Never Satisfied

Cage's body pulses. Every fiber of his being aches with power, an irresistible urge to take from the universe. And the hunger, it feels like he could eat every beast and man in existence, even the planets, and branches of the Praesi. He could swallow reality itself. He would still not be satisfied.

Perhaps its because he transformed consciously this time, or maybe it's because he's stronger now. Either way, that first time against the stone giant was not this intense. The difference is like that of a puddle in the street, and an ocean stretching halfway across a planet.

Cage gazes at Ludan, who stares back with wide eyes, two burning arms held up before him. The Epoch no longer looks terrified, but Cage can feel it, hiding beneath the layer of determination in Ludan's eyes.

Cage can feel everything. Kyro's relief, Ingen's sleeping calmness, and the Vas that swirls inside both of them. He can feel the presence of those out in the city, leaving their homes now that the Wolf is nowhere to be seen. Cage can even feel the army of Rajin soldiers lining up in the cold, miles and miles away under the Stem.

Ingen is alive, saved by Vas. Cage's mind moves too fast to let the joy of the knowledge set in. Cage walks forward, and Ludan's eyebrow twitches. The Epoch dashes forward, his figure a blur of black, red, and burning blue. Cage grins under the darkness, he's ready for this one, his body practically begs for it.

Ludan appears before Cage, and a flurry of flaming of punches thunder forward instantly. Cage blocks and dodges most of them, his black form merging with the shadows as he moves. He feels a few of the flashing punches slam into his sides and burn him, then crack him in his face, forcing his head back slightly.

Cage shouldn't be surprised, the man has lived for a thousand years. But even so, he feels powerful in this form, as if nothing can stop him. Ludan can do just that, and unlike that stone giant, the Epoch's attacks are quick and hard to read. And he's strong, very strong.

He can give Cage a challenge. Good.

One of those black tendrils zip past Ludan as he slams his fist into Cage's jaw. It wraps around his ankle, yanking him up and throwing him away from the tower, and out into the city. Cage glances back and through the hole where the gate used to be. He meets Kyro's eyes and nods, then he turns back and leaps, following Ludan.

Cage flies through the air, limbs outstretched to feel the rushing cold air, thick tendrils of black streaming behind him. He expects to find the Epoch down on the ground, but then he is reminded that his opponent jewelry for weapons. Ludan bolts through the air toward Cage, earrings glowing, blue fist reared back for a punch.

Cage commands his tendrils to move as quickly as possible, some zip down to the street, the rest go up to the cave ceiling. They puncture stone and rock just as Ludan's fist smashes into Cage's black stomach with enough force to throw him back. The tendrils stop that from happening.

Black hands wrap around the Epoch's flaming arm, and though there is no damage, Cage can feel his hands and stomach burning painfully. He ignores the sensation, then removes one hand and grabs Ludan's other arm. All in one motion, Cage pulls on his arms and sinks both feet into the Epoch's chest with all his strength.

Ludan flies over homes and shops as if shot from a massive cannon, flipping out of the shadows of the cave and into the falling snow. Cage pulls the tendrils back, eager to follow after his opponent. The tail-like tendrils merge together in two long, thin wings of darkness. Cage commands the wings to flap, and the next moment, he finds himself bolting out into th after Ludan.

The Epoch rises from a hole in the peaked roof of a long building with a tree carved into the face. The Foreign Registry building.

Ludan wipes the snow off his shoulders as he rises. His and Cage's eyes meet, and they fly toward eachother, ignoring the panicked yells of the scrambling civilians below. Cage's black left arm stretches into a double-edged sword, and he swipes it through the air as Ludan comes into range.

The Epoch rolls and dodges the dark blade, grunting as he swings and cracks Cage in the ribs, sending him flipping through the air for a few feet. Cage quickly rights himself, nearly falling until he remembers the wings, which he is clearly going to need to get used to. Kyro would fume if he saw Cage trying something new in the middle of a battle.

Cage suddenly feels something wrap around his neck, burning him. Ludan. One of his wings is grabbed, rendering it useless. The two of them begin a fast descent toward the city, one wing flapping furiously, which only causes them to spin uncontrollably as they fall. Cage rips at the arm around his neck, and pulls the wing from Ludan's grip and back into his body, along with the other.

Those black tendrils burst through Ludan's torso, adding a shower of dark blood to the falling snowflakes, the arm around Cage's neck only tightening its grip in response. Cage grabs the forearm and digs his fingers into it. He rips it off at the elbow, and another few gallons of blood spray out and stain the snow below.

Then, both Ludan and Cage crash into River Street, stone and red snow exploding with the impact.

A moment passes, and Cage rises to his feet, free from the vice grip of Ludan. He tries to groan, but only a distorted buzzing sound comes out. The hunger is ripping him apart from the inside now, urging him to eat. To devour. It clouds his thoughts, making it a task just to think of anything else.

Cage ignores it the best he can, this is not a time to be distracted. He snaps his glowing white eyes in every direction, but a cloud of dust and snow surrounds him. It settles after a moment, and Cage sees that he's standing in a crater so deep that spots of brown soil are visible under the shattered stones of the street.

Something moves behind him.

Cage spins, tendrils whipping around with the movement. Ludan rises, standing on the edge of the crater, looking down at Cage. His white shirt and black pants are now tattered pieces of fabric that barely cover the important parts. His long black hair is a mangled mess matted with wet snow and dirt. Blood leaks from his nostrils and one corner of his mouth.

One red-skinned leg bends the wrong way, white bone jutting out the back of the knee. The arm that Cage ripped off grows back at a creeping pace, and the other is still shrouded in brilliant blue flames. Finally, a massive hole in Ludan's mid-section reveals bits of his organs and ribs. Even his heart can be seen, still beating as it rebuilds itself.

It's obvious that it will be several minutes before every injury heals completely. Cage sees through the blue fire that those rings are gone. Ludan must have lost his arms once before in the fight with Kyro and Ingen, but he can't imagine that the process was this slow. It must be because there is so much to rebuild, and it's all going at the same time, Cage thinks.

"You are nothing but a product of evil," Ludan says, his disgust for Cage's existence clear in his voice and the look in his eyes, "Even if you and those fools are somehow able to survive, it will not matter. Every one of them will die, and the blood will be on your hands."

That buzzing sound escapes Cage's nonexistent mouth. It's difficult, but he then speaks, the words coming from a place far away, not of this world, "Do you..." his voice crackles like thunder... if it was a twisted and distorted boom that spoke directly into one's mind, that is, "...Miss your son?"

Ludan's crimson face pulses with an expression of pure fury, but only for a moment. The look of revoltion returns, "Of course I do," the Epoch whispers.

A shadow drapes over Cage. He looks up to see a giant set of open jaws falling on him, the translucent teeth smaller than he remembers. Those black tendrils lung upward like a striking snake, wrapping the Spider-Eyed Wolf in solid darkness as its jaws come within inches of Cage's head. The figure of the Wolf is outlined by black, and it begins to shrink in slow pulses, the rhythm like that of a heartbeat.

Soon, a sphere the size of a coin is all that's left, then nothing. Ludan stares up at where the Spider-Eyed Wolf was as the tendrils pull back, lip parted slightly. Then, the black figure of Cage slams into him, and he falls hard on his back.

Cage straddles the Epoch, sitting upright with his black hands by his side, glowing white eyes staring down at him, "...Stalling?" the otherworldly voice of Cage vibrates the Epoch's mind. There is no answer.

Ludan's burden of limbs is relieved by those black tendrils, leaving him with only his head. The hole in his torso has nearly closed, but opens back up as Cage sinks his hand into it, black fingers shifting to sharp blades that shred the Epoch's insides.

Ludan stares into those endless eyes, not an ounce of emotion left in his expression, "Do you think yourself some kind of hero?" he asks.

"...N-no..." Cage says.

"So you are not completely delusional. Perhaps I am wrong about you... I do hope so," Ludan says, eyes drifting up to the grey clouds blanketing the sky. He can't feel the snowflakes landing on his face, nor the blades ripping his insides apart, "Without me, this city will fall. Today, tomorrow, a year from now... the Rajin race will be wiped out. And those that survive will wish they could join the rest. A thousand long years of work... all ground to dust."

"I don't... care," Cage says, "You... should have... left us alone."

"I see that now. A bit too late, but I do," Ludan responds, meeting Cage's monstrous gaze again, "Do it. I've been waiting for this since... he left me."

A broken buzz follows his words, and Cage begins to pull, to rip at the fountain of energy inside Ludan. Seconds pass, then minutes. The tendrils on Cage's back grow with the Anima absorbed until they reach the level of Betor's statue on the apex of that mountain, writhing and slithering like the tentacles of an octopus.

Eventually, the seemingly endless stream of Anima magic slows, then stops completely. The Epoch releases a long, quiet sigh, and his constant healing grinds to a halt. Cage looks into Ludan's glazed-over eyes one last time, then the darkness takes him.

Cage stands, the swirling lines of darkness seeming to rage across his figure. It's not enough. He needs more.

"H-hey! Who are you!? Where did th-that man go!?"

Cage turns slowly. Perlo stands there, spear held up in trembling hands, his brows quivering uncontrollably. A few more guards stand behind him, white-robed and just as terrified as their captain. A little more than him, it seems. Steel clatters against the street, followed by fleeing footsteps.

Perlo falters, then moves to follow the others. He yelps as a black mass wraps around his ankle and yanks him back toward Cage. The Guard Captain hangs upside down with his eyes inches from those spots of white light, blood rushing to his head, tips of his black, grey streaked hair hanging to the ground. A few seconds of silence pass, then stains form on the trouser of his robe, front and back.

"What... did you do... to Yoru?" Cage's monstrous voice rings inside Perlo's head.

"Wh-what? I-I-," Perlo falls to the ground and pauses. He looks down at the leg that was just held, only do find a bleeding stump just below his knee. He screams and wriggles on the ground, tears and snot staining his face.

"What... Did you do?" Cage asks again.

"I-! forced myself on her! but s-she stopped me! It was years ago!" Perlo says in between wails and coughs, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! S-sorry! Sorry!-" Perlo is yanked up by his wrist and thrown against the wall of a home. Blades sink through both of his wrists and into the stone on the other side, pinning him to the wall.

Cage stands there, staring up at Perlo, ignoring every pleading wail and sobbing apology. Minutes pass, blood soaking into the snow beneath the hanging Guard Captain. The screams become quiet mutterings. Perlo's breathing slows, his eyelids hang low, and finally his head drops.

Perlo, the City Guard Captain of Yellen, disappears from the world.