A Prelude

To think whatever inhabitable space lie within the Soul Reaver may have allowed its stolen spirit to have even slight respite was a kind and hopeful thought. That hope was empty.

Within the Reaver, if that is indeed where it was, there was nothing. As much as one could describe it was an abyssal void. It was black not for lack of color but rather what felt like a coalescence of everything that was. Yet at the same time it was desolately empty. Raziel was the only consciousness to inhabit the accursed blade. Well. Yes technically he always was and will be. Some part of him was far more primal, far less tolerant of hunger. For having no corporeal form hunger seemed to be the only constant feeling he perceived.

Or perhaps it just seemed that way. Any preconceived notions of time had not applied here. Not that time had come to mean much before he gave himself up to the sword. In the Reaver he had no way to measure time when he faded in and out of conscious awareness. That was until he felt something, or someone, familiar.

Every now and again Raziel could sense the presence of passing spirits. The stronger the spirit the more he was aware. Given his nature they would quickly make themselves scarce or be devoured. This lent no solace to his bleak loneliness. This spirit, however, this person he knew.

Ariel?

Her presence grew stronger and then, most mercifully, he heard her speak.

"And who is that?" Although filled with suspicion Raziel may possibly never have been so happy to hear anything in his existence. For a moment he didn't even register her voice as real as he remained sightless. No. He had definitely heard her and somehow she had heard him. He could only feel an ongoing surprise while she spoke again.

"Not you-… I am bound if-… do recall." Her enigmatic voice took on a hostile tone with which he was unfortunately familiar. It faded in at out as she seemed to be addressing someone else. The inflection in that last fragment was a level of malice undoubtedly reserved for Kain. As the vampire Kain was the one wielding the Soul Reaver, this was not surprising. Ariel was still bound at the Pillars? That was surprising. The last he had encountered her she gave up existing to purify the Wraith Reaver. To purify him.

A moment later (a moment perhaps) Raziel flared to action like a fire stoked to life. His surprise increased exponentially as all of his energy seemed to catch on something like claws on a wire and then- It gave. Raziel hadn't remained aware immediately afterwards undoubtedly having exhausted all the energy he didn't even know was there.

After that point Ariel began speaking to him with regularity. At first she was incredibly wary, apparently remembering him from a previous less than charming encounter. Did that mean she could see him? He hadn't really the awareness for a lot of critical thinking in the void. He was only aware he was grateful beyond measure to have someone to talk to. More-so as her hostility subsided. She would keep any questions short as was his limited ability to answer them, she kept him abreast of Kain's doings, and, most appreciated, she spoke to him as if he were a person.