In that moment at the Haven, when Kain had killed Cameron and Hash'Ak'Gik
had fled to the Spectral Realm, a plan had already formed in the monster's
mind. The problem was how to execute it. Spawn Worms in a physical world
could only be created in a Vampire's or Werewolf's body, due to the unique
reproductive abilities of the species. And not any Vampire or Werewolf, but
a particularly powerful one - anything less and the body would just fall
apart before the Worm could be expelled. And there was the other factor -
the body had to be dead. No more than a year old, as by about that point
the body would have decayed enough to be unusable. Yet if the body was
still animate, the life force, even in an undead body, would reject the
unholy spawn that Hash needed to form.
A most unlikely set of circumstances indeed. So the Unspoken couldn't believe his luck when he reached out with his senses and found the perfect candidate.
After that, things were easy. Using primarily female bodies such as Sasha and Caitlin to rile Kain and Luna, leaving those childish clues like the rhyme about the girl. Kain's problem was that he was far too used to dealing with characters like Moebius who revelled in playing games and taunting their enemies with riddles and half-truths. Hash preferred a straight up lie - what was the sense of giving your hated enemy clues that might just lead to your downfall?
From the shadows, he'd watched as Kain and his little entourage confronted Sasha, believing her to be the real host. Hash was fine with that. Kain claimed to have a plan, and while Hash didn't think he could lose, he still thought it prudent to sacrifice Sasha to see what this so-called plan was, allowing him to counter it. He chuckled, thinking of the look Kain would have on his face when he realised just how easily the Dark Entity had outwit him.
Except that something unexpected happened. Kain had stepped back to allow Raziel to fight, apparently part of his plan. But before Raziel could begin whatever it was he was supposed to do, Daedalus sprang out from somewhere and knocked Sasha out of the way. Hash cursed himself for not paying more attention to the Nosferatu. The Sewer Rat had managed to sneak away from the battle and rescue Cash, who was now telling the others that he knew who the real host was.
Hash sighed and pulled a phosphorus gun from his belt, the same one he'd "liberated" from Cameron. It seemed that his secret was about to be blown. If that was so, he may as well make a dramatic entrance.
***
"Not the host?" Raziel groaned. "Then why am I fighting this pointless battle? This is what I get for considering Kain's insane plan."
Kain ignored Raziel's outburst. "Well then, Gangrel, perhaps you could cease telling us who isn't the host and start telling us who is."
Cash coughed up a little blood. "I'm sorry, Julian. I couldn't believe it, but..."
Julian put a hand on Cash's shoulder. "What is it?"
A loud bang echoed throughout the street, and Cash fell to the floor, clutching the rib that had broken for the third time in a week. The others span around to see the figure stalking towards them. Kain and Raziel had never seen him before, but the others all wore expressions of recognition and horror.
"That would be me, Kain. So good to see you again Julian. I wish you'd accepted my offer."
Julian staggered back a step. "Archon...?"
Luna's sire sneered. "You really should have taken up my offer, Julian. But you always were so principled. What a disappointment..."
Luna had had a couple of really bad days. Demons, super-powered Vampires, Sabbat, the possession of his niece and lover had taken their toll on him. The sight of Hash taking over the body of the Vampire who had sired him was the final straw. For the first time in years, Julian failed to keep the Beast reined in, and lost himself to a Frenzy.
Luna's leap caught everyone, even Hash-Archon himself, totally by surprise. In the space of a heartbeat, clawed hands had slashed across Archon's face, tearing through skin, muscle, and coming close to gouging out an eye.
"Luna, stop this!" Kain cried.
"Julian!" Daedalus grabbed his friend and pulled him away from the possessed Archon. Hash-Archon laughed.
"How touching."
"Your incompetence continues to astound me." Kain said. "To direct us to a false host in order to see in advance what our plan to defeat you was. Not a bad plan. But it seems that you couldn't even do that. Your entire existence seems to be a string of mistakes and bad decisions. But if you so desire to see our plan, we shall not disappoint."
Raziel stepped in front of Hash-Archon. "That sounds like my cue, demon."
Raziel didn't try to fight. He simply stabbed forward with the Reaver. Hash- Archon didn't even try to dodge. The Reaver's tip came within an inch of stabbing him through the chest. And then Raziel was blasted with a horrendous sense of vertigo, and it seemed that a hurricane was shooting out from the possessed body to stop him from impaling the monster.
"Caine!" screamed Luna. "What's happening?"
"A paradox!" Kain yelled back. "The Timeline is asserting its authority! It won't let Raziel kill the Unspoken here and now!"
"I thought you said Raziel could kill Hash'Ak'Gik!"
"He can, but he needs a little help!"
Kain, now standing a few metres behind Raziel, thrust out both arms. His body seemed to glow with blue energy. For a moment, nothing obvious happened. Then Raziel's body started to fade slightly. Little sparks began to shoot from it.
"Ugh...this is the weakening...Kain mentioned...?" Raziel whispered. He put more strength into the thrust, trying to finish his attack and wipe the smirk from Hash-Archon's face.
"Caine!" shouted Daedalus. "What are you doing?"
"Spirit Death!" Kain replied. "A spell that destroys a person's soul!"
Daedalus gaped in horror. "You're going to kill Raziel?! How can you...? I won't let you!"
Daedalus started to attack Kain, but the Nosgothian shook his head.
"No! Raziel's soul in the future becomes the spirit of the Reaver he uses now! So if I try to destroy him now..."
Lillie grabbed Daedalus by the shoulder. "He's trying to create a second paradox!"
Kain nodded. "Yes! And if I'm right, the two may just balance each other long enough for Raziel to finish his job!"
As Raziel grew weaker, a second distortion manifested around him. Hash- Archon's eyes grew wide.
"Wha...what's happening?"
Raziel's vision was starting to fade, but he was still struggling to finish the attack. The gale obstructing him was as strong as ever, but he felt a second push from his other side. For a moment, the push from behind combined with his own fading strength managed to overcome the distortion coming from in front of him...
...and the Reaver slammed into the chest of Hash-Archon.
"Aaaak...but...that's impossible..."
Hash-Archon screamed in agony. Sasha, and various other Vampires and humans around the city that had been possessed by him screamed in unison. Then Archon's body started to grow into Hash'Ak'Gik's normal form, the huge black-furred monster. It didn't help. Hash's soul was torn from his body, and he was devoured by the Reaver.
The moment Hash died, the vertigo increased dramatically, feeling more like an earthquake. Raziel slumped to his knees in exhaustion, while the others tried to keep their balance.
Daedalus clutched a tree and looked over to the Nosgothians. To his surprise, each shake of his vision made their forms seem more and more indistinct. The shaking slowed, and finally vanished, along with Kain and Raziel.
"Ugh...I haven't felt this bad since I was first embraced..." Lillie groaned.
Sasha stirred on the ground. "What happened? I feel like crap..." She shakily got to her feet, then noticed the Gangrel Primogen on the floor nearby. "Cash..? Cash?!"
Sasha dashed to Cash and frantically searched for signs of unlife. To her immense relief, Cash opened his eyes and gave a weak smile.
"Hey Sasha. Glad to see you back."
"Cash! What happened? Who did this to you?"
The sounds of police sirens filled the air. The authorities wouldn't take long to get there.
"Dammit." Luna cursed. "Everyone get out of the area! Sasha, Daedalus, help Cash back to my house. Move it, people!"
The Kindred started clearing the area, eager to move past the bizarre happenings of that night.
"What do you think happened to Caine and Raziel?" Lillie wondered.
"There's no way to know. Maybe they were returned to Nosgoth." Daedalus guessed. "I hope so. Though they were two unforgettable creatures."
"I'll say." growled Luna. "We'll have to move Heaven and Earth to fix the Masquerade this time!"
The Prince turned back to the blackened area of tarmac where Hash had fallen to Raziel.
"Archon..."
And with one more wistful sigh, the Vampires were gone.
***
Kain felt like he'd tripped backwards into water (and become immune to its destructive effect on his kind). His senses were blurry, and he felt like he was both falling and flying at the same time.
And then the sensation passed, and Kain stumbled to his knees in the Sarafan Stronghold.
"Ha! I was right! A change in one dimension's Timeline caused by residents of another dimension...the easiest way to rid the problem - spit the alien presence back into its home! Perfect! Now, Moebius, Azimuth, it's my turn to take out some frustrations..."
Kain paused, then looked around.
"Raziel?"
***
Raziel collapsed on the cold floor of the Spectral Realm. Slowly, regathering his energy, he got to his feet. He took a look around.
"Where am I? Even distorted in this Realm, this doesn't look like the Stronghold."
Raziel made a quick search for lost souls and a Sluagh to regain his strength, then headed for the nearest Portal. Steps away from it, though, the portal simply faded out of existence.
"What's happening?"
Raziel didn't expect anyone to answer him. But someone did. A familiar and most unwelcome voice echoed in his head.
"You have spurned my plans for you, Raziel. These portals are mine, and I no longer permit you to use them." chuckled the Elder God.
"You! This is the last time you'll interfere with me, monstrosity!"
"You may well be right." the Elder God laughed at Raziel. "You have played your part, and now you shall stay in my Realm for eternity. Rant and snarl your defiance all you wish, Raziel, but as I told you before, you are mine - forever!"
Raziel bristled, but kept calm.
"I doubt your omnipresence, abomination. Perhaps you can keep my enslaved forever. But then again...we shall see."
A most unlikely set of circumstances indeed. So the Unspoken couldn't believe his luck when he reached out with his senses and found the perfect candidate.
After that, things were easy. Using primarily female bodies such as Sasha and Caitlin to rile Kain and Luna, leaving those childish clues like the rhyme about the girl. Kain's problem was that he was far too used to dealing with characters like Moebius who revelled in playing games and taunting their enemies with riddles and half-truths. Hash preferred a straight up lie - what was the sense of giving your hated enemy clues that might just lead to your downfall?
From the shadows, he'd watched as Kain and his little entourage confronted Sasha, believing her to be the real host. Hash was fine with that. Kain claimed to have a plan, and while Hash didn't think he could lose, he still thought it prudent to sacrifice Sasha to see what this so-called plan was, allowing him to counter it. He chuckled, thinking of the look Kain would have on his face when he realised just how easily the Dark Entity had outwit him.
Except that something unexpected happened. Kain had stepped back to allow Raziel to fight, apparently part of his plan. But before Raziel could begin whatever it was he was supposed to do, Daedalus sprang out from somewhere and knocked Sasha out of the way. Hash cursed himself for not paying more attention to the Nosferatu. The Sewer Rat had managed to sneak away from the battle and rescue Cash, who was now telling the others that he knew who the real host was.
Hash sighed and pulled a phosphorus gun from his belt, the same one he'd "liberated" from Cameron. It seemed that his secret was about to be blown. If that was so, he may as well make a dramatic entrance.
***
"Not the host?" Raziel groaned. "Then why am I fighting this pointless battle? This is what I get for considering Kain's insane plan."
Kain ignored Raziel's outburst. "Well then, Gangrel, perhaps you could cease telling us who isn't the host and start telling us who is."
Cash coughed up a little blood. "I'm sorry, Julian. I couldn't believe it, but..."
Julian put a hand on Cash's shoulder. "What is it?"
A loud bang echoed throughout the street, and Cash fell to the floor, clutching the rib that had broken for the third time in a week. The others span around to see the figure stalking towards them. Kain and Raziel had never seen him before, but the others all wore expressions of recognition and horror.
"That would be me, Kain. So good to see you again Julian. I wish you'd accepted my offer."
Julian staggered back a step. "Archon...?"
Luna's sire sneered. "You really should have taken up my offer, Julian. But you always were so principled. What a disappointment..."
Luna had had a couple of really bad days. Demons, super-powered Vampires, Sabbat, the possession of his niece and lover had taken their toll on him. The sight of Hash taking over the body of the Vampire who had sired him was the final straw. For the first time in years, Julian failed to keep the Beast reined in, and lost himself to a Frenzy.
Luna's leap caught everyone, even Hash-Archon himself, totally by surprise. In the space of a heartbeat, clawed hands had slashed across Archon's face, tearing through skin, muscle, and coming close to gouging out an eye.
"Luna, stop this!" Kain cried.
"Julian!" Daedalus grabbed his friend and pulled him away from the possessed Archon. Hash-Archon laughed.
"How touching."
"Your incompetence continues to astound me." Kain said. "To direct us to a false host in order to see in advance what our plan to defeat you was. Not a bad plan. But it seems that you couldn't even do that. Your entire existence seems to be a string of mistakes and bad decisions. But if you so desire to see our plan, we shall not disappoint."
Raziel stepped in front of Hash-Archon. "That sounds like my cue, demon."
Raziel didn't try to fight. He simply stabbed forward with the Reaver. Hash- Archon didn't even try to dodge. The Reaver's tip came within an inch of stabbing him through the chest. And then Raziel was blasted with a horrendous sense of vertigo, and it seemed that a hurricane was shooting out from the possessed body to stop him from impaling the monster.
"Caine!" screamed Luna. "What's happening?"
"A paradox!" Kain yelled back. "The Timeline is asserting its authority! It won't let Raziel kill the Unspoken here and now!"
"I thought you said Raziel could kill Hash'Ak'Gik!"
"He can, but he needs a little help!"
Kain, now standing a few metres behind Raziel, thrust out both arms. His body seemed to glow with blue energy. For a moment, nothing obvious happened. Then Raziel's body started to fade slightly. Little sparks began to shoot from it.
"Ugh...this is the weakening...Kain mentioned...?" Raziel whispered. He put more strength into the thrust, trying to finish his attack and wipe the smirk from Hash-Archon's face.
"Caine!" shouted Daedalus. "What are you doing?"
"Spirit Death!" Kain replied. "A spell that destroys a person's soul!"
Daedalus gaped in horror. "You're going to kill Raziel?! How can you...? I won't let you!"
Daedalus started to attack Kain, but the Nosgothian shook his head.
"No! Raziel's soul in the future becomes the spirit of the Reaver he uses now! So if I try to destroy him now..."
Lillie grabbed Daedalus by the shoulder. "He's trying to create a second paradox!"
Kain nodded. "Yes! And if I'm right, the two may just balance each other long enough for Raziel to finish his job!"
As Raziel grew weaker, a second distortion manifested around him. Hash- Archon's eyes grew wide.
"Wha...what's happening?"
Raziel's vision was starting to fade, but he was still struggling to finish the attack. The gale obstructing him was as strong as ever, but he felt a second push from his other side. For a moment, the push from behind combined with his own fading strength managed to overcome the distortion coming from in front of him...
...and the Reaver slammed into the chest of Hash-Archon.
"Aaaak...but...that's impossible..."
Hash-Archon screamed in agony. Sasha, and various other Vampires and humans around the city that had been possessed by him screamed in unison. Then Archon's body started to grow into Hash'Ak'Gik's normal form, the huge black-furred monster. It didn't help. Hash's soul was torn from his body, and he was devoured by the Reaver.
The moment Hash died, the vertigo increased dramatically, feeling more like an earthquake. Raziel slumped to his knees in exhaustion, while the others tried to keep their balance.
Daedalus clutched a tree and looked over to the Nosgothians. To his surprise, each shake of his vision made their forms seem more and more indistinct. The shaking slowed, and finally vanished, along with Kain and Raziel.
"Ugh...I haven't felt this bad since I was first embraced..." Lillie groaned.
Sasha stirred on the ground. "What happened? I feel like crap..." She shakily got to her feet, then noticed the Gangrel Primogen on the floor nearby. "Cash..? Cash?!"
Sasha dashed to Cash and frantically searched for signs of unlife. To her immense relief, Cash opened his eyes and gave a weak smile.
"Hey Sasha. Glad to see you back."
"Cash! What happened? Who did this to you?"
The sounds of police sirens filled the air. The authorities wouldn't take long to get there.
"Dammit." Luna cursed. "Everyone get out of the area! Sasha, Daedalus, help Cash back to my house. Move it, people!"
The Kindred started clearing the area, eager to move past the bizarre happenings of that night.
"What do you think happened to Caine and Raziel?" Lillie wondered.
"There's no way to know. Maybe they were returned to Nosgoth." Daedalus guessed. "I hope so. Though they were two unforgettable creatures."
"I'll say." growled Luna. "We'll have to move Heaven and Earth to fix the Masquerade this time!"
The Prince turned back to the blackened area of tarmac where Hash had fallen to Raziel.
"Archon..."
And with one more wistful sigh, the Vampires were gone.
***
Kain felt like he'd tripped backwards into water (and become immune to its destructive effect on his kind). His senses were blurry, and he felt like he was both falling and flying at the same time.
And then the sensation passed, and Kain stumbled to his knees in the Sarafan Stronghold.
"Ha! I was right! A change in one dimension's Timeline caused by residents of another dimension...the easiest way to rid the problem - spit the alien presence back into its home! Perfect! Now, Moebius, Azimuth, it's my turn to take out some frustrations..."
Kain paused, then looked around.
"Raziel?"
***
Raziel collapsed on the cold floor of the Spectral Realm. Slowly, regathering his energy, he got to his feet. He took a look around.
"Where am I? Even distorted in this Realm, this doesn't look like the Stronghold."
Raziel made a quick search for lost souls and a Sluagh to regain his strength, then headed for the nearest Portal. Steps away from it, though, the portal simply faded out of existence.
"What's happening?"
Raziel didn't expect anyone to answer him. But someone did. A familiar and most unwelcome voice echoed in his head.
"You have spurned my plans for you, Raziel. These portals are mine, and I no longer permit you to use them." chuckled the Elder God.
"You! This is the last time you'll interfere with me, monstrosity!"
"You may well be right." the Elder God laughed at Raziel. "You have played your part, and now you shall stay in my Realm for eternity. Rant and snarl your defiance all you wish, Raziel, but as I told you before, you are mine - forever!"
Raziel bristled, but kept calm.
"I doubt your omnipresence, abomination. Perhaps you can keep my enslaved forever. But then again...we shall see."