My dark lover, a bizarre magician and stone killer

"Well, I suppose it's time you met old Soul. It seems like you and I have known each other forever. I guess I've actually forgotten that you really know next to nothing about me...and vice versa. Be quiet for a second and let me gather myself a bit." Having said this Pissin seemed to fall into a state of extreme concentration.

Rita stared at the boy as he rubbed his forehead back and forth with his right hand. Then, he uttered some of the strangest words, with a tone of voice that was equally odd. It was almost as if another person was speaking altogether. Pissin presently became his usual self, he took off his glasses and rubbed his face. His eyes fixed on something behind Rita, "hey Soul, get over here and watch this hole. If you see any sign of those fucked up wilding scum wake me up."

Rita drew back, surely the boy had lost his mind. Who in the fuck was he talking to. Almost as a reflex Rita glanced over her shoulder. She knew nobody was there but for some reason she did it anyhow. To her amazement somebody was there! It was Pissin! She looked back quickly to find the boy still sitting by the passageway. Now there were two of them....she shut her eyes tight, it was she who was going insane, not Pissin.

"What's the matter," the Pissin sitting beside her asked. "That's Soul over there."

Rita opened her eyes wide and glared at the "new" Pissin. Everything was exactly the same, the hood, the green pants, the long sword, the glasses...but wait. The Pissin standing against the wall was somehow...different. Try as Rita might, she couldn't quite make out the facial features. They seemed somehow blurred or opaque. She blinked her eyes and tried to focus but still the face was somehow obstructed to her vision. Still, in every other detail it was Pissin.

"I'm feeling very sick," Rita said. "There is something totally weird going on here and I don't like it. Please tell me what's happening to me Pissin. Am I losing my mind. That's it, isn't it. This has all been far to much for me. Maybe, I'm dreaming...yes, it's all a dream! This has to be some incredibly vivid nightmare. By the Gods I pray that I awaken soon."

Pissin put his hand on Rita's arm. He stroked it gently. "Take another drink of wine Rita, I can explain everything. My father was murdered when I was very young and I was raised by the world's most powerful wizard. He shared a little of his knowledge with me. Soul is actually my soul. I have the ability to free him from my body. It can be a very useful thing you know. He can keep watch, warn me about trouble. He can even help me in a fight by making my enemies think there are two of me."

Rita gulped down a major shot of the strong wine. She looked Soul up and down once again. "Th...that's really your soul? How is that possible?"

"Ranorraka preferred to call it science but I'd imagine most would look on it as magic...basically," Pissin said.

"Why can't I see his face clearly?" Rita asked, still perplexed.

"Well, I think that's because Soul is so old he doesn't have a proper face anymore. I mean to say that lots of people have had their bodies inhabited by Soul so in a sense he doesn't belong to any one person anymore....in a way. He's only mine while I live you might say."

"I..I don't understand this at all," Rita replied.

"Ah, don't really worry about it Rita. Just be thankful that we can get Soul to come out and help us...the Gods know we need help right now!" Pissin put his arm around Rita and pulled her close to him. His body was very warm and suddenly she felt incredibly sleepy. "Just go ahead and rest sweetie, Soul will keep watch...if those assholes show up, he'll let us know."

Rita was simply to exhausted to protest. Feebly she took another sip of wine before giving the bottle back to Pissin. The last thing she remembered was Soul standing over the two of them....keeping close watch on the opening that led down into the bowels of the ancient tower. Perhaps it all was just a dream, and she'd simply have to go back to sleep before she could wake up. At least that was what she told herself before dozing off in Pissin's strong arms. Lastly, she reminded herself that somehow she had to get this guy to take a bath.

The exhausted girl slept for an incredibly long time. She woke to a surprise. To her shock it was already dark again and there was enough moonlight for her to see the eerie figure of Soul still silently standing guard over her and his body. She was glad that he was there to keep an eye on things but the little shudder he caused her was a reminder that this was definitely very weird and might take just a bit of getting used to. She brushed a strand of her light brown hair away from her green eyes and snuggled closer to Pissin. He had stopped snoring and was talking to himself in his sleep. Actually he was singing an old tavern tune that Rita knew very well. She couldn't help but giggle at the silliness of the words and their source. The giggle seemed to rouse the swordsman slightly and he slipped his arm around the clinging woman. "Uh oh," the woman muttered under her breath. "This could be trouble."

Sure enough, Pissin moved his hand to one of Rita's more than ample breasts and squeezed gently. She firmly pushed his hand away and whispered, "Please don't do that Pissin." She liked him but...

Unperturbed, the young man pulled her close and tried to kiss her. Abruptly, she shoved him away before sitting up and scooting her bottom several feet away from her companion. There she sat, shivering in the cold. Pissin also sat up and looked at her with a puzzled expression. "What's wrong? I know that I'm not wealthy or handsome, but at least I'm here with you right now. Besides, what are you holding back for? Those monsters out there will most likely see to it that this is our last night alive. I really don't see how we are gonna get out of here, although I'm hoping for the best and plan on taking a shitload of them with me. Now, come back over here and give old Pissin some lovin'. Besides, its cold as fuck in here, can't we at least snuggle some more for crying out loud....Rita?"

"No, you don't understand. I have a problem.....with men...you know what I mean. I'm just different ...you know?"

Pissin scratched his head, "actually I don't know." He was not a very subtle person so he spoke plainly as was his way. "What is the problem anyhow....are you a dyke...that's it isn't it....just my fucking luck....shit, old Pissin knows had to pick em' now don't he....oh fuck it!" With that he fumbled about looking for his wine. He turned it up and gulped before wiping his lips and grunting with satisfaction. "At least I always get lucky with this stuff," he spoke with a fresh smile on his face.

"I am NOT a dyke!" Rita replied very much annoyed. "You just don't get it, you drunk. I was married for four years for crying out loud."

"Ok, ok...I'm sorry," Pissin said. "I guess you just don't like me then..that's cool. That's something I can live with. You're hardly the first hot girl to turn me down cold.....actually it happens most of the time...anyhow, it ain't important. Fuck it all, let's just try to get a little more sleep before those things catch on to us being here."

Rita's tone softened considerably. "To tell you the truth Pissin, I do kind of like you. You're sorta hot too in your own very odd, bloodthirsty way I guess."

Pissin scratched his head again. "Well, uh....then what PRECISELY is wrong....maybe its just the atmosphere, I gotta admit a dank old stone tower isn't exactly the coolest place to make out in."

Rita looked down, she continued with a bit of hesitation, "well my husband, you see, was a real jerk....you are actually a lot nicer than him. The thing is...well....I mean...I stuck with him all that time for a reason.....a weird reason, but I guess you could say he had me figured out and knew what I wanted....you know?"

Pissin looked at the pretty girl with a very blank stare, he was lost. "OK Rita, I guess i'm just not that smart with girls...not sensitive enough or something. If you want to talk I will listen....its just that...well, why cant we talk with you over here with my arm around you? I guess that's what I'm trying to say."

Rita shook her head,"but I'm trying to explain....you see my husband used to do certain things....like before we made love. Know what I mean?"

"Hmmmm," Pissin replied, deep in thought. "These things, do you mean like bring you flowers, or sing to you or something? Things to get you in the mood...huh?"

Rita shook her head again, this time obviously becoming a little frustrated. "I guess I should just spell it out.......before we made love, my husband used to...well.....he used to spank me...spank me hard. There you have it, dullwood!"

Rita sat silently as Pissin absorbed what he'd just heard. He took another big drink of wine before saying anything. "Damn girl, thats cool as fuck....shit!" Then he put the wine bottle down before pulling off his leather belt. He doubled the belt and snapped the leather together, making a loud pop. Soul turned and looked at him oddly. "Uh, just look the other way dude, nothing important going on here. Nevermind him," Pissin said. "He's just another part of me...and that part I ain't much concerned with right now!" Rita crept back in his direction, on her hands and knees. Pissin licked his lips and wiped some a drop of moisture off his hairy chin.

Suddenly there was an incredibly loud scream coming from somewhere below. "Oh, fuck," Pissin said. "THEY'RE HERE."

The young couple leaped to their feet simultaneously. They joined Soul who was peering down the stone steps. "Oh fuck," Pissin said. Rita's eyes grew huge and she gasped involuntarily. There were at least fifty of them, all shrieking with a maddening rage, and moving in the direction of the tower.

"Do you have a weapon?" Pissin asked Rita.

"Yes," the girl answered with a numbed voice. She ran to the supply bag and fished around before flashing a large butcher knife. "It'll have to do," Pissin said. Then he turned to Soul. "Get down there and see if you can scare them old buddy...maybe they're more bark than bite."

Soul nodded and drew his sword. He raced down the steps brandishing his gleaming weapon. The hideous wilding's red eyes glowed even brighter than before and their screaming wails increased in volume. However they hesitated, some even withdrew a bit as Soul waved his long sword expertly in their hate filled faces.

"Those things are pretty stupid but if I was a betting man, I'd wager they're so pissed off and filled with blood lust that it won't be long before they find out he can't actually hurt them." Pissin spoke calmly as he observed the action below.

Sure enough, one particularly gruesome fiend hurled itself at Soul. It passed right through the apparition before stumbling with surprise at encountering nothing solid. The creature fell from the steps some considerable distance to the stone floor below. With a sickening crunch the monster's neck snapped like a rotten twig. Still, the other flesh starved fiends grinned hideously at the realization Soul was not a solid entity. They wasted no time trying to figure out exactly what he was. Rushing single file, they scampered right through the ghostly Soul and towards the two that promised real flesh for devouring. Pissin proved to be a difficult morsel to digest however. His blade flashed down like lightening, splitting the first wilding from the tip of his skull down to his collarbone. Foul blood sprayed onto the thing's brothers as it toppled also to the stone floor below.

The next two creatures met a similar fate. One caught the point of the sword through an eye while the other puked blood after receiving a deep gash to its stomach. Then the unthinkable happened. The steps were awash in blood and Pissin slipped, falling backwards. Suddenly the wildings were all over them. Rita crashed a heavy wine bottle against the forehead of one foul monster as she slashed with the butcher knife at the back of another attempting to crush Pissin's throat with its sharp claws. The one on the business end of the bottle shrieked horribly as it fell to its death below. Then Rita managed to bury the butcher knife in the back of the one on Pissin. It stood up suddenly with the knife still buried between it shoulders. The swordsman was down but not out. He kicked the wilding savagely in the groin, knocking it backwards onto its ghastly fellows. With panther like speed the swordsman snatched the knife out of the wilding's corpse and tossed it back to Rita.

With Rita's help Pissin quickly regained his feet and impaled yet another of the creatures. "This calls for desperate measures," the young swordsman gasped. Then he started singing.

"What the fuck?!" Rita yelled, completely befuddled. "How can you sing at at time like this?" "Actually, its an incantation," grunted Pissin as he was pressed backwards by the sheer mass of the demonic assailants. He continued to sing even as his long blade danced insanely, bringing foul blood with each stroke.

However it was obvious to Rita that they couldn't hold out much longer. There were just to many of them. Her eyes filled with tears at the thought of dying here in this satan spawned place. Desperately she jabbed at the sea of dripping fangs that pushed ever closer. Pissin continued to sing loudly as he fought. Then Rita heard something, something strange and loud. Even the shrieks of the wildings couldn't drown out this new sound. The fiends hesitated and looked about to find the source of the odd humming noise that was both frightening and beautiful. The dawn was breaking, fresh light filtered into the old tower but below much of that light was choked away by the sudden appearance of what first seemed to Rita to be a large black cloud. Pissin continued his singing in a language the girl couldn't comprehend. The cloud moved very fast...it paused directly above the confused flesh eaters. At this point, it seemed to Rita that the cloud was more like a massive group of angry bees although she heard no buzz, just the weird humming.

The cloud abruptly dropped onto the startled wildings who were massed on the stone steps. No sooner were they enveloped by the descending blackness when their frenzied screaming took on a much heightened aspect. They seemed to be in agonizing pain, many leaped off the stairs to crash with a pronounced thud below. Others, near the bottom, ran in every which direction before falling in their tracks like so manys deflated balloons. They were dying en mass....something was killing them.

"It's the spell of the thorns," Pissin said. "It's the second most powerful one I know.....but it takes the most out of me." With those words Rita noticed her young friend's face had taken on a deathly pallor. She barely had time to grab his arm as he collapsed backwards into the little room at the top of the tower.

"Pissin, what's wrong with you??" Rita held the boy in her arms as he struggled for each breath. She looked about, the cloud was gone and the wildings were all dead except for two or three that twitched in the death throes down there on the steps. Satisfied, that at least they were safe, she gave her entire attention to the fallen swordsman who appeared near death himself. That was a very bad mistake.