Seele sat on a rock jutting over the waterfall. he was holding his knees to his chest, rocking back and forth silently. It was habit from his childhood, whenever he was alone. Eventually he swung his legs out over the edge of the rock, sitting on the very tip.

"It's beautiful..."

He felt the demon inside him start to claw out, through the layers of his mind. He gasped in pain at the psychic attack, clutching his head between his hands.

"Are you all right?" a voice asked form behind him as she rushed to his side. Ranewen knelt down beside him, her hands on his shoulders. SHe was muttering something in drow, trying to help him out with whatever he was trying to do - or whatever he was struggling with. She looked at the side of his arm, since she could not see his face. She had forgiven him for what happened in the caves, after she learned that he had a demon inside of him.

Seele coughed, blood trickling out of his lips. "Rane... wan.." He smiled at her, eyes full of pain. "Do you... really... think that I'm ever... alright?" He wiped the blood of with one hand, other grabbing the rock. He shuddered, grimacing, and fell back against her side, eyes closed and breathing gently. A drop of blood trailed out of his mouth, but beside that he seemed fine... "Sorry... for all this..."

"You're cursed by a demon, aren't you?" she asked rhetorically as she held him up from hitting the ground. "Dos phuul naut maglust wun nindol malar. Usstan uil ghil xuil dos. Qualla, xun naut belbau wun." She said it in Drow, just to reassure him that she was telling the truth. There must be a way to help him... but how? she kept on asking herself as she looked down at him. Ranewen tucked her hair behind her ears so that he could see her better, and she could see him better as well. She smiled, hoping he wouldn't let the demon win.

(You are not alone in this fight. I am here with you. Please, do not give in.)

Why will you not leave me alone?
Why mist you fight me? I only seek more power for you!
I do not want it if it comes by making this river red with blood...
Then you are a fool who will always be nothing.
Fine, then go away and bother someone else.
I can't Seele... I must stay with you... forever... to my dismay as much as yours

Seele grimaced and sent a psychic attack towards the demon; it staggered and fell back in his mind, leaving it's attacks off for a while. He groaned and sat up, shaking his head to clear it. "Thank you..." He looked up at Ranewan and smiled slightly. "Not too many people would stay by me when I might go insane and try to kill them any second... but besides support, there is nothing you, or anyone can do..."

"I got rid of my demon! But... that was because I died... And I'm like no other. I don't fear death. I can't die. I'm already dead, yet I am living. I'm somewhere in between. The undead. There ya go. That's the word I was looking for." She rubbed the side of her shoulder and smiled. "Plus, I can just disappear right in front of you. There are plenty of shadows. Or, I could plunge into the river below. It doesn't look too shallow. But that would be a last resort." She nodded her head and smiled again, looking down at the stream. She laid herself out on her stomach, her elbwos just before the edge of the cliff.

The demon deep in Seele's mind was quickly getting mad. It had been trapped in here for a century, when he had been cursed by an ancient god. Then when it had finally reawoken, Seele had forced him back! Then others, like this annoying Ranewan female, helped him push the demon away...Well, if I cannot control him... I will just have to kill him somehow...

"I doubt I would come back if I were to die..." Seele smiled sadly, looking at the roaring waters below. "I have done too much in one lifetime already; in two who knows what trouble I could cause?" He bent down, lookign over the edge of the rock.

A little farther forward... farther...

Seele leaned forward without even knwoing why. He was closer and closer to the edge of the rock before he realized what was happeninjg. What in the...

Ranewen looked over at him and put her hands on his waist. "You're going to fall... I wouldn't lean so far over..." she warned. She wasn't going to upll him back, just to see if he was going to lean even farther down. She blinked, still quite confused about what was going on. She shook her head and cussed silently. "Ori'gato ukta tlu, dos jor!" she shouted at the demon inside of him.

(Let him go, you rat!)

Seele leaned back quickly, scooting away from her and the edge. "Wow... that's a new approach..." He stood up shakily, eyeing the edge warily. "You know... he's never actually tried to kill me before, despite all of his threats..." He turned away and walked over to a large rock, jumping on top and looking out over the waterfalls, but from a safe distance way from the edge.

She turned around to face him, but she didn't get up to follow him. "I think the Drow language drives him off every now and then. I called him a rat... And, just so he knows, if he kills you, he's gone as well... So, I don't think he'll be killing you any time soon." She smirked and looked back over at the waterfalls for a few moments. That was a close one, I'll admit... He could've fallen right over the cliff if I hadn't been there...

Seele looked down at her. "I'm not sure anymore. He is stuck inmy min, but still feels detached from my body. When he's possessing me... he doesn't feel the pain. I do." Seele looked across the waterfalls again, and at the slowly setting sun. "I think I am more of a seal to him... he was born within me, and cannot get out. So he either has to possess me, or..." He smiled sadly. "Kill me."

Ranewen sighed and got up. "I don't know what to do, but perhaps one day he'll give up. Just never give up the fight." She then stood next to him, and looked at the mark on his cheek for the first time. "Does it burn... when he tries to take over?" she asked curiously, wondering what in the world it could be. She shrugged her shoulders, not minding if he wanted to answer or not. She just wanted to hug him, but that wouldn't stop all of his troubles. So, she just stayed calm and watched him, waiting for an answer, if he chose to answer it.

Seele traced the mark. "Yes and no..." He looked at her sideways. "This mark always causes me some pain..." He let his hand fall away from the mark, remembering how he had received it and why. "It is a constant reminder of my shadow powers. When I use them, it burns. When he-" HSeele felt that he didn't need to elaborate exactly who he was "tries to break out, it feels like someone is stabbing a sword through my skull..." Seele rubbed his cheek for a second. "As to what it is... I'm not sure. It was given to me by a demon... as a gift or a curse, I have no idea.

She nodded her head as he spoke to her. "I see," she stated as she pondered as to who 'he' was. Sighing, she leaned against the rock and shook her head. "I don't see... why we all must have curses in some way. I wish to lead a normal life, as you know, but I cannot. Cursed, you may call it. Cursed to a life on Earth once more." The wind picked up and blew her hair over her face for a moment, and she tucked it back behind her ear. She looked around, thinking she heard something, but she looked back to Seele once more.

"I'm sorry..." Seele looked at her, eyes kind. "I read this once. 'Curses remind us we are mortal. They cause us pain, suffering, and death. They are there so that we do not try to become greater than the gods.'" His cloak flapped around him as the wind got even stronger, pulling his hat down farther so that it wouldn't fly off. "I am cursed with a demon for trying to overthrow a god. There is one pivotal point in our life, where we make a decision, which makes us cursed or free. I failed."

"I had a demon once. I don't know how it came to be. I never did anything wrong... It's just... that it resided in the corner of my mind, its presence always there. Sometimes, it changed me completely. Sometimes, I was normal. But always, I seemed to be possessed. Everyone thought that." She nodded her head, trying to forget her past. She shuddered and bit her lip to stop yelling at herself for letting it happen.

He nodded. "I knwo what you mean. It seems that you are the only one, the only one so unhappy." He smiled sadly. "You see, this demon is one of my own creation. I do not knwo how, but he claims it to be true, and somehow, I believe him." He looked at her eyes. "It seems you're alone when you never can be, acting free when you're unable to. But you're never alone."

Suddenly, a new emotion swept over her: saddness. She wrapped her arms around Seele's neck and began to cry. Or at least, she tried to. Tears from all of the past years and all of the happenings. "You don't know how horrible it is. Two hundred and four years, I was haunted by the demon. I was lonely, and I never acknowledged him. And it got worse and worse..." She somehow was able to transfer the day that sometihng took her over when she killed her parents. She still didn't let him go of the embrace.

((Muahaha. I'm so ebil. Lol))

((you are, master. -_- j/j))

Seele hesitated for a second, then returned her embrace. "No one can understand Ranewan... no one but you..." He looked down at her, feeling the pain and sorrow that had built up in her for longer than Seele had been alive. He too knwo this pain, but not so bad. He had had a small choice in the matter; it appeared she had not. "He patted her back, whispering to her soothingly, like she was a frightened child. "Quiet Ranewan, quiet... it's all behind you now..."

You're afraid,a ren;t you Seele? You see it in her. You see what will happen to you if you resist me. Look at her; she is still haunted. You think that you can stop me, hold me back. You can't. You will fail as she did, and death will be your only release... maybe to emphasize this fact, I will kill her one day, while you watch helplessly. Then you WILL understand her pain...

Seele shuddered, trying to ignore the demon but feeling the words cut through his mind like a knife.

((:D That I am! SIT SEELE SIT! haha, j/k))

"No... No it's not... You do not know the real me..." she said back, slowly letting her hands fall against the rock beneath her. "I'm a killer... The reason no one knows of me is because i attack at night, which is when I can become invisible. That's why no one knows of me, but everyone knows that when I am around, no one is safe..." She bit her lip again as the last of her tears streamed down her f ace and dripped onto her leg. She looked up again, her red eyes saddened. "Yes, you now know the real me. But, don't be afraid. Don't run. I won't harm my friends." She smiled slightly, her face stained with tears.

(( :lol: Yes Master! I shall obey! *sits*))

Seele looked away, putting his head down, blockinghis face from her sight. "No, I shouldn't fear you Ranewan... you should fear me..." he bit his lip, deciding wether or not to tell her. She had trusted him; he would have to do that same.

"I am not from Imythess. I hail from Ansalon, in the forest of Light, Quarinost. I was raised as a creature of the light, an elf..." He touched his pointed ears and continued. "i practiced the dark arts, which is forbidden to my kind. And I was banished when found out. And cursed by our God, the God of Light, Paladine..." his fists clenched, eyes still hidden. "But I returned! They rued the day they kicked me out! I shattered their shields, my powers attacking with the fury of a thousand armies. I caused the forest, sculpted for centuries to perfection, to rot from within, their cites of crystal to crumble. Their warriors and mages all died at my hand, when they fought back."

He looked up, meeting her eyes, tears blurring his vision. "then I went a step further. I attacked Paladine. We fought, and he won. I was banished. But in the process... he died." His hands relaxed, a tear flwoing down his face as he remembered. "I knwo now that the forest still rots. they were forced to leave it. Plants die, mist is poison, water acid. ALl because of me..." He stepped away from her, knowing he deserved no comfort.

"Yes, I got what I wanted. But I know that all of this..." He leaned back againt the tock, looking up into the sky. "All of it was because of me..."

((*blinks* Jebus! You're gonna be someone's sex slave when you get older if you obey people all the time! roflmfaotd))

Ranewen reached out a her hand, but then she pulled it back. He didn't look like he wanted comfort. "Well, you had a reason, did you not?" she said, a bit angered. Not at him, of course, but at the peple who vanished them. "And, they're after you?" she asked in a questioning tone, crossing her arms and standing up as well. "Don't worry... I'll be here for you. I promise..." she siad quietly, smiling slightly.

((Ugh... *runs away but is pulled back by leash*))

Seele looked at her, gratitude showing in his eyes. She was one of the few who knew his whole history on Imythess, and it should stay that way. "Yes, they hunt me when they can. Banishment was not enough, I guess."

Hehe... that was the best time for us Seele, when your powers flowed fresh. I remember it... it was the day you created me. You regret it, yes, but that is not my problem. You will regret me for eternity, not just one day...

Seele gritted his teeth, steadfastedly ignoring the demon, mainly because what he said was true. "I wonder sometimes, if I should just let them win... it would end it all." His cloak flapped around him, blue hair blowing in front of his face. "But knowing that you will help me is better than I deserve..."

"You don't deserve to die!" she exclaimed and stood up as well. "Why should you be the one who dies if it was their fauly for banishing you? They have no right as to hunt you down. Since they beleive in Gods, which I beleive is true, eh?, they should know that the Fates decided it, or the Goddess of Death, if you will." She nodded her head and wished it could have come out better. She sighed, wondering if he understood a word she was saying. She wouldn't blame him, if he didn't.

He looked at her. "Maybe... maybe not..." He looked down at her, surprised she was getting so angry. "It is my fault partially, for doing what I knew was forbidden."

She understands you better than you yourself do... let me talk to her...
No way

He gritted hsi teeth as a fresh wave of psychic pain washed over him. "It was my fault Ranewan. Their judgement is just. I would let them succeed, if not for the fact that I have work to do here still..."

"It's not your fault, I'm sure. But, my opinion doesn't matter, does it? Kill them all. Every last one of them. It is their fault for stepping up to someone who killed a God. They'll be no match to you if you managed to kill one if what you state is true, which I beleive it is." She sat back down on the rock and wrapped her arms around her knees and looked at the ground.

Seele sat down on another rock. "I would if I could. But do you think as I am now I could do all of this? "He gave a small, tired grin. "No, Ranewan, banishment and being cursed wasn't enough. My magic was stripped from me. I regain it slowly, but I am weaker than I ever was as an apprentice..." He coughed, blood flecking his lips. The pain was unbearable, almost. But she actually worried about him. He didn't want her to.

She shrugged her shoulders and sat back. "I'm not the best at magick anymore, either. I used to specialize in black magick, but it seems to me that I lost most of my necromancy spells..." She sat indian-style and looked back at the falls, where Seele could have fallen to his death moments before. She then let her gaze wander back towards him slowly.

"well, that makes two of us." He lidd back on the rock, facing the sky and closing his eyes. A thin trail of blood trickled out of his mouth, and he sighed, wiping it away. He grew weary of this all, this constant battle for his own body, the pain. His eyes opened to mere slits. "I am tired Ranewan... so very tired... will this ever be over?"

Ranewen could not answer that question for him. "I...don't know... Once we kill these people who haunt your footsteps, it will be over. Unless, you mean something different such as death..." she said as her voice trailed off, and her gaze returned to him.

Seele felt more blood trickle out of his mouth. "Well, we'll see... we'll see..." A sharp pain struck him in between hsi eyes, and he fainted. However, before he could fall of the rock a change came over him. He caught himself on one hand, scratching it up badly on the hard ground. His eyes locked onto Ranewan's, but the golden orbs were darker now. "Why hello there Ranewan. We meet again." He sprang back up with the nhand, landing on the rock, sitting facing her. "I daresay you remember me?" His tone of voice was mocking; Seele's shadow demon had taken over. He licked the blood away from his lips, a crazed grin on his face, but made no move to attack her.

"How could I forget?" she snapped at him, but made no move as to try and get away from him. Why run from your fate? Why should she run away from her friend, even if his shadow demon has taken over? She couldn't just leave her friend stranded there like that. She wouldn't, either. She braced herself on the rock and glared at him, her own red eyes becoming a few shades darker, as her own anger took over.

Seele chuckled lightly when he noticed her eyes shift colors. "Come now Ranewan, is that anyway to treat an old friend?" He cracked his knuckles , then relaxed, hands extended behind him and holding him up. "seele can be so stubborn. I only wanted to taqlk to you, not kill you. No, that happy day is not in the near future. Seele's grin and tone mocked her, daring her to get mad and attack him. "Your story... intigued me, dear Ranewan. I was wondering, if you could tell me more about this demon of yours."

"The demon you speak of does not exist anymore. I killed him." She ignored his provoking and watched him carefully, yet she didn't move. The sun was setting overhead, which was casting shadows on the ground, which she would be able to use to hide herself, if she needed to. But she wasn't going to hide or run away this time. He had tried to kill her last time. Why would she trust him now? "And don't try provoking me... It won't work..." she said with a slight smirk.

"Really?"" His scythe appeared in his hand, blade gleaming oddly. "What would you do if I were to attack you Ranewan? Tell me to 'Go away'? I feel no pain from his body. You would kill him, and I would be unleashed again. His eyes were bright with madness. "But the torture of dear Seele is still in progress, so I would not want that to happen yet." He dropped the scythe, the blade clanging eerily on the rock.

"I want to knwo of this demon Ranewan. And how you killed him. You see..." He leaned forward, putting his fingertips together. "In case Seele ever gets any ideas, like trying to kill me... I want to knwo what to expect. You can either tell me, or I will make you tell me.

"I refuse to tell you. Nothing you do will make me change my mind in any way. Go ahead and try. I do not feel pain. I never have. I have starved to death without knowing what having a full stomach meant until I died the first time. I came back, I had my demon then. I will tell you no more." She crossed her arms and took into conideration of what she would do if he did attack her. It took a few moments for her to come up with an answer and she shrugged her shoulders. "Defend myself. Disappear into thin air. Not attack you or anything. Maybe that's what I'd do. Maybe not."

his grin faded for a second. "Clever little girl, aren't you?" he picked up the scythe again slwoly, twirling it in one hand. "You really are forcing my hand here Ranewan. It would be so much easier if you gave me the information. But no chance of that, is there?"

He pressed the scythe blade against his own throat, cutting a small ways into the skin. Blood welled up and dripped down the blade. "As much as I love Seele and this body, this information is very important Ranewan. And as I do not die when Seele does..." He grinned and gestured towards his throat with the free hand. "Nice hostage, eh? Now, down to business. Tell me or I kill Seele. And then I'll possess someone else you know, someone closer to you. And kill them too." His eyes narrowed dangerously.

She growled and made no move as to answer, and then remembered that it was Seele who was getting the pain, not the demon. "I died again. And when I came back, he was gone. That's all I know. That's what happened. I was re-summoned by a crow to get my revenge and I am still here, like it or not. Now, let him go or I will make sure not to let you possess another body." She glared at him and then at the scythe and she instantly went over and grabbed it. She began to tug on it, trying to get it away from his grasp.

He cackled merrily and let it go. "See hwo easy that was? ANd that means I am safe. Seele will not die and be reborn. No; he will die and STAY dead." He nodded to Ranewan, who was now holding the bloody scythe. "Thank you, m'lady, for making me sure there is no escape for my host. as you care for him so much, I'll let him take back control..." Seele grinned and his eyes rolled back, head hitting the rock as he fell backwards.

He groaned and sat back up, holding his head with both hands, eyes closed. "Ouch..."

She blinked and then let the scythe drop to the ground and she looked at him before returning to where she was sitting before the demon had taken over. "There are other ways, but I do not know them." She smirked and then looked away, up to the sky that was no painted with not only blue, but purples and yellows, and oranges, and the such. She looked back towards him, wondering if he was all right. "You all right?" she asked finally.