Autumn's Beginning, Autumn's Breeze

I'm bored.

Gerard

"Blast it all," Gerard cursed as he swung his sword in a arc, slicing off a demons head and anothers arm. "Where is Nat when you need him? He'd be able to blow these things up so that they couldn't regenerate like this!"

"Yeah, but even if he was here what would happen to the stone? As it is, one demon already got past and we still need all of us here," Ara reasoned.

"Don't remind me..." Gerard frowned in concern for his brother, even if he was wishing him here with a thousand more demons to deal with, or so it seemed.

Suddenly Alise appeared and tore through the mob of advancing demons...

"I...I'm a Mage..." she answered quietly, avoiding looking into Nat's eyes.

"A Mage? That's...not possible," Nat said, looking down at her.

"Most would say that. Mage's are far and few between, but I am one. I usually don't tell people, because so many are afraid of such magical magic, and because people with magic are always seen differently once people know. I always wanted to tell you..."

"Well then, why didn't you? You know it wouldn't of changed anything between us."

"I was afraid it would...I was afraid that you'd see me more for my magic than anything. I thought it might make you like me more, you know, the way I like you; but I didn't want you to like me for that reason alone..." Bella looked up at Nat, staring him straight in the eyes, and waiting for him to speak.

Nathaniel

"Oh, Bella," he shook his head. Putting one hand on her shoulder he looked into her eyes. "You are a foolish, foolish girl."

"How so?" her eyes narrowed.

"You having magic changes nothing, Nothing, between us. In fact..." he paused, taking a deep breath.

"What?"

"It actually strengthens the bond between us," he said quickly. Then, quietly, he said, "It'll be good to have another mage around. I was beginning to worry..."

"Worry about what?"

"Nothing, nevermind. The fact of the matter is I will never see you for anything more or less than what you are. Magic or no magic."

"You mean it?" she asked hesitantly, seaching him to make sure he was speaking the truth.

"Of course, Bella." he took a deep breath. "I will always love you."


*have fun, bella. hope this helps.*

Ara was thankful, Alise had taken out most of the demons. But she kept going, maybe to find something to feed on. Ara didn't care. She quickly fought, it looked like they were getting control of this,

"I'm going to go get that other, I think y'all should be able to take these." She said slashing at another one. I have to find the other one or the drive will never stop. She thought, to her she was just sitting inside her body watching as the drive took over and fought, and until all the demons were gone she was stuck. If she used a lot of strength in the process then when they were she would pass out.

*Sorry, I'm bored*

***I love you DM! I posted all this once already, but it died. I don't know why, but it died. Anyway, here I go again! And I still love you!!***

"But...you never....and I..." Bella gave up on trying to sort out all of the thoughts running through her head. She had many questions, and she would make sure that they were answered, but they could wait until a better time. "I will always love you too...more." For the first time, it was Nat that pulled Bella into a tight hug, chuckling to himself as he did so. She smiled, inhaling his scent deeply; and for that moment, everything seemed perfect and right in the world.

Lies can only last for so long.


"Did you hear that?" Bella asked, pulling herslef unwillingly out of his arms.

"Yes." There was another scream from far off in the distance, and Nat took charge. "Come on," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling Bella down the tunnel. "The stone must be close by."

"Nat!" He ignored her, too concerned with getting to the stone. "Nat!"

"What?" he asked, still dragging her along as quickly as he could manage.

"Stop!" he stopped, turning around and staring at her impatiently. Bella ignored him, closing her eyes and focusing on everything around her. When she opened her eyes, her fear was quite obvious.

"What is it?"

"The demon is barely even a mile back, and traveling faster than you or I could ever manage to travel, magic or no. We need to get to the stone."

Nathaniel

Nat thought for a moment. "Alright, we'll teleport but i don't know how much good it'll do."

He grabbed Bella's wrist and they disappeared, reapperaing farther down the tunnel.

"Here it is," Nat said, taking a step forawrd towards a small pedastal that seemed to be glowing with a faint pink arura. He reached out a hesitant hand to grab the stone.

"Wait, Nat."

"What?"

Precautions?" Bella suggested.

Nat sighed. "Bella, there is no time. It's now or never."

Even as he spoke, the faint chuckle of a demon could be heard; far away at first but growing ever louder every second. Nat wasted no time. Reaching out his hand he laid it on the stone...

...and collapsed.


*Again, have fun Bella.*

Alise stopped, the scream was coming from behind her now. She turned around and ran back, once again taking out a fair amount of demons. She only got around the corner when the scream was behind her again.

This time she stopped right in the middle of the demons, this is where the scream was coming from.

"Alise what are you doing?" Gerard shouted at her.

"Somebody's screaming from this exact spot!"

Gerard gripped her arm, "Alise nobody's screaming."

"But I can hear them!"

A demon tore through the pair knocking Gerard to the ground. "Gerard!" Alise threw herself at the demon, easily ripping its head off. She grabbed his shirt and pulled him up, "are you alright?"

Gerard nodded, "I'm fine."

*Thanks DM!!*

"NAT!" Bella cried, kneeling beside him instinctively. She placed two fingers on his neck, and could feel his pulse beating slowly. He was alive; good. Bella turned around just as the demon appeared a few yards away.

"Fools; you really believed you could get here first? Even if you had, it would have all been for nothing." Bella felt a large spur of pain shoot through her body, and she fell to her knees. "The stone will be ours."

"Not if I can help it," Bella replied through clenched teeth, raising her hand and shooting a blast of magic at the demon. The demon flew backwards a few feet, but landed on it's feet.

"How did you do that? You're supposed to be mortal!"

"Well, I guess I broke that rule than, didn't I?" Bella shot another blast of magic at the demon, this time stronger. Her anger was obvious in every one of her blows. She heard Nat move behind her.

"Bella, what are you doing?"

"Trying to kill this godforsaken demon!" Bella answered, being foolish enough to turn around. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine; a little weak, but fine...Watch out!" Just as Nat said it, Bella was hit in the back with a stronger blast of magic than she could even imagine. She tumbled forward, so that she was next to Nat, and in reaching distance of the stone. Hesitantly, she reached up to grab it.

"Oh no you don't," the demon luaghed, grabbing the stone just as Bella's hand landed on it. Bella screamed as the room around her began to spin.

"Nat! Nat, what's going on?" She cried. What she didn't realize what that Nat could no longer hear her, nor see her. She could hear him calling her name, trying to figure out where she had went. And then, the voice became faint, until there was nothing but darkness, and silence.

Ara ran as fast as her feet would let her, her staff in one hand a stone she had found in the other, it was glowing so she used it to see. Her legs pumped wildly and when she heard the scream they moved faster towards the sound. The drive was getting more intense and her brain pounded, she was about to fade and the drive take over but she fought it, she had to keep some sense or the drive would take over. She was once told it was a fallen warrior in her, but she never believed it, she didn't know what she did when she was in teh drive and had faded out, but she knew only her enimies ever died from her. Everything to her concious eyes started to go dark and she fought it, she had to see what she was up against before she faded it out.



*Sorry, thought I'd send y'all a little help if you dont' mind that is, I can always make her do somethign else if need be *

Nathaniel

"Bella!?"

No answer, just faint screams.

"Bella!?" he called louder.

Still no answer.

Nathaniel cursed and struggled to his feet, still very weak from the effects of the stone. He should've taken Bella's advice.

He looked around for any trace of Bella, the demon, or the stone. The pedastal upon which the stone had sat was bare. Bella and the demon were gone. Nat cursed again.

Turning, using the last of his energy, Nathaniel sent a flaming ball of light that kept flashing back and forth between blue and black. Then he slumped against the wall, his breathing heavy and labored.

"Come...hurt"


Gerard
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Gerard continued fighting off the remaining demons; striking at almost anything that moved but being careful not to hit anyone he knew. He had refrained from killing the demons, but was doing a considerable ammount of damage to them.

Suddenly, out of the darkness, a small flaming ball came from down the tunnel. Gerard had only to glance at it before he took off running in the direction the ball had come from.

"What is it?" Alise called after him.

"Its Nat! He's hurt and needs us to come!"

Alise waited until Gerard had rounded the corner before she unleashed her full vamp powers, just the sight of her like that scared most of the demons off, and the few brave ones who stayed behind were dead within a full minute.

Demon blood tasted weird, but it gave her a strange buzz of energy. She didn't really like it, but she supposed it would help save Nat. She took off running, over lapping Gerard, but she didn't stop. If Nat was hurt that meant Bella was too, and there was a pretty good chance they had the stone.

She rounded the corner catching the demon off guard, she only managed to knock him off his feet and grab the stone. She stripped off the demon's glamour and saw its true face.

"Remember me Alise?" it looked her over, "no, you don't do you?"

Alise stared blankly at him, she sensed Ara and Gerard nearing, they'd be able to help Nat as long as she kept the demon distracted. "Should I?"

"Well, no, not really. Part of me hoped you would, I'd like you to know that I killed you twice, and buried you alive once already."

"Killed me twice?"

"its because of me that you're a vampire, I killed you, because you didn't want me, and then some bastard of a vampire saved you," he reached out to caress her cheek but she stepped back, "probably because of your beauty. And when I saw you again I buried you alive, right in this very cave! That stone you hold in your hands is your heart. I've been collecting magic in it for centuries, if you tried to put it back it would kill you."

Alise felt the magic wind around her fingers, and she realized she could control it better than she thought.

*:D i'm not really done but if somebody else wants to post go for it!*

Ara saw Nat just as everything went black and the drive took over.

*The drive I guess , I'll still call it Tara *

Tara looked around, the man in front of her was not red, he was a friend. She had to find the other enimies, had to destroy them. Two men ran up, one started talking but voices never regestered in her ears. Only when she was hidden in Ara's brain could she hear them. She could read lips though,

"Whats wrong?" One asked, they were talking to the man in front of her, he talked quickly and she couldn't read the lips, why did Ara have to fade, why couldn't she have stayed and helped hear. Tara knew good and well why, she had forced Ara back into the corner she was in when everything was normal.


*Ok, I hope this makes sense,, tis all I have.*

"Hello?" Bella asked, looking around her as the fog in her mind cleared. She thought back, trying to remember what had happened. NAT! Was he alright? She couldn't remember. She realized that she was standing, and tried to take a step forward. Her ankle caught, and she would've tripped, had her wrists not been shackled to the wall as well. Instead, the metal dug into her wrist sharply, and she let out a small yelp of pain. She heard the familar chuckle of the demon in the distance.

Desperately, Bella began trying to manipulate the shackles, so that they would come off, or break, or something that allowed her more room for movement.

No luck.

"You are quite foolish, especially for a mage." The demon was not in view, but her voice sounded close.

"We'll see who's foolish when I get out of here and slaughter you like the pig that you are!"

"Hahaha, you're very amusing as well. I might find hope for you yet..."

Ok, Bella cleared it up for me. I was just slightly confused over the whole drive thing...but not anymore.

Gerard
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Gerard raced through the tunnel and rounded a corner, skidding to a halt before he hit Alise who was glaring at a demon. Glancing over their shoulders, he caught sight of his brother leaning weakly against a wall, his eyes closed. He quietly inched his way around Alise and the demon. The demon turned to look at him briefly before snorting in annoyance and turning back to Alise.

"Nat?" Gerard asked anxiously as he neared his twin. Nathaniel looked up for a moment before sighing deeply and letting his head fall back to his chest. He shook his head slightly.

"Nat? Where's Bella?" Gerard asked.

Nathaniel sighed again. "I dont know," he said weakly. "She was here one moment...gone the next."

"Do you have any idea what hapened to her?" Gerard asked anxiously.

"Thats what i'm trying to figure out." he lifted his head. "Gerard, where is the stone?"

Alise kept the stone firmly in her hand as she drew on its power. The demon seemed to notice.

"Stop wasting your time, I've won, just embrace death. If you remembered your past you would."

"Enlighten me," Alise said, not only was she trying to distract the demon so Gerard could get Nat out, but she genuinly wanted to know.

"When you were human, I wanted you, not only as my pet but as my love."

"Demons can't love," she said flatly.

"I'm half demon, I can, unlike you. You wanted nothing to do with me, you couldn't see past my demon half, then at last, the demon half took over. And I killed you. Some vampire must have taken pity on you because he turned you. Full of yourself you sought me out to get revenge. Annoyed I buried you alive in this cave, I took your heart and used it to collect power."

Alise shot molten magic at him, striking him in the heart. He stumbled backwards slightly but caught himself. She knew she couldn't do this alone, but everybody else was busy or missing. She had to get him away so they could regroup, but she didn't know what to do.