Traversing a dark place in perpetual darkness was not an inviting time for one to have but for
Darius again the dark was safer than the light. The Kingdom of the Sanguine Court was one
such place where someone like him would be looked at like a delicious little aperitif but
getting there was going to be hard. The Forest of Midnight was one of the largest forests in
the world and mostly dangerous towards those who are uninvited but for Darius this was
more akin to home. The twisting trees and gnarled roots of the trees betrayed what they were,
people that were twisted and deformed and drained of blood. The moon was shining bright
but the path was obscured but something in Darius was pointing the way so his steps
continued. A few hours into his journey there was a shift in the air as a gaunt ugly looking
creature stepped out from the shadows “Greetings bloodbag, what brings you into the Forest
of Midnight” the creature had a hissing kind of voice and a forked tongue, his eyes were that
of a snake “I don’t know, my feet are carrying me somewhere” replied Darius who seemed to
be slipping into a trance like state “No mortal man enters this forest without consulting the
Master first” the creature said but a force was present that it have never felt before, Darius’
eyes began to glow and a voice not his own “Begone you half breed and tell your master
Vra’kei’illel has come to visit” the eyes of the gaunt snake creature widened in terror and as
soon as it arrived it vanished back into the shadows and the voice that now occupied Darius’
body moved forward in large strides “This body is quite exquisite” it noted audibly “It will be
difficult to possess this body completely but I should be able to get some breathing room once
I see my old friend” but there was a slight issue with his train of thought “Can I help you with
something?” it was Darius stopping mid stride now turning inwards staring at this great
dragon “How did you?” the dragon asked “This is my body, I’m letting you share but you
have no right to possess me how and whenever you want, now tell me why I cannot part with
you and why you keep possessing me causing me trouble” Darius seemed serious “I saved
your life, three times and this is what I get? Come now human, you took me from my idol and
claimed my power for yourself instead of that pile of manure you called an emperor, so let’s
begin at the start shall we?” Darius nodded “I am Vra’kei’illel, Conqueror of the Great Vale
and Mentor to Avar’kel’Xel the great Xel Shaman” titles with these creatures Darius noted
“Why would I claim you then? My memories are hazy at best” Darius held his hand to his
head “Ah, sadly that was me. A sacrifice was needed and the bonding needed a substantial
portion of your memory to erase so I could occupy this part of your psyche but it seems
possessing you will be a task” there was a grin on the dragon’s face but Darius was standing
tall “I don’t think I’ll let you do what you like, but with some degree of negotiation I believe
we can come to a formal agreement” he sounded like a businessman or some snake oil
salesman “What makes you think I will want to make a deal with you. You a broken shell of a
fiend who became so monstrous that even his own emperor wanted him gone, you know deep
down this is what you deserve, you deserve to perish while I take over and became reborn as
the new ruler of this pile of ash and dust you call a world” the dragon simply laughed but
Darius was not “Now that was a mistake on your part. I no longer feel the need to hurt people
but somehow I want to cut you out and put you somewhere else, like in a small box so I don’t
have to put up with your constant buzzing and telling me to submit” Darius knew the voice
was there but he decided to ignore it “You cannot suppress me with your feeble will Darius, I
will take control of your corpse if I have to” the voice began to seem distant as Darius buried
it under layer upon layer of will.
The Kingdom of the Sanguine Court was one of those places where mortals would have
loved to visit but the dangers far outweighed the few positives. One of the grandest sights in
the kingdom was the perpetual blood moon that hung over the city stuck between dusk and
twilight. The city itself was twisted in the sense where perception was skewed and almost
forced someone to turn around and leave but not for those few who dared to even enter the
city. Spiders hung from the twisted roofs and odd red shaped eyes peered out of the darkness
and set upon Darius as he stepped on the cobbles that lined the streets. There was a miasma in
the air but the smell was that of a normal city, the rumors that people are eaten and passed
around like a snack were greatly exaggerated but there were always monsters lingering the
underbelly of a city like this, even a lord of monsters had loose control on his minions and
what their certain proclivities were pertaining to humans. As Darius made his way to what
seemed the center of power in the city which was a single tower with a twisted and coiled
roof, his instincts guided him. Entering the tower was easier than he thought but there were
several piles of ash and a glow coming from the room ahead of him and the voices were
seemingly louder than what was normal “I refuse to believe that Lord Haldrith” the voice was
like silk and honey “Be as that it may Lord Zugard the danger is very real, no doubt that
Virtus has already heard of Rigel’s failure and now it seems that the vessel for the dragon is
aimlessly walking the countryside” Haldrith was a stern individual and he did not fear this
lord of night “Actually he is standing behind you” the man called Lord Zugard pointed with
his hand “Curious” was all Haldrith said “Greetings again Darius Wolf” he saluted like a
soldier “Didn’t expect to see you again sir knight” Darius said “Quite, although one would
piece together the clues that Virtus was still alive, skulking, disgusting parasite he is” that
statement raised Darius’ eyebrows “But I will regale you the tale some time later, now Darius
I may I introduce you to the lord of this land” Darius nodded “Lord Zurgard’sol of the
Kingdom of the Sanguine Court this is the former court mage to the tyrant Emperor Virtus”
Darius bowed in respect “Darius Wolf, your bad reputation precedes you, one of my scouts
was quite taken aback with you before he groveled in front of me saying a powerful magus
had come to our humble city” he omitted the part about the dragon of course “I apologize for
any insult I have a passenger in my head that does not know when to quiet itself or at least
display a modicum of tact” said Darius pointing to his head “Yes we heard that the dragon
has now taken residence inside you, do you have a plan to expel him from your being?”
Haldrith asked “Not at present” Darius simply shrugged “There is a way to expel that idiot
dragon from your body young Darius” Zurgad spoke and stood, his long well kept silver hair
seemed to simply float in the air, he wore leather armor that seemed to just stick to his body
even his skin was like a pale moon but his eyes betrayed a monster who swam in oceans of
blood just to satisfy his thirst “How?” Darius asked, his curiosity now peaking out “A blood
rite, the High Templar here may not care for this heretical art but if the dragon has clawed its
way into your mind a blood rite may bring him out and cast him back into the aether” it was
something to consider “He called you an old friend” said Darius “Once, the issue with time is
that it cuts your ties with people. My old friend was power hungry like all the ancient dragons
were but he had a cunning about him that ultimately became his downfall. Too smart for his
own good he began scheming and betraying those he shouldn’t have as it was then the Xel
Shaman devised a plan to kill and soul bind their souls to Eye Stones and place them in
temples all around the world to serve as a warning to would be conquerors and tyrants but the
planned ultimately failed and the Xel Shaman were isolated to the Orcani Islands” Zurgad
paused then continued “But this blood rite will bring the dragon out and I can bind him to the
stone so he won’t possess you again but he could still serve as a potential battery for your
manifestations or a conduit depending on how you view it” Zurgad explained, the ritual was
quite simple Darius noted but maybe there could be another benefit to it he pondered “Can
you also use blood manifestations to restore lost memories?” he asked “Sadly no, as I’m sure
that old decrepit creature has mentioned that in order for you to bond with the stone he
needed to erase your memories. For ancient dragons like him memories are a source of
currency, much like blood is here” explained Zurgad “Young Darius you may not be aware of
this” Haldrith said briefly pausing “Virtus is still alive, he has extinguished Rigel’s life and
burned him asunder thus erasing his usefulness to the emperor” there was a sadness in
Haldrith’s voice as he spoke but his training and long life as a templar led him to be steadfast
and righteous but more self-important to his duties as a templar “I care not” was all Darius
said there was a finality to his voice which in that very moment his past no longer mattered to
him, Zurgad cleared his throat and stood, his long white hair floating eerily behind him “This
ritual will be painful but when the essence is bound the dragon will no longer influence you
but the pain will be oh so exquisite” there was an elation to the tone of Zurgad’s voice as he
spoke, striding down the steps of his throne he appeared in front of Darius in an instant “Give
me your arm” he instructed and as if compelled by a powerful force Darius presented his arm
where Zurgad removed a knife from his belt and sliced Darius’ arm, blood began to pool on
the floor then spreading out to form a complex spell circle “Al’fe, gur’van tel’za” he uttered
the words over and over in a rhythmic chant that reached a crescendo when a billowing burst
of multiple colors erupted from Darius’ pocket as the petrified eye of the ancient dragon
hovered forcing a visage of the dragon into the world “Why are you doing this!?” the dragon
spoke in multiple voices as if he was held and used by multiple different people “You shall be
bound under this sacred blood moon never to influence or corrupt this vessel again, your life
ended eons ago and yet you linger” said Zurgad brandishing a longsword that had old runic
markings etched along the blade “I deserve a new vessel and this one was ripe for the taking!
My rebirth would have sent a Spellbound Doom upon this world where I would ride it
through the vast cosmos defying the Old Ones and making my heaven a paradise free of all
mortals on this earth!” the dragon shouted, the very ground began to crack and the walls
began to bow before the might of the dragon’s presence but Zurgad was determined not to
back down and after he uttered a few more words in sequence another magic circle emerged
expanding to encompass the entire room “I now seal you using the Manifestation of the True
Word, now Seal! Vra’kei’illel” there was a pronounced explosion with the walls buckling
from the power that had just erupted but in that single moment the dragon vanished in a ball
of light as it was sucked into its own eye never to influence or possess Darius again, he then
collapsed and lost consciousness.