“Kain!” Raziel called up to him from below, his voice full of elation. Kain felt much the same way. The sight of the blue wraith, his Raziel, filled him with such hope and glee he could barely contain it. He felt like a fledgling again, the attack of weakness in his chest forgotten and prepared to tackle any opponent head on.
He did just that, the monstrous giant behind him lashing out at him with a paw. Blinded in its single eye, stolen or perhaps loaned by the False God, it was enraged and savagely it came after him roaring in frustration.
The vampire leapt up over the paw as it slammed into the wall and darted up the monster’s arm.
Sensing his location by some other means then sight, it reached up with the other paw attempting to bat him away. Kain leapt over the paw and up onto the other arm, darting across it swiftly before the creature could pull it back. He reached the monster’s left hand side and proceeded to savagely slam his talons over and other against into the huge chest. Blood of many colours spurted out with each puncture.
Kain’s talons grated against the arched bone of the giant’s ribs and he pushed past them into the deeper flesh.
The creature bellowed; mouth wide and full of shark like teeth. Seemingly out of desperation it swung forward and smashed its chest up against the side of the cylindrical chamber, pinning Kain against the wall. In order to save himself from being crushed the vampire dropped down, catching onto the beast’s waist with his talons. The momentum swung him back and forth as he hung there, the creature writhing in pain and rage trying to get at him.
Its leg arched up from underneath, a monkey like foot attempting to grab him. Kain pushed himself off and using the foot as a stepping stone he found purchase on the edge of a lower balcony parapet and hauled himself up onto it.
The demonic blend of animals snarled and lashed out with its head, snapping down with rows of teeth.
Kain leapt out of the way and in mid roll, slipped his body into his wolf shape. He was taking a risk as the form had probably aggravated his earlier attack of weakness but he needed its speed now.
Even so the creature, now prodded into a frothing rage, was coming after them far swifter then he had thought and it plunged its gapping maw at him over and over each time coming close to his fleeing tail.
With a loud roar, that red Lycanthrope that Kain had seen fighting alongside Raziel leapt on top of the beast from behind. It, or rather male as certain extremities were obvious, clambered up between the spikes of bone that ran down its back and up onto the top of the creatures head.
At the same time, Raziel came in; jumping from the other side to latch onto the beast’s arm. The wraith raised his right arm to Kain’s surprise flourished the wraith blade.
He slashed at the beast’s flank, slicing it deep across the belly spilling looping intestines that boiled out of the cut like festering worms.
The monstrous giant gurgled deep in its throat and put its paws to the gaping wound, trying to keep its insides from pouring out.
Kain took the opportunity to strike.
He bounded out from the balcony, using the giant’s arms and chest as stepping stones until he reached its throat.
The flesh around the neck was mostly fat, probably intended to keep its windpipe protected against just such direct attacks. But it had already been sliced open during the battle and changing back to his regular form, Kain plunged both arms into the bloodless wound.
He literally dug with his talons, moving deeper and deeper until finally he grasped a thick column about the width of a tree trunk.
Placing both feet firmly against the collarbone of the beast he began to pull backwards, exerting all the strength he could into the effort. Blood began to foundation at him from out of the hole but he kept pulling, tugging with all his might until finally there was a loud audible snap, very much like the cracking of wood under pressure.
Kain’s arms jerked back suddenly and visible through the vessel was the shattered windpipe.
The beast’s gurgle was a wet one, accompanied by a fresh burst of blood from deep inside.
Kain leapt away as the beast, forgetting its spilling entrails, clasped as its throat. The creature swayed, rivers of blood flowing down its chest. Its limbs trembled as the strength fled from its body and finally with a low groan of agony the monstrous giant lost its grip and fell, plunging down to the floor of the chamber below, bashing several lower balconies on its way down.
The crash when it struck the floor broke the hinge on a concealed trap door and the floor itself caved in, the giant carcass dropping down into an abyss below. The trapdoor was already swinging back shut before Kain could look down to see what was happening.
The Hylden on the high platform who had distained to enter the battle personally, backed up in terrified alarm as Raziel glided over to his perch.
 “No, get back!” He said in a shout lined with panic. He was so preoccupied with the wraith that he did not even notice the werewolf land on the platform behind himself. “I’ve too much work left und...”
The Hylden-Divus was cut off in mid sentence, words dying into a strangled gurgle. The werewolf had plunged into his back, pushing his entire hand in until the tips of the black claws emerging out the chest.
Slowly the werewolf morphed, resuming human form apart from the hand which had impaled the Hylden, which remained feral. Kain had always wondered about the werewolves ever since he had learned of their role in the ancient uprising led by Moebius. Was this one of their decedents?
“Aye and it’ll stay undone.” The werewolf in human form said. His accented voice was thick with contempt and distain. He leaned forward, pressing his hand further inside the rib cage. The Hylden, whose uncorrupted face was drawn and set with pain, vomited forth a glop of blood. “Hope you enjoy hell.”
The werewolf withdraw his hand, the limb reverting back to fully human and let the body of the Hylden-Divus topple down to the ground. By the ragdoll way the corpse collapsed it was clear he was dead before the corpse hit the floor.
Kain climbed up to the parallel level with the platform and then vaulted across, causing it to sway on its chains under the weight of all three of them.
To his macabre surprise, the werewolf was prying open the corpse of the Hylden-Divus with his bare hands. Getting a firm grip he tugged sharply until the skin parted, the rib cage snapping open like a pried clam shell to display a gory interior.
Reaching inside, the werewolf-human took a hold of something buried so deep in blood Kain could not see what it was at first. With a tug he withdrew his hand and the vampire saw it was the Hylden-Divus’ heart.
Hylden hearts were smaller then human ones, he noticed absently and they had a faint blue colour to them.
The human-werewolf stared at the heart in his grip for a long moment and then yanked it free of the veins and arteries still anchoring it to the body. He tore into it savagely, biting off great chunks of heart flesh and swallowing them whole, not even chewing.
When he had finished he had blood all down his front but he did not seem to mind the mess and the expression on his face was one of dreadful satisfaction, not in the act itself but rather in the completion of the task.
 “My first oath is complete.” He declared, turning around to look at the two behind him who were watching him in queasy fascination. “Ambraxas has paid for his crimes with his own heart’s blood. This I have done for my people.”
Kain looked over at Raziel with an eyebrow questioningly raised.
“Interesting fellow you’ve picked up.” He remarked dryly. Raziel turned to look at him and their eyes met.
There was a long moment of silence between them.
Finally the two of them were united once more. But the tensions between them were still there, the age old apprehension of those who had once been determined and bitter rivals.
Raziel’s stare was blank. There could be anything in that stare, friendship, hostility, understanding, loathing, enmity or comradeship. It was impossible to tell which for certain.
Kain hesitated, for the first time not knowing what to expect from his first born son.
Then the blue wraith waggled in his head at Kain, eyebrows raised to give himself a comical expression in an mock gesture of insult.
“It seems you’re healthy enough for flippant remarks.” He said in a light hearted tone that eased Kain’s soul more then he could have thought possible. “Perhaps I needn’t have bothered coming to your rescue.”
He introduced Kain to Ewoden, the ‘emissary’ of the Lycanthrope tribes living in the city. Quickly and very basically he outlined the werewolves story for himself and Kain found himself disturbed afresh of how intervention from this impossible city had directed events in Nosgoth.
“The way the Seer was so insistent about you, I expected to find you half dead.” The wraith said, interrupting his thoughts.
At first the vampire did not fully absorb the words for in that spilt second of processing they made no sense. When it finally did filter through he stared at Raziel incredulously.
“The Seer?” He repeated in bafflement. “You mean she sent you after me?” The blue wraith nodded and Kain was confused afresh. “She was the one who ensured the ambush on the Serioli and myself! It was her fault I am here in the first place!”
There was no surprise in Raziel’s eyes when he said it. Clearly he already knew this and it didn’t seem to bother him.
“We can discuss the politics of the situation later.” He said and Kain began to wonder precisely what had been going on in the real world during his absence.  “For this moment, we need to leave this blasted city.”
That brought Kain’s thoughts right back to their present dilemma. He had escaped Metatron for now but their time was severely limited. They had stirred the hornets nest and all of Fanum-Divus would be roused against them. Already in the distance he could hear movements, perhaps homunculi searching the ship for them. It would not be long until they were found and then the full might of the city would descend upon them.
“You have your father in you after all!” The vampire said winsomely, returning Raziel’s own mocking tone.
“My father?” The wraith asked, also insultingly jovial. “You’re nothing but a grave robber, Kain.”
He reached up and took a bronze coloured broach that Kain hadn’t even noticed until his attention had been drawn to it off of the front of his drape. Once the vampire laid eyes on it he knew it once.
The last time he had seen that artefact he had dropped it into the would-be Sarafan Lord’s inter dimensional gate at Janos Audron’s instruction.
He had never thought he would see it again.
The reason he had killed Umah.
 “The Nexus Stone?” He asked; keeping the emotional sting he felt when he saw it out of his voice.
“I hope the intelligence that it can create doorways through space is not an unfounded rumour.” Raziel asked holding the stone up for them all to see.
Kain had never had an opportunity to test the stone’s supposed ability to open portholes to various locations. Vorador had claimed it could do it but at the time Kain had only been interested in its effect of rendering himself immune to the Soul Reaver in the current possession of the Sarafan Lord.
He had no reason to doubt Vorador’s assessment of its power but he would have been more confident if he had had past experience with using it in such capacity.
Still it was better then nothing
“It seems our paths intertwine once more.” Ewoden remarked, coming up to them after cleaning his lips with the back of his hand. “You say you have a way to leave Fanum-Divus?” Raziel seemed a bit taken aback to be asked by him and Ewoden did not wait for him to answer, nodding sharply. “I will be following.” He said grimly.
Raziel, with a confused expression, looked from Ewoden to Kain and back again.
“But what about your pack?” He asked. “You would leave them behind?”
Ewoden cast a glance back over his shoulder towards the shattered corpse behind him.
“I have completed my first oath.” He said. “Now I must complete my second.”
By the puzzlement on Raziel’s face he did not know what these oaths of his were either.
Ewoden shrugged off their ignorance of his culture without comment.
“The pack will understand this.” He said and then smiled wryly. “Besides, neither of you seem to fully appreciate what we have done here today.” The emissary stepped aside and gestured back to the corpse.  “A Divus lies dead at our feet. We have taken the life of a god of heaven.”
Kain had heard enough from Vorador and seen how they lived first hand to understand what he meant by that remark. They thought themselves demi-gods, subordinate only to the False god itself and they enforced that through their religious dogma. The golden haired slave race he encountered believed very much in their supposed divinity. He wondered briefly what they would say if he showed them the corpse they had.
“There will be retribution the likes of which will shake their heavens from top to bottom.” Ewoden continued. “It would be best if we left, if indeed you can manage it.”
He behaved quite casually but the hunger in his eyes was more then apparent. Kain understood why all too well. The notion of returning to Nosgoth after so long trapped in this city of enemies would seem like an opportunity to be grabbed.
Raziel seemed to agree albeit with some grudging resentment and began to offer to stone to Kain
.
“As I reached for the Nexus Stone, there was a flicker in Raziel’s eyes, as if some thought or doubt had come into his mind. He drew the stone away from me, holding it tight.”
.
Kain looked up in surprise as Raziel drew his hand back and stared down at the stone in his hand, brows creased in deep thought.
“Before we go any further Kain, there is something I have to know.” He began slowly.
“Raziel, all of Fanum-Divus is preparing to descend upon us.” The vampire reminded him urgently. “We have mere minutes, perhaps less!”
Raziel was not disturbed by this in the least, his expression turning resolute and set. Clearly he had made up his mind to be stubborn.
“Answer my question and you can then use the stone to affect our escape.” He said. Kain scowled at him, irritated for this waste of time when there was not time to be wasted.
“And what is your question?”  The vampire demanded testily.
Raziel stared at him and Kain found himself stiffening under a gaze was that demanding and insistent.
 “Why did my clan have to die?” The blue wraith asked.