Date: Wed, 15 Mar 1995 16:02:34 EST Reply-To: "If 'Love is for poets,' then let me be poetic..." Sender: Highlander TV show stories From: "If 'Love is for poets,' then let me be poetic..." Subject: The Battle of Evermore, part nine ************************************************************************* ************************************************************************* ******************* H I G H L A N D E R ************************ ************************************************************************* ************ T H E B A T T L E O F E V E R M O R E ************* ************************************************************************* BY BRIAN PROCOPIO, BASED UPON THE FILM OF THE SAME NAME. COPYRIGHTED 1994, CHAOS PICTURES, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. _______________________________________________________________________ CHAPTER NINE _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ "What flames from the dragon of darkness? the sunlight burns his eyes..." _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ The heavy stone panel crashed open, sending a vibration through the cavernous room. Fury and a touch of mirth at hidden knowledge gleamed forth from Antonio's eyes as he strode into the room, his grace of movement creating a paradox with his hulking form. Cain rose slowly from his desk, clad only in a pair of loose-fitting silk pants, exposing his chiseled torso, his chest hardened from centuries of sword work. He beamed a malicious grin at his former student as he walked to meet him. "Antonio, long time no see," he began sarcasticly. "Please, have a seat..." "Spare me the sarcasm, dear mentor," DeViola growled as he slammed the offered chair aside, sending it skittering across the concrete floor of the abandoned shelter. "You and me, Cain! Right here, right now. We'll see who settles this one..." Cain bowed his head politely, accepting the challenge. He gestured to the sword rack adorning the far wall. "You've made the challenge, select your weapon, Antonio." His eyes narrowed as he followed his student's path to the weapon assortment, then widened in near shock at the selection. "A Tai Chi broadsword???" he asked incredulously. "But you don't know how to use *that*!" Antonio hefted the weight of the blade carefully, practicing with several sure strokes to test its balance. "No," he commented thoughtfully. "But *you* do..." With that he turned and faced his mentor with an evil grin... _______________________________________________________________________________ He stretched as he exited the car, looking down at the long and winding road which ran up the mountainside below them. Brian then turned and scanned the surrounding peaks of the Blue Ridge Mountains, shivering and pulling his trench a little bit tighter. "A cold one, Mac, isn't it?" questioned Laurana as she exited the late Eighties Plymouth behind him, the words forming ice crystals in the air even before she was done exhaling them. "That it is, Laura, that it is," replied MacKenzie as he turned towards the trunk, already open and being ransacked by David. "You sure the only way is by foot?" grunted Macleod as he swung his sword case over his shoulder. "Aye. Right...." his eyes scanned the horizon before his again. "*there* is where we're headed. It's an abandoned nuclear hideaway for spoiled rich Congressmen or such. Duncan told me that Dawson believed it was Cain's private retreat." David handed Brian the nylon case containing his katana, both of their faces unusually grim for a change. "Are you up to this, laddie?" Brian commented lightheartedly, although his question was anything but. David nodded. "How 'bout you? The only times I've ever really noticed your accent coming through this much is when somethings really bothering you.." "Or when he's around someone from the 'Old Country'," Laurana commented casually as she tassled MacKenzie's hair. "Thanks," she added as she accepted her weapon from Macleod. "This is a big one, that's all..." Brian remarked. "Be on guard, all of you," he continued pensively... _______________________________________________________________________________ ...drove his sword down onto Antonio's blade, attempting to use the leverage his hight gave him against his opponent without success. DeViola whipped his sword around, attemping a disarming manuever that Cain had created, but Cain withdrew into the only counter to said action. The pair circled warily, each eyeing the other's form and poise, looking for an opening, but finding a near mirror image in return of flawless swordsmanship. Antonio arced his sword down towards Cain's neck, at the last minute flipping the blade down and under the Elder immortal's rising guard, coming just shy of slashing Cain's chest open with the attack, but still leaving a nice scratch down the length of his abdomen. Cain grunted in admiration, thrusting forward with his double-edged sword at Antonio's torso, avoided deftly by Antonnio's quick circle parry. A quick sidestep saved Cain from the following riposte. "You've learned well, DeViola" Cain bit out as he reversed his grip on the handle, arcing inwards with several quick, sure, and concentrated feints, certain that at least one of them would get through his student's defense. "Just as well as you!" DeViola barked as he spun his sword about, catching all of the attacks on his blade and returning two more. "I know you, Cain, you are *part* of me. I know your attacks, your favorite moves, your preferred beheading strikes, it is all in *me*! Do you hear? In ME!!!" He slammed his broadsword down against Cain's, out-muscling the older immortal in the battle of strength. At that moment the pair froze as they sensed several immortals approach the room. Cain's eyes narrowed as he glared into Antonio's, channeling his inner reserves and ripping his sword free, knocking the younger warrior back several feet. "This ends another time, DeViola..." "Fine," Antonio snarled as he considered the situation. The two were equals in every way, this was an unwinable battle for either of them. With the Quickening of another, however.... Brian MacKenzie and David Macleod rolled into the room, taking positions on either side of the doorway, katanas in hand, as Laurana entered cautiously behind them, her elegant yet deadly rapier poised for the kill before her. "Well..." Cain sneered. "If it isn't Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys!" "You..." Antonio hissed as he spied Macleod's crouched form. "You're mine, whelp," he commented as he fanned his blade. MacKenzie, his survey of the battleground complete, turned to face Laurana. "He's not here, Laura, get out, watch our back guard..." he whispered. "Brian..." she commented as she laid her fingertips on his forearm, communicating more in the simple touch that they had time to communicate in words. "I know," he responded, throwing her a half-hearted grin. "See ya on the outside..." He turned back into the spacious room and strode forth to meet the waiting immortal, clearing his mind of all distractions as he pre- pared for the coming duel, the greatest of his immortal life. Antonio spun about and headed for the back stairwell leading towards the storeroom in the basement of the shelter complex, with David following behind him. Brian circled Cain cautiously, the eager anticipation that came with the battle readiness coursing through him. He cracked his neck from side to side, loosening up his tightened muscles. Cain's chisled form rippled as he relaxed his form, his black pony tail, the only hair on his head, swishing slightly with the motion. Finally, he squared off his position, and Brian faced off against him. They did not speak any words. There was little to say between the two. Four millenia and a gulf of emotions seperated them, and this was their first, and last, meeting. MacKenzie began the conversation, the tails of his clan tartan vest flapping as he drove his sword towards Cain's midsection, his goal more to feel out his opponent's ability rather than having the intent to land the blow. Cain's broadsword flicked out, redirecting Brian's blade and launching into a flurry of three spiraling strikes at Brian's torso, leg, then shoulder. Brian sidestepped one, blocked the second, but was caught on the third, sending a trickle of blood running in rivulets down his left arm. "That's always been your weak point, MacKenzie," Cain growled, his eyes containing a mischevious malice in them. as he spun his blade about, slinging a fine spray of blood along the ground. Brian's face betrayed a look of shock that he was quick to cover up, but not quick enough. "Ho--," he began before Cain interrupted him. "The Watchers, I've had them infiltrated for the better part of a half- millenia now. This glorious information age just makes it all the easier," he grinned as he swept his sword low, towards MacKenzie's feet, bringing it up- wards as Brian swung down and attempting to hit the same spot again. Brian stepped deftly out of the way, driving his blade in and nicking Cain's upper bicep in a light wound, more cosmetic than anything else, but deep enough to draw blood as well. "It's not exactly your forte either, Cain," he remarked. The Elder's only answers was a series of enraged strikes outward at MacKenzie, which the younger immortal was hard pressed to defend... _______________________________________________________________________________ ..., requiring all of his skill to prevent from being hit. David knew without doubt that something had changed in Antonio, and definitely not for the better. "Well, Macleod," Antonio chuckled sinisterly, "together again, are we?" He threw his weight into the next slice for Macleod's throat. "Not," David grunted as he spun his block about, catching the blow full force across his crossguard, feeling a dull ache in his upper arms, "by choice, Antonio." He pivoted, sending a light yet quick swing towards DeViola's scalp. The curly-haired Italian snickered as he threw his blade up, catching Macleod's and redirecting it into the open air above his forehead. "You told me to return when I gained some experience, Macleod. Here I am!" He caught David in a light strike above the kneecap, nearly severing a tendon in the process.... _______________________________________________________________________________ ...of defending the attacks. Blood flowed freely from his shoulder now, as well as from a handful of other scratches and such about his body. Brian dove and rolled past the combatant, whipping his blade back towards Cain's rear calf. Cain paused for a split-second as he assessed the attack. There was an opportunity for him to cleave Brian's sword arm clean off, but the blow to the shin would still land on him. He chose defense instead, blocking the strike and following the first rule of swordsmanship, don't get hit. Besides, he realized, he might need that leg awfully soon when Antonio returned. He swung down in an overhead slice which Brian awkwardly blocked from his kneeling position. In the millisecond before the next onslaught, MacKenzie reversed his grip to the style taught to him by Duncan, spinning the blade about in a figure eight pattern as he sprung to his feet and back a foot, weaving a solid wall of defense between him and the Elder. Having regained his position, Brian drove in on the attack, the clang and chime of steel on steel sounding relentlessly throughout the cavernous hall while the gigantic mural of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse looked down starkly. Every muscle screamed out for release, every beat of the battle caused his arms to yelp in agony, but each fraction of pain spurred him on even more, driving Cain back towards the far wall of the chamber. Cain planted his foot solidly against the rear wall, using all possible leverage in his next downward blow, as well as the natural advantage that several inches of height superiority granted him. MacKenzie slammed his blade upwards, transversing his torso, in a blocking attempt. An unearthly peal rose forth from the contact, and the majority of MacKenzie's blade arced free, catching Cain across his shoulder. Time froze for a half-second as Cain's blade, redirected by the half block, began its downward slide to the space on MacKenzie's left. Brian dropped the lifeless hilt in his right hand as his left rose to meet Cain's oncoming blade. The hand would heal, Brian knew, as it pressed against the razor-sharp edge, its keenness penetrating directly to Brian's wrist bone. Brian's arms continued forward, the leverage pressing against that of the blade, the bone grating against the metal, as his right hand came up and underneath those of Cain's, assisting his left hand's attempt to awkwardly wedge the weapon out of the older immortal's grip. Without pause, he spun at the hip, pulling the broadsword down and across Cain's neck with it, cleaving it cleanly from the four-and-a-half-millenia-old immortal. In all, the action took roughly one a half seconds.... _______________________________________________________________________________ ...of time for David to realize his situation was grim, at best. Try as he might, no attack would penetrate to hit Antonio, and several already had lanced through to hit him. He dove forth in one of MacKenzie's trademark tactics, a last ditch effort that was risky, but could finish a battle quickly if pulled off. As he rolled low past Antonio, he swung his blade out, twisting as he did so and sending it towards DeViola's rear right calf. Antonio saw his opportunity, hedging the risks of getting a cut leg versus the possibility to disable Macleod's sword arm and finding the offensive approach better. He brought his blade down to meet David's right arm, as per form, cutting deeply into the flesh and connecting with bone. Then, two things happened at once, or close enough to it that Antonio could not discern the difference. A sharp, biting, uncomfortable pain lanced through his lower leg, driving him to his knee at the same moment that he realized that Macleod.... was left handed. Suddenly Antonio's brain exploded in a moment of extreme clarity, all interference driven from it, the pain granting him the edge. Everything was driven out... including the access, the link, that he had built with Cain's knowledge and experience. Then, in that moment, the death moment, Antonio DeViola was left on one knee, holding an unfamiliar sword, as David Macleod brought his left arm down, sword in hand, bringing the edge of the blade through the neck of his defeated opponent. The loose bits of cardboard and plexiglass tubing scattered about the near-empty storeroom began to churn about in the simmering maelstrom of electrical energy, filling the area with a tremulous wave of potential energy... _______________________________________________________________________________ ....which exploded finally into a brilliant, blinding flash of blue- white intensity, arcing forth from Cain's limp form and scouring the walls of the chamber, seeking MacKenzie's body. Desk and chairs skittered through the air, the computer terminal atop shattering into a blast of sparks and heat. As the quickened force collided with the weapons rack along the wall it was transformed into a deadly barrage of dancing steel as swords were flung in all directions. Then, the wave of energy finally merged with Brian himself, flinging him like a lifeless doll across the chamber floor. He looked up, feeling heat on his face, realizing that it originated from the nostrils of the Horse rising before him in the painting, the colors all too vivid, the shifting smells, sounds, and agony all too real. The lead Horseman bore down upon him, his mighty blade cleaving MacKenzie in two as five millenia of experience entered his con- ciousness.... _______________________________________________________________________________ ....finally tossing him down next to the lifeless corpse on the concrete floor, spent, exhausted. David slumped onto his back, a state of glorious near-unconciousness opening a gate to a void in his mind. *I am here* David's mind struggled against the invading... presence... in his mind, but it was massive, huge, overwhelming in size and scope... *He is coming. You must kill him now* "Wha.. who?" David mumbled as his head rocked back and forth, eyes clenched shut tightly. *MacKenzie. He is coming, kill him now, it's your only chance* "No..." Dave's eyes squeezed tighter still. *He knows you are better than he is. Why else do you think he keeps you constantly in his shadow? You are his equal now, take his head while you still can!!!* Macleod's fist curled around the hilt of his sword, trying to find a source of strength, of resolve, of steadiness in this chaotic realm of the mind... _______________________________________________________________________________ ....and now it was broken. For nearly two hundred years it had been a part of him, the one sacred element that he could not part with, and now it lay broken in two upon the floor before him. He was too weary for the loss, the pain, now, he decided. Things must be taken care of. He rose to his feet, taking Cain's broadsword, the bright red tassle hanging limply from the handle, stained dark with blood and sweat. He shuffled slowly from the room, glancing only briefly at Cain's artwork above him, now singed from the storm and blackened in places, the lifeless eyes of the mural staring back down at him. As feeling worked it's way back into his limbs he increased his pace, ears attuned for the sounds of a battle below him. The absence of noise frightened him even more than if there was any. He had trained David well, but Antonio had control over Cain's mastery, and it was only by the sheerest of luck that he himself had defeated the Elder. He walked cautiously into the darkening storeroom, the late-day sun blazing in fully through the slits high in the wall across from the doorway. Two bodies lay sprawled on the floor in the center of the room, one headless and the other just barely breathing. "Dave?" MacKenzie called hesitantly, sword held at the ready as he walked slowly towards the prone forms. The live one stiffened slightly at the sound, the rythym of breathing slightly changed, shallower by a beat... As he drew nearer to find the familiar features of his pupil in the light Brian quickened his pace in relief, lowering his weapon. "Dave, it's me, Mac," he stated as he bent over the body to pull it to its feet. Without warning, David's eyes shot open, glaring directly at MacKenzie. "Jeez! You pulling a possum aAARRRRGGHHH!!!!" Brian screamed in agony as David's katana stabbed deep into his stomach, emerging blood-slicked from the other side. "This was all a game to you, wasn't it, Brian?" David interrorgated as he rose slowly to his feet, twisting the blade firmly a half-turn clockwise in Brian's gullet. "You wanted Cain's Quickening so you could defeat me, didn't you!!!" Macleod yelled forcefully, life springing through his body. He slid the blade from Brian's midsection, causing his mentor to slump to his knees in shock and pain. "THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!!!!!" he bellowed as he swung down with his katana, a crazed look encompassing the whole of his brown eyes, the sweat slinging out from his matted down hair, reflected vividly in the sunlight highlighting the room. More from instinct and gut reaction than from rational thought, MacKenzie brought his sword up, knocking the beheading stroke aside. He rose unsteadily to his feet, all possibility for calm, controlled arguement abandoned to the defense of a beserking immortal. He struggled through several blocks, ad- justing repeatedly to assume a more solid grip on the unfamiliar weapon. As David continued the streak of attacks, jabbing, cutting, and slicing the air about him, Brian retreated steadily backwards, finally pressed up firmly against the far wall as fatigue and strain hammered fully at his muscles. David leaned against his mentor, pressing the full weight of his body into the strike, cherishing the grinding squeal the two weapons locked to- gether created. "And when I'm done with you," he growled. "Laurana's head is next!" "NOOO!!!!" Brian bellowed in rage as he threw his heavier frame against David's shorter one, pushing him back a foot. He flipped the blade over, claiming his usual reverse-hand style and whipping the twin-edged death-dealer about, driving at David's retreating form with a fury unmatched, a red haze seemingly overcoming his mind as the battlelust swept him up. *KILL HIM!!!!!!!* the presence screamed out in Brian's mind as his sword ran towards David's neck, seeing an opening in his student's defenses. "NO!" Brian shouted, pulling the blow as much as possible, but sending another parallel streak of blood an inch below Antonio's slice that Macleod had recieved earlier. The pain lanced through David's conciousness, the clarity granted to him eliminating all else. The presence was... gone, and with it his conciousness as well..... _______________________________________________________________________________ EPILOGUE: ONE DAY LATER Brian walked slowly towards the edge of the campground, nursing his still-sore legs. He sat down wearily next to Laurana in front of the crackling fire, letting it's heat soak through his tired bones. Laurana gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze as she leaned aganist him, her soft light brown hair swishing gently across his shoulder. "He ok?" she asked quietly. Brian nodded silently in return. "He'll be ok. Just needs some time on his own, lots of things to sort through for him." Laurana sighed as she curled a finger through the hair at the nape of his neck. "That's obvious, Bri," she smirked. MacKenzie nodded again, poking her playfully in the ribs. "He's not the only one who has some things to work through." He gazed wistfully into her eyes. Laurana raised a eyebrow curiously in MacKenzie's direction. "Oh really? And just what on earth are you referring to, dear Brian?" "Hmmm, I dunno," he fiegned ignorance for a moment. "I have some things to take care of... I need to find a new sword for starters." "Mmmhmmm..." she nodded carefully. "And... um... there *is* something else too....," Brian hedged nervously, looking all the while, Laurana decided, like a childish schoolboy. "Laurana, what I'm trying to say....," he intertwined his fingers with hers, pausing momentarily. "Will you marry me?" Although she had, deep down inside, suspected, nay, hoped, that was the question MacKenzie would eventually put to her, Laurana still found herself speechless at the moment. She swallowed a solid lump in her throat before answering. "YES!" she cried out, her eyes beginning to tear as she threw her arms around him, her limbs trembling as they kissed. "yes?" MacKenzie stammered as he broke the contact of their lips for a moment, a questioning look in his eyes. He still found it hard to believe, he decided. It would probably take a few centuries to believe. "Yes, you big, stupid, GOOFY, Scot, YES!" Laurana giggled as the tears rolled down her face. She had never been married, not in all of her three or so centuries. Most of the men she knew or loved would never have conceded to marry a woman better at the sword than they, let alone one that even carried a sword. Once, almost, a teenage love before her first death, almost, but none since that day. Until now... "Oh god, so many details! Amanda will *have* to be the maid of honor. Who's the best man, Duncan? Connor?" "David," Brian smiled warmly, sharing a bit quietly in her enthusiasm. "And Joe must do a reading at the wedding and all, and Ritchie, maybe Fitz, oh dear sweet lovable Fitz..." "Laura," Brian whispered quietly. She stopped in mid-sentence and looked at him expectantly. "We have forever..." With that he bent forward and kissed her deeply before the roaring flames of the fire, which lasted long into the night..... _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ Well, I hope you all enjoyed this segment. No, the whole story continues in Red Rain, coming soon!!!! ;) Thanks to all who gave support, encouragement, mix tapes (grin), and the like, it wouldn't have been the same without you!!! Oh, and Candice, that one was for you. Love, Brian Macleod MacKenzie Procopio =========================================================================