Eulogy of Forgotten Souls - Chapter 8 Shattering

Felicia took the lead as their small party raced through the dark, decadent halls of the Shadow castle. She rounded a corner, the others a mere second behind, and a powerful force field sprung up behind them.

'Well, we were bound to meet something.' Kaffleen muttered, whipping out Kunou no Yami. The rest readied their respective weapons.

'Despair, mortals. Doom is come unto you this day!' uttered Cain, his glowing dark runesword and armor glittering with his movements.

Ristaccia sighed. 'Why do they always have to say something like that?'

Felicia snorted, and rushed without warning, her blade lashing out in a swift, fatal arc. Cain easily parried, and with his free hand sent a bolt of darkness at Kaffleen, who was next in line, jolting her backwards and stunning her. Rachel ducked under another bolt, and attacked with her katana as Felicia drew back for another strike. Their swords were crossed upon Cain's blade, forcing him to one knee as he blocked both attacks.

Ristaccia darted behind him, and almost decapitated him with a devastating sweep of her twin swords, but with an inhuman roar, the Death Knight pushed upwards with unnatural strength, knocking all three back.

He then turned on Xepher, his eyes afire in demonic energies. The dark crystal behind him flared, and he charged, his speed trebled with the enhancements of the unholy artifact.

Xepher traded lightning-fast blows with Cain, each seeking and failing to find a weak spot in the other, the former calm and focused, the latter erratic and furious. Cain attacked with a manic fury, turning the tide in his favour as he landed a glancing blow with the flat of his blade, pushing Xepher backwards. The Death Knight followed up with a barrage of sickly greenish bolts. Xepher dodged all but one, and gasped as a tiny bit of his life force was leeched from him. A minor wound on Cain's left arm sealed. He grinned.

'Shatter the crystal!' shouted Felicia, erecting a force wall and sending it at Cain, knocking him aside and pinning him into the wall. He screamed in raw fury and sliced the wall apart. Felicia intercepted his charge, and together with Xepher kept him at bay. Rachel and Ristaccia channeled their magical energies into Kaffleen, who gathered her magic essence. It coalesced into a lance-like spell, which shot straight at the crystal.

It shattered with a tinkling crash, and a faint wail shrieked from the shards as they disappeared completely. Cain stopped in mid-swing, and reeled backwards. Xepher and Felicia leapt backwards, and crouched, at the ready.

Cain shouted and screamed, his spine arching backwards, almost snapping in two. A faint shadow rose from his mouth, and gave a wail of despair as it vanished along with the crystal. Cain fell, unconscious and possibly dead.

Kaffleen shook her head. They continued their advance into the heart of the castle.
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Azure snarled as he ripped through three gargoyles with his six blades, shredding their stone skin into confetti. The battle wasn't going well. Raphael was singlehandedly keeping Cerulean, Ithuriel, Leon, Sieghart and Shadowz occupied, their numbers matched evenly by his incredible skill and power.

With a challenging shout, Azure joined the fray, coming behind Raphael, blades extended. The Death Knight laughed and turned as he struck at Azure, sending him careening away.

The exodus fared no better, endless streams of demons pouring against the desperate defenders. Many of the defenders fell, yet for every demon slain, another rose to take his place, three more at his side.
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They reached another large chamber, which housed the second of the three dark crystals. This room was like a jungle, countless pillars rising to the high ceiling, which was lost in shadows, so high it was.

The five Soul Warriors formed a circle, proceeding with caution towards the crystal. Without warning, a shower of crystal-tipped darts peppered them, blocked by Felicia's deft sword strokes. They scattered.

'Azure's daughter?' muttered Xepher, rolling away from another deadly salvo.

'Crystal!' Felicia called. 'We are not your enemies!'

A dart shot towards her in response, which was exactly as she hoped. Pinpointing the direction from which the dart emerged, she scaled the pillars swiftly and pounced, tackling the seemingly young girl from her perch, sending both to the ground.

'Destroy the damned thing!' yelled Felicia, restraining the thrashing Crystal on the ground with magic and physical strength.

Kaffleen needed no urging, blasting apart the dark crystal. As with Cain, Crystal shrieked as the dark presence within her was exorcised. She, too, was unconscious, although she was clearly breathing.

'She'll be safe here.' muttered Felicia. She looked at the double doors ahead, and shook her head. 'Let's finish this.' she uttered resolutely, and the five gathered their last strength and, as one, approached the doors.