Traveling through the spirit world was a feeling that few mortals would ever get a chance to do, to be able to do so would require you to either be dead..or be a necroscope of amazing power. The spirit world for the most part accepted Jory's powerful connection to the spirit world and were quite amazed that a human with the breath of life still in him could not only communicate with them but visit them in their realm and call upon their power to assist him whenever he wished. Jory had to use this method of traveling to take himself to New York City where a powerful vampire hunter is said to reside..he needs her abilities to fight against Durius and his demonic forces and cant take any chances..even in the spirit world though Durius has allies.

Because he is still alive and the spirits who work for Durius have the ability to manipulate the fluxation of power within the other realm, Jory's powers were being drained sufficiantly..it takes a lot of power for a mortal to cross sides and that alone Jory knew would be troublesome but now he has Durius allies forcing Jory to use more power so he can navigate his way to NYC. Thankfully allies of Jory in the spirit realm are using their power to counter the fluxation..but they can only do so much...this was a trial Jory would be lucky to survive.

To be in the spirit realm for too long would be certain death, not only becaue there is no food or water but also because the spirit world is a world of death...it cannot support life, that is why it takes so much power to just be in the spirit world let alone travel in it..to not have your power would mean the end of your life. Luckily, Jory's necroscope powers are directly connected to the spirit realm and with his power being so amplified..allows him to sustain his life for a prolonged ammount of time in the world of the dead, but they will only last so long before the life is slowly sucked out of him..this is why he has to make quick time..to diddly daddle too long will cost him and the hope of so many others to die.

This was what Durius is trying to accomplish at the moment, he hopes to stall Jory long enough so that he is forced to use too much of his power..allowing the spirit realm to suck the life out of his lungs, Jory couldn't afford this and used power he could to navigate his way towards NYC..but it was becoming more & more difficult to do so.

Traveling in the spirit realm is much like if you were able to hit the speed of light on Earth..it went by in a blurr and it seemed there was nothing around you but a huge white light, every now and then he would see the evil presence of Durius's followers trying to direct him to a different location but he would easily slice them down with his sword or allow his allies to envelope them and make them wish they were alive once more.

Jory felt himself begin to slow a little..his power was fading at a break neck speed with the traveling and defending of enemy power..he had to cut his travels short and return to the world of life where he could get some rest and charge his "battery" so to speak. He decided to stop in Chicago as it was the closest to a big city he could get to and knew that a battle there wouldn't not be as big as some of the fights happening back in Spokane..the less fighting the better.

He directed his link to Chi-town and made a beeline for it..but just before he could open the portal from the spirit realm to the mortal plane he felt the presence of an enemy shoot towards him. He turned with his sword already unsheathed and ready to go but was caught off gaurd by the speed of the spirit and was blasted from his link to Chicago..once again hes been moved off target. The blast from the enemy sent Jory spiraling out of control, his power had no way of regaining that link to Chicago..he was forced to open a portal infront of him..it was the best his power could offer him at the time..it was waining and had no way of establishing a link or giving him an idea of where he was going..with all that he had he threw open the portal and flew through it..his last image of the spirit realm being that of the phantom..his grandmother, sneering at him..proud of what she has just done. ***The worst of places***

It wasn't the bitter cold or the sound of crickets in the distance chirping their love songs, but the overpowering feeling of death that brought him out of his unconcious slumber. At first look all he could see was the blanket of darkness all around him, but once his eyes adjusted he started noticing things..such as the moon peeking through the canopy tops of trees...many many trees. He felt the ground around him and found his fingers digging thru dirty and pine needles..obviously he was in a wooded area of some kind.

His trip through the spirit realm seemed like a distant memory as he tried to find his footing, it was a struggle though..he was still very weak from his travels and had no idea how long he has been out or even how long hes been in this strange place..but he was alive and thats all that mattered at the moment.

After taking a few deep breaths he mustered the strength to get to his feet and dust off his dirty clothes..he hated being dirty, especially when he knew he wasn't going to be showering anytime soon. While dusting himself off and taking a look around his hand stopped on his right side..his shirt had a gaping hole in it. He touched the skin inside and for the first time he felt pain in that area..that wasn't what scared him thought..it was the thick hot fluid slowly coming out of the wound that did. The shot he took in the spirit realm from the phantom was powerful enough to not only knock him off course..but to do physical damage as well, how damaging it was he didn't know but he had to find out fast.

With his power still resting within he was unable to use his ability of seeing in the dark, so he had to allow his eyes to adjust and have his hands move freely about so they could feel their way around..other then that he had only the small glimpses of moon to guide him. In the distance he heard various noises from the animals that inhabited the woods, some noises sounded as if they didn't come from animals..and his power was trying to tell him so but he was so weak and in pain that he didn't pay it any heed, he just wanted out.

The walk seemed to go on forever but that was only because he was limping on his right side, plus it didn't help he was practically blind out here..but he had hope he would make it out of here..with the exception of one lingering question..his destination was Chicago..how was he in such a wooded area if he was so close to the portal to Chicago? The answer almost smacked him in the face as he tripped over an unsuspecting gravel road and right into a rusted white fence that held a sign attached to it. He picked himself up using the door of the fence and shook his head...how did he not see this? Was he that blind? No..his eyes had adjusted enough to be able to see this coming up..the trees are more spaced off in this area..why didn't he notice? With many questions eating at his mind he bent over to read the sign attached to gate. When the words made their rounds in his mind he gasped in shock and horror to find where he was...this was a place he could not afford to be at in his condition..this was a place no one in their right mind should ever visit at this time of night...the name alone grasped him in a fear he hasn't felt in a long time...

"Dear spirits...its Bachelor's Grove Cemetary..."

With the fading of his frightened voice in the wind he was shaken from his dark thoughts by the howl of an unnatural sounding creature in the surrounding woods...this wasn't his night.

***The history of Bachelor's Grove Cemetary***

Bachelor's Grove, a cemetary that is said to be named after all the single men buried there, is located in a small suburb of Chicago and is infamous for its paranormal activity. First opened as a cemetary in 1864 but known to be used as one as early as the 1830's, this place is thought to be one of if not the most haunted and down right demented places in America. Tales of voodoo and human sacrifices have eminated from here, as well as the discovery that Chicago land mobsters used it as a dumping ground for dead bodies in the 1920's. Witnesses to the ghostly phenomina have said to have seen the ghost of a two headed man and that of a farmer who drowned in a nearby pond. Also seen is a woman known as Mrs. Rogers and another lesser seen woman who acually lures young men to their death it is said. The ghostly energy here is so strong that even phantom houses & cars are seen here..with the cars almost always narrowly missing real cars as they venture into the cemetary. Why so much paranormal energy comes from this place is a mystery, but it is known world wide by many paranormal investigators and psychics that in most cases..especially at night, it is definately a place well worth avoiding if you do not wish to be spooked out of your underwear..and now DM finds himself here..alone, at night, weakened and wounded...a new adventure begins. ***Checking up on Zedd***

Its been less then a day since Jory has left the mountain and every single moment hes been gone everyone has been none stop training. Zedd has had his hands full with the witch group he was assigned to. They were mortals with amazing talent but still needed work on honing their abilities to connect with their "Mother Earth"..Zedd needn't bother with those kind of boundries..he was a wizard turned demon that controled more power then any of these women could fathom..but soon enough they will become a force so powerful even Durius will find himself being very frustrated..but Zedd wanted to do more then that to Durius, he wanted to end that little bastard's existance on this plain for good.

With night upon them Kerri was able to take the vampires out and work with them while others groups continued training, took up look out spots for the night, or simply took a break, Zedd's group was a group on break and he took the opprotunity of down time to try & search the spirit world for Jory. Zedd has had a strong link to Jory's soul ever since he first possessed him those many years ago..his link has been so strong that Zedd's mortal appearance has even begun to appear much like that of Jory's with the exception of a few small details. This connection to Jory's soul allowed Zedd to know wher Jory was at all times and let him in on the emotions his young pupil is going through..lately the necroscope's emotions have been riding a rollarcoaster of rage and depression with the death of his former love and betrayal of his grandmother, but Jory has been keeping a levelhead through it all and has done well to keep him and his army on the right path.

Zedd could tell that Jory made it to the spirit world and has traveling through it..but something was amiss, several times Zedd detected the evil taint of Durius on Jory's path towards NYC and could almsot invision the battles that happened there. It was dangerous for this to happen as using too much of his power would force Jory to be stranded in the spirit realm and thus killing him instantly..the world of the dead could not sustain life.

He felt like ice was consuming his insides as fear & panic slowly started to grasp him..where was Jory? The trail he was supposed to take to NYC has no essence of his soul..wait a second..he has taken a detour..seems the spirits forced him off his path. Following the essence of Jory's soul Zedd discovers that Jory was heading towards Chicago, maybe to rest himself up after having to use so much of his power. Zedd heaved a big sigh as he felt better knowing that Jory at least made it out of the...wait a second..the essence of his soul once again has drifted to a different direction, before he could follow it a voice from the realm of the living snapped him back to reality, it was Colleen who was standing in his door way looking concerned at him.

At one time Colleen and him would have been at eachother's throats trying to kill eachother, but now they found themselves fighting on the same side and he felt great knowing he had at least one person who understood him if only a little.

Colleen herself is also a demon, though of lesser stance then himself or Durius, she still has amazing abilities that puts most to shame and was very valuable to their cause. Standing at about 5'8" with a nice muscular build for a woman, she had red hair that came down to about the middle of her back and she wore a tight green shirt that showed much of her figure off..as did her tight blue jean pants that had a black belt with a huge silver buckle in the middle resting comfortably on her tummy. Zedd himself couldn't help but take a few deep breaths in her presence..because of his longer than usual stay in the mortal realm not only had he taken on human apperances..but was beginning to feel human emotions as well..like he did so long ago, lust was one that started coming more quickly to him.

Zedd knew of the attraction Colleen felt for Jory, he could see it in her eyes whenever she gazed upon him and even sometimes when she gazed upon Zedd..afterall the demon did have much of Jory's physical characteristics. Zedd once overhead Colleen admit to Kerri that even when she was under Hell's control she felt a weird attraction to him..and now that she is free of that and workign with Jory it has only grown..grown into something much more.

Zedd gave her a warm smile and welcomed her into his room. She still had a look of concern on her face as she took a seat on a chair situated between Zedd's bed & his doorway. She looked at him with bright green eyes that told him a number of things..how much she missed Jory, how concerned she was over this war..and just about every other emotion that could be going through her. Zedd slowly sat himself across from her in a chair that sat next to his window and laid his hands upon the arm rests..sitting in his chair as if he was a King awaiting to hear what his subject has to say.

"Colleen, so glad to see you..what seems to be troubling you?"

She hesitated at first, maybe feeling that she shouldn't have come to him just yet..but she was here now and should just get it over with.

"I'm just a little worried...everyone seems to go to you if they need some counciling or comforting so I figured I'd come see you."

"When your old as I am dear one that seems to be one of your only purposes."

"I'm sorry Zedd, would you like me to leave?"

"No no, I am always here if you need an ear or a shoulder to cry on dear one."

"Thank you Zedd, I appreciate it."

"So, what are you worried about?"

"The odds are really stacked against us Zedd, with the exception of a few of us none of these people have experienced real combat and will still need a lot of attention, this is a set back we cant afford."

"Yes, I agree but we have no other choice."

"I'm just frustrated that Durius may see this and take advantage, it doesn't help that we dont have our leader here either."

"In his absence we have a just as dependable necroscope to pick up that slack, we will be fine until his return."

"None of us doubt Kerri's abilities Zedd, but I feel Jory just seems to have a way of making this easier to deal with around here."

Zedd chuckled to himself..he felt the exact same way. Jory was always under a lot of stress & pressure yet seemed to keep a cool head for most of it, he made it seem that this battle with Durius was just a nice little television show drama playing out on primetime television.

"How are the wolves doing?"

"They seem to be eating up their training...no pun intended. They want to work hard for Jory and revenge their humiliation."

A couple of days back Colleen, Craig, and Scotty had gone to the local werewolf hangout spot where the Wolf King, Colin, was awaiting their arrival so they could lay out the groundwork of an alliance between Jory & the wolves. When they arrived they found that Durius had beat Jory to the punch and took over the pack and placed a new Wolf King in Colin's place..a much more ruthless wolf. It was a battle those three will never forget, but they rescued the wolves from Durius's grasp and saved Colin from a death that would be most painful. In appreciation for their help Colin volunteered the wolves to Jory's cause..the wolves had no objections.

"Those wolves will prove most valuable with that extra motivation in them."

"Oh dont worry, they are quite motivated."

Silence fell upon the room once more, probably because of them weighing more matters at hand..but Zedd could feel that there was more to it, they were both worried about Jory.

"What were you doing before you invited me in?"

"I was following Jory's essence of soul in the spirit realm to see if he was making good time or even in NYC by now."

Colleen chewed on her lip for a bit, afraid to ask the question that was most obvious.

"Has he made it?"

Zedd sighed heavily after she asked, afraid of telling her the situation Jory found himself in.

"I'd say yes but according to what I've found..Durius's allies in the spirit realm made a go for him."

Zedd had never seen her move so fast as she had getting off that chair and shooting across the room towards him.

"WHAT!? Is he ok??"

"I can't say for sure dear one, it would appear that Durius's allies forced him to use too much of his power to avoid them and it made him take a detour towards the Chicago portal where he could rest...but his essence does not go into Chicago..it has taken a different trail that I've yet to be able to track down."

The look of worry in Colleen's eyes would have broken his heart had his heart not felt broken already at this dilemma.

"Is there anything we can do Zedd? Surely we can track him down somehow!"

"I'm working the best I can Colleen, but it is difficult to follow the essence of a soul that has taken a path that is not apart of the central travel system in the spirit realm..it also does not help that Durius's allies are trying to throw my magic off with various little tricks of their own."

Colleen seemed to go deep into thought searching for a solution, she knew the travel system as well as he and was considering options in assisting him.

"You say he took a path that is not apart of the travel system?"

"Correct."

"And obviously he has not taken one of the smaller hidden paths as you too would be able to sence that..perhaps he himself used his power to open a portal of his own."

Zedd considered her words briefly, for someone to open a portal of their own doing in the spirit realm meant that either none of the trails took them to where they wanted to go...or theyw ere in a grave situation and needed a quick way out.

"Do you think Jory would be in such a need to do so?"

"I hope not, the trouble it would cause for him to do that is something we dont need."

"Yes, the power needed to follow his essence if he did that is of great magnitude. I could do it myself but it would take a lot of time with the added interferance of Durius's allies."

"Then I will assist you, I'll also bring Kerri in here for it..her power & link to Jory would be critical."

"Yes yes, bring her..we will need all the power we can get."

Colleen nodded her approval and was off to her task, allowing Zedd to gather himself once more and prepare for a very long night.

***So far so good***

As he sat in the deserted backyard of the Lara House looking up at the clear black night, he was thankful that the cover of darkness would make it remarkably difficult for any of his enemy to sneak attack them. Though that was nice to have, Durius seemed to just enjoy kicking back and listening to the silence of the night in Colbert..it was as if the world didn't exist here at night. It allowed him to go over things in his head he normally got a chance to do when he was around his men or in the battlefield.

One reason he sat out here tonight though is he was awaiting word of what happened to the necroscope. He sent the phantom, Jory's grandmother, into the spirit world after he was given word that Jory was traveling in it. Why Jory was traveling through it was a mystery, but he knew he had to take advantage of Jory being alone and his vunerability in the spirit realm. If the plan went well then Jory's rotting corpse would be floating in the world of the dead while his soul would be in forever torment...oh how he would love to hear his screams.

Another issue he was pondering was the issue of an evil entity residing in the basement of the Lara House. Oddly, he was unable to detect its presence at first..it was of all beings the vampires who first discovered it while sleeping in the basement. They would report that they no longer felt comfort resting down there due to an evil feeling that made them feel even worse then being around Durius. Then the lycanthropes started speaking up..claiming they couldn't even stand by the basement door without getting creepy vibes and they resorted into tricking the human slaves to doing whatever needed to be done down in the basement..this took him off gaurd.

It wasn't until recently that Durius began to feel its presence...and he suddenly he couldn't blame his soldiers for their feelings of fear..even he couldn't help but get goosebumps at the amazing violence and rage this presence held. For some reason it was holding back..not revealing its true self and it frustrated him..he wanted answers.

Would this be an ally? How powerful was it? What form would it resume if it were to materialize? And did the necroscope & his friends ever detect the same presence? Surely Jory must have..not only is his gift directly connected to the world of the dead..but hes been coming & going from this house since he was a young child...he must have felt something here at one point or another.

Before he could ponder more on the situation Durius was interupted by the enterance of one of generals. General Renholder was of the same demon race as Durius and was working his way up in the ranks of Hell. Though not as powerful, or of the same build, as Durius..he was still a very awesome & powerful creature capable of doing much damage. He looked like Death itself standing before him in black battle armor made by the finest blacksmiths in Hell. The skulls of two lesser demons sat upon his shoulders and were made apart of the armor as per special request by the demon..he wanted it to be known he was a superior and not a lesser.

The sword that rested at his hip was a sword of legend among General Renholder's men. It has been known to slice through the toughest of metal, the most brutal of demonhide, and the cruelist of Hellstone and not even receive a scratch..a blow from this sword was almost certain death.

General Renholder saluted Durius by placing his right hand over the middle of his chest and slightly bowing to Durius. Durius acknowledged him with a nod of the head and waved him over.

"What is it general?"

"Sir, the phantom has returned from the spirit realm."

"Has she now? Have her come here then."

"Yes sir."

The general gave a whistle to his men and they escorted in the ghostly nightmare that gave Jory nightmares for months. She didn't retain much of her mortal features due to Durius's magic twisting the hate in her, and it left her in a state that made her look like a rotting old witch that hovered in the air covered in black flowing ripped up robes. The phantom slowly bowed before Durius then returned her gaze to his eyes...her eyes always seemed to be filled with two things..emptyness and hatred.

"Report phantom, how did the attack go?"

"Well, I can safely report that Jory did not make it to his destination."

Something was wrong with that answer, she had stated that indeed Jory did not make it to his destination..but did not specify if Jory was acually dead or not.

"Glad to hear that, but is he still alive?"

"Well...."

She faltered..that was all the clue he needed. In a flash he was out oif his seat and threw out a burst of energy thats ent the frail old ghost flying into one of Renholder's men.

"I SAID I WANTED HIM DEAD!! WHAT HAPPENED!"

She shook her head before slowly raising once again, but this time she kept her eyes away from him.

"We did as you wanted, we kept him off course so it forced him to use more of his power. He decided to take a detour to the Chicago portal and just before he could make it I got to him and sent at him a powerful blast of energy that should have done the trick...but something happened."

Durius's anger at this point was hard to control. General Renholder took a few steps back just incase Durius decided to do more then just send out blasts of energy.

"And what exactly happened?"

"A portal opened up..not one of the travel system, I believe Jory somehow used his power to open a portal for himself and he flew through it before I could finish him."

"WHAT!?!?!?!?!"

Lightning suddenly streaked across the sky as Durius sent a wave of hellish pain at the phantom that brought her to her knees. Her screams of down right agony filled the night air with its song..Renholder had a hint of a smile on his face.

"DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD IT IS TO TRACK ONE WHO OPENED A PORTAL OF THEIR OWN!?"

She could only barely nod at his question..the pain overcoming her ability to talk. Durius looked over at his trusted general who watched the phantom going through her tramatic episode and spoke his name.

"Get my most powerful witches & warlocks and have them meet me here immediately."

"As you wish my Lord."

Durius turned his attention back to his slave and smiled down at her..suddenly enjoying the pain he saw fill her eyes.

"Tonight my dear, is going to be a very long night for the both of us..."

Durius turned to sit back in his chair..an ear shattering scream escaping into the night greets him as he closes his eyes and readies himself for a task that will be most troublesome..he was going to attempt tracking Jory's soul through his own portal..he had to know if Jory was alive or not...the whole war mattered on this. Tonight would be a very long night indeed.