Chapter Twenty Three

Fated

Blood stains the wrecked crimson ground of the Realm of Incarnates. Marianne growls ever ferociously as the tattered remains of Giga Bowser are ripped apart from the back, revealing a walking skeleton: Vincent. His torso was whittled down to the bone, only revealing his spine and bits of flesh here and there. Blood dripped from his mouth, half his face still covered in black, iridescent scales. A deep set crimson eye still glowed within the hollow eye socket where it came, Vincent clenching his weak yet still formidable claws. He lunges at his mother, Marianne sidestepping and with a huge thwack, Vincent screams in agony. The two twitching demonic wings fell onto the ground, leaving their owner helpless as Marianne swings her Halberd once more, impacting Vincent's back and lacerating his shoulder blade. The teen is sent flying for a few yards and then drops to the ground, some signs of life still within him.

Marianne furrows her brow as she slowly walks over to her demon son as he himself stands groggily his showing spine bending ever precariously. He smiles ever widely as he puts a standstill between himself and his mother.

"Now you're just toying with me," Vincent cackles in a sing song voice, "I don't like it. If you want to kill me then do it, mum." Vincent accentuates the last word.

"I am NOT your mother," Marianne shrieks as she charges forwards, running towards Vincent.

The demon child cackles, swinging his body to the side and left hooking Marianne. He swings his body the other way, doing the same thing. Vincent bends down, sweeping his leg across the ground, causing Marianne to trip and with a final blow to the head, knocks the vampiric girl straight out. Vincent smiles as he looks down on his exposed spine, the tendons and muscles starting to reform. Veins and arteries start to pump blood once again as finally, skin covers the boy's muscular midsection, and the demon is back to his old self. He eyes his unconscious mother's halberd with glaring eyes and with a flick of his foot, he obtains it in a cold grasp. He raises it over his head, poised to strike down at the last person standing in his way to ultimate dominance.

"Kuro…" a small, effeminate voice calls from behind Vincent.

Both of Vincent's eyes widen causing him to lower his weapon and turn, finding Anju in tattered clothing. In her small, childish hands she held the Saurian Scythe, Shinigami's main weapon. She stared at Vincent through the two bandanas she wore over her eyes, though blind, she sees the demon easily. She prepares a ready stance, positioned to fight against her only loved one.

"A-Anju…" Vincent's voice cracks, returning back to its original, non-robotic state; the darkness covering his body recedes, "Please no…I don't want to do this!"

"I don't want to either, Kuro," Anju starts to sob, her blindfolds starting to soak with water, "B-But if I have to t-then I will."

"I can't do it…" Vincent groans, "I-It's going to be…" The darkness regrows, this time unleashing its full force upon Vincent. The teen screams, his body convulsing as now, his mind becomes blank. Fear, anger, hatred now fill its seems, coursing through his heart and veins, enveloping the boy in a state of pure evil. The boy's mortal body soon grows six spiderlike legs from its back, hoisting his body over two stories high. Hands and feet turn inwards, being lost into a smoothly scaled underbelly. Its face mixes and transforms, both his eyes now deep set and pure crimson. His mouth becomes inset as four pairs of tusks jut from the side of his mouth. A serpentine tail erupts from his posterior, sharpened sleek black scales protecting the beast. It roars at Anju, the young girl keeping her composure.

"Real fun, sis…" the monster growls through wretched teeth.

"Ro'h Temdeh…" Anju growls under her teeth, "Demon of the wastes, keeper of Silence…"

"And the one who's finally killed the bastard son of the Eternal Reaper!" Ro'h Temdeh cackles, "Oh I remember sixteen years ago. Your mother was oh so…raunchy. And the perfect being to bring forth my return into This World."

"Master Hand banished you…long before the tournaments."

"And I swore to return. And I have. Before you were born, Anju Ryosuke, I had many followers, most were the Silence, others were men. Men like Prince Marth…"

"U-Uncle…M-Marth?!"

"Call it a hunch. He was, of course, a pawn in an entirely new game. His lineage were devout towards the mystical arts and such, and in one single session in Altea, he was mine for the taking. From under Shinigami's eyes, Marianne was not as a perfect wife. She became a mistress to the Prince and in one occasion, impregnated her with his seed."

"S-So…he's isn't my blood brother…"

"Correct. Vincent Valentine Ryosuke is the vessel that I created in order to resurrect myself. I made sure that no one was to know he was of Marth's lineage. His hair, eyes and body physique was traced to that of Shinigami himself, turning most of Marth's DNA into his, except for those who carried my codes…and for sixteen years that lay dormant until now."

"YOU BASTARD!" Anju curses, "YOU KILL INNOCENTS TO GET WHAT YOU DESIRE MOST!"

"Isn't that what we all do? As I was saying, young one, my code lay dormant until Vincent's mind started to feel…what you creatures say, 'love'. And now it was an easy task. Make him decide between two of his most loved partners, kill off one and see where it goes from there. Oh it was bliss as I took over his body and now, here I am. The true Demon Lord…Ro'h Temdeh!"

"Yet now, you still have to get through me," Anju shrieks, saddened by her brother's loss and now angered at the demon's return, "And escape the Realm of Incarnates."

"Bring it on, chiIIIIIIAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR RRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The demon roars, its tail impaled onto the crystalline ground of the Realm. It turns its head to fins Marianne awake, holding the halberd that hurt it so badly. The monster shrieks, spindly legs creating large ticking noises wherever they hit the ground. It scuttles towards the woman as she takes her weapon, and jets up into the air over the monster. Ro'h Temdeh flexes its tail and tries to strike at Marianne overhead, missing. The woman lands right beside her still weeping daughter.

"Get up, honey," Marianne tries to say kindly, "I know Vincent used to train you with a weapon…"

"Yes, mum…I'll try my best."

The two ladies then jet towards the monster, weapons stretched at its legs as they knock down its first two with a crack. Ro'h Temdeh screams in agony, keeping its injured limbs close to its body. It looks as the two women circle around once more, both speeding towards him on draconic wings. It roars at them, digging its sharp legs into the ground. It retracts its head, and from its mouth, it spews a black shadowy gas. The gas moves like lightning, finding its way towards the deceased Prince Marth and entering his body. The zombified creature that was the Altean Royal stands from where it lay, draws its sword and dashes towards the two ladies. It groans as it tries to strike down at least one of them, its sword failing to hit anything.

THWACK.

The Prince is decapitated by Marianne's halberd as finally, she and her daughter can fight Ro'h Temdeh. The demon roars as its old compatriot is dead once more. It charges at the two women, gnashing its teeth.

BOOM.

The demon is impacted by a large blast of energy, sending it reeling a few yards. It drops to the ground, unconscious. Marianne and Anju land to see who had heeled the beast to find none other than Maddox, in his hand holding the weapon form of Akita. Beside him stands Ellen with a large, modified RPG-7 and behind them were the rest of the recruits: Storm, Serena, Valentina, Cloak, Lyra and Mazy. They all look at Marianne with weary eyes.

"He's dead…" she finally says as the demon behind her starts to awaken. "But the demon isn't."

"Well do you need a hand?" Storm cheerily smiles.

"After what you did to cause all this? I think not." Marianne growls.

"WHAT?!" Storm protests.

"You hired that assassin to kill Toshiro, correct? I know everything that revolves around my dead son's life, including what happens to whoever he is with. And you were the one who inevitably sent Trace to kill his only boyfriend and love out of jealousy."

"WELL HE SHOULD'VE LOVED ME!" the warrior shrieks.

"Do you not care that your mother and father are dead because of you?" Marianne snaps.

Storm's eyes widen as the rest of the recruits leave her side, and take Marianne's. The warrior starts to cry as she looks into her aggressor's ruby red eyes, hoping for some sign of forgiveness. Then, she widens her eyes as from her stomach jutted the familiar black insectoid leg of Ro'h Temdeh. The beast lifts her up to its eyes and with a large bite, it easily crunches off the girl's head.

"I hated that girl…so badly."

All the warriors turn, and attack. The beast cackles gleefully, swiping its long appendages at its attackers. It roars and lowers its head, its legs shielding it from energy blasts and such. It lunges, biting down upon Mazy's arm. The helpless girl shrieks as her fellow mates cannot stop her fate. The demon throws her body into the air and catches it within its jaws. It crunches on bones and organs as the warriors resume their attacks, now concentrating on melee. They hack and slash at the monster's limbs, with only one lucky shot coming from Cloak, freezing one of the monster's joints and breaking off an entire leg.

Ro'h Temdeh shrieks, inspecting its broken limb, a purplish ooze dripping onto the ground, melting it. The beast screams as it monstrously increases its attacks, whipping its tail at Cloak. It wraps around the angel's neck and with a violent twist, it breaks him. The tail flicks the man upwards and with another snap of its jaws, the demon ingests another victim. Marianne growls, jetting towards the beast and under its body. She raises her halberd upwards towards the demon's belly. It penetrates, sending a wave of acidic blood onto the ground. The monster reels in pain, screeching as its legs begin to weaken. Serena takes a note of this and Sends off Maddox and Akita, Lyra, Valentina and herself to four equal corners of the beast. They all attack its joints and finally, it falls. It screams as it is doused in its own pool of blood, melting its skin, bones and flesh. Roar after roar of agony fall upon deaf ears as slowly, the demon dies in the Realm of Incarnates, leaving behind a small, exhausted group of people.

"W-What now…" Serena pants as the group reforms, "What d-do we do now?"

"Rebuild…do what must be done," Lyra pipes, "To stop this atrocity from ever happening again."

"Indeed," Maddox nods, keeping his much loved Akita close to his exposed top body.

"And how are we going to do that?" Marianne sighs, leaning upon her halberd for support.

"Let's try, a reset button…" a pale voice comes from nowhere.

A bright flash explodes around the group, across the entire universe. Then, nothing.

A pair of ruby eyes opens in a brightly lit, white room. They blink for a few seconds then move to the side as a soft, effeminate snore came from the boy's right. He turns his head to see a cute face, a boy of about nineteen, sleeping with the sheets just over his member. The boy smiles as he gives the other a kiss on the forehead.

"How sweet…" a man dressed in white chuckles as he leans against a wall, "Remember that you owe me, kid."

"Whatever, Trace," Vincent groans, trying to stand from his bed as slowly as he possibly can, exposing his naked body. Trace immediately looks away.

The boy walks over to the open window to see an undefiled Mansion courtyard, birds flying gracefully in the winds, the trees flowing with the breeze. In the grounds below, Storm looks up to the boy. She smiles and waves in a friendly manner. Behind her, Shinigami and Marianne follow. They turn to see what the girl had spotted to see their only son. They smile and disappear into a darkened portal.

"You've outdone yourself, Trace," Vincent smiles, "Oh how you have truly made the universe…"

"Big Bang Numero Tres, amigo," the assassin chuckles.

"Don't worry, I'll give you what you want soon. I promise. Zelda's birthday is coming up. You won't want to miss that."

"Oh, I bet I wouldn't. That, I promise you."

With that, the assassin leaves by disappearing into thin air, leaving nothing behind. The boy keeps on looking outside as two hands make their way to his naked hips. He smiles as the hushed breath of his lover comes in contact onto the skin of his neck and he kisses it.

"I've missed you…" Toshiro's calm, mumbling voice comes from behind the boy.

"And I've missed you, babe…" Vincent smiles, "No more worries from now on, okay?"

"Okay," Ghirahim smacked his lips as he joined in the group hug.

The Demon Lord is thrown out the window by both teens, both retreating to the safety of their bed in fear.

AUTHOR'S NOTE!
I am so terribly sorry, you guys...like...so awfully, terribly sorry. Ugh, my grandmum just passed so I couldn't get this up in time, and I was busy with projects since I last updated. But anyways, I am still alive after a very cold night of Trick or Treating this Halloween and I almost got killed for calling a random group of girls 'sluts'...because wearing bikinis in -15 degree weather with a frigging snowstorm raging is a smart thing to do, ladies. No man's gonna come up to a popsicle looking for a good time.

Oh wow...that man on Facebook has got to me. ANYWAYS! Here's the conclusion to Vincent's Saga...now onto RANDOMNESS! Because I like a good dessert after a heavy meal of drama, death and destruction.

SO READ AND REVIEW! Please? I'll love you forever.

-Dalektopia