1199, March 14th, 3:00 AM
Outskirts of Sofia, at the base of mount Vitosha, the village of Aleko.
Domain of Kiril, the AnointedKirilCarinus raises his eyebrows.
"I do not possess the ability to manipulate killing shadows, Kiril. I fear my own methods of disposal would result in my terrible demise in this particular situation."
Tendrils spring around Barabus, grabbing the massive man's arms and legs and restraining him. He appears to care about the tendrils exactly as much as he cares about the blades currently within his body.
The thing grins, showing off now-blackened teeth. It whips it's head to his left side and spits black blood into one of the guard's faces. The man screams and falls back, hands coming up to his face, releasing the grip on his blade.
Barabus then lets his right hand morph into a large spike that pierces the last guardsman's belly. The man sinks to his knees, then onto his other hand, pulling his sword from the monster and using it to support himself.
The demon turns his eyes onto Elias then.
The captain grits his teeth and takes a deep breath, almost as if to roar bloody defiance into the monster's face.
The captain croaks then, struggling to speak through the bone that had appeared in his throat. His eyes go wide and he raises his hands to the hole left behind as the lance withdraws into Barabus' body, as if he could stem the tide of blood that flows so freely through his broken artery.
"Gruglh"
Barabus' black eyes turn to Kiril, and he speaks with the chilling voice of a monster.
"No more games. Face me dark o-"
Barabus stops mid-sentence and looks over his shoulder. For the first time, Kiril sees fear and surprise on that terrible face. It soon gives way to a hatred that might have made even him shiver, were he still mortal.
The three demons still among the impaled bodies slink away from their master, any forward advancement they'd planned stopped immediately. Their whispering, however, is redoubled in its intensity.
KILL THE SHAPER, KILL THE KNIGHT---
Lucien"My lord! I must refuse, the captain of this squad can do his part, I must come with you to hunt this mighty beast I have heard so much of!"
The damned fool actually whistles to his wolves and starts charging towards the village, the things follow him with surprising loyalty (perhaps they wish to eat him?)
Ennius grits his teeth.
"We don't have time my lord, the situation appears dire. I suppose we will have to punish the fool at a later date."
Ennius rides forward on his charger, drawing his cavalry sword and maneuvering his horse with his feet as he loosens his shield from his back.
Following quickly after his most loyal knight and his most stupid ghoul, Lucien traverses the ruined village, the smell of death weighing heavily on him. He hears whispers travelling through the air, unable to make out the words but discomforted by them all the same.
It isn't long at all before they arrive at the village square, but the second they do Lucien instantly feels a powerful regret for every single life decision he's ever made that has led him to this particular moment.
Horrifying otherworldly darkness - more than Lucien has ever seen any Lasombra summon - fill the square, enough to drive an inlking of fear down even him. Things move and shift in the darkness, tendrils that whip and lash viciously at unseen monster. The whispers are much louder here, Lucien can start making out some of the words - he doesn't like any of them, of course.
Scanning the scene, he quickly locates Kiril - the Lasombra stands proudly and defiantly with his two servants, Carinus and Sherazhina. Three tendrils move out of his clothes visibly protecting him. Darkness surrounds him and Lucien cannot help but admire the Lord's power.
However, his attention is rapidly drawn away from his old companion and brought with utmost attention the the monster whom he stands in front of so defiantly.
It stares back at him.
Barabus.
Darius has stopped a good 50 feet away from Barabus, along with his three wolves, and he stands with his jaw wide open, frozen, unable to speak.
Ennius has pulled in his charge and has partially lowered his weapon, just long enough to mutter the words, heard by Lucien ever so acutely, more a statement than a question - "What the Fark is this."
While his features might resemble the old Barabus - before Lucien ever touched him - this Barabus is massive. Large to an inhuman degree, he towers over Kiril and 7 or so dead or dying, armoured men who lie in almost a circle around him. His body oozes black blood from cuts that he doesn't seem to notice, and he is restrained by tendrils which he doesn't seem to care about. He is completely naked, and this serves to outline the terrible, strained black veins that stand out on his body like tight cords. His lips and teeth, visible in a snarl, are black from bloody drool. As he tenses at Lucien's approach, he sees the man's horrifyingly large and powerful muscles ripple, not an ounce of fat on him.
He might be beautiful if he wasn't so terrifying.
Returning to his senses, Lucien realizes the voices are whispering something - this time clearer and louder and with more enthusiasm than ever before.
KILL THE SHAPER. KILL THE KNIGHT