Stumbling awkwardly to his knees a tear ran down his face as he gazed into the fire. Closing his eye he bent his head down in defeat as his ears caught the sound of the metallic blade grazing against the floor as it was raised into the air. The sound of steps came closer to him.

The air was torn apart as the blade cut through the air with a deadly precision that only a being of ancient age could muster. The flesh and bone of the inhumanly fragile neck were severed and the mutterings of words silenced. The head rolled down from the shoulders and came to rest before his feet. As if some huge weighty burden had been lifted and the strings of mortality that held it up had been cut the body tumbled backwards falling in a cross shape.

The sword fell to the floor with a resonating clang and the cold sound broke the silence. The doors opened outwards letting a shocking breeze seep into the stone room. From a crouching positon above the room a shadowed figure surveyed the room below.

((wait!! who died??? Mark or the bad guy?? GASP!!

(( Ummm , same as Gabe man , who died !? Better not be mark man lol , cause theres a resurection on the way ! ))

((As requested Kathy, post removed :)

((thanks Mandi i really appreciate it :) By the way it doesnt mean i dont want you to join in its just that ive had a change of plan regarding that bit lol.

The vampire pushed the doors open with a grunted effort from his tiring body, an eternity of blood lust setting upon him, the beast ever consuming him as the hunger for blood raged within. The squeak of a chair gave him cause to raise his eyes and glance towards the executive desk resting in the centre of the room. Behind the desk a large leather executive chair rocked slightly from left to right as its owner gazed upon the burning fire. Documents were sprawled across the desk with what appeared to be an ancient and shattered blade resting upon it. The chair swivelled around to face the Vampire who suddenly stood still in his tracks. A sudden look of shock shot across his face as he was forced to look twice at the man in the chair.

“Welcome to my humble abode” A smile shot across Mark’s face as he looked upon the Vampire. Rocking backwards Mark slid back into his chair his hands gripping firmly to the arms of his chair.

Taking an unsure step to the side the Vampire glanced backwards to the door he had entered through and then back to Mark. “But you’re dead… I killed you with my own hands”

“You pathetic fool!” Mark stood up sharply sending the chair sprawling across the room. “You can not even begin to comprehend….”

The vampire growled as he looked upon Mark. “You dare speak in such a tone to me whelp? There is no one in the world with enough power to stop me now! I will crush your worthless bones into a thousand pieces. I have eternity to exact my wrath upon you.”

Stretching his hand outwards Mark smiled “I’d like to test that theory!” A bolt of burning energy leapt forth from the palm of Mark’s hand and struck the vampire with enough force to send him flying into the wall. The vampire writhed in pain as he pulled himself into a sitting position. Mark looked at the device attacked to his palm and smiled proudly.

“You stupid whelp I am an Immortal! You can not hope to stop my ascension.” The vampire growled as he spoke. As he tried to stand he was knocked back to his feet by an invisible force as Mark moved his hand. “Stay down…”

With a loud frustrated roar the Vampire looked upon Mark with an evil glare. “I brought you back from the grave. Now I’m going to send you back”

The vampire stood and snarled at Mark with a look that could kill. As the vampire charged towards him Mark spoke a few soft words and another bolt of energy sent the aggressor vampire flying through the doors. Wailing his arms in the air in a futile effort of resistance the vampire landed halfway into the adjoining room with a loud thud and cracking of bones.

The doors pushed aside in Marks stride as he followed into the room. Raising his hand into the air the body of the vampire followed it as it began to float. Growling with contempt the Vampire looked down upon Mark. Moving the index finger of his left hand from side to side in time with the shaking of his head he sighed before unleashing a feral growl.

“Bad BEAST!” with a slight movement of Mark’s hand the Vampire was thrust hard into the left wall. With another hand movement the vampire found himself hitting hard into the right hand wall and then finally into the far end wall. He tried to move and resist Mark’s power as he found himself sprawled spread eagle several feet against the wall.

A smile crossed Mark’s lips as he watched the Vampires muscles working and tensing hard as he tried to break free. A small razor began to rise from Mark’s pocket and floated in the air. With a gesture the deadly blade began to cut apart the vampires wrists and arms and then his neck. With a agonised look the vampire gazed at the wounds that refused to heal.

“I wouldn’t waste your time, you have very little of it left” Mark spoke matter of fact like as he moved closer the vampire. His eyes watched as the blood seeped from the Vampire’s crippling wounds at an astonishing rate. As they made contact Mark felt an agonising and searing pain flood through his head. As he fell to his knees in pain his grip on the vampire was lost.

As mark regained his sensed he moved swiftly to one side as he watched the frustrated and beast controlled Vampire flail sluggishly from blood loss as torpor approached him. Mark smile triumphantly as he dodged a few more pathetic swings. Sweeping the legs out from underneath the once powerful Vampire Mark knelt beside him.

“I am your bringer of death, of pain. Feel the agonising horror of eternity.” Placing the device in his palm over the forehead of the vampire he watched as its agonising screams fell silent as its body decayed into ancient ash. Standing to his feet Mark turned and stepped through the doorway. With a gesture of his hand the room ignited in an inferno of fire.

((that RULED!! he blew up the room! woot woot!!

After seeing to the total destruction of books, artefacts and other ancient ritual artefacts that had cost Mark most of what fortune he had in money, secrets and favours regarding the dark incantations and ritual research that had allowed him to raise the once powerful ancient he had just destroyed. Allowing such secrets and darkness to fall into another’s hand would them down the same self destructive course that Mark had been following. An age of work, a collection of one of a kind objects destroyed and disintegrating before Mark’s eyes.

That is all except for one single book and the band he wore around the palm of his hand. Walking from the archive he wondered back into his office. His eyes glanced longingly at the journals that lined the bookshelves. Taking one of the books he started to read the scribbling. The words and the way they were roughly sprawled could have easily been confused for that of an ancient language instead of the ramblings of a mad man who wrote a language only his mind could understand.

A tear rolled down Mark’s eyes as he threw one of his journals against the wall. Walking to the office desk he took a hold of his half shattered sword and walked to leave the hidden haven deep below the city. As his final step left the room the books behind him were set ablaze. Climbing to the surface world he began the long journey through town to his apartment.

Picking up the fallen door he placed it to rest against the wall. As he moved around the room he adjusted furniture and other fallen objects to the positions he remembered them. Gathering the scattered garments he placed them in a rough pile on the bed. Picking up various items he placed the randomly over the worn desk.

He stopped and starred longingly as his rested upon a packet of twenty crayola crayons and a rough sketch pad. Perching himself on the edge of the bed he began to draw abstractions in a child like manor in vibrant colours on page after page of paper as his imagination consumed him. He raised his head slightly as he heard approaching footsteps but soon dismissed it as he returned to his drawings.

((anyone wanna be those footsteps lol

Mark looked casually around the walls of his room. He now had around twenty five drawings pinned up along the walls in a storyboard fashion. Crayons were worn down, snapped and ruined as they rested sprawled across the floor along with crumpled up pieces of paper. Sliding the door into position he left the room and headed down the stairs.

The journey to the graveyard was a familiar and long one. Pushing the lard cast iron gates aside he took a seat among the graves of friends and closed his eyes as he began to travel back through memories of old and new.

Kathy was approaching mark's haven when she saw the door open, the candlelight from inside casting an eerie shadow on the dark sidewalk.

He walked out and pulled his jacket tight around him, his head bowed down he began to walk along the road. His strides increasing as he made his way determindly.
Kathy pulled the hood up of her long angora wool cape up and brushed the tendrils off her auburn hair into it .

She had been intent on seeing mark because she had heard rumours that he was back in the city and had been for some time now.

Not wanting to intrude on him and knowing that sometimes he could act a bit strangely, she had left him alone. But as the days increased to weeks the fact that he hadnt got in touch with her irked her somewhat.

Her footsteps matching his, she followed him discreetly, her soft soled leather shoes making barely a noise on the path.

AS he turned into a graveyard kathy paused,wondering whether to follow him or to leave him be.

She shook her head, no damn it we were good friends once she said to herself as she slipped through the opening in the iron gates.

Kathy watched him as he sat down on a raised tombstone. for all he looked like a man kathy knew his childlike ways and as she watched him she smiled as he pulled a piece of paper out of his jacket and what looked like a very small stub of a crayon.

Kathy moved carefully towards him, avoiding standing on the low gravestones.

"mark.....what you up to ?"


((soz its not much markie mooshoes but ive just done ..ummmmmm a 16 hour split shift at work and im whacked ..)

As he heard Kathy’s voice Mark focused his attention back on the present as he gazed forward blankly into the darkness. As she approached from behind Kathy knelt carefully beside Mark with great care to avoid any unnecessary damage or ruining to her clothes from the harsh surface of the graveyard. Repeating her question with a little more concern she looked upon Mark as a tear flowed down the side of his cheek and his eyes blinked longingly.

“Mark whets going…” Kathy’s concern was shown across her face and in her voice, her trail of words interrupted by Mark.
As he heard Kathy’s voice Mark focused his attention back on the present as he gazed forward blankly into the darkness. As she approached from behind Kathy knelt carefully beside Mark with great care to avoid any unnecessary damage or ruining to her clothes from the harsh surface of the graveyard. Repeating her question with a little more concern she looked upon Mark as a tear flowed down the side of his cheek and his eyes blinked longingly.

“Mark whets going…” Kathy’s concern was shown across her face and in her voice, her trail of words interrupted by Mark.

“Hold me Kay.”

Her arms were wrapped around him as he rested his back against her front and leaned his head against her shoulder clinging closely to her for comfort and sanctuary as he broke down into tears followed by violent sobbing.

(( mines short to, 16 hours?>> wow youve ebaten my crazy record of 15. Don't work yourself to hard or over do it.



“Hold me Kay.”

Her arms were wrapped around him as he rested his back against her front and leaned his head against her shoulder clinging closely to her for comfort and sanctuary as he broke down into tears followed by violent sobbing.

"what's wrong markie?"

Kathy felt his arms tighten around her as sobs wracked his body and he leaned his head on her shoulder, the blood tears dripping down his pale cheeks and onto her jacket.

"Kay" he sobbed louder as he seemed to be letting months even years of grief out.

"shhhh dont try to talk baby.....just let it all out....then we can talk" kathy wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer to her, her fingers stroking his hair as he cried even more.

The drawing he had been doing as she had approached him lay on the moss ridden gravestone and kathy looked at it over his shoulder.
It was all done in black....no colour...just a solid mass of black filled the white page, the edges of it frayed as if he had been sat pulling it apart with his fingers.

Reaching into her jacket pocket she got her mobile out and dialled her haven number.
"Tobias...its me...can you come and pick us up we are at ...."

Kathy paused unsure what the graveyard was called.
"st....sep.....septimusss" Mark sobbed

"st. septimus graveyard, I'll meet you by the gates"

"of course mistress, I'll be there in 5 minutes" tobias frowned as he put the phone down and went to the car, wondering what she was doing down there at this time of night.

"markie.....your coming back to my haven ok? this isnt the ideal place to be and I think you and I need to talk...im sure youve got lots to tell me" kathy whispered softly in his ear as she rocked him in her arms.

Mark nodded and said a muffled yes, his once confident voice now hollow and broken.


...................................................................

Mark had bathed and got dressed in fresh clothes borrowed from Tobias. Kathy looked at him sadly as he sat crossed legged in front of the fire in her room, his face was so pale and empty somehow....the life that had once sparkled in his eyes where now nothing more than a distant past.

"kay can I tak to you and will you promise me to listen till Im finished?"

he looked back at her, his face begging her to give him the answer that he needed.

Kathy crossed to him from where she sat on the sofa, her long dressing gown swishing against the deep piled carpet.

As she sat down next to him on the floor in front of the fire she took his hand in hers.
"do you need to ask me that markie? I'll listen to you as long as you want and I'll do anything I can to help you" she smiled at him waiting expectantly.

((woohooo ive got a day off tomorrow :):)