He was beginning to feel the hunger stir in him again.

He would need to go out soon.  He would need to find his fix.  The pain wasn't bad now, but it soon would be.  Soon a hunger would fill him that dwarfed anything he felt when he was simply a drug addict.

He hated going out.  Hanging there from the ceiling of the abandoned warehouse he felt safe.  The creature called Hollow didn't belong in the world anymore.  His monstrous form wouldn't allow him to walk freely among people.

Better to hide.  Better to hide.

Still, soon he would have no choice.  He would need to sate the hunger... crawling across rooftops until he could find a source, a victim, a fix.  Then he could come back to the safety of this place.

There were others out there, others like him.  He could sense them sometimes hiding in the shadows.  Sometimes he thought he caught glimpses of them, but they were elusive.  He didn't pursue them.  It was better to seek out the weaker prey... the normal people.  He had no desire to confront these other beings of power.  They left him alone and he left them alone.

Until now it seemed.

The sound of a warehouse door being forced shocked him to attention.  A dark figured entered and took position behind the door.  He could sense the power in this one, and he felt a tinge of fear rise in himself...

Tik tik tik..

The long, chitinous legs of the half-breed clicked along the wall of the warehouse as he moved toward the door. The darkness of the storage room was a welcome cloak around him, though the light streaming through the door was unwelcome distraction.

The silence and the darkness were his only welcome companions, and now the intruder betrayed the only things he had left to call his own. He hissed, baring his fangs, though the sound failed to carry through the empty space between them.

As Cadaver's eyes searched the room, he noticed the figure hiding in the shadows.  It was high above in a far corner, clinging to the ceiling.  At first glance it was difficult for him to discern the shape of the strange figure, but it was clearly too large and possessed too many limbs to be human.

Unfortunately, the figure had spotted him as well.

Hollow scrabbled along the wall, moving to a position behind some crates, still keeping Cadaver in sight.  Its movement was not openly aggressive, but it did seem to be moving closer... as if readying itself to react to a threat.

As it moved, Cadaver was better able to see its bizarre shape.  It appeared as if someone had taken a human torso and grafted it to the abdomen of some enormous spider.  He knew that this creature must be like him in some way.  But to be so twisted... was anything left of a man in that monstrous form?

Cadaver watched Hollow as he crawled along the upper wall of the warehouse, coming to a position just opposite.  He paused for a moment, and then slowly and casually slid hands down into the large, outer pockets of his coat, as if to show he had no intention of making any sudden moves.

"Look pal," Cadaver rasped, "trust me when I say, you dont want to eat me. And I don't want to send you packing, either. I just want a place to hole up for the day. This is a big place, so I'm going to move over here and just grab me a corner, OK?"

As he spoke, Cadaver slowly made his way over to the corner nearest the door, never taking his hollow eyes off his wary roommate-to-be.

He then slid down into a low crouch, using the corner of the room to prop himself up. His unblinking, lifeless eyes seem affixed to Hollow as he raised up his arms to rest on his knees.

"So tell me, pal," he uttered casually, "you been here long?"

Hollow made no move to approach closer, but instead simply watched Cadaver. Occasionally, one of his legs lifted off the wall, moving back down swiftly with another eerie 'tik'.

"This is not your home, human. You may not stay here. The only ones who live here are Hollow...and prey."

It seemed quite clear from the narrowing of the black eyes that such a statement was not a threat, but merely the simple fact of this creature's existence.

"Then it looks like we have a bit of an impasse, my forlorn friend." Cadaver quipped, as he casually motioned toward one of the boarded up windows, "The Sun's gonna be coming up soon and I don't tan too well. That means I've got nowhere else to go."

With that, he removed his widebrimmed hat and slowly begins to unravel the scarf from around his face and neck. As his appearance revealed itself, it was clear the term 'human' can no longer honestly apply to him as well.

Cadaver's face was gaunt and ghostly pale, the image of Death's visage seemingly imprinted over it. His dark, sunken eyes glowed faintly with a deep, red aura. Streaks of wiry, black hair hung down around his head and along the sides of his face. It was as if he'd been dead for some time and no one bothered to tell him.

"And like I said," he added after a brief pause, "eating me isn't really an option either. As you can see, I wouldn't be worth the effort."

As if trying to change the subject, Cadaver took a look around. His eerie, dead eyes scanned the derelict structure from his new vantage point.

"Hey," he asked, "so how did you get in here anyway? That door was padlocked from the outside."

This message was last edited by the player at 13:21, Mon 24 Feb

The hideous creature was silent, eyes widening only slightly as he studied the dessicated form of the corpse standing before him. The legs ceased to move as Cadavaer continued, and it was unclear if Hollow was even listening.

As the question was asked, however, movement returned to the half-breed, and legs ticked against the side of the warehouse wall once more, in perhaps a nervous twitch.

"This is Hollow's lair. I am not limited to walking through doors. In fact, most doors are not quite so..accomidating to this form."

It seemed obvious that even if he could open the door, his large form would be unable to get through most doorways.

"Must be tough," Cadaver replied, as he gestured in the direction of Hollow's twisted, monstrous body, "being like... that, I mean. And I though I had it bad."

As he considered it further, Cadaver began to feel a sense of sorrow and pity for this pathetic creature. How difficult must it be to live such an existence, he thought to himself. This creature's will and spirit must be very strong to have survived at all. And if I am Vengeance Reborn, does that make him Torment Embodied? Does it know anything about Other or the cult? Can it help me find those who have wronged me?

After this brief moment of contemplation, Cadaver again addressed the being calling itself Hollow, "So how long you been like this anyway? Me, I've been dead going on two years now."

Hollow hissed and bared his fangs, making a brief lunge toward the intruder. "I don't need your pity! You should be happy I don't just leave you a -real- corpse."

Rage flared behind the eyes of the creature, and it would seem quite clear that the wrong button was just pushed. There seems to be only a very tenuous grip on control that was keeping Hollow from charging forward to attack.

He hissed once more at the next question. "Time has little meaning for me. All that matters is the distance between hungers..."

What's left of Cadaver's desiccated lips arced upward slightly on one side of his ashen face. His bone-white teeth showed through the twisted smirk. Though death had done much to darken his spirit, it seems humor wss not completely lost to him, yet.

Still crouched down into the corner of the room, Cadaver waved Hollow off with a simple gesture.

"Hey. Back off, pal," he grumbled, though he didn't seem to flinch in the slightest from all the creature's hostile posturing. "There’s no need to get all huffy. I think somebody needs a nap… or maybe a meal."

"Look, you don’t want to be a good little host and play civil? Fine." He finally added, "Suit yourself. Go crawl back up into your dark little corner and sulk. I’m not here to solve your problems. I’m just here because it’s going to be light out soon and that means I've got nowhere else to go. I just thought we to could pass the time with some idle conversation. Something I figured you didn’t get much of around here. Am I right?"

Awkward moments passed as Hollow seemed to consider the offer of a 'meal', perhaps considering if Cadaver would satisfy his hunger. Then, the half-breed rocked backward onto all of its legs, the decision apparently made.

Deep within, the hunger wss pushed downward, controlled for the moment only by the force of will. Hollow moved higher onto the wall, until he was crouched in the corner, his features almost completely concealed by the darkness.

Hollow didn't answer the question, as the answer should have been quite apparent. The nature of the intruder, however, dideem to intrigue him.

"Why do you flee the sunlight, corpse?"

"You mean other than for the same reasons you won't go out during the day?" Cadaver quipped, obviously refering to their shared inability to blend into society.

Cadaver appeared satisfied as the tension deminished somewhat.

While the monstrous Hollow slinked back into the security of complete darkness, Cadaver continued to watch him. His sunken, red eyes piercing the viel of shadow with ease. As the initial shock of the encounter began to wear off, he was left staring with awe and fascination at the existence of such a remarkable creature.

Speaking up, Cadaver warned, "Tell me, have you sensed others like ourselves nearby? I'm getting this strange sensation someone's following me. Someone with 'gifts', like us. At first I thought it may have been you, but I no longer think that's the case."

The flicker of reddish light in Cadaver's eyes gave him some concern, but as the conversation continued, the spider-man was quickly distracted from his train of thought.

"Others? Like us? It gives Hollow pleasure to know that others might suffer like he does. It may even be that other suffer more."

Tik tik tik. His legs danced across the wall of the warehouse, and it seemed he was going into some sort of convultions. A crackling spasming breath crossed his fangs. And then it became apparent that the beast was laughing...

"It would be worth seeing such a monster."

A strange, serpentine laughter echoed through the expanse of the warehouse in response to Hollow's suggestion...

"Hsshshshshshshs"

"We're all monssstersss in our own way, but not all of usss sssuffer."

With that, the pair's attention was drawn to one of the warehouse's skylights.  A dark, lithe figure slipped through an impossibly small opening and slithered around the skylight, clinging to the ceiling and positioning itself so that it could see the building's current occupants.  It's body was incredibly quick and pliable, and it rippled as a snake's would as it moved.  It kept close to the skylight's opening, obviously preparing for a quick escape should it prove necessary.

It spoke somewhat smugly.

"Well, jussst look at the two of you.  I have to sssay, we've been aware of the thisss one for sssome time, but were willing to leave it alone asss long asss it kept out of the way here."

It nodded in the direction of Hollow as it said this, and then turned toward Cadaver.

"But you... you're new in town.  What kind of trouble are you here to caussse?"

Cadaver gained his feet as he looked up at the new arrival. Is this the one who's been following me? he wondered. Probably he answered himself.

"What's it to you?" he replied indignantly to the slithering stranger. "As long as you're not on my list, I've got no beef with you. Just stay out of my way and there won't be any trouble."

At the new arrival, Hollow pulled himself deeper into the darkness. There were too many people..too many things.. they swarmed over his home, now, seeking him out. He would have to move again, find some place even these...beasts..couldn't find him.

As the corpse confronted the serpent, Hollow made himself as small as he could, trying to conceal himself in the shadows of the corner, fighting the urge to flee.

The serpentine figure clinging to the roof paused at Cadaver's response, and eyed him warily.  Clearly it wasn't anxious to test Cadaver's bravado.

At that moment, however, another voice spoke.

"I'm afraid we can't do that."

The door that Cadaver had used opened once again and three figures entered the dark warehouse.

The first was tall and thin.  Its flesh appeared to ooze over its frame, and its head seemed to be formed around a large, softly-glowing egg.  Oddly, it wore a suit and sunglasses.

The second figure was small, and looked very much like a very pale little boy.

The being who enetered last was large... so large that it had difficulty getting through the door.  Its great mass seemed to be bound in bands of tough leather, like some bizarre mummy.

It was the child who spoke, and it was most disconcerting... the tone of an elderly statesman in the voice of a child.

"You see, we run things in this part of town.  We can't just have strangers stirring up problems at their whim.  It's bad for business."

"That being said, there's always room for negotiation.  So please tell us a little about yourself... and why you're here in our city."

"You folks may want to rethink being here." Cadaver said as he turned to address the strange, small child, "Because the impression I got from your slithering friend up there was that you already know who's lair this is. And in case you haven't noticed, he's home right now." With that, Cadaver nodded his decrepid head in the general direction of Hollow, clinging to the dark corner of the ceiling.

Then, taking a casual step towards the door, Cadaver continued, "He and I were doing just fine getting to know each other before you showed up... So, 'Little Billy', or whoever you are, why don't you take your play-pals and head home before mommy starts to get worried."

Hollow grew more and more agitated as his lair was invaded by more strange figures. His eyes grew unnautrally wide, and his feet stamped on the wall, causing strange echoes to fill the room.

"Must go..must flee..too many.."

He ran along the wall chaotically, dashing back and forth, looking for a way to escape.

The agressive response by Cadaver was enough to startle the two larger intruders, and they tensed themselves, preparing for for any more sudden moves.

Strangely, the boy seemed altogether unnerved.  In fact, he smiled.

"Yes, yes, you're quite fearsome, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.  As for the other one..."

His hand waved in the direction of Hollow.

"We have been aware of his presence for some time.  However, he's limited his activities to occasionally feeding on some hapless human or other and generally kept himself out of sight.  We've been content to leave him be.

"I suppose introductions are in order before we proceed.  My name is Solomon, and I can assure you that despite my appearance I am far older than you.  My companions are Pussbag and Bound.  I believe you've already met Hiss up there on the ceiling.

"As I said before, my organization runs things in this part of town.  Now if you think for a moment you may realize that someone doesn't attain such status without a rather considerable amount of ability, power and connections.

"To be rather blunt... don't fuck with us."

The strange, boyish figure paused for a moment, as if to let this sink in.

"Now, let's try this again, shall we?  Who are you and what are you doing here in this city?"

"no..no..no...NO!!"

Fight or flight overwhelmed Hollow's consciousness, and the first thing he saw was the shadowy figure that stood between him and freedom. He flinged himself from the wall onto the large pile of crates beneath the windows and snapped at the shadow with his long fangs.

Just before Hollow reached his target in a panicked rage, Cadaver addressed the boyish Solomon.

"Well... since your being all civil about it, you can call me Cadaver. And I don't give a shit about your little 'business', whatever it is. I'm just looking for..."

But before Cadaver could finish his sentence, the mood and tension of the room was inexorably altered by the frantic, hissing assault of the large spidery creature called Hollow.

Hollow lunged forward seeking escape, but the serpentine Hiss proved quicker and he quickly moved out of the his reach.  Hollow's claws raked the frame of the skylight.

However, before he could pry it open the small being called Solomon spun around.  Hollow could see a strange flash of color from the child-man's eyes as Solomon spoke a single word...

"Stop."

Hollow's limbs suddenly gave way and his body slumped on top of the stck of crates.  He was awake and aware, but his body refused to act.

Solomon turned around once again to face Cadaver.

"Now, can we try this again without the dramatics?"

"Fine, no dramatics then." Cadaver responded as he lunged forward, "You hurt one of my friends, I'll hurt one of yours. Drama's for talkers anyway."

As Cadaver stepped up, he reached out for the egg-headed Pussbag with one hand. But the strange, well dressed 'man' anticipated such an attack and avoided Cadaver's reach with easy.

Rather than respond to Cadaver's attack, Solomon's companions held their ground.  The small figure's eyes once again flashed, this time in Cadaver's direction.

"Oh please sit down."

And Cadaver did.

"Now, this has all been very entertaining, but my patience is wearing thin.  Shall we discuss what you're doing here, or shall I have my associates pound you into dust?"

Unable to move, and having been forced to sit on the corner of the old warehouse conveyor by the small man-child, Cadaver was forced to think things through for a moment.

Why are these strangers so interested in me? What are they afraid of? If their power is indeed so great, why don't they just kill me? Then I would pose no further trouble to them or this 'business' they are trying to protect so adamantly. Maybe they serve 'Other'? Or maybe Brother Ivory? Are they here to stop me? Are they the Ninth Mystery? If so, I have failed before I ever got started.

Fearing all could be lost, that he may not live to see his vengeance through, Cadaver sank into a bitter resolve.

"Well, little one," Cadaver said softly, "Since you obviously have the upper hand and hold power over our very minds, why don't you come over here and dig the answers out yourself? Take what you want, just make sure to leave your name in there. I don't want to forget you."

Hollow laid motionless on the pile of crates, staring upward into the night sky through the glass in the ceiling. Freedom so near, yet unattainable..denied by the power which robbed him of the power of his own limbs.

Within his mind, the rage and frustration raged on unabated. His breath came in ragged pants and his eyes dialated from the strain. Whatever force held his hunger and rage in check, was rapidly being overwhelmed by the frustration that blazed within his tortured psyche...

Solomon raised his eyebrows.  He couldn't decide whether he was impressed or annoyed by the stranger's bravado.  He let out an exasperated sigh.

"Everyone always wants to do things the hard way.  Now, you will tell me why you're here."

His eyes flashed once again, and this time Cadaver found himself giving an answer.

"I'm seeking revenge against Brother Ivory and the Ninth Mystery."

For the first time, a look of surprise crossed the child-man's face.  The shock changed to a smile, and the smile to a laugh.

"Well, why didn't you just say so in the first place?  We could have avoided all of this unpleasantness."

With that, his eyes flashed again and Cadaver felt in control of his body once more.

Another mind game? Cadaver wonders to himself as he slowly regains his feet, Who the Hell are these people?

"So you aren't the Ninth Mystery then, I take it?" Cadaver asked with a hint of reservation in his spectral, raspy voice.

Then, waving his thumb towards the slithering, shadowy figure above, "Your friend up there's been following me for some time now. I figured Brother Ivory must have known I was coming for him and sent you to stop me."

Finally, as he straightened his stance and regained some of his confidence, he added, "But now you know my business, so what's yours?".

Solomon seemed satisfied that the confrontation was over for the moment.  As Cadaver pointed toward Hiss, Solomon turned his head in the serpentine being's direction.

"Yes, Hiss noticed you quite by chance as you arrived and had the good sense to contact me and keep an eye on you.  It was quite a strange coincidence that you chose to lay low in this particular building, given its current occupant.  It almost makes you believe in fate.

"As I mentioned before, my organization runs things in this part of town.  Our kind doesn't have much interest in human bureaucracy or laws.  They have their society, we have ours.  We help things run smoothly around here, and make sure no one stirs up much trouble."

It occurred to Cadaver that Solomon sounded like some kind of twisted Godfather figure.

"And no, we have no connection to Brother Ivory or his little band of zealots.  To be perfectly honest, I'm quite curious to hear what that smug bastard has done to deserve your enmity."

"He had me killed." Cadaver responded, simply.

Hollow watched, battling the urges deep inside of him. Biting his tongue so hard he could feel the blood trickling out of the corner of his mouth. He could do nothing else. THese beings could destroy him, apparently at their whim.

He wanted to live.

No matter how hideous he had become, or how great the hunger was inside of him, he still wished to live.

And so he battled to stay silent and listen.

The casual interest showed through in the eyes of those facing him, so Cadaver continued.

"A few years ago, the bastard offered me up to some crap called 'Other', whatever the hell that means. Now I'm here to offer him the same dirt bath he gave me."

"You seem to know enough about him to not like him, right?" Cadaver asked, "So tell me where he. The sooner I find him, the sooner I'm out of your hair."

The boy-man grinned slightly as he listened to Cadvaer's rant.  He raised his eyebrow at Cadaver's claim that he'd been killed at Ivory's hand, but he seemed to grow more serious at the mention of the word "Other".

"Well, you're quite lively for a corpse, although your rather... deteriorating... condition lends support to your claim.  It's not unheard of for a Gift to be triggered that way, but it is extremely rare.  I'm only familiar with one other case.

"I wouldn't give too much credence to anything you may have heard Ivory claim about the purpose of the act.  He doesn't believe most of what he preaches.  However, it's quite well known that he can be a vicious and sadistic bastard."

He paused for a moment, and grinned once again.

"You're correct that there's no love lost between us, and I can't deny that I wouldn't take a fair amount of pleasure in seeing him suffer a bit.  He operates outside of my territory, so I'm not going to stand in your way.

"In fact, I'm going to make a deal with you.

"If you're going to take on Ivory, you're going to need help.  Although his little religious order is made up of normal humans, he does have some Gifted working for him.  However, we're aware of the underground passage that his Gifted lackeys use to enter and exit the facility without notice.

"I'll give you the info.  In exchange, you'll take the spider up there.  You'll need the extra hands, and he's likely to find some good meals among Ivory's little zealots.  It also gets him out of my hair."

He paused once again, waiting for an answer.

"Facility, huh?" Cadaver asked rhetorically, "Sounds like he's dug himself in some. And if he's gotten word of all the followers of his that I've killed tracking him here, he's going to be ready for me."

After a brief pause contemplating the options, Cadaver made his decision. "Fine, I'll take the deal. Once night returns, I'll be heading out. I can't force 'hissy' over there to do what I want," Cadaver said as he motioned towards the beast called Hollow, "Not like you, anyway. But if he'll come, I'll take him. Feeding some of Ivory's lunatics to him suits me just fine. Hell, they can all pay for what he's done."

Realizing he may finally have a chance to deal out the vengeance burning in his unbeating heart, Cadaver got down to the point. "Tell me what you know. Where is he? How do I get there? And how many will I have to go through to get to him?"

Hollow listened as the taste of his own blood filled his mouth. These people had enemies. But they seemed to be the enemies of the corpse as well. There was something to be gained here. Some way to use the enmity of each against the other...a sane, rational mind peered through the maddening haze, struggling to see the pieces moving upon the board...

Only to have the thoughts overwhelmed once more by rage and hunger. Yes, there would be more to feed upon. And when he was strong enough, he would track down these creatures and feed upon them himself...

Solomon smiled with satisfaction.

"See?  That wasn't so hard, now was it?  As I said, there's always room for negotiation.

"As for information, I can only provide you with a way in.  My people will give you access to the underground tunnels and directions to Ivory's lair.  The entrance is probably too strong for you to force.  My recommendation would be to lay in wait near the entrance and ambush Ivory's minions as the enter or exit.

"I really can't tell you much more about the facility or its occupants.  Ivory isn't my concern or my problem, and I haven't invested much in monitoring his activities.  I can tell you what I've heard, and that is that Ivory has some big ceremony planned for his little followers tomorrow night.

"I would expect that his attention will be occupied enough that he won't be expecting anyone like you to show up at his doorstep.  Besides, Ivory is well known for for his overconfidence.  He believes that his public profile will keep others from taking action against him.

"Someone like you, though, who has nothing to lose... shouldn't find that to be a problem."

The boy-man laughed heartedly, turned and walked out the door.  He was followed by the beings called Pussbag and Bound, leaving only the serpentine Hiss with them.

As the laughter faded into the distance, Hollow felt life return to his limbs.

"Well then, snake," Cadaver quipped, with equal parts insolence and humor in his voice, "looks like it's down to just the three of us again. And ya know, the arachnid over there's still looking a bit famished, don't you think?"

Then, turning his attention once again upward to face their lingering guest, "So what's it gonna be? All I want is to hunker down over there in that corner and while away the daylight. You gonna have a problem with that?"

Not expecting any serious opposition, Cadaver returned to his little corner of the room and crouched back into the postion he had before these strangers made their entrance. Soon the sun would rise and there would be nowhere for him to go.

The monster felt strength flow through his veins once more. At such freedom, his eyes locked upon the serpentine creature that lingered near him. He grit his teeth, hissing through the rage.

"Leave now..or you will be food..."

The creature called Hiss responded to Hollow's threat.

"Hsshsshss you would find that I am no easssy catch, ssspider, and that I have a rather nassty bite of my own.

"Ssstill, if you're going to ssstay here through the day, then there isss no point in my continued presssenssse.  I will return at nightfall and ssshow you the way to Ivory'sss lair."

And with that, Hiss slithered quickly across the ceiling and out through the cracked opening of the skylight, leaving the two monsters in silence.

Cadaver watched with indifference as the shadowy serpent took his leave.

When the creature called Hollow turned to peer across the room at him, Cadaver gave a slight shrug and proffered, "Looks like breakfast just got cancelled, big guy. Tough luck." With that, a slight smile appeared across Cadavers ghastly face. His pale, deathly visage causing the expression of sardonic humor to border on malicious sarcasm.

With only a faint hint of sincerity, he asked, "So now what are ya gonna do, pal? Leftovers?" As he said this, he nodded his head once in the general direction of one of the other dark corners of the warehouse. There, a large mass of sickly, silk-like webbing nearly completely covered what seemed to be a few bodies. Human bodies, though frail and gaunt as if they've been drained of all their vital fluids.

The spider-thing hissed in frustration at the escape of the shadowy creature, then turned to glare at Cadaver as he spoke.

"This is all your fault, corpse. You brought these -things- into my home, and now they expect me to aid you in your quest for vengeance..."

He skittered down the wall of crates until he was on the ground. He moved closer to Cadaver, but stopped approximately 20 feet away.

"I care nothing for your vengeance. Nor for the petty squabbles that drive this city. But someone -will- pay for invading my lair."

He took half a step forward.

"Will it be you? Or those others? Choose now. I will feast upon all of them, and if you do not choose to side with Hollow in that goal, then perhaps you will be the first to fall to my kiss..."

With that, he bared his fangs, showing the thick, black poison that glistened on their surface.

"Nice smile." quipped the dead-man, "Funny. Is it just me or are you getting a sense of deja vu as well? 'Cause here we are all over again. You threatening me... me pretending to be scared... I thought we played this out already?"

After a brief pause to allow things to settle a bit, Cadaver continued. "Hell, you heard what I told that freaky, little man-child. I can't make you do anything. If you want to come along, you're welcome. I'm sure there's plenty to eat where I'm going... a goddamn smorgasbord, no doubt. Either way, come nightfall, I'm outta here. It's time Death paid a visit to the 'good' Brother. But I've got no desire to drag you around anywhere. I doubt I would even if I could."

"As for intruding, what can I say? This place seemed as good as any for my purposes. How was I to know this was your place? Maybe you should hang a sign outside..." Cadaver suggested as he mimed a small rectangular shape in the air, "Keep out! Angst-ridden monster brooding inside."

Hollow clearly had little sense of humor at the moment.

"And what of these creatures? The ones that have invaded my home and bound my body. What do you plan to do with them? Will you seek to destroy them as I?"

He waited anxiously, as if perhaps the answer to this question would decide Cadaver's fate.

Cadaver weighed his options for a moment. The man-spider's irrational behavior meant he needed to move cautiously. Things could get out of hand in a snap. Brother Ivory was fianlly within his deadly grasp and he wasn't about to let some twisted, delusional creature muck up his plans.

This guy is unstable at best. Whoever or whatever he was before, his transformation into this... thing must have been too much for him. He's lost his grip on reality. Finally, he made a decision, Somebody needs to snap him back.

"Where were you a few minutes ago, friend?" he asked of his reluctant host. "How exactly are you planning on enacting this vengeance of yours? I doubt you'd get any further next time than you did today. Which wasn't very far at all."

"Believe me when I say I know the lure of vengeance. Hell, I am vengeance. Vengeance reborn. Vengeance incarnate. Vengeance from beyond the grave. Blah, blah, blah. If I ate, slept and breathed, it'd be vengeance. But that can only gets you so far. To succeed takes more than just drive. You have to have the right tools."

"And obviously," Cadaver added as he tapped a finger against his temple, in a geasture of 'intelligence', or maybe 'sanity', "in this case, you are woefully lacking."

"Look, that Solomon kid is dangerous. Very. With a whim he rendered us both helpless. He didn't even break a sweat. And you want to run off and get back into it with him? I just don't see that happening. Sorry, pal."

Hollow hissed and skittered back and forth in poorly contained rage.

"Coward! Your death also took away your spine! And now you serve this child-master, out of fear of what he might do? Someone should put you back in your grave where you belong!"

He snapped with his teeth, inches away from Cadaver's face.

"I will not serve!"

In response to the beast's aggression and proximity, Cadaver issued a simple warning. With a soft whisper in his rasping voice, he said "Aren't you a little close?... I'll tell you this only once, friend, back off for your own good. Trust me when I say, you don’t want this."

As he spoke, Cadaver slowly reached up with his left hand, as if to grab the creature by the throat. In that instant, Hollow could see down into the true depths of darkness welling in the dead-man's eyes. But before Cadaver made contact, he drew back has arm, perhaps unwilling to take that final step. Instead, he simply smiled with an eerie half-smirk that seemed to bolster his aura of confidence.

"As for cowardice, I’d say you have that market cornered. How long have you been holed up in this dive, anyway? Hiding away from the world? Wanting to be left alone? Kinda sad, really. You need to get out more."

Hollow hissed in fury and leapt forward.

"ENOUGH!"

Hollow snapped with his fangs at the corpse before him, his eyes glistening with uncontrollable rage.

The large monstrosity called Hollow lunged for the crouched Cadaver, nearly pinning him in the corner just by the sheer girth of the man-spider's bulky form. But as Hollow was about to sink his dripping fangs into the walking corpse, Cadaver dropped further to the ground beneath the raging creature. As Hollow lashed out into the stale air, where the dead-man's head was just a split second before, Cadaver rolled out from between those hideous, spidery legs.

Moving backward quickly, arms out in front of him in defense, Cadaver found his back against the old, delapidated conveyor belt assembly.

"Ease up now, friend," Cadaver said threateningly, "or this will get really ugly. No more warnings," he demanded. The confidence in his voice seemingly capable of commanding the Gates of Hell themselves to open.

As Cadaver darted out of the way, Hollow spun around. He leaned back for an instant, then lunged forwrad, spitting out a glob of heavy webbing, trying to ensare the quick moving form.

The sticky webbing found its mark, striking Cadaver with a sickly thud. Dripping with a milky adhesive, the glob of webbing wrapped around its target. As it did, it found ground, anchoring the living corpse to the old machinery at his back.

"This better not ruin my coat, beast." Cadaver jest. "So now what? You gonna eat me?... Well, dig in. What are you waiting for?"

As if in preparation to making peace with his inner demons, Cadaver found a sort of spiritual focus. Concentration took hold of his demeanor. He seemed to draw strength and resolve from somewhere deep within his rotted form.

Dispite this, he did not try to break free of the relatively weak bonds which struggled to hold him.

Overcome by rage and hunger and seeing his prey bound and prepared for the feast, Hollow charged forward, forgoing any caution.

Hollow sank his fangs deep into the skin of the corpse, only to feel the cold touch of death overwhelm him. He instantly broke off the bite, but the damage had already been done, and the spider staggered back as the necrotic energies flowed. His eyes sank back into his sockets and his strength faded from his limbs. The great beast crashed to the ground in a heap.

A 'normal' man would have to be very concerned about two, large puncture holes in his chest. Hollow's vicious fangs had pierced deep into Cadaver's lung. If the dead-man still breathed, it would have been a crippling injury. Death would have been swift. But death no longer held sway over the likes of him.

Even as he looked down, he could see his unnatural body expelling the lethal poisons injected into him by the raging Hollow. Before the beast could succumb to but a touch, of course. The poison too would have been a concern if only it had a means of affecting him. Without blood to pump the toxin through his body, there was little, if any, effect. In the brief time it took to acknowlegde their existence, the wounds closed up completely and were gone. All that remained were two tears in his coat and shirt. This seemed to disturb him more than the injury itself.

With almost no effort, Cadaver ripped free of the bindings which had held him. He Brushed off the remnants of webbing still clinging to him, then stepped up to the incapacitated Hollow.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk... Shame." he mumbled, shaking his head slightly in dismay, "You should have listened, friend, when I said you don't want to eat me. You're lucky I've taken a liking to you or it could have been much worse. But I do not envy the headache you'll have when you come to."

Not far from the sleeping beast, Cadaver once again found his favorite corner of the room. And once again, he crouched in shadow, awaiting the day to pass. All the while, he found himself focusing on the shallow breathing coming from Hollow. It soothed him - the sounds of breath. To watch someone clinging to life's gift gave him a meloncholy pleasure. He could no longer experience such simple things. Things most people take for granted.

In this time, he found himself remembering. Thoughts of his former life crept back to him through the haze of death's door...

Living... Was his life before really so boring? Was blandness really all that bad when compared to this? What would he give to make this all but a nightmare. To wake up alive again once again. Worthless wishes.

Angela... That name brought both joy and loathing. Her vision stirred in him thoughts of love and terror. Should he ever find her, what would he do? Say? Did he even want to find her again?

Brother Ivory... Yes. Soon.

"Hey, big guy. Welcome back." Cadaver said, in his unmistakable voice, watching as life returned to the huge spider-thing slumped across the cold, warehouse floor. The creature had been unconscious for quite a few hours. By the time strength had finally returned to it, the day had past almost completely. Soon, it would be dark once again. Soon, the snake-like Hiss would no doubt return to point Cadaver in the direction of his own prey.

"I figured you'd be hungry after your nap, so I rummaged through your snack drawer. Hope you don't mind."

That's when Hollow noticed one of his more recent victims lying on the ground next to him, still wrapped in much of the webbing he used to secure it to the wall. Its gaunt, dessicated body had very little left to offer the huge monster. Cadaver figured it was the thought that counted.

Hollow slowly roused from his paralysis, awakened more by the burning hunger inside of him than his recuperative powers. His unfocused eyes turned in the direction of the voice, but he soon sensed the food laying nearvy. He managed to find the strength to drag his massive body over to the victim, and sank his fangs deep into the body.

The air was filled with an internmitted suckling sound, and Hollow closed his eyes in the rapture of the moment. The world fel away around him, and all that existed was the rush of the feed.

Eventually, when the massive beast had sated himself somewhat, Cadaver felt comfortable trying to reason with him once again.

"There, there. All better I hope? Now maybe you won't be such a sour puss, huh? Maybe you'll listen next time I tell you not to try and eat me?"

"It's a good thing you decided to finally come around too," he added once he's gotten the arachnid's attention, "because it's gonna be dark soon. And that means you friendly neighborhood slithering jackass will be back any minute, I imagine. He'll no doubt want an answer from you."

"Me? Tonight I'll be going after my own prey of choice. One way or another. You don't want to come? Suit yourself. I can respect that. When Solomon and his cronies come back, you can deal with them your way, I'm doing it mine. And right now, my way involves letting them give me what I want... Brother Ivory's ass.

"But if you're still hungry, there's no better place I can think of to sink those fangs into than some of the bastards worshiping a no good mother fucker like him. You're welcome to 'em for all I care."

Hollow extracted himself from the now lifeless corpse as Cadaver spoke. His eyes turned upward to look at the figure.

"Shut up. It's clear you're of no use to me. I care little for this 'Ivory', but there may be more there that could be of use. At the very least a new home. So you can have your vengeance...but everything else is mine."

"Suit yourself," Cadaver replied with a shrug, "Like I keep saying, it's your call. I'm not going to make you do anything. That Solomon kid's the one who said you gotta go, not me. You don't want to go as pals? Fine by me. Just stay outta my way and we won't have any more problems like the one you're just recovering from, got it?"

After several hours in which the two occupants of the warehouse drifted between indifference and antagonism toward each other, they sensed a presence approach.  Sure enough, the slithering figure entered through the skylight above and coiled himself on the ceiling.  Seeing that the two were still preent, he spoke.

"Time to go, boysssss.  I will lead you into the underground, and ssshow you the path to Ivory'sss lair."

Hiss flowed down the wall to the warehouse door and opened it to the night.

"I've already sssscouted the area and there are no prying eyesss.  Follow me."

He led them outside and to a nearby storm drain.  Solomon's crew had evidently already made preparations as the security gate was wide open.

The three descended into the city's underground.  The filth and the smell were decidedly unpleasant, but it had little impact on these individuals.  Vermin scattered as they approached.  Occasionally, they encountered human remains, most likely those of the homeless who sought shelter in the sewers.

Hiss seemed familiar with the urban labyrinth, and led them with confidence toward their destination.  After more than an hour, they came to an intersection.  Hiss pointed down the passage to their left.  Through the gloom, they could see that the tunnel ended and a large, metal door was set in the wall.

"Thisss isss asss far asss I go.  That door leadsss into the building Ivory usssesss asss the headquartersss for hisss religion.  We do not know the interior layout, but we know that thisss door isss usssed by hisss Gifted ssservantsss to enter and exit unssseen.  You ssshould take posssition near the door and ambusssh them in order to get inssside.

"Asss Sssolomon sssaid, tonight Ivory isss holding a big ssseremony for hisss human followersss.  Thisss will be a good opportunity for you to get inssside and find him while he isss dissstracted."

He started down the tunnel from which they came, and then stopped and turned toward them once more.

"I'd wisssh you luck, but I don't think it'd do much good."

With that, he gave a slightly wicked smile and disappeared down the tunnel into the dark.

"Screw him. Nobody asked for his opinion anyway," the dead-man rasped to his reluctant partner. "I think maybe I'll help you chew on that sunofabitch after all... when this is over."

Looking over the immediate area, then to the monstrous spider-thing near him, Cadaver began to form a plan.

"I dunno what you wanna do, maybe you can skitter up the wall and hide out on the ceiling? As for me, there isn't much more I can do to look like a vagrant than I already do. So I'm going to take a seat just over here," as he moved over to slouch down against the wall of the tunnel.

As he took his place against the tunnel wall, Cadaver became the part he'd be playing with expert care. Soon, it was as if he'd been wallowing in filth and dementia for longer than anyone would hope for a man down on his luck. Blending into the environment, he was practically lost to the eye, no more or less than the countless other homeless people that plague the festering city at night.

He seemed to leave the spidery man-thing to his own devices. He no longer seemed to even acknowledge the existence of the other creature anymore. To do so would distract from his deception.

As they laid in wait, the muffled sound of footsteps and splashing could be heard approaching from the direction they themselves had come.  The footsteps stopped, and voices could be heard.  From their positions, Cadaver and Hollow couldn't make out much of what was said.  However, they managed to pick up one statement.

"Go, go.  We've only a short time to work in, remember?"

As the approaching strangers came into view, Cadaver spoke up. Yet, he was careful not to address anyone in particular. In fact he rambled, from beneath his wide-brimmed hat, in such a way as to mimic a man who was obviously spent far too many years nursing cheap liquor.

"Great! Just what we need around here," he mumbled loudly through his scarf, in a slur of disgust. "Ya know, that's the problem with this God forsaken city. All the damn mutant freaks makin' life miserable for the rest of us."

The spider creature clung to the ceiling, hugging the shadows with its bloated form. At the first sound, he slowed his breathing, eyes narrowing to prevent any light from reflecting from them, should the new 'arrivals' bring with them a light source.

Even as Cadaver spoke, Hollow remained silent and motionless, a predator waiting for the prey to enter striking distance.

In response to Cadaver's outburst, one of the figures began to approach slowly.  He took a long drag of his cigarette, exhaling through his nose, while taking small steps towards Cadaver.

He addressed Cadaver in a slow, toneless voice.

"It's not our purpose to make anyone's life miserable, friend."

Almost simultaneously, Cadaver noticed a strange movement above him.  The shadows of the tunnel's ceiling began to take form, becoming almost solid.  They twisted themselves into a small, writhing serpent that coiled itself on the ceiling and watched Cadaver intensely.

"Friend? I ain't your friend," Cadaver responded as the dark man slowly approaches, his demeanor becoming more lucid the closer the stranger got. "You and your boss would be half way to Hell by now if I had my way."

Cadaver then motioned his fist above him, a pointed thumb singling out the swirling shadows above his head. Loaded with a heavy sardonic tone that practically demanded retaliation, he added, "Shadow puppets, huh? Wow. You sure got short-changed at the mutant bank, didn't ya?"

Hollow continued to rest silently on the ceiling, the shadows of the tunnels concealing even his massive, bulky form. At the motion and voices nearby, he tried to turn his attention to the new arrivals.

The sight of the shadows sends a sharp stab through his brain. He recalled the force which bound his limbs, rendering him impotent. His thoughts flashed back to the power of the mind-child Solomon, and how he had become nothing more than a puppet.

He would not let that happen again. He would kill himself before he became a pawn in their games. His mind was his own - the only thing that he still had some control over, even as his body was twisted and deformed, and the hunger slept within him for the moment.

His vision clouded, and he was completely lost in his own inner struggle. He had already lost so much since the change. His sanity would not tolerate losing much more.

One of the other figures moved to back up his partner as he advanced toward Cadaver.  His body tensed as he prepared himself for any sudden moves by Cadaver.

The stranger who had spoken smiled, and replied as sharply as Cadaver had.

"Indeed you correct, we are not friends. My friends have more than half a neuron, which still comes very far from what you've manifested."

He took a sharp, short smoke fom his cigarette, holding the smoke in.

"Now, are you gonna stand aside and let us go our business, or are you going to keep playing butler and show us in?"

In response to the stranger's posturing, Cadaver slowly pushed himself up from the floor of the damp tunnel. All the while, using the wall to support his back as he leaned gently into it.

Now standing, his back against the cold brick, he raiseed up his head to look clearly upon these new arrivals for the first time. The hint of pale flesh could be seen peeking from beneath the brim of his wide-brimmed hat. Straggling bits of black hair hung down, uncerimoneously framing his face. The wide scarf wrapped around his neck and mouth relaxed just a bit. The dead man's eyes filled with power as they began to glow faintly with an eerie, red aura.

"I serve no man," Cadaver replied indignantly. "Not even Death himself can claim to hold sway over the likes of me."

"But I like your style, breather, so I'm gonna do you a favor. You go on ahead." he continued with a single nods in the direction of the steel door. "Return to your boss and tell him that I'm coming. I want him to know that soon he will meet with 'Other' personally. Tell him Death is coming for him and to prepare himself. You do this for me, and I will spare you his fate."

Shadows upon shadows...hungry darkness bided its time clinging tentatively to the roof of the damp, suddenly crowded tunnel.

His thoughts cleared and he managed to focus on the conversation occuring beneath him. The air was thick with aggression and vengeance, and though he had no desire to enter into conflict so early in the evening, he also feared what would happen, should those inside learn of their presence.

But the corpse had already demonstrated his strength. He seemed to know the danger of what lay beyond the doorway. And if he allowed these other intruders to pass, Hollow would not question the decision.

And so, the spider remained in his web of damp shadows, waiting...

All three of the strangers were taken aback by Cadaver's actions.  The leader backed up a step before continuing.

"Thank you. Perhaps we will also meet in the future?..."

With a single sweeping motion, Cadaver waved his left arm in front of him to suggest safe passage for the new arrivals. But before the strangers could make their leave, he reiterated in a firm tone, "Don't forget, mister. You owe me the courtesy of following through with our little arrangement. That's the only reason you're going to walk away at all. You tell Brother Ivory that his time has come. His life for yours. That's the deal. Got it?"

The stranger nearest to Cadaver had a look of confusion on his face.  It was obvious that he didn't understand what Cadaver was talking about, and he spoke up.

"Just what's your problem with this Brother Ivory guy, and who do you think we are?"

Wary of the possibility that the stranger might be bluffing, Cadaver continued to question their motives. "Feigning ignorance now won't release you of your obligation," he replied. "We have a deal. Look, I don't care if you serve the man out of love or loyalty, or if you're just in it for money... or power... or whatever. It doesn't matter because you won't be working for him much longer, I assure you. I'll be seeing to that personally."

The third stranger, who had to this point kept back and stayed silent, suddenly responded to the exchange.

"Let it drop, Bouncer," he said warily as he walked over.  "He's not holding us back from our mission no matter who he thinks we work for.  In fact..." he turned to look over where the entrance lay, "I'd say that he'd likely be a help to us.  So what do the rest of you say?  Shall we tell him the plan?"

Confused by all this, Cadaver began to wonder what was really going on. Are these Ivory's gifted goons or not? They were the ones we were supposed to meet down here. If they're not, then who the Hell are they and why are they here? Now?

Visibly unsatisfied by the current situation unfolding before him, Cadaver decided to get to the bottom of things. "If you don't serve the 'good' Brother," he asked with a hint of scepticism still lingering in his voice, "then who? Because you're not down here by chance, that's for sure. So if you're not followers of 'Other', I'd ask you to please explain yourselves. And we don't have a whole lot of time."

All words, pictures, characters, tiles and just about everything else was created by and is copyright Stephen Rice and Electric Comics, 1996

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