Rebirth

[Jen]

The sun was high in the sky by this time. It must have been near noon by the time all of this had occurred. It felt like an eternity to Isabella. With her hands on her hips, Bella glanced at Caela and nodded.

Take them. Kahlan will know what to do with them.

All she got in reply was a nod. Caela held the children in her arms and moved as quick as lightning past the Vampire and out into the woods.

"I apologize." It was directed to the Vampire, and Isabella still had her hands on her hips -- her eyes riveted on the dark hallway Vylrath disappeared into. "We don't know our own strength sometimes." She felt mildly insane standing there, like a lone sentry, making sure Vylrath didn't come back out. She laughed briefly and turned to the Vampire. She bowed from the waist and motioned to the temple.

"You are welcome here so long as you do not try to kill us. There is a fishing village nearby if you need to feed. The human child in our group will be gone in moments. The temptation is, apparantly, too great even for our own to resist." Isabella said the last very blandly. It was obvious that she was completely irritated with Vylrath's insanity. "If you desire my presence, then I will go. If not...then I must speak with Vylrath. He has some things to answer for."

As if she had forgotten her offer to join the Vampire, Isabella turned and started heading into the inky blackness of the temple. There were places that not even the glare of sunlight falling through windows could penetrate. Vylrath had made a beeline for these areas, as if the darkness itself would erase his stupidity and insanity.

In the distance she felt a surge of power, great and clean, and then it was gone. The only power remaining, fledgling in its own right, seemed bereft and hurried on its way back. There were no more children. There were no more temptations for Vylrath.

He had, however, missed Kahlan.

[Vylrath]

Vylrath was in the chambers where had found the altar. The darkness encompassed his body like an upward spiral. The tip of the power just barely breached the ceiling. Translucent, he was inside the pillar in the middle of the sentient storm. Ravaged by grief, longing, despair, he had finally sacrificed himself completely. What did he have left? Kahlan was in her own realm. The children had always feared him. He had no desire for Caela, or Isabella. The world he had failed no longer existed.

He would let the thing control him- mentally and physically. The curse would be his emotional and physical drive for survival. His skin was no longer blue, but gradually elapsing into the color of slag. His eyes were no longer green, in fact, they did not possess an iris, or any distinguishable makings of an eye. It was as if someone had covered them with a black screen.

The force dropped him, his body hitting the ground with a violent shudder.

He stood up, coughing, observing his surroundings as if he had never been there. Suddenly, he inhaled, feeling new breath enter his lungs. The voice spoke to him once more, leaving him satisfied with what he had done. He had given his soul up for absolution- now he would be an empty shell. Isn’t that what Isabella had wanted? He would obey her and listen to the curse only when it would help their people. He would bless her, siphoning her with all of his available energy when she needed it.

Your Queen will be reborn…never leave her side! Without us, she will perish! You give yourself instead of your daughter. You are bound to me.

The voice ended, leaving him clueless. He did not feel weak, ashamed, or remorseful for his sacrifice. He no longer felt.

He saw the figure of Isabella, his new mind telling him to bow.

His new eyes turned to her. “Yes, your highness?” Vylrath’s voice would falter, as if rethinking his position. He would look immensely strange, his very presence unnerving. He was certain that she could feel his loss.

If he died, she would no longer be affected by his death. She would continue to live, unchanged.

[Jen]

Despite the soft leather soles of her boots, Isabella's footfalls echoed as she entered the heart of the temple. Vylrath had changed, she felt it. It was the reason she'd left the Vampire. Caela could handle him if she needed to. With a tilt of her head, Isabella looked at her ex husband -- her hands on her hips.

"I am not Queen yet."

There was a vacancy about him that didn't bode well for her. He had snapped entirely. Vaguely, Isabella wondered what would bring him back to himself. Her eyes fluttered around the room and settled back on her ex husband. Isabella was strong in ways that Vylrath had always been weak. The irony of the situation, knowing that he wouldn't push her away if she tried to kill him -- well that was just very strange and ironic.

"Technically, Caela is the banished monarch. She is willing to give me the crown, however. So when the time comes we will be ready for it."

Isabella walked around the edge of the room, her fingertips brushing intimately along the wall. Gods, but her moods were insanely unhinged! Her fingertips found the black scar of Vylrath's blood on the wall. He would feel the brush of her fingertips, even if he would not recognize it. Isabella walked around the room, her fingers never leaving the scar -- just lightly brushing the stone. She didn't have to lay her hands on her ex husband for him to feel her. Whatever scar his blood left, his anger left, Isabella would be able to use it.

The woman was the epitome of grace and beauty. It seemed that every waking moment drew away her old weary beauty and replaced it with fresh, irresistable youth. She was firmer in a way she hadn't been after the birth of her children. She knew that she would retain that firmness of youth and body even if she gave birth a thousand times. A small frown flickered over her face at that thought. A thousand births? Gods, but that would be distressing on any mind. Her death had come at the birth of her daughter Caela, so it would be plausible that she would have a mild fear of giving birth again. Would she die? She was just a mortal when she'd died then -- she had no control of power or life. Even now she had no control over life, but she knew that she would be stronger. As Isabella passed Vylrath on his right, her shoulder brushed his and the hand not touching the wall brushed over her belly and womb. She would live and give birth to healthy children should she desire to become pregnant and further their race.

There had to be an easier way to procreate than the way Vylrath had found. There had to be a way that a transfer of power could occur without actually physically losing energy or power. Perhaps pregnancy would be the key to that. Isabella frowned, a face so beautiful even with her brow drawn in thought, and considered how she might prove such a thing. Caela was not ready for more children, she had her own. Then there were the pregnancy implications. Just how long would they be pregnant? Could they even get pregnant? Isabella made a small grunting noise as she left the wall and came to stand in front of Vylrath. Her eyes were the brightest object in that room and she stared, without fear, into the lifeless black eyes of her ex husband.

"There has to be an easier way." He may know her train of thought, or he may not. She wasn't ready to project her thoughts to him as she dropped her eyes to stare at his chest where his heart would (or should) be. The trauma of being born with power would be far less than the trauma of being thrown into the chaos of power exhuded from Vylrath. Isabella began to hum softly, a soft lilting tune, as she thought about how she might further their race without the trauma Vylrath had created.

"There must be an easier way. There must!"

[Vylrath]

Why were the people of this realm always searching for an easier path? Couldn’t they accept their fate? Vylrath thought, hypocritically. Strangely, he could read her thoughts again. He was tired of changing, evolving into something phenomenally stronger than his demonic side.

“You will not die. I do not care to have more children with you. Nothing good comes of it.” Before she could retaliate against his words, he spoke again: “…but I know that’s what must be done, if we are going to grow.”

He became thoughtful, bored with her incessant questioning. Shouldn’t she be happy?

“I do need one thing: armor and weapons. The armory I found is too old, almost to the point of dust. You will have to help me build it. You are a follower of Tempus, aren’t you, or did your God die when I changed you?” He smirked, wondering if she would react willfully, or go against his thoughts.

“I did not make you into a thing to only produce litters! Frankly, none of my children have been loyal to me, except by force or other extreme measures- your death for example.” He paced in front the altar, now tinged with redness. He noticed that his own blood created an inner-glow, that allowed for them to see in the darkness. Vylrath looked at her fully, seeing the pain etched across her seemingly ancient features, regardless she spoke as a young woman.

“You do not want children by me…but I do not know any other way to continue this madness.” An idea struck him: what if they sacrificed the young in the village? Would they become something else if he bathed them in his blood? Did he have to turn them the way he had turned Isabella and Caela? Another idea formed for the creation of his armor. “You said there was a village nearby? I will need you to fetch me supplies…it will be a small list. I don’t want you exhausting yourself.” Sitting down on the altar, the stone looked more like a crude throne built for the madman.

“Human skin and bones…metal… whatever will be necessary! Take their weapons, if you must, but I must have human skin and bone! The purest…they are most likely simple-minded, so the task should not be difficult.” What sparked this idea? He had been envious of the vampire’s armor. He had noticed it almost immediately when he caught first view of the creature. It was truly amazing. He leaned back, his face covered by the shadows, the outline of his body just barely visible.

“When you return, we will talk more about our future.”

He made it sound like the task would be nothing out of the ordinary. Vylrath didn’t know how he would construct such armor and blade, but he was sure he would come up with something. He had never been out of ideas before.

[Vylrath]

It had been days, maybe even weeks, before Vylrath woke up to full senses. Now he felt in control of himself. His guilt had washed over him, riddling him with inner-question’s that had never plagued him until this curse.

Everybody needed a sanctuary: even demons and past Queen’s. In thought to his past actions, he had been attempting to rebuild Tempus- the God that Isabella had been worshipping since before he knew her. He knew that he wasn’t skilled in the arts, but he thought he had done a damn good job at attempting perfection.

His boyish personality had gotten the better of him. He had founded the room, when he had been scouting during the first weeks of their arrival. It may have been designed as a private prayer house, or some odd meeting hall. However, it still had enough light where she could find peace. He found that not all of the light had been covered. He studied his work once more, growing anxious over what her reaction might be. Vylrath had been around human’s enough, to recognize their physique.

Looking upward to admire the facial features, he had personally carved, he wondered if Tempus would be rolling in his own grave. Would the old God have ever fathomed, that a demon would be rebuilding a statue in likeness of him? He doubted it.

Building the statue had brought back old muscle and kept his mind busy. It would be an ultimate gift for Isabella. He had remembered his cruel comment: Did your God die, when I changed you? He sighed at himself, his mind constantly working.

He sat for a moment, as if in counsel with the statue.

Blood had been spilled across the chest of the statue. It looked like symbolism, but they appeared alive with a foreign light. It made the statue look like a living ghost of Isabella’s past. The Great God Tempus was there for her- his sword, shield, and the pose that Vylrath had miraculously remembered.

Leaving his place, he shut the heavy stone doors behind him. They drew up dust and bits of debri from the tile floor keeping them in place. He would show her his gift soon, maybe even in the morning, so the first light could shine in her sanctuary.

“By the gods, never has a woman been so complicated in my life!” He threw his arms up in the air, letting his voice echo down the corridor like a disembodied spirit.

He chuckled, fairly amused with himself. Things had calmed down since his madness. He avoided Caela and still yearned for Kahlan. Would one woman never be enough to satisfy him?

[paper_stars]

What an interesting place. She thought as she stood in the mist of the wilderness around her..did she know were she was? not at all..she just 'woke up' and found herself here. Though the thought of not knowing where she was didnt bother her one bit..she rather liked the idea being somewhere she may have never been before..Yes.

Dark eyes shifted back and forth as she examined her surroundings..she was here for sometime, just aimlessly wandering about this very strange and beautiful land..however its beauty didn't faze her so much..it hardly compared to how she felt about herself and her own beauty..She would rather drown in herself than 'enjoy' the beauty of the land.

"Hmn..how strange." Her head tipped to the side as she stopped by a tree fingers lightly caressing between the rivets of bark. "I didn't notice anyone was here..." the shadows shifted behind her as the sun seemed to slow move in the sky..time simply passing by. "Oh..don't worry, I didn't forget about you my darlings..my shadows." She smiled sweetly to herself and leaned against the trunk of the tree, lightly placing her cheek against it.

"Oooh..." she closed her eyes as she listened as she felt the sudden rush over power, the shift in the land and the rise of emotions.."Wonderous..it's been so long.." She licked her lushes pink lips as she pressed her body into the tree.."I miss it.." she said to the tree, to her shadows..and mainly to herself.

She moved her hand up the tree slowly in a passionate caress before bring it down quickly; digging her nails into the tree..the bark biting into her porcelain skin..blood seeping from the paper cut like wounds as she withdrew her hand to examine it. "mmm.." Shards of wood stuck out from her fingertip where she had dug her finger into the tree too harshly..she shivered and the sight of her blood and removed the shard of bark.

The shadows shifted again as she withdrew herself from the tree and started to walk barefoot over the land. Fascinated with the little bit of blood that now tickled down her index finger..she waited and watched it stain her beautiful skin before she took her tongue and drew it up to the very tip were she would suck on the small wound.

However this woman was not only barefoot but she was completely in the nude and hardly even noticed..she walked through the forest like she walked down a runway, strutting..powerful..intimdating and in her own thoughts beautiful.

She was a small thing, very fragile looking..skinny with an average size bosom ..her body was fairly normal with just a hint of curves to her hips that only showed when she shifted them in her seductive walk.

Skin smooth with no blemishes or hairs..like a perfectly crafted doll. Her deep dark brown hair fell in a feathery cascade down her shoulders to the mid of her back..slick and shimmery in the light of sun.

As she finished enjoying the taste of her own blood she whipped that same hand out in mid air beckoning them forth..and the power would engulf her in an instance of shadows.

Seeping from her body like a disease they would remove from her and leave behind a light black mesh dress to cover part of her body but hide nothing from view. The cloth lightly touched at her upper thighs and draped effortlessly over her shoulders and arms.

Her curiosity pulled her closer to this interesting gathering of beings..to the power and emotions she felt, she found pleasure in it..and wanted to feel more and see what the cause of all this attention was.

How long did it take her to reach this temple? She did not know, she didnt keep track..time was nothing to her, this world..this place truly was nothing in her presence.

She stopped not to far away from it gazing upon it and feeling the power that shown almost brighter than the sun to her eyes..what a wonderful beckon to draw more near..she thought as she curiously gazed upon the structure.

The corner of her mouth twisting up in a devious smile..how long would it take..for whoever was here..around to notice her now?

It was so very exciting.