Chapter XXIII - Bad Vibes ~Naaro

Naaro lay in peaceful sleep, an arm around Rynn, Kai lying between them. His dreams were rather serene, and kept him in a state of calm. However, this would not last long, as something was not right in the world. Soon enough, the visions came to him...a strange, red world, sky scorched by millennia upon millennia of war...the living dead roaming the battlefields like herds of cattle...great temples of dark power, rising above the war-torn, lifeless wasteland...and in the middle of it all, a being of evil, the epicenter of the planet's devastation...he awoke with a gasp, eyes snapping open. He looked around, noticing everyone else was asleep.

*What was that?* he thought, confused by the evil force that had visited his dreams.

He sat up, and assumed a meditative state, thinking to himself, *Time to visit the Void for some answers,* as his spirit lapsed into the darkness, entering the realm of the dead.

Darkness...that was all he saw as his soul entered the Void. This was the eternal prison of evil spirits, a “septic tank”, if you will. While it was a dark realm of suffering for evil, it also held great knowledge of the universe for those strong (and bold) enough to maintain existence within its black grip. Naaro had trained himself to exist in this realm for days, even months, and was now able to fight off the Void's dark pull on his soul rather easily. He searched the darkness for answers to what this planet that he had seen in his dreams was. He sat in deep meditation for an hour before he finally found the answer. This planet was Cocytus, the World of the Black Priest. After finding the name, he searched for more on this Cocytus. His soul's existence in the Void suddenly became clouded...something was preventing him from finding out any more about the planet. Many words were blocked out, like bad static on a radio. Eternal Thirst...Essence...war...death...power...Belial. The last word caught his attention.

*Belial...where have I heard that before,* he thought as he heard the name.

He suddenly felt a feeling of dread...purplish light appeared before him in the Void. A dark man looking for all the world like a bat stepped from the portal. His wings were wrapped around him, and two rodent-like ears stood in the air. A pair of yellow, beady eyes peered at Naaro.

"Turn back," the man warned ominously, adding, "This is not a path you want to take."

Naaro asked the strange man, "Why? I wish to know more about this...Cocytus."

The man replied, just as ominously as before, "You do not. It is a world of blood and atrocity...if you proceed along this course, you will become another crimson puddle upon the face of Existence. Heed my words, and turn back...or you shall be forced."

Naaro's contact with the Void was then severed, and he collapsed, falling into a deep sleep, undisturbed by anything happening around him.

The reptile known as Rexxor tapped his claws on the crystalline panels boredly. He had found this craft waiting outside the cave he had been trapped so long inside, and found it rather strange.

"What's with this thing, anyway?" he mumbled to himself as he watched space race by.

Just a few days ago he had finally been freed from his prison by a mysterious figure, and had willfully offered his services to his enigma of a savior. He was now beginning to regret it. His searches for the one who had imprisoned him so many years ago were fruitless. Every planet he had landed on had yielded no clues, much less results. He was getting tired of this. His consciousness suddenly melted away into a vision. Surprised, he looked around. He stood atop a great temple, on a barren, red world with a scorched sky. Bones littered the sides of the temple. He looked at his feet, and saw a glowing red circle with a strange glyph in the middle.

"Welcome," a dark voice announced to him from in front.

He looked up, and saw the same man who had spoken to Naaro in the Void earlier.

"What do you want?" he snapped, rather rudely.

The man opened his wings, revealing his gored chest and stomach. Blood still pulsed through his veins from a jet-black heart, and objects that mixed in with the crimson blood coating his insides moved along. He flashed a dark smile as he reached into the opening, removing a crimson maggot. He tossed the creature into his mouth, and bit in.

"Mmm...juicy," he sneered as he swallowed the insect.

Rexxor's stomach began to feel less and less comfortable as he watched. *Yech...* he thought to himself as the man devoured the maggot.

The man walked toward Rexxor, continuing until he was right up in the reptile's face. With an evil smirk, he began to speak: "Greetings, Rexxor...my name is Moloch. I've brought your mind here, to my homeworld of Cocytus, to give you a proposition."

"I'm listening," Rexxor replied, interested in what this disgusting fellow could offer him.

"I hear you're searching for one named Naaro...Naaro Karukylis. Am I right?" Moloch inquired.

Rexxor nodded, still listening.

Moloch smirked, and nodded, continuing, "Good. My master has a desire to meet this Naaro. If you would be so kind as to bring him to us before you kill him, we would be able to give you a lovely little gift...a gift of great power."

Rexxor smirked, replying, "That sounds...intriguing. What kind of power?"

Moloch smirked, and went on, "My master has far-reaching abilities...he can give you any power you want. He can heighten your summoning ability. He can give you command over powerful dark magik. He can destroy your greatest enemy. He can even give you eternal life...like he gave me." Moloch grinned slyly, and went on. "Simply bring Naaro to us, and he shall give you what you wish to have."

Rexxor flashed a fang-filled smile, and accepted, stating, "Very well then, Moloch...I'll accept your little proposition. I'm sure it can't hurt."

Moloch smirked. "Excellent," he replied, adding, "then it's settled. Go and find Naaro...bring him to us, and you will receive whatever you may wish for."

Rexxor nodded, and snapped back into consciousness. He smirked, knowing his agreement was real, and continued his search for Naaro with new fervor.

Back on Cocytus, Moloch smirked devilishly.

"The fool...so easily suckered into being our pawn," he chuckled, and disappeared to wait for his newly "hired" servant.