...Kain, hired by a merchant to
protect his caravan managed to fight off a group of thieves who
were attempting to
raid the wagon train. During the following pursuit of a surviving
thug, Kain was caught up in a rock-slide. Broken
and bloody, Kain and his adversary lay prone at the bottom of a
ravine...
The thief slowly got up, he wounds healing fast. As his body
healed itself, it began to transform into the form of a half cat,
half
man. The ManCat reached down and pulled the lance from his side.
He could sense the power emanating from the
weapon."At least it wasn't silver." the lycanthrope
scoffed. "Thanks for the weapon, human." He said,
kicking the prone Kain
in the ribs. Kain made no reaction. "Probably already dead.
The master may have use for you though." the ManCat grinned
as
he hoisted the limp body on his shoulder. Silently, the creature
loped into the night.
Kain woke to find himself chained to a cold stone wall. Scattered
around the cell were the bones of countless other prisoners.
In the far corner, hidden in the shadows, something moved.
"Welcome, Kain." the shadow spoke, his voice almost
inhuman.
"Wh-who said that...?" Kain whispered hoarsely.
"You don't remember me, do you?" the shadow moved into
the light. Standing before Kain was the fiend of fire; Rubicant.
He
seemed much weaker, now... mortal. "I, of course, remember
you." he spoke with an acid tone. "You betrayed our
master and
helped to cause his downfall. And in doing so, we all lost our
power!" Rubicant's eyes glowed with that last word. Rubicant
sat
down again, his rage spent. Silently he mused for several
moments. "We are in the same position, now.
Prisoners...powerless..." Rubicant looked at his red hand.
"...so cold" he whispered. "I need you to help me
escape. I need fire
to survive..."
"Why should I? What's in for me?" Kain growled.
Rubicant sent his fist crashing into the wall next to Kain's
head, splintering the rock. Kain could feel the heat from the
fiend's
skin. "Your bargaining posture is highly dubious...but very
well. Once I am returned to the volcano and regain my power, I
will
grant you unmatched strength and magic. You will become the
ultimate warrior...something you have always wanted."
"How do I know you will keep your word?" Kain asked,
his eyes squinted into slits.
"The way I see it, you simply have no other alternative. You
can hang there and die, or you can help me escape." Rubicant
pressed his face close to Kain's. "What will it be?"
"Agreed." Kain sighed. "Where the hell are we
anyway? Who chained me here?"
"A new fiend calling himself Lord Garland has been amassing
an army here. It seems that he was sucked into a portal and
dropped into this world. He brought several of his minions with
him." Rubicant explained as he broke the chains. "He
has been
seeking a way back to his own world, because his powers are
weaker here."
"That's great, that's nice but how do I fit in?" Kain
snapped.
"It seems that the caravan you were guarding was secretly
carrying some sort of Orb which could help him in his
efforts."
Rubicant retorted.
"You seem to know quite a bit. How do you know that I was
guarding a caravan?" Kain asked suspiciously.
Rubicant chuckled. "Not all of my powers were stripped when
Zeromus died. I am aware of a great many things. Past and
present."
Kain still didn't trust his old enemy, but he didn't any
alternatives. "So how am I supposed to help?"
The guard unlocked the door and stepped in. "Here's your
dinner. Have fun sharing it with the rats!" the big man
laughed as he
tossed the plates to the floor. "Watch it Flame-boy. I still
have this Ice-wand. You remember what happened last time?"
Rubicant fumed slightly, remembering the freezing blast he
received the last time he tried to escape.
"Hey baldie. C'mere." Kain grinned. With the prisoner
stilled chained, the guard didn't see why not.
"What do YOU want?" the guard growled, grabbing Kain by
the neck.
"Surprise!" Kain shouted, clapping his hands together,
striking the guard on either sides of his head. The guard
stumbled back,
holding his temples. Kain's hand bolted down and grabbed the wand
from the guard's belt.
"Shoot him! Kill him!!" Rubicant growled.
Kain gave an wicked grin. "With pleasure. Suck on this,
baldie!" An arc of blue energy shot forth from the wand
blasting the
guard straight in the face. The poor man reached up and felt the
frozen mass that was once his face. Before the guard could
react, Kain kicked out, shattering the frozen-solid visage of the
big man. The faceless thing dropped to the floor, writhing in
agony.
"Let me finish this." Rubicant said, taking the wand
from Kain. He pointed it at what was left of the man's head,
freezing it
solid. He then brought his foot crashing down, shattering the
remains of the man's skull. "I still like your style,
Kain." Rubicant
grinned.
The two escapees looked out of the cell and into the hall.
"Nothing." Kain stated. "This is almost too
easy..."