Hannah wrote: My eyes eased open, even in the dimness of the room I could plainly see Khavik standing over me. He’d removed his shirt revealing a gridwork of scars on the right size of his well muscled chest. He was tracing his left hand lightly up and down my arm . . . well it wasn’t really his hand I guess. It looked like he had taken it off some sun-bleached corpse and grafted it on at the wrist. The fingers were tipped with claws made form lustrous gold. From a chain about his neck dangled what could have been a monkey’s paw, or perhaps a child’s hand, mummified with age.

How very odd this seems to me. First I must ask if the scarring on his chest was on his right side from your perspective, Hannah, or his actual right side?

The grafted hand makes me wonder as well.

Beings that I have considered vampires that I have dealt with in the past would have regenerated the hand. Further I wonder if the chest scarring is from before or after he was turned.

I had come to suspect that it was really the nightmare that Miss Darken had plunged a stake into. I am given pause to reconsider the stories I have heard about Chinese immortals who remove their vital organs and store them elsewhere.

Is Khavik really even a vampire? Or have we all been decieved?

I would recommend that should someone else ever get another shot at this fiend, they go for decapitation.

Incineration is ideal but not always an option in combat. It's usually the post combat activity.

Although, if he is found with organs missing, I'm not certain how traditional means of destruction might fare.

I wouldn't advise relying on sunlight, either.

Khavik is indeed a kyuuketsuki, but one in uncommon favor with his master.

Cybermancer, you believe he may have hidden his animating force seperate from his body? That would be troubleing indeed.

A kyuuketsuki retains some of the original person, if that person practiced the dark arts of necromancy, I see no reason the resulting kyuuketsuki would not do the same.

Necromancy is not a strong point of mine, the things I normally hunt are too proud of their own strength to rely on the dead for aid, perhaps someone more knowledgeable on the subject could speak better on it.

Mr. Li, before I accept your claim as verified, could you please explain your certaintity? And what you mean by uncommon favor?

I would also like to state that it's not that I believe that Khavik is performing this rare form of necromancy. I only mention it as a possibility to be aware of.

I'm afraid that necromancy is not a specialty of mine, either.

Lets just say that for my temerity in challenging the thing at KonThaak's house, I became more intimately aware of who and what Khavik is than I ever wanted to be.

His creator, his master, lies somewhere beyond the veil - though I know not where. That the creator would send so powerfull a part of it's own spirit to aid in Khavik's schemes shows that his master holds him in high favor, wouldn't you agree?

Mr. Holister, do you really question my honor in that fashion?

That you of all people would doubt my word cuts almost as deeply as a misparried blade, Sheriff Holister.

We shall talk more of many things when I arive, Mr. Holister.

So I wasn’t going to beat Khavik with what I had, that was obvious. I needed help and I needed it fast. Once again, I turned inwards, but this time I didn’t stop there, soon I was standing in the depths of a great forest on a hot summer’s afternoon.

“Robin, I need your help.”

I jumped at the voice behind me.

Fair lass to help you I would gladly agree
First you must consent to marry me.

“We don’t have time for this Robin. I am going to die in the next ten seconds if you don’t get rid of this vampire for me. If I’m dead there’s no way I could agree.”

Time in the Forest of Greenwood does not pass
We can stay here until I have the answer, lass

“Look, the Oak King said that if my grandfather has no more female children before he dies, you get me by default. So all you have to do is keep me alive and you get me anyway.”

The Oak Kings wisdom shall be our guide,
Agreed or not, one day you will be my bride.

We were wasting too much time. “If you want me to live long enough to get to the altar, follow me.” I pulled myself back to my body.

He was right, no time had passed at all, Khavik was exactly where I had last seen him – the only change was that now there was a ten-foot tall goat legged man with deer antlers standing between Khavik and me.

They stood there, facing each other across the room. Both ready to move, neither moving first. All was silent except my pulse in my ears.

Khavik broke the silence first, he looked to me and bowed deeply. “Congratulations on your forthcoming marriage, ” then he bowed to Robin. “I shall bring my gift shortly. I think you shall find it . . . satisfactory to your wants. ” With that he exploded into a cloud of bats, filled the room and scattered.

Robin turned to me, bowed and vanished, leaving behind a satisfied smirk that faded just a moment later.

I just sunk to the floor and tried to figure out what just happened.

It would seem that Hannah was manipulated.

It would be interesting to find a way to turn the tables on this situation. That may require some thought, however.

I have no definite thoughts as yet, Hannah.

Imagination and will power on your part may well be key, however. Especially as it is likely that all of them need you more than you need them.

They are creatures of perception. The more they are percieved, the more real they are. The less they are percieved, the less real they are. That is why they crave the worship and adoration of mortals. When such is scarce, they will seek out the richest and most creative minds to sustain them.

You ever see the movie Labyrinth?

Sarah beat the Goblin King but still found a way to maintain the kingdom.

Still, this will require more thought and I am distracted with other matters at the moment.

What you need to do, is digitize Mr. Goodfellow like in TRON. Then he'll be too busy riding around on a cool bike to care about marriage.

Hannah wrote:There was a bit of an incident when their pimp got there and thought I was the new girl and insisted on trying the merchandise first. He changed his mind when I took his knife and his gun away and let him know that if he ever bothered me or the girls again I'd cut his balls off and whore him out to guys who like post-op trannies.

I hate pimps. He wouldn't have gotten off so lucky if it had been me. Street level filth thinking they're gansters.

Perhaps master is the wrong word, but it is the closest I could come. The thing in chicago was a part of the source from which Khavik springs., the darkness that taints his blood.

I don't realy understand the relationship, but without their source, all those of that line will returned to the wheel of life.

Ms. Solstice, I never said such a thing would be easy. I am not even certain that such a thing would be within the capabailities of even the O-Kami. I merely know that it is so.

I can remember no stories or tales of any of the great heroes having had fought such a thing as touched my mind. This tells me that either they did not try, or that if they did, none returned to tell the tale of their fall.