Darkstalkers Pre-History
Shadow Chapter Negative 4
The Dark Child

Author's Note: Takes place immediately after Shadow Prologue

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Makai, in an ancient library...
Today...
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Taranthus pulled his eyes away from the images that filled his mind. "God... Was that real? Was that the Infernal Trinity?"

The shadow just snarled.

Taranthus quailed under the site of the shadow as he glared at him. The ninja form he had taken could kill the demon in ten different ways before he actually died.

^Read, demon. Read and you will live.^

Taranthus gulped. "Very well, then," and turned the page. But as he did, the books enchantment took effect, and the demon butler suddenly found himself drawn backwards in time, long before the realms war, as the history of a demon came to him through the eyes of those living the moments...

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Makai Wilderness...
On the 6th Birthday of Malken T'Arousi...
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In a shaded glen, circled off by trees, on the outskirts of the Shadowlands and the Wilderness, two werewolves, mother and cub, sat enjoying the shade. Malken often wondered why his mother brought him here so many times. He knew that this was where she and his father met, but there had to be another reason. Perhaps he would find out today.

Jana T'Arousi sighed, staring up at the stars in her human form. Malken's father had come back the week before and told her that this was the day the boy would start his ascent to domination. She looked over at her son, smiling warmly at him, admiring him. The boy's charcoal-black fur, ruffled slightly by the wind, set off his glowing red eyes with a splendid affect. Jana kissed her boy on the nose and got up.

"My son. It is time for you to leave me."

Malken blinked and turned to his mother. Of all of the things he had been expecting, this wasn't even close to being one of them.

"Mother?"

"Yes my son. I want you to go to the central Palace of the Infernal Trinity on the borders of the Chaoslands. They are accepting apprenatices, and I want you to become one."

Malken blinked. This contradicted everything his mother had told her before about the Trinity.

"Mother, I thought you hated them."

"I do," Jana said, getting to her feet.

"Then why in the world would you want me to go serve them?!" Malken yelled, incredulous.

Jana turned to him, shifting to her werewolf form. She turned to her young son and snarled, baring her teeth viciously. Malken cowered as his mother's voice thundered out through the forest.

"Never, EVER question my authority! Do you understand?!"

Malken whimpered, curling almost into a fetal position as his mother roared at him. "...yes mommy..."

Jana hruffed. "Good. Now listen very carefully. I truly do hate the Infernal Trinity, but there is a method to my madness in this instant. Listen closely, for this has to do with a promise I made to your father when you were concieved."

"My father?" Malken asked, getting interested now.

"Yes Malken. Your father. A creature from the Shadowlands."

Malken blinked. Jana had never told him anything about his father until recently. He had never been told anything of his father, save that he had not been were, and that his mother would rather have not been his unwilling mate. This news about his father was new.

Jana took notice of her son's sudden alertness and attention at her and continued. "When I was three months pregnant with you, he told me to raise you in the ways of evil, telling me that you would gain great personal power after you destroyed the Infernal Trinity. But first, you must become as evil as they, if not more so. For this, I have decided, you must go and learn from then."

Malken grunted, "I hate the Trinity. They've taken everything from us. And you want them to take me from you?"

Jana nodded. "I know how you feel, my son. But this is what must be done. Prepare yourself. We must go to Willa Wisp Web to meet your new masters."

Malken frowned, and then went to his room in the hovel to get his few personal items. After he had, he and Jana started out towards the TekLands, and the Willa Wisp Web, home of Tekla and the meeting place of the Infernal Trinity.

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Meanwhile...
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The birdlike woman cooed softly, and then took wing. Skindancer would want to here of this. It might be important for the resistance. She took on the shape of a falcon and flew off, heading for the hidden place where the seven Rulers waited.

She stopped over the edge of the forests, the one realm that no member of the Trinity had been able to penetrate, and whispered the enchantment that would allow her to get through safely, without the spells that protected the realm affecting her. She ignored the creatures that tempted her to delights that would sway her mind forever: under the effects of the spell, she didn't even notice them. She flew, until she reached the smile, but beautiful home of Skindancer, the Lord Of The Weres. She flew up to the door, which consisted entirely of stone roses, and whispered another enchantment. The doors opened inward with a rush, and she flew in, flitting about the stone and dirt passageways easily. She reached a massive, darkened chamber whose main feature was a long, ivory council table, and reverted to her werebird form. She kneeled, humbly, bowing her head.

"My lords."

All at once the lights came on, revealing the Seven Lords of Makai. The Shade Lord, in his armor, sat partially in the shadows, frowning, uninterested in what was going on. Lucifer Maximoff, the leader of the only noble clan of vampires in Makai, glared at her, his face partially changed to a machine from Tekla's infection. Allura Veltare, a lamia that represented the fallen Queen Moria Aensland and guarded her children, reared up, glaring at the werebird. Ozum, his body almost hidden by his immense green robes, did not react at the site of the birdwoman. An undead represenative of Mordred, The Plague Lord, his rotting, putrid stench permeating the room, sat far way from the others, grinning dully. Aballam, great and glowing, and looking like a demonic version of Zeus, sat at the head of the table, grinning widely. And Skindancer, in his human form, got up to meet her.

"What is your report, Talara?"

The birdwoman turned her face up to her master. "There may be one who can dethrone the Trinity."

Aballam chuckled. "Who in the names of the Old Ones could be powerful enough to? Even mine own great strength and power, t'was not enough!"

"A werewolf. One fathered by a creature from the Shadowlands."

NOW the Shade Lord was interested.

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Willa Wisp Web...
Tekla's Bedchambers...
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Much later, as the former rulers of the Seven Realms conversed, Tekla squirmed about in her bed, having tossed off her covers made of the flesh of her victims. In her dream, razor-sharp teeth ripped at her body, tearing open her innards and devouring them...

"YAAAAAH!" Tekla awoke with a scream, firing a blast that vaporized a section of ceiling from her eyes. The damage quickly repaired itself, and Tekla got out of bed, shuddering. She didn't get eaten, she ate others. The all-out WRONGNESS of the dream had frightened her. She frowned, shaking her head and went to the balcony to look at her kingdom, reflecting on how she had come to this little smorgasboard.

It was her own fault, really. Her people lived by the programming 'Eat or be Eaten.' She had been the most powerful, and had eaten her species to near extinction. Then, in one of the stupidest moves of her life, she had gathered up the survivors of her people and started out in search of new food. Coming across a planet called Hellstorm, she led her forces against it, intending on having the population of the planet in her belly.

Unfortunately, she had forgotten to check and see what KIND of peoples populated the planet. The fire-like entities slaughtered her soldiers and drove her away. Frustrated and hungry, she set herself into hybernation, ordering her ship to scour the galaxy for a new source of food. Sleeping for a century, she eventually came near Earth, only to have her ship be sensed by other entities, who drew her into their realm.

She had no idea why she was sent here by the strange, god-like demons that her bio-slaves called the 'Great Old Ones.' She truthfully would rather have lived in the 'human realm' that the captured rebels spoke of before she ate them. But she made the best of it, spreading herself all over her section of Makai via transmode virus, driving out the foolish former ruler easily with her techno-magic. She had thought to take over Makai totally, but she had found a friend and equal in the sorcerer Valdoll. Together, they had conquered all realms save the Forests. They set their sites
on the Demon Realm last, and got a massive shock.

From the castle of Ozum came a third comrade, a man covered totally by a massive cloak who gave his name only as Samhain, claiming to have beaten the Demon Lord, and asking for the Wastelands and Demon Realm as his Kingdom. They protested at first, attacking him, but he fought them both to a draw. She and Valdoll had decided they liked this young one, and, in their first address at her castle to their servants, announced Samhain as the Halloween King and ruler of the Demon Realm. Their reign had lasted twenty years, and all of them were looking forward to ruling for a milennia.

"My lady?"

A small, round servdrone rolled up to her. Tekla sighed, not even bothering looking at the creature. "What is it?"

"A werewolf and her cub have arrived. She says she's here about the apprenticeship offer that the Holy Trinity has issued."

Tekla nodded. "Very well. Send them up. And summon Valdoll and Samhain, they will want to meet this child as well."

The servdrone paused. "Umm... I don't think Samhain will."

Tekla whirled on him, her eyes glittering angrily, but the servdrone simply pointed to her bed. She blinked, confused, then turned, only to see a flaming Jack-O-Lantern sitting there, looking angry.

The jack-O-lantern spoke then, channeling Samhain's voice, "Do not go to meet this child. But if you must, eat him or infect him immediately."

Tekla laughed, waving the drone off to summon Valdoll. "Oh, come now. What harm could a child do?"

"I don't know, but whenever I look at him I get a horrid feeling in the pit of my stomach. Like the prophacy the old witch told might be true."

Tekla snorted. "Get real. The old witch was an ancient fallen angel who had gone senile. I don't believe in fate. She deserved to die in my stomach."

"Maybe so, but I tell you this: do NOT, under ANY circumstances, take this child as your apprentice. You will regret it."

"Samhain, you are a fool."

"If you insist on being dumb, fine. But never mention my name to him. Nor will I allow him in my portion of Makai. Is that clear?"

Tekla sighed. "Very well. I'll tell Valdoll."

The Jack-O-Lantern vanished in a burst of flame, and Tekla started down towards the main meeting hall of her castle, the floors parting and making staircases to make her going quicker. When she got to the main hall, she saw that Valdoll was already there, looking confused. She assumed that he got a message from Samhain as well. She shook her head and shrugged, turning to the two werewolves that bowed before her in their beastial states. The white-furred female she dismissed as being prey, but the boy, something about him made her nervous. He looked up at her, and his bright red eyes staring out of his charcoal black fur unnerved her, making her feel suddenly like a mouse that knows it has been seen by a hawk. She shook off this feeling and went down to greet them. After all, what did she have to fear from a child that had come to serve her?

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To be continued...
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