| "Who is the blue *****?" Ruadh demanded. |
I like the way you have great detail, yet give us "jumping off" spots where we can imagine emotions and reactions you don't spell out for us. Gives extra dimension to the story 
*too much emotion for accurate words*
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Originally Posted by Sooner
...not quite the end. |
Epilogue
Centuries passed, and Ciara made good use of her two unwilling servants. She did indeed rise high in the ranks of the diabolic, from a minor power to a major player. The former angel now terrorized the world under his new name: Conall Cian. Sometimes Na'rul worked alongside him, though his disdain for the devil never faltered, and sometimes Na'rul was on her own task. If any rival challenged Ciara's power, her servants ended that challange quickly and savagely.
But no matter how strong Ciara became, she always lusted for more power. She gathered artifacts and trinkets and stashed them away in the spacious lair she'd claimed from Cad'strum. She did bind other servants, and drew on their power to increase her own, but of them all, only Conall and Na'rul managed to survive her considerable wrath.
As the years, decades, and centuries passed, the angel Ruadh slowly faded and weakened, supplanted almost entirely by the monstrous demon Conall Cian. He fought Ciara, with all his will and occasionally with physical violence, but he was well and truly caught. While he never learned to accept his bonds, he learned to survive within them. With time, Conall ceased denying the evil in which he was awash, and embraced it, truly becoming the fearsome demon he appeared. Only the occasional spark of honor and nobility showed through to prove that somewhere the angel still lived. Angel or demon, Ruadh or Conall, Ciara's Red Wolf endured the centuries by reminding himself again and again that his life was the price he paid so that Sadb could rest in peace. He soothed his pain, fury, and pride by reminding himself that it was for his love.
As for Na'rul, for her own sanity, she locked away her love for Ruadh. It helped, yes, but even centuries later, it stung when Conall would sneer at her. He hated many things, Ciara's pet demon did, but devils would always be first on that list. He tolerated her only because Ciara demanded it. Na'rul suffered the pain of his disdain quietly, because she had no other choice.
---
Then, one very lucky day for Conall, Ciara set her sights on the wrong clan of red-headed Celts. Conall was across the veil, in the demon world, when he felt a barrier slam shut. He didn't know what had happened to Ciara, but she was cut off from him. He never spared a thought to trying to find and rescue her- or Na'rul - instead he turned his back and began making his own plans for power.
More centuries came and went before Conall found his way back to the world of humans. He set his plans in motion, even binding his own servant, an imp with tremendous promise by the name of Excruciatrix. Things were proceeding well for Conall, then he felt Ciara moving again, pulling on his will at first faintly, then finally too strongly to ignore. Finally he succumbed to her call and learned that Ciara had been locked away by magic. Na'rul was nowhere to be seen at first, but Conall learned later that Ciara had imprisoned the unfortunate devil in a pillar of rock for some unknown transgression.
By carefully skirting the limits of his compulsions, Conall was able to aid Ciara's enemies. It was a dangerous game and he was found out near the end. As part of his punishment, Ciara revealed to Conall that Na'rul had played the part of Sadb so long ago. Ciara did not, however, allow Na'rul the opportunity to explain. Conall's rage at that revelation terrified Na'rul.
In the end, it was too late for Ciara and she died, freeing Na'rul and Conall at last. Na'rul fled, in fear for her life. She was certain Conall would kill her before she ever got the opportunity to tell him the truth. And, her fears might have been founded, except that once he was free of Ciara and her corrupting magic, Conall fell away, and Ruadh lived again.
---
Ruadh set one foot on the first step and thought about the irony. He'd first met Na'rul, as Sadb, in a wood and stone tavern heated by wood fire in a world so different from this one that it seemed more than time must separate them. Now he stood in the heart of the Campbell building* in Steel Canyon, a towering modern skyscraper of glass and steel. It seemed a fitting analogy for how they, the world, and their circumstances had changed. He was there to meet with Na'rul, to ask her a few questions. And he still had a great deal to consider, so he climbed the steps in the elegant tower, rather than ride the elevator, to give his thoughts a few last moments to settle.
Freedom, power, and a future full of possibilities...
I wonder just what the future might hold for Ruadh, Na'rul, and 'Trix...
Great read Sooner, and thanks for that ending, it's a good one.
NOOOOO! No END! Darn it Sooner, your stories always leave me wanting another story from you. You are truely a master storyteller.
| "I know" |
Well told, Sooner. Well told.
*smiles so big and long my face hurts, even as eyes are full of tears*
Possibilities.... freedom.... HOPE... and love..........
This will be my favorite one of your writings, Sooner. Always.
