In between Good and Evil

[Raydo]

Her nails dug into his arm as she screamed. It was a visceral, almost primal thing that seemed to carry for miles. Relin raised his hand to his necklance, preparing to call on his magic to ensure she didn't bleed out but looked down at the wound as it seemingly started to heal itself. He was too tired, his mind too muddled to make any sense of what he was seeing and no one else seemed to notice. He blinked his eyes, making sure he wasn't seeing things.

Even though the wound closed, he wrapped a bandage around the wound in case. He would ask questions later. "I'll take her back to the church. We need to make sure everyone is indoors early tonight, at least until this beast is found." he told one of the guards. He spoke with more authority than he thought he possessed. To his surprise, the guard nodded and moved to relay the request.

He reached down and scooped the unconscious Evelyn from the ground. Whatever had happened she would need rest.

They reached the church sometime later. Not wanting to go through the main building again, he went around the back where the small cottage lay. There was a fenced in garden and courtyard between the two buildings. Relin carried Evelyn into the cottage and lay her on his bed. It was a simple room, nothing more than bed, desk and nightstand.

He checked her leg once more, running a finger of the newly formed skin. Confident she just needed rest, he walked out in the courtyard and slid down the stone wall until he was seated. The weight of the last day collapsed around him as he sobbed. Why had this happened? Why?

He succumbed to his exhaustion sometime later and fell asleep laying against the wall.

 

[EmilyHuene]

It would be about three hours later that Relin would hear a scream from inside the cabin. It wasn't very long, nor was it the same sound she'd made when she was in pain. It was more or less like she'd be freaked out by something. Particularly the nightmare she just woke up from. Evelyn sat upright quickly and tossed the covers off of her. She was covered in sweat. It was gross. Her heart was racing. She ran her fingers through her hair and then reached down to clutch the necklace around her throat. Ok good. It was still there.

Kicking her feet out of the bed she looked down at her leg to see the bandage. It was reddish, stained with blood. Her blood? She poked her leg but didn't feel any pain. That was good too. She'd healed after all. That was the one problem with her ability. She could heal from just about any wound. So long as there wasn't something in the way. With no patience, she began to unwind the bandage and tear it off her as quick as she could.

 

[Raydo]

He was yanked from the dreamless sleep he had slipped into with a loud scream. His bloodshot eyes opened, as his mind tried to push the confusion aside. It must of all been a dream.

Then it all started flowing back to him. He then remembered Evelyn. That's where the scream had come from. He pushed himself up, ignoring the protest of his body. He entered the room again. "Is everything alright?" he asked looking around the room, scanning for any danger. There was none, just Evelyn tearing at the bandage on her leg.

"You shouldn't be moving that much! You need to rest." he said kneeling beside the bed. He took her hands in his, afraid she would do further damage if allowed to. He looked up into her eyes. "Can you tell me what happened to you out there?" he asked, squeezing her hands lightly. He knew she should rest more, but he needed to get any information he could.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"Oh hey I-" but she was cut off as he came forward and grabbed her wrists.

Evelyn stared at him with so much confusion in her eyes. Like he'd suddenly proposed to her or some other nonsense. That was how confused she was right then. And then she giggled and would move her hands gently out of his.

"I'm fine. Seriously. Look. There won't even be a scar.

Making sure he was giving her permission, Evelyn finished pulling some of the bandage aside and sure enough, her flesh was clean and smooth. She'd then start yanking at the bandage again (unless he assisted by using a knife). Once free from the cloth, Evelyn tossed it aside and curled her legs up under her on the bed.

"I uh.....I owe you an explanation."

Evelyn looked away sadly. She reached up for the necklace on her chest and clutched it tightly. She bit her lip, unable to pull it off. Finally, she took a deep breath and yanked. The chain shattered like glass and the shards and the crucifix too vanished. A strange glimmer swirled around Eve for a moment as if Relin's eyes were seeing two things. Two different versions of Evelyn. The first one then faded away leaving behind the second.

This new Evelyn looked mostly the same. The same clothes, the same hair. Only there were two curved horns coming out from her skull. They came out above her ears, curved down the back of her head, and then came to a point where her jaw ended, only they were parallel to her face and not literally touching her face. She then opened her eyes and instead of green hues over white pupil, he'd see the entirety of her eye was black, and a gold ring was in he center.

The eyes of a demon.

 

[Raydo]

He looked at her leg in a bit stunned disbelief. How had it healed so quickly? He hadn't done anything, had he? No, he remembered that now. It was like nothing had ever happened. She continued to stare while she finished removing the bandage.

He then looked back up at her as she spoke. He waited for an explanation that made any of this make sense, but instead through his life further into a spiral. The air around her shimmered as her shape began to change subtly.

His mind, in it's confused, sleep deprived state tried desperately to keep up. When he looked into those eyes, he stumbled backward, crashing into the wall. He fell to the ground. What was she? He knew what she was.

His mouth opened several times. She hadn't attacked him yet. Why hadn't she attacked him? He could sense it in her, the sun symbol on his neck growing hot.

"I..." he started "how?" he asked finally.

"Did you do this?" he asked before she could reply. His hand going to his sword or at least the empty spot on his belt where it normally was since he hadn't carried it since he rushed off to help her.

 

[EmilyHuene]

Evelyn looked to the side. She couldn't face him. Tears formed in her eyes and began to spill out silently. Her hands gripped the end of the bed while she kicked her feet out from under her. She didn't even flinch when he reached for his sword which wasn't there. It wouldn't hurt her anyway. The symbol of his God would though. But she wasn't that scared of it. Evelyn knew she could get away before he even got the chance to rush her with it in hand.

"I'm sure you'll hate me, for what I am. And I don't blame you. But believe me when I say, I didn't do those things in the church. I can't even step foot inside those doors. Not that you'd believe me."

Evelyn hiccuped, the tears starting to get to her now. "What I told you yesterday was the truth. I'm hunting another demon. One similar to me. Maybe more powerful. And that scares me." She'd get up from the bed and start moving to the door (unless he tried to stop her). "I should....probably go. No one's going to help a demon like me."

 

[Raydo]

Nothing made sense any more. His world felt like it was spinning faster and faster out of control. He couldn't do anything but listen to her. He was completely spent.

He knew what he should be doing, what his upbringing demand he do. The teachings of Pelor were quite clear that he was supposed to do battle with every demon, and die in the process if necessary but when she said she had nothing to do with it, he believed her. He hated that he believed her. Was this part of her magic? To make it hard to see the truth and only see her lies. He didn't know, but he couldn't bring himself to disbelieve her.

She stood to leave, passing close where he still sat on the floor. At the very least he should let her go, but he didn't know what else to do. He didn't have anyone else to turn to. He reached up and rest a hand on her lower leg, around the calf. "Wait." he choked out.

"I..Is this demon responsible for what happened here last night?" he asked, looking down at the floor. "and if so, can you help me keep it from happening again?" he asked.

She would likely leave. Why would her kind care if they were all ripped apart, even if she wasn't responsible.

It was all he had.

 

[EmilyHuene]

With the hand on her calf she stopped and looked back on him. She was still crying, and even though her eyes were filled with evil lineage, Relin could still see the sorrow in them. Since when would a demon ever feel sorrow? It didn't make any sense. Not that anything up until now had done so.

"Something killed that priest in his own home. It may not have been the demon I'm chasing. It could have been a creature under her control. I don't know. But when I followed the trail I found simple lower demons who ambushed me. They got lucky." She took a pause as she looked at her other leg.

Evelyn then pulled her leg free of Relin and turned around to face him. "I'm going to keep chasing them. I'm sorry I let them slip by me unnoticed. I truly am. But I promise you, I won't let anyone else get hurt."

 

[Raydo]

A tear hit his arm and he looked up into her black eyes. The was no firey stare there, no pleasure in the pain he had suffered. There was...sadness. He didn't understand, he didn't understand any of this. Why had his god done this, done nothing to stop whatever had happened.

"If you are going after this thing..." he said pushing himself up. "I am going with you." he said. He was so tired, his body shook with exhaustion but he would chase this thing until it was dead and could no longer hurt anyone in his town. He would have his revenge on his teacher, his friend, his father.

"Tell me what I have to do." he said, holding her gaze with his own.

 

[EmilyHuene]

The look on her face was slowly starting to change. It no longer held the same sadness that it had a moment ago. Now, she seemed to be getting a more serious demeanor. She would reach up and wipe the tears from her eyes and then cross her arms under her chest.

"No way. You're going to get yourself killed. And that hand-me-down sword you had yesterday will get you nowhere. You would need a real weapon to do any sort of permanent damage to a demon. Or at least some Holy magic. If you're going to do be doing anything, it's going to be sitting right here and praying to your gods that I make it back in one piece."

 

[Raydo]

He wasn't backing down either. No way. By the time someone else arrived, they would likely all be dead. He wouldn't just stand by while that happened. "No...I am coming." he said, face matching her own demeanor. He was not some child who would be left at home.

She was right though, he needed a new sword, one that was stronger than his current one. He had such a blade, a blade that had tasted the blood of demons before. He entered the room next to his, Bralin's room. He paused at the door. It felt wrong being in here, like an invasion of privacy in the worst way, but it had to be done.

He slid a box out from underneath the bed and opened it. Inside was a brilliant sword of metal so polished, it looked like glass. Its hilt was covered in various symbols of Pelor. He had seen once as a child, and Bralin had told him about it. He through the black sheath, lined with golden embroidery around his back.

He walked back into his room. As he grew closer to Evelyn, the hilt became warm, a quiet metallic chiming filled the air. The runes of the hilt pulsed with greater intensity as he grew closer to her. He slammed the weapon back in its sheath as it suddenly grew quiet again. "I'm coming."

 

[EmilyHuene]

Hearing him be so bold all of a sudden was a surprise. Evelyn was speechless, but only because she was trying to find the right words to say that would convince him otherwise. But then he stormed off into the other room and started going for the sword. Evelyn flinched when he brought it out and left him to it. When he returned, she said nothing but moved away to the outside of the cabin.

Looking around, she saw that no one was around them and so she put her hands on her hips. Giving him a stern look she pursed her lips for a moment and eyed him carefully.

"Fine. If you want to prove yourself then you should have no problem with one of my wolves."

She wouldn't give him any explanation as to what she meant by that. Instead, she raised her left hand. In the dark, it was nearly impossible to see what was happening. But her shadow was rising out from under her and turning as black as a void in space. A creature then began to form in the shadow and rise up from it like it was clawing it's way out of a lake. The creature had four limbs and a long snout and until it was fully formed looked terrifying. But it solidified into something much more relative, that of a large wolf capable of being ridden by Evelyn. On its side were strange labyrinth looking lines of a deep teal color; it's eyes also bore the same hue.

The dire wolf snarled at Relin and dug its claw into the ground. Evelyn continued to give Relin a look of judgement. And whether he said he was ready or not, the wolf charged!

 

[Raydo]

He followed her outside. It was probably from lack of sleep, but her stubbornness wore on him, though he doubted he was being any better.

He took a step back as she summoned some type of creature. He had never even heard of such a thing. He steaded himself as the beast dug its claws into the earth. Without warning, it charged. He probably should have already had his sword out, but he rolled to the side before coming up on his feet as the wolf circled around again. He pulled the sword out. In the presence of the demon and her creature, the blade sang.

The wolf came again, but it danced backward as Relin swung clumsily at the beast. It came again, this time faster. Relin jumped to the side, but not before one of the wolf's claws caught the side of his leg. It was a minor wound, but it burned with pain far greater than the wound would suggest. He wouldn't outmaneuver this thing, maybe he could out think it.

He could move, but instead, he emphasized his "injured" leg. The wolf circled, eyes darting to his leg and then his eyes. The beast snapped a couple of times as it tested his defenses. He waited, still favoring his other leg.

He feigned his leg giving out. As soon as he did, the wolf lunged for his throat, snarling. Relin thrust his sword out as hard as he could, the blade connecting with the wolf's chest. The momentum of the beast knocked Relin over as it fell on top of him, sword exiting through the back of the wolf's neck.

The creature lay still on him for a second before it vanished into smoke. Relin forced himself up. He reached up to his necklace, whispering words of healing while one hand went to his leg but nothing happened. He must have been too tired, used too much of his magic. He would have to push on without it.

"Let's go." he said coldly.

 

[EmilyHuene]

To say he was clumsy in battle was a kindness. Evelyn watched him face down the wolf but counted several openings she herself could use to stab him in the back. But she'd been trained to fight. And she too had been in his position once. She would admire his bravery though. When she went through her training, she didn't have that courage. She had a whip behind her back forcing her to fight.

The wolf lept and slashed at his leg causing Evelyn to wince. She could smell the blood, but thankfully it wasn't a serious wound. She continued watching with careful eyes. And then he fell. Evelyn gasped and was about to hold up her hand to stop her beast but Relin raised his sword in once last ditch effort to save himself. The blade pierced the wolf, ending what was left of it's life, and it's body poofed away in a cloud of smoke back to where it came from.

Evelyn was smirking. So he'd managed to stay alive, that was something. Not...great. But something. She clapped twice, then held her hand out to the side. A black dagger formed out of smoke by her hand turning into solid metal. She looked him dead in the eye as she slashed a line down her other forearm. Eve tried fighting past the pain but it didn't give her much help.

"Drink," she said offering him her bleeding arm. He would surely protest and she pushed her arm forward again. "Drink it. I can't have you limping into battle. Drink my blood."

The wound was already starting to close to Evelyn dug deeper into her arm with the dagger. Her left hand was starting to lose color and her right one was trembling. Blood was just oozing out of the wound and spilling into the ground.

When and if he actually agreed with this, Evelyn would explain two things. The first was that he needed to drink the blood in her veins, before it came out into the air. So like, he couldn't cup it in his hands as if fell from her forearm and drink it then. He had to put his mouth to her flesh and suck it out like a vampire might. This was crucial. Second, not only would his wound heal, but his body would get a temporary energy boost. He'd suddenly feel well rested, capable of finishing even his strongest spell as if it were a new day. It would also have one other lasting effect, but in his current state it would not affect him.

 

[Raydo]

His hard expression broke a bit when she tore into her own arm, his stomach turning slightly at the sight. He stared at her when she gave her command before he took a step back and shook his head.

"N..No.." he said. She was a demon, he was already breaking core tenants of his training even speaking with her. To consume her blood, and whatever magic it contained would surely damn his soul. "I can't." he said shaking his head again "I won't." he said sheathing his sword and reaching for a bandage.

He quickly tied it around the leg wound. He could deal with it properly later. "I'll be fine." he said taking a step, trying to hide his discomfort. "We should go." he said. He was sure some of the guards would come back and check on the church throughout the night. He didn't want them to get tied up in this.

He walked towards the gate.

 

[EmilyHuene]

Evelyn groaned at his argument. She protested, tossing the blade to the ground. The edge stuck into the ground while the hilt slowly faded away into smoke like the wolf did. She gripped the top of her arm and let the wound heal itself slowly.

"Fine. Be that way. But if you die, I won't let you heal yourself later."

Stubbornly, she followed after him. The blood still dripping into the grass.

 

[Raydo]

He exited the gate, and waited for Evelyn to follow before he turned and locked it. Obviously, whatever had attacked them last night cared little for locked doors, but it seemed foolish to leave it unlocked.

He let Evelyn lead the way, still thinking about her offer for a moment ago. "I appreciate your help." he said quietly. He wouldn't know what this even was without here. Because of her, there was at least some hope of saving the town.

They walked down the dirt road, only the moon lighting the area. "So how does the whole..." he said gesturing to his leg and then arm "healing thing work?" he asked genuinely. "I have never heard of....demons" he said pausing at the use of the word "with such abilities" he asked. They all had for all he knew, he had done a fair amount of studying but was by no means an expert on demons.

 

[EmilyHuene]

Waiting for him to lock the gate she clutched at her arm which was now mostly healed, but still had some way to go. As he did, he thanked her for helping, to which she nodded her head. They began to start walking down the dirt path heading away from the village. The moon lit their way, so they thankfully did not need the light of a torch. She wondered if he had one on him in his pack somewhere because she certainly didn't have one.

And finally he addressed the elephant in the room, as the saying went. How did her healing work? That...was a loaded question. Turning around, she pointed to the dirt behind them. There were small drops of blood leaving a trail. But, as they stood there and watched, he'd see a small line of steam coming out of each of the piles and the blood was slowly receding into nothing. The same could be said for the blood dripping down by her feet. Evelyn wiped a finger across the skin of her arm under the actual wound and held the bloody finger out to him. Getting a closer look, he'd see what was happening now up close.

"There are no demons like me. My blood is...different from anyone I've ever met. My mother explained it once to me that it actually used to be human. Something about my true father. I...don't really understand it much myself. But I am the only person of my kind."

The blood was now completely gone from her finger, though it still had a red tint to the skin from where it had been. She continued, "While the blood is in my body it has the ability to heal me. It restores dead cells, it prevents me from needing to eat; I can actually live without breathing if you believe it. Though the feeling is truly terrifying. I-" Evelyn shuddered as some memory passed through her. "But when my blood is outside my body, it breaks apart and burns away. I don't really know why that is either. But I know it's impossible to store my blood."

Turning around, she would start walking again, "I was taken prisoner once. My friends came and saved me, thank the gods. But not before someone unlocked the secrets of my blood. She drank it from me, bit me right in the neck. Her body had been so old and withered she was literally skin and bones. But after nearly draining me completely-" Eve paused again, shivering from the sensation. "-She became young, youthful. It was...a miracle."

Kicking some of the rocks in her path she would slow down and get rather quiet. She lowered her head staring down at herself; her hair blew gently in the breeze making it more and more obvious to her horns. Her arm was healed now, and she rubbed at the newly formed skin. It was smooth like a newborn.

"I'd never been so scared in my life..."

 

[Raydo]

He walked in silence as she spoke. Everything he knew about the world was being shredded and he couldn't help but feel a bit helpless. He wished Bralin had been here to hear any of it, he would have known what to do, what to believe. But he wasn't. Relin was alone in this. He didn't know if any of this was true. She seemed sincere, but he knew demons were master liars, were all of these just lies.

After she finished speaking he quiet for some time. Drinking blood of any kind seemed wrong to him, but there had to be something different about her. He just didn't know. He let out a quiet chuckle "You have to be the first demon to ever thank the gods for anything." he said. Maybe it was the exhaustion, but he found his chuckle turning into brief laughter before dying down again.

While she may not need to eat or sleep, He would at some point. He hoped she didn't just up and leave him, hoping he had done something to prove himself. "Evelyn." he asked turning his head to look at her "Where are we going?" he asked.

 

[EmilyHuene]

She was glad that he turned to humor, and it cheered her up a little. She didn't like talking about depressing things. He found it funny that a demon had thanked the gods, and she too found that to be quite the story. Putting her hands on her hips she leaned back some as if to stare up at the sky; specifically, the moon.

"Well, my mother is a witch. She taught me to pray to the Moon goddess. So yeah. Makes sense."

And that was all she said about it before her mood changed completely like a lamp light being clicked on. Her depressive mood vanished and now she was cheery and giddy. Her hands clasped behind her back and began skipping ahead. He called ahead to her, asking where they were going. She then spun around and kept skipping, only now she was going backwards.

"There's a clearing up ahead. A mile or so further. I can summon us a mount if you'd like. It would be faster."

Her face then got delighted with that very idea and she clapped her hands happily in front of her face. Turning around so that she wouldn't summon them where he was standing, she placed her hands on the ground and began to create her wolves once more. Her shadow expanded and two more of the giant wolves crawled out of the black pit. They shook there fur like a wet dog and then crouched for them to both climb on their backs.

Evelyn kicked her foot up as if she'd done it hundreds of times and the wolf raised her up. She gave Relin a pleased look and tapped her wolf like she was motioning for him to take a seat. Only, to his and not hers. The wolf would look to Relin and pant as if nothing more than a giant puppy. It was no longer angry or vicious like the one he'd fought not even an hour ago.

"Come on!!! Don't be afraid!