The Pale War

by Max Jager

  All these changes had appeared on the outside as well. The tips of his ears had grown into short points. His nose had become just slightly longer and wider. His eyes still remained the same color but instead of a round black cornea in the center, it was now thinner and more animal looking. Looking more like a reptilian or feline eye. His changing was now no longer mental. It had now become physical.

  Korzen really didn't care either. He thought that maybe it was some kind of side effects from being struck with the staff. His mind was so polluted with getting the Red Firius that he didn't even care what was happening to him or why.

  His eyes focused in on the ship that had been pulled from around the cave. Even though he should have been too far away to even see anything even in close range of the cave, he saw almost clearly; the ship, the Leyline, and the Red Firius!

  Korzen kind of gave a small grin to himself and took off running towards the diamond ship. He noticed something as he ran that he was stronger. He could run fast before but it seemed easier for him to run at such a speed so he began to run even faster. Soon he was running so fast he felt like he was going to come right off the ground. This new physical power was amazing to him. He would have taken a little more admiration for it but he had no time. He wanted the Red Firius. It seemed the more he yearned to destroy the young agent, the faster he ran. He hardly even felt like he was moving. He felt his legs moving and his muscles working but he felt as though he could run like this for hours on end.

  Finally, he got up to the hill Alerius had gotten over and when he did he was too late! Even with all of his speed he watched the diamond ship launch up into the sky and disappear.

  His rage began to boil and his eyes became even more ominous looking. His eyes stared to change right there on the spot and Korzen didn't even pay attention. They became even more reptilian looking taking on a bright red color around his thin black corneas.

  That wasn't the only thing either. His fingernails started to become black. It was a shiny black like you see on Korzen's claws. They were growing rapidly too. They were taking on sharp points at the ends.

  His skin was becoming darker as well. It was changing from a human flesh tone to a more darker yellow. A dark yellow that you find on dying leaves in the fall just before they hit the ground. Korzen was far off from dying though. He was getting stronger. His physical appearance was now starting to take the shape of the evil growing inside of him. He was becoming neither rogue nor human. He was becoming a monster!

  Korzen then spotted Karion. He began to walk towards the okren leader and Karion spotted him around this time too. Karion began to scurry into the cave. Korzen picked up the pace heading straight for him. Karion saw one of his guards over by the entrance of the cave. The bomb was still there and the guard was right next to it. Karion looked back at Korzen knowing full well he wasn't going to make it inside the cave in time. He looked back at the cave entrance as he tried to hurry inside. Karion suddenly yelled at the guard, "Blow it!"

  The guard looked at the bomb and then back at Karion. He shook his head in denial.

  Karion screamed back at the guard, "Do it! That's an order!"

  The guard hesitated for a moment and then armed the bomb. It then ran into the cave entrance and disappeared fast.

  Karion changed his course and began to run straight for the Yellow Korzen. Karion had no idea what he was going to do to slow him down but he had to do something. He had a staff of his own and he was planning on using it to its full potential.

  Karion came with in striking distance at Korzen and had the staff outstretched. He jumped up right at Korzen's face but he was caught in midair and before he even knew what had happen, his staff was down on the ground and his ribs were being crushed by Korzen's vise like grip. Karion struggled to get loose but it was no use. Korzen brought him up right to his face and starred at the small king. Korzen had this look in his eyes that was absolutely diabolic! Even without the menacing changes it still would have been a stair that would have turned the okren's king heart to ice with fear.

  Korzen decided to be the first one to speak. "Where are they?"

  Karion decided to stop struggling and looked at The Yellow Korzen. Karion was almost paralyzed with fear. He knew about The Yellow Korzen. Probably better then anybody. The agents in the academies around the universe only knew the legend, Karion knew the man.

  He wasn't exactly sure how he had killed The Turquoise Steed but he knew when they found him he was a bloody mess. Not even with all the healing powers that the calsins had could they nurse the legendary rogue back to health.

  Suddenly, as Korzen starred at the okren leader, this huge explosion rocked the landscape! Korzen was blown back with Karion still in hand. It was from the bomb. The cave entrance had been sealed underneath its own rock. It didn't even look like rock anymore. Just this grayish pile of rubble.

  Korzen got up with Karion and walked over to the pile. It was still smoking from the explosion. Korzen looked at Karion and said, "Well, that saves them for a bit but you still have a problem. Where are they?"

  Karion felt Korzen's grip get tighter around his body. He squirmed in pain as he felt his breath getting more shallow. Karion looked at Korzen and answered back. "Why don't you go ask them!"

  Korzen walked away with the king in a vise like grip. "I could kill you with a mere thought!" He squeezed tighter and again Karion writhed in pain. His small reptilian body convulsing and twitching inside Korzen's hand from agony.

  Karion barely choked out, "Then do it and be done with it!"

  Korzen gave him a sly, evil smirk. "Now how can I do that when you know where they are?"

  "So, you need me?"

  Korzen's smirk did not diminish. "Oh no, I just thought I would do this the easy way rather then the hard way."

  Korzen then heard this funny sound. It was a strange sound and he recognized it right away. It was the sound of flapping wings. Korzen looked up in the sky and saw a nebron flying his way. This one was different then most he had faced though. This one was extremely powerful looking and had dragon teeth pierced into its horns.

  It landed on the ground about fifteen feet away from Korzen. It stood looking at the traitor agent and after about a minute went by, about thirty hellion soldiers appeared from behind him. More of the volcanis.

  The nebron walked up to Korzen and with every step a tremor could be felt in the ground. The nebron then reached out for Karion but Korzen pulled back and shoved his gun right in the demon, dragon slayer's face. "He's mine!"

  The nebron retracted a bit. Not scarred but a little surprised at the way Korzen was acting. It was a pleasant surprise to the demon. He could feel and see the changes in Korzen. The nebron took a couple steps back wanting to see how this was going to play out.

  Korzen tucked his gun back under his coat and looked at Karion. He then began to crush Karion's small body and this time he heard something break! Karion let out this high pitch hiss that was purely animal sounding. "I'm going to ask you one last time! Where are they?"

  Karion's ribs had been broken! Even if he was going to tell Korzen where they were he couldn't. He was in too much pain. He writhed back and forth until finally Karion's sensible reasoning collapsed and his animal instinct took over. He bit Korzen's hand, hard! He sunk in his small lizard teeth as far as they would go and a blast of blood squirted into his mouth.

  Korzen immediately dropped the okren leader and began to favor his hand. It was bleeding pretty bad but nothing Korzen hadn't encountered before. He looked at the ground after checking his hand over for about a couple of seconds and saw Karion running away. He looked back at his hand and then back at Karion. "You little son of a…"

  Before he got the final word out he had already stomped over to Karion and stepped on the small okren king! He heard this crushing sound and saw this explosion of green blood and chunks of anatomy from under his boot. It was a delightful sound and sight to him.

  He then began screaming down at his boot like Karion cou
ld still hear him, "Fine! I'll find them without you! Goddamn little scaly nuisance!"

  Korzen picked up his foot and began to scrap what was left of Karion off of his boot. He became angry at his whole situation. He had no idea where Red Firius had flown off to. It could have been anywhere! He then calmed himself down and began talking to himself hoping that would help him think. "Where would you go Firius? What would you do? A rogue agent, on the run from another rogue agent, hardly no weapons, with…" He finished the rest in his head. 'With a Leyline! Hogarth! The Visues Pyramid! He wouldn't know about that but the calsins would. Probably told him about the pyramid!' He looked at the nebron and asked, "Is there a ship I can use?"

  One of the volcanis behind the nebron spoke up. "Yes, we brought it with us. It'll take some time for us to refuel it but…"

  The demon was interrupted by Korzen. He walked past the demon and the nebron as he talked. "I don't care! I'll take it now!" He was almost past the small army when the nebron suddenly landed right in front of him, blocking his path. Korzen stopped and looked up at the nebron. At first, he was mad that the demon had blocked his path but then he was amused by it. He figured that the demon was no match for him. He tried to push through the demon but it stood firm in front of him. Korzen pointed at him and turned his head back to the weaker demon platoon. "What's his deal?"

  One of the volcanis hellions stepped up and said, "We're under orders."

  Korzen noticed a slight shakiness in the demon's voice. He sensed fear coming from the infantry. He knew they were afraid of him. He looked back at the nebron and tried to sense some kind of uneasiness. He felt none. This nebron was not afraid of him at all. Korzen still had his eyes locked on the nebron and the nebron on him. "What orders?"

  The same volcanis took a step back and its fear steadily increased. "From The Flaming Meteorite. He wants that ship to be used by us. He wants the Leyline and the agent for himself."

  Korzen tilted his head and cracked the stiffness out of his neck. "You tell 'B.M' that he can have that chick all he wants...but The Red Firius is mine!" He tried again to push through the nebron but again he was stopped. Korzen was getting extremely irritated. He tried two more times before he finally said something. "Demon, I've faced all kinds. What's one more? I don't think they'll miss you!" Korzen decided to try one more time to get through. Again, he was blocked by the demon. This time though he was actually pushed away. Korzen pulled out his revolver and stuck it right in the demon's chin. "DON'T YOU EVER TOUCH ME AGAIN!"

  Suddenly, in the right hand of the nebron, was this raging fireball! The demon held it close to Korzen's face and sort of growled almost as if tempting Korzen to pull the trigger. Korzen took a quick glance over at the fireball and then re-plastered his eyes back on the nebron. "I can skewer your brain with two shots before that thing even touches me!"

  That fireball in the nebron's hand just grew bigger and brighter. Neither one of them was going to back down. Either one ready to lay waste to the other. The two starred each other down and the infantry in the back seemed to fade away. Both were focused on each other.

  Korzen was not frightened of this demon and neither it of him. He did however sense something about it. Some kind of ancient powerful evil hidden within. As if it was more then just some battle harden nebron. As if it was some kind of elite demon. Almost like an Oadin in disguise. Not quite as strong but still capable of heavy damage to life.

  Korzen starred at the demon for another minute until he had an epiphany! An ancient myth that entered his head. He had to be sure though. He had to make the demon identify himself. Korzen made this surprised look on his face faking a feeling he had for quite some time about this nebron. He put his revolver back under his coat and backed up a couple of steps. "It's you!"

  The nebron starred at Korzen curiously. It lowered its hand and the fire in it diminished.

  Korzen began to circle the demon, faking to study it. This was just a big show he was putting on to get some kind of signifying reaction out of the nebron. He wanted to know if his suspicions were correct. He had to put on these theatrics. He wanted to know if what he was dealing with was the mighty power he believed it to be. Plus, it was more fun this way. "Yeah, it's you alright. I knew it!"

  The demon infantry in the back now were intrigued. One of them finally spoke up. "Who is he?"

  Korzen looked back with a pleasant surprise. That one he had not counted on. That even these zealots that this nebron was leading didn't know his true identity.

  Korzen started circling again. "Huh, even your team doesn't know who you are. I find that kind of interesting."

  Again from the hellion force, "What is he?"

  Korzen could sense both their curiosity and their fear. He decided to indulge their inquiry, "Legend tells of a nebron of unbelievable might and power! The first nebron of all time. Domaren: The Hammer of Hell! One who fought in the first war. Had faced down the most powerful of warrior angels, Saint Michael himself! The only demon to escape alive the freeing of the Laylines."

  The nebron sort of growled at him.

  Korzen continued his circling. "I thought you were nothing more then a myth. A cheap story told to scare little rogues while they slept in their little beds at their little academies." Korzen sort gave a disbelieving sigh still playing this role. "If you really are who I think you are, then show me something! Why don't you drop your little façade and really stop me because I don't care who you are!" Korzen stopped right in front of the powerful nebron, "I'm going to get the Red Firius and there's nothing you can do about it!" Korzen arrogantly walked past the nebron and strutted off in the direction of the ship. Suddenly, he dodged to his left and a huge explosion rocked the surface of the ground. He looked back and saw the nebron standing there with this fireball in hand. Korzen solemnly shook his head. "You're going to have to show me something besides what other baragons can do. I can dodge those cheap parlor tricks all day long!"

  He kept walking. He was still putting on a show. He knew that this demon could do more then shoot fireballs. He could sense the truly evil nature about this demon. He knew if it really was Domaren and was loyal to Hell, then it could do a lot more then just shoot fireballs. He was about to find out that he was correct.

  As he continued to walk off, he felt this massive surge of energy. He heard this rumble from the sky and looked upwards. He saw this dark cloud cover the sky. He saw bolts of lighting inside of it as it enveloped the sky. Korzen just smiled.

  The lighting bolts were a red light. An evil of immeasurable power. They flashed and danced inside of the dark sky. A strong wind suddenly hit Korzen and his smile only increased. He turned around to face the wind and saw the nebron rising off the ground with its wings outstretched. Its arms also extended out along with its bat-like wings.

  The red lighting seemed to focus in on the nebron. It loomed over it as it hovered up to the sky. It had that powerful red glow back over its body just like when it had tangled with Aurela. Its eyes were that glowing red now. Same bright red as the lighting that was ripping through the dark sky. The lighting then began to come in contact with its body. The lighting launched straight down and circled around its body. It did this almost ten times in less then three seconds. Korzen had to put his hand up to shield his eyes from the bright, red light given off from the bolts.

  Suddenly, the nebron threw its arms out at Korzen and at that moment, a bolt made direct contact with its body. It seemed to go right through the demon's body and then branch out in two, going through its arms, tearing up the ground to the left and to the right of The Yellow Korzen. As the bolts ripped the ground up, two; seven foot high trails of fire were left behind the bolts. They raged next to Korzen and Korzen just intensely stared at the powerful demon.

  It threw its head up and roared out towards the sky as now red lighting seemed to flash out of its eyes. It ripped up the sky and seemed to give more power to this evil storm conjured up by the nebron.

  It kept roaring as the wind grew stronger. The f
lames to the sides of Korzen blew back ferociously and Korzen was doing everything to keep from being blown away. He began to walk towards the nebron hoping that the motion would keep him stable. The wind blew hard and he watched as most of the hellion infantry, who was hiding over by the closed cave, were blown away into some big whirlwind. The rubble from the cave, what there was of it, was blown away by the wind as well. The fire on the sides of Korzen died away from the furious wind.

  On the wind, through the loud roaring that the nebron was doing, Korzen could hear strange voices on the wind. Demonic voice that were not speaking English. They were uttering some kind Hell speak! Either it was Latin or English backwards. Korzen couldn't be sure and right now he really didn't care. Several voices over another saying the same thing over and over again. Korzen was suddenly swept off his feet no longer being able to handle the powerful wind and was blown back almost a yard away.