Beyond the Clutches of Death

Subject: Beyond the Clutches of Death 1st May 2016, 7:49 pm

The male moved across the bridge towards the looming castle. A bladed tail slithered from under the pitch black cloak. The metal blades clinked an rattled together, but the male was as silent as death as he crawled towards his destination. A severe face with sharp and piercing eyes looked up at the door before him, a hood casting his features in shadow and a simple cloth covering his mouth. He reached out a his left arm, one completely made of a dense metal, and pushed open the door before scuttling inside. It was apparent that the creature, for one knew not what to call it with it's many modifications, was moving on all fours, or at least extremely hunch-backed. His stature was small and he was nearly unnoticeable, though the clicking and luster of the bladed tail gave him away.

He moved inward, past what looked like bedrooms and studies. He stopped at the library to take a peak inside. He wanted to look for volumes about necromancy, but he didn't have the time. Well, he supposed he did but he would come back after he was finished with the task at hand. He moved forth to a large circular room. Upon one wall was a group of projections that told him this was the place he was looking for. Where Curse Marks were given. The male shrugged his shoulders, letting his cloak pool on the floor. A mask was revealed upon his back, the blade extending from the mouth of the demon. The blade retracted back into the puppet and the mask lifted to reveal a young male, who promptly stood and stepped out of his trusty weapon. He used the strings of chakra connected to the puppet to make it stand and settle itself in the corner. He walked over to the projections, ignoring most of them for one of a pale man, stitching covering his body. He bore the Curse of the Undead, what Samael had come here for "With this I will be able to avoid death, even if only for a moment..." He whispered to himself.

Posts : 3780 Join date : 2012-05-06

If only it was that simple, one did not hunt down the mark that they wanted, they were given the choice and assessed for worth. Upon stepping into the temple, the doors would close behind Samael and the darkness would enshroud him. With a pulse, his chakra would be cut off, the strings connecting him to the puppet he was controlling were severed and the puppet would fall dead and lifeless. One walked in here on their own accord, one did not hide within machines, one did not try and shy away from the gaze of Lady Carmen. The darkness and silence would stretch out until the boy chose to crawl from his puppet, whenever that happened to be, it was inert and his strings would not connect to it, not yet. If he bothered to get out into the open, lights would turn on. There were four colours that were perfectly obvious upon the lights activation.

The first stood high and to Samael's left. A short, squat figure in a black robe stood there. Red light suffused them and a red glow came from under their hood, a singular eye watching intently. High and to the right stood a taller, more slender figure. A blue glow suffused them and a blue light burned from within their hood. The third figure was straight ahead, higher than the other two. Purple light and a pair of shimmering, sparkling royal eyes watched Samael, a muscular physique barely held by the robes they were wearing. Above all and behind the one bathed in purple, golden light seared down, backlighting the Phoenix effigy that was raised there. Golden eyes watched Samael, both lifeless and judging simultaneously.

"You wish..." "...to be given..." "...Lady Carmen's blessing." They spoke, one after another, never blinking, forever watching. "Tell us..." "...Why you..." "...Wish for this." Their voices were barely distinguishable, slight cadence and a pulsing of the lights behind them being the only thing to tell Samael which one was speaking at any given time.

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Subject: Re: Beyond the Clutches of Death 1st May 2016, 8:19 pm

When he felt his strings cut he panicked for a moment. The mask only retracted when a pulse of chakra was sent to it. Would he be trapped here until his death? Was this what happened to those they found unworthy of a Curse Mark. As he thought of this, his resolve flared. He was worthy, and he would prove it. He reached his hands up and pushed at the mask, the hinges groaning in protest as it flipped open. He crawled from his puppet, just managing not to get tangle within the cloak it was wearing. He crawled out into the darkness and stood, brushing himself off as best he could.

When the lights came on he looked at each of the figures in turn. The first three were most likely the best of the best scholars here, seeing as they were trusted to impart the gift of the Empress. His eyes then swiveled to the golden ones and even though he had not seen the woman a day in his life, he knew them to be the eyes of Lady Carmen. He drew himself up straight, wanting to present himself with dignity. These people were not who he feared. In fact his empress was his goal, she represented the pinnacle of immortality and he wanted to reach that point, or at least as close to it as he could get. When they spoke to him, he could barely tell their voices apart, but he supposed that did not matter. All that mattered was his answer "I wish for this because it will help me upon my quest to immortality. I wish to one day serve alongside the glorious Lady Carmen, as a God of Pandora." His voice rang clear in the room, and he went to great lengths to ensure it did not waver.

Posts : 3780 Join date : 2012-05-06

There was a pause, the lights dimmed for a few moments. The eyes didn't look away from Samael for a moment though. After the silence stretched for a few minutes, the one lit in purple nodded. "Your quest..." "...Is noble..." "...Young One." "Your path..." "...However..." "...Is treacherous." "Heed your warnings..." "...Or else you..." "...Shall fail." "We believe..." "... That with dedication..." "...And strength..." "You..." "...Shall..." "...Prevail." The lights flared brighter and the three figures stood, gazing down upon him with glowing eyes. They spread their arms and symbols appeared before him. They were intricately designed panels on the ground, glowing from within with golden light. The eyes of the Phoenix faded and all went still. "Choose..." "...Your..." "...Path."

The symbols depicted ancient fairy tale creatures of evil and darkness mostly. Vampire and Werewolf were the most obvious, the former a tall figure cloaked in black and red, gleaming crimson eyes staring out. The latter a massive wolf, howling to the moon, up on two legs. A robed individual highlighted the next sigil, a staff held in hand, light radiating from the end; Magician. Horns, fangs and a spiked tail for the next, black as night and evil as can be; The Demon. Stitches, paper, corpse soil formed the basis of the next, a being almost falling apart and yet caring not; Undead. Wings, claws and eyes of malice, a bird being, known for theft; Harpy. Lastly a small figure, almost a child, wreathed in shadows and mist, one gleaming silver eye looking over her shoulder; The Fae. Which would he choose? Stepping on an icon would reveal more, the paths to be chosen and the supplements therein afterwards.

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~A message to all~

I am always available to help if you need it! Just send me a message here or on Discord, hope you enjoy your time here.

Subject: Re: Beyond the Clutches of Death 1st May 2016, 9:13 pm

Sam had done a bit of research on the marks in preparation for this decision. He still went down the list, reinforcing his knowledge. He stood before the figure with the cloak of blood and shadow, it's crimson eyes meeting Sam's own. The Vampire, a good bet for immortality. They didn't age and disease couldn't effect them. They could also shift their form into that of a bat as well as sprout wings for flight. It was a good mark, but just not his style. The next was the creature howling at the moon. The Werewolf mark turned one into a glorified guard dog, so that just wouldn't do. He moved on to the Magician, it was nice but not his style. The Demon was next, with all their winged glory. It was also a good choice, but he didn't feel like it was....compatible with him. His gaze swiveled over the next mark on to the Harpy. This one seemed tailored to females, so he moved on. The Fae were next, though none of their arts interested him. And so he turned back to the mark he had looked over.

He stepped onto that mark, looking at the Undead creature before him. He had found that there was only way to truly cheat death. That was to embrace it, only to return to life. He was sure that this was the mark for him, and after he took it up, he would be nigh unstoppable in his journeys. It only made sense to choose this one. He looked back up at the three, nodding to them slightly before speaking "I choose this Mark. The Mark of the Undead."

Posts : 3780 Join date : 2012-05-06

All of the lights went out, everything shut down and silence reigned after he made his choice. A pause sat heavily although it lasted only seconds. More silent than a breeze, someone stepped up behind Samael and slammed their hand against his back. There would be a split second where nothing seemed to happen and then searing pain would launch through his heart and he'd die. The person crouched down and placed the supplements around the seal before getting up and leaving. It was up to Samael's spirit to find its way back and inhabit the body to bring him back to life, although he would never remember any of it. In fact, he'd wake up at home with no recollection of ever being within the castle. Only the words of the Priests would ring in his mind and the innate understanding that he had been given something amazing... With that he was classified as Undead and the seal would sit with him forever more...

Spoiler:

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~A message to all~

I am always available to help if you need it! Just send me a message here or on Discord, hope you enjoy your time here.

Subject: Re: Beyond the Clutches of Death 3rd May 2016, 4:24 pm

Samael tried not to panic as the lights shut off. He wasn't afraid of the dark, he was actually worried that this had all been a trick and they decided to kill him. He was afraid that he had been deemed unworthy, seen impure by a red, blue and royal violet jury as well as a golden judge. He heard something move behind him. Actually he got the feeling something was behind him, he couldn't really hear. They moved too silently. He moved to turn when he felt the hand upon his back. He was about to speak as electricity lanced through his entire being. His world went black.

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Sam awoke at home with a killer headache and remnants of a strange dream in his mind. He dreamt of seeing his body upon the floor of the room, being carried out. He swam through a sea of darkness and silvery images of people. The world in the dream shifted between the world he knew and an eerie shadow of it. He then saw his body on his bed, slipping into it as if he was sliding into an old pair of shoes....then he woke up. He sat there thinking, then he heard whispers. He recognized some as dead spirits, though others were from somewhere else. He then caught one word they were speaking "Undead..." Then it hit him. It had worked. They had placed the Curse Mark on him and he had died. He had embraced death and return absolutely fine. He was ecstatic. He had died, and anyone else would have to try doubly hard to accomplish that feat again. He would make sure of it.

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