path. “Let’s just see how things go, yes?” she suggested with a nod. It didn’t matter what he said; she did things her own way and she wasn’t going to be swayed. Cordelia was reckless when it came to these things and she would mostly be acting on impulse the whole time.

“No unnecessary planning. It gets in the way and makes things less fun.” Again she nodded before removing her attention from him and to the path before them. They would be at Taras soon enough and she didn’t want to make this journey any longer than it had to be.