Face to face with Death [Chapter VI]

[lisa]

All the way from the deserts of Jherrazad, to the heavens, she could hear them. Loud wailing in the distance from tortured souls that never got the chance to cross over to the other side, imprisoned by a weapon that preyed on the immortal souls of mortal men and women. No longer. To this Angel of Death the only thing worst than death itself was being forbidden to move on by a force that had no say so in such matters.

They were the only things able to make her feel, the only things she could feel any sympathy for. Her blade was raised up high as the demons that blocked her path entering Jherrazad soon perish, having no chance against the Grim Reaper in the flesh. Mariya's cold hard face looked beyond the low level demons in the desert and over to the castle that outstretched to the skies, impaling one more no-named devil that dared oppose her before finally crossing the threshold that was the borders of Jherrazad, searching for the one they called Ranko.

[Ranko]

Many called her Empress, the loyal referred to her as Lady Ranko and her enemies knew her as only The Crimson Devil. But to a small portion of the world, to those she knew better than anyone else she was simply Ranko. No Empress, Lady or Devil before. Simply Ranko. The ruler of Jherrazad and sister of the terrifying Seductress named Maricul. The siege on Jherrazad made by Death itself did not go unnoticed by The Crimson Devil from atop her castle’s tower. Both she and Z-Rah were the first beings to feel the dreadful power of the angel long before she reached the borders of this land. Kaso and Alexander would feel it soon after her foot stepped across those very borders, but they were all given direct orders to stand down and remain in the castle. This was one threat that the Empress would take on alone.

A chill had shot down the very spine of the nation as every citizen went inside their homes and locked up the doors and windows. The castle gates were lowered and their Empress silently approached the new-found threat to their home, crimson eyes as cold as the look on the angel’s face met the warrior’s glance, her pale hand running along the black hilt of Kasul which was safely tucked away inside its sheathe awaiting the call of its mistress. The wind, which remained absent for the longest time, suddenly began to pick up as it raised the ponytail of Ranko’s, blowing through her long crimson colored trench coat and black pants. A twenty-five foot gap was all that remained between angel and devil as two opposing ice cold mask now looked at one another, both of them quite capable to spread fear into the hearts of the man unfortunate enough to meet their very gaze. Without further ado The Crimson Devil spoke, coldly.

“To what do I owe this pleasure?”

[lisa]

Mariya expected to find a brigade of soldiers marching towards her with their polearms at the ready, being under the false impression that any weapon they so possess could actually inflict damage upon her skin but none of that came to past. Instead it was only one woman but not just any woman, the bandit of souls herself. Lady Ranko. Standing alone with the very tool that motivated the angel to come here in the first place. Was she cast out by her people knowing full well she had brought the angel to them or did she really believe she could force back the Reaper on her own? The Angel of Death now pointed the sharp tip of her broad sword at the very weapon the empress kept.

"I come for the spirits you have denied eternity. I demand you release those souls into my custody or all of Jherrazad shall pay for your transgression!"

[Ranko]

And just like that the motivation and intention of the angel became known to The Crimson Devil, her eyes never left that of Death’s to look down to her sword but instead she would stroke the hilt of the blade with her thumb and gripped it tightly around her hand, as if she expected the agent of death to send it flying right from her sheathe if she didn’t hang onto it tightly. The breeze around them grew colder with each waking second the stare down continued, to the point where every breath The Crimson Devil took could be shown coming out of her mouth. But her body would not yield to the cold just like she herself would not yield to Death in the flesh.

“I’ve no intention of surrendering this blade to you.”

The blade itself was the only means of releasing these souls and Ranko knew better than to expect anyone would allow her to continue wielding this blade when she could just start devouring even more souls into it again. This blade, Kasul, it has been with her for many years, countless centuries, to the point where it has become an extension of herself and who she was. The Empress of Jherrazad would never allow another to wield it and nor would the blade itself. They were one. Neither of them could go on without the other. She didn’t expect her to take this chance but would give it to her anyway.

“Leave.”

[lisa]

Just when you thought it was impossible for Mariya's face to harden any further, it did so at Ranko's response as she prepared for battle.

"Foolish girl! I'll pry that blade out of your cold dead hands!"

Ranko had her chance to end this peacefully and foolishly chose to tempt fate. The twenty five foot gap between them soon meant nothing the moment the Angel of Death charged forward, bringing down the sharp edge of the broadsword down against the upper-body of the crimson devil.

[Ranko]

Neither woman was willing to yield to the authority of the other, the determination in their eyes being the only thing shielding the otherwise emotionless void found on their faces. The only signal of Mariya’s attack to spectators would be the sudden change of wind in The Crimson Devil’s direction. Ranko drew the long black blade known as “Kasul” from its sheathe at long last, a dim red light glowing from it as the sound of the blade clashing with that of the angel’s thundered across all of Jherrazad and the power both women possessed shook the very foundation of the nation as the citizens cowered in fear inside their homes.

Faint whispers could be heard coming from Kasul as a struggle of power began between angel and devil. It wasn’t one select voice but a group of them all mushed together, becoming untranslatable as they spoke in over seven hundred different languages throughout time and space. Many of them didn’t even belong to this realm but they resided inside the demon sword, the most feared blade in all of Genesis, nonetheless. Ranko’s crimson eyes narrowed over the blue orbs of the angel as it took all of the half devil’s strength to force the angel back, shifting Kasul in her hand and then aimed to cut Mariya in two.

[lisa]

So this was the terrifying blade known as Kasul? The one that has imprisoned countless souls throughout Genesis and even more around various realms that it had no right in devouring. The very sight of the demonic blade made the angel sick to her very stomach as the battle between the two threatened to tear all of Jherrazad in half. Speaking of halves, Ranko had swung her blade to cut her in two and if she really thought that would work Mariya would have laughed if she was anyone else. Another loud thunderous sound of her blade hitting the Kasul would echo across the air as her angelic strength kicked in and pushed the blade off to the side before thrusting her own sword into her heart.

[Ranko]

The pure silver blade of the broadsword surface became as red as rubies but Ranko’s eyes did not go wide from the shock of being stabbed. Instead The Crimson Devil’s face remained unyielding as it has from the very beginning of the duel. Pulling back on her head the “Empress of Jherrazad” headbutted Mariya hard enough to knock the angel back while grabbing the sword she had pierced her heart with, pulling it out and now wielding both blades as the angel of death was defenseless. As quick as lighting flashed through the air had the tables turned in The Crimson Devil’s favor, now cutting the gap that was made between them previously and using her inhuman speeds to unleash an omnipotent wave of slashes with both blades, Kasul aimed to drain her strength with each slash.

[lisa]

Mariya was forced back, losing her main weapon in the process. As Ranko came forward, Mariya's wings burst out of her back and lifted her up into the air to avoid the slashes and kick the Crimson Devil in the face with both her feet to knock her back. Immediately after the angel landed back down on the ground in front of her and spun around, her wings aimed to slice her in half while stumbling back.

[Ranko]

The wings sliced through Ranko’s flesh and anything else would have fell to such a sharp blade within the beautiful wings of an angel but not The Crimson Devil. Her endurance was strong enough to only allow the lightest of cuts across her waist, these cuts leaving wounds that quickly closed only mere seconds after being opened. Crossing both swords into an X-shaped formation Ranko charged up her power and then her arms began to move as fast as lighting, each swing of the blade growing more stronger each time it swung down to leave the angel in oblivion.

[lisa]

No chances. Mariya wrapped herself around with her wings to shield from the slices before opening them roughly, the air caused by the wings sudden burst of movement was enough to knock the devil back while she came forward to the side, twisting the arm that held her blade just enough to force it out of her hand, delivering a back hand to Ranko's face soon after before kicking her back giving her the time she needed to reclaim her blade. Mariya would have gone for the Kasul had it not been for its gravity seal ability to prevent any it did not wish to be held by from carrying it. Not even the Angel of Death could move it because of this and her strength could very well all be zap away in a matter of seconds. Wielding her broadsword yet again she waited for the next move by Ranko.

[Ayen]

Ranko withstood the winds, using the blades as a shield against them before The Angel of Death swiftly acted to reclaim her sword, a lost that would hardly phase The Crimson Devil in the grand scheme of things. Kasul was the only blade she would ever need to command. The Broadsword was just dead weight at this point. Her arm quickly recovered from the damage it suffered as she now held Kasul over her head, the sharp pointed tip of the demon blade now aimed at Mariya but Ranko made no move for attack. She simply stood in place, crimson eyes weighing over the angel.

[lisa]

The battle for lost souls quickly became a battle of patience as neither participant made any move of attack. Mariya kept her eyes on Ranko, not allowing anything to slip by her field of vision nor allowing a single piece of her surroundings to be ignored. Ranko was well known for superhuman speed making her surroundings just as important as the woman herself. The single shift of wind could in fact be Ranko moving at a speed that far exceeded her own but so far their speed has been even for the most part. The Angel of Death remained in her place just waiting.

[Ayen]

Ranko took a couple of steps to the right, lowering and moving Kasul from one side of her body to the other, shifting the blade, the sharp point now aimed towards Mariya. The Crimson Devil charged forward but at the last minute with her superhuman speed she zipped up through the air and came crashing back down into a Helm Breaker.

[lisa]

Mariya didn't flinch at Ranko's fake charge and then she made the mistake of going into the air. Angels ruled the skies and most would sooner keep them grounded then even risk something as simple as a jump. The Crimson Devil must have been very confident, or down right cocky, to think there would be no backlash to this idea. It was time to knock the Empress down a few pegs. Mariya met her halfway through the air, her wings coming into contact with flesh and bone cutting the Crimson Devil in half before her feet would meet the ground where the devil once stood. The angel of death turned her head around to get a good hard look at her handy work.