Vae Victis

" a hero? What do I have to gain by killing you vaas? The only outcome to that action is that we all lose a skilled ally, and Diego will hate me for the rest of his life. I didn't mean those things and you know it deep down. I allowed my anger to control me and I hate myself for it. besides, I know that there's more to you than just being an ' insane killer'. Had that been true, you would've iced half of us by now. A true scourge is something that wishes suffering on everyone in this world. You don't meet that definition, vaas. Besides, you know how Diego feels. I know you care about him. And in turn, he cares about you." Kazas's sword gave off a gentle, warm aura, as if it was satisfied by his words. After all of this, the world began to twist and turn. vaas hit the floor. " what the hell... Is the necromancer here?!? Animal, get ready! Vaas, get up! Something's happening!" But it wasn't the necromancer... The group found itself near a village that looked peaceful enough. " what? A village? Untouched by the plague?...." He then am saw that vaas had a sad and terrified expression on his face. " wait.... No way... Are we in.... Vaas's village?" Kazas turned and saw raze appear out of thin air. " raze?!? how did you get here? How is this possible?" Kazas, though weakend, could now stand and fight due to the adrenaline pumping through his veins." " whatever this is... We better prepare for the worst."

Kazas slowly woke up.... " goddamn... What is that smell..." Kazas's vision was very blurry for a moment, then everything came into to focus. He could see that vaas had recovered consciousness and was waving smelling salts over his nostrils... " I'm awake... Damn... that restoration process really takes a toll... You okay? Pfff.. Who am I kidding... Of course you are." Kazas slowly used his sword to pull himself onto his feet. " looks like you made a full recovery, vaas. Very good. look... What I said earlier... I didn't mean any of that. old flashbacks and demons came back to haunt me. I wasn't myself.. I came to apologize, but found your mask and a trail of blood... and well, that's the story so far. But... For what it's worth, I really am sorry. You are definitely no scourge, friend, or I'd be dead. I didn't mean the other harsh insults either... it was all out of anger. I'll control myself next time." Kazas limped over to his chest plate, picked it up, and equipped it back to his chest and smiled. " tell ya what, ill make it up to you. I was part of the griffon royal guard and now I'm a warrior/ambassador to equestria. After we finish our mission, I'm going to invite you all to the griffon empire. I'll make sure you all are treated like royalty. Great dinner... nice place to sleep... Women... Except my wife. She's off limits." Kazas said with a chuckle. " but in all seriousness, i may be limping, but I can defend myself. Go on to the others. I can handle it..." Kazas looked at his sword, then to vaas. " you are not alone in this world... You have people you can rely on, if you so will it... One doesnt need to voluntarily walk alone. hard times are mandatory, but suffering and hatred are optional. These are not nesscesary to be strong..." Kazas used his sword as a walking stick. " thanks for waking me... Go on now. Catch up to Diego and the others... I'll be there soon. Oh, and by the way, here's your mask."

Animal hears everything between the spirit and Kazas. " so I was followed... No matter... I have penance to serve. Leave me be, whoever you are..." Kazas went back to the area where vaas and he had their quarrel. There, he saw a mask and a blood trail. " what the hell... This is vaas's mask! And this... Is his blood... He may be in trouble. I have to help him!" Kazas followed the trail of blood and eventually saw what looked to be an unconscious vaas and two... Ghostly apparitions. It looked as though they were guarding him... " he's lost too much blood.... At this rate, he might not make it." The spirit called to him. "' Kazas... Make your peace with vaas and ask his forgiveness... There is only one thing left to do now... And you know what that is..."' Kazas approached vaas, only to be repulsed by the spirits. " look, I know what I said was wrong, but I'm here to make amends." Kazas could think of only one thing to gain the trust of the ghosts. Kazas stripped off his upper armor, leaving his chest unprotected. " if you wish to kill me, do it now. But I'm only here to help. You can trust me." The ghosts were surprised, and as disgusted as they were, allowed him to pass. Kazas drew his blade and the aura appeared. He cauterized the wound so it wouldn't bleed. "' Kazas... Closing the wound won't work... You'll have to use my restorative powers.., with this, you completely trust vaas with your life, as you will be terribly weakend from this... This deicides if vaas forgives you..."' With this, Kazas took the complete manifest form of the Phoenix lord. Flames engulfed his entire body,.. Both eyes were open and his eyes glowed a bright orange... However, the flames were calm, almost welcoming... he put his hand upon vaas's forehead and started to give him his own life energy. Vaas slowly woke up. Kazas spoke to him with two voices. " consider this my apology for the wrongful things I said... After I complete this process, you'll be completely healed, and I will be left unconscious and unable to fight. You deicide if I live or die. I offer you the ultimate penance... You deicide if I live or die... Don't worry... You'll be okay before long..." After the process was done, vaas was completely healthy and should be able to stand in a few minutes " damn... This power... Really takes a lot.., out of a guy..." Kazas feel flat on his back, a few feet away from vaas. Kazas had given a good portion of his life force to vaas, and it would take time for Kazas to recover his energy. Kazas faded from conciousness, unsure of If vaas would accept his apology...

Kazas threw away his beacon. " it's best if I don't talk to them now..." Kazas walked for awhile. His sword eminating an aura once more, spoke to him aloud and not directly into his mind, as usual. The spirit was aware of what Kazas was not. And wanted the unknown pursuer to know exactly what they were speaking of, and to prove that his master was no mumbling fool. The spirit, better known as simorgh, the Phoenix lord, cared deeply for Kazas, and for the rest of his allies. "' Kazas... I know that his insult of the war struck deep into your soul.... a war is a war. Civil war is even worse. I know how you felt, watching friends being massacred in front of you, and I know you're still bitter. You can't hide your sadness and anger behind jokes and smiles forever. However, you must realize, you are not the only one in life with woe. There are others.'l Kazas begrudgingly answered. " I know... But poisioning a river? That's harsh and unethical. I care not what the others think. That is cruel and unethical... Besides, could you not feel the total darkness and evil within that pony? He has an appetite for death."' The spirit answered "' yes... I could also feel it, my friend. However... I also felt something else... A great sadness and loneliness far beyond Diego's understanding of those subjects... When you both began transforming, I knew what the power of his bow carried. It is infused with the souls of the dead,... At least, that's my theory... I felt multiple presences coming from him, or more specifically, the weapon he wields... the presences seemed sad... Yet some were happy.., others were angry... And some were tainted. Vaas carries a similar burden to your's my friend, or so it seems. But there is a diffrence between you and him... You have a family... Someone to go back to. Your father, your mother, and your wife.... A man of vaas's mentality is borne of one thing; loneliness. he had no one, this I know for sure. This quite possibly explains why he is so enamored with Diego. They are virtually almost the same. Deep down inside, he doesn't want Diego or others to suffer as he has, and seeks the power to create a place where " outcasts" like him can be safe. However, the power he seeks is dark indeed... It steers him... Controls him... Almost drives him insane. He lets his ambition lead him, which may explain why he doesn't care about the methods employed. Of course, all of this is purely speculation. None of it may be true at all... But Kazas, understand one thing; you need to let go of the past and control your anger. You do realize that I grant you unlimited acess to my power.... This could kill you, if misused.... Remember... Only as a last resort or to protect loved ones... Never out of anger... If you were to become primal... There would be unheard of destruction...."' Kazas let out a deep sigh. " I know... But in the end, I'm only mortal, and we make mistakes... And what you said about vaas... I'm going to assume most of it is true.., I've been feeling terrible from the moment I said it... I let my frustrations get the better of me..., dammit I gotta make it up to vaas!" The spirit spoke one more time. "' this is why you alone are worthy... You may not always realize it, but your intentions are good. And don't forget about Diego... If you could be friends with vaas and Diego, you may very well steer vaas from the path of destruction." " good idea" Kazas said. " hell after this is done, I'm inviting everybody to the griffon empire. They'll deserve the royal treatment after this is done." the spirit spoke its last words "' now for the final order of buisness... Ye who hath followed, do not think yourself a ghost. I can feel your presence...."'

" listen here, you arrogant cretin! I'm all for humility and helping my allies, but you try my patience! You have no idea what I can do. you've never seen me at full strength, nor have you even see me have to even try! I know your type. You're exactly like Gorven was years ago! He thought he was invincible, and thought that he had the right to rule the Griffon empire based solely on strength alone! You're deluded and self pretentious! Your way is the way of bloodshed and despair. You don't care for anyone here. Nor have you ever!" Kazas fury started to overcome him. The sword took its familiar red aura, but then burst into flames. The flames started to engulf kazas's sword arm, and his left eye started to glow a fiery red. Kazas was turning into something else. When Kazas spoke again, two voices were heard, as if two entities inhabited the same body. " you are a scourge of the world. You only seek destruction while others seek happiness! you should watch your tongue, and your actions, you wretch! I've seen more blood in a day than you have a life time! I had to slay fellow griffons and rip families apart countless times! I have seen many battles, and I have taken many lives! You're a coward who has no honor... And you only live to SAVE YOUR OWN ASS!" Kazas being further engulfed in flames, ready to use his true power... But the image of his wife and his old friends, as well as his new allies, flashed into his mind. as he regained control, the flames vanished and he was himself again. The ground was burned around him. he breathed heavily and very deeply. " I'm sorry.... I let my emotions get to me... I shouldn't have let that happen. It won't happen again...." He looked at vaas. " and you.... Watch what you say of war. You know nothing of it.... Boy." Kazas sheathed his sword and drank some water from his canteen. then, he walked off by himself. He needed to think on things.

Kazas, though humble, scoffed at the thought that he wasn't strong enough to use his precious blade. " you have no idea vaas... I spent years in war and have honed my skills over the years. Or do you not see the many ash piles behind me? Besides.... You ain't seen nothin yet vaas. Just stick around... You might just be impressed" Kazas said with a joking smile. he kinda did like vaas, but was weary of him. Kazas's expression changed to a serious demeanor. " but in all seriousness, poison the river? Not only will we be contaminating a pure drinking source, but you'd be affecting life up stream and down stream. Now I'm more than willing to share with all of you, but I've only got 2 canteens of clean water. We'd be shooting ourselves in the foot if we did that. I'm strongly against that motion, my friend. It's not a very logical idea. All things must be taken into account. That is the key to victory" Kazas said. Kazas looked to his sword, and saw that the aura had vanished. Kazas comtemplated. ' that vaas.... He has the urge to kill. He is almost primal in that instinct... he's almost insane about it..., wait.... Insane.... Insanity....' The sword's spirit's words echoed in his mind. '" beware the name of insanity. '" Kazas then looked upon vaas with a new found suspicion. ' it's final.' He thought. ' what ever that sneaky man is planning, it's not good... He must be the one the spirit was talking about. That bow of his... That must be the object that rival's searing agony's own power... And in the hands of vaas.... It could bring mass destruction' Blazing agony's aura reappeared, and it was very strong. Unlike last time, Kazas couldn't conceal that the sword had some otherworldly spirit inhabiting in... Blazing agony spoke into Kazas's mind. "' yes.... You have realized... Remember... Your journey will only continue to escalate in difficulty.... You may have slain Gorven years ago... But now you're dealing with an enemy that you have never even heard of... Your skills.... your decision making.... And your very morals will be challenged.... Do not allow yourself to be conquered...'" With this, the sword's aura extinguished itself. though nobody could hear what the spirit said, they all knew that something was up with kazas's beloved sword. They all knew that the sword held more than just an extremely powerful flame enchantment.

Kazas looked around himself, spotting numerous ash piles, at least a dozen. Kazas mumbled to himself. " hmmmm. Not bad, since I haven't practiced in weeks. That was a nice warm up. I'll do even better next time." Kazas called out to the group of warriors to make sure no one had been dragged off by the timberwolves. He thought to himself ' no casualties.... This is great news. Now I know I can trust them to handle theirselves in a fight." Kazas retrieved searing agony from the ash pile, formally the timberwolf of whom he plunged his sword into and burned like a bonfire. Kazas then began to assess the damage done. He mumbled again, his eye focusing on one group member to another. " not wounded.... Not wounded... Neither is she... Wait... Raze is wounded! Maybe I should offer my help." Kazas walked over to raze and offered his assistance. " that wound maybe small, but it'll keep bleeding. with the heat my sword can generate, I can cautaurize the wound and it shouldn't bleed anymore. do you want me to do it? I will warn you... It'll sting a little, if I do it."

Kazas parried the wolves' attacks with sword and shield. He fought bravely with his allies. he slashed each wolf with his sword. They were afraid of the burns that his sword blows inflicted. Kazas fought alongside Judith and animal, relying on them to protect his right. Kazas kept slashing at the wolves, setting parts of them ablaze with every cut. Eventually, he caught sight of what Diego did to the timberwolves. Kazas, unable to control himself, burst out laughing. " Diego that's the funniest thing I've ever seen. Haha! Look, he's taking the walk of shame. " Kazas continued fighting, but was distracted by the thought of the candy timber wolf. he was so distracted, a wolf managed to get a claw in. Thankfully, it bounced off his armor. He bashed it away with his shield. He kept fighting. " when will they ever stop coming?" Kazas brutally slashed the legs out from one wolf, and stabbed the sword into the wolf's chest. That wolf burst completely into flames from the spirit of the sword's power. The other timberwolves saw this, and were vengeful for their fallen pack brother, but were also afraid. Kazas kept fighting along with his allies.

" I understand and respect your decision" Kazas said. Kazas fell behind the ranks of the group, walking alone. his sword eminated a firery aura. the others didn't know it, but Kazas was never alone, for the sword was inhabited by something that only he, his father, and his predecessors knew of. the spirit of the sword spoke to him, but was unheard by the others. ' eventually... You may very well have to use my true power. I hope you have trained enough... The power can leave you exhausted and unable to fight..... Or worse. be very careful in choosing when and why to use it.... Lest your life be forfeit.' Kazas mumbled, making sure no one could hear him. " I'll use it carefully, and only to protect my allies, or as a last resort. Hopefully I won't have to use it. It'd be a shame if I couldn't return to my wife or the rest of my family." The sword eminated and spoke directly to his mind. ' beware the name of insanity... For there is one that carries such an artifact amongst you that can rival the flames of the Phoenix...' Kazas looked confused. " insanity? who names their kid insanity? Hell, I might as well be called insanity... I look crazy because I'm mumbling to a damn sword." the sword's aura abruptly disappeared. The spirit was done talking. Kazas caught up to the group and took a walking position near Judith and animal. " sorry... I was making sure no one was following us." Kazas saw Diego lagging behind. " hey Diego, Walk with us! lets talk for a while!" but his anticipation to consort with his allies was cut short. Yellow eyes surrounded the group. " Everyone get ready! Wolves!" Kazas drew his sword and readied his shield. The sword's burning aura returned slightly. it spoke to him one more time before battle. ' remember what Terminan, your father taught you... Gauge your willpower.'

I'll admit that sponge bob went a little too far. But I must say, I think cartoons are actually going backwards. I mean, Ed Edd n eddy had a sex joke in it once. ( look it up ) cartoons are actually trying not to offend the people, namely the parents. The creators have become more strict in the type of humor and violence used. It's more downgraded than anything. Look at dbz kai for godsakes! The good parts are censored. I don't think cartoons are going to far. I think they're not going far enough.

Herro? Where is everybody? I was hoping for more posts since it was the weekend XD. Kinda missing you all

Ooc( dude I gave Kazas a complete personality change. He no longer has a nickname XD) following the rest of the group, Kazas readied his sword and his shield. " keep them for now, animal. I'll take them later." Kazas drew out his blade, and the familiar burning red aura of the ebony and gold incrested sword eminated, as the enchanted sword burned with kazas's willpower. " Diego, can you do me a favor, I know we just met, but I'd like a protection spell casted if you don't mind." Kazas then said " I'm going to go up front with raze to see what's happening." Kazas ran and caught up with raze. " hello, we haven't been properly introduced, but I'm Kazas. It's nice to meet you" but Kazas was did not look at raze as he was concentrated with the task at hand. " I hope I can assist you greatly." Kazas took fighting stance in preparation for an attack. " as you can see, my right eye is permanently shot for good.... how about I protect your left as you protect my right?" Kazas didn't expect the pony to accept his offer to be his shield sibling, as he seemed to like working alone. But he wouldn't take it offensively if raze refused.

Kazas walked side by side with Diego, speaking with him as they walked. Judith and animal remained 20 ft behind, so Kazas could talk to Diego. " well kinda. lots of hills and mountains, but nothing too special. To be honest, I prefer places like equestria. Flying over green pastures and such... It's beautiful. you must think the same, Yes?" Kazas had read about chaos magic and it's uses. In the royal palace's library and found it to be quite interesting. Why the citizens of equestria had disliked it, he could not fathom. It was magic, and thus being magic, it could be used for the greater good, if used just right. " but one thing that I like about equestria is the diversity of its residents and the fact of how often that magic is used. Griffons are quite interested in magic because we want to broaden our knowledge. Same goes for me. However, there is one problem.... griffons suck at magic" Kazas smiled and laughed to himself. " say, you ever thought about visiting the griffon empire? You'd be a hit with all the female griffons!" Kazas said, jokingly but with some measure of truth in his statement. Kazas then saw what raze saw. " hold that thought... That looks suspicious." Kazas's kind, joking attitude had completely changed into a serious, calm demeanor. his stance changed slightly, and he was ready to unsheathe his sword. " I don't like this... Any idea what they're doing, Diego?"

Kazas found himself contemplating on who he should talk to first, in order to make more new friends and allies. He knew he could trust animal and Judith when he needed to. Yet there were two who caught his eye. The first was raze, who seemed to work alone. The second was Diego, whom seemed very reserved, and somewhat alone and sad, even though he tried to conceal it. " hey guys" he said to Judith and animal. " I'm going to go talk to some more people. It's nothing against you, it's just that I try to talk with most of the people I fight with to form stronger bonds. I'll be with you guys soon. I'm gonna go mingle!" Kazas stepped off the train and spotted Diego. " hm just who I wanted to speak with." As Kazas got closer to Diego, he spotted his cutie mark and saw the chaos symbol. Kazas immediately understood. But he would not judge him for it. Kazas got closer. " hello friend." Kazas smiled. " my name is Kazas. Its a pleasure to meet you." The griffon held out his claw for a claw/hoof shake. Kazas was giving him a legitimate friendly smile as he did so.

Hey I edited Kazas. Tell me if he's okay. http://mlpforums.com/page/roleplay-characters/_/kazas-r3076 I'll start editing my posts as soon as you give me the go ahead, my good sir Also, I have edited my posts to fit his new personality. go ahead and read them. Give me a go ahead to post If you like him okay. ( also, animal and symphonia, kinda try changing the posts about me and the sniper XD)

Alright fine. I guess I'll drop my magnum and my snipe for a sword and a shield. I'll have to go back and rework Kazas to fit the rp. We seem to be lacking in the shield/sword deal anyways. Is that fine with you guys? Warrior class I mean. I don't mean to be inconvient, as I was really wanting to jump in with all eagerness. But is it too late to fix my earlier posts?

I love this kind of stuff... May I join? Here's my OC. ttp://mlpforums.com/page/roleplay-characters/_/wild-thrash-r3102 really hope I get a spot and I hope you enjoy my character XD

Oh for the love of god himself. I can get killed very easily and be affected by plague. A bullet to my brain should suffice. I can be taken out VERY EASILY. I can be snuck up on when I'm by myself. All I ask for is to play kazas's hand like like it should be played. what's fair is fair. I have more disadvantages than advantages. Besides, you have plasma cannon that shoots 500 meters and a giant axe. Those are bigass weapons, my good sir. Your disproving your own comment.

Well yeah I planned on the sniper having a helluva lot of recoil so it's hard to use. plus, I've got a limited clip of four bullets, in order to balance out the power. I can't fly and shoot it, it'll just send Kazas recoiling and to an early grave. I really wanna use the sniper because that's kazas's mindset to use one. Just tell me some limits I can set on it so I can use it.

K.... But I don't really understand why. You have a guy with power armor and plasma cannons and what not. Not trying to be smart, just stating facts. But if it bothers you that much, I'll change kazas's main weapon to a nodachi, basically a katana on steroids. Again, I'm sorry but try to understand where I'm coming from with this. I don't really see the big deal in using a sniper. It's not like I'm god modding. It just seems out of character not to use a sniper. All I've got going for me is a Kevlar vest for protection. I kinda wanna find out your basis for banning of the sniper. That's just not cool

" oh hi there. Why don't you come sit with us, you seem lonely, friend." Kazas moved his shield from beside him and mounted it on his back." Here. Now there is a spot open. Come sit anytime you like." Kazas looked back at animal. " I hear this plague has taken a major toll on your people. I'm sorry to hear that I truly am. my mission actually serves two purposes; to help you all in your endeavors, and to report back to the emperor when we are done. I've seen what I need to see. With my testimony, there is no doubt that we will help your people. Small contingencies of griffon soldiers and doctors will arrive if the plague doesn't subside after we are done. Our goal is to help you, and find a way to combat the deadly disease." Kazas then started to polish his shield with a cloth. " of course, this will be done with Celestia's approval.... But I don't know how much help we can be if the plague doesn't stop after we kill the this necromancer.... We may all be doomed. However, we can still struggle until our last breath. But enough for now. I want to talk to the others."

" oh sorry... Every time I read my book, I feel entranced. it's my father's logs from the old war. It's nice to meet you. I'm Kazas. You must be animal. You must be wondering what a griffon must be doing here in the first place" Kazas smiled " you see I'm part of the griffon royal guard. But I'm also one of the ambassadors to your kingdom. Celestia sent word to the griffon emperor and his first choice was me. I'm honored actually. I'm hoping to get to know all of you better." Kazas then continued conversing with animal about different subjects, such as the way he fights. " oh I use my father's sword and shield style. I also have a small iron ball and chain used for capturing and sweeping opponents off their feet. I see that you use a bow. Nice choice of weaponry. I have a strategy that combines our fighting styles, if we face enemy archers. You hide behind my shield, and you fire arrows over my shoulder as I protect you. It's something my dad taught me." Kazas noticed animal staring at his right eye. " oh that, that's an old war wound." Don't worry about it.